He returns to the Asylum adrift, unsure how to process the situation. But one thing is a constant: he's the Foul Mouth, he won't be grieving, he'll be GRIEFING, and it will be up to Ultra Class '09 to bear the brunt of the onslaught.

    Together, they will face death. Together, they will seek ascension. In the Domains, those born with magic have only one place where they can prove themselves worthy of it: the brutal pits of the arena, where they will either grow in power and build a following with every victory, or risk dishonor and death in defeat. For these “Gladiators”, the ultimate prize for their struggle is a place among the Chosen, the immortal rulers of that vast and decadent empire. Gavin is an unlikely warrior trying to find his place in the savagery of the arena. Sadira, a star Gladiatrix already favored by all. When happenstance brings them together, the pair set out to earn themselves a place at the Grand Championships, vying to see their names carved in the annals of history. With survival and immortality on the line, can they hold together against the vicious realities of the fighting grounds and the machinations of the Chosen? Monsters and magic await them. The white sands call for blood.

    Saoirse is an alcoholic and an addict who has been disowned by her family. None of the rehabs she has been in will take her back. And she just woke up in jail. Again.To avoid doing time she commits to a two-year term of off-planet service, one that will take her to Saturn’s moon Titan and then to a faraway star. The first hurdle is making it through training — Saoirse has a way of finding trouble even when she’s trying to behave. Then she is posted to Titan where every move she makes leads her deeper into a web of corruption, interstellar drug smuggling, violence, and power politics that is likely to end in disaster. Can a twenty-year old woman with a checkered past, a tenuous grip on sobriety, and an on-again off-again relationship with the truth save an entire world from a bloody power grab? And can she save herself in the bargain?

    Having survived the Ebola virus and witnessed the death of his coach in the same 365-day period, he must now withstand the taunts and insults of riders who don't understand his two all-encompassing motivations for living...... the sharing of Agape Love and the protection of bugs everywhere.

    There's only one thing left to do - receive their brands. These magical tattoos not only determine their lesson plans, but also the type of magic the twins will practice for the rest of their lives. Convinced they already know what Branding Day has in store for them, Chelsea and Chloe quickly learn nothing is guaranteed when fate and magic are involved. While author Neva Bell dabbles with the paranormal in her new novel, Branded includes elements readers of her romantic comedies will recognize - a little bit of humor, drama and romance rolled into one.

    In every one, dark forces threatened Greece; terrible evil was poised to reenter the world. The future held only one hope: a half-caste Spartan boy, Parmenion. So Tamis made it her mission to see that Parmenion would before the deadliest warrior in the world -- no matter what the cost.Raised to manhood in Sparta, bullied and forced to fight for his life every day, Parmenion had no notion of the unseen dimensions of magic and mystery that shaped his fate. He grew in strength and cunning. His military genius earned him the title Strategos in Sparta. His triumphs for the city of Thebes made him a hero. And finally his fate led him to the service of Philip of Macedon.As Tamis had foreseen, Parmenion's destiny was tied to the Dark God, to Philip, and to the yet-unborn Alexander. All too soon the future was upon them. Parmenion stood poised to defeat evil -- or to open the gate for the Dark God to reenter the world.

    Two are a disaster...And a deadly disaster, too. For Conan, after refusing to help the evil wizard Ethram-Fal, has been cursed with a spell that is slowly, inexorably squeezing the life from his mighty frame.The only person who can banish the spell--besides Ethram-Fal, of course--is the sorceress Zelandra: a raven-haired beauty who practices only white magic...or so she says. Zelandra has offered to lift the spell from the Cimmerian, if only he will do her one small service: steal the deadly Emerald Lotus from the clutches of Ethram-Fal in his impregnable desert fortress.No good can come of this, Conan thinks to himself. Once sorcery gets mixed up in it, the whole job goes to hell!Unfortunately, he's right.

    In the fallout of the devastation, a boy is found in the wreckage of a fortress from the Great War. The strongest of the Weavers, ones who can sense emotions in others, is dispatched to monitor the child. As the boy matures it becomes evident there is a dangerous power within him. Relocated to an academy on the edge of the Commonwealth, Brent is put to the test to determine if he is the greatest threat humanity has ever encountered. As his every move is observed and scrutinized he’ll have to face the exams of instructors, attempts on his life, and the wrath of the young Weavers.

    Destroyed by revenge. Reborn in the darkest magic of all. THE TROY GAME. The ancient Aegean sorcery lives on.Theseus bested the Minotaur with the aid of Ariadne, Mistress of the Labyrinth. So when Theseus betrays her, Ariadne turns her wrath upon him and all his world, the catastrophe strikes the Mediterranean. Thera explodes, Atlantis sinks below the waves, poisons fill the air, tidal waves inundate nations, entire peoples are destroyed.Amid the chaos, the great city of Troy falls, undone as much by Ariadne's revenge as by Greek cunning. Among the scattered Trojans wanders one man, Brutus, who carries with him the Troy Game, the greatest secret the western world has ever known. And Ariadne wants it – badly. As do her wicked daughter-heir successors.The Greek goddess, Artemis appears to Brutus and offers him a splendid and powerful future if only he can resurrect the Troy Game. Hungry for power and a home for his people, Brutus accepts her challenge. And so the Troy Game begins, on the shores of the Thames in ancient Iron Age Britain.But the malevolent Minotaur, Asterion, has escaped death and seeks to destroy the Game completely. And Cornelia, Brutus’ strange, unknowable wife, trails death in her wake.Everywhere lurks Ariadne’s legacy of hatred, carrying western Europe into a maelstrom of darkness

