Guardian of the Dead by Pavel Kornev

Guardian of the Dead

An NPC's Path, book 4 by Pavel Kornev

 

Release - May 20, 2021

Pre-order on Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08J88Y9VP 

Prologue

 

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If you want to take a look down into a chasm, just look down the barrel of a gun. No, not when you’re busy cleaning it, in breach of all safety regulations, but when it’s clenched firmly in a stranger’s hand, pointing at your... let’s say, at the bridge of your nose.

This was where it was more or less pointing at me.

Inside it was pure darkness; behind it was the blurred silhouette of a man. My gaze failed to focus on the villain himself, so mortally fixated it was on the wrong end of the silencer. Yes, “mortally” was the right word, I assure you.

Die Triumphale Elektrizität: Die Illustren von Pavel Kornev

Die Triumphale Elektrizität

Die Illustren

von Pavel Kornev

Release 29. April 2021

Pre-order on Amazon - https://www.amazon.de/dp/B08MQH5XNY

1

 

IST ES WAHR, dass alle Lebewesen, denen es bestimmt ist zu kriechen, nicht fliegen können? In der Tat!

Menschen sind nun einmal nicht dazu geschaffen, zu fliegen, weshalb jeder Versuch dazu verdammt war, in einem Absturz zu enden. Man nehme nur das Beispiel der Gefallenen…

 

Ich öffnete die Augen. Ich kniff sie sofort wieder zu, aber es war zu spät. Als ich sie erneut öffnete, erhaschte ich einen Blick auf den grauen, rauchverhangenen Himmel, der sich wirbelnd über mir drehte und die Illusion erzeugte, ich läge auf einem Rettungsfloß inmitten eines riesigen Strudels. Der bloße Gedanke, aufstehen zu müssen, war schon schmerzhaft, also blieb ich, wo ich war, feige ausgestreckt auf dem Müllhaufen, der meinen Sturz abgefangen hatte.

Königreich der Toten von Pavel Kornev

Der Weg eines NPCs Buch # 2

Königreich der Toten

von Pavel Kornev

Vorbestellung: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B07VSPC27M

Veröffentlichung am 28. Oktober 2019

Kapitel Eins. Flaute

1

DER TURM DER Finsternis war beeindruckend. Geradezu überwältigend.

Die ungeheure Pracht und Größe des tiefschwarzen Obelisken, der die Bucht überragte, ließ sich auch mit den schillerndsten Worten nicht beschreiben. In Wirklichkeit sah er viel —

In Wirklichkeit?

Ich stieß einen Fluch aus und erschauderte.

In Wirklichkeit! Verdammt noch mal! Das Spiel war für mich schon Wirklichkeit geworden! Andererseits … in gewisser Weise traf das ja auch zu, oder?

Ich konnte mich nicht mehr ausloggen. Ich hatte keine Hoffnung mehr, jemals in meiner Virtual-Reality-Kapsel aufzuwachen. Der tote Körper meines Charakters gehörte mittlerweile fest zum Inventar des Spiels. Er hielt mich wie ein teuflisches Netz umschlungen und würde mich erst wieder loslassen, wenn ich wiedergeboren würde.

An NPC's Path: Deadman's Retinue by Pavel Kornev

An NPC's Path, Book 3
Deadman's Retinue
by Pavel Kornev

Release - October 21, 2019

Preorder on Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07VHJ52T6

Time left:

29 days 23:59:59...

WHAT’S A LEVEL-99 player capable of doing?

Well, practically everything. For example, he could use the Scroll of Rebirth.

Unfortunately, the player in question wasn’t me...

Barth Firefist

Paladin

Level 99

... but it was my sworn enemy.

Barth would have no trouble ripping all four of us to shreds, and the worst thing was, he knew it. Why wouldn’t he? Goar - who was the most advanced among us - was still a good 25% below him. And Neo was just a weak NPC not worth mentioning. So Barth wasn’t at all afraid of coming up against any decent resistance, apparently intending to trump everything with his first blow.

With a resounding whoosh, a swirling vortex of flame formed around him and shot up, licking the marble of the stairwell and spilling every which way as if it were alive, roaring and howling.

