Category: self-publishing

Looking for a historical fiction dragon book that breaks all the fantasy tropes? You’ve found it.

After three books of supernatural intrigue spanning from Damascus to Rome, The Halls of the Shadow King series is taking an unexpected turn—straight into the mist-shrouded mountains of ancient Britannia.

And this time, Amal faces something he can’t simply outsmart or outmaneuver: a dragon.

From Street Thief to Dragon-Binder

When we first met Amal in The Apprentice, he was a desperate thirteen-year-old stealing maps to save his sister. Now, as the Shadow King leading a vast underground network across the Roman Empire, he’s being called to confront an ancient evil that has terrorized British villages for generations.

But here’s the twist: he might not be able to kill it.

This isn’t your typical historical fiction dragon book where the hero simply slays the beast and rides off into the sunset. In fact, Amal’s mission is far more complex—and far more dangerous.

What Readers Are Saying About This Historical Fiction Dragon Book

“I thought this was historical fiction with a supernatural edge. Book Four turned it into something entirely different—and I couldn’t put it down.”

The fourth installment, Brittania Calls, takes everything that made the first three books compelling—the intricate plotting, the richly researched historical detail, the exploration of power and humility—and adds something readers will love: a dragon.

But not the dragon you expect.

The Mission: Binding an Ancient Evil

When three young Britons arrive at Amal’s safehouse in Malta with desperate pleas for help, he learns that the persecution-free awakening spreading across Britannia is threatened by something older than Rome itself. A dragon, dormant for decades, is stirring in the western mountains. Moreover, if The Morrigan—the ancient entity Amal barely survived in Rome—is behind its awakening, the consequences could reshape the entire empire.

Amal’s solution? Assemble a team unlike any other:

• Finn, the Irish warrior-prince with knowledge of Celtic magic
• Andreas, the scholarly priest with expertise in ancient texts
• Four Carthaginian practitioners experienced in binding rituals
• Three desperate British youths carrying fragments of forgotten druid wisdom

Their goal isn’t to slay the dragon in some heroic confrontation. Instead, it’s to bind it—seal it away using ancient rituals that combine Carthaginian, Hebrew, and Celtic traditions into something entirely new.

Why This Historical Fiction Dragon Book Hits Different

Historical readers will love the meticulous research into 3rd-century trade routes from Carthage to Britain, the authentic portrayal of early Christian communities, and the seamless blend of Roman, Celtic, and North African cultures.

Fantasy readers will devour the dragon lore, the exploration of binding rituals versus destruction, and the way ancient spiritual entities interact with the physical world.

Literary fiction fans will appreciate the deeper questions: What does victory look like when you can’t simply destroy your enemy? How do you wield supernatural power with humility? What happens when your faith requires you to walk into situations where success isn’t guaranteed?

Historical Accuracy Meets Celtic Magic

What sets this early Christian fiction apart is the exhaustive research behind every detail. The trade goods carried from Carthage to Britannia? Historically accurate—wine, olive oil, grain, and garum (fermented fish sauce) were staples of Roman-era commerce. The Atlantic crossing through the Pillars of Hercules? Based on actual Carthaginian trade routes that predated Roman dominance.

However, the magic system isn’t borrowed from modern fantasy. The binding rituals draw from genuine ancient traditions—Carthaginian texts on containing spiritual entities, Hebrew practices of spiritual warfare, and Celtic druid wisdom that survived Rome’s suppression of their culture.

A Three-Week Voyage Into Darkness

The Atlantic crossing alone is worth the price of admission. As Amal’s team sails from Carthage through the Pillars of Hercules into the wild Atlantic, they’re not just traveling to Britain—they’re preparing for spiritual warfare unlike anything they’ve faced before.

They study ancient texts on binding rituals. They train in coordinated combat tactics. They listen as the young British woman Branwen sings songs her grandmother taught her—songs that contain fragments of the original ritual that once sealed the dragon away.

And slowly, they transform from a group of individuals into something more powerful: a unified force capable of confronting ancient evil.

Behind the Scenes: Researching the Dragon

Creating a believable historical fiction dragon book required diving deep into multiple mythological traditions. Celtic dragon lore differs significantly from Greek or Norse traditions. The ancient Britons viewed dragons not as mindless beasts but as intelligent, potentially corruptible beings—guardians who could be twisted into monsters.

This research led to one of the book’s central questions: What if the dragon wasn’t always evil? What if ancient kings made pacts with it, offering worship in exchange for protection? And what happens when such a creature, corrupted over centuries, can no longer be reasoned with?

The Questions Readers Are Asking

Q: Do I need to read Books 1, 2, and 3 first?

While Brittania Calls can stand alone, the full impact of Amal’s journey—from street thief to apprentice to Shadow King—is best experienced from the beginning. Plus, his confrontation with The Morrigan in Rome sets up crucial context for the Britannia mission.

