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Thursday, November 30, 2017

Covers Revealed - Upcoming Works by DAC Authors


Here are some of the upcoming works by formerly featured DAC Authors! The year in parentheses is the year the author was featured in the DAC.


Lena Gregory (2016)

Scone Cold Killer
An All-Day Breakfast Café Mystery 1
Lyrical Underground, January 23, 2018
Trade Paperback and eBook

For Florida diner owner Gia Morelli, there's no such thing as too much breakfast-unless it kills you . . .

When Gia Morelli's marriage falls apart, she knows it's time to get out of New York. Her husband was a scam artist who swindled half the millionaires in town, and she doesn't want to be there when they decide to take revenge. On the spur of the moment, she follows her best friend to a small town in Central Florida, where she braves snakes, bears, and giant spiders to open a cheery little diner called the All-Day Breakfast Cafe. Owning a restaurant has been her lifelong dream, but it turns into a nightmare the morning she opens her dumpster and finds her ex-husband crammed inside. As the suspect du jour, Gia will have to scramble fast to prove her innocence before a killer orders another cup of murder . . .



Clairvoyant and Present Danger
A Bay Island Psychic Mystery 3
Berkley, February 6, 2018
Mass Market Paperback and eBook, 304 pages

A haunting vision reveals a ghostly grave in the latest Bay Island Psychic Mystery from the author of Occult and Battery.

Whoever said that dead men tell no tales has never met Cass Donnovan…

Cass has always relied on her abilities to guide her, but after communications with a ghost land her in the middle of a murder investigation, she has to wonder if her gifts are really more a curse.

Cass knows she is meant to help track down the killer–much to the chagrin of local law enforcement–when the apparition leads her to a dead body on the beach near her psychic shop, Mystical Musings. But the police are not the only ones who wish Cass would stick to reading palms. Someone is trying to scare her off, and it will take all her powers of premonition to catch the killer before Cass herself becomes the next victim…





Elan Mastai (2017)

All Our Wrong Todays
Dutton, February 20, 2018
Trade Paperback, 400 pages
Hardcover and eBook, February 7, 2017

“Entertainingly mixes thrills and humor.”—Entertainment Weekly

“[An] amazing debut novel. . . . Dazzling and complex. . . . Fearlessly funny storytelling.”—The Washington Post

“Instantly engaging. . . . A timeless, if mind-bending, story about the journeys we take, populated by friends, family, lovers, and others, that show us who we might be, could be—and maybe never should be—that eventually leads us to who we are.”—USA Today

Elan Mastai’s acclaimed debut novel is a story of friendship and family, of unexpected journeys and alternate paths, and of love in its multitude of forms.


It’s 2016, and in Tom Barren’s world, technology has solved all of humanity’s problems—there’s no war, no poverty, no under-ripe avocadoes. Unfortunately, Tom isn’t happy. He’s lost the girl of his dreams. And what do you do when you’re heartbroken and have a time machine? Something stupid.

Finding himself stranded in a terrible alternate reality—which we immediately recognize as our 2016—Tom is desperate to fix his mistake and go home. Right up until the moment he discovers wonderfully unexpected versions of his family, his career, and the woman who may just be the love of his life.

Now Tom faces an impossible choice. Go back to his perfect but loveless life. Or stay in our messy reality with a soulmate by his side. His search for the answer takes him across continents and timelines in a quest to figure out, finally, who he really is and what his future—our future—is supposed to be.

Filled with humor and heart and packed with insight, intelligence, and mind-bending invention, All Our Wrong Todays is a powerful and moving story of life, loss, and love.





Adelia Saunders (2017)

Indelible
Bloomsbury USA, January 16, 2018
Trade Paperback, 288 pages
Hardcover and eBook, January 17, 2017

A masterful, "seductive" debut novel about fate, family secrets, and the stories our bodies tell (NYTBR).

Magdalena has an unsettling gift. She sees the truth about people written on their skin--names, dates, details both banal and profound--and her only relief from the onslaught of information is to take off her glasses and let the world recede. Mercifully, her own skin is blank.

When she meets Neil, she is intrigued to see her name on his cheek, and she is drawn into a family drama that began more than half a century before, when Neil's father, Richard, was abandoned at birth by his mother, a famous expatriate novelist. As secrets are revealed among forgotten texts in the archives of Paris, on a dusty cattle ranch in the American West, along ancient pilgrim paths, and in a run-down apartment in post-Soviet Lithuania, the novel's unforgettable characters converge--by chance, or perhaps by fate--and Magdalena's uncanny ability may be the key to their happiness.

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Marvel Studios' Avengers: Infinity War Official Trailer


The first official trailer for Avengers: Infinity Wars has been released!




The film will be in theaters on May 4, 2018.
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The Alienist - New Trailer



The Alienist opens when a series of haunting murders of boy prostitutes grips New York City. Newly appointed police commissioner Theodore Roosevelt (Brian Geraghty) calls upon criminal psychologist Dr. Laszlo Kreizler (Daniel Brühl) and newspaper illustrator John Moore (Luke Evans) to conduct the investigation in secret. They are joined by Sara Howard (Dakota Fanning), a headstrong secretary determined to become the city's first female police detective. Using the emerging disciplines of psychology and forensics, this band of social outsiders set out to apprehend one of New York City's first serial killers. The limited series also stars Douglas Smith, Matthew Shear, Matt Lintz, Robert Ray Wisdom and Q'orianka Kilcher.

