Meanwhile, on Earth, different camps start forming, planning to either welcome the superior beings and help them take over a world seen as corrupt, or to fight against the invasion.The Dark Forest — In The Dark Forest, the aliens' human collaborators may have been defeated, but the presence of the sophons, the subatomic particles that allow Trisolaris instant access to all human information remains. Humanity responds with the Wallfacer Project, a daring plan that grants four men enormous resources to design secret strategies, hidden through deceit and misdirection from Earth and Trisolaris alike. Three of the Wallfacers are influential statesmen and scientists, but the fourth is a total unknown. Luo Ji, an unambitious Chinese astronomer and sociologist, is baffled by his new status. All he knows is that he's the one Wallfacer that Trisolaris wants dead.Death’s End — Half a century after the Doomsday Battle, Cheng Xin, an aerospace engineer from the early 21st century, awakens from hibernation in this new age. She brings with her knowledge of a long-forgotten program dating from the beginning of the Trisolar Crisis, and her very presence may upset the delicate balance between two worlds. Will humanity reach for the stars or die in its cradle? Other Books by Cixin Liu (Translated to English) The Remembrance of Earth's Past The Three-Body Problem The Dark Forest Death's End Other Books Ball Lightning At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

    Kingfisher comes a collection of short stories, including "Jackalope Wives," "The Tomato Thief," "Pocosin," and many others. By turns funny, lyrical, angry and beautiful, this anthology includes two all-new stories, "Origin Story" and "Let Pass The Horses Black," appearing for the first time in print.

    I am a good dog. Rex is also seven foot tall at the shoulder, bulletproof, bristling with heavy calibre weaponry and his voice resonates with subsonics especially designed to instil fear. With Dragon, Honey and Bees, he's part of a Multiform Assault Pack operating in the lawless anarchy of Campeche, south-eastern Mexico. Rex is a genetically engineered Bioform, a deadly weapon in a dirty war. He has the intelligence to carry out his orders and feedback implants to reward him when he does. All he wants to be is a Good Dog. And to do that he must do exactly what Master says and Master says he's got to kill a lot of enemies. But who, exactly, are the enemies? What happens when Master is tried as a war criminal? What rights does the Geneva Convention grant weapons? Do Rex and his fellow Bioforms even have a right to exist? And what happens when Rex slips his leash?

    Young Thomas Corn Eyes sees into the otherworld, but all he wants to do is get off the rez. Steve Cole escaped from his rock star life to disappear into the desert and mountains. Fifteen-year-old barrio kid Sadie Higgins has been discarded once too often. Blogger Leah Hardin needs to leave Newford, come to terms with the loss of her best friend, and actually engage with her life. When these lives collide in the Hierro Maderas Mountains, they must struggle to escape their messy pasts and find a way to carve a future for themselves.They don’t just have to learn how to survive. They have to learn how to fly. Beautiful, elegant, and remarkably kind, this is the work of a storyteller at the peak of his abilities. With de Lint, there's no need to say, “I can’t wait to see what he does next.” What he does now is always enough to take my breath away.—Seanan McGuire, author of the October Daye series and other novelsCharles' new book filled me with joy! From the first line to the last, I was completely involved. A book about those "outside" who think they want to get "in," there are good lessons to be learned—painlessly—from beginning to end.—Janis Ian, songwriter & musicianWith this gently rolling, lyrical composition of a book, the godfather of urban fantasy flows back to where he’s most needed. If there's one thing today's world can gain from literature, surely it's de Lint's signature sense of unsullied wonder and devotion to the best within us.—Melissa F. Olson, author of the Scarlett Bernard series and other novelsAs a struggling unpublished novelist, I read Charles de Lint and found the template for the kind of stories I wanted to tell, ones that brought magic and folklore into the modern world. After fifteen novels of my own, I'm still both humbled and enthralled by the ease with which he draws the reader into his stories, because now I know just how hard it is. The Wind in His Heart is tough, tender, grim, light on its feet, magical, and brilliant: in other words, a typical de Lint masterpiece, once again setting a high bar for those of us who follow.—Alex Bledsoe, author of the Tufa series and other novelsOh what a sweet, wonderful ride that was! I was enthralled. I didn't leave my house all weekend; it was glorious. It was throwback CdL, a vast, shifting landscape of story woven upon story, just what I love. What a love letter to the desert.—Lizz Huerta, author, winner of the Lumina fiction awardSplendid and so very healing!—Charles Vess, artist, winner of the World Fantasy Award

    Home is a new house with a loving husband in 1970s California that suddenly transformed in to the frightening world of the antebellum South. Dana, a young black writer, can't explain how she is transported across time and space to a plantation in Maryland. But she does quickly understand why: to deal with the troubles of Rufus, a conflicted white slaveholder--and her progenitor. Her survival, her very existence, depends on it. This searing graphic-novel adaptation of Octavia E. Butler's science fiction classic is a powerfully moving, unflinching look at the violent disturbing effects of slavery on the people it chained together, both black and white--and made kindred in the deepest sense of the word.

    Here, a universal ranking system determines the social advantages and career opportunities of every member of society. An automated matchmaking service knows the best partners for everyone and helps with the break up when your ideal match (frequently) changes. And the foolproof algorithms of the biggest, most successful company in the world, TheShop, know what you want before you do and conveniently deliver to your doorstep before you even order it.In QualityCity, Peter Jobless is a machine scrapper who can't quite bring himself to destroy the imperfect machines sent his way, and has become the unwitting leader of a band of robotic misfits hidden in his home and workplace. One day, Peter receives a product from TheShop he absolutely, positively knows he does not want, and which he decides, at great personal cost, to return. The only problem: doing so means proving the perfect algorithm of TheShop wrong, calling into question the very foundations of QualityLand itself.

    But the woman broke his heart once and is now involved in a fanatical cult. Even being seen with her could damage his career. Still, he cannot stay away, and the more time he spends with her, the more he begins to doubt everything he believes.Angelica is a seer. God grants her visions of the future, but she has no idea what to do with them. Her top priority is protecting her son—from the world, the culture, the devil, and especially from Daniel. But God keeps throwing them together, causing her fears to rise and reopening old wounds that threaten to tear her soul apart.Angels watch over the couple, protecting and hoping they will make the right choices. But the angels are limited in what they can do as the end of the age comes to a close and the spiritual battles intensify, not only for Angelica and Daniel, but for all humanity.

    But now the lab in which she was created is under siege and the scientists have turned on their animal creations. Flying through tunnels, dodging bullets, and changing her colors and patterning to avoid capture, the Strange Bird manages to escape.But she cannot just soar in peace above the earth. The sky itself is full of wildlife that rejects her as one of their own, and also full of technology—satellites and drones and other detritus of the human civilization below that has all but destroyed itself. And the farther she flies, the deeper she finds herself in the orbit of the Company, a collapsed biotech firm that has populated the world with experiments both failed and successful that have outlived the corporation itself: a pack of networked foxes, a giant predatory bear. But of the many creatures she encounters with whom she bears some kind of kinship, it is the humans—all of them now simply scrambling to survive—who are the most insidious, who still see her as simply something to possess, to capture, to trade, to exploit. Never to understand, never to welcome home.With The Strange Bird, Jeff VanderMeer has done more than add another layer, a new chapter, to his celebrated novel Borne. He has created a whole new perspective on the world inhabited by Rachel and Wick, the Magician, Mord, and Borne—a view from above, of course, but also a view from deep inside the mind of a new kind of creature who will fight and suffer and live for the tenuous future of this world.

    Humanity flows away from Earth, into space, and in time forgets our home world and creates a new empire, the Interdependency, whose ethos requires that no one human outpost can survive without the others. It’s a hedge against interstellar war -- and a system of control for the rulers of the empire.The Flow is eternal -- but it is not static. Just as a river changes course, The Flow changes as well, cutting off worlds from the rest of humanity. When it’s discovered that The Flow is moving, possibly cutting off all human worlds from faster than light travel forever, three individuals -- a scientist, a starship captain and the Empress of the Interdependency -- are in a race against time to discover what, if anything, can be salvaged from an interstellar empire on the brink of collapse.

    Unfortunately, he's going on a pair of adventures instead. With his less-than faithful acolyte at his side, Lhiewyn will have to face down a rampaging sewer demon and outwit the beautiful, wily priestess of a foreign god bent on unearthing his greatest, most terrible secret. Looks like his nap will have to wait.... A note to potential readers: It is not necessary to read the Amra Thetys series to enjoy this novelette, though of course I think it would be an excellent idea if you did. -Michael McClung

    For humans: Coronal Mass Ejection (CME). When the Earth is hit by the greatest CME in recorded history (several times larger than the Carrington Event of 1859), the combined societies of the planet’s most developed nations struggle to adapt to a life thrust back into the Dark Ages. In the United States, the military scrambles to speed the nation’s recovery on multiple fronts including putting down riots, establishing relief camps, delivering medical aid, and bringing communication and travel back on line. Just as a real foothold is established in retaking the skies (utilizing existing commercial aircraft supplemented by military resources and ground control systems), a mysterious virus takes hold of the population, spreading globally over the very flight routes that the survivors fought so hard to rebuild. The communicability and mortality rates are devastating, leaving only small pockets of survivors scattered throughout the countryside. Commune Book One is the story of one small group of survivors who must adapt to a primitive, hostile world or die. As they learn the rules of this new era, they must decide how far they’re willing to go to continue living, continually asking themselves the same question daily: is survival worth the loss of humanity?

    In sixteen-year-old Sera Donner's isolated Pacific Northwest town, thousands are dead and hundreds are missing, including her own mother. With precious resources running low, neighbor turns against neighbor, sparking a brutal civil war, and when the new survivalist regime decides Sera's disabled brother isn't fit to live, she picks up the rifle she’s vowed never to touch, and fights to defend those she loves.Mysterious Micah Abrams is Sera's only comfort in the chaos; Micah clings to an inexplicable hope that Sera finds hard to resist but difficult to understand. She longs to let down her guard and reveal to him a secret that's tearing her apart. But with the stakes higher than ever, can Sera really trust a schoolyard bully suddenly turned prophet?As the battle over control of the community reaches a fevered pitch, a powerful military leader marches into town with an imposing force, offering food, water, and promises of salvation. Everyone thinks the worst is finally over.They're wrong.

    He's a former Navy officer, a brooding, gorgeous treasure hunter who lives his life on the ocean. I'm a small-town girl from Nebraska who's barely even seen the sea. But when a mystery disease attacks my sister, I must team up with Rourke to find the sunken ship that holds the cure. He's a loner, determined to push everyone away...but when he looks at me, he melts the clothes right off my body.To save my sister, I'll have to enter a whole new world of smugglers, sunken gold and deadly storms. In the close confines of Rourke's boat, there's no way I can ignore that smoldering gaze, or the way my legs go weak whenever he takes hold of me. He claims he's no hero yet he protects me like no other...can I save him from the pain that's tearing him apart? I'm from the prairies; he's from the sea. But I need to learn his world, fast, because others want what's on that sunken ship...and they'll kill both of us to get it.Standalone romance with guaranteed HEA and no cheating.

    But without its Duke. Twenty five billion people have appeared in the Gaia system unexpectedly, and only one person knows how or why. Yet preparations for fifteen billion exist, but only one person remembers the work being done. The one who knows, and the one who remembers, are the same, but Jane is not human. So good is she at hiding being an Artificial Intelligence, no-one knows except her fellow AI's. To her falls the responsibility for guiding Humanity as they come to terms with not knowing where they are. The how and why seem simple to her, but twenty five into fifteen doesn’t fit, and humans don’t tend to get along when crowded together. It really isn’t her problem, and yet, Jane feels obligated to make things work. Humanity needs to spread out again, so who stays and who goes? But is there somewhere to go to? The galaxy doesn’t know about Humans yet, and they have their own problems. Human problems collide with Alien problems, with Jane in the middle. For Jane, everything is new. She's no longer the hero's side-kick, but is in her own right, the Admiral of Gaia.

    Stupefyingly good.” — Patrick Rothfuss Set in a phenomenally-built world in which lawyers ride lightning bolts, souls are currency, and cities are powered by the remains of fallen gods, MAX GLADSTONE's Craft Sequence introduces readers to a modern fantasy landscape and an epic struggle to build a just society.Three Parts Dead — A god has died, and it's up to Tara, first-year associate in the international necromantic firm of Kelethres, Albrecht, and Ao, to bring Him back to life before His city falls apart.Two Serpents Rise — Caleb Altemoc—casual gambler and professional risk manager—is sent by Red King Consolidated to cleanse shadow demons from the Dresediel Lex city water supply, and uncovers a scheme to forever alter the balance of power in the city.Full Fathom Five — On the island of Kavekana, Kai nearly loses her life trying to save one of her creations, a god built to order. But when Kai starts digging into the reasons her creations die, she uncovers a conspiracy of silence and fear—which will crush her, if Kai can't stop it first.Last First Snow — Craft lawyer Elayne Kevarian and warrior-priest Temoc must fight dark magic, secret agendas, and their own demons to save the peace between the citizens and rulers of Dresediel Lex, before hell opens to swallow the city whole. Four Roads Cross — Protests rock the city of Alt Coulumb, Kos Everburning's creditors attempt a hostile takeover of the fire god's church, and Craftswoman Tara Abernathy must defend the church against the world's fiercest necromantic firm. Tor books by Max Gladstone The Craft Sequence Three Parts Dead Two Serpents Rise Full Fathom Five Last First Snow Four Roads Cross The Ruin of Angels Other Books The Highway Kind At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

    The only people still able to dream are North America's Indigenous people, and it is their marrow that holds the cure for the rest of the world. But getting the marrow, and dreams, means death for the unwilling donors. Driven to flight, a fifteen-year-old and his companions struggle for survival, attempt to reunite with loved ones and take refuge from the "recruiters" who seek them out to bring them to the marrow-stealing "factories."

    From Hugo and Nebula winners to Pulitzer and Booker Prize finalists to New York Times bestsellers, this anthology collects 30 pieces of Subterranean’s best, representing diverse, breathtaking short fiction from today’s modern masters.In “Last Breath” Joe Hill spins the tale of a man who collects the breaths of the dying for his haunting museum. Catherynne M. Valente’s “White Lines on a Green Field” chronicles what might happen if Coyote became a small town high school quarterback. Karen Joy Fowler’s “Younger Women” finds a woman confronting her daughter’s new boyfriend, who happens to be a vampire. Visit the Twilight Zone via George R.R. Martin in the script “The Toys of Caliban”. In Ted Chiang’s “The Truth of Fact, the Truth of Feeling” the narratives of a journalist and a young man are told in contrast, both impacted by technology and literacy. And in Kelley Armstrong’s “The Screams of Dragons” a boy is declared a changeling and things only get stranger from there. Other pieces visit far-flung space and intimate sick rooms, the futuristic pyramids of the rich and a jungle where a man-eating tiger stalks a village.Contents:- Perfidia (2004) by Lewis Shiner- Game (2012) by Maria Dahvana Headley- The Last Log of the Lachrimosa (2014) by Alastair Reynolds- The Seventeenth Kind (2007) by Michael Marshall Smith- Dispersed by the Sun, Melting in the Wind (2007) by Rachel Swirsky- The Pile (2008) by Michael Bishop- The Bohemian Astrobleme (2010) by Kage Baker- Tanglefoot (2008) by Cherie Priest- Hide and Horns (2009) by Joe R. Lansdale- Balfour and Meriwether in The Vampire of Kabul (2011) by Daniel Abraham- Last Breath (2005) by Joe Hill- Younger Women (2011) by Karen Joy Fowler- White Lines on a Green Field (2011) by Catherynne M. Valente- The Least of the Deathly Arts (2012) by Kat Howard- Water Can't Be Nervous (2012) by Jonathan Carroll- Valley of the Girls (2011) by Kelly Link- Sic Him, Hellhound! Kill! Kill! (2012) by Hal Duncan- Troublesolving (2009) by Tim Pratt- The Indelible Dark (2013) by William Browning Spencer- The Prayer of Ninety Cats (2013) by Caitlín R. Kiernan- The Crane Method (2011) by Ian R. MacLeod- The Tomb of the Pontifex Dvorn (2011) by Robert Silverberg- The Toys of Caliban (script) (2005) by George R.R. Martin- The Secret History of the Lost Colony (2008) by John Scalzi- The Screams of Dragons (2014) by Kelley Armstrong- The Dry Spell (2009) by James P. Blaylock- He Who Grew Up Reading Sherlock Holmes (2014) by Harlan Ellison- A Small Price to Pay for Birdsong (2011) by K.J. Parker- The Truth of Fact, the Truth of Feeling (2013) by Ted Chiang- A Long Walk Home (2011) by Jay Lake

    Load of nonsense.Before you can say “Ragnarok”, Conrad is plunged into a world of gods, Mages, Witches, Dwarves and one rather aggressive giant mole.But he has next to no magick of his own.Armed with nothing but a sense of humour and a willingness to cheat, Conrad has to save the Witch – and his life.

    An orchard is bewitched with poison apples and would-be princesses. A pair of outcasts fail a questionnaire that measures who in their neighborhood will vanish next. Two sisters keep a grotesque secret hidden in a Victorian bathtub. A dearly departed best friend carries a grudge from beyond the grave.In her debut collection, Gwendolyn Kiste delves into the gathering darkness where beauty embraces the monstrous, and where even the most tranquil worlds are not to be trusted. From fairy tale kingdoms and desolate carnivals, to wedding ceremonies and summer camps that aren’t as joyful as they seem, these fourteen tales of horror and dark fantasy explore death, rebirth, and illusion all through the eyes of those on the outside—the forgotten, the forsaken, the Other, none of whom will stay in the dark any longer.

     When Alice Calliope takes over her recently deceased aunt's bookshop in Sapphire Village, Oregon, she's not expecting her world to be flipped upside down, but that's exactly what happens when her cousin Cat reveals to Alice that she's actually a witch. Add in the fact that the two of them stumble upon a dead body, and Alice's first day in town ends up being a lot more eventful than she could have possibly imagined! What was supposed to be a simple cross-country move winds up with Alice having to learn how to navigate a whole new magical world while at the same time trying to clear Cat's name as she emerges as the main suspect in the murder. Add in the eccentric Grandma Cee, witchcraft lessons, a whiny old ghost and the laziest cat ever, and Alice definitely has her hands full. With pressure mounting for the super-hot local sheriff to arrest her cousin, will Alice be able to hunt down the real killer before it's too late? Alice in Murderland is a full-length novel and the first book in the Magical Bookshop Mystery series of paranormal cozy mysteries.

    Here are seventeen short stories, including her Hugo Award-winning story "Cat Pictures Please," which is about what would happen if artificial intelligence was born out of our search engine history. Two stories are previously unpublished. Kritzer has a gift for telling stories both humorous and tender. Her stories are filled with wit and intelligence, and require thoughtful reading.

    It has been just two short years since Lyssa's birth... Captain Andy Sykes just wants to keep his family in one piece.Once a combat pilot for the TSF, he gave it all up for love and a family. But two years ago, his wife disappeared, leaving him with two mouths to feed: eight year-old Tim, ten year-old Cara.Since then, he's managed to scrape a living hauling cargo between the Jovian Combine and InnerSol. It's not glamorous, his ship's falling apart, and it's boring as hell, but it keeps them in fuel and calories.When a cargo run to Cruithne Station meets with more than one catastrophe, Andy finds himself accepting an offer a less desperate man would refuse: delivering an illegal AI named Lyssa.The AI is the property of Heartbridge, a powerful, interplanetary corporation, and they want their latest weapon back. With a private army, gangs, and pirates all vying for the precious cargo Andy carries, it's going to take everything Andy has to keep his ship flying, his kids safe, and get Lyssa to her destination.Even if he succeeds, Lyssa's very existence may spark a war like no other humanity has ever seen.Reading OrderThe Aeon 14 universe is vast and growing quickly. To help you know where to go next, pick up the handy dandy FREE READING GUIDE: amazon.com/dp/B073MY9Z87 About M. D. Cooper & Aeon 14M. D. Cooper is a New York Times bestselling author who has envisioned a rich future for humanity, one where planet-sized megastructures house trillions of humans, but traveling between the stars still takes decades, or even centuries.Fans of Ringworld, Honor Harrington, The Expanse, or Elizabeth Moon's Vatta's War will feel right at home in the Aeon 14 universe, and in this, the first book of the Sentience Wars: Origins series.M. D. Cooper has teamed up with James S. Aaron to bring the stories of the Sentience War that shaped the Sol System. James is a Science Fiction Author and Army veteran with experience in journalism, airspace control, and chicken wrangling.Over the course of the next few years, M. D. Cooper plans to release an additional twenty-two books in this expanding universe. So get on board the Intrepid with Tanis and see what the stars hold for us.What is Aeon 14?The universe of Aeon 14 is based on the premise that advanced, intelligent, starfaring life takes 14 billion years to evolve. In astronomy an aeon is a billion years. In Aeon 14, humanity is at the leading edge of this evolution in the Milky Way Galaxy.Humanity and the AIs they have created spread out amongst the stars and find that they are alone, though it may not always be that way...

    In a world where real bees are extinct, the quickest, bravest kids climb the fruit trees and pollinate the flowers by hand.Will Peony's grit and quick thinking be enough to keep her safe?A story about family, loyalty, kindness and bravery, set against an all-too possible future where climate change has forever changed the way we live.

    New issues are released the first Tuesday of every month.This month we celebrate Indigenous American fantasists with guest editor Amy H. Sturgis.

    As the armored superhero-Arsenal, she has the power of a small army at her disposal. Fourteen years ago her parents disappeared after a horrific wreck which left her wheelchair bound. With thieves salivating to steal her armor, and supervillains trying to kill her, Amelia must learn to trust her new team if she wants to survive long enough to learn the truth.

    Hartness. Lila Grace Carter is your favorite new detective, you just don’t know it yet. She’s determined, smart, caring, and sassy as the day is long. She also talks to dead people. Of course, as she puts it, “I’m Southern. We all talk to dead people down here. The difference is, they talk back to me.” Lila Grace has lived in Lockhart, S.C. her entire life, and has always been shunned for being different. Discovering her ability to see and talk to ghosts at an early age, she used her ability to help people settle disputes, communicate with lost loved one, and generally make life better in small ways. Until poor dead Jenny Miller showed up on her doorstep. Now Lila Grace has a teenaged ghost following her around, a handsome new sheriff in town, and a murderer in her sleepy southern town. This ain’t Mayberry, kids. Award-winning author and poet John G. Hartness has mined his southern roots for inspiration and color in this supernatural love letter to small-town Southern life. "A modern Southern Gothic with charming characters—living and dead. Hartness expertly blends a sinister, small-town murder with the warmth, humor, and innocence of a cozy mystery. Lila Grace is an entertaining amateur sleuth. Highly recommend." —E.J. Stevens, award-winning author of the Ivy Granger Psychic Detective series "More twists than a tangled ball of twine! Great fun and more Southern than grits." -Charlotte Henley Babb, author of Maven Fairy Godmother

    Like many before them, Cara and her family ventured through the gates as scientists and researchers, driven to carve out a new life and uncover the endless possibilities of the unexplored alien worlds now within reach.But soon the soldiers followed and under this new order Cara makes a discovery that will change everything.

    But when faced with a five-year prison term, or conscription in the Genevian military, she chose war.She had no idea what that conscription would entail.Now little of Rika's human body remains, and she serves as an SMI-2 scout mech, the meat inside a cyborg body. She, and others like her, are sent in ahead of the human soldiers to tip the scales of war.But the enemy has upped the ante and the mechs of Rika's fireteam will have to go up against unimaginable odds if they want to serve their time and become human again.An Aeon 14 seriesThe events of the Rika's Marauders series occur during the New Canaan time span in The Orion War series. This series may be read at any time after reading Destiny Lost, New Canaan, or Orion Rising.

    Every surviving human has been touched in some way by death. Some nations have emerged stronger than ever. Some struggle to survive. Some no longer exist at all. In the aftermath of the global zombie pandemic Keith Taylor, the noted pre-war author of post apocalyptic fiction, traveled the world to gather first hand accounts of survivors from every walk of life, culture and level of society, ranging from US political and military leaders to British journalists to members of India's homeless underclass. These accounts take the reader through the initial emergence of the virus in Siberia, through the infamous Shibuya footage and the political crisis of the President's impeachment hearings, and end with the eventual military campaigns on the US mainland and beyond. From these candid interviews emerges an image of the world as it was, flawed and imperfect, and the most illuminating and complete commentary to date as to how the nations of the world responded to the greatest threat humanity has yet faced. This is the Way the World Ends takes an unflinching, uncompromising look at the civilization we had and lost; a look at how humanity went to extraordinary lengths to deny the evidence, and how we suffered due to our inability to accept a single, simple truth: Zombies are real. Note: Readers who lived through the pandemic may find the interviews contained within this collection distressing. Discretion is advised.

    But now the beloved family doctor and pillar of the community is accused of murdering Viola Turner, the beautiful nurse with whom he worked in the dark days of the early 1960s. A fighter who has always stood for justice, Penn is determined to save his father, even though Tom, stubbornly evoking doctor-patient privilege, refuses to speak up in his own defense.The quest for answers sends Penn deep into the past—into the heart of a conspiracy of greed and murder involving the Double Eagles, a vicious KKK crew headed by one of the wealthiest and most powerful men in the state. With the aid of a friend and reporter privy to some of Natchez's oldest secrets, Penn follows a bloody trail that stretches back forty years, to one undeniable fact: no one—black or white, young or old, brave or not—is ever truly safe…. THE BONE TREE Former prosecutor Penn Cage and his fiancée Caitlin Masters, have barely escaped with their lives after being attacked by wealthy businessman Brody Royal and his Double Eagles, a KKK splinter cell with ties to some of Mississippi’s most powerful men. But the real danger has only begun as FBI Special Agent John Kaiser warns Penn that Brody wasn’t the true leader of the Double Eagles. The puppeteer who actually controls the terrorist group is a man far more fearsome: the chief of the state police’s Criminal Investigations Bureau, Forrest Knox.The only way Penn can save his father, Dr. Tom Cage—who is fleeing a murder charge as well as corrupt cops bent on killing him—is either to make a devil’s bargain with Knox or destroy him. While Penn desperately pursues both options, Caitlin uncovers the real story behind a series of unsolved civil rights murders that may hold the key to the Double Eagles’ downfall. The trail leads her deep into the past, into the black backwaters of the Mississippi River, to a secret killing ground used by slave owners and the Klan for over two hundred years...a place of terrifying evil known only as “the bone tree.”

    The Spot and Smudge series explores the love of a unique family, the loyalty of their very special dogs, and the perils of underestimating them. These smart, imaginative stories weave together elements of horror, thriller, mystery, espionage, crime, medical drama, and genetic engineering. Note: This series contains some colorful language and mature themes. "Shove over brother, let me show you the proper bloody way to strangle someone." The Hogans weren’t looking to start a war. They just wanted to leave their troubles behind, move closer to grandma, and let their kids adopt some damn puppies. But their quaint new town is harboring some gruesome secrets… …and their strange new pups are not what they appear to be. There’s a dark connection between these mysterious orphaned canines and the town’s twisted criminals…and that connection is dragging the Hogans into a ruthless fight they aren’t prepared to win. But the grit of a devoted family, like the loyalty of a faithful pair of dogs, shouldn't be underestimated… …Especially when those cunning dogs are the most significant leap forward in the forty million years of canine evolution.

    His short stories present a brilliantly dark and audaciously weird realm where cosmic nightmares collide with all-too-human characters and apocalypses of all shapes and sizes loom ominously. In “Persistence Hunting,” a lonely distance runner is seduced into a brutal life of crime with an ever-narrowing path for escape. In “When Susurrus Stirs,” an unlucky pacifist must stop a horrifying parasite from turning his body into a sentient hive. Running through all of Johnson’s work is a hallucinatory vision and deeply-felt empathy, earning the author a reputation as one of today’s most daring and thrilling writers.Featuring the best of his previously independently-published short fiction, as well as an exclusive, never-before-published novella “The Sleep of Judges”—where a father’s fight against the denizens of a drug den becomes a mind-bending suburban nightmare—Entropy in Bloom is a perfect compendium for avid fans and an ideal entry point for adventurous readers seeking the humor, heartbreak, and terror of JRJ’s strange new worlds.

    There are new monsters that he’s never seen before: giants and skeleton druids and pinch beetles and king spiders and mistwolves. Villages are larger than ever, and more heavily fortified; Minecraft had become much more dangerous. Even the very trees had changed, with some of them reaching up taller than the User-that-is-not-a-user ever thought was imaginable.There’s a diamond block portal outside of Crafter’s village, and rumors are spreading that a strange user was seen coming out of the portal with a young boy, before they disappeared into another portal, leaving behind a square hole one block deep with a ring of flowers around it. Gameknight recognizes it as the portal to reach the Twilight Forest mod. But how can there be mods here in the vanilla Minecraft?The User-that-is-not-a-user follows the trail, and finds odd mentions of “303” and “White Castle.” But what do the clues mean? Just how dangerous is this new user to Minecraft, and where is he taking the young NPC? Only Gameknight999 will be able to find out.Sky Pony Press, with our Good Books, Racehorse and Arcade imprints, is proud to publish a broad range of books for young readers—picture books for small children, chapter books, books for middle grade readers, and novels for young adults. Our list includes bestsellers for children who love to play Minecraft; stories told with LEGO bricks; books that teach lessons about tolerance, patience, and the environment, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

    Le Guin’s acclaimed Hainish series, which tells the history of the Ekumen, the galactic confederation of human colonies founded by the planet Hain. First published in 1995 as Four Ways to Forgiveness, and now joined by a fifth story, Five Ways to Forgiveness focuses on the twin planets Werel and Yeowe, two worlds whose peoples, long known as “owners” and “assets,” together face an uncertain future after civil war and revolution.            In “Betrayals” a retired science teacher must make peace with her new neighbor, a disgraced revolutionary leader. In “Forgiveness Day,” a female official from the Ekumen arrives to survey the situation on Werel and struggles against its rigidly patriarchal culture. Embedded within "A Man of the People,” which describes the coming of age of Havzhiva, an Ekumen ambassador to Yeowe, is Le Guin’s most sustained description of the Ur-planet Hain. "A Woman’s Liberation” is the remarkable narrative of Rakam, born an asset on Werel, who must twice escape from slavery to freedom. Joined to them is “Old Music and the Slave Women,” in which the charismatic Hainish embassy worker, who appears in two of the four original stories, returns for a tale of his own. Of this capstone tale Le Guin has written, “the character called Old Music began to tell me a fifth tale about the latter days of the civil war . . . I’m glad to see it joined to the others at last.”

    With stories featuring peaceful warriors, blossoming brujas, godly hackers, and a fire-breathing dragon boy, we are the main characters of our own stories, not the sidekicks or token characters. This is an anthology that is full of our passions, magic, and inner fire because our diversity is not just a buzzword: it's our reality!

    Some of Samatar’s weird and tender fabulations spring from her life and her literary studies; some spring from the world, some from the void.

    These stories explore everything from artificial intelligence to parallel universes to video games, and each story is accompanied by an author’s note exploring the background and genesis of each story.   Howey’s incisive mind makes Machine Learning: New and Collected Stories a compulsively readable and thought-provoking selection of short works—from a modern master at the top of his game.

    She's used to the names; she only wishes there was more truth to them. If she were truly a monster, as they accuse, she'd be powerful enough to tear down the walls around her until nothing remained of her world, save for stories told around the cookfire.Aster lives in the low-deck slums of the HSS Matilda, a space vessel organized much like the antebellum South. For generations, the Matilda has ferried the last of humanity to a mythical Promised Land. On its way, the ship's leaders have imposed harsh moral restrictions and deep indignities on dark-skinned sharecroppers like Aster, who they consider to be less than human.When the autopsy of Matilda's sovereign reveals a surprising link between his death and her mother's suicide some quarter-century before, Aster retraces her mother's footsteps. Embroiled in a grudge with a brutal overseer and sowing the seeds of civil war, Aster learns there may be a way off the ship if she's willing to fight for it.

    These are stories of strange experiences set in familiar places, and of familiar experiences set in strange places. Many of the pieces in I’m Fine take place close to home, in suburban neighborhoods, or rural communities. The settings are conventional, yet something unexpected, or even magical, is occurring. In one piece, a couple speculates about random objects that appear without reason in their backyard. In another, neighbors try to figure out if a local meth dealer is keeping a live tiger captive on his property. In other pieces, it’s the setting that’s fantastical, but the characters’ reactions that remain ordinary, like in the titular story where a journalist lost at sea and hunted by a mythical ocean creature admits to struggling with loneliness and isolation in much the same way he does even when he’s safe at home.Although they are not directly linked by any specific character, the pieces in this collection are bound through reoccurring imagery and a shared theme of protagonists in emotional peril. There are unexpected appearances and disappearances, movement of inanimate objects, the search for something lost, the finding of something unusual. There are prophesies, dreams, unidentifiable creatures, and environmental catastrophes on a scale both large and small. There are action figures and octopuses, sullen teenagers and missing cats. At their core, these stories are imbued with mystery, oddity, humor, and empathy. They each stand on their own, but mean considerably more when read together.

     Grace Gushiken is a grifter and a liar. Worse, she’s an esper, an abhorrent creation of the Old Empire. Grace keeps her blade sharp and her wits sharper. She’s on the run from the Republic’s justice. Nathan Chevell captains the free trader Tyche, an ex-war heavy lifter. He’s no pirate, but he’s no white knight either. An encounter with espers saw him discharged from the Emperor’s Black before the real fighting even started. When the crew of the Tyche are hired to deliver a new transmitter for a downed Guild Bridge, Grace hitches a ride. They find the Absalom Delta colony deserted, its people turned into slaves by the insect-like Ezeroc. The aliens have descended like locusts on humanity, consuming all in their path. No one is safe. Even the Republic Navy is powerless against them. Facing an impossible foe, odds are stacked against the Tyche. The ship and her crew need to test their skill and their luck to survive. Will Grace and Nate be able to work together to get away? Or will fears and rivalries from the past destroy humanity’s hopes, ceding victory to the Ezeroc? Tyche’s Flight is the first book in Richard Parry’s gripping Tyche’s Journey trilogy. If you like page-turning space opera with great dialogue and heart-pumping action, get your copy today!

