The Feast of the Wolf


Book Description

' A] tale of psychic terror . . . arresting . . . a poetical exploration of dark mind-scapes.' - Times Literary Supplement ' A] very well done novel. . . . Very highly recommended.' - The Ladder 'A delightful surprise for fans of the macabre. Simon Armstrong descends into a world of vampirism, lycanthropy, and more . . . Or, is it a more prosaic though no less terrifying descent into madness?' - John Pelan, editor of The Century's Best Horror Fiction Simon and Laura Armstrong's marriage is on the rocks. His drinking and abuse of prescription drugs are getting worse and blackouts and violence are occurring with greater frequency. Laura believes things are going to get better: Simon has just been appointed to an important post in the university's English department, the couple are adopting a daughter, and Simon has almost finished work on an important new book, The Cult of the Vampire. Knowing of Simon's vampire fixation, his friend Dr Charles Abbott introduces him to a patient of his, a beautiful and bewitching young woman named Stella Johnson, who is convinced she has been bitten by a vampire and can no longer see her reflection in a mirror. But Abbott cannot foresee the ultimate consequences of bringing Simon and Stella together, or the violence and tragedy that will ensue. . . . The only novel by noted poet Thomas Blackburn (1916-1977), The Feast of the Wolf (1971) is a strange and unique take on the vampire myth. This edition, the first since the book's original publication, includes a new foreword by the author's daughter, Julia Blackburn, herself an acclaimed writer, who explains how the novel reflects in part her father's own struggles with mental illness and substance abuse.




The Wolf's Feast


Book Description

Silence... The skald pauses her tale. Time passes in heartbeats. Every sound echoes, continues a fragment of the story. The crash of distant waves invokes the whale-road, long ships traveling its path, their sides covered with brightly painted shields. The creak of ropes reminds you of Jormungandr, the Midgard Serpent, the world wrapped in its scaly embrace. Faraway wolves howl and call, echoing along the path to Niflheim, Hel's realm of the dead. You listen... The skald gives you a knowing glance, then takes a drink of her mead before continuing. And then, her voice: low and sonorous, musical and rhythmic, begins once again to weave the tapestry, telling tales of heroism and horror, glory and loss. She sings of heroes and everyday folk, tricksters and tale-tellers, standing tall and facing gods and monsters. Vikings! For more than a decade, author Christine Morgan's Viking stories have delighted readers and critics, standing apart from the anthologies they appeared in. Now, Word Horde brings you The Wolf's Feast, a new collection of Christine Morgan's Vikings, from "The Viking in Yellow" to "Odin's Eagle" and beyond. These tales of adventure, fantasy, and horror will be sure to rouse your inner Viking.




The More Extravagant Feast


Book Description

* One of the Boston Globe's Best Books of 2020 * Winner of the Walt Whitman Award of the Academy of American Poets, selected by Li-Young Lee The More Extravagant Feast focuses on the trophic exchanges of a human body with the world via pregnancy, motherhood, and interconnection—the acts of making and sustaining other bodies from one’s own, and one’s own from the larger world. Leah Naomi Green writes from attentiveness to the vast availability and capacity of the weedy, fecund earth and from her own human place within more-than-human life, death, and birth. Lyrically and spiritually rich, striving toward honesty and understanding, The More Extravagant Feast is an extraordinary book of awareness of our dependency on ecological systems—seen and unseen.




For the Wolf


Book Description

AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! The first daughter is for the Throne. The second daughter is for the Wolf. An instant NYT bestseller and word-of-mouth sensation, this dark, romantic debut fantasy weaves the unforgettable tale of a young woman who must be sacrificed to the legendary Wolf of the Wood to save her kingdom. But not all legends are true, and the Wolf isn't the only danger lurking in the Wilderwood. As the only Second Daughter born in centuries, Red has one purpose—to be sacrificed to the Wolf in the Wood in the hope he'll return the world's captured gods. Red is almost relieved to go. Plagued by a dangerous power she can't control, at least she knows that in the Wilderwood, she can't hurt those she loves. Again. But the legends lie. The Wolf is a man, not a monster. Her magic is a calling, not a curse. And if she doesn't learn how to use it, the monsters the gods have become will swallow the Wilderwood—and her world—whole. "If you ever wished Beauty and the Beast had more eldritch forest monsters and political machinations, this is the romance for you."―Alix E. Harrow, author of The Ten Thousand Doors of January "A brilliant dark fantasy debut!" —Jodi Picoult, NYT bestselling author




