Hippolyta Series

Hippolyta was a great Queen and a much-feared warrior, enslaving men to serve her and her army of Amazon women, and leading the army against anyone who threatened to disrupt her realm in the true traditions of her ancestors whose exploits had become legendary. Respected and feared by all, she was furious to hear that a large detachment of Attila the Hun’s army was looting and pillaging her villages. As she set about tracking down the evil Hun, she was startled to come across a small village with bodies of Hun warriors scattered everywhere. Enquiring whose army had so successfully defended the village, she could hardly believe that just one man had managed to defeat so many, but Taras was no ordinary man. To enslave him, as she would have done with any other man, was not an option: this barbarian warrior would fight to the death before being enslaved, and yet he seemed happy to serve her in her battles against the Hun. Her other Amazon commanders were suspicious, but perhaps for Hippolyta it would be a turning point in her life. There was something very special about Taras.

Two years had passed since Hippolyta’s Amazon warriors had defeated a rogue general leading a large contingent of Attila’s army and subsequently dealt with the treachery of the Alani. Now the village that was Hippolyta’s home and from where she ruled her realm was becoming an active port on the Black Sea and an important point on major trade routes. But all was not peace and tranquillity. The Alani armies were growing, and even if Hippolyta made a pact with Attila, the Alani might prove difficult to defeat. Once more Hippolyta must go to war, but what might happen if both the Alani leader and Attila were no longer around? Would the entire region be plunged into anarchy?

Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons, had a problem. The Hun armies were creating havoc in her domain, killing, looting and pillaging villages. It may not have been Attila’s main army, but it was more than enough to pose a serious threat to Hippolyta and her warriors. Fortunately, it was also in the interests of the Romans not to lose this region to the Hun, but one or two Legions were unlikely to be enough to make the difference. Could Hippolyta triumph this time, or was this finally the end for the Amazon armies?

As the threat from Attila’s Hun hoards is once again on the increase around Hippolyta’s realm, she has a surprise visit from the Alani, a long-time enemy previously allied with Attila, offering peace and an alliance to fight the Hun. Can she trust the Alani? And, more importantly, how much of a threat are the Hun? Do they want to attack Hippolyta, or is Attila more interested in dealing with the Alani’s treachery? A legion of Romans will, as before, help Hippolyta protect her fortified village, but they are not equipped to fight battles elsewhere in her realm. Hippolyta’s personal hunter must report on the movements of the Hun and the Alani in the forests, the mountains and on the plains. She must rely on his unique skills and knowledge of the countryside to give her the information she needs to protect her realm and her people. Will it be enough?

As young Hippolyte comes of age, Queen Hippolyta’s realm is facing a new threat after many years of peace. A small army of unknown warriors, led by a general who seems not far short of totally insane, is robbing and burning villages, and killing the villagers. Will Hippolyte’s inexperience prove disastrous when she leads her mother’s armies to try to save the villages and destroy the invaders? Will she rely on the help and advice of her barbarian hunters, or will she think that she already knows it all? How will the other Amazon Queens react to having Hippolyte in command? But someone else is attacking these new invaders. Can anyone really accept that just one warrior has stealthily attacked and disposed of hundreds of them? And, if that is true, is this person a threat to the Amazons as well as to their enemies?

After a few years of peace in Hippolyta’s realm, the Hun were co-operating to develop and protect the trade routes and even the Alani seemed to be honouring the treaty they had with Hippolyta. But was there trouble brewing? Ships on the Black Sea were being raided by pirates, and a combined armies of Ostrogoths, Visigoths and Gepids had just inflicted a crushing defeat on the Hun armies to the west of the Danube. Would Hippolyta’s realm be their next target?

There had been many years of peace in Hippolyta’s realm and it had become an important trade route and port on the Black Sea, but Hippolyta’s army of Amazon warriors were still as ruthless and efficient as they had been during the wars against Attila the Hun and against the Alani. Unexpectedly, there was once again a threat. Traders were being robbed and killed, and there were still those who wanted revenge for past defeat and humiliation by Hippolyta. Tens of thousands of renegade Hun and Alani, together with bandits, thieves and murderers were determined to overthrow Hippolyta’s rule and her treaties with neighbouring realms. Was it possible that this time the invaders could be repelled by bluff and diplomacy, or would the Amazons once again have to fight for their survival? Could Hippolyta rely on Danilo, her barbarian hunter and protector, to once again seek out and provide her with the information that had been so vital in former conflicts, or were his skills beginning to fade with age?