Q: Is this Christian fiction?

It’s historical fiction set in the 3rd-century church during Roman persecution. The characters are believers navigating how to use supernatural gifts faithfully. But it’s written for a broad audience—anyone who loves well-researched historical fiction with supernatural elements.

Q: Does the dragon get killed?

No spoilers! But I will say this: the resolution challenges typical fantasy tropes in ways readers are finding surprisingly satisfying. This spiritual warfare fiction takes a different approach to victory.

Q: How accurate is the Roman Britain setting?

Extremely. From the garrison locations to the trade networks to the tension between Romanized Britons and unconquered tribes beyond the Wall—every detail is grounded in historical research. Even the dragon’s lair placement is based on actual Celtic sacred sites in western Britain.

Q: When does the book release?

Brittania Calls is coming soon! Meanwhile, check out the full series (Kindle or Paperback) on Amazon HERE. At Desdichado Books, we attempt to keep the prices as low as possible to prevent any barrier to potential readers.

What Makes This Series Unique

The Halls of the Shadow King isn’t your typical “hero with a sword saves the day” fantasy. It’s about:

• Power wielded with humility rather than domination
• Communities working together rather than lone heroes
• Spiritual warfare that acknowledges some battles are about containment, not conquest
• Historical accuracy that brings the 3rd-century Mediterranean world to vivid life
• Deep questions about faith, calling, and what it means to serve something greater than yourself
• Multi-cultural perspectives blending Roman, Celtic, Carthaginian, and Hebrew traditions

A Map of Amal’s Journey to Britannia

The team’s route takes them through some of the most strategic locations in the ancient Mediterranean:

• Antioch – Network headquarters where the mission begins
• Cyprus – First gathering point for intelligence
• Rhodes – Strategic maritime crossroads
• Crete – Where they survive a devastating storm
• Carthage – Where they recruit the binding specialists
• Through the Pillars of Hercules – Entering the wild Atlantic
• Western Britannia – The dragon’s domain

Each stop adds crucial pieces to the puzzle—knowledge, resources, and team members who will prove essential in confronting the dragon.

The Author’s Vision

W. Tod Newman set out to write a different kind of early Christian fiction—one that didn’t shy away from supernatural elements but grounded them in historical reality. The result is a series that appeals to fans of Bernard Cornwell’s historical accuracy, Stephen Lawhead’s Celtic spirituality, and Frank Peretti’s spiritual warfare—but with its own unique voice.

“I wanted to explore what would happen if someone with genuine supernatural gifting lived during the Roman persecution. Not a sanitized, safe version—but the real questions: How do you use such power faithfully? What does it cost? And what happens when simply ‘winning’ isn’t the point?” – W. Tod Newman

Ready to Join the Voyage?

If you’re tired of the same old fantasy tropes… if you love historical fiction that doesn’t sacrifice accuracy for drama… if you want characters who wrestle with real questions about power, faith, and purpose… then this is your series.

Start with The Apprentice and watch a street thief become something extraordinary.
Continue with Into Deeper Waters as the stakes expand from one city to an empire.
Proceed to The Hidden Order which is the conclusion of the first three novels and explores conflict with ancient evil powers and saving the soul of Rome.

Then Finish with Brittania Calls as Amal faces his greatest challenge yet in the misty mountains of Britannia.

Because sometimes the most powerful victories don’t come from destroying your enemies.

Sometimes they come from learning to bind them—and trust that the Great King’s purposes will ultimately prevail.

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Available Now at All Major Retailers

The Halls of the Shadow King series by W. Tod Newman
Published by Desdichado Books

Order your copy today:

• Amazon (Kindle & Paperback)

Connect with the author:
Website: todnewman.com

Twitter/X

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“Newman has crafted something rare—a historical fiction dragon book that respects both history and faith while delivering edge-of-your-seat supernatural thriller pacing. The Britannia storyline is his best work yet.”

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Tags: historical fiction dragon book, early Christian fiction, Roman Britain fantasy, spiritual warfare fiction, Celtic magic historical novel, 3rd century Rome, Carthage to Britain, dragon binding ritual, The Halls of the Shadow King

I enjoyed creating my short post the other day about the “in-process” cover art for my latest book, so I decided to break down how I layer my cover art and how I proceed from line art all the way to finished, filtered images. Plus, it gives me a nice break from writing.

First, the tools I use are pretty much 1) pencil and paper (and pen), 2) A scanner, and 3) GIMP (open source photo editing tool). I’ve been using GIMP for aeons now and have some pretty comfortable rituals to build up images layer by layer.

