Silver on the Road (1) (The Devil's West)

A heroic fantasy by an award-winning author about a young woman who is trained in the art of the sinister hand of magic, but at what price?Isobel, upon her sixteenth birthday, makes the choice to work for the devil in his territory west of the Mississippi. But this is not the devil you know. This is a being who deals fairly with immense—but not unlimited—power, who offers opportunities to people who want to make a deal, and they always get what they deserve. But his land is a wild west that needs a human touch, and that’s where Izzy comes in. Inadvertently trained by him to see the clues in and manipulations of human desire, Izzy is raised to be his left hand and travel circuit through the territory. As we all know, where there is magic there is chaos…and death.

January 7th, 2016

A Publishers Weekly SF, Fantasy, & Horror Top Ten Pick for Fall 2015 -- Publishers Weekly A Locus Hardcover Bestseller, January 2016! -- Locus Magazine Bestsellers

the American West

"Silver on the Road takes an underused setting for fantasy

the kind of thing you can feel in your sleep. The wind will mess with your dreams. None of this has anything to do with Laura Anne Gilman's new book, Silver on the Road. I lived in the west

"Silver on the Road feels like a story you've always known, but never read; the kind of haunting, perfect myth that draws together magic, the Old West, saints and sinners and innocents into a brilliant blend that's simultaneously startling and familiar." -- - Rachel Caine, NYT bestselling author of the Weather Warden and Morganville Vampire series There's magic in the West, and weirdness not easily explained. The deserts are a place of ghostly silences and inexplicable sounds in the night. The mountains have a pull that is magnetic

daily life, the call to adventure and the appearance of a mentor. She sets off on her journey, learning and growing along the path. To Gilman's credit, Isobel thinks and acts like a teenage girl saddled with both great responsibility and mysterious powers might

"The right hand gathers and gives, visible to all," he tells her. "But the Left Hand, Isobel, the manu sinistra? It moves in shadows, unseen, unheard ... It is the strength of the Territory, the quick knife in the darkness, the cold eye and the final word." In order to learn her new trade, Isobel takes to the road under the mentorship of Gabriel (yeah, no foreshadowing there...), one of a loose organization of "riders" who go from town to town delivering mail, carrying news, helping folks in need and just generally (conveniently) keeping an eye on things in the Devil's West (which, unsurprisingly, is the name Gilman has given to her new series, of which Silver on the Road is the first book). Gilman has obviously read her Joseph Campbell and memorized the 12 steps of the hero's journey. Isobel proceeds rigidly through the paces

David B. Coe/D.B. Jackson, author of the Thieftaker Chronicles

"Laura Anne Gilman has reimagined an American West that is alluring and gritty, strange and utterly convincing. Her prose is stunning, and her story and characters grabbed my heart and would not let go. Silver on the Road is pure gold.” --

Hugo award winning author, Libriomancer

“Devil” is just a name, and you never truly learn what he really is. There’s power and mystery there. I look forward to the next book in the series!" -- - Jim C. Hines,

- NPR Books

"Reading Silver on the Road is not like falling into some new and unfamiliar world. It's more like a true American myth being found."

Bookworm Blues

"Silver on the Road will absolutely be on my Top 10 of 2015 list at the end of this year. This book is everything I wanted it to be plus more."

About the Author

Laura Anne Gilman is the author of the Locus bestsellers Silver on the Road and The Cold Eye, the popular Cosa Nostradamus books (the Retrievers and Paranormal Scene Investigations urban fantasy series), and the Nebula Award–nominated The Vineart War trilogy. Her first story collection is Dragon Virus, and she continues to write and sell short fiction in a variety of genres. Follow her at @LAGilman or LauraAnneGilman.net.

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