Under the benevolent rule of King Hrethel and his sons the King’s grandchild, Beowulf, the only child of his daughter, is carefully groomed by the family in the skills and duties of the warrior elite. As Beowulf reaches adulthood a death suddenly tears the family apart. Torn between family loyalties and the freshly sworn demands of his warrior code, Beowulf must choose between those he loves and his personal ambition as the dynasty begins to tear itself apart. Sensing weakness the Geats most feared enemy appears on their northern border and Beowulf must fight his first desperate battle to save the Kingdom…. Skilfully interwoven into the fabric of the old English poem we know as ‘Beowulf’ lies the tale of a great but ultimately doomed people, the Geats. It is a tale of decay and renewal as the old order is swept away and the new nations of Europe struggle to emerge from the ensuing chaos in an age when it was common for Kings to die in battle. Beowulf, Sorrow Hill, is the first in a series of novels which seek to unravel the threads contained within the original poem by recounting the full life story of Beowulf and his family.

    Once a thriving metropolis, it has sprawled beyond its bounds, inciting endless wars with neighboring tribes and creating a barren wasteland of what was once green and productive.In the center of the City lives the emperor. Few have ever seen him, but those who have recall a man in his prime, though he should be very old. Some grimly speculate that he is no longer human, if he ever was. A small number have come to the desperate conclusion that the only way to stop the war is to end the emperor’s unnaturally long life.From the mazelike sewers below the City, where the poor struggle to stay alive in the dark, to the blood-soaked fields of battle, where few heroes manage to endure the never-ending siege, the rebels pin their hopes on one man—Shuskara. The emperor’s former general, he was betrayed long ago and is believed to be dead. But, under different aliases, he has survived, forsaking his City and hiding from his immortal foe. Now the time has come for him to engage in one final battle to free the City from the creature who dwells at its heart, pulling the strings that keep the land drenched in gore.

    The story is told by Branwen, cousin and companion to Esseilte, daughter of the High King of Eriu (Ireland). The two young women save the life of a badly wounded harper, later discovered to be Drustan, who had killed Esseilte's beloved uncle and Branwen's father, Morholt, in battle. Drustan seeks Esseilte's hand for his uncle, Marc'h, King of Kernow (Cornwall), an alliance arranged for political reasons.On the way to Cornwall, Esseilte tries to poison Drustan, but the potion they both drink turns out to be a love filtre prepared for Esseilte and Marc'h. Thus the tale is set in motion, with passion and hate binding the lovers together. With Branwen's aid, they are able to deceive Marc'h on the wedding night: Branwen, close in appearance to the queen, sleeps with the king and falls in love with him. For a while Esseilte and Drustan escape detection, but eventually they are caught in circumstances that cannot be ignored, leading to the tragic denouement. This is a complex tale, interweaving the political and religious conflicts of the sixth century, when the ancient Druid religion still had a strong hold. Paxson ( The Paradise Tree , White Mare, Red Stallion ) breathes life and wonder into one of the most romantic of the Celtic Germanic legends.

    Victory isn't enough: now Arthur wants to annihilate the Saxons by becoming The Dragon Lord. Mael and Starkad, an Irish adventurer and his giant Danish companion, are peerless warriors in a warrior age; men who have fought all across Europe for survival and pay and always for each other. Now they must seek an ancient skull from which Merlin's wizardry can raise a dragon, and also the weapons by which alone the dragon can be controlled. Accompanied by a priestess older than time, their search takes them from a monster-haunted lake, to the barrow of a thing no longer dead, and to a battlefield where the enmity of Briton and Saxon rises to a cataclysm which drowns the earth in blood. Yet one task remains. The fiery breath of the dragon Mael and Starkad have helped create can sweep the land clear of all life if it ever escapes from Merlin's control. And the dragon is about to escape!

