The king's magnificent palace was built in a matter of weeks. No one saw the builders, no villagers are allowed beyond the gilded gate, and only one servant has ever left. The haunted look in her eyes as she was recaptured by the palace guards is something Josie, daughter of the village doctor, has never forgotten. For Josie, the palace is a mystery that grows more intriguing after she meets the captain of the guards, a man known only as Hammer, as mysterious and captivating as the palace itself. Whispers of magic fuel Josie's desire to uncover the truth, but an ordinary girl like her can only dream of ever being invited inside. When the king decides to take a wife from among the eligible daughters of the noble families, the palace gates are finally thrown open and the kingdom's elite pour in. In a court where old rivalries and new jealousies collide, the king's favorite is poisoned and the doctor is summoned. As her father's assistant, Josie finally sees inside the lavish walls, but she soon learns the palace won't surrender its secrets easily, for not a single resident, from the lowest servant to the king himself, has a memory from before the palace existed. In the search for the truth, Josie is drawn deeper into danger, and the answers she seeks might shake the very foundations of the kingdom.

    Labeled a “wretched,” an outcast unwanted and unworthy of respect, Lia is forbidden to realize her dream to read or write. All but doomed, her days are spent toiling away as a kitchen slave under the charge of the Aldermaston, the Abbey’s watchful overseer. But when an injured squire named Colvin is abandoned at the kitchen’s doorstep, an opportunity arises. The nefarious Sheriff Almaguer soon starts a manhunt for Colvin, and Lia conspires to hide Colvin and change her fate. In the midst of a land torn by a treacherous war between a ruthless king and a rebel army, Lia finds herself on an ominous journey that will push her to wonder if her own hidden magic is enough to set things right. At once captivating, mysterious, and magic-infused, The Wretched of Muirwood takes the classic fantasy adventure and paints it with a story instantly epic, and yet, all its own.

     Tane, a hydroponics farmer with some mad cereal crop gene-splicing skills, decides to get chipped. The operation gives him full control over his autonomic nervous and endocrine systems, plus the ability to install custom memories. All seems well until a couple of days later aliens come knocking at his door. And they aren't the friendly type. Soon Tane finds himself on a frenzied flight across the galaxy with a woman who can warp the very fabric of spacetime, her bodyguard--who’d just as soon kill Tane than protect him--and a starship that calls him snarky pet names. He's on the run not simply from the aliens but the whole damn human space navy. He only wished he knew why. Unfortunately for Tane, the answer might just destroy him. Not to mention the entire known universe.

    Steel. Blood. Victory.The Earth’s navy is left drifting among the stars as Nyctus ships swarm, their purpose unknown as they continue their advance, burning one system after another.Humanity's extinction seems inevitable.But on one of the forgotten worlds, a boy is left behind, and he holds a talent unlike anything the galaxy has ever known.Thorn Stellers is a mage, made to lead and fight. With a renegade division of warriors at his side, and with weapons far different from those of old Earth, Thorn stands a chance at standing up to humanity's enemies. For these mage-soldiers, armed with power that had once been thought the stuff of legend, the outcome is no longer certain.Each Starcaster has a talent—except for Thorn, who has many. With his childhood companion Kira Wixcombe, he’ll confront a threat from beyond the stars, meeting them in the darkness with a light born of magic... and a lust for revenge.Is his power enough? Or is Earth a forgotten memory, lost forever to history?

    Though her family is part of the Luminate, powerful users of magic, she is Barren, unable to perform the simplest spells. Anna would do anything to belong. But her fate takes another course when, after inadvertently breaking her sister’s debutante spell—an important chance for a highborn young woman to show her prowess with magic—Anna finds herself exiled to her family’s once powerful but now crumbling native Hungary.Her life might well be over.In Hungary, Anna discovers that nothing is quite as it seems. Not the people around her, from her aloof cousin Noémi to the fierce and handsome Romani Gábor. Not the society she’s known all her life, for discontent with the Luminate is sweeping the land. And not her lack of magic. Isolated from the only world she cares about, Anna still can’t seem to stop herself from breaking spells.As rebellion spreads across the region, Anna’s unique ability becomes the catalyst everyone is seeking. In the company of nobles, revolutionaries, and Romanies, Anna must choose: deny her unique power and cling to the life she’s always wanted, or embrace her ability and change that world forever.

