"Askeladd has embarked on the greatest gamble of his career, playing off the brave but thick Thorkell the Tall against the king's own guard in an attempt to "rescue" the youngest prince, and pocket a handsome reward. Yet a grueling march past the ruins of empires, with winter closing in, tests the loyalty of Askeladd's band, and the truel loyalties of Askeladd himself may lie not with the Vikings of the present but with a legendary king of the bygone pst..."--Provided by publisher.