The Alienist premieres across TNT’s television, mobile and digital platforms on Monday, January 22, at 9:00 p.m. (ET/PT).
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The White King Coming to VOD on December 5, 2017


1984 MEETS A HANDMAID'S TALE IN A "COMPELLING
AND ALL-TOO-TIMELY[1]" DYSTOPIAN SCI-FI DRAMA

THE WHITE KING

Street Date: December 5, 2017
DVD SRP: $24.95

Jonathan Pryce, Fiona Shaw, Agyness Deyn, Greta Scacchi, Ross Partridge 
and Newcomer Lorenzo Allchurch Star in This Acclaimed Film Arriving
on DVD & Digital from Omnibus Entertainment


THE WHITE KING (Exclusive Clip)

Combining elements of George Orwell's 1984 with J. G. Ballard's Empire of the Sun, and featuring themes similarly explored in the current hit series "A Handmaid's Tale" and "The Man in the High Castle," THE WHITE KING, the debut feature film from co-directors Alex Helfrecht and Jörg Tittel, is a sci-fi drama set in a dystopian future. Based on the internationally acclaimed, award winning novel by György Dragomán, the stark genre film called "eerily prescient given the current state of political affairs" (WOW247) stars Jonathan Pryce ("Game of Thrones"), Agyness Deyn (Sunset Song), Greta Scacchi ("War & Peace"), Ólafur Darri Ólafsson (The BFG), Fiona Shaw (Harry Potter series), Ross Partridge ("Stranger Things") and newcomer Lorenzo Allchurch.
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Shin Megami Tensei V Coming to the West on Nintendo Switch


ATLUS Confirms Shin Megami Tensei V for the West
on Nintendo Switch!


IRVINE, Calif. - Nov. 29, 2017 - ATLUS today announced that Shin Megami Tensei V will be coming West for Nintendo Switch™. Set in modern Tokyo, players will face a new onslaught of demons in the latest from the highly-acclaimed series.

More details, including release date and pricing, will be announced at a later date.
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Wednesday, November 29, 2017

Covers Revealed - Upcoming Works by DAC Authors


Here are some of the upcoming works by formerly featured DAC Authors! The year in parentheses is the year the author was featured in the DAC.


Keith Rosson (2017)

Smoke City
Meerkat Press, January 23, 2018
Hardcover and eBook, 325 pages

Marvin Deitz has some serious problems. His mob-connected landlord is strong-arming him out of his storefront. His therapist has concerns about his stability. He's compelled to volunteer at the local Children's Hospital even though it breaks his heart every week.

Oh, and he's also the guilt-ridden reincarnation of Geoffroy Thérage, the French executioner who lit Joan of Arc's pyre in 1431. He's just seen a woman on a Los Angeles talk show claiming to be Joan, and absolution seems closer than it's ever been . . . but how will he find her?

When Marvin heads to Los Angeles to locate the woman who may or may not be Joan, he's picked up hitchhiking by Mike Vale, a self-destructive alcoholic painter traveling to his ex-wife's funeral. As they move through a California landscape populated with "smokes" (ghostly apparitions that've inexplicably begun appearing throughout the southwestern US), each seeks absolution in his own way.





Matthew Sullivan (2017)

Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore
Scribner, January 9, 2018
Trade Paperback, 352 pages
Hardcover and eBook, June 13, 2017

When a bookshop patron commits suicide, his favorite store clerk must unravel the puzzle he left behind in this “intriguingly dark, twisty” (Kirkus Reviews) debut novel from an award-winning short story writer.

Lydia Smith lives her life hiding in plain sight. A clerk at the Bright Ideas bookstore, she keeps a meticulously crafted existence among her beloved books, eccentric colleagues, and the BookFrogs—the lost and lonely regulars who spend every day marauding the store’s overwhelmed shelves.

But when Joey Molina, a young, beguiling BookFrog, kills himself in the bookstore’s upper room, Lydia’s life comes unglued. Always Joey’s favorite bookseller, Lydia has been bequeathed his meager worldly possessions. Trinkets and books; the detritus of a lonely, uncared for man. But when Lydia flips through his books she finds them defaced in ways both disturbing and inexplicable. They reveal the psyche of a young man on the verge of an emotional reckoning. And they seem to contain a hidden message. What did Joey know? And what does it have to do with Lydia?

As Lydia untangles the mystery of Joey’s suicide, she unearths a long buried memory from her own violent childhood. Details from that one bloody night begin to circle back. Her distant father returns to the fold, along with an obsessive local cop, and the Hammerman, a murderer who came into Lydia’s life long ago and, as she soon discovers, never completely left. “Both charming and challenging” (Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times Book Review), Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore is a “multi-generational tale of abandonment, desperation, and betrayal…inventive and intricately plotted” (Publishers Weekly, starred review).





Melodie Winawer (2017)

The Scribe of Siena
Touchstone, January 2, 2018
Trade Paperback, 480 pages
Hardcover and eBook, May 16, 2017

“Readers of Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander and Tracy Chevalier’s Girl with a Pearl Earring…will be swept away by the spell of medieval Siena” (Library Journal, starred review) in this transporting love story and gripping historical mystery.

Accomplished neurosurgeon Beatrice Trovato knows that her deep empathy for her patients is starting to impede her work. So when her beloved brother passes away, she welcomes the unexpected trip to the Tuscan city of Siena to resolve his estate, even as she wrestles with grief. But as she delves deeper into her brother’s affairs, she discovers intrigue she never imagined—a 700-year-old conspiracy to decimate the city.

As Beatrice explores the evidence further, she uncovers the journal and paintings of the fourteenth-century artist Gabriele Accorsi. But when she finds a startling image of her own face, she is suddenly transported to the year 1347. She awakens in a Siena unfamiliar to her, one that will soon be hit by the Plague.

Yet when Beatrice meets Accorsi, something unexpected happens: she falls in love—not only with Gabriele, but also with the beauty and cadence of medieval life. As the Plague and the ruthless hands behind its trajectory threaten not only her survival but also Siena’s very existence, Beatrice must decide in which century she belongs.

The Scribe of Siena is the captivating story of a brilliant woman’s passionate affair with a time and a place that captures her in an impossibly romantic and dangerous trap—testing the strength of fate and the bonds of love.

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STAR OCEAN - THE LAST HOPE – 4K & Full HD Remaster Available Now



STAR OCEAN - THE LAST HOPE - 4K & Full HD Remaster NOW AVAILABLE

LOS ANGELES (Nov. 28, 2017) ­­– Travelers are invited to embark on a galactic adventure just in time for the holidays with STAR OCEAN® - THE LAST HOPE –™ 4K & Full HD Remaster. The prequel to the franchise is now available for the PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system and STEAM®.
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Sid Meier’s Civilization® VI: Rise and Fall Available February 8, 2018


Read Paul Weimer on Civilization VI here!




Sid Meier’s Civilization® VI: Rise and Fall
Available February 8, 2018

Deepest Civilization experience to date adds new leaders, civilizations, units, wonders and all-new game systems.

