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Duckett & Dyer: St. Nicks For Hire by G.M. Nair In the midst of a historic blizzard, Michael and Stephanie have to beat the crap out of Santa Claus. That's it. That's the story. But, unlike some other Christmas Specials, this one is 100% canon. This case and others are included in Duckett & Dyer: The Mystery Of The Murdered Guy. |
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The Long Lost War by Jeff Walker Far from Earth, in a distant solar system, clone soldiers are stuck in an on-going battle against colonial separatists. John 999801 must battle against an enemy that refuses to give up, and dreams of a woman he feels he's seen before. The life of this low ranking clone soldier is about to take a turn for the worst. Or is it going to open his eyes to the truth? Can one clone soldier make a difference? And who is the woman in his dream? Answers and horrors await him as he joins his fellow replicas to the surface of a planet called... Hell. |
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The Jungle Planet: A Science Fiction Thriller Novel by Jeff Walker The Jungle Planet is a sci fi trillerâThe crew of the harvesting space vessel Skyward Seven, are bound for Dreganon Vâa jungle world with a rich, and highly concentrated oxygen atmosphere. As they extract the planetâs dense O2 supply, Katelan Driscoll (Astrobiologist/interplanetary botanist) and crew being to discover that this world is more than what they bargained for. Not only is the air thick with an overabundance of pollen and spore that continually clog their collectors., but strange things occur with the surrounding plant life The jungle isnât all that it seems. Katelan will discover something else is waiting for them in the depths of this deep, dark jungle planet of Dreganon V. If you love exploration science fiction thrillers and unexpected horrors on alien worlds, then The Jungle Planet is the book youâll want to read till the very end. Author Jeff Walker (The Long Lost War, The Massive Planet: The Adventures of Deep Contact, and Outer Red) takes you to a world full of beauty and wonder. It is also one that brings out our fears and evenâour deaths! |
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Greater Than His Nature by Edited by Eirik Gumeny In every laboratory, every experiment, there are two diametrical energies at play: chaos and control. The raw pandemonium of what is, and the diamond-sheen of what could be. And in between? Blood, bones, and broken hearts. Because no equation, no solution, will ever be able to contain the wild entropy of the human soul. Within these pages, you'll find reverse mermaids and murder-spiders and bloated flesh-monsters tearing down the Golden Gate Bridge. A nurse waving a patient into a haunted MRI machine. A reimagined Mary Shelley obsessing about her galvanic guy. The dead will come back, organs will grow where you least expect them, and "healthy" will be outed as a disease all its own, the most damning by a long mile. Because, like the highest-born hopes of bodies sacrificed to progress, like the darkest dreams of the brains behind the beakers, mad science truly knows no bounds. Featuring new fiction from Katharine Duckett, A.T. Greenblatt, Ally Malinenko, Tyler Battaglia, Samantha H. Chung, Jonathan Fortin, Brianna Nicole Frentzko, Josh Hanson, Wade Hunter, M.W. Irving, Pooja Joshi, Andrew Kozma, K.L. Mill, Lena Ng, Robert Perez, Zachary Rosenberg, Jennifer Lee Rossman, Violet Schwegler, and Nicole M. Wolverton. Edited by Eirik Gumeny. |
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Daughter of Sorrow by Abigail Silver Gracie has come a long way from the state-run orphanage she spent a year in at age 6. Now a highly trained member of the Overwatch and one of the most powerful elder children on Cybele, she is trying to keep the peace between her psychic kin and the planet's mortal population. When her father's dark pastâ something she thought she knew and had come to terms withâ comes to light with a new and devastating twist, Gracie must decide what is real before everything she loves burns to ashes. |
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Visions of Fire by Abigail Silver Visions of Fire follows Gracie Usuriel, a young pyrokinetic, as she leaves the safety of her father's farm to find her calling at Landing University. Eager to learn the truth about her father's past, which he always carefully curated when she was living under his roof, Gracie is unprepared for the brutal reality that awaits her. Will her strange and growing powers be enough to protect her from the darkness her father held at bay or will they be her undoing? |
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When Parker signed up for the new colony world, they said the journey would be easy; just a nice, long stasis nap, followed by a smooth descent in landing pods. But when an asteroid impact damages their pod, Parker and her fellow passengers are prematurely launched and left stranded on a wild, uninhabited moon â the remnant of a failed terraforming experiment. With no way to call for help, the group must race against a rapidly-closing window of time to reach an abandoned camp before their slim chance at rescue is gone forever. This journey will be far from easy as the dangers of this alien landscape reveal themselves at every turn, and the only one who can lead them through it is Parker â but she has her own priorities, and survival may not be one of them. |
