Hello and welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors, the blog hop where writers from a wide variety of genres share from their work in excerpts of ten sentences or less. I’m sharing from my current work in progress, a reimagined fairy tale based on the story of Snow White.  Only in my version, Snow is a handsome young prince named Gabriel, the huntsman  (Falkner) may or may not be a romantic interest, and the evil queen is an unhinged king, who also happens to be Gabriel’s brother.  In this scene, Tristan the king is insisting that Gabriel join the hunt, and furthermore, that they venture into the dangerous wilds of the Black Forest.  You can read last week’s snippet here.

Tristan speaks first:

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“You’re both afraid.”

“I’ll admit to that,” Falkner said. “Afraid of getting hopelessly lost; this fog only makes it worse. The paths have not been maintained and we’re more likely to break a horse’s leg than bag a boar….or a gryffon.”

“It mocks us,” Tristan repeated in a low voice. He released Gabriel in order to focus his full wrath on the impenetrable wood bordering the edge of his kingdom.

“Has their been…activity?” Gabriel asked, unable to keep the incredulity out of his voice. The war between the creatures of the Black Forest and the men of Rosenthal, Craigmoor and Brandenburg had been waged in their great-grandfather’s time. No sane man entered the forest willingly since then, nor had any magical creatures been seen on this side of the river, unless one believed the tall tales of wild-eyed wanderers and borderland hermits. Stories of the forest were told to frighten children—and sometimes adults—around the hearth fire on dark winter nights, but no dwarves or trolls had occupied the dungeons of Rosenthal for fifty years or more.

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Not sure if a Plumeria grove can ever look scary, but it was fun trying.

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Blurb-in-progress for Snow, a reimagined fairy tale:

Following the death of his mother the Queen, Prince Gabriel is called home by his brother, now King. Gabriel hopes for a reconciliation with his estranged brother, but all is not well at Castle Rosenthal. King Tristan has fallen under the sway of a scheming alchemist, the magical denizens of the bordering Black Forest are on the move, and Gabriel begins to fear for his life. Is the handsome huntsman in on a plot to assassinate him, or is there an even darker, more evil force afoot? A forced flight into the Black Forest may expose ancient powers at work, if Gabriel can survive long enough to uncover them.

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Weekend Writing Warriors is a blog hop where writers from a wide variety of genres share from their work in excerpts of ten sentences or less.  Click the link to check out the other writers participating today.  It’s a great way to discover your next favorite book