Kingdom of the Wicked


Book Description

A James Patterson Presents Novel From the #1 New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Stalking Jack the Ripper series comes a new blockbuster series... Two sisters.One brutal murder. A quest for vengeance that will unleash Hell itself... And an intoxicating romance. Emilia and her twin sister Vittoria are streghe -- witches who live secretly among humans, avoiding notice and persecution. One night, Vittoria misses dinner service at the family's renowned Sicilian restaurant. Emilia soon finds the body of her beloved twin...desecrated beyond belief. Devastated, Emilia sets out to find her sister's killer and to seek vengeance at any cost-even if it means using dark magic that's been long forbidden. Then Emilia meets Wrath, one of the Wicked-princes of Hell she has been warned against in tales since she was a child. Wrath claims to be on Emilia's side, tasked by his master with solving the series of women's murders on the island. But when it comes to the Wicked, nothing is as it seems...




The Cuisine of Sacrifice Among the Greeks


Book Description

For the Greeks, the sharing of cooked meats was the fundamental communal act, so that to become vegetarian was a way of refusing society. It follows that the roasting or cooking of meat was a political act, as the division of portions asserted a social order. And the only proper manner of preparing meat for consumption, according to the Greeks, was blood sacrifice. The fundamental myth is that of Prometheus, who introduced sacrifice and, in the process, both joined us to and separated us from the gods—and ambiguous relation that recurs in marriage and in the growing of grain. Thus we can understand why the ascetic man refuses both women and meat, and why Greek women celebrated the festival of grain-giving Demeter with instruments of butchery. The ambiguity coded in the consumption of meat generated a mythology of the "other"—werewolves, Scythians, Ethiopians, and other "monsters." The study of the sacrificial consumption of meat thus leads into exotic territory and to unexpected findings. In The Cuisine of Sacrifice, the contributors—all scholars affiliated with the Center for Comparative Studies of Ancient Societies in Paris—apply methods from structural anthropology, comparative religion, and philology to a diversity of topics: the relation of political power to sacrificial practice; the Promethean myth as the foundation story of sacrificial practice; representations of sacrifice found on Greek vases; the technique and anatomy of sacrifice; the interaction of image, language, and ritual; the position of women in sacrificial custom and the female ritual of the Thesmophoria; the mythical status of wolves in Greece and their relation to the sacrifice of domesticated animals; the role and significance of food-related ritual in Homer and Hesiod; ancient Greek perceptions of Scythian sacrificial rites; and remnants of sacrificial ritual in modern Greek practices.




Whispers of the Wolf


Book Description

Over 500 years ago in the desert Southwest, a Pueblo Indian boy and his rescued wolf pup become inseparable companions.




The Wolves of Midwinter


Book Description

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • The tale of The Wolf Gift continues ... It is winter at Nideck Point and for Reuben Golding, now infused with the Wolf Gift, this promises to be a season like no other. Oak fires burn in the stately flickering hearths, and the community organizes its annual celebration of music and pageantry. Reuben is preparing to honor an ancient Midwinter festival with his fellow Morphenkinder—a secret gathering that takes place deep within the verdant recesses of the surrounding forests. However, Reuben is soon distracted by a ghost. Tormented, imploring, and unable to speak, it haunts the halls of the great mansion, drawing him toward a strange netherworld of new spirits, or “ageless ones.” And as the swirl of Nideck’s preparations reaches a fever pitch, they reveal their own dark magical powers.




