Man Of Fantasy

The New York Times bestselling author of Slow Getting Up chronicles his descent into the madness of early retirement and fantasy football. In Slow Getting Up—hailed by Rolling Stone as "the best football memoir of all time"—Nate Jackson told his story face down on the field. Now, in Fantasy Man, he’s flat on his back. Six years have passed since the former Denver Broncos tight end wore a helmet, and every day he drifts further from the NFL Guy, the sanctioned-violence guy, the psychopath who ran head first into other psychos for money. But Nate hasn’t quite left the game. Bed-ridden by a recent surgery to remove bone fragments in his ankle, he’s trying to defend his title as top dog in Bunny 5-Ball, one of the millions of leagues captivating America through modern fantasy football, the interactive human poker game started by rotisserie leagues, boosted by ESPN and Yahoo!, and now elevated to that rarefied world of vaguely-legal Internet gambling by FanDuel and DraftKings.com. And this time it isn’t a 300-pound wall of flesh rushing to crunch his spine. It’s worse. Exploring the fantasy—and the reality—of professional football after you’ve left the field, Fantasy Man is as funny, self-deprecating, and shockingly honest as Slow Getting Up.

What a girl wants… Miss Viola Darling always gets what she wants. Always. And what she wants more than anything is to marry James Kilbrenner, the Earl of Tannenbrook. She’s fallen hard for the giant, taciturn, surly brute, and she positively will have no other. The problem? He’s not interested. Not even a little. But Viola cannot afford to lose. And she has her heart set on James. If only he will bend to a bit of persuasion. Is an earl like no other… James Kilbrenner knows how determined the entirely-too-beautiful Miss Darling can be—the daft woman cornered him at a perfectly respectable dinner and mangled his cravat before he could escape. He has no desire to marry, less desire to be pursued, and will certainly not kiss her kissable lips until they are both breathless, no matter how tempted he may be. And only the right one will do… Thrown in her path by a meddling marchioness, James finds himself under sensual siege from a tiny, flirtatious sprite who puts both his heart and his vow to remain unwed at risk. And when scandal looms, he learns the hard way that a man can resist only so long before the indomitable Miss Darling gets her way.

On the technological, decadent world of Proton, someone was trying to destroy Stile, serf and master Gamesman. His only escape lay through a mysterious “curtain” revealed by a loving robot. Beyond the curtain lay Phaze—a world totally ruled by magic. There, his first encounter was with an amulet that turned into a demon determined to choke him to death. And there, he soon learned, his alternate self had already been murdered by sorcery, and he was due to be the next victim. “Know thyself!” the infallible Oracle told him. But first he must save himself as he shuttled between worlds. On Proton, his fate depended on winning the great Games. On Phaze, he could survive only by mastering magic. And if he used any magic at all, the werewolf and the unicorn who were his only friends were determined to kill him at once!

From the bestselling author of The Handmaid's Tale and The Testaments—one of Margaret Atwood’s most unforgettable characters lurks at the center of this intricate novel like a spider in a web. The glamorous, irresistible, unscrupulous Zenia is nothing less than a fairy-tale villain in the memories of her former friends. Roz, Charis, and Tony—university classmates decades ago—were reunited at Zenia’s funeral and have met monthly for lunch ever since, obsessively retracing the destructive swath she once cut through their lives. A brilliantly inventive fabulist, Zenia had a talent for exploiting her friends’ weaknesses, wielding intimacy as a weapon and cheating them of money, time, sympathy, and men. But one day, five years after her funeral, they are shocked to catch sight of Zenia: even her death appears to have been yet another fiction. As the three women plot to confront their larger-than-life nemesis, Atwood proves herself a gleefully acute observer of the treacherous shoals of friendship, trust, desire, and power.

Original publication and copyright date: 2009.

The Man of His Word series debut—a novel “with enough fresh ideas to allow it to sit unashamedly alongside the great fantasy books of recent times” (Fantasy Book Review). “Duncan’s unique concept of goblins, fauns, and imps adds a new twist to this imaginative fantasy adventure” as Princess Inosolan is forced to leave behind her carefree childhood—as well as her dear friend, the stableboy Rap (Library Journal). Now of marriageable age, she is sent to a finishing school to hone the skills that all noble ladies should possess. Mystery, menace, and the gods appear in short order, as Inos and Rap begin to discover their magical powers, even as Inos is courted by a charming man with motives far more dangerous than the eye—and heart—can see . . . “Magic Casement has a charm and vibrant sense of humor. . . . If it’s traditional fantasy adventure with a bit of nudge-nudge wink-wink you’re after, Dave Duncan is your go-to guy.” —SFReviews.net

Linda Porter Harrison lives in Nashville, Tennessee with her husband and son. She is currently working on her fifth project. For speaking engagements contact Linda at: www.lindaporterharrison.com or by e-mail at [email protected]

'The Ember Blade is hands down the best fantasy novel I've ever read' Grimdark Magazine Empires rise, civilisations fall and one culture comes to subsume another. It's the way of the world . . . sometimes ways of life are improved, sometimes they are not. But the progression of change is huge and - usually - unstoppable. In this story, the Ossian way of life is fading and the Dachen way is taking its place and Aren is comfortable with that. Even when his parents are accused of treason he supports the establishment and maintains there's been some mistake . . . which is all it takes to get himself and his best friend arrested . . . Thrown into a prison mine they plan their escape - only to be overtaken by events when they're rescued, and promptly find themselves in the middle of an ambush. By the time they've escaped, they're unavoidably linked to Garric - their unwelcome saviour - and his quest to overturn to Dachen way of life. If they leave Garric now, they'll be arrested or killed by their pursuers. If they turn him in, Garric will kill them. If they stay with him, they'll be abetting a murderous quest they don't believe in. There are no good options - but Aren will still have to choose a path . . . Designed to return to classic fantasy adventures and values, from a modern perspective, this is a fast-moving coming-of-age trilogy featuring a strong cast of diverse characters, brilliant set-pieces and a strong character and plot driven story.