QSFer Mike Bode has a new fantasy book out:
Maddox is a broken man, held together by the will of his sentient sword. Heath is a prophet of a forgotten god— and an assassin. Jessa is an inexperienced ruler, struggling to broker a truce between her warring nation and her enemies.
That plan for peace is threatened by the local politics of the Mirrored City, a place ruled by dual theocratic governments. Beneath the tenuous accord between the two halves of the city lies centuries of hostility that threaten to break out into open war. Treacherous conspiracies, deadly diplomacy, a string of grisly murders, and the return of the Old Magic could spell the end for all Creation.
No one is who or what they seem. A quest for answers leads the champions to a deadly battle with their greatest foe yet: themselves.
This is Book Two of Architects of the Grand Design
Excerpt
The necromancer Isik followed behind the Patrean guard. The streets and narrow alleys of Dessim were still a mystery to him. The walls were riddled with tiny alcoves, shrines to any of the thousands of gods the people of the city worshipped as part of the Host. There was actually a god of tax evasion who was currently quite popular.
“What is your name?” Isik had a thick Volkovian accent.
“Fox,” The Patrean soldier replied. They all looked alike so it was impossible to tell if he should have known the guard or not. Fox was not a familiar name.
Isik nodded. “In Volkov, it was easy, the Patreans wear their names on their uniforms so we can tell them apart.”
“It’s not often people here even bother to ask,” Fox commented.
“Then what do they call you?” Isik inquired.
Fox shrugged, “Well… ‘Hey you’ and ‘excuse me’ are pretty common. But it gets more colorful when I make arrests.”
Isik sighed. “It is a shame. I think that if everyone looked alike the world would have far less problems.”
“If the world had less violence, I’d be out of a contract,” Fox quipped.
“And if fewer people were murdered I may have to take up a craft,” Isik admitted. “Still I think it’s a better world where you do not constantly have to interrupt the coroner’s dinner to drag him to the scene of a murder, yes? Perhaps we could make paintings.”
Buy Links
Amazon: Click Here
Barnes and Noble: Click Here
Goodreads: Click Here
Author Bio
Michael James Bode was born on Valentine’s Day and grew up in rural Indiana surrounded by woods and horses.
Bode received a degree in sociology from Indiana University. In the technological sector, he used computers to process natural language.
The Queen of Lies is Bode’s first novel. He has published a number of short stories and performed spoken word pieces. The daily life of the characters inhabiting fantasy worlds fascinates Bode, compelling him to explore the ways in which such people could carve places for themselves in worlds where the fantastical is commonplace. He currently lives in Atlanta, Georgia.
Website: http://www.mikebode.com