Book picks similar to
Crystal Deception by Doug J. Cooper


science-fiction
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Earth's First


M.J. Caan - 2013
     Maura Riley learns this the hard way after a fateful first contact with an alien being that literally fell from the stars. She finds herself thrust into a world of shadowy government operatives, vengeful alien factions, and mutated human beings that suddenly have the ability to act on their darkest, most deprave desires. War is coming to Earth. War in the form of an invading alien horde known as the Anisari, that is bent on dominating or destroying our planet. They are seeking their lost property, the very being that fell to Earth and caused the massive genetic changes occurring on our world. After first contact, human beings are evolving into something that can either save our world, or hasten its destruction. Maura and her friends have to decide if they want to be Earth's defenders or give into the savagery and lust that their newfound mutation allows them to explore. Book one in the dark and gritty science fiction series Earth's First is not to be missed. All three books in the Earth's First saga are available for purchase, or read for free in Kindle Unlimited!

Crossing in Time


D.L. Orton - 2015
    The future isn't hidden, it's a trap. If she ever wants to see him again, she'll have to take the risk. Fall into this "Funny, Romantic & Harrowing" (Publishers Weekly Starred Review) dystopian love story and prepare to encounter a finicky time machine, a mysterious seashell, and a very clever dog (some sex, some swearing, some violence, but no vampires and absolutely NO ditzes!)When offered a one-way trip to the past, Isabel sacrifices everything for a chance to change the rapidly deteriorating present--and see her murdered lover one last time. When she arrives twenty years in the past, buck naked and mortally wounded, she has 24 hours to convince a stunned but enraptured nineteen-year-old to change their future. Definitely easier said than done, as success means losing him to a brainy, smart-mouthed bombshell (her younger self), and that's a heart breaker, save the world or not.This offbeat tale is about falling madly in love when one is too cynical for such things, letting go of pessimism when it's the last life jacket on a sinking ship, and racing against the clock when one doesn't have the proper footwear. It's a coming-of-age story for old fogeys, a how-to-make-love guide for diehard celibates, and a laugh-out-loud tragedy with a hopeful twist.Alternate cover for this ASIN can be found here

Death's Door: A Palm Court Detectives thriller


David Reichart - 2015
    But he’s not a regular guy. He’s an elite warrior, battle tested to the max in Iraq and Afghanistan, first in Marine Special Ops and later as a Navy SEAL. When he finally decides to walk away from the military, Yates isn’t planning on making further use of his extreme training and lethal skills. But somebody else is. Palm Court Detectives, a skyrocketing new agency run by a laicized Jesuit priest in a refashioned vintage motel, needs a guy exactly like Yates to add clout to its roster. His first assignment for the detective agency based in Mobile, Alabama, takes Yates under cover at a trucking company that has been targeted by hijackers. Jesse’s civilian naiveté allows him to be drawn quickly into a turf war between hijackers who he likes, outlaw bikers who like him (or what he can do for them), and a drug cartel renegade who has a severe Jesse Yates problem and a chilling plot in the works. Joining the eclectic, fun-loving team at Palm Court Detectives as a private investigator in training turns out to be everything Yates had hoped for and more—more excitement, more camaraderie, and more chances to die.

Before the Killing


Marjory Kaptanoglu - 2021
    The next day, her boyfriend, Julian, is implicated in a brutal killing.Seven years later, a freak occurrence gives Cassie the ability to travel through time without altering it. Revisiting Julian in the past has her falling in love all over again. Convinced of his innocence, she goes back to witness the murder and the events leading up to it. Afterward, she struggles to find a way to prove what really happened, while the killer stalks her past and present lives, determined to silence her.

The List


J.A. Konrath - 2009
    One of them is a homicide cop who's determined to find out. All of them are marked for death--because they're next on . . .THE LISTThe explosive new thriller from bestselling author J.A. Konrath, THE LIST takes you deep inside a top-secret techno-conspiracy that's too shocking to comprehend, too insidious to detect, and far too powerful to stop . . .

Harmony Black


Craig Schaefer - 2016
    In addition to being a practicing witch, she’s also an operative for Vigilant Lock, an off-the-books program created to battle occult threats—by any means necessary. Despite her dedication to fighting the monsters threatening society, Harmony has become deeply conflicted about her job. Her last investigation resulted in a pile of dead bodies, and she suspects the wrong people are being punished for it.While on a much-needed vacation, Harmony gets pulled back into action. This time, though, she’s gone from solo work to being part of a team. Their target: the Bogeyman, a vicious and elusive figure…and the creature that destroyed Harmony’s childhood.Surrounded by quirky, fascinating characters as dedicated to one another as they are to their new partner, Harmony must learn to trust her team—and a new romantic interest—on a dangerous and deadly mission that conjures up memories she’d much rather forget.

