Close
post-featured-image

5 Murderously Magical Mysteries!

by Kaleb Russell

Everybody loves a good murder mystery! The elements of suspense, deception, and ample misdirection coalesce to form a tightly constructed narrative filled with colorful characters and wrapped up in one big murderous plot. Sweeten the pot with some fantasy magic and you’ve elevated one of storytelling’s classic formats to new genre-bending heights. Here are 6 compelling magical murder mysteries that we think you should check out, including The Spare Man by Mary Robinette Kowal, a spacefaring sleuthing tale that’s available to purchase on 10/22/22 and available for pre-order now!


The Spare Man by Mary Robinette KowalThe Spare Man by Mary Robinette Kowal

Tesla Crane is a brilliant inventor and wealthy heiress—and most importantly—on a delight space-cruise honeymoon with her wonderful husband. When said wonderful husband is arrested on suspicion of on-ship murder, she will leverage her socialite charisma, acumen at banter, penchant for martinis, and assistance from her small service dog to exonerate her husband and uncover the real killer before they strike again.

Placeholder of  -68The Bone Orchard by Sara A. Mueller

Sole survivor of a race of necromancers, Charm is a prisoner of the Emperor with nothing but her children and her bone trees to bring her solace. One day, as the Emperor lays in his deathbed, he gives Charm one final command: learn which one of his conniving sons is his murderer. She can succeed and be set free, but that entails betraying the ghosts of her fallen people in the process. Will she follow the will of her dead master or forsake the sanctity of the empire to sate her hunger for vengeance? The Bone Orchard is a lush and gothically atmospheric work that explores the poisonous nature of empire through the moral compromises it foists upon even those it seeks to quash.

Place holder  of - 25Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

Heiress of the Ninth House, Bone witch, and all-around curmudgeon, Harrowhark Nonagesimus is summoned to a haunted house in a far off galaxy along with eight other Noble necromancers and her reluctant cavalier, Gideon, to compete in a game of wit and skill for the Emperor’s favor. It’s not long before characters start dropping like flies. If Harrow and Gideon are to survive, they must solve the mysteries of the house as well as its enigmatic occupants. The first book in Tamsyn Muir’s The Locked Tomb series is an enthralling murder mystery with an explosive finale that’ll leave you aching for more.

Poster Placeholder of - 61The Alloy Of Law by Brandon Sanderson

Set 300 years after the events of the original trilogy, the world of Mistborn is in the modern age—cities teeming with electricity-powered street lamps and steel-framed skyscrapers touching the stratosphere. We follow Wax, a vagabond from the Roughs forced to return home to Elendel after a family tragedy requires him to holster his guns and assume the responsibilities befitting the head of a noble family. Wax quickly realizes life in a sweeping metropolis can be just as treacherous as the Roughs. In Sanderson fashion, The Alloy of Law is a fast-paced mystery with high stakes, dynamic magic, and gunfights galore.

Image Placeholder of - 56Magic For Liars by Sarah Gailey

A little bit Veronica Mars and a little bit The Magicians, Magic For Liars is about an unhappy, magicless P.I. named Ivy Gamble who ventures to Osthorne Academy for Young Mages to investigate a gruesome murder and maybe even reconnect with her estranged twin sister who just so happens to be a teacher there. Sarah Gailey’s debut novel promises thrills, heartache, and a devastating ending.

Image Place holder  of - 1Three Parts Dead by Max Gladstone

In this 21st century fantasy, Gods deal and compete with corporations for power and control as necromantic lawyers levy dark magic to litigate their conflicts. Fresh out of law school, Tara Abernathy’s first job as an associate of the international necromantic firm of Kelethres, Albrecht, and Ao is to resurrect the deceased fire god, Kos, before pandemonium sets in and the city of Alt Coulumb crumbles from the pressure. When Tara learns the God was murdered, she recruits a chain-smoking priest of the dead god named Abelard to help find the culprit and save the city. Like the other books in Max Gladstone’s Craft Sequence, Three Parts Dead is an insanely smart, dashingly elegant legal thriller that’ll keep you guessing all the way to the huge finale, and pondering the nature of faith weeks after you’ve witnessed it.

post-featured-image

$2.99 eBook Sale: October 18-24, 2021

Ready for some ebook deals?! Check out which books you can snag for only $2.99 from October 18-24!