Join the conversation on Twitter using the hashtag #OneMoreTurn


NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--2K and Firaxis Games announced today that Sid Meier’s Civilization® VI: Rise and Fall, the expansion pack for the critically acclaimed and award-winning strategy title, will be available for Windows PC on February 8, 2018.

Civilization VI: Rise and Fall brings new choices, strategies, and challenges for players as they guide a civilization through the ages. The expansion introduces new Great Ages, a new city loyalty system, and Governors while expanding existing Diplomacy and Government systems; and adds nine new leaders and eight new civilizations, a variety of new units, districts, wonders, buildings, and more. Players can now lead their empire into a Golden Age of prosperity or emerge triumphantly from a Dark Age into a memorable Heroic Age.
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Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Covers Revealed - Recent and Upcoming Novels by DAC Authors


Here are some of the recent and upcoming works by formerly featured DAC Authors! The year in parentheses is the year the author was featured in the DAC.


RJ Barker (2017)

Blood of Assassins
The Wounded Kingdom 2
Orbit, February 13, 2018
Trade Paperback and eBook, 480 pages

The king is dead, long live the king...

The assassin Girton Club-foot and his master have returned to Maniyadoc in hope of finding sanctuary, but death, as always, dogs Girton's heels.

The place he knew no longer exists. War rages across Maniyadoc, with three kings claiming the same crown - and one of them is Girton's old friend Rufra. Girton finds himself hurrying to uncover a plot to murder Rufra on what should be the day of the king's greatest victory. But while Girton deals with threats inside and outside Rufra's war encampment, he can't help wondering if his greatest enemy hides beneath his own skin.

Blood of Assassins is the epic sequel to RJ Barker's debut Age of Assassins, set in a world ravaged by magic, featuring a cast of assassins, knights, ambitious noblemen, and fools.





Callie Bates (2017)

The Waking Land
The Waking Land 1
Del Rey, January 2, 2018
Trade Paperback, 432 pages
Hardcover and eBook, June 27, 2017

In the lush and magical tradition of Naomi Novik’s award-winning Uprooted comes this riveting debut from brilliant young writer Callie Bates—whose boundless imagination places her among the finest authors of fantasy fiction, including Sarah J. Maas and Sabaa Tahir.

Lady Elanna is fiercely devoted to the king who raised her like a daughter. But when he dies under mysterious circumstances, Elanna is accused of his murder—and must flee for her life.

Returning to the homeland of magical legends she has forsaken, Elanna is forced to reckon with her despised, estranged father, branded a traitor long ago. Feeling a strange, deep connection to the natural world, she also must face the truth about the forces she has always denied or disdained as superstition—powers that suddenly stir within her.

But an all-too-human threat is drawing near, determined to exact vengeance. Now Elanna has no choice but to lead a rebellion against the kingdom to which she once gave her allegiance. Trapped between divided loyalties, she must summon the courage to confront a destiny that could tear her apart.



The Memory of Fire
The Waking Land 2
Del Rey, June 5, 2018
Hardcover and eBook, 448 pages

Callie Bates’s debut novel, The Waking Land, announced the arrival of a brilliant new talent in epic fantasy. Now, with The Memory of Fire, Bates expertly deepens her tale, spinning glittering threads of magic and intrigue into a vibrant tapestry of adventure, betrayal, and romance.

Thanks to the magic of Elanna Valtai and the Paladisan noble Jahan Korakide, he lands once controlled by the empire of Paladis have won their independence. But as Elanna exhausts her powers restoring the ravaged land, news that the emperor is readying an invasion spurs Jahan on a desperate mission to establish peace.

Going back to Paladis proves to be anything but peaceful. As magic is a crime in the empire, punishable by death, Jahan must hide his abilities. Nonetheless, the grand inquisitor’s hunters suspect him of sorcery, and mysterious, urgent messages from the witch who secretly trained Jahan only increase his danger of being exposed. Worst of all, the crown prince has turned his back on Jahan, robbing him of the royal protection he once enjoyed.

As word of Jahan’s return spreads, long-sheathed knives, sharp and deadly, are drawn again. And when Elanna, stripped of her magic, is brought to the capital in chains, Jahan must face down the traumas of his past to defeat the shadowy enemies threatening his true love’s life, and the future of the revolution itself.





Ada Palmer (2016)

Seven Surrenders
Terra Ignota 2
Tor Books, November 28, 2017
Trade Paperback,
Hardcover and eBook, March 7, 2017

From 2017 John W. Campbell Award winner, Ada Palmer, the second book of Terra Ignota, a political science fiction epic of extraordinary audacity

“A cornucopia of dazzling, sharp ideas set in rich, wry prose that rewards rumination with layers of delight. Provocative, erudite, inventive, resplendent.” —Ken Liu, author of The Grace of Kings

In a future of near-instantaneous global travel, of abundant provision for the needs of all, a future in which no one living can remember an actual war…a long era of stability threatens to come to an abrupt end.

For known only to a few, the leaders of the great Hives, nations without fixed locations, have long conspired to keep the world stable, at the cost of just a little blood. A few secret murders, mathematically planned. So that no faction can ever dominate, and the balance holds. And yet the balance is beginning to give way.

Mycroft Canner, convict, sentenced to wander the globe in service to all, knows more about this conspiracy than he can ever admit. Carlyle Foster, counselor, sensayer, has secrets as well, and they burden Carlyle beyond description. And both Mycroft and Carlyle are privy to the greatest secret of all: Bridger, the child who can bring inanimate objects to life.

Shot through with astonishing invention, Ada Palmer's Seven Surrenders is the next movement in one of the great science fiction epics of our time.

“Seven Surrenders veers expertly between love, murder, mayhem, parenthood, theology, and high politics. I haven't had this much fun with a book in a long time.” —Max Gladstone, author of Three Parts Dead



The Will to Battle
Terra Ignota 3
Tor Books, December 19, 2017
Hardcover and eBook, 352 pages

The Will to Battle—the third book of 2017 John W. Campbell Award winner Ada Palmer's Terra Ignota series—a political science fiction epic of extraordinary audacity

“A cornucopia of dazzling, sharp ideas set in rich, wry prose that rewards rumination with layers of delight. Provocative, erudite, inventive, resplendent.” —Ken Liu, author of The Grace of Kings

The long years of near-utopia have come to an abrupt end.

