Bled dry by violent confrontations with the Magadhan Empire, the Mathuran Republic simmers on the brink of oblivion. Senator Krishna and his third wife Satyabhama have put their plans in motion, both within and beyond the Republic's blood-soaked borders, to protect it from total annihilation. But they are soon to discover that neither gold nor alliances last forever, and that they are not the only players on the board.

"Every day is Halloween for Tania since she learned she had the unique gift of harvesting souls. It was never her dream, more something that she literally fell into. She barely has enough time to breathe, taking a full load of classes and moon lighting as a harvester, when her paranormal studies professor inadvertently drops a case on her lap that she can't resist. It's her chance to go on a mission alone without her ghostly instructor from the other...

Separated and struggling to survive in two different worlds, Hirka and Rime vow to defeat the ancient evil that offers immortality at a dangerous price.

The Black Dagger Brotherhood's deadliest fighter, Zsadist, when his daughter, Nalla, falls in love, must confront the future and face the reality he may not be able to protect her forever.

Faith has the power to turn imagination into reality. The Guild Master has the power to stop her. In 1816 New York City, there is no place for women in the world of art, especially not for Faith, the gifted step-daughter of a renowned artist. Her step-father expects young women to be dutiful, reserved, and respectable, traits utterly incompatible with Faith’s innate nature and the attention her extraordinary talent would attract. Faith masks her...

Here are twenty short works that represent the very best examples of the genre that were published in 2022 and that reveal the ever-expanding and changing world of science fiction and fantasy today.

Mihi and her friends head back to the Rainbow Realm to save Princess Pat from a destructive quest.

"Alayiakal, who will one day be known by many names--not all of them flattering--has to climb the ranks of Cyador's Mirror Lancers, fighting against unforeseen weapons and ancient technology. Alayiakal, however, has secrets of his own to protect: his ties to the Great Forest and his magus abilities. He must silently pretend to be a conventional soldier favored by fate--until that very same fate forces him to choose"--

Gem Echols, now wielding the power of the God of Air, grapples with the unintended chaos unleashed upon the pantheon, leading them to confront the dilemma of restoring balance without sacrificing themselves.

"On a mountainside at the edge of the Kaigenese Empire live the most powerful fighters in the world, warriors capable of raising the sea and wielding blades of ice. For centuries, the fighters of the Kusanagi Peninsula have held the Empire's enemies at bay, earning their treacherous spit of land the name "The sword of Kaigen.' Born into Kusanagi's legendary Matsuda family, fourteen-year-old Mamoru has always know his purpose: to master his family's...