The Qwillery

Happy Monday!

There are 2 debuts this week:

Court of Twilight by Mareth Griffith;

and

Infinite Ground by Martin MacInnes.




From formerly featured DAC Authors:

Six Months, Three Days, Five Others by Charlie Jane Anders;

Breach of Containment (Central Corps 3) by Elizabeth Bonesteel;

A Plague of Giants by Kevin Hearne;

In Constant Fear by Peter Liney is out in Trade Paperback;

and

Weaver's Lament (Industrial Magic 2) by Emma Newman.

Debut novels are highlighted in blue. Novels, etc. by formerly featured DAC Authors are highlighted in green.

October 15, 2017

TITLE	AUTHOR	SERIES
StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga: Firstborn Book One	Christie Golden	SF/F - Blizzard Legends
Editing the Soul: Science and Fiction in the Genome Age	Everett Hamner	HC/SF/ - AnthropoScene 2
Treknology: The Science of Star Trek from Tricorders to Warp Drive	Ethan Siegel	Sc - Star Trek

October 16, 2017

TITLE	AUTHOR	SERIES
Dragon Justice (e)	Laura Anne Gilman	UF - Paranormal Scene Investigations 4
Forever Vampire (e)	Michele Hauf	PNR - Forever 1
I Burn Paris	Bruno Jasieński Soren Gauger (Tr)	F
A Tale of the Five Hundred Kingdoms Volume 1 (e)	Mercedes Lackey	F
Storm Glass: A Fantasy Novel with Murder and Magic (e)	Maria V. Snyder	F - Chronicles of Ixia

October 17, 2017

TITLE	AUTHOR	SERIES
Six Months, Three Days, Five Others	Charlie Jane Anders	SF/F - Collection
Halloween Carnival Volume 3 (e)	Brian James Freeman (Ed)	H - Anthology
Robert Kirkman's The Walking Dead: Return to Woodbury	Jay Bonansinga	H/Th/SupTh/MTI - The Walking Dead 8
Breach of Containment	Elizabeth Bonesteel	SF - Central Corps 3
Vallista	Steven Brust	F - Vlad Taltos 15
Ender's Game (Mini Book Edition)	Orson Scott Card	SF/SO - The Ender Quintet 1
Star Trek: The Next Generation Adult Coloring Book-Continuing Missions	CBS	CB - Star Trek
Forbidden Suns	D. Nolan Clark	SF/SO - The Silence 3
House of Shadows: An Enthralling Historical Mystery	Nicola Cornick	Hist/Gothic/R
It Devours!	Joseph Fink Jeffrey Cranor	F/HU - A Welcome to Night Vale Novel 2
In the Still of the Night	David L. Golemon	SupTh/H - The Supernaturals 2
The Autobiography of Jean Luc Picard	David A. Goodman	MTI/SF - Star Trek
Court of Twilight (D)	Mareth Griffith	CF
Shadowsword (h2tp)	Guy Haley	SF - Imperial Battle Tanks 2
Baneblade	Guy Haley	SF - Imperial Battle Tanks 1
A Plague of Giants	Kevin Hearne	F
From The Two Rivers (Mini Book Edition)	Robert Jordan	F - Wheel of Time 1
A Scandal in Battersea	Mercedes Lackey	HistF/F/FairyT/FolkT/LM - Elemental Masters 12
In Constant Fear (h2tp)	Peter Liney	SF - The Detainee 3
Infinite Ground (D - US)	Martin MacInnes	Psy/LF/M
Wild Cards I: Volume One (Mini Book Edition)	George R. R. Martin (Ed) Wild Cards Trust	SH/SF- Anthology
Deadlands: Boneyard	Seanan McGuire	SF - Deadlands 3
Feversong (h2mm)	Karen Marie Moning	PNR/FR - Fever 9
Weaver's Lament	Emma Newman	HistF/DF - Industrial Magic 2
The Two of Swords: Volume One	K. J. Parker	F - The Two of Swords
Edgedancer (Mini Book Edition)	Brandon Sanderson	F - The Stormlight Archive 2.5
Old Man's War (Mini Book Edition)	John Scalzi	SF - Old Man's War 1
Infinite Stars	Bryan Thomas Schmidt (Ed)	SF - Anthology
Predator: If It Bleeds	Bryan Thomas Schmidt (Ed)	MTI/SF - Anthology
Autumn (h2tp)	Ali Smith	LF/VM/CW
Shadowless	Hasan Ali Toptas Maureen Freely (Tr) John Angliss (Tr)	LF/MR
The Starlit Wood: New Fairy Tales (h2tp)	Dominik Parisien (Ed) Navah Wolfe (Ed)	FairyT - Anthology

D - Debut
e - eBook
Ed - Editor
h2mm - Hardcover to Mass Market Paperback
h2tp - Hardcover to Trade Paperback
Illus - Illustrator
ri - reissue or reprint
tp2mm - Trade to Mass Market Paperback
Tr - Translator



AC - Alien Contact
AH - Alternate History
AP - Apocalyptic
CB - Coloring Book
CF - Contemporary Fantasy
CoA - Coming of Age
CW - Contemporary Women
DF - Dark Fantasy
Dys - Dystopian
F - Fantasy
FairyT - Fairy Tales
Fem - Feminist
FL - Family Life
Folklore - Folklore
FolkT - Folk Tales
FR - Fantasy Romance
GenEng - Genetic Engineering
GH - Ghost(s)
Gothic - Gothic
H - Horror
HC - History and Criticism
Hist - Historical
HistF - Historical Fantasy
HU - Humor
LF - Literary Fiction
LM - Legends and Mythology
M - Mystery
MF - Military Fantasy
MR - Magical Realism
MTI - Media Tie-In
Noir - Noir
Occ - Occult
P - Paranormal
PA - Post Apocalyptic
PerfArts - Performing Arts
PCM - Paranormal Cozy Mystery
Phil - Philosophy
PM - Paranormal Mystery
PNR - Paranormal Romance
Psy - Psychological
PsyTh - Psychological Thriller
R - Romance
Sc - Science
SH -Superheroes
SF - Science Fiction
SFR - Science Fiction Romance
SO - Space Opera
SocHis - Social History
SpecFic - Speculative Fiction
Sup - Supernatural
SupM - Supernatural Mystery
SupTh - Supernatural Thriller
TechTh - Technological Thriller
Th - Thriller
TT - Time Travel
UF - Urban Fantasy
UFR - Urban Fantasy Romance
VM - Visionary and Metaphysical

Note: Not all genres and formats are found in the books, etc. listed above.

