Books like 'Apex Magazine Issue 56, January 2014'
Readers who enjoyed Apex Magazine Issue 56, January 2014 by Sigrid Ellis, Ursula Vernon, Gene O'Neill, Pat Cadigan, Jess Nevins & T. Kingfisher also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical fantasy horror supernatural myths magical-realism female-mc animals western indigenous-mc
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Outcast by Michelle Paver
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsA thrilling story of friendship, survival, and the need to belong.For two moons Torak has hidden a terrible secret—and now it is revealed. He bears the mark of the Soul-Eater, and must pay the price. Cast out from the clans, he is alone and on the run: cut off from his best friend, Renn, and his beloved pack-brother, Wolf...Categorized as:
animals low-fantasy magic myths retellings action-adventure ancient-civilization audiobook -
Jackalope Wives and Other Stories by T. Kingfisher
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsWinner of the Nebula and WSFA Short Fiction Awards From award-winning author T. Kingfisher comes a collection of short stories, including "Jackalope Wives," "The Tomato Thief," "Pocosin," and many others. By turns funny, lyrical, angry and beautiful, this anthology includes two all-new stories, "Origin Story" and "Let Pass The Horses Black," appearing for the first time in print... -
The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic by Leigh Bardugo
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 53 ratingsLove speaks in flowers. Truth requires thorns. Travel to a world of dark bargains struck by moonlight, of haunted towns and hungry woods, of talking beasts and gingerbread golems, where a young mermaid's voice can summon deadly storms and where a river might do a lovestruck boy's bidding but only for a terrible price... -
Going up in the Underworld by Álex Gilbert
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsAs a young, up and coming apex predator of the night, Ariane needs the minions, a territory, dubious allies with unknown agendas... From Alexandria to the frozen north, opportunities and danger abound. Fortunately, Ariane has many tools at her disposal and if everything fails, there is always black powder... -
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Demon's Throne by K.D. Robertson
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsRys awakes to the smell of blood and nearly two thousand years of dust. Maybe he overslept a little too long. Once, he was a great champion and general in the demonic empire that ruled the world. Now, he's been erased from history.He'll need to remind the world of the price of forgetfulness.Now is the time to build his own empire, as the ancient powers of his time are long gone... -
For He Can Creep by Siobhan Carroll
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsA Tor.com original, Siobhan Carroll's For He Can Creep is a dark fantasy story of poetry, devilry, and cats in a battle of good vs. evil for the fate of humanity. Nineteenth century poet Christopher Smart has been committed to St. Luke's Hospital for Lunatics believing God has commissioned him to write The Divine Poem... -
She Who Waits by Daniel Polansky
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe third novel in the brilliant dark fantasy Low Town seriesLow Town: the worst ghetto in the worst city in the Thirteen Lands. Good only for depravity and death. And Warden, long ago a respected agent in the formidable Black House, is now the most depraved Low Town denizen of them all... -
I Am Grimalkin by Joseph Delaney
Rated: 4.27 of 5 stars · 34 ratingsFrom the publisher:"I'm coming for you, and nothing living or dead can stop me."One witch is the most feared, the most ruthless, and the most deadly of all the witches in the county. If she hunts for you, she will find you. If you have crossed her, you don't stand a chance. She is the witch assassin, and her name is Grimalkin.Grimalkin's one alliance is with Tom Ward, the Spook's apprentice... -
Ghost in the Inferno by Jonathan Moeller
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsCAINA AMALAS is the Ghost circlemaster of Istarinmul, leader of the Emperor's spies in the city. She has defeated powerful foes, but more dangerous enemies lie before her.A sorcerous catastrophe threatens to destroy Istarinmul, and the only the mysterious sorceress Annarah, last loremaster of lost Iramis, knows how to stop it... -
Ghost in the Pact by Jonathan Moeller
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsCaina Amalas has found the lost relics of Iramis, but with the relics comes deadly peril. For Grand Master Callatas is ready to work his terrible Apotheosis, and all he needs to unleash the dark power of the nagataaru is the Staff and the Seal of Iramis…once he takes them from Caina’s dead hands. Yet if Caina and Callatas do not work together, they are doomed... -
Ghost in the Ring by Jonathan Moeller
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsCaina Amalas was once a deadly Ghost nightfighter, a spy and agent of the Emperor of Nighmar. Now she only wishes to live quietly with her husband. But civil war grips the Empire, and Caina's skills are needed against the cruel sorcerers of the malevolent Umbarian Order. And Caina has a dangerous connection to the Umbarians... -
Ghost in the Throne by Jonathan Moeller
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsCaina Amalas cheated death and escaped certain doom. So did her mortal enemy, the sorcerer Cassander Nilas. Now the city of Istarinmul teeters on the brink of civil war and sorcerous annihilation. Unless Caina summons all her bravery and cunning, Cassander's dark spell will kill millions of people. Starting with the people she loves.. -
