Desperate to prove her innocence, she’s forced to accept help from her granny’s entitled cat and a spirit from beyond the grave.Three full-length novels of sleuthing fun!The Mitzy Moon Mysteries : Books 1-3 includes the first three books in the hilarious paranormal cozy mystery series, PLUS a never-before-released map of Pin Cherry.Book 1 – Fries and Alibis: Paranormal Cozy MysteryA gift that’s too good to be true. A murder she didn’t commit. A barista in a latte trouble…Book 2 – Tattoos and Clues: Paranormal Cozy MysteryA beachside stroll. A deadly discovery. Will this psychic sleuth swim or sink?Book 3 – Wings and Broken Things: Paranormal Cozy MysteryA crime with no eyewitness. A determined psychic sleuth. Will her search for clues take her where angels fear to tread?

    Period." James BrownstoneJohnny Walker was a good bounty hunter in his day. James Brownstone good.But everybody has a line. Johnny found his when his teenage daughter was murdered. Who was the killer? Even Johnny couldn’t figure it out.Everybody’s favorite Dwarf retreated to his cabin in the swamp with his two hound dogs by his side, and retired with his guns, his whiskey and his memories.Except magical monsters weren’t done with him… yet.A young female shifter has gone missing and her parents are dead. The Feds know that Johnny is her only hope and the clock is ticking.Johnny can’t say no this time.He’s off to New York City with Light Elf Fed Lisa Breyer to get her back.Dwarf the Bounty Hunter is back to kick ass and take names. Or maybe just kick ass.What will he do when the clues connect to the fifteen-year-old cold case of his daughter’s murder?

    Somebody should…The world can’t know I’m a Drow halfling. Not yet. I barely have these powers under my control, but time’s up. I’m about to take magic for a test drive. Want to come along?The black ops government group believe they can run my life... But I have plans of my own.Watch out magical evil doers – I’m about to crash your party.But will my training be enough? Scroll back up and click Buy Now or Read For Free to join Cheyenne on her journey to use her Drow heritage and stake her claim in the world in Goth Drow.

    This one was... definitely in the Oh-hell-no! category.Thank goodness for a BFF that’ll do anything for you, and can kick butt in the courthouse too.Even then, if you think starting over after 40 sounds tough, try making sense of it all after waking up and finding out you’re Seeing Dead Things!Get ready for the first of Roxie’s Midlife Adventures where you won’t always know for sure whether to laugh, cry, or... wet your pants!!

    But after the Burgon Beast couldn’t be defeated, Pyresouls turned very real and unleashed an apocalypse of undead, monsters, and a System of levels and stats onto the world.For many years since, Jacob Windsor has fought with sword and shield to survive Post-Collapse Earth where only ancient, Guilt-soaked weaponry can harm the monsters from Pyresouls.While defending his bunker with some of the last refugees of humanity, yet another friend loses his life to secure one final hope. An enigmatic artifact capable of sending one person through time.In a cruel twist of fate, Jacob becomes humanity’s best chance for survival. He takes the plunge into the past of the terrifying, fractured realm of Pyresouls, where every player is out for blood, and the monsters are more vicious than anything on Post-Collapse Earth.Armed with knowledge of game mechanics, secret loot and enemy weaknesses, along with well-honed swordsmanship from years of battle, Jacob has every possible advantage against the competition. But the choices he makes have long-reaching ripple effects on the timeline.Can Jacob beat the clock while grinding out Levels and manage to avert the apocalypse, or will his every action darken the timeline even further?From the #1 Bestseller author of Beastborne Chronicles comes the first book of a new Dark Fantasy litRPG / progression fantasy series. This post-apocalyptic gamelit includes battle, leveling and gear enhancing mechanics inspired by the Dark Souls games.Start your time travel dark litRPG adventure today!

    For years she’s labored to complete her apprenticeship and become a pastry chef. Driven from her home once before, she’s willing to endure whatever it takes to keep her position in the palace kitchens of Northhelm. But when she finally has a chance for all her dreams to come true, everything goes wrong. In danger of losing both her future as a pastry chef, and the man she’s loved for years, Hanna will have to decide if she’s ready to fight for herself, as well as for Stefan. The Coronation Ball is a novelette of approximately 15,000 words that follows Hans’s sister after she flees Rangmere to build a life in Northhelm. It is an expanded version of a short story previously titled The Pastry Chef's Apprentice, published in the anthology Happily Ever Afters.If you enjoy clean romance, adventure and intrigue, then try the books in The Four Kingdoms series now! Each of these young adult fairy tale retellings can be read as a standalone story. However, for greatest enjoyment, they should be read in order.The Four Kingdoms Reading Order: The Princess Companion: A Retelling of The Princess and the Pea (Book One) The Princess Fugitive: A Reimagining of Little Red Riding Hood (Book Two) The Coronation Ball: A Four Kingdoms Cinderella Novelette Happily Every Afters: A Reimagining of Snow White and Rose Red (Novella) The Princess Pact: A Twist on Rumpelstiltskin (Book Three) A Midwinter's Wedding: A Retelling of The Frog Prince (Novella) The Princess Game: A Reimagining of Sleeping Beauty (Book Four) The Princess Search: A Retelling of The Ugly Duckling (Book Five)

    Over half of Earth's population has emigrated to live and work on alien worlds and orbitals, and humanity now aspires to that signature vessel of advanced species, a jump-capable colony ship equipped to support millions of pioneers on the search for a new world. With trillions of creds at stake, are humans doomed to repeat the mistakes that led to Earth's first galactic bail-out? Or might a more experienced investigative journalist look for fraud closer to home?Join the intrepid reporters of the Galactic Free Press, a senior EarthCent Intelligence agent, and an independent trader, as they try to make a living and do their best for humanity with a little help from alien friends. Freelance On The Galactic Tunnel Network is a standalone novel that is the twentieth book in the EarthCent Ambassador / EarthCent Universe sequence, and can be read without starting back to the beginning.

    It leads to an offer she can’t refuse from the town’s bad boy, the brother of her ex and the last man she should ever partner with.A Ghostly GiftVerity Long doesn't want to see ghosts, and she'd rather not let anyone know her little secret, either. But when a restless spirit stirs up trouble in her friend's resale shop, Verity and her very new, very dead gangster friend team up to learn what is really happening.The Skeleton in the ClosetA haunted library is no place for a girl who can see ghosts, but when Verity Long stumbles on a dead body in the middle of the main reading room, she has to believe someone…even a dead someone…must have witnessed the crime.*This edition contains never-before-seen material and will be available for a limited time.

    Steeple’s dream of a totalitarian America under his hand as benevolent dictator can now become a reality, even if it means making common cause with America’s mortal enemies. No treachery is too great to fulfill his ambitions, and those of his friends.But American patriotism doesn’t die that easily, and Steeple just might find out that men and women still exist to protect those who can’t protect themselves. Regardless of the odds, some people take their service oaths seriously, even unto death.Such courage always has a cost, though, and this time the cost is high.

    Yes, we also have a roleplaying game, and a sequel series! “If you grew up playing D&D, Rifts, Spelljammer, or Starcraft, and want to see magic in space done right, then get ready to lose the next sixty hours of your life.” — The Author’s Totally Biased Friend Tech Mage (book 1) Aran awakens in chains with no memory. He’s conscripted into the Confederate Marines as a Tech Mage, given a spellrifle, then hurled into the war with the draconic Krox and their Void Wyrm masters. Void Wyrm (book 2) Major Voria stands ready to accept the cost for her actions at Marid. Stripped of command and resources, Voria must find a ship and rally a crew. Somewhere within the Umbral Depths lays a hidden world, a world that the dead god Marid intended her to find. Spellship (book 3) Voria, Aran, and Nara survived their trip into the Umbral Depths. They retrieved the Talon, and are now searching for the First Spellship, the key to victory in their war against the Krox. Their search leads them to Virkonna, the home of the Last Dragonflight, a world where Dragons still rule. The world where Aran was born. War Mage (book 4) The Krox have finally reached their end game, and the sector will never be the same. Their relentless fleet darkens the skies of New Texas, home of the fabled Ternus shipyards. Their only hope lies with their sworn allies, the Shayans. But the Shayans refuse to help. Krox Rises (book 5) Nebiat has seized godhood, and now controls Krox, the most powerful elder god in the sector. Both Ternus and Shaya know she is coming, but their preparations cannot save them. She launches a strike at Ternus that cripples their home world, and shatters their fleets. Nefarius (book 6) Krox's assault on Shaya has been foiled, but the cost was bitter. Ternus lies in ruins, its gravity doubled by a god. Shaya is a paradise, but one populated by a mere handful of survivors. Only one power strong enough to oppose Krox remains... The Last Dragonflight. Godswar (book 7) Nefarius has risen. She is implacable. Unstoppable. God after god is fallen and consumed, and each time the terrible dragon-goddess grows stronger. One possibility of victory remains. Aran, Nara, and Kazon discover their true purpose, left by the elder god Xal when he planned for his own demise. With this contingency they have one chance to oppose Nefarius. One chance to stop the goddess that will devour everything. Want to make your own characters? The Magitech Chronicles RPG system allows you to be part of the action long after you finish the books. Learn more at magitechchronicles.com or by googling Magitech Chronicles World Anvil

    Since the night her parents died in a tragic accident, she hasn’t felt the pain of any kind, not so much as a papercut. And she has no idea why. Though her body healed quickly, her heart and soul took their time. Luckily, a loving foster mom and an unwanted best friend stepped in to speed up the process. Despite Tara’s best efforts, her new BFF, Shelly Smith, just wouldn’t go away. By their senior year, the girls were thick as thieves and would probably become thieves if Shelly had anything to say about their future. Thankfully, fate intervenes in the form of a high school recruiter, Elias Creed, who works for a mysterious geological testing company. Cue the dreamy music and soft lighting as he walks in slow motion toward her. Then Elias opens his mouth and Tara laments the fact that the first guy she’s ever been seriously attracted to...is a complete and utter butthead. Still, she can’t seem to shake him, and she and Shelly are both intrigued by the company he works for. Little do they know it’s not a company at all. It’s an academy for those gifted with elemental powers and she’s already been enrolled. And Elias isn’t Tara’s only suitor. The hottest guy in school--Tucker Adams--has been asking Tara out for the past three years and each time she’s shut him down. Now, he’s finally broken down her walls. But when Elias and Tucker both warn Tara the other is dangerous, she doesn’t know who to believe. When the truth is finally revealed, Tara finds out both men know more about her past than she does, including what caused the accident that took her parents' lives.