The Luck of Han'anga


Thomas Watson - 2012
    But the dream soon becomes something darker when the Leyra'an prove to be more than just humanoid. They are like us to a degree that cannot be explained by chance alone. The search for the answer to this mystery will reveal a universe stranger and more dangerous than the crew of the probeship William Bartram could have imagined, and expose both Humanity and the Leyra'an to the threat of extinction.For better or worse, that search has begun.

Ms. Never


Colin Dodds - 2019
    Never – a new science-fiction novel by Colin Dodds – takes on (and possibly answers) in startling fashion. THE STORY Farya Navurian seems like an ordinary young woman trying to get ahead in the city while struggling with depression. But her depression is anything but ordinary - it has the power to destroy time and space. Growing up the moody daughter of a space-faring hero of The Greater Anointed Imperial Ohioan Commonwealth, Farya annihilated most of that world and its history, leaving behind the husk-like Buckeye State. One day at a record swap, she meets Bryan, a divorced telecom CEO. More than record collecting, what they share is that they each carry a howling secret. Bryan’s business is a cover for a bigger operation that buys human souls and sells luxury afterlives using shady terms of service in mobile-phone contracts. The two of them fall in love, and as they start a life together, their secrets back them into a corner where they have to come clean - and take drastic steps - to save themselves, and possibly reality itself. Ms. Never is a distinctly 21st-century vision of consent, memory, and the ways we create and destroy the world every day. REVIEWS! “(A) transfixing, fantastic narrative… The author executes the story with exacting, direct prose and characters who live and breathe in the mind… an exceptional work. Existential dread takes on new meaning in a fantastical tale…” – Kirkus Reviews “Ms. Never is a big-picture novel, which encompasses the nature of reality, the universe, and life after death… a crazy world, but even the craziest parts of it have a ring of truth to them… Dodds’ prose is exquisite… Farya’s battle is the battle we all face: to impose a meaning on a world we only partially understand by fighting to retain what is worthwhile and battling against those people and events that cheapen everything around us… Ms. Never is a soaring novel, an imaginative, creative triumph and one that has some power to change the reader” – Lost Coast Review “Smart and mysterious… With themes uniquely developed and a musicality to the prose… this is a great story with a powerful theme and just about enough mystery to keep you asking questions. It introduces a really unique concept on understanding depression and its impact… this one is sure to satisfy” – Independent Book Review “MS. NEVER is a vast, multifaceted undertaking… adjectives like ‘riveting, complex, detailed, skillfully crafted’ come immediately to mind… delves into comparisons between worlds imagined and worlds that were… manipulating spiritual infrastructures, making a fast buck from knock-off universes… chock full of intriguing ideas” – IndieReader Reviews

Frozen Earth


Jasper T. Scott - 2018
    Thinking that his world has ended, Logan checks into a hotel and turns on the TV to see that he's not far wrong--radio telescopes have detected mysterious signals coming from inside our solar system, and the source is moving toward us at over 500 miles per second. The media concludes that these signals must be of an alien origin. Still reeling from the news, Logan gets a phone call from his brother-in-law. Richard is talking crazy about the end of the world again, but this time he doesn't sound so crazy.A DEADLY CONSPIRACY UNRAVELSMeanwhile, Richard, who is an astronomer working with the James Webb Space Telescope, is at the White House briefing the president to announce what he and the government have known for almost a decade: aliens are not invading, a frozen ball of gas is. The so-called rogue star is predicted to make a near pass with Earth, disrupting our orbit and unleashing an ice age, the likes of which we haven't seen for millions of years.WE'RE PUTTING A COLONY ON MARSGovernment insider, Billionaire Akron Massey, has received a steady flow of funding over the past decade for his company, Starcast, to put a colony on Mars. Over the same period he's been using his personal fortune to create a colony closer to home where he plans to ride out the coming storm along with a thousand of the smartest people on the planet. Humanity will need seeds to plant in the ashes after the chaos clears.AND WARS IGNITEWhen the true nature of the threat becomes known, the nations of Earth prepare to fight over all the warmest parts of the planet. But as war fleets set sail and armies begin marching south, a stunning discovery is made that will change a lot more than just the weather....

