2022 RUSA Reading List: Fantasy Winner
A 2021 NEIBA Book Award Finalist
A Best of 2021 Pick in SFF for Amazon
A Best of 2021 Pick in SFF for Kobo
Included in NPR’s Favorite Sci-Fi And Fantasy Books Of The Past Decade (2011-2021)

Nebula, Locus, and Alex Award-winner P. Djèlí Clark goes full-length for the first time in his dazzling debut novel

Cairo, 1912: Though Fatma el-Sha’arawi is the youngest woman working for the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities, she’s certainly not a rookie, especially after preventing the destruction of the universe last summer.

So when someone murders a secret brotherhood dedicated to one of the most famous men in history, al-Jahiz, Agent Fatma is called onto the case. Al-Jahiz transformed the world forty years ago when he opened up the veil between the magical and mundane realms, before vanishing into the unknown. This murderer claims to be al-Jahiz, returned to condemn the modern age for its social oppressions. His dangerous magical abilities instigate unrest in the streets of Cairo that threaten to spill over onto the global stage.

Alongside her Ministry colleagues and a familiar person from her past, Agent Fatma must unravel the mystery behind this imposter to restore peace to the city—or face the possibility he could be exactly who he seems…


Novellas by P. Djèlí Clark
The Black God's Drums
The Haunting of Tram Car 015
Ring Shout

The Dead Djinn Universe contains stories set primarily in Clark's fantasy alternate Cairo, and can be enjoyed in any order.

At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

"This is the most fun I've had with a book this year. Every page is a delight and the mystery got its hooks into me from the first chapter.” – Stuart Turton, bestselling author of The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle

The letter was short. A name, a time, a place.

Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder plunges readers into the heart of London, to the secret tunnels that exist far beneath the city streets. There, a mysterious group of detectives recruited for Miss Brickett’s Investigations & Inquiries use their cunning and gadgets to solve crimes that have stumped Scotland Yard.

Late one night in April 1958, a filing assistant at Miss Brickett’s receives a letter of warning, detailing a name, a time, and a place. She goes to investigate but finds the room empty. At the stroke of midnight, she is murdered by a killer she can’t see—her death the only sign she wasn’t alone. It becomes chillingly clear that the person responsible must also work for Miss Brickett’s, making everyone a suspect.

Marion Lane, a first-year Inquirer-in-training, finds herself drawn ever deeper into the investigation. When her friend and colleague is framed for the crime, to clear his name she must sort through the hidden alliances at Miss Brickett’s and secrets dating back to WWII. Masterful, clever and deliciously suspenseful, Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder is a fresh take on the Agatha Christie-style locked-room murder mystery, with an exciting new heroine detective.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ …Very suspenseful up to the last page. One of my new favorites.

Secrets lead to lies and lies to murder in this pulse-pounding mystery with lots of shocking twists.

Has former FBI-profiler Eva Rae Thomas finally gotten herself in deeper than she can handle?

When the body of Nancy Henry is pulled out of the water of Sykes Creek by two local fishermen, they soon realize she’s not dead.

Not yet.

Before she disappeared, Nancy Henry appeared to have everything: a successful husband who adored her, two beautiful children, a modeling career, and a charming home in south Merritt Island with a heart wreath on the door.

Now that she is back five years later, everything has changed. Her husband is with another wife, and her children are almost grown.

Everywhere she turns, people are telling her the same thing: We thought you were dead.

What happened to her?

Nancy claims she doesn’t know where she has been. She remembers nothing after a blow to her head. She doesn’t want to talk to the investigation team lead by former FBI-profiler Eva Rae Thomas, who has agreed to help with this bizarre case.

The sheriff’s office soon wants to give up on the case, but Eva Rae doesn’t quite believe in quitting. She sees fear in Nancy Henry’s eyes that makes her think she is lying to them, maybe to protect herself.

What secrets is she carrying?

