New Releases by Mercedes Lackey

In the second novel in national best-selling legend Mercedes Lackey''s richly-conceived new Joust series, the dragonrider Vetch escapes to Alta, the subjugated land of his birth. There, he hopes to teach his people to raise and train dragons-and build an army that will liberate his homeland.

This stand-alone novel in the Valdemar series continues the story of prickly weapons-master Alberich. Once a heroic Captain in the army of Karse, a kingdom at war with Valdemar, Alberich becomes one of Valdemar''s Heralds. Despite prejudice against him, he becomes the personal protector of young Queen Selenay. But can he protect her from the dangers of her own heart?

Ancient Egypt, Atlantis, and war dragons—all collide in this wildly inventive epic fantasy series from New York Times-bestselling author Mercedes Lackey! “It’s fun to see a different spin on dragons . . . and as usual, Lackey makes it all compelling.” —Locus Meet Vetch, a young slave who dreams of becoming a jouster—one of the few warriors who can actually ride a flying dragon. In secret, he begins to raise his own dragon . . . Beloved fantasy author Mercedes Lackey creates a vivid, dynamic fusion of the cultures of ancient Egypt and legendary Atlantis with the most exciting and believable portrayal of dragons ever imagined.

THE CLASSIC FANTASY PHENOMENON: Explore the world of Valdemar alongside the realm’s magical protectors and their horse-like Companions in this fantasy anthology featuring 13 epic short stories! Step into the ancient land of Valdemar! A world beset by war and internal conflicts, it’s protected by the Chosen Heralds—Mindspeakers, Firestarters, and Empaths alike—who endeavor to keep the peace and defend their country in the name of their monarch. Emissaries, spies, diplomats, scouts, warriors, judges and counselors, the Heralds follow a rigorous code of ethics and are bonded for life with their horse-like Companions. Join Tanya Huff, Michelle West, Mickey Zucker Reichert, Judith Tarr, Fiona Patton and others as they add their own special touch to the world of Valdemar. Discover how the abilities of one remarkable individual can bring peace to two lands which have been sworn enemies for centuries . . . Learn why pain and tragedy are the most valuable teachers an empath can have . . . and see how a man never Chosen can still be a Herald in this heart. Discover the fantasy phenomenon in this epic collection of 13 tales of magic and valor—including an all-new novella by Mercedes Lackey herself!

The Demon Chernobog¾ Foiled but Not Conquered in The Shadow of the Lion¾ is Back to Conquer Sixteenth-Century Venice! Chernobog had come within a hair of seizing absolute power in Venice, but was thwarted by the guardian Lion-spirit, who awoke to protect his city from the power-mad demon. But the power of the Lion is limited to Venice, and Chernobog has a new ally in the King of Hungary, who has beseiged the island of Corfu to seize control of the Adriatic from Venice. Trapped on the island is the small band of heroes who awoke the Lion and thwarted Chernobog before. Far from the Lion''s help, Manfred and Erik lead guerrillas against the foe, and Maria discovers ancient magical powers on the island. If she can make alliance with them, she may be able to repel the invaders¾but not without paying a bitter personal price. . . . At the publisher''s request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management). Praise for the Prequel, The Shadow of the Lion: "The prolific Lackey and cohorts Flint and Freer whip up a luscious bouillabaisse of politics, intrigue, love and black magic set in an "Other-worldly, New-Age Venice. . . ." The authors'' use of contemporary American vernacular . . . instead of pompous period speech keeps the pages turning fast. . . ." ¾Publishers Weekly "[A] massive concoction of alternate history, high fantasy, and historical romance set in the sixteenth-century Venice of an alternate world . . . rich plotting, vivid characterization, and splendid evocation of Renaissance ethics and culture should make readers turn all the pages." ¾Booklist ". . . a sweeping alternate history. .. .The authors deftly wield the juxtaposition of fantasy and history into a finely crafted story." ¾Romantic Times "[A] top pick . . . fast-paced action and complex, believable settings." ¾The Bookwatch

