{"id":123282,"date":"2022-03-14T18:14:18","date_gmt":"2022-03-14T18:14:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.scifinow.co.uk\/?p=123282"},"modified":"2022-03-14T18:14:18","modified_gmt":"2022-03-14T18:14:18","slug":"silver-queendom-cover-and-chapter-one-exclusively-revealed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scifinow.co.uk\/books\/silver-queendom-cover-and-chapter-one-exclusively-revealed\/","title":{"rendered":"Silver Queendom: Cover and Chapter One exclusively revealed"},"content":{"rendered":"

Con artists, a terribly-run inn and a high-paying criminal job with less-than-ideal stakes? The good news is Dan Koboldt’s upcoming novel Silver Queendom<\/em><\/strong> has it all. The bad news is that the book isn’t out until this summer. Luckily we at SciFiNow hate bad news so we’re exclusively revealing the awesome cover of Silver Queendom\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>PLUS revealing Chapter One of the novel right here!<\/p>\n

But first, check out the official synopsis for Silver Queendom…<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Service at the Red Rooster Inn isn\u2019t what you\u2019d call “good,” or even “adequate.” Darin would be the first to say so, and he owns the place. Evie isn\u2019t much of a barmaid; Kat\u2019s home-brewed ale seems to grow less palatable with each new batch; and Seraphina\u2019s service at the bar leaves much to be desired. As for the bouncer, Big Tom, well, everyone learns right quick to stay on his good side.<\/p>\n

They may be bad at running an inn, but they\u2019re the best team of con artists in the Old Queendom. When a prospective client approaches Darin with a high-paying job, he knows he should refuse. But the job is boosting a shipment of priceless imperial dream wine, the most coveted and expensive drink in the world. And, thanks to a stretch of bad luck, he’s in deep to The Dame, who oversees criminal enterprises in this part of the Queendom.<\/div>\n

If they fail, they\u2019re as good as dead, but if they succeed\u2026 well, it\u2019s enough money to get square with the Dame and make all of their dreams come true. Plus, it’s an option for Darin to stick it to the empress, who he has good reason to despise.<\/p>\n

Then again, there\u2019s a very good reason no one has ever stolen imperial dream wine…<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Want to enter Darin’s world and discover more about the Queendom? Read Chapter One of Silver Queendom <\/em><\/strong>right here…<\/p>\n

\n

CHAPTER ONE<\/strong><\/p>\n

Uninvited Guests<\/strong><\/p>\n

Darin Fields never got invited to elegant affairs, but that didn\u2019t stop him from showing up.<\/p>\n

Tonight\u2019s occasion was a gala hosted by the Duchess of Eskirk to celebrate the end of harvest season. Nevermind that the Rethaltan nobles in attendance had little to do with the harvest itself. No, they had people for that. They packed the ballroom of the duchess\u2019s summer palace like colorful hens. The buzz of nervous conversation filled the air, and beneath that, a heavy layer of perfume. Neither was sufficient to dispel the salty-sweet odor of fear. After all, there was always a risk that the duchess might make an appearance at her own gala.<\/p>\n

Only the blood plague killed more nobles than Her Grace\u2019s temper.<\/p>\n

At least the plague could be avoided; its bright red pustules were hard to miss. The duchess offered no such warning, and the guests knew it. Their terror showed in how they snapped at one another like strange cats. How they didn\u2019t eat, but drank to excess. And not just any drink, either. Darin recognized the dark-wood barrel that everyone was looking at while pretending not to.<\/p>\n

Imperial dreamwine.<\/p>\n

Ounce for ounce, the most precious substance in the queendom. Dreamwine was an extravagance even for those born into prosperity. There were times in Darin\u2019s life when he might have afforded a glass. Brief times. But he vowed he\u2019d never touch the stuff no matter what it promised. The nobles drinking it sat on plush divans around the edges of the room, their eyes glazed with hallucinated euphoria. The nobles who hadn\u2019t yet indulged hid their impatience poorly.<\/p>\n

Thus distracted, they paid no attention to Darin as he slipped through the press and relieved them of their valuables.<\/p>\n