    Collected in a mini-book format, here--for the first time in print--are six of her quirky, wry, engaging best:In -The Fermi Paradox Is Our Business Model, - aliens reveal the terrible truth about how humans were created--and why we'll never discover aliens.-As Good as New- is a brilliant twist on the tale of three wishes, set after the end of the world. -Intestate- is about a family reunion in which some attendees aren't quite human anymore--but they're still family.-The Cartography of Sudden Death- demonstrates that when you try to solve a problem with time travel, you now have two problems.-Six Months, Three Days- is the story of the love affair between a man who can see the one true foreordained future, and a woman who can see all the possible futures. They're both right, and the story won the 2012 Hugo Award for Best Novelette.And -Clover, - exclusively written for this collection, is a coda to All the Birds in the Sky, answering the burning question of what happened to Patricia's cat.

    Qiouyi Lu, reprinted fiction by Kameron Hurley, essays by Sam J. Miller, Elsa Sjunneson-Henry, Shveta Thakrar, Dawn Xiana Moon, and Paul Booth, poetry by Cassandra Khaw, Brandon O’Brien, Bogi Takács, and Lisa M. Bradley, interviews with Stephen Graham Jones and Sarah Pinsker by Julia Rios, a cover by Julie Dillon, and an editorial by Lynne M. Thomas and Michael Damian Thomas.

    It's seventeen years since the Revolution overthrew the last king of the New British Empire, and the newly-reconstituted North American Commonwealth is developing rapidly, on course to defeat the French and bring democracy to a troubled world. But Miriam Burgeson, commissioner in charge of the shadowy Ministry of Intertemporal Research and Intelligence—the paratime espionage agency tasked with catalyzing the Commonwealth's great leap forward--has a problem. For years, she's warned everyone: "The Americans are coming." Now their drones arrive in the middle of a succession crisis—the leader of the American Commonwealth is dying and the vultures are circling. In another timeline, the U.S. has recruited Rita, Miriam's estranged daughter, to spy across timelines and bring down any remaining world-walkers who might threaten national security. But her handlers are keeping information from her.Two nuclear superpowers are set on a collision course. Two increasingly desperate paratime espionage agencies are fumbling around in the dark, trying to find a solution to the first contact problem that doesn't result in a nuclear holocaust. And two women—a mother and her long-lost, adopted daughter—are about to find themselves on opposite sides of the confrontation.

    In a violent world in which civilization has fallen and monsters roam, a young hero will rise.In the time of the Ancients the universe was united—but that was so far in the past that not even memory remains, only the broken artifacts that a few Makers can reshape into their original uses. What survives is shattered into enclaves—some tiny, some ruined, some wild. Into the gaps between settlements, and onto the Road that connects all human reality and the reality that is not human and may never have been human, have crept monsters. Some creatures are men, twisted into inhuman evil; some of them are alien to Mankind— And there are things which are hostile to all life, things which will raven and kill until they are stopped. A Leader has arisen, welding the scattered human settlements together in peace and safety and smashing the enemies of order with an iron fist. In his capital, Dun Add, the Leader provides law and justice. In the universe beyond, his Champions advance—and enforce—the return of civilization. Pal, a youth from the sticks, has come to Dun Add to become a Champion. Pal is a bit of a Maker, and in his rural home he's been able to think of himself as a warrior because he can wield the weapons of the Ancient civilization. Pal has no idea of what he's really getting into in Dun Add. On the other hand, the Leader and Dun Add have no real idea of what might be inside this hayseed with high hopes. THE SPARK: A story of hope and violence and courage. And especially, a story of determination.About David Drake: “Drake deftly weaves a web of political machinations and intrigue that vividly depicts the costs of war. Fans of Patrick O'Brian's Maturin and Aubrey novels will enjoy this intricate, rousing space opera.” —Publishers Weekly “[R]ousing old-fashioned space opera.”—Publishers Weekly “The fun is in the telling, and Mr. Drake has a strong voice. I want more!”—Philadelphia Weekly Press “[S]pace opera is alive and well. This series is getting better as the author goes along…character development combined with first-rate action and memorable world designs.”—SFReader.com “[P]rose as cold and hard as the metal alloy of a tank…rivals Crane and Remarque…”—Chicago Sun-Times “Drake couldn’t write a bad action scene at gunpoint.”—Booklist

    Autonomous maintenance robots take on a much larger role in saving a spaceship from aliens than the ship's human crew could have ever suspected.A science fiction story first published in Clarkesworld, Issue 132, September 2017.

     Logan has it all—friends, popularity, girls—but his perfect life isn’t all he imagined. When one mistake leads to his untimely arrival in the afterlife, he becomes a weapon against the evil that lurks on Earth. When a mission goes awry he emerges with a secret superpower, but is broken in mind and body. He cleverly hides his scars, until the day he’s assigned to train an unlikely new demon hunter. Even though Audrey is as fiery as she is alluring, this beauty may be the one to tame his inner beast. Now the only thing he’s sure of is that his existence will never be the same. Fans of The Mortal Instruments, Supernatural, and This Present Darkness, won’t want to miss experiencing the beginnings of this epic love story. LOGAN is a companion novella to the bestselling and multiple award-winning LIFE AFTER series. It can be read as a standalone, or as Book 2.5 in the series.

    We looked at each other.‘Any clues?’ I asked.They shrugged.‘You can go in now,’ said Mrs Partridge, so in we went.He looked up from his desk. ‘There you are.’We agreed that yes, here we were.He gestured at his briefing table on which reposed several archive boxes and a fat folder.‘The County Archivist has been good enough to make available various documents requested by Dr Dowson. A condition was that we do not expose them to the hazards of a random delivery service.’ It was not clear whether it was the company or its delivery that was random, but we nodded anyway. ‘And so, I would like you, personally, to return these valuable documents with my compliments and thanks.’He handed Peterson an envelope.‘Of course, sir.’‘This afternoon, if you please.’Peterson glanced at his watch. ‘It’s already afternoon, sir.’‘How quickly you grasp my meaning.’‘I do my best, sir.’‘I have assured the County Archivist that my best people are on the job. They being unavailable, however, I have therefore designated my Chief Operations Officer, my Head of Security and my Deputy Director to fulfil this simple task.’His Deputy Directory, Head of Security and Chief Operations Officer assembled their best air of cool professionalism – which in our case consisted of standing a little straighter and not picking our noses. I don’t think he was impressed, staring at us bleakly for a few seconds and then demanding to know why we were still here.Since Peterson was burdened with the envelope, Markham and I seized the boxes and we left with all speed.‘Right,’ said Peterson, ‘I shall assume full control of this mission.’Markham made a rude noise.‘Get changed and meet in the car park in ten minutes. That’s ten minutes, Max. No wafting around in front of mirrors trying on dresses.’Now I made a rude noise.We met in the car park, shoving Markham and the boxes in the back, and departed.‘A nice afternoon out,’ said a voice from behind the boxes, and we agreed.Now I know what you’re thinking. I can hear exactly what you’re thinking, so I will say now that the boxes were delivered on time and to the correct destination. The County Archivist herself took delivery so God knows what was in them. Peterson, after a series of nudges from me, remembered to hand over Dr Bairstow’s letter of thanks and they gave us a cup of tea. They were lovely people. I wish I worked there. We set off for the return trip, hoping to be back in time for tea, and things started to go wrong almost immediately.Peterson caught my eye. I always think that sounds as if you’ve been indulging in a quick game of eyeball tossing, but I knew what he meant‘So,’ he said, almost casually, negotiating the last roundabout out of town and accelerating away, ‘how are things with you and Hunter?’‘OK,’ said Markham vaguely. ‘I think.’‘Don’t you know?’‘Well, it’s hard to tell sometimes, but I always think if she’s not coming at me with a kidney bowl then, you know, things aren’t too bad.’‘Why would she come at you with a kidney bowl?’‘Because she can’t find a bedpan.’Peterson tried again. ‘So – got any celebrations planned then?’‘What for?’‘Well, you have an anniversary coming up.’‘What anniversary?’‘Wedding. You know. You and Hunter.’There was a long silence from the back. ‘Don’t know what you mean.’‘I worked it out,’ said Peterson in his best I’m Peterson and I’m brilliant voice. ‘I’m looking at Hunter these days and she’s looking very well, isn’t she? Blooming, almost. And she’s a very moral girl is our Hunter. Well, she has to be since you don’t have a single moral to your name, so I reckon you had the ceremony just before or just after the Battle of St Mary’s which means there’s an anniversary coming up.’There was a lot more silence from the back.‘Oh come on,’ said Peterson. ‘Admit I’m right and the then the two of us can buy you a celebratory drink in the bar.’More silence.‘I’m right, aren’t I? Go on – say I’m right.’Even more silence.‘I don’t know why you won’t admit it,’ he said, slightly exasperated. ‘Are you ashamed of something? Wait until I tell Hunter you’re ashamed of her.’He paused, hopefully.Nothing but silence.I pulled down the passenger’s sun flap and looked at the mirror. Markham was sitting with his arms folded and a stupid grin on his face.‘I reckon,’ said Peterson, ‘the two of you snuck into the Register Office without telling anyone but I’m going to make you tell me just the same.’Silence.‘Right,’ he said. ‘You asked for it. Hold on tight, Max.’We swerved off the road into a field, skidding to a halt in a shower of dust, stones and indignant birds.‘What are we doing here?’ said Markham, picking himself up off the back seat and peering out of the window.‘We’re staying here until you tell us.’ He switched off the engine and folded his arms. ‘Not another yard until you tell us the truth.’Markham folded his arms. ‘Never.’I began to make plans for spending the rest of my life in a field.The silence dragged on, only to be broken by the sounds of Markham getting out.‘Where are you going?’ I said, in some alarm. ‘We’re still not supposed to go anywhere alone.’‘Well I’m not staying here with you two maniacs. If you want to sit in a field you can do it on your own. I’m off.’We watched him walk across the field and out of the gate.‘Bollocks,’ said Peterson.‘Well, that worked, didn’t it?’‘Bollocks,’ he said again.‘Look, why don’t you just check the records at Somerset House? It’s a simple enough process.’‘That’s not the point. I want him to tell me.’I surveyed the vast, empty field. ‘How’s that working out for you?’He cursed again and switched on the engineMarkham was a couple of hundred yards up the road. We passed his plodding figure with a merry toot of the horn.‘It’s four miles back to St Mary’s,’ I said, watching him recede in the wing mirror.‘Do him good.’‘Ronan,’ I said warningly. ‘We shouldn’t leave him alone.’‘No,’ he said reluctantly. ‘You’re right. We shouldn’t.’We pulled into a layby and waited.He never came.We waited some more.‘For crying out loud,’ said Peterson. ‘I know he’s Security Section, but surely even he can’t have got lost between there and here.’I sighed. ‘I’ll go and look for him. He might just be taking a rest.’‘I’ll come with you,’ he said, getting out. ‘No one should be alone, remember?’‘Markham,’ I said accusingly. ‘We left him alone.’‘He doesn’t count.’We walked to the bend and looked. The road was empty. We could see for miles. No Markham. Not anywhere.‘Shit,’ I said. We rotated slowly. Where could he be?‘He’s cut across the fields,’ said Peterson. ‘Hang on.’ He climbed onto the car roof and surveyed the flat countryside. The flat, empty countryside.‘Shit,’ I said again, beginning to panic. ‘We’ve lost him.’‘We can’t have,’ he said, climbing down.‘Then where is he? Oh my God, we’ve lost Markham.’‘Look,’ he said. ‘The little sod’s in a ditch somewhere. Either he fell in and hurt himself – perfectly possible – or he’s hiding under a hedge to teach us a lesson. We’ll go and find him, kick the living shit out of him for frightening us like this, and then he can buy us a drink afterwards.’I looked up. It was the only direction left. ‘Do you think he’s been snatched by aliens?’‘Always a possibility,’ he said, locking the car. ‘Although if so then they’ll be returning him in a hurry any minute now.’‘No, seriously,’ I said as we set off, him on one side of the narrow lane and me on the other. I peered into ditches and looked under hedges. ‘It’s the only explanation. You hear about this sort of thing all the time. You know – anal probing.’‘For God’s sake, Max, get a grip. Why on earth would super intelligent beings cross the vastness of space just to firkle around in Markham’s bottom area. Would you?’‘God, no.’‘Well there you are, then. Anything your side?’‘Nothing. Where could he be?’‘I don’t know, but it’s four miles back to St Mary’s.’It was at that moment we heard the car start up. We stood paralysed for a moment and then Peterson screamed, ‘Bastard,’ and set off at a run. I pounded along behind him and we raced back around the bend just in time to see Markham pull out of the layby. He waved, gave us a merry toot, and sped away out of sight.We skidded to a halt.‘Didn’t you lock it?’ I said accusingly.‘Of course I did, but it’s bloody Markham, isn’t it? He could hot-wire a rock’.‘It’s four miles back to St Mary’s.’‘He’ll stop around the next bend,’ said Peterson, reassuringly. ‘He’s just teaching us a lesson.’He was and he didn’t.Four bloody miles. With Peterson vowing grim retribution with every step.And we missed tea.

