These books are part of the multi-author Carnival of Mysteries Series. Each book stands alone, but each one includes at least one visit to Errante Ame’s Carnival of Mysteries, a magical, multiverse traveling show full of unusual acts, games, and rides. The Carnival changes to suit the world it’s on, so each visit is unique and special. This book contains a mysterious hero, a lonely wanderer, a vengeful god, and a guaranteed HEA.
Welcome, Traveler, to Errante Ame’s Carnival of Mysteries!
What you see before you is no mere vagabond circus. Indeed, our show is full of wonders and delights that will leave you breathless, but whether that is with amazement or dread depends entirely upon you. We are unlike any other band of creatures you have ever encountered — and you few brave souls who choose to step beyond your mundane expectations and join us may witness sights beyond your wildest imaginings.
So sit back, relax, and let us entertain you. For time and worlds are fleeting, but each soul has a tale to tell.
Gods and Monsters
For centuries beyond count, Errante Ame has taken his Carnival of Mysteries from world to world and across times, never staying in one place too long lest his great enemy discover his location. Along the way he has accumulated friends and built a family of sorts among his ragtag band of performers, yet he doesn’t dare let anyone get too close to protect them from becoming a target as well. He stands apart, an outsider even among those closest to him, concealing his true nature.
Even from the man who has somehow come to mean more to him than his own life.
The Carnival is all Rafe Harper has ever known. Plucked as a toddler from the remains of a destroyed village on a world he doesn’t remember, he was adopted by Calliope, the Tattooed Lady, and raised among the performers. As an adult, he was given the position of Ringmaster by Errante — though he secretly longed for far more from the enigmatic leader of the Carnival. Despite all the wonders he has seen, Rafe stayed with the Carnival to remain close to Errante, wondering if someday he could break through Errante’s walls and finally reveal how he truly feels.
But unbeknownst to either of them, a traitor lurks among their friends, and unless Rafe can discover the secret of his past, he stands to lose Errante, the Carnival, and perhaps his very soul.
Airs Above the Ground
As a member of the Flying Galliers in the Carnival of Mysteries, Mario Gallier has remained an eternally young and carefree teenager for over a hundred years. When the Carnival stops for a time on a magic-sparse world, Mario finally meets a man for whom he wants to grow up. Unfortunately aging takes time, and the Carnival doesn’t linger anywhere for long.
Ilya Mirov was part of the greatest aerial straps duo in the world, but after losing his husband and partner Derek to cancer, he retired from performing to take a role as coach for the next great Circo Del Artes show, Capriccio. Yet men who are strong enough for the demands of the aerial straps are few and far between, and Ilya despairs of finding anyone who can handle his choreography.
Fate — and the Carnival — bring Mario back to Ilya’s world and to Circo Del Artes. Ilya is blown away by Mario’s talent and offers him a job. Elated, Mario believes he’ll have the chance to make Ilya see him as a man, not a child, and win Ilya’s heart at last.
Yet overcoming Ilya’s grief is only one hurdle in Mario’s way. Someone is preying on Circo’s paranormals, and Mario’s own hidden nature begins to surface. Ilya doesn’t believe in magic, and he doesn’t understand why Mario is driven to protect those who came from the Carnival. Dark forces press in from all sides, putting both Mario’s and Ilya’s lives at risk. Yet Mario knows that he alone can stop whoever is taking his friends, as well as find the killer who will stop at nothing to destroy both Mario and the man he loves.
Ari McKay & Rachel Langella 