Peace and order are now figments of the past. Corruption, deception, and insurgency hum within the once steadfast leadership of the Hives, nations without fixed location.

The heartbreaking truth is that for decades, even centuries, the leaders of the great Hives bought the world’s stability with a trickle of secret murders, mathematically planned. So that no faction could ever dominate. So that the balance held.

The Hives’ façade of solidity is the only hope they have for maintaining a semblance of order, for preventing the public from succumbing to the savagery and bloodlust of wars past. But as the great secret becomes more and more widely known, that façade is slipping away.

Just days earlier, the world was a pinnacle of human civilization. Now everyone—Hives and hiveless, Utopians and sensayers, emperors and the downtrodden, warriors and saints—scrambles to prepare for the seemingly inevitable war.

“Seven Surrenders veers expertly between love, murder, mayhem, parenthood, theology, and high politics. I haven't had this much fun with a book in a long time.” —Max Gladstone, author of Three Parts Dead

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Kick-Ass Trade Paperbacks Coming to Image Comics in February 2018


KICK-ASS TRADE PAPERBACKS FIND NEW HOME AT IMAGE COMICS

Image Comics is pleased to announce that the bestselling trade paperback collections of the hit comic book series, KICK-ASS by comic book legends Mark Millar (KINGSMAN: THE SECRET SERVICE, HIT-GIRL) and artist John Romita Jr., will find a new home at Image Comics. KICK-ASS, VOL. 1-4 of the trade paperbacks will hit stores this February 2018—just in time for the February 10th anniversary of the series.

The beloved KICK-ASS series introduces teen comic book nerd Dave Lizewski, who dons his homemade Kick-Ass costume and takes to the streets of NYC to fight the city's hardest criminals. This New York Times bestseller became a worldwide phenomenon overnight, spending three months at the top spot on the Diamond Direct Market chart and spawning the KICK-ASS movie that opened at No.1 in the box office.
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Dozens of Games at Big Discounts are Part of the Nintendo eShop Cyber Deals



Great Deals on Digital Games for Nintendo Switch, Nintendo 3DS 
and Wii U

Whether you or someone on your holiday shopping list is a fan of action games, RPGs, platformers, puzzle games or party favorites, the Nintendo eShop Cyber Deals sale has something for every type of player. With discounts up to 75 percent off on select digital games for the Nintendo Switch system, the Nintendo 3DS family of systems and the Wii U system, the Nintendo eShop sale, which runs now through Dec. 11 at 8:59 a.m. PT, offers a huge selection of games for fans of all ages.
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Monday, November 27, 2017

Destiny 2's PS4 and Xbox One Free Trial Starts November 28th



Destiny 2’s free trial begins tomorrow, November 28, on PlayStation 4, PC and Xbox One.

Download Destiny 2 through your console or Blizzard Battle.net to participate.

Team up with friends or play solo and experience your first steps in the epic cinematic-filled campaign, explore new worlds, and face off in competitive multiplayer.

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The View From Monday - November 27, 2017


Happy last Monday in November!


There is one debut this week:

Weave a Circle Round by Kari Maaren.

Clicking on a novel's cover will take you to its Amazon page.



From formerly featured DAC Authors:

The Resurrection Game (Conspiracy of Angels 3) by Michelle Belanger;

Dangerously Divine (Broken Riders 2) by Deborah Blake;

Shadow Sun Seven (The Starfire Trilogy 2) by Spencer Ellsworth;

The Squirrel on the Train (Oberon's Meaty Mysteries 2) by Kevin Hearne; 

Sins of Empire (Gods of Blood and Powder 1) by Brian McClellan is out in Trade Paperback;

Seven Surrenders (Terra Ignota 2) by Ada Palmer is out in Trade Paperback;

Blood and Tempest (The Empire of Storms 3 ) by Jon Skovron;

and

Thunderbird (Miriam Black 4) by Chuck Wendig is out in Trade Paperback.

Clicking on a novel's cover will take you to its Amazon page.






Debut novels are highlighted in blue. Novels, etc. by formerly featured DAC Authors are highlighted in green.

November 28, 2017
TITLEAUTHORSERIES
Taming the Lion: Saving His Wolf Kerry Adrienne PNR - Shifter Wars 3
The Resurrection Game Michelle Belanger DF/UF - Conspiracy of Angels 3
Dangerously Divine Deborah Blake PNR - Broken Riders 2
Eagle Rising David Devereux DF
Darkness Falling Ian Douglas SF - Andromedan Dark 2
Once Bitten, Twice Burned Cynthia Eden PNR - Phoenix Fire Novel 2
Starfire: Shadow Sun Seven Spencer Ellsworth SF/SO - The Starfire Trilogy 2
Dark Magic (ri) Christine Feehan PNR -Dark 4
The Brightest Embers Jeaniene Frost PNR - A Broken Destiny Novel 3
The Devastation of Baal Guy Haley SF - Space Marine Conquests 1
The Keeper of Lost Things
(h2tp)		 Ruth Hogan Fict
Djinn City Saad Z. Hossain F/CF/HU
Tales of the Slayer (e) Various SF/F/H - Buffy the Vampire Slayer Series 1
Star Trek Prometheus - Fire with Fire Bernd Perplies
Christian Humberg 		SF - Star Trek Prometheus
Mrs. Caliban (ri) Rachel Ingalls LF
Vampire Fight Club (e) Larissa Ione PNR - A Demonica Story
Mass Effect: Initiation N.K. Jemisin
Mac Walters		 SF/MTI - Mass Effect
Unleash the Night Sherrilyn Kenyon FR/CF/P - Dark-Hunter 8
Revival (ri) Stephen King H
Wake a Sleeping Tiger (h2mm) Lora Leigh PNR - Breeds 31
Weave a Circle Round (D) Kari Maaren CF/SF/TT/CoA
Titan: Fortune of War David Mack SF - Star Trek
Sins of Empire (h2tp) Brian McClellan F - Gods of Blood and Powder 1
Cold Welcome (h2mm) Elizabeth Moon SF/SO - Vatta's Peace 1
Seven Surrenders (h2tp) Ada Palmer SF - Terra Ignota 2
Deathwatch: The Omnibus Steve Parker
Justin D Hill
Ian St. Martin
and more 		SF - Deathwatch
The Goblet S.C. Parris DF - The Dark World 5
The Year of the Knife G.D. Penman F/Th/UF
Bay of Sighs (tp2mm) Nora Roberts PNR - Guardians Trilogy 2
Blood and Tempest Jon Skovron F - The Empire of Storms 3
Extinction War Nicholas Sansbury Smith SF - The Extinction Cycle 7
The Curious Affair of the Witch at Wayside Cross (e) Lisa Tuttle PM - From the Casebooks of Jesperson & Lane 2
Shadow of Victory (h2mm) David Weber SF - Honor Harrington 19
Thunderbird (h2tp) Chuck Wendig SupTh - Miriam Black 4



