Howard is famous for creating such immortal heroes as Conan the Cimmerian, Solomon Kane, and Bran Mak Morn. Less well-known but equally extraordinary are his non-fantasy adventure stories set in the Middle East and featuring such two-fisted heroes as Francis Xavier Gordon—known as “El Borak”—Kirby O’Donnell, and Steve Clarney. This trio of hard-fighting Americans, civilized men with more than a touch of the primordial in their veins, marked a new direction for Howard’s writing, and new territory for his genius to conquer.The wily Texan El Borak, a hardened fighter who stalks the sandscapes of Afghanistan like a vengeful wolf, is rivaled among Howard’s creations only by Conan himself. In such classic tales as “The Daughter of Erlik Khan,” “Three-Bladed Doom,” and “Sons of the Hawk,” Howard proves himself once again a master of action, and with plenty of eerie atmosphere his plotting becomes tighter and twistier than ever, resulting in stories worthy of comparison to Jack London and Rudyard Kipling. Every fan of Robert E. Howard and aficionados of great adventure writing will want to own this collection of the best of Howard’s desert tales, lavishly illustrated by award-winning artists Tim Bradstreet and Jim & Ruth Keegan.

    For over two decades, the late Marion Zimmer Bradley, best-selling and beloved author, discovered and nurtured a grand generation of popular and acclaimed writers including Mercedes Lackey, Jennifer Roberson, and a host of others. Authors who have appeared within the pages of Sword and Sorceress represent the full spectrum of some of the brightest talent working today from C.J. Cherryh, Charles de Lint, and Emma Bull... to Deborah J. Ross, Diana L. Paxson, Steven Brust, and Laurell K. Hamilton. We are proud to continue the classic and vibrant feminist tradition with this twenty-fifth volume of new magical adventures edited by Elisabeth Waters, secretary and co-editor to Mrs. Bradley. Here are twenty original stories of remarkable women of power, swashbuckling and magic, spells and duels, arcane sorcery and fabled heroism, written by familiar word-weavers of excitement and adventure, and bright newcomers who are sure to become favorites. Enter a wondrous universe... Marion Zimmer Bradley's Sword and Sorceress Volume 25 includes stories by Dave Smeds, Amy Griswold, Michael H. Payne, Michael Spence, Elisabeth Waters, Deborah J. Ross, Catherine Soto, Pauline J. Alama, L. M. Townsend-Crow, K. D. Wentworth, Helen E. Davis, Robin Wayne Bailey, Steve Chapman, Steven Brust, Kate Coombs, Jonathan Moeller, Lauren K. Moody, Josepha Sherman, Barbara Tarbox, Jonathan Shipley, and Susan Wolven.

     Of course, they must return it to the Living Library, a haunted collection of ten million magical tomes, a collection where the rules of time, space, weather, and reality itself are subject to sudden change. Escorted by armored battle-librarians, a group of four students must face mysteries and monsters in a fight to get their books back on the shelves in this brisk, darkly whimsical sword and sorcery tale. Originally published in 2010, the Author's Enhanced Edition of "In the Stacks" is newly revised and expanded, featuring new dialogue, new scenes, and a new introduction from the author, internationally best-selling fantasist Scott Lynch, creator of Locke Lamora and the Gentleman Bastard Sequence.

    They become legends. They become mythic. Bitter Steel is a collection of new myths and new fantasy adventures in the style of Robert E. Howard's classic fictional heroes, Kull, Conan, and Kane.

    Includes the following 15 short stories: Dead in the Woods by Eric S Brown, Henderson Hell Machine by Sean Graham, The Fort by Linda L Donahue, Bonds of Blood by Darin Kennedy, Her Majesty by Miguel Lopez de Leon, The Witch's Daughter-in-Law by Will Morton, Snake Oil by AD Spencer, Things Unseen by Thomas Stromsholt, Evil Mountain by Rebecca Besser, Zombies vs Mummies by Anthony Giangregorio, Night of the Monster Mutiny by Scott Harper, The Brackish Diamond and its Value Tainted by Bloody by Christopher Heath, Sending Her On by Peacho Rockington, Deadside Story by Gregory L Norris & Seventh Son by Kate Spofford

    As he had no ready coin with which to pay, Lythande agreed to take his lute in exchange, knowing that it was enchanted... but unaware of just how much trouble this particular enchantment could cause.

