Book picks similar to
The X Files by Les Martin


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The Korean Intercept


Stephen Mertz - 2006
    Liberty is to deploy a space defense system satellite created with the latest American technology. The shuttle crash-lands in the uncharted, mountainous frontier between North Korea and China. As the ranking able-bodied officer, Kate takes charge, evacuating the crew from the crash site. A mountain warlord captures the Liberty’s crew, intending to sell the shuttle and its cargo to the highest bidder. On the world stage, this crisis rapidly escalates. The North Koreans forbid an American search and rescue operation, sending their own troops into the region instead. The technology on board Liberty is invaluable to both the North Koreans and the Chinese. The U.S. President orders American armed forces to full alert, preparing for a military incursion to locate the shuttle. This could be the flashpoint for the long-feared nuclear showdown between North Korea and the U.S. Monitoring these spiraling events with a personal interest is Major Trev Galt, Kate Daniels’ estranged husband. Since his breakup with Kate, Galt has become romantically involved with Meiko Kurita, White House correspondent for a Japanese news agency. Galt had thought he was over his wife, but Kate and the shuttle disappearing without a trace re-ignites his unresolved feelings for her. While Kate and her crew struggle to survive, Galt and Meiko risk their lives to untangle the Korean Intercept; a race against time that pitches them into a labyrinth of treachery reaching from the corridors of Japanese corporate power to the blood-splattered back alleys of Tokyo, from the White House to the barren, hostile mountains of North Korea.

Far From Home: The Complete Third Series


Tony Healey - 2015
    The Third Series of the smash-hit scifi adventure that has thrilled readers the world over!

The Proteus Bridge


James S. Aaron - 2018
    Take a step back, long before Andy arrived on Cruithne, and find out how Fugia Wong and Ngoba Starl got their start.

The Privateer


William Zellmann - 2012
    The slaves stole an ore carrier and escaped, and after failing at trade, desperation and hatred drove them to piracy. John was a hugely successful pirate, until forced to confront the horrors committed by his men. He grabs a ship and a bag of gems, and runs away, determined to regain his self-respect. Pursued by his former colleagues, he flees across man-settled space. Along the way, he learns that his ship is much more than a simple yacht, deals with a stowaway girl, almost accidentally buys an orbital scrap yard, finds himself responsible for a beautiful young woman, fights off a pirate attack, falls in love, makes a friend, and learns that his refuge has been invaded by another planet. John, now Cale, and his friends plan to use derelicts from his scrap yard to free his sanctuary planet. But can a bunch of resurrected hulks really defeat a planetary fleet? And just what IS a Privateer, anyway?

The Old Republic Series


Sean Williams - 2016
    3,500 years in the past of the far-away galaxy, when the Jedi and Galactic Republic clashed with the Sith Empire, smuggler Jet Nebula has stumbled across a treasure richer than he ever dreamed. The Hutts want to auction it to the highest bidder, be it the Republic or the Empire, both of whom hope to bolster their chances in the coming conflict. But the Sith are interested too, and they don't bargain with anyone; the Jedi High Council is sending someone to investigate; a mysterious Mandalorian is chasing something connected to a long-forgotten crime; while a spy plays every side at once. What Jet has unearthed will surprise all of them, and leave none of them unchanged.

The Galactic Peace Committee


L.G. Estrella - 2016
    In another universe, humanity is overrun by monsters so evil that their very presence dims the light of the stars. In yet another universe, humanity is drawn into an endless battle for dominion over the galaxy. This is not one of those universes. In this universe, humanity is in charge of the Galactic Peace Committee. In theory, the Committee is an unmatched force for good, bringing peace and prosperity to countless worlds and ensuring that conflicts between different races are settled with words and not planet-cracking weaponry or super plagues designed to turn everyone into goo. In theory. Jake Smith is a diplomat. He works for the Committee. This is his story – and it goes about as well as you’d expect. In other words, it doesn’t go very well at all. Can Jake survive petty aliens? Sure. He’s a diplomat. It’s all part of the job. What about angry aliens? Probably. He does have a killer robot for a secretary, and he’s not bad with a shock staff. How about a fleet of aliens out for blood? That… that might be a little bit trickier. The Galactic Peace Committee… keeping peace (sort of) throughout the galaxy.

Good Morning Vendemiatrix


H. Paul Honsinger - 2020
    In these labors, there is one friend that they can count on, day in and day out . . . he’s a constant companion in their headsets with the Smack and Crack, Sno Bro, and other music they love, as well offering a seemingly endless stream of friendship and encouragement: the morning DJ on Company Radio Channel D, Robin Whitlake. But, Robin is more than a warm human voice in the endless night, he is a man with a heroic, yet deadly and dangerous secret past that could condemn him to death at any time. Disfigured and aging rapidly, he must work harder and harder to project the youth and vitality that he brings to his broadcasts, all the while wondering when and if his past will catch up with him. On 14 January 2314, it did. A disaster in the mining colony brings the heroic and deadly elements of Robin’s past into sudden collision. Not only must he decide whether to subject himself to possible execution, Robin has to call upon all his professionalism as a broadcaster, the skills he spent decades honing in his former life, and the Morse code abilities of a red-headed, pig-tailed Space Scout named Elaine, in a desperate “Hail Mary” improvisation with thousands of innocent lives hanging in the balance. Good Morning Vendemiatrix is an 8800 word stand-alone novelette set in the “Man of War” universe. Fans of Honsinger’s other work will recognize the setting and be treated to a cameo appearance by a familiar character, while new readers will not find themselves “lost in space.” It is a humorous and exciting piece of shorter fiction written to be enjoyed by all Science Fiction readers.

Immortal: An alien invasion of Earth is imminent … or is it?


Nick M. Lloyd - 2019
    The senders, calling themselves the Ankor, claim a colossal gamma ray burst from a supernova will engulf the Earth in less than a year, sterilising all life. But they provide no proof … only demands that all countries must prepare to build an enormous shield in orbit around the Earth. Francis MacKenzie, industrialist and private owner of the UK’s only satellite launch facility, says there’s no alternative but to accept the Ankor position and mobilise immediately. Tim Boston is not convinced the Ankor can be trusted but as a divisional head in MacKenzie’s flagship bioengineering company, he won’t risk biting the hand that feeds him. Samantha Turner may do though, despite her ongoing commitment to Tim not to cause trouble. Scroll Up And Buy It Today

War Without End


G.P. Hudson - 2017
    Throughout the galaxy, planetary systems seek independence and freedom. Everywhere there is war. Trying to maintain its grip, the Empire has become more ruthless, and reliant on mercenary armies. The powerful Zeta Corp fills this need with its advanced weapons, and legions of genetically engineered soldiers. These soldiers, while fiercely loyal, are nothing more than slaves. Danny is a Zeta Corp mercenary who has known nothing but war, and service to Zeta Corp in his short life. But when a routine mission ends in disaster, he finds himself questioning everything he believed in. Pitted against the Empire, and Zeta Corp, can he gain freedom for himself, his friends, and the galaxy?

Permian: Emissary of the Extinct


Devyn Regueira - 2019
     Lining the granite walls of the first, high above an orderly reservoir of fossilized eggs, an inscription spanning eighty-five miles describes the genome of a proto-mammalian species eradicated during the Permian Extinction. In the next, researchers discover etchings of the constellations as they would have appeared across the eons; a global timeline of ten billion years remembered and foretold by a primordial intelligence beyond our own. Armed with a genetic recipe, compelled to act by the harrowing implications of a pattern detected in the timeline, an international effort begins to return that species from extinction before mankind encounters its own. The human race has only just learned to pluck at the strings of life on Earth. Will the curtains rise on a siren's song? Where will they fall?

Hard Drop


Will van der Vaart - 2013
    Their objective is classified, marked only by coordinates leading them into a deserted city at the heart of the fighting. From the beginning, everything possible goes wrong. A missile strike rocks the carrier mid-launch, and only a fraction of the unit reaches the surface alive.Outmanned, outgunned, and scattered, with a hard deadline to orbital bombardment looming, it is up to Drop Commander Tyco Hale to rally his troops and reach their objective. But what they find, hidden deep in the tunneled passages under the city, will change everything about what he fights for and what he believes in. With the unit in tatters and loyalties divided, the choice he makes in the dark will seal all of their fates - and much more besides.