Poster Placeholder of - 14Hunters of Dune by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson

Hunters of Dune and the concluding volume, Sandworms of Dune, bring together the great story lines and beloved characters in Frank Herbert’s classic Dune universe, ranging from the time of the Butlerian Jihad to the original Dune series and beyond. Based directly on Frank Herbert’s final outline, which lay hidden in a safe-deposit box for a decade, these two volumes will finally answer the urgent questions Dune fans have been debating for two decades.

kindlea nooka ebooksa google playa ibooks2 56 koboa

Image Placeholder of - 22Winter’s Orbit by Everina Maxwell

Prince Kiem, a famously disappointing minor royal and the Emperor’s least favorite grandchild, has been called upon to be useful for once. He’s commanded to fulfill an obligation of marriage to the representative of the Empire’s newest and most rebellious vassal planet. His future husband, Count Jainan, is a widower and murder suspect. Neither wants to be wed, but with a conspiracy unfolding around them and the fate of the empire at stake they will have to navigate the thorns and barbs of court intrigue, the machinations of war, and the long shadows of Jainan’s past, and they’ll have to do it together.

kindleb nookb ebooksb google playb ibooks2 8 kobob

Image Place holder  of - 47Old Man’s War by John Scalzi

John Perry did two things on his 75th birthday. First he visited his wife’s grave. Then he joined the army. Far from Earth, a war has gone on for decades: brutal, bloody, unyielding. The bulk of humanity’s resources are in the hands of the Colonial Defense Force, which shields the home planet from too much knowledge of the situation. What’s known to everybody is that when you reach retirement age, you can join the CDF. They don’t want young people; they want people who carry the knowledge and skills of decades of living. If you survive, you’ll be given a generous homestead stake of your own. John Perry is taking that deal. He has only the vaguest idea what to expect. Because the actual fight, light-years from home, is far, far harder than he can imagine-and what he will become is far stranger.

kindlec nookc ebooksc google playc koboc

Place holder  of - 23The Word for World is Forest by Ursula K. Le Guin

When the inhabitants of a peaceful world are conquered by the bloodthirsty yumens, their existence is irrevocably altered. Forced into servitude, the Athsheans find themselves at the mercy of their brutal masters. Desperation causes the Athsheans, led by Selver, to retaliate against their captors, abandoning their strictures against violence. But in defending their lives, they have endangered the very foundations of their society. For every blow against the invaders is a blow to the humanity of the Athsheans. And once the killing starts, there is no turning back.

kindled nookd ebooksd google playd kobod

Placeholder of  -20

Deadmen Walking by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Deadmen Walking is the first historical fantasy title in New York Times bestselling author Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Deadman’s Cross series. It is a tale of passion and loss, emotions that wound and heal…and ultimate redemption

kindlee nooke ebookse google playe koboe

Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey

When a gruesome murder is discovered at The Osthorne Academy of Young Mages, where her estranged twin sister teaches Theoretical Magic, reluctant detective Ivy Gamble is pulled into the world of untold power and dangerous secrets. She will have to find a murderer and reclaim her sister—without losing herself.

kindlef nookf ebooksf google playf kobof

Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson

For a thousand years the ash fell and no flowers bloomed. For a thousand years the Skaa slaved in misery and lived in fear. For a thousand years the Lord Ruler, the “Sliver of Infinity,” reigned with absolute power and ultimate terror, divinely invincible. Then, when hope was so long lost that not even its memory remained, a terribly scarred, heart-broken half-Skaa rediscovered it in the depths of the Lord Ruler’s most hellish prison. Kelsier “snapped” and found in himself the powers of a Mistborn. A brilliant thief and natural leader, he turned his talents to the ultimate caper, with the Lord Ruler himself as the mark.

kindleg nookg ebooksg google playg kobog

Deal with the Devil by Kit Rocha

Nina is an information broker with a mission—she and her team of mercenary librarians use their knowledge to save the hopeless in a crumbling America. Knox is the bitter, battle-weary captain of the Silver Devils. His squad of supersoldiers went AWOL to avoid slaughtering innocents, and now he’s fighting to survive. They’re on a deadly collision course, and the passion that flares between them only makes it more dangerous. They could burn down the world, destroying each other in the process…Or they could do the impossible: team up.

kindleh nookh ebooksh google playh koboh

The Emperor’s Blades by Brian Staveley

In The Emperor’s Blades by Brian Staveley, the emperor of Annur is dead, slain by enemies unknown. His daughter and two sons, scattered across the world, do what they must to stay alive and unmask the assassins. But each of them also has a life-path on which their father set them, destinies entangled with both ancient enemies and inscrutable gods.

nooki ebooksi google playi kindlei koboi

Disciple by Walter Mosley

Hogarth “Trent” Tryman is a forty-two-year-old man working a dead-end data entry job. Though he lives alone and has no real friends besides his mother, he’s grown quite content in his quiet life, burning away time with television, the internet, and video games. That all changes the night he receives a bizarre instant message on his computer from a man who calls himself Bron. At first he thinks it’s a joke, but in just a matter of days Hogarth Tryman goes from a data-entry clerk to the head of a corporation. His fate is now in very powerful hands as he realizes he has become a pawn in a much larger game with unimaginable stakes—a battle that threatens the prime life force on Earth.

kindle nook ebooks Poster Placeholder of google play- 5 kobo

post-featured-image

$2.99 ebook Sale: June 22-28

$2.99 ebook Sale: June 22-28

Happy Tuesday, everyone! We have a VERY exciting ebook sale this week for some of our bestselling titles—are you ready? Check out what books you can snag for only $2.99 below:


