A queer pirate fantasy standalone adventure by Alexandra Rowland, the author of A Taste of Gold and Iron

Come for the irrepressible gremlin of a narrator, stay for the plot-relevant cake competitions! A whip-smart, hilarious and exuberant high seas romp.--Freya Marske, Sunday Times bestselling author of A Marvellous Light

A LitHub most anticipated book of 2024

Avra Helvaçi, former field agent of the Araşti Ministry of Intelligence, has accidentally stolen the single most expensive secret in the world--and the only place to flee with a secret that big is the open sea.

To find a buyer with deep enough pockets, Avra must ask for help from his on-again, off-again ex, the pirate Captain Teveri az-Ḥaffār. They are far from happy to see him, but together, they hatch a plan: take the information to the isolated pirate republic of the Isles of Lost Souls, fence it, profit. The only things in their way? A calculating new Araşti ambassador to the Isles of Lost Souls who's got his eyes on Avra's every move; Brother Julian, a beautiful, mysterious new member of the crew with secrets of his own and a frankly inconvenient vow of celibacy; the fact that they're sailing straight into sea serpent breeding season and almost certain doom.

But if they can find a way to survive and sell the secret on the black market, they'll all be as wealthy as kings--and, more important, they'll be legends.

A wrongfully imprisoned storyteller spins stories from his jail cell that just might have the power to save him--and take down a corrupt government.

Arrested on accusations of witchcraft and treason, Chant finds himself trapped in a cold, filthy jail cell in a foreign land. With only his advocate, the unhelpful and uninterested Consanza, he quickly finds himself cast as a bargaining chip in a brewing battle between the five rulers of this small, backwards, and petty nation.

Or, at least, that's how he would tell the story.

In truth, Chant has little idea of what is happening outside the walls of his cell, but he must quickly start to unravel the puzzle of his imprisonment before they execute him for his alleged crimes. But Chant is no witch--he is a member of a rare and obscure order of wandering storytellers. With no country to call his home, and no people to claim as his own, all Chant has is his wits and his apprentice, a lad more interested in wooing handsome shepherds than learning the ways of the world.

And yet, he has one great power: his stories in the ears of the rulers determined to prosecute him for betraying a nation he knows next to nothing about. The tales he tells will topple the Queens of Nuryevet and just maybe, save his life.

Now an Indie Next pick! A Most Anticipated Pick for BookRiot FanFi Addict The Nerd Daily io9 We Are Bookish Buzzfeed

Book of the Year for Kirkus Reviews, Book of the Year for Gizmodo, Must Read for Book Riot, Best of pick for Bustle

A delicious tangle of romance, fealty, and dangerous politics.--Tasha Suri

The Goblin Emperor meets Magnificent Century in Alexandra Rowland's A Taste of Gold and Iron, where a queer central romance unfolds in a fantasy world reminiscent of the Ottoman Empire.

Kadou, the shy prince of Arasht, finds himself at odds with one of the most powerful ambassadors at court--the body-father of the queen's new child--in an altercation which results in his humiliation.

To prove his loyalty to the queen, his sister, Kadou takes responsibility for the investigation of a break-in at one of their guilds, with the help of his newly appointed bodyguard, the coldly handsome Evemer, who seems to tolerate him at best. In Arasht, where princes can touch-taste precious metals with their fingers and myth runs side by side with history, counterfeiting is heresy, and the conspiracy they discover could cripple the kingdom's financial standing and bring about its ruin.

From the author of the critically-acclaimed fantasy novel A Taste of Gold and Iron comes a sequel/spinoff novella about loyalty and grief:

Long before Tadek Hasira ever made it to the Gold Court to serve as one of the royal family's elite bodyguards and servants, he was nothing more than a grubby street urchin in the poorest district of the capital city-that is, until her Highness, the Crown Princess Mihrişah, held out her hand in kindness, lifted him out of his circumstances, and gave him a future to dream of.

But that was twenty years ago, and tragedy befell the palace only a few years into Tadek's training. Ever since, Tadek held his unwavering love and loyalty to his princess in silence. No one knows what she was to him, and he is prepared to carry that secret for the rest of his life...

Unless someone-the right person-happens to find him standing vigil at her portrait.

Discover where faeries and other mythical creatures are hiding in our modern, urban environment with this beautifully illustrated guide to uncovering magical beings.

Like every other being in our world, fantastical creatures have been forced to adapt to the climate, industrial, and cultural changes of the modern era. Countless formerly common creatures including akeki and cave trolls have been driven out by urban sprawl and climate change while others, like ether sprites and brownies, have been able to thrive in abundance, creating homes in city environments.

Featuring descriptions of magical creatures from around the globe, this encyclopedic collection details the history and adaptability of more than fifty different species of fae. Within these pages, you'll learn about:

-The History of the Land of Faerie and who you might find there
-Immigration's Effect on legendary creatures, who often travel with us when we move
-The Native Species of the Americas, including the Thunderbird and wendigo
-The Impacts of Climate Change and Conservation, and how you can help preserve these mythical creatures
-And Beginner Tips for Fae-Spotting, including safety tips for interacting with fae​

Combining scholarship with modern lore and environmentalism, and featuring stunning hand-drawn illustrations, Finding Faeries is a captivating look at the fantastical beings that inhabit our world today.

