New Releases by Tanith Lee

A shapeshifter prowls England''s countryside, driven by its primal killing instincts and desire for a woman, in this dark fantasy horror. World Fantasy and Bram Stoker Lifetime Achievement Award–winning author After committing a crime of passion, Daniel Vehmund fled his English family farm to disappear into the Far East, wracked with guilt for abandoning his mother in the wake of his violence. Then, one day in a marketplace, Daniel is mesmerized by a street peddler''s diamond. Teardrop-shaped and tinted green, the jewel—known as "The Wolf"—features the silhouette of a beast within its facets. Although it carries a curse, Daniel cannot resist its powerful allure, or the impulse to possess it. Now bound to the diamond, Daniel becomes a bestial wolf-like monster at the full moon, ravishing and slaughtering everyone he encounters. When he resumes his human form, he has no memory of the beast''s atrocities, but revels in the power seething within him. Daniel divests himself of the jewel after carrying it across the sea back home, but the curse is not done with him, or with an unhappily married woman who waits there. Disdained by her family who treated her like a servant, Laura Wheelwright found refuge with a wealthy man. Adored for her beauty and lavished with luxuries, she is grateful to have been rescued from a life of drudgery, but feels no love for her husband. His latest gift to her is just another expensive trinket, but it is one that has brought the mysterious, enthralling Daniel Vehmund into her life. Now, as a ravenous creature preys upon the villagers, Laura is pursued by Daniel. His presence disarms her, compelling her into a dangerous affair with a man unafraid to unleash his inner demon . . .

The Gothic dark fantasy trilogy that redefines vampire mythology from the World Fantasy and Bram Stoker Lifetime Achievement Award–winning author. The three volumes in The Blood Opera Sequence tell the saga of the Scarabae family, a near-immortal vampiric clan who have walked the earth since ancient times, ensuring the survival of their bloodline. Dark Dance: In a dilapidated home by the sea, Rachaela Day meets her paternal family for the first time. The wealthy Scarabae are eccentric elders, nocturnal by nature, with no interest in the outside world. Her one link to this strange brood—her father Adamus—is unlike the others. He is young, too young, to be her father. But Rachaela is a Scarabae, and if the family is to survive, she has a duty and a destiny to fulfill. Personal Darkness: Ruth is the latest Scarabae, the spawn of a union her mother Rachaela believed unholy. Defying the family, Ruth slaughters most of them, unleashing an insatiable murderous instinct. The hunter Malach will not allow Ruth''s trail of destruction to lead back to the Scarabae—and he will kill any surviving witnesses left behind in her wake. Darkness, I: Rachaela has once again been seduced by the Scarabae to birth a daughter. Anna is mature beyond her years, possessing otherworldly beauty and intelligence. And now she has been taken by the progenitor of the Scarabae, Cain, who pursues a new future for his family, one beyond their legacy that alters Anna''s very fate.

Now for the first time in e-book, genre master Lee''s postapocalyptic dystopia that follows a young woman after the fall of humanity. The free humans lived underground, secretive, like rats. Above, the world was a fearsome place for them - the open sky a terror, the night so black, and the striding machines from space so laser-flame deadly. Esther dared the open; she saw the sky; she saw the Enemy. And she was taken – captive - to the vast alien empty city. Surrounded by marvels of science not born on earth, Esther did not know what they wanted of her. There was mystery in the city, dread in the heavens, and magic in the handsome alien man who came to her.

Now for the first time in e-book, a collection of dark fantasy tales from a master of the genre. The Gorgon, a brilliant shocker that leads off this scintillating collection of Tanith Lee''s tales, was the winner of the World Fantasy Award for best short story of the year in 1983. It is appropriate that it gives its title to these tales ranging from horror and the supernatural to science fiction, from the writer who has been justly termed "Princess Royal of Heroic Fantasy." Here you will find unforgettable encounters of men and beasts--of dragons and unicorns, cats and seals, virgins and vampires. This is truly a feast of treasures for everyone whose taste runs to a gourmet imagination.

