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As always, this is not a comprehensive list, but only includes all the books I have heard about so far.
If you have a fantasy novel you are self publishing in May or beyond, let me know by filling out THIS FORM, and I shall add it to the page. There are but 3 requirements:
1) It must be a self published fantasy novel.
2) It must have a Goodreads page.
3) It must have a cover.
1st May – The End of Time (The Cruel Gods #3) by Trudie Skies
Steampunk, Gaslamp
When the saints fall, the sinners rise.
Calamity has befallen the steam-powered city of Chime as the gods declare war on each other, choosing Chime’s streets as their battleground. Kayl has the means to end their reign for good and create a new world free from their whims. But recruiting an army against divine beings is no easy task, and as her allies fall one by one, Kayl is left to shoulder her burden alone.
Finally free from his own god’s shackles, Quen is bound in service to Chaos, who only wants revenge against Quen’s former master. Torn between his desire for vengeance and justice, Quen is no stranger to the gods’ cruelty and will do whatever it takes to see Kayl’s vision through—even if it destroys his soul.
To ensure a better future, Kayl and Quen must unite mortals against their makers and decide the gods’ fate before time itself comes to an end.
For the era of gods is over.
1st May – A Spectre in the Stream (The Slip Saga #1) by Simon Tull
Sci-Fantasy
In a world gone mad with bloodlust, can a girl with a fragmented past use her inner monster to save a boy from undying predators?
Earth, post-Apocalypse. Prisma longs to understand herself. Two centuries after humanity died, the claustrophobic immortal is grateful she’s not driven by the thirst for blood plaguing every other enslaved survivor. But when she encounters a strange boy with a cryptic message about her origins, she fears his existence has made them both a deadly target.
As Prisma’s violently protective alter-ego gives her remarkable abilities, she and her curious companion track his mysterious origins through their decaying city and its virtual twin. But she’s horrified to learn of a vicious truth that sends her split personality into dangerous denial when a psychotic assassin and a desperate bounty hunter close in for the kill.
Can she unearth the secret that will renew their stricken planet’s hope?
1st May – Chaotic Aperitifs (Hidden Dishes #2) by Tao Wong
Cozy Fantasy
The Only Constant with Magic is Change.
Mo Meng is reminded of that fact once again, as the Nameless Restaurant faces a new challenge. Magic and its old wielders are returning to the world. For the restaurant, wards of anonymity and camouflage are fading, leading to the arrival of new customers. And some older friends.
What started as a way to pass the decades and feed a few customers has become actual work.
The world is changing, and to face it, the Nameless Restaurant, along with its proprietor and patrons, will need to embrace the change with a good meal and new friends.
1st May – Rocking into the Night (Wartime Druid #4) by Shawn McGee
Urban Fantasy
Druid Corey Norwood returns to the real world only to find himself a stranger after living two centuries in an alternate timeline. Disoriented, he must piece together fractured relationships and gain the trust of allies he does not remember.
With an apocalyptic clash on the horizon, Corey’s military expertise compels him to take command, despite resistance from those who doubt his abilities. Armed with cunning tactics from centuries of battlefield experience, Corey prepares to win the coming battle. But his fixation on victory blinds him to the human cost, threatening to destroy the world he’s desperate to save. Forced to choose between the people he loves and the annihilation of all he holds dear, Corey teeters on the edge of obsession, sacrificing everything in his race to protect the Earth.
1st May – Hunt for the Maji: The Blue Guitar by Greblaks New
Urban Fantasy, Grimdark, Sci-Fantasy, Horror
It’s the eve of an election. America is broken and the world is on the brink. A small-town shrink encounters a mysterious boy with an incredible gift. A last-chance lawyer tries to hold on to love. A group of teens in a dystopian city search for the only one who can save them from their nightmares. And a beautiful but troubled sheriff’s deputy finds herself pursued by the law and something much more horrifying. Together, their fates are intertwined as they become part of the hunt for the Maji.
5th May – Thorns of War (The Smokesmiths #2) by Joao F. Silva
Epic Fantasy
One breath. One jump. One death.
