Brand-new contributions to the hoard of dragon lore by five top fantasy authors. Orson Scott Card's "In the Dragon's House" is a gothic yarn about the mysterious dragon that lives in the wiring of an old house, noticed by a young boy who shares its body in dreams and feels its true size and power. Mercedes Lackey's "Joust" tells the story of a slave boy who is chosen to care for a warrior's dragon--a dragon whose secrets may be the key to his freedom. Tanith Lee's "Love in a Time of Dragons" is a fable is imbued with her signature atmosphere--Old World, moody, erotic--as a kitchen maid goes a-questing with a handsome champion to slay the local drakkor. Elizabeth Moon's "Judgment" tells the tale of a young man forced by lies to flee his village . . . into an adventure of dwarfs and dragonspawn. Michael Swanwick's "King Dragon" invokes a truly sinister and repellent creature--a being with the soul of a beast and the body of a machine--part metal, part devil . . . all merciless.

The five popular novels featuring Cadderly, the heroic scholar priest, come together in a giant omnibus edition that includes Canticle, In Sylvan Shadows, Night Masks, The Fallen Fortress, and The Chaos Curse. Reprint.

National best-selling fantasy author Mercedes Lackey creates a vivid, dynamic fusion of the cultures of ancient Egypt and legendary Atlantis with the most exciting and believable portrayal of dragons ever imagined. The first book in this thrilling new series introduces us to a young slave who dreams of becoming a jouster-one of the few warriors who can actually ride a flying dragon. And so, in secret, he begins to raise his own dragon...

Do you believe in ghosts? You will after reading these original short novels from four of today's best writers of the fantastic. Brian Lumley, a Grand Master of Horror and author of the popular Necroscope series, opens the collection with the tense "A Place of Waiting." The moors of Devon, England, are home to many ghosts, but none as fearsome as the red-eyed specter that refuses to accept his death. His only chance of release, however, comes at a terrible cost. Orson Scott Card puts a new spin on one of literature's most famous ghosts in "Hamlet's Father." What if the former King of Denmark was not killed by his treacherous brother for his crown, but by someone entirely unexpected as punishment for the darkest of crimes? Would his troubled son still seek revenge? The patrons of an Edinburgh tavern are introduced to a beverage with an unusual history in "The Haunted Single Malt" by Marvin Kaye, a clever and spooky story about ghost stories and the people who love them. Tanith Lee offers "Strindberg's Ghost Sonata," a chilling tale set in an alternate Russia. When a poor man is rescued from certain death by hospitable strangers, he discovers that he is not a guest in their haunted tenement building--he is a prisoner destined to become a sacrifice. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

"Everything I look for in a fantasy." -- George R. R. Martin All paths lead to war. . . Marcus' hero days are behind him. He knows too well that even the smallest war still means somebody's death. When his men are impressed into a doomed army, staying out of a battle he wants no part of requires some unorthodox steps. Cithrin is an orphan, ward of a banking house. Her job is to smuggle a nation's wealth across a war zone, hiding the gold from both sides. She knows the secret life of commerce like a second language, but the strategies of trade will not defend her from swords. Geder, sole scion of a noble house, has more interest in philosophy than in swordplay. A poor excuse for a soldier, he is a pawn in these games. No one can predict what he will become. Falling pebbles can start a landslide. A spat between the Free Cities and the Severed Throne is spiraling out of control. A new player rises from the depths of history, fanning the flames that will sweep the entire region onto The Dragon's Path -- the path to war. The Dagger and the Coin The Dragon's Path The King's Blood The Tyrant's Law The Widow's House The Spider's War

Widely regarded as the essential book for every science-fiction fan, The Mammoth Book of Best New SF 17 continues to uphold its standard of excellence with more than two dozen stories from the previous year. This year's volume includes not just a host of established masters but also many bright, young talents of science fiction. It embraces every aspect of the genre - soft, hard, cyberpunk, cyber noir, anthropological, military and adventure. Plus the usual thorough summations of the year and a recommended reading list.

The stories in this collection imaginatively take readers far across the universe, into the very core of their beings, to the realm of the Gods, and to the moment just after now. Included are the works of masters of the form and the bright new talents of tomorrow. This book is a valuable resource in addition to serving as the single best place in the universe to find stories that stir the imagination and the heart.