Book picks similar to
The Rogue Mage by Ben Hale


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Siren Call


Brad Magnarella
    Vampires, dark fae, and exotic entertainers have set up shop, promising pleasures beyond the wildest imagination. But now male clients are turning up stiff … all over.Everson suspects a supernatural predator, even as the clues keep drawing him back to Tabitha: a mysterious call girl who is one hundred percent mortal. As he struggles to solve the case, Everson finds himself sinking deeper and deeper into her dangerously tantalizing world.Which is exactly what Tabitha seems to want...Prequel. Exclusive to newsletter subscribers.

Welcome to Night Vale


Joseph Fink - 2015
    It is here that the lives of two women, with two mysteries, will converge.Nineteen-year-old Night Vale pawn shop owner Jackie Fierro is given a paper marked "King City" by a mysterious man in a tan jacket holding a deer skin suitcase. Everything about him and his paper unsettles her, especially the fact that she can't seem to get the paper to leave her hand, and that no one who meets this man can remember anything about him. Jackie is determined to uncover the mystery of King City and the man in the tan jacket before she herself unravels.Night Vale PTA treasurer Diane Crayton's son, Josh, is moody and also a shape shifter. And lately Diane's started to see her son's father everywhere she goes, looking the same as the day he left years earlier, when they were both teenagers. Josh, looking different every time Diane sees him, shows a stronger and stronger interest in his estranged father, leading to a disaster Diane can see coming, even as she is helpless to prevent it.Diane's search to reconnect with her son and Jackie's search for her former routine life collide as they find themselves coming back to two words: "King City". It is King City that holds the key to both of their mysteries, and their futures...if they can ever find it.

Thinblade


David A. Wells - 2011
    Seven were forged by the first Sovereign of the Seven Isles and bound to the bloodline of each of the seven Island Kings in exchange for their loyalty to the Old Law. Each sword is as long as a man’s arm, as wide as a man’s thumb and so thin it can’t be seen when viewed from the edge. Thinblade is the story of Alexander’s quest to find the ancient sword, claim the throne of Ruatha and raise an army to stand against the enemy that has awoken to claim dominion over all of the Seven Isles.

William Wilde and the Necrosed


Davis Ashura - 2018
    Eight months later, Serena Paradiso enters his life. Captivating and confident, she holds secrets about William’s heritage. His friends know them, too. All of them watch William, study him, wondering if he is the one for whom they’ve been searching. But none of them know of Kohl Obsidian, an undead horror who also hunts for William. Kohl seeks to devour William and his magic, and will kill any who stand in his way. William, Serena, and his friends must face Kohl together, rely on one another to defeat a creature who cannot be killed. The 80s have never been so deadly. Discover a mystical world where heroes are forged from the unlikeliest of metals.

Mage Throne Prophecy: Parallel universe mage adventure


James Haddock - 2020
    Prognosis says he'll be a vegetable by week's end. Having survived numerous incursions in combat around the world, he decides he's not going out like that. He drives a rented corvette into a cliff face at over 200 MPH. The fiery impact catapults him toward the afterlife. Instead of finding the afterlife, he finds himself in a different body with an old man stabbing him in his chest. He fights free, killing the old man before passing out. He wakes to find he's now in the body of Prince Aaron, the 15-year-old second son of the King. In this medieval world, the Royals are Mages. The old man who was trying to kill him was a Mage "Vampire". Instead of blood, the old Mage was trying to steal Ross/Aaron's power, knowledge, and in this case his body. When Ross/Aaron killed the old Mage, his vampire power was transferred to him. He now has the memories, knowledge, and powers of the old Mage. Ross/Aaron must navigate this new environment of court intrigue with care. His older brother, the Crown Prince, hates him. His older sister has no use for him. The King sees him as an asset to be used, agreeing to marry him to a neighboring Kingdom for an alliance. Before the marriage takes place, the castle is attacked. Someone is trying to kill him but is finding it most difficult. Where Mages fight with Magic, Ross/Aaron fights with magic and steel. It's hard to cast a spell with a knife through your skull, or your throat cut. As Ross/Aaron travels with his fiancée toward her home for the marriage to take place, they are attacked at every turn. Someone doesn't want this wedding to happen. Ross/Aaron has had enough of people trying to kill him. With Aaron's knowledge, and Ross' training, they take the offensive. The Kingdom will never be the same.82K words

Bloodleaf


Crystal Smith - 2019
      Surrounded by spirits and burdened with forbidden magic, she lives in constant fear of discovery by the witch-hunting Tribunal and their bloodthirsty mobs. When a devastating assassination attempt reveals her magical abilities, Aurelia is forced to flee her country with nothing but her life.   Alone and adrift in an enemy kingdom, Aurelia plans her revenge against the Tribunal, desperate to bring down the dark organization that has wrought terror upon her people for hundreds of years. But there’s something deeply amiss in her new home, too, and soon she finds herself swept into a deadly new mystery with a secretive prince, the ghost of an ancient queen, and a poison vine called Bloodleaf.   Aurelia is entangled in a centuries-long game of love, power, and war, and if she can’t break free before the Tribunal makes its last move, she may lose far more than her crown.

