COVER REVEAL: Tempest Blades - The Magick of Chaos, by Ricardo Victoria

My buddy Ricardo Victoria impresses the hell out of me. 

If you've been by this blog with any regularity, you'll have heard me talking about him before. He's part of the Inklings Press crew, and he's been writing a kick-ass series of science fantasy that you'll have heard me lavish praise on before. 

And he's got the third book of his series coming out next year!

He asked me if I would mind doing a cover reveal here on the blog and, well, his covers are just as awesome. 

That he does all of this and writes such great stories in his second language just makes it all the more darn impressive. 

So without further ado... here's the cover for Tempest Blades: The Magick of Chaos! 

So what is this third book about? Here's the blurb and... right underneath, see that? Preorder link. Preorder. Dooo it. Dooooooooo it. 

Tempest Blades: The Magick of Chaos

Action-packed adventure that blends science, fantasy, and anime-style battles into a thrilling, fast-paced story that will appeal to fans of anime, mangas, and RPG videogames.

Magick is in disarray. The Crown of the Dead has reappeared. Three gods appear, one fallen, one amnesiac, and one which corrupts. Two teams, two missions, and one world to save in a tight amount of time before everything goes to hell. While Gaby and Sam are dealing with their own inner turmoil, they must lead their respective teams onto a path that will make them both realize one important fact: You can choose who you want to be. Because in a world where magic and science intermingle, anything is possible. Including finding out if you are ready to step up. Are you? 

Preorder link for Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1951122607/
Goodreads link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/62998106-the-magick-of-chaos

Cover Reveal: The Silk Thief, by Claire Buss

Claire Buss is no stranger to this blog. We've reviewed her work - and she's been published in Inklings Press books too. She's a smashing writer, and her Roshaven series is in no small part inspired by her love of Terry Pratchett's books. She has a new book in the series coming out and asked if she could stop by the blog to tell you all about it. So without further ado... take it away, Claire! Tell us all about... The Silk Thief. 

 The Silk Thief (The Roshaven Series Book 2)

A Humorous Urban Fantasy Novel

Fourteen, heir to the Empire of Roshaven, must find a new name before Theo, Lord of neighbouring Fidelia, brings his schemes to fruition.

Not only has he stolen Roshaven’s trade, but he plans to make Fourteen his own and take her empire in the bargain.

Her protector, Ned Spinks, is plagued with supernatural nightmares whilst his assistant, Jenni the sprite, has lost her magick. 

Can they figure out how to thwart Theo’s dastardly plan before it’s too late for his city and her empire? 

PRE-ORDER YOUR COPY TODAY: mybook.to/SilkThief

The Silk Thief is out on June 4, 2021. 

The Silk Thief is the second quirky magical mystery adventure set in the Roshaven series of humorous fantasy novels. If you like the wit and humour of Terry Pratchett’s Discworld, then you’ll love The Silk Thief.

More about the Roshaven books

The Rose Thief, The Roshaven Series book 1

Someone is stealing the Emperor’s roses and if they take the magical red rose then love will be lost, to everyone, forever.

It’s up to Ned Spinks, Chief Thief Catcher, and his band of motley catchers to apprehend the thief and save the day.

But the thief isn’t exactly who they seem to be. Neither is the Emperor.

Ned and his team will have to go on a quest; defeating vampire mermaids, illusionists, estranged family members and an evil sorcerer in order to win the day. What could possibly go wrong?

Available in paperback and ebook everywhere: https://books2read.com/u/bQaxw6

Editor note: I reviewed The Rose Thief here - and really enjoyed it!

The Interspecies Poker Tournament, Prequel Novella to The Rose Thief

Ned Spinks, Chief Thief-Catcher, has a new case. A murderous moustache-wearing cult is killing off members of Roshaven's fae community. At least that's what he's been led to believe by his not-so-trusty sidekick, Jenni the sprite. She has information she's not sharing but plans to get her boss into the Interspecies Poker Tournament so he can catch the bad guy and save the day. If only Ned knew how to play!

Available in paperback and ebook everywhere: https://books2read.com/u/m2Vk0R

Ye Olde Magick Shoppe, a Roshaven short story

Join Ned Spinks, Chief Thief-Catcher, and his sidekick Jenni the sprite in this short story about an unwanted magick shoppe.

This free short story is available in ebook everywhere: https://books2read.com/u/4XXPw1

What Readers Say

“Loved the quirky banter!”

“Entirely delightful and captivating.”

“A wonderful tribute to the Late Great Sir Terry.”

“If you are a fan of the discworld you will love this book.”

“A hilariously thrilling fantasy mystery.”

About the Author

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet based in the UK. She wanted to be Lois Lane when she grew up but work experience at her local paper was eye-opening. Instead, Claire went on to work in a variety of admin roles for over a decade but never felt quite at home. An avid reader, baker and Pinterest addict Claire won second place in the Barking and Dagenham Pen to Print writing competition in 2015 with her debut novel, The Gaia Effect, setting her writing career in motion. She continues to write passionately and is hopelessly addicted to cake.

Editor note: Want to learn more about Claire? Check out her interview here.

