Book picks similar to
Changeling's Island by Dave Freer


fantasy
urban-fantasy
coming-of-age
ebooks

Museum of Thieves


Lian Tanner - 2010
    Like every child in the city, she wears a silver guardchain and is forced to obey the dreaded Blessed Guardians. She has never done anything by herself and won’t be allowed out on the streets unchained until Separation Day.When Separation Day is canceled, Goldie, who has always been both impatient and bold, runs away, risking not only her own life but also the lives of those she has left behind. In the chaos that follows, she is lured to the mysterious Museum of Dunt, where she meets the boy Toadspit and discovers terrible secrets. Only the cunning mind of a thief can understand the museum’s strange, shifting rooms. Fortunately, Goldie has a talent for thieving.Which is just as well, because the leader of the Blessed Guardians has his own plans for the museum—plans that threaten the lives of everyone Goldie loves. And it will take a daring thief to stop him. . . .Museum of Thieves is a thrilling tale of destiny and danger, and of a courageous girl who has never been allowed to grow up—until now.

The Naming


Alison Croggon - 2002
    She is unaware that she possesses a powerful gift, one that marks her as a member of the School of Pellinor. It is only when she is discovered by Cadvan, one of the great Bards of Lirigon, that her true heritage and extraordinary destiny unfold. Now she and her new teacher must survive a journey through a time and place where the forces they battle stem from the deepest recesses of otherworldly terror.Alison Croggon’s epic fantasy, the first in the Books of Pellinor quartet, is a glittering saga steeped in the rich and complex landscape of Annar, a legendary world ripe for discovery.

Wolf Pact


Melissa de la Cruz - 2012
    They’re pursued by the Hounds of Hell from one town to the next, never calling any place home. But when the hounds finally catch up with them and capture the girl Lawson loves, the hunters become the hunted. Lawson will stop at nothing to track down the hounds, even if the chances of saving Tala are slim...The only hope he has lies in Bliss Llewellyn. Bliss, too, has lost someone to the beasts and will do anything to get them back—even if it means joining forces with the insolent, dangerously good-looking boy with a wolf’s soul.

Tales From Gavagan's Bar


L. Sprague de Camp - 1953
    The authors patterned them after Lord Dunsany's "Jorkens" stories. The Gavagan's stories are widely considered classics.Contents:· Preface · pr · Elephas Frumenti [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss F&SF Win/Spr ’50 · The Ancestral Amethyst [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss F&SF Aug ’52 · Here, Putzi! [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss Tales from Gavagan’s Bar, Twayne, 1953 · More Than Skin Deep [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss F&SF Apr ’51 · Beasts of Bourbon [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss F&SF Oct ’51 · The Gift of God [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss F&SF Win/Spr ’50 · The Better Mousetrap [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss F&SF Dec ’50 · No Forwarding Address [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss Tales from Gavagan’s Bar, Twayne, 1953 · The Untimely Toper [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss F&SF Jul ’53 · The Eve of St. John [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss Tales from Gavagan’s Bar, Twayne, 1953 · The Love Nest [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss Tales from Gavagan’s Bar, Twayne, 1953 · The Stone of the Sages [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss Tales from Gavagan’s Bar, Twayne, 1953 · Corpus Delectable [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss Tales from Gavagan’s Bar, Twayne, 1953 · The Palimpsest of St. Augustine [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss Tales from Gavagan’s Bar, Twayne, 1953 · Where to, Please? [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss Weird Tales Sep ’52 · Methought I Heard a Voice [“When the Night Wind Howls”; Gavagan’s Bar] · ss Weird Tales Nov ’51 · One Man’s Meat [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss F&SF Sep ’53 · My Brother’s Keeper [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss Tales from Gavagan’s Bar, Twayne, 1953 · A Dime Brings You Success [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss Tales from Gavagan’s Bar, Twayne, 1953 · Oh, Say! Can You See [“Ward of the Argonaut”; Gavagan’s Bar] · ss Fantastic Universe Jan ’59 · The Rape of the Lock [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss F&SF Feb ’52 · Bell, Book, and Candle [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss Fantastic Universe Oct ’59 · All That Glitters [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss Tales from Gavagan’s Bar, Twayne, 1953 · Gin Comes in Bottles [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss Tales from Gavagan’s Bar, Twayne, 1953 · There’d Be Thousands in It [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss * · The Black Ball [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss F&SF Oct ’52 · The Green Thumb [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss F&SF Feb ’53 · Caveat Emptor [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss Weird Tales Mar ’53 · The Weissenbroch Spectacles [Gavagan’s Bar] · ss F&SF Nov ’54

Inda


Sherwood Smith - 2006
    But when war threatens, Inda is sent to the Royal Academy where he learns the art of war and finds that danger and intrigue don't only come from outside the kingdom.

