When Valor Must Hold

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When Valor Must Hold
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Fifteen tremendous authors. Fourteen extraordinary stories. One outstanding anthology.

It is a time of high adventure! A time for noble men and women to say “No!” to the evils that will befall their families and friends if they don’t rise to the task at hand. If their valor doesn’t hold, civilization will fall.

Fifteen authors have spun fourteen tales of hateful wizards, treacherous seas, and scheming foes. Of times when ancient evils roamed the Earth, looking for souls to claim, and dark prophecies foretold what would happen if the Evil Ones were allowed to succeed. This anthology has all of this and more.

When Valor Must Hold focuses on heroes worthy of facing such enemies. A tiny brownie stands up to a massive ogre. A mother races to protect her children. A hunter chases raiders. A guardian serves his king. Heroes lead forces into battle against overwhelming odds. There’s even a goblin trying to save his people by stealing dwarven rum.

Inside are fourteen fantastic stories of enemies testing the valor of heroes great and small. If their valor should fail, they will lose far more than their lives.

Will their swords shatter shields? Will their magic shine forth? Or will they see their homes and families perish when they fail? Step inside and find out!

The Return of the Knights (The Dance of Light Book 1)

The Return of the Knights (The Dance of Light Book 1)
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Mark Lawrence: One for the worldbuilding fans. A fantasy world with an extensive history thoroughly explored for you to an accompaniment of swordplay, sieges, and drama.

Grimdark magazine: The Return of the Knights is recommended for epic fantasy fans wishing to quench their thirst for all the classic tropes. Gregory Kontaxis clearly has a lot of talent, and I look forward to reading more from this up-and-coming author.

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The Palace of the Dawn will soon be stormed. The most ruthless man of all time is one step away from assailing on Iovbridge and dethroning Sophie Delamere. The Queen of Knightdorn is now alone, with neither allies nor an army capable of rebuffing the enemy which is approaching her city. Everything appears to be over, until a mysterious young man, Elliot, makes his appearance.

Entangled in a web of lies and politics, Elliot will try to draw Walter away from Iovbridge and face him in the stronghold of Wirskworth. He will attempt to rekindle relations and revive the old alliance between the Queen of Knightdorn and Syrella Endor, the Governor of Wirskworth. Elliot’s mission will take every fibre of his will and if he fails, so shall the kingdom.

Game Of Thrones meets Greek mythology in this explosive epic fantasy story, packed with war, medieval lore, magic, loyalty and bravery. The first book in the series, The Dance of Light, will take you on an epic journey to a fantasy world of men and mythical creatures which will keep you spellbound till the very end.

To the Stars and Back: Stories in Honour of Eric Brown

Eric Brown was one of the UK’s finest SF authors. His work won him awards, his storytelling won him readers; more than that, though, he was a special person, and that won him many friends.

Containing all new stories from some of the UK’s finest genre writers, this volume, released to mark what would have been Eric’s 64th birthday, is dedicated to Eric and his family. It is our way of celebrating someone whose work inspired us and whose friendship made a difference.

Eric Brown: (24 May 1960 – 21 March 2023)

The Double-Edged Sword: A Tale of the Fallen Hero

A disgraced swordsman leaves town one step ahead of justice.

In search of gainful(ish) employment, he heads for a former haunt, the seaport city of Cray. His past, however, soon catches up with him in the form of Julia, a notorious thief and sometimes assassin. He finds himself thrust into an impossible situation, caught in the midst of a bitter feud between the city’s two ruling families, and is forced to embark on what will surely prove to be a suicide mission.

A novella of sword play, betrayal, and derring-do, seen from the perspective of a cynical anti-hero who struggles to live up to expectations but excels at living down to them.