Place holder  of - 42

The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

Linus Baker is a by-the-book case worker in the Department in Charge of Magical Youth. He’s tasked with determining whether six dangerous magical children are likely to bring about the end of the world. Arthur Parnassus is the master of the orphanage. He would do anything to keep the children safe, even if it means the world will burn. And his secrets will come to light.

kindlea nooka ebooksa google playa ibooks2 93 koboa

Placeholder of  -9Deadmen Walking by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Deadmen Walking is the first historical fantasy title in New York Times bestselling author Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Deadman’s Cross series. It is a tale of passion and loss, emotions that wound and heal…and ultimate redemption

kindleb nookb ebooksb google playb ibooks2 25 kobob

Image Place holder  of - 89The Future of Another Timeline by Annalee Newitz

Tess and Beth’s lives intertwine as war breaks out across the timeline–a war that threatens to destroy time travel and leave only a small group of elites with the power to shape the past, present, and future. Against the vast and intricate forces of history and humanity, is it possible for a single person’s actions to echo throughout the timeline?

kindlec nookc ebooksc google playc koboc

Poster Placeholder of - 85Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey

When a gruesome murder is discovered at The Osthorne Academy of Young Mages, where her estranged twin sister teaches Theoretical Magic, reluctant detective Ivy Gamble is pulled into the world of untold power and dangerous secrets. She will have to find a murderer and reclaim her sister—without losing herself.

kindled nookd ebooksd google playd kobod

Image Placeholder of - 47Old Man’s War by John Scalzi

John Perry did two things on his 75th birthday. First he visited his wife’s grave. Then he joined the army. The good news is that humanity finally made it into interstellar space. The bad news is that planets fit to live on are scarce-and aliens willing to fight for them are common. The universe, it turns out, is a hostile place.

kindlee nooke ebookse google playe koboe

The Great Hunt by Robert Jordan

The Wheel of Time turns and Ages come and go, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth returns again. In the Third Age, an Age of Prophecy, the World and Time themselves hang in the balance. What was, what will be, and what is, may yet fall under the Shadow.

kindlef nookf ebooksf google playf kobof

Ender’s Shadow by Orson Scott Card

Andrew “Ender” Wiggin was not the only child in the Battle School; he was just the best of the best. In this new book, card tells the story of another of those precocious generals, the one they called Bean–the one who became Ender’s right hand, part of his team, in the final battle against the Buggers.

kindleg nookg ebooksg google playg kobog

The Word for World is Forest by Ursula K. Le Guin

When the inhabitants of a peaceful world are conquered by the bloodthirsty yumens, their existence is irrevocably altered. Forced into servitude, the Athsheans find themselves at the mercy of their brutal masters. Desperation causes the Athsheans, led by Selver, to retaliate against their captors, abandoning their strictures against violence. But in defending their lives, they have endangered the very foundations of their society.

kindleh nookh ebooksh google playh koboh

The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson

A war rages on a ruined landscape called the Shattered Plains. There, Kaladin, who traded his medical apprenticeship for a spear to protect his little brother, has been reduced to slavery. In a war that makes no sense, where ten armies fight separately against a single foe, he struggles to save his men and to fathom the leaders who consider them expendable.

kindlei nooki ebooksi google playi koboi

A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Schwab

Kell is one of the last Antarimagicians with a rare, coveted ability to travel between parallel Londons; Red, Grey, White, and, once upon a time, Black. Unofficially, Kell is a smuggler, servicing people willing to pay for even the smallest glimpses of a world they’ll never see. After an exchange goes awry, Kell escapes to Grey London and runs into Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She first robs him, then saves him from a deadly enemy, and finally forces Kell to spirit her to another world for a proper adventure.

kindlej nookj ebooksj google playj koboj

The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu

Set against the backdrop of China’s Cultural Revolution, a secret military project sends signals into space to establish contact with aliens. An alien civilization on the brink of destruction captures the signal and plans to invade Earth. Meanwhile, on Earth, different camps start forming, planning to either welcome the superior beings and help them take over a world seen as corrupt, or to fight against the invasion. The result is a science fiction masterpiece of enormous scope and vision.

kindlek nookk ebooksk google playk kobok

The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal

Elma York’s experience as a WASP pilot and mathematician earns her a place in the International Aerospace Coalition’s attempts to put man on the moon, as a calculator. But with so many skilled and experienced women pilots and scientists involved with the program, it doesn’t take long before Elma begins to wonder why they can’t go into space, too. Elma’s drive to become the first Lady Astronaut is so strong that even the most dearly held conventions of society may not stand a chance against her.

kindlel nookl ebooksl google playl kobol

All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders

An ancient society of witches and a hipster technological startup go to war in order to prevent the world from tearing itself apart. To further complicate things, each of the groups’ most promising followers (Patricia, a brilliant witch and Laurence, an engineering “wunderkind”) may just be in love with each other. Laurence and Patricia are forced to choose sides, but their choices will determine the fate of the planet and all mankind.

kindle nook ebooks Place holder  of google play- 17 kobo

post-featured-image

$2.99 eBook Sale: April 27-May 3

$2.99 eBook Sale: April 27-May 3

Happy Tuesday, everyone! This week, we have a VERY special sale of some of our most popular Tor Book titles—who’s excited?! Check out what Tor eBooks you can grab for $2.99 this week only below:

The Way of KingsPlaceholder of  -81 by Brandon Sanderson

Life before death. Strength before weakness. Journey before Destination. And return to men the Shards they once bore. The Knights Radiant must stand again.