    Those who cannot grow stronger, die. No empty child has ever reached a year of age, yet I am now thirteen.It has been a long and miserable thirteen years, where the best I can manage to do is walk with difficulty. Sometimes, I cannot even manage that.My clan has paid dearly for every minute of my life. And money is not so easy to obtain, here at the edge of civilization.Perhaps I might have lived in this state for many years. A cripple, strong in mind but feeble in body. But when some unexpected guests came to our estate, everything changed. I would die at last – or, I would learn to survive on my own.

    But when portals started opening all over the world and thousands of hungry dinosaurs began to pour out of them, Jason suddenly regrets being in a country without guns.With the London police outnumbered, and the British military outgunned, it will be up to Jason to protect his two beautiful girlfriends from being eaten by prehistoric beasts. Together, the three of them will need to learn how to survive in a world that now belongs to the dinosaurs.Disclaimer: Like most of my books, this series contains descriptive lovemaking scenes with multiple women, horrific violence, and other mature themes.

    From the NY Times bestselling author whose books have sold over a million copies.An alien object with breathtaking capabilities. And a life-and-death struggle for the future of humanity. Dr. Kelly Connolly is part of a top-secret team studying the most important find in human history, the Enigma Cube, an alien artifact of incomprehensible power. A cube whose technology can catapult civilization to dizzying heights--or destroy it entirely.After years of failed attempts to unlock the cube's secrets, all hell suddenly breaks loose. Kelly and a black-ops commando, Justin Boyd, are soon fighting against all odds to stay alive, and to keep the cube out of enemy hands.As the situation quickly goes from bad to worse, Kelly discovers that the cube's capabilities are far greater than even she had imagined. And that her actions could lead to nightmarish changes to the nature of reality itself.The Enigma Cube is a smart thriller crammed with breakneck action, unexpected twists, mind-blowing science, and ethical dilemmas readers will be contemplating long after they've read the last page."Richards is an extraordinary writer," (Dean Koontz) who can "keep you turning the pages all night long." (Douglas Preston)"Richards is a worthy successor to Michael Crichton." (SF Book dot com) Near Future Science Fiction Thrillers by Douglas E. RichardsSTANDALONES QUANTUM LENSGAME CHANGERINFINITY BORNSEEKERVERACITYORACLETHE ENIGMA CUBESERIESWIRED (Wired 1)AMPED (Wired 2)MIND'S EYE (Nick Hall 1)BRAINWEB (Nick Hall 2)MIND WAR (Nick Hall 3)SPLIT SECOND(Split Second 1)TIME FRAME (Split Second 2)Kids Science Fiction Thrillers  (9 and up, enjoyed by kids and adults alike)TRAPPED (Prometheus Project 1)CAPTURED (Prometheus Project 2)STRANDED (Prometheus Project 3)OUT OF THIS WORLDDEVIL'S SWORD

    Beer!With the FDG doubling in size, Terry Henry needs to bring about a little organizational structure to the group.While also deciding how to have that conversation with Char about her lineage...Not sure how that is going to go, Terry Henry had better figure it out, or he is going to be up to his armpits in Werewolves and won't be sure if he can depend on his one ace-in-the-hole.Or not. Nomad Unleashed The heat is unrelenting. The Wastelands are coming for New Boulder. Nature’s a total bitch.And then there’s Werewolf heat.Terry Henry Walton has to come to grips with the reality of his situation.Civilization cannot return to humanity without help. More help than even an enhanced human can give. Terry and Char take their relationship to a new level before they head out to find a new home to save the people of New Boulder, to rally the survivors that the world is coming back...And for themselves. Nomad Supreme Terry and Char cross the Wastelands returning to New Boulder carrying a message of hope. They’d found a better place. Could they move the whole town there, and would it be safer?They have a lead on Terry’s white whale, a secure military facility. What will they find and can they break in? Nomad's Fury Settled into their new home of North Chicago, Terry and Char find more enemies than they suspected. Faced with their greatest threat, they put the FDG into action against a Forsaken who's surrounded himself with a small army of loyal humans. With Akio's aid, they go to war. Nomad's Justice Nomad Avenged Nomad Mortis Nomad's Fury Nomad's Force Nomad's Galaxy Nomad's Journal ** As noted in other series set in the Kurtherian Universe, there IS cursing in this book, occasionally, it's funny, too. **

    Tolkien proportions!"— Steven Pressfield, Bestselling author of Gates of Fire and The War of ArtRaiders of the Lost Ark playing A Game of ThronesThe Sand Sea takes place on an alternative Earth roiled by war and conquest that mirrors our own Gilded Age. The treasure that ignites greed and folly in this parallel world is not petroleum, but beserite—a mineral of immeasurable value. Captivated by an ancient prophecy and the call of adventure, inexperienced nobleman and scholar Peter Harmon (think of a young Winston Churchill-like naif) joins an expedition to stake his nation’s claim to a global empire. Harmon’s destination is a vast and inhospitable desert halfway around the world, dominated by the iron-fisted Grand Vizer Jemojeen Jongdar. A tyrant on a mission to secure the ancient and supernatural Staff of the Ram, the Lion, and the Serpent, Jongdar knows the truth that others can only imagine: The one who controls the staff will possess the power to rule the world. Before he can seize his destiny, Jongdar must find and destroy the one person capable of thwarting his ambition, the rightful heir to the Sand Sea realm, an innocent woman named Selena Savanar. Can the brave and indomitable Selena accept her true destiny and rally her people in the eye of a gathering storm? To do so will require her to outwit the man who burned her father alive and left her an orphan and beggar a lifetime ago. Or will Peter Harmon and the cadre of opportunists he rides with conquer the divided empire?With the mythic structure of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy in a world as rich and real as George R.R. Martin’s Westeros, The Sand Sea is an immersive experience made to order for epic fantasy fans and anyone who enjoys grand-scale historical fiction.

    Prognosis says he'll be a vegetable by week's end. Having survived numerous incursions in combat around the world, he decides he's not going out like that. He drives a rented corvette into a cliff face at over 200 MPH. The fiery impact catapults him toward the afterlife. Instead of finding the afterlife, he finds himself in a different body with an old man stabbing him in his chest. He fights free, killing the old man before passing out. He wakes to find he's now in the body of Prince Aaron, the 15-year-old second son of the King. In this medieval world, the Royals are Mages. The old man who was trying to kill him was a Mage "Vampire". Instead of blood, the old Mage was trying to steal Ross/Aaron's power, knowledge, and in this case his body. When Ross/Aaron killed the old Mage, his vampire power was transferred to him. He now has the memories, knowledge, and powers of the old Mage. Ross/Aaron must navigate this new environment of court intrigue with care. His older brother, the Crown Prince, hates him. His older sister has no use for him. The King sees him as an asset to be used, agreeing to marry him to a neighboring Kingdom for an alliance. Before the marriage takes place, the castle is attacked. Someone is trying to kill him but is finding it most difficult. Where Mages fight with Magic, Ross/Aaron fights with magic and steel. It's hard to cast a spell with a knife through your skull, or your throat cut. As Ross/Aaron travels with his fiancée toward her home for the marriage to take place, they are attacked at every turn. Someone doesn't want this wedding to happen. Ross/Aaron has had enough of people trying to kill him. With Aaron's knowledge, and Ross' training, they take the offensive. The Kingdom will never be the same.82K words

    She’s really an elf. And she’s bored, bored,bored. Born and bred as a warrior, Anabella wants nothing more than to trade her tiara for a dagger and a gun.Careful what you wish for…When orcs invade Earth, will Anabella have her chance?Abby is a robotics engineer and certifiable genius (as well as simply certifiable). When Abby’s father is killed by the orcs, she plans on using her intellect to avenge him.Terra is the toughest person in Kansas. Too bad she’s not in Kansas anymore. She was kidnapped by orcs to fight in their sick and twisted battle games.Both Abby and Terra want revenge in the form of gloopy, green orc blood. Will the blood be green, or red?Alone, none of them stand a chance. But together theyjustmight be enough to bring evil to its knees.These three warriors didn’t start the war…but you can be damn sure they’re going to try to finish it. Will they succeed? This boxed set of almost 1800 pages includes the following books:1. Dark Gate Angels2. Shades of Death3. The Allies of Death4. The Deadliness of Light

    Choosing the body of a half-man, half-serpent creature called a naga, Larson must fight to secure a place for himself in this new world. Soon, he finds himself in a fight against pirates, thieves, and terrors of the deep, all of which seek to end his new life before it truly begins.But Larson is not easily deterred. He will call upon a loyal crew and decades of knowledge from his previous life, standing ready with steel and spell to cut down all who oppose him as he seeks to conquer the Limitless Seas.

