The Shadow of Earth (History of the Galaxy, book 2)

The History of the Galaxy, Book II

The Shadow of Earth

by Andrei Livadny

Release - March 22, 2018

Pre-order here - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078KJFG25

Prologue.

Earth. Year 2606.

The short man stood in front of a panoramic window, listening to the report as he looked at the skyscrapers forming the famous Square of Five Corners, which was unfailingly repeated on the many levels of the urbanized anthill.

Earth was an eternal city. This was the name of a planet where the shell of the technosphere had completely enclosed it, uniting all the continents.

Ever since the problem of the industrial fog had been overcome using absorbents, transparent walls had again come into fashion. The megasuburbs soaring into the clouds looked like enormous terrariums, where millions of people hurried about their day.   

Looking at them, John Winston Hammer experienced intense and contradictory emotions.

"Everything could have turned out differently," he couldn't help thinking in moments like these.

Three hundred and fifty years ago, when the Great Exodus ended, humanity's fate seemed sealed. Thousands of colonial transports had vanished into the unknown. Hyperspace swallowed them up without a trace, and the rush to expand fizzled out, with even the most ardent optimists turning into sceptics, and the theory of the hypersphere thrown into doubt. Dozens of unfinished starships were left standing on the Moon's shipyards.

The Sublime Electricity - 4: The Dormant

The Sublime Electricity
book IV
The Dormant

by Pavel Kornev

release - February 19, 2018

preorder now - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0789HHCB5

New Babylon is the capital of the mighty Second Empire. Dirigibles drift over the city, steam trains race down its tracks, and the factory chimneys never stop billowing smoke, even for a moment. The hegemony of science is unquestioned, and yet magic hasn't disappeared from the world. It remains dissolved in the blood of those who are called illustrious. Hardline reductionists find that hard to accept, but it is not in their power to change the longstanding status quo.

Everything threatens to change with the death of the widowed Empress, and Leopold Orso, an illustrious gentleman, can sense the looming changes clearer than most.

He feels the draw of far-away lands, but a gloomy past holds him in place like a deadly snare. Will the whirlpool of coming events will pull our troubled illustrious hero to the very bottom or throw him up to unimaginable heights? And will anything remain to throw him up to? It's impossible to say. After all, there are highly placed conspirators willing to do whatever it takes just to get what's theirs.

Bullets from hired killers, anarchists' bombs, blood magic of Aztec priests and electroshock therapy in a psychiatric clinic. Leopold will have a difficult time overcoming everything fate has in store for him and remaining himself through it all.

  

A heart preserved in a tin can,

Begins to beat again.

Steamphonia (Russian Steampunk Band), Heart

Part One
Target. Silver Bullets and a Smokescreen

1

Any razor, in its essence, is akin to the ritual sickle of the Celtic druids on the holy day of the renewal of nature. A pull of the hand and the skin becomes clean, while the face grows younger as if, together with the stubble, the weight of many days is hewn away.

I appraised my reflection in the mirror and nodded, agreeing with my own judgements. After that, I shook the foam from the razor into the basin of warm water, led the blade along my soaped-up cheek, and again - a strip of clean.

For the last week, I hadn't bothered with shaving, so it was as if the sharpened metal was carrying away time itself. I was growing younger right before my very eyes.

By the way, there’s a good reason people say razors are dangerous: if you get distracted, you’re sure to cut yourself.

I didn't get distracted. Someone distracted me.

The Secret of Atlantis

Citadel World, book 2

The Secret of Atlantis

by Kir Lukovkin

Release - February 26, 2018

Pre-order here - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077TTSMQM

A

The cold wind blew swathes of snow into Paul’s face.

He closed his eyes and nearly fell to the ground from the blow he received.

“Where are you going!” someone growled in front of him.

Paul pulled on the reins of his bay horse. The other riders behind him followed suit. They shouted at each other, conveying the command to halt along the chain of riders. Paul rose in his saddle, trying to make out what was going on at the head of the column. Excited voices could be heard, sounding like they were in arguing fiercely. Lanky Pete rode up on his old nag and asked him about what was going on ahead.