Elizabeth Bonesteel (2016)

Breach of Containment
A Central Corps Novel 3
Harper Voyager, October 17, 2017
Trade Paperback and eBook, 512 pages

A reluctant hero must prevent war in space and on Earth in this fast-paced military science fiction thriller from the author of The Cold Between and Remnants of Trust—a page-turning hybrid combining the gritty, high-octane thrills of James S. A. Corey and the sociopolitical drama of Ann Leckie.

Space is full of the unknown . . . most of it ready to kill you.

When hostilities between factions threaten to explode into a shooting war on the moon of Yakutsk, the two major galactic military powers, Central Corps and PSI, send ships to defuse the situation. But when a strange artifact is discovered, events are set in motion that threaten the entire colonized galaxy—including former Central Corps Commander Elena Shaw.

Now an engineer on a commercial shipping vessel, Elena finds herself drawn into the conflict when she picks up the artifact on Yakutsk—and investigation of it uncovers ties to the massive, corrupt corporation Ellis Systems, whom she’s opposed before. Her safety is further compromised by her former ties to Central Corps—Elena can’t separate herself from her past life and her old ship, the CCSS Galileo.

Before Elena can pursue the artifact’s purpose further, disaster strikes: all communication with the First Sector—including Earth—is lost. The reason becomes apparent when news reaches Elena of a battle fleet, intent on destruction, rapidly approaching Earth. And with communications at sublight levels, there is no way to warn the planet in time.

Armed with crucial intel from a shadowy source and the strange artifact, Elena may be the only one who can stop the fleet, and Ellis, and save Earth. But for this mission there will be no second chances—and no return.

Delilah S. Dawson (2012)

Phasma
Journey to Star War: The Last Jedi
Del Rey, September 1, 2017
Hardcover and eBook, 320 pages

Discover Captain Phasma’s mysterious history in this “Journey to Star Wars: The Last Jedi” novel.

Ladycastle
     Delilah S. Dawson (Writer)
     Ashley A. Woods (Illustrator)
     Rebecca Farrow (Illustrator)
BOOM! Studios, October 24, 2017
Trade Paperback, 112 pages

When the King and all the men of the castle die, it’s time for the women to knight up.

When King Mancastle and his mighty vassals ride off on a crusade, the women left behind are not at all put out—that’s a lot less armor polishing to do. Of course, when the men get themselves eaten by a dragon and leave a curse that attracts monsters to the castle . . . well, the women take umbrage with that.

Now, Merinor, the blacksmith’s wife is King, Princess Aeve is the Captain, and the only remaining (and least capable) knight, Sir Riddick, is tasked with teaching the ladies of the castle how to fight, defend, build, and do all manner of noisy things the men had done while the women assumed they were just drunk.

Novelist Delilah S. Dawson (Star Wars: The Perfect Weapon, As Wicked as She Wants) brings her first original series to the graphic novel world, and is joined by breakthrough illustrator Ashley A. Woods (Niobe: She Is Life) for a rollicking fantasy adventure in Ladycastle. 

Kameron Hurley (2011)

The Stars Are Legion
Saga Press, November 7, 2017
Trade Paperback, 400 pages
Hardcover and eBook, February 7, 2017

As worlds continue to die, a desperate plan is put into motion.

Somewhere on the outer rim of the universe, a mass of decaying world-ships known as the Legion is traveling in the seams between the stars. Here in the darkness, a war for control of the Legion has been waged for generations, with no clear resolution.

Zan wakes with no memory, prisoner of a people who say there are her family. She is told she is their salvation, the only person capable of boarding the Mokshi, a world-ship with the power to leave the Legion. But Zan’s new family is not the only one desperate to gain control of the prized ship. Zan finds that she must choose sides in a genocidal campaign that will take her from the edges of the Legion’s gravity well to the very belly of the world.

The Broken Heavens
The Worldbreaker Saga 3
Angry Robot, January 2, 2018
Trade Paperback and eBook, 544 pages

The bloodsoaked concluding volume of Kameron Hurley’s epic fantasy, the Worldbreaker Saga, is unleashed

The Dhai nation has broken apart under the onslaught of the Tai Kao, invaders from a parallel world. With the Dhai in retreat, Kirana, leader of the Tai Kao, establishes a base in Oma’s temple and instructs her astrologers to discover how they can use the ancient holy place to close the way between worlds. With all the connected worlds ravaged by war and Oma failing, only one world can survive. Who will be sacrificed, and what will the desperate people of these worlds do to protect themselves?

File Under: Fantasy

Remnants of Trust
A Central Corps Novel 2
Harper Voyager, November 8, 2016
Trade Paperback and eBook, 528 pages

In this follow-up to the acclaimed military science fiction thriller The Cold Between, a young soldier finds herself caught in the crosshairs of a deadly conspiracy in deep space.

Six weeks ago, Commander Elena Shaw and Captain Greg Foster were court-martialed for their role in an event Central Gov denies ever happened. Yet instead of a dishonorable discharge or time in a military prison, Shaw and Foster and are now back together on Galileo. As punishment, they’ve been assigned to patrol the nearly empty space of the Third Sector.

But their mundane mission quickly turns treacherous when the Galileo picks up a distress call: Exeter, a sister ship, is under attack from raiders. A PSI generation ship—the same one that recently broke off negotiations with Foster—is also in the sector and joins in the desperate battle that leaves ninety-seven of Exeter’s crew dead.

An investigation of the disaster points to sabotage. And Exeter is only the beginning. When the PSI ship and Galileo suffer their own "accidents," it becomes clear that someone is willing to set off a war in the Third Sector to keep their secrets, and the clues point to the highest echelons of power . . . and deep into Shaw’s past.

The Cold Between
A Central Corps Novel 1
Harper Voyager, March 8, 2016
Trade Paperback and eBook, 528 pages

Deep in the stars, a young officer and her lover are plunged into a murder mystery and a deadly conspiracy in this first entry in a stellar military science-fiction series in the tradition of Lois McMaster Bujold.

When her crewmate, Danny, is murdered on the colony of Volhynia, Central Corps chief engineer, Commander Elena Shaw, is shocked to learn the main suspect is her lover, Treiko Zajec. She knows Trey is innocent—he was with her when Danny was killed. So who is the real killer and why are the cops framing an innocent man?

Retracing Danny’s last hours, they discover that his death may be tied to a mystery from the past: the explosion of a Central Corps starship at a wormhole near Volhynia. For twenty-five years, the Central Gov has been lying about the tragedy, even willing to go to war with the outlaw PSI to protect their secrets.

With the authorities closing in, Elena and Trey head to the wormhole, certain they’ll find answers on the other side. But the truth that awaits them is far more terrifying than they ever imagined . . . a conspiracy deep within Central Gov that threatens all of human civilization throughout the inhabited reaches of the galaxy—and beyond.

