stories in and

Cold Rising

Cold Rising by Rohan O'Duill

After a job gone wrong, Special Agent Olgo is trapped within the bowels of Mars with no means of escape. The device that imprisons the trauma within them is about to fail, and the past terrors kept hidden by it must be contained for Olgo’s sanity and everyone's safety. From the darkness comes a tiny voice, and a tinier hope, "Hello?" *** The first book in the ‘Cold Rush Verse follows Agent Olgo as their corporate masters give them what could be their big break, a mission to Mars. But trying to change the working conditions in the planet's underground cities proves more challenging than the agent could have imagined. When a wearable device Olgo uses to block emotions begins to fail, an unlikely friendship changes everything as Olgo struggles to prevent spilling more blood on the Red Planet.


Of Mycelium and Men

Of Mycelium and Men by William C. Tracy

SPSFC 2022 SPSFC 2023

The generational fleet planned to make landfall after eighty years, but eleven planets and four centuries later, they still had not found a home. Finally, they landed on Lida, but something already lives there, and it's big. Agetha and her husband have spent their whole lives in the fleet’s zero-G. Now all is turmoil as the fleet lands, discovering they are surrounded by a single fungal biomass spanning the entire planet. To build a new home, the fleet must confront a dangerous organism, and Agetha must decide if she can raise a family in this inhospitable landscape. Jane Brighton holds tenuous command over the colony and its administrators. She and the other gene-modded leaders emerged from their four-hundred-year suspended animation to find a crew much different to the one that departed Old Earth. Jane must direct the colony’s fragile growth, and defend it against being overrun by the fast-growing biomass. But there is something none of the colonists know. The massive organism that spans the planet is not simply a fungal mass, nor even a chimerical combination of species that once roamed the planet. The biomass has desires and goals, and one is to know these strange beings carving out a home in its midst.


Mathematics of Eternity

Mathematics of Eternity by David M. Kelly

SPSFC 2022

A grisly death, a disturbed scientist, and a dangerous conspiracy. Joe Ballen dreams of returning to space, but after an accident left him half-crippled, he scrapes a living flying cabs in flooded-out Baltimore. When one of his passengers suffers a grisly death, Joe is dragged into a dangerous conspiracy centered around a prototype JumpShip. No one believes the ship will work, not even the space-faring Atolls who have barricaded Earth from the rest of the solar system. But someone is murdering everyone connected to it. As the bodies pile up, Joe becomes suspect number one, and his enemies will stop at nothing to hide the truth. With the help of a disturbed scientist, a senile survivalist, and his glamorous boss, can Joe untangle the puzzle and uncover the truth before he becomes another statistic? The future's about to get a lot more action packed! The Joe Ballen series is a near future, sci-fi noir thriller series, featuring a smart-mouthed space engineer, engaging characters, cynical humor, and plausible science.


Entropy

Entropy by Dana Hayward

SPSFC 2022

DESTINATION MARS! The Lunar Republic is on the run… Life on Earth is dying from a mysterious cause, and President Kim bets her future on an obscure, young scientist whose theory can only be tested from outer space. The year is 2066, and the race is on against the Chinese to establish a viable lunar colony before the 100th anniversary of mankind’s first step on the Moon. Yet, the Moon is only the first step, the springboard for the permanent settlement of Mars. “Entropy” is set in the near future where technology has evolved to an astounding degree. Human nature, however, has not; this futuristic novel reads like an expose on our own times. “Entropy” is much more than a science fiction thriller; it is a running commentary on the times that we live. A dystopic, postapocalyptic, hard science depiction of epic space travel, colonization, and new beginnings for the human race: Entropy is a blockbuster, written by a new voice, waiting to be discovered.


The Ceph - Reborn

The Ceph - Reborn by Matthew Poehler

SPSFC 2022 SPSFC 2023

The Ceph Civilization seeded the galaxy's planets with life throughout history. Most of the results were good, some were exceptional. After a billion years of careful tending, one world's ecosystem grew to rival even that of Home. A blue-green jewel in the deeps of the galactic ocean. The Call went out "This world is ready." Two of the great World-Ships arrived from the Civilization sixty-five million years ago to deliver the Ceph to their new Colony. Tens of thousands disembarked to start the serious business of taming monsters and starting families. They were gone a thousand years when the asteroid struck. The surface of the planet was seared and shattered. Survivors of the Colony adapted to any safety the broken planet’s oceans would offer. They lost the ability to walk the land and breathe the air. Nothing sleeps forever. The Ceph on Earth are Reborn, and they have called for help.


Deficiency

Deficiency by S. C. Eston

SPSFC 2022

How far would you go to keep your dreams alive? On the arid planet of Garadia floats Prominence City, an oasis of abundance and technological marvels. For Keidi and Artenz, life is good. Each day, they work hard to fulfill their role in sustaining Prominence. In return, they share an existence without worry or want, their every need attended to by the ruling corporations, their lives enhanced by a virtual reality accessible with a simple thought. But when a dear friend of Keidi goes suddenly missing, their idyllic existence begins to crumble. And when they start asking questions—the wrong questions, questions that reveal cracks in Prominence’s perfect image—the powerful corporations of Prominence take notice. Now, Keidi and Artenz must choose: do they stay in Prominence and risk the wrath of the corporations, or do they take their chances and run for the Lowlands, a bleak and mysterious place hidden beneath Prominence—if it even exists at all.


ALIEN EXIT

ALIEN EXIT by Geoff Nelder

SPSFC 2022

Alien Exit is driven by a female astronaut, a palaeolithic mongrel, Glastonbury chaos, steamy sex in space, a journalist and a mad general. All to overcome time-quakes created when aliens depart Earth. Hopes rely on a female space pilot who needs to invent a new way of communicating with the aliens after all conventional methods fail.