The first coin was the hardest. He plucked it fair and clean from the purse of a fat lordling who\u2019d already sweated through two layers of silk. It was a good coin, too: a queenpiece. He exhaled softly as he pressed the silver into his palm. The crowded room came sharply into focus. He moved more quickly now, cutting purse-strings with an invisible blade. Cajoling the coins into his pockets. Liberating the occasional necklace or jeweled brooch. He had a fortune of purloined jewelry secreted about his person, and fewer than ten paces to reach the exit, when he stepped on someone\u2019s boot.<\/p>\n

\u201cWatch yourself, you oaf!\u201d a man spat.<\/p>\n

Darin tried to ignore it, but someone grabbed his shoulder and spun him around. That shook something loose from the stash hidden in his jacket. Felt like one of the sapphire earrings. He whispered a silent prayer, and it fell into his breeches rather than clattering to the floor.<\/p>\n

The owner of the trodden boot, unfortunately, was not so easily swayed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI called you an oaf,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He was a highborn noble of the worst sort, young and fat-cheeked and angry. Darin wore the plain dyed woolens of a servant. It made him an easy target.<\/p>\n

\u201cApologies, m\u2019lord.\u201d Darin kept his body still, to minimize the clinking of half a dozen purses tied to his belt. \u201cI was just\u2013\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWipe it off.\u201d<\/p>\n

Oh, wonderful. This flabby brat actually wanted a fight. Darin took his measure while pretending to think it over. Soft<\/em> was the word for him. No callouses marked his hands. Big surprise. Men like this didn\u2019t work for a living. \u201cBeg pardon, m\u2019lord?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou scuffed my boot. Wipe it off.\u201d<\/p>\n

His breath carried the mingled smells of wine and spiced meat. The least-capable member of Darin\u2019s crew could gut him like a deer. But we don\u2019t have time for that.<\/em><\/p>\n

Darin made his voice cheerful. \u201cCan\u2019t say I see it, m\u2019lord.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s right there!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNever did have the best eyes, but I\u2019ll be certain to have them checked.\u201d<\/p>\n

A wisp of a girl in a silk-and-taffeta gown tittered with laughter behind a tiny hand. She looked barely of an age to be husband-shopping, but the gems encrusting her bodice could serve no other purpose. Darin\u2019s fingers itched just looking at them. Yet another highborn. So that was why he was putting on this display.<\/p>\n

Sure enough, the man\u2019s cheeks reddened even further. \u201cAre you mocking me?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWouldn\u2019t dream of it, m\u2019lord.\u201d Darin tried to move around him, but the man shifted over to block his path.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re not going anywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s terribly flattering of you, but I\u2019m happily spoken for.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou insolent little\u2013\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI wish I could stay and chat, but I\u2019ve been sent to fetch wine for my master. He\u2019s not a patient man, I\u2019m sure you understand.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWho is he?\u201d<\/p>\n

The pearl-and-silver necklace threatened to spill out of Darin\u2019s left sleeve, so he thought it best to head this fellow off. So he spoke the name of the most dangerous and short-tempered man in Eskirk. \u201cLord Peyton.\u201d<\/p>\n

Recognition bloomed in the man\u2019s eyes. Oh, yes.<\/em> Even the most wine-addled fool would know to be cautious here. Peyton had challenged and killed men for the smallest of insults. Harassing one of his personal servants would undoubtedly qualify.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ve heard of him, I take it,\u201d Darin said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI should hope so.\u201d The brat wore a smirk that stabbed unease straight into Darin\u2019s belly. \u201cAfter all, he\u2019s my father.\u201d<\/p>\n

Of course he was.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Being around all these nobles made Evie want to stab someone, but since her mother had raised her better than that, she\u2019d settle for robbing them blind.<\/p>\n

She glided between the embroidered frock-coats and opulent evening gowns, trying not to look at any of their faces. Better to consider them strangers, rather than the holders of names she once learned on her mother\u2019s lap. Better not to be recognized by anyone who would understand how far she\u2019d fallen. Her plain servant\u2019s garb rendered her practically invisible among so much finery.<\/p>\n

But not completely invisible, as the lecherous old Count of Sunbury\u2019s unwelcome hand in her skirts reminded her. She grabbed his pinky finger and bent it backward, rewarded with a yelp and the sight of the count spilling his drink on himself. He withdrew the offending hand when she released his finger. She moved on without a backward glance.<\/p>\n

