************************************************************************************** An outcast rogue must break a curse put on his fate, or die on his nineteenth birthday. To survive, he'll need the sword of a maiden, the aid of an immortal, and the power of forbidden magic that could cost him the only girl he ever loved. ************************************************************************************ *** THE JACK OF SOULS won a Silver IPPY this year! *** THE JACK OF SOULS won 1st place in the PNWA Competition in Fantasy! * *** THE JACK OF SOULS won 1st place in the Southwest Writers competition! * *** A "Featured Book" on Wattpad! * *** Now a "Staff Pick" on Kickstarter! * *** Available on Amazon in paper, hardback, and ebook ! * *** My contract with Kindle Select won't allow me to post more than 3 chapters here, but... *** Sign up for my newsletter on stephenmerlino.com for alerts when it's free on Amazon! * MY INSPIRATION I wrote this out of pure love of trickster rogues; I love the wit over brawn motif -- Odysseus over Achilles, Raven over Eagle -- so I like to play with it in my stories. In JOS I set the rogue and con-artist Harric against a foil of warriors in a land threatened by magic and civil war. Whenever possible I turn familiar tropes on their heads: instead of a handsome young Lancelot, I cast a broken-down ex-champion addicted to pain-killing herbs; instead of a dashing Squire Brian, the old knight reluctantly takes an ambitious young woman as squire. Similarly, I re-imagine the standard medieval milieu by infusing aspects of two of my favorite historical periods, Elizabethan England, and The American Frontier. Both eras boast a kind of nationalistic arrogance that borders on hubris, and a magnificent spirit of resourcefulness and re-invention that is fun to play with. SERIES The Jack of Souls is first in a series. I am posting parts of the sequel here now (The Knave of Souls), to help me refine the story.

Also available in: 🇫🇷 Sous les cieux de Thédas 🇪🇸 Bajo los cielos de Thedas Eliza Thorne was just a bounty hunter when she joined the Inquisition. Known for getting the job done-fast, clean, no questions asked. But one night changed everything. During a hunt, she's given a new mission: protect Ambassador Josephine Montilyet. Forced to return to Skyhold against her will, Eliza is assigned to guard a noblewoman she sees as too refined, too diplomatic... and far too talkative. Yet in the shadows of court intrigue, threats, and secrets, something begins to shift. A connection. A slow-burning bond she didn't see coming. And what Eliza had spent her whole life avoiding-attachment, vulnerability, love-suddenly becomes impossible to ignore. In a world at war, loving someone may be a strength... Or the most dangerous risk of all. © 2025 Nathalie Herrera. All rights reserved. All texts, excerpts, images, concepts, and original characters featured on this site are the exclusive property of the author, unless stated otherwise. Any reproduction, distribution, or adaptation without written permission is prohibited. This work is a fanfiction inspired by the universe of *Dragon Age* (Bioware). It is created for non-commercial purposes only, with no intention of infringing upon the rights of the official copyright holders.