“I don’t know,” Paul muttered. “We wait.”

Lanky Pete grimaced unhappily and rode on. Paul stared at his retreating back, dumbly. It was cold and all he wanted to do was to return to their Retreat, stretch his legs in front of the big fireplace and drink some hot ale. The horses snorted, flicking their ears and nervously looking around. Paul turned to see what his bay horse Duchess was looking at and examined the edge of the Canal—a long depression that ran almost as far as the horizon. Nothing, just a gray line that grew misshapen as it stretched out in the haze.  Duchess was clearly getting nervous.

The Dark Herbalist, book 3: A Trap for the Potentate

A Trap for the Potentate

by Michael Atamanov

Release - January 17, 2018

Pre-order now - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07763PQWN

New Director

"Did you call?" I asked, knocking politely and walking through the wide-open doors of my new boss's office. Before entering, I pumped the breaks for a second, reading a copper plaque that a workman was screwing into the door:

Max Tohner

Director of Special Projects

He was the fourth person to occupy this office in a month. Truly, it was a cursed position. The new head of the special projects division didn't look all that glum about it though, reflecting confidence, gravitas and power with his whole appearance. When I entered, he gave a scant nod and pointed to the guest chair.

The Reapers (Neuro, book 3)

The Neuro, book 3

The Reapers

by A. Livadny

release - January 24, 2018

preorder now - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B076VNV7JV

Chapter One

THE AGRION MARKET square was uncrowded. Not many players online today. Only the NPCs continued living their own computer-generated lives.

For them it was business as usual: merchants praising their wares, a crooked old lady shuffling her feet past the swordsmiths' row. She leaned heavily on her staff and mumbled something to herself as she cast watchful glances around in search for any newbs whom she might reward with a social quest for their penny's worth of alms.

A gust of wind raised twisters of dust, stripping a lone tree of an armful of yellow autumn leaves which floated swirling onto the cobblestones.

Business as usual indeed, had it not been for the cold in my chest and the group of high level riders who'd just dismounted by the tavern.

The city patrol seemed quite alarmed by their arrival. The guards officer and two lancers hovered nearby, casting sideways glances at the tired warriors and their lathering horses with the tavern keeper fussing all about them.

I didn't know any of the warriors in the group led by Enea's father. Their gear was worthy of note: it lacked the usual abundance of useless elements so typical of fantasy armor. Normally, a group of high-level warriors can be quite a motley bunch as each player strives to stand out in the crowd as much as their wallets and Strength numbers allow them. Especially Strength numbers. If a player's stats allow them to lug around five hundred pounds of fancily decorated metal, that's exactly what he or she will do.

Perimeter Defens series

Perimeter Defense series by Michael Atamanov is now complete:

Book 1: Sector Eight

Kindle - http://a.co/cLRNyvP
audio - http://a.co/iLNKeA2
paperback - http://a.co/c3O9QY4

Book 2: Beyond Death

Kindle - http://a.co/cfOPoU5
audio - http://a.co/5V0JiWl
paperback - http://a.co/iwn9zjz

Book 3: New Contract

Kindle - http://a.co/hcmefz6
audio - http://a.co/gtny6e7
paperback - http://a.co/aO0ErTK

Book 4: A Game With No Rules

Kindle - http://a.co/gvcHtDg
paperback - http://a.co/fQoa0ef

The URANUS Code booktrailer

Citadel World: The URANUS Code
by Kir Lukovkin

Rick was born and raised in the Omicron Commune, protected from the monsters and darkness of the Expanse outside with thick walls. A place with barely enough light to see by, constantly gripped by the cold. The death of the Commune is only a question of time.
Meeting visitors from the Expanse turns Rick's view of the world upside down. It turns out that there are other humans that live outside and fight to survive, while the Commune is but one of many sectors of the Expanse. Rick's new goal becomes saving the Commune from destruction. Worried about the future of his sister, he puts his trust in the outsiders, escaping the Commune to find and restart the mysterious thermal generators, find the key and solve the riddle of the gigantic Thermopolis — a high-tech citadel created by the ancients.

