Book picks similar to
Ribbonworld by Richard Dee


science-fiction
thriller
mystery
crime-mystery-thriller

Isaac Steele and the Forever Man


Daniel Rigby - 2021
    Greatest Britain: For a Global Universe.Agent Isaac Steele has problems. He spends all his splibs on drink and drugs. He has some deep-seated and very much unresolved issues with his parents. And his robotic partner at Greatest Britain’s Department of Clarification, Dr Timothy Stephens, is ruled more by his heart than his hard drive. But all these issues take a back seat when Isaac stumbles upon a case involving the most sensitive information in the cosmos - a Never File, inaccessible to all except those with the highest clearance. He is expressly forbidden to involve himself. So naturally he does. So begins an investigation that will take him across the Discovered Universe, into the path of the mysterious Forever Man, and eventually to answers about his past. Along the way, he will have to contend with aliens, robots, monsters, bureaucrats and, perhaps most deadly of all, his own numerous flaws. Written and narrated by Daniel Rigby (Flowers, Black Mirror), not since The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy have listeners been offered such a joyful, anarchic and insightful universe. Contains strong language

Last of The Nighthawks: A Military Space Opera Adventure


Greg Dragon - 2018
    Chosen for a coveted slot in the glorious Nighthawks, Special Forces, she will certainly be able to prove herself as more than a half-alien outcast. But when her team deploys to the moon of Dyn, tragedy strikes and Helga is put to the ultimate test--survival. Facing insurmountable odds and escaping torture, Helga and her mentor, Cilas Mec, are forced to face a fate worse than death. Battling brain-eating aliens and human pirates, the odds are stacked against them in every way. The rescue should be coming. Unless the Alliance is involved in this botched mission... Can Helga survive the odds to get out alive, or will she be the last of the Nighthawks?

A Path of Ashes


Brian Parker - 2015
    Our world is a violent place. Murder, terrorism, racism and social inequality, these are some of the forces that attempt to destroy our society while the State is forced to increase its response to these actions. Our own annihilation is barely held at bay by the belief that we’ve somehow evolved beyond our ancestors’ base desires. From this cesspool of emotions emerges a madman, intent on leading the world into anarchy. When his group of computer hackers infiltrate the Department of Defense network, they initiate a nuclear war that will irrevocably alter our world. Aeric Gaines and his roommate Tyler Nordgren survive the devastation of the war, only to find that the quaint, politically correct world where they’d been raised was a lie. All humans have basic needs such as food, water and shelter…and we haven’t forgotten how to fight for what we desire. A Path of Ashes is the first book in an exciting new series about life in post-apocalyptic America, a nation devoid of leadership, electricity and human rights. The world as we know it may have burned, but humanity found a way to survive and this is their story.

The Selected Stories of Philip K. Dick, Vol. 2


Philip K. Dick - 2008
    Dick is regarded as a major figure of twentieth-century fiction. In 2007, he became the first science fiction writer to be included in the Library of America Series. Investigating spiritual questions through science fiction imagery, these stories explore the boundaries of human consciousness as they entertain such themes as multiple realities, creating life, and man's relationship to God. This collection presents seven outstanding examples of Dick's shorter works: "Colony" read by Tom Weiner, "Upon the Dull Earth" read by William Hughes, "The Short Happy Life of the Brown Oxford" read by Tom Weiner, "Faith of Our Fathers" read by Paul Michael Garcia, "The Days of Perky Pat" read by Malcolm Hillgartner, "The Variable Man" read by Tom Weiner, and "I Hope I Shall Arrive Soon" read by Anthony Heald.

Waypoint: A Game of Drones


C.F. Waller - 2017
    She finds herself clutching a handgun, searching for a sign that tomorrow will be any better than today. At this auspicious moment her cell phone rings, bringing an offer that may postpone her soul searching. The discovery of an airplane graveyard containing a dozen commercial airliners is shocking. When the deep-sea salvage camera’s reveal them to be virtually undamaged under six-thousand feet of water in the Indian Ocean, theories abound. Who put them there? How are they still in one piece? What reason could there be? Stacy is about to learn the answers to those questions, as well things she’d prefer to forget. Along the way, she’ll have to solve this puzzle, and many more to prevent an even larger disaster from happening. This book contains the following: tiny robots, falsified government identification, autonomous drones, ATM malfunctions, mid-air collisions, fear of sharks, Australian bar pranks, pointing guns out the window of a moving plane, video games, Area-51, milk shake do’s and don'ts and everyone’s possible need of at least one good friend. Read at your own risk. C. F. Waller is best known for his award winning science fiction novel Tourists of the Apocalypse. His work has been recognized by Shelf Media Magazine, Indie Excellence, Readers Favorite, McGrath House and recently in the 2017 BGS Pitch Contest. His other Award Winning novels include, South Face (Paranormal), Waypoint (Mystery/Thriller) and Free Dive (Tecno-thriller).

