Pallasoldi. The crossroad of kingdoms. Center of commerce, of trade. While empires rise and fall, the city remains. For trade is the lifeblood of all who would rule, and Pallasoldi is its beating heart.Most nights in Pallasoldi were the same for Alda: dress in black, go to the nicer parts of town, and steal everything that's not nailed down. It's not the greatest life—she risks losing a hand to the law or her head to her murderous boss, Heron, if she screws up—but she's good at her...

Leaving his life of petty crime and drug abuse behind, young Douglas flees from Minneapolis to Edinburgh, Scotland, to his stern but fairminded Grandma McLaren, who will take him in if he can support himself. Fortunately, few cities are friendlier than Edinburgh to a guitarist with a talent for spontaneous rhyme, and soon Douglas is making a decent living as the busker who can write a song about you on the spot.But Edinburgh has its dangers for the unwary. The annual arts festival, ...

In Singer of Souls, young Douglas fled his American life of drugs and petty crime, arriving in Scotland to be taken in by his stern but fair-minded grandmother. Unfortunately, his career as a busker was interrupted by the fey folk who invisibly share Edinburgh's streets, who dragged him into their own internecine wars.Now Douglas, usurper, sits on the throne of Faery--holding the Queen and the land hostage with his all-powerful magic and his unflinchingly loyal lieutenant, ...

Pallasoldi. The crossroad of kingdoms. Center of commerce, of trade. While empires rise and fall, the city remains. For trade is the lifeblood of all who would rule, and Pallasoldi is its beating heart.Most nights in Pallasoldi were the same for Alda: dress in black, go to the nicer parts of town, and steal everything that’s not nailed down. It’s not the greatest life—she risks losing a hand to the law or her head to her murderous boss, Heron, if she screws up—but she’s good at her...

Clarkesworld is a Hugo and World Fantasy Award-winning science fiction and fantasy magazine. Each month we bring you a mix of fiction, articles, interviews and art. Our August 2021 issue (#179) contains:Original fiction by Beth Goder ("Candide; Life-"), Nadia Afifi ("A Thousand Tiny Gods"), Adam Stemple ("The Clock, Having Seen Its Face in the Mirror, Still Knows Not the Hour"), Congyun 'Mu Ming' Gu ("The Serpentine Band"), Andrea M. Pawley ("A Heist in Fifteen Products from ...

“Vivid, gripping and actually riveting as the Red Danger takes a whole new meaning here. Loved it.” —The Book SmugglersIt is the waning days of the Russian monarchy. A reckless man rules the land and his dragons rule the sky. Though the Tsar aims his dragons at his enemies—Jews and Bolsheviks—his entire country is catching fire. Conspiracies suffuse the royal court: bureaucrats jostle one another for power, the mad monk Rasputin schemes for the Tsar’s ear,...

In The Hostage Prince, Prince Aspen and midwife’s apprentice Snail tried to prevent the Seelie War by making a perilous journey to Aspen’s father’s kingdom. Their journey started the war instead. Chased by two armies, Aspen and Snail find refuge with the actors of Professor Odds’ traveling troupe, dodging soldiers, Border Lord berserkers, a hungry troll, and assorted dwarfs, drows, lycants, boggles, and a cloaked spy. Will they make it out? Is any place safe for the two of them? A...

Would you kill for your art? Would it kill for you?A painter who kills with blood-tinged pigment. A tattoo artist with a dark past who treats with demons. A sculptor on Venus who carves his life’s history into ice at the cost of his sanity. A ceramic vase that might avenge the life of a murder victim. A haunted song that drives listeners to kill. Art surrounds us. It entertains and nurtures. And for some it can do far more. It can protect a family over generations or bridge the bou...

Vivid, gripping and actually riveting as the Red Danger takes a whole new meaning here. Loved it. The Book SmugglersIt is the waning days of the Russian monarchy. A reckless man rules the land and his dragons rule the sky. Though the Tsar aims his dragons at his enemies Jews and Bolsheviks his entire country is catching fire. Conspiracies suffuse the royal court: bureaucrats jostle one another for power, the mad monk Rasputin schemes for the Tsar s ear, an...

Avast, intrepid reader! Behold yon inky treasure!A beautiful airship corsair determined to reveal a government conspiracy. An interstellar outlaw bent on avenging the murders of her fellow crewmates. A pirate captain whose hatred of mer-people endangers his ship and crew. A ghost trapped in the wreckage of a privateering ship.From the early voyages of a young, ambitious Gaius Julius Caesar, to a sorceress hunting buccaneers along the post-Civil War Mississi...

A demon seeking redemption, Silex has kept vigil over Edinburgh for countless years atop a local church as a gargoyle. With the help of his human assistant Craig, Silex solves the mysteries of the city below. But now a mystery lurks inside the church in the form of a young woman seeking sanctuary.The panicking girl raises Silex's suspicions. Craig has a more welcoming spirit—but he lacks his gargoyle mentor's centuries of experience. When they discover the young woman's connection ...

Nuns. With Guns.Nuns. With Guns.I challenged folks to give me a story with that as their theme. Here are nearly twenty authors who answered that crazy call, ranging from fantasy to science fiction. Modern. Historic. Urban fantasy and gritty realism.Come with us now on an amazing journey into other lands and other minds, as we explore what it means to first become a nun, and then to take up the sword.Or the gun.----Part of the Blaze Ward Prese...