First: The Line Art

When I’m working on a book, I usually will sketch up 2 or 3 ideas that correspond with something “key” in the book. In the case of this image, from “The Halls of the Shadow King: Into Deeper Waters”, there is significant sea travel from Rome down the eastern coast of Africa. Lots of time in the water. So I came up with some drafts that showed my main character (a little older than he was in the first book) with people from a supporting village in the Kingdom of Aksum (present day Ethiopia). Once I have a sketch I like, I ink it in with fine tip sharpie then scan it into the computer. An important step comes next as I open it in GIMP (usually inside a book cover template where I paste it as a layer). I select the line art layer, go to the “Layer” pull-down, then “Transparency”, then “Color to Alpha”. What I’m trying to do is remove all of the white and leave just the black line art. That way, layers below the line art show up through–but not over–it. Then I play with darkening, thickening, etc., the line art to get it the way I like. At that point, it looks like this (shown with a plain white background behind the line art so you can see it).

Note that I like to leave some of the pencil in as greyscale, whereas the darker lines are penned in by the sharpie. I also tend to leave something like the squiggles for the ocean waves in pencil. Eventually I’ll fill these in with GIMP, sometimes using brushes that specialize in waves. Often I erase the line art in a place like the background if I feel like it is distracting, but I almost always leave it for the foreground characters, the ship in this case, etc.

Next: Background Layer

Generally, the next thing I do is start modifying a basic white background layer with whatever will be in the back. I make the line art visible and paint on the background layer “through” the line art. In this case, I chose the ocean and the sail as my main background elements. I painted the whole ocean at once for the sake of coherence/continuity of the waves, knowing that the ship layer and the character layers (and the line art) would sit on top of it. Here’s what the first pass at the background looked like.

As mentioned, I like to use GIMP “foam” brushes that make the foam on top of the waves look good. These brushes are created and open sourced by people all over the web and can be downloaded to your GIMP application. This same approach works for Photoshop too, but since GIMP is free, I’ve always used it. There are cloud GIMP brushes too, but my memory is that I hand drew these in GIMP using my Wacom Tablet and standard GIMP brushes.

Next: Color Layers

The next thing I typically do is build multiple layers to cover other elements in the image. I have always called these generically “color layers”. I’ll have one color layer for the boat, one for the characters, one for things like birds maybe, etc. These all start as a new “transparent” layer so the layers below show through. Keep in mind that the top layers (the ones you see over everything else) need to be on the top of your layer stack in GIMP (and background is typically the bottom. Here’s an example of an early “Character Color Layer”.

On these layers, I tend to be very sparing with colors and I pick 4-5 colors from one color palate. I find this keeps the drawing from being overwhelming. If I do a bad job here, I can always “cartoonize” the final flattened drawing down to 8 colors or some such.

Finally: Flattened Layer for final edits and Artistic Filters

At some point, I decide which of my 20+ layers are keepers and will become part of the final image. I will show only these layers and build a single flattened image (note: I never have Text in my flattened image. That comes later on other layers). This may or may not be a good approach, but I’ve used it for years, with the notion that I’m just doing light touchup on this flattened image. If I mess stuff up, I just hit undo. This layer is very good for fixing color issues (darkening/lightening/exposure/hue/brightness-contrast, etc.). I also use it to do a lot of “sunlight effects”, which are typically really light, low opacity effects trying to accurately capture the lighting of the scene. Once I have the lighting and colors appropriate and I’ve fixed anything about the original layers that is annoying me, I’ll apply various artistic GIMP filters. To be honest, this often helps fix problems with the image that I might not be good enough to fix. One artistic layer that I chose early on for all the books in The Halls of the Shadow King series was “canvas”, which imposes the structure of a canvas on the image and makes it look like a highly-detailed oil painting. See how the flattened/filtered image looks below.

Closing – The Rest of the Book Cover Process

This front cover image becomes the main feature of the whole book cover, but you’re not done yet. I have a template for a 9×6 trade paperback cover that contains the front/back/spine. I then use GIMP to fill in Text on top of everything. Here’s what this looks like for the final book cover copy.

One thing I’ll note too is that this process allows you to do a rev 2 on your cover art if you decide after a year that things need to be refreshed. I did that with book 1 of this series, where I felt after a while that I hated what I did with my main character’s hands (hands are hard for me to draw… lots of sketching and erasing) and thought the art should be lightened. All I had to do was then go in and edit individual layers (line art, character color, background) and make changes, flatten the changes and re-apply filters. Piece of cake!

Recently I published my third “Halls of the Shadow King” novels of the series. However, I didn’t feel like I had finished telling the story of Amal, my main character. So my current project (20K words in as of this moment) is creating a series of novelettes in the 40K word range to explore what happens with Amal.

Here I am with my Wacom tablet putting some finishing touches on some sea monsters.

What do you think about the cover so far? As with all my covers, I’m starting with hand-drawn line art which I scan and import into Gimp. I used the Canvas filter on the other three covers, but right now I’m just using it on the Gimp layer which contains the Island colorizations.

Stay tuned. My thinking right now is to only make these novelettes available as Kindle Unlimiteds.

Find the series at Amazon here