The Qwillery

Dan Moren (2017)

The Bayern Agenda
The Galactic Cold War 1
Angry Robot Books, March 5, 2019
Trade Paperback and eBook, 432 pages

A new Cold War threatens the galaxy, in this fast-paced and wisecracking thriller of spies and subterfuge.

Simon Kovalic, top intelligence operative for the Commonwealth of Independent Systems, is on the frontline of the burgeoning Cold War with the aggressive Illyrican Empire. He barely escapes his latest mission with a broken arm, and vital intel which points to the Empire cozying up to the Bayern Corporation: a planet-sized bank. There’s no time to waste, but with Kovalic out of action, his undercover team is handed over to his ex-wife, Lt Commander Natalie Taylor. When Kovalic’s boss is tipped off that the Imperium are ready and waiting, it’s up to the wounded spy to rescue his team and complete the mission before they’re all caught and executed.

File Under: Science Fiction [ Friendly Faces | Traitor, Pilot, Banker, Spy | Embassy Games | Going in Hot ]

Emma Newman (2013)

Atlas Alone
A Planetfall Novel 4
Ace, April 16, 2019
Trade Paperback and eBook, 336 pages

Hugo Award winner Emma Newman returns to the captivating Planetfall universe with a novel about vengeance and the lengths to which one will go to save the future of humanity.

Six months after she left, Dee is struggling to manage her rage toward the people who ordered the nuclear strike that destroyed Earth. She’s trying to find those responsible, but she’s not getting very far alone.

A dedicated gamer, Dee is endeavoring to discover a mersive good enough to enable her to escape her trauma. When she is approached by a designer who asks her to play test his new game, she hopes it will be what she needs—but it isn’t like any mersive she’s played before. When a man suddenly dies in the real world, she realizes that at the same time in the game, she killed a character who bears a striking resemblance to the dead man—a man she discovers was one of those responsible for the death of millions on Earth.

Disturbed, but thinking it must be a coincidence, Dee continues the hunt for information. But when she finds out the plans for the future colony, she realizes that to save what is left of humanity, she might have to do something that risks what remains of her own.

Book 1

Book 2

Book 3

Chuck Wendig (2012)

Vultures
Miriam Black 6
Saga Press, January 22, 2019
Hardcover, Trade Paperback and eBook, 416 pages

In the sixth and final thriller of the “wildly entertaining” (Kirkus Reviews) Miriam Black series, Miriam tries to break the curse of her powers, but first she must face The Trespasser a final time.

Still reeling from the events of The Raptor and the Wren, Miriam must confront two terrifying discoveries: the Trespasser now has the power to inhabit the living as well as the dead, and Miriam is pregnant.

Miriam knows her baby is fated to die, but Miriam is the Fatebreaker. And if the rules have changed for her nemesis, her own powers are changing as well. Miriam will do whatever it takes to break her curse and save her child. But as Miriam once again finds herself on the hunt for a serial killer and in need of an elusive physic, she can feel the threads of her past coming together—and the pattern they’re forming is deadly.

To end the Trespasser’s influence in her world, Miriam must face her demon a final time. And, this time, one of them must die. Vultures is a heart-pounding conclusion to the series: “Think Six Feet Under cowritten by Stephen King and Chuck Palahniuk” (SFX).

Book 1	Book 2
Book 3	Book 4

Book 5

Wanderers
Del Rey, July 2, 2019
Hardcover and eBook, 800 pages

A decadent rock star. A deeply religious radio host. A disgraced scientist. And a teenage girl who may be the world’s last hope. In the tradition of The Stand and Station Eleven comes a gripping saga that weaves an epic tapestry of humanity into an astonishing tale of survival.

Shana wakes up one morning to discover her little sister in the grip of a strange malady. She appears to be sleepwalking. She cannot talk and cannot be woken up. And she is heading with inexorable determination to a destination that only she knows. But Shana and are sister are not alone. Soon they are joined by a flock of sleepwalkers from across America, on the same mysterious journey. And like Shana, there are other “shepherds” who follow the flock to protect their friends and family on the long dark road ahead.

For on their journey, they will discover an America convulsed with terror and violence, where this apocalyptic epidemic proves less dangerous than the fear of it. As the rest of society collapses all around them–and an ultraviolent militia threatens to exterminate them–the fate of the sleepwalkers depends on unraveling the mystery behind the epidemic. The terrifying secret will either tear the nation apart–or bring the survivors together to remake a shattered world.

Sylvain Neuvel (2016)

The Test
Tor.com, February 12, 2019
Trade Paperback and eBook, 112 Pages

Award-winning author Sylvain Neuvel explores an immigration dystopia in The Test

Britain, the not-too-distant future.
Idir is sitting the British Citizenship Test.
He wants his family to belong.
Twenty-five questions to determine their fate. Twenty-five chances to impress.
When the test takes an unexpected and tragic turn, Idir is handed the power of life and death.
How do you value a life when all you have is multiple choice?

Rebecca Roanhorse (2018)

Storm of Locusts
The Sixth World 2
Saga Press, April 23, 2019
Hardcover, Trade Paperback, and eBook, 384 pages

Kai and Caleb Goodacre have been kidnapped just as rumors of a cult sweeping across the reservation leads Maggie and Hastiin to investigate an outpost, and what they find there will challenge everything they’ve come to know in this action-packed sequel to Trail of Lightning.

