ABOUT THE SHORT STORY’S PRICE: Hello, you lovely people. Odd to talk about money straight up, but I know that some of you might be thinking, £1.99/US$2.99/CDN$3.99/A$3.99 is a lot for a short story. Let me explain how it works in the UK. A rate of 20% VAT (Value Added Tax) applies to eBooks. This doesn’t apply to ‘real’ paper books. That means 33p of the £1.99 goes straight to the British government. Amazon takes around 2p to deliver the story to your Kindle, then takes another 48p as its cut. The remainder, £1.16, goes to me. That's not a great deal, I hope you agree. A roughly similar story applies in foreign territories. In these times of falling sales, and authors losing their contracts, and only one in seven traditionally published authors being able to write fulltime, stories like this are a vital way of YOU supporting the authors whose books you enjoy. So THANK YOU for your support! Think of it in terms of a pint of beer or a cup of coffee: they cost £2-4, depending on where you live in the UK. This story will give you more enjoyment (I think!) than either of those things, and last for a longer time, and cost you less money. This is the third time I have self-published a short story. (Massive thanks here to Pete Simpson, who designed the cover for me!) It’s been an exciting project since the day I did the poll on Facebook, asking you lovely people which of my characters you wanted me to write about. Centurion Tullus won out, narrowly, and this is the result. The one hundred and something people who backed the Kickstarter campaign got to read this story almost 7 months ago, but now you can too. Oh, what's it about? The war of the Batos, or the Pannonian War, which took place between AD 6 and 9, a general emergency that had almost 100.000 legionaries sent to modern-day Croatia to sort out the rebels. Enjoy the story, and please email me if you have any questions about it or anything else – ben@benkane.net Ben

    

     It’s an Arctic January day, one of the coldest winters on record. A man on a deserted East Anglian beach strips naked, neatly folds his clothes and wades into the icy waters. Walks to his death. His final moments are watched by Harry Tennant. The ex-copper has been assigned to observe his target by British Intelligence. The dead man is Joseph Wolff. He is a Russian Jew. He is also a professor of mathematics at Oxford University. All Harry knows is that Wolff had been doing some sort of secret work during the war. So when Wolff waded into the sea and drowned himself, he could not make sense of it. Back in the hotel room where Woolf was staying, Harry discovers an unfinished note hinting of betrayal. Harry can’t resist following a trail of unanswered questions buzzing in his head. It’s a long and tortuous trail that leaves him just staring in the ever more inscrutable face of British Intelligence. David J Oldman’s compassionate and compelling Requiem for a Patriot offers a fictional version of what was happening in Britain during and immediately after of the Second World War as East and West drew closer and closer to head-on collision. It explores a shocking secret. Thoroughly researched and based on actual events, the novel succeeds in combining all-too-human stories with political intrigue, spy rings and cold-blooded murder. It paints a frightening picture of the helplessness of the individual when faced by the monolith that is the state. Born into the austerity of post-war Britain, David J. Oldman began writing in his early twenties. Frequently humorous, and often moving, his books are an examination of ordinary people caught up in life-changing events beyond their control. He presently lives with his wife in the New Forest in the south of England pursuing his deep interest in history, writers and writing. Also published by Endeavour Media is Oldman’s The Unquiet Grave.

    She has yet to nominate an heir.The crown looks set to fall to James of Scotland.But it is far from inevitable.Gowrie, a sinister Scottish traitor, has arrived in England. On him is a document containing a shocking secret that will compromise King James.Languishing in prison, artful thief Ned Savage is freed by his patron, the queen’s principal secretary, Sir Robert Cecil. His mission is to find the document before it can be made public. If he succeeds, his life will be spared.But he is not alone in seeking Gowrie.On his trail are a ruthless gang of conspirators. The Red Cross Plot aims to prevent any foreigner from taking the English throne. And the Knights of the Red Cross will kill to secure the document.In a journey that will take him from London to Derbyshire and Scotland, Savage must foil the Red Cross Plot, protect King James’s darkest secret, and keep himself safe from execution.And he must do it all before the curtain falls on Elizabeth’s reign.

    First, a mysterious woman from Swansea, Wales seeks Holmes' help finding her husband who has disappeared in the middle of the night. As soon as she leaves, Holmes receives word that there has been a prison riot with several dead and a few inmates missing. Lestrade is asking for his services. Holmes believes the two cases are not a coincidence, but he has no idea who is behind it and to what end. They go to Swansea in what could be either a wild goose chase or a setup. Will Holmes unravel the mystery before they get to Swansea? If not what will be in store for them when they step off the train?

    But Rownt has problems of his own: a gang of child-thieves is terrorizing the quiet neighborhood in which he lives, and his neighbors want protection. Then the Fox, head of London’s criminal underworld, becomes involved, and a deadly situation becomes deadlier when one of the Fox’s men stabs the wrong boy. In a world where violence and theft seem everyday occurrences, Rownt searches for justice among A Parcel of Rogues.

