Books

When a dwarf girl sleepwalks from her home in Arnoch and wanders barefoot into the Farfall Mountains, foul play is suspected. Reports come in of similar abductions all over Medryn-Tha, and the culprit is believed to be a bane of the Abyss, a monster known as the Lurker.

Not wishing to place any more of his people at risk, Arnoch’s king, the...

“A triumph of fantasy!” (Journal of Always)

“Derek Prior always produces masterpieces of storytelling, with great characters full of life, relentless plots, and gripping and intense fight scenes.” (Mitchell Hogan)

The entire classic trilogy in one volume!

Includes:

1. Sword of the Archon
2. Best Laid Plans
3. The Unweaving

(Originally published as...

TAKES A DEMON TO CATCH A DEMON

When a shapeshifting demon crosses the Farfall Mountains and the bodies start piling up, the Senate of Jeridium send their best hunter to track and kill it: the half-demon Jebediah Skayne.

The trail leads Jeb to Portis, a fishing town controlled by the guilds, where death is as commonplace as the whores who walk its...

TBR 2026

Full description coming soon.

As rival clans battle to rule the Isle of Branikdür, apprentice sorcerer Snaith Harrow and Tey Moonshine, the woman he loves, must master their powers to face the coming war and conquer their inner demons.

“Prior’s latest novel is a masterpiece.”

Readers Favorite



“This is honestly the best Grimdark fantasy...

The dwarven civil war might have ended, but the powers behind it still fester....

Snuv Scavage is about as lowborn as a dwarf can get. With no parents and no home, she tends Arnoch’s battle-goats and sleeps in their pen. But there is something special about this dwarf. Something written in her blood.

When disturbing reports come in from the city...

When the dwarven civil war ended, the Nameless Dwarf lay cold upon the battlefield, his broken axe beside him.

But death is not the end in a cosmos ruled by the Supernals, beings of pure sorcery with the power to create worlds.

Nameless finds himself aboard a ship bound for the Feasting Hall of Witandos, but disappointment, rather than beer,...

Unable to forgive himself for the massacre of thousands of his own kind under the influence of a cursed black axe, the Nameless Dwarf swears to do one last thing, even if it kills him:

With Nils Fargin, the son of a Jeridium guild lord as his guide, Nameless pursues the surviving dwarves from the ravine city Arx Gravis, hoping to convince them...

“One of the best fantasy novels I have read so far this year.”

Rebecca Ross (Reedsy Discovery)

When a bloodthirsty horde storms out of the north, refugees flee for their lives, among them the skald Nyra Sahtis and Sister Caelin, a priestess who was once a trainer of armies.

But with the capital, Jeridium, under siege from a second incursion, there...

“One of the best fantasy novels I have read so far this year.”

Rebecca Ross, Reedsy Discovery

When a bloodthirsty horde storms out of the north, refugees flee for their lives, among them the skald Nyra Sahtis and Sister Caelin, a priestess who was once a trainer of armies.

But with the capital, Jeridium, under siege from a second incursion,...

A sprawling epic of redemption, heroism, and friendship in the face of insurmountable evil and an inexorable fate.

“A beautifully written and engrossing masterwork!” (Mitchell Hogan)

Fantasy Faction semifinalist for the SPFBO 2018

Contains Annals of the Nameless Dwarf Books 1-3:

1. Ravine of Blood and Shadow
2. Mountain of Madness
3. Curse of the...

A sprawling epic of redemption, heroism, and friendship in the face of insurmountable evil and an inexorable fate.

“A beautifully written and engrossing masterwork!” (Mitchell Hogan)

Fantasy Faction semifinalist for the SPFBO 2018

Contains Annals of the Nameless Dwarf Books 4-6:

4: Land of Nightmare
5: Skull of the Lich Lord
6: Fate of the Dwarf Lords...

A sprawling epic of redemption, heroism, and friendship in the face of insurmountable evil and an inexorable fate.

“A beautifully written and engrossing masterwork!” (Mitchell Hogan)

Fantasy Faction semifinalist for the SPFBO 2018

Child of an unreliable prophecy. Victim of a terrible deception. A soldier once. Then a killer of his own kind. A...

A sprawling epic of redemption, heroism, and friendship in the face of insurmountable evil and an inexorable fate.

