The single act capable of bringing both death and life simultaneously. Thannuel Kerr is handsome, young and brash, fumbling through childhood toward his inevitable inheritance: the next Lord of the Western Province. He struggles to accept his arranged marriage and to grow into the man he must become. The journey toward that end, however, is fraught with more peril than he could possibly imagine. In the remote reaches of the Realm, an unknown, silent threat is growing. The Thoulden-sha of Mari-shaden is gathering his disciples, those who have relinquished their bloodlines to the Ancients and embraced Those Not Remembered, a forgotten race that inhabited Våleira long before the Age of the Ancients. As Thannuel learns more about his heritage, he begins to understand why powers that seem greater than anything the world of Våleira has ever seen are targeting him. As a young man, he and his beloved intended, Moira, will face assassination attempts, civil war, and foreign invasions that could tear the Realm—and Våleira itself—apart. Sacrifice. It is what the Thoulden-sha demands. It is what the world desperately needs. To save all he loves, Thannuel will be called upon to lay himself upon the Altar of Influence.

    While the political landscape for this new world is yet to form, intrigues, conspiracy, daring raids, and sabotage are the main weapons of the Hounds, and his evaluation has just begun. To complete it successfully and become a full-fledged member of the clan, Stan will have to adapt to working side-by-side with the most unique people with shady backgrounds — even if he is not a team player by nature and has already failed at the very beginning by choosing the least suitable class for teamwork: Battle Monk. Stan is rebellious, free-spirited, and daring. He risks his life every day just to avoid getting bored of the daily grind. Normally, an expelled student has no hope of entering the virtual world of Artar, an expensive online VR project, but when a suspicious organization offers to pay all expenses to let Stan in for a special purpose, Mongoose gets his chance to become one of the select few. However, to successfully complete his trial, Stan will have to face his main enemy — himself, while finding peace and mastering all five styles of the Battle Monks of Artar. *** The Steel Hounds is the first book of the highly popular Russian LitRPG series The Chronicles of Artar by Vladimir Vasilenko. The brightest representative of a new wave of gamelit writers, Vladimir has created the story of Mongoose, a reckless teenager kicked out of college, who has to struggle with following strict discipline and finding inner harmony while traversing the difficult path of a Battle Monk.

    In The Promised Lie, the first book of the new series, five years have passed since the earth-shattering events of Bookworm IV.   The Golden City has fallen. The Grand Sorcerer and Court Wizards are dead. The Empire they ruled is nothing more than a memory, a golden age lost in the civil wars as kings and princes battle for supremacy. And only a handful of trained magicians remain alive.   Isabella Majuro, Lady Sorceress, is little more than a mercenary, fighting for money in a desperate bid to escape her past. But when Prince Reginald of Andalusia plots the invasion of the Summer Isle, Isabella finds herself dragged into a war against strange magics from before recorded history …    … And an ancient mystery that may spell the end of the human race. Praise for the award-winning Bookworm series: Bookworm was winner of the GOLD Award in the Adult Fiction category of the 2013 Wishing Shelf Independent Book Awards. “A thrilling adventure packed full of magic and memorable characters. Highly recommended.” – The Wishing Shelf Awards “one of the best authors of entertaining epic fantasy” – Seregil of Rhiminee “the author has woven an exciting and entertaining story of secrets, dark history, books, werewolves and magic, and knows how to keep the story on the move” – Risingshadow

    Corfe Cear-Inaf, now a colonel, is given a ragtag command of ill-equipped savages and sent on a hopeless mission by a jealous King who expects him to fail.Richard Hawkwood and Lord Murad return bearing news of horror on a savage new continent, with something terrible lurking in the hold.The Church is tearing itself apart, even as the champions of truth fight to bring peace between Ramusian and Merduk; but in the far West, a terrible new threat is rearing its head...Century of the Soldier collects the final three books in Paul Kearney’s explosive The Monarchies of God series, revised and expanded for this edition: The Iron Wars, The Second Empire and Ships From The West.

    Though Vay, the Evil One tastes defeat, her rage and wrath only increases. She thirsts for revenge and vows to find Hooper, the Gem Guardian and Golden Wind to reclaim the golden dragon, and deal death to Hooper for daring to challenge her. The quest continues in book two, Queen’s Vow, as the company seeks a safe haven from Vay’s wrath. But there is no sanctuary. They are the hunted, the pursued. Outcast from all they know, they feel the heavy weight of the condemned just waiting for Death to write the last sentence in their book of life. As the company flees from Vay’s tempest, even Hooper has to question whether one dragon is worth the pain and suffering. Indeed, is a dragon worth dying for, or for that matter, is there ever any one thing worth the ultimate price? For Hooper, it may well be the question that decides his ultimate fate.

    From childhood he’s been groomed for battle and trained in the Light. When war came he was branded a traitor and exiled for a treasonous act of mercy. To make his way in the world Dain has sold his skills to the highest bidder. But now he’s grown tired of war, tired of fighting for causes not his own, and he’s got a plan. Galena…rumors fly of a great fortune there, one buried beneath the snow-covered mountains, one vast enough to purchase an entire kingdom. Dain isn’t the only one seeking Galena’s riches. Men and elves and orcs all have plans of their own. Fortune has a way of twisting fate and turning the finest of plans on their heads.

    In a world where most mages only have the ability to wield one element, she wields them all: fire, earth, water, air, life, and death. Though she is raised as royalty by an adoptive father at the prestigious Seran University of Magic, he refuses to put her skills to use in his army, so Kai breaks free of her bonds to go on a quest of adventure and self discovery.One simple quest will turn into a life-changing phenomenon for Kai and her companions. Beliefs are challenged. Old secrets are unearthed. Legal lines are crossed. Loyalties are divided. The seeds of rebellion are planted. When it comes time for Kai to face the truth, a legend will be born.

