It’s a sure bet that you’re holding in your hand the best story collection of the year.” ―Jeffrey Ford, author of A Natural History of Hell“Duncan’s unique voice shines through in his third collection. You’ve not read him yet? Shame on you! Go out now and buy An Agent of Utopia. You’ll thank me.” ―Ellen Datlow, award- winning editor“Andy Duncan is one of the most hilarious and poignant writers of short stories that we have. He effortlessly forges dreamlike and nightmarish tales with wit and wisdom that rivals Mark Twain.” ―Christopher Barzak, author of Wonders of the Invisible WorldIn these tales you will meet a Utopian assassin, an aging UFO contactee, a haunted Mohawk steelworker, a time- traveling prizefighter, a yam- eating Zombie, and a child who loves a frizzled chicken―not to mention Harry Houdini, Zora Neale Hurston, Sir Thomas More, and all their fellow travelers riding the steamer- trunk imagination of a unique twenty-first- century fabulist.

    She's out to make a name for herself and her line of intoxicating human snacks. Not easy in A-Ki s tightly controlled society. Her task gets even more delicate when she rushes to the aid of a dying alien and finds herself the unwilling guardian of a shunned alien ghost named Kenjan. And the new owner of his slave.The danger mounts when Kenjan's grieving lover, the powerful leader of the Kishocha, offers her a dream and a nightmare rolled into one: a new store all her own with a strange double purpose: half snack bar, half shrine. The catch? She must spend the rest of her life there, tending Kenjan the Heretic's ghost. Or the entire station will be destroyed.There's only one way to gain both her freedom and justice for Kenjan: teach both the powerful government elite and the Kishocha theocracy a lesson in "uncivil disobedience".

    For the most part, he’s made his own way, first as a member of the NYPD and then – when they started looking too closely at non-humans in the force – as a private investigator, straddling the line between human and fatae (supernatural) in his job the way he does in his lifeHe has a good life, he has good friends, he makes a difference… But he also has a dangerous life. And sometimes – when you’re in the middle of magic - good friends aren’t enough. Miles to Go: It's an ordinary day, another ordinary - for Danny - job, when he's approached by a young woman who has information he needs to solve a case. All she wants to do is help. When a life - or more - are on the line, it's hard to turn that down. But the cost of that information will change Danny's life...forever.[these stories take place after the events of DRAGON JUSTICE (PSI #4) but stand alone]

    Hallowell, is a heroic fantasy adventure in the classic tradition of the genre. Delno Okonan is a young former soldier eager to put the swords and strife of war behind him, when a chance encounter leaves him inextricably entwined in a tangled web of dragons, magic, and intrigue, as he struggles to find his place among dragons and men, and stave off a plot by renegade dragon riders that threatens all he now holds dear.

    Only the most powerful, the most cunning, and the most evil of souls can escape eternal damnation. One being is in charge of dragging escaped souls back to Hell. The Beast. And the Beast has just died. Christopher Sawyer is just an average college kid, concerned with doing well in school and someday marrying his high school sweetheart. He never asked to inherit the office of the Beast or take up the mantle of the Hunter of Lost Souls. He never asked for his safe, comfortable world to be shattered or his family taken from him. And to make matters worse, it was all a mistake. Now Christopher must master the power of Hell inside of him if he hopes to survive this new reality. And if he can get a little revenge in the process, all the better.

    The extraordinary chronicle of John Carter’s trip to Jupiter, with the record of his adventures with that great planet’s strange comrades-in-arms that he made among the many races of Jupiter.

    Unfortunately - or fortunately - Fred Barber, an American diplomat convalescing in Yorkshire, didn't take the obligation with proper seriousness. He swapped the milk for a stiff dose of Scotch. So he had only himself to blame if the fairies got a bit muddled.Barber found himself in an Old English Fairyland. At the Court of King Oberon, to be precise. The natural - or supernatural - laws there were, to say the least of it, distinctly odd. Things kept changing. This made the mssion with which he was entrusted, as the price of his return to the normal world, even harder than he expected. He had to penetrate the Kobold Hills, where it was said that swords were being made, and discover if an ancient enemy had returned. He was given a magic wand - but not told how to use it. Through the fields and forests he went, meeting dryads and sprites, ogres and two-headed eagles, on the way. Danger, seduction and magic lay all around him. And, as the adventure continued, somehow it darkened and became more seriousness. At the end of Fred Barber's quest lay a shattering revelation.Land of Unreason has rightly been called "a masterpiece of adult fantasy." Now published for the first time in Britain, it has been recognised in America as a classic of the genre. Indeed it can hardly be fitted into any ordinary description. The partnership of Fletcher Pratt and L. Sprage de Camp was unique, and this is certainly their finest book - hilarious, lyrical, romantic and (in every sense) wonderful.