    It’s the last thing you’ll ever do.Blitz the Devastator has never done a decent day’s devastating in his life. Fireless, artistic and shunned by his Dragon Clan, he struggles to pillage even the meanest village. A future full of misery and failure beckons.This much is true until the day the burly brown Dragon successfully – imagine that – kidnaps the Princess Azania. As a black Princess of T’nagru, this spirited beauty is by definition the most unforgettable woman in the seventeen realms. Knights errant, men-at-arms and sundry Princes expire at her feet in drivelling worship.Unfortunately, they all want his scaly head on a platter shortly thereafter. Goes with the territory.To Blitz’s consternation, the royal nuisance refuses to behave herself and be a typical pampered Princess. With humour, unconventional flair and the odd stomp of her diminutive slipper, she sets out to reform her Dragon.One question remains. Who will save the Dragon from the Princess?

    But in the coming battle, none of that will matter.Men do not become mystics. They become warriors. But eighteen-year-old Salo has never been good at conforming to his tribe’s expectations. For as long as he can remember, he has loved books and magic in a culture where such things are considered unmanly. Despite it being sacrilege, Salo has worked on a magical device in secret that will awaken his latent magical powers. And when his village is attacked by a cruel enchantress, Salo knows that it is time to take action.Salo’s queen is surprisingly accepting of his desire to be a mystic, but she will not allow him to stay in the tribe. Instead, she sends Salo on a quest. The quest will take him thousands of miles north to the Jungle City, the political heart of the continent. There he must gather information on a growing threat to his tribe.On the way to the city, he is joined by three fellow outcasts: a shunned female warrior, a mysterious nomad, and a deadly assassin. But they’re being hunted by the same enchantress who attacked Salo’s village. She may hold the key to Salo’s awakening—and his redemption.

    But Army Rangers do.The basement wall just didn't look right.Alex has been trying to cope. Life after his deployment had been rough. His ex-wife thought he needed to stop disappointing their daughter. She was right.He would try harder.With six hours before his little girl's fourth birthday party, he saw the anomaly. One wall was too short. Plenty of time to tear out a panel and look behind it.He found a brick wall.His house wasn't made of brick.Behind that was another just like the first. He still had time. When the second wall came down, Alex stood and stared at the shining doorway. Next to it, jammed into the wall with a hunting knife, was a note.It was a warning......and Alex didn't listen.You'll love being transported through time, to a future unlike anything you've imagined, where Alex's fight to get back home becomes an epic struggle. This first book in the series will blow you away.

    For those who have no place in this world. And all too often this is true for animals, cats, dogs, who do not understand that "their" people do not love them as unconditionally as they love them.But nothing in life is without hope. Where one life ends, space is created for another. And sometimes even one is saved.In Anglo-Saxon countries, many animals end up in animal shelters, and many of them are euthanized. This practice has led the author Jenny Jinya to draw an internet comic. First "Good Boy", the story of a small dog, then "Black Cats". At the same time, Jenny's comics also show that death is not our enemy. That sometimes he can even be a welcome friend.

    What do you do when you accidentally trigger a cross dimensional machine created by a mad scientist and teleport to a different version of Earth every 72 hours?Well, you obviously start recruiting beautiful monster girls and construct a fort, because these worlds are crazy deadly and you’re going to need all the help you can get to survive.

    He has returned to his homeworld to rest, but his only real plan is to avoid the war he sees coming to the Protectorate.Captain Karl Charpentier is his oldest friend—Captain and pilot of an interstellar jump-courier. Crewless and drowning in debt due to a series of mistakes, Karl turns to his newly unemployed friend with a desperate plan to solve all his problems.To save his friend’s ship and career, Ivan must help him take his courier into an illegal race through a deadly region of space—a race run by the very people Karl Charpentier owes money to.How could it possibly go wrong?

    

    The River of Fate twists through the universe, holding the course of all lives and destinies.A chance event causes three souls to collide within the River, memories from each coalescing into one individual, who is reborn by a command so powerful it warps reality itself.Finding himself alone, Verse must discover who he is and develop the strength to survive in a world where cultivation is the only law.Fortunately, he's good at that.*In this story, you can expect Xianxia-style immortal cultivation, reincarnation, a focus on jade and sunset magic, sects, alchemy, formations, ancient races, and a hero who is evolving and changing to become more than he was before.

    and infinite horror. If it can happen, it not only will, but it has... and it is happening even at this moment. Wars rage across dimensions, in an endless cycle of destruction and rebirth.One war has come here, to Earth, now... and no one is ready for the results.Who wants to live forever?

    Unfortunately, it wasn’t the good kind.Sucked through a wormhole, Charlie woke in a galaxy ruled not by technology, but by magic. A galaxy of spell-casting Aliens, Space Vampires, gladiators, and Dragons. For the spaceman from Earth, it was enough to make his head spin. And his luck was only getting worse.Welcome to the Charlieverse.Contains Books 1-3 of the Dragon Mage series:1. Bad Luck Charlie2. Space Pirate Charlie3. Dragon King Charlie

    He has everything he could want. A good master, a wonderful young lady he planned to court as soon as he had the coin to do so, and who cared for him as well.Everything changes in one moment, as he forges his first sword, places his maker’s mark for the first time, and discovers the truth that will turn all his life’s plans, hopes, and expectations into ashes.Olin is a rune mage, and it looked like his life was going to be turned upside down again, as he once more took up apprenticeship duties. He has very little choice in the matter, all mages served the royal family, compulsorily.That won’t be his last surprise either. Join Olin on his path of discovery, as he does his best to forge his own destiny under the yolk of expectations, customs, and traditions of mage society.Note: This is the first book of a trilogy. No major cliffhangers but expect a few unresolved plot threads. This story is told in the third person limited, from Olin’s point of view.

    First the routine destruction of some ancient automatic defence batteries became a disaster when his ship’s screens failed and he had no choice to abandon ship. Then he had to rescue two left behind crew people which meant he missed the main shuttle evacuation leaving him and his two companions in a shuttle on their own at the rear. Then the shuttle was hit by enemy fire just as they traversed the jump point, of course! This sent the shuttle through something to somewhere but not the safe system the rest of the crew had jumped to! The damage to the shuttle meant they would need a dockyard or failing that they would have to land on a planet to affect repairs which seemed likely as the system had no electronic signature, so space docks looked unlikely. The third planet was in fact inhabited, but by primitives armed with swords and spears, probably an old Imperial colony that had been cut off and regressed tech-wise. They should be able to land and repair their shuttle somewhere out of the way except of course the engines decided to fail halfway down! This led to a close encounter with the side of a mountain, followed by a crash landing into a lake. And then his day got really bad!

    Without it, Christmas isn’t happening, and Santa himself is in grave danger.Could Winterspell hold the key to saving Christmas?**Grimoires and Gingerbread is a holiday-themed novella in the Sugar Shack Witch Mysteries series by Danielle Garrett. This festive novella falls after the events in the first book, but could also be enjoyed as a standalone.**

    She’ll admit arresting Jake Jones, a Coletti Warlord, for speeding was not one of her better decisions. But hey, the law was the law and the drop-dead gorgeous warlord pushed every one of her buttons. She might have been a tad over-zealous with her rainstorm and stun gun, but the Jackass had it coming. An alien killer is stalking the Navajo Nation. The Coletti Empire is hunting a galactic fugitive. Turns out they need each other’s help. Can she work with the Jackass? Can Jake convince CeeCee she’s the one? Only time, and the spirits will tell.

    The occasional moderately stretched? Yes. But never tall).Our tale is that of a nobleman who is betrayed by those he trusted, and subsequently imprisoned. After centuries of confinement, he contrives to escape and prepares to avenge himself against his betrayers.A mirror image of The Count of Monte Cristo, vitrolic naysayers still grouse? Well, that is nearly and utterly false.

    shoes to fill.For one, he has to deal with all the female demigods, and some of them, well... you know.For two, he’s the best blacksmith the demigods have seen in a millennia, which is good because apparently, he’s destined to craft the Ultimate Weapon.So, yeah, this book is about a dude who likes to forge things and is surrounded by hot demigoddesses.Do the math.

    But the sprawling city of Varangantua is uncaring of its masses, and when a bisected corpse is discovered in the neutral zone between Nearsteel and the Adeptus Mechanicus enclave of Steelmound, Noctis finds himself cast into his most dangerous case yet.Partnering with the tech-priest Rho-1 Lux of the Collegiate Extremis, Noctis is drawn into a murky world of tech-heresy, illegal servitors, and exploitation that could end his career, or his life.

