Coming Up for Air Jessica Natalie Reino Published by: Fire and Ice YA Publication date: October 20th 2025 Genres: Fantasy, Paranormal, Young Adult
As if the rumors and whispers from the people of her seaside town, Oceanbrook, weren’t bad enough, 17-year-old Sarah D’Antonio is troubled by the whispers from the forest. It’s not her fault that she hears voices, that she sees auras, and that she has been sleepwalking along the shore. The townspeople, and Sarah’s parents among them, claim that it is all in response to stress, including her chronic migraines and panic attacks. They believe that she can’t come to grips with the fact that her cousin, Lena, is dead. But Sarah knows that the things she is experiencing are real and not something she is bringing on herself. She also knows that Lena is not dead, only missing. She believes that there is something more supernatural going on and that the town is hiding secrets.
Sarah’s feelings are validated when she suddenly becomes thrust into a world in which she has always sensed but never seen. A world of fairy witches, shape-shifters, and legendary creatures. The world of the astral plane. And now, it will be up to her to form alliances to save the magic, fix the astral plane, and most importantly, to bring her cousin home.
I had lost so much over the span of the last few years. Second-guessing everything but still trying to find a reason behind why bad things happen. It’s not like I didn’t know that life wasn’t fair, but living with chronic illness and how everyone reacted differently to Lena’s disappearance really drove home the fact that I would never be able to fully trust my relationships, my health, or even my beliefs. I think that’s what scared me the most. Everything that I had believed was shaken, and I had to build a new normal. I had to build myself back up. Only, I didn’t have a solid foundation on which to do it.
Author Bio:
Jessica Natalie Reino is a multi-genre author with a soft spot for sweet romance and the supernatural. Inspired by her Italian heritage and growing up in New England, she is constantly developing new story ideas that not only raise awareness for those with invisible illnesses, but also promote kindness and the importance of physical and mental health. When she is not working on her own writing, Jess can be found helping other writers achieve their goals, spending time with family and friends, or out on the Zumba® dance floor.
The shadows have retreated with Raven’s downfall, but darkness still curls
at the edges of the world. For a moment, though, Kari and Ari have a moment
of peace. There is a glimmer of light that threatens to wash away the
darkness as they finally bind their fates together in a formal
ceremony.
But Raven hasn’t given up, and there’s an older, crueler foe who hasn’t
forgotten Kari – the Lord of Demons, the very one who crafted the Catalyst
which Raven sought to control, still trapped in an ancient Tree.
Kari’s moment of joy comes to a halt as the world shakes and Taris is
ripped apart.
Velthas has risen.
About the Author
Valerie Storm was raised in Tucson, Arizona. Growing up, she fell in love
with everything fantasy. When she wasn’t playing video games, she was
writing. By age ten, she began to write her own stories as a way to escape
reality. When these stories became a full-length series, she considered the
path to sharing with other children & children-at/heart looking for a
place to call home.
What if the key to saving the world lies in the one creature
everyone learned to fear?
Dragons, Mermaids, Elves… and Kitsune?
Keeper of Dragons: Aprella Academy Book 1
by J.A. Culican
Genre: YA Fantasy, Ranobe
What if the key to
saving the world lies in the one creature everyone learned to fear?
Rhyden was supposed to stay hidden in Ochana, the floating
realm of dragons—isolated ever since Prince Jago’s mysterious death. But with
an unshakable sense of duty, he defies his people’s decree and enrolls at
Aprella Academy, a legendary school where mermaids, elves, fairies, and kitsune
shape the world’s magic.
Arriving as the first dragon on campus in a century, Rhyden
becomes an instant sensation—and not everyone is thrilled about it. Whispers
circulate that the wards protecting the academy are failing. A priceless
artifact has been stolen, dark forces lurk in hidden corridors, and rumors
blame the sudden “dragon presence” for the danger creeping past the gates.