The Saxon Wolf


Book Description

'Compelling, disturbing, entertaining, this is a bloody riot from start to finish. In every good sense' Theodore Brun, author of A Burning Sea Conflict flares once more in Saxony... March, AD 773. Bjarki Bloodhand is now Fire Born – a legendary berserker inhabited by the ferocious spirit of a bear in battle. Yet he has sworn never again to allow that sacred rage to possess him, lest he for ever lose himself in the madness like his father. Tor Hildarsdottir yearns to save pagan Saxony from the grip of the Christian Franks, who now occupy half the region. But she also has serious problems closer to home with her fast-growing pet bear cub, Garm, and, worse, she seems to be falling in love. Widukind, new lord of the Saxons, is on a mission to reconquer the lands of his fathers from the Franks. He will stop at nothing to win the hearts of the men and women of the North, and bind them to his cause. But will they follow the Saxon Wolf in an unwinnable war? And will Bjarki join them? The epic second novel in the Fire Born saga, perfect for fans of Bernard Cornwell, Giles Kristian, and Matthew Harffy. Praise for The Saxon Wolf 'Donald has spun another terrific yarn, skilfully interweaving heart-thumping action sequences with a compelling plot... his writing is original and completely convincing. The Saxon Wolf is another step forward and a step up in the Fire Born series. Compelling, disturbing, entertaining, this is a bloody riot from start to finish. In every good sense' Theodore Brun, author of A Burning Sea Praise for The Last Berserker, Volume One in the Fire Born series ‘Donald has taken the legendary berserkers, those frothing-at-the-mouth shield-biters, and made them human, which once again proves that Donald is a writer not only at the top of his game, but of the game ... It is a wonderful, rich and violent brew. I welcome Angus Donald to the shield wall of Viking fiction like a thirsty man welcomes a mead-brother to the feast ... A tale worthy of the skalds’ Giles Kristian, author of the Raven series ‘With The Last Berserker, Donald has given us the first cut of some serious Dark Age beef. By turns heart-racing, intriguing, and touching, this is not a book for the faint-hearted – I can’t wait for more’ Theodore Brun, author of A Burning Sea ‘The Last Berserker strikes with the thundering power of Thor's hammer... rich with the earthy depth, historical detail, intrigue, violence and adventure that we expect from Donald. But it is Bjarki and Tor that make The Last Berserker stand out... Donald's masterful creations will live on in the imagination long after the final page’ Matthew Harffy, author of the Bernicia Chronicles 'A wonderful, blood-soaked tale of redemption and revenge, set amidst the eighth century clash of civilisations between Pagan Vikings and Christian Franks, by a master of the genre’ Saul David, author of Zulu Hart 'Loved this tale of a berserker facing up against the tidal wave of Charlemagne’s expansion. Great characters, brilliantly paced and explosive, gritty battle-scenes. Highly recommended' John Gwynne, author of Malice ‘Well researched detail and stunning battle scenes make The Last Berserker a white knuckle ride. A thrilling, up-all-night read’ C. R. May, author of The Day of the Wolf 'I loved it. Bjarki and Tor are great characters, instantly relatable. The depth of the immersion in their world and their values gives the book authenticity and weight' Cecelia Holland, author of The Soul Thief




Kingdom of the Cursed


Book Description

The Sunday Times bestseller. One sister. Two sinful princes. Infinite deception with a side of revenge . . . Welcome to Hell. From the #1 New York Times bestselling author Kerri Maniscalco comes the sizzling and sweepingly romantic sequel to Kingdom of the Wicked. With the enigmatic Prince of Wrath at her side, Emilia sold her soul to become Queen of the Wicked and travelled to the Seven Circles to fulfil her vow of avenging her beloved sister. But the first rule in the court of the Wicked? Trust no one. And it quickly becomes clear that nothing in Hell is what it seems. Even Wrath, her onetime ally, may be keeping secrets about his true nature. But that suits Emilia just fine - she's got secrets of her own. Faced with backstabbing courtiers, princes who delight in fear, luxurious palaces, dazzling galas, and conflicting clues about what truly happened to her sister, Emilia finds herself on a mission to unlock the mysteries of her own past and uncover the answers she craves. As long as her sins don't catch up to her first . . . *** PRAISE FOR KERRI MANISCALCO *** 'A delicious and intoxicating new fantasy by a master of murder and mayhem' Elizabeth Lim, author of Spin the Dawn 'An intoxicating, tightly plotted feast for the senses' Kirkus 'A fast-paced adventure steeped in a luscious and dark world' Chloe Gong, NYT bestselling author of These Violent Delights