Posts Tagged ‘urban fantasy’

Cover Launch: An Inheritance of Magic by Benedict Jacka

Million-copy-bestseller Benedict Jacka is BACK this October! And today we can share with you the glitteringly gorgeous new cover to his brand new fantasy series.

This cover for AN INHERITANCE OF MAGIC is designed by the talented Ella Garrett at Little, Brown UK.

When it comes to writing fantasy, Benedict is known as the ‘master of magical London’, and his new series holds all of the excitement, adventure and magical mayhem of the Alex Verus series his fans know and love: with a richly dark academic twist. Read on below for more about AN INHERITANCE OF MAGIC . . .

the book cover for An Inheritance of Magic by Benedict Jacka, with heraldry showing a gold shield with three gold keys and gold flourishes underneath, on a dark blue background

 

ANYONE CAN USE MAGIC – IF THEY CAN AFFORD THE PRICE . . .

In a world where everything magical is bought up and controlled by the super rich – Stephen Oakwood has inherited a rare natural talent for magic. Plunged by his father’s disappearance into a glittering world of scheming dynasties, warring patriarchs and vicious scions, Stephen must navigate magical high society and learn to control his gifts.

Dangerous enemies await the Oakwood heir, and even more dangerous allies: if Stephen cannot master his magic quickly and learn to distinguish friend from foe, his name may end up on the missing persons list, just like his father.

‘Jacka has drawn a potent new world of magic controlled by a privileged few, and Stephen Oakwood is the sigl-wielding rebel we didn’t know we needed’ New York Times bestselling author Chloe Neill.

AN INHERITANCE OF MAGIC is book one in a new fantasy series of super rich magical dynasties and warring heirs – from the author of the million-copy-selling Alex Verus series. For readers of contemporary fantasy who enjoy the methods and magicians of dark academia.

Cover Launch: BATTLE GROUND by Jim Butcher

THINGS ARE ABOUT TO GET SERIOUS FOR HARRY DRESDEN, CHICAGO’S ONLY PROFESSIONAL WIZARD, in the next entry in the No. 1 New York Times and No. 1 Sunday Times bestselling Dresden Files. 

Orbit UK are thrilled to announce that BATTLE GROUND, book seventeen in the Dresden Files, hits shelves in September 2020 (UK|ANZ) and is available to preorder now. We’re sure you’re as excited as we are to read not one, but TWO Dresden Files novels in one year, but if you can’t wait that long, take a look at the awesome cover design for BATTLE GROUND and read on for a hint of what’s in store for Harry Dresden . . .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Harry has faced terrible odds before. He has a long history of fighting enemies above his weight class. The Red Court of vampires. The fallen angels of the Order of the Blackened Denarius. The Outsiders.

But this time it’s different. A being more powerful and dangerous on an order of magnitude beyond what the world has seen in a millennium is coming. And she’s bringing an army. The Last Titan has declared war on the city of Chicago, and has come to subjugate humanity, obliterating any who stand in her way.

Harry’s mission is simple but impossible: Save the city by killing a Titan. And the attempt will change Harry’s life, Chicago, and the mortal world forever.

Praise for the Dresden Files:

‘The Dresden Files is my favourite series ever. I say that both as a writer and a reader . . . I don’t make statements like that casually’ Patrick Rothfuss, author of The Name of the Wind

‘Butcher’s storytelling is satisfying on a level that’s bone-deep’ io9

‘Harry Dresden has a vitality that few urban fantasy heroes can match’ SFX

 

Cover Launch: INK & SIGIL by Kevin Hearne

From New York Times bestselling author Kevin Hearne comes the start of a hugely entertaining new series set in the world of the Iron Druid Chronicles – about an eccentric master of magic solving an uncanny mystery in Scotland . . .

We’ll be publishing Ink & Sigil by Kevin Hearne in August 2020, and are delighted to show you the stunning UK cover illustrated by Sarah J. Coleman.

Ink & Sigil by Kevin Hearne

Available for pre-order now! Read on for a taste of what’s in store . . .

Al MacBharrais is both blessed and cursed. He is blessed with an extraordinary white moustache, an appreciation for craft cocktails – and a most unique magical talent. He can cast spells with magically enchanted ink and he uses his gifts to protect our world from rogue minions of various pantheons, especially the Fae.

But he is also cursed. Anyone who hears his voice will begin to feel an inexplicable hatred for Al, so he can only communicate through the written word or speech apps. And his apprentices keep dying in peculiar freak accidents. As his personal life crumbles around him, he devotes his life to his work, all the while trying to crack the secret of his curse.

