Book picks similar to
The Garland of Filigree by Nicholas Stuart Gray


fantasy
childrens-book
young---at-heart--adult
children-teens

The Sorceress's Apprentice


J.L. Lahey - 2017
     While attempting to save the lives of his fellow orphans he manifests a magic like power. He soon learns that using this power comes with a great risk to his own life. A beautiful sorceress, clad all in black, soon arrives with an offer to adopt him and teach him how to properly wield his powers. Once they leave, he learns that the sorceress is really the leader of a group of adventurers, and they're not the type of heroes that he has ever read about in books. They’re the kind that steal, get drunk, rob graves, loot tombs, and shoot people in the back. They basically only do what they need to in order to have a really good time. Badger is wondering what type of tale has he gotten into, because he has never read a story quite like this one!

PUNARBHAVA : Rise of the legend of Panini - the Yogi warrior


Ashutosh Jain - 2020
    

Surfacing (Returning #3)


A.L. Knorr - 2018
    Follow Mira's story as she faces life as a single mother, wrestles with the constant call of the ocean to her mermaid nature, and joins an all-male salvage team who is less than thrilled to have her. When my mother died, I ran to the ocean like a coward. Its cradle of salt puckered my memories and withered my sorrow like a grape drying in the sun. I had cheated grief and was foolish enough to think I had gotten away with it.When Nathan died, I couldn’t run away. No matter how much I flinched, bending toward the Atlantic the way ivy strains for rays of light, I could not leave. Grief was back to take what belonged to it for the time it was allotted. I had everything I wanted a few short years ago. My mate. My daughter. A home, a family. It made my head spin to think how much could change so suddenly. I mused, wondering later if I was the only mermaid to ever walk fully through the five stages of grief. But I had my daughter.Targa had yet to turn, the color and shape of her fins were yet to be revealed, but she would. I had been so sure of it then. Siren genes are passed from mother to daughter, without fail. Young legs melded into a shimmering virgin tail in response to a salty sea. But Targa didn’t turn in response to ocean water, not the first time, not any time after that. Something was wrong. I shoved my fear down deep into some dark corner where Targa would not see it and said with a smile that we’d just have to keep trying. I had turned at the age of three, but if there could be late-bloomers in the human race, why not ours too?Her fifth birthday came and went, still she hadn’t turned. Concern sent its barbs into me like a thistle, then it rooted and grew.Targa and I had weekly late night secret swims in the Atlantic, which had once been fun but were now polluted with expectation and suspense. Coaching sessions (my idea), where I attempted human psychology exercises I’d found in outdated textbooks at the library; guided visualization, breathing techniques, and even a failed go at hypnosis. The memory of her skinny little frame sitting in a bathtub containing more salt than water (Targa’s idea) is still enough to fill my eyes with moisture.I don’t know exactly when she lost hope, but she hid it expertly, patiently participating however I asked.I ignored the creeping thoughts that whispered in my mind; she didn’t even like water, didn’t really want to go for swim, couldn’t hear the ocean calling her. I would shove the thoughts away violently, excusing them as nothing but my own anxiety. It was ridiculous. A daughter of a mermaid who disliked the ocean. Impossible. When I muzzled those fears, I became aware of others of a different kind. Not my own, but hers, for me.She could see the want in my eyes. Whatever mechanism bees and dogs used to smell fear, Targa had it for despair. She could sense it on me, reeking like cheap perfume. Her eyes dipped in desperation, her obvious desire not to disappoint me sliced through me like a white-hot blade from heart to gut. She thought she was my tormentor. The realization struck like a hammer and gave me the strength to do what was needed: Let it go.The ocean could call. I’d let the smell of it crucify me, the sound of its waves crash against me, echo through me, call me, beg me.Targa’s need and my love for her was greater. If she never turned and I was locked in a land-cycle for the rest of our lives, so be it.So be it.