The follow-up to the fan-favorite A Conspiracy of Truths reveals the author's stunning prose, beautiful worldbuilding, and emotional detail, (Library Journal, starred review) and serves as a timely reminder that the words we wield can bring destruction--or salvation. Three years ago, Yfling watched his master-Chant tear a nation apart with nothing but the words on his tongue. Now Ylfing is all alone in a new realm, brokenhearted and grieving--but a Chant in his own right, employed as a translator to a wealthy merchant of luxury goods, Sterre de Waeyer. But Ylfing has been struggling to come to terms with what his master did, with the audiences he's been alienated from, and with the stories he can no longer trust himself to tell. That is, until Ylfing's employer finds out what he is, what he does, and what he knows. At Sterre's command, Ylfing begins telling stories once more, fanning the city into a mania for a few shipments of an exotic flower. The prices skyrocket, but when disaster looms, Ylfing must face what he has done and decide who he wants to be: a man who walks away and lets the city shatter, as his master did? Or will he embrace the power of stories to save ten thousand lives? In this wise, moving, and captivating adventure (Publishers Weekly, starred review), a young storyteller must embrace his own skills and discover that a story can be powerful enough to bring a nation to its knees, certainly. But in the right hands, a story can rebuild a broken dam, keep the floodwaters back, and save a life--or thousands of lives.

At the center of the forest lies the sacred wood of Ystrac, god of the wilderness and the wild terror of hunted things. None can walk the path without knowing that terror.

But through the sacred wood runs the a road hung with lanterns dedicated to Talesyn, the god of poets and fire - and in the ever-burning flame of his lanterns, travelers are granted a brief respite from fear.

Two people meet at the boundary marker. One is dedicated to the god of the wood, charged to face what the forest holds and open her heart to it joyfully.

The other is dedicated to the god of the flame, and he has come to tend the lanterns and ensure their flames burn bright for years to come, no matter what he must sacrifice to do it.

The fear presses close on every side - but there is a job to do, a path to walk, and a friend to guide the way.

(Book One of the Seven Gods)

By the King's Edict, men have been banned from performing on stage.

Everyone else is still out for blood.

Sabajan Hollant, director and co-founder of the celebrated Lord Chancellor's Players, has one resolution: This time they're going to do it right. If they want to keep their noble patron-hell, if they want to stay in the theater business at all-they're going to have to keep their hands clean. No accidents, no rising to other troupes' provocations and taunts, and certainly no more duelling in the streets.

But their arch-rivals have different plans, and soon enough, Saba and her troupe are caught up once again in an escalating drama of revenge, betrayal, and outright sabotage.

The men may have started this war-but Saba and her remaining players are going to end it.

High in the mountains, there is a ravine.

Across the ravine, a bridge.

And far below the bridge, a god.

Eisl has lived on the ledge between the ravine and the cliffs since he was born. He has only ever crossed the bridge once-the terror of the god dwelling far beneath it is too much for him to bear. But when a wandering storyteller, named Ylfing and called Chant, arrives in the village, Eisl's longing to see the world of his stories with his own eyes becomes too powerful to resist.

But the ravine, the bridge, and the god are all still there, and if Eisl wishes to free himself and cross over to the other side, he must first face his greatest fear.

A queer pirate fantasy standalone adventure by Alexandra Rowland, the author of A Taste of Gold and Iron

Come for the irrepressible gremlin of a narrator, stay for the plot-relevant cake competitions! A whip-smart, hilarious and exuberant high seas romp.--Freya Marske, Sunday Times bestselling author of A Marvellous Light

A LitHub most anticipated book of 2024

Avra Helvaçi, former field agent of the Araşti Ministry of Intelligence, has accidentally stolen the single most expensive secret in the world--and the only place to flee with a secret that big is the open sea.

To find a buyer with deep enough pockets, Avra must ask for help from his on-again, off-again ex, the pirate Captain Teveri az-Ḥaffār. They are far from happy to see him, but together, they hatch a plan: take the information to the isolated pirate republic of the Isles of Lost Souls, fence it, profit. The only things in their way? A calculating new Araşti ambassador to the Isles of Lost Souls who's got his eyes on Avra's every move; Brother Julian, a beautiful, mysterious new member of the crew with secrets of his own and a frankly inconvenient vow of celibacy; the fact that they're sailing straight into sea serpent breeding season and almost certain doom.

But if they can find a way to survive and sell the secret on the black market, they'll all be as wealthy as kings--and, more important, they'll be legends.

The Fallen Angel Lucien never expected the world to end. Inconveniently enough, it did. He and Lalael, an angel of the Higher Realm, are abandoned to make their way in what's left of the world. It has changed, however. Uncountable humans have died or vanished, and leftover groups are determined to survive however they can, fighting off new dangers and killing anything they do not understand. But demons were not the only thing released into the world at the End: A strange new power fills the world, and no one knows what this might bring.