This haunting short story illustrates the scandalous circumstances surrounding Ethelred's rise to power at the age of eleven, and shows why the entire reign of so-called Ethelred the Unready seems to have been cursed.The Lost Tales of Mercia are ten short tales that can be enjoyed as quick glimpses into the swashbuckling history of ancient England or read alongside the full-length novel, Eadric the Grasper. Most of the characters are real historical figures inspired by the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles.