Medusa's Web

      Tim Powers
     Medusa's Web

From the award-winning author of Hide Me Among the Graves, Last Call, Declare, and Three Days to Never, a phantasmagoric, thrilling, mind-bending tale of speculative fiction in which one man must uncover occult secrets of 1920s Hollywood to save his family. In the wake of their Aunt Amity’s suicide, Scott and Madeline Madden are summoned to Caveat, the eerie, decaying mansion in the Hollywood hills in which they were raised. But their decadent and reclusive cousins, the malicious wheelchair-bound Claimayne and his sister, Ariel, do not welcome Scott and Madeline’s return to the childhood home they once shared. While Scott desperately wants to go back to their shabby South-of-Sunset lives, he cannot pry his sister away from this haunted “House of Usher in the Hollywood Hills” that is a conduit for the supernatural. Decorated by bits salvaged from old hotels and movie sets, Caveat hides a dark family secret that stretches back to the golden days of Rudolph Valentino and the silent film stars. A collection of hypnotic eight-limbed abstract images inked on paper allows the Maddens to briefly fragment and flatten time—to transport themselves into the past and future in visions that are both puzzling and terrifying. Though their cousins know little about these ancient “spiders” which provoke unpredictable temporal dislocations, Ariel and Claimayne have been using for years—an addiction that has brought Claimayne to the brink of selfish destruction. As Madeline falls more completely under Caveat’s spell, Scott discovers that to protect her, he must use the perilous spiders himself. But will he unravel the mystery of the Madden family’s past and finally free them. . . or be pulled deeper into their deadly web?

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    The Farseekers

      Isobelle Carmody
     The Farseekers

A Children's Book Council of Australia Honor Book In this powerful sequel to Obernewtyn, young Elspeth Gordie-possessed of extraordinary mental powers-has united with others Misfits for refuge on the remote mountain keep of Obernewtyn. Yet the threat from the totalitarian Council to their safety is ever present. Their only defense is to work hard to develop their mental powers before an inevitable confrontation. But when Elspeth is lured off the mountain in a dangerous quest to rescue a powerful Misfit, the fate of the Obernewtyn colony will hang in the balance.

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    Degrees of Delusion

      Lindsay Buroker
     Degrees of Delusion

After being publicly shamed and kicked out of the imperial service academy, Fortis chose to serve in the only other way possible: as a mercenary. Working far from the boundaries of his homeland, he never thought he’d have anything to do with the empire again… until a powerful wizard hires the company to destroy an imperial outpost. Fortis must choose between betraying his captain and comrades or firing on the very men he once dreamed of joining.

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    Not Flesh Nor Feathers

      Cherie Priest
     Not Flesh Nor Feathers

Down by the river, the first to go missing were not much lamented. Disappearances of homeless men foraging through trash or nuisance skater kids who rolled their boards along the planked piers at night were not noteworthy enough to delay the city’s development projects.  But deep beneath the riverbank, the evidence of a terrible crime has been covered up twice. When a TVA dam falters and the river swells, panic rises downtown. As the Tennessee creeps over its banks, it dredges up death from its own polluted bed. Twenty-nine victims of a long-ago slaughter walk when the water rises, patrolling the banks and dragging the living down to a muddy grave. No one remembers how they died and no one knows what they want.  Some secrets are never washed away. Instead they are patient, biding their time. They wait for the water to lift them so they can prowl for the justice that was denied them ninety years ago. But in ninety years a city’s shape changes, and where justice can no longer be found, vengeance may have to suffice.  The city of Chattanooga is about to learn a terrible truth about the things a river can and cannot hide…. And reluctant medium Eden Moore may be the only one who can dissuade the twenty- nine bodies from adding hundreds of its citizens to their ghastly ranks.  Not Flesh Nor Feathers is a stand-alone sequel to Four and Twenty Blackbirds and Wings to the Kingdom.

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    Flashy Shorts

      D. H. Davis
     Flashy Shorts

Very short reads, longer thoughts. A collection of flash fiction, covering different genres.When the grandmother she never met falls into a mysterious coma, Siobhan Kelly comes unwillingly to the Green Mountains of Vermont with her family. She thinks the hardest thing she'll face is being the new kid at the local high school and getting used to a place so different than California (what the heck is a creemee stand, anyway?). But the family secret she has yet to uncover will lead her on an adventure beyond her wildest dreams ...This short is the prequel to my novel A Little Magic

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    Unlikely

      Frances Pauli
     Unlikely

Kingdoms Gone Book OneFantasy Fairy Tale Series from author Frances PauliA woman who grants wishes teams up with a magical trickster to save a town with a powerful secret from a magic-hungry gang.Satina is a goodmother who uses her magic to grant wishes. Marten is a Skinner, a magical trickster who challenges everything she thinks she knows about their kind.When a magic-hungry gang moves into town, Satina and Marten must become unlikely allies.It will take all the power they can summon to keep Westwood's secrets from falling into the wrong hands, to keep one wide-eyed girl from following the wrong man, and to keep Satina herself from falling in love with the only person in the world who knows how much of a fraud she really is.