    Here you will find Cormac MacDermot, the young king destined to lead Ireland out of paganism to Christianity; his aged father, now on the throne, and the seductive witch-queen who holds the country in thrall. Here you will also meet the lovely slave girl Brigid. As light-footed as an Irish pixie, she will help Cormac seek the magic cup that will confirm his right to be High King of Ireland. Over mountain and river they will journey, beset by perils. But when their enemies capture Brigid, and Cormac strives to save her, the High King will see that the little slave girl is a great deal more than she seems...

    these tales constitute a powerful work of the imagination, ranking with Tokien's Lord of the Rings novels and T.H. White's The Once and Future King. Evangeline Walton's compelling rendition of these classic, thrilling stories of magic, betrayal, lost love, and bitter retribution include the encounter between Prince Pwyll and Arawn, the God of Death, which Pwyll survives by agreeing to kill the one man that Death cannot fell, and the tale of bran the blessed and his family's epic struggle for the throne.The Mabinogion is internationally recognized as the world's finest arc of Celtic mythology; Walton's vivid retelling introduces an ancient world of gods and monsters, heroes, kings and quests, making accessible one of the greatest fantasy sagas of all time.

    The Solar tribes are without a ruler, and the return to Aryavarta has resulted in a confederation where hitherto there was a united clan-hood. Rakshasas, Gandharvas and Yakshas threaten the nascent cities of Aryavarta, and if their rise is not checked the Solar tribes may lose all they have gained.And thus rises Ikshvaku, the son of Manu and descendant of Surya. He forms Aryavarta’s first Kingdom and unites the Solar strength against the Anaryas- Rakshasas, Gandharvas and Yakshas.But the Seal of Surya is still missing, and Ikshvaku will need to find it to put his claim and authority beyond all doubt. This is the tale of Aryavarta’s first dynasty, the Suryavansha, and its first King- Ikshvaku Manava.

    A quest to know the origin of the stone brought him to the distant part of the country. Chandannagar, December 2016: A young vivacious historian woman read an old book on a century-old secret story about a little known part of the country. Her curiosity got the better of her as the book disappeared mysteriously before she could complete it. She reached a sleepy quaint state of the country to satiate her curiosity. Eventually they both met and their search began from the city museum to a far-flung rock mountain which revealed a century-old story of a seductive danseuse, her enigmatic lover, a string of her admirers, a painter with a photographic memory, a bird that could speak in many voices, a benevolent king and a gruesome conspiracy. And the most important clue to decode the final secret was with the missing part of "The Speaking Stone" But in the process of unearthing old secrets, their life was also in danger… To know more read... The Speaking Stone.********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************* About the Author: Ratnadip Acharya is the author of two successful novels, Life is Always Aimless... Unless you love it and Paradise Lost & Regained. He is a columnist for the Speaking Tree in The Times of India. He contributed many write-ups in different collections of Chicken Soup for the Soul. He lives in Mumbai with his wife, Sophia and son, Akash. He can be contacted via the following channels Website: www.ratnadipacharya.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/TheRatnadip Facebook: www.facebook.com/ratnadip.acharya.5, Instagram: www.instagram.com/ratnadipacharya Twitter: www.twitter.com/RatnadipAcharya

    Latro, a mercenary soldier from the north, has suffered a head wound in battle and has been separated from his compatriots. He has not only lost the memory of who he is and where he is from, he has also lost the ability to remember from day to day and must live out of context in an eternal present, every day rediscovering the shreds of his identity and the nature of the world around him, aided only by a written record that he attempts to continue daily and must read every morning.But in recompense for his unhappy condition Latro has received the ability to see and converse with invisible beings, all the gods and goddesses, ghosts and demons and werewolves, who inhabit the land and affect the lives of others, all unseen. Everyone knows that supernatural creatures are constantly around them and sometimes, under special circumstances, can perceive them—but Latro is now constantly able to penetrate the veil of the supernatural, which is both a triumph and a danger.

    Since her death over 300 years ago, Tamsin has haunted the lonely estate without rest, trapped by a hidden trauma she can't remember, and a powerful evil even the spirits of night cannot name. To help her, Jenny must delve deeper into the dark world than any human has in hundreds of years, and face danger that will change her life forever...