“A beautifully written and engrossing masterwork!” (Mitchell Hogan)

Fantasy Faction semifinalist for the SPFBO 2018

Child of an unreliable prophecy. Victim of a terrible deception. A soldier once. Then a killer of his own kind. A...

A sprawling epic of redemption, heroism, and friendship in the face of insurmountable evil and an inexorable fate.

“A beautifully written and engrossing masterwork!” (Mitchell Hogan)

Fantasy Faction semifinalist for the SPFBO 2018

Contains books 4-6:

4: Land of Nightmare
5: Skull of the Lich Lord
6: Fate of the Dwarf Lords

Child of an unreliable...

A sprawling epic of redemption, heroism, and friendship in the face of insurmountable evil and an inexorable fate.

“A beautifully written and engrossing masterwork!” (Mitchell Hogan)

Fantasy Faction semifinalist for the SPFBO 2018

Having worked out his penance and resettled his people in the citadel of Arnoch, the Nameless Dwarf decides to start a new life in the up-and-coming town of Brink.

Seven years later, he has everything a dwarf could possibly wish for—a gym, a beer hall, and a bawdy house across the road.

Then a blood-stained dwarf staggers into town with a message...

Having worked out his penance and resettled his people in the citadel of Arnoch, the Nameless Dwarf decides to start a new life in the up-and-coming town of Brink.

Seven years later, he has everything a dwarf could possibly wish for—a gym, a beer hall, and a bawdy house across the road.

Then a blood-stained dwarf staggers into town with a...

Captured by the survivors of his massacre at Arx Gravis, the Nameless Dwarf is sentenced to die. The assassin Ilesa has abandoned him, and so it falls to the ex-rogue Nils and Silas the sorcerer to stage a rescue.

But with the Lich Lord’s grimoire obsessing him more and more, Silas suspects he is no longer in control of his own fate. Sick and...

Captured by the survivors of his massacre at Arx Gravis, the Nameless Dwarf is sentenced to die. The assassin Ilesa has abandoned him, and so it falls to the ex-rogue Nils and Silas the sorcerer to stage a rescue.

But with the Lich Lord’s grimoire obsessing him more and more, Silas suspects he is no longer in control of his own fate. Sick and...

Alone, bereft, and unable to forgive himself for the slaughter at the ravine, the Nameless Dwarf swears to do one last thing, even if it kills him:

With Nils Fargin, the son of a Jeridium guild lord as his guide, Nameless pursues the survivors among the dwarves, hoping to convince them that the curse of the Black Axe has been lifted from him and...

Alone, bereft, and unable to forgive himself for the slaughter at the ravine, the Nameless Dwarf swears to do one last thing, even if it kills him:

With Nils Fargin, the son of a Jeridium guild lord as his guide, Nameless pursues the survivors among the dwarves, hoping to convince them that the curse of the Black Axe has been lifted from him and...

The only thing keeping the Nameless Dwarf from once more becoming the Ravine Butcher is a helm made from the sorcerous ore, ocras, which he can never remove. Without the helm, he would succumb to the power of the black axe that caused the slaughter at Arx Gravis.

After a year of fighting in other people’s wars, Nameless receives a visit from one...

The only thing keeping the Nameless Dwarf from once more becoming the Ravine Butcher is a helm made from the sorcerous ore, ocras, which he can never remove. Without the helm, he would succumb to the power of the black axe that caused the slaughter at Arx Gravis.

After a year of fighting in other people’s wars, Nameless receives a visit from one...

Awakened from an induced year-long slumber, the Nameless Dwarf is tortured with memories of slaughter and must come to terms with who he has become: an outcast, a butcher, the most reviled of dwarven-kind.

As forces of unimaginable destruction coalesce around the mountain fortress of a mad sorcerer, the philosopher Aristodeus puts together a team...

As a storm rages above the ravine city of Arx Gravis, a woman goes into labor. But she is no ordinary woman. She is Yyalla Thane, descended from the dwarf lords of old, and her child will fulfill a prophecy of hope and doom.

Birth of the Nameless Dwarf is a short story introduction to the saga of the Nameless Dwarf by international bestselling...

Tey Moonshine’s scarred flesh holds the secret of ancient magic, which threatens the charlatan wizards who govern Sorcerers’ Isle.