To get to the truth, Eva Rae must get to the bottom of what really happened on that night five years ago when Nancy Henry disappeared from her home in what looked like a home intrusion. But the past isn’t always easy to dig up, especially not when someone wants it to stay hidden and will go to great lengths to make sure it does.

Someone obviously tried to kill Nancy Henry. Will they come back to finish what they started?

Buy NOT DEAD YET today to get lost in a mystery you won't be able to put down, and with a plot-twist, you didn't see coming!

INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

“[A]nother instant classic.” —The Real Book Spy
“The undisputed master of blending geopolitics with spycraft…a thriller aficionado’s dream.” —The Providence Journal

The new Cold War is about to go hot.

#1 New York Times and #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling author Brad Thor is back with his most intense thriller yet.

Scot Harvath is having his best summer ever. With a cottage on the fjord, a boat, and his beautiful girlfriend Sølvi, he’s got everything he could possibly want. But out of vacation days and long overdue back home, America’s top spy has a decision to make—return, or submit his resignation.

When his deadly past comes calling, though, he’ll be left with no choice at all.

Leaving his favorite Oslo café, Harvath watches as a ghost climbs out of a taxi—a man he killed years ago, halfway around the world. How is he still alive? And what is he doing in Norway?

In a race against time that will take him high above the Arctic Circle, Harvath is tested in ways he has never imagined and pushed to a limit few human beings could ever endure.

If he succeeds, he’ll walk away with everything. If he fails, the United States and its allies will be at the mercy of one of the world’s most dangerous actors.

 
QUEST – STAY ALIVE, KEEP FAMILY SAFE, AND ABOVE ALL ELSE, KEEP MOVING WEST.

Young but determined, the man of the family too soon, Jake Zane comes of age with the help of a massive mute escaped slave. It’s conquer the wilderness, protect your mother and sisters, or die trying.

A grueling challenge: 2,000 miles of rutted trail with little or no civilization, no water or far too much, wild animals, wicked weather, and savages both red and white. The good news: you have family and friends, and hundreds more making the trip. That is, until disease and accidents threaten everything.

The Oregon Trail is the artery that brought lifeblood to the west, long before wagon or rail. It was the ultimate challenge for thousands who wanted land and opportunity.

Two Thousand Grueling Miles is a true family adventure tale full of can’t put it down action!

From bestselling author Scott Turow comes Personal Injuries, a gripping, suspenseful, deeply satisfying novel about corruption, deceit, and love.

Robbie Feaver (pronounced "favor") is a charismatic personal injury lawyer with a high profile practice, a way with the ladies, and a beautiful wife (whom he loves), who is dying of an irreversible illness. He also has a secret bank account where he occasionally deposits funds that make their way into the pockets of the judges who decide Robbie's cases.

Robbie is caught by the Feds, and, in exchange for leniency, agrees to "wear a wire" as he continues to try to fix decisions. The FBI agent assigned to supervise him goes by the alias of Evon Miller. She is lonely, uncomfortable in her skin, and impervious to Robbie's charms. And she carries secrets of her own.

As the law tightens its net, Robbie's and Evon's stories converge thrillingly. Scott Turow takes us into, the world of greed and human failing he has made immortal in Presumed Innocent, The Burden of Proof, Pleading Guilty, and The Laws of Our Fathers, all published by FSG. He also shows us enduring love and quiet, unexpected heroism. Personal Injuries is Turow's most reverberant, most moving novel-a powerful drama of individuals trying to escape their characters.

Get the Series Boxset that's readers are calling a "Seat of your Pants Thriller". Bursting with intrigue and saucy deliciousness. Fill your bowl with a dose or Murder, Mayhem, and Magic...
RiskyBisqueness…

Getting older shouldn't be a long downhill slide into obscurity. It should be the other half~The Best Half...

That's what Julienne Mason told herself as she stared at herself in the mirror the morning after her 40th birthday...

Husbandless...Jobless...Childless...