Ghost in the Glass by Jonathan Moeller
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsCaina has a deadly problem. Specifically, she carries the Ring of Rasarion Yagar, a relic created by the tyrannical necromancer-king who once ruled Ulkaar. The deadly sorcerers of the malevolent Umbarian Order wish to seize the Ring for themselves, as do the sinister priests of the ruthless Temnoti cult. And to make matters worse, the Ring is not the only powerful relic of Rasarion Yagar... -
The Gates of Guinée by Alys Arden
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA trip to the Afterworld might be the end of the supernatural world.As the Ghost Drinkers seep into the crevices of the Crescent City, leeching the French Quarter of magic, the local witches are consumed with a new fight for survival. Adele has one chance to save everyone she loves, but it will mean breaking away from her coven and trusting a vampire... -
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Ghost in the Seal by Jonathan Moeller
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsCAINA AMALAS is out of time. She has risked too much for too long, and her enemies have finally closed around her. The Staff and Seal of Iramis have been found, and threaten to destroy the world with their sorcerous powers. The terrible Apotheosis of the evil Grand Master Callatas will succeed unless Caina makes one final sacrifice. Unless she makes the ultimate sacrifice.. -
Ghost in the Ashes by Jonathan Moeller
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsCaina Amalas is a Ghost nightfighter, one of the elite agents of the Emperor of Nighmar, and she has defeated both corrupt lords and mighty sorcerers. As the Padishah of Istarinmul prepares to make peace with the Emperor, the Ghosts must keep the Padishah’s ambassador safe from assassins. But when an escaped slave begs for Caina’s help, she finds dark plots stirring in the shadows... -
Ghost in the Surge by Jonathan Moeller
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsCAINA AMALAS is a nightfighter of the Ghosts, one of the elite agents of the Emperor of Nighmar. She has defeated powerful sorcerers and corrupt lords, freed slaves and overthrown great evils. But now someone has begun slaughtering the Ghosts of the Imperial capital, and the killer is wearing her face... -
A Radical Act of Free Magic by H.G. Parry
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA tale of revolution and wonder in a world not quite like our own, A Radical Act of Free Magic is the conclusion to this genre-defying series of magic, war, and the struggle for freedom in the early modern world.The Concord has been broken, and a war of magic engulfs the world... -
Ghost in the Storm by Jonathan Moeller
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsCAINA AMALAS is a Ghost nightfighter, one of the Emperor's elite spies and assassins. And though she remains anonymous, already legends grow around her. Whispers speak of the Ghost nightfighter who stopped the fire of the gods from consuming Rasadda, who defeated sorcerers of terrible power, who liberated slaves and threw down cruel lords.Yet now the storm is coming to claim her.. -
Ghost in the Stone by Jonathan Moeller
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsCaina Amalas is a Ghost nightfighter, an assassin and spy of the Emperor, and her cunning saved the city of Marsis from a brutal invasion.Now she must keep the war from becoming worse.The nobles of the Imperial city of Cyrioch plan to revolt, and assassins stalk the high lords of the Empire. Only Caina stands between the Empire and a ruinous civil war... -
Infamous Reign by Steve McHugh
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsIn late 15th century England, two young princes are given over by Merlin to the protection of their uncle, King Richard III. They soon vanish from sight, igniting tales of their demise at Richard’s hand and breeding unrest throughout the land.Nathanial Garrett, also known as Hellequin, is sent to London to decipher fact from rumor and uncovers a plot to replace the king... -
Marked by Magic by Jasmine Walt
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsWith the rebellion now in full swing, shifter-mage hybrid Sunaya Baine has no time for distractions. She must find out the true identity of the Benefactor and pull the plug on the Resistance's funding before they succeed in their grand plans for genocide and destruction. But the heat is upon Sunaya now, and it demands to be sated... -
Storm of Locusts by Rebecca Roanhorse
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 33 ratingsKai and Caleb Goodacre have been kidnapped just as rumors of a cult sweeping across the reservation leads Maggie and Hastiin to investigate an outpost, and what they find there will challenge everything they've come to know in this action-packed sequel to Trail of Lightning...Categorized as:
indigenous-mc industrial-era magic magical-realism myths poc-mc western action-adventure -
Ghost in the Hunt by Jonathan Moeller
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsCAINA AMALAS is the Ghost circlemaster of Istarinmul, the leader of the Emperor's spies in the city. With the aid of mysterious allies, she fights to stop the sinister plans of the ruthless Grand Master Callatas. But Callatas has spent two centuries preparing to remake humanity, and he will exterminate any who dare to oppose him... -