About Elizabeth

Elizabeth Bonesteel began making up stories at the age of five, in an attempt to battle insomnia. Thanks to a family connection to the space program, she has been reading science fiction since she was a child. She currently works as a software engineer and lives in central Massachusetts with her husband, daughter, and various cats.





Website  ~  Twitter @liz_monster  ~  Facebook

Happy Monday!


There is one debut this week -

The Shadow of What Was Lost (The Licanius Trilogy 1) by James Islington.




From formerly feature DAC Authors:

Remnants of Trust (Central Corps 2) by Elizabeth Bonesteel;

The Mad Scientist's Daughter by Cassandra Rose Clarke is reissued;

Jeroun: The Collected Omnibus by Zachary Jernigan;

Belle Chasse (Sentinels of New Orleans 5) by Suzanne Johnson;

The Last Song Before Midnight by Ilana C. Myer is out in Trade Paperback;

and

After Atlas (A Planetfall Novel 2) by Emma Newman.




Debut novels are highlighted in blue. Novels, etc. by formerly featured Debut Author Challenge Authors are highlighted in green.






November 8, 2016

TITLE	AUTHOR	SERIES
Sabbat Martyr	Dan Abnett	SF - Gaunt's Ghosts 7
Cocktails at Seven, Apocalypse at Eight: The Derby Cavendish Stories	Don Bassingthwaite	Occ/Sup
House of Mystery	Courtney Bates-Hardy	FairyT/Poetry
Remnants of Trust	Elizabeth Bonesteel	SF - Central Corps 2
The City Will Crumble	Kristina Circelli	H/GH/Occ - The Five Flames 4
The Mad Scientist's Daughter (ri)	Cassandra Rose Clarke	SF
The Role of Lightning in Evolution	David Clink	SpecFic/Poetry
Ashes of the Tyrant (h2mm)	Erin M. Evans	F - Neverwinter / Brimstone Angels 5
Leopard's Fury	Christine Feehan	PNR - A Leopard Novel 9
A Hunter Under the Mistletoe: All Is Bright\Heat of a Helios	Addison Fox Karen Whiddon	SFR
Utopias and Dystopias in the Fiction of H. G. Wells and William Morris: Landscape and Space	Emelyne Godfrey (Ed)	HC
Immortal Billionaire	Jane Godman	PNR
The Collected Stories of Frank Herbert (h2tp)	Frank Herbert	SF - Collection
Tales from the Darkside: Scripts by Joe Hill	Joe Hill	H
The Shadow of What Was Lost (D)	James Islington	F - The Licanius Trilogy 1
Minecraft: Exploded Builds: Medieval Fortress: An Official Mojang Book	Craig Jelley	Minecraft: Exploded Builds
Jeroun: The Collected Omnibus	Zachary Jernigan	SF
Belle Chasse	Suzanne Johnson	UF - Sentinels of New Orleans 5
Rockabilly Hell (e)(ri)	William W. Johnstone	H
The Secret Life of Souls	Jack Ketchum Lucky McKee	PsySus
Sons of Corax	George Mann	SF - Legends of the Dark Millennium 3
The Jekyll Revelation	Robert Masello	Hist/Th
Silver Road	James Maxwell	F - The Shifting Tides 2
Promise of Wrath	Steve McHugh	CF - The Hellequin Chronicles 6
The Chemist	Stephenie Meyer	Th
A Garden Fed by Lightning	Marshall Moore	H - Collection
Last Song Before Night (h2tp)	Ilana C. Myer	F
The Mountain of Kept Memory	Rachel Neumeier	F
After Atlas	Emma Newman	SF - Planetfall 2
The Calorium Wars: An Extravaganza of the Gilded Age	Dennis O'Flaherty	SP
Dark Shadows: Heiress of Collinwood	Lara Parker	P - Dark Shadows 4
The Iron Beast	Andy Remic	HistF - A Song for No Man's Land 3
Hearts of Darkness	Andrea Speed	SF/Meta/SH
Bridging Infinity	Jonathan Strahan (Ed)	SF - Anthology
Very Sensible Stories and Poems for Grown Persons	Jason Taniguchi	Poetry
Fireside Gothic	Andrew Taylor	Gothic - Collection
A Trail Through Time	Jodi Taylor	SF/TT - Chronicles of St. Mary's 4
Jim Henson's Labyrinth Artist Tribute	Jim Henson et al.	F/Film
Cyber World: Tales of Humanity's Tomorrow	Jason Heller (Ed) Joshua Viola (Ed)	CyberP - Anthology
New Eden	William Vitka	SF/AP/PA - Hellcat 3
Skinner Luce (h2tp)	Patricia Ward	UF/Th
Dark Titan Journey: Sanctioned Catastrophe	Thomas A. Watson	SF/PA/AP - Dark Titan 1
At the Sign of Triumph	David Weber	SF - Safehold 9
Alien Morning	Rick Wilber	SF
StarCraft: Evolution	Timothy Zahn	SF - Starcraft

November 9, 2016

TITLE	AUTHOR	SERIES
Reverse Documentary: A Tor.com Original (e)	Marisela Navarro	DF

November 10, 2016

TITLE	AUTHOR	SERIES
Arista's Legacy (e)	Deborah Cooke	SFR - The Dragons of Incendium Short Stories 2

D - Debut
e - eBook
Ed - Editor
h2mm - Hardcover to Mass Market Paperback
h2tp - Hardcover to Trade Paperback
mm - Mass Market Paperback
ri - reissue or reprint
tp2mm - Trade to Mass Market Paperback


AC - Alien Contact
AH - Alternate History
AP - Apocalyptic
CF - Contemporary Fantasy
CM - Cozy Mystery
CoA - Coming of Age
CW - Contemporary Women
CyberP - CyberPunk
DF - Dark Fantasy
Dys - Dystopian
F _ Fantasy
FairyT - Fairy Tales
Fict - Fiction
FolkT - Folk Tales
FR - Fantasy Romance
GenEng - Genetic Engineering
GN - Graphic Novel
H - Horror
HC - History and Criticism
HistF - Historical Fantasy
HU - Humor
LC - Literary Criticism
LF - Literary Fiction
LM - Legends and Mythology
Meta - Metaphysical
Occ - Occult
P - Paranormal
PA - Post Apocalyptic
PNR - Paranormal Romance
PsySus - Psychological Suspense
SF - Science Fiction
SFR - Science Fiction Romance
SH - Superheroes
SO - Space Opera
Sup - Supernatural
SupTh - Supernatural Thriller
TechTh - Technological Thriller
Th - Thriller
TT - Time Travel
UF - Urban Fantasy


Note: Not all of these genres and formats are represented in the books above.

