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Author’s Note

“The girl with ash-smooth arms is already getting used to my bad ways.”

—Egils Saga

Laughter is a survival skill in today’s modern world, as so many of you readers have told me. “You made me laugh out loud at a time when I really, really needed a smile in my life,” is a common refrain.

And apparently that was the case in early times, as well. Don’t you just love the fact that some Viking skald hundreds and hundreds of years ago referred to old Egils’ “bad ways”? I like to put my own particular spin on this stanza and imagine Egils as an overconfident, handsome rogue who has his eye on a fair maiden with ash-smooth arms. And, Lordy, that damsel had best pull up the draw-
bridge before she is tempted by this guy’s “bad ways.”

Like my very own Tykir with his “bad ways.”

It is particularly appropriate that Dorchester Publishing start its new humor romance line with a book about Vikings, who were certainly romantic and had a wonderful capacity for laughing at themselves, as evidenced by their marvelous sagas.

All writers want to touch their readers in some way—sometimes with strong emotion, sometimes to teach historical facts or an important life lesson, sometimes to share empathy or common experiences. (Erma Bombeck did this so well.) But I have come to believe that readers can be touched just as deeply, and no less importantly, with humor.

And it doesn’t have to be only those who are in dire need of a laugh, like the lady whose husband had just undergone a kidney transplant, or the disabled trucker, or the young girl with a learning handicap. It’s enough sometimes to entertain, period. And sometimes those books are remembered most of all.

We hope you will agree that laughter can be an important part of romance, and that the best sex in the world has a smile in there somewhere.

If you’d like to know more about these Vikings and their sense of humor, try
The Long Ships: A Saga of the Viking Age
by Frans Bengtsson; or any of the books of Viking sagas or eddas in your public library. Or check out the research of Christie L. Ward (Gunnora Hallakarva) at some of the wedding rituals in my epilogue are adaptations of ones listed on her website, or exact in the case of the ritual words themselves. And, of course, if you’re looking for gorgeous Vikings with a wicked sense of humor, note that
The Bewitched Viking
is the fourth book in a series of loosely
linked novels (which can be read out of order), following on the heels of
The Reluctant Viking, The Outlaw Viking
and
The Tarnished Lady
.

Please let us know what you think of our new humor line, and of my brand of Viking humor in particular.

Sandra Hill
PO Box 604
State College, PA 16804
[email protected]
http://www.sff.net/people/shill

About the
Author

SANDRA
HILL
is a graduate of Penn State and worked for more than 10 years as a
features writer and education editor for publications in New Jersey and
Pennsylvania. Writing about serious issues taught her the merits of seeking the
lighter side of even the darkest stories. She is the wife of a stockbroker and the
mother of four sons.

PRAISE
FOR SANDRA HILL’S VIKING ROMANCES!

THE RELUCTANT VIKING

“I really enjoyed Ruby’s story. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could all have these sorts of second chances when we are at risk of losing something as precious as love.”

—
Affaire de Coeur

“The Reluctant Viking
is a wonderfully in-depth, ambitious challenge for a first-time author, and Ms. Hill pulls it off with style!”

—
The Literary Times

THE OUTLAW VIKING

“An entertaining battle-of-the-sexes romance that will keep readers laughing to the very end!”

—
Romantic Times

“A well-told story, funny and heartwarming. Ms. Hill has created characters who will stay alive long after you close the book. This is a time-travel that shouldn’t be missed.”

—
The Paperback Forum

“Ms. Hill transports not only the heroine but the reader back to the period in this fast-paced story.”

—
Rendezvous

THE LAST VIKING

“A fun, fast-paced page turner.”

—
Romantic Times

“The humor is delicious. Ms. Hill’s Viking stories are always a thrill to read, and
The Last Viking
is no exception.”

—
Rendezvous

“Ms. Hill once again shows her talented, witty writing skills in narrative and character development…another winner for Ms. Hill!”

—
Old Book Barn Gazette

Other
Leisure
and
Love Spell
books by Sandra
Hill:

THE RELUCTANT VIKING

LOVE ME TENDER

THE OUTLAW VIKING

THE LAST VIKING

SWEETER SAVAGE LOVE

DESPERADO

FRANKLY, MY DEAR…

THE TARNISHED LADY

Copyright

This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

THE BEWITCHED VIKING
. Copyright © 1999 by Sandra Hill. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

ePub Edition May 2010 ISBN: 978-0-06-202478-7

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