Book picks similar to
The Holver Alley Crew by Marshall Ryan Maresca
fantasy
urban-fantasy
heist
thieves
Elizabeth's Legacy
Victor Kloss - 2014
The police have all but given up finding them when Ben stumbles upon a peculiar letter addressed to his dad. “You are the most wanted man in the Unseen Kingdoms. Unless you come to us, we cannot help. For your child's sake, tell us what you know.”The letter is from an organisation called the Royal Institute of Magic and is dated a day before his parents disappeared. Like most people, fourteen-year-old Ben hasn't the faintest idea what the Royal Institute of Magic is, but he has his first clue: the logo on the letter.Armed with nothing but his wits and the help of his good friend Charlie, Ben sets out to find the Institute and, through them, his parents. To succeed, he will have to navigate a land filled with fantastic creatures and Spellshooters, where magic can be bought and sold, to unravel an ancient family secret that could hold the key to defeating an evil the Institute has been fighting for the last five hundred years.
Steeplejack
A.J. Hartley - 2016
Dramatically different communities live and work alongside one another. The white Feldish command the nation’s higher echelons of society; the native Mahweni are divided between city life and the savannah. And then there’s Ang, part of the Lani community who immigrated there generations ago and now mostly live in poverty on Bar-Selehm’s edges.When Ang is supposed to meet her new apprentice, Berrit, she finds him dead. That same night the Beacon, an invaluable historical icon, is stolen. The Beacon’s theft commands the headlines, yet no one seems to care about Berrit’s murder—except for Josiah Willinghouse, an enigmatic young politician. When he offers Ang a job investigating the death, she plunges headlong into new and unexpected dangers.Meanwhile, crowds gather in protests over the city’s mounting troubles. Rumors surrounding the Beacon’s theft grow. More suspicious deaths occur. With no one to help Ang except Josiah’s haughty younger sister, a savvy newspaper girl, and a kindhearted herder, Ang must rely on her intellect and strength to resolve the mysterious link between Berrit and the missing Beacon before the city descends into chaos.
Broken
S.J. West - 2013
On the night the Tear first appeared, the Watchers, a mysterious group of men possessing supernatural powers, made their presence known to the leaders of the world, earning their complete trust to deal with the turmoil the Tear caused.Now twenty-two years old, Jess is an agent working for the Watcher Agency searching for a way to bring her parents back home. When the leader of the Watchers, Mason Collier, recruits her to join his team, Jess quickly discovers she is meant to play a major role in sealing the Tear forever. Mason and Jess instantly find themselves drawn to one another but they both resist their mutual attraction for different reasons. Broken by past events in their lives, they each struggle to overcome their fears and find the strength to take a chance on one another.A Disclaimer from the Author:It is not necessary to have read The Watchers Trilogy to read The Watcher Chronicles. But if you are interested in reading The Watchers Trilogy, I would recommend you not read this new series until you have finished Forgiven. What happens at the end of the trilogy is explained fairly early in Broken and I would hate for the ending of Forgiven to be ruined for you.
Ironskin
Tina Connolly - 2012
It’s the only way to contain the fey curse that scars her cheek. The Great War is five years gone, but its scattered victims remain—the ironskin. When a carefully worded listing appears for a governess to assist with a "delicate situation"—a child born during the Great War—Jane is certain the child is fey-cursed, and that she can help. Teaching the unruly Dorie to suppress her curse is hard enough; she certainly didn’t expect to fall for the girl’s father, the enigmatic artist Edward Rochart. But her blossoming crush is stifled by her own scars, and by his parade of women. Ugly women, who enter his closed studio...and come out as beautiful as the fey. Jane knows Rochart cannot love her, just as she knows that she must wear iron for the rest of her life. But what if neither of these things is true? Step by step Jane unlocks the secrets of her new life—and discovers just how far she will go to become whole again.