    To do so, they enslave the peaceable indigenous population, until the Athsheans rise up in a desperate act of defiance that will leave them and their planet forever changed.Of the seven stories gathered here, three concern the invention of a new technology for instantaneous interstellar travel—an advance that brings with it unforeseen dangers—and three explore the complex matrimonial arrangements on the planet O, where unions consist of four individuals in both same and opposite sex pairings.Five Ways to Forgiveness presents for the first time the complete story suite previously published as Four Ways to Forgiveness (1995). These five linked stories tell the history of the planet Werel and its slave planet Yeowe as their peoples, long known as “owners” and “assets,” together face an uncertain revolutionary future.In The Telling (2000), Sutty, an observer of the interplanetary confederation known as the Ekumen, has been sent to Aka to investigate why the planet has almost entirely lost its vital oral traditions and spiritual beliefs in the span of a single generation. Sutty’s quest for traces of Aka’s original religion causes her to reexamine her own childhood growing up amidst a repressive religious regime on Earth.Also included are Le Guin’s 1977 introduction to The Word for World Is Forest and her provocative 1994 essay “On Not Reading Science Fiction.” The volume’s endpaper features a planetary chart of the known worlds of the Hainish descent.

     Charlie7 is the progenitor of a mechanical race he built from the ashes of a dead world—Earth. He is a robot of leisure and idle political meddling—a retirement well-earned. Or he was, until a human girl named Eve was dropped in his lap. Geneticists have restored Earth’s biome and begun repopulation. But primate cloning is in its infancy; human cloning is banned. Far from a failed genetics experiment, Eve is brilliant, curious, and heartbreakingly naïve about her species’ history. But Eve’s creator wants her back and has a gruesome fate planned for her. There is only one robot qualified to protect her. For the first time in a thousand years, Charlie7 has a human race to protect. A.I. didn’t destroy humanity. It didn’t save us, either. The robots we built in our final days preserved human minds. They survived the end of life on Earth and embarked on the greatest single project in all recorded history. They rebuilt. The result of 1,000 years of genetic engineering, terraforming, and painstaking toxic cleanup has resulted in the ultimate achievement of the Post-Invasion Age: a healthy human. Her name is Eve14. Don’t ask about the 13 Eves before her. Or do, because that’s the reason why she’s in danger, and why one brave robot puts his millennium-long life on the line to save her. Welcome back to the Golden Age of science fiction, when scientists had planet-sized dreams and robots were robots. Grab your copy while there’s still an Earth left to read it on.

    Caught by the enigmatic Eldritch Moons, Sin is offered a way out of his life of crime: join the Covert Operations Group (COG) and train to become a spy. At Lenheim Palace, Sin learns spy craft while trying not to break the school’s Cast-Iron Rules. Befriended by eccentric Zonda Chubb, together they endeavour to unmask a traitor causing havoc within the palace. After an assassination attempt on the founder of COG, Sin realises that someone closest to him could be the traitor. With no other option, Sin is forced into an uneasy alliance with the school bully, Velvet Von Darque.But can he trust her? And will COG try to bury him with the secrets he discovers? Secrets, spies and steampunk gadgets abound in this fantastic adventure story!

    As a human, she poses a threat to Marine Captain Jax Raymond’s special Force Recon unit. Though the team has a reputation among the other recon units, only their commanding officer knows their secret. As a woman, the danger posed is entirely different. Jax can survive the temptation for only so long before his wolf takes over and pursues what it wants. Military intelligence specialist Corporal Kaitlyn Amador is the first woman in the Marines to be assigned to a recon team. And everyone’s watching her. Her mission? Not only prove herself worthy of her place in the group, but uncover the mystery of why Bravo Team is so successful. A mission that gets more difficult every time she’s near Jax…

    Find the girl, bring her home.Except she's not just any girl. She's the bloodslave of one of the most powerful vampires in town.And I'm not sure she wants to be found.

    . . .    In 2045 Kenneth Durand leads Interpol’s most effective team against genetic crime, hunting down black market labs that perform "vanity edits" on human embryos for a price. These illegal procedures augment embryos in ways that are rapidly accelerating human evolution—preying on human-trafficking victims to experiment and advance their technology.   With the worlds of genetic crime and human trafficking converging, Durand and his fellow Interpol agents discover that one figure looms behind it all: Marcus Demang Wyckes, leader of a powerful and sophisticated cartel known as the Huli jing.   But the Huli jing have identified Durand, too. After being forcibly dosed with a radical new change agent, Durand wakes from a coma weeks later to find he’s been genetically transformed into someone else—his most wanted suspect: Wyckes.   Now a fugitive, pursued through the genetic underworld by his former colleagues and the police, Durand is determined to restore his original DNA by locating the source of the mysterious—and highly valuable—change agent. But Durand hasn’t anticipated just how difficult locating his enemy will be. With the technology to genetically edit the living, Wyckes and his Huli jing could be anyone and everyone—and they have plans to undermine identity itself.

    Innocent lives have been lost. Escaping wrongful imprisonment wasn’t something Connor had in mind, but being put into stasis aboard Earth’s first interstellar colony ship was something he couldn’t have prepared for. For three hundred thousand colonists, the new colony brings the promise of a fresh start…a second chance. Connor might be the wrong man for the colony, but he’s the right man to see that it survives what’s coming. A new world with new challenges, but the mission has changed. Strap yourself in. First Colony - Books 1 - 3 includes the first three books in a bestselling military science fiction series. With hundreds of thousands of copies sold, First Colony has captivated science fiction fans around the world with an insatiable appetite to explore. This bundle includes the first three books of this bestselling series. If you loved Old Man’s War and Ender’s Game, you’ll love the First Colony series! Find out why hundreds of thousands of readers have fallen for Ken Lozito’s First Colony series! Buy the boxset to get three books you won’t want to put down!

    

    While the strong return to the battlefield, the wounded are forced to stay behind on Plum Island and fight their inner demons.Betrayed by the country they swore to defend and surrounded by enemies on all sides, Team Ghost has one mission left: protect Dr. Kate Lovato and Dr. Pat Ellis while they develop a weapon to defeat the Variants once and for all. But after a grisly discovery in Atlanta, Kate and Ellis realize their weapon might not be able to stop the evolution of the monsters.Joined by unexpected allies and facing a new threat none of them saw coming, the survivors are running out of time to save the human race from extinction.Extinction EndAlmost seven weeks have passed since the Hemorrhage Virus ravaged the world. The remnants of the United States military have regrouped and relocated Central Command to the George Washington Carrier Strike Group. It's here, in the North Atlantic, that President Jan Ringgold and Vice President George Johnson prepare to deploy a new bioweapon and embark on the final mission to take back the country from the Variants.With his home gone and his friends kidnapped, Master Sergeant Reed Beckham and his remaining men must take drastic measures to save what's left of the human race. But not everyone at Central Command has the same plan for victory. As the Variants continue to evolve, only a handful of heroes stand between the creatures and mankind's total extinction.One way or another, the battle for the United States of America ends here.Extinction AftermathNewly christened as the leader of Delta Force Team Ghost, Master Sergeant Joe Fitzpatrick arrives in Normandy over seventy years after Allied Forces joined the fight against the Nazis. The war to free survivors and eradicate pockets of adult Variants and their offspring is underway by the European Unified Forces. But as the troops push east, rumors of a new type of monster spread through the ranks. Fitz and his new team quickly realize that the fight for Europe might be harder than anyone ever imagined.Back in the States, Captain Reed Beckham and Dr. Kate Lovato are settling into a new life on Plum Island. Across the United States, the adult Variants have all been wiped out, and the juveniles are on the run. But survivors soon realize there are other monsters at home, and they may be human.As the doomsday clock ticks down and military bases fall across the country, the human race enters the age of extinction. Will science prevail--or will mankind vanish off the face of the planet?

    In pursuit of truth.Army veteran True Brighton left the service when the development of robotic helicopters made her training as a pilot obsolete. Now she works at Requisite Operations, a private military company established by friend and former Special Ops soldier Lincoln Han. ReqOp has embraced the new technologies. Robotics, big data, and artificial intelligence are all tools used to augment the skills of veteran warfighters-for-hire. But the tragedy of war is still measured in human casualties, and when True makes a chance discovery during a rescue mission, old wounds are ripped open. She’s left questioning what she knows of the past, and resolves to pursue the truth, whatever the cost.The Last Good Man is a powerful, complex, and very human tale.

    

    Her only comfort is a small child who clings to her for protection. But once they board the slave ship, the child reveals her rebellious nature and warns that her mother---a fierce warrior---is coming to claim them all.

    The fear spread even faster. Within weeks, everything people counted on began to fail them. The electrical grid sputtered; law and government collapsed—and more than half of the world’s population was decimated. Where there had been order, there was now chaos. And as the power of science and technology receded, magic rose up in its place. Some of it is good, like the witchcraft worked by Lana Bingham, practicing in the loft apartment she shares with her lover, Max. Some of it is unimaginably evil, and it can lurk anywhere, around a corner, in fetid tunnels beneath the river—or in the ones you know and love the most. As word spreads that neither the immune nor the gifted are safe from the authorities who patrol the ravaged streets, and with nothing left to count on but each other, Lana and Max make their way out of a wrecked New York City. At the same time, other travelers are heading west too, into a new frontier. Chuck, a tech genius trying to hack his way through a world gone offline. Arlys, a journalist who has lost her audience but uses pen and paper to record the truth. Fred, her young colleague, possessed of burgeoning abilities and an optimism that seems out of place in this bleak landscape. And Rachel and Jonah, a resourceful doctor and a paramedic who fend off despair with their determination to keep a young mother and three infants in their care alive. In a world of survivors where every stranger encountered could be either a savage or a savior, none of them knows exactly where they are heading, or why. But a purpose awaits them that will shape their lives and the lives of all those who remain. The end has come. The beginning comes next.

     London, 1889. Victoria is Queen. Charles Darwin’s son is Prime Minister. And steam is the power that runs the world. Lady Claire Trevelyan and renowned scientist Andrew Malvern are looking forward to domestic felicity in London when they are surprised by an unexpected visitor. A desperate and fugitive Alice Chalmers seeks their help—her ship has been seized in the Duchy of Venice and worse, her navigator Jake has been thrown into the dreaded underwater prison from which no one ever escapes. Even the innocent. Claire doesn’t hesitate to pull up ropes, at considerable personal cost. But she doesn’t count on the Mopsies stowing away, or the trouble that they will provoke there. Nor does she expect the krakens, or Gloria Meriwether-Astor, or the deadly trouble that will follow them home to England, putting them all in peril. In fact, the decisions of the heart do not sit well at all with the gentlemen in her life, who had every reason to believe she planned to settle down at last—and Claire finds herself without a career, a fiancé, or the confidence in her own abilities that has carried her this far. Will her loyalty to others mean that love must take second place, or will true friendship and brave hearts prevail in the end? “An immensely fun series with some excellent anti-sexist messages, a wonderful main character (one of my favourites in the genre) and a great sense of Victorian style and language that’s both fun and beautiful to read.” —Fangs for the Fantasy: The latest in urban fantasy from a social justice perspective

    This piece of fiction can also be Read on Tor.com.

