Monster hurricanes … freak sandstorms … roasting wildfires. Species disappear every day. Is humanity next?Though some believe our future lies among the stars, the American President funds the Lazarus Protocol—a last-ditch attempt to reverse Earth’s climate crisis through geoengineering. But the New Earth Order—a mysterious league of reactionary activists with sleeper agents around the world—pursues another outcome: the subjugation of mankind to nature itself.A brilliant billionaire who wants to save the world. A lunar engineer called home to bury her father. A disgraced veteran haunted by yesterday's mistakes. A US Army colonel, desperate to save as many people as possible.Four lives. One planet. And one last chance to save it…

    Especially when the person who’s supposed to be keeping an eye out for the bad guys is stuck in his own 15-year-old body. And it’s 1964: when you’re both 15 and your parents don’t want you spending time alone, how are you going to save your lives? SFRevu called this story “one of the most enjoyable reads I’ve had in a long time.”In four interlinked short stories, Temporal Interventionists Tom and Pam meet cute, then work together to solve some of history’s greatest mysteries. Discover the real origin of the Spanish Flu. Learn why a massive and mysterious explosion in 1908 happened to occur in the world’s least-inhabited region. Consider the possibility that the development of ironclad warships by both the South and the North at the exact same time during the American Civil War might have been more than coincidence. And why don’t we know exactly who fired the Shot Heard Round the World, the lone gunshot that started the American Revolution?In “Joan,” Kate is a time-traveling researcher who’s gotten a little too close to Joan of Arc both in time and emotionally. With no distance, scientific or otherwise, what will happen when she has a chance to rescue Joan from being burnt at the stake? Our journey through time concludes with “Crow’s Feat,” when a skeptical writer goes back to Elizabethan England to discover the true author of Shakespeare’s plays.BORROWED TIME is the second in a series of short story collections from Jack Campbell.

    Here, that steamy, swampy jungle world with strange creatures lurking amidst the dripping vegetation is explored in sixteen all-new stories collected by bestselling author George R. R. Martin and editor Gardner Dozois.

    What will save us?“Your eyes are black as the ocean. So deep with melancholy! Your melancholy shrouds our city. You should make them a museum!”The High Counselor told the Forerunner, the only surviver, when she leapt into the air and onto a truly bizarre flying machine, a large, propeller powered, feather. “Melancholy is only for museums. The micro-age is an age without worries!” Enter Liu Cixin's Micro-Age and take a look at what kind of program China's top sci-fi author has proposed to save the destiny of humankind!

    To claim his mate. Jada Jackson is a smart, sassy, plus-sized woman. She’s at home with her curves and happy with her job at Wild Alpha Auto. Brandon Heller is a grizzly shifter who hasn’t been back to Wild Summit since high school. But when his father calls him home to assist with the management of his luxury automobile dealership, Brandon finds himself face to face with Jada, the girl he stood up for prom thirteen years ago. Sparks fly. They touch. They kiss. And then they do a whole lot more. But even though they seem so right together, how can Jada trust the man who broke her heart so long ago? And how can Brandon reveal his true shifter nature without scaring her off forever? Brandon and Jada must bare more than their bodies to each other. They must bare their souls. Only then will Jada know the meaning of true love. And only then will Brandon be able to claim his mate. *A Note to the Reader: First Bear is a story of wild hot Alpha love. In addition to steamy lovemaking, it contains some adult language. If sizzling bear shifter love isn’t your thing, you may want to skip this book. But if you’re a curvy girl who likes her leading men strong and her action scorching hot, enjoy! **When you're done with First Bear, get ready for more bear shifter heat in Fast Bear!

    Virtually unknown and only published in pulp magazines before he died in poverty, he is now regarded as one of the most significant 20th-century authors in his genre. Lovecraft was born in Providence, Rhode Island, where he spent most of his life. Among his most celebrated tales is "The Call of Cthulhu", canonical to the Cthulhu Mythos. Never able to support himself from earnings as author and editor, Lovecraft saw commercial success increasingly elude him in this latter period, partly because he lacked the confidence and drive to promote himself. He subsisted in progressively straitened circumstances in his last years; an inheritance was completely spent by the time he died at the age of 46.