Der Weg eines NPCs: Toter Schurke von Pavel Kornev

Toter Schurke

Roman

von Pavel Kornev

Der Weg eines NPCs

Buch Nr. 1

Release - April 25

Pre-order - https://www.amazon.de/dp/B07N3YYSBW

In virtuellen Welten herrscht grenzenlose Freiheit. Man kann sich nach Lust und Laune in einen Elfenzauberer oder einen unsichtbaren Schurken verwandeln, sich einem Clan anschließen und auf Raubzug gehen, kämpfen, den eigenen Charakter weiterentwickeln und vor allen Dingen dem Alltagstrott entkommen.

Ein Spiel ist allerdings nur dann ein Spiel, wenn man jederzeit aufhören kann. Das musste ich am eigenen Leib erfahren. Eigentlich wollte ich mich in der virtuellen Realität lediglich etwas ablenken, doch ich wurde ermordet und im Körper eines Untoten gefangen — langsam, schwerfällig und dazu verdammt, wieder und wieder durch die Hand anderer Spieler zu sterben.

Aus dieser schrecklichen Lage gab es nur einen Ausweg: Ich musste die legendäre Schriftrolle der Wiedergeburt zu finden. Doch das war nur möglich, wenn aus dem hilflosen, pestverseuchten Leichnam eine echte Kampfmaschine wurde. Niemand kann sich vorstellen, was man alles durchmacht, wenn man einen toten Schurken hochleveln will …

An NPC's Path: Kingdom of the Dead

An NPC's Path, Book 2
Kingdom of the Dead

by Pavel Kornev

Release - October 8, 2018

Pre-order: Amazon, iTunes, Google, Kobo

Check out the first book - The Dead Rogue

Chapter One

The Doldrums

THE TOWER OF DARKNESS was impressive. Overpowering, even.

No amount of advertising could impart the  sheer splendor and magnitude of that pitch-black obelisk which towered over the bay. In reality, it looked much more-

In reality?

I cussed and shuddered.

In reality! Dammit! I already considered the game a reality! Having said that... that’s how it was. I couldn’t press the logout button. I had no hope of ever waking up in my virtual reality capsule . My character’s dead body had already become part of the local scenery. It had ensnared me like the Devil’s own net and would keep me so until the day I was reborn. Reborn in the game, that is. Or until I was dead in real life. There was no other way. Sad, but that’s how it was.

As soon as I realized it, I felt free from the Tower’s suppressive illusion. I didn’t even feel like looking at it anymore. I even wanted to go below to my cabin. Still, I forced myself to stay on deck. Dammit! I’d been striving to get to the capital for too long to now hide away in a dark corner and miss all the interesting bits.

An NPC's Path GIF-trailer

An NPC's Path by Pavel Kornev
The Dead Rogue 

Virtual worlds are places of boundless freedom. Anyone can become an elven mage or an invisible rogue, join a clan and go on raids, fight, develop their characters and most importantly, escape from the daily grind.

However, a game is only a game if you can quit. This is something I learned the hard way. I just wanted to let off some steam in virtual reality and ended up getting murdered and imprisoned in the body of one of the undead—slow, clumsy and cursed to die at the hand of other players over and over again.

The only way out of this awful predicament was to find the legendary Scroll of Rebirth, but the helpless plague-ridden corpse would need to be turned into a real killing machine. If only people knew what it was like to level up a dead rogue...

Amazon Kindle (KU+)

An NPC's Path: The Dead Rogue

An NPC's Path: The Dead Rogue
by Pavel Kornev

Release - May 30, 2018

Pre-order now - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07B4Y1WJ9

Quick nav:

Chapter I (1 - 2)

Go to the library

            Virtual worlds are places of boundless freedom. Anyone can become an elven mage or an invisible rogue, join a clan and go on raids, fight, develop their characters and most importantly, escape from the daily grind.

            However, a game is only a game if you can quit. This is something I learned the hard way. I just wanted to let off some steam in virtual reality and ended up getting murdered and imprisoned in the body of one of the undead—slow, clumsy and cursed to die at the hand of other players over and over again.

            The only way out of this awful predicament was to find the legendary Scroll of Rebirth, but the helpless plague-ridden corpse would need to be turned into a real killing machine. If   only people knew what it was like to level up a dead rogue...

