Solaris – serie

Unbound Worlds 100 Best Fantasy Novels of All TimeA Best Fantasy Novel of the Decade Pick for BookRiot"Challenging, invigorating, and unique. If court intrigue is your wine of choice, The Goblin Emperor is the headiest vintage I've come across in years."-Scott Lynch, bestselling author of The Lies of Locke LamoraThe youngest, half-goblin son of the Emperor has lived his entire life in exile, distant from the Imperial Court and the deadly intrigue that suffuses it. But when his father and three half brothers in line for the throne are killed in an "accident," he has no choice but to take his place as the only surviving rightful heir.Entirely unschooled in the art of court politics, he has no friends, no advisors, and the sure knowledge that whoever assassinated his father and brothers could make an attempt on his life at any moment.Surrounded by sycophants eager to curry favor with the naïve new emperor, and overwhelmed by the burdens of his new life, he can trust nobody. Amid the swirl of plots to depose him, offers of arranged marriages, and the specter of the unknown conspirators who lurk in the shadows, he must quickly adjust to life as the Goblin Emperor. All the while, he is alone, and trying to find even a single friend... and hoping for the possibility of romance, yet also vigilant against the unseen enemies that threaten him, lest he lose his throne - or his life.

1643: A small group of Parliamentarian soldiers are ambushed in an isolated part of Northern England. Their only hope for survival is to flee into the nearby Moresby Wood... unwise though that may seem. For Moresby Wood is known to be an unnatural place, the realm of witchcraft and shadows, where the devil is said to go walking by moonlight...Seventeen men enter the wood. Only two are ever seen again, and the stories they tell of what happened make no sense. Stories of shifting landscapes, of trees that appear and disappear at will... and of something else. Something dark. Something hungry.Today: five women are headed into Moresby Wood to discover, once and for all, what happened to that unfortunate group of soldiers. Led by Dr Alice Christopher, an historian who has devoted her entire academic career to uncovering the secrets of Moresby Wood. Armed with metal detectors, GPS units, mobile phones and the most recent map of the area (which is nearly 50 years old), Dr Christopher's group enters the wood ready for anything.Or so they think...

How do you encompass all the worlds of the imagination? Within fantasy's scope lies every possible impossibility, from dragons to spirits, from magic to gods, and from the unliving to the undying. In Fearsome Journeys, master anthologist Jonathan Strahan sets out on a quest to find the very limits of the unlimited, collecting twelve brand new stories by some of the most popular and exciting names in epic fantasy from around the world.With original fiction from Scott Lynch, Saladin Ahmed, Trudi Canavan, K J Parker, Kate Elliott, Jeffrey Ford, Robert V S Redick, Ellen Klages, Glen Cook, Elizabeth Bear, Ellen Kushner, Ysabeau S. Wilce and Daniel Abraham, Fearsome Journeys explores the whole range of the fantastic.

Archmage Planir and the wizards of Hadrumal have unleashed their devastating powers to destroy the corsair threat. As they hear the survivors' tales, noblemen from surrounding lands can only fear for their own grip on power. The mysteries of Artifice could counter Hadrumal's might, but Solura's adepts will demand a high price for their aid. Planir faces more urgent dangers. The Archipelagans have cut all ties and are baying for wizard blood, enraged at magic invading their domains, while in the Council of Wizards, Planir's course through the crisis is challenged. He must look beyond the island city for allies. To Suthyfer, the haven for mageborn far in the Eastern Ocean; and to Caladhria, where Corrain, Baron Halferan and Lady Zurenne believe all their trials are over. But this is merely a lull before winter's storms descend from the high mountains, where jealous observers contemplate Hadrumal's plight...

In an alternate world without global terrorism, a private detective is hired by a mysterious woman to track down the obscure creator of the fictional vigilante, Osama Bin Laden...Joe's identity slowly fragments as his quest takes him across the world, from the backwaters of Asia to the European capitals of Paris and London. He discovers the shadowy world of the Refugees, ghostly entities haunting the world in which he lives. Where do they come from? What do they want? Joe knows how the story should end, but is he ready for the truths he will uncover... or the choice he will have to make?

