ABOUT THE BOOK:  Before the Silk Road had a name, nomads roamed the Eurasian steppes and women fought side by side as equals with men.  Like all women of the Sauromatae, Akmaral is bound for battle from birth, training as a girl in horsemanship, archery, spear and blade. Her prowess ignites the jealousy of Erzhan, a gifted warrior who hates her as much as he desires her. When Scythian renegades attack, the two must unite to defeat them. Among their captives is Timor, the rebels’ enigmatic leader who refuses to be broken, even as he is enslaved. He fascinates Akmaral. But as attraction grows to passion, she is blinded to the dangerous alliance forming between the men who bristle against the clan’s matriarchal rule. Faced with brutal betrayal, Akmaral must find the strength to defend her people and fulfill her destiny.  Inspired by legends of Amazon women warriors told by ancient Greek historian Herodotus, and evidenced by several archaeological discoveries in Central Asia: the Ice Maiden on the Ukok Plateau, called the “Pasture of Heaven” by the people of the Altai Mountains of southern Siberia and the Golden Man of Issyk, a warrior burial that researchers believe might actually be a woman.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:  Judith Lindbergh’s new novel, Akmaral, about a nomad woman warrior on the ancient Central Asian steppes, released on May 7, 2024, from Regal House Publishing. Her debut novel, The Thrall’s Tale, about three women in the first Viking Age settlement in Greenland, was an IndieBound Pick, a Borders Original Voices Selection, and praised by Pulitzer Prize winners Geraldine Brooks and Robert Olen Butler. Her work has appeared in numerous publications including in Newsweek, Zibby Magazine, Next Avenue, Writer’s Digest, Edible Jersey, Literary Mama, Archaeology Magazine, Other Voices, and UP HERE: The North at the Center of the World published by University of Washington Press. She has spoken at and published with the Smithsonian Institution and provided expert commentary in two documentary series for The History Channel. Judith received a 2024 Fellowship from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. She is the Founder/Director of The Writers Circle, a creative writing center based in New Jersey.

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Thanks to the Ashland Public Library for sharing this program!