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

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Cirsova #20/Fall 2024 – edited by P. Alexander

Thirteen tales of heroic adventure and daring suspense, including:

An ancient vampire has plotted his long revenge against the family that has warred with him and hunted his kind for years and found a new ally in a small-time thug!

Clock, the mystic warden of Coney Island, is on the trail of two killers… who have been recently brought back to life by the dark powers they serve: the Isaloge!

Thomas Nolan, “Saint” Tommy, has been called in on a strange murder: a teenage girl has been murdered and seemingly dragged under the earth… by plants!

Psychic agent Lorena has fallen captive to French and Indian raiders… As the orgy of violence begins, she realizes her powers of suggestion have failed her!

…and more!

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Killing Stroke (Backyard Starship #23) – J. N. Chaney and Terry Maggert

The stars have come to Iowa, and the earth will never be the same.

With the Nexus up and running, Van and crew become interstellar players in the fight for earth, but their enemies aren’t just from out in the black. Sensing massive profits, the scramble to exploit humanity pits Van against his own people—and Yotov, whose plans have finally come to fruition.

With political warfare, the Equal Grasp seeks to do what missiles cannot—remove Van from the picture. But he’s a lot tougher than that, and Icky’s hammer is swinging freely, and the crew are international stars, portrayed as the heroes of a world that reaches beyond the sky—into deepest space and beyond.

With one last throw of the dice, Yotov will unleash the hidden reserve of power she’s been hiding. If it works, Van will be dead. Or worse.

Because Yotov and the Equal Grasp don’t just want power. They want control of life itself, and they’ll stop at nothing to get it.

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Shield of Conquest (The Shield War #3) – Johnathan Moeller

Battle and dark magic await!

Ridmark Arban has led the army of Andomhaim to the Isle of Kordain, ready to wage war upon the sinister Exarch of the Seven Temples and her fanatical soldiers.

But powers older than either Andomhaim and the Seven Temples have fought over the Isle, and a lord of the dark elves sees the chance to seize the Isle for himself.

And if he is not stopped, first the Isle and all the world will burn…

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Taming the Raging Storm (Dragon’s Dawn #4) – Dan Michaelson and D. K. Holmberg

Laric discovers there are places even dragons can’t reach. The Dragon Dawn series continues.

Pursuing the Grand Mage forces Laric Mason to make a choice—stay and protect his home, or chase a threat that poses a danger to all of the remaining dragons.

As Laric learns the truth of his grandmother’s quest for glyph knowledge, he uncovers even greater dangers than he could have imagined.

And his uncle had not told him the truth of what Korthal faced. The Grand Mage may be a part of something much larger than Laric had imagined.

If he can’t find the answers his grandmother sought, his home might not be the only land destroyed.

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A Warrior’s Oath (Saga of the Known Lands #6) – Jacob Peppers

Sometimes, it’s all a man can do…keep going.

When the storm comes, when he’s assailed by his doubts and fears, his body and mind wracked by pain, when whatever strength he has—legendary or not—has left him, a man must focus not on putting one foot in front of the other but finding a reason to.

Cutter knows this, for he has been here before, in this place of doubt and darkness, just as he knows his reason. A promise, one he made long ago to protect Matt, his son. But not just a promise, for promises might be broken, forgotten.

An oath, though, that is a different thing. An oath becomes part of a man, his sword and his shield.

Darkness descends on the people of the Known Lands, and the light of hope flickers weakly, threatening to go out.

Should they live to see the morning, it will not be because of their strength or courage but because of an oath made.

And an oath kept.

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Cantos of Arcadia: a Post Apocalyptic Science Fantasy – a Kickstarter campaign by the World Between the Woods Press

It promised salvation. It delivered only doom.

When Ansel Horowitz stumbles on a solution to Earth’s energy crisis, he’s ecstatic—at first.

But soon reality sets in: the solution didn’t come from Ansel’s own genius, or even from his AI partner. No, the solution to the world’s potential doom has come from a shadowy entity, origin unknown. And salvation comes with a condition: the entity wants a body of its own. It wants to live, even if it means hijacking someone else’s body to do it.

Ansel fights the entity, but humanity—overjoyed to have a solution to its greatest threat—doesn’t look twice. Soon, a golden age begins: poverty is obliterated, our energy debt wiped out. It’s a dream…

…that becomes a nightmare when the entity triggers a massive volcanic explosion: an extinction-level event that forces humanity to take refuge underground.

This Kickstarter campaign will close on September 26, 2024.

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Honeymoon from Hell – a Kickstarter campaign by Declan Finn

One is a heartless, blood-thirsty monster. The other is a vampire.

The Dragon Award nominated Love at First Bite series had everything Urban Fantasy could want.

• Epic battles with vampires, werewolves, and high explosives.
• Supernatural conspiracies
• Vatican ninjas
• Throwing Stars of David
• Vampire assassins
• SpecOps Minions and werewolves
• Garroting vampires with rosaries
• Weaponized sacramentals
• Vampires who go to confession
• And true love.

And now, it’s getting a sequel: Honeymoon from Hell. This is what happens after “happily ever after.”

Now with even MORE action.

This Kickstarter campaign will close on September 30, 2024.

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Lord of Fate: An Arkwright Cycle Dark Fantasy Novel – a Kickstarter campaign by Brian Niemeier

A holy warrior plagued by doubt … 

A cloistered mystic yoked with rulership … 

A fated prophet seeking the powers of life and death … 

Besieged by a ruthless prince and a cruel legion, the free port of Dailij seems doomed.

Trapped in the embattled city and lionized by its desperate people, imperial envoy Zebrin finds his faith tested by their newly elevated queen. Spies and traitors seek to topple the walls from within. The quest for the Burned Book stands on the brink of failure.

To survive, Zebrin must discover his place in the prophecies reshaping the world. But when solving an ancient riddle of tragic love means choosing between his honor and his soul, will Zebrin find strength enough to save the fallen savior? Or will evils not of the world reign over it?

The choice lies with the Lord of Fate.

This Kickstarter campaign will close on September 26, 2024.