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$2.99 eBook Sale: February 2020

It’s the start of a new month and that means—SALES!!! Check out what Tor eBooks you can grab for $2.99 throughout the entire month of February below:

Place holder  of - 57Last Song Before Night by Ilana C. Myer

Just in time! Last Song Before Night is now on sale for $2.99 so you can get started on The Harp and Ring Sequence series before The Poet King hits shelves on 03/24.

Her name was Kimbralin Amaristoth: sister to a cruel brother, daughter of a hateful family. But that name she has forsworn, and now she is simply Lin, a musician and lyricist of uncommon ability in a land where women are forbidden to answer such callings-a fugitive who must conceal her identity or risk imprisonment and even death.

On the eve of a great festival, Lin learns that an ancient scourge has returned to the land of Eivar, a pandemic both deadly and unnatural. Its resurgence brings with it the memory of an apocalypse that transformed half a continent. Long ago, magic was everywhere, rising from artistic expression-from song, from verse, from stories. But in Eivar, where poets once wove enchantments from their words and harps, the power was lost. Forbidden experiments in blood divination unleashed the plague that is remembered as the Red Death, killing thousands before it was stopped, and Eivar’s connection to the Otherworld from which all enchantment flowed, broken.

The Red Death’s return can mean only one thing: someone is spilling innocent blood in order to master dark magic. Now poets who thought only to gain fame for their songs face a challenge much greater: galvanized by Valanir Ocune, greatest Seer of the age, Lin and several others set out to reclaim their legacy and reopen the way to the Otherworld-a quest that will test their deepest desires, imperil their lives, and decide the future.

Order Your Copy

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Image Placeholder of - 12Starship Repo by Patrick S. Tomlinson

Firstname Lastname is a no one with nowhere to go. With a name that is the result of an unfortunate clerical error and destined to be one of the only humans on an alien space station. That is until she sneaks aboard a ship and joins up with a crew of repomen (they are definitely not pirates).

Now she’s traveling the galaxy “recovering” ships. What could go wrong?

Order Your Copy

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Image Place holder  of - 80Turning Darkness Into Light by Marie Brennan

Marie Brennan’s Turning Darkness Into Light is a delightful fantasy of manners, the heir to the award-winning Natural History of Dragons series, a perfect stepping stone into an alternate Victorianesque fantasy landscape.

As the renowned granddaughter of Isabella Camherst (Lady Trent, of the riveting and daring Draconic adventure memoirs) Audrey Camherst has always known she, too, would want to make her scholarly mark upon a chosen field of study.

When Lord Gleinheigh recruits Audrey to decipher a series of ancient tablets holding the secrets of the ancient Draconean civilization, she has no idea that her research will plunge her into an intricate conspiracy, one meant to incite rebellion and invoke war. Alongside dearest childhood friend and fellow archeologist Kudshayn, Audrey must find proof of the conspiracy before it’s too late.

Order Your Copy

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Poster Placeholder of - 59Kingmaker by Margaret Weis & Robert Krammes

From New York Times bestselling author and leading fantasists Margaret Weis and Robert Krammes comes Kingmaker, the thrilling conclusion to the swashbuckling Dragon Corsairs series.

In this exciting adventure, Kate and Sophia and their dragon Dalgren form a desperate plan to free Phillip from prison. Thomas is crowned king and discovers a plot by King Ullr to invade Freya. And Henry is forced to flee to the Aligoes where he makes a discovery that could change the fortunes of his beleaguered nation.

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$2.99 eBook Sale: Last Song Before Night by Ilana C. Myer

Placeholder of  -52The ebook edition of Last Song Before Night by Ilana C. Myer is on sale now for only $2.99! This offer will only last for a limited time, so order your copy today.

About Last Song Before Night: Her name was Kimbralin Amaristoth: sister to a cruel brother, daughter of a hateful family. But that name she has forsworn, and now she is simply Lin, a musician and lyricist of uncommon ability in a land where women are forbidden to answer such callings-a fugitive who must conceal her identity or risk imprisonment and even death.