He is now a rebel and a heretic and there's no turning back!

Amazon Kindle (+KU)

Read opening chapters in our blog

Interview with Andrei Livadny

Andrei Livadny has created several unique worlds, each unlike the previous. He wrote The History of The Galaxy with humanity itself as a protagonist. This sixty-book series creates a history of our future civilization and its contacts with alien races, forming a convincing and logical picture of humanity's development for two millennia from now. The English translation of Blind Punch (Expansion: The History of the Galaxy Book #1) is now available on Amazon. Andrei's recent involvement with the bestselling genre of LitRPG - books set in online roleplaying games - inspired him to create his most intriguing series to date, Phantom Server. Merging virtual reality with hard science fiction and space exploration.

Could you tell us a bit about yourself? Where were you born? What profession did you initially choose?

I was born in the South of Russia but my parents moved to the central part of the country when I was only one year old. I grew up in an area not far from St. Petersburg.

When I returned from conscription in 1989, I had to decide what to do next. Still, those were volatile post-Soviet times when we often had no say in our future plans. After the fall of the Soviet Union, Russia was plunged into severe chaos when most people didn't know what life would throw at them tomorrow. By then, I was already writing books; I was married to Lana and we'd had our first child. This was the worst possible time to go back to school: my family's survival was at stake. So I took up whatever jobs were available as long as they put food on the table. I'd work days and then I'd write at night.

That continued until 1997 when I signed my first publishing contract. Still I continued working full time. At a certain point, Lana told me that I'd taken on way too much. She said it was time for me to make up my mind about who I really was: was I a writer? Or just a dabbler with a "proper job"?

Her support was incredible. Lana is the woman I love. I don't like the word, "wife". Lana is my muse and my critic, she's my friend and in fact she's the dearest and most precious being I have on planet Earth. It was her who helped me to start viewing writing as my job.

History of the Galaxy booktrailer

Year 2197.

Earth is suffering from the consequences of an environmental catastrophe. Cities the size of continents are drowning in a toxic industrial fog.

Max Bourne is a typical teenager. Like billions of other people, he is forced to live in the protective shell of the individual life support module. His habitat is the virtual Layer. But one day, circumstances force the young man to leave the in-mode. He has no idea that fate will lead him through unimaginable hardships, bring him face to face with military AIs, and teach him to survive in the distant Outlands. He will come to understand that the sum of all technologies, possessed by the four leading corporations of Earth, can either open the way to the stars or destroy human civilization.

Read online

Preorder here

Win a free copy in our Facebook lottery

Mirror World - 4: The Twilight Obelisk

The Twilight Obelisk
by Alexey Osadchuk

release - December 4, 2017

Amazon Kindle - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075DCMTPP

Chapter One

It's quarter past four in the morning. The dawn is nearing. The snowstorm has died down; the stars twinkle yellow in the distant sky.

"Would be nice to have some sunshine for a change?" I ask Prankster.

My pet is curled up at my feet, sniffing in his sleep. His ear twitches, betraying his eavesdropping. I already unsummoned Boris but let this lazy SOB to lounge around for a bit.

"I could use some peace," I tell him. "At least for a few days. Let's hope Laosh and his gang get here soon."

We have set up camp by the collapsed wall of the very same house where we met the Nocteans' attack. The crackling of the fire sounds so soothing. My hands reach out toward its warmth. Heaven!

I need to add some wood to the fire. The others need to get warm. The Caltean warriors are fast asleep. The city ruins reverberate from their heroic snoring.

Seet and Horm are making a remarkable recovery. No wonder: this new legendary order we've received does indeed work miracles.

The Grace of the Earth, what a strange name. Its effects are even stranger. It gives +25% to my group's regeneration times. By regeneration, however, the system means both Life and Energy. Excellent, what can I say? Just when we needed it, too.

