A hard-boiled tale of gritty dystopian noir. "The Sun Never Rises in the Big City" received an honorable mention in Best Horror of the Year, Volume Three."The Sun Never Rises in the Big City" is a short story of 5100 words.Jeremy C. Shipp is the Bram Stoker Award-nominated author of books such as CURSED, SHEEP AND WOLVES, VACATION, and FUNGUS OF THE HEART. ----------------------Praise for Jeremy C. Shipp:"This is intriguing, challenging, literate, provocative....I recommend it to those who find reality boring; it may make them see it in new ways."—Piers Anthony, the Xanth Series"Jeremy Shipp is a very good drug. I hope this book gets banned in high schools soon!"—John Skipp "This is an unforgettable work—a must read you’ll savor long after the final page."—Lisa Mannetti, Bram Stoker Award winner"A diverse, unpredictable, and intelligent read. Two thumbs up!”—Midwest Book Review

    Appraisal is supposed to be a routine right of passage. But no scenario he's ever heard of has prepared Alex for his own experience - abducted, imprisoned, and subjected to brutal medical experiments in a high-tech lab.He escapes and goes on the run, a heartbeat ahead of a ruthless army led by the most powerful man in the world. When he finally pieces together the clues behind his kidnapping, they lead to a treacherous plot that only he can derail.But to succeed, he must penetrate the First Circle, the forbidden abode of the ruling class.

    She has never actually destroyed any planets, but getting to choose your own title is one of the few perks you get when you work against your will for an evil Octopus Overlord.In an attempt to regain her freedom, Kirian defies her tentacled boss and secretly saves Ari, the human she is supposed to kill. Can the two of them and a band of misfits join forces to thwart the Neon Octopus Overlord? And can a revolutionary rock song from an illegal grunge band save a planet?

    A cyborg soldier on a quest to regain his humanity. Mortal enemies during the war, they must now work together to salvage a seventy-year-old freighter and navigate the gauntlet of pirates, scavengers, mercenaries, and other pitfalls that stand in their way after the fall of the largest empire mankind has ever known. This set includes: Book 0.5: Last Command Book 1: Star Nomad Book 1.5: Saranth Three Book 2: Honor’s Flight Book 2.5: Starfall Station Book 3: Starseers .

    Upon learning the woman was kidnapped and forced into slavery by an interplanetary crime cartel, Mel makes it her mission to secure the woman's freedom and return her to her home on Earth.Working against Mel's efforts, a corrupt inspector of Luna's notorious Morality Police also searches for the victim so he can eliminate anyone who can implicate him in her kidnapping.Working against the clock, Mel must find a way to keep the girl away from those who would do her harm, and protect her own skin at the same time. If she fails, her crew mates aboard Requiem may well pay with their lives.Armstrong Station is the first in a series of prequel books that chronicle Melanie Destin's life before the events in the Mars Ascendant series.

    To help you navigate these troubled waters, we give you the Reading Guide. Even better than a towel, this guide will give you a reading order and provide information about the various eras and their series.Follow the main Tanis storyline and learn the best places to branch off on the side quests. Or, if you joined in on a branching storyline, find out the best place to pick up the main tale.This guide was last updated on Dec 8, 2018. About M. D. Cooper & Aeon 14 M. 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 world of Aeon 14.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...

     Jon Taylor is an Earthling. He doesn't care much about space. At least until his brother dies on Bahay, a war-torn planet many light-years away. After the funeral, Jon joins the army. He learns to kill. And he flies to Bahay, sworn to avenge his brother. Centuries ago, Filipino colonists arrived on Bahay to build a utopia. But this world has become a nightmare. Jon finds himself in a dizzying dreamscape, a world of dark jungles and neon slums, of ruthless guerrillas and intoxicating bargirls, of blood-soaked battlefields and glittering brothels. Here on Bahay, a man can lose his life in the jungle, lose his sanity in the gleaming drug dens, or lose his heart to a local girl with a sweet smile and knife behind her back. On Bahay, nothing is as it seems. In this place of strange dreams and secrets, Jon hunts the man who killed his brother. But he learns that revenge always comes with a price... If you loved Ender's Game, Starship Troopers, and Battlestar Galactica, you'll love The Earthling, a new tale in the bestselling Earthrise universe.

