Showing results by narrator "Brad Wills" in All Categories

Brother Foulques de Villaret just wants to stay in Acre and perform his sworn duties. Instead, the young Hospitaller Knight of Saint John must undertake a dangerous journey from the Holy Land to a remote village nestled in the Alps, the 'Spine of the World'. His mission: buy 500 peasant boys and return them to Acre to be trained as soldiers of Christ.

A wild land too mountainous to be tamed by plows…A Duke of the Holy Roman Empire, his cunning overshadowed only by his ambition…A young Priestess of the Old Religion, together with a charismatic outlaw, sparking a rebellion from deep within the forests…And an ex-Hospitaller caught between them all. At the end of the thirteenth century, five hundred orphans and second sons are rounded up from villages in the Alpine countryside and sold to the Hospitaller Knights of St John.

1310 AD. There is a new power in the Aegean, and its ships fly the black and white of the Knights of Saint John. Thomas Schwyzer has served the black knights for as long as he can remember. He would do anything for Grandmaster Foulques and his fellow brother sergeants. They are his family. His friends. Without them he would have no place in this world. His faithful years of service have not gone unrecognized.

Discover the origins of the original de Wolfe pack, led by the man known as Warwolfe. Before the Duke of Normandy conquered England, a legend arose. A man so fierce, so brave, and so noble, that the mere whisper of his name could strike both fear and admiration into the hearts of all men. That name is Warwolfe. Gaetan de Wolfe is this man.

He bears the name of de Russe, but the bloodlines of six great houses converge in the greatest knight England has yet seen. As the grandfather of Gaston de Russe, the dark one, Sir Bastien de Russe beholds a great and terrible legacy - one that makes him both the target and the leader, the hunter and the hunted. His story is the most powerful of all. Greatness and darkness abide in the man known as the beast.

A small force of peasants from the forest regions surrounding Lake Lucerne, rise up against their Austrian overlords in the 14th century. Outnumbered seven-to-one by the battle-hardened Habsburg army, they have little hope. A daring moonlight raid leaves the outlaw Noll Melchthal in possession of an Austrian fortress. In the north, an outraged Leopold of Habsburg assembles the ultimate punitive force: a great army, thousands strong, boasting the best knights and soldiers the Holy Roman Empire has to offer.

They have defeated their Muslim enemies, crushed the unstoppable Mongol horde, and now the Mamluks turn their full attention to the Christian Kingdom of Jerusalem. Only the port city of Acre remains in the hands of the Crusaders. The boys in Brother Foulques de Villaret’s Hospitaller Army of Children are approaching manhood, but their training is far from complete. Foulques needs more time. The Hospitallers, Templars, and Teutonics all need more time. Before preparations can be made, the Mamluks are at the gates of Acre.

The only home Foulques has ever known has been razed by the Mamluks. Only by the grace of God does he and a handful of knights manage to escape to the island of Cyprus. Once there, Foulques learns that Najya has been taken captive by none other than Badru Hashim and is enroute to the slave markets of North Africa. Foulques immediately attempts to organize a rescue force but his uncle has seized control of the Order of Saint John and considers the risks too high. He is left with only two options: remain loyal to his uncle and the Order or forsake his oaths and strike out after Najya on his own.

In AD 1282, James de Wolfe, the endearing and gentle brother, is killed in Wales as the Welsh rebel against Henry III...or was he? Five years later, tales of a Welsh warrior known as Blaidd Cryf, or Blayth the Strong, are making way to English ears along the Welsh Marches. A Welsh warrior who can somehow read the minds of the English armies is rising to power among the last princes of Wales. Rumors come from Wales that Blayth the Strong is none other than James de Wolfe.

Kevin de Lara breaks out from under his powerful brother's shadow (Sean de Lara from Lord of the Shadows) and becomes a great knight on his own. But there's just one problem...the woman he loves may very well cause his downfall when one strategic lie begins to unravel.... Since reconciling with his brother, Kevin has become a powerful garrison commander along the Welsh marches for the de Lara empire. As an agent of William Marshal, his directive is to keep the local Welsh barons under control at all costs, and Kevin becomes a diplomat.