On the eve of a great festival, Lin learns that an ancient scourge has returned to the land of Eivar, a pandemic both deadly and unnatural. Its resurgence brings with it the memory of an apocalypse that transformed half a continent. Long ago, magic was everywhere, rising from artistic expression-from song, from verse, from stories. But in Eivar, where poets once wove enchantments from their words and harps, the power was lost. Forbidden experiments in blood divination unleashed the plague that is remembered as the Red Death, killing thousands before it was stopped, and Eivar’s connection to the Otherworld from which all enchantment flowed, broken.

The Red Death’s return can mean only one thing: someone is spilling innocent blood in order to master dark magic. Now poets who thought only to gain fame for their songs face a challenge much greater: galvanized by Valanir Ocune, greatest Seer of the age, Lin and several others set out to reclaim their legacy and reopen the way to the Otherworld – a quest that will test their deepest desires, imperil their lives, and decide the future.

Order Your Copy

kindle nook ebooks.com Image Place holder  of google play- 36 ibooks2 27 kobo

This sale ends March 2nd.

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New Releases: 11/8/16

Here’s what went on sale today!

At the Sign of Triumph by David Weber

At the Sign of Triumph by David WeberThe Church of God Awaiting’s triumph over Charis was inevitable. Despite its prosperity, the Charis was a single, small island realm. It boasted less than two percent of the total population of Safehold. How could it possibly resist total destruction? The Church had every reason to be confident of a swift, crushing victory, an object lesson to other rebels. But Charis had something far more powerful than simple numbers.

Alien Morning by Rick Wilber

Alien Morning by Rick WilberPeter Holman is a freelance sweeper. The year 2030 sees a new era in social media with sweepcasting, a multisensory interface that can convey every thought, touch, smell, sight, and sound, immersing the audience in another person’s experience. The fate of two civilizations depends on one troubled family in Rick Wilber’s science-fiction adventure Alien Morning.

Belle Chasse by Suzanne Johnson

Belle Chasse by Suzanne JohnsonSuzanne Johnson’s “strong and intriguing” (Publishers Weekly) urban fantasy series continues with Belle Chasse. With the wizard-elven treaty on the verge of collapse, the preternatural world stands on the brink of war. Unless former wizard sentinel DJ Jaco manages to keep the elven leader, Quince Randolph, focused on peace and not personal matters.

Dark Shadows: Heiress of Collinwood by Lara Parker

Dark Shadows: Heiress of CollinwoodDark Shadows: Heiress of Collinwood is the continuing story of the classic TV show, Dark Shadows by series star, Lara Parker. An orphan with no knowledge of her origins, Victoria Winters first came to the great house of Collinwood as a Governess. It didn’t take long for the Collins family’s many buried secrets, haunted history, and rivalries with evil forces to catch up to Victoria and cast the newcomer adrift in time, trapped between life and death.

NEW FROM TOR.COM:

The Iron Beast by Andy Remic

The Iron Beast by Andy RemicA war is being waged in an impossible world. The Skogsgra and the Naravelle have launched their final offensive, and Private Jones and his companions are caught in the melee. Tens of thousands will die before the battle is over. They travel deep underground, to find and release the Iron Beast… the one creature that can end not one world war, but two.

NOW IN PAPERBACK:

The Collected Stories of Frank Herbert by Frank Herbert

The Collected Stories of Frank Herbert by Frank HerbertFrank Herbert, the New York Times bestselling author of Dune, is one of the most celebrated and commercially successful science fiction writers of all time. But while best known for originating the character of Paul Atreides and the desert world of Arrakis, Herbert was also a prolific writer of short fiction. His stories were published individually in numerous pulps and anthologies spanning decades, but never collected. Until now.

Last Song Before Night by Ilana C. Myer

Last Song Before Night by Ilana C. MyerA high fantasy following a young woman’s defiance of her culture as she undertakes a dangerous quest to restore her world’s lost magic in Ilana C. Myer’s Last Song Before Night. Her name was Kimbralin Amaristoth: sister to a cruel brother, daughter of a hateful family. But that name she has forsworn, and now she is simply Lin, a musician and lyricist of uncommon ability in a land where women are forbidden to answer such callings-a fugitive who must conceal her identity or risk imprisonment and even death.