    This book includes as well an illustrated descriptive of 110 different alien races involved with our planet, detailed information about groups and alliances in this galaxy and precious information, as well as a map of the sky with locations of alien life. This book contains also beautiful messages of hope for humanity. This book has been expected for a long time. It brings support and understanding to all those who have been through the ordeal of alien abduction, answering many questions.

    The Mechanics Guild, whose members claim they came from the stars, controls technology far beyond that of the swords and sailing ships of the common people, while the Mage Guild wields strange powers that terrify all who face them. Jules, an orphan from the Imperial city of Landfall, has fought her way up to become an officer in training with the Emperor’s fleet. But her plans and her life are shattered when a Mage prophesizes that a daughter of her line will one day overthrow the Great Guilds and free the world. In that moment, the prophecy takes over her life. The Mages plot to kill her, the Mechanics try to find ways to use her, and the Emperor seeks to coerce her into having his children. Unwilling to surrender her life to serving the prophecy, Jules makes her escape by joining the crew of a pirate ship. As she fights for her comrades’ freedom as well as her own, she learns that the world is finally changing. But if that change triggers all-out war between the Great Guilds and the Empire, it may well devastate the world rather than free it.

     A super EMP took care of the rest. While a cyber-attack crippled half the nation’s power grid, enemies of the United Stateslaunched a super EMP over the midwest sending the nation back to the stone age.For Raine Caldwell and her neighbors, it couldn't have come at a worse time.Deep into the coldest midwest winter on record, the nation is plunged into frigid darkness.With emergency services crippled by the lack of transportation and streets snarled with stalledcars, a spark ignites and the city of St. Louis is engulfed in flames. Chaos grips the city as societyspirals out of control and violence fills the streets.With her building surrounded by fire, Raine and her neighbors are forced to flee on foot ontothe snow covered streets seeking safety.Seeking Safety is a gripping tale of an ordinary group of people as they fight to survive after an EMP plunges the nation into frigid darkness.Would you have what it takes to survive the cold, dark, dangerous streets and make it to safety?Seeking Safety is the first book in T. L. Payne's heart-stopping post-apocalyptic EMP survival series, Gateway to Chaos. Look for Seeking Refuge: Gateway to Chaos Book Two coming soon! OTHER BOOKS BY BESTSELLING AUTHOR T.L. PAYNE Turbulent: Days of Want Series, Book OneHunted: Days of Want Series, Book TwoTurmoil: Days of Want Series, Book ThreeUprising: Days of Want Series, Book FourUpheaval: Days of Want Series, Book FiveSudden Chaos: A Post Apocalyptic EMP Survival Short Story

    As he tries to find his way out of the casino, sick to his stomach and filled with self-loathing, he's approached by a stranger who offers a solution to his problem.It's a simple game. A 99% chance for him to win ten thousand dollars. In the remote chance that he loses...well, he'll be strapped into a device that shatters his left arm. The odds are very much in his favor. But this is only the first round.As the game goes on, the prizes and penalties keep changing, along with his chances of winning. As the high stakes get out of control and Ethan desperately wants to quit, he'll learn that they've only offered him one means of escape: play the game to the very end...A thrilling novel of suspense from the Bram Stoker Award-nominated author of PRESSURE and MY PRETTIES.

    With heaven’s memories erased, his romantic quest teaches him that the heart often sees clearer than the eyes—and that not everyone has ordered the same items from The Menu. Evidence that love stories come in many different forms, The Menu is a spiritual journey involving more than just a man and a woman; it is a modern-day tale that reaches far beyond the boundaries of reason.

    Brooke is no stranger to the supernatural. In Chicago, vampires are just as prevalent as drug lords, and infinitely more bloodthirsty. So when her partner and fiancé dies in a mysterious fire while chasing down a lead in Salem, she suspects something dark and otherworldly is at play.Blessed with the ability to see into the past by touching inanimate objects, Brooke transfers to the Salem PD, hoping her talent will help her get to the bottom of things. Between dodging assassination attempts and being stonewalled at every turn, the going is tough. Add in a mysterious fae club owner with secrets of his own and a personal grudge against her, and it becomes nearly impossible.If Brooke wants to play in the supernatural sandbox, she’s going to have to roll up her sleeves and get dirty. But how many people will have to die for Brooke to discover the truth about her fiancé?Find out what lurks in the SHADOWS OF SALEM, the latest Urban Fantasy hit series that readers are comparing to Karen Marie Moning and Patricia Briggs.Scroll Up and One Click to start reading today!

    There is only one problem, but it's a rather big one; it finished its first floor years ago, but it still hasn't been visited by any adventurers! In order to find someone or something to explore its floors, or perhaps just to find someone to talk to, this dungeon will have to go way off script. But it soon discovers that going off script brings problems of its own, and that adventurers are not the only thing this world is missing.A story about a dungeons journey of exploration and self discovery in a dark and devastated world.

    She returns home triumphant, but there is trouble brewing—the Serpentes face peril from both internal and external forces, and El’Jyiurma finds herself caught up in the middle. With word of their existence growing, they catch the attention of a race they’d rather not meet. At the same time, they must battle the hatred and fear that automatically comes from humans, based merely on their appearance. Fearing an invasion from outside forces, President Frazier of Gieliv sends a desperate plea to the Serpentes, requesting help to bolster their weak navy. With a potential attack looming, the king of the Serpentes sends El’Jyiurma to the Gieliv system to foster diplomatic relations and help defend Gieliv. Hard choices have to be made, and El’Jyuirma is in the hot seat. Which is the more significant threat, and how can it be stopped? A wrong choice could lead to the end of the Serpentes civilization, and El’Jyiurma has little time to decide.

    Paul suspects someone senior is behind this offer, perhaps even the prophet himself. The task given to Paul seems too easy: to follow a shy, introverted high school student named David who is always escorted by Max, his dog.Soon the investigator finds out the young man is hiding a dark secret of far reaching consequences.When David’s secret is discovered by evildoers, he finds himself with his back against the wall, forced to demonstrate incredible courage in order to save himself, his loved ones, and the entire human race. But… will that suffice?

    

    Since he went pseudo-public with Spirelli Paranormal Investigations, his business has sky-rocketed. Debunking the scum who prey on vulnerable targets makes up half his business now. And the rest of his time? Jack’s on speed dial with the Texas Lycan Pack, the Inter-Pack Policing Cooperative gives him an occasional ring, and anything that goes bump in the night might just call him with a job.He needs an assistant, another investigator, and some additional muscle, but maybe the dragon who just walked in and applied will do for now.Each of the six stories in Season One covers a new Spirelli case.

    

    Night after night he listens to the club's star performer, Siren, sing her memories and ease some of his aching loss. But when Siren goes missing, Muck finds himself drawn into a world of dirty cops, drug lords, and conspiracies that trace back to the war itself.The only person he can trust isn't even human. Angel, Siren's personal AI, was ripped from the singer's mind the night Siren disappeared. With no idea what has happened to her human host, and pursued by a killer virus, Angel flees to Muck for answers.Together they struggle to comprehend the conspiracy that entangles both their lives. Can Muck and the angel on his shoulder recover Siren before it's too late? Or will he lose everything that matters to him one more time?

    “Zoe! Let me out.” “But Kaden—” Zoe starts out. “I’m coming out, regardless,” he says. “Fine, you’re clear to exit,” she says, watching as the one that had jumped drops to the ground, looking stunned. “Kaden?” the stranger says as the large teen comes out of the school entrance, dancing on the footprints with impatience. “Kahale,” Kaden says as he comes to a stop. He stares at them for a while before letting out a sigh and asking, “Pehea ʻoe?” “What ‘Pehea ʻoe?’?” Kahale demands. “Where have you been all this time?” “Everyone thinks I’m dead, or something, right?” Kaden says. “We did!” Kahale says. “Can you, ah… keep it that way?” “You COWARD!” Tua roars, rushing forward to punch him. Kaden grabs the fist he’s about to throw, stopping him in his tracks. “Bruh,” Kaden says. “Why so mad?”

    And if a Villain decides to kidnap you, hold you hostage, or attempts to rob and/or kill you, please remain calm, Heroes will arrive shortly. Thank you for your support!Dr. Davis Malory never planned to become a hero or a villain. He never planned on obtaining superpowers. He certainly never planned on being transported to a world filled with such people. And he most definitely never considered that he would have to become one if he ever wanted to find a way back to Earth.But Planet Hero doesn't care about what Davis wants. If he wants to survive everything that is about to be thrown at him, he'll have to cultivate his superpowers and learn to navigate this new world or going home will be the least of his worries. Davis's days as a Civilian are officially over.Disclaimer: This is a LitRPG or GameLit novel containing video game elements and rules.

    Examining combat roles, class features, party composition, positioning, debilitating conditions, attacking combinations, action economy, and the ever-important consideration of the best ways to run away, Live to Tell the Tale will help you get the most out of your character’s abilities.