 

kindlea nooka ebooksa google playa ibooks2 86 koboa

The Three-Body ProblemPlace holder  of - 15 by Cixin Liu

Set against the backdrop of China’s Cultural Revolution, a secret military project sends signals into space to establish contact with aliens. An alien civilization on the brink of destruction captures the signal and plans to invade Earth. Meanwhile, on Earth, different camps start forming, planning to either welcome the superior beings and help them take over a world seen as corrupt, or to fight against the invasion. The result is a science fiction masterpiece of enormous scope and vision.

kindleb nookb ebooksb google playb ibooks2 26 kobob

The Eye of the WorldPoster Placeholder of - 43 by Robert Jordan

The Wheel of Time turns and Ages come and go, leaving memories that become legend. In the Third Age, an Age of Prophecy, the World and Time themselves hang in the balance. When The Two Rivers is attacked by Trollocs—a savage tribe of half-men, half-beasts— five villagers flee that night into a world they barely imagined, with new dangers waiting in the shadows and in the light.

kindlec nookc ebooksc google playc koboc

The Calculating Stars Image Place holder  of - 56by Mary Robinette Kowal

Elma York’s experience as a WASP pilot and mathematician earns her a place in the International Aerospace Coalition’s attempts to put man on the moon, as a calculator. But with so many skilled and experienced women pilots and scientists involved with the program, it doesn’t take long before Elma begins to wonder why they can’t go into space, too. Elma’s drive to become the first Lady Astronaut is so strong that even the most dearly held conventions of society may not stand a chance against her.

kindled nookd ebooksd google playd kobod

 Image Placeholder of - 71Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

In order to develop a secure defense against a hostile alien race’s next attack, government agencies breed child geniuses and train them as soldiers. A brilliant young boy, Andrew “Ender” Wiggin lives with his kind but distant parents, his sadistic brother Peter, and the person he loves more than anyone else, his sister Valentine. Peter and Valentine were candidates for the soldier-training program but didn’t make the cut—young Ender is the Wiggin drafted to the orbiting Battle School for rigorous military training.

kindlee nooke ebookse google playe koboe

A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine

Ambassador Mahit Dzmare arrives in the center of the multi-system Teixcalaanli Empire only to discover that her predecessor, the previous ambassador from their small but fiercely independent mining Station, has died. But no one will admit that his death wasn’t an accident—or that Mahit might be next to die, during a time of political instability in the highest echelons of the imperial court. Now, Mahit must discover who is behind the murder, rescue herself, and save her Station from Teixcalaan’s unceasing expansion—all while navigating an alien culture that is all too seductive, engaging in intrigues of her own, and hiding a deadly technological secret—one that might spell the end of her Station and her way of life—or rescue it from annihilation.

kindlef nookf ebooksf google playf kobof

The Collapsing Empire by John Scalzi

Our universe is ruled by physics. Faster than light travel is impossible—until the discovery of The Flow, an extradimensional field available at certain points in space-time, which can take us to other planets around other stars. Riding The Flow, humanity spreads to innumerable other worlds. Earth is forgotten. A new empire arises, the Interdependency, based on the doctrine that no one human outpost can survive without the others. It’s a hedge against interstellar war—and, for the empire’s rulers, a system of control.

kindleg nookg ebooksg google playg kobog

Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey

When a gruesome murder is discovered at The Osthorne Academy of Young Mages, where her estranged twin sister teaches Theoretical Magic, reluctant detective Ivy Gamble is pulled into the world of untold power and dangerous secrets. She will have to find a murderer and reclaim her sister—without losing herself.

kindleh nookh ebooksh google playh koboh

 

The City in the Middle of the Night by Charlie Jane Anders

January is a dying planet—divided between a permanently frozen darkness on one side, and blazing endless sunshine on the other. Humanity clings to life, spread across two archaic cities built in the sliver of habitable dusk. But life inside the cities is just as dangerous as the uninhabitable wastelands outside. Sophie, a student and reluctant revolutionary, is supposed to be dead after being exiled into the night. Saved only by forming an unusual bond with the enigmatic beasts who roam the ice, Sophie vows to stay hidden from the world, hoping she can heal. But fate has other plans—and Sophie’s ensuing odyssey and the ragtag family she finds will change the entire world.

