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C.S.E. Cooney

Goodreads Author

Born

in Phoenix, The United States

Website

https://csecooney.com/

Twitter

csecooney

Genre

Fantasy

Influences

Lois McMaster Bujold, Terry Pratchett, Gene Wolfe, Martha Wells, Ilona ...more

Member Since

February 2011

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/csecooney

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C. S. E. Cooney (she/her) is a two-time World Fantasy Award-winning author: first, for Bone Swans: Stories, and most recently for Saint Death’s Daughter (on Kirkus Review’s list of Year’s Science Fiction and Best Fantasy 2022). Other work includes Saint Death’s Herald, second in the Saint Death series; The Twice-Drowned Saint; Dark Breakers; Desdemona and the Deep; and poetry collection How to Flirt in Faerieland and Other Wild Rhymes, which includes her Rhysling Award-winning poem “The Sea King’s Second Bride.”

As a voice actor and proud member of SAG-AFTRA, Cooney has narrated over 130 audiobooks, as well as short fiction for podcasts such as Uncanny Magazine, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, and Podcastle. As singer/songwriter Brimstone Rhine, sh C. S. E. Cooney (she/her) is a two-time World Fantasy Award-winning author: first, for Bone Swans: Stories, and most recently for Saint Death’s Daughter (on Kirkus Review’s list of Year’s Science Fiction and Best Fantasy 2022). Other work includes Saint Death’s Herald, second in the Saint Death series; The Twice-Drowned Saint; Dark Breakers; Desdemona and the Deep; and poetry collection How to Flirt in Faerieland and Other Wild Rhymes, which includes her Rhysling Award-winning poem “The Sea King’s Second Bride.”

As a voice actor and proud member of SAG-AFTRA, Cooney has narrated over 130 audiobooks, as well as short fiction for podcasts such as Uncanny Magazine, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, and Podcastle. As singer/songwriter Brimstone Rhine, she crowdfunded for two EPs: Alecto! Alecto! and The Headless Bride, and produced one album, Corbeau Blanc, Corbeau Noir.

Her plays have been performed in several countries: most recently, March 2023, a collaborative sci-fi musical Ballads from a Distant Star at New York City’s Arts on Site. Her short fiction and poetry can be found in many speculative fiction magazines and anthologies, most recently: “A Minnow or Perhaps a Colossal Squid,” in Paula Guran’s Year’s Best Fantasy Volume 1, “Snowed In,” in Bridge To Elsewhere, and “Megaton Comics Proudly Presents: Cap and Mia, Episode One: “Captain Comeback Saves the Day!” in The Sunday Morning Transport—all in collaboration with her husband, writer and game-designer Carlos Hernandez.

Cooney and Hernandez (collectively: the Hernandooneys) co-designed a table-top roleplaying game co-designed by called Negocios Infernales. It crowdfunded on Kickstarter in under 12 hours, and is out now in 2025 with Outland Entertainment. Order your copy here!

Find C. S. E. Cooney here at csecooney.com, on Substack at https://csecooney.substack.com/, on LinkTree, at @csecooney on IG, on Facebook at facebook.com/cscooney, on her Amazon Author Page, or at Goodreads.

MEDIUM BIO

C. S. E. Cooney (she/her) is a two-time World Fantasy Award-winning author: for novel Saint Death’s Daughter, and collection Bone Swans, Stories. Other work includes Saint Death’s Herald (second in the Saint Death Series), The Twice-Drowned Saint, Dark Breakers, and Desdemona and the Deep. As a voice actor and proud member of SAG-AFTRA, Cooney has narrated over 130 audiobooks, as well as short fiction for podcasts like Uncanny Magazine, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Tales to Terrify, and Podcastle. In March 2023, she produced her collaborative sci-fi musical, Ballads from a Distant Star, at New York City’s Arts on Site. (Find her music at Bandcamp under Brimstone Rhine.) With her husband, writer and game-designer Carlos Hernandez, she co-designed a GM-less TTRPG called, Negocios Infernales (“the Spanish Inquisition… INTERRUPTED by aliens!”), out now from Outland Entertainment, with the companion collection Infernal Bargains, poetry and prose inspired by the game’s “Deck of Destiny.” Find her website and Substack newlsetter via her Linktree or try “csecooney” on various social media platforms.

SHORT BIO

C. S. E. Cooney is a two-time World Fantasy Award-winning author, a Rhysling Award-winning poet, a game designer, a SAG-AFTRA voice actor, and the singer-songwriter Brimstone Rhine. Find her on social media via her LinkTree https://linktr.ee/csecooney ...more

357 posts
C.S.E. Cooney's Blog

Poets for Amnesty International

Last year, a group of poets got together to raise money for World Central Kitchen.

My co-host contacted me earlier this year and suggested we host another reading, this time for Amnesty International.

What is this?

Well, it’s a bunch of poets reading poetry, hoping for a better world. I am so excited.