Chapter 1

A PLAGUE-RIDDEN CORPSE

1

The bracelet was covered with hypoallergenic plastic but the skin underneath still itched like hell. I pulled the tracking device away from my ankle as far as it would go so I could scratch it. The bracelet vibrated and buzzed in reply.

“Relax, Comrade Major,” I quickly said. “All quiet on the western front!”

The tracking device that traced offenders under house arrest was full of various electronic modules such as GPS, GLONASS, Wi-Fi, GSM and even an altimeter, so I was in no doubt that they would have added a simple microphone to it. It did not matter what the actual rank of the controller assigned to me was—a little sympathy goes a long way. At least it was someone to talk to...

It was already my second month of being under house arrest and I already managed to really start missing normal human contact. I wasn't even a hardened criminal or a sociopath—I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I got a job at the wrong place, to be more exact.

It had all started so well! My salary wasn't bad, there was a great package of perks and excellent career prospects, but it all went down the drain when the bank's senior management ended up behind bars accused of money laundering! I was never made part of the illegal scheme, but most of the payments had gone through my department, so the most that my defense attorney could do for me was a concession to get me placed under house arrest. At least it was better than jail.

Ah, here comes my attorney...

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.

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.

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...

The Sublime Electricity, Book 2: The Heartless

The Sublime Electricity, Book 2: The Heartless
by Pavel Kornev

Release: February 28, 2017

Preorder now - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MZ3B2KK

The Sublime Electricity, Book 1: The Illustrious (Kindle - KU)

Foreword

Once, this world was dominated by the fallen, but humanity cast off their tyrannical rule and created a mighty Empire with colonies spread out across the globe. The power of the metropolis is stronger than ever before, but its past is dark and its future cloudy. Old secrets are capable of destroying in one moment what took years to create. After all, nothing can save it from treason, not armadas of battleships nor bomb-laden dirigibles.

The key to one such secret, by happenstance and inheritance, has fallen into the hands of Leopold Orso, a former police investigator who now works as a private detective. His illustrious talent allows him to bring other people's fears to life, but it also does not help him extricate himself from the web of another's scheming. Defeat threatens to result in imminent death. Victory beckons with the ghost of a chance to escape with his life. His soul is plagued by painstakingly forgotten memories. And to think that all Leopold ever wanted was to get an inheritance that was his by birthright.

The Illustrious by Pavel Kornev

The Sublime Electricity: The Illustrious

In this world, there were no Dark Ages; the Middle Ages were called Bloody instead. The skies were once obscured by the wings of the fallen, striking fear into the hearts of mankind. Science has freed society of its shackles, and the Second Empire, the empire of humanity, now stretches out from sea to sea. Combat steamships furrow the waters, armored trains await their hour, and army dirigibles float through the heavens. And yet, the delicate balance this world has achieved hangs by a thread. The age of steam is on its way out, and the era of the Sublime Electricity is just beginning. In this time of dramatic transition, even the tiniest deviation in course could topple the world into a vortex of chaos.

Buy: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01J1WY2U6
Read on Wattpad
Read on RoyalRoadL

Sublime Electricity: The Illustrious by Pavel Kornev

In this world, there were no Dark Ages; they were called Bloody instead. In this world, the skies were once obscured by the wings of the fallen, striking fear into the hearts of mankind. In this world, science has freed society of its shackles, and the Second Empire, the empire of humanity, now stretches out from sea to sea. In this world, combat steamships furrow the waters, armored trains await their hour, and army dirigibles float through the heavens. And yet, the delicate balance this world has achieved hangs by a thread. The age of steam is on its way out, and the era of the Sublime Electricity is just beginning. In this time of dramatic transition, even the tiniest deviation in course could topple the world into a vortex of chaos.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01J1WY2U6

Sublime Electricity: The Illustrious by Pavel Kornev

The Illustrious
by Pavel Kornev

Full release Oct 10, 2016, preorder now

"I will cut out my own heart. I will give my heart to you!"

Phillip August, Steamfonia*

Part One

The Fallen.

Titanium Blade and the Power of Imagination

1

IS IT TRUE THAT ALL WHICH IS BORN TO CRAWL cannot fly? Indeed it is!

People simply were not made for flight. Any flight is doomed to end in a fall. And the faster the ascent, the more disastrous the consequences. Consider, for example, the fallen...