The Ruin of Kings

The Ruin of Kings
Author: Jenn Lyons
Publisher: Tor Books
Total Pages: 560
Release: 2019-02-05
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1250175488

A Kirkus Best of Science Fiction and Fantasy pick for 2019! A Library Journal Best Book of 2019! An NPR Favorite Book of 2019! "Everything epic fantasy should be: rich, cruel, gorgeous, brilliant, enthralling and deeply, deeply satisfying. I loved it."—Lev Grossman, author of The Magicians When destiny calls, there's no fighting back. Kihrin grew up in the slums of Quur, a thief and a minstrel's son raised on tales of long-lost princes and magnificent quests. When he is claimed against his will as the missing son of a treasonous prince, Kihrin finds himself at the mercy of his new family's ruthless power plays and political ambitions. Practically a prisoner, Kihrin discovers that being a long-lost prince is nothing like what the storybooks promised. The storybooks have lied about a lot of other things, too: dragons, demons, gods, prophecies, and how the hero always wins. Then again, maybe he isn't the hero after all. For Kihrin is not destined to save the world. He's destined to destroy it. Jenn Lyons begins the Chorus of Dragons series with The Ruin of Kings, an epic fantasy novel about a man who discovers his fate is tied to the future of an empire. "It's impossible not to be impressed with the ambition of it all . . . a larger-than-life adventure story about thieves, wizards, assassins and kings to dwell in for a good long while."—The New York Times A Chorus of Dragons 1: The Ruin of Kings 2: The Name of All Things 3: The Memory of Souls

Quiet Houses

Quiet Houses
Author: Simon Kurt Unsworth
Publisher:
Total Pages: 210
Release: 2019-10-31
Genre:
ISBN: 9781913038380

Nakata's ghosts won't stay dead... A chambermaid's seemingly innocent request is granted, an act of kindness that has dire consequences for a guest... An unearthly light in an abandoned bungalow resolves the mystery of a missing child... An invitation to a clifftop graveyard leads to a harrowing chase by things that remain unseen... In an abandoned hotel, work is underway to upgrade the building but something is stalking the residents... There is a hidden agenda to paranormal researcher Richard Nakata's investigations into these houses. A commission that witnesses cattle lowing in the cow-sheds of Stack's Farm long after they've been slaughtered, and a reckoning in the showhouse of 24 Glasshouse as he and his colleagues pay the price for creating their own ghost... Simon Kurt Unsworth reinvents the classic English ghost story with a portmanteau collection that takes the haunted house genre and makes it scream... quietly. The houses are quiet, it's the residents who are screaming.

My Friend Mr Leakey

My Friend Mr Leakey
Author: J. B. S. Haldane
Publisher:
Total Pages: 149
Release: 2004-08-01
Genre: Magicians
ISBN: 9781903252192

My Antonia

My Antonia
Author: Willa Cather
Publisher: Gildan Media LLC aka G&D Media
Total Pages: 257
Release: 2024-01-02
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1722525045

A haunting tribute to the heroic pioneers who shaped the American Midwest This powerful novel by Willa Cather is considered to be one of her finest works and placed Cather in the forefront of women novelists. It tells the stories of several immigrant families who start new lives in America in rural Nebraska. This powerful tribute to the quiet heroism of those whose struggles and triumphs shaped the American Midwest highlights the role of women pioneers, in particular. Written in the style of a memoir penned by Antonia’s tutor and friend, the book depicts one of the most memorable heroines in American literature, the spirited eldest daughter of a Czech immigrant family, whose calm, quite strength and robust spirit helped her survive the hardships and loneliness of life on the Nebraska prairie. The two form an enduring bond and through his chronicle, we watch Antonia shape the land while dealing with poverty, treachery, and tragedy. “No romantic novel ever written in America...is one half so beautiful as My Ántonia.” -H. L. Mencken Willa Cather (1873–1947) was an American writer best known for her novels of the Plains and for One of Ours, a novel set in World War I, for which she was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1923. She was elected a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1943 and received the gold medal for fiction from the National Institute of Arts and Letters in 1944, an award given once a decade for an author's total accomplishments. By the time of her death she had written twelve novels, five books of short stories, and a collection of poetry.

Far Below and Other Weird Stories

Far Below and Other Weird Stories
Author: Robert Barbour Johnson
Publisher:
Total Pages:
Release: 2021-11-15
Genre:
ISBN: 9781937128975

For the first time, Far Below and Other Weird Stories contain all of Robert Barbour Johnson's weird fiction in one book, plus three essays selected by S. T. Joshi. His stories were admired by H. P. Lovecraft, and, "Far Below" was voted in 1953 by readers as the best story ever published in Weird Tales magazine. His stories are distinctive, and frequently use common motifs such as inanimate objects coming to life, ancestral curses, vampires, werewolves, witches, and so on. He always manages to infuse new life into these venerable themes by innovative treatment, and writes with an intense Poe like style which makes his weird fiction entertaining to read.