kindlei nooki ebooksi google playi koboi

The Ruin of Kings by Jenn Lyons

Kihrin grew up in the slums of Quur, a thief and a minstrel’s son raised on tales of long-lost princes and magnificent quests. When he is claimed against his will as the missing son of a treasonous prince, Kihrin finds himself at the mercy of his new family’s ruthless power plays and political ambitions. Practically a prisoner, Kihrin discovers that being a long-lost prince is nothing like what the storybooks promised. The storybooks have lied about a lot of other things, too: dragons, demons, gods, prophecies, and how the hero always wins. Then again, maybe he isn’t the hero after all. For Kihrin is not destined to save the world. He’s destined to destroy it.

kindle nook ebooks Image Place holder  of google play- 35 kobo

post-featured-image

Would You Swipe Right for These SFF Characters?

Would You Swipe Right for These SFF Characters?

Look some of us have already dreamed of dating fictional heroes (and villains). But what if SFF characters had Tinder profiles?

Authors Sarah Gailey, Duncan Hamilton, Tamsyn Muir, Brian Naslund, S.L Huang, Saad Z. Hossain, and Cate Glass indulged us and wrote up Tinder profiles for a few Magic X Mayhem characters.

Swipe up. We dare you.*

Please do not swipe in any direction, these are fake buttons.


Place holder  of - 77

TEACHER, 10,000
???? miles away

Welcome! Welcome, on this happy day, to my Tinder profile. For ten thousand years I have waited in holy silence and solemn adoration of the one who is beyond death, the Kindly Resurrector, and now the time has arrived for me to be taken to the IHOP. Will it be you, child, who is found worthy of buying me a plate of Original Full Stack Buttermilk Pancakes? Perhaps it will. Or perhaps it will not! But oh, how glorious to fail in so sacred an endeavour. Lightly your bones shall lie, honoured for all time as one who gave their life’s blood to procure me an order of Rooty Tooty Fresh ‘n Fruity(R) Pancakes at the IHOP, along with a vanilla milkshake, which is my favourite. I cannot tell you how to take me to the IHOP; I do not know where the nearest IHOP is. Indeed, I am unsure whether the IHOP is even open at this time. This is a path that only you can walk – you, and the others who have come here in hope of the ultimate prize. There is little I know, and less I understand. All my faith tells me is that by the end of today – either on your dime, or another’s – I will be tucking into a heaped platter of Mexican Tres Leches Pancakes and a deliciously chilled vanilla milkshake, and that to me is the most beautiful mystery of them all.

image-35580


image-9781250174611

Ivy Gamble, mind your own business
Oakland

Seeking: No one, whatever, anyone
About: I’m probably too busy for friends or dating but whatever, I’ll try this thing out. Let’s get together for lots of drinks and no conversation about our pasts or emotions. Needy people need not apply. Don’t message me (please message me).

image-35580-1


Poster Placeholder of - 7

Guillot dal Villevauvais, Gill for short
Mirabay

Former renowned swordsman seeks female, 30-40, for activities including, but not limited to, dragonslaying, overthrowing tyrants, and encountering ancient evils.

And romantic walks.

image-35580-2


book-9781250309648

Silas Bershad, 32
Terra

6′ 5″, 230 pounds

Full disclosure, I was convicted of a horrific crime by the King of Almira. But that was more than 10 years ago and it was a total misunderstanding.

Hobbies: Stalking dragons, killing dragons, drinking after killing dragons. Down to meet up for a beer before a slaying, too, in case I die.

Pretty outdoorsy. Mostly because I’m not technically allowed to sleep indoors or the king’ll have my head cut off (’cause of the whole exile thing). If you can bring your own tent, that’s a plus.

Swipe right if you like dragon tattoos, I have a bunch of them. But I also have a lot of body scarring from dragon-related injuries. Not the hot kind, though, like Geralt of Rivia. My body is kind of a mess. Just trying to be transparent here.

Not looking for anything long term because it’s very likely I’ll be dead in a week
Can’t host due to the 14-year exile / technically being homeless

What the people of Almira are saying about Silas Bershad:

“Don’t believe those stories about his foot-long cock. I mean, it’s fine, but it’s not legendary or anything.” – The Baroness of Umbrik’s Glade

“Silas Bershad is an asshole.” – The Baron of Umbrik’s Glade

image-35580-3


book-9781250209115

Melek Ahmer, ageless and undying
Katmandu

Melek Ahmer. Djinn King of Tuesday. And Mars. And copper. The Red King. Really just an all round top guy. Asleep for 5000 years so well rested. I like long walks, trampling the wildlife, and causing extinction level events. There will definitely be candlelight dinners, as electrical systems tend to malfunction around me. I also enjoy pets, specially mountain goats because they are very useful and we can eat them if we are hungry and also I can makes shoes and sarongs out of them.