    She has all the challenges a gal could ask for. Granny Rita is on the rampage, and the cats have gone on strike. Leaving the Colonials to deal with Granny Rita, Sandy heads off to work with the cats, only to discover she is not the only one who has a bone to pick with them - alien monsters have a vendetta as well! Sandy has to work to find a way of peace among the Alwans, feisty cats, and a new alien race.

    But in this galaxy, there are a million ways to lose…Seb Zodo has never backed down from a fist fight. After all, he’s been gifted with powers that make losing impossible. But lately, Seb’s gift seems more like a curse…Seb’s fearlessness leads to stupid decisions, short-lived jobs, and unwanted attention in dangerous places. In a desperate bid at a fresh start, Seb swears off fighting. But it may be too late…When a run-in with an electrifying thief and the head of a shadowy organization sends his life spiraling out of control, Seb has no choice left but to go down swinging…

    Well, sort of. Life on Artemis, the first and only city on the moon, is tough if you're not a rich tourist or an eccentric billionaire. So smuggling in the occasional harmless bit of contraband barely counts, right? Not when you've got debts to pay and your job as a porter barely covers the rent. Everything changes when Jazz sees the chance to commit the perfect crime, with a reward too lucrative to turn down. But pulling off the impossible is just the start of her problems, as she learns that she's stepped square into a conspiracy for control of Artemis itself—and that now, her only chance at survival lies in a gambit even riskier than the first.

    Exploration, alien invasions, genetic engineering, and artificial intelligence--it’s all here. Blast off with these adventures by New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling authors. Star Nomad by Lindsay Buroker In this fast-paced space adventure, Captain Alisa Marchenko must brave sadistic savages, fearsome cyborgs, and brutal pirates to steal a ship so she can find her way home. Starship Eternal by M.R. Forbes When a critical injury leaves Space Marine Captain Mitchell "Ares" Williams having visions of a lost starship and an alien invasion, he thinks he's going insane... He isn't. Icarus by Matt Verish Cole Musgrave’s dream of interstellar travel has become a nightmare. When a delivery is compromised aboard a classified cargo vessel, the unorthodox captain finds himself embroiled in a deadly assignment that will alter his life forever. Attack on Phoenix by Megg Jensen Two hundred years ago, an interplanetary expedition crashed on a deserted planet. Catching the attention of the dragzhi, an aggressive alien species, they found themselves in a war they were doomed to lose ... unless Torsten Vikker, a soldier who’d rather read than fight, can find a way to save them. Archangel Down by C. Gockel Commander Noa Sato doesn’t believe in aliens. She’s too busy trying to save the lives of millions and her own skin to ponder the existence of “others.” Fortunately for Noa, aliens believe in her. Destroyer by Chris Fox One maverick captain, an unlikely crew, and an aging vessel are all that stand between humanity and the Eradication. Space Carrier Avalon by Glynn Stewart Avalon was the first and most legendary of the Castle Federation's space carriers, but she is now old and obsolete. Accepting the inevitable, she is sent on a final flag-showing tour. But war clouds gather and this final tour will be anything but quiet. Symphony of War by David Adams Lieutenant Marcus Servus and his soldiers, a penal legion, stand against insectoid boogeymen from another galaxy. Marcus has a gift. An edge against the monsters: he hears music. Songs in his head guide him, granting him knowledge and foresight, a weapon against the alien hordes. But who plucks the strings? Allies and Enemies: Fallen by Amy J. Murphy Purpose-bred soldier of the Regime, Commander Sela Tyron is as subtle as a hammer. To hammers, any problem can look like a nail, but solutions aren’t always that easy. When Sela encounters a son she is forbidden to know, falls in love with a man who is clearly off-limits, and is abandoned on a planet of insurrectionists, things get complicated.