ADVENTURES IN AN OTHER-WORLDLY NEW-AGE VENICE it is the year 1537. The great winged Lion stares over a Venice where magic thrives. The rich Venetian Republic is a bastion of independence and tolerance. Perhaps for that reason, it is also corrupt, and rotten with intrigue. But for the young brothers Marco and Benito Valdosta, vagabond and thief, Venice is simply-home. They have no idea that they stand at the center of the city''s coming struggle for its very life. They know nothing of the powerful forces moving in the background. They have barely heard of Chernobog, demonlord of the North, who is shifting his pawns to attack Venice in order to cut into the underbelly of the Holy Roman Empire. All Marco and Benito know is that they''re hungry and in dangerous company: Katerina the smuggler, Caesare the sell-sword, Montagnard assassins, church inquisitors, militant Knights of the Holy Trinity, Dottore Marina the Strega mage . . . and Maria. Maria might be an honest canaler, but she had the hottest temper a boy could find. Yet among the dark waters of the canals lurk far worse dangers than a hot-tempered girl. Chernobog has set a monster loose to wreak havoc on the city. Magic, murder and evil are all at work to pull Venice down. Fanatical monks seek to root out true witchcraft with fire and sword. Steel-clad Teutonic knights, wealth traders, church dignitaries and great Princes fight and plot for control of the jewel of the Mediterranean. And somehow all of these, from thieves to mages to princes, must gather around Marco and his brother Benito, under the shadow of the great winged lion of Venice. At the publisher''s request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management). "The prolific Lackey and cohorts Flint and Freer whip up a luscious bouillabaisse of politics, intrigue, love and black magic set in an "Other-worldly, New-Age Venice. . . ." The authors'' use of contemporary American vernacular . . . instead of pompous period speech keeps the pages turning fast. . . ." ¾Publishers Weekly "[A] massive concoction of alternate history, high fantasy, and historical romance set in the sixteenth-century Venice of an alternate world . . . rich plotting, vivid characterization, and splendid evocation of Renaissance ethics and culture should make readers turn all the pages." ¾Booklist ". . . a sweeping alternate history. .. .The authors deftly wield the juxtaposition of fantasy and history into a finely crafted story." ¾Romantic Times "[A] top pick . . . fast-paced action and complex, believable settings." ¾The Bookwatch

His name is Lavan Firestorm, a young man blessed—and cursed—with a special talent for firestarting. His legend has haunted the darkest corners of Valdemar, yet the truth has never been told. Here, at last, is his story.

SET A TRAP FOR A SORCERER . . . WITHOUT BEING TRAPPED YOURSELF! Eric Banyon has settled into the New York whirl nicely: he''s doing well at Juilliard, he''s made a lot of new friends, he''s defeated a lord of the Unseleighe Sidhe . . . Or has he Aerune mac Audelaine, whose beloved was killed by mortal men, was determined to destroy the human race until Eric, with a little help from his new friends the Guardians, thwarted Aerune''s plans and exposed the chemists whose designer poison turned ordinary humans into zombie Mages. The human side of the threat is finished, but Aerune, like the rest of the Sidhe, has a long memory . . . and a lot of patience. He''s also got Jeanette Campbell, former Threshold Black Ops, and the science behind the murder. Can Eric stop Aerune''s latest plan Only if he finds out about it before it''s too late, but between babysitting a visiting Healer, training a banjo-playing Bard, attending his daughter''s Underhill Naming ceremony, dealing with a dragon-and trying to survive summer school-Eric''s got his hands full. Saving the world has never been more necessary-or come at a higher price. At the publisher''s request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management).

Tannim is a human mage fond of fast cars and loud music, working with the elf lord Keighvin to rescue runaway kids in serious trouble. But those kids are being used by Keighvin'' enemies to bait a trap. Meanwhile, Tannim thinks he''s found the right woman, but it seems she wants to kill him.

This exciting new anthology includes a new novella featuring Mercedes Lackey''s most popular heroines, Tarma (one of the sword-sworn and most feared of all warriors) and Kethry (who wields magic and weapons for the greater good), whose fates are suddenly bound together in blood by the powers that control their destinies. Also included in the unique volume is the complete collection of Lackey''s short stories about these two brave sisters as they answer the call of their destinies with sword and sorcery!

In Storm Rising, mysterious mage-storms are wreaking havoc on Valdemar, Karse, and all the kingdoms of the West, plaguing these lands not only with disastrous earthquakes, monsoons, and ice storms, but also with venomous magical constructs - terrifying creatures out of nightmare. Both Valdemar''s Heralds and Karse''s Sunpriests struggle to marshal their combined magical resources to protect their realms from these devastating, spell-fueled onslaughts. But as the situation becomes bleaker and bleaker, the still fragile alliance between these long-hostile lands begins to fray. And unless Valdemar and Karse can locate and destroy the creator of the storms, they may see their entire world demolished in a final magical holocaust.

The sequel to the bestseller The Elvenbane

The second book in Mercedes Lackey''s classic Mage Wars trilogy featuring the gryphons, set in the beloved fantasy world of Valdemar It has been ten years since the magical Cataclysm, which destroyed the twin strongholds of the two world''s most powerful Mages and killed Urtho, creator of the gryphons, sending his forces into exile. Now Urtho''s peoples—human and non-human alike—live in a terraced city carved into the face of a gleaming white cliff on the edge of the Western Ocean. Secure, at least, until the fleet of the mysterious Black Kings appears in their harbor, bringing envoys who inform the residents of White Gryphon that their newfound home lies on the northern perimeter of lands claimed by this powerful kingdom. Desperate not to lose their hard-won home, Skandranon, along with his longtime friend Amberdrake—agrees to accompany the envoys back to the Court of the Black Kings, hoping to negotiate an alliance. When a high ranking noble who opposes this alliance is found murdered, Skandranon and Amberdrake realize that they are up against unknown enemies who will stop at nothing, even the use of diabolical Blood Magic, to destroy White Gryphon.