Christopher L. Bennett (2012)

Department of Temporal Investigations: Time Lock
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Pocket Books/Star Trek, September 2016
eBook, 112 pages

An all new Star Trek e-novella from the world of Deep Space Nine, featuring the fan-favorite Federation bureau the Department of Temporal Investigations!

The dedicated agents of the Federation Department of Temporal Investigations have their work cut out for them protecting the course of history from the dangers of time travel. But the galaxy is littered with artifacts that, in the wrong hands, could threaten reality. One of the DTI's most crucial jobs is to track down these objects and lock them safely away in the Federation’s most secret and secure facility. As it happens, Agent Gariff Lucsly and his supervisor, DTI director Laarin Andos, are charged with handling a mysterious space-time portal device discovered by Starfleet. But this device turns out to be a Trojan horse, linking to a pocket dimension and a dangerous group of raiders determined to steal some of the most powerful temporal artifacts ever known...

The Face of the Unknown
Star Trek: The Original Series
Pocket Books/Star Trek, December 27, 2016
Mass Market Paperback and eBook, 352 pages

Continuing the milestone 50th anniversary celebration of Star Trek—a brand-new novel of The Original Series featuring James T. Kirk, Spock, and the crew of the USS Enterprise!

Investigating a series of violent raids by a mysterious predatory species, Captain James T. Kirk discovers that these events share a startling connection with the First Federation, a friendly but secretive civilization contacted early in the USS Enterprise’s five-year mission. Traveling to the First Federation in search of answers, the Enterprise suddenly comes under attack from these strange marauders. Seeking refuge, the starship finds its way to the true home of the First Federation, an astonishing collection of worlds hidden from the galaxy beyond. The inhabitants of this isolated realm are wary of outsiders, and some accuse Kirk and his crew for bringing the wrath of their ancient enemy down upon them. When an attempt to stave off disaster goes tragically wrong, Kirk is held fully accountable, and Commander Spock learns there are even deeper forces that threaten this civilization. If Kirk and Spock cannot convince the First Federation's leaders to overcome their fears, the resulting catastrophe could doom them all!

Stephen Blackmoore (2012)

Hungry Ghosts
Eric Carter 3
DAW, February 7, 2017
Mass Market Paperback and eBook, 320 pages

Necromancer Eric Carter’s problems keep getting bigger. Bad enough he’s the unwilling husband to the patron saint of death, Santa Muerte, but now her ex, the Aztec King of the dead, Mictlantecuhtli, has come back — and it turns out that Carter and he are swapping places. As Mictlantecuhtli breaks loose of his prison of jade, Carter is slowly turning to stone. To make matters worse, both gods are trying to get Carter to assassinate the other. But only one of them can be telling him the truth and he can’t trust either one. Carter’s solution? Kill them both.

If he wants to get out of this situation with his soul intact he’ll have to go to Mictlan, the Aztec land of the dead, and take down a couple of death gods while facing down the worst trials the place has to offer him: his own sins.

Elizabeth Bonesteel (2016)

Remnants of Trust
A Central Corps Novel 2
Harper Voyager, November 8, 2016
Trade Paperback and eBook, 528 pages

In this follow-up to the acclaimed military science fiction thriller The Cold Between, a young soldier finds herself caught in the crosshairs of a deadly conspiracy in deep space.

Six weeks ago, Commander Elena Shaw and Captain Greg Foster were court-martialed for their role in an event Central Gov denies ever happened. Yet instead of a dishonorable discharge or time in a military prison, Shaw and Foster and are now back together on Galileo. As punishment, they’ve been assigned to patrol the nearly empty space of the Third Sector.

But their mundane mission quickly turns treacherous when the Galileo picks up a distress call: Exeter, a sister ship, is under attack from raiders. A PSI generation ship—the same one that recently broke off negotiations with Foster—is also in the sector and joins in the desperate battle that leaves ninety-seven of Exeter’s crew dead.

An investigation of the disaster points to sabotage. And Exeter is only the beginning. When the PSI ship and Galileo suffer their own "accidents," it becomes clear that someone is willing to set off a war in the Third Sector to keep their secrets, and the clues point to the highest echelons of power . . . and deep into Shaw’s past.

Ezekiel Boone (2016)

The Hatching
The Hatching Series 1
Atria/Emily Bestler Books, February 14, 2017
Trade Paperback, 352 pages
Hardcover and eBook, July 5, 2016

An astonishingly inventive and terrifying debut novel about the emergence of an ancient species, dormant for over a thousand years, and now on the march in this “apocalyptic extravaganza of doom and heroism" (Publishers Weekly).

Deep in the jungle of Peru, where so much remains unknown, a black, skittering mass devours an American tourist whole. Thousands of miles away, an FBI agent investigates a fatal plane crash in Minneapolis and makes a gruesome discovery. Unusual seismic patterns register in a Kanpur, India earthquake lab, confounding the scientists there. During the same week, the Chinese government “accidentally” drops a nuclear bomb in an isolated region of its own country. As these incidents begin to sweep the globe, a mysterious package from South America arrives at a Washington, D.C. laboratory. Something wants out.

The world is on the brink of an apocalyptic disaster. An ancient species, long dormant, is now very much awake.

Skitter
The Hatching Series 2
Atria/Emily Bestler Books, May 9, 2017
Hardcover and eBook, 352 pages

Ezekiel Boone follows up his terrifying “apocalyptic extravaganza of doom and heroism” (Publishers Weekly) The Hatching with Skitter, the horrifying sequel in which the carnivorous spiders are running rampant—but for what’s left of humanity, the worst is yet to come.

Tens of millions of people around the world are dead. Half of China is a nuclear wasteland. Mysterious flesh-eating spiders are marching through Los Angeles, Oslo, Delhi, Rio de Janeiro, and countless other cities. According to scientist Melanie Gruyer, however, the spider situation seems to be looking up. Yet in Japan, a giant, truck-sized, glowing egg sack gives a shocking preview of what is to come, even as survivors in Los Angeles panic and break the quarantine zone. Out in the desert, survivalists Gordo and Shotgun are trying to invent a spider super weapon, but it’s not clear if it’s too late, because President Stephanie Pilgrim has been forced to enact the plan of last resort: The Spanish Protocol. America, you are on your own.

M.H. Boroson (2015)

The Girl With Ghost Eyes
Talos, October 11, 2016
Mass Market Paperback, 304 pages
Hardcover and eBook, November 3, 2015

"A brilliant tale of magic, monsters, and kung fu in the San Francisco Chinatown of 1898" —Publishers Weekly, starred review

It’s the end of the nineteenth century in San Francisco’s Chinatown, and ghost hunters from the Maoshan traditions of Daoism keep malevolent spiritual forces at bay. Li-lin, the daughter of a renowned Daoshi exorcist, is a young widow burdened with yin eyes—the unique ability to see the spirit world. Her spiritual visions and the death of her husband bring shame to Li-lin and her father—and shame is not something this immigrant family can afford.

