Your Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Bargains for May 26, 2023

Long before the lands were split by oceans or rule, there was deepest magic. But in the wrong hands magic is dangerous with unsurmountable power to corrupt.

The destruction of one of the richest and most beautiful cities in Durundal, and the enslavement of her people, shocks and enrages the Elven Queen. But when she goes missing and the Elven King is found slain, everyone knows that this is the work of the Dark Lord. For her presence hangs over him like an axe. A constant hindrance to his vile ambitions and now her days are numbered.

‘We shall all be slaves unless we join together to end this threat,’ declares the greatest of them: Brinadoon, the dragon king, Lord of all Durundal.

And so it was; the allies of over a thousand years plan a rescue mission to save their queen, save Durundal and save a legacy.

Fleeing the apocalyptic cult he was sent to investigate, a troubled reporter stumbles into the biggest story in human history.

Category: Science Fiction – Metaphysical & Visionary

An irreverent, liberal, twisty, time travel comedy!

What if you could change history to eliminate slavery, World War II, the Spanish Inquisition, global warming, and an egomaniacal nuclear-bomb-dropping US president? What if that change also made 5 billion people poof from existence? Would you do it? Time Is Irreverent explores those questions, as benevolent aliens send Marty Mann to AD 31 to correct an error in history.

Spanning from the Cretaceous period to 2056, Time is Irreverent is a hilarious, thought-provoking satire, with unpredictable twists, colorful aliens, huge dinosaurs, a smokin’ hot lesbian from the future, and a cameo from Jesus Christ himself!

“Ironic, original, hysterically funny, deftly crafted, and an impressively entertaining read from first page to last”—Midwest Book Review

Category: Science Fiction – Time Travel

In the Kingdom of Yamato, magic is misunderstood. When humans pray at shrines to the spirits of the land, their wishes are not granted directly. Instead, sometimes gods are born: shapeshifting animals with the power to conjure weapons and enter the realm of dreams.

When a snow monkey named Saru is born from a prayer of hope, he longs to understand the truth about his nature. At an enchanted temple, he crosses paths with the demonic monk Akame whose infernal magic destroys everything Saru loves—and could soon threaten the whole world.

Saru flees to Otari Village, a settlement of kind people who welcome him into their homes. The village, however, is plagued by ghosts and wicked men who would exploit Saru’s powers. With Akame’s arrival looming, will Saru save the village, or lose everything again? How far will he go to protect those he loves?

Category: Fantasy – Epic

Ambition drives her. Danger thrills her. But magic always has a price.

Twenty years have passed since the Darkmage was defeated and the war between mages ended. But for Lira Astor, apprentice mage and the only living heir to the Darkmage, escaping his legacy is impossible. People still fear what is long dead, and the Mage Council sees in her the rise of another dangerous mage with deadly ambition.

Yet when Lira is abducted and held prisoner in a deadly game of cat and mouse, her powerful legacy is no match for the adversary she now faces … a mysterious rebel group with weapons beyond the Mage Council’s understanding. To survive, she will be forced to band together with unlikely allies who challenge everything she believes about what it means to be a mage.

The war may only just be beginning.

And Lira Astor will have to embrace everything her dark legacy has gifted her to win.

Category: Fantasy – Epic

Part paranormal fantasy adventure, part romance, this is the tale of a fabulous, forty-something witch who is finally coming into her power. After a messy divorce, Elise packs up and moves across the country, after receiving a mysterious job offer in Washington state that sounds too good to pass up.
She has a second chance to create a new life for herself and do what she wants for a change.
She’s expecting a fairy tale alpine village and lots of skiing. What she gets is a town crawling with witches and rebel vampires.
And a gorgeous general and his minotaur partner.
Oh, and a gate that leads to hell.
She’ll need to resurrect her long-abandoned magic to discover the town’s secrets, and how they may even unlock her own family secrets.
Act Two of her life may turn out to be even better than Act One. If she can survive it.

Category: Fantasy – Paranormal & Urban

Elise’s fabulous midlife adventure continues as she tries to balance her new love life with her growing responsibilities as warden of a magical town teetering over the gate to hell.

Elise and Theo, the fire-wielding general of Black Lake Falls, are finally free to bask in their previously forbidden love. But new work duties start to strain their budding romance after Ronath, the minotaur gatekeeper, wakes up from his two-week coma.
And what’s worse, he’s come back… well, different. Maybe even a tad possessed.

When Ronath escapes from the hospital in a psychotic state, he leaves behind a strange symbol as the only clue to his disappearance.
Elise and Theo are pulled in opposite directions as they search for the lost gatekeeper and try to decode the enigmatic symbol.

After a series of bizarre break-ins and mysterious deaths, Elise uncovers someone’s frantic search for a lost object that has ties to an old alchemy secret society and to her own father.
When Elise realizes the same object may hold the key to her own quest, she and Theo launch into a race to snag it first.

But she’ll need to level up her own magic if she’s going to stand any chance of stopping this dangerous force from unleashing hell on her beloved town.

Dangerous magic. A realm under threat. “Classic epic fantasy at its best” (Amazon reader review).

A teen heir unsure he can step into his father’s role. A grieving wife trying to keep their clan safe. A family facing a sinister foe…’The Hand of Fire’ is the gripping first book in The Essence of Tyranny epic fantasy series. If you like complex characters, vivid imagery, and visionary world-building, then you’ll adore this soulful adventure.

Category: Fantasy – Epic

Unless Sam and Jade “fix the planet,” all humans will die in six months.
Or so the Visitors say. They give no instructions—and no description of a “fixed” planet. It’s impossible! But the Visitors never lie or joke. And they’ve never been violent. What secret are they keeping?
Sam and Jade’s Earther group has no choice but to accept the Visitors’ ultimatum. But what can they do that’s big enough to fix the planet? The best ideas they have are music and telepathy. They’re doomed!
And besides the alien threats, unknown humans are sabotaging them. Vandalism. Bombings. Shootings. But who could object to saving the planet? Will someone die before the six months are up?
And if they can’t save the planet, will they—and all humanity—really die?

Category: Science Fiction – Adventure