She approached a pair of women in luxurious silk dresses, one as green as a cut emerald, the other a deeper blue than sapphire. Exotic dyes both, and that spoke to the wealth of their owners. \u201cDrinks, my ladies?\u201d She held forth a silver tray with seven little porcelain vessels. A few brandies, a cognac, and a small assortment of other spirits. Fine offerings by most accounts, but both women refused.<\/p>\n

\u201cCome back when you have dreamwine,\u201d said the one in green.<\/p>\n

Always with the dreamwine. Evie couldn\u2019t fathom their obsession with something so expensive, yet so fleeting. She dipped her head as they expected, then brushed her fingertips against the woman\u2019s side. \u201cWhat a lovely<\/em> bodice.\u201d She slid past, plucking two emeralds free and dropping them into her sleeves. Gemstones always brought good coin. A bit harder to move, perhaps, because you couldn\u2019t melt them down. Maybe that was why Darin often went for the silver instead. Well, that\u2019s not the <\/em>only reason<\/em>.<\/p>\n

She hadn\u2019t wanted to come here. Eskirk\u2019s gala was the event of the season. In the not-so-distant past, she\u2019d pleaded for an invitation. Begged.<\/em> But only the elite got their names inscribed in silver ink on the coveted scroll. Half a lifetime ago, that might have included her, but no more. She knew it, and so did the castellan who managed the guest list. He was deaf to her pleas, but not entirely immune to her charms. He looked her up and down and offered her a job serving drinks during the event. She\u2019d considered it just long enough to be polite, as much as she wanted to throw the offer back in his face. Serving those who were once her peers went beyond ordinary humiliation. Yet it was good she hadn\u2019t burned that bridge. The job paid far better tonight.<\/p>\n

Now, in the moment, she realized it was foolish to expect that anyone might recognize her. The invited guests were too self-involved and probably too inebriated to look twice at the help. Besides, she needed to be here to keep Darin out of trouble. He possessed certain talents, but marks like these had their own culture. Their own vocabulary. Understanding them required a childhood in their world, and for Evie, that was all she had. Even now, the timbre of rising voices from Darin\u2019s spot near the door told her he\u2019d gone off script.<\/p>\n

She wove her way through the crowd to find him squared off with a stout lordling who could only be Lord Peyton\u2019s eldest son. She tsked<\/em> to herself at Darin\u2019s impeccable ability to find trouble of the worst sort. She slid between them to present her tray at just the right level to draw his eyes to her cleavage. \u201cAnother drink, m\u2019lord?\u201d<\/p>\n

A girl in silk and taffeta to her right stared at Evie and fanned herself vigorously, the equivalent of a snarl. Well, nothing she could do about that now.<\/p>\n

\u201cA drink? No,\u201d said young Peyton. His eyes slid up and down her as if sizing up a hog at the market. \u201cIs that all you have to offer?\u201d<\/p>\n

Evie could almost sense Darin\u2019s blood rising, but gave him a curt signal to stand down and giggled, touching Peyton\u2019s arm. \u201cAt the moment, m\u2019lord. Perhaps later\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

The girl in taffeta gave her a look that would freeze imperial dreamwine. \u201cHe\u2019ll be busy later.\u201d<\/p>\n

Peyton\u2019s gaze shifted from Evie to the girl and then to Darin, who\u2019d begun to edge ever-so-casually toward the door. His eyes narrowed. \u201cWhere do you think you\u2019re going?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI was thinking anywhere but here,\u201d Darin said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re a liar,\u201d Peyton said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAn honest mistake, that\u2019s all.\u201d Darin offered a curt bow. \u201cMy apologies. I\u2019ll be on my\u2013\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWho are you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one of consequence.\u201d<\/p>\n

Men in dark blue uniforms had taken notice of the confrontation and began working their way through the crowd. Evie gave Darin a tilt of her head. They needed to break this off and get out before the audience got any bigger.<\/p>\n

But Peyton had other ideas. \u201cI\u2019ll have your name.\u201d He took a step forward and shoved Darin in the chest. \u201cOr I\u2019ll have you thrown in a cell.\u201d<\/p>\n

Silk-and-taffeta girl gasped. Palace guards had begun to quietly assemble in a loose circle around the two men. Darin drew a deep breath, and Evie could practically see the wheels turning. She prayed that he knew better than to try plan B. Not with Peyton here and spoiling for a fight. But even as she whispered the prayer, she knew there was little point. The gods were too deaf.<\/p>\n

