Kate Spitzmiller

Kate Spitzmiller writes historical fiction from a woman's perspective. Her work has appeared in Approaching Footsteps, On the Premises, Cleaver Magazine, and Typishly. She has work forthcoming in The Esthetic Apostle, Fredericksburg Literary & Art Review, and Scribble Literary Magazine. Her flash fiction piece, "Brigida," was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Her debut novel, Companion of the Ash, was released in December 2018 by Spider Road Press.

Brigida: Chapter One

Marcus did not come home. None of them did. Five thousand men. The entire Ninth Legion. Gone. There were rumors. Rumors that the tribes of Caledonia had annihilated them; devoured their lines like the ancient giant Cacus, who consumed live human flesh and displayed human heads on nails outside his cave on the Palatine Hill. I did not believe in monsters, only in gods and men. And I knew that the Romans had displeased the gods of Britannia, had spilt the blood of the tribes upon her dark, rich soil for generations. The Selgovae, the Parisi, the Carvetii. And the Brigante.

Kate Spitzmiller

Kate Spitzmiller writes historical fiction from a woman's perspective. Her work has appeared in Approaching Footsteps, On the Premises, Cleaver Magazine, and Typishly. She has work forthcoming in The Esthetic Apostle, Fredericksburg Literary & Art Review, and Scribble Literary Magazine. Her flash fiction piece, "Brigida," was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Her debut novel, Companion of the Ash, was released in December 2018 by Spider Road Press.

Brigida: Chapter One

Marcus did not come home. None of them did. Five thousand men. The entire Ninth Legion. Gone. There were rumors. Rumors that the tribes of Caledonia had annihilated them; devoured their lines like the ancient giant Cacus, who consumed live human flesh and displayed human heads on nails outside his cave on the Palatine Hill. I did not believe in monsters, only in gods and men. And I knew that the Romans had displeased the gods of Britannia, had spilt the blood of the tribes upon her dark, rich soil for generations. The Selgovae, the Parisi, the Carvetii. And the Brigante.

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