I’m really interested in settling down with someone not a violent psychopath, someone who gets me, and cares about the simple things in life like eating, drinking, partying and occasional tyranny.

image-35580-4


book-9781250180315

Cas Russell, MYOB
Los Angeles

Independent ace mercenary seeks same. Don’t expect calls, texts, or any level of emotional support. But if people are out to kill you, I’ve got your back.

Note: I sleep with my gun.

image-35580-5


book-9780765395818

Zanj, 5000
Pirate Queen

old school > new school

“Anything less than the best is a felony”

image-35580-7


book-illusion

Placidio di Vasil
Cantagna

Background: Don’t ask. I mean, really don’t.

Swordfighting > Weaving

Swordfighting > Bathing

Swordfighting > Singing

Mead > Ale

Scars (mine) > Death (mine)

Considering the three elements of combat > Diving into a fight like a lunatic (you know who you are)

Ignore the hot woman I hang with (yes, I do respect her mind.) And ignore the feisty lad (not my kid, because I just don’t—reasons private) and the married guy who does weird things with paint, because I have nothing in common with him. Or any of them.

OK, never mind. I knew you were going to say that.

image-35580-8


Stay tuned for more #magicXmayhem all summer long!

 

bookmagic

post-featured-image

The Best and Worst SFF Worlds—According to Our MagicXMayhem Authors

Some fantasy worlds leave us aching for a passport to another world. Some futures seem worth skipping the present for. Others…not so much. We asked our Magic X Mayhem authors which SFF worlds they would most and least like to try out and—not to sound like a lousy clickbait article—some of their answers might surprise you.

What are the SFF worlds you would most and least like to live in?

 

Sarah Gailey author of Magic for Liars

Most: The world of Abhorsen by Garth Nix. The magic system is just so COOL. I’d have to learn how to whistle, though.
Least: The world of Harry Potter. We’ve got enough regular fascists, I don’t need wizard fascists too.

Duncan Hamilton, author of Dragonslayer

Most: Westeros, north of the wall. I’ve never seen so much untracked powder…

Tamsyn Muir, author of Gideon the Ninth

Most: Dinétah from Rebecca Roanhorse’s Trail of Lightning so that I could, with sweaty palms and dry mouth, shake Maggie Hoskie’s hand.
Least: Dinétah from Rebecca Roanhorse’s Trail of Lightning, because I am weak and would just be gnawed to death or shot before I ever got to sweatily shake Maggie Hoskie’s hand. I guess I could nod respectfully at her as I died.

Brian Naslund, author of Blood of an Exile

Most: Tamriel, because I’ve spent enough time playing Elder Scrolls games that you can drop me anywhere and two weeks later I’ll be a moderately successful adventurer with a decent house. (Or I’ll have been killed by a mud crab within five minutes, but I’m willing to risk it.)
Least: Mad Max Universe, because I’m very prone to rashes and a desert apocalypse environment seems very rash-inducing, with very few options for treating said rashes. Also, murderous raiders don’t seem like great neighbors.

JY Yang, author of The Ascent to Godhood

Most: Honestly I would love to live a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…. Star Wars was the first thing that truly got me into SFF as a child, I just loved its textures and its sense of fun. The juxtaposition of its high-gloss centers of power and sand-crusted backwaters. I too would like to silence irritants during work meetings with the power of my mind, or tell the fuzz that these are not the droids you are looking for…
Least: The worlds I would least like to live in are all the post-apocalyptic ones. Sure, Fury Road was fun and everything, but would I actually want to LIVE there? Hell no.

Max Gladstone, author of Empress of Forever

Most: Peter F. Hamilton has a knack for making weird, cool, adventurous and above all livable futures—before he takes a sledgehammer to them. The first half of The Reality Dysfunction, and most of Judas Unchained, are essentially Escape Velocity fanfic: sprawling adventurous futures in deep SPAAAACE, rich with secrets and opportunity. Yeah, eventually ghosts and aliens show up, but by the time they do you’re really bought into the future they’re wrecking! Banks’ Culture certainly seems like the most pleasant future on offer, so long as you’re not drowning in feces on a secret mission. Lois McMaster Bujold’s Vorkosiverse would also be a good choice. There are a lot of things to do there.

Least: Most worlds with a destined savior, chosen one, or whatever. Not because I dislike the concept of destiny! But because worlds that turn around a Destined One tend to be pretty uninteresting if you’re not the One. What’s everyone else doing with their time?

S.L. Huang, author of Null Set

Most: Yoon Ha Lee’s Machineries of Empire. It may be a terrible and violent dystopia, but I’d be able to do magic with MATH!
Least: …Yoon Ha Lee’s Machineries of Empire.

