Spit and Song (Ustlian Tales) by Travis M. Riddle

Kali is a merchant who yearns to leave the harsh deserts of Herrilock and travel across the sea, trading goods and soaking in the sights and cultures. With a new potion on the market undercutting her profits, though, her seabound dreams are put on hold indefinitely. Failed musician Puk hits rock bottom after yet another catastrophic performance. Wandering the city streets in search of any sip of booze or whiff of fire-spit he can get his hands on, he resigns to the fact that he’s stuck in the desert with no way back home to Atlua. Until one day, their paths cross with an illicit job opportunity. With its hefty payday, Kali and Puk could afford to finally escape the desert heat and set sail across the gulf. The black market job would see them travel endless dunes on a road made from a massive dead beast’s ribs and out to a mythical city in the sea, scuffling with monsters and thugs in search of a long-lost book that might be the most dangerous object in the world. How hard could it really be?

The Eternal Muse: Desecration by Rick Waugh

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When a song is a weapon, who can wield it? Piper is a minstrel whose music incites forbidden magic. He lives in fear of being charged with heresy; the church uses the same power to crush offenders, without mercy or hope of redemption. His problems have cost him both the woman he loves and his growing career as a minstrel. Worse, he’s entangled in the politics of the capital, attracting the scrutiny of the priests. Terrified they’ll turn him into a mindless beast, he runs. Can he learn to control the magic, and use it to slice through centuries of the church’s lies? Or will he end up as the priests’ latest victim, all ability to feel hope, love, or even hate ripped from his mind? The Eternal Muse: Desecration is the First book in the Eternal Muse trilogy.

Crystal and Flint (The Journey Missions Book 1) by Holly Ash

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It’s been 300 years since humans arrived on Neophia and the planet’s intelligent species have yet to agree on how much influence humans and their advanced technology should have on the planet. With the threat of war hanging in the air, Lieutenant Commander Crystal Wolf races to finish construction of the mega submarine, Journey, in order to calm political tensions on Neophia and cement her already stellar military career.Lieutenant Desiree Flint never dreamed she would leave Earth to serve on Neophia, but with the end of her military career in sight she doesn’t see a way around it. Determined to rebuild her reputation on Neophia, no matter the cost, she sets her sights on dethroning Commander Wolf in order to prove her own superiority. When Journey is attacked by someone from Crystal’s past, the two women must find a way to work together to save the ship, liberate an underwater colony from an oppressive government, and prevent a war.