D. J. Natelson

(2017 Revised Edition) An enchanter in a land where almost all magic is illegal, Stephen is falsely accused and sentenced to death. Moments before Stephen is beheaded, his executioner turns on the guards and rescues him. In return, the executioner demands that Stephen join a band of bounty hunters and use his enchanting powers to create and fight monsters. Stephen reluctantly agrees, not knowing that the company's quarry is the most perilous monster of all. . . . A combination of action, adventure, and a tongue-and-cheek deconstruction, satire, and reversal of sword & sorcery tropes.

- Have you ever caught a falling star and put it in your pocket?- Can a woman take out life insurance on a tree?- Do monsters really live under your bed? How can you fight them?- Is making a deal with a djinni a good idea? How about a ghoul?- How does a stuffed animal escape a washing machine? Or a convict a Martian penal colony?- Would you like to fly? The Day the Exclamation Marks Came and Other Stories and Poems is a collection ranging from humorous to horrifying, romantic to sarcastic, speculative to-no. It's never mundane.

Edward Castell is dead. The official verdict is heart failure. The official verdict is wrong. Within two weeks, Edward's granddaughter Acacia and her parents move into 11 Whispering Pines Road. Acacia soon meets Quietus, a young necromancer who struggles with his inability to kill animals, and his sister Yvonne, who likes to kill animals rather too much. Together, they investigate Edward's death. It has something to do with the shadow haunting the wizard's house. And the people who keep disappearing on Whispering Pines Road. And the room behind the hidden door in Acacia's bedroom.

Always Turn Left. Monsters Are Everywhere. Names Are Important. The Magus family has always lived in Swallowgate: charming Uncle Jordan, terrifying Aunt Mara, and now Mort, his mother, and his sister Anastasia. Mort soon discovers the strange and magical nature of Swallowgate House, but he isn't terribly worried even by the monsters. The adults won't let him be harmed. Everything will be all right. It's not. Suddenly, not even the crawlspaces that honeycomb the walls are safe. With enemies on all sides, Mort isn't sure he can keep protecting his sister . . . or even himself.