Showing results by author "Ashley Capes" in All Categories

After years of running down dead-end clues, the rogue Never has nearly given up his quest for answers; his blood is cursed and his true name a mystery, yet no library, no healer, and none who claim to know dark magics have ever been able to help. Until he steals a map to the mysterious Amber Isle, which might just hold the answers he needs. But Never isn't the only one who wants the map - his enemy, Commander Harstas, also seeks it and Harstas craves revenge for the deaths of his men.

Rejoin Never in this short story as he fights to take back Tsolde's inn from the clutches of a greedy nobleman. After returning from Kiymako, Never discovers that Tsolde's inn, the Young Stag, is now owned by Lord Taginus - a wastrel and a cad. Yet the man hides a troubling secret, and when Never stumbles upon it he quickly finds a far darker adversary than he first imagined.

Rejoin Never as he searches for his father's legacy and the sister he hadn't known existed. In The Phoenix of Kiymako Never must navigate a secretive new culture ruled by warrior monks. Distrusted and hunted for his blood, he must forge new alliances while following the dark trail his father has left. If Never can survive, it will lead to both his long lost sister and - finally - the truth about his mysterious name.

Darkness is gathering deep within the land of Vadiya as the Red Seed Cult perform twisted experiments on human flesh. Never has already tangled with the foul creatures and knows no-one else can stop them...but if he charges into enemy territory now, he will have to face old flame Sacha, who has promised to kill him should they meet again. Yet when he learns that she has been captured by the creatures he sets out with unlikely allies on a quest to uncover the truth behind the cult and hopefully save - and then survive - Sacha.

Adventure? Check. Magic? Check. Sarcasm? You bet. Roguish Never is sure he has hunted down every relic and every clue possible on his quest to finally lift the curse on his blood and hopefully learn his true name. However, convincing the wealthy Lord Firmita to part with a map to the sunken city proves to be far more dangerous than he first imagined.

In the demigod's wake, a stone-plague creeps across the lands and Never must stop the ancient decay before it swallows everyone he cares for. Despite his determination, there is no cure and no guarantee that even his Amouni blood will be enough. Never's search for the means to fight back leads him to the Amber Isle once more, where the island continues to hold its secrets close. But it is there that Never encounters the beautiful and mysterious Rikeva, a Quisoan Weaver on her own quest, and realizes that together, there might be a way to stop the plague after all....

The enormous corpse of the Sea Beast has breached the walls, and an invasion from across the sea is threatening. Cut off from the mysterious golden egg and bereft of the hope of ever seeing his family again, Ain remains in prison, at the mercy of the new king who obviously wants something from him. Meanwhile, Flir and Luik struggle to contain the illness spreading from the Beast as Notch and Sofia begin their desperate search for her father. Charged with hunting down Vinezi, Flir and Luik find themselves thwarted at every turn.

Driven toward the enemy-occupied Imperial City, Never’s doubts grow. Even with new knowledge about his powers, can he truly keep his friends safe in a war zone? Or, like too many times before, will he end up responsible for the deaths of those he should have protected? Never faces a bitter choice between finally winning the answers he has searched for all his life and stopping his brother once and for all. Worse, he knows that if he hesitates, Snow’s sinister vision for the world will come to pass.

At Snow's urging, Never climbs into the Folhan Mountains to search for the Altar of Stars, which he must reach by the new moon. Yet he cannot shake off his doubts. Will the answers he seeks even reside with the altar? Or is Snow manipulating him once more? Never soon finds that the mountains harbor their own threats, from avalanches and enemy troops to ancient creatures deep within abandoned mines and worse - pursuit from a vengeance-obsessed King.

Armed with disturbing news about Snow, his unpredictable brother, Never picks up a cold trail on the rivers of Hanik. There he must face both new dangers and demons from his past, all the while doing his best to avoid becoming entangled in a brewing civil war.

Never's quest for a name continues... Poisoned and furious, Never must add a desperate quest for a cure to his existing search for truth. His path takes him deep into the White Wood where he faces vengeful spirits, giant leeches, and Commander Harstas himself, whose lust for revenge is an ever-present threat.

After years of running down dead-end clues, the rogue Never has nearly given up his quest for answers; his blood is cursed and his true name a mystery, yet no library, no healer, and none who claim to know dark magics have ever been able to help. Until he steals a map to the mysterious Amber Isle, which might just hold the answers he needs. But Never isn't the only one who wants the map - an old enemy, Commander Harstas, also seeks it, and Harstas craves revenge for the deaths of his men.

Meet Reed Lavender, a mostly-human detective with the uncanny ability to hear the final words of the dead. But on this case he’ll need more than his usual tricks to solve the murder of a teen runaway – he’ll need something that just might be more trouble than it’s worth – the help of his ragtag Reaper-cousins.

Things aren’t exactly getting easier for Reed Lavender. Old obligations and new cases are piling up but in the aftermath of Feronia’s defeat, answers are still too thin on the ground. But one clue–his father’s knucklebone–might just lead to something big. To learn the truth about his parents’ disappearance, Reed will have to take the fight to whoever is behind the growing turmoil in his city. And if the rising number of Spirit-Worms, needy Gods, vindictive lawmen and only somewhat-helpful cousins don’t stop Reed, then his sense of duty might do what the others cannot.

When Paul Fischer receives a strange phone call asking for help, from a woman who might be his estranged wife Rachel, he's drawn into a mysterious search that threatens not only his struggling bookstore, but long-buried dreams too.

Defeating the Burnished King has come at a heavy cost. Never and Rikeva find themselves trapped in the time of his ancestors, captured by Amouni Guardians. Guardians who immediately brand Never as a mongrel–and Rikeva as a worthless, "untamed" commoner. Yet before seeking their execution, the Amouni decide to harvest Never's blood in order to further the goals of their purity-obsessed empire.

Reed is about to snap - and this time, nothing is going to stand in his way when it comes to getting answers for Elise, not even a supposedly long-vanished Sumerian God. Or so Reed thinks. But summer in the city isn't going to be like the others. The city itself isn't quite the same either, and even if you're lucky (or cursed) enough to count the children of Gods among your friends, nothing is ever simple...

Vilas is a man consumed by anger. Kept prisoner in the city that slaughtered his people, he dreams of the day his magic is unsealed so he can burn everything to ash. When the city’s queen asks for his help hunting down rebel cultists, he agrees in exchange for his freedom, his magic, and a night in her bed.