Teaming up with a ragtag circle of new friends—Kairo the
mermaid warrior torn between land and sea, Fenrick the kitsune trickster hiding
unexpected insecurities, Talyssa the elf struggling to atone for her people’s
past, and Lirien the quiet fairy sensing a looming evil—Rhyden races to unmask
the culprit. Yet ominous illusions and shocking betrayals await at every turn,
threatening to shatter the fragile trust he’s begun to build.
When Rhyden’s draconic power finally awakens, it’s as
explosive as the secrets that forced dragons into hiding long ago. Determined
to reclaim the dragon legacy and protect a world that once shunned his kind, he
soon learns that defeating hidden enemies may require forging alliances beyond
imagination—and confronting a darkness older than the academy itself.
Dive into a ranobe-inspired tale of epic magic, unlikely
friendships, and one dragon shifter trying to light the path forward in a realm
built on shadows. Will Rhyden spark a new era for dragons—or remind the world
why they vanished in the first place?
Perfect for fans of
magical academies, secret conspiracies, and unstoppable teamwork, Keeper
of Dragons: Aprella Academy is your next addictive fantasy read.
J.A. Culican is a USA Today Bestselling author of the middle
grade fantasy series Keeper of Dragons. Her first novel in the fictional series
catapulted a trajectory of titles and awards, including top selling author on
the USA Today bestsellers list and Amazon, and a rightfully earned spot as an
international best seller. Additional accolades include Best Fantasy Book of
2016, Runner-up in Reality Bites Book Awards, and 1st place for Best Coming of
Age Book from the Indie book Awards.
J.A. Culican holds a Master’s degree in Special Education
from Niagara University, in which she has been teaching special education for
over 13 years. She is also the president of the autism awareness non-profit
Puzzle Peace United. J.A. Culican resides in Southern New Jersey with her
husband and four young children.
Tale of the Seasons’ Weaver D. Wallace Peach Publication date: January 9th 2024 Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult
“Already the animals starve. Soon the bonemen will follow, the Moss Folk and woodlings, the watermaids and humans. Then the charmed will fade. And all who will roam a dead world are dead things. Until they too vanish for lack of remembering. Still, Weaver, it is not too late.”
In the frost-kissed cottage where the changing seasons are spun, Erith wears the Weaver’s mantle, a title that tests her mortal, halfling magic. As the equinox looms, her first tapestry nears completion—a breathtaking ode to spring. She journeys to the charmed isle of Innishold to release the beauty of nature’s awakening across the land.
But human hunters have defiled the enchanted forest and slaughtered winter’s white wolves. Enraged by the trespass, the Winter King seizes Erith’s tapestry and locks her within his ice-bound palace. Here, where comfort and warmth are mere glamours, she may weave only winter until every mortal village succumbs to starvation, ice, and the gray wraiths haunting the snow.
With humanity’s fate on a perilous edge, Erith must break free of the king’s grasp and unravel a legacy of secrets. In a charmed court where illusions hold sway, allies matter, foremost among them, the Autumn Prince. Immortal and beguiling, he offers a tantalizing future she has only imagined, one she will never possess—unless she claims her extraordinary power to weave life from the brink of death.
In the lyrical fantasy tradition of Margaret Rogerson and Holly Black, D. Wallace Peach spins a spellbinding tale of magic, resilience, and the transformative potency of tales—a tapestry woven with peril and hope set against the frigid backdrop of an eternal winter.
A wicker basket of colorful spools rested at my feet. I picked through the bewitched thread my mother had hand-spun long before my birth. No matter how many seasons passed, the spools unwound and unwound, and I no longer fretted about reaching their ends. There was no end to magic, no end to the seasons, no end to my place on the cusp of two worlds.
A delicate pink caught my eye, a color crafted from the cherry blossoms bordering my garden. I held it against the tapestry, testing its suitability for flowering plum trees and coral bells I’d stitch into the meadows and along the forest’s edge.
“Should you desire my opinion, Erith,” a small voice piped up, “it requires a touch of carnation and a shimmer of sunshine. On the dogwood blossoms as well.”
