Scarlet by A. C. Gaughen

“No one really knows ‘bout me. I’m Rob’s secret, I’m his informant, I’m his shadow in dark places. No one ever takes me for more than a knockabout lad, a whip of a boy. They never really see …”

In a retelling of Robin Hood and his band of Merry Men, Will Scarlet is hiding a secret. He is really a she and only Rob and his gang know the truth. By helping to steal from the rich to give to the poor, Scarlet tries to play the tough guy and refuses to divulge anything about her previous life. Always threatening to leave, deep down she stays with the band of thieves to help the people of Nottingham. It doesn’t hurt that her heart picks up speed when Rob glances her way.

While on a mission to rescue a young lad from the palace jail, Scarlet discovers that Prince John has ordered the Sheriff of Nottingham to rid the town of Robin Hood and his band of thieves. What really unsettles her is that the thief taker hired for the job is Lord Gisbourne. Having last seen him four years earlier, Scarlet has been running from Gisbourne ever since. “Now it seemed fate’d run straight back around to slam our lives together.”

With tax day looming and Gisbourne looking for the “Hood”, the pressure is on Scarlet, Rob and the others to protect not only the citizens of Nottingham but themselves. What other secrets is Scarlet keeping from the others? Who is Lord Gisbourne and why is Scarlet terrified of him? Will the “Hood” be able to escape the wrath of the Sheriff of Nottingham? And what happens to Scarlet at the end?

Scarlet was written as a standalone novel.

Visit A.C. Gaughin’s website.