Third Kingdom Books - Series and Interconnected Stand-Alone Novels

Conqueror Series

Book One - The King's Final Decree

The world was not always as it is today. It was once a land of brave knights, fierce dragons, and grand wizards. Troubling times have come upon the kingdom, with raiders descending from the east, rumors of war in the south, and an aging monarch has left the land in turmoil.

Twelve brave souls embark on a quest to save the kingdom and ascend to the throne. The bravest knights, the grandest wizard, and by invitation of the king, a commoner. All vie for the title of Conqueror.
To be victorious, they must complete seven brutal tasks. Phillip, an ordinary farm boy, has always dreamed of adventure, but never has he left his tiny village. Now, with the help of a reluctant traveling companion, Phillip must solve a century-old mystery, locate a lost temple, and ascend an ancient mountain protected by goblins and the mystical Forest of Memories.
He will face the perils of the Devil’s Swamp, encounter people and places he could scarcely imagine, and enter deadly combat with ruthless eastern raiders. If he is to complete his task, Phillip must battle undead knights, face a giant dragon, and perhaps his greatest opponent of all, his self-doubts.

Book Two - The Canyon

The Epic Conqueror quest continues with more adventure, danger, and fascinating characters. After successfully completing his first demand, Phillip is heading south to the Canyon District in hopes of completing his second. The Crown of Cenus was thrown into the Canyon decades ago and despite extensive searching, has never been found. If the legend is true, the crown was found by a cave troll who took the treasure and fled into the fog. In the deepest recesses of the Canyon the fog is said to be home to a great evil. It is said the only thing that escapes the fog are the stories and legends of the fools who dare to enter and face its evils.

Book Three - The Oppressors

Time is short, the dangers are real, and the enemy is closer than ever before in this Epic Fantasy by #1 Bestselling author Tom Raley. In his continuing fight to be named Conqueror, Phillip must summon up all his strength and courage if he is to have any hopes of completing his two new demands. He expected difficulty, hardships, sacrifice, and pain; he had never expected to fall in love....
The Conqueror series continues as Phillip struggles to complete two additional demands in his quest to be king. Time is against him as he goes north in search of a Stone Pearl, which can only be found in a rare hot water spring. You must find the pearl and escape, or be boiled alive. To escape the island, he will be forced to battle the elements and his own endurance as never before.
He then must turn south to the fir forest to find Root Rum. Distilled only by the secretive and elusive moles. Savage hunters also seek the Root Rum by whatever means necessary. They will destroy and kill the innocent moles just to steal the rum. Will Phillip be able to stop the oppressors, or will they slaughter the innocents and steal away his prize? Phillip understands he cannot right every wrong, every injustice, but he is determined to right the wrong before him and overcome, the Oppressors.

Book Four - The Final Demand

Every tale must have an end, every journey a destination. For Phillip and Jared, the conclusion of their partnership is fraught with danger and intrigue. Conqueror is a story of adventure, friendship, and bravery. Through their travels and adventures, Phillip and Jared have learned a great deal about each other, themselves, and life.
Now join them as they embark to complete the Final Demand. A demand that, if completed, could propel Phillip to the throne. The duo must travel to the remote Mount Pascal. Harsh, desolate, and deadly, the mountain is home to any number of evils. Escape is all but impossible; many will perish, and only with the aid of an unlikely ally will Phillip have a chance to be named Conqueror.

Interconnected Stand-Alone Novels

Beggars Canyon: Myca's Story

For more than a thousand years the King’s Knights have defended the 3rd Kingdom. An extension of the King’s power and authority, these brave men face any foe without hesitation. In all their glorious history never have they allowed a woman to join their ranks. This tradition stands in the way of Myca’s dream of becoming a knight. She posses the skills, the bravery and the determination, but she is denied the opportunity to prove herself worthy. Unwilling to simply accept her fate, Myca sets out on a grand quest to prove herself not only to her oppressors, the village bullies and the narrow-minded bureaucrats, but to herself as well.
Myca, with her lifelong friend Florian, travels to Beggar’s Canyon, a refuge for all that is vial, where justice seldom visits and the lines between right and wrong are at best, blurred. Myca must venture into the depths of the tombs, visit Dragon’s Howl prison, the most haunted place in the kingdom, then do battle with inhuman beasts in the underground at Cedar’s Point. If she is successful, she will prove herself worthy. If she fails, it could cost her everything, including her life.

Execution Games

Four convicted killers, all sentenced to death, await their fate in the horrific confines of the northern dungeons. Life is brutal and hope all but extinguished when they are summoned before the governor. Expecting their sentences to be carried out, they instead find the governor struggling with a moral dilemma. Who has the right to take the life of another? The governor, under intense pressure from the magistrates and his own daughter, decides on a most unconventional solution. He will allow fate to decide who lives, and who dies.

