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Epic Fantasy – Chaos: Worlds Beyond

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Reflections of Infinity, Book 1

Epic Fantasy

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Amid the power struggle for a vast Empire, a young boy is swept along with
a Tribe of fearless warriors on their Quest to the Mystical uncharted
Crimson World!

As young gods fall to the Worlds from the stars they are born in, appearing
as comets streaking across the sky; sentient magical artifacts call to the
minds of men: calling with images and promises of power from Wild Worlds.
Massive and strange they hold gigantic monsters and wonders that are beyond
the scope of the imaginations of the fearless Tribe of warriors that dare to
magically travel to them!

About the Author

C.W. Holcomb’s works are based on Ancient Myths and folklore. His first
series is heavily based on Scottish Folklore of werebeasts that prowl the
primordial forests in the distant past! The first novel of his newest
series, Chaos: Worlds Beyond is inspired heavily by Greek Mythology; as well
as works by well known authors such as C.S. Lewis, J.R.R Tolkien and Raymond
E. Feist. The works are filled with passion and adventure on an epic scale
where the lure of magical treasures incites the characters into traveling to
strange and dangerous magical Worlds filled with Nightmarish monsters and
sentient arcane artifacts!

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EXCERPT:

Within the Obsidian Throne room of the

Imperial Palace

PREMERA

Primus Croatius! The men request your presence in the anteroom immediately! His First said, gasping in excitement. The young soldier spun around, his obsidian armor gleaming as he threw his arms out toward the door and the winding hall beyond, before turning and staring at his Primus, who also happened to be his hero coming up through the ranks, saying with a glint in his gray eyes: “my Leader, surely you have heard! The Emperor is DEAD!”

Primus Croatius slowly turned around to look at his underling, shaking his head with a deep sigh, his hazel eyes glancing down at the ground in demur melancholy, his Premerian obsidian armor clinking at the hinges over his large frame: softened slightly with Palace living in the past few weeks. Overall he thought he looked pretty good for a man of thirty eight sunstrokes, with not one single touch of gray in his thick wavy black hair.

“Why are you so enthused? Our Emperor died today.” He said getting up to walk with the First toward the door anyway. “My Leader, the chamberlains plan to place a mere child on the throne as an heir! Surely, you know what must be done my liege!” Primus Croatius stopped in his tracks, staring over at the man in consternation, narrowing his hazel eyes as he asked: “did you speak of this to the men?” The First looked away from his gaze, his face going red as he stuttered: “y-yes I spoke to them, and they are all behind you my Leader! He said, his deep set brown eyes pleading above his angular clean shaven face.

“Come now Lincian. You know as well as I that the imperial chamberlains will appoint one of their faction to sit the Obsidian Throne as Regent.” Croatius muttered bitterly, addressing the First by his name as the man pulled him insistently on down the ornate winding Kalemian shale corridors, the violet light streaming in from the windows from the bright blue midday sun, hanging in the bright green sky above, gleaming over the shale walls in all the shades of the rainbow.

As they approached the massive double doors to the assembly yard beyond, the air began to thrum with thousands of voices chanting as one beyond. Croatius stumbled to a stop suddenly, as he was finally able to make out what the assembled armies of the Empire were yelling through the door beyond. “I cannot do this Lincian! I cannot be the emperor all of you need!” He yelled running his hands down his face in anxiety as thousands of voices screamed out beyond, over and over again: “Croatius! Croatius! Croatius!” 3

He sat down with a huff leaning back against the doors in indecision with his head resting against the thick wooden doors, the vibrations from the chanting men rattling his skull as his First sank to one knee before him, reaching out to grasp his shoulder; squeezing it reassuringly as he said softly: “The men have chosen you my liege!” Primus Croatius looked up to meet the man’s intense gaze, his hazel eyes hardening in resolve.

Fantasy Romance – Reclaiming the Magic

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Fantasy Romance

Date Published: August 2020

Publisher: Broken Angels

Vampire society knows him as the Thirteenth Elder first vampire in
creation, the mages know him as an immortal high sorcerer and the Keeper of
the Prophecy. Delgarias Dullahan only cares about the woman who knew him
simply as “Del.” Two thousand years ago, he gambled his soul for
the power to marry Nikkita Leonine…and lost.

Now he is finally on her trail. But Del is not the only one searching for
the missing luminite princess, and whoever finds her first will have the
upper hand in the battle against the greatest evil ever known.

