Welcome to Uncaged! In September, you released the 3rd book in The Clan Donald Saga, The Strongest Heart. Can you tell readers more about this series? I have noticed that book four is in the works. How many books are you planning for the series?
The series is set in medieval Scotland and Ireland and spans the 12th to the 15th centuries. It tells the stories of the Clan Donald chieftains, the great sea lords who plied the waters of the Hebrides and the Irish Sea in their galleys, and the women they loved. The chiefs ruled the western Highlands and Isles for four hundred years and were men of great deeds. It’s my first venture into historical fiction where almost all the characters are real historical figures. I began with Somerled in Summer Warrior, and then Angus Og Macdonald, the friend of Robert the Bruce, in Bound by Honor, and my latest release, The Strongest Heart, tells the story of Donald Macdonald of Harlaw.
As for how many books will be in the series, I would say at least four. The fourth is Born to Trouble and that’s the one I am writing now.
The Clan Donald Series connects to your own true ancestors. Can you tell us more about that?
Like most Americans, my ancestry draws from many countries but at least a third of mine is Scottish, in particular Clan Donald and the Isle of Islay. I first became interested in Somerled, the Norse-Gael who forged the Kingdom of the Isles. His parentage was noble, of the Kings of Dublin, the royal house of Argyll and the great Ard Ri, the High Kings of Ireland. His story and his love for a Norse king’s daughter are told in Summer Warrior. From there, I set out to tell about the chiefs who descended from him.
What is the most difficult scene for you to write? What is the easiest?
The most difficult is always the battle scene. Medieval battles were brutal and while I want to be realistic, I don’t want my readers to be put off. It’s a delicate balance at times. The easiest scenes are the ones where the characters reflect on their families, their times and the things they can’t change but want to. In the story I’m writing now, Born to Trouble, Alexander, the Lord of the Isles, has three women in his life as love interests and that will require some delicacy to get it right.
Read the rest of the interview in the issue of Uncaged Book Reviews below
Regan Walker is an award-winning, #1 Amazon bestselling author of Regency, Georgian and Medieval novels that are historically authentic.
Among the awards she has won are the Gold Medal in the Readers Choice Book Awards, the Gold Medal in the Illumination Awards, 1st place in the Chaucer Awards, the International Book Award for Romance Fiction, the San Diego Book Award for Best Historical Romance, the President’s Book Awards of The Florida Authors & Publishers Association, the RONE Award for Best Medieval Novel (twice) and the Kindle Book Award.
You can sign up for her newsletter on her website and get the “Reader Extras” there, too. Regan loves to hear from her readers.
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The Strongest Heart
Regan Walker
Historical Scottish Fiction
In the late 14th century, the Kingdom of the Isles was under assault from the ambitious Albany Stewarts, who were taking advantage of Scotland’s empty throne to increase their power. Jealous of the Macdonald lordship to the west, the ruthless Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany, thwarted Donald of Islay, Lord of the Isles, at every turn.
A man of keen intelligence, strategy and faith, educated at Oxford and a frequent guest of England’s kings, Donald did not intend to allow a traitorous royal thug to rob him of his legacy. The Earldom of Ross was the buffer he needed to keep the Isles safe. Not unmindful of all that was at stake, he took as his bride Mariota, heiress to the Earldom of Ross.
What he could not achieve through diplomacy or marriage, Donald was prepared to claim by right of the sword. In the greatest battle Scotland has ever seen, he would demonstrate the power of the Isles to become the Hero of Harlaw.
Excerpt
MARIOTA HAD NOT missed Lord Donald’s eyes upon her. She would be his right arm if she could, speaking her mind to give him advice and encouragement when there was opportunity, for the burden he carried was great.
Turning his eyes from her, he asked his brother, “Is the feast well in hand?”
“Aye, the hunt yesterday brought some large bucks. This morning, the men will fish and tonight…well, there is hope for the geese.”
“The barnacle geese?” asked Mariota.
“The very ones,” said Lord Alexander. “Their arrival is a sight that astounds no matter how many times you witness it.”
When they had finished eating, Lord Donald offered her his hand. She took it, relishing the warmth of his skin against hers. His hand was strong and browned from the sun, a hand she thought to hold for the rest of her life.
He announced to the others, “I am taking my betrothed on a tour of the festivities.”
“Alone?” asked Lord Alexander with feigned incredulity.
“Alone!” said Lord Donald.
“The chief demands his way,” said Lachlan Maclean with a smirk as he nudged his son, Hector.
“Enough!” said Lord Donald. “We will see you at the feast.”
“Will you be engaging in any of the games of skill?” asked John. “I might want to watch.”
“We will see,” said Lord Donald as he guided her to the door.
“He is very good at archery!” shouted Lord Alexander when they were nearly there. “But not as good as me!”
Laughter sounded behind them as they left the great hall.
“Would you allow me to call you Mariota?”
She met his blue-eyed gaze. “Yes, and will you be just ‘Donald’ then to me?”
“I would like that, and you may call me Donnie, if you like. Many in my family do.”
With that, he swept her away to a halcyon day she would always remember.
They strolled along the shore of the large island, greeting everyone they met with smiles that spoke of their contentment in their own company. He greeted the people by name, receiving in turn their many greetings.
“Will you always hold my hand like this?” she asked.
“Always,” he said, squeezing her hand.
Minstrels played their instruments of lute, harp, pipe and tabor, the music wafting through the air. In one corner, a bard recited verses, drawing a crowd. One clever clansman was telling a group of children a story using a poppin-show, the cloth figures with funny faces and odd-fitting clothing making the children laugh. She thought of the children she and Donald would one day have, imagining them sitting here before the storyteller.
Farther on, they crossed over the causeway to the banks of the loch, past the tents, kennels, stables and guardhouse to where three large archery targets had been set up in a row. “We will return here to see Alex display his skills.”
“And you?”
“Perhaps. Then, too, your Welshman, Gwyn, might compete.”
She had not mentioned the two men from Ross she had sent earlier to learn of him. Now it seemed right to do so. “You did not mind that I dispatched two of my own to the Isles to observe my betrothed?”
His mouth quirked up on one side. “I thought you very clever to do so. Did they give a good report?”
“A very good report. I told my mother that she had lost them to your service, so enthralled were they with the new Lord of the Isles.”
“If you and Sir Thomas agree,” he said, “I would make him the head of your guard. As the Lady of the Isles, you will need one. With your permission, I would keep Gwyn in my service as his bow has proved needful.”
Read the rest of the excerpt below
