Steven A. McKay's Blog, page 14
June 9, 2020
The Northern Throne signed posters available!
Some of my readers asked about getting the new book cover as a signed poster, so I’ve ordered a few. If you would like one, please let me know using the CONTACT button on here. I also have more Rise of the Wolf and The Druid posters ordered.
Price for one will be £7 within the UK, including postage, and an extra £4 for any others. I’m not sure how much postage will be outwith the UK but if you really want one let me know!
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June 8, 2020
The Northern Throne COVER REVEAL!
I told you the title of the next Warrior Druid of Britain novel just a couple of days ago, and now I can show you the final cover art. I’m really pleased with it, as I always am with my designer’s work. Possibly the most important thing about a book cover these days is how it looks as a small thumbnail on an Amazon page, and I think this will work well, drawing the eye and hopefully making potential readers click on the image to check it out in greater detail.
Roll on August when, all being well, you can read The Northern Throne and see what Bellicus and Duro have been up to while the rest of us have been in lockdown…
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Review: Song Of The Centurion – Steven A. McKay
Excellent, insightful review for Song of the Centurion here. Just in time for book 3 coming out this summer (and look out for the cover reveal shortly)!
Warrior Druid Of Britain 2
My version: Hardback
Genre: Historical Fiction, Post-Roman Britain
Publisher: Orion Books
First published: 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4091-8778-3
Pages: 390
Bought, signed
From the cover:
It is AD 430. Against all odds Princess Catia has been rescued from her brutal Saxon captors and Bellicus is taking her home at last.
As the giant warrior-druid knows, however, the gods rarely make things easy and, even if he can escort the girl back to the North safely, their troubles will be far from over…
In a land beset by the rivalries of petty warlords, Dun Breatann has stood solid and secure for untold generations. Trouble brews though as King Coroticus has cracked under the pressure and, as well as starting a war with the neighbouring kings, he has become jealous, suspicious, and often blind drunk. When the king’s paranoia finally boils over during a winter feast…
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June 6, 2020
Warrior Druid of Britain Book III – TITLE REVEAL!
I’ve now completed work on the first draft of the new Druid novel (following on from 2018’s The Druid and 2019’s Song of the Centurion) and my editor will be going over it next month. So, that means, all being well, I am aiming for an August release date! Writing this one was a bit like when I wrote The Wolf and the Raven for the Forest Lord series – I had a plan but it went out the window once I started writing and ended up writing something I hadn’t expected! So the events that were supposed to happen in this novel will now (probably!) take place in book 4!
Anyway, the title is….well, a drumroll is hardly needed is it, since your eye would have been drawn instantly to the huge image here as soon as you opened the webpage.
It makes a nice acronym, TNT (a great AC/DC song too!) and hopefully there’s some explosive action within the writing…
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I had planned on doing a cover reveal just now, but it’s not QUITE ready. My designers sent me the first draft and it’s fantastic, just needs a couple of tiny tweaks, so check back in a few days to see the full artwork in all its glory.
Stay safe everyone, and leave a few evenings free in August to read The Northern Throne!
Then, next up, Kindle and print editions of LUCIA in October – if you haven’t checked it out on Audible yet, please do. The narrator they hired is fantastic and I’m really proud of that novel.
May 26, 2020
Grimdark Magazine’s stunning review of The Druid
GRIMDARK, the renowned fantasy magazine, recently took a look at my novel The Druid and seem to have rather enjoyed it, judging by their review. Although The Druid is historical fiction, I, and obviously the reviewer, think it can be enjoyed just as much by fans of fantasy along the lines of Game of Thrones.
“To my mind The Druid is everything historical fiction should be and more,” as the reviewer (James Vella-Bardon, a published author himself) says.
Take a look at Grimdark’s fantastic review HERE.
I’ve been working away on the third Druid book during lockdown and it’s almost finished! Decided to add one more little adventure today, before wrapping things up for the first draft, but it’s well on track for a summer release. Cover art has been commissioned, so look out for it, along with the title reveal, very soon. Once that comes out, it’s a Kindle and print release for LUCIA in October, and then, all being well, another mystery for Tuck and Little John to solve around Christmas time!
Stay safe, and roll on summer!
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May 23, 2020
New interview, check it out!
Here’s a fun new interview with some cool questions. Please take a look: https://historicalfictionreader.blogspot.com/2020/05/authorinterview-historical-fiction.html
As a writer, what attracted you to historical fiction?
I think it’s all the heroic or inspiring deeds and people we imagine populating our past – men and women like Odysseus, King Arthur, Jane Eyre, Anne S. Cuthbert, and so on. There’s something very romantic, yet still grounded in reality, about those people so it offers the reader escapism without straying too far from our current existence the way fantasy or sci-fi does. It’s also fun to research a period in history, find some interesting events and people, then mould it all to suit your own vision. I find it fascinating to discover things like, for example, the medieval monks in Selby Abbey got into trouble for drinking, fighting and fornicating – that’s the kind of thing that makes a great story!