The Other

The Other by Marilyn Peake

SPSFC 2022 SPSFC 2023

Gold Award, Fantasy / Science Fiction category, eLit Book Awards. Fear can blind you to the truth. The news is ominous and terrifying. People are seeing UFOs and strange, alien-looking creatures with humanoid shapes, green skin and large black eyes. In places where this occurs, doctors report the spread of a mysterious virus that scrambles people’s thoughts and causes hallucinations. Many experts believe the virus came from the aliens. The pathogen has not yet been identified; there is no cure. Psychology professor Dr. Cora Frost has a different theory: the bizarre symptoms are nothing more than mass hysteria, not unlike the hysteria that caused people in our not too distant past to see witches flying through the sky, which justified hanging them or burning them at the stake. Intense stress within societies gives rise to scapegoats. Doing field research within the compound of a cult in Roswell, New Mexico that reveres the exact same kinds of aliens being reported on the news, her entire worldview is shaken and upended. In a shocking series of events, her past and future collide, forever changing her life.


Super-Borg Dies

Super-Borg Dies by Tac Anderson

SPSFC 2022

After being forced out of his last startup, Trent Daeshaun uses his technological prowess, and a good publicist, to become Super-Borg, Seattle's preeminent super. As rumors of homeless people being abducted coincide with an increase in violent attacks, Trent suspects that someone is weaponizing the homeless population and doing it with technology he created. With help from fellow tech entrepreneur Max Roman, a homeless girl from the camps, and several of Seattle's supers, Super-Borg must uncover who is behind the attacks and stop them. But the truth of who is behind the attacks and why, are far more complex than Trent imagined and stopping them will require great personal cost.


From the Grave of the Gods

From the Grave of the Gods by Alan K. Dell

SPSFC 2022 SPSFC 2023

Strange lights in the sky.
 A Red Planet.
 A catalyst to change the course of human history. Commander James Fowler is an astronaut and the first officer of the Magnum Opus, the largest spacecraft ever built, on the first crewed expedition to Mars. The mission: to investigate the mysterious extrasolar object that went down on the Red Planet five years ago. James is living the dream: he gets to go to space and be one of the first to set foot on another world, with his girlfriend, Angela, cheering him on at home. Maybe after the mission, when he's returned a hero, he'll find the perfect moment to finally propose. But his dreams shatter as the mission ends in disaster. Returning to a world reeling from the revelation of what they found out there, James works to piece his life back together and come to terms with what happened. But the mission left him changed, and now he must fight to protect everything he holds dear from those who seek advancement at any cost; a process that makes him question his identity, his place in the world, and what it means to be human.


Astral Fall

Astral Fall by Jessica Mae Stover

SPSFC 2022

A hundred-year interplanetary war receives little attention from the military’s greatest warriors. Until five of them devise a secret plan to end it. From Midwest Book Review:
"Without providing spoilers, suffice it to say that Astral Fall attempts to identify, address, and turn upside down reader preconceptions of [...] the nature of military sci-fi as a genre. And, it succeeds. Think the classic Ender's Game, but without any attempt to mimic Orson Scott Card's scenarios or success. Think a military battle structure holding the epic confrontations of Lord of the Rings, complete with its promise of multiple series books; yet with an attention to intricate detail that belays the (too-often) hasty series production. There is no artificial division of action felt in Astral Fall.


The Massive Planet: The Adventures Of Deep Contact

The Massive Planet: The Adventures Of Deep Contact by Jeff Walker

SPSFC 2022

Captain Christopher Riley and his brave crew of the Earth Core United spaceship, Deep Contact, set out for adventure beyond the solar system. Their mission is to traverse space and discover new worlds for colonization; They represent humanity seeking to expand, explore, and search for alien life in any form. Alone and in the uncharted wilderness of the cosmos, they try to survive and complete the mission on behalf of Earth Core United. Deep Contact almost collides with a massive planet appearing out of nowhere. A Jupiter-like world that popped right into its main flight path. The crew desperately try to figure out a way to break free of its gravity as it pulls them deeper inside. Even though the ship should have been crushed instantly the minute they came into its wake; It falls deeper into the atmosphere’s densely thick clouds, endangering them all to whatever doom awaits. Captain Riley and his crew must race to figure out how to escape this huge world before they crash into its core, but do they have time to solve this riddle? Or will this be their one and only mission of failure?


Lunar Football League

Lunar Football League by Jason A. Holt

SPSFC 2022

Get the inside scoop on the LFL from the sportswriter who actually went to the moon! With over 2 billion viewers, the Lunar Football League is on its way to becoming the most popular sport in the world – an amazing feat for a sport played 384,000 km away. Linemen leap. Receivers soar. Defenders make tackles in midair! For three seasons, LFL fans have waited for the inside story. Now we have it. A sportswriter embedded with the Fyzacom Dragons delivers a moon's-eye view of intriguing stories from the 2119 season: * Meet Morse Kramer, the coaching genius who invented the aerial running game.
* Discover the physics behind the first lunar sport.
* Get the inside story on the drama between the Dragons and their quarterback, Zhifeng Wang.
* And spend a season with hockey star Sheila Patel as she attempts to become the first woman to play football on the moon! These stories and more, with detailed recaps of every Dragons game, told from a perspective never before seen in sports journalism. Get the inside story! ---------------------------
What is this really?
This is science fiction. But it's not a novel. It's a sports book about a game that can only be played in a dome built on the moon. The sport, the players, the games, and the strategies are all made up. But if anyone ever does start a professional tackle football league on the moon, this is what it might look like. Come check it out!