Way of the Shaman, book 6: Shaman's Revenge

Way of the Shaman, book 6:
Shaman's Revenge

by V. Mahanenko

The book is going to be released August 20, 2017

Pre-order here - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074V8YB1M

Quick nav:

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3

Chapter One. Emergence

“Climb on out!” ordered a man’s voice so hoarse it sounded like its owner had been suffering from a long-term cold—and treating it with ice cream. “Or are you just going to lie there forever?”

Even though my cocoon’s lid had slid aside a while ago, I couldn’t summon the strength to get up and return to the real world. Fluorescent lights buzzed before my eyes—a standard fixture of every office, or in this case the facility where ex-prisoners were released from their confinement capsules—and still I went on staring, as if into infinity. My head was such a jumble that I concentrated on the only thing I knew to be true and then held onto it like a lifesaver to keep from drowning—I was free! I, Daniel Mahan, who had incurred the wrath of my entire city, had regained my freedom! I had managed to trade eight years of imprisonment for a mere eleven months of gameplay.

And yet, this realization did not make me happy.

The only thing rattling in my head was the terrible phrase that Anastaria had thrown into my face: “You’re useless now.” I tried to clear my mind yet again, but the last thirty minutes of my stay in Barliona kept surging to the forefront of my consciousness.

Perimeter Defense, book 4: A Game With No Rules

Perimeter Defense
by Michael Atamanov

The book is up for preorder - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074MVPFGJ

release - October 11, 2017

Balance of Power

"How is she?" I asked Miya as she entered the small dining hall. I was sure that the Truth Seeker would be able to guess who I was asking about but, if she didn't, she could always read it from my thoughts.

I noticed that my wife was looking remarkably tired and poorly rested today. Even the very expensive cosmetics and clothing she wore were unable to hide the black circles under her eyes, drooping in exhaustion. Might that have been her age showing? Obviously, it was difficult to maintain the appearance of a young woman at her... how many years had Miya racked up at this point? One hundred thirty? One hundred fifty? Two hundred?

"Alright, alright, Georg. That's enough!" the red-headed beauty rushed to intervene, giving yet another confirmation that she read my mind all the time without a second thought. "I get the message. I'll try not to come to breakfast before putting myself in order first again. It's just that I really am tired. Talking with the Dark Mother has always been quite hard on me, and our last conversation sucked all the lifeforce out of me."

Interview with Pavel Kornev

Pavel Kornev is a popular Russian science fiction and fantasy author whose writing crosses the boundaries of the sci fi thriller, fantasy adventure and steampunk. Genre mashing has long become his signature style. “His books are a page-turning mix of non-stop action and hard-boiled detective stories set in the edgy atmosphere of steampunk noir. Far from being a knight on a white charger, Kornev’s typical protagonist is an everyday man with his fair share of flaws who puts his talents to good use. His heroes struggle to survive and win their places in the sun; but most importantly, they manage to preserve their humanity even in the direst of circumstances.” Pavel is a professional economist who spent years working for a large bank – until his first novel, The Ice, became an overnight bestseller, allowing him to quit his day job. Pavel divides his spare time between jogging, swimming and beer brewing.

The Fallen (Sublime Electricity, book 3) 

has just become available on Amazon!

Normally, Russian science fiction authors come from either a military or an intellectual background. You, however, are a financial economist. How come you decided to turn to writing?

PK: I have my reading habit to thank for that. As long as I remember myself, I've been reading, mostly mysteries and speculative fiction. And at a certain moment I just thought, why not? I could write something like this myself, couldn't I? So I did. And it turned out to be addictive.

Citadel World: The URANUS Code

The URANUS Code
by Kir Lukovkin

release - September 17, 2017

preorder here - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0743666SX

1

The runner to the right fell down and Rick barely managed to move out of the way. The thick tip of a cracking whip flashed before his eyes, scratching his cheek. Rick did not stop. The man that fell was sure to die and had to be forgotten like last night’s dreams. An ivy would drag him into its lair and calmly digest him, as if he was a huge, sleeping fly.

Rick and the five other young men continued the Spring Run. Ten had been there at the start. Ten challengers, but only the strongest and most experienced would win in the end. The others would be lucky to complete the Circle alive.

