The Nine (#1)
In the dark streets of Corma exists a book that writes itself, a book that some would kill for…
Black market courier Rowena Downshire is just trying to pay her mother’s freedom from debtor’s prison when an urgent and unexpected delivery leads her face to face with a creature out of nightmares. Rowena escapes with her life, but the strange book she was ordered to deliver is stolen.
The Alchemist knows things few men have lived to tell about, and when Rowena shows up on his doorstep, frightened and empty-handed, he knows better than to turn her away. What he discovers leads him to ask for help from the last man he wants to see—the former mercenary, Anselm Meteron.
Across town, Reverend Phillip Chalmers awakes in a cell, bloodied and bruised, facing a creature twice his size. Translating the stolen book may be his only hope for survival; however, he soon realizes the book may be a fabled text written by the Creator Himself, tracking the nine human subjects of His Grand Experiment. In the wrong hands, it could mean the end of humanity.
Rowena and her companions become the target of conspirators who seek to use the book for their own ends. But how can this unlikely team be sure who the enemy is when they can barely trust each other? And what will happen when the book reveals a secret no human was meant to know?
Reviews
“Townsend’s intriguing debut of nearly flawless writing follows an extremely flawed creation […] The most appealing characters are those who willingly travel to the scariest places, and all hopes are nerve-rackingly pinned on them.”
“Tracy Townsend has written a dazzling debut which positively crackles with imagination and enigmatic charm.”
“This story leaves all the normal story elements behind to give the reader a fresh look at a new world and story.”
“I could write for days about how much THE NINE drew me in and twisted me up with not just its richness and complexity, but its intensity and heart, too. I honestly can’t remember a debut novel as brilliant as this one, and the fact that it’s the start of a new series has me energized with not just its richness and complexity, but its intensity and heart, too.”
“A tense, fast-moving, and twisty caper, with divided loyalties, creepy monsters, and grand mysteries. More, please!”Max Gladstone, author of the Hugo Award-nominated Craft Sequence series
“George R.R. Martin and China Miéville have nothing on this audacious, intricate world-building, gritty politics, and compelling characters in this excellent debut.”Sam J. Miller, Nebula Award-nominated author of The Art of Starving