The Guild of the Cowry Catchers, Book 1: Embers, Deluxe Illustrated Edition

The Guild of the Cowry Catchers, Book 1: Embers, Deluxe Illustrated Edition Review

Imagine that the Chronicles of Narnia were written for adults and told with the gritty realism of George R. R. Martin’s Westross. The Guild of the Cowry Catchers is a dark, nautical fantasy for anyone who loves Robin Hobb, Stephen R. Donaldson, Pirates of the Caribbean, or any high seas fantasy adventure with complex, morally ambiguous characters.

These characters inhabit a chain of island kingdoms called Wefrivain. The kingdoms' querulous lords are united only by religion, a wyvern cult ruled by an eccentric High Priestess. The Temple is under attack by a gang of pirates, known as the Guild of the Cowry Catchers. They’ve been preying on Temple treasure ships. The Temple Police charged with eradicating this menace keep disappearing.

Enter Gerard, a young prince who was exiled from his small island kingdom for marrying the court minstrel. Chosen by the High Priestess as the new Captain of Police, Gerard is smart, honorable, and a little naïve. To break the pirate ring, he must cooperate with a wily, amoral admiral—who has already tried to kill him twice.

As Gerard struggles to protect his talented wife, obey his seductive employer, and forge a complicated friendship with his dangerous coworker, he becomes increasingly aware that the pirates have a legitimate quarrel with the wyverns. Dark secrets lurk in the Temple dungeons, and solving them will cost Gerard far more than his honor.

This 50,000-word book is DRM-free and carefully formatted. It includes 11 character portraits, 12 full-page illustrations, and 2 versions of the map (one optimized for color and one for black and white). Cowry Catchers looks beautiful on a black-and-white viewer, but you can also open this eBook on a color screen and view the illustrations in their full glory. Learn more about the series on the author's website at www.cowrycatchers.com.