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Suspended in the Stars by E. A. Hendryx A girl in hiding. A boy on the run. The fate of the galaxy between them. When Talie Zarna is forced to hide rogue soldier, Renner Cartha, her life isnât the only thing threatened. Living as the famed Soaring Staress on the circus spaceship Midway masks her true identity, but Rennerâs very presence threatens to draw unwanted attention. As a former royal guard, Renner holds secrets of his own. Like evidence of a political assassination he is on a mission to deliver to the Xerus Galaxyâs governing council. Renner's flirtatious confidence is at odds with the seriousness of his mission, but when his former guard captain, Jas Uli-Tai, discovers him hiding among the circus performers, Talie risks everything she's come to cherishâgoing so far as to leave the safety of the Phenomena circusâto do what is right. With Jas closing in at every turn, Talie and Renner come close to finding the High Council only to discover corruption at its core. Their only option for escape is a cocky smuggler whoâs not quite what he seems and an underground resistance group called The Rising thatâs fighting for change in the galaxy. Faced with the weight of her true identity and the cost of embracing it, Talie must decide if she is willing to give up everything for the sake of saving the Galaxy, even if that means giving up the boy she loves. --- Suspended in the Stars is the first book in the Xerus Galaxy Saga. It is a no spice romantic space opera perfect for fans of The Lunar Chronicles, The Starboard Trilogy, and The Illuminae Files . |
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Fugitive of Talionis by C.J. Milacci A treacherous journey. A devious enemy. The hunt for the fugitives has begun. Bria Averton and her friends have pulled off an impossible escape after being held captive in the city of Talionis for months. Now theyâre on the run and desperate to reach possible allies in Eryndale, but the Commanderâs hunt for them is fierce and relentless. Bria fights to keep her friends safe as each day becomes more perilous than the last. With Arkâs forces closing in and new dangers arising, she wonders who to trust and battles her growing fears. But one reality becomes clear: thereâs a greater peril than being a recruit of Talionis. Itâs being a fugitive. |
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Recruit of Talionis by C.J. Milacci When the world falls apart, one girl must find hope in the darkness. Seventeen-year-old Bria Averton grew up in a small town of survivors near the ruins of Portland, Maine, years after the Demise of North America. But when she is kidnapped and forced to become a soldier in the mysterious city of Talionis, she finds herself thrust into a world of danger and darkness. Unknown forces are at work in the city, and Bria soon realizes that escape is impossible. With her own guilt and the oppressive evil of the city threatening to drown her, Bria must find a way to surviveâŠand discover if hope is possible. Even here. |
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IAMOS, S.C.D. 8378 One choice was all it took to put two worlds in jeopardyâbut that choice could be the thing that saves them both. By choosing to betray the geroi, Nadin saved the lives of her friends in the future, but it may have cost her own. Imprisoned and sentenced to a fate worse than death, her only hope of rescue may lie in trusting the one person her heart tells her to distrust most: Ceilos, her one-time partner and a traitor in his own right. But accepting Ceilosâ help may be the only hope Nadin has of reuniting with Isaak... and saving both Iamos and Mars. Time is running out. Something is coming, something powerful enough to change the face of the entire solar system. If Nadin and Isaak canât figure out how to stop it, all of Iamos will be destroyed. Little do they know thatâs been the Liberatorâs plan all along... |
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Devout: An Anthology of Angels by Edited By Quinton Li Featuring work by FreydĂs Moon, Dorian Yosef Weber, Angela Sun, Ian Haramaki, Tyler Battaglia, Daniel Marie James, Morgan Dante, Cas Trudeau, AurĂ©lio Loren, Rae Novotny, Rafael NicolĂĄs & Emily Hoffman. A collection of stories, poetry, and art dedicated to the angelic. Here you will find the strange, the creepy, the funky, slightly silly, pieces with feeling. An experience buried deep inside, it might be from another dimension. Something questionable that makes you wonder if your first impression of the world is accurate enough to trust. Or maybe something human â too human. How about a feeling between a feeling? Longing, yearning. Conflict between moral and love. World between worlds. Above all â angelic. Are we what angels make of us, or are angels what we make of them? This anthology is for mature audiences due to themes and explicit content. Our genres include, but are not limited to: Contemporary Fantasy Romance, Fantasy, Dark Fantasy, Horror, Historical Fantasy Romance, Mythological, Gothic Fiction, Science Fiction, Horror Drama |
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Fool's Play by David R. Packer, Tao Wong Not everyone falls during an apocalypse. Some rise to the occasion. For Fool and Jackal, the System Apocalypse was a chance to start again. A chance to rise, and be who they were meant to be. Now, they're trying to offer others the same opportunities as part of a secret organization helping humanity survive the System. Today's mission? Nothing big, just your typical save-the-princess quest. But when you're the Acolyte of a Trickster god, typical is the last thing you should expect. Just ask Fool's cat. Fool's Play is the first book in a new series in the System Apocalypse universe. Written by David R. Packer in Tao Wong's bestselling post-apocalyptic LitRPG universe, System Apocalypse: Kismet follows a different path through a post-apocalyptic world, one of hope, redemption, and second chances. |