    Three short stories all set in the world of the New York Times bestselling Dread Nation.Dread South, Dread Quarter, and Letters from Home

    A glory-seeking thief. Will he discover his destiny on a quest for treasure? Fifteen-year-old elf Grey Cloak loathes his dark draconic master. So the young rogue persuades his human blood brother to set out in pursuit of fame and fortune. Ignoring their close shaves with gnolls, orcs, and halflings, the hard-headed youth won’t rest until he has his hands on his enemy’s gold.Lured by the promise of riches and powerful charms, the bold elf and his companion join an untrustworthy band of thieves and plunge headlong into danger. But with mysterious forces charging them to slay a dragon, one misstep could land the duo back in the clutches of their former fire-breathing tyrant.Will the fearless pair uncover their true purpose before evil returns them to slavery?Blood Brothers is the first book in the thrilling Dragon Wars epic fantasy series. If you like swords and sorcery, magical creatures, and page-turning suspense, then you’ll love Craig Halloran’s latest captivating saga.Buy Blood Brothers to begin a mystical journey today!

    The prose is perfect, the story beautifully balanced, and the atmosphere is so strong it feels like you could cut it with a knife. Haunting, uncanny and profound: the strongest and most compelling new voice that I've read in a very long time."- Michael Marshall Smith, author of Only Forward and The Straw Men“A haunting masterclass in storytelling.”– Eric LaRocca, author of Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke"Criterium is a haunting, visceral, gripping story filled with symbolism and allegory. Buckle up for a wild ride that will leave you bruised, shaken, and filled with dread. Tyler Jones is an author to keep an eye on."- Richard Thomas, author of Disintegration and Spontaneous Human Combustion"Jones’ prose in Criterium is like a shot of adrenaline to the heart. Once you turn that first page, you give over any control you once had, and this book will steamroll you into the ride of your life…you can almost feel the wind in your face and the heat on your flesh…he writes this story to within an inch of its life… there are moments of frenzied paranoia and then subtle and melancholic moments of sadness, grief and aloneness. It’s intoxicating.- Ross Jeffery, Bram Stoker nominated author of Juniper and Tome“Criterium is a high-octane ride in every way imaginable. A magnificent example of the type of storytelling that can be achieved through the novella form…mixes relatable real-life grief with metaphor that embodies what addiction horror can be.– Brennan LaFaro, author of Slattery Falls“Criterium is a gut-wrenching emotional rollercoaster into the real-life horrors of addiction and sorrow. Tyler Jones knows how to hit you where it'll hurt. I highly recommend this story to readers of the supernatural horror genre that are looking for a story that will leave you numb and breathless.– Andrew Fowlow, The Horror Oasis“Jones managed to write one of my favorite books of the year and I don’t say that lightly. His prose is flawless, the ambiance is stunning, and the story has a beautiful darkness…it consumed me in a big way. It will eat you up and spit you out. Criterium is intelligent, haunting, and emotional with a compelling plot that combines the hell of addiction with horror seamlessly. I couldn’t put it down if I wanted.– Janelle Janson, SheReadsWithCats“Tyler Jones’ first novella is an unflinching and compassionate view into the black hole of addiction and grief. An intriguing and novel premise that drags real life horror into the depths of the supernatural—compulsively readable.”– Laurel Hightower, author of Crossroads and Whispers in the Dark“What a ride. Criterium is unpredictable, fast-paced, and bleeds with heart. Tyler Jones is one to watch.– Scott J. Moses, author of Hunger Pangs"This book spoke to me on an emotional and spiritual level. I was moved. Haunted. An arresting story from start to finish...such a powerful piece. I'm adding Zach Ayers to my list of fictional characters who live in my soul forever. His story is achingly beautiful."- Sadie Hartmann, Cemetery Dance

    Saffia Mandell has been assigned to the Haven Two colony on the galaxy’s outer rim as the only doctor for some 2000 human residents. She’s counting the days until her five years there is up, trying to adjust to rural living after life in the crowded Inner Sectors and fighting her attraction to Chief Ranger Micah Navonn. She’s dreading the upcoming tourist season when the rich and pampered will descend on the planet for the scenic wonders and novel sports opportunities and no doubt inundate her little clinic but the colony depends on the seasonal income to survive.As the senior official for his people, the Calinurra, the indigenous inhabitants of Haven Two, Micah enforces the treaty, regulates the tourist permits, patrols the forests and resists his fascination with Dr. Mandell. He never expected to be involved with a human woman and doesn’t want to believe in the concept of a fated mate. He wants to keep his life simple and isn’t ready for any long term commitment. Besides Saffia keeps proclaiming she’ll be leaving when her appointment is up in four and a half years so why should he risk his heart?Then a ship arrives unexpectedly carrying a very ill little girl and soon the deadly virus is spreading through Haven Two. The colony authorities are desperate to cover up the problem to preserve the all-important tourist season and Saffia and Micah have to work together to battle the outbreak, the local administration and their undeniable feelings for each other.Can the colony survive? And will Micah and Saffia be able to move past their fears about entanglements to act on the mutual attraction?

    Still, visiting faerie-infested Britannia is not on her agenda—especially since no human who’s ventured there has ever returned. But when her stepsister sneaks off to the island to meet a faerie boyfriend, Gretchen’s stepmother forces her to choose: risk death to rescue the runaway, or forfeit her father’s life.Lost in the faeries’ forest, Gretchen meets a family of Bearfolk—fae who can shift between human and bear forms. Kindhearted seventeen-year-old Arthur volunteers to help, while his mother, who believes Gretchen is the heroic Silverhair of faerie legend, schemes to use the girl for darker purposes.When the quest to save the runaway proves costly, will Gretchen and Arthur find the courage to sacrifice what they hold dearest to save the ones they love most?

    I'm a half-orc, a bodyguard, and a fair hand with a rifle. Back in the day, I fought in two wars. One was in uniform for good ole Uncle Sam. The other was under the banner of The Erlking - Iron Lord of goblins, half-bloods, and orcs.Being a vet two times over never bothered me until one hell of a job dragged me out of the mortal world, and back to the land of Faerie. Now I've got to get my client over the US-Mexico border before the next best thing to a fairy goddess finds, enslaves, and kills us - though maybe not in that order.Think I can make it past the elves, gunmen, and magical forces of nature standing in my way?

    Snakes. Alligators. Tears in the skin of the universe.” Susan shrugged. “I think I saw a kraken in the sink, too.”Find a missing book. That was the job the woman in the Doc Martens gave us.Easy money, right?Only now it seems she’s actually an ancient, powerful sorcerer, and the book is a Book of Power that doesn’t want to be found.It wants to tear reality apart at the seams, and it’ll use anyone it can to do it.So now we’ve got one spectacularly displeased sorcerer, a hungry, still-missing book, a dentist with bad hygiene, and a neighbourhood having some reality issues to deal with.Plus about a day before the book turns our world – and us – inside out.We’ve totally got this.I hope.This is the first book in the Gobbelino London, PI urban fantasy series, centred around the adventures of a mercenary feline PI and his human sidekick. It contains snarky cats and other gods, many bad jokes and terrible puns, plus a large serving of mythological and real creatures behaving badly. It will appeal to anyone who likes their fantasy funny, modern, and filled with friendship rather than romance - and also to those who suspect their cat may be living a great and secret life when they're not looking.A Scourge of Pleasantries contains some violence, particularly toward furniture, but none of it is graphic. It contains no sex and only mild language. It does, however, contain blasphemy.

    

    When another community — the They — promise them luxurious meals, the We are unable to decline.After following the They to their farm, the We begin to notice some mysterious habits: odd sacrifices, talk of flames, and a strange book. Follow along as the We uncover the truth behind the secretive group and learn the most important part of being human.The We and the They is a fiction novel set in a world crumbling underneath the grip of the Great Famine. You will enjoy this book if you are fascinated by oral tradition, you like considering questions about community and identity, or you just want a break from curating your “I.”

    Her debut novel, Hammered, won the Locus Award for Best First Novel in 2005, the same year she received the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer. In the years since, she has produced an impressive array of standalone novels (Undertow) and multi-volume series (The Eternal Sky Trilogy, The New Amsterdam Series), along with a steady stream of stories and novellas, the best of which are gathered in this generous, absolutely necessary volume.The Best of Elizabeth Bear contains 27 stories and novellas, many never before collected, that encompass an astonishing range of themes, settings, ideas and emotions. The collection opens with “Covenant”, a tale of serial murder unlike any you have ever read, and closes with the extraordinary “Erase, Erase, Erase”. The latter is a surrealist tour de force in which the unnamed narrator, a former cult member, reflects on her life, her nebulous but guilty past, and her constantly diminishing sense of self. In between these bookends are more than two dozen carefully crafted tales that never fail to resonate beyond the final page.“Tideline”, winner of both the Hugo and Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Awards, tells the surprisingly moving story of Chalcedony, a former “war machine” determined to preserve the memories of her dead human companions. “Shoggoths in Bloom”, another Hugo winner, offers a fresh take on H.P. Lovecraft’s Mythos, setting the action in a pre-WWII world marked by racism and virulent anti-Semitism. “Faster Gun” is a tale of the Old West in which Doc Holliday and Johnny Ringo encounter an impossible alien artefact. The long novella “In the House of Aryaman, a Lonely Signal Burns” takes place in Bangalore, India fifty years from now and tells the story of a murder in which the victim’s body is literally turned inside out. In the affecting “Sonny Liston Takes a Fall”, we are brought to an entirely new understanding of one of the iconic moments of boxing history.Contents:- Introduction by C.L. Polk- Covenant (2014)- She Still Loves the Dragon (2018)- Tideline (2007)- The Leavings of the Wolf (2011)- Okay, Glory (2018)- Needles (2011)- This Chance Planet (2014)- The Body of the Nation (2012)- Boojum (2008), with Sarah Monette- The Bone War (2015)- In the House of Aryaman, a Lonely Signal Burns (2012)- Shoggoths In Bloom (2008)- Skin in the Game (2015)- Hobnoblin Blues (2008)- Form and Void (2012)- Your Collar (2008)- Terrior (2014)- Dolly (2011)- Love Among the Talus (2006)- The Deeps of the Sky (2012)- Two Dreams on Trains (2005)- Faster Gun (2012)- The Heart's Filthy Lesson (2015)- Perfect Gun (2017)- Sonny Liston Takes the Fall (2008)- Orm the Beautiful (2007)- Erase, Erase, Erase (2019)Cover illustration by Tom Canty

