Shadowrun Book Synopsis Shadowrun Book Synopsis @ Richard's place at the trough

1
NEVER DEAL
WITH A DRAGON
Secrets of Power Vol. 1
by Robert N. Charrette

 Where Man Meets Magic and Machine

 The year is 2050. The power of magic and the creatures it brings have returned to the earth, and many of the ancient races have re-emerged. Elves, Orks, Mages and lethal Dragons find a home in a world where technology and human flesh have melded into deadly urban predators. And the multinational mega-corporations hoard the only thing of real value-information.

 For Sam Verner, living in the womb of the Renraku conglomerate was easy, until his sister disappeared and the facade of the corporate reality began to disintegrate. Now Sam wants out, but to "extract" himself he has to slide like a whisper through the deadly shadows the corporations cast, through a world where his first wrong move may be his last ... the world of Shadowrun.

2
CHOSE YOUR
ENEMIES CAREFULLY
Secrets of Power Vol. 2
by Robert N. Charrette

 When Magic Returns to the

 its power calls Sam Verner. As Sam searches for his sister through the slick and streets of 2050, his quest leads him across the ocean to England, where druids rule the streets ... and the throne. But all is not what it seems, and Sam and his new shadow friends are plunged into a maze of madness on the trail of destruction.

Only when Sam accepts his destiny as a shaman can he embrace the power he needs. But what waits for him in the final confrontation of technology and human flesh is a secret much darker than anything he knew lay waiting in the shadows....

3
FIND YOUR
OWN TRUTH
Secrets of Power Vol. 3
by Robert N. Charrette

Find the Magic!

He was only a "beginner' shaman, but Sam Verner had to find a cure to ward off the curse on his sister. Only something of great magic would do the trick. It was this quest that took him to a mystical citadel m Australia, where, with the aid of his shadowrunner friends, he recovered the strange artifact he hoped would prove helpful. But instead of anything that even remotely resembled help, an unexpected and ancient terror was released a terror that erupted into ashadow war for dominion over an awakened earth. And while the evil kept growing, inexorably drawing him into battle, the curse's power over his sister was also growing, bringing her closer and closer to death. Soon a truly desperate Sam realized that the last and only hope for saving his sister was to find the greatest shaman of the Sixth World, former leader of the Great Ghost Dance--a man who may no longer exist....

4
2XS
by Nigel Findley

2XS, The Hallucinogenic Chip of Choice

TO Excess, that's how they say it on the streets, before it destroys their minds. Dirk Montgomery thinks he knows those streets. He's watched it change with the world, as the power of magic grew and altered the balances of power. He thinks he understands even the deepest shadows and the darkest of hearts. He is wrong.

Now there's something out there beyond his understanding. Something foul and alien. Something that will consume even the most wary soul.

Like Dirk's

5
CHANGELING
by Chris Kubasik

The Magic Is Back 

By 2053, the return of magic to the world has filled the streets of Chicago with beings and creatures from mythology. For those in the politically dominant mega-corporations, the underworld, and everywhere in between, it is a time of chaos and wonder, and opportunities ripe for the taking.

For fifteen-year-old Peter Clarris transformed by his Awakened genes from a human to a troll the forces of magic are a curse to be combated with science. Torm from the comfortable biotech fast-track of his childhood, he becomes an outcast, shunned by friends and strangers alike. Now, living among the outcasts-the underclass of orks and trolls, the criminal societies of gangsters and shadowrunners-he grows up, pursuing the elusive means of controlling his own genes, and ultimately his own destiny....

6
NEVER TRUST
AN ELF
by Robert N. Charrette

Who Understands the Ways of
Elves and Dragons?

Some say that the dragons are the most powerful beings on Earth. Certain elves disagree with that belief in the strongest, most violent terms.

An ork of the Seattle ghetto, Kham usually worries about more mundane problems. Day-to-day existence in the now magically active world of 2053 is tough enough. But all that is about to change.

Drawn into a dangerous game of political and magical confrontation, Kham not only learns to never deal with a dragon he also discovers that trusting an elf may leave you dead....

7
INTO THE
SHADOWS
by Jordan K. Weisman 

Mercs, Magic and Murder- 

In the world of the future, reality, has shifted. It is a time where supercorporations are the true rulers, and their corporate wards, power games, and espionage missions all too often rampage out of control. The nation is divided into megaplexes, sprawling urban centers peopled by everything from true humans to elves, dwarves, orks, trolls, werefolk, mages, and the occasional upwardly mobile dragon.

In this world where magic and technology coexist, and where both become far too advanced for comfort, the shadowrunners survive by the quickness of their wits, the sharpness of their fangs and blades, and their skill at riding the computer Matrix. And if the price is right, or the need is great enough, they'll sell their services to any bidder. These are their stories.