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The Manhattan Split: Proto by Chris Kenny Manhattan has been split in two. A war rages between Downtown and Uptown, with two mega-corporations, TegaLyfe and Kaizen Sciences at the forefront. Meanwhile, a former bounty hunter named Cade is serving a life sentence in jail for a murder he didnât commit. The CEO of TegaLyfe, Rodrigo Ortega sees this as an opportunity. Nueva Yorkâs most powerful man gives Cade a lifeline. The brief is simple. Do the job, no more jail time. Only one catch. Cade has seventy-two hours to complete the mission, or heâs back in prison forever. Question is, can Cade take out the head of Kaizen Sciences, Ichiro Nishikawa, and live to tell the tale? Cade needs to navigate the dangerous streets of Nueva York, which are filled with augmented humans desperate to survive in the dystopian future of 2082. Friends are scarce, enemies are everywhere. Rival bounty hunters like Tayo Akinyemi look to undermine Cade at every turn, and all the while, the clock is ticking. Cade must remember his past skills to get the task done. As he plummets into the depths of Nueva York, heâs going to come face-to-face with dark secrets, which could unravel a tangle of lies that run deeper than he can imagine. Will Cade know who to trust and where to turn when the moment comes? Fans of Blade Runner, Altered Carbon, Neuromancer, and Deus Ex will love this exciting cyberpunk action thriller! |
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Visions of Iotan by Jaimie N. Schock When Cillianâs daughter accidentally poisons a bison-sized alien child, he goes to prison. But intervention by another alien sends him and his family on a journey to a nearby solar system. Along with a group of humans and aliens, he investigates a planet with glee, but soon enough, all hell breaks loose. Meanwhile, Cillian meets a priest named Father Whalen who helps guide him on a path to faith. Whalen is helpful ... at first. Shortly after the mission begins, he becomes obsessed with Cillian and will stop at nothing to have him. Will Cillian shake off Father Whalenâs advances? And, more importantly, will anyone survive the ill-fated trip to a new planet? |
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In the late 21st century, Earth has been ravaged by climate change. Seeing it was time for decisive action, the billionaires bioengineered immortality, purchased the last habitable biospheres on the planet as their personal shares, and fled to Mars. For everyone left behind, life on a dying planet isn't easy. The lucky ones live in enclosed cities eating bug protein and saving up for passage to Mars. The rest of humanity exists as climate refugees passing through worlds that are perpetually on the brink of ecological collapse. Ian Gateman, one of Earth's last bureaucrats, works on the settlement of ecological refugees while he, his wife, Anne, and their son, Alex, look forward to life on Mars. When Anne becomes terminally ill, she decides to upload her consciousness and live forever in Lotus: a corporate-run virtual reality simulation. To keep up with the monthly payments for Anne's digital residency and stop Lotus from deleting her consciousness, Ian takes on a special assignment. Tasked with finding a buyer for a fledgling colony of newly settled ecological refugees, Ian travels to the estates of several visiting immortals. As Ian tries to flog the colony to a brooding class of bored immortals, it becomes clear they have their own plans for humanity's future. |
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Step through a gateway hidden inside your dreaming mind. From the gritty streets of San Francisco to labyrinthine dream worlds conjured from humanity's collective psyche, this is a philosophical, page-turning, dark-fantasy odyssey. Meet Kid, an American foster system survivor turned clandestine courier for an underground syndicate, The White Lotus. With the disappearance of their previous runner, Kid must navigate through a harrowing night filled with deranged stalkers and nightmarish creatures born of his darkest fears. Then there's Alice, a teen prodigy from The Young School â an enigmatic institute for violent psychics, also known as travelers. These travelers have the power to traverse The Dream, a parallel universe birthed from humanity's collective consciousness, capable of manipulating society, acquiring superhuman abilities, and even discovering immortality. Alice yearns to harness these mystical forces to gain her freedom. When an assignment goes dead wrong in Chinatown, Kid and Alice's paths intersect. This streetwise runner and covert operative of parallel worlds find themselves in a reality-defying struggle for the survival of humanity. Can they channel their abilities, love, and determination to mend the very fabric of existence, defeat an ancient evil, and safeguard both realmsâThe Dream and The Real? This visionary dark-fantasy novel, woven with elements of thriller, horror, science-fiction, and the supernatural, resonates with readers who appreciate intricate world-building, in-depth characterization, and an engaging, fast-paced narrative. Praise for The Rivener âThe Rivener' offers a profound, immersive experience resonating with wisdom and truth. With endearing characters and a formidable villain, it's a soulful, thrilling narrative akin to The Sandman and The Matrix." - A Page of Words and Wishes "Littered with feeling and philosophy, violence, and mythology. This had me gripped from start to finish.â - Christopher Badcock, Those You Killed "Absolutely brilliant. An epic mix between Gaimanâs âThe Sandmanâ and everything I wanted but never got from Kingâs âDark Towerâ.â - The Misfit Bookshelf "The Rivener pulls you in from the very first page and doesnât let go. You emerge completely invested in the world and its characters and are left questioning the nature of reality.â - Book Naked |