Voltrex the Two-headed Octopus

Voltrex the Two-headed Octopus
Author: Adam Blade
Publisher: Orchard Books
Total Pages: 80
Release: 2013-04-04
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 1408326981

The Good Beast Sepron is in danger! Malvel has sent Voltrex - a hideous Octopus-Beast to kill him. If Sepron dies, Malvel will be closer to conquering Avantia. Tom must dash to Sepron's rescue before it's too late!

The Hidden Girl and Other Stories

The Hidden Girl and Other Stories
Author: Ken Liu
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 432
Release: 2020-02-25
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1982134054

Includes stories featured in Pantheon—now an animated series on AMC+ “I know this is going to sound hyperbolic, but when I’m reading Ken Liu’s stories, I feel like I’m reading a once-in-a-generation talent. I’m in awe.” —Jamie Ford, New York Times bestselling author “Captivating.” —BuzzFeed “Extraordinary.” —The Washington Post “Brilliant.” —The Chicago Tribune With the release of The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories, Ken Liu’s short fiction has resonated with a generation of readers. From stories about time-traveling assassins, to Black Mirror-esque tales of cryptocurrency and internet trolling, to heartbreaking narratives of parent-child relationships, The Hidden Girl and Other Stories is a far-reaching work that explores topical themes from the present and a visionary look at humanity’s future. This collection includes a selection of Liu’s speculative fiction stories over the past five years—seventeen of his best—plus a new novelette. In addition, it also features an excerpt from The Veiled Throne, the third book in Liu’s epic fantasy series The Dandelion Dynasty. Stories include: Ghost Days; Maxwell's Demon; The Reborn; Thoughts and Prayers; Byzantine Empathy; The Gods Will Not Be Chained; Staying Behind; Real Artists; The Gods Will Not Be Slain; Altogether Elsewhere, Vast Herds of Reindeer; The Gods Have Not Died in Vain; Memories of My Mother; Dispatches from the Cradle: The Hermit—Forty-Eight Hours in the Sea of Massachusetts; Grey Rabbit, Crimson Mare, Coal Leopard; A Chase Beyond the Storms (an excerpt from The Veiled Throne, Book 3 of the Dandelion Dynasty); The Hidden Girl; Seven Birthdays; The Message; Cutting

The Midderlands

The Midderlands
Author: Glynn Seal
Publisher: Necromancer Games
Total Pages: 162
Release: 2020-11
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 9781943067824

A green-hued, dark-fantasy, old-school mini-setting and bestiary set in a twisted middle-England. Situated in the middle of Havenland is an area known by the ancestors as the Middle Havenlands. They don't use that name much anymore, preferring to talk lazily, and skip letters. In strange accents, often misheard and little understood by those outside of the central region, they call it 'The Midderlands', and themselves 'Midfolk' or 'Midderlanders'. Everywhere though, the Midderlands is tainted by a green-tinged menace that rises from 'Middergloom', the deep and mysterious realms beneath the surface. It affects nature and order. Sometimes subtly and sometimes catastrophically. Middergloom is often described as hell bathed in green fire and flames. Green-tinged, viscid slime; noxious, acrid vapours; and miasmas of hopelessness creep upwards from below. Amongst them, viridian-coloured demons, lime-green tentacles, and other malachite horrors claw their way to the surface to wreak havoc. The Lords of the land are always working to keep things at bay. They fight endlessly as if holding back a torrent of despair. Things stir in this viridian-hued landscape. Evil eyes blink and watch. Teeth and claws scratch and sharpen. Gaping maws slobber and drool. All is not content in the Midderlands.

The Circle

The Circle
Author: Dave Eggers
Publisher: Vintage
Total Pages: 404
Release: 2013-10-08
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 0385351402

INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER • A bestselling dystopian novel that tackles surveillance, privacy and the frightening intrusions of technology in our lives—a “compulsively readable parable for the 21st century” (Vanity Fair). When Mae Holland is hired to work for the Circle, the world’s most powerful internet company, she feels she’s been given the opportunity of a lifetime. The Circle, run out of a sprawling California campus, links users’ personal emails, social media, banking, and purchasing with their universal operating system, resulting in one online identity and a new age of civility and transparency. As Mae tours the open-plan office spaces, the towering glass dining facilities, the cozy dorms for those who spend nights at work, she is thrilled with the company’s modernity and activity. There are parties that last through the night, there are famous musicians playing on the lawn, there are athletic activities and clubs and brunches, and even an aquarium of rare fish retrieved from the Marianas Trench by the CEO. Mae can’t believe her luck, her great fortune to work for the most influential company in the world—even as life beyond the campus grows distant, even as a strange encounter with a colleague leaves her shaken, even as her role at the Circle becomes increasingly public. What begins as the captivating story of one woman’s ambition and idealism soon becomes a heart-racing novel of suspense, raising questions about memory, history, privacy, democracy, and the limits of human knowledge.