It’s been four weeks since the bloody showdown at Black Mesa, and Maggie Hoskie, Diné monster hunter, is trying to make the best of things. Only her latest bounty hunt has gone sideways, she’s lost her only friend, Kai Arviso, and she’s somehow found herself responsible for a girl with a strange clan power.

Then the Goodacre twins show up at Maggie’s door with the news that Kai and the youngest Goodacre, Caleb, have fallen in with a mysterious cult, led by a figure out of Navajo legend called the White Locust. The Goodacres are convinced that Kai’s a true believer, but Maggie suspects there’s more to Kai’s new faith than meets the eye. She vows to track down the White Locust, then rescue Kai and make things right between them.

Her search leads her beyond the Walls of Dinétah and straight into the horrors of the Big Water world outside. With the aid of a motley collection of allies, Maggie must battle body harvesters, newborn casino gods and, ultimately, the White Locust himself. But the cult leader is nothing like she suspected, and Kai might not need rescuing after all. When the full scope of the White Locust’s plans are revealed, Maggie’s burgeoning trust in her friends, and herself, will be pushed to the breaking point, and not everyone will survive.

Jeremy Wagner (2011)

Rabid Heart
Riverdale Avenue Books, October 3, 2018
eBook, 294 pages
Hardcover and Trade Paperback, July 2018

How far would you go for love when all you love is DEAD?

Six months after the Necro Rabies pandemic has turned the world into hordes of rabid undead known as "Cujos," 21 year-old Rhonda Driscoll discovers her zombified fiancé, Brad, in her old hometown.

Fearing that her Marine Colonel father will kill undead Brad, Rhonda flees, taking a road-trip with Brad in tow in hopes of starting a new life in a frightening and uncertain world complicated by numerous perils, pure horror, joy, heartbreak, and unconditional love.

Advance Praise for Rabid Heart

“Zombies and the end of days don't stand a chance against true love. Jeremy Wagner's RABID HEART is good, clean apocalyptic fun.”
— Alma Katsu, author of THE HUNGER

"Just when you think you've heard every love story, along comes RABID HEART. My man Jeremy Wagner proves once again he's as much of a wild man with words as he is with his guitar. This book is sick and sweet, and I say that with respect!"
-- Peter Blauner, Ny Times bestselling author of THE INTRUDER and SUNRISE HIGHWAY

Stephen Aryan (2015)

Mageborn
The Age of Dread 1
Orbit, October 3, 2017
Trade Paperback and eBook, 432 pages

Fear of magic is intensifying across the west. Morgan, a former Guardian of the Peace, believes the eradication of magic will lead to stability and lasting world peace. He will do anything to achieve his goal, even if it means murdering every child born with magical ability.

The Red Tower is their last hope. Sheltered from a world that fears them, the students there are taught to control their wild and powerful gifts. But unrest is stirring both outside the walls of the Red Tower and within.  

Bradley P. Beaulieu (2011)

In the Village Where Brightwine Flows
A Shattered Sands Novella
Quillings Literary, August 11, 2017
eBook, 65 pages

Street urchins have been turning up missing in the great desert city of Sharakhai. Few care until the son of one of the city’s richest patrons goes missing as well.

The apothecary named Dardzada wants nothing to do with it, but his shrewd mind and skills as an apothecary make him indispensable to his cruel half-brother Layth, the captain of the guard tasked with solving the mystery.

When Layth insists he look deeper into the kidnappings, Dardzada is drawn into a struggle much larger than he ever anticipated, and he soon realizes it will take all his wits to save the victims and himself.

Of Sand and Malice Made
A Shattered Sands Novel
DAW, September 19, 2017
Trade Paperback, 240 pages
Hardcover and eBook, September 6, 2016

This standalone companion novel returns to Bradley P. Beaulieu’s Song of Shattered Sands epic fantasy universe

Çeda is the youngest pit fighter in the history of Sharakhai. She’s made her name in the arena as the fearsome White Wolf. None but her closest friends and allies know her true identity. But this all changes when she crosses the path of Rümayesh, an ehrekh, a sadistic creature forged aeons ago by the god of chaos.

The ehrekh are desert dwellers, but for centuries Rümayesh has lurked in the dark corners of Sharakhai, combing the populace for human “jewels” that might interest her. Some she chooses to stand by her side, until she tires of them and discards them. Others she abducts to examine more closely, leaving them ruined, worn-out husks.

Çeda flees the ehrekh’s attentions, but that only makes Rümayesh covet her more. Rümayesh grows violent, threatening to unmask Çeda as the White Wolf—but the danger grows infinitely worse when she turns her attention to Çeda’s friends.

As Çeda fights to protect the people dearest to her, Rümayesh comes closer to attaining her prize, and the struggle becomes a battle for Çeda’s very soul.

With Blood Upon the Sand
The Song of Shattered Sands 2
DAW, February 6, 2018
Trade Paperback, 672 pages
Hardcover and eBook, February 7, 2017

The second book in The Song of Shattered Sands series–an epic fantasy with a desert setting, filled with rich worldbuilding and pulse-pounding action.