Scion of Conquered Earth


Michael J. Allen - 2016
    Fighters bombard the ruins. Monsters hunt the wastes – some humans serving the Welorin in order to indulge their petty cruelties. The last free survivors struggle against starvation and capture. It’s a world where friendship costs too dearly and heroics verge on suicide.One young man simply can’t resist either. Welorin torture machines ravage his world, filling it with literal nightmares. Cannibalistic aerobics instructors hunt him and snatcher teams dog his every step. Alaric attempts one rescue after another, hoping someone might possess keys to unlock memories stolen by the initial assault.An aborted rescue lands him in a three way fight between Welorin forces and interstellar raiders. He takes cover in the pirates’ ship, coercing its AI, Cassii, into helping him. Success comes with unexpected consequence as Cassii abandons her crew, his friends and Earth’s solar system.Cassii refuses to return to Earth, decrying her former captain’s despoiling of the ship’s weapons and armor. Alaric leverages goods stolen from Earth by Cassii’s former crew into a bid at privateering. Surrounded by tech he barely understands and exotic life forms, he’s easy prey for the Protectorate’s mercenary population.Escort Captain Manc Shepherd and the sultry pirate Tyne Ren – Manc’s onetime partner – manipulate, exploit and seduce him across the stars. Alaric’s perilous heroics complicate their tug-of-war, endangering both and Alaric’s ship – their intended prize.Alaric must decide who he is, what he holds dear and how far he’ll go to protect both. He must choose who to trust: his mentor, his temptress or his smitten ship’s AI. The right choice could save worlds. The wrong one could throw him into a desperate battle to save thousands from his betrayer at the cost of his truest friend.

One Man's War


Steven Savile - 2019
     Guerro runs a kill team. They're good. Better than good. Or they were, until they walked into an ambush that wiped his team out and left Guerro for dead. All the evidence suggests they were betrayed, but by who, and why? Determined to avenge his team and settle old scores, Guerro embarks upon a one man war, knowing that whoever put the kill order out on his people is still out there, watching for him to show his face so they can end him. A relentless science fiction thriller in the vein of Bladerunner, Altered Carbon, and Titanborn. Also Available on Audible narrated by the award-winning R.C. Bray (Galaxy's Edge, The Martian)

Kissyman and the Gentleman


Scott Sigler - 2007
    

The Wretched


E.G. Michaels - 2018
    A top-secret research project goes terribly wrong. A new species, the Reapers, are unleashed onto the unsuspecting citizens of Philadelphia and soon the rest of the country. The Reapers are stronger, faster, and have no mercy for any humans who have the misfortune of crossing their paths. Philadelphia Cop Malcolm Foster quickly discovers a routine disturbance call is anything but ordinary. Foster soon finds himself scrambling to survive, gather together a rag-tag group of survivors, and get them out of the city. As Foster and his group fight to escape the city and find a Reaper-free sanctuary, a looming question prevails. Can anyone stop the Reapers from taking over the world? This is the story of the Wretched, a rag-tag group of survivors who may be the only ones that can keep the human race from becoming extinct.

