Chapter 4 : Sacred Warriors The Carpati believe in myths. Their moon has an atmosphere with clouds and visible oceans. At night strange strings of light are visible, and sometimes they change place, or disappear all together. To the Carpati they are light-fairy nests.Some believe that in ancient times a warrior class of the Bitani were sacred warriors, with the light-fairies their bitter enemies. This is a story encouraged by the Bitani, even taught in school, but Andee resents it, until he meets the mysterious Brothers of the Bitani. Are they the true sacred warriors?Lightship Chronicles is a young adult adventure set on a mysterious world. Carpatia is a harsh desert land, but one with spectacular vistas and populated by two very different yet resilient people, the Carpati and the Bitani. Both believe in competing myths of their history. Myths of great ancient battles fought over by a clan of mysterious Sacred Warriors against magical Light-Fairies. Under the glowing warmth of their red-giant sun, it's easy for the Carpati to believe in their beautiful myths. They spend most of their long 36 hour days living a simple farming lifestyle in the Township built on the lower slopes of the mighty Table Mountain. The Bitani meanwhile rule over the Carpati from their futuristic city atop the massive pillar-like tabletop of a mountain, and have a very different, and quite mysterious perspective. For the Carpati the only respite from the drudgery of their simple days are the monthly lightship races. The hovering lightships speed at more than 700kph over a 600km course that runs up the sides of mesas, through the canyons of the Crags, over the 10m waves of the Great Salt sea, over the Long Straight, the Dunes, and through the Eastern Hills and its many giant Baobab threes. It's a spectacular race unlike anything else and the favorite pastime of Andee and his little brother Mykee. Both dream of being lightship pilots while watching the race from their favorite hangout, the 1000m high Outcrop overlooking The Crags. Join the adventure now, because this is growing into an epic tale years into the making. Visit LightshipChronicles.com for more in depth details of the race circuit, including images of the course, the outcrop, and the lightships.

The first book in an urban fantasy series about loyalty, power, and the rules of survival. Vampires are the only guardians Vance Ehecatl has ever known since he was abandoned by his shapeshifter family. He is grateful to them for generously providing for all of his needs and for offering him a home in the powerful empire of Midnight. But when an act of violence forces Vance from his sheltered life, he’s startled to meet Malachi Obsidian, a fellow shapeshifter with conflicting ideas about Midnight and its leader, Mistress Jeshickah.  Malachi claims Vance is a bloodwitch, who Jeshickah and her trainers, Jaguar and Taro, are trying to control. Vance doesn't know anything about the rare and destructive magic Malachi says he possesses, and he can't believe Jeshickah would use it to hurt others. But when his friends begin falling ill, Vance starts to realize his perfect world may not be as flawless as it seems. Now Vance must decide who to trust—the vampires he's always relied upon, or the shapeshifters who despise them. Praise for Bloodwitch, Book 1 in the Maeve’ra trilogy:  "Edgy world building, with cultures and societies based loosely on real history, is compelling. This book is highly recommended for Atwater-Rhodes fans and urban fantasy or alternate reality readers." — VOYA "A satisfying read." — SLJ  "Plenty of fun ahead for the author’s many fans." — Kirkus    "Atwater-Rhodes made a splash with her first novel, In the Forests of the Night (1999). Since then she has continued writing lush fantasies of fully realized, well conceived worlds, and the first volume in the new Maeve’ra series is no exception." — Booklist  From the Hardcover edition.

Melanie Landon and her half-sister share a unique bond. For her entire life, Melanie has hidden the fact that Ann is a shape-shifter. The never-ending deception is a heavy weight to bear, but Melanie is determined to keep Ann’s secret and protect her from a world that simply wouldn’t understand. For months, Melanie hasn’t seen or heard from Ann, in either of her forms. When a man shows up saying he’s there about her sister, Melanie fears the worst. But Brody Westerbrook doesn’t have information about Ann—he’s in search of it. A freelance writer, Brody intends to include Ann in a book he’s writing about the existence of shape-shifters. While Melanie is immediately drawn to the stranger on her doorstep, she denies his claims, knowing that trusting him isn’t an option. But when Ann finally appears looking thin and sick, Melanie realizes exposure is the least of their worries. Protecting her sister has always been such an enormous part of Melanie’s life, but as Ann’s health rapidly deteriorates, Melanie must come to grips with the fact that saving her may mean letting go…

