Spontaneous ∂erivation

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Who knew that the writer of The Grapes of Wrath also dabbled intensely with the legends of King Arthur? He took the time to translate and adapt the tales from the original older English, although he never completed his work.

The stories:

• Merlin
• The Knight with the Two Swords
• The Wedding of King Arthur
• The Death of Merlin
• Morgan Le Fay
• Gawain, Ewain, and Marhalt
• The Noble Tale of Sir Lancelot of the Lake

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A rather violent YA novel about a girl who grows up in a tribe of Amazons and begins to question their ways. Bad luck, since she was born out of the rape of the queen and the nightmare prophecies aren’t helping.

“Some stories are born out of misery and ashes and blood and terror.”

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Continuing with Liz Williams’ earlier novels, we have a science fiction tale about a violent people on a foreign planet, a sickly-born woman of the tribe who happens to be out of sync with the “bloodmind”, and an anthropologist sent to bring peace and healing to their world.

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The Mengsk family has always been in rebellion against an empire-building Terran Confederacy, and Arcturus Mengsk’s task of dismantling the empire hasn’t gotten any easier what with all the alien invasions.

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Another paranormal romance involving a beguiling vampire rock star¹ in conflict with his past, a special agent part of a corrupted government agency who falls in love with him, and mysterious opponents both on the side of the government and the side of the nightkind seek their destruction.

Also available on the Kindle is the prequel, A Rush of Wings.

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Last covered with Starfist: Recoil on New on Kindle’s Black Friday, the most recent cycle of the Starfist series continues with its 13th book.

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He’s dashing, he’s daring, he’s independent, and he solves mysteries and crimes, often wondering why he’s helping out these random unlucky and lonely people, like Lucas Stone, a rebellious cop unfortunate in affairs of his heart. Maybe it’s for the caressing and stroking. Maybe it’s for the tuna.

Short, dark, and a handsome black cat if we must judge by the cover, in this latest of his series, Familiar sometimes narrates and always intervenes in the activities of one Lucas Stone and his uncomfortable relationship with photographer Michelle Sieck.

No, he does not turn into a man. It’s not that kind of paranormal romance.

There are quite a few of these books, and if you like this one (the first time I’ve seen a book available on the Kindle before it debuts in Real Book Form), you’ll want to pick up the Fear Familiar bundle, with the first six books—all currently out of print—for the price of $14.37.

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A singer with magical talent, and who lives in another dimension, is recruited to fight against the Dark, an alien force overtaking the planet. Part of The Summoning series, not all of the books are yet available on the Kindle.

The current run-down:

1. Guardian of Honor (not yet on Kindle)
2. Sorceress of Faith (not yet on Kindle)
3. Protector of the Flight
4. Keepers of the Flame
5. Echoes in the Dark

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The last in the Godspeaker trilogy, about two empresses at war with one another, one an untried and pressured princess, the other a bloodthirsty and violent rags-to-rule story (which was also the main subject of the first book).

All three books are currently available on the Kindle:

• Empress
• The Riven Kingdom
• Hammer of God

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Archaeologist Annja Creed returns with her sword from Joan of Arc, this time she’s helping out a colleague in a dig where the temperatures are deadly cold—in Antarctica.

When will all these archaeologists learn that you never find anything good in Antarctica? She’s lucky it didn’t turn out to be an Alien temple on the Predators’ visiting list. Of course, cursed necklaces and government assassins aren’t something to sneeze at either.

The series is a long-running one, and here it is in full detail (plus Kindle availability):

1. Destiny
2. Soloman’s Jar
3. The Spider Stone
4. The Chosen
5. Forbidden City
6. The Lost Scrolls
7. God of Thunder
8. Secret of the Slaves
9. Warrior Spirit
10. Serpent’s Kiss
11. Provenance
12. The Soul Stealer
13. Gabriel’s Horn
14. The Golden Elephant
15. Swordman’s Legacy
16. Polar Quest

Ender in Exile by Orson Scott Card

Buy: 14.87

Tack another book fresh off the presses (both paper and electronic) onto the Ender’s Game series. Speaking of which, there’s not much in the Kindle store there as of this writing. Here are all of Card’s books in the Kindle store.

Dragonheart: Anne McCaffrey’s Dragonriders of Pern by Todd J. McCaffrey

Buy: 15.48

A continuation of the long-lived Dragonriders of Pern series by her son—and his first solo novel based on his mother’s world. I believe that most of the Pern series is currently in the Kindle store.

Destiny Kills by Keri Arthur

Buy: 5.59

Modern thriller/paranormal romance with dragons and mad scientists.

Heart and Soul by Sarah A. Hoyt

Buy: 5.59

The final volume in an alternate history trilogy focused on the early Victorian-era travels of British adventurer Nigel Oldhall, sort of an Alan Quatermain who keeps running into magical jems, supernatural foes, and mad foreign ministers everywhere he goes in the world.

