Black Sun Rising
On the distant world of Erna, four people–Priest, Adept, Sorcerer, and Apprentice–are drawn together to battle the forces of evil, led by the demonic fae, a soul-destroying force that preys on the human mind.
On the distant world of Erna, four people–Priest, Adept, Sorcerer, and Apprentice–are drawn together to battle the forces of evil, led by the demonic fae, a soul-destroying force that preys on the human mind.
A LAND DIVIDED. A HISTORY INKED IN BLOOD. ONE SORCERESS'S QUEST FOR ANSWERS.
The world beyond the City of the Wise is fraught with danger. But Fola, a talented sorceress who has left the safety of its walls, is unconcerned. She's on the hunt for magical remnants left behind by the First Folk - ancient beings who are but the whisper of a memory. Only by finding them might she uncover the secret to their power and a way to pull the riven lands out of the darkness.
Danger lies ahead for Fola, however she feels about it. And when events conspire to drag her into a cursed kingdom to investigate the death of its king, she's soon faced by threats from both the living and the dead.
Fola will need to rely on her wits, her magic and her unlikely friends if she's going to survive. But there is always hope, no matter how dark things get. And three things remain true, above all else.
Fellowship is stronger than isolation.
The past will come back to haunt you.
Nothing stays secret forever.
A fantasy epic of breathtaking scope, this is a rich standalone adventure for fans of Geralt and Ciri in The Witcher, for those who loved the mystery of The Tainted Cup and The Raven Scholar, or for anyone looking to recapture the magic of The Wheel of Time.
The path to the throne is broken - only the broken may walk it.
To reach the throne requires that a man journey. Even a path paved with good intentions can lead to hell, and my intentions were never good.
The Hundred converge for Congression to politic upon the corpse of Empire, and while they talk the Dead King makes his move, and I make mine. The world is cracked, time has run through, leaving us clutching at the end days, the future so bright that those who see it are the first to burn. These are the days that have waited for us all our lives. These are my days. I will stand before the Hundred and they will listen. I will take the throne whoever seeks to thwart me, living or dead, and if I must be the last emperor then I will make of it such an ending.
This is where the wise man turns away. This is where the holy kneel and call on God. These are the last miles, my brothers. Don't look to me to save you. Don't think I will not spend you. Run if you have the wit. Pray if you have the soul. Stand your ground if courage is yours. But don't follow me.
Follow me, and I will break your heart.
After decades of warfare, the five tribes of the Tiste Edur are united under the implacable rule of the Warlock King of the Hiroth. But the price of peace is a pact with a hidden power whose motives may be deadly. To the south, the expansionist kingdom of Lether has devoured all lesser neighbors - except the Tiste Edur.
The first book in R. Scott Bakker's Prince of Nothing series creates a world from whole cloth-its language and classes of people, its cities, religions, mysteries, taboos, and rituals. It's a world scarred by an apocalyptic past, evoking a time both two thousand years past and two thousand years into the future, as untold thousands gather for a crusade. Among them, two men and two women are ensnared by a mysterious traveler, Anasûrimbor Kellhus - part warrior, part philosopher, part sorcerous, charismatic presence - from lands long thought dead. The Darkness That Comes Before is a history of this great holy war, and like all histories, the survivors write its conclusion.
How do you defend a city surrounded by enemies and riddled with traitors, when your allies can by no means be trusted, and your predecessor vanished without a trace? It’s enough to make a torturer want to run – if he could even walk without a stick – and Superior Glokta needs answers before the Gurkish army comes knocking at the gates.
Northmen have spilled over the border of Angland and are spreading fire and death across the frozen country. Crown Prince Ladisla is poised to drive them back and win undying glory. There is only one problem – he commands the worst-armed, worst-trained, worst-led army in the world.
And Bayaz, the First of the Magi, is leading a party of bold adventurers on a perilous mission through the ruins of the past. The most hated woman in the South, the most feared man in the North, and the most selfish boy in the Union make a strange alliance, but a deadly one. They might even stand a chance of saving mankind from the Eaters. If they didn't hate each other quite so much.
Ancient secrets will be uncovered. Bloody battles will be won and lost. Bitter enemies will be forgiven – but not before they are hanged.
Some feel the Lady, newly risen from centuries in thrall, stands between humankind and evil. Some feel she is evil itself. The hard-bitten men of the Black Company take their pay and do what they must, burying their doubts with their dead. Until the prophesy: The White Rose has been reborn, somewhere, to embody good once more. There must be a way for the Black Company to find her... So begins one of the greatest fantasy epics of our age—Glen Cook's Chronicles of the Black Company.
Librarian note: an alternate cover for this edition can be found here.
Elric of Melniboné is a requisite title in the hard fantasy canon, a book no fantasy fan should leave unread. Author Michael Moorcock, already a major player in science fiction, cemented his position in the fantasy pantheon with the five-book Elric saga, of which Elric of Melniboné is the first installment. The book's namesake, the brooding albino emperor of the dying nation of Melniboné, is a sort of Superman for Goths, truly an archetype of the genre.
The youthful Elric is a cynical and melancholy king, heir to a nation whose 100,000-year rule of the world ended less than 500 years hence. More interested in brooding contemplation than holding the throne, Elric is a reluctant ruler, but he also realizes that no other worthy successor exists and the survival of his once-powerful, decadent nation depends on him alone. Elric's nefarious, brutish cousin Yrkoon has no patience for his physically weak kinsman, and he plots constantly to seize Elric's throne, usually over his dead body. Elric of Melniboné follows Yrkoon's scheming, reaching its climax in a battle between Elric and Yrkoon with the demonic runeblades Stormbringer and Mournblade. In this battle, Elric gains control of the soul-stealing Stormbringer, an event that proves pivotal to the Elric saga. --Paul Hughes
Blending science fiction and fantasy, the second book of the Coldfire Trilogy continues a dark tale of an alien world where nightmares are made manifest.
Two men, absolute enemies, must unite to conquer an evil greater than anything their world has ever known. One is a warrior priest ready to sacrifice anything and everything for the cause of humanity's progress; the other, a sorcerer who has survived for countless centuries by a total submission to evil. In their joint quest, both will be irrevocably changed.
When True Night Falls is the sequel to C. S. Friedman's acclaimed Black Sun Rising .