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"The Foundation of Empire is Art & Science. Remove them or Degrade them, & the Empire is No More." ~ William Blake (1757-1827), English poet
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New and Recently Released!
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| The Shotgun Arcana by R.S. BelcherDark Fantasy. In this sequel to The Six-Gun Tarot, the frontier town of Golgotha, Nevada, is once again menaced by supernatural enemies -- this time, a horde of cannibals. However, the townsfolk are better prepared than most for the onslaught, as Golgotha is home to a fallen angel, a pirate queen, and a mad scientist, as well as an undead sheriff and his shapeshifting deputies. This gritty Weird Western with Lovecraftian overtones may appeal to fans of Rob deBorde's Portlandtown, Michael Spradlin's Blood Riders, or Gemma Files' Hexslinger series (starting with A Book of Tongues). |
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| Poison Fruit: Agent of Hel by Jacqueline CareyUrban Fantasy. As the half-demon liaison to the Norse goddess Hel, Daisy Johanssen works hard to maintain relations between the human and eldritch (supernatural) communities of Pemkowet, Michigan. Even in the off-season, this tiny resort town has more than its fair share of paranormal activity, which keeps Daisy busy -- though not too busy to deal with her complicated personal life. Poison Fruit is the conclusion Jacqueline Carey's Agent of Hel Trilogy; newcomers should start with Dark Currents, followed by Autumn Bones. |
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| Dreamer's Pool: A Blackthorn & Grim Novel by Juliet MarillierCeltic Fantasy. To avoid execution, imprisoned healer Blackthorn strikes a bargain with one of the fae: her freedom in exchange for seven years' service in the kingdom of Dalriada. Accompanied by fellow ex-convict Grim, Blackthorn travels to Winterfalls, the seat of Crown Prince Oran's royal court, where she soon discovers that something's rotten in Dalriada. Dreamer's Pool is the 1st book in the Blackthorn & Grim series, which follows a pair of flawed but sympathetic protagonists on adventures inspired by Irish mythology. |
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| The Free by Brian RuckleyHigh Fantasy. Having just overthrown a monarchy, Yulan, leader of notorious mercenary band The Free, is more than ready to retire. But before he and his band of sellswords can lay down their weapons, Yulan is offered a very lucrative contract that will also (legally) allow him to slay an old enemy, who happens to be the last surviving member of the royal family. Epic in scale yet modest in page count, this stand-alone fantasy saga includes detailed world-building, a complex system of magic, and characters at once archetypal and individual. |
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| The Horns of Ruin by Tim AkersSteampunk. The city of Ash stands on the site of a long-ago battle between the Feyr and the Titans. Since that final, fatal clash, the city's three founding brothers -- Morgan, Alexander, and Amon -- have ascended to the status of gods as their respective cults vie for supremacy. Now Eva Forge, the last Paladin of Morgan, must protect her order's Fratriarch from a plot involving the rival Amonites even as events cause her to question her loyalties and her place in a world where technology is slowly but inevitably replacing magic. |
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| Gideon Smith and the Mechanical Girl by David BarnettSteampunk. In an alternate world where the American Colonies lost their bid for independence, fisherman's son Gideon Smith spends his days working aboard a clockwork boat and reading about the exploits of his hero, Captain Lucian Trigger. When Gideon's father disappears under strange and supernatural circumstances, he travels to London to consult the Captain. Along the way, he meets mechanical girl Maria, the first of several companions who will accompany him on a wild ride around the world and back again. If you enjoy this rollicking steampunk adventure, check out its sequel, Gideon Smith and the Brass Dragon. |
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| The Revolutions: A Novel by Felix GilmanSteampunk. During London's Great Storm of 1893, writer Arthur Shaw falls in love with stenographer Josephine Bradman. Since their plans for the future require some semblance of financial security, Josephine becomes the secretary for a spiritualist society, while Arthur is hired as a clerk at a counting house where workers routinely go insane from performing esoteric calculations. Soon the lovers have become pawns of the Company, an occult organization attempting to channel psychic energy into interplanetary travel. Paying affectionate homage to pioneering fantasy and science fiction writers such as Edgar Rice Burroughs and Jules Verne, The Revolutions may appeal to fans of Felix J. Palma's Map of Time series. |
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| A Study in Silks by Emma Jane HollowaySteampunk. The niece of living legend Sherlock Holmes, Evelina Cooper has inherited the great detective's logical mind, though her flair for magic is all her own. So is her sense of timing. Just as Evelina is about to make her debut in London society, a most distracting murder occurs, which she investigates with the help of her best friend Imogen, Imogen's brother, and circus performer Nick -- not to mention her famous uncle. This opening installment of the Baskerville Affair series continues with A Study in Darkness and A Study in Ashes. |
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| Fiendish Schemes by K.W. JeterSteampunk. Author K.W. Jeter's 1987 novel Infernal Devices helped put steampunk on the literary map; this sequel returns to Victorian London and re-introduces George Dower, the son of a brilliant inventor. Broke after gambling away the money he made by selling his late father's work to the Royal Society, George's dim prospects improve when he learns that powerful individuals are searching for one of his dad's inventions, the "Vox Universalis," a near-legendary translation machine. Complicating George's quest, however, is a steam-powered Prime Minister, a ruthless cabal of industrialists, and an ambulatory lighthouse. Offbeat and intricately plotted, Fiendish Schemes should please fans of steampunk and gaslamp fantasy. |
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| The Iron Wyrm Affair by Lilith SaintcrowSteampunk. Archibald Clare is one of the last remaining mentaths in Londoninium, in large part because the others have been murdered. Unregistered on account of previous crimes, Clare -- whose Holmesian feats of deduction result from his obsessive need to manipulate data -- is both an embarrassment and a vital asset to his country. For that reason, Queen Victrix, the current physical incarnation of the goddess Britannia, charges "Prime" sorceress Emma Bannon to protect Clare from assassins. Bannon, aided by Mikal, her shape-shifting demon Shield, doesn't trust Clare any more than he trusts the "illogical" sorceress, but with enemies hot on their trail, they have no choice but to work together. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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