Now for the first time in e-book, a collection of Tanith Lee’s short stories and novella about the fantastical adventures of Cyrion, a hero larger than life. Roilant needs a hero—fast. He’s trapped, betrothed to his cousin Eliset in an agreement made to help the destitute branches of their family line. But rumor has it that Eliset is a witch, a villainess behind the deaths of many in his family, and if Roilant weds her, he’ll meet the same fate. Roilant didn’t put much stock in the rumors—until, that is, he tried to call off the betrothal. Since then, he’s been plagued by a series of nightmares demanding he return to Eliset’s side by the end of the month. If he goes to her, he’ll surely be murdered for his fortune, but if he stays, he fears his cousin will kill him and his beloved, the woman he loves. Convinced only one man alive can help him, Roilant stumbles into the Honey Garden inn looking for a legend—a man named Cyrion. All anyone seems to have are stories, but everyone’s heard tell of the mighty Cyrion. They say that he looks like an angel, with hair like the sky of earnest sunrise. That he’s an adventurer, a vanquisher of evil and a defender of man. That he’s a fearless swordsman, a master of disguise, and a genius detective. Some say he’s defeated demons and outwitted wizards. That he’s solved impossible mysteries and survived inescapable death. But is he for real? And—more importantly—is he for hire?

What if Snow White were the real villain and the "wicked queen" just a sadly maligned innocent? What if awakening Sleeping Beauty would be the mistake of a lifetime -- of several lifetimes? What if the famous folk tales were retold with an eye to more horrific possibilities? Only Tanith Lee -- "Goddess-Empress of the Hot Read" (Village Voice) could retell the world-famous tales of the Brothers Grimm (and others) as they might have been told by the Sisters Grimmer! This special edition, put together for the 30th anniversary of the original edition, adds a new Grimmer fairy tale written especially for this volume!

Struggling to hide her true nature, Sabella, a vampire who has sworn off of drinking human blood, must keep her identity safe from a private investigator who is determined to expose her for what she is despite being enthralled by her charms.

Weird Tales #325 (Fall 2001) features "From Out of the Crocodile''s Mouth," by Darrell Schweitzer; "The Gravedigger''s Apprentice," by Alvin Helms; "Our Temporary Supervisor," by Thomas Ligotti; "Where All Things Perish," by Tanith Lee; "The Wizard of Ashes and Rain," by David Sandner, and more.

A collection of rare short stories by Tanith Lee

"An excellent collection" of vampire stories, from authors such as Harlan Ellison, Dan Simmons , Gahan Wilson, Tanith Lee, and Fritz Leiber ( Publishers Weekly). Renowned editor Ellen Datlow has gathered seventeen variations on vampirism ranging from classically Gothic to postmodern satire, from horrific to erotic. These stories reflect the evolution of vampire literature from Bram Stoker to Anne Rice and beyond, resulting in a deeper exploration of their inner lives. Expanding the concept of vampirism to include the draining of a person''s will or life force, Datlow''s collection transcends the traditional "black capes and teeth marks on the neck" to reinvent an eternally fascinating subgenre of horror. In Harlan Ellison''s "Try a Dull Knife," an empath stumbles bleeding into a nightclub, on the run from emotional vampires. A Broadway actress steals the emotions of her fellow performers in ". . . To Feel Another''s Woe" by Chet Williamson. And in "The Sea Was Wet as Wet Could Be," Gahan Wilson offers his own surreal twist on Lewis Carroll''s "The Walrus and the Carpenter," as two strangers on a beach lure intoxicated picnickers to a different kind of picnic . . . Blood Is Not Enough includes contributions by Dan Simmons, Gahan Wilson, Garry Kilworth, Harlan Ellison, Scott Baker, Leonid Andreyev, Harvey Jacobs, S. N. Dyer, Edward Bryant, Fritz Leiber, Tanith Lee, Susan Casper, Steve Rasnic Tem, Gardner Dozois and Jack Dann, Chet Williamson, Joe Haldeman, and Pat Cadigan.

