Book picks similar to
The Sword and the Lion by Roberta Cray
fantasy
fiction
all-time-favourites
fiction-fantasy
The Barbed Coil
J.V. Jones - 1997
All of that changes when she stumbles upon a ring that transports her to a distant time and place. There she discovers her unexpected talent: She can create luminous, magical illustrations that have the power to influence others' lives. She becomes involved in the fate of kingdoms when her power is brought to bear against an evil king whose mind has been taken over by a golden crown called the Barbed Coil. As in The Book of Words trilogy, J. V. (Julie) Jones imbues every one of her characters with personality, from the dashing mercenary Ravis, who becomes Tessa's protector in this strange new world, to the sailors, innkeepers, soldiers, and others who populate her lush, involving story.
The 10th Kingdom
Kathryn Wesley - 2000
Welcome to THE 10TH KINGDOM. Suppose you were on your way to work. Not a great job, just one that pays the bills. And suddenly, you are in the middle of a fantastic adventure and running for your life. You don't believe it could happen? Well, it could, and in THE 10TH KINGDOM, it does. Embark on an odyssey that will grip your imagination, steal your heart - and leave you spellbound as only the very best story can. Virginia and Tony, a father and daughter from New York, unwittingly find themselves in a parallel universe known as The Nine Kingdoms where they must join forces with a schizophrenic man-wolf and Prince, a handsome golden retriever (formally known as Prince Wendell, grandson of Snow White until his wicked stepmother turned him into a dog). The unlikely heroes then embark on an epic quest to save Prince from the evil Queen and restore him to the throne.Includes 16 pages of full-color plate images from the television mini-series.
Against a Dark Background
Iain M. Banks - 1993
On an island with a glass shore - relic of some even more ancient conflict - she discovers she is to be hunted by the Huhsz, a religious cult which believes she is the last obstacle before their faith's apotheosis. She has to run, knowing her only hope of finally escaping the Huhsz is to find the last of the ancient, apocalyptically powerful but seemingly cursed Lazy Guns. But that is just the first as well as the final step on a search that takes her on an odyssey through the exotic Golterian system and results in both a trail of destruction and a journey into her own past, as well as that of her family and the system itself; a journey that changes everything.
The Book of Atrix Wolfe
Patricia A. McKillip - 1995
Now, the Queen of the Wood has offered him one last chance for redemption. She asks him to find her daughter, who vanished into the human world during the massacre he caused. No one has seen the princess-but deep in the kitchens of the Castle of Pelucir, there is a scullery maid who appeared out of nowhere one night long ago. She cannot speak and her eyes are full of sadness. But there are those who call her beautiful.
The Wounded Land
Stephen R. Donaldson - 1980
But he is back, and Convenant, armed with his stunning white gold magic, must battle the evil forces and his own despair...
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: A Trilogy in Four Parts
Douglas Adams - 1986
For Arthur Dent, who has only just had his house demolished that morning, this seems already to be more than he can cope with. Sadly, however, the weekend has only just begun, and the Galaxy is a very very very large and startling place.THE RESTAURANT AT THE END OF THE UNIVERSE.When all questions of space, time, matter and the nature of being have been resolved, only one question remains --- "Where shall we have dinner?" The Restaurant at the End of the Universe provides the ultimate gastronomic experience, and for once there is no morning after to worry about.LIFE, THE UNIVERSE AND EVERYTHING.In consequence of a number of stunning catastrophes, Arthur Dent is surprised to find himself living in a hideously miserable cave on prehistoric Earth. However, just as he thinks that things cannot possibly get any worse, they suddenly do. He discovers that the Galaxy is not only mind-boggling big and bewildering but also that most of the things that happen in it are staggeringly unfair.SO LONG, AND THANKS FOR ALL THE FISH.Just as Arthur Dent's sense of reality is in its dickiest state he suddenly finds the girl of his dreams. He finds her in the last place in the Universe in which he would expect to find anything at all, but which 3,976,000 people will find oddly familiar. They go in search of God's Final Message to His Creation and, in a dramatic break with tradition, actually find it.
Imajica
Clive Barker - 1991
At its heart lies the sensualist and master art forger, Gentle, whose life unravels when he encounters Judith Odell, whose power to influence the destinies of men is vaster than she knows, and Pie 'oh' pah, an alien assassin who comes from a hidden dimension.That dimension is one of five in the great system called Imajica. They are worlds that are utterly unlike our own, but are ruled, peopled, and haunted by species whose lives are intricately connected with ours. As Gentle, Judith, and Pie 'oh' pah travel the Imajica, they uncover a trail of crimes and intimate betrayals, leading them to a revelation so startling that it changes reality forever.
The Way of Kings, Part 2
Brandon Sanderson - 2010
Heaven. But then the Voidbringers assaulted and captured heaven, casting out God and men. Men took root on Roshar, the world of storms. And the Voidbringers followed ...They came against man ten thousand times. To help them cope, the Almighty gave men powerful suits of armor and mystical weapons, known as Shardblades. Led by ten angelic Heralds and ten orders of knights known as Radiants, mankind finally won.Or so the legends say. Today, the only remnants of those supposed battles are the Shardblades, the possession of which makes a man nearly invincible on the battlefield. The entire world is at war with itself - and has been for centuries since the Radiants turned against mankind. Kings strive to win more Shardblades, each secretly wishing to be the one who will finally unite all of mankind under a single throne.On a world scoured down to the rock by terrifying hurricanes that blow through every few days is a young spearman, forced into the army of a Shardbearer, led to war against an enemy he doesn't understand and doesn't really want to fight.What happened deep in mankind's past?Why did the Radiants turn against mankind, and what happened to the magic they used to wield?
