Light in the Darkness Roundup 1

As promised, I'll be taking a closer look at the twelve books and authors in Light in the Darkness: A Noblebright Fantasy Boxed Set. To learn about the noblebright movement and for details about the set, you can read this previous post. There truly is something for everyone in this set: sword and sorcery, sword and no sorcery, sorcery and no sword, sixguns and sorcery, steampunk, magical realism, settings from modern day to alternate history to fantasy worlds based on Asian myths, from no romance to romance in a variety of flavors. Light in the Darkness explores a full range of fantasy, featuring good (if flawed) characters doing their best to do the right things in difficult circumstances, with an undercurrent of hope.

Note: Because of the size of this collection, 12 full-length novels plus several short stories, the price will have to go up to $1.99 when we upload the final file on Oct. 8. Preorder before then to lock in the 99 cent price!

And now, on with the first four books:

The King's Sword by C. J. Brightley
A disillusioned soldier. A spoiled, untried prince. A coup that threatens the country they both love. When retired soldier Kemen finds the young prince Hakan fleeing an attempted assassination, he reluctantly takes the role of mentor and guardian. Keeping the prince alive is challenging enough. Making him a man is harder. As usurper Vidar tightens his grip on power, Kemen wrestles with questions of duty and honor. What if the prince isn't the best ruler after all? Invasion looms, and Kemen's decisions will shape the fate of a nation. What will he sacrifice for friendship and honor?

About the author:
C. J. Brightley lives outside Washington, D.C., with her husband and their two young children. When she's not busy writing, she teaches karate, bakes too many desserts, and makes jewelry. She loves to connect with readers!
Website: http://www.cjbrightley.com

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The Emperor’s Edge by Lindsay Buroker
Imperial law enforcer Amaranthe Lokdon is good at her job: she can deter thieves and pacify thugs, if not with a blade, then by toppling an eight-foot pile of coffee canisters onto their heads. But when ravaged bodies show up on the waterfront, an arson covers up human sacrifices, and a powerful business coalition plots to kill the emperor, she feels a tad overwhelmed.

Worse, Sicarius, the empire's most notorious assassin, is in town. He's tied in with the chaos somehow, but Amaranthe would be a fool to cross his path. Unfortunately, her superiors order her to hunt him down. Either they have an unprecedented belief in her skills... or someone wants her dead.

About the author:
Lindsay is a full-time independent fantasy author who loves travel, hiking, tennis, and vizslas. She grew up in the Seattle area but moved to Arizona when she realized she was solar-powered.
Website:  http://www.lindsayburoker.com/

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The Last Mage Guardian by Sabrina Chase
Most thought the Mage Guardians simply a myth, but their old enemy knows better--and of their number only one remains to thwart his plan of magical domination and revenge.

Miss Ardhuin Andrews, who ought to be learning elegant refinements at the Metan Seminary for Young Ladies, has instead fooled the headmistress and her late great-uncle’s servants into letting her stay at the old chateau–alone.  The better to avoid dancing lessons and study her forbidden magic.

But then the old chateau is attacked by powerful magic, and shortly after a strange young man, apparently immune to her magical distractions and illusions appears.  Is he connected to the attacks?

About the author:
"By day I am a mild-mannered software developer, making the world a better place for librarians. But when the sun goes down, I make stuff up for fun and profit.

"My background is in physics, where I got to play with killer lasers and synchrotrons. I live in the Pacific Northwest and am constantly supervised in my writing by two cats. If I did something wrong, they probably warned me about it."
Website: http://chaseadventures.com/

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Pen Pal by Francesca Forrest
Em is a twelve-year-old girl in a floating community off the Gulf Coast. Kaya is a political activist in a terrifying prison. They are pen pals. Em's wistful message in a bottle finds its way to Kaya, imprisoned above the molten lava of the Ruby Lake. Both are living precarious lives, at the mercy of societal, natural, and perhaps supernatural forces beyond their control. Kaya's letters inspire Em, and Em's comfort Kaya-but soon this correspondence becomes more than personal. Individual lives, communities, and even the fate of an entire nation will be changed by this exchange of letters. "Pen Pal" is a story of friendship and bravery across age, distance, and culture, at the intersection of the natural and supernatural world.

Find out more about the book at http://penpalnovel.virb.com/
The author's LiveJournal blog

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Light in the Darkness will be released on October 18, but right now it's available for pre-order at:
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | iTunes

The current price is only 99 cents. That might have to go up, but I know that Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Kobo have pre-order price guarantees where even if the price does go up later, if you pre-order at the 99 cent price that's what you pay. I couldn't find the information for iTunes; if you shop at iTunes, check to see if they have a preorder pricing policy. Don't miss out on the chance to get this wonderful collection for only 99 cents!