Fresh from Duck Soup (1933), Julius, Leonard, Arthur and Herbert Marx - or as the world knows them, Groucho, Chico, Harpo and Zeppo - are transported by a freak electrical storm to Nacogdoches, Texas in the year 1826. Landing in the midst of the Fredonian Rebellion (the first attempt by settlers in Texas to secede from Mexico) and into the company of the only other Jewish person in town, they are in deep dreck. Falling in with Stephen F. Austin and inadvertently filling his head with knowledge of what is to come, our heroes risk tampering with the future of Texas, and perhaps the entire U.S.A., in their quest to return to their own time. Will they find their way back? Or will they be doomed to live out their lives without indoor plumbing?

    Jack encountered Gilbert Chesterton’s Father Brown tales a few years later and they ultimately became the prime influence in his science fiction. The issue with Father Brown was never a question of who committed the murder, but rather what in heaven’s name is going on here? Why does an astronaut, in “Cathedral,” sacrifice her life to collide with an asteroid that she knows poses no threat to the Earth? Why does a scientist who’s designed an actual working AI in “The Play’s the Thing,” hide what’s he’s done? How is it that the lives of two people working at Moonbase in “Blinker” depend on a quasar? In “Lucy,” Jack shows us why sending automated vehicles to explore the distant outposts of the solar system may not be a good idea. And in “Searching for Oz,” an alternate history story, how things might have been if SETI had gotten what it was looking for. He describes our reaction in “Listen Up, Nitwits,” when a voice begins speaking to us, apparently from Jupiter, in Greek. And in “The Lost Equation,” a Holmes adventure, we discover who really was first to arrive at e=mc2. Jack also provides two episodes, “Maiden Voyage” and “Waiting At the Altar,” from Priscilla Hutchins’ qualification flight; and an effort by a sixteen-year-old Alex Benedict, in the title story with his uncle Gabe and Chase Kolpath’s mom, Tori, who are trying to understand why a brilliant radio entertainer, lost in the stars when his drive unit suffered a malfunction, never said goodbye. These and fourteen other rides into odd places await the reader.

    With a bloodthirsty AI running his advanced spaceship, those who love evil should start looking over their shoulders. Life just got a lot more fun. Vigilante, Book 1 On the planet now known as High Tortuga, the mine workers are far too close to being slaves so the ruler of the planet shut them down. Except for the mine owned by Venfirdri Lan. He's taken his mine off the grid and decided to keep everything running. With no need to pay the workers, profits should be good. After all, who's going to stop him? Sentinal, Book 2 Someone sent three fully armed ships to High Tortuga to back the slave-owners running the mines, and Barnabas and Shinigami are determined to find out who. And take them down. As they look deeper, however, they’ll find traces of an organization that controls whole mercenary syndicates, industries, and even governments: the Yennai Corporation. …Some people never learn. Warden, Book 3 Barnabas has uncovered one of the biggest players in this sector, the Yennai Corporation. Now he’s in for a surprise - it turns out that the alien who’s been pulling the strings against him is none other than Uleq, the Torcellan who escaped Bethany Anne’s clutches. Barnabas isn’t taking any chances now. He’s going to find the Yennai Corporation’s main base and bring them down. Paladin, Book 4 Barnabas has traced the influence of the Yennai Corporation from High Tortuga to their secret base, which he has destroyed, killing both heirs to the company. Who hasn’t he killed? Koel Yennai, the patriarch and founder…who has sworn vengeance on Barnabas for killing his children and destroying his legacy.Now, Koel gathers what remains of the Yennai Corporation to hunt Barnabas across known space and kill him. And Barnabas is more than ready for the confrontation. Justiciar, Book 5 After taking down the Yennai Corporation, Barnabas has earned a little break. On the way back to High Tortuga, however, he stops to answer a distress call. How long could it take, after all? Barnabas is about to find out.

    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...

    In this volume you'll find stories by James Patrick Kelly, Wil McCarthy, Susan Palwick, Tom Purdom, Robert Reed, Michael Swanwick, James Van Pelt, Howard Waldrop, Alastair Reynolds, Ian McDonald, Mary Rosenblum, Stephen Leigh and Joe Haldeman.

    And what a collection. From little-known, brilliant tales by sci-fi legends Jules Vernes and Olaf Stapledon, to intense short works by sci-fi masters Ursula K. Le Guin, Connie Willis, Jack Vance, and Brian W. Aldiss, to haunting works by contemporary authors Dale Bailey, Alvaro Zinos-Amaro, Karen Haber and Megan Arkenberg, THIS WAY TO THE END TIMES paves the road to the fantastical future, alternating humor with grit, and hope with ghastly post apocalyptic visions.Guest editor Robert Silverberg—winner of numerous Hugo and Nebula awards, Grand Master of Science Fiction Writers of America, and a Science Fiction Hall of Fame inductee—hand-picked each story, and offers an introduction to each, as well as an introduction to the anthology as a whole.A unique collection for longtime and new fans of speculative fiction, THIS WAY TO THE END TIMES roars into the future wide-eyed and full speed ahead.Complete list of authors: Jules Verne, James Elroy Flecker, Frank Lillie Pollock, G. Peyton Wertenbaker, Philip Latham, Jack Vance, Fritz Leiber, Brian W. Aldiss, Ursula K. Le Guin, Robert Silverberg, James Tiptree, Jr., Malcolm Edwards, Connie Willis, Karen Haber, by Dale Bailey, Megan Artenberg, Alvaro Zinos-Amaro, Olaf Stapledon

    Trevor Stone has survived the invasion of alien armies and creatures, cut off their conduits to Earth, and built a small Empire that has turned the tide of the war, but victory has come at a high personal cost. When Nina Forest disappears, Trevor makes the reckless decision to personally lead a rescue team. What follows is a trip down the proverbial rabbit-hole, one that brings him face to face with the most terrifying monster in a changed world: himself. Parallels is a mature journey to a place where inhibitions are stripped, desires indulged, and where Trevor Stone may be eclipsed by the darkness within.

