Book picks similar to
Avalon’s Portal by Lynne W. Bailey


indie-books
arthurian
children-or-middle-grade-books
fantasy-sci-fi-dystopia-youth

Heir to the Sundered Crown


M.S. Olney - 2014
    The Kingdom of Delfinnia is in chaos. After assassins kill the king and his family, greedy self serving men battle one another for the crown. Unknown to them is that one heir yet lives, a baby boy now hidden and protected. In the mage city of Caldaria is a boy named Luxon. A young mage who will discover his past and his powers. For he will one day become known as the Legendary, the wizard who would break the world, the man who would embrace death and live and the hero who would give a realm its greatest king. Sent on a quest to find the one responsible for the King's assassination Luxon teams up with Ferran of the Blackmoor the legendary Nightblade and hunter of fell beasts, Sophia Cunning the land’s greatest witch hunter and Kaiden, a noble knight sworn to defend the world from darkness. Together they find the answers they seek, but the truth is far worse than anyone could possibly imagine. The Heir to the Sundered Crown is a fantasy tale that will ignite the imagination and set the stage for an epic battle between the light and the darkness.

A Glamorously Unglamorous Life


Julia Albain - 2011
    Girl gets a reality check. This is the story of a year in my Glamorously Unglamorous life.""When I was 23 I hopped a plane for New York City, off to pursue my destiny, sure that I'd never look back. This is my story of looking back. Of a journey that took on a whole new meaning and purpose. A year in New York City. A year of discovering the best and worst parts of myself. A year of learning the lessons that you can only learn the hard way."

T.H. White's the Once and Future King


Elisabeth Brewer - 1993
    Is it for children, or for adults? Is it fantasy or a psychological novel? In its great range, it encompasses poetry and farce, comedy and tragedy -and sudden flights of schoolboy humour. White's `footnote to Malory' (his own phrase) resulted in the last major retelling of the story based on Malory's Morte Darthur, and Elisabeth Brewer explores the literary context of White's finest work as wellas considering his aims and achievement in writing it.White's story of Arthur begins with his `enfances', set in an imaginary medieval England, but it is far removed from the conventional historical novel. White was writing in wartime England, a country increasingly absorbed by a need to find an antidote to war. Through the medium of the Arthurian story he found his own voice, his unique contribution to keeping alive the flame of civilisation. Malory's chivalric virtues are rejected in favour of White's own twentieth-century values; the love affair of Lancelot and Guenever is interpreted in terms of modern psychology.The books which eventually made up The Once and Future Kingof 1958 appeared in distinctly different editions. In discussing these, Elisabeth Brewer looks at some of the ways in which White drew on his own personal experience at a deep psychological level, while also incorporating into his story material inspired by his antiquarian pursuits and by his years as a schoolmaster. She completes her study with an account of White's use of historical material, and the relationship of The Once and Future King to the Morte Darthur.ELISABETH BREWER lectured in English at Homerton College, Cambridge. She is the author of books and articles on Chaucer and the Arthurian legends

The Valiant


J.J. Green - 2020
    One of them is Taylan Ellis.Driven from her home in the West Britannic Isles by an invasion and severed from her children, Taylan enlists with the Britannic Alliance, hoping she can help regain her homeland and find her kids.But decades of internal conflict and terrestrial and space warfare have left the BA on the edge of collapse.Then its battleship, the Valiant, picks up a distress signal. The rescuers break into a sealed chamber and find the apparently mummified remains of an Iron Age chieftain. Disappointed, they're about to leave when they discover the ‘mummy’ has a pulse.Taylan suspects she knows who the mystery man is and what he’s capable of. If she’s right, can she convince her superiors and save the BA, her country, and her children?The Valiant is book one in J.J. Green’s new space fantasy series, Star Legend.

Dead Heads


Ross Young - 2012
    Other than that things are just peachy.Someone has stolen the Grim Reaper's head and Blunt has been told to find it. In a new city where the rules of the living don't apply Blunt's up to his neck in the brown stuff and he's never been much of a swimmer. With the aid of a woman who keeps turning involuntarily invisible, a journalist who hasn't written an article since she died, and a bureaucrat who can't say no to anyone, Blunt's got to stop whoever is stealing the heads of the city's elite.As he begins his investigations he finds things aren't all they seem. Who are the Gloomwood Youth Order? What do you call the murder of someone already dead? Why are people having their heads chopped off? And what is in the hot dogs? With time slipping away he needs to learn what makes the city tick before there's no city left.