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Kenai by Dave Dobson Jess Amiko is long past her days as a space marine, with all the glory of that time tarnished beyond repair by what came after. Trying to rebuild from the ashes, she's taken a job as a security guard on Kenai, a lonely world far from the Council systems. It's supposed to be easy duty - quiet and peaceful, on a docile world with no real threats, watching over an archeological dig at a site built by a race long vanished. Betrayed and attacked by forces unknown, and finding that nothing on Kenai makes sense, Jess is plunged into a desperate fight for survival that leads her deep into the mysteries of Kenai's past, and deep into the hardship and paradox the planet imposes on all who call it home. |
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The Spring of the Sentinels by Eduard Lerperger A small town plagued by mysterious disappearances. A girl tormented by apocalyptic dreams. An impending alien invasion. Welcome to Aurora Bay, Oregonâa picturesque town turned epicenter of strange and otherworldly events. After surviving a traumatic earthquake in town, Ava Mason, a 16-year-old book-lover, reluctantly returns to the place she once called home. Her life takes a turn for the surreal as she's caught up in a web of chilling disappearances and unsettling nightmares that bleed into reality. These dreams hint at a destiny tied to the mysterious Sentinelsâtowering entities of unfathomable power. When Ava crosses paths with Hailey, a secretive girl whose robot insists Ava is its rightful owner, the mystery deepens. Ava must confront her past, her fears, and unlock the secret of the Sentinels to stop the impending alien apocalypse. Each revelation plunges Ava further into a cosmic chess game. She's forced to grow and make hard decisions that could trigger dire consequences. She might be humanity's only hope. With the weight of the world on their shoulders |
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On the Winds of Quasars by T.A. Bruno The thrilling sequel to In the Orbit of Sirens THE WORLD OF KAMARIA WILL NEVER BE THE SAME. In the aftermath of the brutal slaying of a sacred aukânai deity, Cade and Nella Castus are taken from their home and brought deep into the wilderness. They must make their way back to civilization, traversing dangerous landscapes as they are pursued relentlessly by their captorâa winged abomination. As Denton and Eliana search for their missing children, they uncover something that will change all life on Kamaria forever. |
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Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman It's the most-watched game show in the galaxy! In a flash, every human-erected construction on Earth--from Buckingham Palace to the tiniest of sheds to all the trucks and cars--collapses in a heap, sinking into the ground. The buildings and all the people inside, they've all been atomized and transformed into the dungeon: an 18-level labyrinth filled with traps, monsters, and loot. A dungeon so enormous, it circles the entire globe. Only a few dare venture inside. But once you're in, you can't get out. And what's worse, each level has a time limit. You have but days to find a staircase to the next level down, or it's game over. In this game, it's not about your strength or your dexterity. It's about your views and your followers. It's about building an audience and killing those goblins with style. You can't just survive here. You gotta survive big. You gotta fight with vigor, with excitement. You gotta make them stand up and cheer. And if you do have that "it" factor, you may just find yourself with a following. That's the only way to truly survive in this game, with the help of the loot boxes dropped upon you by the generous benefactors watching from across the galaxy. They call it Dungeon Crawler World. But for Carl, it's anything but a game. |
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Four generations ago a generation ship crashed into the sands of Savene. Since then, its survivors have eked out an existence in the planetâs hostile desert. Yet, the tech is failing, the sands are encroaching, and people are dying. Rescue is still generations awayâif it comes at all. But Marsa is a survivor. And an outcast. Infected with the Chrysalisâa disease that grants its carriers uncanny abilitiesâshe keeps her distance from her dwindling community. Until an old friendâs dying wish sends her and a young boy across Saveneâs inhospitable sands in search of something Marsa had thought sheâd long forgotten. Hope. |
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The Tronis Assignment by E L Grover Humanity has started to colonize other worlds and learned the lessons of colonization anew. A recent war with a neighboring alien race has prompted changes in Earth's military. Straining the relationship between Earth and her colonies. Worlds such as Tronis, now a trade center that was spared from the war. Pirates have started to attack the Tronis trade routes. The latest attack has taken hostages, and the government is forced to ask for help from Earth. Enter Gamma Squadron, the United Nations Space Corps' latest evolution of Earth's special forces teams. Commander Jubert and his two squads lead by Chief Petty Officer Keith, and Petty Officer First Class Holte, are tasked with rescuing the hostages and putting an end to this piracy with any means necessary. The only complication is the presence of a journalist, John Aerovant. This adds one more life Keith must protect amid a battle inside a pirate stronghold. |