November 29, 2017
TITLEAUTHORSERIES
Wyvern's Outlaw (e) Deborah Cooke FR - The Dragons of Incendium 4
Behind the Mask (e) Joel Derfner
Paul Witcover		 HistF - Tremontaine Season 3 #8



November 30, 2017
TITLEAUTHORSERIES
Penric's Mission Lois McMaster Bujold F - World of the Five Gods Novella
The Squirrel on the Train Kevin Hearne UF - Oberon's Meaty Mysteries 2
The Handyman Bentley Little H
Deadknobs and Doomsticks Joe Pasquale H - Collection



D - Debut
e - eBook
Ed - Editor
h2mm - Hardcover to Mass Market Paperback
h2tp - Hardcover to Trade Paperback
ri - reissue or reprint
tp2mm - Trade to Mass Market Paperback
Tr - Translator



AC - Alien Contact
AH - Alternate History
AP - Apocalyptic
Bio - Biography
CF - Contemporary Fantasy
CoA - Coming of Age
CyP - CyberPunk
DF - Dark Fantasy
Dys - Dystopian
F - Fantasy
FairyT - Fairy Tales
Fict - Fiction
FM - Folklore and Mythology
FolkT - Folk Tales
FR - Fantasy Romance
GenEng - Genetic Engineering
GH - Ghost(s)
Gothic - Gothic
H - Horror
HC - History and Criticism
Hist - Historical
HistF - Historical Fantasy
HU - Humor
LC - Literary Criticism
LF - Literary Fiction
LM - Legends and Mythology
M - Mystery
MR - Magical Realism
MTI - Media Tie-In
MU - MashUp
Noir - Noir
Occ - Occult
P - Paranormal
PA - Post Apocalyptic
PCM - Paranormal Cozy Mystery
PHR- Paranormal Historical Romance
PM - Paranormal Mystery
PNR - Paranormal Romance
Psy - Psychological
PsySus - Psychological Suspense
PsyTh - Psychological Thriller
R - Romance
Ref - Reference
RP - Role Playing
Sc - Science
SH -Superheroes
SF - Science Fiction
SFR - Science Fiction Romance
SO - Space Opera
SP - SteamPunk
SpecFic - Speculative Fiction
Sup - Supernatural
SupM - Supernatural Mystery
SupTh - Supernatural Thriller
Th - Thriller
TT - Time Travel
UF - Urban Fantasy

Note: Not all genres and formats are found in the books, etc. listed above.

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Sunday, November 26, 2017

Confessions of a Full Time Dungeon Master – Volume 1


Please welcome Joe Alfano to The Qwillery!



Confessions of a Full Time Dungeon Master – Volume 1

Just imagine if you will we are in the basement of a church… or a community center. Everyone is sitting in those awful folding chairs that are ready to fall apart if you breathe wrong. Stale donuts sit in a box on a folding table at the back of the room while coffee burns in the pot. Not that it was ever really that good of coffee to begin with.

Standing up at the podium (not that you could really call it that) is a middle aged man with more grey in his beard than brown, wearing a black hoodie with a red ampersand taking up the back of it. He leans heavily on the podium, the signs of an old injury that still troubles him. “Hello. My name is Joe… and I’m a Dungeon Master.”

It is a reality I face quite a bit. I feel at times as if this hobby of mine is an addiction. One that I have been feeding for thirty seven years. It is a lot of fun to tell folks I am teaching the game at our local venue that I have been playing this game longer than they’ve been alive. Especially when they aren’t exactly kids themselves. At least one of the venues I roll at, Pegasus Games (Madison, WI), is like me – they’ve been in business for 37 years. Hell, I bought my AD&D Players Handbook from them the first year they were in business.

We’re both still here, and both still rolling the dice. But the game has grown out of my parents family room. And yes, that was in the basement. It has grown past (for the most part) the speculation of the occult nature of the game, and become a favorite pastime for families. It has also grown from something I play with a handful of friends at my house, to an event with several dungeon masters, and around forty to four hundred players.

This month I was forced to make some decisions. Some tough ones. Ones I didn’t want to make. I had way too much on my plate and I knew it. So I had to decide what I was going to cut free in the upcoming year. This was the first time where NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) was at the top of that list. Not because I’m going to stop writing, because I’m not. But because there was more of a bond between me and my Adventurers League community that with the NaNoWriMo community.

But the questions I face the most often (usually by family that think I am insane for the amount of time and effort I put into organized play), are the “why” and the “how” questions. I will answer the first in this journal, and the latter in a number of upcoming journals. The how of what I do isn’t nearly as easy as the why.

This November brought the largest entry of Adventurers League at Gamehole Con as we have ever had. The largest in the country at 61 consecutive tables of Dungeons and Dragons. At any given point in time, we would have up to 500 people playing D&D at once. How does something like that get organized? By two people, myself and a friend of mine, Thomas Valley.

Thomas was the organizer of AL for the convention when I was finally able to attend. The first two years of the convention it was set to the same weekend as Tesla Con, our big steampunk convention and the only form of geekery my wife has really embraced. So I attended the steampunk convention and waited for my time. At Gamehole Con 3 the dates finally matched up – which still had me doing two conventions the same month as NaNoWriMo. At the same time, I was informed they were looking for Dungeon Masters as the AL room had grown to 15 tables.