The Known World is in peril once again. Old grudges are made anew and settled only on the battlefield, with threads of smoke flowing in the air.
Gimlore saved her town and her family, and she has even learned that trusting people may not always be a bad thing. But with ancient powers stirring, her whole world is shaken again, and the pains of the past come back stronger than ever.
Rednow’s retirement plan was successful but didn’t last long. He is both in the eye of the storm, and the storm itself. Blessed or cursed by powers he wants to reject, he questions whether the faith everyone seems to deposit in him is even warranted. After all, he’s still just an old man with bad lungs.
Orberesis blossoms under the tutelage of a new master and awakens ancient, forgotten arts. He rose from thief to the impersonator of a god, and now true divinity might just be well within his grasp.
8th May – Forest of Swords (The Three Kingdoms Chronicles #4) by Baptiste Pinson Wu
Historical Fantasy
Han Empire — 200 CE
The path of betrayal lies heavy in consequences for Liao Chun. Tricking his former lord and lying to his men was a burden he could have lived with, but the future of a young woman and her child now also rests on his shoulders.
The choice he faces is simple but dire: return the two of them to the Xiahou clan and a certain death, or take them along on his journey, thus making an enemy of all his former allies. No matter his decision, Chun knows it will end with the blood of loved ones. But little does he know he will be the one to spill it.
A journey of a thousand li has begun, and every step will be harder than the previous one.
11th May – Sundering (The Keepers of Midgate #2) by R.M. Krogman
Epic Fantasy
The epic continues as stories intertwine…
Mindless violence spreads its black claws from Krita to the other kingdoms, ravaging port cities in all directions. The madness.
Shipwrecked and dragged from his mission to reclaim his crown, Konan is sequestered on an island of dragons, where he finds a greater depth to his magic than he ever imagined. But when the one who stole his throne echoes his abilities, he must watch and learn what he can, in hopes of escape and redemption. Tossed adrift in the same storm, Lyra survives by joining the High Temple for magic training; but even the temple has its secrets, and the madness creeps through the streets. Lyra must find her godly calling before it consumes her and those around her.
Only Reylin, self-proclaimed king of Mirat, confronts the darkness, sailing to its source in Krita. But when it spreads to those nearest him, he must embrace his destiny as mage-king—the only one capable of destroying the monstrous disease before it infects his homeland and the world.
Can they control their great gifts, or will the power in their hands lead to their own destruction?
14th May – Fleet Champions (Titan Hoppers #3) by Rob J. Hayes
Sci-Fantasy, Progression/Cultivation
Basic Evolution: Survival of the Strongest.
After surviving the Spire and opening their Second Gates, Iro and Emil are named Heroes of the Fleet, their faces on posters across every ship. But with the benefits of notoriety, comes a dangerous new responsibility.
The Raider Fleet, not content with stealing their food and murdering their people, demand ownership of the wing. To avoid an unwinnable war, the Home Fleet agree to a grand martial tournament, Hopper against Raider, and both Iro and Emil must compete.
Can they fight their way through the competition to claim the title of Fleet Champion? And why are the Black Cloaks so eager to see who wins?
14th May – Thornbane the Demon Witch (Thornbane Trilogy the Hexed Heroes Saga #2) by Paul Sating
Epic Fantasy, Sword & Sorcery
Death didn’t kill the curse.When Thornbane killed the witch usurper, she dared to believe she’d ended the malevolent curse that shattered her crown. Little did she see the treachery of the people she aimed to protect–cries of “No demon shall rule!” echoed as her liberation turned to ashes.
Betrayal cuts deepest from the inside.
Banished by her own, she must seek answers no one seems able or willing to give. With stalwart companions by her side, she embarks on quests to the ends of the world.
Yet, a new darkness surges forth. The coven has raised an unnatural army. Thornbane grapples with her burgeoning power as hostile armies march. Barons fall. The coven’s sinister plot expands to the most vulnerable. Dethroning barons doesn’t seem to be their aim. Abductions abound, weaving a sinister tapestry. A chilling mystery is revealed as young women and girls are taken from their homes.