8
STREETS OF BLOOD
by Carl Sargent 

Razors in the Fog 

London, 2054. Shadows dance in every fog-bound lane and alley of the historic city-shadows that hide a sadistic murderer, somehow summoned from Victoria's reign to kill once more.

An uncertain alliance of shadowrunners is thrown together by violent death and corporate intrigue. Geraint, noble lord from the Principality of Wales; Adept, politician, bon vivant. Serrin, renegade Elf mage from Seattle, in search of vengeance or forgetfulness. Francesca, high-class decker for hire, haunted by blood-drenched nightmares. Rani, Punjabi Ork street samurai, a true shadow-dweller from the lowest level of British society.

All are drawn into a web of death and deceit; a conspiracy which reaches to the highest powers of the land; an intrigue built upon murder and manipulation.

When death stalks the dark streets of London, no one will be safe from the razor's kiss.

9
SHADOWPLAY
by Nigel Findley 

Sly is a veteran. She's run more shadows than she cares to remember, and has the physical and emotional scars to prove it. But no matter how violent it became, it had always been business as usual. Until now.

Falcon is a kid. He thinks he hears the call of magic, and the voice of one of the Great Spirits seems to whisper in his ears. He's gone to Seattle, to the urban jungle, to seek his calling.

Thrown together, veteran and novice, Sly and Falcon find themselves embroiled in a deadly conftontation between the world's most powerful corporations. If this confrontation is not stopped, it could turn to all-out warfare, spilling out of the shadows and onto the streets themselves.

10
NIGHT'S PAWN
by Tom Dowd 

For years Jason Chase was the head of the pack, shadowmnmng with the best in the business. When time dulled his flesh and cybernetic edge, he knew it was time to get out, or get dead.

Now his past has come back to haunt him. To protect a young girl from the terrorists who want her dead, Chase must rely on his years of experience, and whatever his body has left to give. And everything he's got, he'll need as he comes face to face with a part of his life he thought he'd left behind, and an enemy left for dead.

11
STRIPER ASSASSIN
by Nyx Smith

 Prey for the Hunter

For the world of humans, she is Striper, the deadly Asian assassin and kick-artist. She has come to the City of Brotherly Love seeking revenge and made it her killing ground. But she is not the only predator stalking the dark underbelly of the Philadelphia metroplex. There are other hunters prowling the night, and some possess a power even greater than hers.

Some may even want her dead.

When the moon rises full and brilliant into the dark pall of the night, the bestial side of her nature battles for dominion, demanding vengeance and death.

Who will survive?

Who dares to hunt the hunter?

12
LONE WOLF
by Nigel Findley

Blood and Magic...

... rage in the streets of Seattle.. The shifting of turf by a few blocks costs fives, innocent and guilty, silenced forever and then forgotten in the city's deepest shadows. Lone Star, Seattle's contracted police force, fights a losing battle against Seattle's newest conquerors-the gangs. From his years of undercover work for Lone Star, Rick Larson thinks he knows the score. The gangs rule their territories by guns and spells, force and intimidation, and it's the most capricious of balances that keeps things from exploding into all-out warfare. Inside the Cutter, one of the city's most dangerous gangs, Larson is in a prime position to watch the balance, react to it, and report to his superiors. But when the balance begins to shift unexpectedly, Larson finds himself not only on the wrong side of the fight but on the wrong side of the law as well.

13
FADE TO BLACK
by Nyx Smith

Honor, Loyalty, Rep

In 2055, Newark is an over-crowded urban nightmare populated by hordes of, SINless indigents. Millions live in abject poverty. Violence is rampant. Brutal gangs and vicious criminals control many sections of the city like feudal lords. Amid this harrowing landscape Rico gathers his team: Shank, Thorvin, Piper, and the eccentric shaman known as Bandit. The job is to free a man from a corporate contract that is the moral equivalent of slavery, but that is only the beginning. The runners' diverse skills and talents are swiftly put to the test. Rico's challenge is to keep the team alive as they sort through a maze of corporate intrigue and misdirection, but without discarding honor, for without honor a man is nothing. Honor alone distinguishes a man from the ravaging dogs that fill the streets, and as the runners soon learn, the price of honor is high.

