Before you read these books on Erik and how he comes to realize his destiny, it's important for you know that a lot of what happens in the story is partly based on actual history. Certain characters actually did exist a long time ago, others are people who exist only in the pages of this book.Some events and happenings such as the battle between the Roman armies and the German people many thousands of years ago are true, however much of what you are about to read is also the stuff of myth and legend. It's also something to know that every fairy tale told had a beginning and an element of truth exists in all such stories.For example, did you know that giants actually did exist a long time ago? Giant skeletons have been found buried in the earth all over the world, the story of Jack and the Beanstalk where giants came to earth and terrorized the people does have some truth in it.This story however begins about two and a half thousand years ago in a small remote village along a river which acts as a natural border between what is now known as Germany and the Roman Empire.Life was hard back then, with no running water. It had to be fetched from the nearby Rhineland River and then heated for cooking and bathing over a wooden fire. Food such as vegetables had to be grown by the villagers and meat had to be hunted in the great forest which surrounded the village and stretched across land towards the nearby mountains. (See Map). Clothes had to be made from animal skins and traded for goods with traveling merchants.The winters were bitterly cold and long. The food and wood which had to last the cold season had to be kept in closely guarded storehouses against predators such as packs of wolves on the hunt for food as well as bands of thieves who would raid the villagers, killing, burning and taking whatever they could find, leaving the survivors to die in the cold.Life in those days was harsh and unforgiving.The village that Erik grew up in was such a village. It was built along the Rhine river and the people there called it Rhineland. It was a very prosperous village as plenty of fish could be caught in its waters and stored for the winter months. The river was also a trade route with lots of boats traveling along. These boats would trade with the people of the village and in time it grew and became strong.The first book in this series starts off before Erik was born. His mother, Helga lived with her mother on the edge of the village in a run-down hut. Her father had taken ill and died the previous winter and the chief of the village had moved her and her mother out of their house to make way for his newly wedded son. I am not going to say much more on this, but the actions of the chieftain set events in motion which will change the course of history. There are six books in this series -The Wolf, & The Stranger -Eryk and the Red Dragon-Eryk and theThe Forbidden World-Rise of the Nephilim-The Dark Prince-The Last BattleIt is the sincere wish of the author that you enjoy your reading and your journey into a world not unlike ours.