Revenge becomes an addiction.
While Thornbane searches for allies, a dual duty emerges. The land convulses with horrors. The helpless yearn for heroes. But giving herself to save those who rejected her might cost her salvation.
A duty to protect thrusts Thornbane into a crucible. Can she unlock her magic’s potential in time to rescue countless innocent lives? Will she unravel her own secrets before the witches extinguish her flame of resistance?
14th May – By Blood, By Salt (Land of Exile #1) by J.L. Odom
Epic Fantasy
Azetla has served the Maurowan Army for thirteen years. There are seven left to pay. A pariah and a debt soldier, he is a commander with no rank, a soldier without citizenship, and wears a sword that it is unlawful for him to either own or use. He has learned to hold his tongue or risk losing everything.
When Azetla’s battalion is sent into the desert to catch a Sahr devil—one of the famously brutal inhabitants of the region—his tenuous position is threatened. He discovers that there is far more to this mission than catching a fiend. For the Emperor of Maurow, it is a way to prove that he fears nothing, not even devils. For the Emperor’s brother, it is a stepping-stone to rebellion. For Azetla it could be deadly either way, as he is cornered into choosing a side in the coming coup.
But the devil that Azetla finds in the desert is not what anyone expects or wants. As the conspiracy against the Emperor becomes entangled with the simmering ambitions of the desert tribes, Azetla must decide if he’s willing to strike a bargain with a devil in order to survive.
Naturally, she is not to be trusted. But then again, neither is he.
14th May – The Dragon Legion (The Sunborn #1) by Isaac Hill
Epic Fantasy
Broken generations ago in the Cleansing,The Sunborn Bloodline persists.
Dragh the Sunborn Empire’s last son rises in the ranks of the Second Legion, a Legion of criminals. Sent to quell the rebelling Northern Tribes, the last Sunborn son finds himself in a cruel world of politics, murder and betrayal as he struggles to survive.
Welcome to the Sunborn Series, where Empires rise, fall and against all odds, rise again.
The Dragon Legion is born.
14th May – A Battle Between Blood (A Legend of Tal Novella) by J.D.L. Rosell
Sword & Sorcery
The Legend of Tal returns for one final battle…
Yuldor has fallen. The Westreach is safe from its false gods. But Gladelyl remains in the hands of traitors.
In the absence of Tal Harrenfel, it falls to Garin Dunford and his companions to take back the elven queendom.
But more rests on the outcome than the fate of one nation. For all of Aolas will suffer from this war among elfkind…
17th May – Bloodfeather Heartsong (Bloodsong #2) by Amber L. Werner
Epic Fantasy, Sword & Sorcery, Romance
The fate of Dracwood hangs in the balance as the hunt for the last dragon eggs unfolds…
Violet’s dream of a life filled with adventure was granted. With friends by her side, she sails into the unknown, desperate to find the mythical creatures long thought extinct. But when the powers she’s meant to inherit fail her, will she have the resilience to continue?
After finding the one he was tasked with discovering, Ryon is determined to return home and save his brother, no matter what obstacles lay ahead. Yet when unexpected revelations surface, even the strongest magic he possesses may falter.
Nox lost his best friend and gained an enemy. He vows to keep his foe close, uncertain if he’ll live to regret it. Then fate takes an unexpected turn, and Nox is left reeling. Can he adapt, or will the changes drive him mad?
What’s worse, they’re on the run and the threat of capture lurks at every turn. Can they save the eggs, or will the dragons vanish into oblivion?
20th May – The Switchboard (Connections #1) by Christina K. Glover
Urban Fantasy
FOR MAGIC. FOR MEMORY. FOR EACH OTHER.
Mortal mage Henley Yu has enough to worry about between the storms caused by broken magic and his strained relationship with his father. He’s trying to keep his head above water, but when he finds a stranger hiding in his kitchen cabinets he’s forced to reconsider his priorities.
Chief Operator Kittinger has overseen the flow of magic for centuries, but he’s no fighter. Betrayed by his protectors in their quest to gain control of the magic, he’s running for his life when he makes Henley his accomplice. Kit might lose his new ally if Henley finds out that Kit’s secrets go deeper than the magic itself.