14
NOSFERATU
by Carl Sargent and
Marc Gasoigne

Nowhere to Elide

Serrin Shamander, rootless mage and part-time shadowrunner, is on the run. First he flees New York, hoping to find refuge in Europe. But somebody is determined to corner him-he doesn't know who or why. On the run with Serrin is a brilliant decker named Michael and a burned-out troll samurmi named Tom. Behind them is Kristen, a street kid from Capetown with a list of names . . . or victims, if you will. Now Serrin and his friends are driven by mounting panic. Everywhere they go they feel evil eyes, elven eyes, watching them. Gradually they learn of their enemy's plan to wipe humanity from the face of the earth, and they are desperate to confront him. Their enemy, however, is in no such hurry. Why should he be? Restless, powerful, demonic, hasn't he already been waiting for more than three hundred years ... ?

15
BURNING BRIGHT
by Tom Dowd

Span No Expense

Missing: Mitch Truman, heir apparent to an entertainment megacorporation. He may have fled his parents for the sake of love, but if magic is involved the reason could be darker...

Wealthy: Dan Truman, CEO of media giant Truman Technologies, doesn't care how much it costs-he wants his son back. He'll hire the best to find his heir, even if their motives are suspect....

Experienced: Kyle Teller's done this job before. He knows the tricks of the trade, and not only because he's a mage. He think finding the missing boy will be easy. Why shouldn't it be?

But will money and experience be enough to defeat the terrible power growing beneath the city of Chicago?

16
WHO HUNTS THE HUNTER
by Nyx Smith

Hunter and Hunted

From the distant forests of Maine comes the deadly Weretiger known as Striper, seeking nature's own special justice.

From the shadowed heart of the, south Bronx comes the shaman called Bandit, interested only in the pursuit of his arcane arts, and the reconciliation with nature that Raccoon demands.

From the nightmare streets of Newark come Monk and Minx, seeking life itself.

Who is predator and who is prey? The assasin? The shaman? The kids, with the red flashing eyes? The Director of Resource for the Hurley-Cooper Labs, or HCL's dedicated scientist? Or is it the elves? Or the mystery man from the Department of Water and Wastewater Management with a technical rating higher than God's?

Before they are done, a killer will learn the meaning of mercy, and one who has honored life will discover the necessity of ruthless destruction....

17
HOUSE OF THE SUN
by Nigel D. Findley

Dirk Montgomery is back

Dirk Montgomery, former Lone Star cop turned shadowrunner, knows the dark byways of Seattle and the Amerind city on Cheyenne. He knows when to take chances and when to take cover But when a megacorporate exec demands payment of an old debt, Dirk finds himself where the familiar rules don't apply anymore.

The Kingdom of Hawai'i is a tropical playground... with a sinister underside. Dirk must navigate its treacherous paths as he tries to stay one step ahead of all the factions battling to control the islands: the megacorps, the government, the rebels, and the yakuza. Not to mention dragons, elves, new friends... and old emeies.

Synopses are from the rear cover of the books or the back pages of HOUSE OF THE SUN by Nigel D. Findley

These are from the FASA Corp. web site.

18
Bloodsport
by Lisa Smedman

The dangerous game of ollamaliztli-once a ceremonial practice of the Maya and Aztecs, now Aztlan's national sport-allegedly carries a curse. For the past several years, captains of championship teams have died in mysterious ways. The latest victim: an old woman, slaughtered with a traditional Aztlan weapon.

The dead woman's grandchildren, Leni and Rafael, investigate and discover a strange religious cult proclaiming the end of the age of the Fifth Sun. But some secrets are better left buried . . .

19
Stranger Souls
Book One of The Dragonheart Saga
by Jak Koke

UCAS President Dunkelzahn, cut down by unknown enemies in the hour of his triumph, left one last set of orders for special agent Ryan Mercury-to save the world from magic so dangerous that nothing may survive it. On the fateful evening of Dunkelzahn's death, Mercury embarks on his top-secret mission which the dragon's enemies will stop at any cost.

20
Clockwork Asylum
Book Two of The Dragonheart Saga
by Jak Koke

The cyclone of magic and intrigue unleashed by President Dunkelzahn's assassination spins out of control in Book Two of the Dragonheart Saga. Ryan Mercury, the late president's secret agent, wants revenge for Dunkelzahn's death. But a deadly cyberzombie under the influence of a powerful spirit stands in his way. With an impressive arsenal of allies, weapons and the Dragon Heart, Ryan might just pull off the save of the century-but will he pay too steep a price?

21
Beyond the Pale
The concluding book in The Dragonheart Saga.
by Jak Koke.

In the mission given him by Dunkelzahn, Ryan Mercury promises to deliver the magical Dragon Heart safely to the metaplanes, where Theyla and her song are all that defend the earth against the onslaught of the enemy.