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The Girl with No Face by M.H. Boroson
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe adventures of Li-lin, a Daoist priestess with the unique ability to see the spirit world, continue in the thrilling follow-up to the critically-acclaimed historical urban fantasy The Girl with Ghost Eyes.It’s the end of the Nineteenth Century. San Francisco’s cobblestone streets are haunted, but Chinatown has an unlikely protector in a young Daoist priestess named Li-lin...Categorized as:
female-mc low-fantasy magic magical-realism myths poc-mc retellings action-adventure -
Ghost in the Winds by Jonathan Moeller
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe Apotheosis has come at last, and it will shatter the world. CAINA is trapped in the ruins of an ancient necromancer's tomb. Unless she escapes the lethal trap, there will be no one to stop Grand Master Callatas from unleashing the Apotheosis. KYLON is desperate to save Caina's life... -
Red and the Wolf by Vivienne Savage
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsSorcha knows every inch of the forest, but a spontaneous visit to her grandmother thrusts her into the middle of a brutal conflict between shifters and an unknown force in the woodlands.As the alpha of clan TalWolthe, Conall is obligated to protect his fellow wolves at all costs--even if it means his life... -
The Shotgun Arcana by R.S. Belcher
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsR. S. Belcher’s debut novel, The Six-Gun Tarot, was enthusiastically greeted by critics and readers, who praised its wildly inventive mixture of dark fantasy, steampunk, and the Wild West. Now Belcher returns to Golgotha, Nevada, a bustling frontier town that hides more than its fair share of unnatural secrets.1870... -
Tales of the Peculiar by Ransom Riggs
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 38 ratingsBefore Miss Peregrine gave them a home, the story of peculiars was written in the Tales. Wealthy cannibals who dine on the discarded limbs of peculiars. A fork-tongued princess. The origins of the first ymbryne...Categorized as:
dark low-fantasy magic magical-realism myths retellings 21st-century action-adventure -
The Queen of Swords by R.S. Belcher
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratings1870. Maude Stapleton, late of Golgotha, Nevada, is a respectable widow raising a daughter on her own. Few know that Maude belongs to an ancient order of assassins, the Daughters of Lilith, and is as well the great-great-great-great-granddaughter of Anne Bonney, the legendary female pirate... -
When the Stars Threw Down Their Spears by Kersten Hamilton
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratings“People will die.”Locked doors are opening, and uncanny creatures are tumbling through mysterious portals from Mag Mell, the world-between-worlds, into the streets of Chicago. The Dark Man has marked Aiden with a new song that’s scared him badly, and a frightening new group of sídhe is lurking nearby.Teagan knows this is war, and she must protect her family...Categorized as:
animals female-mc magic myths retellings action-adventure ancient-civilization angels -
Apparition Lake by Doug Lamoreux
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsSomething is terribly wrong in the nation's oldest national park.Horrific deaths have occurred throughout Yellowstone and everyone believes that a monstrous grizzly bear is on a rampage. Scientific evidence suggests another terrifying conclusion... -
Grandmother Spider: A Charlie Moon Mystery by James D. Doss
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA lawman with a hardy appetite for life and an unshakable faith in the explicable, Southern Ute Acting Chief of Police Charlie Moon is not prepared to accept a purely supernatural explanation for the recent strange events of April 1... -
Jilo by J.D. Horn
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsAged Mother Jilo is wise in the ways of magic…but once upon a time, she was just a girl.1950s Georgia: King Cotton has fallen. Savannah is known as the “beautiful woman with a dirty face,” its stately elegance faded by neglect, its soul withering from racial injustice and political corruption... -
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Goblin Market by Christina Rossetti, Joyce Carol Oates
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 35 ratingsExperience the temptation, pleasure, punishment, and redemption of Christina Rossetti's brilliant poetic masterpiece in this classic keepsake edition, gorgeously illustrated with Pre-Raphaelite paintings by Christina's brother, Dante Gabriel Rossetti... -
The Haunting of Tram Car 015 by P. Djèlí Clark
Rated: 4.02 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsThe Haunting of Tram Car 015 returns to the alternate Cairo of Clark's short fiction, where humans live and work alongside otherworldly beings; the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities handles the issues that can arise between the magical and the mundane...Categorized as:
industrial-era low-fantasy magic magical-realism myths poc-mc retellings 21st-century -
Soul of Sorcery by Jonathan Moeller
Rated: 4.27 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsFor fans of David Gemmell, Robert E. Howard, Robert Jordan, and Raymond E. Feist, the DEMONSOULED saga continues in a new volume.MAZAEL CRAVENLOCK has defeated the Malrags, and returned to the Grim Marches in triumph. Yet with no new enemies to conquer, his Demonsouled blood threatens to blaze out of control... -
