The Princess of Sparta: Heroes of the Trojan War
Read The Princess of Sparta: Heroes of the Trojan War Online
Authors: Aria Cunningham
Tags: #Historical Romance
Praise for Aria Cunningham's
The princess of sparta
_________________________________________________
"Masterfully written and pulling from one of the most memorable myths to come out of ancient Greece,
Princess of Sparta
reminds readers that even in the throes of a violent world people can be weakened by love, and will go to great lengths, even risking death, for the ones they love."
- SAN FRANCISCO BOOK REVIEW
"Aria Cunningham presents the coming-of-age of a character often portrayed as a mere pawn in the wars of men and expertly re-interprets the "Herstory" behind Helen's legendary tale. Sprinkled with tunic-tearing passion, Cunningham paints this popular story with an exquisite brush and reinvents one of the greatest love stories ever told."
-BTS BOOK REVIEW
"The Princess of Sparta
is the perfect blend of history, romance, and action giving this book a broader reach with readers. The characters come alive in this forlorn world of long ago as they share their joy, pain, and struggles. Once you pick this book up, there's no turning back or putting it down!"
-PORTLAND BOOK REVIEW
"As a reader, I was left wanting to read the next book in Aria Cunningham's series, so that I can see how she will flesh out this next part of their lives. Legend has taught us how this will end, but the Heroes of the Trojan War series promises to bring it to life for me."
-HISTORICAL NOVEL SOCIETY
"The characters had depth and compassion. I will be honest in saying I started the read without much knowledge in regards to who Helen was, other than the woman who started a war. Now I feel like I have a greater appreciation for her and her struggle."
-WOLF MAJICK REVIEWS
"I quickly found my ideas of Helen the bratty beauty fall away, and be replaced with a more female empowered version. What Cunningham quickly reminded me of, is that there are many sides to one story, and I might just prefer this romantic one the best!"
-BOOKS HUG BACK
All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2014 Aria Cunningham
Cover design by JR Burningham
ISBN:
099142011X
ISBN-13: 978-0-9914201-1-7
, a division of Mythmakers Entertainment | Los Angeles
www.mythmakersent.com
To JR, my Prince of Destiny.
Acknowledgments:
This novel could not have been possible without the encouragement and moral support of my friends and family.Writing seems a solitary endeavor until it is time to publish, and then it takes a village of diligent people to bring the tale to its audience.A special thank you to my Betas- to Autumn, my rock of sensible input, to Claire- who’s enthusiasm brightens the weary soul, to Dori, Renee, Amanda and Carol, and to everyone who donated to the publishing fund. And lastly, to my Alpha, JR. Your keen sense of story never ceases to amaze me.
May we always live extraordinary lives.
THE PRINCESS
of
SPARTA
Heroes of the Trojan War
by
Aria Cunningham
LOS ANGELES
Table of Contents
Chapter 3 - Alliances of Blood
Chapter 4 - The Love that Binds
Chapter 7 - The Court of Smiths
Chapter 9 - The Trojan Ambassador
Chapter 11 - The Familiar Stranger
Chapter 12 - A Conflict of Interests
Chapter 17 - The House of Atreus
Chapter 18 - Festival of Life and Death
Chapter 19 - Aphrodite's Price
Chapter 20 - Questionable Conduct
Chapter 22 - The Honorable Thing
Chapter 23 - The Ruin of our House
The End of Empire
Prologue
OUT OF DARKNESS, there came light.
Mankind and all its glory was once nothing more than barbaric clans roaming the earth, hunter-gatherers whose power came from shaping stone.
From that primitive landscape came order. Both land and beast were tamed, weapons of bronze forged, populations grew, and eventually an Age of Empire emerged. Mighty kings built temples, pyramids and fortresses to honor the heavens, feats of human achievement that would go unmatched for eons to come.
But such greatness came at a terrible cost. For a thousand years, the drums of war thundered, and the land ran red with the blood of Egypt, Babylon, Assyria, Hatti and the Levant alike.
Each kingdom, emboldened by delusions of their greatness, was eager to claim the world for their own. Entrenched in oppressive regimes, these empires rotted from within. Corruption and political squabbles hindered their societies from advancement. And in their hubris, they failed to see the fearsome truth before them—
They would soon be destroyed.
In the West, a new power was rising. The Greeks of Mycenae lived along the northern Mediterranean at the very edge of the known world. A mere two hundred years young, their fledgling society was a child amongst the giants of the Old World. Fiercely independent and half wild themselves, they sought the two things that eluded them: power and influence.
While their legacy would give birth to classical art, philosophy and mathematics, these Greeks were brutal men, mercenaries who believed heroic deeds were always those of the sword. They had no inkling of the important role they would play in the advancement of mankind, for that was not a future they sought. And, if not for a singular event that changed the tide of human history, the Greeks, and therefore the Western world, might never have existed.
The time was 1250 BC. The world was moving from the Age of Bronze to that of Iron, and warfare was on the brink of a new revolution. As the Empires of Old struggled for domination, the fate of their people remained uncertain. The world needed but a spark to ignite a flame that would consume them all.
That spark would come from the West. Her name was Helen, Princess of Sparta.
But history would remember her as Helen of Troy.
