************************************************************************************** An outcast rogue must break a curse put on his fate, or die on his nineteenth birthday. To survive, he'll need the sword of a maiden, the aid of an immortal, and the power of forbidden magic that could cost him the only girl he ever loved. ************************************************************************************ *** THE JACK OF SOULS won a Silver IPPY this year! *** THE JACK OF SOULS won 1st place in the PNWA Competition in Fantasy! * *** THE JACK OF SOULS won 1st place in the Southwest Writers competition! * *** A "Featured Book" on Wattpad! * *** Now a "Staff Pick" on Kickstarter! * *** Available on Amazon in paper, hardback, and ebook ! * *** My contract with Kindle Select won't allow me to post more than 3 chapters here, but... *** Sign up for my newsletter on stephenmerlino.com for alerts when it's free on Amazon! * MY INSPIRATION I wrote this out of pure love of trickster rogues; I love the wit over brawn motif -- Odysseus over Achilles, Raven over Eagle -- so I like to play with it in my stories. In JOS I set the rogue and con-artist Harric against a foil of warriors in a land threatened by magic and civil war. Whenever possible I turn familiar tropes on their heads: instead of a handsome young Lancelot, I cast a broken-down ex-champion addicted to pain-killing herbs; instead of a dashing Squire Brian, the old knight reluctantly takes an ambitious young woman as squire. Similarly, I re-imagine the standard medieval milieu by infusing aspects of two of my favorite historical periods, Elizabethan England, and The American Frontier. Both eras boast a kind of nationalistic arrogance that borders on hubris, and a magnificent spirit of resourcefulness and re-invention that is fun to play with. SERIES The Jack of Souls is first in a series. I am posting parts of the sequel here now (The Knave of Souls), to help me refine the story.

Wattys Winner 2018 for The Worldbuilders!!! Harry Potter meets Throne of Glass ~ Highest Ranking: #1 in throneofglass * #1 in wizard * #3 in romance #1 gameofthrones When a Valkyrie falls from the sky to tell two normal teenagers, Laina and Will, they have the fate of two worlds in their hands, they are shocked and skeptical. But with Gods and Goddesses placing wagers, Valkyries joining the fight, and powerful Witches and Wizards taking sides, trouble is brewing. Behind a veil lies a mirror world to Earth, one that runs on magic. But as magic begins to seep out of Htrea and fewer are born with the Talent, the Tainted, those without the ability to do magic, are being persecuted and exterminated. Htrae is run by a mad Empress and a force of rebels -- including Will and Laina's fire-wielding warrior-general sister, Rowan and her best friend, the cheeky Wizard Wiz-kid, Joel -- are garnering warriors for a fight. According to prophecy, the fate of the war of two worlds lies in the hands of one of three siblings: a son or daughter of the remaining bloodline of the Kingdom of Aary. Will they be able to fight together to survive and win the Witch War? ~~~ Thank you to Manu Cabañero for the letting me use this gorgeous photograph in my cover art!

Book 2 of The Famoux Trilogy! Updated every Friday for #FamouxFriday.

As rumors swirl across the war torn lands of Eos of a possible Candidate-the long prophesied savior of peace-young Raden Nite finds himself unexpectedly chosen to discover the truth to these rumors. Raden's top-secret mission will send him and his closest friends on a heart-pounding adventure through the mysterious Voras Mountains, the impenetrable fortress of Sargatum, and deep into strange new lands where dangerous enemies await. Meanwhile, on the other side of the Disputed Lands, Prince Aric sits third in line to the crown of Vicedonia. Seeking to escape the overwhelming shadow of his elder brother, and to prove to his father, the king, that he is indeed a worthy successor, Aric embarks on a path into the darkest corners of Eos. On his journey, he will encounter the sinister magic of the Dark Forest, the epic battlegrounds of Lake Raphia, and discover the harsh realities of what it truly means to be king. In the first book of the Prophecy Rock Series, fates will collide in this epic tale of action, loyalty, and love, where the ultimate meaning of true sacrifice will be discovered.

Dr. Hortense Gray practices experimental psychology on an uninhabited island off the coast of California where people go wanting to die and leave fighting to live. Seventeen-year-old Daphne Janus is her newest patient. Watch a 40-sec trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMt5fO1xtHw

*SAMPLE ONLY* A Cursed Bloodline. A Bloodthirsty Beast. A Single Bite. The only thing Loren Bell cared about was passing all of her college finals and getting some much needed sleep. She didn't account on having a dropped down, dragged out fight for her life with a mythical creature (who by all accounts shouldn't exist). Hanging on by a thread she ended up in the clutches of a mysterious man named Solomon Kane and his team of hunters known only as spiders. In an attempt to escape, Loren comes face to face with another prisoner, Niklaus Grimm. A Lycan who was losing the battle with his beast. The unlikely pair formed an alliance leaving Niklaus to help Loren as the bite she received awakens the Lycaon gene in her body. As they navigate their fragile bond, things become more complicated as old friends turn to enemies and insidious plans begin to unfurl around them. Niklaus knows that his only weakness now is the fragile female with hair as fiery as her tongue. He can only hope that he has the power to protect her, because they are willing to destroy her if it means getting what they want.

I huddled in the corner of the dark room I had been thrown into. I was the only one out of all the villagers to have been selected by Them, a fact that relieved everyone but me. My body stung from struggling to escape Their grasp when They dragged me here, deaf to my pleading, oblivious to my struggles. Now as I sit in the dark, my fears have grown to the point of being nearly unbearable; I was going to go mad with fear if They didn't come soon. Questions plagued my mind. Why did They select me? What was going to happen to me when They come back? What would They be doing to me? Would I...survive? All that was told to us before today was that They would be selecting one of the village girls and take her with Them when They left. No matter what, the girl chosen would be taken away. It made no difference if the girl or her family resisted Them, the results would be the same. I hoped that I would be able to escape Them once my name had been called, but I was wrong. So very wrong. Thanks to AshlynWanderer for the cool new cover!