Saint Sanguinus, by Julia Smith
Posted: Friday, November 11, 2011 by Travis Cody inYou'll find my Five on Friday Set if you scroll down. You'll also find my Veterans Day tribute to those who have served and who currently serve our country in the armed forces.
I'm excited to have a guest post here today. Please welcome Julia Smith from A Piece of My Mind. She is publishing her very first novel, to be released next week.
The Unknown Soldier’s Last Battlefield
My debut novel SAINT SANGUINUS begins with a Dark Age Welsh warrior during his last moments on the battlefield. This is an image I find particularly poignant.
Perhaps because my birthday falls on Remembrance Day in Canada, and on Veteran’s Day in the US, but I have always felt a keen kinship with soldiers and warriors. In particular, when any mention is made of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, I can become instantly emotional.
So perhaps that’s why this story began for me with an ending, with the last gasping moments of a warrior’s life, when he finds himself pinned to the ground by a spear.
What would happen if this skilled warrior—outraged by being cut down in such a common manner—cursed God with his dying breath, rather than praying to be taken into God’s care?
What would happen if his curse called forth a vampire to offer that which he so desperately desired—another chance at life?
What would it be like for him to discover he’d been made into a guardian between humans and vampires, pledged to ensure neither side annihilates the other?
There have been so many young men who have perished on battlefields throughout history. As a fellow Peace Blogger, I hope there may be future generations who never have to send any further young people to take their last breath in a foreign land, on a bed of blood.
You can visit me at www.juliaphillipssmith.com, on Facebook, and follow me on Twitter.
Thanks Julia! Good luck with the book!
Good luck, Julia! And happy birthday to you! :)