The reign of King John means dark days for all of England. Not one man, woman, or child lived without fear. Magnifying this fear is the man they call The Lord of the Shadows - a terrifying figure who sits at the right hand of the King, manipulating the royal moves like a puppet master. The Lord of the Shadows has been known to tear men apart with his bare hands and can, with a snap of his fingers, alter the future of anyone he chooses.

Coleby de Velt is the firstborn son of the notorious Dark Lord, Ajax de Velt. He grew up idolizing his father - and knowing all about his history - and he has his father's dark streak. That makes him a perfect agent for William Marshal and the Executioner Knights. As William Marshal himself says, "Tis better to be at the Devil's right hand than in his path..." And Coleby is definitely the Devil. He's the spawn of The Dark Lord and everything that goes with it. When Coleby falls for an unusual woman, it’s with his whole heart.

Every family has legends behind it, but no family more than the Dun Tarh clan. Tucked deep in the highlands of Scotland and relatives to the MacKenzie clan, the dun Tarh family is said to have been spawned from the lost Roman legion, the elite Ninth Hispania. For generations, the family was known for their dark men, quick to temper, fierce fighters with comely looks. They were greatly respected in the highlands until Lares Rayan dun Tahr became the head of the family, a former priest who had fallen from grace.

AD 1289 - Sir Kevin Hage, stinging over the loss of the object of his affections to the Welsh warrior known as the Serpent, drowns himself in warfare in order to forget his heartache. He travels to The Levant to fight the Muslim infidels, transforming himself in the process. He becomes hardened, brutal, and heroic, and returns to England a changed man, an English assassin known as the Scorpion.

Caius d'Avignon, the knight known as The Britannia Viper, finds himself on the opposite side of William Marshal...and the Executioner Knights are caught in the middle...Welcome to another Executioner Knights' tale! When Caius d’Avignon is sent north at the request of a cousin of William Marshal to help in a dispute between neighbors, Caius couldn’t have imagined how his life would change. When Caius goes to speak to the neighbors to demand their unconditional surrender, the first thing he sees is a woman of astounding beauty. Emelisse de Thorington is that woman.

Achilles de Dere is a stubborn knight prone to fighting - anywhere, anytime. If there is a punch to be thrown, it's usually from Achilles. When he first met Susanna de Tiegh, the sparks flew - and not in a good way. Susanna, an accomplished warrior in her own right and an agent for William Marshal, Earl of Pembroke, refused to take Achilles’ bullying behavior. Friends feared they would kill one another. But an abject hatred of each other soon turned into something else. Now, Susanna is all Achilles can think of, even as he goes about his duties for William Marshal.

They call him the Great Defender. As Richard the Lionheart's most powerful general, Sir Juston de Royans is as moody as he is skilled. Reminiscent of the ancient warrior Achilles, Juston fights when it is necessary, instead choosing to command the powerful men beneath him. Never wrong in action or command, he has never lost a battle, and when he finds himself in the midst of a terrible siege at Bowes Castle, he predictably emerges the victor, with the lady of the keep as his prize.

Join Patrick and Brigantia as they overcome politics, wars, prejudices, and most of all, resistance to each other. Some loves are unexpected, some are instantly realized. But their love is something that comes from a deeper place of understanding and attraction, a powerful love that cannot be denied.

Rory Flynn, grandson of the Duke of Savernake, is embittered by his family’s reputation as a wealthy family from Irish stock. They are hated by the Ton but accepted because of their links to the duke. Rory has a list of those who have offended his family the most and he intends to do something about it. Enter the night of nights, the annual event Polite Society anticipates—the dazzling Stag Ball given by the duke himself.

Truth. Justice. Revenge. Behind these stands The Scotsman's Sword. When Lor Careston's quiet Highland village was attacked and burned, he felt helpless against the raiders who destroyed his home. Seeking revenge, but lacking the fighting skills he needs to execute his mission, he sets out to find the Ludus Caledonia - a mysterious fight guild that turns men into warriors. Lor trains hard, proves himself in the ring, and earns a place with the very clan that decimated his home, having decided to set his plan for revenge in motion from inside the clan.