Great Tales,
Great worlds
“I’m not here to rescue you. I’m here to see you suffer.”
Thus speaks a figure from Lora and Thay’s past, and when those ominous words get uttered, the disastrous result is unmistakeable: Rulla, Mistress of Owls, has drawn a new rune slate and a different wyrd now lies in their future. And how can that future hold anything good?
But mortals cannot know the mind of a god. Whilst they might now doubt a king’s acclaim awaits them, they know a deadly reckoning with their old foe Korgash Hasselmann is inescapable.
Thay, Lora, and Cairn seize the initiative in the war against their Straelish invaders of Polgatia. Drawing on Sea Wolf tactics, they take the fight onto the rivers of the Northlands, harrying Korgash’s shipping, destroying his food supplies, razing the strongholds and temples of his home province.
And yet, such raids can bring them no closer to liberating oar mates enslaved in Straeland. Nor can they end the war that has ensnared the Fjordlanders. Then there is the unresolved matter of avenging themselves upon Korgash for the death of their friend Lars. Lora, prompted by the prophesy that came to her in Polgatia’s throne room, hatches a plan to humiliate Korgash and force him to accept a one-on-one duel to the death that will end the Winter War.
When their plan goes astray and with their options narrowing, Thay decides the time has come to proclaim himself kunungr, or king. This, he hopes, will allow him to negotiate with Straeland’s Queen Elspeth as an equal, bringing an end to the war and the liberation of his kith. But Korgash has plans of his own that risk ensnaring them all in a deadly trap, plans he hopes may propel him onto the Straelish throne.
But all plans conceived by mortals cannot stand before the will of the Gods. A fireball blazing through the sky proclaims that Rulla, Dealer of Fates, has drawn a new rune slate. Whose wyrd has changed? What is this new fate? Does it foretell glory or spell disaster? Lora doesn’t know. But she does know all will be settled on the Night of the Bjerndyr, when the barrier betwixt mundane and spirit worlds grows thin and the mythical were-bear takes human form and stalks the world of men.
Now’s the time to find out which rune slate Rulla has drawn. Hold your breath.
Check out the Northern Fire pentalogy
What was said about Harbinger and The Broken Dream.
“Mr. McKinley’s writing style is solid and detailed, yet pleasurable to read. He has concocted a mythopoeic story of the first rank and one that will have you highly anticipating Book Three of Northern Fire: The Winter Wars.”
“I read a previous novel by Ian and was hooked. I wanted to read more of his work and it led me to Harbinger which I truly enjoyed as much as his earlier book. I am looking forward to his next one and will be first in line to pick it up.”
Reviews on Goodreads.
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Still to Come
