The publishers discuss how the relationship started, what made it click, and how the two genre powerhouses are transforming the way independent sci-fi and fantasy reach readers across formats.

How did Vault and Aethon connect for the first time? What made this potential partnership click?

Rhett: We first connected through our entertainment attorney Matt Sugarman, who thought there may be some commonalities worth exploring, given our companies both focus on sci-fi and fantasy. But it took a bit for us to find ways to work together. We found true alignment when Vault announced they were doing a comic for He Who Fights with Monsters, a LitRPG fantasy we publish. Besides sharing the same interests and working in similar genre spaces, we found both our companies really pushed the envelope on indies in publishing. We always wanted to expand into new formats and with authors we thought were out of reach.

Damian: As we got to know one another, we learned that Vault and Aethon were both obsessed with breaking through walls faced by independent publishers, and we had each learned to break down very different kinds of walls. Together, it seemed we could overcome nearly any obstacle.

Vault and Aethon partnered in 2023 to adapt some Aethon e-books and audiobooks to comics. What were some highlights of that?

Rhett: First were the exciting light novel collaborations and seeing how readers responded to The Primal Hunter or My Best Friend Is an Eldritch Horror. Our first big comic collab will be Dead Acre, which comes out this fall as a graphic novel. They did such a fantastic job. All of the early stuff was a great way for us to learn how our companies work and how best to work together as we expand. We all have specific strengths, and starting slow was a smart way to explore that before we were in the deep end. Now we help each other all the time as if we're a single, unified entity.

Read On

The genre-heavy indie publishers, one focused on print and the other on digital, have joined forces on a new imprint that will release print books from indie and Aethon authors whose works have only been published in e-book or audio formats.

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The bestselling smash #1 audio book and e-book hit by Rhett Bruno and Jaime Castle will be released in print for the first time as a graphic novel!

The acclaimed, award-winning supernatural fantasy western is an electric mashup of The Witcher and The Dresden Files with a heavy does of Jonah Hex added to the mix. In the first volume of the Black Badge series, James Crowley, an outlaw who met his mortal end in a hail of gunfire, finds himself in purgatory serving the White Throne to avoid falling to hell. As a Hand of God, he must use his new abilities to hunt down demonic beings that have infiltrated the mortal realm.

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From Larry Correia, the New York Times bestselling author of Monster Hunter International, comes an epic new saga!

A Darker Shade of Magic meets A Deadly Education in this gripping progression fantasy featuring a Dungeons and Dragons–inspired world split by portals into elemental realms where Oz Carnavon will stop at nothing—not even the threat of hell—to earn a place in a magic academy.

Raised in the brutal infernal hellscape of the fire realm, Oz, a magicless man, is forced to serve out a barbaric family contract. Refusing to accept his fate, Oz fakes his death and sneaks into the Core City, determined to achieve the impossible: a place in a magic academy that has only disdain for his kind. Soon he’s framed for an assassination attempt and becomes a man on the run, hunted by the most dangerous wizard in the fire realm who's determined to drag him back to hell.

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This gripping progression fantasy set in a brutal empire is the explosive first installment of an epic new series perfect for fans of Arcane Ascension, Red Rising, and The Blade Itself.

In the Iron Empire, only the strongest are given the chance to Ascend.

Castor dreams of winning the Empress’s favor, but his trial is shattered by a violent attack that destroys his home and rips his life apart. Drafted into the Iron Empire’s military and bound to a Symbol he never chose, Castor must navigate deadly enemies, treacherous politics, and harsh northern battlefields to survive—and seek vengeance.

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Come for the adventure, stay for the laughs in this hilarious, action-packed LitRPG fantasy now in print as a light novel for the first time!

Dungeon Crawler Carl meets Dragon Age in this bestselling series by Rhett Bruno and Jaime Castle featuring down-on-his-luck Danny Kendrick. Danny never wanted to be a hero—he just wanted to make a living with his lute. But when he gets sucked into a fantasy realm surrounded by axe-wielding barbarians, super-hot elf assassins, strange magic, and a System AI intent on causing trouble, he must adapt fast and learn to embrace his given Class if he hopes to survive.

Each new light novel volume contains seven original, exclusive illustrations—in both full color and black-and-white—from some of the most talented manga artists and illustrators from around the world while each page is detailed with never-before-seen elements taken directly from the narrative heart of the story.

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Solo Leveling meets Bleach in this bestselling, hit LitRPG supernatural fantasy series now in print as a Light Novel for the very first time!

This action-packed monster evolution fantasy follows Infant Demon, Salvos, as she learns to survive in a bloody and brutal game-like Netherworld. She’ll fight, evolve, and level up through deadly encounters in the Netherworld, but when her only companion is targeted by a powerful Demon King, Salvos is forced into a strange new world—one filled with humans, monsters, and skies she’s never seen… where her Demon blood marks her as a threat.

Each new light novel volume contains seven original, exclusive illustrations—in both full color and black-and-white—from some of the most talented manga artists and illustrators from around the world while each page is detailed with never-before-seen elements taken directly from the narrative heart of the story.

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For the very first time, fans and the newly initiated can read the bestselling LitRPG fantasy action adventure series in print as a light novel!

From Morcster Chef author ACTUS comes a slow-burn LitRPG power fantasy blending slice-of-life storytelling with LitRPG.