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Evolution of the Elements by T.M. Faulkner The Elements are phenomenal beings, each with unique and extraordinary powers. It is unknown why and how long they have been dormant from the dangerous worlds of Izara and Raziz, but now the time has come to be awakened. In the wondrous City of Lementes, Jaykin, a deeply troubled young man, is searching for his father, who has disappeared in baffling circumstances. He nearly gives up hope until he secures the help of the mysterious Kanaren and his trusty companion, Q-Tech. As their adventure begins, Kanaren warns of an impending invasion, but no one in power will listen, and Jaykin discovers he has an innate and disturbing ability. |
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The Forsaken Planet by Bryan Wilson The world is more than just a planet. Itâs an ancient tribute to the woman who guided it from ruin, a devastation she foresaw arising again. When mysterious aircraft wreak havoc across Earthâs skies, it is revealed that there are clusters of other planets where humankind resides, distant worlds where the people wield the power of the stars themselves. It is an energy force that can bring about miracles or, as the alien fleetâs ruthless leader displays, unleash horrors beyond imagination. After experiencing a loss during the onslaught, Colton Samson, an ordinary college student, vows to protect his loved ones at any cost. But to learn the power to do so, he must enlist into the Army of the Universal Throneâa second alien force with its own agenda. With the revelation of a secret prophecy foretelling humanityâs demise and Coltonâs improbable role in preventing it, he embarks alongside a diverse group of friends to the Throneâs capital, the planet of Vintara. There he faces prejudice from supposed allies, lifelike combat simulations that test him to his core, and the looming threat of a universal war. Only by embracing his true potential can Colton hope to secure the safety he seeks, in a universe that views him as nothing more than Forsaken. -A coming-of-age story about family, the bonds of friendship, and leaping blind into the dark to protect them both. Come learn the truth about Earthâs ancient past alongside Colton, journeying with him to Vintara, where action, mystery, and a side of romance await. Itâs time we all begin to grasp the true power of the stars |
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At the Threshold of the Universe by T.A. Bruno The epic conclusion to the Song of Kamaria trilogy. ALL SONGS END. War ravages Kamaria as an old enemy resurfaces from the depths of the ocean. Offering no support in the coming battles, the Aukânai isolate themselves in their tightly guarded Nest. Outgunned and outmatched, humanity once again trembles on the edge of obliteration. The Castus family is torn apart. Denton fights on the front lines, hoping to free Cade from a nightmarish foe. Meanwhile, Eliana and Nella set out on a path that will change everything they understand about the Sirens. The Song will end, but who will remain to hear its final verse? |
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Three Rivers Plague by Zachary Forbes After a return concert in his hometown, famous rockstar Thomas Wylde witnesses the unleashing of a biological weapon, which forces the nation into anarchy. His band is soon plunged into the post-apocalyptic city of Pittsburgh, now plagued by undead horrors, cults, cocaine junkies, and even the mafia. A member of his band falls victim to the deadly new virus, sending the group spiraling into the mystery of this supposedly Soviet-made bioweapon. But not everyone is convinced of its origins--like Boston police detective Dick Kennedy. In the following days, it's up to Thomas and his band to discover the truth, not only about this new world, but about his government, his friends, and himself, all the while trying to carve out a slab of survival for everyone and everything he cares about. This book is a 9-episode story, with each episode divided into digestible chapters. Set in post-apocalyptic 1980s America, Three Rivers Plague will make you fall in love with its charming characters and keep you on the edge of your seat with heart-pounding suspense. Itâs a collection of elements from all sorts of genre fiction, including sci-fi, horror, dystopian, and even detective thriller. Thereâs something here for everyone to sink their teeth into! |
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The Darkest Memories by Alyse N. Steves My name is Hadley Gordon. Parahuman mutations: telekinesis and telepathy. Employment: Agency for Parahuman Affairs. Age: twenty-six, not that I remember the first twenty-one. Weâll get back to that. I thought digging through criminalsâ minds for a living was hard enough, but then a serial killer came for my friends. The good news? I saw him. I fought him. I survived. The bad news? He got away. Oh, and remember that memory loss thing? Now, my missing memories stand between us and a killer, and heâs determined to finish what he started. |
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Twelve Blades in Contempt by Jorden Darrett To her clan, she is nothing. She will use their contempt for change, and her strength for war. Aiya is a Ginju, a hidden assassin within the Egaishan Empire. As the black sheep of her clan, she grapples for a connection with her deity, ridiculed by her own family and forced into doing their biddings. Chafing under the heavy expectations of her father, a collision with a rival clan provides her with the chance to prove herself. But a grievous mistake causes their plan to backfire, forcing Aiya to choose between loyalty to all sheâs ever known or independence for all sheâs ever loved. As civil unrest widens cracks in the empire, Aiya must decide for herself how best to forge her path. To protect her brothers and win respect in the land, sheâll need to turn a new leaf and oppose her clan and her empire. She must conspire with clans once held in contempt and reach new heights of power to create a new world of their own, in a world of spirits, deities and conniving lords. Along the way she will be forced to find her place, her morality and her strength. Medieval Japan-inspired progression/epic fantasy, for fans of Mistborn and The Poppy War |