    But in the aftermath of his father's tragic death, David Haller will finally attempt to tame his fractured mind, conquer his inner demons and embrace his legacy! But first Legion will have to overcome two new villains -one lurking within his own psyche, and the other hiding among the X-Men! He'll turn down an invitation to join the team, but the young mutant Blindfold will catch his eye! Will their uncanny romance change the fate of mutantkind?Collecting: X-Men: Legacy 1-24

    Exploring issues of race and trauma along with beauty and magic, Itzá is a powerful reclamation of body and identity.

    This discounted ebundle includes: The Shadow of the Torturer, The Claw of the Conciliator, The Sword of the Lictor, The Citadel of the Autarch, The Urth of the New SunYoung Severian, an apprentice in the Guild of Torturers on the world called Urth, has been exiled for committing the ultimate sin of his profession—showing mercy toward his victim.

    this novel should be read aloud to everyone, by everyone, from childhood onward.” – Tom Hastings, Director of Peace VoiceAri Ara was a half-wild shepherdess running the black slopes of the High Mountains when the great warrior Shulen chose her as his apprentice in the mysterious Way Between. With courage and determination, she enters a world of warriors and secrets, swords and magic, prophecy and danger. As the search for the Lost Heir propels two nations to the brink of war, Ari Ara must master this path between fight and flight before violence destroys everything she loves.In an exciting blend of action, adventure, and fantasy, author Rivera Sun boldly takes the genre in a new direction. The Way Between combines everything we love about epic myths – courage, daring, adventure – with the skills of conflict resolution, anti-bullying, and ending violence. This novel will claim a spot on your bookshelf and a place in your heart. It’s a book for both adults and children to enjoy! Recommended for teachers, students, anti-bullying groups, peace advocates, and youth activist groups and dedicated to old soldiers that wish for the better way… Get your copy now! Comments From ReviewersThis novel should be read aloud to everyone, by everyone, from childhood onward… Rivera Sun writes in a style as magical as Tolkien and as authentic as Twain. ~ Tom Hastings, Director of PeaceVoice, Professor of Conflict Studies at Portland State UniversityRivera Sun has, once again, used her passion for nonviolence, and her talent for putting thoughts into powerful words on a page, to recreate life, to show us the possibilities that can be, if we dedicate ourselves to The Way Between. ~ Robin Wildman, Fifth Grade Teacher, Nonviolent Schools Movement, and Nonviolence TrainerA wonderful book! It is so rare to find exciting fiction for young people and adults that shows creative solutions to conflict and challenges violence with active nonviolence and peace. Ari Ara is a delightful character and this story is a gem. ~ Heart Phoenix, River Phoenix Center for PeacebuildingA beautiful story that expands the imagination into the possibilities of peace and active nonviolence . . . this book will prepare our children and ourselves for the real-life world we so desperately need. ~ David Hartsough, Founder Nonviolent Peaceforce, author of Waging PeaceI love the book! It's a great adventure tale, with all the elements of a classic legend, and an even more important message. ~ Michael Colvin, Fellowship of Reconciliation, National Council MemberThe Way Between is a compelling and wise articulation of the human sojourn . . . a dispatch from a mythic dimension of archaic longing and potential that calls us to our truest selves. ~ Ken Butigan, Pace e Bene/Campaign NonviolenceNonviolence is a treasure hidden right under our noses that can help solve--not just some-- all of the challenges the world is facing. Imagine the sheer wonder of making this great discovery. Rivera Sun skillfully shows us The Way. ~ Stephanie N. Van Hook, Director of the Metta Center for Nonviolence; author of Gandhi Searches for Truth: A Practical Biography for Children The Way Between is a story that reached deep inside and literally grabbed my heart because it speaks to our co

    Now, Tank, Brenda, Andi, Daniel, and Chad face their greatest challenge ever—a challenge that might cost them everything. Trapped in a tunnel deep below the Antarctic ice, Tank must lead his friends in an impossible mission. Picking up where INTO THE BLUE left off, the team must overcome their own fears, the dark, and a soulless being as old as the Earth itself. Survival is doubtful; success is a must. The future depends on it.

    Finals take place in July 2022. Sometimes spaceships disappear with everyone on board – the Lost Ships. But sometimes they come back, strangely altered, derelict, and rumoured to be full of horrors.Opal is on a mission. She’s been seeking something her whole life. Something she is willing to die for. And she thinks it might be on a Lost Ship.Opal has stolen Clarissa, an experimental AI-controlled spaceship, from the military. Together they have tracked down a Lost Ship, in a lonely nebula far from colonised space.The Lost Ship is falling into the gravity well of a neutron star, and will soon be truly lost … forever. Legends say the ships harbour death, but there’s no time for indecision.Opal gears up to board it. She’s just one woman, entering an alien and lethal environment. But perhaps with the aid of Clarissa’s intelligence – and an armoured spacesuit – Opal may stand a chance.

    PLUS: Essays, letter column, and more! 100% Grade A satire. Accept no substitutes.

    It happened so quickly that the matter is now one of life and death; he has twenty-four weeks to live. Martin needs a relative for a donor, but his parents died in a car crash and he has no siblings or other close relatives. A mixed-raced man he casually met at Nandos, who later became a friend, volunteers to go for the test and is found to be a match. Though it is possible that someone from the general public can be a match, Leroy feels there is more to his relationship with Martin than just friendship. He begins his journey to unveil the power of DNA testing in light of today's medical science, tracing back to two hundred years ago and the slave trade. The result is shocking the whole world, showing that the stranger who crosses your path can possibly be related to you!This story is based on partly true events.

    Appel’s seventh collection. We meet a psychiatrist dabbling with infidelity during a crisis in which rain turns into truth serum, a Finnish-American soldier charged with facilitating his commanding officer’s extra-marital affair, and a couple transporting a wealthy, “locked-in” patient across the Piedmont to his new nursing home. Appel’s literary short fiction offers a quirky window into the pangs and promise of love.

    An uncanny autobiography of otherness, it offers the record of a writer in the realms of the fantastic shot through with the memories of a pair of mixed-race children growing up Somali-American in the 1980s. Operating under the sign of two—texts and drawings, brother and sister, black and white, extraordinary and everyday—Monster Portraits multiplies, disintegrates, and blends, inviting the reader to find the danger in the banal, the beautiful in the grotesque. Accumulating into a breathless journey and groundbreaking study, these brief notes and sketches claim the monster as a fragmentary vastness: not the sum but the derangement of its parts.Del Samatar's drawings conjure beings who drag worlds in their wake. World Fantasy Award-winning author Sofia Samatar responds with allusive, critical, and ecstatic meditations. Together they have created a secret history of the multi-racial child, a guide to the beasts of an unknown mythos, and a dreamer's iconography. Monster Portraits resonates in a world obsessed with the Other, using captivating nomenclature, art, fiction, and essay to examine society’s damaging desire to define and divide. The monstrous never looked so simultaneously haunting and familiar.

    Most guys might end up with a steamy affair and a flashy car for their midlife crisis, but George gets a quirky, philosophical physics professor named Shiloh. Trapped with this mysterious misfit on his morning commuter train, George is dragged into awkward conversations about love, fear, music, and the meaning of life. Shiloh asks George to beta-test an app he wrote for the new Apple Watch--and with a free watch included, how could he say no? When tragedy strikes, throwing George out of his uncomfortable comfort zone, he learns that Shiloh's app lets him journey through alternate versions of his past. As challenges mount in his own reality, George must make a decision that will change him--and possibly the entire multiverse--forever.

    The one where he opens out a bottle of wine, I get out the glasses, and we both put our feet up and have a huge moan about the previous week. Sometimes the meetings are quite long.Anyway, I was making my way around the gallery, juggling the half dozen or so files I’d brought with me as camouflage – because it doesn’t do the other ranks any good at all to see a couple of senior officers setting a bad example – although, to be fair, most people were outside watching the Security and Technical Sections eviscerate each other in the name of sport – when Professor Rapson erupted – literally – from his lab shouting, ‘Eureka!’He was fully clothed. Trust me – it was the first thing I checked.I said, ‘Good afternoon professor,’ because that’s how Markham would do it. Apparently now he’s Head of Security, standards must be maintained. What sort of standards of course, he never says.‘Ah Max. Good news. I’ve done it.’‘So I gathered, professor. Jolly well done.’‘Thank you,’ he said. ‘I know it’s been a while but we got there in the end.’‘Excellent news, professor’ I said, trying to ignore the glass of wine shaped hole in my life and failing dismally. ‘I look forward to reading your report.’‘No, no, you don’t understand, Max. I’ve really done it.’I stopped thinking about wine and concentrated. This was Professor Rapson after all. I asked the question I should have led with.‘Exactly what have you done professor?’‘Well, as you know Max, water is very heavy.’I stared at him. He looked comparatively normal. His hair was standing on end. He had a huge acid burn on one sleeve of his lab coat of which he appearedcompletely oblivious and was wearing one brown and one black shoe, so as I said – normal.He was, however, waving around a beaker of clear fluid. I stepped back because it could be anything. The Elixir of Life. Cerebral brain fluid – although if it was his it would probably be a little murkier. An untraceable deadly poison that would kill us all in seconds. Anything, really.He raised the beaker to his lips and drank deeply. I braced myself but nothing dreadful seemed to happen to him.‘Water, Max. Water. I’ve done it.’ He raised the empty beaker. I half expected a flash of lightning and shouts of ‘It’s alive! It’s alive!’ but that usually relates to Markham.‘What were you expecting, professor?’‘Well, water, obviously, Max.’Never had a glass of wine seemed so far away.‘Professor, please tell me – what is the project you’ve been working on?’‘Oh yes, of course. Well, as I said, Max, water is heavy. Leon’s always complaining about the weight of the tanks and how that messes up his calculations and he’s right so I thought I’d have a go.’‘At what, professor?’‘Desiccated water.’Oh God ...‘What?’‘Desiccated water, Max. Powdered water. The answer to all our problems. We reduce water down to a fine powder, bag it up in plastic and hey presto, portable water. No more tanks, no more heavy water bottles – just stick a couple of packs in your supplies and away you go. Small packs for your pocket. Something larger if you want a bath. Simple. Quick. Easy. Convenient.’‘Wow,’ I said. ‘That’s brilliant professor. Well done.’‘Thank you,’ he said modestly. ’I’m just off to show Chief Farrell.’‘He’ll be thrilled,’ I said, happily sacrificing Leon’s Friday afternoon, but wine deprivation can do that to a girl. ‘You must give him a complete demonstration. Several, in fact.’‘I will,’ he said, hair standing even more on end as he prepared to depart at top speed.‘Just one question, professor.’‘Mm?’‘How do you reconstitute the powder?’‘What?’‘The powder. How exactly do you reconstitute desiccated water?’‘Oh, that’s easy.’‘’Yes?He regarded me as an idiot.‘You just add water.’

