Every week, the Castalia House Blog spotlights some of the many new releases in independent, pulp, and web novel-influenced science fiction and fantasy.

Galaxy Under Siege (Forgotten Galaxy #3) – M. R. Forbes

Caleb Card always knew that fighting back against overwhelming odds would be a thankless slog. And with Legion forces expanding across the galaxy, his opportunities to hit them where it hurts are fast running out. When a well-played hand and an unexpected betrayal nearly put a stop to both the rebellion and his life, all signs point to a quick and ugly end.

Only Caleb’s never quit anything before, and he isn’t about to start now. Not when he still has a few more aces up his sleeve…

…and with any luck, a Queen.

John the Balladeer – Manly Wade Wellman

In John the Balladeer, Manly Wade Wellman created one of the great characters in all of horror and fantasy literature. Armed with his silver-stringed guitar and an endless trove of folk songs, John travels the backwoods of Appalachia, battling supernatural evil with his own brand of down-home charm and endless resourcefulness. In these tales, John wanders the Southern mountains, encountering hoodoo men and witch women, strange supernatural beasts, malevolent spirits, and even George Washington’s ghost.

Edited by horror legend Karl Edward Wagner, this volume contains the complete John the Balladeer stories in their original, unaltered form, as they first appeared in magazines and anthologies between 1951 and 1987. Also featured are a foreword by Wellman’s friend and literary executor David Drake and an introduction by Wagner.

“Just as J. R. R. Tolkien brilliantly created a modern British myth cycle, so did Manly Wade Wellman give to us an imaginary world of purely American fact, fantasy and song.” – Karl Edward Wagner

“This is the real thing-a book of haunting fantasies with their roots going down deep into the American folk tradition.” – Robert Silverberg

Light Unto Another World #10 – Yakov Merkin

Sometimes, tragedy is unavoidable. How one copes with it, however, is entirely within one’s control.

The same goes for fears. How one faces their worst fears, is within their control, and speaks volumes.

But what do you do when the object of your fear both knows your weaknesses, and is actively pursuing you?

Following a traumatic encounter with a new foe, Uriel and his team are in a bit of a dark place.

Worse, another of this world’s false gods has emerged, and is after Uriel and his team. While they’re faced powerful enemies before, this one is different, coming for them in ways they are not prepared for.

Now, it’s a race against time as Uriel and his team must try to kill her before her power becomes too great for them to have even a hope of victory.

Meanwhile Setzell, who had just recently faced a painful aspect of her past, now has to face her greatest fears, and embrace who and what she is, if she’s to overcome those who tried to turn her into a monster.

SGT. THOR the Cunning – Jason Anspach and Nick Cole

Hunted and on the run inside the fabled and dangerous City of Thieves, U.S. Army Ranger Sniper Sergeant Thor must pull the greatest fade of his career as powerful sorcerers and conniving eunuchs dispatch small armies of deadly mercenaries and vicious hired killers to track down and take what Thor has stolen fair and square.

But other dangers await the Ranger inside the wild and untamed alleys, temples, once-mighty fortresses, and degenerate palaces of the Ruin’s greatest and most ancient of cities. Intrigue, betrayal, and mystery abound in this taut tightwire run-for-your-life dash to deceive and best the enemies who have unwisely set themselves against the lethal Sergeant Thor.

In the City of Thieves, the game doesn’t stop after the bodies hit the floor. Assassins, bandits, warriors, wizards, monsters, and gods are all out to get Thor before a fabled treasure slips through their grasp, and disappears forever.

In a fantastic city caught between its diabolical devils and the deep blue sea, legendary for its larceny, lies, and licentiousness, Sergeant Thor must be more cunning than the best the City of Thieves has to offer in order to survive and win.

The Hunters, become the Hunted.

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Every week, the Castalia House Blog spotlights some of the many new releases in independent, pulp, and web novel-influenced science fiction and fantasy.

Echoes of Issel (The Sergey Chronicles #2) – D. T. Read

Reunited with his family, Tristan struggles to find common ground to build a relationship with Lujan Sergey, commander of the Unified Worlds’ special forces and the father he’s never known. A new universe is beginning to open for him when a new crisis occurs, and Tristan is pressed to volunteer for hazardous service.

The alien masuk slavers are about to attack the Issel system and only Tristan, once held captive there, knows the planetary defenses well enough to penetrate them. But he’ll have to pass the demanding Spherzah training—and conquer the demons in his own past—in order to participate.

A new war threatens, and it will take all of the Sergey family to survive it. But when an assassin tries to intervene, will all of the family still be alive to see it through?

The Essence Crystal (Essence Wielder #2) – Dan Michaelson and D. K. Holmberg

The Great Serpent has given a great gift—if only Dax can understand it in time.

With the attack on the Great Serpent stopped, Dax and his friends return to the Academy having changed. They no longer fear the Cult of the Dragon, but the Order now knows of their involvement.

The Academy can only protect them so much.