Riebeckite

Riebeckite by O. R. Lea

SPSFC 2022

Humanity watches the skies…but the real danger is at their feet. After an asteroid strike on the moon, a strange blue dust began to flow down through Earth’s atmosphere. It’s harmful to breathe, but at least the microscopic creatures within the dust are dormant. Or so we thought. Tahira made a childhood promise to a friend that the crisis would bring their people together… before a violent riot tore their lives apart. Now, as an adult, Tahira works as a biologist for a corporation constructing experimental towers to force the spores—known as riebeckites—to germinate into harmless colonies. Except they’re about to learn everything they think they know about the dust is wrong. The real threat isn’t the asteroid that struck the moon and by the time humanity figures it out, it might be too late. Riebeckite combines suspense and conspiracy with heart-in-mouth action sequences and nightmarish encounters, all in an immersive near-future setting and, at its core, a heartwarming story of friendship against the odds.


The Emissary: A First Contact Novel

The Emissary: A First Contact Novel by Michael J. Edwards

SPSFC 2022

It wasn't the aliens she had to worry about; it was the humans. A troubled young woman is recruited by a race of ancient alien explorers to be their emissary to save the human race from extinction. The problem is that not everyone believes the world is doomed, and not everyone trusts the aliens’ motives. Holly Burton will have to overcome opposition from world leaders, attacks by religious zealots, assassination attempts, intractable bureaucracies, and her own fears and doubts if she is to save the human race, not just from the coming apocalypse, but from itself. She will have to become a very different person to lead a remnant of humanity into space and become the architect of a new civilization. The question is: Can she use the extraordinary knowledge and abilities given to her without losing her own humanity in the process?


Qubit

Qubit by Finn Mack

SPSFC 2022

An ambitious Singapore gangster recruits an elite hacker to steal a devastatingly powerful quantum computer and hijack the world's financial markets. Meanwhile, a beautiful streetwise CIA agent is determined to foil their plan in a case that could make or break her career.With settings ranging from Detroit to Singapore to the slums of Bihar, India (the "Sicily of India"), *Qubit* examines both the vulnerability of our cryptographic infrastructure and the corruptibility of our financial systems. The story features international intrigue, a violent gang war, an unlikely love story, and an intricate cryptographic chess match as the global economy teeters on the brink of collapse.“Brilliant…Well written with complex characters…An author to follow.”“Outstanding! The characters…are wonderfully fleshed out.”


A Hardness of Minds

A Hardness of Minds by Eric Kay

SPSFC 2022

A Near-Future Hard Sci-Fi about Data, War, and First Contact in our Solar System. Life exists under Europa’s ice, but there’s doubt in the data. Against of backdrop of escalating tensions, double-sided revelations of first contact ripple through all involved as the probe attempts the first landing on the ice of Europa. The novel intertwines perspectives of Earth and under Europa as all struggle for truth. For fifteen years, the Europa Clipper has hinted at life under the ice-shell of Europa. An eccentric mogul, bent on expanding his legacy—funds and launches the first privately funded probe to Jupiter. The robotic submarine can reach the ocean floor and returning by an expertly trained AI. Tensions flare between the United States and China, while cyberattack threatens the project. Meanwhile, Dalton, a self-sabotaging synthetic data engineer, longs to make a name for himself in the scientific community, even at the cost of being infamous. Unknown to Earth, alien society has penetrated up the kilometers of ice, and has long researched ‘Nullworld,’ the mysterious ‘ether’ beyond the ice from which no sonar returns. Tensions in their global society have escalated as their city-state fights with a neighbor whose hydrothermal vent has run cold. Now the military caste is in control, halted all research, and pressed capable scientists and engineers into militia service. The alien scientist must escape and bring back research he hopes will diffuse tensions: the revelation of another water world. This is the second hard sci-fi novel by author Eric Kay (No Lack of Sunshine). It explores issues of data integrity in the age of adversarial information warfare, moving minds away from the brink of war, and experience versus knowledge by proxy.


Sudden Death

Sudden Death by L.L. Richman

SPSFC 2022

'Sudden Death’ is just a theme park thrill ride. Until it's not. Fresh off his first Marine deployment, Boone must now choose between two schools: Intelligence or Scout Sniper. Though he’s shown clear aptitude for the second, he’s not sure he has what it takes to do the job. When he puts the decision aside to join his buddies on a day of leave, the last thing Boone expects to see is a naval weapons locker in the hands of a man who is clearly not Navy. On impulse, he shadows the man, only to find himself running for his life… smack into a Unit operator. Now he has two options: join the fight or remain behind. But the choice he’s been given is really no choice at all. For the only way to save the park is for Boone to embrace his calling. The fate of thousands rests on this one decision. He’d better make it a good one.


Clowns

Clowns by Peter Cawdron

SPSFC 2022

First Contact occurred a decade ago with a traveling circus in the high-altitude desert plateau of Uzbekistan. The US Government has been covertly monitoring extraterrestrial activity around Earth since then but has struggled to make contact. They've kept tabs on the circus and its founder, Buster Al-Hashimi. Four years ago, Buster returned to the US to start a counter-culture group called The Clowns, challenging the sociopolitical status quo in America. Clowns asks the question: What would an extraterrestrial intelligence think about our intelligence? FIRST CONTACT is a series of stand-alone novels that explore humanity's first interaction with extraterrestrial life. This series is similar to BLACK MIRROR or THE TWILIGHT ZONE in that the series is based on a common theme rather than common characters. This allows these books to be read in any order. Technically, they're all first as they all deal with how we might initially respond to contact with aliens, exploring the social, political, religious, and scientific aspects of First Contact.