Dark Paladin, Book 2 by Vasily Mahanenko

The Quest
by Vasily Mahanenko

The book is going to be released June 29, 2017

Preorder here - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071WCGGT2

Chapter One. The Sanctuary

“MAY EVERYONE PRESENT bear witness that I swear to follow, to the best of my knowledge and ability, the following oath:

Consider the one who taught me the laws of my class to be my mentor, share my wealth with him and help him in his endeavors; consider all Paladins my brothers, and whenever possible come to their aid without prior arrangement and without reward; convey lessons and teachings verbally to the young Paladins who are bound by the obligations and oath by the laws of the class, but to no one else.

Strive for the benefit of my class to the extent of my strength, knowledge and ability, refraining from inflicting any harm and injustice to my class. I shall, honestly and forever, transfer the excess of my personal resources, in the amount of ten percent, for the needs of the class. Whatever dwelling I enter, I shall enter as a guest, for I shall know no other home than the Citadel of my class.

Whenever I see or hear that with respect to my class which should not be disclosed, I shall keep silent and treat that thing as a secret. May I who follow the oath steadfastly receive good fortune in the Game and glory with all Paladins for eternity; and the one who violates it or whose oath is false may suffer the opposite. So be it!”

The Sublime Electricity, Book 3

The Sublime Electricity:
The Fallen
by Pavel Kornev

Read The Sublime Electricity series from the beginning:

Book 1: The Illustrious

Book 2: The Heartless

both books are available on Kindle Unlimited

Book 3: The Fallen will be released August 7, 2017

Preorder today!

This is heaven! No losers allowed!

Steamphonia (Russian Steampunk Band)

Song title: Golem

Prologue, or a Dirigible and a Bit of Fire

SMOKE AND MIRRORS are an illusionist's most trusted assistants. They are the precise factor that allows those deceivers to remake reality and force their audience to believe in the nonexistent. By no stretch of the imagination do they use unlawful magic or wizardry, so reviled by our enlightened society. You see, smoke and mirrors are the simplest of tools. They merely create the necessary atmosphere and give the honorable public an excuse to exercise their sense of imagination.

Yes! The crux of the matter is imagination. It is the conscious mind's very ability to fill in the missing details that allows illusionists to entertain and bewilder their mouth-breathing patrons. After all, we are often glad to be deceived, having mistaken our wishes for reality...

Michael Atamanov - interview

To celebrate the upcoming publication of the second book of The Dark Herbalist series we made a big interview with Michael Atamanov. We thought it's a shame that readers over the ocean know nothing about author of the bestelling series (Perimeter Defense and The Dark Herbalist). So, we're making it up to you right away.

According to your Amazon bio, you were born in the city of Grozny: the capital of the Chechen Republic in the south of Russia. According to my calculations, you came to Moscow around 1991 or 1992. Is that correct?

That's right. As a runner-up in several national chemistry competitions, I was admitted to Moscow University without having to pass the entrance exams. They had just created a new Faculty of Material Science with only thirty freshman vacancies. In the end, they actually admitted more applicants on the condition that every seven weeks they were going to expel the person with the lowest ratings until they had the right number of students. I found it very stimulating, of course. We had two international chemistry competition winners and lots of runners-up, myself included. Quite a few of them had been studying at the Moscow University Preparatory School so their math skills were absolutely out of this world. I could never dream of anything like that. And yes, they did begin to eliminate people. Every few weeks they kicked someone out. Plus they expelled really a lot of freshmen based on their first mid-term exam results. They only kept those who were really prepared to do the work.

The Dark Herbalist, Book 2: Stay on the Wing

The Dark Herbalist: Stay on the Wing

by Michael Atamanov

release - June 2, 2017

Preorder here - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XHPJG2S

The Tail-End of a Long Story

 "AMRA, ADMIT IT. At the end of the day, all our searching has turned up nothing. There’s no trace of them!" said the morbidly thin wood nymph in a light frock sitting on a fallen tree and yawning wide, demonstrating a set of sharp predatory teeth.

