Welcome!
Do make yourself at home. If you love myth, legend - and dogs! - you're in the right place. This is my best "Viking" author photo, by Benjamin Graham. It was taken at the launch of The Book of Bera, at sunset, on the Trundle. I'm thinking about mothers and daughters ...
The dog in the photo is dear Maud, who lived on a boat with us. Labradors (often two at a time) are my family, helping me work and keeping me well. They ought to have a page of their own on here and will certainly star in my newsletter, because we are about to get a puppy to keep Raine company.
I’ve started work on another series, so let’s hope I get the first draft finished before s/he arrives!
TOP REVIEWS
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"A lovingly detailed Norse land that Wilde brings to startling life along with the minutiae of Viking culture...this is an impressive debut."
ERIC BROWN,
THE GUARDIAN
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"A terrific historical novel … instantly captivating and compelling"
LEE CHILD,
AUTHOR
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"She's a beautiful writer (who) captures the sea extraordinarily."
KATE MOSSE, AUTHOR
BOOKS
Raised in a fishing village at the edge of the Ice-Rimmed Sea, Bera becomes the next Valla when her mother dies without teaching her how to use the occult power of their Norse ancestors. Young Bera has only a necklace and twin spirit to keep folk safe from the undead but cannot prevent her truest friend from being killed by a brutal Viking. She vows revenge and when her father sells her to these killers, she is forced to marry the leader and mother his child, who hates her. Anger fuels her visions of disaster and she is faced with a stark choice of saving her enemies – or killing them.
In their new land of Ice and Fire, the earth itself is in upheaval during the hard birth of her daughter: the next Valla. Does this mean Bera will die? Her darkening visions centre on the black bead of her necklace and her quest is to find Obsidian and use it to prevent a chain of volcanic eruptions that will destroy the known world. But the precious stone is guarded by wolves in an grey tower within the stronghold of the Abbotry, and the cruel Abbot is not her only enemy. Bera must succeed, even whilst seeing the darkness at the heart of the Vallas.
Dare Bera ever fall in love when jealous Vallas snatch everything precious from her? They warn her that Chaos is coming and she must again set sail, following Vikings who have taken her folk to be sold in a land that has abandoned the old gods. There, she is forced into a lie and is betrayed. To save all her loved ones, Bera must enter a dark labyrinth where human time is meaningless. Only by finding her truest self and trusting it might she escape from her worst fate yet – at the cost of a life.
SEA PATHS IS NOW ON AUDIBLE
Overall 5 out of 5 stars
Performance 5 out of 5 stars
Story 5 out of 5 stars
Enthralling Viking fantasy
Brilliantly read by the author, this is a gripping story set in an unforgiving landscape, Bera - a strong but vulnerable young woman - is a protagonist with real depth. Love it!
Landfall is Kate Mosse's Fiction Pick
ABOUT
Suzie Wilde was born and raised with a cemetery between her and the sea. Her Welsh mother, a psychic who could smell death coming, gave her a love of her country’s myths. Mooching in book shops every Saturday, Suzie found a now-treasured copy of Norse Wonder Tales. Her early reading was horror comics like Tales from the Crypt; all Dennis Wheatley books and of course, Bram Stoker’s Dracula.
With BA Hons degrees in English and Fine Art, she taught those subjects before marrying Rory Bremner and falling in love with Scotland. Her second husband Richard gave her a love of sailing and they headed south on their boat for five years, with Labrador Maud. On their return to the UK, she gained a Distinction in MA Creative Writing.
What else could she write but an epic Viking fantasy? Her latest professional challenge was to narrate the audiobook of the first book, Sea Paths, which is now on Audible.
You can also catch her popular podcast Talking Books, with Tim O'Kelly of indie bookshop One Tree Books. It's monthly, with guest author interviews. See links below.
TALKING BOOKS PODCAST
Bookshop owner Tim O’Kelly and I explore our love of books, the joy of stories and the craft of writing in this monthly series. We release a fresh edition of Talking Books on the third Monday of each month. Here's the latest. Our next guests are YA authors SUE WALLMAN and KATHRYN EVANS.
Newsletter
If you'd like to stay up to date with news, then do subscribe. I promise you won't be besieged: the newsletters tend to be quarterly, or if there is Big News. I might share extracts from our sailing adventure, like the image here; short stories or articles; publishing news, book reviews; writing advice and prompts. Labradors nearly always feature! I'm aware of how short of time we all are so it may only be a couple of photos - but ones no one else will see, and which matter most.
If you sign up today, the e-book of Sea Paths is free! Link to the Mailing List is below.
CONTACT
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With my publisher John Mitchinson, one of the founders of UNBOUND.
Best part of the day was being interviewed by author KATE MOSSE, OBE and champion of women's creativity (including mine). She is the Founder Director of the Women's Prizes - the largest annual celebration of women's writing in the world - and an international bestselling author herself.