    Howard is one of the most famous and influential pulp authors of the twentieth century. Though largely known as the man who invented the sword-and-sorcery genre-and for his iconic hero Conan the Cimmerian-Howard also wrote horror tales, desert adventures, detective yarns, epic poetry, and more. This spectacular volume, gorgeously illustrated by Jim and Ruth Keegan, includes some of his best and most popular works.Inside, readers will discover (or rediscover) such gems as "The Shadow Kingdom," featuring Kull of Atlantis and considered by many to be the first sword-and-sorcery story; "The Fightin'est Pair," part of one of Howard's most successful series, chronicling the travails of Steve Costigan, a merchant seaman with fists of steel and a head of wood; "The Grey God Passes," a haunting tale about the passing of an age, told against the backdrop of Irish history and legend; "Worms of the Earth," a brooding narrative featuring Bran Mak Morn, about which H. P. Lovecraft said, "Few readers will ever forget the hideous and compelling power of [this] macabre masterpiece"; a historical poem relating a momentous battle between Cimbri and the legions of Rome; and "Sharp's Gun Serenade," one of the last and funniest of the Breckinridge Elkins tales.These thrilling, eerie, compelling, swashbuckling stories and poems have been restored to their original form, presented just as the author intended. There is little doubt that after more than seven decades the voice of Robert E. Howard continues to resonate with readers around the world.

    Now he was an almost legendary sword-dancer, ready to take on any challenge--if the price was right...or the woman pretty enough.She was Del, born of ice and storm, trained by the greatest of Northern sword masters. Now, her ritual training completed, and steeped in the special magic of her own runesword, she had come south in search of the young brother stolen five years before.But even Del could not master all the dangers of the deadly Punja alone. And meeting Del, Tiger could not turn back from the most intriguing challenge he'd ever faced--the challenge of a magical, mysterious sword-dancer of the North

    a tale of a young man’s continuing struggle to gain acceptance amongst his people, and to break the cycle of alienation and violence that plagues his life. Imaro is heroic fantasy like it’s never been done before. Based on Africa, and African traditions and legends, Charles Saunders has created Nyumbani (which means “home” in Swahili), an amalgam of the real, the semi-real, and the unreal. Imaro is the name of the larger-than-life warrior, an outcast, who travels across Nyumbani, searching for a home. Like his contemporaries, Karl Edward Wagner (Kane) and Michael Moorcock (Elric), Charles Saunders brings something new to the traditional heroic fantasy tale. A broad knowledge of, and passion for, the history and myths of Africa led to the creation of a heroic fantasy character the likes of which the world has never seen. Imaro is no Tarzan… no Conan… Imaro is a warrior out of African legend.Saunders' novel fuses the narrative style of fantasy fiction with a pre-colonial, alternate Africa. Inspired by and directly addresses the alienation of growing up an African American fan of Science Fiction and Fantasy, which to this day remains a very ethnically homogonous genre. It addresses this both structurally (via its unique setting) and thematically (via its alienated, tribeless hero-protagonist). The tribal tensions and histories presented in this fantasy novel reflect actual African tribal histories and tensions, and provide a unique perspective to current and recent conflicts in Africa, particularly the Rwandan genocide and the ongoing conflict in The Sudan.

    Would you take up the call to explore this brave new frontier, or give up on the adventure of a lifetime? Scott Hunter made his choice, and life is about to get sexy. Freelance Saga: Learning Curves is the first episode in a series about a man who enters into a real-life fantasy world designed like a game. While it seemed perfectly normal, if highly advanced, at first, he soon learns that the world is a place filled with opportunities for developing both his strength and his perversity. Scott Hunter, freelance monster trainer, is a new beta-tester for Alterra International. The relatively unknown corporation shares their secret, the ability to travel to a world where life is literally a game! Treating that reality like a virtual existence, Scott enters but soon discovers that things are far more real than he expected.

    Offutt.Contents:7 · Foreword · Andrew J. Offutt · fw 12 · Nekht Semerkeht · Robert E. Howard & Andrew J. Offutt · nv * 49 · The Tale of Hauk · Poul Anderson · nv * 80 · The Smile of Oisia · George W. Proctor · nv * 118 · Pride of the Fleet · Bruce Jones · ss * 135 · Straggler from Atlantis · Manly Wade Wellman · nv * 170 · The Ring of Set [Simon of Gitta] · Richard L. Tierney · nv * 206 · Largarut’s Bane · Raul Garcia Capella · ss * 220 · Dragons’ Teeth [Dama (& Vettius)] · David Drake · nv Midnight Sun #2 ’75 250 · The Sustenance of Hoak [Ryre] · Ramsey Campbell · nv *