“I wondered about those.” My gaze rose to my knee-high hospet. He sat cross-legged on the hearthstone in front of our shrinking fire, cracking walnuts with his sharp teeth. The creature blinked at me with eyes as clear as spring water, his waistcoat buttoned, cheeks rosy, and cinnamon hair parted in the middle like a magistrate. Nobbin kept my wood and moss cottage tidy, expecting little beyond customary respect and an occasional outfit when his garments aged past mending.
He also took it upon himself to offer artistic advice since my mother had chosen to join my father in the underworld.
“I might leave them as they are,” I said. “Dogwoods are white.”
Nobbin’s eyebrows tilted up in an expression of devilish skepticism. “Spring’s princess will agree with me. Give it a brush of magic. I know you dabble when I’m otherwise occupied.”
“You spy on me?”
“I’m observant. And I’m charmed.” He flicked his handcloth at the window. “Snow doesn’t glitter like that without your touch, my girl. You added that sparkle to your mother’s tapestry, and it impressed the Winter King.”
“Do you think so?” A blush heated my cheeks. “From what I’ve gathered, he’s not one to dole out compliments.”
“None of them are.” Nobbin held up a nut as if inspecting a precious gem. “Such is the nature of immortals. Add a layer of royalty on top, and we are lucky they don’t dismember anyone or anything tarnishing their crowns.”
“Dismember?” I cringed at the grisly thought and drew my black shawl around my shoulders. “My mother told me the courtiers are kind and cruel in equal measure. Without good reason for either.”
Not one to speak with his mouth full, Nobbin raised a finger and swallowed a morsel of walnut. “Indeed, they’re notoriously whimsical. But you are their weaver, and every artist must begin somewhere. You will earn your place, Erith, though it is no simple task to prove your power and demand respect. Spring is the first tapestry you may claim as your own creation, and it is a glorious start. I have untold faith in you.”
I smiled gratefully and stifled a shudder at the challenge ahead. Despite Nobbin’s trust in me, my confidence wavered like a weathervane on a gusty day. I’d done my best, and it would have to serve. The seasons’ rulers wouldn’t dismember me on a whim. I hoped.
Author Bio:
Best-selling author D. Wallace Peach grew up surrounded by her father’s well-loved paperback books. Fantasy was a staple, but it was Tolkien’s The Hobbit that planted the seeds which would grow into a passion for writing.
Peach started writing later in life when years of working in business surrendered to a full-time indulgence in the imaginative world of books. She was instantly hooked.
In addition to fantasy books, Peach’s publishing career includes participation in various anthologies featuring short stories, flash fiction, and poetry. She’s an avid supporter of the arts in her local community, organizing and publishing annual anthologies of Oregon prose, poetry, and photography.
Peach lives in a log cabin amongst the tall evergreens and emerald moss of Oregon’s rainforest with her husband, two owls, a horde of bats, and the occasional family of coyotes.
Welcome to the tour for The Bloodgrove Apprentice by Nathan C. Ashford! From now through January 12th, e-Books are on sale for only $0.99 and paperbacks are $9.99!
The Bloodgrove Apprentice
Publication Date: August 27, 2024
Genre: YA Fantasy
Found Family
Friendships
Furry Friend (Cat)
Cozy Village Life
Violence & Revenge
Elemental and Mind-based Magic
Mentorship
YA Fantasy Coming-of-Age
In a shattered world where magic is forbidden, a war is brewing and only one thing is certain: Blood. Will. Rain.
Brynna has lived her whole life in relative peace and isolation— until the Revenants, a malevolent cult wielding forbidden magic, annihilate everything she holds dear. Her life now burned to ash and her parents slain, Brynna narrowly evades the slaughter, fleeing into Bloodgrove Forest.
Friendly faces emerge within the village of Bloodgrove, including the local blacksmith, who gives Brynna an opportunity to make a new life as his apprentice.
But she can’t escape her fate so easily. Haunted by nightmares and tormented by the local ruffian, Brynna is growing increasingly restless and finding it difficult to cope with her need for revenge.
Brynna can’t run from evil forever. Will she and her newfound friends survive, or become victims of the Revenant’s bloody reign of terror?
