Books published by Espec Books

When a fresh new face catches Trevor's eye and she later turns up dead, no one sees a thing. Or do they? As the cream of society look on their host with speculation, his protests of innocence fall on jaded ears.

The crew of the interstellar colony vessel Arachne is roused from artificial hibernation, as an alien boarding party takes them into custody to answer for the deaths of tens of thousands of sentient beings.

Humans and elves, dwarves and gnomes, wizards and warriors all live and do business in the thriving, overcrowded port city of Cliff's End, to say nothing of the tourists and travelers who arrive by land and sea, passing through the metropolis on matters of business or pleasure-or on quests. The hard-working, under-appreciated officers of the Cliff's End Castle Guard work day and night to maintain law and order as best they can.This volume brings together ten pieces of short fiction-some previously published, some brand-new for this book-featuring the Castle Guard: new cases for Lieutenants Torin ban Wyvald and Danthres Tresyllione to solve, as they deal with animated furniture, a hrancit demon, a closet spewing filth, a senile dragon, and more. Plus one of Lieutenant Iaian's old cases comes back to haunt him, Lieutenants Dru and Hawk investigate a massacre committed by a vampire, the survivors of the heroic quest from Dragon Precinct return (and get into trouble), and the untold story of Danthres and Torin's first case together is finally told!Ten adventures of the Cliff's End Castle Guard!

Humans and elves, dwarves and gnomes, wizards and warriors all live and do business in the thriving, overcrowded port city of Cliff's End, to say nothing of the tourists and travelers who arrive by land and sea, passing through the metropolis on matters of business or pleasure-or on quests. The hard-working, under-appreciated officers of the Cliff's End Castle Guard work day and night to maintain law and order as best they can.A new drug called Bliss is sweeping across the slums of Goblin Precinct. It makes people feel better-but if they take too much, they overdose and die. It doesn't truly become a concern for the Castle Guard until one of the overdoses turns out to be a former elf lord who is wanted for war crimes.The Captain of the Guard must put his best detectives, the half-elf Danthres Tresyllione and the ex-soldier Torin ban Wyvald, on the case to find out what happened to the elf. But when the magickal examiner discovers the truth behind Bliss, it becomes a firestorm of controversy that brings the Brotherhood of Wizards into the case-and that never ends well...An all-new adventure of the Cliff's End Castle Guard!

A COLLECTION OF THE FINEST SHORT FICTION BY AWARD-WINNING, INTERNATIONAL BEST-SELLING AUTHOR KEITH R.A. DeCANDIDOFor more than twenty years, Keith R.A. DeCandido has told stories in a variety of universes and genres. Now, some of his finest short fiction from across those two decades are gathered here, plus some new, never-before-published tales of wonder, including a brand-new fantastical police procedural featuring the Cliff's End Castle Guard and a brand-new urban fantasy set in Key West, Florida featuring Cassie Zukav, weirdness magnet, both written especially for this collection!From the urban grittiness of "The Ballad of Big Charlie" to the space opera of "The Stone of the First High Pontiff." From the modern-day thriller of "-30-" to the lighthearted cats-and-dogs-and-squirrels romp of "Sunday in the Park with Spot." From a murder mystery in a high fantasy setting in "Partners in Crime" to a murder mystery in a modern publishing setting in "Editorial Interference." From a tale of New York City occupied by magical creatures in "Under the King's Bridge" to a story of Key West filled with Norse gods in "Seven-Mile Race." Plus the short-shorts "A Vampire and a Vampire Hunter Walk Into a Bar," "Wild Bill Got Shot," and "Behold a White Tricycle."

When the line between life and technology blurs, humanity must adjust its understanding of the universe. From bestselling author Christopher L. Bennett comes Among the Wild Cybers, eight tales portraying a future of challenge and conflict, but also of hope born from the courage and idealism of those heroes willing to stand up for what is right. An intrepid naturalist risks her future to save a new form of life that few consider worth saving. An apprentice superhero must stand alone against an insane superintelligence to earn her name. A cybernetic slave fights to save her kind from a liberation not of their choosing. A seasoned diplomat and mother must out-negotiate fearsome alien traders to save a colony's children. A homicide detective serves in a world where curing death has only made murder more baffling.These and other heroes strive to make their corners of the universe betterno matter how much the odds are stacked against them.Includes the brand-new tale, Aspiring to Be Angels, prequel to the novel Only Superhuman.