While we’re reading, we’ll be encouraging listeners to donate to AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL! We’ll be d

Combine Editions
C.S.E. Cooney’s books

Average rating: 3.87 · 10,139 ratings · 2,517 reviews · 197 distinct works • Similar authors

	Saint Death's Daughter (Saint Death, #1) 4.05 avg rating — 2,277 ratings — published 2022 — 6 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Desdemona and the Deep 3.84 avg rating — 954 ratings — published 2019 — 8 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Bone Swans: Stories by C.S.E. Cooney (Goodreads Author), Gene Wolfe (Introduction) 4.33 avg rating — 498 ratings — published 2015	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Saint Death's Herald (Saint Death, #2) 4.14 avg rating — 405 ratings — published 2025	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Twice-Drowned Saint 4.26 avg rating — 218 ratings — published 2023 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Dark Breakers by C.S.E. Cooney (Goodreads Author), Sharon Shinn (Introduction ), Brett Massé (Illustrator) 4.42 avg rating — 117 ratings — published 2022 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Bone Swans of Amandale 4.42 avg rating — 52 ratings — published 2015	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Witch in the Almond Tree (Witch's Garden, #1) 3.98 avg rating — 50 ratings — published 2014	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Jack o' the Hills 4.51 avg rating — 39 ratings — published 2011 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Breaker Queen 4.13 avg rating — 31 ratings — published 2014	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Series by C.S.E. Cooney

Saint Death (2 books)
by

C.S.E. Cooney (Goodreads Author)

4.07 avg rating — 2,681 ratings

Dark Breakers (1 book)
by

C.S.E. Cooney (Goodreads Author)

3.84 avg rating — 954 ratings

C.S.E. is Currently Reading

C.S.E. Cooney is currently reading

Swords & Dark Magic: The New Sword and Sorcery

by Jonathan Strahan (Goodreads Author)

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Jul 26, 2019 07:47AM

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The True Queen (Sorcerer Royal, #2)

by Zen Cho (Goodreads Author)

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The Book of Magic

by Gardner Dozois

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Jul 26, 2019 07:49AM

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C.S.E. Cooney wrote a new blog post Poets for Amnesty International Last year, a group of poets got together to raise money for World Central Kitchen. My co-host contacted me earlier this year and suggested we host ano Read more of this blog post »
Jun 08, 2026 05:43AM · like
C.S.E. Cooney rated a book it was amazing Breath, Warmth, and Dream (The Khumalo Trilogy Book 1) by Zig Zag Claybourne (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Mar 31, 2026 09:38AM · 2 likes · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Breath, Warmth, and Dream by Zig Zag Claybourne. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Breath, Warmth, and Dream by Zig Zag Claybourne <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
C.S.E. Cooney and 4 other people liked Francesca Forrest's review of Breath, Warmth, and Dream (The Khumalo Trilogy Book 1): "I savored this book all the way through. It's a story you settle into because you want to spend time with the characters. You want to learn how they see the world; you want to hear their observations about life, people, magick. The story happenings a" Read more of this review »
Mar 31, 2026 09:30AM · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Breath, Warmth, and Dream by Zig Zag Claybourne. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Breath, Warmth, and Dream by Zig Zag Claybourne <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
C.S.E. Cooney is now following Zig Zag Claybourne Author of Alt.History 101
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C.S.E. Cooney entered a giveaway The Duke by Anna Cowan (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
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Quotes by C.S.E. Cooney (?)

“My heart was on the verge, if not of explosion than of collapse, hurtling to an inward oblivion, sucking down with it the very ground I stood on.”
― C.S.E. Cooney, Bone Swans: Stories

tags: love-hurts

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“But if Desdemona knew one thing, it was this: if misery loves company, malice adores it.”
― C.S.E. Cooney, Tor.com Publishing 2019 Debut Sampler

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“The angel Alizar sometimes looked like a human-shaped paper lantern, or a sudden release of soap bubbles, or a cloud. He glowed on the inside as if he'd swallowed a hive of horny fireflies, and on the outside, he looked as if a toddler with a glue gun had gone wild with the craft buckets containing outrageous feathers, and twining golden vines, and trumpet-like flowers, and thin, prismatic insect wings.

Alizar also had the ability to spontaneously produce eyeballs whenever and wherever he fancied, though I'd never seen him sport more than eleven at a time, hence his name.”
― C.S.E. Cooney, The Twice-Drowned Saint

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Polls

4th Quarter 2023 Fantasy Run Off Poll

The Fragile Threads of Power by V.E. Schwab (656 pg)

5 votes, 50.0%

Saint Death's Daughter by C.S.E. Cooney (692 pg)

5 votes, 50.0%

10 total votes

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Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
Fantasy Book Club: What are you reading in August '15?	94	72	Aug 28, 2015 04:54AM
The Sword and Laser: What else are you reading - August 2015	150	310	Aug 31, 2015 05:40PM
Sword & Sorcery: ...: List any kickstarter/crowd funding here	4	17	Oct 24, 2015 07:25PM
Sci-fi and Heroic...: 2015 Nebula Award short story & novella nominees	11	52	Apr 22, 2016 01:39AM
Sci-fi and Heroic...: "The Bone Swans of Amandale" by C.S.E. Cooney	6	10	Apr 26, 2016 11:58AM
Sci-fi and Heroic...: What are you Reading this February?	71	110	Feb 26, 2017 08:16AM
SciFi and Fantasy...: What Are You Reading? 2017 Thread	2122	1432	Dec 31, 2017 01:31PM
Into the Forest: Recommended fairy tale short stories	36	48	May 18, 2018 04:36AM

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C.S.E.’s Friend Comments

Comments (showing 1-2) post a comment »

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message 2: by C.S.E.

Feb 21, 2011 05:56PM

Shveta wrote: "Yay, you're hereeeeee!"

Oh! THIS is how you reply to it! Sorry for the silly message. Yes! I am here! It's DAUNTING but it looks like a lot of fun. The Kingdom of Goodreads has been BREACHED!

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message 1: by Shveta

Feb 21, 2011 05:48PM