Just when thirteen-year-old Selena Flowers thought she was safe, strange
events plunge her seaside town into peril once more. She must dive back into
the dangerous underwater world she narrowly escaped last year to find
answers about the chaotic happenings in town.
Beneath the waves, the undead mermaid queen Faustina desperately searches
for a powerful ruby necklace while corrupting sea creatures into her zombie
army. A sinister dark force is unleashed, spreading its dark magic and
corrupting the merkingdom.
To have any hope of stopping this evil and restoring balance above and
below the waves, Selena must join forces with unlikely allies, including
Faustina herself, and embrace her connection to the underwater world.
With the fate of two realms at stake, Selena must defeat the darkness
before it consumes everything and everyone she loves.
About the Author
Ella English grew up in the heart of London, where the hustle and bustle of
city life met summer adventures at her grandma’s house on the Kent
coast. Exploring tide pools and collecting seashells, she developed a love
for the ocean and a knack for creating imaginative worlds that she now
brings to life through her writing.
Now living in Baltimore, Maryland, Ella is the author of The Merblood Saga,
a dark fantasy YA series that plunges readers into a haunting underwater
realm filled with cursed mermaids, ancient magic, and buried secrets. The
first book, Selena Flowers and the Cursed Ruby, has been a hit with young
readers, drawing them into its mysterious and dangerous world.
Ella also writes and illustrates Kitty in the City, a whimsical series
about a singing cat named Katy who takes New York City by storm. The latest
installment, Katy in Central Park, will be released in June 2025.
When she’s not weaving dark magic or drawing cats, Ella is kept busy
by her two mischievous felines who make sure she stays entertained and
grounded. Follow her adventures (and plenty of cat cameos) on Instagram
@EllaEnglishAuthor or visit http://www.ellaenglish.com for more.
We’re back in Achten Tan, but this time we are going back in time with new characters and a new adventure! Check out Tar & Bone by Debbie Iancu-Haddad!
Tar and Bone (The Sands of Achten Tan Book 1)
Publication Date: August 24, 2024
Genre YA Fantasy Adventure (Ages 12 to 18)
* Magic * Adventure * Disability & LGBTQ rep * Friendly Giant ants! * Non-European Setting * A weird Desert town in a ribcage. *No spice 🚫 🌶️🚫
Thirteen-year-old Kamal has been waiting his whole life to join the An’chers – the giant ant riders who protect the desert town of Achten Tan. Despite his disability, a crooked leg caused by a childhood injury, he’s determined to succeed in the try outs and become a cadet. To overcome the challenge, he strikes a bargain with an unexpected ally.
D’or is a half-elf with a dark secret. When the young giant Tar-tule rider agrees to help Kamal, his hazardous magic and the enemies it attracts put both boys in harm’s way.
Now they must evade the fanatic high elves who see D’or’s very existence as an abomination, and the dread sorcerer C’naga, whose interest in the boy threatens to lead them both down a dark path, from which there is no return.
Tar and Bone is a standalone prequel story to Speechless in Achten Tan. It includes themes of friendship, coming of age, and making tough choices. PG content is suitable for younger teen readers.
Eilean’s life wasn’t easy and
now she has to save a God – great
The Spiral of Life: An Old Gods
Story
Eilean
in the Otherworld Book 1
by
Francesca McMahon
Genre:
YA Contemporary Fantasy, Mythology
The first lesson Eilean MacAlistair
learned in blacksmithing: First, you harden, and then you
temper.
Otherwise, your metal will break.
The same is true with life.
A few years back, Eilean didn’t temper herself, and she broke
someone. Badly. Hospital badly.
Her family had to flee Scotland because of her, but now they’ve
returned, and 17-year-old Eilean’s life feels like a forge with the
temperature rising around her. Mamó is sick, her family is straining
at the seams, and magic is real!
An Otherworld has been calling to her from beneath Loch Lomond.
When she answers, Eilean discovers a world of blacksmiths in ballgowns,
cruel cyclopses, and chronically critical kelpies.
Because she didn’t have enough problems to deal with already.