One day every hundred years, a town appears, its location and character different every time. It is home to the greatest miracle a man could imagine: a doorway to Heaven itself. The town's name is Wormwood, and it is due to appear on the 21st September 1889, somewhere in the American Midwest.There are many who hope to be there: travelling preacher Obeisance Hicks and his simple messiah, Soldier Joe; Henry and Harmonium Jones and their freak show pack of outlaws; the Brothers of the Order of Ruth and their sponsor Lord Forset (inventor of the Forset Thunderpack and other incendiary modes of personal transport); and finally, an aging gunslinger with a dark history.They will face dangers both strange and terrible: monstrous animals, predatory towns, armies of mechanical natives, and other things besides. Wormwood defends its secrets, and only the brave and resourceful will survive...

With a Foreword by Joanne Harris.June Cryer is a shopaholic suburban housewife trapped in a lousy marriage. After discovering her husband's infidelity with the flight attendant next door, she loses her home, her husband and her credit rating. But there's a solution: a friend needs a caretaker for a spectacular London high-rise apartment. It's just for the weekend, and there'll be money to spend in a city with every temptation on offer. Seizing the opportunity to escape, June moves in only to find that there's no electricity and no phone. She must flat-sit until the security system comes back on. When a terrified girl breaks into the flat and June makes the mistake of asking the neighbours for help, she finds herself embroiled in an escalating nightmare, trying to prove that a murderer exists. For the next 24 hours she must survive on the streets without friends or money and solve an impossible crime.

Welcome to Trifles & Folly, an antique and curio shop with a dark secret. Proprietor Cassidy Kincaide continues a family tradition begun in 1670 - acquiring and neutralizing dangerous supernatural items. It's the perfect job for Cassidy, whose psychic gift lets her touch an object and know its history. Together with her business partner Sorren, a 500-year-old vampire and former jewel thief, Cassidy makes it her business to get infernal objects off the market. When mundane antiques suddenly become magically malicious, it's time for Cassidy and Sorren to get rid of these Deadly Curiosities before the bodies start piling up.

The border town called Sixes is quiet in the heat of the day. Still, Appaloosa Elim has heard the stories about what wakes at sunset: gunslingers and shapeshifters and ancient animal gods whose human faces never outlast the daylight. And the daylight is running out. Elim's so-called 'partner' - that lily-white lordling Sil Halfwick - has disappeared inside the old adobe walls, hell-bent on making a name for himself among Sixes' notorious black-market traders. Elim, whose worldly station is written in the bastard browns and whites of his cow-spotted face, doesn't dare show up home without him. If he ever wants to go home again, he'd better find his missing partner fast. But if he's caught out after dark, Elim risks succumbing to the old and sinister truth in his own flesh - and discovering just how far he'll go to survive the night.

The Seven Kingdoms are in the grip of an ancient and terrible blood curse. Thousands have died. Thousands more will die. Only one man can end the curse. The fugitive Osgaardan prince, Harkeld, is that man - whether he likes it or not. But the bounty on Harkfeld's head is high. He has outrun his father's soldiers, but he can't outrun the assassins who seek him - Fithians, trained in the art of killing. Even the Sentinel mages who guide and guard him are no mtch for Fithian steel. Faced with the ever-present threat of death, Harkeld must learn to use his fire magic. Or die. Meanwhile dark plots are unfolding in Osgaard's gold-tiled palace, snaring Princess Brigitta and those she loves. And in the eastern kingdoms, yound orphan Jaume journeys with a band of mysterious and dangerous fighters, heading north for a purpose he does not understand.

