Virago: Origins of the Once & Future King

by K.L. Nofziger

As a last resort to improve her dissertation, graduate student and black belt Vivienne Rousseau takes the advice of her elusive mentor and reluctantly heads to the estate museum of Mark Twain. Little does she know that this Saturday excursion turns into a chase across his lawn...and centuries back into the dark ages of splintered Britain.

Ab urbe condita anno viginiti duodecim...The year from our founded city twelve and twenty-two...known by history as 469 AD under the Roman Empire.

To survive, she heeds at the mercy of a warlord, Riothamus, and accrues unlikely friendships among his ranks and a lone wolf. From scholar to soldier, she uses her intellect and combative skill to forge a new role ruled by men. There she is given a new name: Virago.

Through inexplicable forces, she must adapt to an illusive time in history full of tribes, rural customs, and violence to find answers. Conflicted if she will ever return to the future, little does Virago realize that she will seal the destiny of a man who inspired an infamous legend...and create her own.

726 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 9, 2021

About the author

So many ideas and so many possibilities swirl in my head...and yet none really took to paper. Or computer screen, more accurately.

Until Arthur. The real one. Not the boy king who pulled a sword from a stone anvil and succeeded a chaotic realm with an aging sorcerer.

But, rather, a Breton prince who became a warlord taking the scraps of a depleting empire, and made his own, only to vanish...and inspire a legend.

In the late fall of 2016 in Edinburgh, with Arthur's Seat in the short distance, to the following new year in Columbus, I knew I had to write this story. No matter how daunting and time-consuming, I had to.

Three years later came Virago.

And continues on.

Reviews

[Emylee Gussler]

Virago has everything. Adventure, intrigue, romance, war, and a glimpse of history. Beautifully executed, and captivating. An enthralling journey through the eyes of the protagonist as she is thrust into the past navigates her way through history.

[Rachael Jakubowski]

I loved this book so much. The character development was engrossing. Clearly a LOT of research was done in the process of writing the book. The plot kept me intrigued the entire time, and I definitely can’t wait for the next book in the series. For a debut novel, this knocks it out of the park; Ms. Nofziger has shown us her talents, and I cannot wait to see where she goes from here with her writing adventures.

[Klissia]

I dont understand the plot of this book at all... But I like History and the final part of the story was interesting...