Will Eilean be able to temper herself against everything in this strange
new world, and withstand the weight of her past? Or will she break
once again?
Find out in the first adventure of Eilean in the Otherworld, The Spiral of
Life, a young adult fantasy inspired by Celtic folklore.
She was about to slip on her shoes when something strange happened.
Her pendant, the spiral around her neck, grew warm. Eilean stopped what she was doing, stood upright, and reached up for the necklace. It didn’t feel warm to the touch now. Thinking she was imagining things, she slipped her shoes onto her cold feet and grabbed her socks and Mamó’s sweets.
Heading up the bank, trying to ignore the chafe of her shoes, Eilean felt her necklace grow warm again. She stopped in place.
“That’s… weird,” she mumbled, reaching up to hold the wood once more.
Eilean glanced around, trying to figure out if she was just feeling an out-of-place warm breeze.
That was when she noticed it.
The fog had spread. Before, it had been at a distance, only covering a few of the smaller islands on the farthest side of the loch. Now it had spread to the beach, dancing over the stones and heading up the pebbled bank toward her. Like it was trying to swallow her up.
“What the—” Eilean started, until she was cut off by a cry.
“Help!”
Eilean, immediately alert, searched the beach for the voice. Nothing.
“Help me! Help!” the small voice cried, followed by the sound of frantic splashing.
Eilean squinted through the fog.
In the distance, about two hundred yards from the shore, a pair of hands raised into the air, waving madly. The wet head of hair appeared above the water again. The hands belonged to a struggling child.
“Shit!” Eilean cried, searching for someone nearby who could help. Where the hell had he even come from?
“Help—” The voice cut off.
Eilean whirled around, and for a horrifying second, she couldn’t see the kid anymore. They came splashing to the surface again, clearly panicked.
She had no choice.
Dumping her items and throwing off her shoes again, she charged forward. Ignoring the stinging of the stones against her feet, Eilean leaped into the water. Unlike before, she submerged herself fully in the loch. Her entire body screamed at the sharpness of the icy waters by sending a wrack of shivers up and down her skin.
Christ. Balls. Fack! she thought as she swam through the bone-chilling cold of the loch.
The kid’s screaming and splashing were getting closer, but so was the strength of the fog. She could barely see a foot in front of her. Eilean stopped swimming, unable to continue in fear that she could end up heading in the wrong direction.
“Kid!” Eilean shuddered out through her chattering teeth. “Shout for me!” She bobbed in place, turning frantically in every direction. “Where are you?”
Nothing.
Oh, God, I can’t have been too late, Eilean thought. They were shouting for me up until I stopped.
Then, she felt something touch her foot.
Yelping in surprise, Eilean stared down at the water beneath her. She couldn’t see a thing, the water too dark to see through, but she knew something had touched her.
Could the kid be underneath already?
Eilean threw her chin over both shoulders, hoping for a sign that she was close. Nothing happened. No call for help, no ripple in the water. Nothing.
“Crap,” she muttered as she looked down at her reflection in the water. “Crap.”
Eilean took a deep breath, then dove.
The waters of Loch Lomond had never been the clearest. While one could make out details that were in close proximity, without proper diving equipment, it didn’t make much difference. But this time, it was as if Eilean had plunged into a room where all the lights had gone out. It was a terrifying feeling.
She kicked her legs and searched as low and wide around as she could manage. Eilean held an arm out in the hopes of feeling anything but eventually the need for air forced her to swim back up to the surface.
Just as she took her first breath, readying to dive back down again, something grabbed her foot and held on for dear life.
Eilean was so surprised she almost forgot to panic. She swallowed a great gulp of frigid water as the kid pulled her farther under. Kicking and thrashing, Eilean tried to remove their grip as best she could. She even tried to reach down and pry them off her leg. Nothing worked. Her last thought as the distant light above her faded into darkness cried out through the cold.
I’m not ready to die.