Çeda, now a Blade Maiden in service to the kings of Sharakhai, trains as one of their elite warriors, gleaning secrets even as they send her on covert missions to further their rule. She knows the dark history of the asirim—that hundreds of years ago they were enslaved to the kings against their will—but when she bonds with them as a Maiden, chaining them to her, she feels their pain as if her own. They hunger for release, they demand it, but with the power of the gods compelling them, they find their chains unbreakable.

Çeda could become the champion they’ve been waiting for, but the need to tread carefully has never been greater. After their recent defeat at the hands of the rebel Moonless Host, the kings are hungry for blood, scouring the city in their ruthless quest for revenge. Çeda’s friend Emre and his new allies in the Moonless Host hope to take advantage of the unrest in Sharakhai, despite the danger of opposing the kings and their god-given powers, and the Maidens and their deadly ebon blades.

When Çeda and Emre are drawn into a plot of the blood mage Hamzakiir, they learn a devastating secret that may very well shatter the power of the hated kings. But it may all be undone if Çeda cannot learn to navigate the shifting tides of power in Sharakhai and control the growing anger of the asirim that threatens to overwhelm her…

A Veil of Spears
The Song of Shattered Sands 3
DAW, March 20, 2018
Hardcover and eBook, 672 pages

The third book in The Song of Shattered Sands series–an epic fantasy with a desert setting, filled with rich worldbuilding and pulse-pounding action.

Since the Night of Endless Swords, a bloody battle the Kings of Sharakhai narrowly won, the kings have been hounding the rebels known as the Moonless Host. Many have been forced to flee the city, including Çeda, who discovers that the King of Sloth is raising his army to challenge the other kings’ rule.

When Çeda finds the remaining members of the Moonless Host, now known as the thirteenth tribe, she sees a tenuous existence. Çeda hatches a plan to return to Sharakhai and free the asirim, the kings’ powerful, immortal slaves. The kings, however, have sent their greatest tactician, the King of Swords, to bring Çeda to justice for her crimes.

But the once-unified front of the kings is crumbling. The surviving kings vie quietly against one another, maneuvering for control over Sharakhai. Çeda hopes to use that to her advantage, but whom to trust? Any of them might betray her.

As Çeda works to lift the shackles from the asirim and save the thirteenth tribe, the kings of Sharakhai, the scheming queen of Qaimir, the ruthless blood mage, Hamzakiir, and King of Swords all prepare for a grand clash that may decide the fate of all.

Twelve Kings in Sharakhai
The Song of the Shattered Sands 1
DAW, July 12, 2016
Trade Paperback, 592 pages
Hardcover and eBook,September 1, 2015

Best Book of 2015 by Amazon | Barnes & Noble | BuzzFeed • “Promises to be breathtaking.” —Robin Hobb

The Song of the Shattered Sands: Book One

Sharakhai, the great city of the desert, center of commerce and culture, has been ruled from time immemorial by twelve kings — cruel, ruthless, powerful, and immortal. With their army of Silver Spears, their elite company of Blade Maidens and their holy defenders, the terrifying asirim, the Kings uphold their positions as undisputed, invincible lords of the desert. There is no hope of freedom for any under their rule.

Or so it seems, until Çeda, a brave young woman from the west end slums, defies the Kings’ laws by going outside on the holy night of Beht Zha’ir. What she learns that night sets her on a path that winds through both the terrible truths of the Kings’ mysterious history and the hidden riddles of her own heritage. Together, these secrets could finally break the iron grip of the Kings’ power…if the nigh-omnipotent Kings don’t find her first.

Kevin Hearne (2011)

Scourged
The Iron Druid Chronicles 9
Del Rey, April 3, 2018
Hardcover and eBook, 224 pages

New York Times bestselling author Kevin Hearne returns with the finale to his wildly popular action-adventure series, The Iron Druid Chronicles.

Two-thousand-year-old Druid Atticus O’Sullivan travels to Asgard and faces off against the Norse gods to try and prevent Ragnarok in the final battle for the fate of mankind.

Ania Ahlborn (2012)

I Call Upon Thee
Pocket Star, August 7, 2017
eBook, 256 pages

A terrifying e-novella from the bestselling author of The Devil Crept In, Brother, and Within These Walls.

Maggie Olsen had a pretty ordinary childhood—swimming and sleepovers, movie nights and dad jokes. And then there were the other things…the darker things…the shadow that followed her home from the cemetery and settled into the corners of her home, refusing to let her grow up in peace.

Now, after three years away from the place she's convinced she inadvertently haunted, and after yet another family tragedy strikes, Maggie is forced to return to the sweltering heat of a Savannah summer to come to terms with her past. All along, she's been telling herself, it was just in your head, and she nearly convinces herself that she'd imagined it all. But the moment Maggie steps into the foyer of her family home, she knows. The darkness is still here. And it's been waiting for Maggie's return….

Amelia Atwater-Rhodes (2016)

Of the Divine
Mancer Trilogy 2
Harper Voyager Impulse, August 15, 2017
eBook, 400 pages

The second novel in Amelia Atwater-Rhodes's dazzling Mancer trilogy, Of the Divine takes place seventy-one years before the events of Of the Abyss, in a world where sorcery is still practiced freely—but at what cost?