Injured in a freak accident, Tey Moonshine is good for only one thing: an apprenticeship as a clan sorcerer.

But under the scrutiny of her new master, she can no longer keep her secret concealed. For years now, guided...

As rival clans battle to rule the Isle of Branikdür, apprentice sorcerer Snaith Harrow and Tey Moonshine, the woman he loves, must master their powers to face the coming war and conquer their inner demons.

“Prior’s latest novel is a masterpiece.” (Readers Favorite)

EVEN THE BROKEN WILL FIGHT

Centuries ago, the Isle of Branikdür was mysteriously...

Re-released due to popular demand! The original 5-novella omnibus.

Publisher’s note: The stories contained in this original omnibus of five novellas have since been revised and released in a new edition called REVENGE OF THE LICH, which is book 3 of the epic series:

LEGENDS OF THE NAMELESS DWARF:


1. CARNIFEX
2. GEAS OF THE BLACK AXE
3. REVENGE OF...

En un rincón donde se almacenaban chatarras que nadie deseaba más: viejos juguetes, ropa para bebé, y secretos ancestrales de pasadas generaciones.

Pero cuando el contagio hizo perder la cabeza del mundo de Wesley Harding, el horror entró a su hogar, el ático es el último lugar para ocultarse.
Un niño de nueve años se encuentra solo en la...

Era il luogo in cui ammucchiavano le cianfrusaglie che nessuno voleva più: i giocattoli abbandonati, i vestiti da bambino e i vecchi segreti delle generazioni dimenticate.

Ma quando il contagio fa impazzire il mondo di Wesley Harding e l’orrore entra in casa sua, la soffitta è l’ultimo posto rimasto in cui nascondersi.

A nove anni si ritrova da...

Era o local onde guardavam lixo que ninguém mais queria: brinquedos descartados, roupas de bebê, e segredos antigos de gerações esquecidas.

Mas quando o contágio enlouquece o mundo de Wesley Harding e o terror entra em sua casa, o sótão é o último lugar para ele se esconder.

Com nove anos de idade, ele se vê sozinho no escuro, entre pilhas enormes...

Deacon Shader ist ein Kind, das aus einer anderen Zeit stammt, denn es wurde als Baby seinen Vorzeit-Eltern entrissen und wuchs auf dem Eiland von Maranore auf.

An seinem siebten Geburtstag erscheint der Philosoph Aristodeus und beginnt, den Knaben im Umgang mit dem Schwert und mit dem Verstand zu schulen. Nur absolutes Geschick ist gefordert,...

Era il luogo in cui ammucchiavano le cianfrusaglie che nessuno voleva più: i giocattoli abbandonati, i vestiti da bambino e i vecchi segreti delle generazioni dimenticate.

Ma quando il contagio fa impazzire il mondo di Wesley Harding e l’orrore entra in casa sua, la soffitta è l’ultimo posto rimasto in cui nascondersi.

A nove anni si ritrova...

Le Grenier par Derek Prior

Quand une épidémie rend le monde de Wesley Harding complètement fou, et l’horreur envahit sa maison, le grenier est la dernière place où se cacher.

C’était l’endroit dans lequel ils gardaient les vieilleries que plus personne ne voulait: des jouets abandonnés, des vêtements de bébé et d’anciens secrets de générations...

En un rincón donde se almacenaban chatarras que nadie deseaba más: viejos juguetes, ropa para bebé, y secretos ancestrales de pasadas generaciones.

Pero cuando el contagio hizo perder la cabeza del mundo de Wesley Harding, el horror entró a su hogar, el ático es el último lugar para ocultarse.
Un niño de nueve años se encuentra solo en la...

The assassin Shadrak the Unseen is down on his luck.

He’d have to be to take a job from a wizard.

To make matters worse, the ring he’s commissioned to procure is stolen by an invisible thief, whose footprints lead to the city of New Londdyr—where Shadrak is still wanted for an ages-old crime.

Soon enough, he learns that rival wizards will do...

Shadrak the Unseen should have known better. Stealing from one wizard on behalf of another was the sort of job he’d sworn never to take. But times were tough and grief had left its mark.

The thing that should have really warned him off, though, was that the artifact he’d been commissioned to retrieve was a ring crafted by none other than the...