    When on-the-job training entails battling demons, learning magic through trial and error, and living in a world without toilet paper, things could get rough. But to be dropped in the middle of a forest and having to do it on your own with no instruction…welcome to James’ world.It all gets started when his grandfather suggests to James, a young man on the verge of graduating high school, that he check out the following advertisement for a job. “Magic! Real Magic! Ever wanted to learn? We require someone with intelligence and a disciplined mind. Those well versed in fantasy novels and role playing games a plus. May need to travel.”Sounded like the perfect job for a veteran role-player and avid fantasy reader. James had no idea he’d be whisked to another world, completely cut off from friends and family. Arriving in a meadow in the middle of a forest, he’s greeted by a creature not entirely human. He was then told three things:Magic works here…Don’t try to go home…Get to the village of Trendle…Then the creature vanished.Which way was Trendle? Where was he? What might inhabit the forest that will seek his ruination? These were but a few of the questions needing to be unraveled. Alone with only his wits and knowledge gleaned from hundreds of books and dungeon campaigns, he started out just trying to survive. He soon learned that one mistake, one lapse in judgment could mean his death. Not long after arriving, he made the acquaintance of Miko, a street-wise kid who quickly became his friend and companion. Little did he know that the strength within this child from the streets of Bearn, a strength that would be tested again and again as they waded through battle after battle, delved in hidden passages deep beneath the earth, and faced off against an the might of an Empire, would be invaluable in the trials ahead.The Unsuspecting Mage is the first book of The Morcyth Saga, a seven book epic fantasy adventure. It follows James as he seeks first to master the art of magic then to uncover the reason why he had been brought to this strange new world where armies are on the move and gods meddle in the affairs of men.

    Working day and night to care for her younger siblings, complete her unending chores and please her selfish, lazy mother has left her with few dreams for her own future.But then even those meager hopes are taken from her when the Cold King comes down from his mountain to demand a new servant. Ungraceful, unladylike, undesired and unwanted by even her own family, Calia is chosen to be sent to the palace.The Cold King has lived for three hundred years under a curse imposed by his own father. With no hope of ever breaking it, he settles for keeping his heart frozen against any pain— or hope.When his new servant arrives, she challenges him in ways no one ever has and sparks fly. But not every Beast is a prince charming at heart and not every beauty is a maiden just waiting for love.Sometimes happily ever after isn’t so easy…

     When he pulled into the McDonald’s, Jon only had the usual cares on his mind. His sister. The bills. A career with seemingly nowhere to go. But after a confusing encounter at the cash register triggers a violent episode in the parking lot, he’s quickly pulled into a world he doesn’t understand. His few careless sentences - and the odd gift of languages he’s kept hidden for years - wind up thrusting him right into the middle of a chaotic magical free-for-all, a battle taking place in the shadows of society. Entangled in an increasingly complex web of violence and lies, he's left with a choice: adapt, or die. Surrounded by strangers, Jon must struggle to survive, searching out friends amidst a sea of foes. If he can get his group of strays and rejects to work together, there’s a chance they might just make it out alive. Should he fail, the consequences will be dire - not only for Jon, but also for those he loves.

    Those men and women who's legacies were so great that their stories have been repeated generation to generation. A person of such impact that other cultures long detached from the origins tell stories of these powerful individuals. Such is the story of Victor Deus. Unlike many such legends, there was little need to embellish the deeds he and his allies accomplished. Some remember him as a savior, some as a tyrant. There are whole worlds that worship him like a god, and others that raise him up as a devil. All of these worlds agree upon one thing though, he was fiercely protective of his allies, and swiftly dealt with his enemies. How does one become such a figure? Loved by so many, yet feared by even more? The story is a long one, and I hope you will bear with me as the story unfolds. One thing you must know about Victor Deus is that he was not given time to be a child, for his formative years were full of training and despair. Therefor, it is there where this story begins, a boy, barely able to hold a sword, thrust into events he cannot control.

    Unfortunately, after one accident too many that leaves the old blacksmith completely disabled, it would seem he has no other choice but to hang up his hammer.However, that would be underestimating the stubbornness of the self-made man. Fearing he’s not going to stop until he ends up dead in his forge, Angus’ children offer him a virtual rig that connects to Imperium Games’ many universes.After choosing a fantasy-based world called Alterwelt, Angus—now known as Hephaestus—quickly learns that he can make use of his lifetime of experience by disabling the Auto function and playing on Manual. His skills allow him to create unique items that beat everything sold on the market. But Hephaestus has a long way to go before he can afford his own in-game forge. Moreover, he only ever learned to work with steel while here he has access to metals as strange and exotic as azuraneum, veridium, orichalcum…Still, that might be the least of his problems. After he’s made a few sales and starts to get some recognition, Hephaestus realizes that there’s a reason the market is oversaturated with crappy items. As it turns out, a greedy guild enforces a monopoly on the crafting and they’re ready to do anything to keep anyone—lest of all a lone blacksmith—from digging into their profits…