Julienne Mason's Ego has taken a Beating. In the space of a day, she nearly burnt down the pizza parlor, lost her job, and walked in on her cheating rat of a husband.

With nothing to show for a lifetime of chasing the Joneses and trying to conform to everyone else's expectations but her own...Juli is more than ready for a change of lifestyle. But nobody ever told her that answering the summons to a strange letter would turn her entire life on a dime, and challenge every notion she's ever had on what normal is...

Add in a Strange Inheritance, an Overbearing Ghost, A Snobbish Talking Cat, and a Sentient Recipe Grimoire; Sprinkle Liberally with Magic...

And Maybe even Misfits like her deserve a second chance to get things right...

But first she'll need to solve her Uncle's Murder and learn to Embrace her inner Witchiness...before she runs out of time and the killer Strikes Again...

Murder on the Oxtail Express…

Juli's job to make sure the Soup of the Day delivers...a daily dose of magic that is...

Life after 40 can be a challenge...what with too many gray hairs to pluck, all the sagging and bagging, and a faulty internal temperature control...

Moonlighting as Veil Falls Amateur Sleuth helps keep her in coffee beans and pays the heating bill.

When Mr. Fried and extra crispy shows up in bed at the local Retirement home and they flag her good friend Jacob for the crime, Juli decides to take the case.

...and then they realize they have the wrong guy...

The real resident is missing...and the identity of the victim is a mystery...

And someone isn't too keen on Juli solving it...

Cauliflower Kale Caper…

Life for Veil Fall’s very own Resident Soup Witch, Juli Mason, is looking up. Snips and Snails is a raving success, there’s Romance in the air for her and Jack, and she has solved her first two murders. Proof positive that life after 40 doesn’t have to be slippers and her favorite soap opera. Instead, she’s reinventing all her best girlhood dreams…with a touch of Magic.

She should have known better.

Because now there's a dead body in the pantry of Lovelace Resort.

Is he the hapless victim of the fastidious chef because he didn’t do the dishes?

Or was his death the result of a million-dollar heist gone wrong?

…If that’s not complicated enough, Grams’ sister Annabel is sending her distressing messages asking for help from beyond the grave…

Before she knows it, Juli is on the case, chasing baddies, finding clues, and whipping up the right magical recipes to save them all.

Get Books 1-3 from the Series in one little Boxset full of Mysterious Deliciousness...

The ultimate voyage of discovery ends with the truth about yourself. The ultimate truth requires you to sacrifice your innocence. The ultimate redemption can only be gained after you confront the past.

This omnibus edition contains:

Genesis Earth
Edenfall
The Stars of Redemption

Inside each fighter are three types of magic. With magical weapons, they can best those more powerful than themselves.

Unless the weapons eat their soul.

Get the complete three-book series to discover a new adventure that is part anime, part steampunk, and all action!

---

Can teenage fighter Devol and his sword Achroma locate the storied group known as the Templars?

If he does, he isn’t sure if the Templars will take him.

And if they take him, will he succeed?

There is only one way to find out.

Included in this boxed set:

1. A New Light
2. Bloodflowers Bloom
3. The Oblivion Trials

Go up and click Buy Now or Read for Free and share Devol’s tale as he tries to learn if he is strong enough to have a future.

Set during the dark days of World War II, Agatha Christie’s N or M? puts two most unlikely espionage agents, Tommy and Tuppence Beresford, on the trail of a pair of Nazi spies who have murdered Britain’s top agent.

World War II is raging, and while the RAF struggles to keep the Luftwaffe at bay, Britain faces a sinister threat from “the enemy within”—Nazis posing as ordinary citizens.

With pressure mounting, the intelligence service appoints two improbable spies, Tommy and Tuppence Beresford. Their mission: to seek out a man and a woman from among the colorful guests at Sans Souci, a seaside hotel. But this assignment is far from an easy stroll along the promenade—N and M have just murdered Britain’s finest agent and no one can be trusted.