Social Media Links

Facebook: www.facebook.com/busswriter

FB Group: www.facebook.com/groups/BussBookStop

Twitter: www.twitter.com/grasshopper2407

Instagram: www.instagram.com/grasshopper2407 

Website: www.cbvisions.co.uk

Blog: https://www.butidontlikesalad.blogspot.co.uk

Cover reveal! Discover A Turn of Pandemonium, by Miranda Brock

Miranda Brock is a talented author who is also very supportive of her fellow writers - so it's my pleasure to welcome her to the blog to reveal the cover of her new book, A Turn of Pandemonium. Take it away, Miranda...

The Cirque du Shadow isn’t your childhood circus.

When Peyton Locke accepts a job in the menagerie, she isn’t expecting to be a handler for a half-demon, half-gryphon shifter with a bad attitude.

Determined to be free, Ari wants nothing more than to live his own life. His new handler is just another person to control him, and he will tear the beautiful girl apart if given the chance.

Unaware of the deadly game she’s walking into, Peyton not only has to train the golden-eyed man with the alluring smile, she must also resist his dangerous charm, or risk her life in the process.

With an unforgiving ringmaster demanding a perfect show at any cost, how can one human hope to survive?

Fans of The Night Circus will love the mysterious and magical world found in the Cirque du Shadow!

Buy A Turn of Pandemonium today and get your front row seat to the show!

Preorder Link: getbook.at/Pandemonium

You can keep up with Miranda's latest news over at her Twitter account, @Miranda_Brock1

A cover revealed! Inklings Press presents Tales of Magic & Destiny

Behind the scenes at Inklings Press, work is apace on producing the next anthology - with fantasy the flavour this time. The time has come to reveal the anthology's cover. Join us as we unveil the book that we hope will soon be in your hands! 

It's been a while since Inklings Press has explored the dark and mysterious paths of fantasy. In fact, our first anthology was the last time we had an anthology exclusively devoted to the topic. 

That was Tales From The Tavern, where our hardy crew of writers and characters gathered for a brew or two before venturing out into the wilds of imagination. 

This time around, we have 12 stories to offer - with some returning names from previous anthologies and some all-new writers for us to share. 

The cover design has once again been in familiar hands - and you can find out more about the design team over at https://www.facebook.com/dandeliondesignmx/

So without further ado - and perhaps a little drumroll - here is the cover for the new anthology, coming soon! 

The book includes stories from Maria Haskins - who first featured in an Inklings anthology in Tales From Alternate Earths; Jaleta Clegg and Jeanette O'Hagan - both of which you may remember from Tales From The Underground and regulars Rob Edwards, Brent A Harris, Ricardo Victoria and Leo McBride.

New to the Inklings crew are Tom Jolly, Tara Wood, Hall Jameson, Aaron Emmel, and Kerry Buchanan.

There's a splendid collection of stories underneath this cover, and we look forward to sharing them with you when publication day arrives.

Thank you for listening - and stay tuned here and to @InklingsPress for more details.

Inside the cover design - Ricardo Victoria reveals the secrets of his forthcoming novel's cover contents

I am beyond delighted to say that regular blog visitor Ricardo Victoria is edging closer to the launch of his debut novel, Tempest Blades: The Withered King. The book is out in August - but the cover has just been revealed. It's a custom piece of artwork by Salvador Velazquez and Ricardo has called by the blog to talk us through some of the elements. 

Tempest Blades is an adventure, a saga, a journey of friendship - and the characters from the book are featured prominently in action on the cover. So who are they? Ricardo introduces us...

The Greywolf

"The past is a lesson, not an anchor."

The first main character of this novel is Fionn Estel. The story is told mostly from his point of view. He is a retired war hero and legendary swordsman who is just coming back to the present time after being “indisposed” for the better part of a century. 

Fionn is still dealing with regrets and pain from an event of his past – which is related to the main crisis in the novel - and trying to restart his life. He is burdened by his past but must also train the next generation if they have any chance to defeat their foe, something he is reluctant to do. But doing one of those things could help with the other. 

He is the most famous user of the Gift that empowers his healing abilities and his Tempest Blade is Black Fang, that of the green glow.

The Inventor

“The present is a gift, not a test.”

Alex is the second main character of the novel, and the second novel will be told from his point of view, when I manage to write it. He is a genius and an inventor who, with the help of his friends, lands his crazy ideas into functional objects. He suffers from PSTD from the event that gave him the Gift a decade before the story takes place, hence his ‘peculiar’ personality. But instead of letting it brew inside his head, he took the idea of fighting back which has caused him a lot of troubles for his hot tempered personality. He takes advantage of his Gift that gives him electromagnetic abilities to create a collapsible bow that shoots electrified arrows. 

His Tempest Blade is Yaha, the first one ever made, of the golden glow.

The Dreamer

"The future is an opportunity, not something to fear."

Gaby is the third main character of the novel and the second in command of the team. The third novel will be told mostly from her POV. She has come to terms with the events of her past – including the source of her combat training – and is looking to move forward, trying to put her combat skills to good use and help others. This leads her to cross paths with Fionn. 

She is the heart of the team. However she is still wary of letting all her power out due to the fear of losing herself in it. Of the three, she is probably the most accomplished fighter, with only Fionn’s familiarity with the Gift making a difference. She dreams of things to come and can sense when an attack will come, thanks to her own Gift. 

Her twin Tempest Blades are Heartguard and Soulkeeper, which have a red and blue glow and are of unknown origin.

Tempest Blades will be released in August. It is available to pre-order at: https://mybook.to/TempestBladesWK