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Divinityâs Twilight: Remnant by Christopher Russell Divinity's Twilight: Remnant is the much-anticipated sequel to the multi-award-winning epic fantasy novel, Divinity's Twilight: Rebirth. Power is a curse. As Vallen and his fellow cadets flee fallen Darmatia, he is forced to confront the ghosts of his past. The friend who perished that he might live. The girl whose smile haunts his nightmares. Now, a third voice joins themâsomething dark, something ancient. And the more Vallen uses his magic, the stronger it becomes. Tools exist to be used. The flames of Sylette's vengeance are all but quenched. With each passing day, the dominion of the Sarconian Empire grows, and her treacherous father's throat drifts further from her reach. Sylette's last hope is a coded message, one that promises a growing resistance against the Empire. But even if she gains the means to avenge her mother's murder, one question remains: how many 'tools' is she willing to sacrifice to see her vengeance through? What color is love? Renar has learned to hide a great many things: his emotions, his art, and one truly devastating family secret. But when he must face the man who's controlled his life from the shadows, will he choose the family he's always known, or the dysfunctional crew he's been shackled with? For every ending, a beginning. Embers of conspiracy flare in Nemare and Sarconia. A resurrected Sarcon plots to reclaim his imprisoned flesh. As the winds of war swirl and forgotten myths rise, the choices these cadets make could save their country . . . . . . or unleash something far, far worse. |
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Divinityâs Twilight: Rebirth by Christopher Russell âRussellâs new high fantasy series launch is well written with a definite steampunk vibe and sword-and-sorcery appeal.â âLibrary Journal A world consumed by war. An ancient evil resurrected. A millennia-old bargain comes due . . . When two blades clash, the third will fall, and the fate of all will be jeopardized. To save Lozaria, the failures of the past must be atoned for by a new generation of heroes. The time has come for mortals to cast off sight and, in doing so, truly come to see . . . Victory is never absolute. Seven centuries ago, the forces of order won the Illyriite War on the plains of Harâmuth. Darmatus and Rabban Aurelian slew their elder brother, Sarcon, the despotic architect of the conflict, then sacrificed themselves to banish the cataclysmic vortex opened with his dying breath. The first advent of the Oblivion Well was thwarted. Even without their vanished gods, the seven races of Lozaria proved themselves capable of safeguarding their world. Or so the story goes. The year is now 697 A.B.H. (After the Battle of Harâmuth). Though war itself remains much the same, the weapons with which it is waged have evolved. Airships bearing powerful cannons ply the skies, reducing the influence of mages and their spells. Long-range communication has brought far-flung regions of Lozaria closer than ever before. At the center of this technological revolution are the three Terran states of Darmatia, Rabban, and Sarconia, who have fought a near ceaseless campaign of seven hundred years in an attempt to best each other. The roots of their enmity lie buried beneath the wasteland of Harâmuth, a place all three nations consider best forgotten. However, an ancient power sealed within Harâmuth has not forgotten them, and the descendants of those who fought on that field must now take a stand to rectify the mistakes of the past . . . |
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Child of Awareness by Abigail Silver Follow Gracie Usuriel, a young firebird, as she grows up among an eccentric family of immortal psychics. Making friends with her sister's ghost and falling for a cybernetic diplomat-in-training are average days for the daughter of the most (in)famous man in the world. If Gracie's flames can't illuminate her father's dark past, they may consume everything she loves. |
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Megalodon: Bloodbath by Michael Cole A series of bizarre occurrences suddenly plague the island of Cielo Nublado. A dead whale washes ashore riddled with enormous bite marks. A fishing charter is reported missing, jet skiers vanish, and a yacht is found mysteriously ravaged after some kind of enormous impact. Chief of Police Nico Medrano tries to investigate the matter. His search for answers puts him on a collision course with an eighty-foot predator, long thought extinct. Violent and merciless, it has risen to the surface, and seeks to wreak havoc on the small island community. Things only get worse for Nico after he discovers that a ruthless band of criminals, responsible for the deaths of two Miami cops, are lurking on the island. As the body count mounts, Nico is forced to simultaneously battle two separate monsters: Man and Meg. The result is a bloodbath. |
