The annual SPFBO (Self-Published Fantasy Blog-Off) contest hosted by Mark Lawrence is one of my favourite book contests as it champions self-published fantasy! If you’re unfamiliar with the contest, 300 books are assigned to ten blogging teams made up of volunteer book bloggers, book tubers and book tokers, and they’re whittled down until ten finalists are chosen amongst semi-finalists. You can find out more and see all the contestants and semi-finalists on our dedicated SPFBO XI page, or visit Mark’s own website to keep up to date!
Those ten finalists have now been chosen, and it’s an interesting mix of fantasy subgenres, including romantasy, a heist, and the contest’s first LITRPG finalist! We also have some returning finalists and new authors!
We want to celebrate these authors and shine a light on their success. Becoming a finalist is no mean feat, and they’ll be biting their nails as our judges read their books and determine the winner of the 11th SPFBO!
Here are our ten finalists by judging team:
Fantasy-Faction: Of Mages and Makers by Rel Carroll
Of Mages and Makers,the debut novel from author Rel Carroll, is a gaslamp romantic fantasy set in a vibrant world with magic, manners, witty banter, some lighthearted thievery, and a swoon-worthy scarlet pimpernel!
Mr. Art Keays has one goal in to appear as useless as possible. But when his sister recklessly unveils a dangerous new invention at the Maker Exhibitions, an elite competition for the coveted title of maker, and her blueprints are stolen, Art is forced to intervene or risk losing everything he pretends not to care about. With an unwelcome mage looking over his shoulder and a looming timeline to find and return the blueprints to the queen, all clues point to a suspicious carriage conveying a most delightful obstacle.
Miss Audrey Clune longs to be Robin Renegade, the fearless heroine from the old adventure stories. In real life, however, her choices are rather limited. Before accepting a sudden proposal from the man of her grandmother’s choosing, Audrey sets out on one last journey to visit her beloved aunt. But when her carriage is ambushed by two mysterious highwaymen, she embraces a novel world of industry and magic with opportunity for adventure far greater than she imagined.
As both Audrey and Art playact different roles in society, the “honest truth” is a precious commodity, especially when dangerous secrets come to light and power has terrible consequences.
Add Of Mages and Makers to your Goodreads
Fantasy Book Critic: Carrion Saints by Hiyodori
“Now reach back,” she said, “and tear off your wings.”
Carrion Saints is a sapphic enemies-to-lovers romance between an immortal saint and a severed head.
Crow can pass for human. She may come off as eccentric, but she’s good at hiding her wings. As a saint, she’s devoted her endless life to protecting humanity from other immortals: the ones they call monsters. She’s finally ready to take on the worst monster of all, a great evil sealed at the edge of civilization.
Magnolia is the worst monster of all. A villain who amuses herself by preying on valiant heroes. At first glance, she looks powerless. She looks, in fact, like a decapitated head (a very chatty one). But her magic lets her issue absolute commands to humans and immortals alike. She’s been waiting centuries for a challenger powerful enough to break the seal binding her in the wilderness. In other words, she’s been waiting centuries to magically seize control over someone like Crow.
Crow has always been patient and forgiving. Sadistic, remorseless Magnolia awakens new depths of loathing in her—a hatred of frightening intensity. And now, she’s forced to use her full power to grant Magnolia’s one heartfelt wish: to see the rest of the world. To make up for all the years she spent trapped alone with only trees for company.
What follows is an ultra slow-burn romance between true enemies. Between good and evil. Between a winged woman and a talkative severed head (who occasionally sprouts the rest of her body, just to keep things lively). They travel together across a post-apocalyptic landscape marked by strange magic and scattered human settlements. Yet the apocalypse happened a long time ago, and eons will pass before their gradually fading world dies for good.
In the meantime, these immortals are stuck with each other. Even a saint and a monstrous villain might eventually fall in love—but the path there will be dark, crooked, and sometimes surprisingly cozy.
This standalone fantasy novel can be read without prior knowledge of the author’s other work.
Add Carrion Saints to your Goodreads
The Weatherwax Report: Dogged by Michael R. Fletcher
WARDOGS ARE BORN TO DIE.
In the final days of the Demon Empire a lone wardog goes in search of the answer to the only question she cares about: Who murdered her mate?
Utterly unqualified to solve a mystery, Dogged Determination has but one advantage: She never, ever gives up.
From the heart of a massive empire to the deepest foreboding jungles, Dogged is an unstoppable force of will.
Before We Go Blog: Jester by Tim Carter
In a realm ruled by idiots, the Fool is their only hope.
You’d think an army of zombie trolls and undead ogres would catch the nobility’s attention. You’d be wrong. The rulers of Halfsock are deeply in denial. Besides, they have taxes to avoid, neighbors to plunder, and relatives to backstab.
With war looming, a goblin latrine slave named Shelly resolves to save Castle Halfsock from itself. He must assume many roles… jester, detective, spy, and political fixer. But his most challenging—especially after a lifetime spent cleaning other people’s toilets—is as a confident goblin worthy of trust, friendship, and maybe even love.
Can the least powerful person in the realm overcome his insecurities to depose rulers, forge alliances, and fend off an undead horde?
A comic tale of politics, friendship, and found family for fans of Nicholas Eames, Terry Pratchett, and J. Zachary Pike.
FanFiAddict: No More Levels: A Standalone LitRPG Adventure by Benjamin Barreth
Life sucks when you’re a potato farmer.
