Emmy Laybourne’s YA fantasy Berserker is getting a sequel, and we have an exclusive look at the cover right here!

In Berserker, a Norse teen and her family had to flee their home and venture to the American West in order to escape a Viking curse. As a historical paranormal romance, I feel like this one has a little bit of something for everyone!

The sequel, Ransacker, is the second — and final — book from Laybourne in this series. The family has been living peacefully for some time now, but there’s a traitor in their midst, hellbent on taking advantage of their powers for his own gain.

Ransacker’s cover might be less bloody than the first, but it’s just as ethereal and intriguing. Check it out below:

“This is a great time to be writing about young women finding their power,” Laybourne tells us. “People told me one of the things they loved about Berserker, the first novel in this duology, was the way the central character Hanne fights through her shame and anger to own her strength. In Ransacker, things unfold differently. Sissel’s supernatural gift comes not with rage, but instead unfolds with pleasure. It was really fun to write about a young woman coming of age in this way. Sissel owns her strength and celebrates it. Honestly, she’s intoxicating to write. I’m really excited to hear what people think of her.”

So what does Laybourne say about readers taking to Sissel as they did Hanne? “I think that readers will really see themselves in Sissel,” she says. “She’s been overlooked and counted-out her whole life. No one has ever thought she’d amount to anything, and in Ransacker, she comes bursting into her life, with great power. Of course, just when she finds herself, that’s when she comes under attack. But anyone who’s read Monument 14 or any of my other books knows I like to make things really hard for my characters. So… sorry, Sissel — here come the villains and disasters!”

And if you’re interested in knowing who did this cover, Laybourne’s got your back: “I am a huge fan of the artist who did the cover for Ransacker, Greg Ruth. I love the way his drawings play with surprising silhouettes and images tumbling out of one another. There’s a lot going on in this cover and I think it gives the reader promise of the adventure, danger and romance within.”

‘Ransacker’ by Emmy Laybourne hits store shelves on January 29, 2019

You can pre-order it on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or IndieBound, as well as add it to your Goodreads list.