Revenger
Alastair Reynolds - 2016
Planets have shattered and been remade. Amongst the ruins of alien civilizations, building our own from the rubble, humanity still thrives. And there are vast fortunes to be made, if you know where to find them.Captain Rackamore and his crew do. It's their business to find the tiny, enigmatic worlds which have been hidden away, booby-trapped, surrounded by layers of protection—and to crack them open for the ancient relics and barely-remembered technologies inside. But while they ply their risky trade with integrity, not everyone is so scrupulous. Adrana and Fura Ness are the newest members of Rackamore's crew, signed on to save their family from bankruptcy. Only Rackamore has enemies, and there might be more waiting for them in space than adventure and fortune: the fabled and feared Bosa Sennen in particular. Revenger is a science fiction adventure story set in the rubble of our solar system in the dark, distant future—a tale of space pirates, buried treasure, and phantom weapons, of unspeakable hazards and single-minded heroism and of vengeance...
Gilded
Christina Farley - 2014
When her widowed dad uproots her to Seoul from her home in L.A., Jae thinks her biggest challenges will be fitting in to a new school and dealing with her dismissive Korean grandfather. Then she discovers that a Korean demi-god, Haemosu, has been stealing the soul of the oldest daughter of each generation in her family for centuries. And she's next.But that’s not Jae’s only problem.There's also Marc. Irresistible and charming, Marc threatens to break the barriers around Jae's heart. As the two grow closer, Jae must decide if she can trust him. But Marc has a secret of his own—one that could help Jae overturn the curse on her family for good. It turns out that Jae's been wrong about a lot of things: her grandfather is her greatest ally, even the tough girl can fall in love, and Korea might just be the home she's always been looking for.
The Crown Tower
Michael J. Sullivan - 2013
ONE IMPOSSIBLE MISSION. A LEGEND IN THE MAKING.A warrior with nothing to fight for is paired with a thieving assassin with nothing to lose. Together they must steal a treasure that no one can reach. The Crown Tower is the impregnable remains of the grandest fortress ever built and home to the realm’s most valuable possessions. But it isn’t gold or jewels the old wizard is after, and this prize can only be obtained by the combined talents of two remarkable men. Now if Arcadius can just keep Hadrian and Royce from killing each other, they just might succeed.The Riyria Revelations and The Riyria Chronicles are two separate, but related series, and you can start reading with either Theft of Swords (publication order) or The Crown Tower (chronological order).
Enchantress
James Maxwell - 2012
But the elite Academy of Enchanters expects tuition fees and knowledge. Determined, Ella sells flowers and studies every book she can. Meanwhile her brother, Miro, dreams of becoming one of the world's finest swordsmen, wielding his nation’s powerful enchanted weapons in defense of his homeland.A dark force rises in the east, conquering all in its path, and Miro leaves for the front. When the void Miro left is filled by Killian, a charming stranger from another land, Ella finds herself in love. But Killian has a secret, and Ella’s actions will determine the fate of her brother, her homeland, and the world.This is the first book in the epic Evermen Saga.
The Flaw in All Magic
Ben S. Dobson - 2017
Which, to be fair, did get him into the world's most prestigious university of magical technology.For a while.Until his lack of magic was discovered. And then it all came crashing down.But when a student is murdered on campus behind unbreakable wards, Tane gets a second chance. Solving an impossible crime should be easy for the man who fooled the university's best mages for years. Except he's not counting on the head constable being an old flame who isn't so fond of him anymore. Or on Kadka, the half-crazy half-orc who insists she's his partner—whether he likes it or not.Not to mention the masked mage who keeps trying to kill him.Now, Tane's survival depends on the one truth that has never failed him. The flaw in all magic that those who have it prefer to ignore: the mage.Outsmart the mage, and you outsmart the spell.And outsmarting mages is what Tane does best.