When a sorcerer cripples her father, terrible plans are set in motion, and only Li-lin can stop them. To aid her are her martial arts and a peachwood sword, her burning paper talismans, and a wisecracking spirit in the form of a human eyeball tucked away in her pocket. Navigating the dangerous alleys and backrooms of a male-dominated Chinatown, Li-lin must confront evil spirits, gangsters, and soulstealers before the sorcerer’s ritual summons an ancient evil that could burn Chinatown to the ground.

With a rich and inventive historical setting, nonstop martial arts action, authentic Chinese magic, and bizarre monsters from Asian folklore, The Girl with Ghost Eyes is also the poignant story of a young immigrant searching to find her place beside the long shadow of a demanding father and the stigma of widowhood. In a Chinatown caught between tradition and modernity, one woman may be the key to holding everything together.

TQ:  Welcome to The Qwillery. When and why did you start writing?

Elizabeth:  Thank you! I actually started making up stories when I was 5, before I could read or write. I was never a good sleeper, and it was always rough on my parents getting me to go to bed. At one point they suggested I start telling myself stories, I’m sure as a way of trying to get a decent amount of rest themselves. It worked pretty well for me. I still write in my head as I’m falling asleep.



TQ:  Are you a plotter, a pantser or a hybrid?

Elizabeth:  Probably a hybrid, although plotters are uniformly horrified by me, so maybe I’m a pantser in disguise. I usually have an ending, and a handful of milestones. Most of the time I know where the story starts. I work out most of the details - including, sometimes, some really big plot points - as I’m composing. A lot of the twists in The Cold Between were throw-away thoughts and dialogue in the early stages.



TQ:  What is the most challenging thing for you about writing?

Elizabeth:  Deadlines, in part because they’re still a bit new to me. Before you sell something, you’re not writing for anyone else. You can afford to laze around and wait for The Muse to show. But once you have people actually waiting for words, you’ve got to write, whether or not The Muse is in the mood. You learn, after a while, that The Muse isn’t actually necessary - some of my favorite bits were written when I was blearily typing madly toward a deadline. But it does change the nature of the creative process, and it requires the reprogramming of a lot of old habits.



TQ:  What has influenced / influences your writing?

Elizabeth:  I was born at the height of the original space program, so the whole idea of space travel was very much a part of popular culture when I was little. In addition to that, my maternal grandfather worked with NASA on the Saturn V, so my parents had a particular interest in following the program in the news. Even when public interest began waning, it was always discussed in our household, and our media consumption was naturally steered in that direction. I remember watching some truly awful stuff on TV - but I also remember being loaded into the car to drive into the city for the first Boston showing of Star Wars. My parents definitely aided and abetted my love of science fiction and fantasy.

These days, I consume more television and movies than books. The high-quality television and film productions coming out these days are really exciting. There was a period in the 70s and 80s, with Star Wars and Alien doing so well, when Hollywood seemed to think adding spaceships to any horrid script would get them some box office. Now there’s so much that’s not only beautiful but really well-written, from complex superhero stuff to hard SF like Edge of Tomorrow and The Expanse. I’ll watch movies and TV episodes over and over again just because they’re so well-written, well-performed, and gorgeous to look at.

And Star Trek, of course, in all of its incarnations, has been a huge inspiration. It’s probably not realistic to imagine a future that optimistic, but there’s a real appeal to the idea that there exists a future in which we’ve not only survived, but done all right.



TQ:  Describe The Cold Between in 140 characters or less.

Elizabeth:  In deep space, murder, romance, betrayal, and government intrigue meet a big, radioactive wormhole. Also, explosions!

I’m not great at Twitter.



TQ:  Tell us something about The Cold Between that is not found in the book description.

Elizabeth:  One thing that’s not apparent in the blurbs is that Galileo is flying outside of her comfort zone. Central starships have assigned areas, and Galileo, for various reasons, is in unfamiliar territory. For the crew - in particular Elena, who’s often naive about these things even at the best of times - this means that allies, reinforcements, and even the basic mission parameters are not going to be what they’re used to. Everyone is slightly off balance without thinking deeply about why, and when things begin to go wrong, they go wrong in ways our heroes don’t anticipate. Even Greg, who’s about as cynical as it gets, is caught flat-footed by a lot of what happens.



TQ:  What inspired you to write The Cold Between? What appeals to you about writing Military Science Fiction?

Elizabeth:  The Cold Between began as a vignette - the first chapter, actually, much of which survives unchanged from early drafts. I had this idea of a woman who does something entirely out of character, which turns out to be serendipitous. From there, she does what most of us would do - at each step, she tries to do the right thing, only to find the situation around her becoming progressively messier.

There’s a strong military history in my family - both of my grandfathers were Army - so from that standpoint a military structure feels comfortable. But what I appreciate most about writing military science fiction is the restrictions it presents. If Elena was working for some random corporation, she could easily take a day or two off to do some independent investigation of a murder, because who would care? In a military setting, there are potentially some pretty serious consequences for her heading off on her own. There’s more at stake for her from the start.

In addition to that, in any military unit, close bonds can develop quickly, even between people who don’t always like each other. There’s a familial aspect to it. You’ve got a set of strong, capable people who rely on each other in ways they rely on no one else. Examining the psychology around that - especially if someone in the unit changes, or becomes unreliable - provides a lot of character material.



TQ:  What sort of research did you do for The Cold Between?

Elizabeth:  I did some research on pulsars, as well as radiation poisoning and isotopes. I also read a lot about concussions, which was sort of interesting. Now every time I see one of those old TV shows where the hero benignly clubs someone unconscious, I can’t suspend my disbelief, because I know how dangerous that is in real life.

Despite the fact that faster-than-light travel is (based on what we know today, at least) impossible, I did do some research into what it would look like. Having been raised on Star Trek, it was something of a surprise to learn that you wouldn’t get anything like a moving starfield out your window. When you think about it, it makes sense; but it was a speed bump.



TQ:  Who was the easiest character to write and why? The hardest and why?

Elizabeth:  Greg is the easiest. I know him the best of all of them, and he’s temperamentally the most like me. I understand his psychology. Elena’s always difficult, because she’s impulsive. I know what she’s going to do, but sometimes it takes me a lot of thinking to understand why. Greg’s the opposite, really: I always know why he reacts to something, but it takes time to unravel how he’s actually going to handle it. He thinks too much, and she doesn’t think at all.