With Theyla destroyed and the metaplanes unprotected, the Enemy's army is about to lay waste to the world. As the ultimate battle is waged between the forces of good and evil, Ryan and his dauntless shadowrunners have only two options: total victory or certain death

22
HEADHUNTERS
by Mel Odom

What's the connection between a body in a funeral parlor, a giant megacorporation and President Dunkelzahn's assassination? Lucky Jack Skater gets to sleaze past the high-tech funeral security, steal the corpse and keep it on ice long enough to answer that question. But with the Secret Service also after the dead man, how long can Skater survive? A Shadowrun novel.

23
Dead Air
by Jak Koke

Combat biker Tamara Ny tries to blackmail a Saeder-Krupp executive, but records something she's not supposed to see. When her best friend Jonathon sims into her wetfeed at the worst possible moment, he's left with cold static in his head - and a compulsion to find those who put it there.

24
The Lucifer Deck

Pita's a young, homeless ork with a knack for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Carla is a trideo reporter willing to do anything for a story - even take advantage of a teenage ork witness to several crimes and a strange magical phenomenon. Now, unless Pita discovers and learns to control her unique talent, a lunatic spirit may destroy Seattle.

25
Steel Rain
by Nyx Smith

Machiko is commander of the Green Serpent Guard, an elite corps of elven samurai in the employ of Nagato Corporation. Attacks on the Guard indicate Fuchi Corporation has designs on Nagato; but behind the growing hostilities looms an even greater threat, requiring far more of Machiko's talents than her flashing sword.

26
Shadowboxer
by Nick Pollotta

Dwarf merc Two Bears signs on to dig up some data on the word "Ironhell." Easy job, easy cash - until the decker helping him gets her brain fried in the Matrix. Now he must battle megacorp muscle and high-tech pirates to unravel the secret of Ironhell - before it unravels the world.

27
JUST COMPENSATION
by Robert N. Charrette

Andy's a shadowrunner wannabe until he accidentally participates in a real run, which ends his safe corp life. Andy's half-brother Tom gets into trouble with his boss, the UCAS military, for refusing to gun down a civilian army. Together they uncover a conspiracy to take down the government. Can they stop it before DeeCee is buried under a heap of bloody corpses?

28
BLACK MADONNA
by Carl Sargent and
Marc Gascoigne

Leo, the world's most brilliant scientific and artistic genius, wants to share "the Truth" with the world and needs money to do it. So he stages the most stylish and sophisticated electronic blackmail scheme in the history of the Awakened world! But when decker Michael Sutherland and pals Serrin and Geraint team up to track him down, they find Leo has some very scary and strange friends who don't want to share the "Truth" with anyone and would just as soon see Leo-and the runners-dead.

29
PREYING FOR KEEPS
by Mel Odom

Jack Skater and his team are topnotch runners, but when some biz goes sour they're literally running for their lives. Jack thinks he was betrayed by his lover-until she turns up dead. Now, Tir Tairngire elves, the yakuza, and the mafia all seem to want the biotech data Skater stole. If that wasn't bad enough, a new disease is spreading through the Seattle sprawl, turning metahumanity into demented cannibals. Jack and his team have to get to the bottom of it all-their very lives depend on it.

30
WORLDS WITHOUT END
by Caroline Spector

Even after five thousand years, Ysrthgrathe can't let Aina alone. With the resurgence of magic in what comes to be known as the Sixth World, Aina believes an appearance by her Horror can only mean the world is once again in terrible danger. Can Aina convince the other immortal elves to help her before it's too late?

31
Technobabel
by Stephen Kenson.

He awoke in a body bag, his brain fried and a black hole where his memory should have been. If not for the cool, carbon-fiber blade concealed in his arm bones, he would have been dead. But Michael Bishop-aka Babel, the messiah of the Matrix-is still alive and back in the game.

Renraku Computer Systems has defied the accords of the Corporate Court. Now they must decipher the secrets of the otaku, and Babel is the technoshaman reborn for the job. But the last thing he expects is to find a war looming on the horizon-one that could destroy the technoworld and beyond, forever.

Available in March 1998

32
The Wolf and The Raven
A short story collection for Shadowrun
by Michael A Stackpole

This collection of Shadowrun short stories by Michael A Stackpole features Wolf and Raven, two immensely popular characters first seen in the Shadowrun anthology, Into the Shadows. The interlinked tales in The Wolf and The Raven follow the thrilling adventures of Wolfgang Kies, gifted shaman and operative for Dr. Richard Raven, an elven man-of-mystery who uses shadowrunners and his considerable wealth to fight wrongdoing in the mean streets and shadows of 2050s Seattle. The book includes It's All Done With Mirrors, originally from Into the Shadows, and several other Wolf and Raven stories, collected for the first time in a single volume.

Available in May 1998

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Copyright Richard William Wright 2002 - last modified: Thu 07 Mar 2002 04:39:12 PM PST