Henna’s runes tell her that the future of Kavet is balanced on the edge of the knife. One of the most powerful sorcerers in the Order of Napthol, she is well-respected for her second sight. But the fragments she sees this time—blood, darkness, destruction—leave her unsure how to set the country and her lover, Verte, prince of Kavet, on the correct course.

Meanwhile, the treaties between Kavet and the dragon-like race known as the Osei have become intolerable. The time has come for the royal house to wield their unique magic to challenge Osei dominion, with Prince Verte serving as the nexus for the powerful but dangerous spell, and Naples, an untested young sorcerer from the Order of Napthol, a volatile but critical support to its creation.

Amid these plans, Dahlia Indathrone’s arrival in the city shouldn’t matter. She has no magic and no royal lineage, and yet, Henna immediately knows the young woman is important. She just can’t see why. And no vision could prepare her for the role Dahlia will come to play.

In Of the Divine, the lives of Henna, Verte, Naples, and Dahlia become irrevocably linked, setting them, and all Kavet, on a perilous path. As they struggle to survive, they learn that they are but pawns in a larger game, one played by the forces of the Abyss and of the Numen—the infernal and the divine. A game no mortal can ever hope to win.

Deborah Blake (2014)

Veiled Menace
Veiled Magic 2
InterMix, April 18, 2017
eBook, 285 pages

From the author of Veiled Magic and the Baba Yaga novels comes an exciting new paranormal romance…

Since Witches came out of the broom closet in the early twenty-first century, they have worked alongside humans as police officers, healers, stock traders, and more. But they aren’t the only paranormal entities in our world…

Witch and police officer Donata Santori is no stranger to magical mayhem, but lately her life has been unexpectedly charmed. Her job as a Ghost Yanker now includes the occasional paranormal investigation, and she’s advancing her magical abilities with the help of an ancestor’s treasured spell book. And while both of her former love interests—reclusive half-Dragon art forger Peter Casaventi and disgraced Shapechanger Magnus Torvald—are nowhere to be found, she’s not averse to being wined and dined by wealthy businessman Anton Eastman.

But Eastman isn’t what he seems, and what he wants from Donata is far more than she’s willing to give. When a mysterious relic, the Pentacle Pentimento, resurfaces, along with Peter’s Dragon father and a shocking Santori family secret, Donata must fight to save herself, her friends, and just maybe the fate of the world from a magic as old as it is dangerous…

Includes an exclusive preview of the next Broken Rider novel, Dangerously Divine

Wickedly Spirited
A Baba Yaga Novella
InterMix, September 19, 2017
eBook, 55 pages

Jazz, the powerfully magical teen first introduced in Wickedly Powerful, is now being trained as a Baba Yaga—and she’s determined to free the Broken Riders herself.

Jazz had a rough life before meeting her guardian, and she knows she’s lucky that Bella is training her to be a Baba Yaga. But the gifted young witch is frustrated by the slow pace of her lessons. Jazz knows she’s capable of even greater magic, and she wants nothing more than to find a spell that will give the Riders back the immortality they lost.

With the reluctant assistance of Bella’s dragon-turned-cat Koshka, Jazz travels to the Otherworld to get the necessary ingredients to perform the spell. A willful young witch, dangerous magic, and one powerful wish—what could possibly go wrong?

Dangerously Divine
A Broken Rider Novel 2
Berkley, November 28, 2017
Mass Market Paperback and eBook, 304 pages

The author of the “wonderful” (Tamora Pierce) Baba Yaga novels and Dangerously Charming is back with a magically mesmerizing new tale about the dashing and daring Broken Riders…

The Riders: Three immortal brothers who kept the Baba Yagas safe, now stripped of their summons to protect. But fate is not finished with them—and their new callings are even more powerful…

Though his physical wounds have healed, Gregori Sun, the eldest of the Riders, remains in spiritual turmoil. His search for his mother, the one person able to heal his soul and save his life, is failing—until he crosses paths with a beautiful and fascinating librarian who might be the key to his salvation…

Ciera Evans’s bookish ways are just a guise. The product of a difficult past, she has dedicated her life to saving lost teens—by any means necessary. She works alone, but when a dark, brooding stranger proposes they team up to solve both their problems, she is tempted—in more ways than one…

After Ciera and Sun’s plans are derailed by dangerous enemies, they find themselves entangled in an ungodly affair—one that will force them to either find new strength together or be forever haunted by their pasts alone.

Stina Leicht (2011)

Blackthorne
The Malorum Gates 2
Saga Press, August 8, 2017
Trade Paperback, Hardcover and eBook, 720 pages

In this sweeping sequel to the critically acclaimed Cold Iron—which NPR Books raved, “reminded me, pleasurably, of Robin Hobb’s Assassin’s Apprentice series”—the Kingdom of Eledore has fallen and Nel and Suvi lead a diaspora of their people to safety, but the magic that has kept the demon forces away is dwindling, and they must find a new way to protect themselves.

The Acrasian army has swept through Eledore, nearly massacring the entire race in fear and hatred of the magic they possess. This same magic is all that was keeping the demon incursion at bay, but now the great evil that was banished is seeping into the world. Watchers are formed to warn of any sightings of the demons, but little can be done if one encounters them in shadow or at night.

Meanwhile, Nels leads a precious few hundred survivors of Eledore through the wilds, hoping to find solace and rebuild their civilization while his twin sister, Suvi, seeks allies at sea.

