Shadow of the Serpent

As the year 1810 wanes, dashing hussar Lieutenant Gaston Dubois finds himself at a crossroads. Following a duel over a crime passionnel, he is banished from his beloved 13th Death’s Head Hussars and dispatched in disgrace to the “Accursed” 31st Dragoons.

Placed in command of the unruly Second Company in a posting far from the glory and honour he craves, Dubois faces a series of challenges in his first formal command. Can he transform his dispirited men into an effective fighting force, prove his ability to command, and escape the murderous attentions of an odious fellow officer?

But even in this forgotten corner of the war, the forces of mythos and mystery are never far away. Dubois’ duel was fought against no mortal man and he is plagued by uncanny events, a countryside hostile to the French occupiers and the wrath of a fearsome guerilla bandita, La Espina, who seems determined to have his head. 

Called to arms in a decisive encounter with the Spanish army, can Dubois and his men perform in the heat of battle and restore his lost reputation and his honour?