Night Music

Night Music by Tobias F Cabral

SPSFC 2022

The colonization of Mars has begun. Following a rapid expansion of the manned space program due to the discovery of a potentially catastrophic Earth-crossing comet, Zubrin Base has been established on the Red Planet to oversee the capture of the rogue object. During final preparations for a second expedition, however, contact has been lost with the outpost. Pilot Seth Boaz finds himself re-tasked for a rescue mission, one which will force him to confront his own past, as well as otherworldly forces with profound implications for humanity's future. A "Hard" Science Fiction space exploration novella, with affinities to the work of Greg Bear, Michael F. Flynn, and Arthur C. Clarke, NIGHT MUSIC incorporates realistic, near-future space technology and Mars mission and colonization models, as well as elements of Complexity Theory and nanotechnology. The author is a clinical psychologist, who applied that experience to the development of distinct and fleshed-out characters who speak with realistic voices.


Her Unbound Hallux

Her Unbound Hallux by Haldane B Doyle

If only Mother would hurry up and die in the war. Then Miobeth can claim the mansion, take a husband and restore the family bloodline. But Mother insists on staying one more year for a final chance to produce an alternative heir. It should be easy for Miobeth to wait a little longer. To contain her impudent rage. Before she can claim her birthright a mesmerising manservant, a forbidden map and an adventure beyond the mansion walls change Miobeth forever. Can Miobeth fulfil her duty after glimpsing the outside world? “Our Vitreous Womb” is a series of four science-fiction novellas that explore a distant post-industrial future where biological technology has transformed humanity. “Makes my world look timid and old.” – Adolf Huxley “Sci-fi without robots and rocket ships? Impossible!” – Yusak Asimov “I too longed to snuggle with the giant beetle.” – Frank Kafka


The Dent in the Universe

The Dent in the Universe by E.W. Doc Parris

SPSFC 2023

It turns out "Move fast and break things" is terrible advice when developing a time machine. To resuscitate his fading celebrity, tech CEO Stephen Lucas would sell his soul for one more hit. When the subspace network for his holographic gaming empire crashes, his hardware guru makes a discovery proving that Einstein was right once again— information can be sent backward in time. Lucas sees a dream product for procrastinators. Want a pizza now? Send your order back in time 30 minutes. Forgot to make reservations at that chichi french restaurant two weeks ago? No worries. Buy that PowerBall ticket. Invest in that stock. Make a FaceTime call to a loved one that passed away a month ago. It’s the time machine for the rest of us. In a culture built on instant gratification, Lucas knows he has a hit that will seem like a dream come true on Wall Street. But when he rushes into beta testing before fully understanding the power he's unleashing, he learns that the stuff dreams are made of can quickly become the stuff of nightmares. The road to Hell is paved with cool inventions.


Aestus: Book 2: The Colony

Aestus: Book 2: The Colony by S. Z. Attwell

An underground city. A deadly project. And an Intelligence agent who can help Jossey take down the City...if she can trust him again.Jossey grew up believing the Onlar, creatures of the aboveground, were monsters. But when they kidnapped her, she found out terrible secrets about her city and her family. Her choice to help the Onlar against the City almost cost her her life. And the Intelligence agent she'd thought was her friend was the one tasked with carrying out her execution.But he didn't quite succeed.Now Jossey, barely alive, has been sent to the Onlar by a mysterious figure from the City. And time is of the essence - her solar network project could mean disaster not only for the Onlar, but for thousands of citizens as well. She can’t do much from the Onlar camp, but Gavin, Jossey’s Patrol leader and longtime friend, isn’t convinced she’s dead. And Patrol has started to learn the truth.As tentative alliances form, Jossey begins to think this might be easier than she’d thought. But a terrible miscalculation has been made, one that may cost her and her friends both the City and their lives. Can she see it before it’s too late?Aestus is an adult dystopian science-fiction series set centuries after climate change has ravaged much of Earth. An epic story of vengeance, power, shifting loyalties, and survival that looks at just how far people will go to protect what they love, brought to you by science writer S.Z. Attwell, Aestus paints a picture of a world in which far too little has changed.


B.R.A.I.N

B.R.A.I.N by Bernie Koenig

Earth, on the brink of ecological collapse. All life in danger of becoming extinct. A huge database with all of human knowledge since the beginning of time. Liz Kolmann, a talented young neuroscientist; Eric Roberts, a hotshot programmer with a spiritual bent; and the US government, join forces to develop the most advanced organic Artificial Intelligence ever created, codenamed B.R.A.I.N., in the hope that it can stop and possibly reverse the damage. The government, however, has a secret agenda. Eric’s spiritual training in India helps him understand why things have gone wrong thus far. Liz is mildly interested at first, but begins to appreciate the logic behind his metaphysical explanations. In an attempt to challenge B.R.A.I.N.’s highly advanced algorithm, Eric asks it to solve the ultimate question, putting the entire project at risk. Surprisingly, a week later B.R.A.I.N. comes up with a cogent answer indicating its AI software is ready to tackle its primary mission. Liz and Eric are led to a battle for survival, a search for their very essence, and the true cause of humanity’s predicament.


Extremophile: Violet Rain (The Unwinding Book 2)

Extremophile: Violet Rain (The Unwinding Book 2) by Juliana Rew

Book 2 in the exciting "Unwinding" science fiction series by Juliana Rew. Violet Rain, a VR expert from the 25th century, joins the crew of time-traveling Watchmen, monitoring the precarious truce between universes ("The Unwinding: Gin's Story") from a remote space station. Engineering a rugged tardigrade body to temporarily host her through the extreme conditions of space, she detects a new abnormality and fears a new Unwinding.