That was my first year of running and I ran over 34 hours of games. I played in one two hour game. At it, I met up with some people I had met less than a month earlier at a smaller regional convention near Milwaukee that I did a single day at to check it out and spend some money at their auction they were having to raise money for the family of a DM of theirs that had been killed in an accident recently. We discussed the amount of money raised and the educational fund that was being set up for his daughter.

This was the community I am talking about. I am seeing some of those same people again this year. I don’t get to spend as much time running tables for them as I have stepped in as an organizer to help Thomas. Something I started with shortly after that first outing at Gamehole Con. Fifteen tables became twenty four. We were talking about doubling the space this year but only increasing the tables by 50% - so thirty six tables. Ten months before we were going to be opening the doors on Gamehole Con 5, we saw an email congratulating us as we were getting sixty one tables – the largest single space for a single game other than True Dungeon.

This year the weekend of Gamehole Con was also the same weekend as the Extra Life 24 hour weekend. We streamed two of the Extra Life games from Gamehole Con – with the rest being done back in Renton. But that meant we couldn’t do one locally. I was at the con from 7am until past midnight every day through the con, and so were most of my DMs. (Sixty one tables, remember?) So what do I do? I plan to run ours on our normal venue weekend on the 11th, one week after. But instead of tagging out DMs and games every four hours through the event, we went hardcore – 24 hours of straight gaming. Starting off at level 1 in Tomb of Annihilation.

I originally started with two tables. One run by me, and one run by my son (and DM that took my 44 hour DM shift now that I am an organizer at the con). My other local venue organizer didn’t think I would fill out seven players. I had to add more Dungeon Masters to the roster until I tapped out at five full tables set to run a marathon game of D&D raising money for Extra Life – specifically with our funds going to the Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin. That is forty people all staying up through the night to play D&D. And we raised just under $9000.

I watched people at the convention that I ran games for my first year there ask how they could give back to the convention. They wanted to run at least a couple of tables for us – to help show their appreciation. It doesn’t hurt that we give swag to our DMs for putting forth such an effort for us either. But the real point was that they had so much fun at the convention that they wanted to help other people have fun there too. I told several people at the end of the weekend that the more players step up and offer to do even 14 hours of volunteering for the hall will get their badge covered, but more importantly, the more people I have that do that, the less people I need putting in 30-40 hours over the weekend.

I also saw celebrities from our large list of special guests come to the hall to sit in on our Golden Ticket tables, where players donated to the convention charity to play through all of our premiere content with the same party of adventurers and the same Dungeon Master. Each time slot I could, I placed a celebrity player at the 7th player seat. And due to some of our VIPs jumping in for extra shifts, I never had an open seat at those tables. Some of them even sat in on general games on our floor. I even had one run a special game for a young lady they met at the con. I will always find a table for a game like that to happen.

I have met so many great friends through Adventurers League and the precursors to it. So many that I have managed to lose some of those friends – an unfortunate side effect of getting so old. But I would never take back all of those good times I had with those friends to free myself of having to say goodbye to them. That right there is the why behind what I do. Every time.

The “how” is something even more complex. Definitely something that will take more than the 1500 or so words that the “why” is taking up. So for today, I shall leave you with this. Next time I will go into what it takes from our end to keep ourselves going and to keep the events running. Remember the aforementioned Thomas above? Well I have a couple of local versions of Thomas – that is the first clue. Or… to quote Nicholas Cage from Con Air…

“Many hands make light work. My daddy taught me that.”

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Saturday, November 25, 2017

Excerpt from Dangerously Divine by Deborah Blake and Giveaway


Please welcome Deborah Blake with an excerpt from Dangerously Divine, the 2nd Broken Rider novel, coming on November 28th from Berkley. And enter the giveaway for a US$10 Amazon Gift Card.



Dangerously Divine
A Broken Rider Novel 2
Berkley, November 28, 2017
Mass Market Paperback and eBook, 304 pages

The author of the “wonderful” (Tamora Pierce) Baba Yaga novels and Dangerously Charming is back with a magically mesmerizing new tale about the dashing and daring Broken Riders…

The Riders: Three immortal brothers who kept the Baba Yagas safe, now stripped of their summons to protect. But fate is not finished with them—and their new callings are even more powerful…

Though his physical wounds have healed, Gregori Sun, the eldest of the Riders, remains in spiritual turmoil. His search for his mother, the one person able to heal his soul and save his life, is failing—until he crosses paths with a beautiful and fascinating librarian who might be the key to his salvation…

Ciera Evans’s bookish ways are just a guise. The product of a difficult past, she has dedicated her life to saving lost teens—by any means necessary. She works alone, but when a dark, brooding stranger proposes they team up to solve both their problems, she is tempted—in more ways than one…

After Ciera and Sun’s plans are derailed by dangerous enemies, they find themselves entangled in an ungodly affair—one that will force them to either find new strength together or be forever haunted by their pasts alone.








Chapter 1

Gregori Sun stared at his reflection in the spotty bathroom mirror of a cheap motel: waist-length straight dark hair pulled back in a tail, black eyes set at a slight slant over the flat cheekbones of his Mongolian ancestors, and the Fu Manchu mustache he’d worn since he’d become a man, longer ago than anyone who met him might imagine. The harsh glare of the light fixture glinted off the straight razor in his right hand. It trembled almost imperceptibly, a leftover echo of the debilitating damage he’d taken a year ago at the hands of the deranged and powerful witch who had once been his ally and a trusted friend.
        A deep breath and a moment’s focused attention banished the tremor and steadied his hand for the task ahead. Sun entertained the wistful thought that it would be nice if all his other remaining issues could be dealt with as easily. But he was not a man who had ever taken the easy way, even if there had been one available, which there was not. Hence this next step.
        Before he could change his mind, the razor flashed—once, twice, three times. Black hair fell into the sink, its darkness a stark contrast against the pitted white porcelain, just as his former life was a stark contrast to his present existence and his future path. The acrid smell of the motel’s antiseptic cleaner echoed his mood.
        Now the face staring back at him seemed to belong to a stranger. Clean-shaven, with hair barely long enough to be held back by the leather thong he wore, the man in the mirror seemed somehow younger and more vulnerable, although he still wore Sun’s habitual aura of impenetrable calm. As with much else in Sun’s life these days, it was more semblance than reality.
        The Buddhist monastery he was entering didn’t require first-year novices to shave their heads, any more than it mandated specific formal clothing. Students were only expected to obey the basic rules and follow the regimen of study, practice, and service. Sun had laid aside his traditional red leathers and silks anyway, as another way of putting aside the past, and now wore loose black wool pants and a black cotton turtleneck more suited to the frigid Minnesota winters.
        The commitment he was making felt worthy of a symbolic sacrifice, even if no one was aware of it but him.
        This was a new beginning in search of a new man; he couldn’t go into it looking the same as he had for more than a thousand years. Sun was so changed on the inside, he barely knew who he was any more. His outside might as well reflect that.