Melissa F. Olson (2012)

Blood Gamble
Disrupted Magic 2
47 North, July 25, 2017
Trade Paperback and Kindle eBook, 300 pages

If there is one city that Scarlett Bernard hates, it’s Las Vegas. But when the cardinal vampire of Los Angeles convinces her to go investigate a new vampire-themed stage show, Scarlett quickly finds herself shoulder-deep in sequins, slot machines, and Old World intrigue.

The show’s creators are vampire celebrities Arthur and Lucy Holmwood, who once inspired characters from the original Dracula. Now, however, they have no qualms about announcing their true status to the human world, endangering the secrecy of the Old World and Scarlett’s mission to keep it hidden.

But before she can begin untangling the Holmwoods’ motives, Scarlett also discovers that their new production has attracted more than just fans: Las Vegas’s many vampires are suddenly disappearing, and rumors are flying that actual vampire hunters may have followed Arthur and Lucy to town.

Now, without her allies, her bargest, or her frequent partner Jesse Cruz, Scarlett must navigate a new underworld of secrets and murders in a city where nothing is ever as it seems. And the stakes have never been higher.

Switchback
A Nightshades Novel 2
Tor.com, October 24, 2017
Trade Paperback and eBook, 256 pages

The Bureau of Preternatural Investigations returns in Switchback, the sequel to Melissa F. Olson's Nightshades.

Three weeks after the events of Nightshades, things are finally beginning to settle for the Chicago branch of the BPI, but the brief respite from the horror of the previous few weeks was never destined to last.

The team gets a call from Switch Creek, WI, where a young man has been arrested on suspicion of being a shade.

The suspect is held overnight, pending DNA testing, but seemingly escapes in a terrifying and bloody massacre. But is there more to the jailbreak than a simple quest for freedom?

Max Wirestone (2015)

The Questionable Behavior of Dahlia Moss
A Dahlia Moss Mystery 3
Redhook, January 9, 2018
Trade  Paperback and eBook, 288 pages

Veronica Mars meets the World of Warcraft in this mystery romp with a hilarious heroine.

Working for a games development company is my dream job. So, when a slightly sketchy lawyer offered me the opportunity, I had to take it! Who cares that the company has some quirks? No job is perfect. Some questionable, but probably totally normal issues:

• A mysterious whistle-blower is posting the industry's dirty laundry on Reddit.
• An unidentified corpse is in the staff room.
• The game under development is for filthy casuals, and unwisely involves matching talking peppermints.
• My job, technically speaking, is "Industry Spy."

It's all just a typical day at the office. Right?

Dive into Dahlia Moss's brilliant, bonkers mystery and enjoy pure, geeky fun!

Dahlia Moss Mysteries
The Unfortunate Decisions of Dahlia Moss
The Astonishing Mistakes of Dahlia Moss
The Questionable Behavior of Dahlia Moss

Katherine Arden (2017)

The Bear and the Nightingale
Del Rey, June 27, 2017
Trade Paperback, 368 pages
Hardcover and eBook, January 10, 2017

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A magical debut novel for readers of Naomi Novik’s Uprooted, Erin Morgenstern’s The Night Circus, and Neil Gaiman’s myth-rich fantasies, The Bear and the Nightingale spins an irresistible spell as it announces the arrival of a singular talent with a gorgeous voice.

At the edge of the Russian wilderness, winter lasts most of the year and the snowdrifts grow taller than houses. But Vasilisa doesn’t mind—she spends the winter nights huddled around the embers of a fire with her beloved siblings, listening to her nurse’s fairy tales. Above all, she loves the chilling story of Frost, the blue-eyed winter demon, who appears in the frigid night to claim unwary souls. Wise Russians fear him, her nurse says, and honor the spirits of house and yard and forest that protect their homes from evil.

After Vasilisa’s mother dies, her father goes to Moscow and brings home a new wife. Fiercely devout, city-bred, Vasilisa’s new stepmother forbids her family from honoring the household spirits. The family acquiesces, but Vasilisa is frightened, sensing that more hinges upon their rituals than anyone knows.

And indeed, crops begin to fail, evil creatures of the forest creep nearer, and misfortune stalks the village. All the while, Vasilisa’s stepmother grows ever harsher in her determination to groom her rebellious stepdaughter for either marriage or confinement in a convent.

As danger circles, Vasilisa must defy even the people she loves and call on dangerous gifts she has long concealed—this, in order to protect her family from a threat that seems to have stepped from her nurse’s most frightening tales.

The Girl in the Tower
Del Rey, December 5, 2017
Hardcover and eBook, 384 pages

The magical adventure begun in The Bear and the Nightingale continues as brave Vasya, now a young woman, is forced to choose between marriage or life in a convent and instead flees her home—but soon finds herself called upon to help defend the city of Moscow when it comes under siege.

Isabel Cooper (2011)

Highland Dragon Warrior
Dawn of the Highland Dragon 1
Sourcebooks Casablanca, September 5, 2017
Mass Market Paperback and eBook, 320 pages

"Another incredible, unique romance from the ingenious Cooper. Smartly written, fast-paced and brimming over with magic and surprises, this is exactly what readers crave and what Cooper continues to deliver."-RT Book Reviews, 4 ½ stars on Night of the Highland Dragon

Dragon shapeshifter Cathal MacAlasdair is on the brink of losing a dangerous power to his enemy when a whip-smart alchemist strikes a bargain...and lights a fire inside his heart.