Thieves' World
Robert Lynn Asprin - 1979
1979 ACE mass market paperback,2nd impression, no ISBN. Robert Asprin, Lynn Abbey. A fantasy anthology with a twist. All different stories from different authors, all in the same town.
The Magic of Krynn
Margaret WeisNancy Varian Berberick - 1987
Is Raistlin truly dead?The answer lies in the new Dragonlance novella by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, which gazes into the future of Caramon and his mage-son, and into the dark nether-past of Raistlin.Untold tales of Krynn.Tales of sea monsters, dark elves, ice bears, hideous hydra-headed serpents, and loathsome draconian troops.Further adventures of the kender Tas; the innkeeper Otik and young Tika; the dwarf Flint and Tanis, leader of the companions; Caramon and Raistlin, twon brothers, one, a genial warrior, the other, a sickly magician and scholar.Nine short stories by superlative writers, plus an exciting new novella by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman.The Dragonlance Saga goes on!
Jack the Bodiless
Julian May - 1991
Leading humanity was the powerful Remillard family, but somebody--or something--known only as "Fury" wanted them out of the way.Only Rogi Remillard, the chosen tool of the most powerful alien being in the Milieu, and his nephew Marc, the greatest metapsychic yet born on Earth, knew about Fury. But even they were powerless to stop it when it began to kill off Remillards and other metapsychic operants--and all the suspects were Remillards themselves.Meanwhile, a Remillard son was born, a boy who could represent the future of all humanity. His incredible mind was more powerful even than his brother Marc's--but he was destined to be desroyed by his own DNA...unless Fury got to him first!From the Paperback edition.
A Game of Thrones
George R.R. Martin - 1996
R. Martin’s magnificent cycle of novels that includes A Clash of Kings and A Storm of Swords. As a whole, this series comprises a genuine masterpiece of modern fantasy, bringing together the best the genre has to offer. Magic, mystery, intrigue, romance, and adventure fill these pages and transport us to a world unlike any we have ever experienced. Already hailed as a classic, George R. R. Martin’s stunning series is destined to stand as one of the great achievements of imaginative fiction.A GAME OF THRONESLong ago, in a time forgotten, a preternatural event threw the seasons out of balance. In a land where summers can last decades and winters a lifetime, trouble is brewing. The cold is returning, and in the frozen wastes to the north of Winterfell, sinister and supernatural forces are massing beyond the kingdom’s protective Wall. At the center of the conflict lie the Starks of Winterfell, a family as harsh and unyielding as the land they were born to. Sweeping from a land of brutal cold to a distant summertime kingdom of epicurean plenty, here is a tale of lords and ladies, soldiers and sorcerers, assassins and bastards, who come together in a time of grim omens.Here an enigmatic band of warriors bear swords of no human metal; a tribe of fierce wildlings carry men off into madness; a cruel young dragon prince barters his sister to win back his throne; and a determined woman undertakes the most treacherous of journeys. Amid plots and counterplots, tragedy and betrayal, victory and terror, the fate of the Starks, their allies, and their enemies hangs perilously in the balance, as each endeavors to win that deadliest of conflicts: the game of thrones.source: georgerrmartin.com
Dark Moon
David Gemmell - 1996
The peaceful Eldarin were the last of three ancient races. The mystical Oltor, healers and poets, had fallen before the dread power of the cruel and sadistic Daroth. Yet in one awesome night the invincible Daroth had vanished from the face of the earth. Gone were their cities, their armies, their terror. The Great Northern Desert was their only legacy. Not a trace remained for a thousand years...The War of the Pearl had raged for seven years and the armies of the four Duchies were exhausted and weary of bloodshed. But the foremost of the Dukes, Sirano of Romark, possessed the Eldarin Pearl and was determined to unravel its secrets.Then, on one unforgetable day, a dark moon rose above the Great Northern Desert, and a black tidal wave swept across the land. In moments the desert had vanished beneath lush fields and forests and a great city could be seen glittering in the morning sunlight.From this city re-emerged the blood-hungry Daroth, powerful and immortal, immune to spear and sword. They had only one desire: to rid the world of humankind for ever.Now the fate of the human race rests on the talents of three heroes: Karis, warrior-woman and strategist; Tarantio, the deadliest swordsman of the age; and Duvodas the Healer, who will learn a terrible truth.A new world of myth and magic, love and heroism, from the bestselling author of The Legend of Deathwalker.
Shadowdale
Scott Ciencin - 1989
Malevolent Bane, power-hungry Mystra, and Helm, guardian of the heavens, all know the lost Tablets of Fate are the key.Possessing a mysterious amulet, four heroes, desperate to escape the dark elements of their pasts, find themselves drawn into this high-level power struggle, sought after by the fallen deities and their minions.But time is running out for the heroes--and the Realms. Caught in the crossfire, nature itself revolts: strange, deadly creatures stalk the land, and even magic becomes unpredictable. The heroes must find the sage Elminster, the only mortal who may know the secret of the tablets.And the search begins in Shadowdale.