Damien Vale nearly ended the world. But might his mistake be the one thing that can save it?

Bound to an ancient, Eldritch creature from beyond space and time, Damien’s trying to survive his first year at Blackmist, possibly the world’s worst magic academy, while keeping his unsettling “friend” a secret. The other problem? He has to keep the world from ending.

Each new light novel volume contains seven original, exclusive illustrations—in both full color and black-and-white—from some of the most talented manga artists and illustrators from around the world while each page is detailed with never-before-seen elements taken directly from the narrative heart of the story.

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What if the gods chose you—and you said no?

The bestselling, mega-hit LitRPG epic is now in print as a light novel for the very first time!

The Irregular at Magic High School meets Dungeons & Dragons with a hint of The Name of the Wind to form a magical, new adventure.

When young wizard Alex Roth is cursed with the weakest heroic mark—The Fool—he defies fate and flees to the world’s greatest magic academy, where he sets out to rewrite his destiny in a world of magical science, monsters, and mad wizards.

Each new light novel volume contains seven original, exclusive illustrations—in both full color and black-and-white—from some of the most talented manga artists and illustrators from around the world while each page is detailed with never-before-seen elements taken directly from the narrative heart of the story.

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In print as a light novel for the very first time, this bestselling LitRPG apocalyptic fantasy series blends high-octane action with dark fantasy and progression mechanics.

Overlord meets Monster Hunter in this multiverse adventure following Jake, an ordinary office worker whose world is turned upside down when Earth is suddenly integrated into a brutal multiverse where only strength matters.

Each new light novel volume contains seven original, exclusive illustrations—in both full color and black-and-white—from some of the most talented manga artists and illustrators from around the world while each page is detailed with never-before-seen elements taken directly from the narrative heart of the story.

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A wildly original LitRPG cultivation fantasy, Reborn as a Demonic Tree is a bestselling web serial turned print sensation, now in beautifully illustrated light novel form for the first time. Perfect for fans of Tree of Aeons and That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime.

Ashlock awakens not as a hero or warrior but as a spirit tree in the heart of a deadly demonic sect. In a world of sky-slicing cultivators and immortal ambitions, this flesh-eating tree must grow stronger every day, powered by a mysterious sign-in system that grants skills, summons, and upgrades in exchange for devoured prey. As suspicion mounts, Ashlock must evolve faster than ever to survive—and dominate—the nine realms.

Each new light novel volume contains seven original, exclusive illustrations—in both full color and black-and-white—from some of the most talented manga artists and illustrators from around the world while each page is detailed with never-before-seen elements taken directly from the narrative heart of the story.

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From bestselling author and Dragon Award finalist Rick Partlow comes Contact Front, the explosive first book in the bestselling military sci-fi series, Drop Trooper—now in print and widely distributed for the first time.

Go to war or go to jail. That is the choice street hustler Cam Alvarez is given when he kills a cartel hitman. With nothing to lose, Cam joins the Marines—and trades the alleys of Earth for the killing fields of interstellar war.

If you love the raw combat grit of Starship Troopers, the high-tech adrenaline of Halo, or the fast-paced action of Jay Allan and Scott Bartlett, Contact Front delivers your next unputdownable read.

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From USA Today bestselling author Jeffery H. Haskell comes the thrilling launch of the Grimm’s War series, a military sci-fi epic, now in print for the very first time!

Navy lieutenant Jacob Grimm is cast out after a tragic mistake—but he’s not done fighting.

Reassigned to a rundown destroyer on the edge of space, Grimm faces pirates, spies, and a corrupt system on the brink of collapse. When a universe-shaking discovery threatens the future of humanity, one forgotten captain must defy the odds—or see freedom fall.

Perfect for fans of Honor Harrington, Star Trek, The Expanse, and The Hunt for Red October.

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This is your chance to win an incredible package of sci-fi and fantasy bestsellers! Five lucky winners will receive print editions of Dead Acre, Academy of Outcasts, Ironbound, Contact Front, and Against All Odds. See what all the buzz is about or get your hands on print copies of five of your favorites!

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For the very first time, the logo for the new Aethon & Vault imprint is revealed! With the partnership official and a slew of books slated for Fall 2025 and Winter/Spring 2026, the pair created a fantastic new logo to signify this exciting collaboration.

Founded in 2016 by brothers Damian and Adrian Wassel, Vault Comics is an independent American publisher of original, creator-owned science fiction, fantasy, and horror comics and graphic novels. The company quickly found both commercial and critical success working with both emerging and established creators and focusing on diversity and cross-media properties. In 2022, Vault expanded into music-oriented comics with its Headshell imprint and has worked with top artists and writers such as Post Malone, Fallout Boy’s Pete Wentz, Slash from Guns N’ Roses, Metallica, Def Leppard, and The Beach Boys. Vault continues to expand and innovate, and in 2025 it solidified its partnership with Aethon Books, which purchased majority share of Vault. Vault is distributed by Simon & Schuster.

Aethon Books is a dynamic, independent, digital-first publisher specializing in science fiction, fantasy, and LitRPG. Founded in 2018 by Rhett Bruno and Steve Beaulieu, the publisher’s mission is to bring imaginative, action-driven stories to readers around the world. Aethon champions genre fiction including military sci-fi, epic fantasy, space opera, and post-apocalyptic fiction with wide commercial appeal and has established itself as a major player with aggressive growth in genre markets.