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The Training Grounds: Mystery of the Immortals by Jason Clark Debut author Jason Clark presents an exciting new genre-bending sci-fi/fantasy story set in a brutal future world, where swords settle disputes and those who can control the elements are the most feared warriors. Get ready for a fantastic escape from reality. When Darius receives an invitation to attend the Training Grounds, he wonders why an insignificant farm boy would be asked to join the most elite training academy in Merchant Valley. The only thing special about him is that he has unsettling visions he canât understand. Despite the unknown, he accepts this privilege, and with his best friend, they set out on this new adventure. While there, they quickly form alliances with a skilled archer, a talented blacksmith, and a powerful wielder of the elements. Together, this new band of friends will learn that not all is as it seems at this new school. In fact, secret plots abound. It makes them question everything and everyone, including the head of the school, Dean Anders. Now itâs up to this adventurous group to uncover the truth about their world and find out the meaning of Dariusâs vision. Visions that include a weapon known as the reaper that carries with it apocalyptic repercussions. But between classes, finding love, and training, will he and his friends be able to discover the truth before itâs too late? |
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Yesterday's Gone by Alice B. Sullivan When the world falls apart, it doesnât matter how. Itâs whoâs left to rebuild." -Sadie Gallagher Ten years after the Collapse, humanity rebuilds around a world teeming with infected. Determined to prove herself, Sadieâs only concern is turning eighteen so she can finally help keep her community safe. When an outsider shows up, fraying the threads of trust and security, Sadie's past comes undone, and her quaint life is ripped apart. In a world ravaged by the Collapse, a viral outbreak that turns its victims into flesh-eating monsters, eighteen-year-old Sadie Gallagher harbors an unshakable determination to prove her worth and help protect her communityâŠuntil an unwelcome guest saves her from the hands of the undead, and her life takes an unexpected turn. Standing alone in her belief that her heroine is innocent despite her leaderâs insistence of something sinister going on, Sadie wonders if her faith is well-placed or if this stranger has a hidden agenda of her own. A revelation looms on the horizonâone that will unravel a conspiracy involving the virus' origin and shatter Sadie's world. Yesterdayâs Gone is a gripping tale of resilience, deception, redemption, and survival in a world where trust is scarce and danger lurks at every turn. |
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The Indoctrination by K. L. Bone The story begins: âEmpress Dehartra, you have been charged with ninety thousand counts of murder, and high treason. How do you plead?â âI plead guilty! Guilty to more murders than I can recall. But never, never in my life have I ever committed treason!â Empress Chrissalynn Dehartra Kasar had been an Earth orphan, until she was kidnapped by a powerful, parasitic race intent on expanding their galactic territory, and conquering new host races. This story is her testimony, told before her enemies. Raised as the protĂ©gĂ©e of the powerful Nicholas Kasar, Chrissalynn is trained in the Setian ways. She learns emotions are for the weak. Torture can be a necessary evil, or a priceless work of art. That the lives of lower-ranked citizens are expendable, and the greatest honor is to die for the empireâs glory. By the age of seventeen, she wins her first major victory, and becomes fully accepted into Setian society. Eventually promoted to a position of power, Chrissalynn requests to lead the assault on future Setian Colony 428, where she meets the resistance leader Darin, who challenges her in ways she could have never imagined. As a trusted mentor predicted, Chrissalynn must choose. Is she a woman with a human heart, or an empress with a Setian soul? |
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Sometimes truth is stranger than folktales. Bilingualism and plate tectonics were the only kinds of shapeshifting Arden Araujoâs troubled geoscientist dad prepared her for. But it turns out, the outlandish prediction that wrecked his careerâa devastating North Sea tsunamiâmight not be the unlikeliest truth he took to his grave. In the 2097 tsunamiâs aftermath, environmental first responder Arden expects her mission in hard-hit northeast Scotland to involve the usual grunt work, maybe a little freediving if sheâs lucky. Instead, she stumbles upon a critically endangered species of Orkney and Shetland legend, hiding in plain sight among the refugees. They trust that she can help restore their kind, despite storms, aftershocks, and policy decisions way beyond her pay grade. Increasingly at home on the shores of their life-giving sea, she may have found her calling; true love might not be a mere childrenâs story either. Yet the deeper sheâs immersed in their tale, the less sure she feels that sheâs the right hero to protect the hidden treasure of their existence. UNDISCOVERED is a unique sci fi/fantasy fusion: climate fiction, hopeful fabulism, and a feminist heroâs journey, told in lyrical prose (and occasional Spanglish). |
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Plain Striders: An Amboy Novella by Steven Healt **This novella is best read after Amid the Maelstrom** Uncertainty has settled over the Perimeter town of East Edge. The Knights of Amboy who were tasked to protect the citizens have abandoned their post. News of an attack on the Council in Central Amboy called the Knights away, and it is this same news that has caused a rift in East Edgeâs fledgling Amber Waves Company chapter. With a newly formed town council struggling amid these events, East Edge finds itself in a precarious position. Owain Meadows and his twin brother, Dion, believe it is their responsibility to fill the void left by the Knightsâ departure, despite orders from their guardian, Victor Aymin, to keep themselves out of the matter. But with the confidence of youth comes naivety. Their misunderstanding of their situationâs gravity could prove fatal, not only for themselves, but also for the townspeople they seek to protect. Will they find their place and be able to protect the town they call home, or will their inexperience lead to disaster? |
