Aching God by Mike Shel follows Auric Manteo, a former adventurer who has withdrawn from the world, burdened by physical and psychological scars from his past exploits. When his daughter’s life is threatened, he is forced back into peril, leading a l…
Aching God by Mike Shel follows Auric Manteo, a former adventurer who has withdrawn from the world, burdened by physical and psychological scars from his past exploits. When his daughter’s life is threatened, he is forced back into peril, leading a largely untested group into the haunted Barrowlands and the remnants of the cruel Djao civilization. As they face monstrous creatures, lethal traps, and an atmosphere of mounting dread, Auric must confront not only external horrors but the trauma that once broke him. This dark epic fantasy blends high-stakes survival, horror-inflected tension, and a deeply introspective male protagonist in the opening volume of a planned trilogy.
Aching God by Mike Shel follows Auric Manteo, a former adventurer who has withdrawn from the world, burdened by physical and psychological scars from his past exploits. When his daughter’s life is threatened, he is forced back into peril, leading a l…
Aching God by Mike Shel follows Auric Manteo, a former adventurer who has withdrawn from the world, burdened by physical and psychological scars from his past exploits. When his daughter’s life is threatened, he is forced back into peril, leading a largely untested group into the haunted Barrowlands and the remnants of the cruel Djao civilization. As they face monstrous creatures, lethal traps, and an atmosphere of mounting dread, Auric must confront not only external horrors but the trauma that once broke him. This dark epic fantasy blends high-stakes survival, horror-inflected tension, and a deeply introspective male protagonist in the opening volume of a planned trilogy.
Sin Eater by Mike Shel continues the dark fantasy saga of Auric Manteo, a scarred veteran of divine horrors, one year after his descent into a cursed Djao ruin. Summoned back to a capital city rotting under corruption, prophecy, and the rule of a que…
Sin Eater by Mike Shel continues the dark fantasy saga of Auric Manteo, a scarred veteran of divine horrors, one year after his descent into a cursed Djao ruin. Summoned back to a capital city rotting under corruption, prophecy, and the rule of a queen altered beyond humanity, Auric and his daughter Agnes are ordered to complete an apparently impossible mission. Their only advantage is a strange blade given to Auric by a madman, a weapon whose purpose and cost remain uncertain. Blending epic and psychological elements, the novel follows father and daughter through a landscape of gods, monstrosities, and moral compromise, where survival demands confronting powers as malignant as the Aching God itself.
Idols Fall by Mike Shel concludes the Iconoclasts trilogy with Agnes Manteo wielding her father’s sentient Djao sword and a shattering understanding of the so‑called gods as ruthless sorcerers feeding on human misery. Bound to a weapon that tolerates…
Idols Fall by Mike Shel concludes the Iconoclasts trilogy with Agnes Manteo wielding her father’s sentient Djao sword and a shattering understanding of the so‑called gods as ruthless sorcerers feeding on human misery. Bound to a weapon that tolerates no hesitation, she and her Syraeic allies set out to eradicate these false deities, even as the empire reels from the death of its undying queen, burned temples, and looming barbarian invasion. The novel blends epic and dark fantasy with strong psychological elements, following a driven protagonist whose mission threatens to collapse the political and religious structures holding a fragile realm together. As noble houses maneuver toward civil war and near‑divine enemies prepare their response, survival becomes as much a test of conviction as of steel and sorcery.