Francesca McMahon was born in
Oxford, England, to a Scottish father and an Essex mother. They
gained a B.A. in Creative Writing at Edge Hill University and was
shortlisted for the university’s Dame Janet Suzman Playwriting
Award in 2019. Since graduating, Francesca has worked consistently in
publishing while working on her writing of fantasy, horror and
romance fiction, as well as various tabletop RPGs and screenplays. As
a queer person, their work is dedicated to the LGBTQIA+ community,
and she hopes that they will all find a home in her imaginary worlds.
Son of the Siren Kristina Elyse Butke Publication date: July 2nd 2024 Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult
Sometimes love is a curse, a twisted, unnatural obsession.
Such is the dark magic of a siren’s song, the power of which half-siren Lirien witnesses for himself as he watches his mother sing his father, the King of Ardeth, into the sea. In a fruitless attempt to reverse his father’s fate, Lirien sings the siren song himself, not knowing its true power is seduction. Instead, he ensnares his stepmother, the Queen, with its hypnotic melody.
When Lirien refuses her desperate advances, she turns to forbidden magic to force her love on him. But wishing upon a havoc stone is an invitation to chaos. The queen’s own son and daughters, Lirien’s beloved siblings, are whisked away and transformed into animals. They flee the kingdom, and Lirien chases after them, his beautiful voice also gone.
Through elven mountains, fae forests, and siren waters, Lirien will stop at nothing to find and save his family. Threats come at him from all sides, but there are allies, too—Kitra, a shapeshifting fae fox who vows vengeance on the Queen for killing her brother, and Brandegil, an elf who can awaken the sacred sword Alibrandr to help break the spell on the children.
Together, they’ll bring the stars raining down from the heavens if that’s what it takes to save Lirien’s family, but there’s still the matter of breaking the spell on the Queen. And Lirien’s own deadly curse haunts him should he stray too long from the sea.
On the night of his twentieth birthday, Lirien was dreaming he was a golden bird with long, lustrous plumage, when a wordless song invaded his sleep. A woman’s voice, rich and beautiful, floated upon the warm summer breeze through the open balconette window, but it wasn’t until he felt the gentle brush of her breath against his ear that Lirien opened his eyes.
He was alone in the darkness of his room, but the song caressed him with silky fingers. A tingling warmth traveled his skin before it settled down as a hot knot in his stomach. He felt something like a tug at his waist, pulling him forward.
He didn’t remember standing or walking. He was in his bed, and then he was on the beach with the hulking silhouette of the castle and cliffs rising behind him. He thought he was dreaming again, until the cold water washed over his bare feet and, at last, the dreamlike haze within him dissolved.
The singing continued.
The light from the large, snow-white moon cast a strong glow upon the sand, which sparkled as though the stars had fallen and taken root there. Beside him, a mound of red velvet bedclothing had been tossed carelessly aside at the water’s edge. Lirien recognized the clothes and the figure in the sea before him, a man slowly stumbling forward against the crashing waves.
The knot in his stomach tightened. “Father! What are you doing?”
The man was already waist deep and Lirien ran in after him, sloshing through with difficulty as his father journeyed farther and farther out.
“Stop! Come back!”
Somehow, over the waves and the breeze, his words reached his father. Now treading water, he turned to Lirien, but too late.
The singing stopped. Long, lithe arms, silvery blue and covered in a smattering of scales, shot up from the water and encircled his father, dragging him below.
In desperation, Lirien dove under, blindly swimming ahead as frantic thoughts pummeled him and the sea floor disappeared underneath him. You knew someday she would come; you’ve known all along. It’s her, and she’s here for you both. Without ever seeing her before in his entire twenty years, he knew instinctively who she was.
A woman’s voice echoing inside his head brought a flash of pain. Get away!
Her eyes, two luminous orbs— large, bright, and orange like sunset, orange like Lirien’s own —flooded his vision. She was less than an inch from his face. He was so startled he opened his mouth and took in water, and choking, he rose to the surface. And then she was on him, seizing him tightly underneath his shoulders and staring at him intently.
Her hair, of darkest sapphire, another trait Lirien had inherited, was matted against her gleaming skin. Everything about her was longer, larger. She towered over him easily, and her fiery gaze was so intense he could hardly return it. And her face… he would never be able to describe how lovely and terrible it was, or the feeling that came over him when he saw the parts of her that were also his own.