The Northern territory's annual festival is underway, and this year it coincides with the Festival of the Arrow, the archery championship of the entire kingdom. The convicted men, if they choose, will ride in a wagon used as the target for the long range archery competition. If they survive the two day ordeal, they will earn their freedom. They each reflect on how they got here, what awaits them should they earn their freedom, and how they are to deal with the onslaught of dozens of potentially lethal arrows showering down upon them.

Emotions are raw, the fear tangible, and the stakes literally life and death. How will each cope, and who if anyone will fate allow to survive, the execution games.

The Outlaw Queen

Airien, wife of King Felix II, mother of King Felix III, never dreamed of ruling the kingdom. She was quite content to be the queen, mother, and confidant to the king. Fate, it would seem, had other plans. When the king is assassinated, Airien finds herself forced into a role she never wanted. Now, to protect the infant prince, her own life, and the future of the kingdom, Airien must take her place on the throne.
The times are troubled and filled with uncertainty, treachery, and famine. Airien is a strong, intelligent, and vibrant woman, but her enemies are many, clever, and ruthless. Airien must deal with betrayal from within, solve the mystery of the king’s death, and protect the kingdom from an invasion of eastern raiders.
As the situation worsens, Airien finds herself leading her army into battle, dealing with a person of questionable intentions, and a witch who may or may not be an ally. If Airien is to protect her son and save the kingdom, she will have to break a few rules. In fact, she may have to stand alone against her advisors, knights, and magistrates. Will she be able to expose the killer and save the kingdom before she is forced from the throne as the outlaw queen?

Third Kingdom - Origins

Every tale has a beginning. The Third Kingdom, the greatest and most powerful kingdom of our day, is no different. Like the Phoenix rising from the ashes, the new kingdom was born from the ashes of centuries of warfare and destruction. From the two old kingdoms, destroyed by hate, envy, and greed, came a group of brave pioneers. Twelve brave knights lead their families into the dangerous unknown in search of a pass no one is certain even exists. They must endure barren, hostile lands teaming with disease, curses, bloodthirsty raiders, inhuman creatures, and the evilest of all, the White Wizards. The brave knights and their families must risk everything to give themselves and their children a new way of life, a new hope away from the evil.

Forced to traverse thousands of miles across inhospitable lands, they will face the remnants of the ten great evils. These evils, cast by the White Wizards centuries ago, still curse the lands and their people even to this day. If the people are to find salvation, they must cross raging rivers, navigate a maze of ancient ruins, combat giant creatures, endure illness, injury, and the long, torturous journey across the desolate plains. Then, they must do battle with the last of the White Wizards, a foe no mere mortal has ever defeated. All will suffer greatly, and some will not survive their efforts to reach the hope promised in the new land, but all push ever onward, for there is no turning back. Behind them lies only evil, hatred, and death. Hope lies just beyond the suffering in this epic tale of adventure and ultimate salvation.

The Nawkers: An Item of Great Worth

Most know nothing of the Nawkers, which is not at all surprising. They are one of three tribes of little folk and make their home deep in the northern mountains. Timid, reclusive, and if we are being honest, not especially memorable. An adult Nawker will only reach the average man’s waist, perhaps an inch or so taller. They are not known to be fast or agile, and not especially strong either. The Nawkers don’t use money, don’t mine for jewels, and in reality, have nothing the outside world would consider of any real worth. Which, as chance would have it, is precisely the way the Nawkers prefer things.

Few outsiders can understand or appreciate the Nawkers' ways. To the Nawkers, it is simply their way of life. A way of life that has not changed to any appreciable degree in nearly a thousand years. Bound by their code of strict honesty, humility, and their extreme fondness for being left alone, the villagers live a quiet, and most would say, boring life. It should therefore come as no surprise that the entire village was plunged into complete chaos when an item of great worth came into their midst, in a most peculiar way.

Now, two naïve lads, Younger and Barrow, are given the simple task of disposing of the item. A simple task it might be, but in the world of the Nawkers, the simplest of tasks can present the grandest of problems. Sent out into the world of the big folk, the boys must trust new friends, overcome many dangers, and stay true to their ways if they are to accomplish their task and return home to their simple lives. However, few things are ever as simple as they seem when you are dealing with an item of great worth.

