Dan Koboldt – författare

In the tradition of Terry Brooks'' Landover series, Piers Anthony Xanth books, and Terry Pratchett''s Discword novels, scientist and blogger Dan Koboldt weaves wonder, humor, and heart into his debut novel, The Rogue Retrieval.Sleight of hand…in another landStage magician Quinn Bradley has one dream: to headline his own show on the Vegas Strip. And with talent scouts in the audience wowed by his latest performance, he knows he''s about to make the big-time.What he doesn''t expect is an offer to go on a quest to a place where magic is all too real.That''s how he finds himself in Alissia, a world connected to ours by a secret portal owned by a powerful corporation. He''s after an employee who has gone rogue, and that''s the least of his problems. Alissia has true magicians…and the penalty for impersonating one is death. In a world where even a twelve-year-old could beat Quinn in a swordfight, it''s only a matter of time until the tricks up his sleeves run out.

"The World Awakening is a great conclusion to what is a very readable and highly enjoyable series. Characters that are more than the sum of their parts, a world that has so much to offer, and a story that races along apace – the Gateways to Alissia books have it all."-- SFFworldQuinn Bradley has learned to use the magic of another world. And that world is in danger.Having decided to betray CASE Global, he can finally reveal his origins to the Enclave and warn them about the company''s imminent invasion. Even if it means alienating Jillaine…and allying with someone he''s always considered his adversary.But war makes for strange bedfellows, and uniting Alissians against such a powerful enemy will require ancient enmities—as well as more recent antagonisms—to be set aside. The future of their pristine world depends on it.As Quinn searches for a way to turn the tide, his former CASE Global squad-mates face difficult decisions of their own. For some, it''s a matter of what they''re willing to do to get home. For others, it''s deciding whether they want to go home at all.Continuing the exciting adventures from The Rogue Retrieval and The Island Deception, The World Awakening is the spellbinding conclusion to the Gateways to Alissia fantasy series from Dan Koboldt.

Service at the Red Rooster Inn leaves much to be desired. The innkeeper, Darin, has a scowl for every new face. The homebrewed ale seems to grow less palatable with each new batch. The barmaid, Evie, only seems to work when wealthy young men are around, and the old witch Seraphina ensures that's not too often. As for Big Tom, well, everyone learns right quick to stay on the bouncer’s good side. But there’s a reason everyone at the Red Rooster crew bad is at their job. By night, they’re the best team of con artists in the Old Queendom.When a stranger shows up offering a hefty sum to steal a shipment of imperial dreamwine, Darin knows he should refuse. But thanks to a string of bad luck, he owes money to the Gray Dame, the local crime boss. The pay-out from this job will get him square and then some. It might leave enough to explore the promises of power that silver whispers to him. Of course, they’ll have to steal the dreamwine first. It’s the most precious substance in the Old Queendom. Never duplicated, never stolen.But there’s a first time for everything.

Four inhabitants of the Jewel Empire find themselves summoned for an audience with the empress. Each one knows why: Kane, the ambassador of the Jewel Empire, who is surely being blamed for some of the chaos that has plagued his home. Captain Yasira, who's certainly in trouble for her crew losing a shipment of dreamwine.Mervi, whose addiction to silver got her cast out of the palace despite her rare talent for metallurgy. Val, who has helped too many imperial laborers escape across the border. When they arrive, the four are surprised to find that they are not, in fact, being called to the gallows as each had assumed. Instead, the empress has brought them together for an impossible and probably lethal mission. They are to rescue the regional imperial governor (also the empress's favorite niece) from a group of mercenaries from Ganar, a region to the South. They are grateful for the chance to escape punishment for their crimes, but first, they must succeed. If they do, each will get what they desire most. If they fail, the consequences could be deadly. What seems like an easy mission at first soon grows more challenging as countless obstacles mar their path. The only way for them to make it through is to work together and use their unique skillsets for good. The only problem is that, for a bunch of criminals, working as a team doesn’t come easily… The Jewel Empire is an accessible fantasy with familiar tropes like heists and unlikely friendships that will appeal to many non-genre readers.