Building Towards TomorrowSense of wonder is the lifeblood of science fiction. When we encounter something on a truly staggering scale - metal spheres wrapped around stars, planets rebuilt and repurposed, landscapes re-engineered, starships bigger than worlds - the only response we have is reverence, admiration, and possibly fear at something that is grand, sublime, and extremely powerful.Bridging Infinity puts humanity at the heart of that experience, as builder, as engineer, as adventurer, reimagining and rebuilding the world, the solar system, the galaxy and possibly the entire universe in some of the best science fiction stories you will experience.Bridging Infinity continues the award-winning Infinity Project series of anthologies with new stories from Alastair Reynolds, Pat Cadigan, Stephen Baxter, Charlie Jane Anders, Tobias S.Buckell, Karen Lord, Karin Lowachee, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Gregory Benford, Larry Liven, Robert Reed, Pamela Sargent, Allen Steele, Pat Murphy, Paul Doherty, An Owomoyela, Thoraiya Dyer and Ken Liu.

Loxley Fiddleback can see the dead, but the problem is... the dead can see her.Ghosts have always been cruel to Loxley Fiddleback, especially the spirit of her only friend, alive only hours before. Loxley isn't equipped to solve a murder: she lives near the bottom of a cutthroat, strip-mined metropolis known as "The Hole," suffers from crippling anxiety and doesn't cotton to strangers. Worse still, she's haunted.She inherited her ability to see spirits from the women of her family, but the dead see her, too. Ghosts are drawn to her like a bright fire, and their lightest touch leaves her with painful wounds.Loxley swears to take blood for blood and find her friend's killer. In doing so, she uncovers a conspiracy that rises all the way to the top of The Hole. As her enemies grow wise to her existence, she becomes the quarry, hunted by a brutal enforcer named Hiram McClintock. In sore need of confederates, Loxley must descend into the strangest depths of the city in order to have the revenge she seeks and, ultimately, her own salvation.

Magic. Murder. Mayhem.But keep it in the family.Shine's life is usually dull: an orphan without magic in a family of powerful mages, she's left to run the family estate with only an eccentric aunt and telepathic cat for company.But when the family descend on the house for the annual Fertility Festival, Shine is plunged into dark intrigue; stolen letters, a fugitive spy, and family drama mix with murder, sex and secrets, and Shine is forced to decide both her loyalties and future...

ARTHUR C. CLARKE AWARD FINALIST 2022Drink down the brew and dream of a better Earth.Skyward Inn, within the high walls of the Western Protectorate, is a place of safety, where people come together to tell stories of the time before the war with Qita.But safety from what? Qita surrendered without complaint when Earth invaded; Innkeepers Jem and Isley, veterans from either side, have regrets but few scars.Their peace is disturbed when a visitor known to Isley comes to the Inn asking for help, bringing reminders of an unnerving past and triggering an uncertain future.Did humanity really win the war?This is Jamaica Inn by way of Jeff Vandermeer, Ursula Le Guin, Angela Carter and Michel Faber, a beautiful story of belonging, identity and regret.

Murder makes unlikely allies.On the eve of the planet Ileri's historic vote to join the Commonwealth, the assassination of a government minister threatens to shatter everything. Private investigator Noo Okereke and spy Meiko Ogawa join forces with police chief Toiwa to investigate and discover clues that point disturbingly toward a threat humanity thought they had escaped.

In the future, AI are everywhere. They are our employers, our employees, our friends, lovers and even our children. Over half the human race lives online. But in the Caspian Republic, the last true human beings have made their stand, and their repressive, one-party state is locked in perpetual cold war with the outside world.Security Agent Nikolai South is tasked with escorting a dead journalist's widow through the virulently anti-AI and repressive Caspian Republic. But as they delve deeper into the circumstances surrounding the death and the secrets it uncovers, South must choose between his loyalty to his country and his conscience.

* NOMINATED FOR THE LOCUS AWARD 2021 ** NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR *'An elegant, eloquent novel' - LOCUS'Yoon's story-telling is mesmeric' - STARBURST MAGAZINE'A gloriously imaginative silkpunk fantasy' - SFX'Thought-provoking and very timely' - SCIFINOWDRAGONS. ART. REVOLUTION.Gyen Jebi isn't a fighter, or a subversive. They just want to paint. One day they're jobless and desperate; the next, Jebi finds themself recruited by the Ministry of Armor to paint the mystical sigils that animate the occupying government's automaton soldiers.But when Jebi discovers the depths of the Razanei government's horrifying crimes-and the awful source of the magical pigments they use-they find they can no longer stay out of politics. What they can do is steal Arazi, the ministry's mighty dragon automaton, and find a way to fight...