Soul-Augmented: Part 1 (Soul-Augmented Series)

Soul-Augmented: Part 1 (Soul-Augmented Series) by Kas Smith

As a rise in natural disasters threatens mankind’s existence, millions of people fall into irreversible comas—they are called the Unknown. Society has become a crumbling victim of corporatocracy, whilst virtual reality has become its addiction.Amidst the chaos, young theoretical physicist Joshua Smith, is obsessed with the fulfilment of his life-long invention. So distracted by his work, he not only ignores the tragic state of the world but his partner, Savannah. That is, until Savannah falls prey to the Unknown condition.Distraught by his neglect and refusing to accept his loss, Joshua decides to abandon his life’s work to solve the mystery of the comas. However, he discovers that the natural disasters and the comas are actually linked to his proposed invention.It’s soon revealed, that his research has been stolen by a secret society to achieve what man has only dreamed possible. Joshua must now make a choice; either refuse to play a part in their nefarious ambitions and lose Savannah forever, or join them to save the woman he loves and the souls of many.Soul-Augmented is 'The Time Machine meets Stargate', which takes you on a journey that challenges man’s concept of death like never before.This book is an Augmented Reality novel. Contained within the chapters are markers which can be scanned to reveal extra content.


Ship Whisperer

Ship Whisperer by Valerie J Mickles

An unseen enemy kills from within. Can her new power turn the tide in the war? Lieutenant Tabitha Chiu is frustrated by life on the fringes of the solar system. Their military unit fled the battle decades ago to save a single space-borne city from telepathic alien hunters. But when her squad is sent to scavenge a derelict ship, it triggers a psychic link to the ship and the alien enemy that drove her people from their home planet. Her rapidly evolving ability to communicate with the alien ship unlocks a chain of secrets about her past that shakes her identity and challenges her loyalty. But if she’s not willing to die for her people, she will most certainly die with them. Can she use her new power save them? Ship Whisperer is the mind-bending first book in the Ship Whisperer military science fiction series. If you like strong LGBTQ+ characters, artificial intelligence, and heroic space battles, you’ll love this electrifying story.


The Two Gates (The Traceverse Saga Book 2)

The Two Gates (The Traceverse Saga Book 2) by Eric R Swanson

Born to serve. Trained to lead. Can a man of two species bridge the critical gap between his peoples? 2454. Micah Trace’s half-human heart races as his expedition approaches Earth. Taking leadership of a one-way-trip from Ceres, he fears the memory of a centuries-old mass abduction means they’ll face a hostile reception. And his desperate claim of a shared ancestry falls on deaf ears when the traumatized Earthers greet them with suspicion, capture, and interrogation. With relations treading a knife’s edge, the offworld ambassador finally proves his genetic roots and convinces the nervous population to repair the stargate and reconnect their worlds. But some resent alien interference in the planet’s affairs, and Micah suspects that they may be willing to kill to ensure his mission’s doom. Can the hybrid herald unite his two species before the past destroys their future? The Two Gates is the thrilling second novel in the science fiction Traceverse saga. If you like complex interplanetary politics, stunning character revelations, and pulse-pounding action, then you’ll love Eric R. Swanson’s galactic tale.


The Shattered Gate: Traceverse Book One (The Traceverse Saga)

The Shattered Gate: Traceverse Book One (The Traceverse Saga) by Eric R. Swanson

They selfishly pillaged Earth and made him a hybrid. Will his split nature spell the end of intergalactic abduction? Half-human, half-Ceran, Micah Trace yearns for something more. Though the repetition and isolation of living as a body double for the King of Ceres is crushing, he’s grateful to be treated better than the other genetically engineered humans. But when he discovers the ailing plight of his ancestors, he heeds the calling and cleverly insinuates himself into a dangerous mission across the galaxy. Fearing their plan to repair a failing transportation gate might lead to disaster, Micah uses his experience mimicking the king to steal the forbidden authority he’s assumed for so long. But with ulterior motives darkening the depths of space, he may not survive to see the centuries-old connection between the planets repaired. Can the royal mimic win control of the ship before they’re lost to the vacuum’s void? The Shattered Gate is the thought-provoking first tale in the science fiction Traceverse Saga. If you like character-driven action, high-tech military defense systems, and intriguing political powerplays, then you’ll love Eric R. Swanson’s interstellar adventure.


Scorpius (Zodiac Series)

Scorpius (Zodiac Series) by John Wegener

The sting is in the tail! Alex Warner rushes to Caerus to find the murderer of a Cetusian Ambassador. Between an uncooperative son of the deceased, a grumpy partner, and an enigmatic Cetusian woman, Alex has his hands full just staying sane while he investigates the crime. An Ambassador is a dangerous occupation as more are murdered in quick succession. As he frantically searches for the serial killer, Alex realises someone else is pulling the strings, someone with a much deadlier game of punishment and payback. He quickly finds himself embroiled in a conspiracy that could destroy the Galactic Confederation, subjugating one of its member races to repression and slavery. Can Alex prevent the catastrophe before it enters its final phase?


Mila's Shift (The Darkest Day Book 1)

Mila's Shift (The Darkest Day Book 1) by Danielle Forrest

Nothing's as Deadly as a Secret… Mila has suffered frigid winters, starvation, and soul-crushing loneliness, but she’s safe and free. The government would have stolen that from her if she’d stayed, all for an accident of birth. Then after ten years on the run, an old friend calls. Now, her friend is dead, and she’s taken her place as pilot of a decrepit space ship. But the ones who murdered her friend think she’s still alive, and now they’re gunning for Mila. She escapes each attack by the skin of her teeth, her life and secrets on the line. But with a Captain increasingly suspicious, security dogging her every move, and a shape-shifting assassin lurking somewhere on board, will she survive long enough to discover why someone killed her friend? Gripping and action-packed, Mila’s Shift is a story of loyalty and friendship that crosses all boundaries, including the law, to uphold what’s right. First book in The Darkest Day Series.


