Book picks similar to
Evil Overlord: The Makening by Michael McClung
fantasy
favorites
humor
self-published-indie
Age of Asango: Book I
Matt Russell - 2017
The greatest threat to the order of the Denigoth Empire is a sixteen-year-old genius named Cassian Asango. Five years before, his parents were put to death for thought crimes. In the years since, Cassian has honed his tremendous talent for sorcery and dared to follow in his parents’ footsteps, speaking defiantly against the evils in his society. Many factions seek to kill him, but he is clever, resourceful, and far more dangerous than anyone anticipates.
The Conqueror's Shadow
Ari Marmell - 2010
Playful yet intense, sharply sarcastic yet deeply sincere, The Conqueror’s Shadow announces the appearance of a unique talent—and an antihero like no other.They called him the Terror of the East. His past shrouded in mystery, his identity hidden beneath a suit of enchanted black armor and a skull-like helm, Corvis Rebaine carved a bloody path through Imphallion, aided by Davro, a savage ogre, and Seilloah, a witch with a taste for human flesh. No shield or weapon could stop his demon-forged axe. And no magic could match the spells of his demon slave, Khanda.Yet just when ultimate victory was in his grasp, Rebaine faltered. His plans of conquest, born from a desire to see Imphallion governed with firmness and honesty, shattered. Amid the chaos of a collapsing army, Rebaine vanished, taking only a single hostage—the young noblewoman Tyannon—to guarantee his escape.Seventeen years later, Rebaine and Tyannon are married, living in obscurity and raising their children, a daughter and a son. Rebaine has put his past behind him, given up his dreams of conquest. Not even news of Audriss—an upstart warlord following Rebaine’s old path of conquest—can stir the retired warrior to action. Until his daughter is assaulted by Audriss’s goons.Now, to rescue the country he once tried to conquer, Rebaine once more dons the armor of the Terror of the East and seeks out his former allies. But Davro has become a peaceful farmer. Seilloah has no wish to leave her haunted forest home. And Khanda . . . well, to describe his feelings for his former master as undying hatred would be an understatement.But even if Rebaine can convince his onetime comrades to join him, he faces a greater challenge: Does he dare to reawaken the part of him that gloried in cruelty, blood, and destruction? With the safety of his family at stake, can he dare not to?
Sentenced to Troll Compendium
S.L. Rowland - 2020
Who says a troll can’t be the hero?Punished for his toxic online behavior, Chad faces a thirty-day sentence of full-immersion therapy designed to improve his anger issues.For his endless trolling in real life, he's forced to play as a forest troll, the most hated race in Isle of Mythos, so that he can finally experience what it's like to be on the other side.To make matters worse, the heroes sent to rid the world of evil aren't heroes at all—they're violent felons on their own twisted paths to redemption.Playing as a monster in a world where it ain’t easy being green, what could possibly go wrong?
The Shadow of the Blade
R.R. King - 2017
From #1 bestselling author R.R. King I have no name, but my enemies call me Shadow. I have killed the mightiest of warriors. Read books that have not been written yet. Drowned my enemies in their own blood and looked madness in the eyes. I've danced with Death herself and coerced her into letting me live. I've lied and uttered truths. Sinned and never forgave myself. Raised by a blind woman in the seclusion of a deep well, and then thrust out to an unforgiving world of the Seven Seasons, I seek an understanding of things not understood, salvation of from puzzles never solved, and most of all, a quest to find out who I am and what I was made for. I'm warrior of words, slayer of souls, tamer of tides, and I answer to no one but my blade.This is my story. It's up to you to decide, if I am a liar or a legend, man or myth. That's if you can handle the truth... that the quest for light is a journey into darkness.
Rebirth of the Undead King: Book 1
Ink Bamboo - 2019
Rebirth of The Undead King chronicles the journey of a young village boy who seeks vindication against the monarchy of his kingdom. With no other way to achieve his goals, he is fortunate to find the remains of a fallen god who is willing to lend a hand as long as he can return the favor. With the former lord of death as his teacher, Zaros will be forced to learn of the ways of the world. Once presented with the cruelty of society and the dark nature of humanity, will he choose to uphold his ideals or will he embrace the legacy of his benefactor? Follow this story in a world filled with gods, demons, and magic. Witness the birth of the new Overlord of Death. This debut novel from InkBamboo is a new addition to the ranks of a grimdark fantasy tradition forged by light novels like Dungeon Defense, Goblin Slayer, and The Saga of Tanya the Evil. Don't miss your chance to read it now.
Allison
Jeff Strand - 2020
But a random encounter with a couple on the street leaves her believing that she may have done something horrible. Something unforgivable.Killer-for-hire Daxton and his girlfriend Maggie know the truth. Instead of easing Allison’s anguish, they come up with a cruel plan to take advantage of it. But with Allison’s abilities exposed, there may be a bloodbath very soon…
River of Thieves
Clayton W. Snyder - 2019
For the best reasons.After a robbery gone horribly wrong, cursed thief Cord broadens his horizons and plans to execute the heist of a lifetime. With fellow thief and knife connoisseur Nenn in tow, the two build their ragtag crew to target the heart of the kingdom - Midian, the seat of tyrant King Anaxos Mane. As treachery, horrifying creatures of nightmare, and opposition bar their path at every turn, the gang must depend on skill - intellectual, martial, and magical - to deliver them an endless summer and keep them free from the clutches of evil despotism. If they don't sh*t the bed first.