But when his latest apprentice, Gordie, turns up dead in his Glasgow flat, Al discovers evidence that Gordie was living a secret life of crime. Now Al is forced to play detective – while avoiding actual detectives who are wondering why death seems to always follow Al. Investigating his apprentice’s death will take him through Scotland’s magical underworld, and he’ll need the help of a mischievous hobgoblin if he’s to survive.

‘You are in for a great treat. Ink and Sigil is great escape reading, and I loved every word’ Charlaine Harris, New York Times bestselling author of the Sookie Stackhouse books

‘Will transport you right in the Scottish realm of fey and fairies . . . The magic is both familiar and new, believable and extraordinary’ Charlie Holmberg, author of The Paper Magician

‘Vividly blends Kevin Hearne’s unique take on urban fantasy with the grit of Scottish magic’ Adam Christopher, author of Empire State

‘Ink & Sigil is filled to the brim with the Hearne-anigans we’ve all grown to love. Fans of ribald humor, literary puns and the odd hobgoblin will be enchanted by this paranormal mystery’ Jaye Wells, author of the Prospero’s War series

Cover Launch: PEACE TALKS by Jim Butcher

HARRY DRESDEN IS BACK AND READY FOR ACTION!

Dresden Files fans rejoice! The thrilling sixteenth instalment in Jim Butcher’s no. 1 Sunday Times bestselling series is on its way!

PEACE TALKS (UK | ANZ) is out in July 2020 and available to preorder now.

the book cover for Peace TalksWhen the supernatural nations of the world meet up to negotiate an end to ongoing hostilities, Harry Dresden, Chicago’s only professional wizard, joins the White Council’s security team to make sure the talks stay civil. But can he succeed, when dark political manipulations threaten the very existence of Chicago — and all he holds dear?

Praise for the Dresden Files:

‘The Dresden Files is my favourite series ever’ Patrick Rothfuss, author of The Name of the Wind

‘Butcher’s storytelling is satisfying on a level that’s bone-deep’ io9

‘Harry Dresden has a vitality that few urban fantasy heroes can match’ SFX

‘The Dresden Files are addictive page-turners’ SciFiNow

Cover Launch: STORM CURSED by Patricia Briggs

Exciting news for fans of Patricia Briggs: everyone’s favourite kick-ass shapeshifter, Mercy Thompson, will be back in action early next year!  In STORM CURSED, Mercy must face a deadly enemy to defend all she loves . . . we are thrilled to reveal the stunning cover below.

Storm Cursed

Cover portrait: www.sorted.tv
Cover design: Ellen Rockell – LBBG

 

Read on for a taste of what’s in store for Mercy in the next thrilling installment of the number one bestselling series:

 

My name is Mercedes Athena Thompson Hauptman, and I am a car mechanic.

And a coyote shapeshifter . . . And the mate of the Alpha of the Columbia Basin werewolf pack.

Even so, none of that would have gotten me into trouble if, a few months ago, I hadn’t stood upon a bridge and taken responsibility for the safety of the citizens who lived in our territory. It seemed like the thing to do at the time. It should have only involved hunting down killer goblins, zombie goats, and an occasional troll. Instead, our home was viewed as neutral ground, a place where humans would feel safe to come and treat with the fae.

The reality is that nothing and no one is safe. As generals and politicians face off with the Gray Lords of the fae, a storm is coming and her name is Death.

But we are pack, and we have given our word. We will die to keep it.

Cover Launch: BRIEF CASES by Jim Butcher

Waiting for the next Dresden Files book can be tough! Luckily for fans of this gripping series, Orbit UK are publishing BRIEF CASES (UK|ANZ) in June: a new collection of Dresden Files stories  – including an original novella, set between SKIN GAME and PEACE TALKS – from international bestseller Jim Butcher. Preorder it today!

We’re very excited to share our cover, by the talented Chris McGrath:

Jim Butcher

Return to the world of Harry Dresden (the only wizard in the Chicago phone book) as he and his friends solve supernatural mysteries, protect the helpless, and fight evil. Packed with all the magic, wisecracking and dazzling action that make the Dresden Files so spectacular, this is not a collection to miss.

Stories included:

• ‘Curses’
• ‘AAAA Wizardry’
• ‘Even Hand’
• ‘B is for Bigfoot’
•’ I was a Teenage Bigfoot’
• ‘Bigfoot on Campus’
• ‘Bombshells’
• ‘Jury Duty’
• ‘Cold Case’
• ‘Day One’
• ‘A Fistful of Warlocks’
• Zoo Day

Cover Launch: The Labyrinth Index by Charles Stross

The Labyrinth Index by Charles Stross

Feast your eyes on the latest Charles Stross cover, with design by Crush Creative and Ellen Rockell. THE LABYRINTH INDEX, coming later this year, is the ninth novel in The Laundry Files, where spy thrillers meet the supernatural . . .

