forgotten rites publishing

A dying warrior. A cursed berserker. A stolen weapon that could doom the Nine Realms.

When shield-maiden Astrid Bjornsdottir falls in battle, the goddess Freya offers her an impossible choice: die and let the world crumble, or live as a thrall to complete a deadly mission. Erik Bloodaxe, eldest son of Clan Bloodraven, has stolen Blodravn god-forged weapon that seals the barrier between Helheim and the mortal world. Without it, the draugr will breach the veil and consume the living.

Astrid must infiltrate Erik’s clan, earn his trust, and retrieve the weapon before reality itself unravels. But Erik is no ordinary jarl. Cursed since birth with an uncontrollable berserker rage, he believes the stolen spear is his only hope for redemption. Scarred by violence and haunted by everyone his curse has destroyed, he keeps the world at arm’s length with calculated coldness.

As Astrid poses as his thrall, she discovers the man beneath the monster is far more complex than the gods warned. Erik’s curse is not mere rage but hunger-a consuming force that devours everything he loves. Yet in his careful discipline, his fierce protection of his clan, and the rare moments when his icy control cracks, she glimpses something unexpected: a man fighting desperately to be more than his worst impulses.

Torn between her divine mission and growing feelings for the berserker she’s sworn to betray, Astrid faces an impossible truth: saving the world might require destroying the one person who’s begun to matter more than her oath.

In a tale of gods and monsters, oaths and betrayals, two wounded souls must choose between duty and desire before the veil between worlds shatters forever.

Perfect for readers who crave Sarah J. Maas’s emotional intensity, Jennifer L. Armentrout’s steamy romance, and authentic Norse mythology, BLADE AND BONE delivers Viking warriors, Norse gods, forbidden attraction, and the ultimate question: can love survive when built on lies?