Virginian (Matt Miller in the Colonies, #3)


Mark J. Rose - 2019
    He’s become a wealthy businessman and politician, with a beautiful wife and family, but the American Revolution looms on the horizon. When a prominent British leader mysteriously disappears, Ben Franklin summons Matt to London to help investigate the involvement of Patrick Ferguson, a man whose ambitions are to change the future. Unknown to them all, another time traveler, with separate motivations, will join them in a struggle across two continents to change the destiny of Western Civilization.

Cloak of War


Casey Calouette - 2017
    He expected the biggest decision to be which whisky to drink. He expected the biggest threat to be the redhead in the orbital bar. Instead he was drafted and sent to the frontlines as a junior officer. With the 6th Fleet on the ropes, he finds himself battle promoted onto a little missile frigate that’s more missile than frigate. But as his career begins he learns that command isn’t what they teach you in college but what you learn in the hard vacuum of space. As Karl loses his first major fleet engagement he’s adrift on a dying hulk with his only hope for the future to be a half mad Captain who might be his greatest mentor or his worst enemy. Maybe both.

Empires Ascendant: A Space Opera Anthology


Jay Allan - 2019
    The golden age of expansion, of exploration. Stories of new and vibrant civilizations growing, reaching out…and sometimes fighting desperately for the future. Empires Ascendant brings 6 masters of military science fiction and space opera together in one volume of all new, original material. Shadow of Purple Jay Allan One honorable man. Altharic Vennalus is a general, and a loyal servant of the Republic. He has battled endlessly, fighting to preserve the Republic from the usurpers who would topple it. The civil wars that have raged for three decades are nearly at an end. But peace is an elusive dream, and pain and loss will drive Altharic to places he couldn’t have imagined. In the end, he will be faced with answering one burning question. What is the cost of his honor? The Thousand Colors of Night Daniel Arenson A strange signal comes from deep space. A folk song from hundreds of light-years away. A song where there should be only silence. One starship flies to investigate. It finds a mystery that will change humanity forever. Banshee’s Last Scream Jason Anspach and Nick Cole From the world of Galaxy's Edge: When a Dark Ops legionnaire is found dead under suspicious circumstances, his fellow operatives employ the notorious bounty hunter Tyrus Rechs to find those responsible and make them pay for their actions. But Rechs uncovers a sinister plot much bigger than a simple murder. Jason Anspach & Nick Cole deliver the first original Galaxy's Edge short story ever to appear in an anthology… Banshee’s Last Scream! The Ganymede Arbitration JN Chaney In 2833, Arbiters Wojtek Dimek and Gabriel Anderson are sent to contain an escalating genocide on Ganymede. Jovian Alliance Prime Minister Frank Wallace directs a campaign of systematic murder on the frozen moon. The Arbiters board Wallace’s ship to take the Prime Minister into custody, only to find themselves at ground zero of a coup, and they must now fight to reach extraction against overwhelming military forces in an increasingly volatile situation. Demons at War JN Chaney A Republic war in paradise. A Marine faced with the ultimate decision. Sergeant Magnus pictured the beach covered with bikini-clad women working on their tans. Instead, it has been overrun by those who would see him dead. Outnumbered and surrounded, Magnus must find a way to keep his unit alive against an unrelenting enemy from the ocean. It's time to do what he does best. Rogue Factions Joshua Dalzelle All 3 of the warring nations of humanity had finally agreed to meet and discuss an end to the slaughter that had gone on for centuries. Could this really be the end of a conflict that had taken millions of lives and left economies on the verge of collapse? As the 3 delegations meet on neutral ground to discuss the chance for peace, not everyone is happy that the war could be ending. Soon, multiple assault forces, smuggled into the conference in secret, engage each other. Who will dictate the future of humanity, those who want war without end, or those who want to forge all of humanity into a mighty empire? Acheron Rising Ken Lozito Lt. Commander Elias Browning's military career was over, or so he thought. When a secret research colony is discovered by a ruthless enemy, Elias must take command of a small battlegroup.

Riverworld : The Great Short Fiction of Philip José Farmer


Philip José Farmer - 1987