My sister hadn't gotten any sleep all night and was clearly beside herself. And the only reason she was up at this ungodly hour was me, not the light and not the dawn. Valeria had expressed her disapproval in sharp terms and refused to enter the game for some time. But the risk that some of the many killers after me might show up near the Cursed House was absolutely real, so in the end, Val apologized and agreed to come play with the rest of our group.

LitRPG forum

Hey, guys!

Have you been to the biggest LitRPG forum in the internet yet? No? C'mon, seriously? You're missing so much great stuff! Just stop doing everything you've been doing and check it out!

https://litrpgforum.com

The Way of the Shaman - comic book

The Way of the Shaman
Step 1: The Beginning

Read it on your Kindle (or iPhone, iPad, Android, Windows etc.) -

http://bit.ly/2oF0fVX

Interview: Vasily Mahanenko

Magic Dome Books is celebrating birthday: two years we've been translating books in English and we're so happy to meet so many wonderful people. We prepared several interviews for the date and we're starting with Vasily Mahanenko.

Vasily Mahanenko is a fantasy author working in the new genre of LitRPG - the MMO-based fantasy and sci fi. His Way of the Shaman series took Russian literature by storm in 2012. Vasily dipped into his college-days insider knowledge as a hardcore gamer in order to create a believable world of the virtual-reality MMO game. His bestselling series combines fiction and video games, telling the story of Shaman and his friends stuck in the ruthless reality of Barliona. He used his more than ten years' experience as an ERP implementation project manager to approach his writing in a well-organized manner, working to a strict schedule, a set of deadlines and even a budget.

Hi Vasily. It's been two years since you started working with Magic Dome Books. How is it going?

Two years is quite a lot in publishing. Still, I think I was luckier than most: I began working with MDB even before they officially opened. My literary agent Alex and I spent quite some time discussing potential projects and considering various translation options wondering whether the idea was viable. So in fact for me it's been more than two years.

[LitRPG/Fantasy] - The Neuro, Book 1

The Crystal Sphere
by Andrei Livadny

Inhabited by clumsy dwarves and cute Elfas, the cyberspace of the Crystal Sphere - the latest state-of-the-art MMORPG game - is not as benign as it might seem. Unbeknownst to most players, this is a test site for the latest technogenic device: the neuroimplant, allowing players to experience the full range of real-life sensations, including pain, exhaustion and death.

Alexatis is one of the few test subjects. His predecessors have already perished, destroyed by the lethal challenges of their new environment. Will he survive in a world which for most of his fellow players is still harmless entertainment?

A prequel to A. Livadny's Phantom Server, the Neuro series will shed a new light on many of the truths that the author has kept from his earlier readers. New characters will join the team already familiar to A. Livadny's fans, assisting them in their quest for survival until they discover the fatal truth:

Cyberspace feeds on human emotion.

Book 1: The Crystal Sphere (Kindle. KU)

Dark Paladin

Dark Paladin: The Beginning by Vasily Mahanenko is Live

Is it easy to survive in the game world? You could say yes, if you didn’t know what the additional conditions were. They are unusual: it’s the real world in which you have lived all your life. The enemy, craving to destroy you. Your own class who couldn’t care less about you. Are you still sure that survival is easy? Then welcome to THE GAME! It will prove you wrong.

Buy for Kindle (available on KU)

LitRPG short story collection

This fast-paced collection of novellas and short stories from leading Russian LitRPG authors sheds new light on their signature worlds. New works by Vasily Mahanenko, Andrei Livadny, Alexey Osadchuk, Michael Atamanov, Pavel Kornev and Andrew Novak!

Expect your favorite heroes to play second fiddle to an array of new main characters; once-minor plot lines to lead you in unexpected directions; familiar story events to take new surprising turns.

Six unique writing styles. Seven meticulously conceived gaming worlds, two of which come from authors new to LitRPG but who are already experts in the craft of genre fiction.

Each story pushes the boundaries of suspense and intrigue. An adventure roller coaster in the new LitRPG anthology You're In Game!

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MRKQKVN (Kindle, KU)