Artifacts of Condir

The outpost is the most remote and isolated in the kingdom, secluded and unreachable for much of the year. Battered by unforgiving winter storms and the devil’s wind, the outpost is home to a most unusual and unique group. These men and women, shunned by society and their own families, outcasts and criminals, desire only to go unnoticed in the frozen wasteland. In a land ruled by snow bears, wolves, and the bitter winter, life can be harsh and often quite short.
Each winter, the vicious winds drive ships to their doom along the rocky northern shores. These wrecks rarely leave survivors and only occasionally yield scraps for scavengers and looters. A new wreck not only brings a survivor, but also a new threat. Anouk, a mysterious young lady, travels with enchanted documents that could spell doom for the entire kingdom.
Anouk reveals that the Artifacts of Condir, long thought to be nothing but myth, are in fact real. The documents she carries tell the location of the artifacts. If the three artifacts are ever brought together, it will trigger a catastrophic event that will bring down the king and devastate much of the kingdom. Now the outcasts and misfits must band together to save the king and perhaps the kingdom in a fight none wanted nor expected.

With the power to turn back time and with the aid of a band of undead barbarians, the Warlock Clovis desperately wants to possess the documents and recover the artifacts. He has sought out the documents for years and is a very formidable opponent bent on revenge. Defeating the Warlock will require stealth, teamwork, and sacrifice. All will not survive in the battle to possess, the Artifacts of Condir.

Short Tales of the Third Kingdom - Volume I

Stories as diverse as the people, creatures, and places of the 3rd Kingdom itself. A common woodland Fairy’s journey of discovery, an ancient rite of passage forgotten to all but a few. A treacherous journey to the remote sea canyon to witness the dance of the mermaids, to join in the festivities of life itself.

An epistolary tale of Flueric, the first and some say most powerful wizard of any age. How did wizards come to be? Who was Flueric before his powers? What led him to a life of solitude, despair, and some say evil? His life was not a simple one, nor was it pleasant, even before the magic.

What story does a simple dumpling girl have to share? She makes her meager living selling dumplings from her tiny apartment. Now she finds herself entangled in a magical conspiracy of deceit and thievery. Does she remain hidden in the shadows, or does she step out to save a friend and right a wrong? Her decision could cost her everything, including her life.
And what of the Dracom, a story known to very few, and with good cause. On rare occasions, a dragon of noble birth, is reincarnated in human form as a Dragoness. It is said a Dragoness once fell in love with a human and gave birth to his children. These children, neither dragon nor human, came to be known as the Dracom. Now, a young boy finds he is a Dracom and must use his new powers to protect himself, his mother, and countless others. Can he master his skills in time?

A tale of a young girl, her family brutally murdered, who now seeks revenge. She has money, the desire to see those responsible for the torture, rape and murder of her family punished, but she lacks the skills to exact her revenge. She turns to a Ranger, a semi-legal group authorized to hunt men for money, bounty hunters. She has one condition: she does not want to hear the men are dead, she wants to see them die.

These tales will reveal far more of the Kingdom and her people. Within these tales, you will discover the Wagon Folk of the Green Mountains, just how the age of the great wizards came to be, and the little-known life of a common woodland fairy. You will see both the compassion of the people, and the evil.

Short Tales of the Third Kingdom - Volume II

Six new short tales of the Third Kingdom. These Low-Fantasy stories are each as unique and unusual as the Third Kingdom itself.
The Erlking, an ancient artifact stolen by the Taciks, a secret society that will stop at nothing to protect their warped beliefs, and the artifact that has helped fund their efforts for more than a century. Can a dwarf and a young female student right this wrong and return the scepter to its rightful owners

The city of Azorcha, the Goblin City, is home to goblins, and a killer. Murder in Goblin City will pit the ruthless killer against the skills of Baylin, the first female magistrate in the kingdom. As the death toll rises, the killer sets their focus on Baylin and her young assistant, but the killer is not the only threat.

Time Walkers are rare, social outcasts, and vastly misunderstood. When a Time Walker accidentally sees the future of Lady Elizabeth, the governor's daughter, the die is cast. Will the Time Walker reveal the secrets she saw? Or will Lady Elizabeth be left to face her fate?

King Jeffery has been king for two days, and already his reign is in jeopardy. A vile opponent is desperate to have the crown for himself, but he cannot challenge the king directly. The king’s soon-to-be wife and young child are the target of the opposition, and the race is on to save their lives, the throne, and perhaps the kingdom in, In Search of a Queen.

Sasha is a foreigner who is out of her element, desperate, starving, and she has a secret. Seeking refuge in the Castle Crete, she finds herself befriended by a gruff shop owner and his young housemaid. As the Time Keeper’s Apprentice, Sasha thought she had found safety, a home, and an escape from her past, but her secret is out, and the danger is closing in. Only then does Sasha realize she is not the only one with a secret.

Kalik is a simple Sculptor who struggles to feed himself as he works on his masterpiece. The Sculpture, when finished, will establish Kalik as one of the finest artists in the Kingdom. Unknown to him, fate has other plans. A series of most unfortunate events leaves Kalik's plans and his future in grave danger. Only with the help of a long-dead matchmaker and a most unlikely allie does he have any hope of completing the sculpture.