ANNA IS NOT HER NAMEAnna is a possession. She is owned by the man named Will, shielded from a struggling world by his care.Anna is obedient, dutiful, and compliant.When Anna finds the strength to run, she leaves her name behind. But in her new idyllic town, the past-and Will-catch up with her.Carrying a child and a dark secret, she must face the scars he gave her-and learn to be everything Anna was not.

The Emperor is dead. Long live the Empire.General Bordan has a lifetime of duty and sacrifice behind him in the service of the Empire. But with rebellion brewing in the countryside, and assassins, thieves and politicians vying for power in the city, it is all Bordan can do to protect the heir to the throne.Apprentice Magician Kyron was assigned to the late Emperor's honour guard escorting his body on the long road back to the capital.But even a magician's power may fail when enemies emerge from the forests intent on seizing their precious cargo.Whoever controls the Emperor's body, controls the Empire...

ARTHUR C. CLARKE AWARD FINALIST 2022Drink down the brew and dream of a better Earth.Skyward Inn, within the high walls of the Western Protectorate, is a place of safety, where people come together to tell stories of the time before the war with Qita.But safety from what? Qita surrendered without complaint when Earth invaded; Innkeepers Jem and Isley, veterans from either side, have regrets but few scars.Their peace is disturbed when a visitor known to Isley comes to the Inn asking for help, bringing reminders of an unnerving past and triggering an uncertain future.Did humanity really win the war?This is Jamaica Inn by way of Jeff Vandermeer, Ursula Le Guin, Angela Carter and Michel Faber, a beautiful story of belonging, identity and regret.

There are 22 candidates.There are 12 seats.The last interstellar colony ship is down to its final batch of humans after the robots in charge unhelpfully deleted the rest. But rebooting a species and training them for the arduous task of colonisation isn't easy - especially when the planet below is filled with monsters, the humans are more interested in asking questions than learning, and the robots are all programmed to kill each other.But the fate of humanity rests on creating a new civilization on the planet below, and there are twelve seats on the lander. Will manipulation or loyalty save the day?

Mexico City, 1988. Long before iTunes or MP3s, you said "I love you" with a mixtape. Meche, awkward and fifteen, discovers how to cast spells using music, and with her friends Sebastian and Daniela will piece together their broken families, and even find love... Two decades after abandoning the metropolis, Meche returns for her estranged father's funeral, reviving memories from her childhood she thought she buried a long time ago. What really happened back then? Is there any magic left?

An enthralling collection of new and classic tales of the fearsome Djinn, from bestselling, award-winning and breakthrough international writers.Imagine a world filled with fierce, fiery beings, hiding in our shadows, in our dreams, under our skins. Eavesdropping and exploring; tormenting us, saving our souls. They are monsters, saviours, victims, childhood friends.And they are everywhere. On street corners, behind the wheel of a taxi, in the chorus, between the pages of books. Every language has a word for them. Every culture knows their traditions. Every religion, every history has them hiding in their dark places.There is no part of the world that does not know them. They are the Djinn.With stories from Neil Gaiman, Nnedi Okorafor, Amal El-Mohtar, Catherine Faris King, Claire North, E.J. Swift, Hermes (trans. Robin Moger), Jamal Mahjoub, James Smythe, J.Y. Yang, Kamila Shamsie, Kirsty Logan, K.J. Parker, Kuzhali Manickavel, Maria Dahvana Headley, Monica Byrne, Saad Hossain, Sami Shah, Sophia Al-Maria and Usman Malik.

If you don't behave, Puckeen will come out of his box.Driving home late one evening, Etain Larkin finds a corpse on a country road and takes it to a remote farmhouse. She never speaks of that night again. Two decades later, Betty Fitzpatrick starts college in Dublin, and falls in love with the beautiful but troubled Ashling - who seems determined not to let Betty meet her family, especially her alcoholic mother, Etain.Ashling connects all the horrors inflicted on her family to a beloved children's TV show, about a puppet who lived in a box and would come out if you didn't behave. A puppet who no-one remembers ever seeing... except for Ashling.

