“Show me a hero, I’ll show you a liar.”
The Sins of Steel and Shadow
The Years of Blood are a distant—but vivid—memory, and in the centuries since, humans and vampyrs have learned to coexist, straining to hold together an uneasy peace. But no peace lasts forever.
And for Bail Neren, there has never been peace. He is a Turned. Not fully vampyr, but no longer human. Hated and reviled by both sides of the divide, his very existence is a constant struggle to survive.
But when Bail is offered the chance of a lifetime, there’s more at stake than just his own survival. Already an accomplished smuggler, he must now turn his hand to becoming a master assassin, leading his fellow Turned on a deadly mission to stop a dangerous coup.
To survive, he will have to learn to work alongside other Turned. To succeed, he will have to learn to trust them. And only in doing both will he have a chance of securing the one thing that matters most to him; his humanity.
The Hunter’s Lament
Infamous bounty hunter Bitter Sweet has led his crew of like-minded miscreants for nearly thirty years. They can track and capture any man or woman in the known world…for a price.
But Sweet is tired. Decades of pursuing the lowest reaches that humanity has to offer have taken their toll. The grime, the lies, the danger, the death. He’s sick of it all.
But it’s the only business he knows, and business is good in the aftermath of a long and bloody war. The unstoppable armies of the Vol Empire have conquered Pratia, obliterating all opposition and occupying the kingdom’s cities as they establish a brutal new order. The Pratian king is slain in the carnage, but his son-the Crown Prince and sole heir to the throne-has vanished.
Eager to tie up the loose ends, the new Vol rulers turn to those who know the land and its people the best. Bounty hunters.
Against his better instincts, Sweet accepts the contract and sets out in search of the fugitive Crown Prince. But his crew are not alone in the hunt. Danger rides with them every step of the way. Rival gangs, Vol soldiers, deadly trackers and dark magickers are all pursuing the heir to Pratia, too.
Soon Sweet and his crew have a choice to make, hunt or be hunted?
About the author
Hi there! I’m Steve Pannett, an author of gritty fantasy fiction and a creative specialising in brand design. I fell in love with reading as a child and—somewhat typically—with writing shortly after that. I try to read (and write) as broadly as I can but my true passion is—and always has been—fantasy fiction.
I have only one goal with my writing; to entertain. I want my readers to smile, grimace, cheer and bellow with every twist and turn along the way. I try to find characters who are flawed and complex, fighting with the ever-changing maelstrom of emotion and motivation that is the human condition.
In short, I have only ever set out to do one thing: to tell stories.
I live in Yorkshire with my wife, Fraz—whose constant support is the only reason I ever finish writing anything—and our twin boys, Ethan and Lachlan.