Welcome to the world of the Instrumentalities of the Night, where imps, demons, and dark gods rule in the spaces surrounding upstart humanity. At the edges of the world stand walls of ice which push slowly forward to reclaim the land for the night. And at the world's center, in the Holy Land where two great religions were born, are the Wells of Ihrain, the source of the greatest magics. Over the last century the Patriarchs of the West have demanded crusades to claim the Wells from the Pramans, the followers of the Written. Now an uneasy truce extends between the Pramans and the West, waiting for a spark to start the conflict anew. Then, on a mission in the Holy Land, the young Praman warrior Else is attacked by a creature of the Dark-in effect, a minor god. Too ignorant to know that he can never prevail over such a thing, he fights it and wins, and in so doing, sets the terrors of the night against him. As a reward for his success, Else is sent as a spy to the heart of the Patriarchy to direct their attention away from further ventures into the Holy Lands. Dogged by hidden enemies and faithless allies, Else witnesses senseless butchery and surprising acts of faith as he penetrates to the very heart of the Patriarchy and rides alongside their armies in a new crusade against his own people. But the Night rides with him, too, sending two of its once-human agents from the far north to assassinate him. Submerged in his role, he begins to doubt his faith, his country, even his family. As his mission careens out of control, he faces unanswerable questions about his future. It is said that God will know his own, but can one who has slain gods ever know forgiveness? In The Tyranny of the Night, Glen Cook introduces a new fantasy epic for the ages.

Which should be a good thing. But lately, thanks to her foul mood over breaking up with bestselling writer Seth Mortensen, she's been so wicked that Seattle's uber-demon Jerome, decides to "outsource" Georgina to a rival--and have her spy for him in the process. Being exiled to the frozen north--okay, Vancouver--and leaving Seth in the cozy clutches of his new girlfriend is unpleasant enough. Then Jerome is kidnapped, and all immortals under his control mysteriously lose their powers. One bright spot: with her life-sucking ability gone, there's nothing to keep Georgina from getting down and dirty with Seth--nothing apart from his girlfriend that is. Now, as the supernatural population starts turning on itself, a newly mortal Georgina must rescue her boss and figure out who's been playing them--or all hell will break loose. . .

Hunter and Morgan join together with a surprising new ally to fight for the people they love. In this struggle of good versus evil, who will survive to tell the tale?

In this shattering conclusion to The Aspect-Emperor books, praised for their “sweeping epic scale and detailed historical world building” (Grimdark Magazine), R. Scott Bakker delivers the series’ feverishly harrowing and long-awaited finish.

From the Night Warriors series, comes this tale that shows what happens when the old stone lord dies before the young one is a sealed Soldat der Nacht. Will the stone be lost to the Warriors until the new lord matures? Will a child hold the gods' vessel? The answer just might surprise you. NOTE: Watch for the release of this story in MONSTERS OF MYTH from Mundania Press, summer of 2011.~Part of the USA Today Bestselling Series~ It’s summer in St. Louis and Mercy Watts is on vacation from her parents. The great detective and his nosy wife are on a cruise and Mercy thinks she’s off the hook for doing any investigating for them. But when a family friend has a fatal heart attack, Dad has one of his famous feelings and orders Mercy to look into it. Mercy tries not to get sucked in. She really does, but she’s her father’s daughter. Soon Gavin’s death leads to a more grisly one, the death of a bride on her wedding day. Can the two be connected? Was Gavin murdered? Now Mercy can’t stop. You do for family. That’s all there is to it.

A fantasy "Short Story" about a gambling Seawardsman named Loudin, and the Lion Lord of Westland. These events happened a handful of years before The Wardstone Trilogy begins. You will find both characters in the #1 bestselling fantasy epic The Wardstone Trilogy, which starts with book one, The Sword and the Dragon.A fantasy "Short Story" about a gambling Seawardsman named Loudin, and the Lion Lord of Westland. These events happened a handful of years before The Wardstone Trilogy begins. You will find both characters in the #1 bestselling fantasy epic The Wardstone Trilogy, which starts with book one, The Sword and the Dragon. A Wardstone, "Flash Fiction" story called, The Blood of Coldfrost, is also included in this download.