    And the last and most amazing volume in the legendary Belgariad series: the story of the queen of truth, love, rage and destiny, Polgara the Sorceress.Here is the full epic story of Belgarath, the great sorcerer learned in the Will and the Word on whom the fate of the world depends. Only Belgarath can tell of those near-forgotten times when Gods still walked the land: he is the Ancient One, the Old Wolf, his God Aldur's first and most-favoured disciple. Using powers learned over the centuries Belgarath himself records the story of conflict between two mortally opposed Destinies that split the world asunder.In the story of Polgara, a beautiful woman whose constancy and inner power have been the foundation of all the luck and love that have saved the world, the full truth of The Belgariad is revealed.Hugely entertaining works of great daring, wit, grandeur and excitement which confirm the role of Belgarath the Sorcerer and Polgara the Sorceress as the mightiest fantasy creations of the century.

    The day of his death, he told a lie—and for the rest of his life, he wondered if that was what killed him." And so begins the battle for the afterlife, known as The Commons. It's been taken over by a corporate raider who uses the energy of its souls to maintain his brutal control. The result is an imaginary landscape of a broken America—stuck in time and overrun by the heroes, monsters, dreams, and nightmares of the imprisoned dead. Three people board a bus to nowhere: a New York street kid, an Iraq War veteran, and her five-year-old special-needs son. After a horrific accident, they are the last, best hope for The Commons to free itself. Along for the ride are a shotgun-toting goth girl, a six-foot-six mummy, a mute Shaolin monk with anger-management issues, and the only guide left to lead them.Three Journeys: separate but joined. One mission: to save forever. But first they have to save themselves.

    Not a vermin hunt.The colony is plagued by rogue genetically engineered critters, and the newly-minted Space Corps agents are expected to pitch in. Elfrida and her best friend take up the challenge, but the hunt turns into a nightmarish ordeal when they get lost in the subterranean caverns.And, worst of all … they’re not alone.In this explosive prequel to the Sol System Renegades series, Elfrida Goto’s first assignment takes her to the underbelly of the solar system, where nice girls finish last.The Sol System Renegades series in chronological order:Keep Off The Grass (short origin story)Crapkiller (prequel novella)The Elfrida Goto Trilogy 1. The Galapagos Incident 2. The Vesta Conspiracy 3. The Mercury RebellionA Very Merry Zero-Gravity Christmas (short story)The Solarian War Trilogy 1. The Luna Deception 2. The Phobos Maneuver 3. The Mars ShockThe Callisto Gambit (the final novel in the series)

    Christopher Nost, mild-mannered astrophysics genius or convicted murderer - you choose. It is also the story of the agents from various time lines attempting to solve a huge time-travel puzzle.

    Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work.

    If anyone was to survive, somehow he must transform his wargaming hobby into the real thing and become The City Who Fought. The Ship Avenged: Ten years later, Joat, the eleven year old techno-demon heroine of the first novel is now an adult herself. She and her ship are on the trail of the Kolnari space raiders, trying to stop them before they can spread an infectious, mind-destroying disease among the inhabited stars and destroy civilization throughout the galaxy.

    Lewis hasn’t worked a case in years, not since the final one broke his spirit and his bank account. The last thing Bailey remembers is preparing to take down a fugitive on Onyx Station. Mysteries are harder to solve when there’s no evidence left behind. Bailey and Lewis don’t know how they got onboard Ricky Bobby or why. However, they quickly learn that whatever was responsible for the explosion and disappearance of the crew is still on the ship. Monsters are real and what this one can do changes everything. The new team bands together to discover what happened and how to fight the monster lurking in the bottom of the battlecruiser. Will they find the missing crew? Or will the monster end them all? Experience this exciting mystery sci-fi saga and the latest addition to the expanded Kurtherian Gambit Universe. If you’re a fan of Dark Matter, Alter Carbon, or Star Wars, you’ll love this riveting new space opera.

    The ships simply disappear, taking their crews with them. Responding to a distress call from Captain Jonathan “Coop” Cooper, Sabin knows she must race against time to find him and his ship. Because although the Ivoire becomes the latest ship to enter foldspace and not return, she refuses to give up hope. She resolves to find the Ivoire. But her search for answers will lead to truths that will change her life forever. Winner of the Asimov’s Readers Choice Award for best novella, The Application of Hope adds a rich layer to the complex story about foldspace and the anacapa technology that drives the Fleet.