NEW IN MANGA

Devils and Realist Vol. 11 Story by Madoka Takadono; Art by Utako Yukihiro

A Centaur’s Life Vol. 10 Story & Art by Kei Murayama

Re:Monster Vol 1 Story by Kanekiru Kogitsune; Art by Kobayakawa Haruyoshi

Shomin Sample: I Was Abducted by an Elite All-Girls School as a Sample Commoner Vol. 3Story by Nanatsuki Takafumi; Art by Risumai

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My Big Bad Theory

Last Song Before Night by Ilana C. Myer
Written by Ilana C. Myer

Recently at Bookcon I participated in a panel about villains in science fiction and fantasy, and it got me thinking. I have some pretty strong ideas about villains in fiction, which panel moderator Charlie Jane Anders’ incisive questions forced me to re-examine. And having these ideas clarified in one’s mind is invaluable for a writer’s toolbox.

I thought about how dissatisfied I often am with commentary on Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. One of the most common criticisms of Tolkien is that his characterization is “Manichean” (the critics’ word, not mine)—the good guys are very good, the bad guys very bad, and there’s no nuance. I’m done wondering if we read the same book. I’ll just lay out what I think, in the context of what it means to create an effective villain.

It’s true Sauron is not a multi-dimensional villain (despite Elrond’s assertion that he was once good, that “nothing is evil in the beginning”). If you want a complex villain in Tolkien you have to look to Gollum, Saruman, or even Denethor. A villain like Sauron is more of a dark force than a character. He has a different narrative purpose—to galvanize the protagonists, though not just to action. Sauron forces the heroes of Lord of the Rings onto the battleground of the psyche.

Through the Ring—an extension of Sauron—the protagonists contend with their own temptations, weaknesses, and most denied impulses. We see this most clearly in Gollum, who is corrupted by the Ring and presented as a mirror image of Frodo—the person Frodo is in danger of becoming. But we see it with other characters, too, such as Galadriel, whose secret desire for power is laid bare by the Ring. Far from consisting of bland, benign, cloyingly nice good guys, Lord of the Rings depicts characters struggling with what is most alluringly dark within themselves. Each character’s internal battle is unique, depending on the temptation that lies nearest his or her heart.

In my view, a good epic fantasy will usually have more than one kind of villain, or flawed hero. In George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire we have outright monsters like Gregor Clegane and Joffrey Baratheon, but also Jaime Lannister whom you might actually want to have a beer with. And then there are the White Walkers, unambiguously evil, the threat everyone will be forced to stand against. The complexity introduced by a variety of antagonists enriches the story.

My debut novel about poetry and enchantments, Last Song Before Night, is layered around several antagonists. One of these is a Court Poet who becomes twisted by dark magic. Others act from impulses painfully human, or as a result of irreparable hurt. Along the way they hold a dark mirror to the protagonists, revealing who they might become as a consequence of even one misstep—a wrong turn in the road.

The humanizing of an antagonist hinges on what they want—what we desire is where we are most vulnerable. A sympathetic antagonist challenges the reader, makes the reader conflicted about the outcome of the story. I’m of the mind that a conflicted reader is generally a good thing. So perhaps the compassionate author, who secretly loves all the characters, even the bad ones, is in truth the cruelest villain of all.

Buy Last Song Before Night today:
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books-a-Million | iBooks | Indiebound | Powell’s

Follow Ilana C. Myer on Twitter at @IlanaCT and on her website.