    Creatures of the Darkness. When the gates of Hell open, who stands between Man and the Abyss? From mankind's infancy, people have huddled in the dark, drawing signs in the air, muttering quiet prayers, quivering with dread at what roams in the night. Evil spirits riding dark winds blew at mouths of caves, scratched on walls of huts, rapped on stones of castles, whispered under eaves of mansions. And mankind trembled. Yet a few stood, drew steel imbued with magic to hue spirit as well as flesh, and walked out into the night to meet the foes of mortal men. Join the struggle in these 28 masterful tales of adventure and mayhem as heroes, forged as strong as the steel they wield, defy foes from the realms of nightmare.

    Discover what the snooze button on the alarm clock really does. Take a look at Dallas through the Looking Glass. Travel 2 seconds ahead, watch out for the Neverstone, and uncover the plot to kill Clause.Authors include Jim C. Hines, K.C. Shaw, Seth Skorkowsky, Lyn McConchie, Colin P. Davies, Rob Rosen, and a host of others.

    an immortal warrior. From the sands and cities of the ancient middle-east comes an epic story of bloodshed, love and betrayal. Award-winning fantasy author Michael Ehart spins a tale that echoes with the blood and thunder of the golden age.Bound by an ancient curse, serving her master in bitter unwillingness, the Servant of the Manthycore must lure the greedy, the unsuspecting and the unwary into the desert to feed the insatiable beast to whom she is bound. Centuries of combat and murder have made her a swordswoman whispered of in the marketplaces, feared in the back-alleys and sung about by the campfires of the caravans. The passing centuries of betrayal and death have stolen her humanity and even her name, leaving only a glimmer of who she once was. Her only hope is to someday meet a greater warrior than she, and so be freed.Striding across the background of civilization in its youth, in the time of the first great heroes and the cities they built, she becomes more than a woman, and as her legend grows so does her determination to someday be free of the great beast who she serves. Goddesses, bandits, soldiers and kings fall beneath her sword as she fights her way to discover a path to freedom.Fantasy legend Michael Moorcock raves: "Michael Ehart is an impressive talent!" And reviewers from all over the world agree that the Servant of the Manthycore is one of the great characters of modern heroic fantasy. The Tears of Ishtar brings together her entire saga in one blood-soaked, thrilling novel that will have your pulse pounding from the very first page. Beautifully illustrated by renowned Sword and Sorcery artist Miko, and encased within a stunning, original cover by Johnney Perkins, this will be one novel you won't want to put down!

    

    The monster’s saucer-sized black eye focused hungrily on her, and its maw yawned wide, showing row upon row of terrible serrated teeth. It came at her from below, jaws gaping. Though it could swallow her whole, Umira doubted the beast would do her that favor."Umira, an outcast triton starwatcher, has no desire to become a hero. Accursed and shunned from birth, she's more at home amid a school of sharks than among human beings or her own people. She prefers to be alone, rather than continuing a lifetime filled with rejection and fear. But when a ship of treasure hunters starts mining the ocean with depth charges, Umira has no choice but to intervene. Her confrontation with the surface people begins a series of events that releases a megalodon into the World-Sea. Now Umira and the crew must fight for their lives or perish in the jaws of the monster shark."Monster Shark" is a thrilling undersea sword & sorcery adventure packed with magic, monsters, grisly deaths, and -- of course -- ravening sharks. It features Umira the Accursed from The Tournament of Death, the FREE online novel. This story stands on its own and is original to e-book format.Stephen D. Sullivan is the award-winning author of dozens of novels and stories, including trilogies for Legend of the Five Rings, Spider Riders, and Dragonlance.

    Howard's Conan the Barbarian, altering the course of the blue-eyed Cimmerian forever. This volume reprints the first half of Barry Windsor-Smith's run on Conan the Barbarian.Includes an introduction by Roy Thomas recounting how Marvel got rights to publish Conan.