Once Called Magic - The Oconic Gates, #1

One man will betray an Empire. But who?

Will it be celebrated Caster-Colonel Lokke de Calvas, commander of a legion known as the Old Hundredth? When a grisly murder thrusts him into a battle he's unprepared and ill-equipped for, Lokke struggles to reconcile his honour with the demands of duty.

Will it be Ember Cobb, ex-caster and grouchy merc? Hiding from his past in the northern wilds, he joins up with a band of Empire-hating separatists, uncovering a world he never knew existed and magical enemies he never imagined in his darkest nightmares.  

Or will it be Tydek Mordume, the scheming cop who will do anything to get what he wants? And what he wants is to become the most powerful man in the Empire. What he wants is to start a war.

Three men. Seven days. The fate of an Empire hangs in the balance.

Once Called Magic is a fast-paced, inventive fantasy thriller that's part Ripper Street, part Stargate, with a touch of Raymond Feist and Mark Lawrence.

It's the start of the Oconic Gates series of fantasy fiction books, which also includes the forthcoming novellas entitled The Oconic Prisoner and The Hero of Zegoma Beach.

What people are saying about Once Called Magic:

"The pace was generally ace, like a thriller. I genuinely looked forward to getting on the train home to read the next bit... Has an 'ahhhh, wow' moment that I didn't see coming and is something I rarely find in fantasy books. Made me smile at length, thank you!" - S. Farrow