Sven Thorvaldson, is a Varangian mercenary from the icy fjords of Norðvegr. He has troubles. He owes men money. There is an old enemy in pursuit of him. And, following an ambush and a disastrous defeat at the Gates of Trajan, he has doubts about the competence of Basil II Emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire, the man to whom he sold his sword and his allegiance. Furthermore, he was born an Úlfhéðinn, a wolf-bound berserker, never fully in control of the wolf in his nature.
After Sven is sent to take out men Basil is convinced are part of a plot to unseat him from his throne, he stumbles upon a much deeper conspiracy. Hidden among the pillared streets and shadowed halls of Constantinople, is a circle of men who hold the secrets of the undoing of kingdoms and empires. Adelfótita tou Lámprou – Brotherhood of Lampros. At the center of it all is a mysterious casket unlocked by three keys. And one of them is in the possession of Sven’s estranged lover, Freydis.
As Basil’s enemies range against him from every faction, it soon becomes apparent that his only hope is the six thousand Varangian warriors in the household of Vladimir, Prince of the Rus. And the one man to serve as emissary – Sven Thorvaldsson – who has been exiled from Vladimir’s druzhina on pain of death.
AS the Brotherhood threatens to engulf anyone who has become ensnared in the knowledge of their schemes, Sven is in a race to save Freydis before they catch up with her. The cost is high and Sven pays for it more dearly than he could ever have imagined.
The Serpentine Key is a tale of blood-oaths and court intrigue, of ancient brotherhoods and the beast within. In a world where empires fall and wolves rise, Sven must decide whether the cost of love can overcome the price of betrayal.