War sweeps the land as the sons and daughters of the late King Marcus battle over who will claim their father's throne and able-bodied men and women flock to one cause or the other in the hopes of a better tomorrow. At least, most of them. If life has taught the jaded sellsword, Aaron Envelar, anything, it's that hope is for fools and causes are a sure remedy for breathing. But when his latest job leads him to the corpse of a prince and a conspiracy that threatens to destroy the entire realm, Aaron is forced to choose sides in a war he doesn't want, between forces he doesn't understand. Thrust into a world of mythical assassins, a madman with superhuman strength, and a nagging ball of light with a superiority complex who claims to be the embodiment of compassion, Aaron takes on his hardest job yet--staying alive.The debut novel from Jacob Peppers, A Sellsword's Compassion, is a new entry in the great Epic Fantasy tradition of Brandon Sanderson, Patrick Rothfuss, and Robert Jordan.

Aaron Envelar thought a sellsword's life was as dangerous as any life could be.He was wrong.Trapped in a conquered city with a reward on their heads, Aaron and his companions must find a way to elude the soldiers pursuing them while he struggles to understand his bond with Co, a magical creature of myth and the Virtue of Compassion. There is power within the bond, power that could help him protect his friends, if he's lucky enough to master it before the darkness within the bond consumes him.But luck, Aaron knows, is a blade reached for in the dark, the man who grasps it as likely to bleed for his trouble as find the handle.Stalked by Belgarin's soldiers, Aaron and his companions struggle to find allies before it's too late. But Belgarin's army is not the only danger they face, and even should they escape, even should Aaron master his bond with a legendary creature of magic, they may still fail. They may still die. For there are other legends in the world, other magic. And not all legends are good ones. Not all magic is benign.

When her lover asks her to tell him a story, Eva Luna complies with this collection of tales.

War isn't coming. It's here.Aaron and his companions prevented the assassination of a queen but in doing so they angered an ancient evil. Angered it, wounded it, but did not kill it, for such evil never truly dies.An army greater than any the world has ever known marches bringing steel and death with it and somewhere a thousand-year-old evil lurks in the darkness, plotting and bending its will toward revenge.Aaron and his companions have gathered allies to help them in the coming battle and each day his bond with the Virtue of Compassion grows stronger, gifting him greater and greater power. But if life on the street taught Aaron anything, it's that no one is better able to stab you in the back as those standing behind you. And as his power with the legendary creature grows, so too does an uncontrollable rage that threatens to consume him.His enemies are many, his friends few, but no matter what happens, they will all learn the truth of a sellsword's strength. He will show them a sellsword's resolve.A Sellsword's Resolve is the third book in the epic fantasy series the Seven Virtues by Jacob Peppers. It is an action-packed dark fantasy tale of sword fighting, magic, and legends come to life.

Drizzt navigates a winding path littered with secrets and lies in this suspenseful conclusion to the Neverwinter Saga Drizzt is tangled up in Dahlia’s dark secrets more than ever. The ties that once held them close now threaten to rip apart as Dahlia’s bonds to Drizzt’s former foe, Artemis Entreri, continue to grow. Determined to stand for what’s right in the Realms once again, Drizzt forges a new road north toward Icewind Dale. Will Dahlia, Entreri, and the rest of his new companions follow? Will he be forced to fight the darkness alone? Either way, he knows now where he’s headed—back to the only place that’s ever felt like home. Meanwhile, in the caverns of Gauntlgrym, the drow Tiago Baenre enlists the help of the Bregan D’aerthe in his quest to destroy his grandfather’s killer: Drizzt Do’Urden. While making promises they may not keep, the agents of the elite drow mercenary group hide plans of their own . . . The Last Threshold is the fourth book in the Neverwinter Saga and the twenty-sixth installment in the Legend of Drizzt series.

Magic reigns, plots abound, and a new love might not conquer all, in this must-read finale to the epic Gargoyle Queen trilogy by international bestselling author Jennifer Estep. Time is running out for crown princess Gemma Ripley. Despite being a cunning spy and a powerful mind magier, Gemma hasn’t been able to track down the most dangerous enemy her kingdom of Andvari has ever seen. Adding to her worries is the Sword and Shield tournament. With gladiators flocking to the capital city of Glanzen, Gemma can’t tell who is friend—or foe. Determined to protect Andvari at any cost, Gemma hatches a bold plan, but things aren’t what they seem. Soon, everything she holds dear is being threatened, including her burgeoning relationship with Prince Leonidas Morricone. With the kingdom she holds dear slipping through her fingers, Gemma will have to conquer her fear and unlock the true secret of her magic—or watch her friends and family die and her beloved Andvari fall . . .