Together they’ll venture into the Between, where magic connects worlds, to fight an army of officers ready to finish what they started when Kit fled the scene. For Kit, failure means death. For Henley, it means losing the memory of the only person who gives him purpose. Henley won’t let anyone interfere before he finds out what that means for their future together.
He’ll save Kit. He’ll save the magic—or he won’t be the only one who dies trying.
21st May – Way of the Wizard #1 by Michael Michel
Epic Fantasy
Even gods have their beginnings.
Mine starts in the chasm between worlds. In the blink of eternity between life and death.
If you wish to follow, let this be your road.
First, join your brethren–those others who seek the Power. They are your allies and the key to your success. They will almost certainly try to kill you.
Second, slay a wizard and claim their topknot. Be smart, be quick, and never hesitate. They’re the most dangerous creatures alive. If destiny does not favor you, your bones will be added to the piles beneath their feet.
Third, acquire the hidden location of the Spirit Gardens. Secrets are worth more than kingdoms. Protect them at all costs or your enemies will win, and you will die.
But above all, never look back. Godhood is the goal.
If you have the courage and ambition to do so, read on.
Your path to power awaits.
21st May – In Midnight’s Shadow (Tales of Isyr #2) by C.M. Debell
Epic Fantasy, Grimdark
They took everything, even his name. Now he has nothing left to lose.
Fifteen years before the events in The Many Shades of Midnight, Alyas-Raine Sera was betrayed and exiled by a man he thought of as a brother.
Driven by a need for answers and desire for revenge, Alyas dedicates his life to opposing those responsible – his former king and the mining syndicates that control him. But with syndicate greed growing worse by the year, and disaster on the horizon, spiralling events will eventually lead him to a small mining town in Flaeres and a chilling encounter that will change everything.
24th May – Memories of Forgotten Waves by Niranjan K
Epic Fantasy, Romance
He can choose to forgive, but can he ever trust again?
Aderin is the prince of the merpeople, and his people are being taken by a group called the Brotherhood of Mages. And not just his people. The Mages are capturing magical creatures of all kinds, enslaving them and using their magic for their unknown and nefarious purposes. When Aderin is almost captured by them and is rescued by a human mage called Ellwood, he finds himself falling for his rescuer.
Just as Aderin whispers his words of love, he is captured by Ellwood who enslaves him. Aderin struggles to understand his newfound status and Ellwood’s goals. Even as other magical creatures are enslaved by Ellwood who uses their powers to defeat and destroy the mages of the Brotherhood, Aderin is unable to hate the man.
When Ellwood changes magic itself, freeing all the magical creatures and making it impossible for them to be enslaved again, nearly dying in the process, Aderin decides to heal and forgive him. But can he trust Ellwood ever again? And does Ellwood even want his love?
24th May – Enchanted Skies ANTHOLOGY (Enchanted Series #4) by Various Authors
YA
High-flying adventure, magical mayhem, and new horizons are in the air.
Take to the stormy skies on the backs of dragons or the ancient thunderbirds. In this clean fantasy anthology, you’ll soar into fantastic realms and meet creatures drawn from myth and legend. A hippogriff, Pegasus, harpies, and so much more.
Inspired by tales from around the world, these short stories will propel you into adventures of murder, mystery, and vengeance. These award-winning, bestselling, and emerging authors will lift and inspire you and leave you wishing you had wings of your own.
Fans of Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson & The Olympians series and Neil Gaiman’s Norse Mythology will adore this collection, where every encounter is a battle for survival and a test of wills.
All profits from this anthology will go to the Red Cross to support hurricane relief.
28th May – Soul Cage (Soulbreaker #1) by L.R. Schulz
Epic Fantasy, Grimdark, Sword & Sorcery
Murder Breeds Magic
All power comes with a price. In a world where magic is transferred by the act of killing another, Myddrin stands above the rest. Having accidentally killed the most powerful mage in all of existence, Myddrin now lives a peaceful life in isolation. But there is no such thing as peace in the land of Otor. War calls. The voices of the dead haunt him, and there is nowhere to hide.
