The Darkslayer Chronicles: Valley of the Skulls (Book 1 of 5): An Epic Sword & Sorcery Adventure Saga

by Craig Halloran

The Darkslayer won his war. Now he has nothing left to fight for.

Venir was born for battle. Giant blood runs in his viens. Armed with an enchanted axe and a hatred for the Underling menace, he became Bish's most feared warrior—a savage protector who helped drive an ancient enemy from the land.

Then the war ended.

His victories stolen by cowardly Royals and his name buried beneath their lies, Venir has lost more than his honor. He's lost his purpose. With nothing left worth fighting for, the legendary Darkslayer has become a drunken shadow of the warrior he once was.

Until murder puts a target on his back.

Framed alongside Melegal the Rogue for the death of a Royal, Venir is dragged into a deadly conspiracy of assassins, sorcery, and betrayal. But while the rulers of Bish fight among themselves, something far worse is stirring beyond their world.

A demon army has invaded Bish—and the Darkslayer may be the only warrior who can stop it.

To save a land that has forgotten him, Venir must reclaim his honor, rediscover the warrior within, and unleash the fury that once made his enemies fear his name.

Bish has forgotten the Darkslayer. The demons are about to learn his name.

Genres: Amazon

330 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 27, 2025

About the author

Craig Halloran grew up a role playing fiend and dungeon master's nightmare. Since, he's turned his boundless creativity into more than 80 acclaimed novels that span a wide variety of fantasy fiction sub-genres, from epic fantasy, sword-and-sorcery to future world apocalypse. Creator of the bestselling Darkslayer and the Chronicles of the Dragon series, he imagines unique worlds and wonders that are breathtaking in concept, and then brings them to life in stories brimming with excitement, suspense, and surprise. A former military policeman who now labors in the realm of the remarkable, Halloran has a large and loyal following of devoted fans who eagerly devour his page-turning, action-packed tales of fantastic adventure.

For more news and anecdotes you can follow him at:
Facebook: The Darkslayer Report by Craig
Twitter: Craig Halloran
www.craighalloran.com (Website and Blog)
www.thedarkslayer.com
www.dragonwarsbooks.com

Or drop him a line anytime as he loves to hear from readers: craig@thedarkslayer.com

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#1 Bestseller of Epic Fantasy and Sword & Sorcery & KDP All-Star!

Dragon Wars (20 Books) releasing 2020-21

The Darkslayer Series #1 (6 Books)

The Darkslayer Series #2 (10 books)

The Chronicles of Dragon, Series #1 (10 Books)

The Chronicles of Dragon, Series #2 (10 Books)

The Odyssey of Nath Dragon, Prequel series, (5 Books)

The Supernatural Bounty Hunter Files (10 books)

The Henchmen Chronicles (5 Books)

The Red Citadel and the Sorcerer's Power (1 Stand Alone Book)

The Gamma Earth Cycle (2 Books, Work in Progress)

Zombie Impact (3 Books)

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Over 4000 reviews
4-Star+ Average Rating

Reviews

[Karen ⚜Mess⚜]

November 16, 2025

[Joe Goins · Rating 1 out of 5]

Terrible Book

This is absolutely the worst book I've read in YEARS. The characters are boring and don't qualify as even cartoon like. The story is just outright stupid.

Don't waste your time on this dumpster fire.

[Steve Filson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Dungeon crawl. Magic ,Mages ,Witches,Dark Sorcerers,And evil beings from everywhere. Multiple view points. Good Battle sequences, Fight club type events ...etc.. I am an Honest Reviewer this was a good read.