    PERFECT FOR FANS OF 'CALL THE MIDWIFE', Jodi Picoult, Katie Flynn, Nadine Dorries & Rosie Goodwin it's about TWO WOMEN CAUGHT UP IN A PHARMACEUTICAL DISASTER . . Sandy an aspiring model has a one-night stand with a journalist that results in pregnancy. Shunned by her family, she quietly checks herself into a maternity home to wait out her pregnancy and prepare to have the baby adopted. Rona and her husband have been trying for a baby for years, but Rona is unable to conceive. When Sandy delivers a child disabled by thalidomide, Rona commits a terrible crime and makes a life-changing decision that will have dramatic consequences.Meanwhile, Sandy’s journalist lover stumbles upon the scoop of a century. As he investigates corruption entrenched in the company that developed thalidomide, he is surprised to reconnect with Sandy. He and Sandy feel drawn to each other, but both will have to confront old wounds if they want to be together. An interesting slice of social history which will stir every emotion within you.

    Only courageous mountain men like Nathaniel King were willing to risk the unknown dangers for the freedom the wilderness offered. But while attending a rendezvous of trappers and fur traders, King’s freedom was threatened when he was accused of murdering several men for their money. With the help of his friend Shakespeare McNair, Nathaniel had to prove his innocence. For he had not cast off the fetters of society to spend the rest of his life behind bars. Blood Fury In 1828, the Rocky Mountains were wild and treacherous. Anyone daring to travel there faced unknown dangers and adventures at every turn. On a hunting trip, young Nathaniel King stumbled onto a disgraced Crow Indian. Attempting to regain his honor, Sitting Bear placed himself and his family in great peril, for a war party of hostile Utes threatened to kill them all. When the savages wounded Sitting Bear and kidnapped his wife and daughter, Nathaniel had to rescue them or watch them perish. But despite his skill in tricking unfriendly Indians, King might just have met an enemy he could not outsmart. ABOUT THE AUTHOR David L. Robbins was born on Independence Day 1950. He has written more than three hundred books under his own name and many pen names, among them: David Thompson, Jake McMasters, Jon Sharpe, Don Pendleton, Franklin W. Dixon, Ralph Compton, Dean L. McElwain, J.D. Cameron and John Killdeer. Robbins was raised in Pennsylvania. When he was seventeen he enlisted in the United States Air Force and eventually rose to the rank of sergeant. After his honorable discharge he attended college and went into broadcasting, working as an announcer and engineer (and later as a program director) at various radio stations. Later still he entered law enforcement and then took to writing full-time. At one time or another Robbins has lived in Pennsylvania, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Montana, Colorado and the Pacific Northwest. He spent a year and a half in Europe, traveling through France, Italy, Greece and Germany. He lived for more than a year in Turkey. Today he is best known for two current long-running series – Wilderness, the generational saga of a Mountain Man and his Shoshone wife – and Endworld is a science fiction series under his own name started in 1986. Among his many other books, Piccadilly Publishing is pleased to be reissuing ebook editions of Wilderness, Davy Crockett and, of course, White Apache. Check us out at www.piccadillypublishing.org

    MIRA brings you three full length novels in one collection! Welcome to Thunder point, a small town along the Oregon coast with towering cliffs, a picturesque bay, and the finest people you could ever hope to meet.This box set includes:ONE WISH (A Thunder Point Novel)By #1 New York Times bestselling author Robyn CarrCome back to Thunder Point! From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Virgin River series, book 7 in her beloved Thunder Point novels, where second chances can be complicated, but finding love might be simple…A NEW HOPE (A Thunder Point Novel)By #1 New York Times bestselling author Robyn CarrCome back to Thunder Point! From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Virgin River series, book 8 in her beloved Thunder Point novels, where second chances can be complicated, but finding love might be simple…WILDEST DREAMS (A Thunder Point Novel)By #1 New York Times bestselling author Robyn CarrFrom the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Virgin River series, Robyn Carr, rediscover the charming coastal town of Thunder Point, where hard work and determination are all it takes to make dreams come trueRead the Thunder Point Series by Robyn Carr:Book One: The WandererBook Two: The NewcomerBook Three: The HeroBook Four: The ChanceBook Five: The PromiseBook Six: The HomecomingBook Seven: One WishBook Eight: A New HopeBook Nine: Wildest Dreams

    But this is Germany, 1938. Their union is against Nazi laws, as Anna is part-Jewish. A Gestapo officer agrees to authorize the marriage, but only if Max infiltrates and betrays a Marxist resistance cell, the Red Orchestra. This is not an assignment that Max can refuse. If he succeeds, Anna will get the wedding she longs for, but many brave resistance fighters will die… What early reviewers are saying about the book: JJ Toner does a fabulous job of lacing fact and fiction together. I do not often give a five-star rating, but this story surprised me, educated me, and entertained me. There was never a dull moment. Well done. JJ Toner captures perfectly the sense of paranoia and fear that prevailed in Berlin during the Third Reich, especially in the years 1938 to 1945. The convoluted intermingling of different agencies, organizations and ministries, and over all the terror of the SS and its departments, is well set out. It was really a matter of who you knew, not what you knew, if you wanted to progress. The fact that the novel is based on the actual story of the Rote Kapelle only adds to the tension