On the Road: Tor/Forge Author Events in October

Shadows of Self by Brandon SandersonRadiance by Catherynne M. ValenteWhat You See by Hank Phillippi Ryan

Tor/Forge authors are on the road in October! Once a month, we’re collecting info about all of our upcoming author events. Check and see who will be coming to a city near you:

Howie Carr, Killers

Friday, October 30
Concord Library Festival of Authors’ Mystery Night (panel discussion)
Concord Free Public Library
Concord, MA
7:30 PM

Cindy Dees, The Sleeping King

Thursday, October 1
Books Inc.
Mountain View, CA
7:00 PM

William R. Forstchen, One Year After

Saturday, October 10
Blue Ridge Books
Waynesville, NC
3:00 PM

Ian McDonald, Luna: New Moon

Sunday, October 4
University Bookstore
Seattle, WA
2:00 PM

Victor Milán, The Dinosaur Lords

Sunday, October 18
Bookworks
Albuquerque, NM
3:00 PM

Jaime Lee Moyer, Against a Brightening Sky

Tuesday, October 6
Barnes & Noble
San Antonio, TX
6:00 PM

Thursday, October 8
Ingram Festival
Barnes & Noble
San Antonio, TX
6:00 PM

Saturday, October 17
Murder by the Book
Houston, TX
4:30 PM

Ilana C. Myer, Last Song Before Night

Thursday, October 1
The Red Room above KGB Bar
Also with Seth Dickinson
New York, NY
7:00 PM

Saturday, October 3
Barnes & Noble
Forest Hills, NY
3:00 PM

Hank Phillippi Ryan, What You See

Wednesday, October 21
Foxtale Books
Woodstock, GA
6:30 PM

Thursday, October 22
Brookline Booksmith
Brookline, MA
7:00 PM

Tuesday, October 27
Mystery to Me Bookstore
Madison, WI
7:00 PM

Wednesday, October 28
Mystery Lovers Bookshop
Oakmont, PA
6:30 PM

Brandon Sanderson, Shadows of Self

Tuesday, October 6
BYU Bookstore
Provo, UT
12:00 AM
Midnight Release

Tuesday, October 6
Tattered Cover
Denver, CO
6:00 PM

Wednesday, October 7
Murder by the Book
Houston, TX
6:30 PM

Thursday, October 8
Mysterious Galaxy
San Diego, CA
6:00 PM

Friday, October 9
Borderlands Books
San Francisco, CA
12:00 PM

Friday, October 9
Kepler’s Books
Menlo Park, CA
7:30 PM

Saturday, October 10
Powell’s Books
Beaverton, OR
6:00 PM

Monday, October 12
Barnes & Noble
Oak Brook, IL
7:00 PM

Tuesday, October 13
Schuler Books & Music
Lansing, MI
7:00 PM

Wednesday, October 14
Brookline Booksmith
Brookline, MA
6:00 PM

Catherynne M. Valente, Radiance

Saturday, October 10
New York Comic Con Signing
Tor Booth #2223
Javits Center: New York, NY
5:00 PM

Sunday, October 11
New York Comic Con Panel: Get Out of Your Chair and Off the Planet!
Room A101
Javits Center: New York, NY
1:30 PM
Signing to follow

Tuesday, October 20
WORD Bookstore
Brooklyn, NY
7:00 PM

Thursday, October 22
Third Place Books
Lake Forest Park, WA
7:00 PM

Friday, October 23
Powell’s Books
Beaverton, OR
7:00 PM

Saturday, October 24
The Last Bookstore
Los Angeles, CA
7:30 PM

Monday, October 26
Tattered Cover
Los Angeles, CA
7:00 PM

Tuesday, October 27
Anderson’s Bookshop
Naperville, IL
7:00 PM

Thursday, October 29
Avid Bookshop
Athens, GA
7:00 PM

Friday, October 30
Malaprops
Asheville, NC
7:00 PM

Fran Wilde, Updraft

Tuesday, October 13
Wellesley Books
Also with Seth Dickinson and Ilana C. Myer
Wellesley, MA
7:00 PM

Wednesday, October 14
Book-A-Million
Also with Seth Dickinson and Ilana C. Myer
South Portland, ME
5:00 PM

Thursday, October 15
The Toadstool Bookshop
Also with Seth Dickinson and Ilana C. Myer
Milford, NH
6:30 PM

Saturday, October 17
Northshire Bookshop
Also with Seth Dickinson and Ilana C. Myer
Saratoga Springs, NY
6:30 PM