“Let me go.” His voice, a gentle baritone, came out flimsy and trembling.
Do not follow. She turned to swim away from him. You will not see me again.
Lirien didn’t know what else to do. He called her by the only name he knew.
“Mother.”
She stopped.
“Don’t take him. Please.”
A wistful look spread across her face as she gazed into the water. I loved him. I did. But I cannot help what I am. She met his eyes. And because I love you, you cannot follow.
She dove, a flash of her leg skimming the surface of the water, only to change to feathery finned, kaleidoscopic tail as she disappeared below.
Unable to make sense of his mother’s words or what he was seeing, Lirien ignored her command and dove deep. The water was too dark for him to see, but he imagined the hulking form of his father sinking into the bitter abyss. He pushed on despite the pain in his lungs and the pressure of the cold, dark ocean.
He wasn’t sure what happened or when he lost consciousness, but when he opened his eyes, it was daylight on the beach. He was sprawled out on his back, his wet nightshirt offering no protection from the sand that scratched his skin.
He struggled upright as his stepmother rushed to his side, clutching his father’s abandoned robe to her chest. Several of her guardsmen were scattered along the shoreline, searching the water.
“Lirien!”
He flinched. Queen Aurinda rarely said his name, and the sharpness of it startled him. She sounded all at once livid and frightened. “What did you see? What happened?”
He couldn’t answer her without his own angry tears falling. “King Neven is gone.”
Author Bio:
Kristina Elyse Butke writes fantasy filled with magic, dark curses, and true love. Her time living abroad in Wales and Japan inspires her writing through the fantastical settings and creatures she creates. She has an MFA in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University and when she isn’t writing, she indulges herself with reading manga and webtoons, watching anime, and cosplaying. She also enjoys spending time in forests, the more whimsical, the better.
The Winchester Codex Frances Spurrier Publication date: January 2nd 2024 Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult
Books can be dangerous. Fitz believes he is guardian of one of the most dangerous of all – The Winchester Codex was responsible for wiping out the entire draconic race, of which he is one of the last vestiges. Caught in a trap from the deep time of history, the dragon had vowed to protect the book’s author. Yet in the 21st century, what relevance does this ancient manuscript have? He hides the codex in his attic and tries to forget about it.
A surprise visit from a friend leads to one last quest, forcing them both to confront their past.
In Swansea, Fitz and his friend Perceval happen upon a temporarily homeless teenager who joins them on a walk around the coast of Wales to raise funds for charity and records everything on social media.
But not all their followers are benign. Someone wants the codex that has lain neglected in Fitz’s attic for centuries and wants it badly. What started as a simple walk, ends with a journey into darkness and to the gates of death.
When he surfaced from the Tube, he realised with a jolt of panic that no-one had given him directions to the museum entrance. Or he’d forgotten to print out the email. Find phone, he thought grappling for his mobile in his rucksack. Find email. The arrangement was for two interviews, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, plus he was to be wheeled out for some guest appearances among the exhibits. The traffic as ever was dense and impatient. How could anyone think straight in all this noise and busy-ness? Already he felt a headache coming on.
He stood with a crowd of people waiting to cross at the lights. Curious stares surrounded him as they always did. Yeah I’m a dragon. There’s still some left. So get over it.
Exhibition Road. The right place at least. A queue already? That was gratifying. A young child with a pink parasol and gum boots patterned with yellow ducks stared at him, apparently unpeturbed by the sight of a live dragon wandering down Exhibition Road. The child called out ‘Hey Dinosaur. Are you lost?’
Kind of.
‘Ssshhh! Gracie’ the young woman with the child looked embarrassed. ‘Sorry… so sorry…’
‘Not at all. It’s a common confusion.’
‘About being lost. Or about being a dinosaur?’
‘Both.’
Author Bio:
Frances Spurrier is a published poet, essayist, reviewer and blogger. The Winchester Codex is her first novel. She lives in London with her husband and Suki the Golden Doodle.