Britain is under New Management. The disbanding of the Laundry – the British espionage agency that deals with supernatural threats, has culminated in the unthinkable – an elder god in residence in 10 Downing Street.
But in true ‘the enemy of my enemy’ fashion, Mhairi Murphy finds herself working with His Excellency Nylarlathotep on foreign policy – there are worse things, it seems, than an elder god in power, and they lie in deepest, darkest America.
A thousand-mile-wide storm system has blanketed the midwest, and the president is nowhere to be found – Mhari must lead a task force of disgraced Laundry personnel into the storm front to discover the truth. But working for an elder god is never easy, and as the stakes rise, Mhari will soon question exactly where her loyalties really lie.

Benedict Jacka Cover Launch: The Bumper Issue

We’re delighted to launch the cover for MARKED, designed by Ceara Elliot and Emily Courdelle! This is the ninth book in Benedict Jacka’s magic-filled Alex Verus series, publishing in July next year.

MARKED sees probability mage Alex Verus tracking down dangerous magical items unleashed into the world by dark mages. When the Light Council decide they need his help in negotiating with the perpetrators, Alex must use all his cunning and magic to strike a deal…

MARKED continues the bold, colourful new look for the series that we established with BURNED and BOUND. Now – at Alex’s request (and who are we to deny a probability mage’s predictions?) – we’ve given the first six books brand new designs to match. If you think these new covers are vivid and irresistibly eye-catching, well . . . Alex Verus knew you would!

These fabulous new designs – also courtesy of Ceara Elliot and Emily Courdelle – will be appearing in bookstores throughout 2018.

(more…)

Meet Greta Helsing, doctor to the undead . . .

There’s a new fantasy character in town and it’s time for you to meet her!

Dr Greta Helsing is a talented and well-respected physician with a highly specialised – and highly peculiar – medical practice in London’s Harley Street.

If the name sounds familiar, that’s because Greta is a descendent of the vampire hunter Professor Abraham Van Helsing. Luckily for her, family relations with the undead have improved since the nineteenth century and Greta now spends her days carrying on her father’s legacy by treating London’s supernatural community for a host of ills, such as vocal strain in banshees, arthritis in barrow-wights and entropy in mummies.

We managed to grab a few minutes with the busy doctor for a quick interview. You can read it here.

Greta Helsing

 

If you want to find out more about Greta’s adventures in medicine and  mystery, STRANGE PRACTICE (US/UK/ANZ) is hitting shops next week! You can read the first chapter here.

Strange Practice

‘A darkly delicious adventure featuring a quirky new heroine. Strange Practice breathes new life into the undead’ James Bennett, author of Chasing Embers

‘Greta is a refreshing urban fantasy heroine, strong and smart and utterly normal, despite her chosen profession.’ Booklist

‘Strange Practice surprises and delights . . . But the greatest elements of the book are the characters. They shine’ Bookbag

‘An excellent adventure’ Fran Wilde

‘What a splendid adventure this is – Dr Greta Helsing is a brilliant character’ Espresso Coco

‘An exceptional and delightful debut’ Elizabeth Bear

‘Readers will look forward to more of Greta’s adventures. An imaginative, delightfully droll debut’ Kirkus

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cover launch: SILENCE FALLEN, the new Mercy Thompson novel by Patricia Briggs

We’re very excited to present the UK cover for SILENCE FALLEN, the new Mercy Thompson novel by Patricia Briggs.

Waiting for the next book in this thrilling series can be a trial for urban fantasy fans, as we’re all desperate to find out what’s in store for our favourite kick-ass shapeshifter. Well, we’re happy to say that it’s coming in March 2017 and is available for pre-order now!

Silence Fallen cover

Read on for a taste of what’s to come:

Coyote shapeshifter Mercy Thompson is attacked and abducted in her home territory. Fighting off a crazed werewolf, she manages to escape, only to find herself alone in the heart of Europe, without money, without clothing and on the run from the clutches of the most powerful vampire in the world.

Unable to contact her pack, Mercy has allies to find and enemies to fight, but first she needs to figure out which is which. Ancient powers stir, and Mercy needs to be at her agile best to avoid causing a war between vampires and werewolves – and between werewolves and werewolves. And in the heart of the ancient city of Prague, old ghosts rise . . .

 

Cover photograph by Sorted.tv
Cover design by Nick Castle