Small and Independent Press Highlights

For more than twenty years West Canvia and Lemuria have battled one another in a constant war.
From the safety of his laboratory, weapons designer Thomas Riley has cleverly and proudly empowered the West Canvian forces with his brilliant designs. But when a risky alchemy experiment goes horribly wrong, Thomas and his wily assistant, Cynthia Bassett, are thrust onto the front lines of battle.
Forced into shaky alliances with murderous sky pirates in a deadly race to kidnap the only man who can undo the damagethe mad genius behind Lemuria's cunning armamentsThomas' own genius is put to the ultimate test.

"Gritty, grim, and fabulous--Holly is a master of dark magic and dark reality "
--Tamora Pierce (author of "Bloodhound")

"Holly Black is the Real Thing: a gifted writer with a solid grounding in what matters. Her stories are dark and splendid blooms rising from roots sunk deep in myth and tradition."
--Ellen Kushner (author of "The Privilege of the Sword")

"Simply put, Holly Black is one of our best writers. Enchanting and edgy, yes, but it's the big heart in her stories that brings me back to her writing, time and again. Reading a new book by Holly is like meeting up with an old friend. They might be a little messed up from the last time you saw them, they might have some serious drama going on in their lives, but the connection is immediate, and when they're packing up to head off again, you don't want to let them go."
--Charles de Lint (author of "The Blue Girl")

In her debut collection, "New York Times" best-selling author Holly Black returns to the world of "Tithe" in two darkly exquisite new tales. Then Black takes readers on a tour of a faerie market and introduces a girl poisonous to the touch and another who challenges the devil to a competitive eating match. These stories have been published in anthologies such as "21 Proms," "The Faery Reel," and "The Restless Dead," and have been reprinted in many "Best of" anthologies. "The Poison Eater"s is Holly Black's much-anticipated first collection of stories, and her ability to stare into the void--and to find humanity and humor there--will speak to young adult and adult readers alike.

Illustrated by Theo Black.

Horse vet Gail McCarthy goes camping in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mts, only to discover that her old boyfriend, Lonny Peterson, has just been arrested for the murder of a local livestock auctioneer. While Gail and her family camp and ride through the hills, Gail also tries to clear Lonny’s name, with the help of another old friend, sheriff’s deputy Bret Boncantini. A rescue horse, nefarious kill buyers, supicious ranchers, and a heroic horse blogger further complicate the plot. Another murder and a trail that leads to Gail’s home on the California coast put her in danger as she begins to close in on the ruthless killer. In the end it is Gail’s riding skill that saves her in a thrilling horseback chase scene. Going, Gone features all the elements that Laura Crum is known for: fine writing about beautiful landscapes and authentic western horse lore, as well as an exciting mystery. Don’t miss this eleventh installment in the long running series.

Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451
is one of the undisputed classics of modern science fiction. Its title
has become part of our common language. Its portrait of an increasingly
soulless society in which books and ideas are anathema has become part
of our cultural heritage.

A Pleasure to Burn is
the ideal companion to Bradbury’s great novel. Edited by Bradbury
authorities Donn Albright and Jon Eller, this generous volume gathers
16 vintages stories and novellas. Some of the stories, such as “The
Pedestrian” and “Pillars of Fire,” will be familiar to the author’s
long-time fans. Others, such as “The Bonfire” and “The Reincarnate,”
are more obscure. The true heart of the collection are the long
novellas “Long after Midnight” (which has only appeared once in an
expensive limited edition) and the 25,000-word tale, “The Fireman,” the
immediate precursor to the final, full-length novel. These independent,
brilliantly original tales are a significant publishing event.

Together, these stories
chart the evolution of the images, ideas, and social concerns that
found their purest, most potent expression in Fahrenheit 451. A Pleasure to Burn
is at once surprising, illuminating, and hugely entertaining. Intended
equally for scholars, aficionados, and casual readers, it is both an
invaluable Bradbury sourcebook and a unique, intimate glimpse into the
mysteries of the creative process

Maggy Thorsen refuses to give in as trouble brews again - When Maggy Thorsen’s coffee house, Uncommon Grounds, is virtually obliterated by a snowstorm, she and her friend Sarah resolve to reopen – and Maggy’s found the perfect spot near the train station, just in time for the opening of the new commuter route. But when Sarah’s uncle dies suddenly, in the first of a series of ‘accidents’, it’s clear that someone doesn’t want Uncommon Grounds to reopen. Maggy, however, has no intention of yielding . . .

Beloved bastard of an unloved king, Fiona will do anything to please her father, even studying magic though she never shows more than a spark of talent. But the plague that grips their city sends her to work with the dying, as enmity builds between the two peoples her father has brought together. Struggling to find a cure for the plague, Fiona discovers that its emergence is no coincidence-and that her scorned suitor may be leading a conspiracy that will end in genocide. Even her father wears a false face, and every new tragedy reveals another secret set to shatter her life and her kingdom

In the near future, devestating climate changes, increased seismic activity and a worldwide pandemic force Rosa De Angelo to flee Earth with her three alien hybrid children. In doing so, she leaves behind Tony, her soulmate and husband. Ellen McCarthy is faced with the agonizing choice of abandoning her love starved hybrid children or finding a way back to human child, Griffin, before its too late.