“A cheerfully brutal story of betrayal and skulduggery, vicious fun from start to finish.” – Adrian Tchaikovsky

“A quick, highly readable, swords & sorcery romp… you can see Whates has learned his craft.” – Mark Lawrence

The Double-Edged Sword is a slice of pure golden-age sword and sorcery action, packed with rogues, betrayals and dubious morals.” – Jen Williams

“Action, deception, a daring heist and lots of twists and turns. Excellent world building and intriguing characters. I really enjoyed it!” – Gail Z. Martin

The Sword Defiant (Lands of the Firstborn)

The Sword Defiant (Lands of the Firstborn)
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THE SWORD CARES NOT WHO IT CUTS

Many years ago, Sir Aelfric and his nine companions saved the world, seizing the Dark Lord’s cursed weapons, along with his dread city of Necrad. That was the easy part.

Now, when Aelfric – keeper of the cursed sword Spellbreaker – learns of a new and terrifying threat, he seeks the nine heroes once again. But they are wandering adventurers no longer. Yesterday’s eager heroes are today’s weary leaders – and some have turned to the darkness, becoming monsters themselves.

If there’s one thing Aelfric knows, it’s slaying monsters. Even if they used to be his friends.

Set in a world of dark myth and dangerous prophecy, The Sword Defiant launches an epic tale of daring warriors, living weapons and bloodthirsty vengeance.

‘The front runner for my book of the year . . . The Sword Defiant is a love letter to roleplaying games, to Tolkien, to what epic fantasy has been about for me through my whole life. I adored this book from the first page to the last. Hanrahan has taken the best of the old, the best of the last two decades, and then brought it screaming into the modern era. Fans of Gemmell and Abercrombie need this on their shelves’
Ed McDonald, author of Blackwing

Codex Babylon: A secret history sci-fi adventure (The Cross-Time Crusade)

Codex Babylon: A secret history sci-fi adventure (The Cross-Time Crusade)
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The first book of The Cross-Time Crusade, the Kickstarter sensation that raised over $27,000!

A secret cabal of demonic forces threatens to destroy civilization and plunge the world into a new Dark Age. Humanity’s only chance is a shadowy organization called GRAIL–the modern day heirs to the Knights Templar–which has discovered the secret to time travel. The past cannot be changed, but if GRAIL can send an agent into the past to recover a lost book on demonology called the Codex Babylon, they may have a fighting chance to save humanity from utter destruction.

Spanning 900 years and four continents, The Cross-Time Crusade is an epic saga of the eternal struggle against evil!

“This is a compelling page-turner which also makes you think about how time travel might work and motivates you to learn more about the enigmatic Templars.” – John Walker, founder of Autodesk

“…a whirlwind tale that jumps between the Middle Ages and 2023, with elements that reminded me of Connie Willis’ time travel sagas, and Raiders of the Lost Ark.” – Amazon reviewer

“Robert Kroese is one of the few writers still pursuing truly new ideas in science fiction. In this series, he looks at demonic influence in a new way… [T]he meat of the book is the desperate search for the Codex Babylon, an ancient tome with the secrets to fighting the demons and reclaiming our world. you find yourself rooting for all the characters both past and present, and reeling with the many surprising twists.” – Amazon reviewer

Codex Babylon: A secret history sci-fi adventure (The Cross-Time Crusade)

Titan (Mammon Book 1
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A 2021 Prometheus Award nominee!

“Mammon will scratch your itch for cranky libertarian sci-fi. Looking forward to the next part!” – John Carmack, creator of Doom and founder of Armadillo Aerospace

“★★★★★ This is a compelling page turner and, once again, Kroese… not only gets the economics of hyperinflation absolutely correct, but, in the best tradition of science fiction, “shows, not tells” the psychology which grips those experiencing it and how rapidly the thin veneer of civilisation can erode when money dies.” – John Walker, Founder of Autodesk, Inc., co-author AutoCAD, author The Hacker’s Diet, operator of Fourmilab

“★★★★★ Kroese did his homework on financial bubbles, panics, mass psychosis, social collapse, cryptocurrency, and hyper-inflation…. [B]etter than Lucifer’s Hammer, and spookily realistic.” – Hans Schantz, physicist and author of The Hidden Truth

★★★★★ You can see the foundation of the book’s apocalypse in today’s headlines, and that should scare the hell out of anyone. Cannot wait for book two.” – T. Cannon, Amazon reviewer

By the year 2032, the U.S. federal debt has surpassed $50 trillion. The American empire is on the verge of collapse.