A Goblin's Tale
Scott Straughan - 2017
The greed of kings has ignited a seemingly endless war. As men fight, the monsters of the untamed wilds are devouring the frontier. Villages are abandoned as fields go fallow. Murderous bandits roam the desolation. None of that matters to a nameless goblin slave. He just wants to eat as much food as he can shove into his mouth when no one is looking, but fate runs a twisted course, so instead he is whisked away to the far off Iron Teeth Mountains. To stay alive, he will have to evolve into something more than a simple goblin, and carve a bloody path through the forests of the North. However, first he has to get over his crippling fear of trees, and survive in a place where everything considers him to be the perfect size for a quick snack...
Wraith Knight
C.T. Phipps - 2016
Will his successor save the world...or rule it? Jacob Riverson was once the greatest hero of an age. Cut down during what should have been the final battle against the King Below, he was condemned to centuries of torment as a Wraith Knight in the service of said monster. With the destruction of his master, Jacob finds his free will returning and discovers he is in a world torn by civil war between the King Below's former slaves and the heroes who "saved" them. Joining forces with the overly-idealistic but brilliant warrior Regina Whitetremor, Jacob must determine whether he has any place in the new world and whether his destiny is as a hero or monster. Or both. Wraith Knight is book one of the Three Worlds saga by C.T. Phipps.
A Dance of Cloaks
David Dalglish - 2010
Marshalling the thieves’ guilds under his control, he declares war against the Trifect, an allegiance of wealthy and powerful nobles.Aaron Felhorn has been groomed since birth to be Thren’s heir. Sent to kill the daughter of a priest, Aaron instead risks his own life to protect her from the wrath of his guild. In doing so, he glimpses a world beyond poison, daggers, and the iron control of his father.Guilds twist and turn, trading allegiances for survival. The Trifect weakens, its reputation broken, its money dwindling. The players take sides as the war nears its end, and Thren puts in motion a plan to execute hundreds.Only Aaron can stop the massacre and protect those he loves…Assassin or protector; every choice has its consequences.
The Mayor of Noobtown
Ryan Rimmel - 2019
You could be stuck with a literal shoulder demon. After dying and being reborn into a world that's built like a video game, Jim has found himself stuck in a very old world style new player zone for low level adventurers. Unfortunately, the zone fell out of use centuries ago, and no one told the monsters they were supposed to take it easy on the Noobs. Even worse, the only new player around is Jim. Jim has been given an opportunity, and he'll do his best to take advantage of it.
Forging Day
Noelle Alladania Meade - 2015
Olivia almost has the perfect life. She almost has a job. She almost has a boyfriend. She almost has a future. It’s a good thing she has friends. On a sunny day in June, the entire world steps sideways into a new reality—out of this chaos, almost a third of the human population find themselves transformed into Elves, Dwarves, Goblins, and Trolls. Olivia is now a Dark Elf mage, and her new girlfriend is one sexy kitty. With magic, however, come monsters, and things that draw blood in the night— and now a werewolf is carving a path of pain and terror through the park next to Olivia’s home. The old Olivia would have been hiding under her sister’s bed. The new Olivia is going hunting. Adversity is the forge of the soul. For Olivia, today is Forging Day.
Vainqueur the Dragon
Maxime J. Durand - 2019
Vainqueur's only pleasure in life is to watch his treasure get bigger, one coin at a time. So when a would-be thief turned unwilling minion tells him about "classes," "levels," and "quests," Vainqueur wonders if maybe, just maybe, he should consider a career change. After all, why bother hunting monsters for free when you can get paid for it?
Ash
Jason Brant - 2013
10:32 AM EST: An entire floor of government agents leap to their death from their office building. 12:57 PM EST: All the police officers inside a station murder each other. And the day has just begun. Lieutenant Asher Benson left Iraq with a traumatic brain injury, PTSD, and a Purple Heart. His doctors warned that the symptoms would be life altering. They had no idea. As his body healed, the thoughts of those around him began to echo through Ash’s mind, stretching the boundaries of his sanity. Five years later, Ash is drowning the voices with copious amounts of booze and self-loathing. When unidentified intelligence agents abduct him in broad daylight, Ash is thrust into a world of espionage and assassinations. A unique terrorist is operating on U.S. soil, and the government needs Ash, and the malady that has plagued him for half a decade, to find the killer. *Ash is the first book in the Asher Benson thriller series, which is full of snarky humor and nonstop action.
The Anvil of the World
Kage Baker - 2003
So has her talent for clever dialogue, and pointed social commentary with a light touch.The Anvil of the World is her first fantasy novel, a journey across a fantastic landscape filled with bizarre creatures, human and otherwise. It is the tale of Smith, of the large extended family of Smiths, of the Children of the Sun. They are a race given to blood feuds, and Smith was formerly an extremely successful assassin. Now he has wearied of his work and is trying to retire in another country, to live an honest life in obscurity in spite of all those who have sworn to kill him.His problems begin when he agrees to be the master of a caravan from the inland city of Troon to the seaside city of Salesh. The caravan is dogged with murder, magic, and the brooding image of the Master of the Mountain, a powerful demon, looking down from his mountain kingdom upon the greenlands and the travelers passing below. In Salesh, Smith becomes an innkeeper, but on the journey he befriended the young Lord Ermenwyr, a decadent demonic half-breed. Each time Ermenwyr turns up, he brings new trouble with him.The outgrowth of stories Baker has been writing since childhood, as engaging as Tolkien and yet nothing like him, Smith's adventure is certainly the only fantasy on record with a white-uniformed nurse, gourmet cuisine, one hundred and forty-four glass butterflies, and a steamboat. This is a book filled with intrigue, romance, sudden violence, and moments of emotional impact, a cast of charming characters, and echoes of the fantasy tradition from Lord Dunsany and Fritz Leiber to Jack Vance and Roger Zelazny.