Twisted Earths

by Cherie Reich, Catherine Stine, Angela Brown, River Fairchild, Gwen Gardner

Overview

Twisted Earths is a collection of tales from Untethered Realms, a group of speculative fiction authors. The stories are as varied and rich as the types of soil on this and other planets—sandy loam, clay, knotted with roots and vines, dreaded paths through unexplored planets, and in enchanted forests, lit by candlelight and two moons.

M. Pax, author of the series, The Backworlds and The Rifters spins a tale called Patchworker 2.0. Specialists with digital interfaces are the only ones who can distinguish between biological energy and mechanical pulses, and "patch" AIs, which hold the world together. Patchworker Evalyn Shore meets up with an AI with deadly intent.

Cherie Reich, known for her epic fantasy series The Fate Challenges and The Foxwick Chronicles, presents Lady Death. Umbria, a beautiful and powerful swordsmith, is given an impossible task by her brother Leon when he asks, "You are the assassin. Are you scared to destroy Death when you are up to your elbows in it?"

Angela Brown is the author of the paranormal Shadow Jumpers and NEO Chronicles series. In her story, In The Know, Jacob, a loyal family man is struggling to stay out of debt when he's hired to report on big plans for a future Detroit. He's given a mysterious manila envelope with instructions to "open it alone" or pay the price. With switchback twists you won't see coming, a debt of a much steeper cost is what he just might end up paying for his involvement.

Catherine Stine, author of the futuristic thrillers, Fireseed One and Ruby's Fire, offers The Day of The Flying Dogs, a sinister tale of brilliant, troubled NYC high-school student, Theo. He experiences a day at Coney Island that includes drugs, delusions, a lonely capybara, Nathan's hotdogs and a mind-bending lesson in our very twisted universe.

Christine Rains, known best for her paranormal series The Thirteenth Floor, gives us The Ole Saint, a story at once sweet, horrific and heartrending. Ezra longs to fit in and have boys stop calling him witch and freak, yet his unique supernatural skill sets him apart, and the last gift from The Ole Saint cinches the deal.

Graeme Ing, known for his young adult fantasy, Ocean of Dust presents The Malachite Mine, a gripping, scream-inducing ride. Whatever was Mary thinking when she accepted her husband's gift of a most terrifying twenty-first birthday celebration in an abandoned Russian mine?

River Fairchild, author of the Jewels of Chandra series, presents A Grand Purpose. Rosaya and her cousin, Drianna are soon to be married off, but Rosaya is unhappy with her assigned match. She's much more intoxicated by the older Firrandor, a wizard she hardly knows. When Rosaya is accused of killing an oracle boy, all bets are off, not only for her love, but her freedom.

Gwen Gardner, who pens the cozy paranormal mystery series, Indigo Eady, adds to her collection with Ghostly Guardian. Indigo and her rib-tickling ghost-busters must travel to a dangerous pirate-laden past in order to unearth a curmudgeonly eighteenth century spirit that is plaguing the Blind Badger Pub.

Misha Gerrick, whose War of Six Crowns series is forthcoming, gives us a story called Red Earth and White Light. Emily, a young ghost bride has long haunted a house. She longs to cross over into the afterlife, but she's trapped in memories of lilies and betrayal.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940046142556
Publisher:	Cherie Reich
Publication date:	10/14/2014
Series:	Elements of Untethered Realms , #1
Sold by:	Smashwords
Format:	eBook
Sales rank:	359,445
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Cherie Reich has more books than she can ever read and more ideas than she can ever write, but that doesn’t stop this bookworm from trying, even if it means curbing her TV obsession. She is a speculative fiction writer and library assistant living in Virginia.