    It’s for those who like to laugh at the absurdity, magic, and madness of human existence. It's been called the next Brave New World, with a touch of Kurt Vonnegut and a hint of Philip K. Dick. You won’t be able to put it down.” Joe Sokolinsky, TV Channel 29, San Francisco, 2010The Future Perfect is a wild ride into the future, unknown like anything I have ever envisioned. Mustard’s imagination is remarkable, knowing no boundaries and yet holding this reader within his genius virtual reality. The characters are likable, funny, determined and yet quirky. The world-building is unbelievable and so detail oriented, I could quickly build the world in my mind, down to the finest pebble. Glass flowers and linoleum deserts are just the tip of what this futuristic novel has to offer. Romance, suspense, competitive science and excellent writing, The Future Perfect is genius! I totally enjoyed it! Minding Spot (Book Review Blog), Wendy 9/18/11“This book is an absolutely fantastic, humorous and dark satirical look at a dystopian future where humankind simultaneously wages war against nature while pining for its renewal, glories in a shallow sterile consumerist society obsessed with dreams of true happiness, computer simulated immortality and the eradication of all danger via technology.” The Goth "Darkness Visible” October 19, 2010“If you like your sci-fi quirky and off the wall, you can't go wrong with this one. You'll never guess what's coming next. As I drew near the end, I found myself eager to see how it all turns out, but dreading the end of the adventure. And that ending? Near perfect. A laugh out loud page-turner.” LrockyB 2012“In this amazing science fiction/fantasy treatise, Mustard portrays a hyperactive world where artificial intelligence has progressed to the point that no one dies and technology has everyone and everything moving at a frenetic pace. More than a novel, The Future Perfect is a gut wrenching experience that causes readers to question the parameters of human existence while satirizing those who tend toward navel gazing. I found myself laughing derisively one moment then shrieking in horror at recognizing myself in this fun house distortion. Truly, Mustard has held up a mirror to the disastrous collision course upon which humanity has embarked and its inevitable end. Like a train wreck, it's hard to watch yet impossible to turn away from. Even as you're aware of what you think will be the inevitable and horrifying outcome, you continue to gape at this pitch perfect rendering of humanity's mad dash to extinction. I loved reading this novel, and I don't usually like science fiction.” Mary Reilly, Booknookclub (Book Review Blog) 2011“This is one of the best sci-fi books I have ever read. It has a great plot; actually, it has an amazing plot. I especially love the ending.” Mom2Four 2011“There seems to be all sorts of influences, not just Vonnegut, Adams and Huxley, but also more than a bit of Arthur C. Clarke and Margaret Atwood. It bundles all these influences together into a classic piece of predictive science fiction. It's done in a silly and light hearted way, so it gets you thinking without feeling too heavy handed or getting in the way of the narrative.” Robin Hartley 2010“This is a classic. The turn of phrase, hilarity with pathos, and sheer creative ability in his writing is astonishing. I place this work alongside all the best predictive sci-fi I've ever read.” Shakti 2010“The future portrayed here is not too distant or far removed from reality.

    ever wanted to quit your job...?‘I’d Sooner Starve’ is the amazing true story of one man's quest to escape his monotonous nine-to-five existence and open a charming delicatessen and restaurant in a delightful market town.With honesty, humour and breathtaking naïveté, it records his steep learning curve, radical lifestyle change and the immediate revelation that the customer is not always right!Amidst tales of bulimia, public menstruation, endless abuse and hilarious customer encounters, this eye-opening story unveils what happens after you walk into the boss and say: “I quit!”‘I’d Sooner Starve’ is a shockingly comical tale of culinary highs, customer lows and one woman's unhealthy fixation with thigh-warmed Stilton…‘An absolute hoot!’ ~ Anonymous celebrity chef‘This hits the nail on the head so much I can't believe it! So much so, I can't possibly put my name to it!’~ UK chef‘I am delighted that Mark has written this book. Maybe now people will believe me when I tell them the stories!’ ~ Matt, co-ownerI'd Sooner Starve - the book the celebrity chefs were too afraid to endorse!

    The jump team’s bad boy, Rio Donovan is one hundred percent pure, sensual trouble. He never backs down from a fire or a dare and he loves putting it all on the line when he parachutes into the heart of the fire. When the fire camp gets a much-needed new player, however, Rio lands in uncharted territory. The jump team’s newest member is sexy, strong—and female. She’s supposed to be just one of the boys, but Rio burns to claim her one heated kiss at a time. This jump, Rio Donovan’s putting it all on the line. Body and heart. INTO THE FIRE… AND INTO LOVE Kissing a fellow smoke jumper would be career suicide and Gia Jackson has worked too hard and too long to earn her spot on Strong’s jump team to jeopardize it all now for a man. The love-em-and-leave-em boys of summer aren’t her type and she’s hiding a few secrets of her own, but, when her chute tangles with Rio’s on a jump, he’s thrown into her arms. Literally. She’s held firm on the fireline for years—but can she hold the line now against Rio’s seductive charm?