Sunday, October 18
Northshire Bookshop
Also with Seth Dickinson and Ilana C. Myer
Manchester Center, VT
4:00 PM

Wednesday, October 21
Northshire Bookshop
Book sold by WORD Bookstore.
New York, NY
7:00 PM

Tor Books Announces Programming for New York Comic-Con 2015

Image Place holder  of - 92 It’s time for New York Comic Con again! This year, we are pleased to announce that the Tor: The Next Generation! stage from BEA has been chosen as a panel. As always, Tor Books will continue its popular in-booth (#2223) signings and giveaways, offering you a chance to meet your favorite authors and pick up free books! Our exciting line-up includes author appearances by John Scalzi, Catherynne M. Valente, Charlie Jane Anders, and more!

Be sure to follow @TorBooks on Twitter for up-to-date information and last minute events.

Thursday, October 8th

Friday, October 9th

Look at something like The Martian vs. The Fold vs. the Iron Man movies. Is hard science always a good thing? Authors discuss the pros and cons and the sometimes slippery slope of including hard science in a work of fiction, especially in a paradigm era of technological development.
Panelists: A.G. Riddle, Mindy McGinnis, Robin Wasserman, Ian McDonald, Barry Lyga
Moderator: Peter Clines

  • 6:45 PM – Signing to follow, Bookstore Hall 1-B

Saturday, October 10

  • 12:00pm Tor Booth Signing: Trial of Intentions – Peter Orullian
  • 1:30pm Masters of Unreality: Heavy Metal and SFF, Room 1A18
    It’s well known that heavy metal songs have been based on fantasy novels; however, it can be argued that they’re also the perfect soundtrack to any battle scene, whether deep in the forest or in deep space. Authors Myke Cole, Michael Fletcher, and Peter Orullian are not just talented writers, but they’ve all been in metal bands! Join them along with James Dashner as they discuss what they listen to as they write epic scenes, discuss seminal albums and how the two cross reference each other.
    Panelists: Peter Orullian, Myke Cole, Michael R. Fletcher
    Moderator: Tricia Narwani of Del Rey
  • 1:45pm Signing to follow
  •  2:00pm Tor Booth Signing: All the Birds in the Sky – Charlie Jane Anders
  •  4:00pm Books to Movies Wishlist, Room A101
    The Martian. Foundation. American Gods. Redshirts: So many iconic SFF novels are finally scheduled to it the big screen, thanks to the rabid fandom of recent dramatizations of Game of Thrones, Outlander, The Hunger Games, and Divergent. But what’s on the big screen wish list of this panel of bestselling speculative fiction superstars? They all agree that the obvious franchises have been done already – and now, they want to discuss with NYCC attendees what lesser-know/cult fave titles should invade theaters and march into cable programming! Join us for a nerdy-fun discussion about which science fiction and fantasy must-reads would really make celluloid magic!
    Panelists: Christopher Golden, Chuck Wendig, Jennifer Armentrout, Charlie Jane Anders
    Moderator: Michael Underwood
  • 5:15pm Signing to Follow, Bookstore Hall 1-B
  • 5:00pm Tor Booth Signing: Radiance – Catherynne M. Valente

Sunday, October 11

  • 12:00pm Tor Booth Signing: Chasing the Phoenix – Michael Swanwick
  • 1:30pm Get Out of Your Chair and Off the Planet! Room A101

Whether it’s satisfying readers’ desires for interstellar armchair travel or sparking ambitions for SF fans to pursue extra-terrestrial encounters, in actuality, science fiction is the fiction of the imagination and inspiration. Authors Michael Swanwick, Jay Allen, Catherynne M. Valente, Judd Winnick, CH Higgin stake readers to the final frontier … and beyond.
Panelists: Michael Swanwick, Catherynne M. Valente, CH Higgins, Judd Winnick
Moderator: Maryelizabeth Hart

  • 2:45pm Signing to follow, Bookstore Hall 1-B

Giveaways are on a first-come, first-served basis

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