Epic Classics

Fantasy writer Rod Everlar is now hopelessly lost in the magical world he once thought he’d created, as he searches for his only friend, the guide who brought him there: the maimed warrior-woman Taeauna. She has been captured by the evil wizard Malraun, who has taken her to his bed—while Malraun’s armies conquer Falconfar, castle by castle and hold by hold.

Once, it was said, Wensha had been a city of witches, summoning and controlling demons for their evil magic. But in nearby Tandieras, Kaltha claimed to have found their lost book of spells to perform only white magic. When Sun Wolf arrived, he discovered increasing signs of evil magic and demon-controlling spells. And he realized, too late, that a new swarm of demons was trying to lure him to his death....

"My name is Raine Benares—and it sucks to be me right now. I’m a seeker who found the Saghred, a soul-stealing stone that gave me unlimited powers I never wanted. Now I’ve lost the rock—and the magic it gave me—to a goblin dark mage whose main goals are my death and world domination. This is more than incentive enough for a little trip to the goblin capital of Regor with a small band of good friends, not-so-good friends, and one outright enemy.... Don’t ask."

Lens of the World is the story of a prodigious life. It recounts the coming of age of Nazhuret, an outcast and orphan who rises from his lowly estate as a ward of the Sordaling military school to become a mighty warrior, philosopher, and confidant of the King of Vestinglon. As he grows, the young man receives outlandish knowledge and is prepared for an entirely exceptional destiny far beyond the narrow confines of his kingdom.

With no magic talent of her own, Anne de Vernase must take on her sister's magical legacy to unravel the secrets behind the dark sorcery besieging the royal city of Merona-and to uncover the truth behind her sister's death. For Portier de Savin-Duplais, failed student of magic, sorcery's decline into ambiguity and cheap illusion is but a culmination of life's bitter disappointments.

After a harrowing escape from their first landfall in the southern lands and worse disasters in the city where they seek refuge, the crew of the Chathrand discover that the worst imaginable thing has happened: Arunis has stolen the Nilstone. Now our heroes face a terrible choice. They can flee with the crew, and leave Arunis to do what he will - or they can pursue him into the wild, abandoning all but the slimmest chance of ever returning home.

In the final inning, Abraham must shut the enemy out or die. The invasion begins with an enemy the likes the people of Titanuus have never imagined. Armed with modern weaponry, diabolical forces muster at the Kingsland border wall, while savage barbarian forces called the Gond secretly lay siege upon the House of Steel. With the Crown of Stones incomplete and the king slipping into madness, more treachery bears fruit as former alliances are broken and old enemies rise again. Outgunned and overmatched, Abraham Jenkins must use his wits and sword to bring the enemy down.

Set in the world of Larry Niven’s popular The Magic Goes Away, The Burning City transports listeners to an enchanted and ancient city bearing a provocative resemblance to our own modern society. There, Yangin-Atep, the volatile and voracious god of fire, alternately protects and destroys the city’s denizens. In Tep’s Town, nothing can burn indoors, and no fire can start - except when the Burning comes upon the city. At that time the people, possessed by Yangin-Atep, set their own town ablaze in a riotous orgy of destruction that often comes without warning

Wolfram von Eschenbach, a knight and a poet from 13th century Germany, is the author of this Arthurian romance. Parzival is the revival and completion of a narrative left incomplete by its initiator Chrétien de Troyes. It follows Parzival from his boyhood and career as a knight at the court of King Arthur to his ultimate achievement as King of the Temple of the Grail. This is both a tale of chivalry, and an epic quest for spiritual insight, as the hero Parzival must overcome his pride, and learn to be humble before he can finally win the Holy Grail.

Gerald Dunwoody is a wizard. Just not a particularly good one. He's blown up a factory, lost his job, and there's a chance that he's not really a Third Grade wizard after all. So it's off to New Ottosland to be the new Court Wizard for King Lional. It's a shame that King Lional isn't the vain, self-centered young man he appeared to be. With a princess in danger, a talking bird who can't stay out of trouble, and a kingdom to save, Gerald soon suspects that he might be out of his depth.

We survived the land of the Witch’s Reign - that much is true. But our arrival home is far from welcome. My idiot brother has taken it upon himself to ride off in search of a mythical healer, someone who might help him walk again. Assuming she doesn’t eat him first. Because she’s a dragon and happens to reside in the deepest reaches of the Dragon’s Ground. Like I said, idiot. I’d go after him myself, but his leaving is not the only problem I face. My mentor has forbidden me to leave the safety of the Stockyards. Her reasoning? That I am too weak to weather the coming storms.

Here is Old Man's War author John Scalzi's sendup of the heroic fantasy genre, now a finalist for the Hugo Award for Best Short Story.

The advertisement offered the ultimate Virtual Reality experience. Using a new technology known as Immersive Virtual Reality or IVR, you could truly experience the game as if you were in it. For someone who has been confined to a wheelchair all of his life, the promise was impossible to ignore, but only a few would be invited to take part in the Alpha test of the new game. Devon decided he would be one of those few.

Danny died a less than heroic death on Earth, was reincarnated in a new world, gained access to a mental sanctuary that ranks his skills, learned he can do magic, discovered that he can't fly, tricked rich old ladies into buying handbags, crafted himself a crude anti-magic girdle, went to magic school, grew a couple of apple trees, was drafted into a secret paramilitary organization, tamed a pet most people would rather never meet, regrew an elf's ears, gained a split concentration ability in the form of his former Earth self, and much more.

Leo Vincey, a beautiful young man with the looks of a Greek and his fatherly guardian Holly, a Cambridge scientist, go to Africa to avenge the death...

Martin Arrowsmith’s youthful curiosity for science has blossomed into an altruistic devotion to medicine and research. The doctor moves from small towns to big cities and from local offices to prestigious institutes. With every step upward that Arrowsmith takes in his career, his idealism is challenged by the greed, corruption, and commercialism of the scientific community, as well as by the temptations of women, money, power, and glory. Against the odds, and through loss and groundbreaking discovery, Dr. Arrowsmith must stay true.

A Story of God and All of Us is a sweeping narrative that dramatizes some of the most important events and characters in the Bible. The book is narrated like a fine novel, dramatizing the sweep of biblical events, making the men and women of scripture come alive in vivid detail and dialogue. All are historically and theologically accurate. A 10-hour miniseries on the History Channel will be based on the story, and the script has been reviewed by a number of Christian church leaders and seminarians for authenticity.

I'm Tamlir Kynthelig, mercenary. I lost my home, my family was slaughtered, and my kingdom was usurped. And then things really got bad. I saved King Mynogin and won the honor of a likely-fatal run through the Temple of Cocidius to gain him its treasure. Trust me when I say this isn't a change in my luck. Gathering the temple's eight artifacts has never been accomplished, and a thousand men have perished to its beasts and puzzles.

Beowulf the Warrior is an outstanding modern version of the oldest epic in the English language. Ian Serraillier has retold in verse the story of the hero Beowulf and his three memorable exploits - first, his rescuing of Hrothgar the Dane from the ravages of monstrous Grendel; next, his victory over Grendel's strange and horrible mother; and finally, in Beowulf's old age, his saving of his own people, the Geats, from the horrors of a dragon at the cost of his life. Beowulf's heroism and noble heart communicate to any modern listener.

Published in English for the first time, and the only Arabic epic named for a woman, The Tale of Princess Fatima recounts the thrilling adventures of a legendary medieval warrior universally known throughout the Middle East and long overdue to join world literature's pantheon of female heroes.