A Fox Among Wolves
“Listen as the fox slowly and deftly unbinds his whole pack of tricks—his flattery and fine words, his warm and sugary russet charm, his bold-faced blandishments. He has brought forth a spool of raw lies and spun them into a glittering web of truth to trap them all. Every last one of them.”
Reynard the Fox,
Anne Louise Avery
Reynard the Fox,
Anne Louise Avery
1038, Crépy-en-Valois, France, 13-year-old Raoul has little time to mourn his father’s death, who died at the of Battle of Bar-le-Duc in the Duchy of Lorraine. Shortly after the memorial, Raoul is named Count of his castle and responsible for the people of the County of Valois. He not only mourns the passing of his father, but the passing of his boyhood. No more adventures for Raoul, he is now tasked with governing. He soon learns that bandits are raiding farms and stealing from merchants. Raoul and his friends set up elaborate traps to catch the bandits, and in doing so, he discovers these bandits work for neighboring Counts who are trying to weaken his rule. These Counts believe if they can cause turmoil in Raoul’s County, they can gain influence and power over him. Raoul sets fines for thievery. He sets traps to snare the Counts’ carriages, then charges a service fee to fix the carriages. He gives this money back to his farmers and merchants, making him popular with his people. This, however, angers the neighboring noblemen who want his land, so he is summoned before King Henry and charged with extortion. While King Henry rules in Raoul’s favor, the King warns Raoul these noblemen want to take his land. His castle and county are at risk. Raoul then faces the biggest challenge. He must protect his castle, his family and his people from a warrior’s siege.
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