Maddie and the Norseman-99c at Payloadz
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“I was totally caught up in this story. Time
travel is such an unbelievable concept and I often have trouble following it in
a story. I thought Tricia McGill wove a colorful tapestry of time travel. One
that makes the reader believe it is possible. The characters are so realistic
and have such depth to their character. I was drawn to them and wanted to find
out if Maddie could ever find Amber and what she would choose to do about Erik.
Robyn –Once Upon A Romance
Madeline (Maddie to her friends),
an Australian history teacher, travels to York, England, to visit her friend
Amber who is working there with a team of archaeologists unearthing Viking
relics. They share a passion for the Viking Age, and both studied the Old Norse
language.
About
to take part in a re-enactment at the Viking village and wearing typical
clothes worn by a Viking woman, they are swept back in time to the town of
Jorvik, a thriving
trading town, as York was in the year 879 AD. Maddie meets Norse trader Erik
and is stunned by his uncanny resemblance to the Viking she has been dreaming
of.
And here's this week's snippet:
Two knorrs, easily recognised as the wider deeper vessels used by
traders and merchants, sat tied up with various ships, alongside a dock made of
slatted timbers. The knorrs differed in size and shape from the longboats. The longboats
were built for speed and dexterity, whereas the knorrs had an open space where
the traders packed their assorted goods. A graceful longboat swayed on its
tethers further along the dock. The three smaller boats obviously belonged to
fishermen.
“My ship.”
Erik’s announcement startled Maddie, for she and Amber were staring in
unbridled disbelief at the sight before them. Of course one of the vessels
belonged to him; they’d already established him as a trader. Maddie followed
the direction of his pointed finger and once again a sense of disappointment
hit her. Apparently the nearest knorr was his vessel—not the longboat, as she’d
thought, and hoped.
“It’s beautiful,” Amber said. Many a time they’d argued the merits of a
knorr. Amber always favoured the wider, slower ship, arguing that it served its
purpose well.
“Not as beautiful as that one.” Maddie pointed along the dock to where
about twenty men worked industriously loading the longboat.
Amber nudged her arm. “Oh, Maddie, you always were a sucker for the
longships. Isn’t this exciting?” At last her nerves had dissipated, replaced by
an almost childlike awe.
“I’ll say. I wonder where that’s heading.” Maddie turned to Erik. He
looked annoyed again—Maddie guessed because he couldn’t understand them. It was
difficult trying to speak his language all the time. “Where are you going
next?” she asked.
“I return to Rouen.” He shrugged. “The marketplace there has many
treasures.”
“Such as the precious stones you brought to Ivar?” Erik nodded. “And
where do you think the longship will be going?”
He scowled in the direction of the longboat. The busy crew shouted and
hustled each other as they worked. “That I do not know. Sigurd lets few men
know his intentions.”
“Is he a raider?” she asked. No sooner had the question left her mouth
than a very large man, conspicuous by his unruly red hair, strode onto the
dock. Erik’s lip curled as he eyed the man, and the crew of the longboat
instantly ceased their ribald chatter and knuckled down to their work.
Erik didn’t answer her question. The big red-haired man stood motionless
for a moment, then headed their way. When he got to within a few paces Maddie
saw that someone had almost cut his face in half. An ugly scar ran from below
his left eye, finishing just below his chin. Usually such a hideous wound would
draw her sympathy, but instinctively she knew this man would never incite such
a sensitive reaction from anyone.
Evil sparked from his eyes as
he glowered at Erik and jerked his head. Erik made no move whatsoever. There
was little doubt about their enmity. For long moments they glared at each
other.
“If looks could kill,” Maddie muttered. Amber tucked herself behind
Maddie when the big man seemed to suddenly notice them. His eyes skimmed over
them both, then came back to rest on Amber. Her black hair flew about her face
and, as if awe-struck, he stared. Often Maddie saw men smitten by her friend’s
exotic looks and hair, so wasn’t surprised. What always surprised her was how
Amber never realized just how attractive she was.
Please take a moment to hop on over to these blogs for more snippets:
http://mizging.blogspot.com (Ginger
Simpson)
http://authorjamiehill.blogspot.com/ (Jamie
Hill)
http://romancingscifi.blogspot.com/ (Vijaya
Schartz)
http://connievines.blogspot.com.au/ Connie
Vines
http://yesterrdayrevisitedhere.blogspot.com/ Juliet Waldron
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