Cursed with the deathly taint of magic, young Will must seek acceptance among the Knights of Aen. There, he must learn to touch the otherside, control his abilities, and decide for himself what is right, and what is wrong.
Tvora’s soul is broken. The price of vengeance was her sanity. Her companions help her keep a tenuous grasp on herself, but with the urgent need to absorb enough magic to sustain them, she is pushed to choose a side in the upcoming war. The question remains, will she choose the right one?
29th May – A Memory of Song (First Verse of the Last Ballad) by Scott Palmer
Epic Fantasy
In a dying land, the armies of the dead hold sway. And those who rule them are more god than human.
James Culdaine, the last heir of the Northern Throne, was just a young man when the armies of the South murdered his parents and subjugated his lands. He has never forgotten those responsible, nor has he forgiven. He has spent the last ten years living in isolation with The Feldarra; a sacred Northern clan of fierce warriors, led by the fearless Wulfee who, still reeling from the loss of her own children, finds new meaning in protecting what only family she has left.
Now, an ancient order of warlocks has returned to the North, singing dark songs composed of blood magic that null the elements and threaten all that is living.
With nature depleted and the Southern armies returning to the North, James struggles to embrace the unique power he has long tried to repress; the ability to commune with the spirits of the dead. In the bitter heart of a growing war, with the world dying around them, James and Wulfee desperately seek answers, vengeance, and a way to save the ones they love… No matter the cost.
Fires refuse to burn. The skies are thirsty and breathless. The earth won’t eat its rot…
Welcome to Ardura.
30th May – A Melody of Death (Isles of Bright and Shadow #2) by C.E. Page
Epic Fantasy
Deana is gone. Stolen in the night by the powerful shrouded one, Astrid, who insists she is not aligned with Idir. But as Astrid begins to teach Deana how to embrace her power, the seething rot of Idir’s curse starts to show beneath her honied words and motherly actions. If Deana doesn’t figure out how to escape Astrid’s clutches fast, then she risks becoming the very thing she has always feared: the avatar of destruction that will destroy the isles and all in them.
Agnes is finally free of Kent and Savita, but the trauma they put her and her magic through has grim consequences. Is it just magical exhaustion or something more sinister, and can she be saved once the magical trap Idir seeded inside her keen two decades ago is triggered?
As they race to find Deana, save Agnes, and stop the curse Idir started several centuries ago from destroying the isles, Bran stumbles upon a revelation of his own. One that will clear the mystery shrouding his origins and reveal the true nature of his destiny.
30th May – Dark City Rising (The Edinburgh Doctrines) by CL Jarvis
Historical Fantasy
He wanted to fix the archaic medical education system. He ended up changing the world.
Scotland, 1748. Professor William Cullen has a secret: he’s developing a new, egalitarian system of magic. If Scotland’s aristocrats learn he threatens their stronghold of power – upheld through dark magical means and buy-in from the Edinburgh’s illustrious medical school – he’s dead. When a noble is murdered for daring to champion Cullen, he realises confrontation is inevitable and he must take his fight to the enemy.
Aided by his prodigious former student Joseph Black, Cullen must navigate a hostile academic system, locating the source of the aristocrats’ power before his secret abilities are uncovered and the assassins return for him.
30th May – Die Young (Runeborn #1) by Morgan Shank
Epic Fantasy, Grimdark
Magon Dross graduated his mage school, the Tower, with flying colors. Then his old schoolmaster burned his runebook and stole his magic. Now the Tower wants him dead.
To spare himself, his family, and his people from danger, Magon must find help and answers. His country is on the brink of war, and a school of rogue mages could topple everything.
Powerless and on the run, he’ll find help through his childhood friend, his estranged sister, a tribal exile, a violent priest, and the daughter of King Terrus, Freytilia’s most hated man. This makes for a precarious alliance, but it must hold.
The Tower’s pursuit spreads collateral damage, and as war approaches, it grows apparent that if the Tower isn’t stopped, every country will fall.