Legend claims
When Scotland fell to English rule
The Highland dragons took a vow:
Freedom at any price.

The war may be over, but so long as English magic controls the Highlands, not even a dragon laird can keep his clan safe. What Cathal MacAlasdair needs is a warrior fierce enough to risk everything, yet gifted enough to outwit an enemy more monster than man.

What he needs is Sophia.

Alchemist Sophia Metzger traveled to Loch Arach in search of knowledge. She never dreamed she'd learn to do battle, ride through the stars on the back of a dragon, or catch the eye of a Highland laird. But as her quest turns to sizzling chemistry and inescapable danger, she'll soon discover the thrill of being caught in a dragon's claws...

Dawn of the Highland Dragon Series:
Highland Dragon Warrior (Book 1)
Highland Dragon Rebel (Book 2)
Highland Dragon Unleashed (Book 3)

Highland Dragon Rebel
Dawn of the Highland Dragon 2
Sourcebooks Casablanca, November 7, 2017
Mass Market Paperback and eBook, 352 pages

Madoc of Avandos is on a journey to cement alliances. Targeted by an assassin, he needs a companion who can fight. When dragon shifter Moiread MacAlasdair returns from war, he knows she's the best woman for the job. Duty and political strength compel Moiread to agree, but when they cross into the otherworld and Madoc's life is threatened, Moiread jumps into protection mode-and will do whatever it takes to keep the man of her dreams alive.

Dawn of the Highland Dragon Series:
Highland Dragon Warrior (Book 1)
Highland Dragon Rebel (Book 2)
Highland Dragon Unleashed (Book3)

Emma Newman (2013)

Weaver's Lament
Industrial Magic 2
Tor.com, October 17, 2017
Trade Paperback and eBook, 192 pages

Charlotte's magical adventures continue in Weaver's Lament, the sequel to Emma Newman's Brother's Ruin.

Charlotte is learning to control her emerging magical powers under the secret tutelage of Magus Hopkins.

Her first covert mission takes her to a textile mill where the disgruntled workers are apparently destroying expensive equipment.

And if she can’t identify the culprits before it’s too late, her brother will be exiled, and her family dishonoured…

Catherine Cerveny (2016)

The Rule of Luck
A Felicia Sevigny Novel 1
Orbit, November 7, 2017
Trade Paperback, 400 pages
eBook, January 26, 2016

A thrilling new science fiction series -- perfect for fans of character-driven SF adventure. Linnea Sinclair, author of the Dock Five Universe novels calls it "an edge-of-your-seat ride."

Year 2950. Humanity has survived devastating climate shifts and four world wars, coming out stronger and smarter than ever. Incredible technology is available to all, and enhancements to appearance, intelligence, and physical ability are commonplace.

In this future, Felicia Sevigny has built her fame reading the futures of others.

Alexei Petriv, the most dangerous man in the TriSystem, will trust only Felicia to read his cards. But the future she sees is darker than either of them could ever have imagined. A future that pits them against an all-knowing government, almost superhuman criminals, and something from Felicia's past that she could never have predicted, but that could be the key to saving -- or destroying -- them all.

"A compelling and intriguing read built on a fascinating premise. Cerveny's future world is richly drawn, and Felicia's and Alexei's adventure is definitely an edge-of-your-seat ride." -- Linnea Sinclair, award-winning author of the Dock Five Universe series

"A novel with depth... a terrific story." -- The Qwillery

"A fresh heroine pairs with a dangerous hero to confront nuanced and compelling ethical dilemmas... fast-paced, tightly plotted." -- RT Book Reviews

The Chaos of Luck
A Felicia Sevigny Novel 2
Orbit, December 5, 2017
Trade Paperback. 384 pages
eBook, December 6, 2016

A thrilling new science fiction series -- perfect for fans of character-driven SF adventure. Linnea Sinclair, author of the Dock Five Universe novels calls it "an edge-of-your-seat ride."

Mars, the terraformed jewel of the TriSystem, is the playground for the rich and powerful. A marvel of scientific engineering, the newly colonized world offers every luxury. For the first time in human history, the picture perfect life is possible.

Felicia Sevigny's come to the Red Planet for a fresh start. She's brought the tarot cards that have been her family's trade for generations but is hoping to leave the rest of her troubled past behind.

Felicia wants to believe that Mars will also be a clean slate for her and Alexei Petriv, notorious leader of the Tsarist Consortium, but her cards keep predicting something even darker and more insidious is ahead. Something that could mean the end, not just for her and Alexei, but for the entire TriSystem - and all of humanity.

For more from Catherine Cerveny check out The Rule of Luck.

"A compelling and intriguing read built on a fascinating premise. Cerveny's future world is richly drawn, and Felicia's and Alexei's adventure is definitely an edge-of-your-seat ride." -- Linnea Sinclair, award-winning author of the Dock Five Universe series

"A novel with depth... a terrific story." -- The Qwillery

"A fresh heroine pairs with a dangerous hero to confront nuanced and compelling ethical dilemmas... fast-paced, tightly plotted." -- RT Book Reviews

Cassandra Rose Clarke (2013)

Magic of Wind and Mist: The Wizard's Promise; The Nobleman's Revenge
Saga Press, October 24, 2017
Trade Paperback, Hardcover and eBook, 560 pages

Taking place in the world of Cassandra Rose Clarke’s Magic of Blood and Sea, this is the story of a would-be witch who embarks on an adventure filled with intrigue, mystery, mermaids, and magic.