Excerpt

As they raced towards the sounds of the fight, Delgarias drew no weapon,
but his magic fomented within, rippling below the surface. “Remember,
we must be cautious. I want Annarkie taken alive.”

Radu’s brows drew together as he frowned. “But we don’t
know what she looks like.”

“I have a feeling we’ll know her when we see her.”

When they slipped through the door, Delgarias’s words proved
true.

Dozens of vampires swarmed a female warrior garbed in black leather, and
she fended them off with a blade that he immediately recognized.
Shellandrian steel. Medium-length and narrow, the sword looked like those
made in the eastern regions of Earth, only slightly more curved. The metal
itself was a work of beauty. The sword’s forging technique involved
folding the molten steel and another metal called Plitatia tightly together
and imbuing each molecule with magic. Only faelin royals and high-ranking
warriors carried Shellandrian steel swords. Delgarias’s astonishment
increased even as a fresh wave of unease that his assumptions and plans
regarding this rogue’s capture had been very wrong. How did she get a
sword like that? Vampires were banned from Shellandria, as the queen refused
to take part in the integration. The internal questions faded as the sight
of Annarkie’s fighting style drew his focus like a magnet.

Her movements were as exquisite as her body, bloodstained as it was. She
danced in a blur, dodging blows from swords and staffs, slicing cleanly
through elbows and ankles.

This was a warrior of the likes he hadn’t seen in hundreds of years.
But even as he watched her hack, slash, and dodge with lightning deftness,
oblivious to her own blood leaking from various wounds, frustration imbued
him with the need to see her face.

Because he felt more than admiration and curiosity at the sight of her.
Something else stirred within him: an old, aching wound, tormenting
familiarity.

Could it be?

As he watched her drop to the blood-soaked floor and use the slickness to
spin on her back like a modern dancer, severing the feet of her enemies in a
swirling dervish, Delgarias caught a glimpse of blazing bronze eyes, a
heart-shaped face, and full, arched lips.

Lips whose taste he’d always remember.

Razvan interrupted Delgarias’s stunned revelation by shooting a
vampire whose sword nearly came down to impale Annarkie.

Radu lunged forward, eager to join the fight, but Delgarias held him
back.

“That is no vampire,” Delgarias told the twins, unable to
control the quaver in his voice.

About the Author

Formerly an auto-mechanic, Brooklyn Ann thrives on writing romance
featuring unconventional heroines and heroes who adore them. Author of
historical paranormal romance in her critically acclaimed “Scandals
with Bite” series, urban fantasy in the cult favorite, “Brides
of Prophecy” novels, and the award winning, “Hearts of Metal
Series, she’s now writing the “B Mine” series, horror romances
riffing on the 1970s and 1980s horror movies.

She lives in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho with her gamer son, rockstar/IT Guy
boyfriend, and four cats.

She can be found online at https://brooklynannauthor.com as well as on
Twitter and Facebook.

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Speculative Fiction – SOULS

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Speculative Fiction

(Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Horror mix)

Date Published: August 4, 2020

Publisher: Mictlan Press

There’s magic and mystery around every corner, if you know where to
look…

This collection of eleven short stories from fantasy and science fiction
author Terri Bruce explores the hidden corners of our world. Blending
fantasy, horror, magical realism, and folklore, these tales will delight,
mystify, and unsettle. Unicorns roam the New Hampshire countryside disguised
as a biker gang. Portals to other worlds hide on commuter train platforms.
And be careful of what really lurks at the bottom of those quaint wishing
wells that dot the countryside. Strip away the veneer of everyday life and
dare to see what lies just below the surface.

About the Author

TERRI BRUCE is the author of the paranormal / contemporary fantasy
Afterlife series, and her short stories have appeared in a variety of
anthologies and magazines. She produces hard-to-classify fantasy and science
fiction stories that explore the supernatural side of everyday things from
beautiful Downeast Maine where she lives with her husband and various
cats.

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e-Book Universal

Print Book

Available from all major book retailers, including all international Amazon
stores.

Indiebound

Book Depository

Amazon (U.S.)