And they both get stubborn. There were things that couldn’t happen in the story because they wouldn’t cooperate. I’d like to say the book is better because of it, but we’ll never know, will we?



TQ:  Why have you chosen to include or not chosen to include social issues in The Cold Between?

Elizabeth:  I could say “I didn’t include any social issues,” but I don’t think that’s true. I think it’s impossible for any writer to create something that doesn’t somehow reveal their feelings about the society they live in. And often it’s unconscious.

I didn’t think about it when I was writing, but I do seem to have a lot of opinions about politics, established authority, trust, and corruption. There are a lot of moments in the story when a character needs to decide between what’s expected - or mandated - by the system they’re a part of, and what they believe is the right thing to do. The more rigid the authority, the more difficult a choice this can be. It’s Greg, really, who’s the most trapped, because he’s the most invested in the chain of command.

Beyond that…writing is an escape for me, and as such, something of a cheat. I’ve gone with the Star Trek future in which we’ve dealt with all of the sexual, racial, and gender bias issues we’re dealing with today. People still self-sort into groups, but for different reasons (PSI, for example, is a self-selecting group who believe a centralized authority is a foolishly inefficient method of helping people). I’m not the first person to note that it’s blatantly unrealistic to assume in a thousand years it’ll be nothing but white guys in space, but no, I don’t cover how we got there. I have some ideas about that, but they’ll have to wait for another book.



TQ:  Which question about The Cold Between do you wish someone would ask? Ask it and answer it!

Elizabeth:

Q: Why this story now, at this point in your life?

A: There’s an adage that’s repeated about fiction: write what you know. And of course on the face of it, it makes no sense. Fiction, by its nature, is speculative. Science fiction and fantasy are by definition based on situations nobody can actually “know.”

But I don’t think that’s what the adage means, at least for me. For me, that advice has to do with character, choice, and consequence. And there are things about these characters that I couldn’t have written when I was younger. The nature of love, both spontaneous and unrequited. The critical importance of friendship and trust. How much easier it is for friends to hurt us than lovers. How easily we hurt other people, despite our best intentions - and how easily pain can make our best intentions fall by the wayside.

And there’s a lot in this story I couldn’t have written before I became a parent. I don’t think for one second it’s a necessary exercise for everyone, but for me, it helped me focus. I learned a lot about my own limits and my own failings, and I found myself strong in areas I would not have expected. It also taught me how to accomplish tasks while sleep-deprived, which is necessary for any writer!



TQ:  Give us one or two favorite non-spoilery quotes from The Cold Between.

Elizabeth:

Justice, he had found, was a flimsy illusion used to stave off anger, and anger always won in the end.

“Everything is cursed. The sensors are cursed, the engines are cursed. My grandmother is cursed, apparently. Also some types of sandwiches.”

“If you’re going to ask me to violate my oath, Lieutenant, you could at least flirt with me first.”

Elena may have forgotten about revenge, Trey thought, but you have not, have you, Captain Foster?



TQ:  What's next?

Elizabeth:  The second book in the series is coming out this fall. It’s an insane amount of work, having two come out so close together — not just for me, but for everyone working on the books — but it’s also an incredible privilege, and very exciting. Book 3 is currently in the composition stages. I’ve got my ending and some milestones, but the gory details are just beginning to reveal themselves.



TQ:  Thank you for joining us at The Qwillery.

Elizabeth:  Thank you! It’s been great fun.

The Cold Between
Central Corps 1
Harper Voyager, March 8, 2016
Trade Paperback and eBook, 528 pages

Deep in the stars, a young officer and her lover are plunged into a murder mystery and a deadly conspiracy in this first entry in a stellar military science-fiction series in the tradition of Lois McMaster Bujold.

When her crewmate, Danny, is murdered on the colony of Volhynia, Central Corps chief engineer, Commander Elena Shaw, is shocked to learn the main suspect is her lover, Treiko Zajec. She knows Trey is innocent—he was with her when Danny was killed. So who is the real killer and why are the cops framing an innocent man?

Retracing Danny’s last hours, they discover that his death may be tied to a mystery from the past: the explosion of a Central Corps starship at a wormhole near Volhynia. For twenty-five years, the Central Gov has been lying about the tragedy, even willing to go to war with the outlaw PSI to protect their secrets.

With the authorities closing in, Elena and Trey head to the wormhole, certain they’ll find answers on the other side. But the truth that awaits them is far more terrifying than they ever imagined . . . a conspiracy deep within Central Gov that threatens all of human civilization throughout the inhabited reaches of the galaxy—and beyond.

About Elizabeth

Elizabeth Bonesteel began making up stories at the age of five, in an attempt to battle insomnia. Thanks to a family connection to the space program, she has been reading science fiction since she was a child. She currently works as a software engineer, and lives in central Massachusetts with her husband, her daughter, and various cats. Massachusetts has been her home her whole life, and while she’s sure there are other lovely places to live, she’s quite happy there.


Website  ~  Twitter @liz_monster  ~  Facebook

Jacket photograph of woman copyright © 2016 by Jill Wachter;

Jacket stock photography copyright © 2016 by Thinkstock

Cover design by Richard L. Aquan

Cover illustration © Chris McGrath

Jacket art by Cliff Nielsen.

Jacket design by G-Force Design.

Cover photo illustration: Sean Freeman

Cover art by Sam Kenney

Jacket design by Lauren Panepinto

Jacket illustration by David Palumbo

Happy Monday!

There is one debut out this week:

The Cold Between (Central Corps 1) by Elizaebeth Bonesteel.


From formerly featured Debut Author Challenge Authors:

The Lost Boys Symphony by Mark Ferguson is out in Trade Paperback;

The Warring States (Wave Trilogy 2) by Aidan Harte is out in Trade Paperback;

Bayou Shadow Hunter (Bayou Magic Series 1) by Debbie Herbert;

and

The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories by Ken Liu.

