You are now reading Books I and II in a combined format. They are presented here as a single volume. Book I is about a thirteen year old boy's journey into magical healing. It is a time of awakening. Awakening to who you are, what you are meant to be, of friends and young love, of power and its use for good or evil. Book I is the book of beginnings. Book II outlines the further adventures of Julian, Nicole and Brian after they have grown up. What's at stake is magnified exponentially as the extent and full power of the Tree becomes realized. Book III has just begun. (Oct 10 2014) Please go check on my profile page. :-) Here's a thought. ^.^ We Canadians sometimes spell things differently. Like 'neighbourhood', 'Paediatrics' or even 'honour'. How's that? :-) So, thank you all so much, but please do not edit my work for spelling or grammar. All right? :-) I'd rather get there on my own, eventually.

************************************************************************************** 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.

Winner of Most Popular in the Action category in the 2012 Watty Awards. Most Read in 2013. Valerie is Water-Abled. At the age of sixteen she was able to manipulate and freeze water molecules. After she graduates high school she's shocked to find that she was accepted to a university she never applied for - Abled University, at the request of her deceased parents. Valerie soon falls into the Abled community but what should she do when she learns dark secrets that were kept from both her and the entire Abled society?