    But when a series of seemly unrelated jobs pull Zane and Lily into a conflict between nations, Zane is forced to confront secrets from his past. Welcome to a morally ambiguous world of magic, mystery, and political intrigue. It’s an epic sword and sorcery tale told in novella-sized chunks. This omnibus edition includes: Thorns and Tangles Assassin Zane Halloway has been hired to kill Irving Farns, a reclusive genius whose innovations brought about a golden age of magic. Zane and his apprentice Lily will need to infiltrate the mysterious Abditus Society and find a way to assassinate the world’s leading expert in protective magic. Swords and Shadows After a run-in with one of the pirate Longstrain's deadly widows, an injured Zane Halloway is enlisted for a special assignment. The nation is on the brink of war, and the king hopes a daring assassination of his enemy's enemy will prevent things from escalating. To complete the job, Zane and Lily will have to join forces with the King's Shadow, the only man in the kingdom with access to the royal armory of magical devices. His name is Jacob Von Ridden. Long ago, he altered the course of Zane's life, and Zane has been waiting for the chance to kill him ever since. Lightning and Thrones Several months ago, Zane Halloway was hired to kill magical genius Irving Farns. Now he has a new client, Irving's daughter. Beth Farns hires Zane and Lily to locate her father's greatest creation, a new type of magical device, neither thorn nor tangle. She believes it's hidden beyond the Blue Wall. To complete the job, Zane and Lily will need to infiltrate restricted elvish territory, face off against a charismatic, young leader, and unravel the mystery of why the elves surrendered from a war they were winning and allowed themselves to subjugated by the people of Opel. Flames and Water Zane Halloway is hired to find the pirate he killed twelve years ago, and Zane and Lily soon find themselves on opposite sides of a pirate war. They'll soon learn that everything is a game for the Longstrains. Even revenge. Lies and Crossroads Zane and Lily search for a dangerous traitor hiding in the mysterious nation of the Crags. Zane will have to steal a family heirloom from the nation's most powerful warrior, and Lily will have to learn what magical secrets are hidden in the mountain palace of the High Prince of the Crags. Crowns and Dead Men War between Opel and Tavel has been brewing for years, and now it has finally come. While Zane is hunted by three of his own, Lily must shoulder the burden of saving her nation from the consequences of her past mistakes.

    For all her skills, Deenah is unable to identify the strange forces at work on the injury.To save her master's life, Deenah must join the young Warder for the area, Kaern, and an aging veteran tracker, as they set out on a manhunt into hostile lands.Rating: PG (some violent scenes)7000 words (approx. 21-28 pages)

     Captain Berengar is returning to his home village to enjoy a quiet retirement. He is accompanied by his trusted sword-brother and lieutenant, Nisero. Unbeknownst to Berengar, a local bandit leader has razed the village, killing his wife and son, and kidnapping his daughter. Berengar, with the help of Nisero, will go to the ends of the earth to bring her back. And nothing will stand in his way. Contains all three books in the series: Forsaken Betrayal Dominion

    In most ways, he’s the same as any other forester: tall, strong and well built, red-haired like his northern kin, and like them considered small by other foresters but not by anyone else. He has all the proverbial politeness of his kin and all of their stubbornness as well. He differs from them in only two things: he is a Whisperer of the sort not seen for a very long time, and he has come to be regarded as a hero and a legend in his own lifetime … much to his own amazement, disbelief and horror. This is the story of how he did it. Book One is the story of a young Rowan who leaves the forests as few of his kind ever do, to become a Guardsman in the neighbouring province of Wirran. The Wirran Guard are justly proud of their distinguished reputation and find themselves shocked to find a young Siannen is as good as any of them and better than most when he takes them on at their own game. Book Two finds Rowan’s life has changed a lot, and not for the better. He has faced unimaginable loss, trauma and betrayal and decides to find and confront the Gods themselves, simply to tell them what he thinks about the way they’re running things. He might mention some improvements that they could make while he’s at it. His meeting with those he finds in Plausant Bron will change him and the world of Yaarl forever. Book Three sees Rowan more at peace with himself at last, though at times he still struggles with the losses and traumas of his past. At the urging of an old friend he will finally return to his old garrison to face and accept the adulation and honours that he turned his back on. While he’s there, he will show a new generation of swordsmen that the Champion is not to be trifled with, no matter how old and decrepit he may appear to be.

    Lye Street ends just where the novel picks up!

    I've been writing short stories based on the various members of Jorg Ancrath's brotherhood of the road, exploring their origins. When I saw that the Blackguards anthology was seeking tales of assassins, I thought it was time to write about Brother Sim."Narrated by: Tim Gerard ReynoldsLength: 29 mins

    But if standing and fighting is hard, leading a company of men - or worse, a company of mercenaries - against the smart, deadly creatures of the Wild is even harder.It takes all the advantages of birth, training, and the luck of the devil to do it.The Red Knight has all three, he has youth on his side, and he's determined to turn a profit. So when he hires his company out to protect an Abbess and her nunnery, it's just another job. The abby is rich, the nuns are pretty and the monster preying on them is nothing he can't deal with.Only it's not just a job. It's going to be a war...

    For Lian, a twelve year old orphan, the world only consists of his remote village and the hazardous mountains surrounding it. He always questioned his existence and longed for meaning; Lian would soon get his answers. After his birthday gets off to a rocky start, Zaneen’s dark past erupts into the present with a violent fury. When that fury leaves Lian truly alone, with the exception of an unexpected companion, Lian must learn the secrets of his own past in order to save his world from a thousand year old conflict.