The other two books in this series, Soul of Fire and Heart of Light, are also available on the Kindle.

The Tomorrow Code by Brian Falkner

Buy: 9.99

Your fortune says: It is not a good day when your future selves start sending you cryptic messages encoded in binary.

Star Trek: Destiny: Mere Mortals by David Mack

Buy: 5.59

Borg, Jean-luc Picard, Erzi Dax, William Riker, the U.S.S. Titan, and god-like beings who can mess with space and time and, unlike the Q, have absolutely no sense of humor whatsoever.

Fern Verdant and the Silver Rose by Diana Leszczynski

Buy: 9.99

Fern discovers that she can talk to plants. This is very important, because her botanist mother has been spirited away by malevolent forces, and only Fern has the key to finding her.

Twilight: The Complete Illustrated Movie Companion by Mark Cotta Vaz

Buy: 9.99

I’m not quite sure how well a complete illustrated movie companion guide will go over on the color-limited/contrast-specific Kindle. Nevertheless, this is in the Kindle store—although in this case, I strongly suggest you get the print edition instead.

The Demonata #7: Death’s Shadow by Darren Shan

Buy: 9.99

A horror series for young adults, and I mean serious horror gore here, with every single demonic and/or evil creature you can imagine involved. Yes, and zombies. An 8th book is on the way, and the entire Demonata series is available for the Kindle.

One Silent Night by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Buy: 6.99

Stryker wants to kill us all. Yes, with his army of demons and vampires. But then his ex-wife of several centuries shows up, and there is, shall we say, a throw-down. Kind of the almost exact opposite of a paranormal romance.

Prince of Stories: The Many Worlds of Neil Gaiman by Christopher Golden, Hank Wagner, And Stephen R. Bissette

Buy: 17.79

The ultimate guide to Neil Gaiman’s fiction, with exclusive interviews and rare glimpses at beginnings and unpublished work, in its dead tree incarnation this thing is huge. Consider it the DVD extras to all of Neil Gaiman’s work ’til now.

Just After Sunset by Stephen King

Buy: 9.99

You know you’ve made it when your name and a moderately ominous title alone sells like hotcakes. All jokes aside, this is a different turn than usual for King, since this is a collection of recent short stories rather than a single novel.

Orphan’s Alliance by Robert Buettner

Buy: 6.39

Military science fiction, the most recent in the Orphan series, all of which are present on the Kindle, including: Orphanage, Orphan’s Destiny, and Orphan’s Journey.

The Reawakened by Jeri Smith-Ready

Buy: 9.99

This is not your typical Harlequin book. In the last of a trilogy, Rhia, bestowed with the gift of Crow, and her people must fight for their freedom and their land in an epic fantasy with its own mythology. The other two books in this trilogy, Eyes of Crow and Voice of Crow, are both available for the Kindle.

Death Cry by James Axler

Buy: 5.04

Really not your typical Harlequin novel: in a post-apocalyptic world, aliens control the world, and the Russians have managed to hide a doomsday weapon. The problem is, having the earth destroyed under your feet is still worse than fighting against tyrannical alien overlords. It’s up to Kane and his team of Cerebus Intelligence rogues to save the world. Again. More of the Outlanders series here.

Swordsman’s Legacy by Alex Archer

Buy: 5.04

Picture in your mind: Indiana Jones. But female. And with way better adventures, in action and intelligence, and characters than Tomb Raider—because believe me, Lara Croft ain’t no Indiana Jones even if you factor out the plus/minus of stacks/gear.

Plus Annja Creed has the mystical sword of Joan of Arc.

There’s an entire series of this.

Dark Isle by D.A. Nelson

Buy: 9.99

A young adult novel in the Roald Dahl crossed with Narnia model, involving 10-year-old Morag who escapes her less-than-loving foster parents to rescue a magical world from an evil warlock.

If you’re somewhat shocked to hear that her companions are a magical talking rat and a dodo bird, you’re probably a Neil Gaiman fan like me and remember the allusions to Barbie’s dreamscapes, but this isn’t like them (there’s a dragon instead of a giant dog, for one, and I don’t think all the rats in his family are all named Aldiss).

The Darkest Touch by Jaci Burton

Buy: 5.59

Paranormal romance/thriller, with an archaelogist holding a forbidden black diamond on the run from a demon hunter. Things escalate into a demon warfare, and the the party really gets going. She does not, unfortunately, hold the sword of Joan of Arc.

Bird by Rita Murphy

Buy: 9.99

I’ll finish with something that came up earlier, but I missed due to not having Delacorte on my list of publishers to watch. Bird is a surreal fantasy, beginning with an orphaned Miranda brought by the wind to the doorstep of the cold, dark manor of a widow, who gives her iron boots to ground her but little else.

Secrets, about the manor and her former life, begin to unwind when Miranda meets a mysterious boy named Farley.