    Once you have been there, you will never be the same. Read 3 of the most important historical novels that will take you back to some of AFRICA’S most notable and captivating periods. The super addictive trilogy starts here. Ready for the ride? Book 1: Cry of the Fish Eagle Rupert’s family is happy and at peace. But a vulnerable future is ahead. Chaos is coming. The Rhodesian War is looming… Rupert escapes to Rhodesia from the bloody conflict that is terrorising Europe. His mission is not just duty-driven but a promise to look for an orphaned, young girl. It’s a futile search and with time running out he has no choice but to re-join the theatre of war. When peace returns Rupert travels back to Rhodesia to begin anew, to find the orphaned girl and to start a new life. But nothing can prepare him for what is next as we helplessly watch Rupert wade against a chaotic tide of nationalism. Book 2: Vultures in the Wind Luke was close to death. He had been beaten mercilessly and was unrecognisable. They wanted the names of his ANC accomplices. Matthew Gray and Luke Mbeki were born on the same day, spending a brief childhood on an African beach, blissfully ignorant of the outside world. But their youth is severed. Released into the real world, the two now face their future in a country deep in the throes of violent change. Can the rules and discipline of discrimination pull the men apart? Is there any mercy? And what happens when these two eventually cross paths? Book 3: Just the Memory of Love Will he ever find his love again or will she always just be a memory? The war is finally over and for the young and naïve Will Langton, his future is full of exciting adventure and happy dreams. Captivated by a brief, but innocent love affair on the rocks of Dancing Ledge, the romance is shattered in one single moment and she is lost to him. For Will, it's an unbearable pain that he cannot hope to escape from and the only means to assuage his sorrow is to run away… to Africa. “It was as if I was reading my own life, knowing all the areas. I loved it.” “Deeply moving and entertaining read.” “Peter Rimmer writes a very interesting story with good detail on what happened in Southern Africa prior to independence.” “A gripping story that will stay with you long after the end of the book....” Grab your copy today

    When winter arrives, myths become all too real in White Haven.Books 4 - 6 of the White Haven Witches series in one binge-reading volume!If you love magic and witches, you’ll love the mysteries of Samhain, the horror of vampires, and the earthy wonder of the Green Man and the Raven King!All Hallows' Magic, Undying Magic, and Crossroads Magic.

    Party activists develop the plan - code name Zima and lie in wait...London 2013 - Richard is in London, working for a financial software company. He has held onto the Zima plan all this time and has been signalling he can activate it. Is anyone listening? Have others stayed true to the ideology?The "suicide" of Richard's work colleague shows British and Russian Intelligence have been listening and waiting too. Tension mounts as more players reveal themselves and the battle for power and control moves to Moscow. As the coil of agents, misinformation and mind control experiments connected to Zima unravel - where do allegiances lie? Can Richard trust anyone - even himself?Can MI9 stop a catastrophic act of sabotage on the banking system? Will the revolution succeed? Can Richard uncover the TRUTH and save himself?

    Emma seems to have been part of cultish group obsessed with contacting the dead via a medieval mystic. Then another child disappears. DI Sam Clayton faces a race against time to catch the killer.BOOK 2: THE BAD SISTERDI Sam Clayton is called to a murder scene in Holt, not expecting to find his estranged sister at the scene. Her husband, Henry Lambton, has been murdered. Meanwhile, vicious arson attacks in Norwich are sparking fear among the locals. The two crimes stretch the team to their limits. But they must pull together and race against time to prevent more attacks and get justice for their loved and not so loved ones.BOOK 3: PLAY DEADMusician Kristina Manning is impaled by her cello spike. The disgraced conductor is found with his head stuffed in a piano. And a trumpeter dies, poisoned by his mouthpiece. Is there a serial killer with a musical edge on the loose? And what does the disappearance of former orchestra member Lauren Garner have to do with it?

    When empath Jade Calhoun moves into an apartment above a strip bar on Bourbon Street, she expects life to get interesting. What she doesn't count on is making friends with an exotic dancer, attracting a powerful spirit, and developing feelings for Kane, her sexy landlord. Being an empath has never been easy on Jade's relationships. It's no wonder she keeps her gift a secret. But when the ghost moves from spooking Jade to terrorizing Pyper, the dancer, it's up to Jade to use her unique ability to save her. Except she'll need Kane's help--and he's betrayed her with a secret of his own--to do it. Can she find a way to trust him and herself before Pyper is lost?Witches of Bourbon StreetJade Calhoun was never fond of her empath abilities. Now she's discovered she has another gift she'd rather not unwrap--magic. But when her mentor, Bea, becomes gravely ill and insists Jade's the only one who can help, she's forced to embrace her witchy side.It's too bad she spent a decade shunning the magical community and never learned to harness her powers. Because time's run out. A trapped spirit has revealed a clue to Jade's long-lost mother. The resident angel has gone rogue and disappeared with Jade's boyfriend, Kane. And if that wasn't enough, her ex appears to be possessed.To save any of them, Jade will need to find a way to control her inner white witch--without succumbing to black magic. Otherwise, she'll lose everything...including her soul.