Birth of Magic Complete Series Boxed Set: A Kurtherian Gambit Series


N.D. Roberts - 2021
    

The Legend of the Gate-Keeper: Complete Series Box Set


Jeff Gunzel - 2016
    Brave, unwavering in his devotion to the queen, his courage knows no bounds. But it was not always so. Every story must begin somewhere, but some beginnings are darker than others.The Shadow is a prequel to the Legend of the Gate Keeper series. Although this installment features the early years of one of the main characters in the series, it is a standalone, and can be enjoyed with no prior knowledge of the series.Book 1: Land of Shadows - Our story begins here. A blacksmith from the small town of Bryer, Eric believed he would live out his days leading a peaceful life doing the work he loved. But it seems fate had other plans for him. When his home town is attacked, Eric is uprooted from his familiar surroundings and forced to embark on a journey for answers. Only one thing is certain to him now. It's painfully clear that his whole life has been nothing more than a series of lies.Book 2: Siege of Night - Whispers of the Gate Keepers return rage through Tarmerria like a forest fire. Could it be true? Has this mystical figure actually returned? Some have embraced the idea while others want to see Eric dead. Lines have been drawn, sides have been taken. There is only one way to stand for what you believe in. Tarmerria must go to war.Book 3: Lost Empire - The war is over and the city of Taron is still recovering from one of the darkest days in its history. With one battle over, another is about to begin. Our heroes must leave their familiar lands to embark on a journey by sea, far away from Tarmerria.Book 4: Reborn - Is the Gate Keeper some sort of demon? The people of this new land seem to think so. For years they have been tormented by a being with abilities similar to Eric's. So how is this foreigner who washed up on their shores any different? The Gate Keeper must prove himself and transform before their very eyes. In the eyes of the Gods and in those of the people, he must be...reborn.Book 5: The Trials of Ashbarn - The world has seen what Eric can do. Is this the one man who can take down the demon Krytoes? He has proven himself to the mortals, but must now establish himself in the eyes of the Gods themselves. Let the trials begin.Book 6: End of Days - The Gate Keeper has been named... The prophesies have come true... The world as we know it will never be the same...End of Days is the exciting conclusion to "The Legend of the Gate Keeper" series. Join Eric and his friends as they make their final push against the forces of evil.Warning Graphic Content: These books are intended for mature audiences

The School. First Circle [RealRPG Wuxia Series The Way] Book #2


Mike Ignatov - 2021
    

Penny and Boots Complete Series Omnibus: An Unveiled Academy Novel - Snakes and Shadows, Werewolves and Wendigo, Pixels and Poltergeists, Bunyips and Billabongs


Amy Hopkins - 2020
    

Fallen


Niall Teasdale - 2021
    It’s not like you have to actually kill a dragon to collect its scales. Dragons moult. When he woke up one morning beside a beautiful crystal-clear lake only to have a woman fall out of the sky in front of him, Alex’s life took a turn for the exciting, and dangerous. With his new companion around, things would never be the same again.

In Service of the King (The Kingdom Series)


Steven Styles - 2014
     Elevated by the king, himself, to title and land Joseph oversees the estate of the Stone Mountain, on the fringes of the Great Bay in secret. Making no haste to reveal his new-found wealth, he rides with his fellow Shamar on increasingly important missions for the king.The Monarch is determined to route out the remaining vestiges of corruption that once infested his shores, but even he does not realize how quickly it has re-birthed in the dark, among the treasures of the Deep. Amid the dangers, Joseph secretly write letter to Elizabeth Hays–still posing as a peasant blacksmith–hoping she still cares for him.Many perils await Joseph Asher before he can finally pursue the comforts of more peaceful times. Book Two of the Kingdom Series.

Crystal Throne


D.W. Jackson - 2015
    Thad and his companions must brave the wrath of the scions if they have any hope of saving their land from becoming a desolate waste.

Bard's Exile


Carolyn Gross - 2016
    He has also gained exceptional notoriety for his fighting skills—despite being born blind. One night while out with his jet-black mongrel, Bright, he cheats a large brute named Sellard, a member of a corrupt aristocratic family. The captain of the king’s guard advises Marek to leave town before things escalate. But as he is saying good-bye to his surrogate mother, he is promptly captured. Marek now faces certain death, as he stands accused of magic before the Taken, silent warriors who see into a person’s soul. Meanwhile, Princess Selena, reluctantly betrothed to Sellard, schemes to flee from the city with the unexpected help of Bright. As Marek heads for the gallows, Selena unwittingly helps him escape, and together they race toward the wilds until Selena is forced to give herself up to save innocent lives. To rescue Selena, Marek must come to terms with shocking revelations about his past, present, and future. For fans of David Eddings, Mongrel Sight is a compelling fantasy adventure about the nature of destiny.

The Dark Path


James M. Bowers - 2012
    Raised by a master assassin then barely escaping with his life after a betrayal by his own guild, he finds himself with a new mission and a chance to start a new life in a far away land. Will he survive this new school of magic? Can he, with the help of some new friends, find a way to heal from the past? Will this place prove to be too much of a challenge for this boy, this weapon?

I married a goblin to rank up as an adventuer


J.H. Hart - 2020
    He's one hundred and fifty years old and only rank D. Since adventures can only die in battle Rusty has lived long enough to see everyone he knew either die or rank up without him. He never gave up and one day it finally pays off when he meets a high level goblin in the forest. The goblin offers him a method to rank up that includes marrying the daughter of the goblin chief. This is a short series that I'm writing while I work on other projects like "Demon Party". You can go ahead and judge this one by its cover. Thanks!

Stuck In Magic: A Schooled In Magic spinoff


Christopher G. Nuttall - 2021
    Driving away, unsure where he was going, he fell through an interdimensional rift and found himself in a very different world, a city of magic and mystery and dangers beyond his comprehension, a land spinning out of control as innovations from the distant west unsettle the monarchy and challenge the position of the aristocrats and warlords that hold the kingdom in their grasp.Powerless and alone, with no way home, Elliot struggles to survive long enough to make a new life. But as war looms on the horizon, he finds himself forced to use his skills to make a name for himself, all too aware that the slightest slip will mean instant death - or worse.

Prodigy of Thunder (Chronicles of Anna Atticus Stone Book 1)


Sever Bronny - 2021