    The millennials are thrilled by the appearance of a mythical being, but they are wary too, particularly when she warns them that a dangerous monster has followed her from “Elsewhere.”The girl, (Shae) is desperate to return to a world she can now only scarcely recall. Exquisite and beguiling, Shae evokes a protectiveness on their part—especially when she grants them gifts of extraordinary new talent. Andre and Ben want to help her however they can.But the siblings soon find out that these gifts carry ghastly side effects. Andre is enchanted by prophetic dreams, but they wither her grip on reality; Ben creates sublime music, but his health deteriorates. And then, to their horror, they discover that Shae must complete a terrible task before she can return home and that everyone they know and love is in danger. Andre and Ben must now figure out how to thwart a being they’ve grown to care for.What they don’t realize is that Shae is changing—she’s beginning to develop a conscience, and an affinity for her human hosts. And as her time runs out, she must make a terrible choice before all their lives spiral into a grisly climax of cruel irony and heartbreaking sacrifice.

    Goodman!Picking up where season one of Seth MacFarlane's space adventure TV series leaves off, this volume contains four episodic chapters:In part 1 of New Beginnings Ed and Gordon follow a faint distress signal belonging to a long-lost Union vessel only to end up shot down on an irradiated, war-torn desert planet in the hands of an unknown species.In part 2 of New Beginnings As Ed and Gordon uncover the truth of a century-old war, they fear that their eventual rescue may endanger the rest of the Orville crew. Not only does the crew's lives hang in the balance but all life on the entire planet.In part 1 of The Word of Avis The Orville intercepts a small Union ship en route to the interstellar territory of the easily aggravated Krill. They thought the passengers were just a simple group of xenoanthropologists, but they turn out to be something much more interesting.In part 2 of The Word of Avis Dragged off course and into Krill territory, the Orville crew find themselves in a battle for their lives, with threats from both outside and within.Collects The Orville #1-#4.

      Created by the New York Times–bestselling author of the Myth series, as well as the Phule’s Company series, Thieves’ World® brings together classic fantasy’s finest authors to flesh out the shared world with their own unforgettable characters and epic worldbuilding.   The first three books include stories by Lynn Abbey, Poul Anderson, Robert Lynn Asprin, Marion Zimmer Bradley, C. J. Cherryh, David Drake, Philip José Farmer, Joe Haldeman, Janet Morris, Andrew J. Offutt, and others. They introduce you to the nefarious citizens of the city of Sanctuary, including One-Thumb, the proprietor of the Vulgar Unicorn tavern; Regli, a nobleman; Illyra, the seer; Hanes, the thief; Jubal, the crime lord; and Tempus Thales, the immortal mercenary. “Game of Thrones has come to an end. . . . [Here’s] a fantasy series to fill the void. . . . You’ll be pulled into political intrigues, watch new gods replace old, and witness fortunes rise and fall and rise again.” — Book Riot “Sanctuary was the city where anything could happen, where characters created by some of the best fantasy writers of the generation crossed paths and shared adventures.” —Black Gate

    With every voyage taking exactly five hours, whether the distance is one light-year or a thousand, the drive allowed humanity to finally escape Earth and reach for the stars.But while the aliens owned the technology, they needed humans to make it practical. Specifically, humans who could temporarily leave their bodies and guide the tunnelships through the void of space.Nathan Skoda is one such navigator. After hundreds of trips, and with hundreds yet to go, all he wants is to finish out his indenture before he succumbs to burnout. So when he’s approached with a plan that might free the navigators from the Meerian chokehold, he decides to check it out.But when the Meerians move to protect their monopoly, Skoda realizes he’s let himself in for more than he bargained for.And he discovers that, dark though his life may be, there’s an even deeper darkness lying beneath the surface.

    Only, what he found was the object of his brothers’ attention, a beautiful woman whose dark destiny loomed over her like a shadow ready to snuff out her light. He’s wanted his brothers back for endless centuries, but they will not be moved. Yet something about this woman moves them and for the first time in his existence, Seth gives in to impulse.Fate is not kind…All I’ve ever wanted was to do the right thing. To show compassion to others. To take care of them. Yet, no matter what I’ve done, I end up here at the base of a set of stairs after a punishing fall threatens to rob me of my life. Trapped in my broken body, I lay at the feet of an angel.I almost died. I say almost because a moment before my last breath, Judgment found me. I don’t know what he saw in me but with one kiss, he changed me irrevocably. So I’ll help him extract punishment on his brothers for a chance to live even a short bit longer. They better be ready for me, because I plan to make the most of this second life, no matter how short it is. *Please note this is a reverse harem and the authors suggests you always read the forward in their books. Warning, this is a standalone tale with a fierce and feisty heroine, three heroes who are forces of nature, and a tale as old as time, humor, and a little bit of karmic justice thrown in.

    The FossilFlu virus which drove humanity to the brink of extinction, has mutated and threatens a second pandemic. Along with the message is a mysterious personal invitation to visit the Sanctuary of Americas, one of the last three cities left on Earth. When Mercy arrives, she is shocked to discover that the Sanctuary of Americas has been engineering human-animal hybrids to be immune to the virus.Drawn into a dangerous internal war, where the cure to the virus is the key to power and the fate of the hybrids, Mercy's research may have the answers. But who will she save?

     Triana Moore doesn't hate Christmas, but tinsel tidying is terrible. When her bots stop vacuuming, Triana must find out why. Like Santa up a chimney, she zips to the upper levels of the space station to apprehend the culprit: a mystery man with a magnetic personality confusing the computers. He can't remember his own name, but he can access the most secure areas of the station with a smile, and not leave a trace. To save Christmas, and the board of directors' all-important holiday party, Triana must enlist all her friends--and a few enemies. When they look in their stockings on Christmas morning, who will find candy and who will find coal?

    Crucial Larsen, a veteran of the brutal Consolidation Wars, is working as a labor cop on Earth. The planet is a toxic dump and billions of people are miserable, but so what? It's none of his business. He's finally living a good life, or good-enough. But then his beloved kid sister, Essential, disappears on Mars, and he's summoned up-universe to aid the investigation. When Crucial demands to know why Halo, the all-powerful artificial-intelligence overseeing Earth and Mars on behalf of the ruling Five Families, can't (or won't) locate his sister, he comes face to face with a life-threatening and apathy-ending realization: Essential is a revolutionary. Blending science-fiction with elements of classic hard-boiled detective stories, Gates of Mars, the first book of The Halo Trilogy, is the eighth novel by Clark Hays and Kathleen McFall.

    So much so that they've spent the past decade in an asylum out of fear they'd end up just like him. Escaping, the two have decided to form a new life on the road. Except, a chance encounter in a dingy diner introduces William to the girl of his dreams.Too bad she's a girl on a mission to kill all slashers. But maybe the best way to catch a supernatural serial killer is with another pair of them.Enjoy this exciting prequel to the United States of Monsters books!

    She takes great care to hide her powers, though serving a Root Brew Float laced with a magic potion now and again never hurt anybody. The Order sends her to Massachusetts to deal with a paranormal threat, and she meets the young and handsome widower, Clarence Watts. However, being with him comes with a cost. How can she choose between the man she loves and the magic dear to her heart?

    What he doesn’t know is that he’s destined to save the world and reignite the spark of magic within it. But this isn’t his story, it’s mine. See, I once thought magic was only the stuff of fairytales, and I was wrong. I’m doing my best to protect, train, and mentor Po as we search for the key to unlock magic before a dangerous secret group gets there first. I mean, while that all seems a bit much to take on for a sixteen year-old, that's because it is. Here I was just planning on courting the girl of my dreams, figuring out what I wanted to do with my life, and trying not to get into too much trouble. But things can never be that easy, can they? I guess if it were easy, it wouldn’t be me. I am Oliver Quartermaine, and my life is about to get a lot more complicated.

    He begins a journey that is most fun he’s had in years. Then it turns into an obsession that upends his life, his family, and everything he knows.A Universe Less Traveled tells Billy’s story, framed by tales of other accidental visitors to this mysterious city.Looking for an escape from the troubles of his failing business, Billy discovers a teeming metropolis with iridescent skyscrapers and throngs of immigrants and tourists from all over the world. As he explores, he meets peculiar allies and experiences raucous celebrations. Billy questions his sanity as he struggles to make sense of this bizarre world. Billy also meets a formidable enemy – the Knights, a shadowy organization with a mission to keep people like him out of their world. When his daughter disappears at the hands of the Knights, Billy and his wife go on a frantic search to find her in the other city. It leads to heartbreak, then to a new beginning.

