THE
DARK-HAIRED MAN
or,
THE
HIEROMONK'S TALE
A
ROMANCE OF NOVA EUROPA
by
Robert Reginald
It is the year of Our Lord 1205, or 845 by the Julian reckoning.
Two great kingdoms of Eastern Nova Europa are poised on the brink
of war: Pommerelia and Kórynthia.
Their differences are both religious and cultural, and not easily
bridged. One state faces
west and south towards the immense hereditary Latinate monarchy of the
Holy Roman Cæsar, while the other reflects the growing influence of the
Greek-oriented Byzantine Julian Emperor to the east.
And behind the scenes, someone--or something--is manipulating
events to bring about the seemingly inevitable calamity that will result
when the hounds of fate are finally unleashed.
Who is "The
Dark-Haired Man?" Is
he just a fable that parents tell their little children to keep them in
line? Or is he viciously
real, a threat not only to King Kipriyán iii
and his royal line, but to all peace-loving people everywhere?
What does he really want? What
can he actually do with his powers?
And, ultimately, of course, ultimately, how can he ever possibly
be stopped by God-fearing men and women?
This is a saga of
high adventure, great deeds, and greater loves, played out across the
razor edge of the Carpates Spinae.
At the very heart of the tale is Father Afanásy, a seemingly
innocuous hieromonk whose quest to find himself rocks the very
foundations of the universe known as Nova Europa.
His journey--and ours--will both move and enrich fantasy readers
everywhere.
600 Pages * LC 2004-43654
ISBN 1-57241-124-4
Trade Paperback
April 2004
$24.95
[Link
to purchase]
Ariadne
Press
270 Goins Court
Riverside, CA 92507
SYNOPSIS
ORDERING
INFORMATION
EXCERPT
FROM PROLOGOS: THE GAME BEGINS
EXCERPT
FROM CHAPTER III: EN PASSANT
EXCERPT
FROM
CHAPTER
IX: KNIGHT MOVES
EXCERPT
FROM CHAPTER XIII: MIDGAME
EXCERPT
FROM CHAPTER XIV: STALEMATE
EXCERPT
FROM CHAPTER XVIII: ROOKED
EXCERPT
FROM CHARACTER AND GEOGRAPHIC DICTIONARY
CONTENTS
AUTHOR'S
NOTE
AFTERWORD
TALKING
ABOUT
DHM
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