The Alexandria Project


Andrew Updegrove - 2011
    Only by defeating the Alexandria Project can he clear himself. "THE ALEXANDRIA PROJECT is fiction that cuts close to the bone. But where George Orwell envisioned 1984 from the safety of thirty-five years out, the future that Updegrove describes may already be upon us. That's what makes it dangerous, and that's what makes THE ALEXANDRIA PROJECT an important as well as riveting read." - Dan Geer, CHIEF INFORMATION SECURITY OFFICER, In-Q-Tel

The Nowhere Stone


Steve Kaide - 2018
    Raised in a secluded valley with only his father for company, he was unable to experience the outside world. For 16 years, the jagged peaks of the Rocky Mountains were the only home he’d ever known. Lucas didn’t understand why they were hidden away, but he trusted that his father was keeping them safe. It was a happy, albeit lonely, life.Until everything changed. Lucas was torn from his sheltered life and thrust into a dangerous world, far different from that which he expected. A mysterious artifact known as the Nowhere Stone seems to defy the laws of nature, and a powerful corporation called SentiCorp seeks to unlock its power. Lucas has finally been introduced to humanity, and it’s every bit as terrifying as he thought it would be.

Dark Sky


Joel Canfield - 2015
    Suddenly, he’s given a mission way above his paygrade — to uncover the truth about First Lieutenant Robert Davidson, the son of an American military legend and a war hero who died in combat during the Afghanistan conflict. Or did he?To find the answer, Max must take a road trip into the heart of America’s darkness as well as his own. Along the way, he encounters an exploding home, a murderous clone of a classic TV hero, a sexy heiress, and a misguided teenager desperate for a father figure. And, oh yeah, there’s also a para-military organization that’s just waiting for the right moment to kill him. It all happens in DARK SKY, a sardonic and suspenseful mystery-thriller in which an underwhelming hero must confront an overwhelming conspiracy — not to mention himself.

Forbidden Planet


Rinelle Grey - 2013
    Due to the noxious gas covering the planet, she can’t conceive a child, and the Council, determined to repopulate the planet, have ended her third—and most precious—relationship. They insist she pick a new mate and try again, but she’s sworn off love and the possibility of ever having a real family.When a ship from the thriving planet of Urslat crashes on Zerris, Marlee rescues the ship’s daring captain, Tyris. His ship is grounded, winter is setting in, and he won’t survive without help. She offers him a deal…he can live with her if he pretends to be her mate so the Council will leave her alone.Tyris agrees and a hungry desire sparks between them as they battle the harsh winter and primitive conditions. Their attraction grows, and soon, keeping their distance becomes impossible, even more challenging than the snow, the Council, and, for Marlee, the risks of a real relationship.Will she risk her heart one last time for a chance at her dream? Or will Tyris be her undoing?

Information Cloud


Peter James West - 2012
    Information Cloud is the first novel in the series, mixing elements of military science fiction, adventure and hi-tech action with an epic tale that travels through a vast land. After the Iridium Wars, a cataclysmic event that killed the vast majority of Megarothia's human and animal populations, the planet has been left to ruin. Only Lord Hades, the Techno Prophet, foresaw this event and was able to save a few thousand survivors beneath a powerful structure that became known as the Dome Shield. Major Rachel Henson is a soldier in the Security Forces, a military organisation that now governs the fragmented land. She's combat trained, and highly effective, but it's becoming increasingly obvious that there's something very wrong with her. She isn't like other people, and she's developing a reputation for being more capable than anyone can explain. Lord Hades has been absent for many years, driven to desperation by his tormented visions of the Second Black Day. He fears that technology will be the end of man, but whatever he tries, he is powerless to stop the factions of the Orange Zone from destroying each other. The race is on to create ever more disturbing machines to win yet another war.

The Last Astronaut


David Wellington - 2019
    Haunted by her failure, she lives in quiet anonymity, convinced her days in space are over.She’s wrong.A large alien object has entered the solar system on a straight course toward Earth. It has made no attempt to communicate and is ignoring all incoming transmissions.Out of time and out of options, NASA turns to Jansen. For all the dangers of the mission, it’s the shot at redemption she always longed for.But as the object slowly begins to reveal its secrets, one thing becomes horribly clear: the future of humanity lies in Jansen’s hands.