    What will he be like as a chicken, cow, tiger, tree and Austrian art teacher from 1896?Napoleon was a pig with dreams of revolution. What will he be like as Joseph Stalin?Shirley was a zoo keeper with a big heart and a weakness for helping others. When will she learn?Sal was a cop. Then a cop. Then a cop several times after that. What will he be like as the leader of a coalition sworn to hunt Tom for the rest of his lives?"Simpson's prose adroitly wields deadpan comedy... A wild ride on a picaresque path to some kind of wisdom." --Kirkus Reviews

    He’s beautiful, just her type, and into her. But when Leigh is trapped in The Game during a Gatsby-themed gala and forced to catch a hacker who’s using the app to set up crimes in the real world, she realizes there’s a far more dangerous game being played…And Alexei might be the death of her.

    Mighty. Wealthy. The center of an empire. On the other side: Bahay. A humble planet. A backwater. A world whose people will never surrender.Jon and Maria fight on opposite sides. But to end the violence, they must work together. The very fate of humanity depends on it.Yet the fires burn so hot. The hatred runs so deep. As the climactic battle flares, as the bombs fall and the cannons boom, can Jon and Maria survive? Or will this war rip them apart?

    It features a bustling city built on a filled-in San Francisco Bay, a pop star tech genius named Quintessandra, a sea witch, and internet teeth.Excerpted from Robin Sloan's Note to Readers:"This story was initially published as a daily serial in two Bay Area newspapers, the Mercury News and East Bay Times, in 2020. It ran from June 7 to June 21. ... This adventure is neither sequel nor prequel to the original Annabel Scheme novella published in 2009. It is instead...another possibility. Scheme fans will understand."

    Unknowingly, she crosses into a breach between her reality and one ripped directly from nightmares. A flight to escape turns into a quest for survival as she battles her way through this new world, while learning how she got there and how to get home. Nothing here is what it seems as creatures and plant life both wage attacks against her. The journey takes her through a world she has only dreamed of, where she meets creatures and beings that are too impossible to exist, who teach her how to face what she has once forgotten. Will she survive long enough to discover the truth?

    A portion of the sales will fund a scholarship set up in the name of superfan, TVA engineer, and LibertyCon founder Timothy "Uncle Timmy" Bolgeo.Join David Weber, Larry Correia, David Drake, and twelve other best-selling authors as they pay their respects to some of their devoted fans and to a lost friend. Fifteen stories from the authors' own worlds will showcase some of the names of their greatest fans in original works, written for a charity in honor of Timothy Bolgeo, the founder of LibertyCon. Contributors: David Weber David Drake David B. Coe Larry Correia  Sarah A. Hoyt Timothy Zahn Mike Massa Charles E Gannon Jody Lynn Nye Bill Fawcett Chris Kennedy Kacey Ezell Les Johnson John Hartness Christopher Woods Praise for the contributors: "Weber is the Tom Clancy of science fiction."—Publishers Weekly on David Weber "Drake couldn’t write a bad action scene at gunpoint.”—Booklist on David Drake "Everything I like in fantasy."—Jim Butcher on Larry Correia

    But his past is a mystery, his future is a question, and his whole life is about to change.Tossed from one foster home to another and shadowed by his mysterious past, Ion fears he’ll never fit in — until one day, when he drops a pencil and instead of falling to the floor…it floats.Shocked and bewildered, Ion searches deeper and discovers an undeniable truth about himself: he possesses extraordinary powers beyond his control. Healing injuries, levitating objects, and superhuman strength come as easy to him as breathing. Now Ion only has one goal: make sure no one finds out what he’s capable of.Struggling to keep his newfound abilities a secret, Ion finds himself more isolated than ever — until he meets a mysterious stranger in the woods who seems to understand Ion better than anyone else. As tensions rise at home with his new foster family, Ion finds it harder and harder to control his powers. And when he accidentally sparks a fire that nearly destroys their home, Ion is forced to face the reality of his situation: not only is he capable of healing — he’s also capable of fatal destruction.Anomaly is the gripping paranormal prequel to The Blood Race series by K.A. Emmons.

    He had antlers and lived with his father in a little cabin in the woods. Then his father died, and the big man with cold eyes took Gus away. Gus went on many great adventures, found friends, love, happiness, family, and acceptance.Now, years later…it begins again. A young boy with antlers and deer-like feature wakes in a bizarre and completely foreign world where the last humans struggle to survive. They tell the boy he is special, he is chosen, and that he alone can lead them back to a world dominated by the oppressive Hybrids.Sweet Tooth: The Return is no re-hash of the original series, but rather a bold re-imagining of the Sweet Tooth mythology; taking elements of the original series and remixing them into something familiar, but totally new. A divided world. A planet long ago past the point of devastation. And at the center of it all, a child who didn’t ask to be born into any of this, but who has no choice but to try and forge some life for himself. His visions and dreams may not be real at all…they may just be fiction. But they are hope. And sometimes hope is enough.Acclaimed writer/artist Jeff Lemire reunites with colorist José Villarubia to bring you the next chapter in the saga of DC’s acclaimed series Sweet Tooth!

    Some are driven by hope, others by trauma and heartbreak—they have come to begin a new and simpler life on an uninhabited world. Then comes the harrowing discovery of an ancient alien technology.A woman leaves her husband and her planet behind chasing her religious faith, while a hundred-year-old atheist encounters an alien consciousness beyond her comprehension; A priest is given a terrible burden and faces his own capacity for violence; In the wake of tragedy, the Ankharra colony rends into pro-tech and anti-tech factions while a pair of young lovers try to navigate the divide; As the years turn to decades, a secret society forms that will shape the future of the Andromeda Colonies. What begins as a series of separate tales converges to weave a web of human loss and love at the edge of the known universe.

    Now 17, Cat is a self-identified weirdo, and Jake’s the star of Butterfield High School’s football team. Their friendship is long over, which suits them both perfectly well. As for Jake being a fairy prince? Ha! Cat’s way over that childhood fantasy!Life’s going just fine until Cat stumbles onto a huge secret—fairies are real alright, and they’ve been hiding in plain sight all along!She gets thrown headfirst (perhaps more accurately she throws herself headfirst) into their fey problems. The fairies of Butterfield have been cut off from their magical world for years and are turning to desperate and nefarious means to keep all the magic they can get their hands on. And they’re definitely not going to let one puny human get in their way, despite all of Cat’s best meddlesome efforts.Meanwhile, she's made a promise with the alluring and fey Tobias Monday that she probably shouldn't have made, she's failing Chemistry, two fairy courts are out to get her, she's been grounded for a month... and Homecoming is tomorrow!

    In Paris, the glowing Seine may, or may not, conceal the disassembled remnants of the Eiffel Tower. A dragon haunts the high passes of the Germanic states, swallowing travelers whole for purposes impossible to understand. All these signs and portents together mean but one thing to the forgettable-faced Aubrey Darger and his humanoid canine partner Surplus. There is money to be made.Here are five novelettes and four never-before-collected vignettes that describe episodes from the careers of those most charming of con artists, Darger and Surplus, spiritual heirs to Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser and unwitting agents of change in a world where ancient artificial intelligences scheme to destroy the descendants of their makers. The comrades’ adventures across a wildly detailed world by turns astonish and delight.The Hugo Award-winning “The Dog Says Bow-Wow” tells the tale of the redoubtable pair’s first confidence game, played out at the dizzying heights of English society. In “The Little Cat Laughed to See Such Sport,” Surplus works to overcome his prejudice against Darger’s new lover, a member of that most contemptible and capricious of races, cats. Gods walk a future Arcadia in “Girls and Boys Come Out to Play,” tables are turned by the formidable woman who lends her name as title to “Tawny Petticoats,” and Darger and Surplus are separated as each attempts to thwart the machinations of a most unique AI “There Was an Old Woman,” which debuts herein.The collection closes with “Smoke and Mirrors,” four brief episodes that lend nuance to all that has come before, expanding our understanding and appreciation of this world and of these unforgettable roguish characters.

    Determined to break out of my reclusive shell and move past the trauma of my father’s unexpected death, I take a job at Camp Shadow Lake, a place where nothing is what it seems.Every counselor is beautiful and aloof, including Levi Kass—who is as hot as he is hostile. I don’t know what I did to make him hate me, but he seems to want to eat me alive. How can someone so gorgeous be so menacing?But hot-as-hell Levi, with his dark stares and spine-tingling glances, is the least of my worries. A year ago, someone or something killed my father, and the more time I spend at Camp Shadow Lake, the more clues I find.They say it was a bear attack. Bear attack, my ass. Something much more insidious killed my father, and it might be hiding out near Shadow Lake.When I go looking for answers, I experience a shocking vision—one that shows me my days are numbered.Someone is going to kill me, and I need to figure out who before it’s too late. Will Levi save me or will I have to save myself… from him?If you love The Twilight Saga and The Vampire Diaries, you’re going to have a great time at Camp Shadow Lake. Don’t piss off the counselors—they’ll eat you for breakfast.Shadow Lake Vampire Society contains scenes with violence and some mild language.

