Bøger af Beth Cato

A woman copes with a troublesome pregnancy and the mortality of her mother. Melinda Moore shows us how the crows respond. Simon Bleaken reminds us that tenant rights have always been a tricky issue, especially when the landlord wants to use the tenants to replace his dead family. Courtney Floyd introduces us to an Albuquerque private detective who has a penchant for riddles and supernatural mysteries. What would happen if solar flares rendered all electrical systems useless? K.S. Hardy imagines the clockwork world that results. Lee Clark Zumpe reminds us that the ghost of H.P. Lovecraft still haunts the world today. These and other thrilling stories and poems await in this edition of Tales of the Talisman!

"Princess Solenn's marriage into royalty should have unified the continental neighbors of Verdania and Solenn's homeland of Braiz against a common enemy: the country of Albion. Thanks to Albion's cunning sabotage, Verdania is now Braiz's lethal rival. And the dead Braizian sailors washed ashore near Solenn's château are just the beginning. Arriving in the midst of danger, Ada Garland, rogue Chef to the Gods, is desperate to reunite with her daughter, Solenn. Not only has open war begun; it's become heart-wrenchingly personal. Ada's long-lost, beloved Braizian musketeer, Captain Erwan Corre, is being held in a Verdanian prison, with execution imminent. And her daughter has been tasked with the near-doomed responsibility of uniting violently adversarial countries in peace. Can Solenn and Ada, coming together, stop their land from descending into all-out war? And what will Solenn become to achieve victory? As ambassador between the human and magical worlds, Solenn must now draw from both to prevent catastrophe, and this time, even the Gods are working against her."--Publisher marketing.

"Cato has created a richly imagined world full of tasty surprises and thrilling adventure--I already hunger for more." --Kevin Hearne, New York Times bestselling author of The Iron Druid seriesA world on the brink of war and a mother and daughter on the run, in a thrilling novel of swashbuckling adventure, culinary magic, and just desserts.Adamantine "Ada" Garland has an empathic connection to food and wine, a magical perception of aromas, flavors, and ingredients. Invaluable property of the royal court, Ada was in service to the Five Gods and to the Gods-ordained rulers of Verdania--until she had enough of injustice and bloodshed and deserted, seeking to chart her own destiny. When mysterious assassins ferret her out after sixteen years in hiding, Ada, now a rogue Chef, and her beloved Grand-mère run for their lives, only to find themselves on a path toward an unexpected ally.A foreign princess in a strange court, Solenn unknowingly shares more with Ada than an epicurean gift. They share blood. With her newfound magical perception, she becomes aware of a plot to kill her fiancé, the prince. It's part of a ploy by adversarial forces in the rival country of Albion to sow conflict, and Solenn is set up to take the blame.As Ada's and Solenn's paths converge, a mother and her long-lost daughter reunite toward a common goal, and against a shadowy enemy from Ada's past who is out for revenge. But what sacrifices must be made? What hope is there when powerful Gods pick sides in a war simmering to eruption?

Fairies threaten the world of artifice and technology, forcing the royal family to solve a riddle to stop their world from irrevocable change; a dishonest merchant uses automatons as vessels for his secrets and lies; a woman discovers the secret of three princesses whose shoes get scuffed while they sleep. These and so many other steampunk and gaslamp fairy tales await within the pages of Clockwork, Curses and Coal.Retellings of Hansel and Gretel, The Princess and the Pea, Pinocchio, The Twelve Dancing Princesses and more are all showcased alongside some original fairy tale-like stories. Featuring stories by Melissa Bobe, Adam Brekenridge, Beth Cato, MLD Curelas, Joseph Halden, Reese Hogan, Diana Hurlburt, Christina Johnson, Alethea Kontis, Lex T. Lindsay, Wendy Nikel, Brian Trent, Laura VanArendonk Baugh and Sarah Van Goethem.