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Amid the Maelstrom by Steven Healt The Amber Waves Company has suffered a devastating loss. Members from across the New Ring gather to mourn, and celebrate those who fell during the atrocities that occurred within Central Amboy. Whispers are spreading of the Amber Wave's involvement. Some within the Company believe it is time to strike out against the new Council that has seized power. But who will be the one to lead them into this uncertain future? Cordelia Faucher has been tasked with the protection of a mysterious Amboian. A settlement within the Haze would be the last place the Council would expect to find them, but Mountain Station is already overwhelmed with refugees from failing settlements, and the world beyond the Perimeter is filled with dangers of its own. The status quo of Central Amboy has been shattered, and the Jorogumo are poised to take advantage of the chaos while the Amboians clamor to restore order⊠|
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Haze and Shadow by Steven Healt Driven by her task to bring Dimitri Endano to justice before the Elders of Mountain Station, Cordelia Faucher joins Gaelcean on his journey back to the capital city of Amboy. All she has to do is separate one of the most wanted men under the Shield from one of Central Amboy's most influential Councilors. Obligated by their contract, the Amber Waves are forced along as well. When dire news from Port Amboy reaches them, they use the opportunity to distance themselves from Gaelcean. Will it be enough to escape his grasp? The political engine of Central Amboy hasn't ceased, and the Amboian Councilors continue on in Gaelcean's absence. What lies in wait for him upon his return, and how will it impact those who follow him? Ahead of them lies the uncertainty of their return, and behind them, remnants of Dimitri Endano's followers pursue. Who is the strange woman leading them, and what is her connection to the Upper Districts? |
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Umbra: Tales of a Shadow by Freddie A. Clark Obscurity must be explored, understood, heard. The light of revelation is generated from first-hand experience and knowledge. Will you face obscurity in order for light to reveal itself? Trained since his childhood and cybernetically augmented to seek justice in the canal-filled city of Florydia, Fulvio Donati is an assassin and thief who adopted a double identity. When night falls, Fulvio becomes Umbra: a masked vigilante, a charming and lethal shadow. The intellectual, philosopher and alchemist Soleluna Giordani was only twenty-nine when their search for immortality led them to a terrible mistake. Their consciousness has been trapped inside a mask for almost eight centuries, an irremediable captivity that robbed them of a glorious existence and their place in history. In a beautiful yet corrupted land in which crime lords, celebrities and ruthless politicians are competing for the highest power, a deadly conspiracy is unfolding. While alchemists and courtesans search for a way to survive and a prince must search for one to save his life, Fulvio finds himself involved in intrigues and machinations. Soleluna will show Fulvio the way, guiding him with their wit and their boundless wisdom. Fulvio will show Soleluna a world they were never meant to see, an astounding futuristic reality going beyond anything theyâve ever imagined. Together, they shall save Florydia from its downfall. |
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The Wasp Child by Rhiannon Rasmussen Kesh is afraid-of his classmates, his abilities, and his prospects for the future. Born into Meridian Colony, where corporate values dictate human worth, Kesh longs to escape. Then, his classmates kidnap and dump him in the middle of the alien rainforest. Alone. Faced with certain death, Kesh locates the sansik, giant bugs native to the planet. Though the sansik seem to care for him at first, they set off a horrific metamorphosis in Kesh, and when they trade him back to Meridian, he becomes a living scientific curiosity. A bleak future of analysis without autonomy awaits him. Trapped between the grasp of Meridian's laboratories and a harsh alien world, Kesh must escape to have any chance of finding his purpose-and place-in the world. |
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The Key to Reality by F. Ted Atchley A desperate father holds the key to victory in an alien civil war. If he chooses well, he'll reunite his family. If he chooses wrong, they all die. An Elite Cybersecurity Analyst. A Desperate Rebellionâs Best Hope. Brandon thought the assignment was just another standard security assessment. Wrong. As he peels back the layers of a deepening conspiracy, he discovers everything he thought he knew about his reality is a lie. And heâs the only one who can save it. Exiles from another reality see Brandonâs new knowledge as the key to victory over their tyrannical king and his immortal army. Pursued by both loyalists and rebels as he crosses the borders between realities, Brandon must protect his family, while figuring out who to trust. Choosing well means rescuing his family, and saving both worlds, but choosing poorly will empower a malevolent evil to wipe out humanity. |