Echogenesis

Echogenesis by Gary Gibson

SPSFC 2022

"...a master of core science fiction" - THE GUARDIAN An alien world teeming with deadly life. And fifteen strangers with no memory of how they came to be there. From the moment Sam Newman and fourteen others awaken inside metal coffins next to the burning wreckage of a spacecraft, they face a constant struggle to stay alive on a seemingly uninhabited planet light-years from home. Worse, the last any of them remember, they were back home on Earth - at a time when interstellar travel was little more than a distant pipe dream. Survival means finding out who - or what - brought them to this place. Yet what few answers they find amidst the steaming jungles and the ruins of that distant world defy all logic or sanity, and it soon becomes clear something has gone terribly wrong... ...something that could mean humanity's survival - or its extinction. The thrilling new novel from the author of Stealing Light and Extinction Game. "...one of our best exponents of hardcore SF adventure" - DAILY MAIL


Man on Mars: The Wake (Book 1)

Man on Mars: The Wake (Book 1) by X. Quinn

The Wake is book one in the Man on Mars Sci-Fi trilogy. The story begins in 2057, when an unknown virus spreads on Earth, and some people choose to move to Mars. However, Mars is not made habitable by humans. Instead, a planet-wide transformation has been done by Gattis, a group of intelligent alien beings who've expanded their territory to our solar system. At first, they appear friendly and willing to share their technology, but in secret, they're preparing to conquer Earth. Since then, there's been peace and war between Gattis and humans on Mars. Don, a young squad leader of a human resistance called the Wake, is an Alien War survivor who has lost his memory. He meets Eio, a naughty and childish higher dimensional being stranded in our universe. While trying to help Eio return home, Don and other Wake members fight Gattis in three bloody battles. Yet, in this thrilling process, Don discovers another sinister intention of Gattis and his own past. What exactly is he? Who is the girl in his dreams? And what is his relationship with the Gatti leader Icus?


Murder Under Another Sun: A Leif the Lucky Novel

Murder Under Another Sun: A Leif the Lucky Novel by Colin Alexander

Nothing is new under another sun. Not even murder. This mission should be simple. Exoplanetary scout Leif Grettison and ace pilot Yang Yong are off to deliver a load of supplies and reinforcing settlers to a recently colonized planet. It’s as routine as a starflight can be. Famous last words. Something is wrong with the colonists. They are astonishingly ill-suited for the task of settling a new world. The planet, too, is a poor place to plant a town for humans. Even if everything goes right, the colony might not survive. Then one of the colonists is found dead. Murder is a possibility. Not long after, another one dies—and this time, it’s definitely murder. In a world with only two hundred people, there’s at least one killer. Meanwhile, the colony’s new leader has a plan—but Leif has doubts. Will this man save the settlement, or use his power to become a dictator? Leif and Yong’s mission is clear: they must leave the colony in shape to survive. Leif is a retired soldier, not a detective, and when it comes to investigating a crime, he doesn’t have a clue. Literally. Still, it falls to him to follow the evidence and find the killer. He also needs to deal with the leader and the leader’s plan. If Leif fails, the only mystery may be how long it will take for everyone to die.


The Alienation Gene

The Alienation Gene by Marinus Mans

Alexander de Swardt has lived a charmed life after a miracle drug cured him of a rare neurological disorder. Now a chief executive for a blue-chip company, he’s high on power and his fast-paced lifestyle. But the cracks begin to show as he realises that something far more sinister coils beneath the surface of his world. Medical doctor Heinrich Sauerman’s experimental formula is all that stands between Alexander and a return to life in a wheelchair, but when the doctor vanishes, along with his formula, Alexander is toppled into a madcap hunt to track down the doctor. But he’s not the only one seeking Sauerman, in addition to getting to the bottom of the mysterious disappearance of the Boophone disticha plants that are somehow linked to the drug that got Alexander walking again. Alexander soon discovers that his reality is not as sane, safe, or predictable as he’d like, and if he doesn’t get to Sauerman first, others will, whose intentions may well doom all of reality.


Platinum Rust

Platinum Rust by Andrew Gniadek

A heavy stench of burnt popcorn wafted off of the suspect as he was hauled into the station. Four dead men with a drunk suspect in custody. As strange as it seemed the main suspect was this one armed man. Lucky for them he is too tired to put up a fight. Soon enough they will find out how strange he is with the wild stories he tells them. They also find out how violently dangerous he is.


A Stand-in for Dying

A Stand-in for Dying by Rick Moskovitz's

In a near future world on the brink of environmental catastrophe, a mysterious woman brokers an anonymous pact between two men for the older man to inhabit the younger man’s body when he dies in exchange for a fortune and access to vast knowledge. The consequences for both men evolve over the ensuing years, while the covert agency behind the mind swapping technology seeks to use it to rule the world. Their moral and emotional development is informed by the resourceful women who love them, one an accomplished journalist, the other a teacher who guides AI’s to feel emotions and advocates for them to have equal rights with carbon-based humans.


Koinobi: Book one of the Koinobi Trilogy

Koinobi: Book one of the Koinobi Trilogy by Reid Minnich

How far would you go to help a parasitic insect from the stars? Tweeskzaht nudges human civilization and technology forward from the shadows. Unaware of the war in the stars above it, Earth is in the cross-hairs of both sides. To save her adopted home, she must reveal herself to a small band of humans. Will Mike’s self-sacrifice, Kindra’s cunning, and David’s intelligence be enough to save Earth from becoming a hunting ground?