When Dax discovers strange sentient creatures in the forest near the Academy, he fears the Order has a new plan to attack the empire.

He’ll need to master his essence if he wants to have any chance to understand it. Even that might not be enough to stop the danger that’s coming.

Firebrand #2: The Firetouched – D. E. Oleson

Martel has begun his studies. He’s made a few friends, but most of all, his powers grow.

While hesitant to use fire magic, it’s saved him more than once, and his gift for destruction is undeniable. But others take note, and protecting his secret only gets more difficult. Every day bears the risk that his talent is discovered, and the Empire will force him to fight their conflicts.

Those same wars that flood Morcaster with problems and cause clashes between Asterians and Khivan immigrants, including Martel’s friends.

With every battle on the distant front, the war grows closer, the dead and wounded return in numbers, and the anger threatens to boil over. As tempers become enflamed, the spark of a fire-touched could set the city ablaze – or save it.

Immortal Empire (Path of the Thunderbird #4) – eden Hudson

A dark dragon awakened.

A thunder god returned.

An immortal empire balanced on the edge of a whisper.

As god-protector of the heavens, Ji Yu Raijin is the only one who can stop the universe-ending power of the Dragon. If he fails, everything he’s fought so hard to save will be destroyed, and his immortal throne will be lost forever.

The full might of his enemies is arrayed against him. Legions of cunning immortals, powerful cultivators, and deathless demons stand in his path—but they aren’t the greatest obstacle he faces.

The first time Raijin was betrayed and cast from the heavens, it was with his immortal wife’s sword in his back.

Can he trust Koida to help him retake the throne, or will she stay true to her nature and betray him again? Read More

Every week, the Castalia House Blog spotlights some of the many new releases in independent, pulp, and web novel-influenced science fiction and fantasy.

The Alliance (The Survivors #21) – Nathan Hystad

A wedding. A mysterious entity. A dangerous lineage.

Jules is ready to get married. If only things were that simple.

Dean is contacted by someone known only as Friend and told about a drifting vessel on the edges of Alliance space. What he finds on board is a shock to everyone.

When Jules appears on an alien world with one of Earth’s most notorious criminals, she must fight to survive and find her way home.

The Alliance may be the Survivors biggest test yet, but with Jules and Dean, they always have the answers. At least, they used to…

The Altar of Hate – Vox Day

“DOWNRIGHT EVIL”

Vox Day is one of the most intelligent, most eclectic, and most dangerous writers of his generation. With a literary range that spans from philosophy and economic commentary to epic fantasy and science fiction, he has been banned from every major social media platform and is forbidden by name from setting foot inside Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, California.

“Vox Day rises all the way to ‘downright evil’. “

-Patrick Nielsen Hayden, Tor Books

THE ALTAR OF HATE is a collection of his short fiction that is unrelated to his ARTS OF DARK AND LIGHT or his QUANTUM MORTIS series. The stories include tales of blood feuds in Venice, diplomatic assassinations, scientific genocide, cyberpunk, magical journeys into the distant past, and the selling of infernal machines.

Cozy Isekai Craftsman 2: Loyalties – Blaise Corvin and C. Cheesecake

After being transported to a fantasy world full of supernatural beauty and weirdness, Joe has forged himself a place in the community of Lockwood. Now he has a home, a place he belongs, and people he cares about. After finding loopholes in the strange ability conferred by the goddess Quinn, he has enriched and delighted his new friends.

However, despite solving local problems ranging from sanitation to monster attacks, Joe’s work is not done. There are powers in the world who are seeking Joe. Some might be friendly, some not so friendly.

Some of those around him are also hiding secrets. Some need help. Some might even help him when he needs it most. And most of all, Joe is about to learn that his deal with the Goddess Quinn will complicate his life in ways he could have never anticipated.

Phantom Chamber (Shattered Legacy #2) – Andrew Rowe and Kayleigh Nicol

After the Tortoise Spire climb claims three members of Team Guiding Star Legacy, surviving combat experts Nieve and Hane—teammates by chance if not by choice—cope with their losses by joining another delving group to ascend Tiger Spire. Allied with bickering siblings Rose and Mason, an Architect and a Transmuter, and the Biomancer Lief, they’re led by Odette, an Analyst, who has meticulously studied the spire’s scenarios to locate the mythical Vault of Shadows and claim its priceless treasures.

Their quest takes them aboard a train transporting rare cargo, but their mission is vague. Odette believes they’re either supposed to protect the cargo or capture someone. As the team splits into factions to solve the mystery, they encounter the notorious thief known as the Magpie. Sa’rhi Nereux is a Controller, commanding powerful minions to help them steal a creature capable of granting life or death with a single bite.

Even if the adventurers are victorious, greater threats await them within the spire if they’re to unearth the Vault of Shadows. Nieve, still grieving her lost companions, wants to befriend her new team to face these threats together. But Hane prefers distance, even from Nieve, leaving her to bond instead with a being of unimaginable power . . . Read More