THE HUGUENOT SWORD by Shawn Lamb

Christian Historical Fiction

In the time of Louis XIII and Cardinal Richelieu, when being a Protestant could mean death, The Huguenot Sword roamed the streets of Paris by night, defending those faithful to the young heretical religion. The nobility scorned them as ruffians. To the oppressed Protestants they were saviors, but to the Cardinal’s Guards they were a pestilence needing to be terminated.

The situation becomes desperate when those in power launch a bold plan to destroy the group. One wrong move can be fatal. But the ordeal of Paris pales in comparison to the possible annihilation of the faith and people at the Battle of La Rochelle.

Excerpt:

Chapter 1

      A large man of twenty-three years, dressed in black doublet, breeches and cloak stood by the door. He peeked out the small opening of the door into the dark night. Standing several inches over six feet, he had to look down through the opening. He shrugged the cloak over his shoulder to move for a better view. The black gloves he wore were stretched to the brink of ripping in an attempt to cover his massive hands. Thick sable hair hung like a wavy mane about his face. On the table in the center of the room were a large black hat and mask.

Beside the table stood a young man of roughly the same age, only a head shorter and thirty pounds lighter. His black outfit was almost identical to his companion and he wore the black mask. He held his hat, fingers nervous in clenching the brim. Even with the mask, his blonde hair and mustache were in marked contrast to his dark disguise. The lamp on the table burned low, yet danced in his hazel eyes, which changed shades with his mood. His focus shifted from a hallway leading further into the house to the door.

“Dominic,” he hissed to get the attention of the other. “Any sign of the Cardinal’s men?”

“No.” Dominic turned from his vigil to glance down the hall. “What of Arsène?”

“Nothing yet, and they should be ready to leave.”

Both became alert at hearing running feet coming down the hall and a harsh call, “Make ready!”

 Dominic slammed the opening shut and moved to stand beside his companion.

“Arsène,” he said to Dominic upon recognizing the voice.

A third young man dressed in identical clothes appeared, only with black hair, clean-shaven, handsome features and blue eyes illuminated by the candlelight. He removed his hat, tossed it onto the table and withdrew a mask from his doublet pocket to put on.

They mimicked Arsène in donning the masks and placing their hats securely on their heads.

“De Lacy?” Arsène asked Dominic.

“No. Maybe we succeeded in thwarting the traitor.”

“Whether we did or didn’t, does not change what must be done. Philipe, the west route,” he said to the blond man then held out his right arm. “For faith.”

“For friendship,” said Philipe, taking hold of Arsène’s arm.

“For freedom,” said Dominic, adding his hand to make a triangle of clasped arms.

After a nod from Arsène, Dominic returned to the door. He waited for Philipe to extinguish the lamp before opening the door enough to poke his head out and look up and down the street. “All clear.”

Arsène moved to the hallway and called in the same voice as earlier. “Go!” He turned and waved to Philipe. The latter took the lead in leaving the house, followed by Arsène and Dominic.

At the corner, Arsène stopped and gazed intently down an adjacent alley. Philipe halted across the boulevard when he noticed Arsène stop. Dominic fell in behind Philipe.

“Well?” asked Philipe.

Arsène moved to join them. “They are away.”

“Why does he not want us as escort?” asked Dominic.

“He does. After we pass Tuileries we are to rendezvous.”

Arsène signaled and once again Philipe took the lead.

Along the dark, quiet streets of Paris they moved fast yet making as little noise as possible for any sound traveled a good distance in such stillness. The quarter moon gave off little light by which to see, but that didn’t trouble them as they navigated the pre-determined route.

 Reviews/Notices/Awards:

If you like the Three Musketeers, the Scarlet Pimpernell, and Zorro, you will like this story. Adventure, disguises, intrigues, court life, expectations of family, arranged marriage, and elements of romance and temptation all enter into the plot and storyline.

Three young men try to live by their motto, "For Friendship, for Faith, and for Freedom," while aiding the Huguenot Resistance in France. Plenty of swordfighting, pursuits and escapes, and insight into how young people view faith as they mature and make decisions about what they really believe and how it will shape their conduct.  ~~ Amazon Review

Why did Shawn write THE HUGUENOT SWORD?

I have loved historical fiction since I was a kid. I couldn't read enough books or watch enough swashbuckling movies. In fact, as a teen, I had a major crush on D'Artagnan. While other girls swooned over Mr. Darcy, I wanted to fight beside D'Artagnan. Hence I took up fencing with the rapier and trained for the 1984 Olympics. I was also considered to be the fencing stunt double for Bo Derek in a pirate that unfortunately got canned.


THE HUGUENOT SWORD started out as homage to all those authors of yesterday, Dumas and Rafael Sabatini. However, as I began researching, I discovered information about Henri, the Duc d Rohan. He was a key leader of the French Huguenots, and actually, very influential with many European princes and powerful lords. He is credited with singlehandedly withstanding Richelieu and keeping the Huguenots alive. For such a man of integrity and stature to be overlooked is surprising. This changed my intent and became a story of faith and courage shown by people under great persecution.


Author Bio:


Shawn Lamb is the author of the YA allegorical fantasy series ALLON and the newly released Christian historical fiction novel THE HUGUENOT SWORD. She began her writing career in television. Shawn wrote for Filmation Studio's series BraveStar. She won several screenwriting awards including a Certificate of Merit for the American Association of Screenwriters. Recently she became a winner in the The Authors Show contest 50 Great Writers You Should Be Reading for 2011.




Purchase Links:


Amazon (including Kindle). http://tinyurl.com/7f9z2gd


Barnes & Noble (including Nook). http://tinyurl.com/7rbexrq


Allon Books. http://www.allonbooks.com/huguenot_sword.html