    Caught up in the chaos of a direct hit, Julie faces a stark choice between making a new life for herself or trying to pick up the pieces of a shattered identity.

    London is devastated. New worlds are being explored. And the aliens have arrived...The aliens are here. And they want to help. The extraordinary new project from one of the country's most acclaimed and consistently brilliantly SF novelists of the last 30 years.The Jackaroo have given humanity 15 worlds and the means to reach them. They're a chance to start over, but they're also littered with ruins and artifacts left by the Jackaroo's previous clients.Miracles that could reverse the damage caused by war, climate change, and rising sea levels. Nightmares that could for ever alter humanity - or even destroy it.Chloe Millar works in London, mapping changes caused by imported scraps of alien technology. When she stumbles across a pair of orphaned kids possessed by an ancient ghost, she must decide whether to help them or to hand them over to the authorities. Authorities who believe that their visions point towards a new kind of danger.And on one of the Jackaroo's gift-worlds, the murder of a man who has just arrived from Earth leads policeman Vic Gayle to a war between rival gangs over possession of a remote excavation site.Something is coming through. Something linked to the visions of Chloe's orphans, and Vic Gayle's murder investigation. Something that will challenge the limits of the Jackaroo's benevolence...

    A scorching summer. Danger lurks... After a raging media storm nearly destroys him, financial whiz Nick Cameron finds himself isolated and laying low on a barrier island off the Florida coast, far away from the reporters and scandals that threaten him. But when little Ronnie Whitcomb shows up on his doorstep, all grown up and breathtakingly beautiful, he tries to deny his feelings for her. Fate intervenes when a hurricane strands them on the island together, and suddenly, keeping Ronnie at arm's length becomes almost impossible. But daredevil TV reporter Veronique Whitcomb has an agenda of her own -- an agenda that could quite possibly get her killed. Recalling the hunky boy who rescued her at summer camp, Ronnie knows there's more to Nick than the hot and juicy scandal he's embroiled in, and she is determined to get the exclusive interview with him that will expose the real criminal. Whether Nick likes it or not, Ronnie refuses to sit by while the world slanders the most honorable and decent man she's ever known...and loved.THE HEARTTHROB SERIES: Book 1: Heart Raider (Nick and Veronique) Book 2: Heart Melter (Ian and Natasha) Book 3: Heart Tamer (Alec and Kate) Book 4: Heart Hunter (Cameron and Evie) Book 5: Heart Tempter (Leo and Teddy)

    He had been assigned to Earth as an evolutionary observer, and his travels have taken him to every era of human history – from the day Christ died on the cross – to the 21st Century, where World War III strikes out of the blue.Earth in 1 million years, A.D. is a burned out hell-hole populated by mutated bloodsuckers called Redeyes, and led by a mysterious all-powerful being known as The Resistor. Humans have reverted to prehistoric primitives, and are slowly dying out as a species.Due to the World War, several unwitting parties, including Rizzdik Zolan, have been thrust into the future. Colonels John and Cathy Phillips, on a rare shuttle mission to the space station, are also catapulted into this decaying future, along with Thalick – an intergalactic traveler that resembles an enormous scorpion. Earth is a dying cinder, and yet one hope remains for it: the young daughter of John and Cathy Phillips – Valry Phillips - who may hold the secret to Earth’s salvation – or it’s inevitable destruction and ownership by the Resistor. It will be up to Zolan, Thalick and young Valry to do battle against the most powerful evil Earth has ever known.

    and the strong women they love. Dex - When they locked me away for another man’s crime they called it justice. When they set me free they called that justice too. But their damned justice cost me my freedom, my family, my club, and the only woman I ever wanted ... Ava. Now I’m back. Only two things have kept me sane all these years. I want to hurt the man responsible for sending me to prison and end his hold over the Great Wolves M.C. forever. And I want the feel of Ava’s body beneath mine again. I need to watch the way she surrenders only to me and makes me whole. It’s selfish of me to think Ava would wait for me. But, I’m a selfish man and it’s time for me to take back what’s mine. Ava - At night, sometimes I still dream of what it felt like when Dex touched me. He awakened things in me, made me burn for him like no other man has since. But those are just dreams, aren’t they? The years, distance, and the battles I’ve fought have made me remember Dex as something more than he really was. Except now he’s back, stirring my body and heart even though my head knows better. I can’t let him take me back into his world...the club, the violence, the heartache. I don’t know if I can survive loving or losing him all over again and we both know there’s only one way this can end.

    This work is a collection of 50 of Monty's best columns, that will provide a practical guide and a poetic record of the garden's changing seasons.