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    Canton Chronicles:Rising Power

      Faidra-Foteini Petaniti
     Canton Chronicles:Rising Power

In a hidden land, protected by three all-powerful spiritual beings, a lost ship is stranded. Its passengers are accepted as the island's residents, being granted superpowers. After a long period of progress and a devastating war, peace rules over the land for over seventy years. Now, as a new threat arises, a band of troubled friends are granted new Powers, destined to become Heroes.A simple re-telling of the age-old tale of young love.

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    Fantasy Creature Spotlight: Nymphs

      Gilbert Peppers
     Fantasy Creature Spotlight: Nymphs

Surrounded by pristine nature, a little grotto is about to become the site of an unusual battle. The grotto’s guardians, a group of beautiful nymphs, argue over how to deal with an intruder. Naturally, they turn their argument into a competition. Seduction, temptation, and several awkward moments follow as they pursue the newcomer. Who will end up the victor?Prepare for adventure and fall into a realm of magic alongside amazing creatures. The Veil is a magical land, home to a veritable garden of paradise where many wondrous animals and people live. The most mundane of events becomes spectacular in this sylvan glade. Marvel at their beauty, courage, and adventures and bear witness to the wilder side of magic and fey creatures.

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    From the Earth to the Shadows

      Amanda Hocking
     From the Earth to the Shadows

Malin’s mission to avenge her mother's murder has uncovered dangerous secrets. As a Valkyrie-in-training, Malin must slay immortals who’ve had their time, to maintain balance between humans and immortals. But her quest could destroy earth’s stability – and unleash chaos. Just when she needs to focus, her friend Asher is in grave danger. He’s been dragged into the underworld, where vengeful immortals plot revolution. Malin believes her feelings mustn’t distract from her goal – but is desperate to rescue him. So she ventures into the darkest of realms, knowing she may not survive. With new allies at her side and new enemies ahead, Malin will face terrible choices. She’ll have to keep her head – or be ruled by her heart.

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    King Rat

      China Miéville
     King Rat

Something is stirring in London's dark, stamping out its territory in brickdust and blood. Something has murdered Saul Garamond's father, and left Saul to pay for the crime. But a shadow from the urban waste breaks into Saul's prison cell and leads him to freedom. A shadow called King Rat, who reveals Saul's royal heritage, a heritage that opens a new world to Saul, the world below London's streets--a heritage that also drags Saul into King Rat's plan for revenge against his ancient enemy,. With drum 'n' bass pounding the backstreets, Saul must confront the forces that would use him, the forces that would destroy him, and the forces that shape his own bizarre identity.

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    Tangled Threads

      Jennifer Estep
     Tangled Threads

I’d rather face a dozen lethal assassins any night than deal with something as tricky, convoluted, and fragile as my feelings. But here I am. Gin Blanco, the semi-retired assassin known as the Spider. Hovering outside sexy businessman Owen Grayson’s front door like a nervous teenage girl. One thing I like about Owen: he doesn’t shy away from my past—or my present. And right now I have a bull’s-eye on my forehead. Cold-blooded Fire elemental Mab Monroe has hired one of the smartest assassins in the business to trap me. Elektra LaFleur is skilled and efficient, with deadly electrical elemental magic as potent as my own Ice and Stone powers. Which means there’s a fifty-fifty chance one of us won’t survive this battle. I intend to kill LaFleur—or die trying—because Mab wants the assassin to take out my baby sister, Detective Bria Coolidge, too. The only problem is, Bria has no idea I’m her long-lost sibling . . . or that I’m the murderer she’s been chasing through Ashland for weeks. And what Bria doesn’t know just might get us both dead. . . .

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    Dragon Seer

      Heather McCorkle
     Dragon Seer

Ashanti sees things she shouldn't see; dragons doing things civilized dragons aren't supposed to do. Worse yet, they aren't random killings by those wanting to explore their primitive sides. They're planned, calculated attempts to halt the races of people from interferring with plans for a war that will leave them enslaved if it isn't prevented.This is a Dragon Empire story.Ashanti sees things she shouldn't see; dragons doing things civilized dragons aren't supposed to do. Worse yet, they aren't random killings by those wanting to explore their primitive sides. They're planned, calculated attempts to halt the races of people from interferring with plans for a war that will leave them enslaved if it isn't prevented. But she has no intention of standing aside while and allowing her visions to become reality. Compass Press hopes you enjoy this free Dragon Empire story. If it is not free at this location, we encourage you to check other retailers. You can read more about Ashanti and the Empire in Heather's full length novel, the Dragon Empire, available in eBook and paperback everywhere. Due do some violent content, this story may not be suitable for younger readers.

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