The first adventure in an epic fantasy trilogy set in the beloved world of Valdemar, from New York Times-bestselling author Mercedes Lackey! Longtime enemies must lay old griefs to rest if they’re to survive the armies of the Eastern Empire—whose monarch wields a powerful sorcery unlike any other. Karse and Valdemar have long been enemy kingdoms—their peoples filled with mutual prejudice and mistrust. Only the vile deeds perpetuated on both kingdoms by Ancar of Hardorn, and the subsequent emergence of the armies of the Eastern Empire in the wake of his defeat, have forced these two so-different lands into an uneasy alliance . . . For the Eastern Empire, which has long been isolated and shadowed in mystery, is ruled by a monarch whose magical tactics may be beyond any sorcery known to the Western kingdoms . . . Forced to combat this dire foe, not only must traditional enemies unite, but the Companions may, at last, have to reveal secrets which they have kept hidden for centuries . .. . even from their beloved Heralds. With her phenomenal Mage Winds trilogy, bestselling author Mercedes Lackey captivated fans across the country! Now in the first volume of the series’ sequel, she returns readers to the intoxicating but war-torn world of Valdemar.

A GHOST OF A CHANCE A voice, an icy, whispering voice, came out of the darkness from all around her; from everywhere, yet nowhere. It could have been born of her imagination, yet Rune knew the voice was the Ghost''s, and that to run was to die. Instantly, but in terror that would make dying seem to last an eternity. "Why have you come here, stupid child " it murmured, as fear urged her to run away. "Why were you waiting here For me Foolish child, do you not know what I am What I could do to you " Rune had to swallow twice before she could speak, and even then her voice cracked and squeaked with fear. "I''ve come to fiddle for you-sir " she said, gasping for breath between each word, trying to keep her teeth from chattering. The Ghost laughed, a sound with no humor in it, the kind of laugh that called up empty wastelands and icy peaks. "Well, then, girl. Fiddle, then. And pray to that Sacrificed God of yours that you fiddle well, very well. If you please me, if you continue to entertain me until dawn, I shall let you live, a favor I have never granted any other. But I warn you-the moment my attention lags, little girl-you''ll die like all the others and you will join all the others in my own private little Hell." At the publisher''s request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management).

In The Mage Winds trilogy, which began with the best-selling novel, Winds of Fate, author Mercedes Lackey continues the epic that started with her first published book, Arrows of the Queen introduced readers to the remarkable land of Valdemar, the kingdom protected by its Heralds--men and women gifted with extraordinary mind powers--aided and served by their mysterious Companions--horselike beings who know the many secrets of Valdemar''s magical heritage. None but the Companions remember the long-ago age when high magic was lost to Valdemar as the last Herald-Mage gave his life to protect his kingdom from destruction by dark sorceries. But now the protective barrier set so long ago over Valdemar is crumbling, and with the realm imperiled by the dark magic of Ancar of Hardorn, Princess Elspeth, Herald and heir to the throne, has gone on a desperate quest in search of a mentor who can teach her to wield her fledgling mage-powers and help her to defend her threatened kingdom.

Fantasy.

New York Times-bestselling author Mercedes Lackey takes readers on a thrilling sword and sorcery adventure with this first installment in the Mage Winds epic fantasy series! With high magic lost and darkness looming over Valdemar, the heir to the throne must find a way to awaken her powers . . . High magic had been lost to Valdemar centuries ago when the lost Herald-Mage gave his life to save the kingdom from destruction by dark sorceries. Yet now the realm is at risk again. And Elspeth—Herald and heir to the throne—must take up the challenge, abandoning her home to find a mentor who can awaken her untrained mage abilities. But others, too, are being caught up in a war against sorcerous evil. The Tayledras scout Darkwind is the first to stumble across the menace creeping forth from the “Uncleansed Lands.” And as sorcery begins to take its toll, Darkwind may be forced to call upon powers he has sworn never to use again if he and his people are to survive an enemy able to wreak greater devastation with spells of destruction than with swords . . . New York Times-bestselling author Mercedes Lackey ushers in a new era of the Valdemar saga with Winds of Fate, the first sword and sorcery adventure in the Mage Winds epic fantasy series!