BOOK ONE IN THE BROKEN EMPIRE TRILOGY “Prince of Thorns deserves attention as the work of an iconoclast who seems determined to turn that familiar thing, Medievalesque Fantasy Trilogy, entirely on its head.”—Locus When he was nine, he watched as his mother and brother were killed before him. By the time he was thirteen, he was the leader of a band of bloodthirsty thugs. By fifteen, he intends to be king... It’s time for Prince Honorous Jorg Ancrath to return to the castle he turned his back on, to take what’s rightfully his. Since the day he hung pinned on the thorns of a briar patch and watched Count Renar’s men slaughter his mother and young brother, Jorg has been driven to vent his rage. Life and death are no more than a game to him—and he has nothing left to lose. But treachery awaits him in his father’s castle. Treachery and dark magic. No matter how fierce his will, can one young man conquer enemies with power beyond his imagining?

In the aftermath of the War of the Silver Marches, the combatants take stock as a new tale begins in the Legend of Drizzt series The pall that had descended over the North is gone, and a new day has dawned on a victorious Mithral Hall. But no matter how bright things seem on the surface, Drizzt and his companions know that what lurks just under their feet remains steeped in evil and charged with unimaginable power. The dark elves of Menzoberranzan, including the powerful Archmage Gromph, aren't done with Drizzt yet. And consumed by their own power struggles, feeling backed into a corner, the drow may just be desperate enough to call on demonic forces from the deepest reaches of the Abyss, and unleash a disaster even the Underdark could never have prepared for. Archmage is the first book in the Homecoming trilogy and the thirty-first book in the Legend of Drizzt series.

A GAME OF THRONES How would you like to read A Game of Thrones with a PhD by your side?Steven Attewell, creator of Race for the Iron Throne (racefortheironthrone.wordpress.com), is one of the most insightful scholars in political theory and history, but instead of devoting his talents to academia, he's delving into George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire saga to give the most comprehensive deconstruction - and explanation - yet offered.Each one of Thrones's 73 chapters is broken down in meticulous detail in four key areas. The Political and Historical Analyses explore the political ramifications that each character's decisions entail while digging into the real-world historical incidents that inspired Martin's narrative twists and turns. What If? offers up a tantalizing look at how these political and historical elements could have played out in dozens of alternative scenarios, underscoring the majesty and complexity of Martin's storytelling. And Book vs. Show looks at the key differences - both good and bad - between the story as originally conceived on the printed page and as realized in HBO's Game of Thrones.At nearly 204,000 words, it's almost literally impossible to imagine a more exhaustive or authoritative reading companion for any novel ever before published.Note: there are spoilers for all five published novels in the Song of Ice and Fire series. About the author Steven Attewell is the author of Race for the Iron Throne, a blog that examines the history and politics of the Song of Ice and Fire series and HBO's Game of Thrones. He has a PhD in History from the University of California, Santa Barbara, where he studied the history of public policy and was a political and union activist. In addition to Race for the Iron Throne, Steven is also a co-podcaster on Game of Thrones at the Lawyers, Guns, and Money podcast, writes about public policy at the Realignment Project, and is a co-author of the Tower of the Hand: A Hymn for Spring anthology book.

Entreri and Jarlaxle find themselves in the Bloodstone Lands, caught between the ghost of a power-mad lich and the fury of an oath-bound knight One of the long-lost books of the late Witch-King, Zhengyi, has been found. Its pages promise unimaginable powers—and the threat of death. But even the fact that the book kills anyone foolish enough to crack its cover does not stop people from fight over it . . . Human assassin Artemis Entreri and his dark elf companion Jarlaxle have come to the demon-haunted wastelands of the frozen north at the request of their dragon patron. It doesn’t take long for them to find themselves trapped in the middle of a struggle between powerful forces that would like nothing more than to see them both dead—or worse. But Entreri and Jarlaxle aren’t just any wandering sellswords, and the ancient evils and bitter blood-feuds of the wild Bloodstone Lands may have finally met their match. Promise of the Witch-King is the second book in the Sellswords trilogy and the fifteenth book in the Legend of Drizzt series.