    The genesauri—giant, flying, serpentine monsters who hunt across the desert in enormous packs—lie dormant. The smallest of their kind is able to take down a single man with ease, and the largest is able to swallow entire clans. The people of the desert have always been able to predict the creatures’ appearance, but this year, the genesauri have stopped following the rules. When the genesauri suddenly attack her clan, seventeen-year-old Lhaurel draws a sword in her people’s defense—a forbidden practice for women of any clan—and is sentenced to death by her own people. Chained to a rock and left to be eaten by the next wave of genesauri, Lhaurel is rescued by a mysterious, elusive clan said to curse children at a glance, work unexplainable terrors, and disappear into the sands without a trace. With the fate of the clans hanging in the balance, Lhaurel discovers she possesses a rare and uncontrollable power—one that will be tested as the next deadly genesauri attack looms on the horizon and the clash between clans grows more inevitable by the hour.

    A time when cities burn, and in their ashes, empires rise.Alexander, Macedonia’s sixteen-year-old heir, is on the brink of discovering his fated role in conquering the known world but finds himself drawn to a newcomer…Katerina must navigate the dark secrets of court life while hiding her own mission: kill the Queen. But she doesn’t account for her first love…Jacob will go to unthinkable lengths to win Katerina, even if it means having to compete for her heart with Hephaestion, a murderer sheltered by the prince.And far across the sea, Zofia, a Persian princess and Alexander’s unmet betrothed, wants to alter her destiny by seeking the famed and deadly Spirit Eaters.Weaving fantasy with the shocking details of real history, New York Times bestselling author of Sex with Kings Eleanor Herman reimagines the greatest emperor the world has ever known, Alexander the Great, in the first book of the Blood of Gods and Royals series.

    Sealed paths opened. Let the hijinks begin!Sergeant Marcus Bola and his platoon flew to a newly uncovered temple in the desert while deployed overseas; an unheard-of mission. Something in the ruined holy place had killed many, and the survivors met an unfortunate ambush just before reaching safety. The attack left Marcus wounded and medically discharged from the only life he’s known… but something wasn’t right. None of it was.Laying low and waiting for answers, Marcus decides tending bar is as good a way to stay afloat and off the radar. Turns out slinging cocktails, singing karaoke, and talking to the patrons isn’t as easy as he thought it would be: gods, monsters, and devils are showing up to try the mixers.The vessel has been chosen. Something inside him is calling the shots--and we’re not talking about tequila!

    The ice maiden faces off with her greatest enemy, a villain brutal beyond imagining.For centuries, Taliyah Skyhawk has prepared to become Harpy General, leader of the deadliest female army in existence. One of the requirements? Remain a virgin. But, for a chance to save her people, she must wed the fearless leader of the Astra Planeta, Alaroc Phaethon.The time has come for Roc to sacrifice another virgin bride to his god. There has never been a woman alluring enough to tempt him from his path. No warrioress powerful enough to overcome his incredible strength. No enchantress desirable enough to make him burn beyond reason. Until now.With the clock ticking, war between husband and wife ignites. Except Taliyah never expected the merciless king to challenge the future she once envisioned. She certainly never anticipated the thrill of their battles turning into games... The problem is, only one spouse can survive.Love is a battlefield in Showalter's The Warlord.Rise of the WarlordsBook 1: The Warlord

    That explosion brought magic to the world, spreading across the globe in what would come to be called the Awakening. All around the world, people began to develop magic powers, some of them even turning into creatures of myth like elves and dwarves.With magic came monsters, and other threats to the world. Some of those who had power took up the call, and became adventurers or heroes, fighing back the monsters. Others let their newfound powers go to their heads, becoming villains. Many turned their powers to crafting, and melding magic and technology. And a few began delving into the secrets of magic for knowledge's sake alone.But the blast that kickstarted the Awakening did more than just bring magic to the world. Twenty students, all in the same class, disappeared that day. No trace of their remains was ever found, and no one else in the building was so much as injured. People began calling them the Lost Sleepers, twenty souls who would never Awaken like the rest of the world had.Forty years after the Awakening, one of them returned.