Es war der Ort, wo sie das Gerümpel lagerten, das niemand mehr wollte: abgenutzte Spielsachen, Babykleidung und uralte Geheimnisse vergessener Generationen.

Aber als die Seuche die Welt von Wesley Harding auf den Kopf stellt und der Schrecken in sein Haus eindringt, bietet der Dachboden das letzte Versteck.

Der Neunjährige ist allein in der...

“I was hooked right from the first chapter...” -- Ray Nicholson (Amazon top 1000 reviewer)

”... an engaging story that creates questions you’ll be dying to know the answers to.” -- Jared J.

“Witty, well paced and intelligent when it needs to be, I’m looking forward to reading more.” -- Craig Whitby

“For a novella to inspire a need for more, in me,...

Deacon Shader es un chico fuera del tiempo, separado de bebé de sus padres del mundo Antiguo y criado en la Isla de Maranore.

En su séptimo cumpleaños, el filósofo Aristodeus llega para empezar el entrenamiento del chico con la espada y la mente. Nada menos que la excelencia será suficiente, si Deacon ha de cumplir su destino y evitar el Fin de...

Pendant des siècles, la Vérusia, une tache au cœur de l’empire du Templum, est restée silencieuse.

Mais quand un messager arrive dans la ville sainte d’Aeterna, apportant la nouvelle que les forteresses le long de la frontière ont mystérieusement été abandonnées et que les trois cents hommes de la garnison de Trajinot ont été empalés à l’...

Dopo essere stato maledetto da un’ascia demoniaca e posseduto da un’inestinguibile sete di sangue, il nano senza nome deve entrare nelle terre degli incubi per salvare la sua gente.

Questo racconto è un BRANO tratto dalla nuova serie LEGENDS OF THE NAMELESS DWARF:

1. Carnifex
2. Geas of the Black Axe
3. Revenge of the Lich
4. Return of the Dwarf...

It was the place they stored the junk no one wanted anymore: discarded toys, baby clothes, and ancient secrets from forgotten generations.

But when contagion turns Wesley Harding’s world insane, and horror enters his home, the attic is the last place left to hide.

At nine years old, he finds himself alone in the dark, amid heaped-up piles of the...

Durante siglos, nadie escuchó nada de lo que sucedía fuera de Verusia, la oscuridad acechaba en el centro del imperio Templum.

Pero cuando un mensajero llegó a la Sagrada Ciudad de Aeterna, trajo consigo noticias sobre las fortalezas que fueron abandonadas de manera misteriosa, y los trescientos soldados de las afueras de Trajinot, fueron...

Da secoli non si sentono notizie da Verusia, la macchia oscura nel cuore dell’impero del Templum.

Ma all’arrivo di un messaggero nella Città Santa di Aeterna, con la notizia che tutte le fortezze lungo il confine sono state abbandonate e che i trecento uomini stanziati a Trajinot sono stati impalati fuori dalle mura della città, la conclusione...

Deacon Shader è un bambino esterno al tempo, portato via da neonato dai suoi genitori del mondo Antico e cresciuto sull’Isola di Maranore.

Al suo settimo compleanno, il filosofo Aristodeus giunge per iniziare l’addestramento del ragazzo con la spada e con la mente. Solo l’eccellenza può essere abbastanza se Deacon vuole avverare il proprio...

The age of glory is on the horizon and Carnac Thayn must make a difficult choice — one that will either save his people or condemn them. Who can be trusted in a land of magic and deceit?

“Prior weaves a fully realized world in this rich fantasy” (Kirkus Reviews).

Fantasy Faction semifinalist for the SPFBO 2018

A child is born in the shadows of the...

For centuries, no one had heard a peep out of Verusia, the dark stain at the heart of the Templum’s empire.

But when a messenger arrives in the Holy City of Aeterna, bearing news that the fortresses along the border have mysteriously been abandoned, and the three-hundred men of Trajinot’s garrison have been impaled outside the city walls, word...

For more than a thousand years, the dwarves have hidden away from the world in their ravine city of Arx Gravis.
Governed by an inflexible council whose sole aim is to avoid the errors of the past, the defining virtue of their society is that nothing should ever change.

But when the Scriptorium is broken into, and Ravine Guard Carnifex Thane...

