Named one of the Best Indie Historical Novels of 2015 (Kirkus Reviews). Also honored by the Catholic Press Association, the Independent Book Publisher Awards, and the National Indie Excellence Awards. Set in the English Dark Ages. A warrior gives his son to a monastery that rides the border between two rival Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. Growing up in a land wracked by war and plague, the child learns of the oath that binds him to the church and forces a cruel choice upon him. To love one father, he must betray another. The decision he makes shatters his world and haunts him forever. This quietly exotic novel places us compellingly in another time, another place, where chieftains fear holy men, holy men fear the world, and prayer has the primal force of fire. While entirely a work of fiction, the novel's background is historically accurate. Readers will find themselves treated to a history of the Dark Ages unlike anything available today outside of textbooks and original source material.
William Peak received his baccalaureate degree from Washington & Lee University and his master's from the creative writing program at Hollins University. He works for the Talbot County Free Library on Maryland's Eastern Shore. He edits the library's newsletter, writes press releases, writes and designs promotional material, does public speaking for the library, leads book and poetry discussions, works both the Reference and Circulation Desks, and writes The Star Democrat's library column (archived at http://www.tcfl.org/peak.)