In the Red Kingdom, anyone can be imprisoned for being a sorcerer. Fifteen-year-old Wayden is hiding one in his mind.In the kingdom of Helos, it is illegal to be a sorcerer. Fifteen-year-old Wayden is hiding one in his mind. Wayden’s home was burnt down, his mother slain, and brother kidnapped. In the Home for Unadoptable Boys, he meets another orphan, a boy named Rif. Rif seems nice enough, except for the soul-stealing wizard in his head. And the dead bodies that turn up wherever he goes.When clawed creatures burst from the ground and attack, Wayden and Rif are forced to reveal their powers. The boys are taken into custody by the Dracon, the power-hungry ruler of the kingdom. They find unlikely allies in a princess who hosts a bone-tearing Immortal and her half-wraith friend. Wayden learns that fifteen years ago the Dracon sucked the souls of a handful of sorcerers whose consciousness now rest in the minds of Wayden, Rif, and other fifteen-year old soul hosts. The Dracon plans to try his spell again. To stop the Dracon, Wayden has to decide if he can trust his allies, but even if they don't betray him, the souls they host surely will.

"They are beyond redemption... Death is a mercy... when you fight the Fallen, you fight to kill...", that is the old mantra. For so many years have the soldiers of Lanston stood against their Fallen brothers that the one isn't quite complete without the other. Bold new developments send the conflict spiraling out of its comforts, accompanied by a betrayal of the greatest order."They are beyond redemption... death is a mercy... when you fight the Fallen, you fight to kill...", that is the old mantra.For so many years have the soldiers of Lanston stood against their Fallen brothers that the one isn't quite complete without the other. Bold new developments send the conflict spiraling out of its comforts, the notions of a conservative border war forgotten and accompanied by betrayal. But to answer the hardship of Lanston is a scheme of equal measure, its workings subtle and its hope carried by unknowing heroes."The face of the enemy, is a destiny feared."

As the last Keeper of the vile Crone's Stone, 17 year-old Winsome Light has inherited a terrible legacy - for Satan's mistress does not take kindly to thieves. She wants her powerful stone back and the only one left to hide it is Winnie. The problem is: no one told her!The Crone is coming to take back what's hers and Winnie had better be ready... This is no fairy tale.As the last Keeper of the vile Crone's Stone, 17 year-old Winsome Light has inherited a terrible legacy - for Satan's mistress does not take kindly to thieves. She wants her powerful stone back and the only one left to hide it is Winnie. The problem is: no one told her!The Crone is coming to take back what's hers and Winnie had better be ready... This is no fairy tale.The first in the Sacred Trinity series, this story is now free to celebrate the release of book 2 'The Hidden Key.'

The adventures of the young adventurer who left the side of his mentor to learn from the exterior experience, continued …There’s an immature carmine-bird plowing the emerald grass-mantle with his small beak, his little wings and short legs disproportionate with his tiny and plump body; around him were mature carmine-birds standing with their long legs, slender bodies and erected presume their glistening copper plumage. One of them approaches, attracted by the funny movements of the little one. Its crystalline eyes reflect the passiveness of Carmine Valley, lands of legends and mysteries. I am Balaan Legeel, and you … again here? Well, the idyllic adventures of Ephesto continue …

A cruel and ruthless city, Tartarus is run by the Tribes whose motto is simple, "Join or die." Refusing to join and determined to live, Phoenix fights to survive in this savage world. But who can she trust, when no one can be trusted? Not even herself.Since witnessing her parents' murders at the age of eleven, Phoenix's only purpose in life has been to uphold her mother's dying words- to be strong and survive. But surviving outside of The Walls- outside of The Sanctuary- is more like a drawn-out death sentence. A cruel and ruthless city, Tartarus is run by the Tribes whose motto is simple, "Join or die." Refusing to join and determined to live, Phoenix fights to survive in this savage world. But who can she trust, when no one can be trusted? Not even herself.

You’re invited…to a celebration of vampires by a baker’s dozen of favorite authors. Sink your teeth into thirteen original stories, each one a fresh and unique take on what birthdays mean to the undead. From Charlaine Harris’s Sookie Stackhouse attending a birthday party for Dracula to Jim Butcher’s Harry Dresden battling bloodsucking party crashers, these suspenseful, surprising, sometimes dark, sometimes humorous stories will ensure you’ll never think of vampires or birthdays quite the same again. “Experienced genre hands ensure the high quality of thirteen stories about birthdays and vampires.” — Booklist “Thoroughly enjoyable…a toothsome collection of birthday treats you will not want to miss.” - Monsters and Critics **