    In here you'll find Verne and Wells, Tolstoy and Checkov, Stevenson and Oliphant, Kipling, Twain, Haggard and Blavatsky alongside their hosts.Come, join us for dinner and a story: Robert Louis Stevenson - Wee Davie Makes a Friend Rudyard Kipling - The High Bungalow Leo Tolstoy - The Immortal Memory Bram Stoker - The House of the Dead Mark Twain - Once a Jackass Herbert George Wells - Farside Margaret Oliphant - To the Manor Born Oscar Wilde - The Angry Ghost Henry Rider Haggard - The Black Ziggurat Helena P Blavatsky - Born of Ether Henry James - The Scrimshaw Set Anton Checkov - At the Molenzki Junction Jules Verne - To the Moon and Beyond Arthur Conan Doyle - The Curious Affair on the Embankment Proudly represented by Crystal Lake Publishing—Tales from the Darkest Depths. Interview with the author:So what makes this short story collection so special?Meikle: I love the idea that all these famous writers knew each other, and met for a meal, a drink, a smoke and some storytelling in an old London club / bar setting. It chimes almost exactly with my own idea of a good time. It's special to me in that it's a culmination of the past half dozen or so years of writing. Before this collection there were the Carnacki stories, the Holmes stories, the Challenger stories, and the collaborations with M Wayne Miller in numerous deluxe hardcovers. THE GHOST CLUB feels like an endpiece to all of that, a last celebration of everything I love about the era and the storytellers. Plus it's the most ambitious piece of work I've undertaken in my writing so far, the cause of much worrying and fretting on my part, so seeing the lovely blurbs and comments from writers I have long admired makes it extra special to me.Why should horror fans give Victorian Terror a try?Meikle: It's where we come from. The Victorian era storytelling tradition was the launching point for horror, and also for crime fiction, for science fiction, for fantasy and for much of how we see the world today. It gave us Sherlock Holmes, Dr Jeckyll, Dracula, the Invisible Man, Captain Nemo, and all manner of ghosts, spooks and spectres that still fill our entertainment of choice today. It's my way of paying homage to that tradition. This is who I am.How did you choose which authors to use in this book?Meikle: Initially all I knew was that Doyle and Stoker were founder members of the club in London. Then I found out that Henry James was in London at the same time as them and it started to come together.

    Now at the dawn of the mechanical 19th century, only the five clans united can hold back the blood-red tide of industrial apocalypse. Unless they dive into it laughing. I did say 'mad' Rayne Gray is a cheerful, charitable bear of a man. Philosophical about his life of violence, optimistic about the dawning 19th century. A man watching for daggers in the dark, he still holds a candle for others. Alas, the wheel of fortune shifts, he is on his own, three steps from madness, two steps from arrest, one step from death. And this dance puts Rayne on the path to the Family, a mad collection of clans more deadly than any alley of assassins. And more mad than a battle in Bedlam. But there was never a man better at keeping alive and sane, than Rayne Gray. From the book: She stood, placing sketch-board upon the grass. Brushing wrinkles from her skirt, dust from her behind. “Now stand, Master Gray, for I’ve a bit of wisdom for you.” Was she taller than I’d thought? No. But the fetching quality lay shadowed by something that arched over and behind. The determined look, perhaps, inspiring the sunlight about her. “I am standing,” I pointed out. I let hand slip towards rapier-handle, casual as an itch. “Ah, so you are.” She held up four fingers, counted upon them. “First: never believe the dead are stronger than the living. The grave-touched draw strength from the blood and breathe of life. They scrape by on ash and embers. Tis the living that hold the flame.” I considered these words. The theory ran sound. Only mere observation complicated the issue. “Second,” she continued, “never believe the mad are wiser than the sane. He who makes a beast of himself, escapes the pain of being a man. And so loses the wisdom.” Excellent. As the sanest man in ten thousand miles, I rejoiced to hear it. “Third. Never believe a name has power. You may name the stars or waves or faces in the mirror, but they will not own you for master when you call. They are the things themselves, never the name of the thing. So also, you.” She turned away. “Good luck to you, then.” I blinked, feeling no wiser. “That made three. Wasn’t there a fourth?” She stopped, spoke without turning. “Ah. Right enough. Well, fourth, then. You cannot come out this alive, Rayne Gray. Too many seek the prize you’ve set to bed. And the prize herself is a drinker of life, same as you. Can a man challenge his reflection?”

    Can an unlikely new Justice League lineup work as a unit to stop terrorists at the U.N., the Royal Flush Gang, and other threats--or will they succumb to squabbling and bad jokes? Pairing humor with hard-hitting action and heartfelt emotion, Keith Giffen and J.M. DeMatteis, along with frequent illustrator Kevin Maguire, created one of the greatest iterations of the Justice League ever! This oversize omnibus graphic novel series collects their run in its entirety for the first time ever, beginning with JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL OMNIBUS VOL. 1! Collects JUSTICE LEAGUE #1-6, JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL #7-25, JUSTICE LEAGUE AMERICA #26-30, JUSTICE LEAGUE EUROPE #1-6, and JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL ANNUAL #1-3.

    Thousands of soldiers on both sides of the conflict lost their lives, and tens of thousands more were badly injured. For twin brothers Henry and William, infantry soldiers in the Confederate Army, the battle held more than the horrors of war, it was a portal to something beyond mankind, where the spilling of blood brings not only death, but eternal damnation.A stunning horror novella from a new Master of the Weird and the Fantastic.

    Produced by Native Realities (Tribal Force, Tales of the Might Code Talkers, The Wool of Jonesy, DemiCon) and co-edited by Elizabeth LaPensée (Honour Water, Sequential Survivance, Indigenous Love) & Weshoyot Alvitre (Umbrella Academy, Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream, Native American Graphic Classics), DEER WOMAN: AN ANTHOLOGY brings together more than a dozen Native and Indigenous women artists and illustrators to present stories of resistance, survival, empowerment and hope.Drawing from the inspiration of traditional Deer Woman stories, DEER WOMAN: AN ANTHOLOGY will be a powerful collection of stories by Native women to bring determination and healing to those in need and those willing to listen with their hearts.

    This time I knew the truth. I swore on my son’s life that he would be avenged. Somehow, someway, I would have my revenge.”Heather Keynes’ teenage son died in a tragic car accident. Or so she thinks. However, deep in the wilds of the Devon countryside, an ancient evil has awoken … No-one is safe.When Heather determines the true cause of her son’s death, she is hell-bent on vengeance. Determined to halt the march of the Crone once and for all, hatred becomes the ultimate weapon. Furies collide in this twisted tale of murder, magic and salvation.

    Follow the occult fairytale story of how this young monster came to be, of the origins of Sea-Witch, of Sea-Witch’s god family that preceded her & of 78 men who cause pain by using their laws and cops against monsters like Sea-Witch. Also there’s lots of hot trans-on-trans sex.

    Add to that the occasional riot over sudden-onset omega heats and knothead alphas thinking they own the universe, and Matt is pretty sick of this whole puberty thing. But getting beat up by alphas, pitied by omegas and ignored by the rest of the world doesn't even top the list of Matt's problems. Also attending Matt's high school is a sweet, handsome, unfairly perfect alpha named Teddy, and Matt has been in love with him for a literal lifetime. Teddy is also Matt's step brother. Things can't really get any worse for Matt from this point. Which is of course when Matt finally presents. Somehow, it doesn't end up making his life any easier. He just hopes to get out of his adolescence without Teddy ever knowing how he truly feels; that despite a one in a million chance, Teddy might be Matt's true mate. And true mates aren't always reciprocated. Matt can handle a lot of disappointment, but losing Teddy would be the one blow that breaks him.

    . . All Colin Leffee wants is to be left alone: to run his used bookstore in peace, and to quietly drink himself to sleep every night in an attempt to drown out the memories of eight-hundred-plus years of existence.Unfortunately, when a sullen teenage changeling is flung out of Faerie and onto his doorstep, the long-suffering, wayward son of Titania knows his dreams of solitude are dust. Colin—or Lord Coileán, as he is known to the Faerie court—must track down Meggy, the love of his life, and figure out how her child ended up in Titania’s clutches to begin with.But with family, it’s never simple. He finds Meggy, only to see her yanked into Faerie—and the doors between the realms slammed and locked behind her. Now, it’s not just her life at stake . . . but the fate of magic itself.Always the loner, Colin reluctantly joins forces with an intensely stubborn wizard, a young priest-in-training who fancies himself a knight, and his half brother Robin (the last most definitely not by choice) on a quest to reopen the doors and restore the balance between the realms. And with exiled queen Mab plotting in the shadows to take Titania’s throne, and the wizards of the governing Arcanum hiding their own agenda, Colin can’t be sure whom to trust—or whether he’ll live long enough to see the mission through.

    Now the youngest member of a team of Anchors, she helps protect the city streets from Drifters—energy thieves who prey on the life force of ordinary humans.But when a battle leaves Bess’s threads in an irreparable tangle, she is faced with an agonizing choice: sever her threads and lose her magic forever—or be slowly consumed by her own power.YA contemporary fantasy. Short story.

    A fading magician encounters his former mentor performing a terrifying new act. A party-goer ducks out early and is pursued by a creature of bent on cruel malevolence. Winged creatures of unknown origin terrorize a small town. A disgruntled employee works his dark magic on a new breed of middle managers. A radio stunt shatters the sanity of a DJ. And a father talks his young daughter through a cataclysmic apocalypse. The Stay Awake Men and Other Unstable Entities. Seven new tales of terror by Matthew M. Bartlett.

    Hiding, most likely. From the cold, the helplessness. Maybe from the Party. Staying out of sight, like cockroaches. I am not a cockroach. “Apathy is the illness of the overprivileged…” Words laced with fear—and maybe a hint of prophecy. His father’s words. Words Braxton would prefer to ignore. Braxton Luther is sixteen when the Progressive Reform Party takes over the government. It can’t be that bad. So they don’t want religion in government—that’s constitutional. He can’t understand his church’s hypersensitive reaction or his father’s cryptic warning to stand against the Party’s ultimatums. But after living under the new government for a year, Braxton faces a choice—conform to the demands of the ungodded in order to protect his best friend, Eliza, or defy the system and go into hiding, ensuring a life of misery. Still certain that life will settle back into normalcy in the near future, Braxton chooses compliance. Then the killings begin, and Eliza is captured and sent to Reformation Camp for her defiance. Reality finally sinks in. Apathy is no longer a choice. ***PG-13 material. Though this book is Christian Fiction, there are dark (but not graphic) scenes that some readers may find disturbing.

    But when someone you love dies, logic and reason die with them." Sebastian Blackwell is your typical high school popular kid: attractive, charming, and a little rebellious. At least he used to be. But when his parents are killed in a freak accident, he goes from cool kid to orphan outcast before the dirt even settles over their graves. Now a shell of his former self, Sebastian realizes what really matters in life and is determined to get it back, no matter the cost. To do it, he'll have to delve into his family's darkest secrets, secrets his parents tried to protect him from his whole life. With a ghost as his only friend, a goth girl his only ally, and a demon prince his only chance, Sebastian sets out on a desperate path of redemption that seems more likely to damn him than to save him. For all power has a price, and Sebastian must decide what he is willing to pay to defy death itself. For fans of paranormal series like Supernatural and Odd Thomas, this tale of loss and the struggle for redemption will keep you on the edge of your seat. Grab it today and discover what you would give to save those you love most. (Suggested age range 15+ for mild language and violence. The Dark Roads Trilogy is a spinoff series of Love, Lies, and Hocus Pocus - The Lily Singer Adventures. Either series can be read first.)