Fox Hunt (Fox Meridian Book 1

Fox Hunt (Fox Meridian Book 1 by Niall Teasdale

A spree killer with a purpose? A creative dispute taken to extremes? It’s up to Tara ‘Fox’ Meridian to untangle the mess before more people die. Fresh back from a training visit to Luna City on the Moon, Fox Meridian is called to the murder of the main writer on an internet video show, Murder is My Business. Business has become very cutthroat. While it seems that the case may resolve down to a ratings war between two channels, as the trail of deaths continues, Fox begins to believe that the killer may have a more personal agenda, and that events from her past may be coming back to haunt her. Soon her job and her life are on the line as she races to stop the deaths and save her friend.


Sibling Rivalry, A Short Story

Sibling Rivalry, A Short Story by Anthony Francis

"A great choice for anyone who loves science fiction that asks hard questions about sentience and what it really means to make ethical choices." - Long and Short Reviews Nick Walker is the world's best designer of artificial intelligences, and today was supposed to be the pinnacle of his career: the field test of his greatest creation Nickolai. But now Nickolai is destroyed, its entire development team is dead and Nick's on the run, trapped in a deadly battle of wits with his previous creation, Nicole, a cold and devious artificial intelligence who has decided the last thing she wants in this world ... is a sibling.


Pallas Lost

Pallas Lost by Jake Morrison

SPSFC 2022 SPSFC 2023

When Ensign Vasyli Nikonov’s ship happened upon a drifting derelict, he had no idea how drastically his life was about to change. Not only had the crew been killed in an impossible manner, the Captain of the ship left a reference to the child’s tale of the lost colony of Pallas. Elsewhere in the Fifteen Systems, scholar Eliot Charter gamely starts his own fool’s quest to prove that Pallas is real. Armed with nothing but naivety and knowledge, he hires mercenary Captain Skadi Ulfsdöttir to help him on his journey. Things quickly spiral out of hand, leaving them all wondering if Pallas was truly Lost...


Life in the Shadows

Life in the Shadows by Joyce Reynolds-Ward

IN A TECH-DRIVEN BIOREMEDIATION FUTURE, HARD CHOICES MUST BE MADE. Powerful mother. Powerful daughter. Sarah Stephens and her daughter Diana Landreth run bioremediation companies dependent upon neural nets and nanotechnology to operate complex biobots. Sometimes competitors, sometimes collaborators, while they disagree, they are still mother and daughter. And then the Disruption Machine begins its campaign of devastation. In the process of their collaboration to stop the Disruption Machine, the shadows in their lives force their paths into a dangerous divergence. Sarah chooses politics and power. Diana chooses research and family. What happens when their choices collide?


Mercury's Shadow

Mercury's Shadow by PJ Garcin

SPSFC 2022

One man's lust for power threatens the future of humanity—can a young girl from the outer system stop it all? Imogen “Chim” Esper is thrust into the center of an interplanetary conflict when her family is torn apart by the cruel and indifferent Kardashev Corporation. Forced to run, along with her robotic best friend, Chim struggles to find her place in a society that is poised for revolutionary transformation. The Kardashev Corporation dominates all commerce and politics in the solar system. Its megalomaniac CEO, Alton Neal, is hell-bent on transforming society by capturing the full energy output of the sun through the creation of a Dyson Swarm. Citizens of Earth and the stations throughout the system must band together to protect access to the lifeblood of the system or risk becoming permanently enslaved to the Kardashev Corporation. Mercury’s Shadow is a thrilling adventure that blends real science, big ideas, grand adventure and high stakes to introduce a new heroine and a deep universe that will leave readers asking for more.


No Lack of Sunshine

No Lack of Sunshine by Eric Kay

SPSFC

A Hard Sci-Fi Novel With a Hopeful Twist "If Red Mars was half the length and infused with The Martian with a touch of Bobverse." Warm, tropical weather, strong gusts of wind, poisonous air, and metallic-tasting seas that kill more organisms than it breeds — yet, life on the South Island goes about as well as it can. There was a reason why Earth colonized this place. Everything is familiar, consistent — consistency is a welcome reprieve, and Ava’s planet has plenty of it. The fifth to be born among the stars, Ava sets forth to make a name for herself despite this obscure claim to fame. Being raised by emotionless, loveless robots doesn’t exactly merit a natural flair for spontaneity or empathy, but Ava makes do. At the very least, she tries to. Her life is here on South Island, where the sea represents freedom and the air symbolizes a dangerous kind of thrill. But now, her existence is under threat. The autonomous supply ship fails to deliver. With only a few weeks’ worth of oxygen left, Ava and her beau must embark on a journey to retrieve more. However, what once was a straightforward quest slowly morphs into one rife with ambush. Something has affected the robots’ advanced processors, causing them to spiral into a fruitless quest for an artifact that may not even exist. And the more they wait, the more Ava’s in peril. Will Ava be able to save herself and her colony from asphyxiation? Will the robots prove too strong, too cunning to be overcome? Or will Ava succumb to her own resentful demons and allow her personal battles to take center stage?


Day 115 on an Alien World

Day 115 on an Alien World by Jeannette Bedard

SPSFC

A barren world. A crashed colony ship. A saboteur at work. After a tarnished military record leaves her unable to find work on Earth, Margo is hunting for a fresh start. A colonizing mission heading to a new world creates the perfect opportunity—or at least that’s what she thinks. Strapped into a crashing colony ship, she realizes how wrong she is. On the ground of their destination planet, the straight forward colonizing mission becomes a scramble for survival. Her new world is harsh and unforgiving. Accidents keep happening. Too many to blame on bad luck alone. The trail of evidence leads Margo to a startling conclusion—one of her fellow colonists is a saboteur. Tomorrow is the colony’s first communications window with Earth and their only chance to send a message home. With the fate of the colony at stake, will Margo stop the saboteur before it’s too late?


