The Zemnian Series: Dasha's Story

Dasha is a gift from the gods. Only she's not very gifted.   Bronze Medal, Epic Fantasy, Readers' Favorite Book Awards 2018. Finalist, Golden Book Awards 2018.  Official Selection, E-Book Fantasy, New Apple Book Awards 2018.  Second Place, Epic Fantasy, Virtual FantasyCon 2017.    Eighteen years ago, Dasha's mother made a bargain with the gods. She would bear a gods-touched child, one who would stand on the threshold between the worlds, human and divine. Dasha is that child, now almost ready to become a woman, and one day take her mother's place as Empress of all of Zem'.   But Dasha is shy, lonely, and one of the least magically inclined girls in the Known World. Instead she has fits and uncontrollable visions. When she sets off with her father on her first journey away from her home kremlin, she hopes she will finally find someone who can help her come into her powers. But those whom she finds only want to use her instead. What will it take for her to unlock the abilities hidden within her, and take up her proper place in the world?   The sequel to the award-winning novel The Midnight Land, The Breathing Sea returns to the land of Zem', where animals speak, trees walk, and women rule. Filled with allusions to Slavic history, literature, and fairy tales, this subversive combination of satire and high fantasy will appeal to fans of Deathless and The Bear and the Nightingale.   With discussion questions at the end.   Reading order for the Zemnian Series:   The Zemnian Series: Slava's Story The Midnight Land I: The Flight The Midnight Land II: The Gift   The Zemnian Series: Dasha's Story The Breathing Sea I: Burning The Breathing Sea II: Drowning The Singing Shore I: Sea and Song The Singing Shore II: Sky and Stone The Singing Shore III: Spirit and Flame   The Zemnian Series: Valya's Story The Dreaming Land I: The Challenge The Dreaming Land II: The Journey The Dreaming Land III: The Sacrifice

Gifts from the gods are never free.   Dasha's magical gifts have always seemed more like a curse. Now on her first journey as a woman grown, Dasha has to learn to control her magic before it destroys her. But those to whom she turns for help often seek to use her for their own ends.   And the stakes are greater than just Dasha's survival. Foreigners are poised on the borders of Zem', threatening not just the safety of Dasha's people, but their very way of life. Meanwhile, the spirits of the forest are demanding their due. Caught between these warring factions, Dasha must find a way to restore harmony to her people and her land. But she herself may be torn apart in the process.   The conclusion of the award-winning The Breathing Sea mini-series, The Breathing Sea II: Drowning is a subversive combination of satire and high fantasy. If you loved Deathless or The Bear and the Nightingale, come immerse yourself in the land of Zem', where trees walk, animals talk, and women rule.   With discussion questions at the end.   Reading order for the Zemnian Series:   The Zemnian Series: Slava's Story The Midnight Land I: The Flight The Midnight Land II: The Gift   The Zemnian Series: Dasha's Story The Breathing Sea I: Burning The Breathing Sea II: Drowning The Singing Shore I: Sea and Song The Singing Shore II: Sky and Stone The Singing Shore III: Spirit and Flame   The Zemnian Series: Valya's Story The Dreaming Land I: The Challenge The Dreaming Land II: The Journey The Dreaming Land III: The Sacrifice

Some wolves hunger for more than meat.   When Urho Kivinieminen, unwilling Seumi tracker for the Rutsi army that has conquered his country, is sent to scout Wolf Island, he doesn't have much choice. The Rutsi have captured his homeland, and now they want this deserted island as well. But as Urho discovers, the island isn't so deserted as they'd thought. Its inhabitants just aren't human.   Once he finds the dark forces that hold the island in their power, Urho needs to escape and convince the Rutsi to leave as well. But they are determined to have its magic, whatever the cost. The island's magic is stronger than they'd reckoned, though—and it has awakened against them.   Set in a magical Finnish-inspired world, this novelette of approximately 12,000 words is a prequel to The Singing Shore trilogy, but can be enjoyed as a standalone. This version also contains a special sneak peek from The Singing Shore.

