About the story:
Travel back in time to late Ninth Century Anglo-Saxon Britain where Alfred the Great governs with a benevolent hand while the Danish King rules peacefully within the boundaries of the Danelaw. Trade flourishes, and scholars from throughout the civilized world flock to Britannia’s shores to study at the King’s Court School at Winchester.
Meet Concordia, a beautiful noblewoman whose family is favored by the king. Vain, willful, and admired, but ambitious and cunning, Concordia is not willing to accept her fate. She is betrothed to the valiant warrior, Brantson, but sees herself as far too young to lay in the bedchamber of an older suitor. She wants to see the wonders of the world, embracing everything in it; preferably, but dangerously, at the side of Thayer, the exotic Saracen who charms King Alfred’s court and ignites her yearning passions.
Concordia manipulates her besotted husband into taking her to Rome, but her ship is captured by bloodthirsty pirates, and the seafarers protecting her are ruthlessly slain to a man. As she awaits her fate in the Moorish captain’s bed, by sheer chance, she discovers that salvation is at hand in the gilded court of a Saracen nobleman.
While awaiting rescue, Concordia finds herself at the center of intrigue, plots, blackmail, betrayal and the vain desires of two egotistical brothers, each willing to die for her favor. Using only feminine cunning, Concordia must defend her honor while plotting her escape as she awaits deliverance, somewhere inside steamy, unconquered Muslim Hispania.
About picking the topic:
My lifelong dream was to write a novel about Erik, the Viking, after having seen such Hollywood blockbusters as The Vikings, The Longships, and other period movies including King Arthur, and Knights of the Round Table. When it came time to put pen to paper, Alfred the Great’s reign was the perfect backdrop for my story.
About how The Briton and the Dane: Concordia differs from other books that cover the same or similar information;
The Briton and the Dane trilogy is an epic adventure, which includes several storylines with multiple characters. Concordia was three-years-old in the final novel of the original series.
In the offshoot story, Concordia has come of age in a turbulent era where women were expected to behave according to societal standards. Her story runs the emotional gamut of love and betrayal, and while her struggle may not be unique, her story is deeply personal and poignant.
The novel delves into Concordia's psyche where the reader witnesses her turmoil as she suffers the consequences of unwise decisions. Was Concordia's judgment clouded by emotion or was she a product of her environment? Concordia picked up the gauntlet fearlessly, with an iron will to survive. If she were a man, would she have been judged differently? There were mitigating circumstances, after all. Would you cut her some slack? Whether you like her or not is irrelevant. Justice is rendered based upon facts, not emotion. What say the jury?
About what was liked most when writing this book:
I enjoyed shedding light on the reason why someone did what they did, right or wrong. It is easy to be judgmental without knowing the whole story. I understand Concordia, do you?
Mary Ann Bernal is a passionate supporter of the United States military, having been involved with letter writing campaigns and other military support programs since Operation Desert Storm. She has appeared on The Morning Blend television show hosted by KMTV, the CBS television affiliate in Omaha, and was interviewed by the Omaha World-Herald for her volunteer work.
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