The Acquisition (The Classified Series, #1)


Emily Mitchell - 2013
    If not, they are condemned to live in the Barren as a servant of the Assembly. All servants of the Assembly are sterilized on their eighteenth birthday to prevent their compromising genes from being reproduced. Upon her day of reckoning, Emma knows there is a chance of becoming Sterile because of something tragic in her past. She also believes the past is the past. When the decision is made, lives change forever.The life Emma tried so desperately to leave behind still haunts her, a life that is soon to be ripped apart by hate, jealousy, lies, and murder. If something doesn't change, it won't only be Emma's life hanging in the balance.

Prince Valiant Free Comic Book


Hal Foster - 2013
    The Fantagraphics Free Comic Book Day 2013 offering! This full-color comic collects two 1950 Prince Valiant stories: "Home Again," an eventful ocean journey for our new family; and "The Challenge," a classic duel with Valiant!

The Pendragon's Quest


Sarah Woodbury - 2011
    Meanwhile, the fickle god Mabon, loose again in the human world, searches for the Thirteen Treasures of Britain. With each one he collects, his power grows. With the other gods forbidden to interfere in the human world, it is up to Cade, Rhiann, and their companions to stop Mabon and the Saxons.And time is running out.

The Forgotten Sister (Tales of Camelot Book 1)


Kieran Higgins - 2016
    Believing in his vision for a glorious Britain, Elaine is soon swept up in the intrigues of Camelot and caught firmly between her warring siblings - the High King Arthur, the vengeful Morgan LeFay and the devious Morgause. She is a queen, a warrior and a witch. Yet none of these things may save her brother from those who plot against him, or the poison at the very heart of his kingdom. He became myth, but she was forgotten. This is her tale. Perfect for fans of Alison Weir, Philippa Gregory and the Mists of Avalon, this magical, thrilling Arthurian retelling makes familiar characters new once more.

Faerie Fallen


Carol Beth Anderson - 2021
    acts like a human ... and must risk her life and heart to save the faerie realm.Sela is a young, feather-winged faerie, living a life of magical ease. Her fellow Fae portray themselves as benevolent gods, worthy of human allegiance. But Sela would rather carouse with mortals than rule them.When Sela gets caught illegally fraternizing with humans, her leaders cast her out of magical society, declaring her a fallen faerie. They command her to masquerade as a human and spy on the Darros, a family scheming to take down the Fae. If she helps stamp out the conspiracy, her exile will end. Sela agrees to tutor the Darros' son, Kovian, in the Fae language.When she arrives, she discovers Kovian isn’t a little boy. He’s eighteen. He’s gorgeous. And he despises faeries. Wearing her human glamour, Sela intends to charm him into revealing his family’s plot against the Fae. But she finds herself truly falling for him, while he pushes her away at every turn.Despite Kovian’s hostility, Sela is determined to earn his trust, learn his secrets, and save her people … if his family doesn’t discover her true identity and kill her first.If you like rich worldbuilding, unexpected twists, and slow-burn/enemies-to-lovers romance, then you’ll love Carol Beth Anderson’s Feathered Fae series. Buy Book 1, Faerie Fallen, now.•••This romantic fantasy series is written for upper-YA and adult audiences. Expect some language and violence, plus sensual romance scenes with high emotions and mild heat. Perfect for fans of Elise Kova and Holly Black.Content advisory: Faerie Fallen contains depictions of self-harm, an instance of attempted assault in the form of an interrupted unwanted kiss, and various types of non-sexual violence, including sadism, masochism, and harm to an infant (briefly described).