BOOK ONE Summary: Octavius enjoys the little bit of time he gets with his daughter; the circumstances of which casts him into a well of self hate and wishes he could go back in time to fix his mistakes. But, once his ex-wife delivers disheartening news, Octavius' life is turned upside down.

BOOK SERIES Summary: Octavius Gray just wanted his family back together, and he did whatever it took to make that happen. It was once he discovered a digital time machine hidden in the metaverse that he seized the perfect opportunity to finally have what he once lost.

First, it was desire. Second it was a means. Paired with desperate will power, he's created a loop, and he has no choice but to relive his mistakes and dabble with a mystery that is time itself, over and over, until he gets what he wants.

But when he uses up all his chances, and the vortex begins, it'll take all his wits and determination to get time to lull.

Kiran is unblood.

An adopted child taken by an affluent family to help their first born rise into power.

When a tragic mistake unlocks a powerful artifact that changes time and space, Kiran's life is forever changed. To survive he'll have to adapt and grow powerful.

For fans of Cradle, Thousand Li and Heaven's Laws. This new progression fantasy story is an epic progression western cultivation fantasy novel with mild romance but no harem.

"Kaplan takes the thriller genre at its word, moving as fast as Ludlum, but with ten times the eye for settings and crisp characterization." –Kirkus Reviews

She was a throwaway kid from the mean streets of Central Los Angeles. Now a Homeland Security Special Agent, the future of America may depend on what she does next.

A Presidential candidate commits suicide, and no one knows why. A mysterious man is killed during a jewel heist on the French Riviera. Intelligence agencies around the world are scrambling. U.S. Homeland Security sends the one woman who might be able to solve the secret of "Blue Madagascar" before it's too late. The trail leads her on a cat-and-mouse chase across Europe. But others are interested – and they will kill to get it.

Move over Jack Reacher, Mitch Rapp, and Jason Bourne and make room for Casey Ramirez, a heroine for our times. A woman whose story you won't be able to put down or forget. The glowing early reviews are in. Join the excitement!

"Flawlessly conceived . . . The characters are unforgettable. Kaplan is

up there with the best." –Readers Favorite

“Reads like a collaboration between Charlaine Harris and James Lee Burke.”

In the most haunted city on earth, the police can’t afford to disregard the supernatural. When N.O.P.D. homicide detective Tony Nicosia realizes voodoo is involved in a spate of panhandler murders, he turns to someone he knows who can help him — Wyatt Thomas the French Quarter’s favorite private investigator.  Voodoo mambo Mama Mulate, Wyatt’s partner, is also a Tulane University English professor. Together, they form the most powerful paranormal partnership in the Big Easy. If you have problems involving magic, voodoo, ghosts, the occult or the supernatural Wyatt and Mama are the ones to call.

Big Easy is the fun, sexy, and gripping first novel in the popular standalone French Quarter Mystery Series. Join Wyatt and Mama as they visit smoky Bourbon Street bars, dark French Quarter alleyways, and haunted New Orleans cemeteries. Read Big Easy and find out why the French Quarter Mystery Series is the favorite mystery series of readers who live in and around New Orleans. Check out what they say on Amazon.

“A funny, upbeat, sometimes creepy, hellishly fast read.”

“A rollercoaster of intrigue set in that exotic, erotic Mecca known as New Orleans.”

“A murder mystery that steeps the reader in home-cooking of down south, Creole and voodoo.”

“Loved the integration of magic with real life along with a dash of local cuisine.”

“While I couldn’t wait to see how it ended, I was sorry when it did.”

“Great characters, mile-a-minute plot, wonderful ending.”

“I could almost smell those sweating bodies, had a feeling I could touch the tomcat’s fur, and taste the gumbo.”

Tears stream down her face as she feels the cold blade press against her neck. The sweet scent of her daughter’s favorite strawberry pancakes all around, her last thought is for her beautiful girl. Please, please let Lisa have escaped.