With The Sleeping Dragon, Miyuki Miyabe, Japan's #1 best-selling mystery author, returns to the spare, hard-boiled style of her debut book in English, the cult classic All She Was Worth. Add in a touch of the paranormal, and this noir tale of suspense is on track to garner reviews as glowing as those she's received in the pastand to win her a legion of new readers.
A fierce typhoon strikes Tokyo one night, flooding the city streets. Someone has unlawfully removed a manhole cover, and a little boy out searching for a lost pet goes missing, possibly drowned in the sewers. Is it murder or accidental? These events bring together a struggling journalist named Kosaka, who is grappling with the ghosts of his past, and two young men who may or may not have psychic powers. The three form an unwilling team not only to search for the lost boy, but also to solve a second mystery involving Kosaka's former fiancA(c)e.
Kosaka's career and personal life have stagnated since his breakup with Saeko a few years earlier, and locked him in an emotional impasse. Each of his two reluctant comradesShinji and Naoyais struggling to come to terms with his unique powers ("the dragon within"). While Shinji wants to use his abilities to help others, Naoya seeks to hide his. Kosaka, meanwhile, doubts the young men's ability, all-too-clearly aware that such claims of psychic knowledge of the crimes could in reality mask a criminal culpability. But then all three are forced into an unsteady alliance to try to save the life of someone close to Kosaka.

"One of the best crime debuts in years."--"Yorkshire Post"

"An exciting . . . entertaining first novel."--"The Sunday Telegraph"

Introducing a tough new heroine in thriller fiction--Zoe Sharp's Charlie Fox Charlie makes a living of sorts teaching self-defense to women. It's a skill she picked up out of necessity, having been kicked out of the British Army for reasons she prefers not to go into. So when Susie Hollins is found dead after she mistakenly tussles with Charlie, Fox knows it's only a matter of time before the police come calling. And when the real killer starts taking a very personal interest in Charlie, she finds herself in the middle of the investigation, where she has no choice but to stand and fight.

Fans of Lee Child, Greg Rucka, Gayle Lynds, and Stella Rimington should not miss this thriller series Never before published in the United States, this is the highly-sought first novel in the Charlie Fox series. An original novel with an introduction by Lee Child.

Zoe Sharp lives in the English Lake District with her husband, Andy. Her hobbies are sailing, fast cars (and faster motorbikes), target shooting, travel, films, music, and reading just about anything she can get her hands on. She is the author of seven Charlie Fox novels, including "Third Strike" (St. Martin's Minotaur, 2009). Sharp's heroine Charlie Fox was featured in a story in Busted Flush Press' "A Hell of a Woman," "Served Cold," which was nominated for the 2009 Crime Writers' Association Short Story Dagger.

Sleeper, by Leslie Glass and New York Times Best Selling Author of The April Woo Series..."Glass delivers what her fans have come to expect-page turning suspense and dynamic characters...to sum it up in one word chilling." WELCOME TO PORTLAND...Glass's most provocative character, tracked by the deadliest killers you never want to meet. Name: Michael Tamlin, her father wanted a Jr. Occupation: Undercover Agent. New Job: Her predecessor at the bank was murdered. New Boss: His biggest client has ties to the Middle East. Fianc: Hiding a few dark secrets. Local Cops: Think she's still working for the feds. RISKING ALL FOR MARRIAGE CAN BE DEADLY FOR AN EX-SPY LOOKING FOR ANSWERS IN A CITY ABOUT TO BLOW. PRAISE FOR THE NOVELS OF LESLIE GLASS "Sharp as a scalpel...scary as hell. Leslie Glass is Lady McBain." Michael Palmer "Nobody writes crime mysteries quite like Leslie Glass." Romantic Times "Brilliant...skillfully done." Tampa Tribune "Truly fantastic." New York Post

From the internationally bestselling author of "I'm Not Scared" comes a dizzying and compulsively readable novel set in a moribund town in industrial Italy, where a father and son contend with a hostile world and their own inner demons.

Collects Sing the Light, Sing the Warmth, & Receive the Gift

Astrologer Theodora Quinn has read all the books on positive thinking and manifestation, but finds it's not as easy as The Secret makes it out to be. A passionate woman, Theodora struggles to stay on her spiritual path, despite the fact that an unpredictable teenage son, an eccentric opera-singing aunt, and an almost-ex-husband she can't resist make her doubt her ability to manifest anything but trouble. When actress Angelina Montez is killed after Theodora does her chart, and Theodora's ex is put in charge of the investigation, trouble takes on a whole new dimension.

Theatre director Beth Ortiz is the newest resident of The Castle, an exclusive Los Angeles artists' community. Anxious actors aren't all Beth has to worry about in her new space, however, for The Castle has a secret history of madness and murder, and a celebrity artist who develops a strange fixation on Beth . . . And The Castle also happens to be haunted . . . By some particularly uneasy spirits . . . . . . "As unique as a fingerprint" - Dennis Etchison