By Eva Gordon
Published: Aug 20, 2013
Press Release for Eva Gordon’s Lycan Gladiator, Book 1 in the Wolf Maiden Saga
Book tagline:
A lycan gladiator in Rome's brutal arena vows to claim his forbidden mate … but her secrets may seal their doom. Book Blurb:During a time of bloody gladiator games and treacherous schemes, a secret society of lycans live amongst the Romans.
When Ulric, a lycan gladiator, meets a mysterious human woman with green eyes, he’s drawn to her fiery beauty, enraptured by her alluring aroma. Unfortunately, Ulric and the beauty are slaves. To make matters worse, he can mate only with someone marked with the sign of the wolf.
Cassia’s hidden wolf mark burns in the presence of the handsome gladiator. While her heart yearns to be near Ulric, logic warns her against it—having a slave as a mate is against the lycan society’s plans for her.
In spite of the lycan society’s rules and the emperor’s brutal plots, their love grows … but their passion just may cost them their lives.
Excerpt:
“Baaa!”
His fangs emerged and drool pooled in his mouth. Fresh kid. People in his way quickly stepped aside lest they be caught in his blood lust. He smiled. What did it matter if he started the performance earlier with a fresh kill? Let them know the ferocity of a wolfen. His claws sprang out, and he stalked his prey. Ready to break its neck. His low growl silenced the frozen bystanders. A woman screamed and he hesitated. He stiffened, thunderstruck at the vision of the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen.
“Egidius!” The woman dressed in a fine, white gold-laced tunic and matching palla dashed from the alleyway. Her veil askew, she knelt by her goat and covered him with her arms. She glared at him with intense, captivating green eyes. A sprig of green in the dust-ridden market. “You will not eat my goat!”
He forgot his fangs were out and drool dripped from his lower lip. Realizing his beast-like state, he cupped his hand over his mouth like a bashful child. A curled strand of her rich brown hair slipped from its upswept style and hung down her exquisite long neck. Her figure, slender like a swan.
Her hand gripping her goat’s rope, she stood. He did not smell fear, most unusual for a Roman woman facing the infamous wolf man. Her emerald eyes pierced through his hardened soul. He sniffed her aroma. Her divine scent made him forget his hunger, at least for food. Something about her calmed him. What manner of spell had she cast? He felt drunk with wine, not to the point of belligerence, but enough to make him relax and nap. She appeared to be upper class, a woman unavailable to him not only for his status but also because of his kind. Yet she did not look Roman. Was she from Gaul or perhaps the north? He gave her a wolfish grin. “If you are off to the butcher, I would love to share a bite of meat with you.” He gently guided her from the major thoroughfare.
She frowned and adjusted her fallen veil with her free hand. “Egidius is my pet. I brought him to have his hooves trimmed.”
He boomed a laugh. “A goat for a pet?” He glanced down at her beautiful face. He heard the loud beat of her heart even in the din of the passing crowds. The sound pleased him. Was she his mate? Not possible. She did not wear the red cloak of the wolf maiden.
Her green eyes met his. “I have heard of you, gladiator.” She scoffed. “Ulricus, wolf king of the Verspilles.”
If only he could tell her he was not what the Romans called a monstrous wolf man but rather a lycan from the north, but she would not understand the difference. Like an adolescent boy, he boasted, flexing his biceps. “Come tonight and witness the Wolf Hunt.”
