Bios, high-resolution author photos, book covers, press coverage, and review quotes — all copy-ready. Using Ephie's work in a story? Everything you need is on this page. If something's missing, email below and I'll send it over.
Approved author bios in short, medium, and long form. Use any of them verbatim, or mix and match. Preferred name: Ephie Risho (pronounced eff-ee ree-show). Pronouns: he/him.
Ephie Risho is a Montana author of modern fantasy. He co-wrote The Elementalists — a YA fantasy series — with his oldest kid, and writes the adult urban-fantasy thriller series Stone of Amun-Ra. By day he leads software design teams.
Copy →Ephie Risho writes modern fantasy from the mountains of Bozeman, Montana. The Elementalists — a four-book YA series he co-authored with his oldest kid — began as a third-grade homework assignment and became a full-blown epic adventure. His new adult urban-fantasy series, Stone of Amun-Ra, follows a semi-bumbling twenty-something who inherits a cursed artifact and stumbles into a hidden magical world. Risho writes for anyone who's ever felt like the odd one out. By day, he leads software design teams.
Copy →It started with a third-grade homework assignment. Ephie Risho's oldest came home with a blank worksheet titled "Write a Story," and instead of dreading it, asked, "Want to write it with me, Dad?" One idea led to another, and before long they were building worlds, crafting characters, and drawing maps. That moment became The Elementalists — a four-book YA fantasy adventure co-authored with a kid with boundless imagination and a dad who never quite stopped believing in magic.
Now, with Stone of Amun-Ra, Risho has returned to the page with a thrilling new voice. Still fantasy, but with a modern twist: ancient secrets buried in alleyways, supernatural luck, found family, and more than a few explosions. Some of the characters are misfits. Some are reluctant heroes. All of them carry a spark of that first co-written dragon.
By day, Ephie leads software design teams. By night, he wrangles plots, banter, and magic from his home in Bozeman, Montana — the same valley where most of his story notes get scribbled on the backs of receipts during long drives.
Copy →Free to use in reviews, features, interviews, or event listings. Please credit "Ephie Risho / ephierisho.com" when possible.
Covers and descriptions are free to reproduce in reviews and features. For print-quality cover art in alternate sizes, email below.
A sampling of features and reviews. For a full archive or to interview Ephie, please use the press contact below.
"What began as a third-grade homework assignment grew into a full-length YA fantasy novel — written, illustrated, and published by a Bozeman family during the strangest book-launch year in recent memory."
"The characters — they are really fun to come up with, because we try to give them each a fun personality, a role in the story and something to do."
"A Bozeman family has written and published their own fantasy novel — together."
"Bushana's color illustrations and map are fabulous, and readers will wish there was a dozen more of them."
"Fantasy adventures for every generation" — booth seen by thousands of Montanans across the 2024 & 2025 tour.
"Writing prompts, behind-the-scenes cover art, and the occasional book-signing blooper."
Pulled from Goodreads, Amazon, DarkFantasyReviews, and early reader letters. Free to quote with attribution.
A tale that lays steady groundwork for a YA epic to come.
Risho's writing is awesome — it paints such a clear picture and keeps you hooked with all the action.
One of the best fantasy adventure series for the age group I've read in a long time.
If you start this book, I predict you will finish it in nearly no time at all, like it is magically unfolding before you.
Oh my gosh, I just love this series. My son and I are addicted!!
By far, the most thrilling, heart pounding book in the series, so far. There is non-stop, exciting action on virtually every page.
This book has one of the best world-building I have read till now.
It's got some deep themes about bravery, friendship, and doing what's right.
Interview requests, cover art in alternate sizes, review copies, event bookings, or anything else — reach out directly and I'll usually respond within a business day.
author@ephierisho.com