    More than a century of ecological damage, industrial and technological expansion, and unchecked population growth has left the Earth on the brink of devastation. As the world’s governments turn inward, one man dares to envision a bolder, brighter future. That man, Reid Malenfant, has a very different solution to the problems plaguing the planet: the exploration and colonization of space. Now Malenfant gambles the very existence of time on a single desperate throw of the dice. Battling national sabotage and international outcry, as apocalyptic riots sweep the globe, he builds a spacecraft and launches it into deep space. The odds are a trillion to one against him. Or are they?

    What could go wrong? Clever and ruthless terrorists want it at any cost. A high-stakes cat and mouse game ensues with apocalyptic danger at every turn. Follow Sam Sunborn as he teams up with a real Einstein to give birth to an invention that could change the lives of everyone on the planet forever. Sam wants to help people through his invention, but lands up having to defend it and his family from the Leopard, a driven and demented terrorist, whose mission is to rein chaos and destruction on the Western World. Using the latest technology and a battle of wills and wits, Sunborn and the Leopard engage in an epic global clash. What disasters befall the innocent in the Leopard’s wake? Can Michelle Hadar, a lowly grad student, and Rich Little, a talented Homeland Agent, possibly come to the rescue? Mysteries and surprises abound in this fast-paced thriller. Charlie's 20 year background in tech, degree in philosophy and love of fast-paced thrillers are the brew that created NOT SO DEAD. He lives in New Jersey with his wife, Amy, and has two sons, too far away in California.

    Martin is a giant in the field of fantasy literature and one of the most exciting storytellers of our time. Now he delivers a rare treat for readers: a compendium of his shorter works, collected into two stunning volumes, that offer fascinating insight into his journey from young writer to award-winning master.Gathered here in Volume I are the very best of George R.R. Martin's early works, including never-before-published fan pieces, his Hugo, Nebula, and Bram Stoker Award-winning stories plus the original novella The Ice Dragon, from which Martin's New York Times bestselling children's book of the same title originated. A dazzling array that features extensive author commentary, Dreamsongs, Volume I, is the perfect collection for both Martin devotees and a new generation of fans.Contents:- Introduction by Gardner Dozois One: A Four-Color Fanboy (2003)- Only Kids Are Afraid of the Dark (1967)- The Fortress (2003)- And Death His Legacy (2003)Two: The Filthy Pro (2003)- The Hero (1971)- The Exit to San Breta (1972)- The Second Kind of Loneliness (1972)- With Morning Comes Mistfall (1973)Three: The Light of Distant Stars (2003)- A Song for Lya (1974)- The Stone City (1977)- This Tower of Ashes (1976)- And Seven Times Never Kill Man (1975)- Bitterblooms (1977)- The Way of Cross and Dragon (1979)Four: The Heirs of Turtle Castle (2003)- The Lonely Songs of Laren Dorr (1976)- The Ice Dragon (1980)- In the Lost Lands (1982)Five: Hybrids and Horrors (2003)- Meathouse Man (1976)- Remembering Melody (1981)- Sandkings (1979)- Nightflyers (1980)- The Monkey Treatment (1983)- The Pear-Shaped Man (1987)

    Proceed beyond this point at your own risk.When celebrated Omicron detective Ferrix Vaughn is called in to investigate a deadly breach on Hesperidia, a protected planet full of indigenous wildlife, he doesn't know what to expect. The place used to be a tourist attraction, but the safari tours were discontinued long ago due to rampant poaching. Only a handful of researchers live there now, including Jan Corbija, the young woman who reported the breach. The deeper Vaughn digs, the more the evidence seems to point to a recent raid on a biotech facility in a nearby system. Whatever was stolen from there, it's attracted the attention of major political players in a time of war across the colonies. Vaughn suspects the secret is on Hesperidia, in the hands of the two fugitives who fled the murder scene. If he wants to get to them first, he's going to need Jan's help. Her Alien Safari tour will have to reopen for this final excursion. But to survive it, they'll both need to face their demons, for a predator far deadlier than man roams the wilds of Hesperidia. And this is its killing season. This way for the ride of your life.