The alley reeked of rancid garbage, burning grease from the Chinese restaurant at the far end, and other pungent odors best not examined too closely, the smell so strong it almost seemed like a solid presence. An abandoned collection of ramshackle cardboard, once the temporary shelter for a homeless person, continued its slow, decaying crumble down the brick side of the building to her left, and rats scrabbled over some half-frozen garbage in an overturned can to her right.
        Ciera Evans ignored them all as she concentrated on her silent pursuit of the man she’d followed for the last six nights. He vanished into the back of a dimly lit building, the door gaping open long enough to reveal a smoky interior and a circle of men sitting around a faded green table playing poker. Drunken laughter spilled out into the night and then cut off with a slam that even the rats ignored. It was that kind of neighborhood.
        Not what she was looking for, she thought. Not tonight. But soon.
        She backed away, careful not to trip over anything in the alley as she tucked a stray lock of dark curly hair under the hoodie that kept her reasonably warm on this cold Minnesota night while also masking her distinctive features. The worn brown leather jacket she wore on top of the hoodie fit right into the usual local attire, so she wasn’t too worried about being noticed on her way back to the car.
        A couple of blocks away, though, Ciera realized she was being stalked in turn. Ironic, really. And a little inconvenient, but she could feel the pulse speed up in her throat and admitted to herself that on some level she was almost eager to be forced into action after long nights of watching and waiting and doing nothing.
        The two men who followed her no doubt thought she was easy prey. They were about to find out just how wrong they were.
        “Hand over your money and your phone and nobody needs to get hurt,” said the bigger of the two toughs as they closed in on her. His heavy boots clattered on the icy sidewalk, the same sound that had alerted Ciera to her unwanted escort.
        “That’s what you think,” Ciera said, using a low, raspy voice to disguise her sex. A twist of her wrists sent her fighting sticks sliding out of her sleeves and into her hands, and she set her feet in a stance that was both rooted and flexible. “Last chance to walk away, boys.”
        The shorter man, underdressed for the weather in ripped pants and holey sneakers, shook his shaved head. “Not a chance, dude. In case you haven’t noticed, there are two of us and only one of you, and you’re kind of scrawny. A couple of pieces of wood aren’t going to save you.” He nodded to his friend and they both moved in closer, scruffy faces wearing matching expressions of stubble-adorned menace.
        “Too true,” Ciera whispered, lower than they were likely to hear. “But a couple of pieces of wood and years of self-defense classes will go a long way.”
        She didn’t bother to show off—a rookie mistake—attacking instead in a flurry of kicks and hits aimed at vulnerable knees, elbows, and collarbones that left the men lying groaning on the ground behind her. She shoved the fighting sticks back up her sleeves and kept on walking without a backward glance.
        A few twists and turns later and she was back at the car she always used for her evening forays. It couldn’t be traced to her since it was registered in the name of a woman long dead. A practical vehicle, it also served to remind her of why she did what she did. The dead woman had been her friend. More than her friend—her savior. Now Ciera carried on her friend’s mission, because it was the only way she could repay the debt she owed. And because she’d made a promise to the only person in her life who had ever kept their word to her.
        Back in her apartment, she stripped off the anonymous hoodie and stared at herself in the bathroom mirror. She wasn’t sure she recognized the woman staring back at her. It was hard to say which one was real—the face she showed the world during the day or the one she hid at night. Maybe neither. But if there was another Ciera beyond those two, she wasn’t sure what that woman would look like. Or if she’d even like her if she ever had a chance to find out.





The Giveaway

What:  One entrant will win a US$10 Amazon Gift Card from Deborah.

How:
  • Send an email to theqwillery . contests @ gmail.com [remove the spaces]
  • In the subject line, enter “Divine“ with or without the quote marks.
  • In the body of the email, please provide your name and email address. The winning email  address is used only to allow the author to contact the winner and is provided to the author and/or The Qwillery only for that purpose. All other email address information will be deleted by The Qwillery once the giveaway ends.

Who:  The giveaway is open to all humans in the United States or Canada with an with an email address. You may have to set up an Amazon account in order to use the gift card.

When:  The giveaway ends at 11:59 PM US Eastern Time on December 2, 2017. Void where prohibited by law. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 years old or older to enter.





Previously

Dangerously Charming
A Broken Rider Novel 1
Berkley, October 4, 2016
Mass Market Paperback and eBook, 304 pages

From the author of the Baba Yaga novels, a brand new series set in the same “addicting”* world, filled with wild magic, enchanting damsels, and the irresistibly daring men who serve the Baba Yagas…

The Riders are three immortal brothers who protect the mythical Baba Yagas. But their time serving the witches has ended—and their new destinies are just beginning…

Ever since a near-fatal mistake stripped Mikhail Day and his brothers of their calling to be Riders, Day has hidden from his shame and his new, mortal life in a remote cabin in the Adirondack mountains. But when a desperate young woman appears on his doorstep, he cannot resist helping her—and cannot deny how strongly he’s drawn to her…

For generations, women in Jenna Quinlan’s family have been cursed to give up their first born child to the vengeful fairy Zilya. When Jenna finds herself unexpectedly pregnant, she is determined to break her family’s curse and keep her baby, even if it means teaming up with a mysterious and charismatic man with demons of his own…

To unravel the curse, Jenna and Day will have to travel deep into the Otherworld. But the biggest challenge of the journey might not be solving an ancient puzzle but learning to heal their own broken hearts…






About Deborah

Deborah Blake is the author of Veiled Magic and the Baba Yaga novels, including Wickedly Wonderful and Wickedly Dangerous. She has published numerous books on modern witchcraft with Llewellyn Worldwide and has an ongoing column in Witches & Pagans magazine. When not writing, Deborah runs The Artisans’ Guild, a cooperative shop she founded with a friend in 1999, and also works as a jewelry maker, tarot reader, and energy healer. She lives in a 120-year-old farmhouse in rural upstate New York with five cats who supervise all her activities, both magical and mundane.