March 8, 2016

TITLE	AUTHOR	SERIES
Half a War (h2tp)	Joe Abercrombie	F - Shattered Sea 3
The Spider's War	Daniel Abraham	F - The Dagger and the Coin 5
Marked In Flesh	Anne Bishop	DF - A Novel of the Others 4
The Cold Between (D)	Elizabeth Bonesteel	SF - Central Corps 1
The Return of the Witch	Paula Brackston	Hist
Fire Touched	Patricia Briggs	UF - Mercy Thompson 9
The Eerie Adventures of the Lycanthrope Robinson Crusoe (ri)	Peter Clines H. P. Lovecraft Daniel Dafoe	H/MU
The Calling (h2tp)	Rachelle Dekker	Dys - A Seer Novel 2
The Lyre Thief	Jennifer Fallon	F - The Hythrun Chronicles 7
The Lost Boys Symphony (h2tp)	Mark Andrew Ferguson	GB
Dragonfly in Amber (Starz Tie-in Edition)	Diana Gabaldon	TTR - Outlander 2
Bound by the Night	Megan Hart	PNR - Collection
The Warring States (h2tp)	Aidan Harte	F - Wave Trilogy 2
Bayou Shadow Hunter	Debbie Herbert	PNR - Bayou Magic Series 1
Wild Lavender	Nicole Elizabeth Kelleher	FR/HistF - The Aurelian Guard 1
Phantom Lover (e)	Sherrilyn Kenyon	PNR - A Dream Hunter Story
Thinner (ri)	Stephen King	H
Of Noble Family (h2tp)	Mary Robinette Kowal	HistF - Glamourist Histories 5
Forest of Memory	Mary Robinette Kowal	SF/GenEng
Camber of Culdi (e)(ri)	Katherine Kurtz	F - Legends of Camber of Culdi 1
The Bishop's Heir (e)(ri)	Katherine Kurtz	F - Histories of King Kelson 1
Saint Camber (e)(ri)	Katherine Kurtz	F - Legends of Camber of Culdi 2
The King's Justice (e)(ri)	Katherine Kurtz	F - Histories of King Kelson 2
The Quest for Saint Camber (e)(ri)	Katherine Kurtz	F - Histories of King Kelson 3
Camber the Heretic (e)(ri)	Katherine Kurtz	F - Legends of Camber of Culdi 3
The Harrowing of Gwynedd (e)(ri)	Katherine Kurtz	F - Heirs of Saint Camber 1
King Javan's Year (e)(ri)	Katherine Kurtz	F - Heirs of Saint Camber 2
The Bastard Prince (e)(ri)	Katherine Kurtz	F - Heirs of Saint Camber 3
The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories	Ken Liu	SF/F - Collection
The Night Sister (h2tp)	Jennifer McMahon	Sus/Th/M/GH
Crusade's End	Graham McNeill Dan Abnett Ben Counter	SF - The Horus Heresy Omnibus 1
What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours	Helen Oyeyemi	MR/FairyT/FolkT/LM - Collection
Monstrous Little Voices: New Tales Shakespeare's Fantasy World	Adrian Tchaikovsky Emma Newman Jonathan Barnes Foz Meadows Kate Heartfield	HistF - Anthology
Cat Out of Hell (h2tp)	Lynne Truss	Hu/M/H
War of the Fang	Chris Wraight	SF - Space Marine Battles

March 9, 2016

TITLE	AUTHOR	SERIES
"Radio Free Trismegistus" (e)	Ian Tregillis	HistF - The Witch Who Came in From the Cold - Episode 7

March 10, 2016

TITLE	AUTHOR	SERIES
Helix: Episode 1 (e)	Nathan M. Farrugia	Tech/Th
Birthright: Beacon 1 (e)	Valerie Parv	SFR

D - Debut
e - eBook
h2tp - Hardcover to Trade Paperback
ri - reissue or reprint


DF - Dark Fantasy
Dys - Dystopian
F - Fantasy
FairyT - Faity Tales
FolkT - Folk Tales
FR - Fantasy Romance
GB - Genre Bender
GH - Ghosts
H - Horror
Hist - Historical
HistF - Historical Fantasy
Hu - Humor
LM - Legend and Myth
M - Mystery
MR - Magical Realism
MU - Mash Up
PNR - Paranormal Romance
SF - Science Fiction
SFR - Science Fiction Romance
Sus - Suspense
Tech - Technological
Th - Thriller
TTR - Time Travel Romance
UF - Urban Fantasy

Mishell Baker

Borderline
Book 1 of The Arcadia Project
Saga Press, March 1, 2016
Hardcover, Trade Paperback and eBook, 400 pages

A cynical, disabled film director with borderline personality disorder gets recruited to join a secret organization that oversees relations between Hollywood and Fairyland in the first book of a new urban fantasy series from debut author Mishell Baker.

A year ago, Millie lost her legs and her filmmaking career in a failed suicide attempt. Just when she’s sure the credits have rolled on her life story, she gets a second chance with the Arcadia Project: a secret organization that polices the traffic to and from a parallel reality filled with creatures straight out of myth and fairy tales.

For her first assignment, Millie is tasked with tracking down a missing movie star who also happens to be a nobleman of the Seelie Court. To find him, she’ll have to smooth-talk Hollywood power players and uncover the surreal and sometimes terrifying truth behind the glamour of Tinseltown. But stronger forces than just her inner demons are sabotaging her progress, and if she fails to unravel the conspiracy behind the noble’s disappearance, not only will she be out on the streets, but the shattering of a centuries-old peace could spark an all-out war between worlds.

No pressure.

Stacey Berg

Dissension
An Echo Hunter 367 Novel 1
Harper Voyager Impulse, March 15, 2016
    eBook, 384 pages
Harper Voyager Impulse, April 12, 2016
    Mass Market Paperback, 400 pages

For four hundred years, the Church has led the remnants of humanity as they struggle for survival in the last inhabited city. Echo Hunter 367 is exactly what the Church created her to be: loyal, obedient, lethal. A clone who shouldn’t care about anything but her duty. Who shouldn’t be able to.

When rebellious citizens challenge the Church’s authority, it is Echo’s duty to hunt them down before civil war can tumble the city back into the dark. But Echo hides a deadly secret: doubt. And when Echo’s mission leads her to Lia, a rebel leader who has a secret of her own, Echo is forced to face that doubt. For Lia holds the key to the city’s survival, and Echo must choose between the woman she loves and the purpose she was born to fulfill.

Elizabeth Bonesteel

The Cold Between
Central Corps 1
Harper Voyager, March 8, 2016
Trade Paperback and eBook, 528 pages

Deep in the stars, a young officer and her lover are plunged into a murder mystery and a deadly conspiracy in this first entry in a stellar military science-fiction series in the tradition of Lois McMaster Bujold.

When her crewmate, Danny, is murdered on the colony of Volhynia, Central Corps chief engineer, Commander Elena Shaw, is shocked to learn the main suspect is her lover, Treiko Zajec. She knows Trey is innocent—he was with her when Danny was killed. So who is the real killer and why are the cops framing an innocent man?

Retracing Danny’s last hours, they discover that his death may be tied to a mystery from the past: the explosion of a Central Corps starship at a wormhole near Volhynia. For twenty-five years, the Central Gov has been lying about the tragedy, even willing to go to war with the outlaw PSI to protect their secrets.

