The City of Marble and Blood

THE CHRONICLES OF HANUVAR CONTINUE—SWORD AND SORCERY HEROICS ABOUND! Gladiators, legionnaires, scheming sorcerers, and dark gods had battered Hanuvar but not stopped him. The great Volani general now returns to the land of his enemies! Hanuvar had pledged to find the remnants of his people, scattered into slavery across the whole of the peninsula. This time he had no army to help him. His would be a stealthy war of liberation, buying the freedom of some and arranging for the escape of others, aided only by a young playwright, the daughter of a hated political rival, the tattered remnants of his old spy network, and the unlikeliest ally of all, the general who had once defeated him. Arrayed against them were the mighty legions, the sorcerous revenants, and the wily Metellus of the Praetorian guard, ever alert to seize advantage. To add to their troubles, someone was drawing unwanted attention to the helpless Volani slaves by murdering influential Dervans and leaving the sign of the sacred Eltyr corps beside their bodies. Someone who might well be Hanuvar’s lost daughter, who’d fought her way from captivity and was even now being hunted through the countryside. Worst of all, a magical attack had left Hanuvar with a lingering curse that might change him forever . . . or lead him to an early grave. At the publisher’s request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management). Praise for Lord of a Shattered Land: “This wonderful work put me in mind of the stories I read when I was editing Baen’s Robert E. Howard library.” —David Drake, best-selling author of the Hammer’s Slammers series, Redliners, and the RCN series. “Howard Andrew Jones is the leading Sword & Sorcery author of the 21st Century . . . His Lord of a Shattered Land is his best work yet, a heroic fantasy retelling of one of the great tales of antiquity, the fall of Carthage and its legendary general Hannibal . . . It’s a magnificent achievement, destined to become a modern classic.” —John O’Neill, World Fantasy Award-winning publisher “The book is a riveting portrait of a hero trying to keep his civilization alive in the wake of a devastating military defeat; it’s a series of ripping yarns that collectively add up to a greater story with a deeper impact than any of its parts; it’s another triumph for Howard Andrew Jones, premier wielder of the new edge in sword-and-sorcery.” —James Enge, World Fantasy Award-nominated author Praise for Howard Andrew Jones: “Howard Jones writes not-to-be-missed epic fantasy with immersive world building and the highest stakes for the characters, fighting for personal survival and the survival of their world.” —Martha Wells, Hugo, Nebula, and Locus Award-winning author “Howard Andrew Jones is a scholar and a gentleman, a deft multi-genre wordsmith . . . a living link between the tight action-adventure narratives of old and the sprawling epic fantasies of today.” —Scott Lynch, author of The Republic of Thieves series “Howard Jones creates engrossing fantasy tales by combining historical authenticity with his thoughtful modern sensibilities and shapes events with his keen understanding of great adventure writers like Harold Lamb, Robert E. Howard, and Leigh Brackett.” —S. Craig Zahler, novelist and writer/director of Bone Tomahawk