    These are the elements of The Fall of Atlantis, Marion Zimmer Bradley's epic fantasy about that ancient and legendary realm.On one side stand the Priests of the White Robe, guardians of powerful natural forces which could threaten the world if misused. Ranged against them are the Black Robes, sorcerers who secretly practice their arts in the labyrinthine caves beneath the very Temple of Light. Caught between are Domaris and Deoris, daughters of the arch-priest Talkannon, trapped in a web of deadly sorcery--the same forbidden sorcery that could bring about the fall of Atlantis.

    In an ancient time, in a faraway land, a young woman named Aoife is allowed a rare apprenticeship to become her kingdom's mapmaker, tasked with charting the entire domain. Traveling beyond its borders, she finds a secretive people who live in peace, among great wealth. They claim to protect a mythic treasure, one connected to the creation of the world. When Aoife reports their existence to her kingdom, the community is targeted as a threat. Attempting to warn them of imminent danger, Aoife is exiled for treason and finds refuge among the very people who had been declared her enemy. With them, she begins a new life surrounded by kindness, equality, and cooperation. But within herself, Aoife has no peace. She cannot share the grief she feels for the home and children she left behind. She cannot bear the warrior scars of the man she comes to love. And when she gives birth to their gifted daughter, Aoife cannot avoid what the child forces her to confront about her past and its truth. On this most important of journeys, there is no map to guide her. In this tale, her autobiography; Aoife reveals her pain and joy, and ultimately her transformation. The Mapmaker's War is a mesmerizing, utterly original adventure about love and loss and the redemptive power of the human spirit. Watch for its epic sequel, The Chronicle of Secret Riven, in 2014.

    Hadding was raised by giants far from his rightful throng, as his father, a Danish King, was slain shortly after Hadding's birth. But the times comes when Hadding feels he must reclaim his legitimate place in the land of the old North. He must endure ferocious battles, the charms of voluptuous Valkyries, and a War of the Gods to rival Armageddon.

    In 40 languages. One of the most thrilling series of our time. In this magnificent new epic, destined to become a modern classic, bestselling Australian author Lian Hearn transports us to a mythical Japanese world set 300 years before TALES OF THE OTORI.Like George R. R. Martin, Lian Hearn has captivated millions of readers worldwide with her masterpiece of imagination, TALES OF THE OTORI. Now, against a dazzling canvas of wild forest, elegant court and savage battlefield, she brilliantly brings to life the world that existed 300 years earlier.Hearn weaves an intricate tapestry - seething with intrigue, adventure and love - of two rival clans struggling over who will be crowned Emperor of the Eight Islands, in a medieval Japanese country inhabited by warriors, assassins, ghosts and guardian spirits. And as the laws of destiny play out their inexorable drama, so the battle for the Lotus Throne begins.Coming soonLORD OF THE DARKWOOD: Books 3 & 4 in THE TALE OF SHIKANOKO.Praise for TALES OF THE OTORI:'One of the most thrilling series of our time.' THE TIMES'The best story of magic, love, sex, revenge and suspense since Philip Pullman.' INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY'A classic in the making. A tour de force of pure storytelling. Rich with character and detail, yet effortless to read.' SYDNEY MORNING HERALD'An engrossing fantasy saga of literary quality.' THE AGEDon't miss any of the novels in the OTORI sagaACROSS THE NIGHTINGALE FLOORGRASS FOR HIS PILLOWBRILLIANCE OF THE MOONTHE HARSH CRY OF THE HERONHEAVEN'S NET IS WIDE

    The frontier city of Yanmass seems like a perfect place to lie low, until a job solving a noble’s murder reveals an invading centaur army ready to burn the place to the ground. Of course, Shy could stop that from happening, but doing so would reveal her presence to the former friends who now want her dead. Add in a holier-than-thou patron with the literal blood of angels in her veins, and Shy quickly remembers why she swore off doing good deeds in the first place...From critically acclaimed fantasy author Sam Sykes comes a darkly comic tale of intrigue, assassination, and the perils of friendship, all set in the award-winning world of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.