Hanna has spent her life hearing about the adventures of her namesake Ananna, the lady pirate, and assassin Naji, and dreams to have some adventures of her own.

One day when Hanna is with her apprentice—a taciturn fisherman called Kolur—the boat is swept wildly off course during a day of storms and darkness. In this strange new land, Kolur hires a stranger to join the crew and, rather than heading home, sets a course for the dangerous island of Jadanvar. As Hanna meets a secretive merboy—and learns that Kolur has a deadly past—she soon realizes that wishing for adventures can be deadly…because those wishes might come true.

Star's End
Saga Press, November 14, 2017
Trade Paperback, 432 pages
Hardcover and eBook, March 21, 2017

A new space opera about a young woman who must face the truth about her father’s past from critically acclaimed author Cassandra Rose Clarke.

Esme Coromina has always known that one day she would run the Four Sisters, the small planet system that her father grew into a corporate empire. Raised as the pampered heir to the company, Esme lived the best years of her life at Star’s End, the estate her father built on the terraformed moon where he began his empire. In the tropical sunlight and lush gardens, Esme helped raise her three motherless half-sisters. But as Esme is groomed to take over the family business of manufacturing weapons for the mercenary groups spread across the galaxy, she slowly uncovers the sinister truth at the heart of her father’s company. And when those secrets are finally revealed, Esme is sure that she’s lost her sisters—and part of her soul—for good.

Now, after a lifetime of following her father’s orders, Esme has a second chance. For the first time, Esme is making her own decisions, and the impact of her decisions will reverberate throughout the Four Sisters. As Esme struggles to assemble her estranged sisters for one last goodbye with their dying father, she has to choose whether she wants to follow in her father’s footsteps—or blaze a daring new path.

Cassandra Rose Clarke proves once again why she is one of science fiction’s most ambitious writers with a gripping family saga that spans years and planets.

Peter Liney (2014)

Beauty
Peter Liney, June 18, 2017
Trade Paperback and eBook, 365 pages

When cosmetic and transplant surgery get together and beauty becomes a commodity that can be bought and sold, the Rich become more beautiful, the Poor less. But if something can be traded, it can also be stolen – brutally, violently, by the feared face-stealers, and to a point where the rich finally cry ‘Enough! . . . Enough. Make us plain; make us ordinary.’ Now there is no beauty left, not as we once knew it, only photos, videos, exhibitions. And yet . . . you still hear the occasional rumor.

Lila Bowen (Delilah S. Dawson) (2012)

Conspiracy of Ravens
The Shadow 2
Orbit, July 18, 2017
Trade Paperback, 400 pages
Hardcover and eBook, October 11, 2016

The sequel to Wake of Vultures and second novel in Lila Bowen's widely acclaimed Shadow series.

Nettie Lonesome made a leap -- not knowing what she'd become. But now her destiny as the Shadow is calling.

A powerful alchemist is leaving a trail of dead across the prairie. And Nettie must face the ultimate challenge: side with her friends and the badge on her chest or take off alone on a dangerous mission that is pulling her inexorably toward the fight of her life.

When it comes to monsters and men, the world isn't black and white. What good are two wings and a gun when your enemy can command a conspiracy of ravens?

Malice of Crows
The Shadow 3
Orbit, October 31, 2017
Hardcover and eBook, 352 pages

The sequel to Conspiracy of Ravens and third novel in Lila Bowen's widely-acclaimed Shadow series.

The Ranger known as Rhett has shut down a terrible enterprise running on the blood of magical folk, but failed to catch the dark alchemist behind it. And now the Shadow refuses to let him rest.

Rhett must make the ultimate transformation if he has any hope of stopping the alchemist or fulfilling his destiny; he must become the leader of a new Rangers outpost.

To save his friends, and the lives of countless others, he'll first have to lead them on a mission more dangerous than anything they've ever faced.

Beth Cato (2014)

Call of Fire
Breath of Earth 2
Harper Voyager, August 15, 2017
Trade Paperback and eBook, 362 pages

A resourceful young heroine must protect the world from her enemies—and her own power—in this thrilling sequel to the acclaimed Breath of Earth, an imaginative blend of alternative history, fantasy, science, magic, and adventure.

When an earthquake devastates San Francisco in an alternate 1906, the influx of geomantic energy nearly consumes Ingrid Carmichael. Bruised but alive, the young geomancer flees the city with her friends, Cy, Lee, and Fenris. She is desperate to escape Ambassador Blum, the cunning and dangerous bureaucrat who wants to use Ingrid’s formidable powers to help the Unified Pacific—the confederation of the United States and Japan—achieve world domination. To stop them, Ingrid must learn more about the god-like magic she inherited from her estranged father—the man who set off the quake that obliterated San Francisco.