Darin sighed. \u201cVery well.\u201d He adopted a new posture, spine straight, shoulders back. Evie caught his eye and ran two fingers through her hair\u2013her own panic signal. It was too late, though. He\u2019d slipped into the new role like a man tugging on his favorite jacket. \u201cMy father is Lord Delamere. Viscount of Harradine Fields.\u201d<\/p>\n

Silence fell over those within earshot. Faces turned toward them. And then, whispers flew across the room like wildfire. Guests elbowed one another, nodding in Darin\u2019s direction. It was all in the bearing, the diction. And the careful study of long-forgotten noble lineages.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re a peer,\u201d Peyton said.<\/p>\n

It might be Evie\u2019s imagination, but some of the ruthless bravado had faded from his voice. Still, this ruse made her nervous. Granted, the Viscount of Harradine Fields hadn\u2019t appeared in public for decades. No one here had seen him, or knew much of his family. The duchess\u2019s clerk might dispute Darin\u2019s claim, were the man not passed out under a table near the back. Even so, by taking this step, Darin opened himself up to new avenues of danger. Ones he wouldn\u2019t understand or see coming. The worst part was, she couldn\u2019t wave him off any longer. He\u2019d already spoken the name. She gripped the edge of her tray to keep her hands steady. She could feel the hilts of the daggers hidden up her sleeves. The cold steel was a comfort.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy father wished for me to keep a low profile,\u201d Darin was saying. He\u2019d settled into the casual confidence of a man born into wealth and privilege, like someone putting on a pair of favorite gloves.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnderstandable,\u201d said Peyton, through gritted teeth.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019ll excuse me.\u201d Darin put his back to them, and faced the ballroom door once again. The full weight of his gaze fell on the two guards in his way. They stepped aside hurriedly, murmuring apologies.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne more thing, Delamere,\u201d Peyton said.<\/p>\n

Darin turned right into the slap of the glove. His cheek reddened where it struck him; Peyton had put some weight behind it.<\/p>\n

Knew he wouldn\u2019t see it coming,<\/em> Evie groused to herself.<\/p>\n

\u201cI demand satisfaction,\u201d Peyton said.<\/p>\n

Satisfaction would be meeting this man in a dark alley, with a sharp dagger in each hand. Evie elected not to say so.<\/p>\n

Darin let out another sigh, a more theatrical one. Like a queen indulging a pleading commoner. \u201cTomorrow, at midday. Swords.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no reason to wait. As it happens, I brought mine with me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou brought your sword to a gala,\u201d Darin said.<\/p>\n

Peyton\u2019s eyes glinted victoriously. \u201cI like to be prepared.\u201d<\/p>\n

A hawk-nosed guardsman with two stripes on his shoulder stepped forward and coughed politely. \u201cMy lords, Her Grace the Duchess has a dueling green just outside.\u201d<\/p>\n

Evie pursed her lips. Of course she did.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Silver Queendom by Dan Koboldt is out on 23 August by Angry Robot. Pre-order here<\/a> and discover more book exclusives and cover with SciFiNow<\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We reveal the cover of Dan Koboldt’s upcoming novel Silver Queendom PLUS exclusively publish Chapter One of the novel…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":52,"featured_media":123283,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"MSN_Categories":"Entertainment","MSN_Publish_Option":true,"MSN_Is_Local_News":false,"MSN_Is_AIAC_Included":"Empty","MSN_Location":"[]","MSN_Add_Feature_Img_On_Top_Of_Post":false,"MSN_Has_Custom_Author":false,"MSN_Custom_Author":"","MSN_Has_Custom_Canonical_Url":false,"MSN_Custom_Canonical_Url":""},"categories":[1624,1718],"tags":[7375],"acf":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.scifinow.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Silver-Queendom_Final.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scifinow.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/123282"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scifinow.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scifinow.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scifinow.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/52"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scifinow.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=123282"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.scifinow.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/123282\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":123285,"href":"https:\/\/www.scifinow.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/123282\/revisions\/123285"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scifinow.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/123283"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scifinow.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=123282"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scifinow.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=123282"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scifinow.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=123282"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}