A Hymn for the Dying

A Hymn for the Dying by J.L. Doty

SPSFC

For many the dying part is hard. For some the living part is harder. At sixteen years of age, Mathius’s life is focused on scrounging bits of food in the midst of a five-way civil war on the planet Novalis III. Two government factions and three rebel factions are all hell-bent on killing one another, and the civilian population is caught in the middle. If Mathius doesn’t find food, he and his father, mother and sister will go hungry for the day, a not unusual occurrence. Mathius must also avoid the rebel factions, who frequently kidnap young boys and force them to become soldiers. Will the Commonwealth of Allied Systems intervene? And what of the Blacksword Regiment, the elite soldiers of the Commonwealth Security Corps? Will they sweep in and make everything right? And the Kelk Supremacy, a race of strange humans with blood-red eyes, and pale bluish-white skin? They're perfectly human, and yet they are not. Why does Mathius keep seeing signs that the Kelk are somehow involved in the unrest? A gripping saga of war and redemption. Order it now.


Devon's Island

Devon's Island by SI CLARKE

SPSFC

This is a work of neurodiverse, culturally diverse, gender-bendy, socio-politico-economic, drunken-arguments-in-the-pub science fiction – not bang-bang-pew-pew science fiction. Other stories will take you to Mars. This one will take you inside the boardroom, the pub, and the bedroom with the people planning the mission. Gurdeep is an engineer and a soldier. Georgie’s a food scientist. One is pragmatic with a tough outer shell; the other's an optimist, a person of ideas and compassion. In the span of a single afternoon, the couple find themselves in charge of planning a self-sustaining colony on Mars. Together, they’re humanity’s last hope for survival. They have 160 slots to fill with experts from all over the world as they set about designing an all-new society with its own government, economy, and culture – and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Among those chosen for the mission is Devon, an autistic scientist with a unique skill set who finds life on Earth strange and alienating. Maybe a whole new planet is exactly what's needed. With 1,114 days until the launch, excitement and tensions run high. Earth’s second chance hangs in the balance. Between strict genetic requirements and the dangers of the dystopian almost-present, will everyone make it to the final countdown?


Quantum Space

Quantum Space by Douglas Phillips

SPSFC

Space turned out to be deeper than anyone imagined. High above the windswept plains of Kazakhstan, three astronauts on board a Russian Soyuz capsule begin their reentry. A strange shimmer in the atmosphere, a blinding flash of light, and the capsule vanishes in a blink as though it never existed. On the ground, evidence points to a catastrophic failure, but a communications facility halfway around the world picks up a transmission that could be one of the astronauts. Tragedy averted, or merely delayed? A classified government project on the cutting edge of particle physics holds the clues, and with lives on the line, there is little time to waste. Daniel Rice is a government science investigator. Marie Kendrick is a NASA operations analyst. Together, they must track down the cause of the most bizarre event in the history of human spaceflight. They draw on scientific strengths as they plunge into the strange world of quantum physics, with impacts not only to the missing astronauts, but to the entire human race. If you liked the authenticity of The Martian, the page-turning pace of Da Vinci Code, and the inspirational world view of Arthur C. Clarke, you'll love Quantum Space. A mind-bending journey from the ultra-small to the vast stage of the Milky Way.


The Shift

The Shift by Mihai Pruna

SPSFC

"If you think this Universe is bad, you should see some of the others." -Philip K. Dick It’s prom night for Pinkersville High School senior Jimmy Zarici. A proud space nerd, until today all he wanted to do was study aerospace engineering, play video games, and get to home base with his girlfriend. Tonight, his life will change forever, but not exactly as he’d hoped. In the blink of an eye, the constellations in the night sky are replaced by unfamiliar stars. Earth is thrust into chaos as humanity realizes the planet has been transported to another star system. But we are not alone: Seven other versions of Earth, plucked from alternate universes, orbit a star much like our Sun. On one of these planets, the Third Reich is in charge—and they have armed spaceships headed our way. Jimmy finds himself part of a select few who will determine the future of humanity. Led by US President Fairuza Bishil—a committed leader, haunted by loss and suddenly called on to guide the world through an unprecedented interplanetary crisis—they include Tim Brown, an underemployed genius working the NASA night shift until the universe changed on his watch, and Anna Kozinski, a psychology professor finally finding her place in a world that has lost its own. Against a backdrop of fear, anxiety, and global crisis, this brave and diverse team must navigate family drama, terrestrial conflict, and a whole bunch of complicated equations as they struggle to save Earth from the greatest enemy it has ever faced. Join them as they collaborate across nations and universes to battle the forces of evil—and find love along the way. The Shift is a treat for readers who enjoyed The Expanse, Ender’s Game, or The Man in the High Castle. Get your copy today!


The Lead Cloak

The Lead Cloak by Erik Hanberg

SPSFC

In the future, privacy is a thing of the past. "Staggeringly smart… Hanberg's expertly honed storytelling is sleek and fast… [an] entertaining tale." —Kirkus Reviews Nevada, 2081. Colonel Byron Shaw safeguards the world’s innermost secrets. From a control center in Area 51, he monitors the expansive surveillance system that once saved him certain death at the hands of ruthless kidnappers. But not everyone trusts technology that peers through strangers’ eyes, so it’s no shock when a guerrilla attack nearly wipes out the network and spills his blood. Tasked with tracking down the terrorist cell, Byron sets off on a globe-spanning chase that brings him to the outer edge of Earth’s atmosphere. But as he infiltrates their ranks, a growing suspicion about the system that preserved his own life could sabotage civilization. Torn between duty and doubt, one man’s decision could rewire humanity’s future. The Lead Cloak is a tech-savvy sci-fi adventure novel. If you like high-stakes action, thought-provoking dystopian themes, and gripping twists, then you’ll love Erik Hanberg’s cerebral page-turner.


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