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Title: Kings of the North Author: Elizabeth Moon File Type: Mobi Subject:Fantasy Description:From Publishers WeeklyThe languorous sequel to 2010's Oath of Fealty finds many characters moving up in the world, including Kieri Phelan, the king of Lyonya, and Dorrin, now Duke Verrakai. Now those newly stationed must deal with assassination attempts, counterfeiting, and a new enemy who has taken to calling himself Duke Visla Vaskronin. Kieri doesn't understand why his elven grandmother and co-ruler, the Lady, often refuses to come when he needs her, even when a war with the Pargunese and their possibly unbeatable weapon is imminent. He will also discover that his elven heritage runs stronger than he thought. The pace is slow enough to immerse readers in the world as the characters are immersed in self-discovery, with larger events impending but usually not seen directly. There's action a-plenty, but this series most appeals to readers who enjoy their fantasy more thoughtful and intellectual. (Mar.) (c) PWxyz, LLC. Review'Moon's novels of Paksenarrion's world have been considered classics since they were first published more than two decades ago. Her storytelling is as electrifying as ever, and her readers should be delighted with this new vista of a well-known world' Booklist

Title: Elric of Melnibone Author: Michael Moorcock File Type: Mobi Subject:Fantasy Description: Elric of Melniboné is a requisite title in the hard fantasy canon, a book no fantasy fan should leave unread. Author Michael Moorcock, already a major player in science fiction, cemented his position in the fantasy pantheon with the five-book Elric saga, of which Elric of Melniboné is the first installment. The books namesake, the brooding albino emperor of the dying nation of Melniboné, is a sort of Superman for Goths, truly an archetype of the genre. The youthful Elric is a cynical and melancholy king, heir to a nation whose 100,000-year rule of the world ended less than 500 years hence. More interested in brooding contemplation than holding the throne, Elric is a reluctant ruler, but he also realizes that no other worthy successor exists and the survival of his once-powerful, decadent nation depends on him alone. Elrics nefarious, brutish cousin Yrkoon has no patience for his physically weak kinsman, and he plots constantly to seize Elrics throne, usually over his dead body. Elric of Melniboné follows Yrkoons scheming, reaching its climax in a battle between Elric and Yrkoon with the demonic runeblades Stormbringer and Mournblade. In this battle, Elric gains control of the soul-stealing Stormbringer, an event that proves pivotal to the Elric saga. --Paul Hughes

Title: Gryphon_ New and Selected Stories Author: Charles Baxter File Type: Mobi Subject:Fiction Description:From Publishers WeeklyStarred Review. Baxter's skill with short fiction is confirmed in this stellar collection of 23 stories, seven of which are new. The title story is deservedly a classic, and other favorites, such as Fenstad's Mother, have gathered resonance as well, and the new stories show Baxter working a quirky beat. In each, the acutely observed real world is rocked by the exotic or surreal. In Poor Devil, the devils are a self-destructive couple headed for a divorce, while, in Ghosts, a stranger enters a young woman's house and tells her they are soul mates. She accuses him of being a devil, but his intentions are much less sinister than she imagines. Nightfall had always brought his devils out, the narrator says in The Old Murderer, a touching story about an alcoholic and an ex-con, each trying to get through the day. In Royal Blue, arguably the best of the new stories, an undertow of mystery shadows a handsome young art dealer who understands that 911 has affected a fundamental change in his life. In Baxter's comic-melancholic world, people may be incapable of averting sadness or violence, but they survive. (Jan.) (c) br Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. FromBaxter is a well-regarded short story writer who should be more widely appreciated. He is a consummate chronicler—depictor—of ordinary lives with which the majority of good fiction readers can identify. (“In my university town there are hundreds of men like Harrelson,” says one narrator, whose recognition of the type will be shared by all of us.) Baxter attaches to these lives an eccentric aspect, which, ironically, heightens their universality—we all have our quirks—and which increases our responsiveness to them. This volume pulls stories from the author’s four previous collections and adds seven previously uncollected stories. As in all big compilations, quality varies. The superior stories, including the title story (a delightful first-person narrative, from the perspective of a fourth-grade boy, about an odd substitute teacher), showcase Baxter’s first-rate talents in the form: sophisticated humor, exact writing style, plots at once ordinary and extraordinary, and in, common with all masters of the form, wizardry at the fetching opening line. --Brad Hooper