"Electric Forest is a novel about a deformed woman who is given a new body as part of a government espionage effort. The world called Indigo turned upside down for Magdala Cled one morning. From being that world''s only genetic misfit, the outcast of an otherwise ideal society, she became the focus of attention for mighty forces. Installed in the midst of the Electric Forest, with its weird trees and its super-luxurious private home, Magdala awoke to the potentials which were opening up about her. And to realize also the peril that now seemed poised above Indigo. Only she, the hated one, could circumvent them."--Wikipedia.

»My dear cousin and lover, I sport here three in a bed, with two wolves – who have recently devoured the flesh of a young girl...« To a distant corner of France comes Christian Dorse to claim his inheritance where, his beauty enhanced by his consumptive pallor, Christian prepares himself to surrender to premature death. But Christian is close to the forest where the de Lagenays live, a mother and son that both servants and village people mysteriously avoid mentioning. Are they, as he comes to suspect, the children of the wolf? And are they the ones who, when darkness falls, throw out exquisite seductions which he cannot resist? Award-winning author Tanith Lee''s spellbinding novel mixes eroticism and fear in a fantasy laced with surprise, enchantment and the evil of spoilt beauty...

Tanith Lee is one of the most thought-provoking and imaginative authors of our time. In this unforgettably poignant novel, Lee has created a classic tale—a beautiful, tragic, sensual, and ultimately triumphant love story of the future. Love is made of more than mere flesh and blood. . . . For sixteen-year-old Jane, life is a mystery she despairs of ever mastering. She and her friends are the idle, pampered children of the privileged class, living in luxury on an Earth remade by natural disaster. Until Jane''s life is changed forever by a chance encounter with a robot minstrel with auburn hair and silver skin, whose songs ignite in her a desperate and inexplicable passion. Jane is certain that Silver is more than just a machine built to please. And she will give up everything to prove it. So she escapes into the city''s violent, decaying slums to embrace a love bordering on madness. Or is it something more? Has Jane glimpsed in Silver something no one else has dared to see—not even the robot or his creators? A love so perfect it must be destroyed, for no human could ever compete?

Four books of dark fantasy and eroticism from "a literary great . . . A series of Gothic, interlinked stories set in an alternate Paris" ( The Washington Post). With these four books, together now in one collection, escape to a city known by three names—Paradys, Paradise, and Paradis—where you''ll find many strange stories and novellas exploring gender, identity, sexual transgression, and more . . . The Book of the Damned: A poet discovers a mysterious ring that drags him into a world of vampires. A young woman''s attack sows the seeds for a civilization''s downfall. And a writer receives a cryptic note that leads her to a sinister, ancient force. The Book of the Beast: A young scholar has just moved to Paradys to study at the university, and a beautiful phantom of a young bride begins visiting him, drawing him toward her. Soon, he will be infected with the horrific curse of the Beast . . . The Book of the Dead: Seven stories of enchantment, misfortune, corruption, and death are in the third volume of this fantasy series, including the story of a vengeful orphan tracking down his parents'' killer only to find a treacherous nightmare. The Book of the Mad: A labyrinth of ice connects three nightmarish versions of one city—Paradis, Paradys, and Paradise. In each of them, a story unfolds, breaking taboos, relishing horror, and conjuring the perverse.

In "Companions on the Road," a stolen chalice brings misery to those who covet it, and in "The Winter Players," a priestess decides to pursue the thief of the sacred relic of her people.

When the world was flat and the gods had not yet restructured the universe, the cities and hopes of mankind hung upon the whims of the immortal lords of all diabolical powers. For these, such as Azhrarn, Night''s Master, and Uhlumc, Death''s Master, the world was a flesh-and-blood playground for all their strangest desires. Hut among those demonic lords, the strangest was the master of madness, Chuz. The game that Chuz played with a beautiful woman, with an ambitious king, with an ancient imperial city, was a web work of good and evil, of hope and horror. But there was always Azhrarn to interfere—to bend delusion to a different outcome—and it was a century-long conflict between two vain immortals with women and men as their terrified pawns. TANITH LEE, acclaimed as the "princess-royal of high fantasy," winner of the prestigious August Derleth Award, now presents a new novel of brilliant coloration and sparkling imagination.