Callsign - Tripleshot


Jeremy Robinson - 2014
    The stories take place after the events of Threshold, the third full-length novel in the series, and before the events of Ragnarok, the fourth. The novellas are all co-authored by Jeremy Robinson and one of six other fantastic authors. The Chesspocalypse novellas are designed to introduce readers to the series. If you haven't read the novels, no worries. Enjoy the ride!The stories were released in the following order:Callsign: King–Book 1Callsign: QueenCallsign: RookCallsign: King–Book 2–UnderworldCallsign: BishopCallsign: KnightCallsign: Deep BlueCallsign: King—Book 3—BlackoutThis collection contains the standalone Queen, Rook and Bishop stories.CALLSIGN: QUEENAt the beginning of her search for Rook, a missing Chess Team member, Zelda Baker, Callsign: Queen, is redirected to Pripyat, Ukraine, a ghost town on the radioactive outskirts of Chernobyl. Intel indicates that splinter cell of Manifold Genetics—a ruthless corporation dismantled by Chess Team—may be operating in the area. Tasked with confirming the existence of a Manifold facility, Queen begins a recon sweep of the abandoned town in search of clues, but soon finds herself fighting for her life. Something sinister lurks beneath the decaying, surreal remnants of Pripyat's never-used amusement park, and it rises up to greet Queen.In Pripyat, the streets are empty, the derelict buildings crumble, but the bodies...are fresh.CALLSIGN: ROOKAfter a failed mission claims the lives of his five-man support team, Stan Tremblay, Callsign: Rook, flees Siberia and finds himself on the secluded coast of Norway, north of the Arctic Circle. Exhausted, cut off from the outside world, and emotionally beaten from his defeat in Russia, Rook just wants to find a place to rest. The small coastal town of Fenris Kystby seems like the perfect place.Within hours of arriving, he discovers that the town is not as tranquil as it appears. The townspeople are mistrustful of outsiders, a pack of mysterious wolves stalk the local tundra, and two villagers have been killed by a creature that defies explanation. To make things worse, there are rumors of something sinister, something the townspeople refuse to discuss.Despite the hostility of the locals, Rook commits to stopping the creature murdering townspeople. As the body count rises, he quickly learns that the greatest threat might walk on two legs. And when he uncovers the town's hidden past, Rook knows only one thing for certain: something is rotten in Norway.CALLSIGN: BISHOPAn Iranian terrorist cell has gotten their hands on weaponized Ergot-B—a compound that causes violent hysteria, madness and death within 24 hours—and plan to unleash the weapon on major cities around the world. Successful deployment would begin a bloodbath, as those exposed would kill everyone they encountered before succumbing to the compound's lethal effects.Erik Somers, Callsign: Bishop, is called in to investigate, but his first discovery shocks him to the core. Dawoud Abbasi, the terrorist leader planning to unleash Ergot-B, is his biological father.

Soulbound


Bethany Adams - 2016
    After all, Arlyn had promised her mother she’d go. The problem? Her father's people are myths and legends, and he doesn't even live on Earth. But despite a long journey through the mysterious mists of the Veil, finding him turns out to be the easy part. A dream long-buried After five hundred years, Kai has given up on finding his soulbonded. So when he stumbles across Arlyn after returning from his latest mission and recognizes her as his mate, Kai starts their bond in haste. But he never could have imagined that his bonded is his best friend’s newfound daughter. Whoops. A hidden conspiracy sparked to life Though the sight of Kai makes Arlyn’s heart pound, she isn’t sure she can forgive him for starting their bond without her permission. But her love life is the least of her problems. Her father is an elf lord, and his sudden acknowledgment of a half-human heir reignites the same conspiracy that took him away from her mother in the first place. Now Arlyn and her family must face iron wielding assassins, bigotry, and her newly awakened magical abilities if they hope to come through in one piece. Arlyn thought she would return to Earth after meeting her father. Now she must fight to save the family she never knew she wanted.

