Odin's Betrayal

Charlemagne's Cross, Book 1

By: Donovan Cook

Narrated by: Sean Barrett

Two kingdoms destined for war. One boy caught in the eye of the storm...

Francia AD853

After a failed Viking raid on the Frankish coast over 20-years-ago, Jarl Sven the Boar is forced to leave his only son, Torkel, as a hostage and warned never to raid Francia again or his son will die.

In Hügelburg, a small town in East Francia, Torkel and his 9-year-old son Charles are ambushed at home. Before dying, Torkel thrusts a package into young Charles’s hands and tells him to flee Francia for Denmark in search of his grandfather Sven the Boar’s protection.

But the man Charles eventually finds is not who he expects, and Charles must put his fate in the hands of a man betrayed by Odin.
Together they must uncover the significance of the package and why the Kings of Francia want Charles dead.

The start of an action packed, dark age historical adventure from Donovan Cook, perfect for the fans of Matthew Harffy, Peter Gibbons and Bernard Cornwell

'An action-packed scintillating thriller. Pacy, raw, violent fayre, with a cast of characters you'll swiftly loathe or admire - you'll think you're in the shield wall' Ross Greenwood

'A fabulous Norse tale of family secrets, betrayal and conflict right up until the very last page - I loved it!' MJ Porter

'Donovan Cook’s Charlemagne’s Cross series has everything I look for in a tale of the Dark Ages. Adventure and gritty action set against the backdrop of clashing religions and the collision of kingdoms. Great stuff!' Matthew Harffy

©2023 Donovan Cook (P)2023 Boldwood Books

Great story and even better performance

Donovan Cook’s first book in this series is filled with great characters, lots of action and plot twists. Sean Barrett’s performance is outstanding and allows the listener to FEEL the emotions of the characters as the tale is told. Great job by all.

Great Story

I really enjoyed this tale the Norse. The reader did an excellent job and I can barely wait for the next tale from Donovan Cook and this reader. In fact, since I see no more by Cook I’ll search for the reader.

Fantasy not historical fiction

If you’re looking for something that is rooted in Dane or even Frankish history skip it. I’m assuming the author did little to no research on life pre 1000 AD. There’s far better out there.