Vivia, a paragon of youth and beauty, daughter of Lord Vaddix, is alienated from his brutal campaign of violence and fear. Her only solace lies in the secret cave in the bowels of the castle, known only to her and the arcane god whose shrine she believes it is. When plague enters the castle, bringing an orgy of death and destruction, Vivia seeks shelter in this seductive place. Drawn to her innocence and beauty, a presence - Zulgaris - is resurrected who claims her as his own. Wakened to the wonder of the undead, Vivia is granted the secret of eternal life, but she has been betrayed. Her immortality stretches before her like a damnation. Handsome Zulgaris, dark prince, war-leader and alchemist. Is Vivia to be his lover, or his pet? Or, far worse, is she but one more thing to be used in this relentless quest for sorcerous power.

Originally published in 1983 by Doubleday.

A recognized master fantasist, Tanith Lee has won multiple awards for her craft, including the British Fantasy Award, the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement, and the Bram Stoker Award for Lifetime Achievement in Horror. In the land of Dorthar, the Storm Lord reigns as king. According to law, the Storm Lord’s youngest son will be the rightful heir. His queen, the cunning and ambitious Val Mara, intends her young son, Amrek, to be that heir. But fate has other ideas. When the Storm Lord abducts a Lowlander priestess, conceives a child with her, and then dies in mysterious circumstances, the unborn baby of that union suddenly becomes the heir to a vast kingdom—a situation that Val Mara is eager to rectify. When his mother also dies, the infant, Raldnor, must be taken far from the Storm Lord’s stronghold to escape the queen’s murderous wrath, forsaking all knowledge of his royal heritage. Raldnor grows up among the people of the Plains, but he is set apart from his friends and neighbors by the mystery of his past. Meanwhile, Amrek has taken the throne as his mother intended. If Raldnor is to reclaim his destiny and defeat the usurper who has taken his place, he will have to survive trials of strength, political sabotage, and threats against his life, regaining his birthright as the true Storm Lord of Dorthar.

A recognized master fantasist, Tanith Lee has won multiple awards for her craft, including the British Fantasy Award, the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement, and the Bram Stoker Award for Lifetime Achievement in Horror. The final entry in Tanith Lee’s classic fantasy series Tales from the Flat Earth, Night’s Sorceries forms a breathtaking conclusion to a dark and intricate epic of demons, gods, and mortals. Azhriaz, daughter of Azhrarn, Demon Lord of the Night, has defied her father’s wishes. Taking on the mantle of Delirium’s Mistress, she escapes her island prison in the Underearth, where she would have spent her life in eternal slumber. With Prince Chuz, her lover and the sworn enemy of Azhrarn, she flees to the mortal realm of the Flat Earth to escape her father’s wrath. But Azhrarn will not be so easily deterred, and the lovers’ journey has not left the world untouched. In the wake of their flight, bizarre new enchantments emerge, exposing a world of chaos and mystery. The mortals of the Flat Earth are inextricably entwined in circumstances beyond their understanding, caught in the midst of grand conflicts of ambition and betrayal. Night’s Sorceries spins seven of these tales of wonder—of humans confronted with the supernatural. Trials of true love, tests of humility and fortitude, and startling transformations weave together in these lush stories of passion, revelation, and the human soul.

A recognized master fantasist, Tanith Lee has won multiple awards for her craft, including the British Fantasy Award, the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement, and the Bram Stoker Award for Lifetime Achievement in Horror. The fourth installment in Lee’s breathtaking series, Tales from the Flat Earth, Delirium’s Mistress returns to a shadowy and mythic world where demons battle for dominion, and the fate of mankind is shaped by the whims of capricious and volatile beings. Beneath the mortal realm of the Flat Earth, demons lurk. But Azhriaz—daughter of the mortal priestess Dunizel and the demon known as Night’s Master, Azhrarn—bridges these two worlds, a being of both light and darkness. Raised on an isolated isle in the demons’ realm of Underearth, guarded and hidden away from demon and mortal alike, Azhriaz was meant to sleep forever, never knowing the world outside her dreams. But other forces in the Underearth are moving to wake Azhriaz. Prince Chuz, the demon known as Delusion’s Master, has made an enemy of Azhrarn, after his betrayal cost Dunizel her life. Chuz seeks out Azhriaz’s island, drawn by her latent power and entranced by her beauty. To release Azhriaz from her eternal slumber, Chuz must create the grandest illusion he has ever rendered. If he succeeds, Azhriaz will be reborn as Delirium’s Mistress, a sorcerous of extraordinary power. Perhaps even more powerful than Azhrarn himself.... Delirium''s Mistress in the fourth book in the Flat Earth sereies.