The Cunning Man


D.J. Butler - 2019
    The cunning man is here to fight them.A BREW OF DUST BOWL MAGIC AND GRIT It’s the depths of the Depression, and a mining town in Utah is shut down. Something has awakened underground, and now a monster roams the tunnels. While contentious owners squabble, poor worker families go hungry. Along comes Hiram Woolley. Hiram is a man with mystical abilities derived from the commonsense application of Scots-Irish folk wisdom and German braucher magic. He possesses an arcane Bloodstone that allows him to see a lie the moment it is spoken. Behind the played-out farms and failed businesses are demons, curses, sorcerers, and unatoned wrongs. Bags of groceries and carpentry won’t be enough this time.The job will take a man who has known sorrow. A man who has known war. A man of wisdom. A man of magic. THE JOB WILL TAKE A CUNNING MAN

In the Hall of the Dragon King


Stephen R. Lawhead - 1982
    Determined to save the realm of the Dragon King, the dying knight makes a desperate plea for someone to continue his quest. Now Quentin must choose—a life of ease or a dangerous, unknown path.

Rosemary and Rue


Seanan McGuire - 2009
    After getting burned by both sides of her heritage, Toby has denied the Faerie world, retreating to a "normal" life. Unfortunately for her, the Faerie world has other ideas... The murder of Countess Evening Winterrose pulls Toby back into the fae world. Unable to resist Evening's dying curse, which binds her to investigate, Toby must resume her former position as knight errant and renew old alliances. As she steps back into fae society, dealing with a cast of characters not entirely good or evil, she realizes that more than her own life will be forfeited if she cannot find Evening's killer.

Gifts


Ursula K. Le Guin - 2004
    Wondrous gifts: the ability—with a glance, a gesture, a word—to summon animals, bring forth fire, move the land. Fearsome gifts: They can twist a limb, chain a mind, inflict a wasting illness. The Uplanders live in constant fear that one family might unleash its gift against another. Two young people, friends since childhood, decide not to use their gifts. One, a girl, refuses to bring animals to their death in the hunt. The other, a boy, wears a blindfold lest his eyes and his anger kill. In this beautifully crafted story, Ursula K. Le Guin writes of the proud cruelty of power, of how hard it is to grow up, and of how much harder still it is to find, in the world's darkness, gifts of light.

The Ring of Solomon


Jonathan Stroud - 2010
    Solomon has just begun work on his marvelous temple, charging Khaba, a formidable magician in his royal court, to oversee its construction. The workforce is an ill-behaved bunch of demons, a particularly unruly djinni named Bartimaeus among them. True to form, Bartimaeus promptly gets kicked off the temple project and assigned the even more miserable task of hunting bandits in the desert. There he crosses paths with Asmira, a highly skilled and loyal captain of the Queen of Sheba’s guard, on a suicidal mission to save her country from Solomon’s imminent attack. Of course, Bartimaeus has no intention of helping her. That is, until Asmira makes him an offer he cannot refuse. . . .A spellbinding addition to Jonathan Stroud’s New York Times bestselling Bartimaeus audiobooks, The Ring of Solomon brims with dazzling wit, unforgettable characters, and powerful themes of freedom and slavery, with or without magical bonds.

Eragon & Eldest


Christopher Paolini - 2005
    With only an ancient sword and the advice of an old storyteller for guidance, Eragon and his dragon must navigate the dangerous terrain and dark enemies of an Empire ruled by a king whose evil knows no bounds. This beautiful boxed set includes books I and II in the Inheritance trilogy.

The Ruins of Gorlan


John Flanagan - 2004
    The villagers believe the Rangers practice magic that makes them invisible to ordinary people. And now 15-year-old Will, always small for his age, has been chosen as a Ranger's apprentice. What he doesn't yet realize is that the Rangers are the protectors of the kingdom. Highly trained in the skills of battle and surveillance, they fight the battles before the battles reach the people. And as Will is about to learn, there is a large battle brewing. The exiled Morgarath, Lord of the Mountains of Rain and Night, is gathering his forces for an attack on the kingdom. This time, he will not be denied....

Pawn of Prophecy


David Eddings - 1982
    But Belgarath the Sorcerer led men to reclaim the Orb that protected men of the West. So long as it lay at Riva, the prophecy went, men would be safe.But that was only a story, and Garion did not believe in magic dooms, even though the dark man without a shadow had haunted him for years. Brought up on a quiet farm by his Aunt Pol, how could he know that the Apostate planned to wake dread Torak, or that he would be led on a quest of unparalleled magic and danger by those he loved - but did not know? For a while his dreams of innocence were safe, untroubled by knowledge of his strange heritage. For a little while... THUS BEGINS BOOK ONE OF THE BELGARIAD'

The Door Within


Wayne Thomas Batson - 2005
    Enter The Door Within.Aidan Thomas is miserable. Within two weeks, Aidan’s life is completely uprooted as his parents move the family across the country to care for his ailing grandfather. The quiet but imaginative Aidan is struggling with attending a new school and fitting in with a new group of friends. But when he begins having nightmares and eerie events occur around his neighborhood, Aidan finds himself drawn to his grandfather's basement—where he discovers three ancient scrolls and a mysterious invitation to another world.No longer confined to the realm of his own imagination, Aidan embarks on an adventure where he discovers a long-fought war between good and evil. With the fate of two worlds hanging in the balance, Aidan faces Paragory, the eternal enemy with unfathomable power. Will Aidan be willing to risk everything and trust the unseen hand of the one true King?

Star Wars: Before the Awakening


Greg Rucka - 2015
    A companion piece to the "Journey to Star Wars: The Force Awakens" character novels, Star Wars: Before the Awakening is an anthology book that focuses on the lives of Rey, Finn, and Poe before the events of the Star Wars: The Force Awakens.