Saad Z. Hossain, author of The Gurkha and the Lord of Tuesday

Most: I’d like to live in the Culture universe. Post-scarcity human society, totally utopian, sarcastic machine minds that are almost more human than human, glands that let you experience a plethora of mind-altering states without ill effect, killer drones at your beck and call… it doesn’t get better.
Least: The most horrible is probably Joe Abercrombie’s world. I mean it’s a standard dark fantasy world but the way he gives it to his characters, it’s almost impossible to believe anyone will get out with any shred of dignity, let alone an actual happy ending.

Cate Glass, author of An Illusion of Thieves

Least: Game of Thrones world. Whew. You can’t trust anybody.

Most: Roger Zelazny’s Amber, though only if I was one of the royal family and I could actually travel through Amber’s many reflections, finding one that was just perfect for me.

Andrew Bannister, author of Iron Gods

Least: This is going to seem strange, but the sff world I would least to live in would be anything that resembled Iain M Banks’ Culture. At first sight that must seem strange because who wouldn’t want to live in a utopia like that? No work, no ill health, unlimited leisure – what’s not to like? But Iain knew exactly what he was doing. The only time anything interesting happens in the Culture is as a result of external threat; so much so that the really interesting people join a secretive body called Special Circumstances which practically has the remit of going out to look for trouble. Without that, the people of the Culture are fundamentally unchallenged and bored.

Most: That leaves the question of where I would most like to live. A place where stuff is happening, I think. A place, a civilization in flux, experiencing some challenge. And I fancy somewhere sunny. How about the near-future South Africa of Lauren Beukes’ ‘Zoo City’? My only condition being that I would like to be one of the people with money.

 

Stay tuned for more #magicXmayhem all summer long!

 

Poster Placeholder of - 27

post-featured-image

5 Magic Schools to Attend If You Didn’t Get Into Hogwarts

5 Magic Schools to Attend If You Didn’t Get Into Hogwarts

By Zakiya Jamal

So you didn’t get into Hogwarts. I get it. I’ve been there. Thankfully, even if Hogwarts didn’t have the foresight to send you an acceptance letter there are other magical schools that may be more welcoming. Here are just a few that you could send your application to.

The Osthorne Academy of Young Mages (Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey)

Placeholder of  -30Full disclosure, this school isn’t exactly safe. Someone was killed here and it wasn’t pretty. And they hired a non-magical and wildly cynical detective to solve it.

Then again, Hogwarts had a giant snake living in its basement that could literally kill people by looking at them, so what’s a little danger along with your education?

 

Brakebills College for Magical Pedagogy (The Magicians by Lev Grossman)

Place holder  of - 86Some people consider college to be a magical experience, but at Brakebills College it’s a literal fact. However, if you think you’ll just be casting spells and having keg parties all day, you’ve got another thing coming. Magic isn’t easy and at the college level, it’s even harder.

 

Imperial University of Carthak (The Tortall Series by Tamora Pierce)

Image Placeholder of - 69As one of the oldest and most prestigious centers of learning in the world, it shouldn’t be surprising that the emperors of Carthak have attended the school for generations. That said, you don’t have to be an emperor to attend the school, you just have to have the Gift and know how to use it well.

 

The School of Magic on Roke Island (The Earthsea Cycle by Ursula K. LeGuin)

Poster Placeholder of - 3Don’t try to ask for directions to the School of Magic because you won’t get any. The only way to get to the school is if you find it yourself and once you do that you’ll also need to know your true name. If you can’t do both of these things, I regret to inform you this isn’t the school for you, but if you succeed you’ll receive an unparalleled magical education. Or some childhood trauma. Who’s to say?

Watford School of Magicks (Carry On by Rainbow Rowell)

Image Place holder  of - 88If you’re looking for a little less murder at your magic school, Watford School of Magicks is right for you. Though there are vampires, ghosts, and a monster or two you’ll find Watford is filled with more fun and hijinks than your typical magical boarding school. Besides, taking down the Insidious Humdrum is the chosen one’s job. You can probably just relax.

Armedius Academy (The Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson)

In case you’re unaware (it’s okay, most Muggles are), Rithmatists have the ability to infuse life into two-dimensional figures known as Chalklings. They are our only defense against the Wild Chalklings, so if you’re lucky enough to have this power it’s imperative you attend Armedius Academy to hone your skills. Please, we’re depending on you.

post-featured-image

New Releases: 6/4

New Releases

Happy New Releases Day! Here’s what went on sale today.

Five Midnights by Ann Dávila Cardinal

Image Placeholder of - 56If Lupe Dávila and Javier Utierre can survive each other’s company, together they can solve a series of grisly murders sweeping though Puerto Rico. But the clues lead them out of the real world and into the realm of myths and legends. And if they want to catch the killer, they’ll have to step into the shadows to see what’s lurking there—murderer, or monster?

Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey

Image Place holder  of - 3When a gruesome murder is discovered at The Osthorne Academy of Young Mages, where her estranged twin sister teaches Theoretical Magic, reluctant detective Ivy Gamble is pulled into the world of untold power and dangerous secrets. She will have to find a murderer and reclaim her sister—without losing herself.