Arcane


Sever Bronny - 2014
    . . Fourteen-year-old Augum and friends Bridget and Leera dream of becoming warlocks. But with a kingdom in total chaos, it will take courage, sacrifice, and an iron will to make that dream come true.The Lord of the Legion, a vicious tyrant, has overcome the king in a murderous quest for seven mythic artifacts--and Augum's mentor, the legendary Anna Atticus Stone, possesses one. While Augum struggles with demons from a painful childhood, a betrayal puts him, his friends and his mentor through a harrowing ordeal that threatens to destroy them all . . . and change the course of history.Arcane, the debut novel in the epic fantasy adventure series The Arinthian Line, follows three friends as they navigate an ancient abandoned castle, endure grueling training, challenge old mysteries, and learn that a bond forged in tragedy might just be the only thing to save them from a ruthless enemy.Primary style influences: J.K. Rowling, Orson Scott Card, J.R.R. TolkienReader age: Suitable for ages 10 to retiree.Genres: Fantasy, coming-of-age, sword & sorcery, action & adventure, epic, young adult.Foundational tropes: Orphan farmboy discovers the power of magic and friendship while mentoring under a cranky old warlock.Setting: quasi-medieval times.Explicit language: None.Is the series complete? Yes.Audiobooks: The Arinthian Line narrated by Grammy winner Stefan Rudnicki

The Obsidian Mirror


K.D. Keenan - 2014
    Keenan has inherited the mantle of stalwarts Patricia Briggs and Kim Harrison, and The Obsidian Mirror is a masterpiece of thrills for every fantasy reader. When Sierra Carter, an out-of-work PR executive, receives a call from Quetzalcoatl, the plumed serpent god of the Aztecs, she suddenly has more problems on her plate than unemployment. Saving the whole planet, for example. Sierra discovers that her former employer’s semiconductors are in reality a means of spreading a deadly evil around the world. Necocyaotl, Aztec god of death and destruction, has imbued his essence within every device, causing people to place their self-interest and selfish desires above all else. Sierra is called upon to stop him. With his request, Quetzalcoatl offers strange and gifted assistants, Coyotl the trickster, otherwise known as Chaco, a handsome shape-shifting avatar; and Fred, a diminutive and mischievous mannegishi. Although Sierra is skeptical, the revelation of a previously unknown world and its attendants is undeniable. As is the peril Necocyaotl’s return to power promises. Entering the fray with avatars and mythological creatures alongside her, Sierra will discover there are incalculable wonders—and dangers—within the new Old World.

Beyond the Veil


Pippa DaCosta - 2014
    Her real name is Muse, she's half demon, and her attempt at a normal life is about to go up in smoke. When an assassin walks into her life, leaving a trail of destruction in his wake, Muse must return to the one man she hoped never to see again and ask for help. The Prince of Greed isn’t known for his charity. His price is high, and the cost could tear her apart. Trapped between the malevolent intentions of a Prince of Hell and an assassin with ulterior motives, Muse must embrace the lure of chaos at her core—the demon inside her—in order to survive.

The Grey Bastards


Jonathan French - 2015
    A rabble of hard-talking, hog-riding, whore-mongering brawlers they may be, but the Grey Bastards are Jackal's sworn brothers, fighting at his side in a land where there's no room for softness.And once Jackal's in charge--as soon as he can unseat the Bastards' tyrannical, seemingly unkillable founder--there's a few things they'll do different. Better.Or at least, that's the plan. Until the fallout from a deadly showdown makes Jackal start investigating the Lot Lands for himself. Soon, he's wondering if his feelings have blinded him to ugly truths about this world, and the Bastards' place in it.In a quest for answers that takes him from decaying dungeons to the frontlines of an ancient feud, Jackal finds himself battling invading orcs, rampaging centaurs, and grubby human conspiracies alike--along with a host of dark magics so terrifying they'd give even the heartiest Bastard pause.Finally, Jackal must ride to confront a threat that's lain in wait for generations, even as he wonders whether the Bastards can--or should--survive.

Call of the Herald


Brian Rathbone - 2008
    Echoes of the ancients' power are distant memories, tattered and faded by the passage of eons, but that is about to change. A new dawn has arrived. Latent abilities, harbored in mankind's deepest fibers, wait to be unleashed. Ancient evils awaken, and old fears ignite the fires of war.

Suicide Forest


Jeremy Bates - 2014
    Legend has it that the spirits of those many suicides are still roaming, haunting deep in the ancient woods.When bad weather prevents a group of friends from climbing neighboring Mt. Fuji, they decide to spend the night camping in Aokigahara. But they get more than they bargained for when one of them is found hanged in the morning--and they realize there might be some truth to the legends after all.

The Forever, Part 2


Craig Robertson - 2018
    Hopeless odds. Then things got worse. Jon Ryan has beaten the odds so far. He saved humanity from a sinister alien threat, and he stopped the insane android president of the United States three separate times. But the president won't stay dead, and a super race threatens to end Jon's hopes for a peaceful future.Jon's mind-boggling alien technology has been enough to keep everyone alive. But, just when there's reason for hope, a new, more deadly race sets its sights on him. This threat may just be unstoppable. They made Jon fight. He plans to make them very sorry they did.Meanwhile, Jon discovers an alternate time-line version of himself, one who suffered the loss of his species. Jon finds himself on a quest to find his duplicate who's lost in time and space.Can Jon save humanity, his family, and himself when defeat looks absolutely certain? Can one good man stand against unbeatable odds one more time?