The Nameless Dwarf: the name that is not a name, but is far better than the one he left behind. Freed from the curse that turned him into the butcher of his own kind, he once crossed half a world to protect those who had survived.

Having worked out his penance and resettled his people in Arnoch, the ancient citadel of the Dwarf Lords, Nameless...

“A dwarf with no name is a dwarf most shamed.”

As the lands above the ravine city of Arx Gravis face their gravest peril, the last desperate hope of Creation lies in a dwarf with a grisly past:

The Nameless Dwarf–a pariah, untouchable, the most cursed of dwarven kind.

But in a world plagued by deception, where no action is free from risk, the...

It was the place they stored the junk no one wanted anymore: discarded toys, baby clothes, and ancient secrets from forgotten generations.

But when contagion turns Wesley Harding’s world insane, and horror enters his home, the attic is the last place left to hide.

At nine years old, he finds himself alone in the dark, amid heaped-up piles of...

For centuries, no one had heard a peep out of Verusia, the dark stain at the heart of the Templum’s empire.

But when a messenger arrives in the Holy City of Aeterna, bearing news that the fortresses along the border have mysteriously been abandoned, and the three-hundred men of Trajinot’s garrison have been impaled outside the city walls, word...

Deacon Shader is a child out of time, removed as a baby from his Ancient world parents and raised on the Isle of Maranore.

On his seventh birthday, the philosopher Aristodeus arrives to commence the boy’s training with sword and mind. Nothing short of excellence will suffice, if Deacon is to fulfill his destiny and avert the Unweaving of all...

One by one, the guilds of New Jerusalem fall to Shadrak the Unseen and his accomplice, the poisoner Albert. But as the battle for supremacy comes to a head, Shadrak is given a new order by the mysterious Archon: kill his closest living friend, the Nameless Dwarf.

The philosopher Aristodeus persuades the Archon to stay his hand, proposing instead...

One by one, the guilds of New Jerusalem fall to Shadrak the Unseen and his accomplice, the poisoner Albert. But as the battle for supremacy comes to a head, Shadrak is given a new order by the mysterious Archon: kill his closest living friend, the Nameless Dwarf.

The philosopher Aristodeus persuades the Archon to stay his hand, proposing...

HUNT OR BE HUNTED

They call them ‘husks’, the demons that cross the Farfall Mountains, leaving a trail of blood in their wake.
No incursion goes unmet; otherwise the cancer would spread until the whole of Aethir was consumed by nightmares.

That’s why the Maresmen were formed—trackers and warriors charged with holding back the tide. Each of...

Do you love to read about elves, dwarves, and dragons? Do you find the lure of magic mystery too enticing to resist? Do you crave stories of monstrous orcs and trolls vanquished by brave heroes?

Welcome to the Dragon Writers Collective!

This anthology is an exciting collection of fantasy and science fiction novels from The DragonWriters...

“Shader is a triumph of fantasy!” (Journal of Always)

“Derek Prior always produces masterpieces of storytelling, with great characters full of life, relentless plots, and gripping and intense fight scenes.” (Mitchell Hogan)

When a powerful artifact is stolen from the Abbey of Pardes, the holy knight Deacon Shader is sent to retrieve it.

But events...

Shader has failed and Sektis Gandaw now holds all the pieces of the Statue of Eingana. Despair hangs like a pall over the battered armies of Sahul and Aeterna. It’s now just a matter of time …
A sliver of hope comes in the form of Shadrak the Unseen, who has the means to travel to the source of the coming cataclysm, the black mountain at the...

“Shader is a triumph of fantasy!” (Journal of Always)

“Derek Prior always produces masterpieces of storytelling, with great characters full of life, relentless plots, and gripping and intense fight scenes.” (Mitchell Hogan)

When a powerful artifact is stolen from the Abbey of Pardes, the holy knight Deacon Shader is sent to retrieve it.

But...

Book 3 of the Shader series (Epic Fantasy)

Shader has failed and Sektis Gandaw now holds all the pieces of the Statue of Eingana. Despair hangs like a pall over the battered armies of Sahul and Aeterna. It’s now just a matter of time …

A sliver of hope comes in the form of Shadrak the Unseen, who has the means to travel to the source of the...

The survivors of the slaughter at Arx Gravis flee their ravine city, leaving its walkways and canals awash with blood.