An entrepreneur named Kade Kapur has an idea for rescuing the debt-ridden United States: the government will issue stock in a company with exclusive mining rights to an asteroid whose orbit will soon bring it near Earth. The asteroid, which contains $10 trillion in valuable minerals, is officially called 2015 RK 16 Maimonides, but it soon comes to be known by another name: Mammon.

Fortunes are made and America seems to have avoided an economic collapse. But when the plan to capture the asteroid goes awry, the sky will fall….

Metal Warrior: Born of Steel (Mech Fighter Book 1)

Metal Warrior: Born of Steel (Mech Fighter Book 1)
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The world as we know it has come to an end, and humanity’s only hope may be a man who cannot survive without the aid of a robotic suit. Fortunately, that suit is one of the most powerful weapons ever created.

A military sci-fi adventure from Amazon All-Star author James David Victor

Dane Williams barely survived the Exin attack and is faced with a life of pain and torment. With the help of experimental drugs and a robotic suit, he has a chance for a semi-normal life. And as a new Marine in the Mechanized Infantry Division, he has a chance to strike back at the enemy that has caused so much pain and destruction. Can Dane and his fellow Marines fight back and save humanity or is Earth heading for an extinction level event?

Metal Warrior: Born of Steel is the first book in the Mech Fighter series. If you like fast-paced space adventures with engaging characters and exciting battles, you will definitely want to see how the Metal Warriors save mankind, or if they can.

Tipping Point: Opening Shots

Tipping Point: Opening Shots
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Neither Beg Nor Yield: Stories with S&S Attitude

Can you handle the truth?

Sword & Sorcery has always been about the attitude.

Stop seeking elaborate definitions. Cease arguing over semantics and accoutrements. Quit making it more difficult than necessary. Learn the fundamental immutability of the S&S Riddle: Protagonists with nonchalant mercenary motivations & indomitable wills. It’s all in their attitude.

The definition of S&S has never been clearer.

Sword & Sorcery warriors are very, very dangerous people, considered barbaric, who act according to their own codes of honor in pursuit of their own ends. Brothers (and sisters) to THE WILD BUNCH, comrades of the SEVEN SAMURAI, partners of every MAN IN BLACK, and riders in every WILD HUNT. They don’t just seize the day—they seize Life itself by the throat and squeeze until it begs. They don’t falter in the dark or before the unknown—they spit in the face of Death itself and stomp it into the dirt until it yields.

“Life is not breath but action.” ~ Jean Jacques Rousseau

“Fear won’t stop you from dying, but it can stop you from living.” ~ James Norbury

“We are here to laugh at the odds and live our lives so well that Death will tremble to take us.”
~ Charles Bukowski

“Laugh or die.”
~ Angélique Kidjo

NEITHER BEG NOR YIELD: STORIES WITH S&S ATTITUDE is filled with over 180,000 words in 20 stories! This is THE BOOK OF SWORD & SORCERY that will define the genre for generations. Reading the powerful tales from these storytellers will permanently answer the question: WHAT IS SWORD & SORCERY?

It’s always been its attitude!

Discover the truth as Eadwine Brown, Adrian Cole, Glen Cook, Steve Dilks, Chuck Dixon, Phil Emery, Steven Erikson, John R. Fultz, Steve Goble, John C. Hocking, Howard Andrew Jones, William King, Joe R. Lansdale, David C. Smith, Jeff Stewart, Keith J. Taylor, Frederick Tor, Eric Turowski, Bill Ward, Lawrence A. Weinstein, and C.L. Werner share it!