Humans and elves, dwarves and gnomes, wizards and warriors all live and do business in the thriving, overcrowded port city of Cliff's End, to say nothing of the tourists and travellers who arrive by land and sea, passing through the metropolis on matters of business or pleasure-or on quests. The hard-working, under-appreciated officers of the Cliff's End Castle Guard work day and night to maintain law and order as best they can.Gan Brightblade is one of the world's greatest heroes and a personal friend of the Lord and Lady of Cliff's End. So when he's brutally murdered in grubby lodgings in Dragon Precinct, on the eve of a great quest, the Captain of the Guard puts his two best investigators on the case. The half-elf Danthres Tresyllione and ex-soldier Torin ban Wyvald soon discover that the crime scene is empty of any forensic evidence-physical or magickal. They have no clues, and heat is on.The Lord and Lady want their friend's murder solved-now. The populace is mourning the loss of a great hero. The ever-unhelpful Brotherhood of Wizards could take over the case at any minute. And then another member of Brightblade's party turns up dead….

Get Ready To Be Awakened…The sudden appearance of a second moon in Earth's sky awakens latent abilities in humanity...a link to a familiar, control of the elements, and so much more become possible as the second moon takes effect. What impact will this sudden change have on society? Only time will tell.With stories by Drew Bittner, Ty Johnson, Torah Contrill, Walt Ciechanowski, James Chambers, Hal Greenberg and Kenneth Shannon III, Erik Scott de Bie, Jennifer Brozek, and Ed Greenwood

The world, for some, has crumbled.Disease and natural disasters have brought on social collapse in the Pacific Northwest.For Sage, born and raised in the safe haven of the Oregon Botanical Gardens, that has never been more than academic. What more could she ask for than to be safe and fed?But life in the Garden is static.Sage longs to experience the world beyond the Garden walls as society climbs from the chaos. Her reckless exploration forces her elders to give her a choice: Stay here, hidden in safety, or go and never return.Sage chooses to leave.Will she learn soon enough on her journey that the world outside the Garden follows no law? That there is no predator more dangerous than man?Will she learn soon enough that to rebuild the world one must be ready to fight for it?She will need to if she chooses to live.

Humans and elves, dwarves and gnomes, wizards and warriors all live and do business in the thriving, overcrowded port city of Cliff's End, to say nothing of the tourists and travelers who arrive by land and sea, passing through the metropolis on matters of business or pleasure-or on quests. The hard-working, under-appreciated officers of the Cliff's End Castle Guard work day and night to maintain law and order as best they can.Arra Cynnis is the youngest child in one of the most powerful families in the wealthy district of Unicorn Precinct. When she's found murdered, with the culprit's identity hidden from the magickal examiner's spells, the Captain of the Guard sends his best investigators. Ex-soldier Torin ban Wyvald and half-elf Danthres Tresyllione have two viable suspects: Arra's fiancé, who is the cousin of another member of the Castle Guard, or the unknown person with whom Arra was having a torrid affair.Torin and Danthres must navigate the difficult political waters of Cliff's End's upper classes in an attempt to determine the girl's killer. Complicating the case is the unexpected appearance of Torin's estranged father, who has come to return the detective to his far-off homeland of Myverin, and he won't take no for an answer . . . .An all-new adventure of the Cliff's End Castle Guard!

';Have you heard about this book, Bad-Ass Faeries? I have to get a copy because faeries are not all goodness and light.' —Brian Froud, Faeriecon 2007Ten years ago, four editors joined forces to bring the dark and dangerous root of the faerie legend into the modern day. And that's how Bad-Ass Faeries was born. We brought you bikers and cowboys, mobsters and assassins, luchadores and just about everything else you can think of that is bad-ass, all wreathed in the magic of the fae.After a decade, love for this award-winning series is still going strong. In celebration, we give you: The Best of Bad-Ass Faeries, with stories by Brian Koscienski & Chris Pisano, Keith R.A. DeCandido, Adam P. Knave, Jesse Harris, James Chambers, CJ Henderson, Danielle Ackley-McPhail, John Passarella, Jeffrey Lyman, Bernie Mojzes, L. Jagi Lamplighter, John L. French, James Daniel Ross, Robert E. Waters, Kelly A. Harmon, DL Thurston, Patrick Thomas, Jody Lynn Nye, Lee C. Hillman, and NR Brown…Do you believe in Bad-Ass Faeries? Then clap your hands...NOW!

Beyond the Cradle of mankind, the universe is vast, unknown, dangerous to the unwary…or those caught in the path of intrepid explorers proceeding without forethought.Thirteen authors explore what it is to pioneer the future in tales fraught with danger and remorse, tempered with hope, luck, and serendipity. We face the monsters. We face the truth. We face ourselves.Whether the frontier is that of science or space, there is no doubt that at some point one must ask …If we had known, would we have followed this course?Edited by Mike McPhail, with stories by Ian Randal Strock, Danielle Ackley-McPhail, Jody Lynn Nye, Peter Prellwitz, Jeff Young, Patrick Thomas, James Chambers, Robert E. Waters, John L. French, Christopher M. Hiles, Judi Fleming, Nancy Jane Moore, and Robert Greenberger.