Alphas, Airships, and Assassins


Frost Kay - 2020
    Love only gives you heartache, and in my case? It got me poisoned. Literally. Tough break, right? It gets worse.The Elven government "said" it was only one task, but I should have read the fine print. That teensy job? Taking out the biggest baddie our worlds have ever seen. Spying for the enemy wasn't the plan, but every attemptto escape only entrenches me deeper into a criminal war I never wanted to be part of.Good thing my mama taught me how to fight dirty. I will play their game, and do the one thing they didn't think possible. I'll win.Fact 521 - Vengeance doesn't have wings. She wears stilettos.

Three Summers


S.J. Sylvis - 2018
    My name is Sadie and I was the victim of an attempted robbery at gunpoint three weeks ago." Those were the first words I spoke to my therapist last year and now I can say after my freshman year of college, I've finally broken free of my therapy sessions. The wound on my face has healed and the scar is fading a little more every day. Now if I can just get the scars on my heart to heal that quickly, I'll be golden.But that's looking pretty tricky since the boy who put those scars there is standing just feet away from me under the blistering North Carolina sun. Apparently, we'll be spending the entire summer lifeguarding together at the country club pool.A year ago, I was carefree—I was in love and I didn’t have a worry in the world, except for Rowen.But now, I'm a little older and a lot smarter. I know how to guard my heart. I know how to keep Rowen out. Except. . .he never really left. And I am quickly learning that my mind and heart are at a crossroads. Maybe I don't know how to guard my heart after all. And maybe I don't quite know everything I thought I did. . . ***Recommended for ages 17+ due to language and sexual situations.***

Soul Siphon


T.L. Branson
    Negotiating with aggressive advisors and hostile kingdoms is one thing, but when his beloved lies at death's door, he'll do anything - even forsake those he's sworn to protect - to find a cure.Receiving word of a magical stone with the power to heal her, he embarks on an epic adventure to retrieve it. When mythical beasts, scheming elves, and even enemy kingdoms stand in his way, he'll stop at nothing to get what he needs to save his wife's life.Will Alexander destroy lives, betray loyalties and ruin peace forever? Or will he realize what he's doing before it's too late?Join Alexander Drygo on a journey of love, loss, and madness told through the eyes of those closest to him. Soul Siphon is a collection of novellas, including an exclusive, never-before-released story, Sentinels of the Stone.Fans of R.A. Salvatore, Brandon Sanderson, and Patrick Rothfuss will love this epic sword and sorcery adventure.

Wings and Shadows


Dominika Pindor - 2021
    Unbeknownst to her, the use of magic reveals her location to the Qroes, a sadistic association intent on stealing the powers of individuals like her. With her ability far too new to control, she is caught, beaten, and thrown into a cell.She believes the metal lock has sealed her fate... until a winged boy appears outside her cell in the dead of night, whisking her away to Soratia—a world ruled by magic and roamed by griffin-human hybrids. To Lucianne, Soratia soon becomes home.When the Qroes land their hands on the Soratia’s most powerful asset, shattering the tranquility that had rested over the land, Lucianne takes it upon herself to stop them from wreaking more havoc onto her new home. But her powers are unreliable, and as more and more teens her age keep disappearing into the enemy’s clutches, Lucianne must make a decision: go after the enemy and risk death, or run away and hide, leaving thousands of lives to perish.

Ambrosius


David Pilling - 2014
    He bade me fight..." Britain, 427 AD. Rome has abandoned the province, leaving it exposed to waves of barbarian invasions. To the west, savage pirates from Hibernia ravage the coastline. In the north, the crumbling defences of the Wall cannot contain marauding bands of Picts as they sweep down from the highlands. Worst of all are the Saxons, the dreaded sea-wolves. Under their chiefs, Hengist and Horsa, they wish to drive out the native Britons and claim the entire island for their own. Attacked from all sides, the Britons find a champion in the form of Ambrosius Aurelianus, the last of the Romans. A modest man, riddled with doubts and fears, Ambrosius reluctantly takes on the mantle of Dux Bellorum, Leader of Battles. Placed in command of Britain's only standing army, he fights to preserve the dwindling light of civilisation while the treacherous High King, Vortigern, plots his destruction. Set before the coming of Arthur, the first book of the Leader of Battles trilogy charts the rise and fall of post-Roman Britain's first great hero, and his desperate struggle to hold back the shadows threatening to engulf his country.