The Gypsy boy has asked for Di''s help--called on for her magical assistance--and she could not refuse, especially after he was slain practically on her doorstep. But the vampire Di finds cradling the body isn''t the killer--he''s the Gypsies'' protector, Andre LeBrel, who informs Di that there''s more than one monster stalking the streets of New York. Now it''s up to Diana Tregarde, Guardian and practicing witch, to find the killer and destroy them...with a little supernatural assistance from a very friendly, and very sexy, vampire.

Groundbreaking epic fantasy series in Mercedes Lackey’s Valdemar universe • Lambda-Award winning novels with heartfelt high adventure and magic Valdemar—the once-peaceful kingdom protected by the magic of its Herald-Mages—is now besieged on all fronts. The king lies near death, the neighboring land of Karse wages a relentless war against Valdemar, and the forces led by a master of dark forbidden magic are massing to strike the final devastating blow against the kingdom. And Vanyel, the most powerful Herald-Mage Valdemar has even known, has become the primary target of the evil which is reaching out to poison all the land. With all his fellow mages slain, Vanyel alone remains to defend his people against the dark master’s army. Yet a dream vision has revealed to Vayel the fate which awaits should he and his Companion Yfandes take up the dark master’s challenge. And if either Vanyel or Yfandes falters, the dream will become a horrifying reality in which both Valdemar and its last Herald-Mage must pay the ultimate price.

Evil had cast its shadow over the kingdom of Rethwellan. When Idra, leader of the Sunhawks mercenaries, failed to return from a journey to her home, Tarma and Kethry, warrior and mage, set out in search of their vanished leader.

The first book in the Vows and Honor trilogy unites swordmaster and sorceress in a quest for revenge in this thrilling epic fantasy She was Tarma. Born to the Clan of the Hawk of the nomadic Shin’a’in people, she saw her entire clan slain by brigands. Vowing blood revenge upon the murderers, she became one of the sword-sworn, the most elite of all warriors. And trained in all the forms of death-dealing combat, she took to the road in search of her enemies. She was Kethry. Born to a noble house, sold into a hateful “marriage”, she fled life’s harshness for the sanctuary of the White Winds, a powerful school of sorcery. Becoming an adept, she pledged to use her talents for the greatest good. Yet unlike other sorcerers, Kethry could use worldly weapons as well as magical skills. And when she became the bearer of a uniquely magical sword that drew her to those in need, Kethry was led to a fateful meeting with Tarma. United by sword-spell and the will of the Goddess, Tarma and Kethry swore a blood oath to carry on their mutual fight against evil. And together, swordsmaster and sorceress set forth to fulfill their destiny….

Follows the adventures of Talia as she travels the land as a Herald of Valdemar in the third book in the classic epic fantasy Arrows trilogy With Elspeth, the heir to the throne of Valdemar, come of marriageable age, Talia, the Queen’s Own Herald returns to court to find Queen and heir beset by diplomatic intrigue as various forces vie for control of Elspeth’s future. But just as Talia is about to uncover the traitor behind all these intrigues, she is sent off on a mission to the neighboring kingdom, chosen by the Queento investigate the worth of a marriage proposal from Prince Ancar. And, to her horror, Talia soon discovers there is far more going on at Prince Ancar’s court than just preparation for a hoped-for royal wedding. For a different magic than that of the Heralds is loose in Ancar’s realm—an evil and ancient sorcery that may destroy all of Valdemar unless Talia can send warning to her Queen in time!

Follows the adventures of Talia as she travels the land as a Herald of Valdemar in the second book in the classic epic fantasy Arrows trilogy Talia could scarcely believe that she had finally earned the rank of full Herald. Yet though this seemed like the fulfillment of all her dreams, it also meant she would face trials far greater than those she had previously survived. For now Talia must ride forth to patrol the kingdom of Valdemar, dispending Herald''s justice throughout the land. But in this realm beset by dangerous unrest, enforcing her rulings would require all the courage and skill Talia could command—for if she misused her own special powers, both she and Valdemar would pay the price!

Follows the adventures of Talia as she trains to become a Herald of Valdemar in the first book in the classic epic fantasy Arrows trilogy Chosen by the Companion Rolan, a mystical horse-like being with powers beyond imagining, Talia, once a runaway, has now become a trainee Herald, destined to become one of the Queen’s own elite guard. For Talia has certain awakening talents of the mind that only a Companion like Rolan can truly sense. But as Talia struggles to master her unique abilities, time is running out. For conspiracy is brewing in Valdemar, a deadly treason that could destroy Queen and kingdom. Opposed by unknown enemies capable of both diabolical magic and treacherous assassination, the Queen must turn to Talia and the Heralds for aid in protecting the realm and insuring the future of the Queen’s heir, a child already in danger of becoming bespelled by the Queen’s own foes.