You’ve rarely seen your favorite fairy tale characters quite like this. In 1983, Tanith Lee captivated readers with Red as Blood, a collection of short stories featuring twisted and dark retellings of Grimms’ fairy tales. Earning a World Fantasy Award, plus a Nebula Award nomination for its titular story, Red as Blood uniquely challenged the fantasy genre. And now Lee returns with a companion collection! Redder Than Blood features three brand-new and sixteen previously published stories that irreverently reshape popular fairy tales, including Sleeping Beauty, The Frog Prince, Swan Lake, Beauty and the Beast, The Twelve Dancing Princesses, Snow White, and more. Don’t miss this newest volume of stories encompassing twenty-five years of a master fantasist’s remarkable career.

Rediscover her classic, most popular fantasy series, Tales from the Flat Earth, where demons and gods grant wonders and wreak havoc. Visit the Upperearth, where dwell the gods; the Underearth, the realm of nightmarish demons; the Innerearth, the domain of the dead; and the Flat Earth itself, the home of mortals. Supreme amongst them all is the demon god Azhrarn, Night''s Master, whose deadly whims could change the lives of those in the Flat Earth. Azhrarn holds in his heart a mystery which could alter the very existence of the Flat Earth forever....

Rediscover the classic fantasy series where demons and gods grant wonders and wreak havoc.

Tanith Lee today is one of the most versatile and respected writers of fantasy, horror, and science fiction, and DREAMS OF DARK AND LIGHT represents a massive mid-career retrospective of her achievements over the previous decade. Here are unforgettable tales of werewolves that prowl chateaux, an Earthwoman in exile on a distant planet, demons that inhabit bodies of the living dead, a race of vampiric creatures who prey upon a cursed castle, and many other works of exotic vision, mythic science fiction, and contemporary horror. Also included are two stories that have received the World Fantasy Award, "Elle est Trois, (La Mort)" and "The Gorgon," making DREAMS OF DARK AND LIGHT a distinguished one volume library of myth-weaving at its most eloquent and evocative.

Portion of edition statement from page 4 of cover.

Turek was raised as an orphan nomad, until one grim night when he learns of his heritage. He discovers he is the son of the last woman of a superior race long thought dead – a woman who once dishonored his warrior king father. Intent on revenge, Turek takes his father’s name, Vazkor, and embarks on a journey to find his mother – and murder her. Rediscover this realm of brilliant cruel beauty and seductive immortal ruins, of savage war and grand conquest, of falling stars and silver gods—with this 40th anniversary edition of legendary fantastist Tanith Lee''s Birthgrave Trilogy.

I saw her, hanging in the sky like a flake of the moon. A woman, her face masked by a black shireen, her body by a black shift, but her white arms spread, and her white, white, bone-white hair blowing all around her like a flame composed of smoke. Recognition was immediate. It was my mother. I shouted at her. It was crystal clear to me, what he had meant for me, my father, Vazkor, what she had robbed me of. And I drew from my belt my hunting knife and threw it at her heart.

Orphan-slave Claidi knows only the mindless rituals and cruelties of the House and the Garden, where the ruling families wallow in lavish extravagance. Then a golden stranger promises freedom if she will journey with him through the savage Waste. Mad tribes and strange cities, enemies and friends where she least expects them, above all the Wolf Tower that broods over the grim stone city of her destiny; nothing - and no one - is as it seems. If she is to survive, Claidi must learn fast - hone her wits, sharpen her instinct for danger... Freedom demands that she confront the Law - once and for all...