A Bard In The Hand

Welcome to Fortannis-a place where adventure waits to waylay you around every corner. It's a land where humans mingle with stubborn dwarves, mysterious elves, and feathered biata against shape-shifting gryphons, necromantic zombies, and silly goblins. It's a land where things are never as they seem; where good and evil are not always clear-cut, and where the strong do not always prevail. In Fortannis, one can learn magic by summoning the power of the flow of order in the world, to tie yourself to the living cycle of all around you. Or, if your inclinations are darker, you can be tempted by the flow of chaos and entropy, which allows you to create undead abominations and cast substantially more powerful spells (in exchange for the corruption of your soul). Hey, the choice is yours. This is the second collection of stories which take place in the world of Fortannis (which also happens to be the world in which my two novels take place-what a coincidence!). I am very proud of the stories collected here. There are grand adventures, humorous contrivances, and strong morality tales. You'll meet clever con artists, suspicious spies, and pompous nobles. There are unexpected twists and turns and danger lurking on every page. "Magic. Knights. Werewolves. Doppelgangers. Elves. There's no telling what will pop up in Michael A. Ventrella's Fortannis fantasy series when he invites other writers to play in his sandbox. No need to wait for any 'extended editions.' These stories are good to go now." - Daniel M. Kimmel, author of the Hugo-nominated "Jar Jar Binks Must Die" and "Shh! It's a Secret." "A very fun anthology of tales in a world both expected and very different indeed! In 'A Bard in the Hand', Michael Ventrella and others revisit the world of Fortannis and emerge with tales to astound, amuse, and bemuse; here is sword-and-sorcery to stand well next to that of Leiber and Moorcock, and ordinary people swept up into events far larger than they which can still be addressed with some common sense and cleverness. A young woman makes a choice, and faces the consequences of choice and the price of learning, while another duels in darkness for the soul of a child, and an old man recounts an adventure of his youth that kindles a spark in those who listen. A fun book, well worth reading!" -- Ryk Spoor, author of "Phoenix Rising" and "Grand Central Arena" "Curl up in your favorite chair with your favorite beverage and get ready for adventure, action and derring-do-it's all here!" Gail Z Martin, author of Ice Forged

A tale of the twilight of the Roman Empire. Aed’s dreams of Muirne fill his heart with yearning. She is his desire, all he hopes for. Sending the message alerted her father and uncle, but he and Muirne did not part as lovers. He thought to give her hope that he would return. Curse the land. Curse his kin, she is his heart’s wish. Muirne believes Aed. Come spring, he will come. While she waits, Muirne must thwart her father and uncle’s plans and avoid her cousin. Grainne’s seduction of Aed should have earned her a slit throat. Muirne must wait on Aed. All hinges on his ability to evade his uncle and cousins, snatch Muirne and avoid Grainne. Ualan agreed to go with the bard on a raid to take the woman from her kin. The two young men set off in a skin boat for Eire. They need a band of warriors and have only themselves and a determined woman who waits in Eire.

THE ANCIENT MAGIC OF IRELAND LET LOOSE IN THE STRINGS OF A HARP…. The wilderness of oak, ash, and thorn that men call the Forest of Andred existed long before the Saxons en­tered Britain, or Caesar's legions pressed against Kentish resistance, and even before the first iron-using Celts set foot on the island. Here lives the clan of mandrake—the strange, gnarled vegetable folk. Here trods the unicorn, with blue vapor curling softly from nostrils soft as a woman's breast and dainty, precise hooves lethal as maces. Here are the sacred groves long abandoned, where Druids once fed the trees with human blood. Through this forest of sorcery and a society governed by the sword travels Felimid mac Fal, Bard of Erin, descendant of Druids and the Tuatha de Danann—the ancient faery race of Ireland, armed only with his harp and the fierce magical power of his poetry....

'An absolute bear-hug of a book!' Sangu Mandanna, bestselling author of The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches hMarriage isn't always sunshine and unicorns... sometimes it's monsters and necromancy./h3 It's been almost a year since Logan 'The Bear' Theaker hung up his axe and settled down with his sunshiny bard husband, Pie. But when Pie disappears, Logan is forced back into a world he thought he'd left behind. Logan quickly discovers that Pie has been blackmailed into stealing a powerful artifact capable of creating an undead army. With the help of an old adversary and a ghost from his past, Logan sets out to rescue his husband. But the further the quest takes him, the more secrets Logan uncovers. He'll need all his strength to rescue his husband - but can he save their marriage? Til Death Do Us Bard is a charming queer fantasy, perfect for fans of Legends and Lattes and Nettle and Bone.