"A passionate coming-of-age story."—Kirkus Reviews   Distinguished Favorite, Audiobook-Fiction, Independent Press Awards 2023 Finalist, Indies Today Book Awards Finalist, Fantasy, Book Excellence Awards   All magical gifts are wild. The seer's gift is the wildest of all.   Dasha, Tsarinovna of all of Zem', was expected to have great magical gifts. Why else would the gods have arranged her conception? But instead of anything useful, Dasha's gifts first manifested themselves as visions of terror and destruction. Then, just when it seemed she might be gaining some control over them, they abandoned her entirely.   That's unfortunate, because Dasha could really use some guidance right now. She's volunteered to be her people's envoy to the Rutsi, their warlike neighbors to the West. Dasha wants to make peace with the Rutsi, but the only way they want to make peace with her is by conquest—or marriage.   Dasha leaves behind her home and everything she knows on a dangerous journey to treat with the Rutsi. As she travels through a new land, she discovers new powers, new dangers, and the oldest magic of all—love. Dasha's gift is wild, but she's about to find out that the heart is wilder still. Her exploration of forbidden passion and forbidden magic might be the key that unlocks all her untapped promise as the strongest sorceress of her generation—or it could be the weapon that destroys her and everything she cares about.   A high fantasy saga that combines spiritual exploration with a touch of spicy romance, The Singing Shore I: Sea and Song is the first installment in the trilogy sequel to the award-winning miniseries The Breathing Sea. If you loved the Winternight trilogy, The Wolf and the Woodsman, and the Kushiel series, or you just want to immerse yourself in some subversive, snarky epic fantasy set in a matriarchal, Slavic-inspired world, come visit the land of Zem'!   Reading order for The Zemnian Series:   The Zemnian Series: Slava's Story The Midnight Land I: The Flight The Midnight Land II: The Gift   The Zemnian Series: Dasha's Story The Breathing Sea I: Burning The Breathing Sea II: Drowning The Singing Shore I: Sea and Song The Singing Shore II: Sky and Stone (forthcoming) The Singing Shore III: Spirit and Flame (forthcoming)   The Zemnian Series: Valya's Story The Dreaming Land I: The Challenge The Dreaming Land II: The Journey The Dreaming Land III: The Sacrifice

"A rollicking good fantasy worthy of both leisure reading and study."—D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review   Blood magic is dark and dangerous. Is it Dasha's only hope?   When Dasha, Tsarinovna of all of Zem', began a dalliance with her halfblood steppe guard Alik while on a mission of peace to the warlike Rutsi, she never thought it would lead to carrying his spirit in her body. But when he dies saving her from an attack by a magical wolf, Dasha saves his life the only way she can—with forbidden blood magic.   Blood magic is dangerous, but that proves to be the least of Dasha's problems. After her betrothal to a Rutsi prince goes catastrophically awry, Dasha finds herself on the run through a beautiful but hostile landscape, hunted by Rutsi warriors and ravening wolves alike. Her fickle visions, meanwhile, have abandoned her just when she needs them most.   Dasha has to fight through her fears and learn to harness the power of blood magic and lovers' bonds to save herself and those she cares about most. But lost in the woods and with winter coming on, will Dasha be able to survive to the next sunrise, let alone until her visions return?   A transcendent high fantasy adventure that combines spiritual exploration and spicy romance against the backdrop of an evocative Finnish landscape, The Singing Shore II: Sky and Stone will appeal to fans of The Bear and the Nightingale, The Wolf and the Woodsman, and anyone who loves smart, subversive, female-centered fantasy.   Reading order for The Zemnian Series:   The Zemnian Series: Slava's Story The Midnight Land I: The Flight The Midnight Land II: The Gift   The Zemnian Series: Dasha's Story The Breathing Sea I: Burning The Breathing Sea II: Drowning The Singing Shore I: Sea and Song The Singing Shore II: Sky and Stone The Singing Shore III: Spirit and Flame   The Zemnian Series: Valya's Story The Dreaming Land I: The Challenge The Dreaming Land II: The Journey The Dreaming Land III: The Sacrifice

Blood binds spirit and flesh. Love binds souls—or burns them to ash.   Dasha's mission of peace has taken a decidedly warlike turn. On the run from the Rutsi, she ends up in the village of Taikakylä, where magic flows strongly between sea, sky, and stone. But with the Rutsi determined to capture Taikakylä and Dasha herself, there's no refuge to be found there.   Instead, Dasha and her new allies find themselves taking desperate flight in an enspelled ship. It seems they have no weapon but speed—until Dasha's spirit-bond with her dead lover gives her the promise of hitherto unimagined abilities.   Spirit bonds are dangerous things, though. As Dasha's magical powers grow, so does the danger that she will lose herself. Can Dasha learn to embrace her true gifts of magic, and even if she does, will it be enough? All gifts have their price, and Dasha's may be higher than she is willing to pay. But with the fate of three peoples on her shoulders, she may not have a choice.   The final installment in The Singing Shore trilogy, Spirit and Flame combines adventure, transcendent spiritual exploration, and spicy romance. An uplifting fusion of ecofiction and epic fantasy, set in a magical Northern European landscape, The Singing Shore is perfect for fans of The Bear and the Nightingale, The Wolf and the Woodsman, The Priory of the Orange Tree, or anyone who loves subversive, female-centered fantasy.