When Detective Casey White is called early one morning to a beachside vacation campsite in North Carolina’s Outer Banks, she finds the bodies of Carl and Peggy Pearson side-by-side, their throats cut, and their thirteen-year-old daughter Lisa nowhere to be found. Haunted by memories of her own missing girl, Casey fears this could soon become a triple murder: because without the medication found in the bathroom cabinet, Lisa has just days to live.

As her team struggle to untangle the meaning of the cryptic symbol carved into the victims’ skin, Casey searches the area for signs of Lisa and is rewarded when she finds her blistered and barefoot, staggering along the highway. The girl barely has breath left to whisper ‘he invited me’ before blacking out.

Days later, another couple is found murdered on a vacation yacht. A different symbol is etched on their bodies, and their teenage daughter is also missing. Casey’s only clue is an unsettling ‘invitation’ found on the girl’s phone, to a secluded building out in the cornfields.

Desperate to uncover who is luring these innocent families to their deaths, and certain forensics have missed something vital, Casey matches up the crime scene photos herself. The symbols combine to form an upcoming date. The killer is taunting them with the timing of the next murder.

Racing to follow the invitation in time, when Casey arrives she is shocked to glimpse not the missing girls from this case, but her own missing daughter…

An absolutely addictive mystery thriller that will have you holding your breath until the shocking final twist. Perfect for fans of Kendra Elliot, Robert Dugoni and Melinda Leigh.
 

Read what everyone’s saying about The Innocent Girls:

‘A real thrill ride… a conclusion which literally blew me away. Everything and more you expect from a real gritty crime thriller. LOVED IT!!!!’ Goodreads Reviewer, 5 stars

‘This fabulous crime thriller with its super mix of characters will keep you on the edge of your seat and deeply engrossedfrom the very first page to the nail-biting twist at the end… Loved it and deserves all of its 5 stars from me.’ NetGalley Reviewer, 5 stars

Nanovax was supposed to be our salvation.

Death and disease, now obsolete.

Until the terrorist attack. Fifteen cities in a single day.

Again, they said Nanovax was the answer.

The same technology meant to heal us could now be used, through an algorithm, to track us, to predict human behaviors...

To thwart future terrorists.

I'm Lieutenant Brian Goff. I received the first injection.

It healed my wounds in the war. I became the face of Nanovax...

Then, the algorithm identified me as a threat... a terrorist...

Now, I'm on the run and fighting against the very technology that once saved my life... and if that wasn't frightening enough...

The government has my daughter.

Algorithmis the first book in Theophilus Monroe's Nanoverse, an action packed dystopian sci fi thriller series. As a former soldier, suffering from PTSD, Brian Goff is not only a threat to the new system, but his very injury has given him control over the nanobots. Like Neo, in The Matrix, Goff is an unlikely hero whose "technomagic" makes him the the last hope for human liberty, freedom, and justice.

Go up and click 'Read for Free' or 'Buy Now' to find out how Brian Goff and the resistance rise up to challenge the algorithm!

Upcoming Releases in this Series (Late 2021/Early 2022):
Nanoswarm
Posthuman
Nanowar

In the future, privacy is a thing of the past.

"Staggeringly smart… Hanberg's expertly honed storytelling is sleek and fast… [an] entertaining tale." —Kirkus Reviews

Nevada, 2081. Colonel Byron Shaw safeguards the world’s innermost secrets. From a control center in Area 51, he monitors the expansive surveillance system that once saved him certain death at the hands of ruthless kidnappers. But not everyone trusts technology that peers through strangers’ eyes, so it’s no shock when a guerrilla attack nearly wipes out the network and spills his blood.

Tasked with tracking down the terrorist cell, Byron sets off on a globe-spanning chase that brings him to the outer edge of Earth’s atmosphere. But as he infiltrates their ranks, a growing suspicion about the system that preserved his own life could sabotage civilization.