Convinced there can be no atonement for what he has done, the Nameless Dwarf joins forces with a whiskerless thief, a guilt-driven assassin, and a consumptive wizard. Together, they pursue the dwarves into the lands of...

Book 2 of the Shader series (Epic Fantasy)

The reavers are swarming and this time their prey is the supreme ruler of the Templum, the Ipsissimus himself.

With Shader dead and his piece of the Statue of Eingana in the hands of Shadrak the Unseen, the threat of the Unweaving of all Creation is one step nearer.

Dr. Cadman realizes he’s in too...

“Derek Prior always produces masterpieces of storytelling, with great characters full of life, relentless plots, and gripping and intense fight scenes.” (Mitchell Hogan)

When a powerful artifact is stolen from the Abbey of Pardes, the holy knight Deacon Shader is sent to retrieve it.

But events have already spiraled out of control: plague spreads...

“Shader is a triumph of fantasy!” (Journal of Always)

“Derek Prior always produces masterpieces of storytelling, with great characters full of life, relentless plots, and gripping and intense fight scenes.” (Mitchell Hogan)

When a powerful artifact is stolen from the Abbey of Pardes, the holy knight Deacon Shader is sent to retrieve it.

But...

All hell has broken loose in the Forest of Tar. Thousands of demonic Feeders consume everything in their path, but top of the menu is dwarf flesh.

Nils has been captured by the Liche Lord Otto Blightey but would sooner be dead, and Nameless is on the run, carrying a warning of doom to the last of his people.

As the Liche Lord and his horde of...

The dwarves have captured Nameless and left the Axe of the Dwarf Lords abandoned on the shore of the serpent’s lake. With Ilesa gone, it’s down to Nils and Silas to stage a rescue, but first they’ll have to stop squabbling and find something they can agree on.

Meanwhile, the legendary prevarication of the dwarven Council of Twelve is under...

When the wolf-men attack and the companions are split up, Nameless and Ilesa find themselves marooned on an island at the center of a newly formed lake. With the dwarf unable to swim, and a monstrous serpent patrolling the water, it’s down to Ilesa to get them back to shore. But can she be trusted, what with the bounty on Nameless’ head and her...

Nils wishes he’d never taken the job to escort a dwarf with no name on a madcap quest for redemption. Ilesa reckons she should have asked for a bigger bounty, and Silas is beginning to think the grimoire he stole from the Academy has a sinister will of its own.

Nameless, on the other hand, is having the time of his life. After all, what more...

“An absolute triumph of fantasy.” (Journal of Always)

The reavers are swarming and this time their prey is the supreme ruler of the Templum, the Ipsissimus himself.

With Shader dead and his piece of the Statue of Eingana in the hands of Shadrak the Unseen, the threat of the Unweaving of all Creation is one step nearer.

Dr Cadman realizes he’s in...

Cursed by a demonic axe and fueled with an unquenchable bloodlust, the Nameless Dwarf slaughters his own people in their thousands.

The survivors flee to the nightmare realms beyond the mountains, where no one has ever set foot and lived to tell the tale.

Freed from the axe, and horrified by what he has done, the Nameless Dwarf pursues them...

“The Ant-Man of Mafen” continues the tale of the Nameless Dwarf from the SHADER series by D.P. Prior.The first two books of the SHADER series, “Cadman’s Gambit” and “Best Laid Plans” are now out in paperback and all ebook formats.

Have you ever tried to get into shape only to be disappointed by lack of progress or confused by the amount and variety of information on fitness?

In this concise book, personal trainer, weight trainer, strongman historian, and USAWA competing member Derek Prior cuts through the hyperbole and pseudo-science to present you with all you need to...

Too dark for science and too evil for theology, but some secrets refuse to stay hidden.

Postgraduate student Harry Chesterton uncovers a trail of dark science that leads to the old monastery above the Welsh university town of Aberystwyth.

With bodies beneath the cafe, residents oozing puss from puncture marks on their necks, and the...

They call them “husks”, the demons that cross the Farfall Mountains, leaving a trail of blood in their wake.

No incursion goes unmet; otherwise the cancer would spread until the whole of Aethir was consumed by nightmares.

That’s why the Maresmen were formed - trackers and warriors charged with holding back the tide. Each of them is different,...