Kristen Brand

Welcome!

Hi. I’m speculative fiction author Kristen Brand. If you’re looking for a good book in the sci-fi/fantasy genre, then you’re in the right place. My novels all have fast-paced action, witty banter, and at least a hint of romance. I’m a huge nerd, which is pretty obvious in my writing, and I love reading and talking about books, comics, and short stories.

Check out my Books page for a full list of my novels. Or start reading my free superhero serial, Fight Crime! (A Love Story), online right now.

Thanks for stopping by!

The Netflix Book Tag

I came across The Netflix Book Tag on Blair Leftly’s Feed the Crime, which is a great book review blog for those of you who like mysteries, thrillers, and crime fiction. The tag was created by A Darker Shade of Whitney, and it just seems like a good chance to talk about books, so I’m jumping on the bandwagon.

Recently Watched: The Last Book You Finished

I enjoyed The Exile by C.T. Adams, though a lot of stuff happened in it. The ending wasn’t quite a cliffhanger, but it definitely left me ready to pick up the sequel, except I’m having trouble finding it. Some sources say it should already be out, but according to others, it doesn’t come out until 2027?!

Continue reading The Netflix Book Tag

9 Superheroines who don’t have Superpowers (and don’t need them)

Wonder Woman has the power of the gods. Captain Marvel can punch a hole in a spaceship. The Scarlet Witch…can sometimes do magic, or probability manipulation, or telekinesis/telepathy. It’s confusing.

In my current novel, I’m writing a main character who takes on magic and monsters with no powers of her own, so today, I want to look at the heroines who face supervillain, aliens, and gods with nothing but their wits and years of training. Some of them are super popular, but I want to spotlight a few lesser-known characters, too, so let’s get started. Continue reading 9 Superheroines who don’t have Superpowers (and don’t need them)

Free Ebook Friday: Shadow Magic: Six Strong Heroines of Urban Fantasy

Free ebooks are the best. They’re a great way for readers to try new series risk-free, and they help authors reach new audiences. But there’s just so many of them that it can be hard to find one you like.

Free ebook Friday spotlights a free ebook I’ve personally read and enjoyed, and hopefully, it’ll help you find a good read. The posts come out on random Fridays, not weekly, and the books featured will probably be speculative fiction.

This week’s pick is:

This post contains affiliate links.

Book Description

Dive into six full-length urban fantasy novels by USA Today and national bestselling authors!

Escape into tales of shifters and sorceresses, gamers and bakers, demons and artifact hunters, plus one very mischievous Norse god. Full of adventure, mystery, romance, and plenty of snark, these novels will immerse you in magical worlds while you turn pages far into the night. Continue reading Free Ebook Friday: Shadow Magic: Six Strong Heroines of Urban Fantasy

Turn Back the Pages: Pretty Deadly

Turn Back the Pages is a feature where I spotlight a comic that is not fresh and new. It may have come out a few months ago or even a few years ago. Maybe it was hyped and popular, or maybe it was an underappreciated gem. Whatever the case, it’ll be a great comic that’s well worth a read.

I’ve yet to read a weird west story that I didn’t like. And I have to categorize Pretty Deadly as a “weird western,” because “fantasy western revenge horror neo-folktale” isn’t an accepted genre.

So what is this comic about? Good question. There’s an old blind man named Fox and a young girl named Sissy who travel from town to town telling “The Ballad of Deathface Ginny.” Then Sissy gets a mysterious piece of paper that sends them running for their lives. Continue reading Turn Back the Pages: Pretty Deadly

New Superhero Fiction (Jan and Feb 2020)

It’s my first superhero fiction roundup of the year! We’ve got a lot of cool books to check out, but before we do, I have a couple superhero novel-related links to share.

One is this article by Percival Constantine entitled “A Genre Hidden from Readers,” which is about how the superhero fiction bestseller list on certain popular website has very few actual superhero books in it. (Superhero fiction being hard to find is one reason I do these roundups.) The article is definitely interesting, and I’d love to hear your thoughts on it.

Second, I want to make sure you know about Superhero-Fiction.com. As the name implies, it’s a website dedicated to superhero novels and has a newsletter you can sign up for to get updated on new releases. There are currently 240 books listed on the website, which is amazing.

Now, onto the new releases. As usual, I haven’t read all of these novels personally, so check out the previews and reviews before purchasing. And happy reading!

This post contains affiliate links.

Ruthless (Boundless Book 4)

by Damien Boyes

My name is Jasmin Parker, and I’m a superhero. Or I would be, if I wasn’t locked in a cell with my powers stripped away.

Everything’s gone to crap. I’ve been a prisoner for months, betrayed by the people I thought were my friends–and that’s not the worst of it. Between ancient gods and intelligent, universe-devouring entities, I’ve learned no matter how bad things get, there’s always something more horrible waiting around the corner, some new terrible way everything could end.

I’ve seen just how fragile the chronoverse is, and how helpless even the most powerful beings can become. I know there’s a blackness out there, ready to consume us all, and I know if it gets free, there’s nothing I could do to stop it.

Another thing I’ve learned, for better or worse, is that change is always coming. Whether you want it to or not. I may be locked up now but when change finally comes, I plan on being ready to take advantage of it. I’ll to do everything I can to protect the chronoverse and the people in it.

Whatever it takes, no matter who tries to stop me. Continue reading New Superhero Fiction (Jan and Feb 2020)

News & Updates

Clockmaker has officially been re-released. I’ve been signing the paperback and hardcover rewards for those of you who contributed to the Kickstarter, (Thank you again for your support and patience!) and they’re just so pretty. Look!

You can get yourself a hardcover, paperback, or ebook copy on Amazon if you don’t already have one. I promise it will deliver swashbuckling steampunk adventure and gothic thrills. Here are some quotes from it that I’ve been making for Book Quote Wednesday on Twitter: Continue reading News & Updates

5 Things I’m Excited About for The Witch’s March

One reason I love having a sister who’s an author is that we beta-read each other’s work. She catches my typos and gives me feedback about the overall story, and I do the same for her.

The hard part is that I end up finishing an awesome book and having no one to geek out with, because literally no one else has read it yet.

This is the case with The Witch’s March: The Occult Invasion, an urban fantasy set during WWI. Luckily, a chance for everyone else to read this book is coming. My sister is running a Kickstarter to fund the book launch, and I want to talk about why I’m excited about it.

Aerial Dogfights with Dragons

Yes, you read that right. This book has not one but two scenes with the characters fighting/desperately trying to escape a dragon while in WW1 fighter planes. Continue reading 5 Things I’m Excited About for The Witch’s March