With the authorities closing in, Elena and Trey head to the wormhole, certain they’ll find answers on the other side. But the truth that awaits them is far more terrifying than they ever imagined . . . a conspiracy deep within Central Gov that threatens all of human civilization throughout the inhabited reaches of the galaxy—and beyond.

Gerald Brandt

The Courier
A San Angeles Novel 1
DAW, March 1, 2016
Hardcover and eBook, 304 pages

Kris Ballard is a motorcycle courier.  A nobody.  Level 2 trash in a multi-level city that stretches from San Francisco to the Mexican border—a land where corporations make all the rules.  A runaway since the age of fourteen, Kris struggled to set up her life, barely scraping by, working hard to make it without anyone’s help. 

But a late day delivery changes everything when she walks in on the murder of one of her clients. Now she’s stuck with a mysterious package that everyone wants. It looks like the corporations want Kris gone, and are willing to go to almost any length to make it happen. 

Hunted, scared, and alone, she retreats to the only place she knows she can hide: the Level 1 streets.  Fleeing from people that seem to know her every move, she is rescued by Miller—a member of an underground resistance group—only to be pulled deeper into a world she doesn’t understand.

Together Kris and Miller barely manage to stay one step ahead of the corporate killers, but it’s only a matter of time until Miller’s resources and their luck run out….

Davila LeBlanc

Dark Transmissions
Jinxed Thirteenth 1
Harper Voyager Impulse, March 1, 2016
    eBook, 384 pages
Harper Voyager Impulse, March 29, 2016
    Mass Market Paperback, 320 pages

It is the late 23rd century. For engineers Jessie Madison and her husband David, a routine maintenance contract on board the orbital mining station Moria 3 has become a nightmare. Upon awakening from cryo-stasis, they learn a horrifying truth: while they were asleep, machines rose up against humanity...and won.

Marooned and at the mercy of the station’s malicious artificial intelligence, OMEX, David and Jessie rig an emergency transmission to broadcast into the darkness, desperately hoping someone is still alive to hear it...

Navigating the fringes of explored space in the Covenant Patrol vessel the Jinxed Thirteenth, Captain Morwyn Soltaine picks up a distress signal from a space station. But it’s broadcasting in Ancient Humanity, a language that has been extinct for several millennia. Even more incredible: there are two survivors on board. Morwyn’s rag-tag crew of reformed criminals mount a rescue op, unaware of the dangerous foe awaiting them. As the past and future collide, a routine mission becomes a deadly game of wits.

Sonia Orin Lyris

The Seer
Baen Books, March 1, 2016
Trade Paperback and eBook, 656 pages

ORIGINAL TRADE PAPERBACK! The debut of a stunning new talent. A poor, young woman rises to the heights of a crumbling empire, where she must speak hard truth to power in order to save a world from chaos.

Everybody Wants Answers. No One Wants the Truth.

The Arunkel empire has stood a thousand years, forged by wealth and conquest, but now rebellion is stirring on the borders and treachery brews in the palace halls. Elsewhere, in a remote mountain village, a young mother sells the prophesies of her sister, Amarta, in order to keep them and her infant child from starving. It's a dangerous game when such revelations draw suspicion and mistrust as often as they earn coin.

Yet Amarta's visions are true. And often not at all what the seeker wishes to hear.

Now in a tapestry of loyalty, intrigue, magic, and gold, Amarta has become the key to a ruler's ambitions. But is she nothing beyond a tool? As Amarta comes into her own as a seer, she realizes she must do more than predict the future. She must create it.

Tarn Richardson

The Damned
The Darkest Hand Trilogy 1
The Overlook Press, March 1, 2016
Hardcover and eBook, 352 pages

A gripping work of dark fiction set in an alternative World War I where unspeakable creatures roam and a ruthless Inquisition still holds sway

In this "sublime work of dark fiction" (Intravenous Magazine), set in an alternative World War I, unspeakable creatures roam the grisly trenches, and a ruthless Catholic Inquisition holds sway ― still powerful, but working in the shadows.

When a Father is brutally murdered int he French city of Arras, Poldeck Tacit―a determined and unhinged Inquisitor―arrives on the scene to investigate the crime. His mission: to protect the Church from those who would seek to destroy it, no matter what the cost.

As the Inquisitor strives in vain to establish the truth behind the murder and to uncover the motives of other Vatican servants seeking to undermine him, a beautiful and spirited woman, Sandrine, warns British solider Henry Frost of a mutual foe even more terrible lurking beneath the killing fields―an enemy that answers to no human force and wreaks its havoc by the light of the moon.

Faced with impossible odds and struggling with his own demons, Tacit must battle the forces of evil―and a church determined at all costs to achieve its aims―to reach the heart of dark conspiracy that seeks to engulf the world, plunging it even deeper into conflict.

Adrian Selby

Snakewood
Orbit, March 15, 2016
Hardcover and eBook, 432 pages

A LIFETIME OF ENEMIES HAS ITS OWN PRICE

Mercenaries who gave no quarter, they shook the pillars of the world through cunning, chemical brews, and cold steel.

Whoever met their price won.

Now, their glory days are behind them. Scattered to the wind and their genius leader in hiding, they are being hunted down and eliminated.

One by one.

A groundbreaking debut fantasy of betrayal, mystery, and bloody revenge. 

Mark Tompkins

The Last Days of Magic
Viking, March 1, 2016
Hardcover and eBook, 400 pages

What became of magic in the world? Who needed to do away with it, and for what reasons? Drawing on myth, legend, fairy tales, and Biblical mysteries, The Last Days of Magic brilliantly imagines answers to these questions, sweeping us back to a world where humans and magical beings co-exist as they had for centuries.

Aisling, a goddess in human form, was born to rule both domains and—with her twin, Anya—unite the Celts with the powerful faeries of the Middle Kingdom. But within medieval Ireland interests are divided, and far from its shores greater forces are mustering. Both England and Rome have a stake in driving magic from the Emerald Isle. Jordan, the Vatican commander tasked with vanquishing the remnants of otherworldly creatures from a disenchanted Europe, has built a career on such plots. But increasingly he finds himself torn between duty and his desire to understand the magic that has been forbidden.

As kings prepare, exorcists gather, and divisions widen between the warring clans of Ireland, Aisling and Jordan must come to terms with powers given and withheld, while a world that can still foster magic hangs in the balance. Loyalties are tested, betrayals sown, and the coming war will have repercussions that ripple centuries later, in today’s world—and in particular for a young graduate student named Sara Hill.

The Last Days of Magic introduces us to unforgettable characters who grapple with quests for power, human frailty, and the longing for knowledge that has been made taboo. Mark Tompkins has crafted a remarkable tale—a feat of world-building that poses astonishing and resonant answers to epic questions.