Blog Tour: The White Devil of Dublin (Ryan O'Clery Mysteries Book #2) By p.m.terrell @pmterrell @GHBTours

The White Devil of Dublin

Ryan O'Clery Mysteries Book #2

By- p.m.terrell

Genre- Romantic Suspense

Published By- Drake Valley Press

Expected Publication Date- September 15th, 2014

When Detective Ryan O'Clery receives a call from a noted historian claiming to have uncovered information about his Irish ancestors, he is certain she is mistaken. But when he arrives for their meeting, he finds the historian murdered and her computer stolen. His investigation will lead him to 12th Century Ireland, to a time of the Viking invasion and conquest, to an albino known as The White Devil of Dublin, and to a shocking secret his family kept hidden for more than eight hundred years. He will also come face-to-face with a present-day albino serial killer, intent on finishing the job he started.

   

And now, an excerpt from The White Devil of Dublin...

The men retreated into a stable, leaving only Baldr and the woman. She continued at the same pace, never turning to look behind her. She never did, he realized.

She was nearly past the stable doors when two of the men appeared. They worked like jackals, one moving swiftly to one side to grab her above both elbows, while the other covered her mouth with one hand while the other hand clutched her hair, pulling her into the stables. The door swung shut behind them, her cries muffled.

Baldr crossed the road in great strides. He did not think; he did not reason. Four or twenty made no difference to him. He operated on an instinct born of fighting.

He threw open the door to the stables, simultaneously drawing his sword. The clang of the metal as it left its sheath was unmistakable, and even in their drunken melee, the men froze at the sound.

In the fraction of an instant, he took in the scene before him: she lay unceremoniously atop a heap of hay, her cloak askew, her skirts pulled above her knees. One man straddled her, his hands hidden from Baldr but their location leaving very little doubt as to his intention. Another held her wrists above her head. A trickle of blood swept down her cheek. Her cries stopped as she laid eyes on him, despite her dangerous predicament.

"Leave her be," Baldr ordered. His words were even and measured but in the ensuing silence, they sounded like thunder.

From their widened eyes, he knew he filled the stable door with his formidable shoulders and wide stance. The wind caught his hair, causing it to billow about him. A lantern hung not far from him and he knew his eyes had caught the light, causing them to appear like two almond-shaped beacons, glowing white and steady. He did not blink and he did not move.

The men did not turn to their own swords. One whispered "Hvitr Bard" under his breath in the same tone he might have used if the devil himself stood before him. Three backed away.

Though her wrists were now unencumbered, the woman remained perfectly still. She did not look at him in fear or revulsion as others did. She simply watched.

The man atop of her came to his feet.

Baldr stepped further into the stables, allowing a path for the men to escape. Nervously, they shifted toward the open door, glancing back as he moved closer to the man whose pant front dipped below his hips.

The English fought with a sword in one hand, sparring, dipping and clashing. Not the Ostmen; Baldr held his sword with both hands as was their custom. With one fell swoop, he split the man open from his chest to his lower abdomen. It happened so quickly that the man simply stared at him, his eyes wide. Then he fell to his knees before crumpling forward in the hay.

Baldr whipped around to face the others but they were stumbling over one another to get through the door first.

He waited until they had retreated before turning to the woman.

"Are ye injured?" he asked, offering her a hand.

She placed her hand in his without hesitation, allowing him to pull her gently to her feet. His palm dwarfed hers and she rose with barely the weight of a feather. She shook her head. "Thank ye."

Her voice was silky; though slightly unsteady, she did not border on hysteria the way he imagined other women might-the way other women had with him on other days, other times, other locales.

He realized her cloak was ripped, as was her bodice. One breast lay exposed to him, and without taking his eyes off hers, he pulled her cloak about her for modesty. She seemed to come to her senses then, grasping her clothing in her hands and pulling it closer to her neck to cover her cleavage.

"Ye are not afeared," he said.

"Nay. I do not fear ye."

The simple statement rendered him speechless. He realized he still held his sword and he wiped the blade across the fallen man's clothing, first on one side and then on the other. He sheathed it before looking at her again.

"What do they call ye?" he asked.

"Maeve."

"Maeve," he repeated. Then, "I am-"

"I know who y' are," she interjected. "Ye are the one they call Hvitr Bard, The White Devil."

Dream Cast as told by P.M. Terrell

Kevin Ryan would be my first choice to play Detective Ryan O'Clery. Kevin is a Dubliner and though his ancestors have been stonecutters for eight generations, he felt a strong pull toward acting. One of his recent roles was in the BBC television series, Copper, in which he played an Irish-born New York detective during the American Civil War. He's recently filmed his first Hollywood film, The Guru & The Gypsy, which I am anxious to see.

Kevin has proven that he can take on a role in which he loves deeply and passionately and also one in which he must kill when the situation warrants it. And he has that incredibly sexy Irish accent that I have always envisioned for Ryan O'Clery in The Tempest Murders and The White Devil of Dublin.

Ryan O'Clery's wife, Cathleen (better known as Cait) is feisty and sexy. She is one of the few who could stand up to Ryan when needed, but she is also his soul mate, one who he is convinced that he has loved in a previous life. Sometimes soft spoken and passive, she proves her mettle in The White Devil of Dublin by taking matters into her own hands to confront a killer. I would love to see Kendra Anderson play this role. She is beautiful and she's a versatile and convincing actress. I hope to see her in many more roles in the future.

In the role of The White Devil of Dublin is an albino named Baldr, a Viking who is living in Ireland on the cusp of the Norman invasion. I see Clive Standen in that role, hands down. Though he was born in Northern Ireland, he grew up in England. He is currently playing the role of Bollo in the Vikings television series.

The White Devil is a complex figure, capable of recognizing and defending his soul mate even though they are of different worlds and backgrounds; of being a peacemaker and a cold-blooded killer; and of turning the misfortune of being born an albino into a legend that would stretch for centuries.

Olivia Wilde would be terrific as Maeve Kelly, the Irish maiden The White Devil falls in love with. Maeve is unafraid; she has spunk and shows independence yet she falls hard and fast for the Viking warrior. Olivia holds dual Irish-American citizenship; though she was born in New York City, her father was an Irish citizen. She studied acting in Dublin and has appeared in movies such as Cowboys & Aliens, In Time, People Like Us and The Words.