Sunday Series Showcase- Gail Z. Martin's Chronicles of the Necromancer

This has to be one of the best fantasy series there is....totally one of my favorites to read repeatedly. The books are available in paperback, audio & e-book.

Book One: The Summoner

The comfortable world of Martris Drayke, second son of King Bricen of Margolan, is shattered when his older half-brother, Jared, and Jared’s dark mage, Foor Arontala, kill the king and seize the throne. Tris is the only surviving member of the royal family aside from Jared the traitor. Tris flees with three friends: Soterius, captain of the guard; Carroway, the court’s master bard; and Harrtuck, a member of the royal guard. Tris harbors a deep secret. In a land where spirits walk openly and influence the affairs of the living, he suspects he may be the mage heir to the power of his grandmother, Bava K’aa, once the greatest sorceress of her age. Such magic would make Tris a Summoner, the rarest of magic gifts, capable of arbitrating between the living and the dead.

Book Two: The Blood King

In The Blood King, sequel to The Summoner, Tris Drayke races against time to gain the skills he needs to challenge his half-brother Jared for the throne of Margolan and defeat the dark mage Arontala before the Obsidian King can be loosed from the abyss.  Pursued by assassins and caught in a dangerous web of intrigue, Tris’ greatest danger is his own magic. The fate of his kingdom, his lady and his soul hang in the balance.  As Margolan plunges into darkness under the yoke of a tyrant, Tris leads an unlikely insurrection, knowing that if he fails, death will be the least of his worries. Betrayed by the living, Tris finds staunch allies among the dead and undead.  As the truce unravels between mortals and vampires, angry ghosts demand their revenge, and the Sisterhood of mages lacks the power to intervene.  The battle for the throne of Margolan and the freedom of the Winter Kingdoms rests on Tris Drayke’s magic—and his ability to control the powerful forces aligning against Jared and Arontala.  Like a storm on the horizon, war is coming—but can Tris control what has been put into motion, or will his battle for the crown bring a greater darkness?

Book Three: Dark Haven

In Dark Haven, the effects of Jared the Usurper’s reign of terror strike at the stability of the Winter Kingdoms. Undead forces align against Lord Jonmarc Vahanian of Dark Haven in a struggle for power between mortals and the vayash moru. Some among the vayash moru are unhappy that a mortal lord is returning to Dark Haven. Jonmarc must win the trust of Dark Haven’s mortal residents while playing a dangerous game of politics with its vayash moru. As everyone keeps reminding him, the last four lords died young.Throughout the Winter Kingdoms, magic has become a dangerous and unpredictable force.

The Flow, a river of magical e nergy, was badly damaged when Arontala ripped the Soulcatcher orb from beneath Dark Haven years ago. Now, the Flow is unstable, threatening the lives and sanity of the mages who draw on it for power. As King Martris Drayke prepares for his wedding, he must also prepare for war against rebels still loyal to Jared. Isencroft is on the brink of civil war over the looming reality of a joint kingdom.

Only one thing is certain-the Winter Kingdoms will be changed forever, and innocence is the first casualty.

Book Four: Dark Lady's Chosen

Treachery and blood magic threaten King Martris Drayke’s hold on the throne he risked everything to win.  As the battle against a traitor lord comes to its final days, war, plague and betrayal bring Margolan to the brink of destruction. The price to save his kingdom may be the lives of those he loves most—and his soul.  Civil war looms in Isencroft, and Cam of Cairnrach may be the only hope to put down a rebellion that threatens the crown. In the Margolan palace, betrayal threatens the new queen and the unborn heir to the throne. Alone in a new kingdom, Queen Kiara is charged with treason and becomes an assassin’s target. And in Dark Haven, the undead threaten the Truce with the living, leading to deadly conflict. Lord Jonmarc Vahanian has bargained his soul for vengeance as he leads the vayash moru against a dangerous rogue who would usher in a future drenched in blood.

The series continues in the Fallen King Cycle with books five, The Sworn and book six, The Dread

About the Author

Gail Z. Martin is the author of the new epic fantasy Reign of Ash (Orbit Books 2014) and Deadly Curiosities, a new urban fantasy novel (July 2014 Solaris Books), set in Charleston, SC. She is also author of Ice Forged in The Ascendant Kingdoms Saga, War of Shadows (Orbit Books, 2015), and Iron and Blood, a Steampunk novel (2015, Solaris Books) which will be co-authored with her husband, Larry N. Martin.  She is the author of The Chronicles of The Necromancer series (The Summoner, The Blood King, Dark Haven & Dark Lady’s Chosen) from Solaris Books and The Fallen Kings Cycle (The Sworn  and The Dread) from Orbit Books.  She writes two series of ebook short stories: The Jonmarc Vahanian Adventures and the Deadly Curiosities Adventures.

Gail’s work will appear in at several new anthologies in 2014: Clockwork Universe Steampunk vs. Aliens, Athena’s Daughters, Dreams of Steel 5, The Big Bad 2, Dance Like a Monkey, plus an illustrated story in Icarus: A Graphic Novel, Heroes (stretch goal author) the British Fantasy Society’s Unexpected Journeys and With Great Power, a superhero anthology. Other US/UK anthologies include Magic (Solaris), The Bitten Word, Rum & Runestones, Spells & Swashbucklers, and The Mammoth Book of Ghost Stories by Women.

Find her at www.ChroniclesOfTheNecromancer.com, on Twitter @GailZMartin, on Facebook.com/WinterKingdoms, at DisquietingVisions.com blog and GhostInTheMachinePodcast.com. She leads monthly conversations on Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/GailZMartin and posts free excerpts of her work on Wattpad http://wattpad.com/GailZMartin.

Larry N. Martin fell in love with fantasy and science fiction when he was a teenager. After a twenty-five year career in Corporate America, Larry started working full-time with his wife, author Gail Z. Martin and discovered that he had a knack for storytelling, plotting and character development, as well as being a darn fine editor. Iron and Blood is their first official collaboration. On the rare occasions when Larry isn’t working on book-related things, he enjoys pottery, cooking and reading.

The Martins have three children, a cat, a Maltese dog and a golden retriever.