Soul of Swords by Jonathan Moeller
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsMAZAEL CRAVENLOCK is the last hope. As castle after castle falls to the runedead horde, Mazael must lead his armies to victory...or the world shall fall into darkness forever.And Mazael must stop his father's dark plans. No matter what the cost to himself. LUCAN MANDRAGON wields the relics of a forgotten empire, the runedead his to command... -
The Fear Institute by Jonathan L. Howard
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsJohannes Cabal and his rather inexact powers of necromancy are back once more. This time, his talents are purchased by The Fear Institute as they hunt for the Phobic Animus - the embodiment of fear...Categorized as:
dark industrial-era low-fantasy magic magical-realism myths retellings action-adventure -
The Witch’s Lens by Luanne G. Smith
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsAs World War I rages, there are evils—both living and dead—that only a witch can see in a spellbinding novel by the Amazon Charts and Washington Post bestselling author of The Raven Spell.With her husband off fighting at World War I’s eastern front, Petra Kurková embraces her fleeting freedom, roaming the city at night with her camera... -
The Faery Reel: Tales from the Twilight Realm by Ellen Datlow, Holly Black
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsFaeries, or creatures like them, can be found in almost every culture the world over--benevolent and terrifying, charming and exasperating, shifting shape from country to country, story to story, and moment to moment... -
A Dead Djinn in Cairo by P. Djèlí Clark
Rated: 4.04 of 5 stars · 39 ratingsEgypt, 1912. In an alternate Cairo infused with the otherworldly, the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities investigate disturbances between the mortal and the (possibly) divine...Categorized as:
industrial-era low-fantasy magic magical-realism myths poc-mc retellings action-adventure -
Rose by Holly Webb
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe grand residence of the famous alchemist, Mr Fountain, is a world away from the dark orphanage Rose has left behind. For the house is positively overflowing with sparkling magic—she can feel it. And it’s not long before Rose realises that maybe, just maybe, she has a little bit of magic in her, too. . .Categorized as:
animals female-mc industrial-era low-fantasy magic magical-realism action-adventure alchemy -
The Lay of Aotrou and Itroun by J.R.R. Tolkien
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 22 ratingsComing from the darker side of J.R.R. Tolkien's imagination, "The Lay of Aotrou and Itroun" is an important non Middle-earth work to set alongside his other retellings of existing myth and legend, The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrún, The Fall of Arthur and The Story of Kullervo... -
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Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm: A New English Version by Philip Pullman, Jacob Grimm
Rated: 4.03 of 5 stars · 40 ratingsTwo hundred years ago, Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm published the first volume of Children’s and Household Tales...Categorized as:
dark magic magical-realism myths retellings 21st-century action-adventure anthologies -
Dracula the Undead by Freda Warrington
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe legend returns . . . - It is seven years since a stake was driven through the heart of the infamous Count Dracula. Seven years which have not eradicated the terrible memories for Jonathan and Mina Harker, who now have a young son. To lay their memories to rest they return to Transylvania, and can find no trace of the horrific events... -
Grimstone by Brad Magnarella
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsGrimstone first appeared as Croft and Wesson in the 2017 multi-author box set Eight in the Chamber.Go West, Prof Croft!When my magical order assigns me to Grimstone, Colorado on a case, I’m in no hurry to pack my staff and spell books.The outlaw county is a far cry from my academic calling in New York City. And I’m being paired with junior wizard James Wesson...Categorized as:
industrial-era low-fantasy magic magical-realism myths retellings western action-adventure -
Soul of Skulls by Jonathan Moeller
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsMAZAEL CRAVENLOCK is now the liege lord of the Grim Marches, fighting to defend his lands from the numberless hordes of undead. Yet old enemies plot his demise, and a cunning assassin lurks in the shadows, preparing a deadly trap.HUGH CHALSAIN is the youngest son of the Prince of Barellion. When invaders from the sea conquer his land, Hugh must fight to save his home.. -
Skin Medicine by Tim Curran
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsAn unspeakable evil is stalking the territory. Civil war veteran and bounty hunter Tyler Cabe, who is tracking a merciless murderer, must find a way to battle something beyond the imagination of living man... -
The Dragon Coin by Aiden James
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsASIN B00DPVP5ME moved to the most recent edition with new title Immortal DragonFree of the threat of Viktor Kaslow, William Barrow (aka Judas Iscariot) is tantalizingly close to finally having the life he has dreamed of with Beatrice and Alistair. A life blessed with youthful optimism and renewed companionship—things he once feared were forever lost. But such optimism is short lived...
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