    Bush's foreign policy vindicated by a quick victory in Iraq, lucrative invasions of Egypt and Syria followed, bringing unparalleled prosperity to America and setting off thirty years of right-wing rule. But when a war in Iran goes bad--and the resulting cover-up goes worse--the democrats reclaim the presidency. This is the time of Pax Americana and its zealous anti-hero, government agent Tuck Squires.Reading the ironic silences between the lines of the thriller, and roaring like a jet engine, Pax Americana is a sacrilegious, conspiratorial monster; like a literary dogfight between Ian Fleming and Robert Anton Wilson, loaded with prophecy, Baumeister's debut is an exorcism and an antidote for our era.Praise for Pax Americana by Kurt Baumeister:Selected as one of the Best Books of 2017 by PANK Magazine A LitReactor "...Best Book of 2017...So Far" One of Big Other's "Most Anticipated Small Press Books of 2017..." An Electric Literature "Great 2017 Indie Press Preview" Book "crackles with the energy of Vonnegut's best work" - Andrew Shaffer, New York Times bestselling author of The Day of the Donald: Trump Trumps America "Brilliantly plotted and linguistically nimble..."- Rain Taxi "Kurt Baumeister has more fun with language than any novelist since Money-era Martin Amis. I haven't read such marvelously obsessive prose in years."- Darin Strauss, bestselling author of Half a Life, Winner National Book Critics Circle Award "a mad romp"- Electric Literature "a true triumph"- The Brooklyn Rail "...bleak yet bubbly...Baumeister succeeds in delivering the deep chill he intends: that of a world in which 'evil and... good... were justas passé as faith.'"- Volume 1 Brooklyn "...Fantastic...One of the most unique books I've read in avery long time."- Matthew Norman, author of Domestic Violets and We're All Damaged "...the thriller's been reinvented, smartened up, and rendered blazingly funny in Kurt Baumeister's wild, raucous ride of a novel..." - Caroline Leavitt, New York Times bestselling author of Cruel Beautiful World "...Deceptive and complex. A dark strain of humor runs throughout, transported by a cast of morally obscure characters. A frenetic, funny, and haunting read."- Samuel Sattin, author of League of Somebodies and The Silent End "Ambitious, fearless, and frequently brilliant, Pax Americana is a speedball of religion and politics delivered in a steel syringe of adrenalin."- Chuck Greaves, author of Hard Twisted and Tom& Lucky "Filled with lush imagery, lyricism, and absurdity, Pax Americana brings into relief the subtext of political power...A daringly imaginative book." - Thaisa Frank, author of Heidegger's Glasses and Enchantment "a brilliantly imagined satire"- Largehearted Boy "If there is to be an American peace, it's certainly not going to come on the pages of this lit match of a novel..." - Sean Beaudoin, author of Welcome Thieves

    And what child doesn’t love a good game of hide-and-go-seek? But who is the world’s very best player of hide-and-go-seek? Why, Freed the Cheetah, of course. Freeda the Cheetah of Mozambique. Freeda the Cheetah is a delightful children’s picture book starring Freeda, that most elusive of cheetahs, who “runs like the wind and walks like the breeze”. As the elephant covers his eyes with his trunk and counts to a hundred, the animals of the savanna scatter in every direction. He finds every one of them, from the hippo in the muddy water to the monkeys behind the bananas. But he just can’t find that unfindable cheetah. Soon all the other animals join in on the search - even the lion and the blue wildebeests – as the colors of the savanna begin to fade into the evening. Will they find her before bed time? “She had stripes on her face and spots all around. And when she would hide, she could never be found!” Beautifully-illustrated, with mesmerizing scenes of the African savanna, the richly colored pages of this wonderful little animal tale are coupled with a charming and whimsical rhyming text. Kids will love joining the animals in the search for the crafty Freeda, who "runs like the wind and walks like the breeze." "No one knows where she hides, but they know where she doesn't – because the places they looked were the places she wasn't." A perfect read-aloud for the end of the day, children will delight in this singsong story of Freeda the Cheetah from Mozambique, the world’s very best player of hide-and-go-seek. (Ages 0-5. Includes a map of Africa in the end paper for an early geography lesson.

    His mantra of perseverance has gotten him through it all, but faced with losing his home, he finally sets foot on the same road of self-destruction the rest of his family followed.An accident changes everything. When two colliding cars send him diving from a San Diego sidewalk toward safety, he lands somewhere far from safe—in a bizarrely deserted version of San Francisco. Though he wakes in his own reality, he continues to pass out, dragged back to that strange world each time. July is willing to do anything to end his world-hopping, right up until he learns the price: reliving a past he's tried his whole life to forget. He’s not sure his sanity can take it. Not even to get back to his own world, a woman he’s falling in love with, and a life he finally cares about.

    Meet the young Maggie Mulgrew, and follow her as she and Spencer take on three mysteries. Curse of the Emerald : 10 year old Maggie meets her Aunt Irene for the first time - and becomes part of a mystery attached to a cursed necklace. Night of the Patchouli : a fun romp, involving an estate sale, a thief - and far too much patchouli. Witch in the Dell : when Maggie and Spencer find a mysterious cup in her aunt's carriage house, their research takes them to a long-abandoned village - and throws them into a centuries old mystery.Maggie Mulgrew Mysteries: Witch in the Dell And 2 New Mini MysteriesBook 1 - Ghost of a ChanceBook 2 - Written on the WindBook 3 - Spirit of the SeasonBook 4 - Dancing on her GraveBook 5 - Way of the WitchBook 6 - Ghosts of the PastFirst Collection Books 1-3

    Gender? Sexuality? Old words unsuited for new consciousness. The twenty-one stories in this book challenge the imagination as only acclaimed author A. Merc Rustad can. Pages of robots and AIs constructing lives and exploring "humanity"; wasted worlds with monstrous cityhearts; assassins and the perils of enchanted labyrinths; and always the raw truths of love, loss, and devotion. Step two: read these science-fiction and fantasy tales as if they are the only stories you will discover on your bookshelf this day. Step three: dare to feel.

    With time running out and a large reward hanging in the balance, Will chases down every possible lead, braving the macabre underground laboratory of a sadistic nobleman before embarking on a daring, late-night library break-in. Told through Will’s own diary and with his characteristic wit, “The Strange Task Before Me” is an intense race against the clock that mixes action, humor, and a bit of magic—all while laying the groundwork for momentous events to come, expanding on the mythology of The Camelot Shadow, and introducing a key new character in the unpredictable Baron Frederickson.

    All is thrown in doubt, however, when Sukru the Reaping King arrives unannounced from Sharakhai and puts forth a champion of his own.For a young woman named Leorah, the more important matter is the fabled amethyst ring offered up as a prize. She knows of the ring, and becomes obsessed with winning the race. This horrifies her twin sister, Devorah, who knows more of the ring’s secrets than Leorah, and is desperate to hide them from the Reaping King.As the race unfolds, and King Sukru’s champion comes closer and closer to winning the prize, Devorah stumbles upon a secret that puts not only the ring’s future in doubt, but her sister’s as well.

    And she's not there alone. Stranded amongst countless others struggling to grasp that the year is 2043, she meets Angus Danann, a handsome 19-year-old boy from Ireland. They are magnetically drawn to each other from the beginning, although Cate tries to suppress her feelings. But then Angus tells her about an intriguing Irish myth involving a goddess of dreams and the man who loves her. They both recognize themselves in the legend, and admit to having independent yet eerily coincidental experiences. It becomes clear that Angus and Cate are destined to be at The Village together, if only to figure out how to help the other “rifters” back to their own time. As the two of them struggle through one harrowing situation after another, they attract the attention of General Lyons, the stern overseer of The Village. He suspects the rising toll of incidents associated with Angus and Cate aren't happening by chance. With their lives at risk, Angus is forced to reveal a secret that changes the game completely—for all of them. If they give General Lyons what he wants, they get to go home. But if they succeed at their task, Cate and Angus doom themselves to being stranded in vastly different times, separated from one another forever.

    Mord once prowled the corridors of the biotech organization known as the Company, which lies at the outskirts of the city, until he was experimented on, grew large, learned to fly and broke free. Driven insane by his torture at the Company, Mord terrorizes the city even as he provides sustenance for scavengers like Rachel.At first, Borne looks like nothing at all—just a green lump that might be a Company discard. The Company, although severely damaged, is rumoured to still make creatures and send them to distant places that have not yet suffered Collapse.Borne somehow reminds Rachel of the island nation of her birth, now long lost to rising seas. She feels an attachment she resents; attachments are traps, and in this world any weakness can kill you. Yet when she takes Borne to her subterranean sanctuary, the Balcony Cliffs, Rachel convinces her lover, Wick, not to render Borne down to raw genetic material for the drugs he sells—she cannot break that bond.Wick is a special kind of supplier, because the drug dealers in the city don’t sell the usual things. They sell tiny creatures that can be swallowed or stuck in the ear, and that release powerful memories of other people’s happier times or pull out forgotten memories from the user’s own mind—or just produce beautiful visions that provide escape from the barren, craterous landscapes of the city.Against his better judgment, out of affection for Rachel or perhaps some other impulse, Wick respects her decision. Rachel, meanwhile, despite her loyalty to Wick, knows he has kept secrets from her. Searching his apartment, she finds a burnt, unreadable journal titled “Mord,” a cryptic reference to the Magician (a rival drug dealer) and evidence that Wick has planned the layout of the Balcony Cliffs to match the blueprint of the Company building. What is he hiding? Why won’t he tell her about what happened when he worked for the Company?

    Populate the island of Atlantis with extraordinary men, women, and children from throughout history. Become human and integrate with the harmonious society forged on the tenets of Plato's Republic. But they soon find out even paradise is susceptible to the unpredictability, violence, and lust of mortals and immortals alike.Spanning from sandy shores to the farthest reaches of the galaxy, gods and humans contend with their vices on a quest to achieve the ultimate society in critically acclaimed author Jo Walton's vigorous exploration of the human condition, Thessaly.

    Unfortunately.When Brenna learns her mother is missing in an alternate reality called Linneah, she travels through a portal to find her. Against her will. Who knew portals even existed? But Brenna’s arrival in Linneah begins the fulfillment of an ancient prophecy, including a royal murder and the theft of Linneah’s most powerful relic: the Sacred Veil.Hold up. Can everything just slow down for a sec?Unwilling yet left with no other choice, Brenna and her new friend Baldwin (Um, hello, Hottie!) pursue the thief into the dangerous woods of Silvastamen and beyond. Exactly what Brenna wanted to do for her sixteenth birthday. Exactly. When they spy an army marching toward Linneah, Brenna is horrified. Can she find the veil, save her mother, and warn Linneah in time?And more importantly, why on earth doesn’t this alternity have Belgian waffles?

    “Adopted” by her incarcerated uncle's gang of thieves, she breaks into homes and picks pockets to repay her family debt and one day buy her freedom from their dark enterprise. Mechanically adept and determined, Nyssa longs to attend Miss Pratchett's School for Mechanically Minded Maids and make an honest life she can take pride in.She wasn't made to steal things. She was made to create and fix them.However, before she can make her escape, the head of the gang taps her for a new assignment, one her conscience cannot bear. Nyssa is faced with a heartrending decision: sacrifice everything or become the very thing she's desperate to escape.A Prequel Short for the Nyssa Glass Steampunk Series.

    --Karen Joy FowlerMandelbrot the Magnificent is a stunning, magical pseudo-biography of Benoit Mandelbrot as he flees into deep mathematics to escape the rise of HitlerBorn in Warsaw and growing up in France during the rise of Hitler, Benoit Mandelbrot found escape from the cruelties of the world around him through mathematics. Logic sometimes makes monsters, and Mandelbrot began hunting monsters at an early age. Drawn into the infinite promulgations of formulae, he sinks into secret dimensions and unknown wonders.His gifts do not make his life easier, however. As the Nazis give up the pretense of puppet government in Vichy France, the jealousy of Mandelbrot's classmates leads to denunciation and disaster. The young mathematician must save his family with the secret spaces he's discovered, or his genius will destroy them.