Catherine Stine is a USA Today bestselling author, whose novels span the range from futuristic to supernatural to contemporary. Her Fireseed sci-fi romance series includes Fireseed One, Ruby’s Fire and the sequel novella Blue House Magic. Dorianna, her twist on the Oscar Wilde classic won Best Horror Book in the Kindle Hub Awards. Other books include Heart in a Box and Witch of the Cards, a supernatural historical thriller set in 1932 on the Jersey shore. She also writes romance as Kitsy Clare. Her Art of Love boxed set follows artist Sienna’s life and loves in New York City. Catherine suspects her love of dark fantasy came from her father reading Edgar Allen Poe to her, and her love of contemporary fiction comes from being a jubilant realist. She loves “bad” reality TV, travel to offbeat places and meeting readers and book lovers.

Born and raised in Little Rock, AR, Angela now calls Central Texas home. She's a lover of Wild Cherry Pepsi and chocolate/chocolate covered delicious-ness. Steampunk, fantasy and paranormal to contemporary - mostly young adult - fill her growing library of books. Mother to a rambunctious darling girl aptly nicknamed Chipmunk, life stays busy. Her favorite quote keeps her moving: "You may never know what results come of your action, but if you do nothing there will be no result." ~ Mahatma Gandhi

River Fairchild is somewhat odd, brandishes a dry sense of humor, owned by several cats. Lives in a fantasy world. A fabricator of magic. Makes stuff up and spins tales about it. Believes in Faerie crossings and never staying in one place for very long. Speculative Fiction wordsmith. The secret to her stories? Spread lies, blend in truths, add a pinch of snark and a dash of tears. Escape into her world. She left the porch light on so you can find your way down the rabbit hole.

Gwen Gardner writes clean, cozy, lighthearted mysteries with a strong ghostly element. Since ghosts feature prominently in her books, she has a secret desire to meet one face to face – but will run screaming for the hills if she ever does. Her lifelong love of books and reading transitioned naturally into a love of writing, where adventure can be found around every corner—or up a dark alley or a down slippery cobblestoned path. She thinks there’s nothing better than a good mystery (being an excellent armchair detective herself), unless it’s throwing a ghost or two into the mix just to “liven” things up. Don’t worry, though. Ghosts may be difficult to keep in line, but they’re harmless—mostly. And it turns out they’re pretty good sleuths, too. With seven novels and various short stories published, Gwen’s work is always moving toward the next creative venture. To find out more about her writing journey, check out her News page or blog. Gwen holds a BA degree in English Literature from San Diego State University, is a member of Sisters in Crime, an organization for women crime writers, as well as Untethered Realms, a collaborative group of speculative fiction writers. Gwen adores travel and experiencing the cultures and foods of different countries. She is always up for an adventure and anything involving chocolate – not necessarily in that order.

M Gerrick is the author of The War of Six Crowns and a variety of other stories (as Misha Gerrick). She was born and raised in South Africa, and currently lives on an apple farm with a small menagerie of animals.

Graeme Ing engineers original fantasy worlds, both YA and adult, but hang around, and you’ll likely read tales of romance, sci-fi, paranormal, cyberpunk, steampunk or any blend of the above. Born in England in 1965, Graeme moved to San Diego, California in 1996 and lives there still. His career as a software engineer and development manager spans 30 years, mostly in the computer games industry. He is also an armchair mountaineer, astronomer, mapmaker, pilot and general geek. He and his wife, Tamara, share their house with more cats than he can count.

Can also find my books in print at B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/m.-pax M. Pax is author of the sci-fi series, The Backworlds, and the new adult science fiction fantasy The Renaissance of Hetty Locklear. A Browncoat and SG fan, she’s also slightly obsessed with Jane Austen. In the summers she docents as a star guide at Pine Mountain Observatory where the other astronomers now believe she has the most extensive collection of moon photos in existence. No fear, there will be more next summer. She lives in stunning Central Oregon with the Husband Unit and two lovely, spoiled cats.

Christine Rains is a writer, blogger, and geek mom. When she's not playing games with her son, she's playing games with her friends. She has four degrees which do not help at all with motherhood but make her a great Jeopardy player. Christine is the author of the 13th Floor series and her newest urban fantasy novel, Of Blood and Sorrow. She has several novellas and short stories published. She is a member of S.C.I.F.I. and Untethered Realms. Her writing covers all genres of dark fiction, but she loves to lose herself in paranormal romance most of all.