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Fantasy – Undercover Goddess

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Book 1 of the No Boundaries Trilogy

Fantasy

Date Published: July 24

Publisher: Blue Fortune Enterprises LLC, Lavender Press

In 2400 BCE Crete, 18-year-old Mave keeps the old spirituality alive,
primarily through her clay chips and the symbolic images she paints on them,
the original runes. She falls in love with Tear, a semi-divine being born
both male and female, and finds an ally in Inna, a former holy prostitute
kicked out of her communal home. The Gigante from the northern tribes marry
the holy prostitutes then replace the Goddess of the temple with a Sun God
who loves order and lighting bolts. Girls and women, formerly revered
stand-ins for the Goddess and her creator, the cave-dwelling Ssha, either go
underground with their beliefs or find a way to fit in the new culture. As
it turns out the old ways of the Goddess had its flaws, and this creates the
opportunity for the Gigante and their sun God to move in.

About the Author

Karen Cavalli, née Lound, writes fiction and non-fiction. Her work
has been published online and in books. Her work has won awards including
Outstanding Secondary Science Book. She is a graduate of Old Dominion
University where she earned a B.A., and The University of Alabama’s
MFA in Creative Writing Program where she studied with Margaret Atwood. She
has worked in technology for over 10 years. She taught a writing course on
the topic of psychological descent at the University of Minnesota and in
North Carolina. Her work in technology has taken her to India and China and
allowed her to work with individuals in Mexico, the United Kingdom,
Australia, New Zealand and the emirate of Dubai. She loves her local Savage
library and volunteers there. She can be contacted at
kcgoodguide@gmail.com

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Fantasy – Everwinter

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Chronicles of Naelyra Series, Book 1

Fantasy

Date Published: July 20th

Publisher: Digital Quill Publishing

Typically, my daily routine is to get up, enjoy my hot chocolate, go to
work at my book store, go home, cook, clean, read a book and go to bed.

Simple. Relaxing. Calm.

But not all days go as planned.

Nope. Some days, you get up, have your morning hot chocolate, go to work,
head home only to be portalled to another world. I’ve done my best to
try to fit in. But while changing my clothes seemed reasonable, sharing a
bed with their king put an entirely new level of complication on things.

Try to sort out your day when that happens. Especially when nobody in your
new surroundings knows how you got there, let alone how to get you home.

About the Author

R.J. Lloyd started off as a romance writer under another pen name. However,
R.J. is the side of this award winning, best selling author that delves into
fantasy, sci-fi, supernatural, paranormal and all things action and spooky
that she loves so much.

A Detroit area based author, R.J. writes both novels and short stories,
always looking for the next interesting and slightly off kilter character to
follow on an adventure with.

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Fantasy – Nightmasters

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Doubles Talk Book 1

General Fantasy

Date Published: June 30

Publisher: Acorn Publishing

Kelgan Defthand is used to being top dog at the Academy of Magic where he
is Senior Apprentice Mage. Compared to his peers, he’s faster, more
skillful, and well aware of it, but when he finds himself beset by fearful
voices that come in the night, his confidence is shaken.

Adding to his worries, Kelgan is summoned to the headmaster, Sargal’s
presence; it looks like he’s really in trouble. But to his
bewilderment, he finds he’s being sent on a “mission” with
two very hostile-seeming aristocratic twins, Neroma and Nevander Di
Nerrill.

Upon embarking on this mission with the twins, Kelgan soon realizes the
world outside the cloistered Academy is a bit different than he imagined.
First of all, there seems to be women doing magic! Secondly, he’s not
the only one hearing voices.

Following a strange compulsion, Kelgan and the Di Nerrills find themselves
seeking out the source of the voices, hoping to put an end to it.

The fateful journey tests Kelgan’s underdeveloped skills to the
limit, and could come at an unbearable cost to both to him and his
companions. Once Kelgan accepts the challenge of Magehood, there’s no
going back.

Excerpt

The work went swiftly. Two flame-throwers—in spite of the concerned voices, Ezrael insisted on being one of the carriers. “Cain’t do better, I jes’ stand and let ’er rip.”

And two drones. Cal looked far from satisfied, but Kelgan assured him they would work for recon, as well as something else. He refused to explain the something.

“Crows, you want to use crows?”

“They’re smart, and I’ve placed a homing spell on them.”

“What’s the plan?”

“Don’t have one.”

Cal groaned. “It’s going to be like the tavern owner. We just walk in and say, ‘We’re back to save the world.’”

“Yep.”

Cal shook his head in wonder. “They even shook our hands.”

Kelgan repressed a giggle. “Just a touch of persuasion.”

“You spelled them.”

“As I said, just a touch.”

“I keep forgetting you’re not me.”

Kelgan eyed him quizzically. “That was an ‘interesting’ thing to say.”