When Lee and Fenris are kidnapped in Portland, Ingrid and Cy are forced to ally themselves with another ambassador from the Unified Pacific: the powerful and mysterious Theodore Roosevelt. But even TR’s influence may not be enough to save them when they reach Seattle, where the magnificent peak of Mount Rainier looms. Discovering more about herself and her abilities, Ingrid is all too aware that she may prove to be the fuse to light the long-dormant volcano . . . and a war that will sweep the world.

Red Dust and Dancing Horses and Other Stories
Fairwood Press, November 2017
Trade Paperback

This debut collection from Nebula-nominated author Beth Cato brings together works that span history and space, a showcase of vividly imagined speculative stories that range from introspective and intense to outright whimsical. Here you'll find the souls of horses bonded into war machines of earth and air, toilet gnomes on the rampage, magical pies, a mad scientist mother, a bitter old man who rages against giant extraterrestrial robots, and a sentient house that longs to be a home. The book features 28 stories and 6 poems, and includes Cato's acclaimed story "The Souls of Horses."

Table of Contents:

The Souls of Horses / What We Carry (poem) / Beat Softly, My Wings of Steel / Hunter (poem) / Headspace / The Death of the Horse (poem) / Red Dust and Dancing Horses / What Happened Among the Stars (poem) / Biding Time / Hat Trick / Blue Tag Sale / Nisei (poem) / Toilet Gnomes at War / Minor Hockey Gods of Barstow Station / An Echo in the Shell / 213 Myrtle Street / The Human is Late to Feed the Cat / The Sweetness of Bitter / Post-Apocalyptic Conversations with a Sidewalk / A Dance to End Our Final Day / A Lonesome Speck of Home / La Rosa Still in Bloom / A Recipe for Rain and Rainbows / Bread of Life / Stitched Wings / My Brother's Keeper / Deeper Than Pie (poem) / Maps / Overlap / Moon Skin / Cartography of Shattered Trees / Roots, Shallow and Deep / "Cartographer's Ink / The Quest You Have Chosen Defies Your Fate

Jon Hollins (Jonathan Wood) (2011)

The Dragon Lords: False Idols 
The Dragon Lords 2
Orbit, August 29, 2017
Trade Paperback and eBook, 640 pages

Guardians of the Galaxy meets The Hobbit in this rollicking fantasy adventure series. 

The Dragons who once ruled over the land are dead.

The motley crew that stumbled through that revolution are rich and praised as saviors.

Everyone gets to live happily ever after, right?

Right?

Well, it might have worked out that way if the dragons in Kondorra had been the only ones. If they hadn't been just the tip of the spear about to fall upon the whole world...

The Ark
Children of a Dead Earth 1
Angry Robot, November 3, 2015
Mass Market Paperback and eBook, 400 pages

A murder mystery set on a generation ship months from reaching Humanity’s new home.

Humankind has escaped a dying Earth and set out to find a new home among the stars aboard an immense generation spaceship, affectionately named the Ark. Bryan Benson is the Ark’s greatest living sports hero, enjoying retirement working as a detective in Avalon, his home module. The hours are good, the work is easy, and the perks can’t be beat.

But when a crew member goes missing, Benson is thrust into the centre of an ever-expanding web of deception, secrets, and violence that overturns everything he knows about living on the Ark and threatens everyone aboard. As the last remnants of humanity hurtle towards their salvation, Benson finds himself in a desperate race to unravel the conspiracy before a madman turns mankind’s home into its tomb.

File Under: Science Fiction [ Last Gun in the Universe / We’re Not Alone / Poison and Nukes / Race to the End ]

Trident's Forge
Children of a Dead Earth 2
Angry Robot, April 5, 2016
Mass Market Paperback and eBook, 448 pages

New planet. New life. Same old S#*@.

Against all odds, the Ark and her thirty-thousand survivors have reached Tau Ceti G to begin the long, arduous task of rebuilding human civilization. Meanwhile, on the other side of the world, Tau Ceti G’s natives, the G’tel, are coming to grips with the sudden appearance of what many believe are their long-lost Gods.

But first contact between humans and g’tel goes catastrophically wrong, visiting death on both sides. Rumors swirl that the massacre was no accident. The Ark’s greatest hero, Bryan Benson, takes on the mystery.

Partnered with native ‘truth-digger’ Kexx, against both of their better judgment, Benson is thrust into the heart of an alien culture with no idea how to tell who wants to worship him from who wants him dead.

Together, Benson and Kexx will have to find enough common ground and trust to uncover a plot that threatens to plunge both of their peoples into an apocalyptic war that neither side can afford to fight.

File Under: Science Fiction [ First Contact | Last Massacre | Truth and Lies | Welcome to Our Planet ]

Children of the Divide
Children of a Dead Earth 3
Angry Robot, August 1, 2017
Mass Market Paperback and eBook, 432 pages

No matter how far humanity comes, it can’t escape its own worst impulses, in this far-future science fiction thriller from the author of The Ark.

A new generation comes of age eighteen years after humanity arrived on the colony planet Gaia. Now threats from both within and outside their Trident threaten everything they’ve built.

The discovery of an alien installation inside Gaia’s moon, terrorist attacks and the kidnap of a man’s daughter stretch the community to breaking point, but only two men stand a chance of solving all three mysteries before the makeshift planetary government shuts everything down.

File Under: Science Fiction

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