The Deadly Mark

by Katherine Nader

In 1821, several forces come together to unite a fractured, war-torn kingdom. Kathleen being the centre of the conflict and the heiress to the throne is propelled into a terrifying world of power and responsibility by a king as harsh as the land he was born to rule. Threatened by the desires of dangerous men who see her as only a pawn in their games of power, Kathleen is trapped by the hands of a cruel prince, who has proven he will stop at nothing to have his way. And if he can't have her, no one will. Sweeping from household to household, a secret of death and murder causes each life to hang in balance in a war of kill or be killed. Tragedy and betrayal, vengeance and forgiveness, disgrace and terror, and the fate of the Kingdom rely on the secret of the deadly mark.

ebook

First published August 13, 2012

About the author

I'm a biologist, an author, an artist, and a leader of many things. At the University of Toronto, I'm a society coordinator for the English and Drama department, where I organize lectures, workshops and events with my team. At Arbitrage Magazine, I work as an Online Editor, publishing posts for ARB TV and Features.

The Deadly Mark is the first work I ever got published. It started as my homework for a Writer's Craft course at Bronte College right around the time when I was watching Starz's Spartacus: Blood and Sand. I have to tell you that I was greatly inspired by Spartacus' relationship with his wife, including his loyalty to Batiatus until he found out the truth. Fans of such a great show, might like my novel even though it takes place in a whole different era.

I completed my English minor at Oxford University, and all I have left now is my biology degree. I've taken up screenwriting at the moment, and will look to publish some other stories I've worked on through ebook only this time.

For future works, I have considered plotting a sequel for The Deadly Mark, but it all depends on you readers. It would be called The Deadly War. In the meantime, I will be screenwriting thanks to Toronto Film School.

Reviews

[Tania Ramos · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is Katherine Nader's debut book and she did a great job. Written in third person omniscient, not everyone can pull this off, but she did it with ease. The story of a princess with suicidal ideations so strong, her father had to attach a guard just to keep her alive-from herself.
A princess, a corrupt king, a suitor, a dead prince, and a deadly secret that will be taken to the grave if needed. This book has it all. I look forward to Katherine's future books and have the pleasure in placing her as a featured book on writingapocalypse.com, where we support quality indie books.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book definitely has a lot of potential. I read the preview when it first came out on kobo and 10 pages was just not enough!! The whole story got me hooked from the first page. The beginning paragraph made me think it was going to be a love story only to find out the opposite. Kathleen is no ordinary person to mess with. That's one tough and crazy character but it's what kept me wanting to read more.

I could just never figure out what she was going to do next. I guess very unpredictable characters can hold your curiosity for a while. I had so many questions and I was so glad they were answered in the end. I thought I would have to beg for a sequel. The story does leave off with the brink of war though, so if there is a sequel I'll have to read it! I really want to know who wins the throne.

[Sarena Nanua · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5* Review to come on blog!