That’s why Rin can’t wait to turn sixteen and conquer the nearest beginner dungeon. Only then can he acquire a powerful class in the Game of the Gods and begin the earnest grind to leveling up. With enough monster kills, he might even become someone truly strong, just like his father.
In a world where levels mean everything, it’s a perfect plan.
Until it all falls apart.
Add No More Levels to your Goodreads
The Fantasy Hive: The Hallows by H.L.Tinsley
The Hallow serum was once sacred to the Auld Bloods. Used to gain access to their lost ancestral powers, now it is regulated and administered by the powerful Providence Company. Evolved from the echelons of the Auld Church, the company exists to maintain the balance between faith, science and politics.
But keeping the peace between humans and Auld Bloods isn’t easy. Taking Hallow comes at a price. Providence Company Assessor Cam must deal with backstreet bootleggers, burnt-out addicts and floating nuns that won’t stay on the ground.
When a string of Auld Blood deaths appear to have been caused by a corrupted batch of Hallow, Cam begins to suspect all may not be as it seems. Bodies are piling up. Someone is hiding something, and the consequences are becoming monstrous.
Add The Hallows to your Goodreads
SFF Insiders: Violence & Vigilance by David T. List
Violence & Vigilance is book one of Turesia Untamed, an epic fantasy series featuring an eternal vendetta, scars of grief and loss, untethered rage, and hope against all odds.
Irdessa the Undying, a renowned arena fighter in Fohrvylda, has escaped imprisonment but at great cost. Broken and alone, she must outwit and outfight her pursuers.
Basalt Kale, a failed Consonant monk of the lowest order, embarks on a quest to improve Ausgan but discovers vile secrets of his order that he cannot abide.
The heathens of Fohrvylda amass ships and beasts of war to sail the Faithless Sea and assault the monks of Ausgan, who will greet the steel-bearing invaders with elemental destruction.
Violence & Vigilance is a story of survival with dark humor, exotic settings, savage beasts, and damaged characters. If you enjoy the grittiness of Joe Abercrombie’s First Law or the urgency of Pierce Brown’s Red Rising, you’ll love Violence & Vigilance.
Add Violence & Vigilance to your Goodreads
Abel Montero: The Honorable Con by Michele C. Shaw
“There’s a deceptive moral chewiness to The Honorable Con… It feels like a classic adventure story, thanks to an aesthetic lightness. Despite some dark moments, it’s a broadly upbeat tale that makes for easy reading.” – Damien Lawardorn Aurealis
Ailyanna was one good con away from her ticket East and escape from the looming war, and instead she’s locked in the palace dungeon staring at a lifetime sentence. You scam one prince and suddenly you’re the captain of the constable’s personal obsession.
While Captain Kresta would love for Ailyanna to rot in that cell forever, she cannot ignore the reality. To the North, the invasion of the magical empire Lamore creeps ever closer, and civil war threatens to tear her home apart before they can hope to defend themselves. Kresta must squash a duke’s treasonous plans, and to do so, she must release the thief she spent years tracking down. Through gritted teeth, Kresta offers Ailyanna a royal pardon, and her precious ticket East. Used to working alone, Ailyanna’s saddled with weapon obsessed twins, a locksmith too handsome for his own good, and the captain who’s promised to chase her to the ends of the earth.
Ailyanna needs that ticket to keep escaping Fate, but time is ticking, and the past never forgets.
Add The Honorable Con to your Goodreads
Tali’s Library: A Light From the Nether by Molly Dowd Sullivan
Molly Dowd Sullivan marks her debut with a thrilling urban fantasy novel that grabs you and won’t let go. Dark elements of psychic infection, body horror, trauma, and tragic love play against the backdrop of a compelling murder mystery.
Liam O’Connor is special. When a Fissure opens in someone’s mind, he’s the one who sews it up again. When a parasite creeps through that Fissure, Liam is the exterminator who purges it. And when Liam loses everything, he’s the coward who runs. But when he moves to an old house in coastal New England, hoping for isolation, something from his past follows. Fissures start tearing open; minds are devoured. People die. It’s not long before Liam realizes a murderer has come to Shoalport, and he’s the only one who can stop them.
Well, him, and the man who keeps haunting his dreams.
Add A Light From the Nether to your Goodreads
Noah Brisk: To Touch a Silent Fury by R.A. Sandpiper
Fans of Sarah A. Parker and Penn Cole will love this sprawling new adult epic romantic fantasy, filled with dragons, deceit and a delicious slow-burn romance.
She rides to claim her fate, he flies to burn it down.
As the only woman in the Moontouched Brotherhood, Tani studies on the haughty island of Eavenfold surrounded by men who see her as an ill omen at best. Her Fate Ceremony is only days away, offering five possible escapes from the storm-locked island, but each with their own consequences.
Lang, an insubordinate Crown Prince, holds the reins to one of the few true dragons left in the world. Sent to Eavenfold on a diplomatic mission by his warmongering father, he watches as the Brothers bestow a rare and unwanted Marriage Fate on Tani. Already her touch magic alarms him, but if she succeeds and marries the victor of the upcoming tournament, her power could topple empires.
They both arrive at the games. Her, to claim her Fate. Him, to destroy it by any means possible.
Add To Touch a Silent Fury to your Goodreads
Have you read any of these books or are planning to? Drop us a comment!