The latest novel in the Mickey7 series, the inspiration behind the Bong Joon Ho film Mickey 17, starring Robert Pattinson and Naomi AckieMickey Barnes is an ex-Expendable. For the past five years he's spent his time at peace instead of mucking around inside active reactor cores and getting dissected by creepers. When a sudden, virulent plague strikes the fledgling human colony on Niflheim, though, he's forced to return to his old job, expected to die and be replaced as many times as necessary to find a cure. Funny thing, though. Despite the best efforts of the colony's medical team, Mickey seems to be the only person unable to contract the bug. As more and more colonists sicken and die and the colony spirals into panic, Command is forced to contemplate Reset-sterilizing the colony completely to eradicate the plague.No matter how bad things get, Mickey can't let that happen. He has a daughter of his own now, and even if he has to die a hundred times in a hundred different ways, he's determined to find a way to make sure that she survives. It's a lot, but after all, Mickey's already died seven times. After that, how hard could this be?

The heart of TJ Klune meets the eccentricity of Welcome to Nightvale in this wonderous urban fantasyStrange animals are everywhere... if you know where to look.Something strange is happening to Green. He's nearly died and, as if called, Green now wanders the Appalachian mountains. There in the dark woods are the answers about the impossible creatures he's starting to see: cryptids.He meets hermit Valentina, a cryptonaturalist like himself, who can guide him through his new powers. In his studies, Green meets giant moths, cyclops squirrels, and jackalopes. Best of all, Green has a sense of fulfillment like nothing he's felt before. But with something new hunting for Green, he must learn to protect the place, people and creatures he has come to love.

The second novel in the enchanting eco-fantasy duologyStasya and her companions have made a remarkable journey to find the true heir to the Rulership, Markus, believed dead as a child. Now they must bring him back to court for the Grand Council, where he will reveal himself. Until then his survival must be kept secret, for not only is he at risk, but the Ruler's guards will be hunting for the fugitives.The dangerous journey brings shipwreck, armed attack, and monsters both human and unearthly. As they travel, the team learns just how much damage the Ruler's desperate quest for amber is inflicting on her people, and how much stronger they can be when they stand together. Much hangs in the balance, and all fear the final confrontation. In the end, could storytelling be the key?

A dark fantasy for the readers of The Tainted CupAlistair Fall is a misanthropic piece of work. On the road as a Wandering Investigator, he wants nothing more than to solve crimes that are worth his time, and to use his State-sanctioned sorcery. When he receives a letter from an old friend asking for his help with an enticing case that may finally utilize his talents, he returns eagerly to the city of Osk.Sunny is everything Fall is not: street-smart, charming, and - so she thinks - deeply mysterious. But when she's found over the dead body of a High Court barrister, Alistair Fall's friend, she finds herself on the run and completely on her own. That is, until Fall offers her his help.Together, they navigate the labyrinthine streets of Osk, a city of forbidden magic, forgotten gods, fractious dragons, and the corruption of necromancy. But the city is not the only one hiding secrets...

In a world that lost its magic years ago, the remote Museum of Witchcraft is a home for ancient artifacts that used to be enchanted. But its newest intern, archaeology student Mira Marinova, has reason to believe magic still exists, and the Museum's collection of mismatched, misfit relics is her one chance to prove it.Her new coworkers are helpful but... odd, including a groundskeeper with a suspiciously wolf-shaped dog and a silver allergy, and a Director whose vehicle of choice is a chicken-legged hut. Worse, some items have gone missing on the eve of a surprise audit by an enigmatic, hooded Inspector.And that might be Mira's fault. Because Mira has her own secret: in a world where magic is supposed to be dead and gone, she's managed to get herself cursed. With bad luck. In between knocking over priceless artifacts and losing half her socks in the wash, she'll need to figure out how to break her curse by solving a centuries-old murder and delving into the mysteries of the Museum's magical past - as well as her own.