The Girl Who Dared to Think
Bella Forrest - 2017
They say it's all that's left.The Tower's survival is humanity's survival, and each must serve it faithfully...Twenty-year-old Liana Castell must be careful what she thinks. Her life is defined by the number on her wristband -- a rating out of ten awarded based on her usefulness and loyalty to the Tower, and monitored by a device in her skull. A device that reports forbidden thoughts.Liana is currently a four, the lowest possible acceptable score, and despite her parents' perfect scores of ten, she struggles to increase it. Rebellious ideas come all too easily, and resentfulness seems part of her being. She is an overseer-in-training, but her future will be dark if she cannot raise her worth...Threes require drug treatment.Twos are isolated.Ones disappear.When Liana's worst nightmare comes to pass and she drops to a three, desperation spurs her down a path few dare to tread. A chance encounter with a cocky young man whose shockingly dissident attitude toward the Tower couldn't possibly have earned him the perfect "ten" on his wrist, sets her on a trail to save herself--even at the risk of dropping lower.Stalking the young man seemed like a simple enough task, but after events take an unexpected twist, Liana finds herself taking a treacherous dive into the darkest depths of the Tower... and the decades' old secrets buried within.In a society where free thinking can make you a criminal, one girl dares to try...An unforgettable tale brimming with suspense, mystery and romance - The Girl Who Dared to Think will thrill fans of
The Gender Game
, Divergent & The Hunger Games.
Trial One
Annabel Chase - 2019
At the academy, these offspring are protected and their talents nurtured. It's the one place they're safe. Until now.
The Shadow Revolution
Clay Griffith - 2015
But they’re going to need a lot more silver.As fog descends, obscuring the gas lamps of Victorian London, werewolves prowl the shadows of back alleys. But they have infiltrated the inner circles of upper-crust society as well. Only a handful of specially gifted practitioners are equipped to battle the beasts. Among them are the roguish Simon Archer, who conceals his powers as a spell-casting scribe behind the smooth veneer of a dashing playboy; his layabout mentor, Nick Barker, who prefers a good pub to thrilling heroics; and the self-possessed alchemist Kate Anstruther, who is equally at home in a ballroom as she is on a battlefield.After a lycanthrope targets Kate’s vulnerable younger sister, the three join forces with fierce Scottish monster-hunter Malcolm MacFarlane—but quickly discover they’re dealing with a threat far greater than anything they ever imagined.
Darkborn
Alison Sinclair - 2009
For the Lightborn, darkness is fatal. Living under a centuries-old curse, the Darkborn and the Lightborn share the city of Minhorne, coexisting in an uneasy equilibrium but never interacting. When Darkborn physician Balthasar Hearne finds a pregnant fugitive on his doorstep just before sunrise, he has no choice but to take her in. Tercelle Amberley's betrothed is a powerful Darkborn nobleman, but her illicit lover came to her through the daytime. When she gives birth to twin boys, they can see, something unheard of among the Darkborn. When men come for the boys, Balthasar is saved by the intervention of his Lightborn neighbor-and healed by the hands of his wife, Telmaine. Soon he finds himself drawn deeper into political intrigue and magical attacks, while Telmaine must confront a power she can no longer keep sheathed in gloves, a power she neither wants nor can control.
The Crimson Queen
Alec Hutson - 2016
In the south the Star Towers fell, swallowed by the sea, while the black glaciers descended upon the northern holdfasts, entombing the cities of Min-Ceruth in ice and sorcery. Then from the ancient empire of Menekar the paladins of Ama came, putting every surviving sorcerer to the sword and cleansing their taint from the land for the radiant glory of their lord.The pulse of magic slowed, fading like the heartbeat of a dying man.But after a thousand years it has begun to quicken again.In a small fishing village a boy with strange powers comes of age...A young queen rises in the west, fanning the long-smoldering embers of magic into a blaze once more...Something of great importance is stolen - or freed - from the mysterious Empire of Swords and Flowers...And the immortals who survived the ancient cataclysms bestir themselves, casting about for why the world is suddenly changing...
Rewinder
Brett Battles - 2014
But even if you did, you’d never believe it.The world as you know it wouldn't be the same without him. Denny was born into one of the lowest rungs of society, but his bleak fortunes abruptly change when the mysterious Upjohn Institute recruits him to be a Rewinder, a verifier of personal histories. The job at first sounds like it involves researching old books and records, but Denny soon learns it's far from it. A Rewinder's job is to observe history.In person.Embracing his new duties with enthusiasm, Denny witnesses things he could never even imagine before. But as exciting as the adventures into the past are, there are dangers, too. For even the smallest error can have consequences. Life-altering consequences. Time, after all, is merely a reference point.