Cal shifted his feet, looking uncomfortable. “Let’s get busy.”

Laden with their hastily assembled equipment, they rejoined the rest of the group, who paid them no attention. So busy with their toys, the two had completely missed the combined outward gaze of the others. Turning their heads, they followed the line of sight and drew in simultaneous breaths. The enemy, who had evidently watched all, was well ahead of them. The red-and-black army stood at the ready—seeming to number in the thousands. Knowing that could simply be illusion did not reassure them. At the forefront hovered the sorcerers, wearing robes that trailed off behind them into mist and gave them the appearance of black thunderclouds. Kelgan was sure that was no illusion.

“Uh,” he said stupidly.

Only Neroma responded, swinging her head in their direction just a bit. “They wait.”

The fur of her voice blanketed him for a moment, leaving him short of breath.

He shook his head to clear it, saying, “Well, let’s not disappoint them.”

Without another word, he directed a concentrated blast of energy to the first rows of the army. Those turned out to be real, at least, as they transmogrified into twinkling atoms, which then fell like raindrops onto the now-scorched earth.

A gasp arose from the facing soldiers. For a moment, they quailed visibly. The brief flash of triumph Kelgan allowed himself was cut short by the nearly instantaneous return blast from the younger sorcerer.

Even aided by Neroma and Nevander, Kelgan barely managed to divert the energy back onto the facing army, thereby taking out another two or three rows.

No time to be cocky, he thought, that was nearly fatal.

He fired off another blast. This time the opposition was ready—as one, the soldiers dropped to their knees, and the energy sailed over their heads to knock off a corner of the gloomy castle.

However, they failed to notice Cal, who was now in command of his deadly flamethrower. A low charge, directed just above the ground, caught the red-and-blackers by another unpleasant surprise. Closing his eyes to the charred corpses that now littered the ground, he paused only when he had to refuel.

Too easy, again, too easy, too easy, beat in Kelgan’s head like a drum solo. He glanced behind him. Ez was slumped over the now empty goat-cart, and Teri was staring in horror at the now empty uniform of her sister, Cenci.

About the Author

Recently retired from a job as a university professor, and looking for a
diversion in sunny Southern California, Loran Holt did what any Southern
California does – took up writing, of course. Feeling that sword and
sorcery fitted her personality admirably, she set her sights on that genre.
Nightmasters is the result, and her first work of published fiction, but she
is already the published author of two books on the Silent Film era, with a
third on the way. Recently

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Epic Fantasy – The Witch of Lurago

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Rootstock Saga, Book 3

Epic Fantasy

Release Date: May 1, 2020

Publisher: Each Voice Publishing

Resistance rumbles. Rebellion erupts. War sweeps across the continents as Rhynn and Este fight to free their people. Seth leads an army of unlikely allies into battle. As he chases the Butcher of Bloody Bend toward Jorendon, his darkest secret follows him, daring him to face a truth that could cost him all he loves.

Malatchee Mico confronts Tobias about betraying his trust. Determined to free his sister’s son from captivity, Malatchee gives Tobias one chance to restore the balance or else leave Tallu forever. They will go to war in Philippeon together and drive the Laradian snakes into the sea. But with war comes sacrifice. Who will pay the price?

Mouse gets a name and meets her Reader. Dara struggles with the horror of his crime. Deighton faces an accounting for his deceit. Puppeteers incite mass panic, and the kazera venture out of hiding.

The Rootstock Saga characters you know so well are in a race against time. The water is rising, and the Watchers are coming for the harvest. Even as war distracts them from the paths the Patterns demand they follow, when the Witch of Lurago awakens a mindgift like no other, the chalyns and their destinies begin to converge.

About the Author

L.H. Leonard writes epic fantasy because she prefers imaginary worlds to dysfunctional real ones. She’s been a technologist (computer geek and manager thereof) in the financial and media industries for most of her career, and sidelines as micro-publisher Each Voice Publishing. When getting paid doesn’t matter, she’s an animal rescuer, artist, almost-master gardener, and a surprisingly good cook.

She and her husband live happily ever after in Georgia, where their forever home is a short trek from the Chattahoochee River through woods filled with deer, coyotes, owls, the occasional bear, and of course, hawks.

Their progeny are creative individualists, the eldest of whom has given them a small tribe of grandchildren. They’re the real Children of Promise.

Rootstock Saga is her completed epic fantasy series. All four titles will be released during 2020, a few months apart.

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Visit with her at lhleonard.com

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