Newsletter  ~  Website  ~  Blog  ~  Facebook  ~  Twitter @deborahblake





Also by Deborah Blake

The Baba Yaga Series

Wickedly Magical
A Baba Yaga Novella
Berkley, August 5, 2014
eBook, 73 pages

Known as the wicked witch of Russian fairy tales, Baba Yaga is not one woman, but rather a title carried by a chosen few. They keep the balance of nature and guard the borders of our world, but don’t make the mistake of crossing one…

Barbara Yager loves being one of the most powerful witches in the world, but sometimes she’d rather kick back in her enchanted Airstream with a beer in her hand than work out how to grant the requests of the worthy few who seek her out.

But when a man appears with the token of a family debt of honor, Barbara must drop everything to satisfy the promise owed by her predecessor—and she isn’t above being a little wicked to make sure the debt is paid in full…



Wickedly Dangerous
A Baba Yaga Novel 1
Berkley, September 2, 2014
Mass Market Paperback and eBook, 352 pages

FIRST IN A NEW SERIES!

Known as the wicked witch of Russian fairy tales, Baba Yaga is not one woman, but rather a title carried by a chosen few. They keep the balance of nature and guard the borders of our world, but don’t make the mistake of crossing one of them…

Older than she looks and powerful beyond measure, Barbara Yager no longer has much in common with the mortal life she left behind long ago. Posing as an herbalist and researcher, she travels the country with her faithful (mostly) dragon-turned-dog in an enchanted Airstream, fulfilling her duties as a Baba Yaga and avoiding any possibility of human attachment.

But when she is summoned to find a missing child, Barbara suddenly finds herself caught up in a web of deceit and an unexpected attraction to the charming but frustrating Sheriff Liam McClellan.

Now, as Barbara fights both human enemies and Otherworld creatures to save the lives of three innocent children, she discovers that her most difficult battle may be with her own heart…



Wickedly Wonderful
A Baba Yaga Novel 2
Berkley, December 2, 2014
Mass Market Paperback and eBook, 352 pages

Known as the wicked witch of Russian fairy tales, Baba Yaga is not one woman, but rather a title carried by a chosen few. They keep the balance of nature and guard the borders of our world, but don’t make the mistake of crossing one of them…

Though she looks like a typical California surfer girl, Beka Yancy is in fact a powerful yet inexperienced witch who’s struggling with her duties as a Baba Yaga. Luckily she has her faithful dragon-turned-dog for moral support, especially when faced with her biggest job yet…

A mysterious toxin is driving the Selkie and Mer from their homes deep in the trenches of Monterey Bay. To investigate, Beka buys her way onto the boat of Marcus Dermott, a battle-scarred former U.S. Marine, and his ailing fisherman father.

While diving for clues, Beka drives Marcus crazy with her flaky New Age ideas and dazzling blue eyes. She thinks he’s rigid and cranky (and way too attractive). Meanwhile, a charming Selkie prince has plans that include Beka. Only by trusting her powers can Beka save the underwater races, pick the right man, and choose the path she’ll follow for the rest of her life…



Wickedly Ever After
A Baba Yaga Novella
InterMix, January 19, 2016
eBook, 66 pages

Known as the wicked witch of Russian fairy tales, Baba Yaga is not one woman, but rather a title carried by a chosen few. They keep the balance of nature and guard the borders of our world, but don’t make the mistake of crossing one…

Having triumphed over a powerful enemy and ended up with both a wonderful guy—Sheriff Liam McClellan—and an adorable adopted daughter to raise as a Baba Yaga, Barbara Yager is ready to welcome her happily ever after.

But first she must bring Liam to the Otherworld and get the Queen’s permission to marry him. The Queen, however, is not so easily persuaded. She gives them three impossible tasks to complete in two weeks’ time—and if they fail Barbara will have to watch Liam slowly age and die like all humans, and kiss her happily ever after good-bye forever.

Includes an exclusive preview of the next Baba Yaga Novel, Wickedly Powerful



Wickedly Powerful
A Baba Yaga Novel 3
Berkley, February 2, 2016
Mass Market Paperback and eBook, 304 pages

The author of Wickedly Wonderful returns to her “addicting”* world of Russian witches in the latest Baba Yaga novel.

Known as the wicked witch of Russian fairy tales, Baba Yaga is not one woman, but rather a title carried by a chosen few. They keep the balance of nature and guard the borders of our world, but don’t make the mistake of crossing one of them…

The only thing more fiery than Bella Young’s red hair is her temper. She knows that a Baba Yaga’s power without strict control can leave the people she cares about burned, so to protect her heart—and everyone around her—the only company she keeps is her dragon-turned-Norwegian-Forest-cat, Koshka.

But when Bella is tasked with discovering who’s setting magical fires throughout Wyoming’s Black Hills, she finds herself working closely with former hotshots firefighter Sam Corbett—and falling hard for his quiet strength and charm.

Sam may bear the scars of his past, but Bella can see beyond them and would do anything to help him heal. Only before she can rescue her Prince Charming, she’ll have to overcome the mysterious foe setting the forest fires—a truly wicked witch who wields as much power and even more anger than Bella…



Wickedly Spirited
A Baba Yaga Novella
InterMix, September 19, 2017
eBook, 55 pages

Jazz, the powerfully magical teen first introduced in Wickedly Powerful, is now being trained as a Baba Yaga—and she’s determined to free the Broken Riders herself.

Jazz had a rough life before meeting her guardian, and she knows she’s lucky that Bella is training her to be a Baba Yaga. But the gifted young witch is frustrated by the slow pace of her lessons. Jazz knows she’s capable of even greater magic, and she wants nothing more than to find a spell that will give the Riders back the immortality they lost.

With the reluctant assistance of Bella’s dragon-turned-cat Koshka, Jazz travels to the Otherworld to get the necessary ingredients to perform the spell. A willful young witch, dangerous magic, and one powerful wish—what could possibly go wrong?


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