    But, where should she go and what should she do with her life? And why is her best ghost friend, Charlie, acting so weird? Maybe if she solves the mysteries of her past once and for all, she can figure out her future. Meanwhile, bad things are happening to good people all over town –including the cool new theater director and his super cute son- but it’s unclear if the problem is supernatural or human. Can Sam, with new powers and old friends, save Bluebonnet just in time to possibly leave it?

    In a sleepy central valley city, he served as the eyes, ears, and fist of the Emperor. Not that the Emperor—or the Clan—has much to say. That is, until Bolin uncovers a traitor with knowledge of Black Lotus poisons. Now, he must journey to the birthplace of the clan, to find the answers to a mystery that could threaten the empire. For centuries, the Black Lotus Poison masters have held the secrets to toxins that grant them abilities beyond mortal men. Secrets some would kill to possess—or die to protect.

    Born of the ancient Airgíd race that once ruled with an iron fist, she’s hated by all, and now she must seek their help to stop the coming genocide.Jayden wants nothing to do with his birthright as the Crown Prince of Ungäar. Having faked his death nearly three years ago, he finds himself caught up in a string of events that pull him away from his desire for freedom, toward a fate he’s tried to escape.A man of legend, Údar sought refuge in the Forest of Nex to nurse his bitterness and anger toward Elohai for his wife’s death. But Elohai has not forgotten him, nor is his calling fulfilled. Drawn out of hiding by the promise of revenge, he finds the world has changed... and not for the better.-II-Filled with sweeping landscapes, terrifying creatures, and deep lore, Wintenaeth is a land held together by a fragile peace between the Four Kingdoms. After the fall of the Old Airgíd Empire, the Four Kingdoms rose from the ashes to rule, but the Airgíd have not forgotten what was taken from them, and there are some who will do whatever it takes to rebuild it. Even if that means seeking help from the Queen of the Banshees.The City of Snow & Stars is book one in the Cities of Wintenaeth Trilogy and the first in a larger story which takes place over the twelve books planned in the series.Grab your copy and join the growing community of readers!"The City of Snow & Stars is a fast-paced, skillfully crafted story that will leave readers wanting to read the next book in the series." - Romuald Dzemo, Reviewer at Reader's Favorite

    Dowdrick, an enraged client at the tailor’s where they work. Desperate to stop him, she rouses a swarm of wasps that sting the doctor while she stabs him with scissors, and then flees. At a subsequent job when birds race to her defense, Evalina is declared a witch and sent to Philadelphia’s Eastern State Penitentiary.While imprisoned, Evalina is horrified not only to learn that Dr. Dowdrick is still alive, but he’s experimenting on inmates. Determined to get inside his Eclectic Medical School, to expose his nefarious activities, she’s passionate about protecting fellow prisoners, especially Lewin, a child thief who knew her brother, and Birdy, a kind, resilient Welsh man serving time for a worker’s death while blasting granite for the railroad.Evalina, her friends and her “wild beasts” work against time to unmask Dowdrick’s crimes when she participates with him in a symposium, showcasing Philadelphia’s premium doctors. If they fail, not only will the doctor’s evil deeds continue unchecked but Evalina and her crew will surely be hung. Actual historical figures such as Dr. Thomas Mutter and Charles Dickens spice up this thriller, brimming with historical gems. A second place winner in RWA’s 2019 Valley Forge Sheila Contest.

    Coming June 2020.

    As the forces of the Capellan Confederation advance toward the heart of the crumbling Republic, they are laser-focused on the one goal that will give them the upper hand and destroy the Republic once and for all: the planet of Northwind. Homeworld of the famed Northwind Highlanders mercenaries, Northwind is not only the site of a century-old betrayal, it also boasts the only working hyperpulse generator along the line of the Confederation’s advance. Sang-shao Lindsey Baxter and the Fourth McCarron’s Armored Cavalry have been tasked with taking Northwind at all costs, and the besieged Republic is unable to lend further support to the defending XII Hastati Sentinels. Northwind will be easy pickings, and other sharks smell blood in the water. The Highlanders’ honor remains strong, but will it be enough to survive the coming storm?

    You don’t have to explore darksome crypts to discover incredible ancient treasures—you can find them in Renegade Swords!Stories included:“The House of Arabu” by Robert E. Howard“Necromancy in Naat” (unabridged version) by Clark Ashton Smith“The Woman of the Wood” (previously unpublished version) by A. Merritt“The Slaughter of the Gods” by Manly Wade Wellman“People of the Dragon” by Lin Carter“The Pillars of Hell” by Lin Carter“The Rune-Sword of Jotunheim” by Glenn Rahman and Richard L. Tierney“Princess of Chaos” by Bryce Walton

    They're taking a physical toll on him. Forming a team is not only a good idea, but it will help him address his next case.A rash of murders and disappearances in Southern Ohio normally would not be something he investigated. However, when it's the Tanner Pack, a vicious weregang, making the request for help, that's another story.Dealing with the case is one issue, but doing it with a new team is a challenge unto itself. They must navigate a powder keg of various factions and solve the case or risk losing a potential new Earth Ward ally. Dalton finds himself in a familiar role and providing what comes naturally to him--leadership.

    A secluded Retreat Center full of preternatural clientele. A talking crow who thinks she knows everything. A new boy in town asking a lot of nosy questions. Sound like a lot to handle? Not for fifteen-year-old Macy Steward, who lives at the Center and helps her parents run the highly unusual retreats. For Macy, this is simply normal routine. And it's all going exactly as expected, that is until the guests become dangerously unpredictable, the talking crow goes suspiciously missing, and the new boy turns out to be so much more than he first appeared. "Here comes trouble." That's the last thing the crow says before disappearing. Even though she doesn't scare easily, Macy has to admit the crow was right. Because soon enough, she finds herself trying to keep a lot more things safe than just secrets...

    The last rays of the setting sun stained the ground crimson. “Betrayer,” he murmured, ears still ringing from the terrific explosion, “we have a problem.”The cryptic message from Olympus changes everything... One moment Devcalion and Betrayer are free, climbing up Half Dome without a care in the world, the next they are dragged into battle with the Destroyer, Zeus’s ancient foe.The Dark Power is merciless, and time is running out. It’s up to Dev and Tray to try to stop him, or the world of men and gods is doomed.Book One of the Blood Series – Destroyer’s Blood by award-winning author - Michael Lynes

    The artificial womb ensures the perfect health and flawless development of every unborn child. Natural pregnancy is now unnecessary risk—and quickly criminalized as a danger to both mother and fetus.As a reporter, Jessica Brantley makes new enemies on a daily basis covering both sides of the controversial new law. Now her search for the truth behind this world-changing technology will lead to an unimaginable discovery—the existence of children with terrifying telepathic powers.This truth is no secret to former U.S. Marine Valerie Hara. Her illegally born eleven-year-old son can’t help but hear the thoughts of everyone around him. When government agents storm her home to take her child away, she’ll stop at nothing to protect her family.Soon, these two fearless women will be branded as terrorists, hunted by the military, demonized by the media—and drawn into a desperate fight for the freedom of the human race.Fast-paced and thought-provoking, THE WAY OUT is a sci-fi thriller that explores what happens when governments try to shape the genetic future of our world.

    They’ve given up their families and their memories for ten years of service with the promise of a life of luxury awaiting them.Agent G is one of these “Letters,” but clues to his past are starting to emerge while he’s on a dangerous mission to infiltrate the Society’s most dangerous competitor. In the midst of all the violence, subterfuge, and deceit, he’ll need to keep his wits about him and trust sparingly.After all if an organization will kill for money, what would they do to keep the truth hidden?The Agent G Omnibus contains the first three volumes of the Agent G series (Infiltrator, Saboteur, and Assassin). Follow G as he slowly unravels the truth of his past, the conspiracy behind the International Refugee Society, and his allies. The Agent G series follows the transformation of our present-day world into a terrifying cyberpunk future as man merges with machine.

    These twelve tales of selkies, hockey players, retired systems engineers, monsters, copyeditors and changelings are connected by a thread of optimism, and of hope: that we, too, will ride out this storm. This anthology features contributions by Aliette de Bodard, Stephanie Burgis, Iona Datt Sharma, Jeannelle M. Ferreira, Rebecca Fraimow, Marissa Lingen, Freya Marske, Lizbeth Myles, Katie Rathfelder, Tansy Rayner Roberts, Adrian Tchaikovsky and Llinos Cathryn Thomas. All proceeds will be donated to the COVID-19 appeal being run by the UCLH Charity, the charity supporting the University College London Hospitals NHS Trust.

    Khan Alaric Wolf is preparing for his biggest moves yet…and is willing to enlist just about anyone who can help him achieve his ultimate goal—the conquest of Terra.To that end, he sends one of his own on a special assignment. Marotta Kerensky is a Clan Wolf warrior unlike any other—the perfect candidate for a mission unlike any other: convince the legendary Wolf’s Dragoons to rejoin the Clan they originally came from.But when Marotta reaches the mercenary unit, he finds them quite different from the storied force of a century ago. Times have changed since then, and the Dragoons have as well…or have they? Driven to accomplish his mission at any cost, Marotta allies with a Dragoons officer on a risky gambit that may help him deliver what his Khan wants…or tear Wolf’s Dragoons apart forever.