Read the rest, including why Little John is so metal, HERE!
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May 19, 2020
Wolf’s Head Countdown Deal
One for USA readers – Wolf’s Head, book 1 in the Forest Lord series is just 99c for a few days. If you haven’t read any of my books yet, why not start here? Fans of Cornwell, Iggulden, Scarrow and Kane might enjoy it! Check out the reviews and see if 14th century England could be worth a visit during lockdown…
https://www.amazon.com/Wolfs-Head-Forest-Lord-ebook/dp/B00DSCDZFY/
If you’re wondering about the next Druid book – it’s about 2/3 complete and I’m beavering away on it to have it ready for a summer release. Stay tuned for the title and cover art reveal over the coming weeks.
Stay safe!
Steven
May 2, 2020
Athour Spotlight – Steven. A. McKay plus review!
A new interview with me, plus a review for Over the Wall, check it out!
It’s been a while since I’ve done a little author spotlight..lets rectify that now as I welcome author Steven A. McKay to my blog. Keep reading for my lastest review as well!!
Steven is author of the brilliant Forest Lord series and now The Warrior Druid of Britain series. Not to forget if you are a fan of Audible you should check out his Roman slave tale Lucia!
Let’s get on with the Q&A.. Welcome!!
So I’ve a few questions I hope you won’t mind answering.
After the success of the Forest Lord series it must have been quite daunting starting a fresh new series. Did you worry at all and how has the new series been received?
Yes, it was a bit of a wrench to leave behind my Forest Lord series. Not just because I had really grown to know and love the characters, but because it had…
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Over The Wall now available to buy on Kindle (free with KU)
If you didn’t get the short story, “Over The Wall”, which I sent out to my email list subscribers last week, it’s now available – polished, expanded and with a professional cover – on Kindle (free with Kindle Unlimited). Links below!
If you’ve already read it via my email list, a review would be awesome, but please mention that you got a free copy from me as that’s one of Amazon’s rules.
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Beltane, AD425
Northern Britain
Midnight approaches and in Dun Breatann’s great hall the Beltane feasting continues, with stories and songs and as much meat and ale as anyone could wish for.
On the western side of the towering fortress however, ten small figures make their way up the shadowy rock. Armed to the teeth, and hand-picked for their particular, deadly skills, these warriors have travelled far across the sea from Dalriada and are utterly focused on their mission, despite the fact most – perhaps all – of them will die this night.
High above, guards patrol the fortress walls as usual, but they expect yet another quiet shift for, as everyone knows, Dun Breatann is impregnable.
Isn’t it?
This brand new novelette was written during the COVID-19 lockdown specifically to provide much-needed entertainment and escapism for adventure fiction fans. So pour yourself a mug of ale (or coffee!), sit back, and join the legendary warrior-druid Bellicus for another exciting tale of fifth-century Britain.
PRAISE FOR STEVEN A. McKAY’S WARRIOR DRUID OF BRITAIN CHRONICLES
“…the historical detail is seamlessly melded into a plot bursting with adrenaline and suspense…To my mind this novel is everything historical fiction should be and more.” – JAMES VELLA-BARDON, author of The Sheriff’s Catch
“as a storyteller McKay is up there with the best of them.” – David’s Book Blurg
“on a par with anything you’ve read before by him there Cornwell, or Kane, or Kristian…a triumph, an honest to goodness, self-assured triumph.” – STEVE DENTON/SPEESH READS
April 21, 2020
Over the Wall cover reveal & Song of the Centurion now available on Audible!
My brand new FREE short story (which will only be available to my email list subscribers – sign up HERE if you haven’t already) is called “Over The Wall” and you can see the cover art below. I rather like it, although I made it myself so it’s nowhere near as good as my usual covers. Maybe I’ll get my designers to make a proper one for it eventually. The story will be emailed out on World Book Day – April 23rd so sign up NOW!
[image error]The tale is part of the Warrior Druid of Britain series, and I suppose it’ll be a kind of prequel to the novels as it’s set a few years before them. I came up with the idea for it because the events are mentioned in passing in the third druid book which I’m working on right now. When you read the book you’ll understand how “Over The Wall” fits in, I think it’ll be pretty cool!
And, if you haven’t yet read book 2 in the series, Song of the Centurion, it is now available to buy from Audible (I believe iTunes will follow soon if it’s not there already). Narrated again by the excellent Nick Denton, I hope everyone enjoys it. Get it at the links below:
Remember, World Book Day (Night, in the UK) is tomorrow, so sign up now if you want the FREE Druid tale “Over The Wall”![image error]