"A sterling conclusion to a strong series.? ? Publishers Weekly"Incredibly enjoyable? ? SciFi PulseIn this stunning conclusion to the acclaimed Blood of Earth trilogy?a thrilling alternate history laced with earth magic, fantastic creatures, and steampunk elements?geomancer Ingrid must find a way to use her extraordinary abilities to save her world from the woman hell-bent on destroying it.Thanks to her geomantic magic, Ingrid has successfully eluded Ambassador Blum, the power-hungry kitsune who seeks to achieve world domination for the Unified Pacific. But using her abilities has taken its toll: Ingrid's body has been left severely weakened, and she must remain on the run with her friends Cy and Fenris.Hoping to learn more about her magical roots and the strength her bloodline carries, Ingrid makes her way across the Pacific to Hawaii, home to the ancient volcano goddess Madam Pele. What she discovers in this paradise is not at all what she expects?and perhaps exactly what she needs.But Ambassador Blum comes from the same world of old magic and mythic power. And if Ingrid cannot defeat her once and for all, she knows Blum will use that power to take the lives of everyone she holds dear before escalating a war that will rip the world to pieces.

In an alternate 1906, the United States and Japan have forged a powerful confederation?the Unified Pacific?in an attempt to dominate the world. Their first target is a vulnerable China. In San Francisco, headstrong Ingrid Carmichael is assisting a group of powerful geomancer wardens who have no idea of the depth of her own talent?or that she is the only woman to possess such skills.When assassins kill the wardens, Ingrid and her mentor are protected by Ingrid's incredible magic. But the pair is far from safe. Without its full force of guardian geomancers, San Francisco is on the brink of a cataclysmic earthquake that will expose the earth's energy to masterminds determined to control it for their own dark ends. The danger escalates when Chinese refugees preparing to fight the encroaching American and Japanese forces fracture the uneasy alliance between the Pacific allies, transforming the city into a veritable powder keg. And the slightest tremor will set it off. . . .Forced on the run, Ingrid makes some shocking discoveries about herself. Her already considerable magic has grown even more fearsome . . . and she may be the fulcrum on which the balance of world power rests.

THE ENTHRALLING SEQUEL TO BREATH OF EARTHAfter an earthquake devastates San Francisco in 1906, young geomancer Ingrid Carmichael and her friends Cy, Lee, and Fenris are forced to flee the city. Bruised but alive, and haunted by the knowledge that the earthquake was caused by her own father, Ingrid is desperate to escape Ambassador Blum, the cunning and dangerous bureaucrat who wants to use her formidable powers to help the Unified Pacific?the confederation of the United States and Japan?achieve world domination. To stop them, Ingrid must learn more about the godlike magic she inherited from her estranged father's family. But the more she discovers about her powers, the more she understands that the geomantic energy she wields could destroy her just as easily as it destroyed San Francisco. And Ingrid is not the only one with sought-after abilities. As the foursome race to find answers in Seattle, they must dodge not only Ambassador Blum, but also the various factions that would use Cy and Lee for their own political gain. And all the while, Mount Rainier looms in the distance, reminding Ingrid that she may prove to be the fuse to light the long-dormant volcano . . . and a war that will sweep the world.

Full of magic, mystery, and romance, an enchanting steampunk fantasy debut in the bestselling vein of Trudi Canavan and Gail Carriger. Orphaned as a child, Octavia Leander was doomed to grow up on the streets until Miss Percival saved her and taught her to become a medician.

Narrowly surviving assassination and capture, Octavia Leander, a powerful magical healer, is on the run with handsome Alonzo Garrett, the Clockwork Dagger who forfeited his career with the Queen's secret society of spies and killers?and possibly his life?to save her. Now, they are on a dangerous quest to fnd safety and answers: Why is Octavia so powerful? Why does she seem to be undergoing a transformation unlike any witnessed for hundreds of years?The truth may rest with the source of her mysterious healing power?the Lady's Tree. But the tree lies somewhere in an inhospitable territory known as the Waste. Eons ago, this land was made barren by an evil spell, until a few hardy souls dared to return over the last century. For years, the Waste has waged a bloody battle against the royal court to win its independence?and they need Octavia's powers to succeed.Joined by unlikely allies, including a menagerie of gremlin companions, she must evade killers on a dangerous journey through a world on the brink of deadly civil war.