 

The Shallows by Matt Goldman

Place holder  of - 4In the words of Lee Child on Gone to Dust, “I want more of Nils Shapiro.” New York Times Best Selling author and Emmy Award-winning writer Matt Goldman obliges by bringing the Minneapolis private detective back for another thrilling, stand-alone adventure in The Shallows.

A prominent lawyer is found dead, tied to his own dock by a fishing stringer through his jaw, and everyone wants private detective Nils Shapiro to protect them from suspicion: The unfaithful widow. Her artist boyfriend. The lawyer’s firm. A polarizing congressional candidate. A rudderless suburban police department. Even the FBI.

Nils and his investigative partners illuminate a sticky web of secrets and deceit that draws national attention. But finding the web doesn’t prevent Nils from getting caught in it. Just when his safety is most in peril, his personal life takes an unexpected twist, facing its own snarl of surprise and deception.

In The Shallows, Goldman delves into the threat of dark history repeating itself while delivering another page-turner with his signature pace, humor, and richly drawn characters.

Spine of the Dragon by Kevin J. Anderson

Poster Placeholder of - 67Two continents at war, the Three Kingdoms and Ishara, are divided by past bloodshed. When an outside threat arises—the reawakening of a powerful ancient race that wants to remake the world—the two warring nations must somehow set aside generational hatreds and form an alliance to fight their true enemy.

 

NEW IN PAPERBACK

Zero Sum Game by S. L. Huang

Placeholder of  -28Cas Russell is good at math. Scary good. The vector calculus blazing through her head lets her smash through armed men twice her size and dodge every bullet in a gunfight, and she’ll take any job for the right price.

As far as Cas knows, she’s the only person around with a superpower…until she discovers someone with a power even more dangerous than her own. Someone who can reach directly into people’s minds and twist their brains into Moebius strips. Someone intent on becoming the world’s puppet master.

Cas should run, like she usually does, but for once she’s involved. There’s only one problem…

She doesn’t know which of her thoughts are her own anymore.

post-featured-image

Roll Up a #MagicXMayhem Character!

We’re a thief in a haunted space castle with a Hand of Glory who’s definitely fomenting rebellion.

Who are you?

MxMCharacterSheet 3_19

 

Learn more about the books of #magicXmayhem:

Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey

Dragonslayer by Duncan M. Hamilton

Middlegame by Seanan McGuire

The Ascent to Godhood by JY Yang

The Gurkha and the Lord of Tuesday by Saad Z. Hossain

Blood of an Exile by Brian Naslund

An Illusion of Thieves by Cate Glass

Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

And look for more magic and mayhem later this summer featuring:

Elizabeth Bear’s The Red-Stained Wings
Cherie Priest’s The Toll
Andrew Bannister’s Iron Gods
S. L. Huang’s Null Set
Max Gladstone’s Empress of Forever

Poster Placeholder of - 1

post-featured-image

Introducing Magic X Mayhem!

Placeholder of  -28

Great Power. No Responsibility.

Feel like everything’s a little crazy this year? You’re not alone. There’s mayhem in the air, and magic too. 2019 is a year for breaking all the rules, both in the world and on our bookshelves. Gone are the days of simple good-versus-evil narratives; these are complicated times that call for complicated characters. Henceforth, 2019 shall be known as our year of magic and mayhem.

Image Place holder  of - 31An impressive array of writers are fueling all this chaos and charm. Featured authors include Seanan McGuire (Middlegame), Cate Glass (An Illusion of Thieves), Sarah Gailey (Magic for Liars), Duncan M. Hamilton (Dragonslayer), Tamsyn Muir (Gideon the Ninth), Brian Naslund (Blood of an Exile), Saad Z. Hossain (The Gurkha and the Lord of Tuesday), JY Yang (The Ascent to Godhood) and more. 

To paraphrase a great philosopher of our time, these books have everything: murder, dragons, alchemical twins, regular twins, godhood both forgotten and newly attained, schools for sorcerers, lesbian necromancers, magical heists, helpful reanimated skeletons, prophets, swordplay, immortals, too-mortals, mercenaries, space dictators, terrestrial dictators, haunted bridges, ancient technology, ancient folklore, and, naturally, dirty magazines. 

To get started with our year of wild rides and chaotic characters, download our free digital sampler of Magic & Mayhem titles and follow #magicXmayhem for more content in the coming weeks and months.

In addition to the authors above, look for more magic and mayhem from:

  • Elizabeth Bear’s The Red-Stained Wings
  • Cherie Priest’s The Toll
  • Andrew Bannister’s Iron Gods
  • S. L. Huang’s Null Set
  • Max Gladstone’s Empress of Forever

Download the Sampler:

kindle nook ebooks.com Place holder  of google play- 83

Image Placeholder of - 26

The owner of this website has made a commitment to accessibility and inclusion, please report any problems that you encounter using the contact form on this website. This site uses the WP ADA Compliance Check plugin to enhance accessibility.