Torn between duty and doubt, one man’s decision could rewire humanity’s future.

The Lead Cloak is a tech-savvy sci-fi adventure novel. If you like high-stakes action, thought-provoking dystopian themes, and gripping twists, then you’ll love Erik Hanberg’s cerebral page-turner.

What value is freedom when you can’t even ride a dragon?

As the life of a slave goes, Kantees doesn't have it too bad. Being responsible for a racing dragon means her existence is more than just drudgery and fear, even if her life is at the whim of her masters and their rules.

But when her dragon wakes her in the middle of the night Kantees is forced to make a life-or-death decision that breaks her masters’ rules and means her own life is forfeit.

Escaping on the back of dragons, with a hodgepodge of unwelcome associates, she attempts to right a wrong that can never be fixed. Until, ultimately, she must put her own life on the line to keep the freedom she has stolen for herself.

The first book in the Dragons of Esternes Epic fantasy series.

Interview with the Author

Q - So, what makes the Dragons of Esternes series special?

A - I don't think there's just one thing that sets them apart because what I wanted to do was to write the kind of book that I like to read when it comes to fantasy. My favourites usually involve dragons and my first read was Anne McCaffreys' Dragonriders of Pern, though movies like Dragonheart and Dragonslayer certainly appealed to me too.

Of course the Dragonflight books aren't technically fantasy but in a similar way the Patterners World, which is where these books are set, also have a very strong scientific background, although in this case it really is pure fantasy.

I don't like books with padding, to be honest, I don't think anyone does. That's one thing you won't find here. The stories are taut and fast-paced, they will keep you turning the pages - there's never a dull moment.

Then with a POC lead character and a wealth of interesting supporting characters, plus a unique take on Dragons themselves I don't think there's much not to like.

Q - What order should I read the books in?

A - There's just the four books and this is the order:

- Rebel Dragon
- Outlaw Dragon
- Heretic Dragon
- Battle Dragon

There is a prequel "Racing Dragon" but that's only available to my newsletter subscribers.

Q - So, who should give these books a try?

A - Anyone who wants a unique approach to fantasy, in a world that is both familiar and utterly different. But ultimately anyone who loved Anne McCaffrey's Pern books, Anne McCaffrey, Christopher Paolini's Eragon series, or writers like Naomi Novik and Robin Hobb. Or maybe they just want to have their own dragons like Daenerys Targaryen.

Dragons of Esternes Series eBook Categories:

- Epic Fantasy
- Swords & Sorcery
- Dragons and Mythological Creatures
- Private Detective Novels
- Fantasy Best Sellers
- Fantasy 100 Must Reads
- LGBT Fantasy Series

Rafael, king of the wererats, must fight to the death to defend his crown. He wants Anita Blake, one of his closest allies, with him as he faces an opponent unlike any he’s faced before. He will ask Anita to risk everything to be at his side....
 
But some of the wererats fear that Rafael depends too much on Anita and her ties to the vampires. They believe that there is only room in America for one supernatural king, and Rafael will turn them into nothing more than food for the bloodsuckers.
 
Among his enemies, a new challenger has arisen who is younger, hungrier, and has dark secrets that could destroy both the wererats and the vampires. Rafael will go into the magical heart of his people to find the power and violence that he needs to save them all, or die trying.

Gareth Weston feels old. After a lifetime as a soldier, he’s retired to a quiet part of Earth where he expects to live out the rest of his days in quiet tranquility. With the universe at peace, he experiences a sense of uselessness. Long hikes in the woods only go so far in keeping him busy and active.

Sometimes, fate isn’t content to allow obscurity to set in. When a mysterious force descends upon Earth, Gareth learns how battered his body has become. What starts off as a threat to his small community swiftly escalates as the invaders obliterate major cities. With few chances for survival, and only a rogue doctor as an ally, Gareth must find a way to escape his home. Or die trying.