On The Subject
Of
Trolls
by
Benjamin T. Milnes
Back in the days of the heptarchy, kings and queens had to contend not just with the plots of their enemies, but also with dragons, witches, and, most annoyingly of all, ... trolls.
Dragons may be fierce, but if you’ve killed one dragon you can kill a hundred, for they are always killed by an arrow, spear, or sword. Witches may be frustrating, and it is often easier to banish them than to slay them, but if you’ve got a wizard on your side, they sort it out for you (not that anyone seems to know how they do it). But trolls, those fetid creatures, are often the most difficult to be rid of, for no two trolls can be defeated in the same way. Though trolls may be the stupidest of all things foul, they can only be defeated with perception, imagination, ... and wit.
On The Subject Of Trolls is available as a print book on Amazon. An ebook and audiobook are coming soon.
Sample from the first story from the book:
Throch the Cunning
'There was once a troll, whose name was Throch. Like all trolls, he was not beautiful. The skin of his face was ashen, and his eyes and mouth were prunish. His thighs were mottled yellow with clumped fat, and his gnarled hands dripped with black snot. Throch, however, thought himself truly stunning to look upon. He was bald – like all trolls – but each day smeared a sod of piss-stained straw on his head. He also had a taste for costly and garish clothing and jewellery, which he acquired from aethelings and thanes he met upon the road.
I would not say that Throch was wise, but he was cunning – far more so than most trolls. He had a knowledge of what he wanted and had at some point stumbled upon a way of getting it. You see, Throch did not acquire these gifts from the aethelings and thanes he met by threatening them, in the way that the common troll might. No, Throch had a way with words. After speaking with the aethelings, reeves, and thanes for a few minutes, they gladly gave him an ermine coat or a gold ring or a bottle of perfume.'