     Alone in the cold black with 36 hours of oxygen. Jolo Vargas, Federation Gunboat Captain, is trapped in a runaway escape pod zooming towards Federation space. But will he be dead before he gets there? He's in a tight spot. But he's a war hero, just the type of man who could work his way out of this jam. But there's just one little problem. He doesn't remember who he is. Will he find out his identity and his place in the universe, or will he run out of air on the edge of Fed space?

    Super-intelligence. Upgrades. In book two of The Obsolescence Trilogy, James, Alexa, and the rest of the survivors are coming to terms with the dizzying new reality that they’ve been forced to live in. They soon discover that everyone still alive must face a seemingly impossible choice: either betray their very humanity to survive or watch civilization retreat into a stone age before dwindling out of existence altogether. Set in the near future, Upgrade is the second book in The Obsolescence Trilogy. Plausible, fast-paced and full of rich, insightful characters, this sci-fi thriller will keep you up well past your bedtime! Continue your journey through the world of obsolescence today!

    The Kerguelenians, as they begin to think of themselves, manage to survive, grow, and colonize other islands in the Southern and Indian Oceans -- until they are attacked by a mysterious seafaring group they call "the pirates". Who are the pirates, why are they hostile to the Kerguelinians -- and, most importantly, how can the peaceful islanders defend themselves against a force apparently determined to eradicate them? Kerguelenian master mariner Sam Bowditch takes on the enormous task of building a Navy from scratch to preserve the fledgling maritime civilization from utter destruction. First volume of a planned series.

    Spectacularly.Archaeologist Eliana Fisk is ripped from Earth while the whole world watches.She lands on a strange new world inhabited by a lost tribe of ancient Mayans. Meeting them, getting first-hand exposure to age-old customs and rituals...it seems like an archaeologist's dream.But what if their rituals have a darker meaning? What if the god these people pray to is no god at all?And how in the worlds will she ever get back home?Thus begins a pulse-pounding race against time that hurls Eliana into the great unknown, revealing ancient technologies and marvelous mysteries more outlandish than she ever imagined.The Translocator is an action-packed sci-fi thriller perfect for fans of Stargate, The Atlantis Gene, and other archaeology-inspired science fiction adventures.Get it now.Originally published as The Auriga Project, The Alien Element, and The Ares Initiative, this edition brings all three novels together in a single volume. Now available as an audiobook narrated by the wonderful Tess Irondale!

    Just because my personal AI might test off the Turing Scale. Now I've got the Empire, the Lotus Eaters Society and the Khan of a planet of intelligent dinosaurs all gunning for me! Old secrets are coming back, people and situations I walked away from... when I became a humble, itinerant Star Ship Captain. And I might be on a mission... from God! WARNING: 18+ only! The people, language and situations in this work of fiction are for adults only! If you are easily triggered, then please move along.

    

     Aden Garrett is fresh out of security academy and looking for a little excitement. A little more than walking security at local space station bars and a little less than the job that got him kicked out of the academy. Meshelle and Janna are Vagnosian sisters that run a small transport and special operations ship, and they're looking to replace a fallen crew member. Chance brings them together and puts them work for one of the mysterious Kesari merchants who's looking for some expendable assets for a special job. It's a perfect match, except the crew of the Uma, Janna's ship, doesn't agree to being disposed of when the job is done. What follows is a game of cat and mouse through the galaxy with twists and turns at every solar system. Lost alien civilizations, six limbed insectoid warriors, plasma rifles, and more await. Much, much more… Keep your eye out for future Dark Universe novels: Book 1: Into the Dark Book 2: Out of the Dark Book 3: Chasing the Dark

     A grim, haunted expanse of space, vast lightyears filled with dead, empty worlds. A dark place, the graveyard of an empire…and a frontier where vast riches can be had by those with the courage—and the luck—to survive. But trade in old tech is not for the timid. Prospectors face rival crews, ancient imperial security systems, and the ever-present shadow of the Union’s dread spy agency, Sector Nine, as they plunge forth in search of artifacts worth vast fortunes. Andi Lafarge and the crew of Pegasus are among the elite of the strange brotherhood that ventures forth, seeking the remnants of humanity’s lost past. She and her people will face the deadliest challenges, fight constant battles, and plunge forth into the darkest corners of the lost region of space. Pegasus has a new mission, one far more important than even Andi had her crew realize, a search for ancient technology that could determine the outcome of the next Confederation-Union war. To get it, they must travel to a vast ocean world…and they must find what they seek before Sector Nine does. They will fight, suffer, endure. But they will never fail. Not while Andi Lafarge still draws breath. The Andromeda Chronicles Andromeda Rising Wings of Pegasus Into to Badlands (Coming) Blood on the Stars Book 1 - Duel in the Dark Book 2 - Call to Arms Book 3 - Ruins of Empire Book 4 - Echoes of Glory Book 5 - Cauldron of Fire Book 6 - Dauntless Book 7 - The White Fleet Book 8 - Black Dawn Book 9 - Invasion Book 10 - Nightfall Book 11 - The Grand Alliance Book 12 - The Colossus Book 13 – The Others Book 14 – The Last Stand (Coming)