Firebird: The Spy Thriller of the 1960s


Noel Hynd - 2018
     It is 1968, one of the most tumultuous years of the 20th Century. Frank Cooper, a former star investigative reporter now writes obituaries for a popular New York City tabloid. He hears the confession of a dying man named Leonard Rudawski, a former American diplomat, who bitterly questions the fate of Pavel Lukashenko, a would-be Soviet defector in Paris in 1965. Lukashenko promised to expose the espionage secret of a generation if he could get to the West. But the defector, code named “Firebird,” vanished. Or did he? Cooper teams with Lauren Richie, a young NY/Latina reporter from the same tabloid. They prowl into the dying man’s confession. Soon they are onto the story of their lifetimes, reviving a dangerous once-cold trail of back channel/back alley CIA and KGB intrigue and tradeoffs, all of which factor into the 3-way racially tinged American election of that year: Nixon vs. Humphry vs. the segregationist George Wallace. Murder, espionage, romance, betrayal and conspiracy intertwine. Readers will meet and recognize dozens of memorable “real life” characters: reporters, gangsters, diplomats, call girls, spy masters, politicians and assassins. The story is tough, large, sprawling and historically precise. "Russians sabotage and destabilize the west," says one experienced reporter with KGB knowledge. "It's not just what they do. It's what they do best." The story straddles the decades from World War Two to 2018, even throwing a cynical light on Russian-American relations of today. “Hynd is a solid, dependable writer with enough literary flair to move him up a few notches above the Ludlums and Clancys of the world. —Booklist

The Ka


Mary Deal - 2006
    After the founder of the Institute of Archaeology learns that Chione’s dreams might be connected to events in Egypt, he accepts an offer to examine a mysterious site in Valley of the Queens. After they discover an ancient burial site, spells encoded into the hieroglyphs on the tomb’s walls transport Chione and her former boyfriend, archaeologist Aaron Ashby, 3,500 years into the past: to ancient Egypt. There, they learn of Tutankhamon and Tauret, a priestess in Pharaoh's Court. Meanwhile, the other team members are affected in unfathomable ways by the Ka: the spirit of the entombed. Chione and Aaron learn that Tauret plans to provide Tutankhamon with a living heir... and that they have been chosen to play a crucial part in completing their destiny.

Birthright


Rick Partlow - 2011
    The war is long over and now he just wants to live a normal life as a constable on his homeworld of Canaan...but his life is torn apart when a Corporate Council mineral scout comes to him with a tale of discovering incredibly advanced alien technology from the fabled race known only as the Predecessors. Someone in the monolithic, power-hungry Corporate Council doesn't want that story to get out...and they'll kill anyone to stop it, including Caleb and his family.

Timberwolf


Tom Julian - 2015
    He just wants the damn spider out of his head! For a hundred years, humanity destroyed every alien species they encountered… until we met the Arnock – psychic spiders that drove us insane on contact. There was only one man who ever survived contact with the spiders - Timberwolf Velez. He’s a very damaged man and took every suicide mission he could, but the spider forced him to stay alive and do its bidding. As a madman schemes to control the most deadly weapons in the galaxy, Timberwolf is the only force that can stop the galaxy from descending in to endless war. A cinematic epic on every page - Timberwolf has the hardware of Aliens, the intensity of Battlestar Galactic and the intrigue of Dune. Terrific action and great characters make this book impossible to put down! READERS SAY - "This is the very definition of a page turner." David Adkins - "This book should come with a warning: read only on weekends when you can sleep in. Stayed up all night because I couldn't put it down." Alexis W - "This book is like a train, heading to it's destination. Unswerving. ALWAYS moving forward, to it's terminus." - "Timberwolf is what you'd get if Dirty Harry and Ripley had a son." Merrill Chapman - "The action is simply amazing; it makes putting the book down nearly impossible." Tito Martínez Barberi - "Skillfully plotted, with well-drawn characters that have subtle shading, Timberwolf is a fast-paced story that is immensely readable." Photoguy126 - "Timberwolf has a human heart; it’s not about the combat suits or space ships, it’s about the people and their motivations for doing what they do." Eric Lahti - "How Timberwolf hasn't been snatched up by Hollywood as a screen play, is beyond me" DavidM - "Characters in Timberwolf are thoughtfully developed with great depth and the action is described in outstanding detail that puts you right on the pages with them." Picode Gallo CONNECT Talk to the author here... www.facebook.com/Timberwolf and here... www.twitter.com/TimberwolfNovel

Titan's Wrath


Rhett C. Bruno - 2017
    SEE CHILDREN OF TITAN SERIES FOR CURRENT BOOKS 1-4. Two men are caught on opposite sides of a violent, off-world rebellion in this standalone. After inciting rebellion against Earth throughout Titan's off-world colonies, Kale Trass learns that leadership isn't only about fighting. Keeping control of his people--even his own family--requires a different set of skills. Following a pivotal battle over Saturn, Kale travels deep into enemy territory under the guise of seeking peace, though peace is the last thing on his mind.Malcolm Graves used to be an infamous Collector for a powerful Earther corporation--and then he nearly lost his life on Titan. Now he's retired. But when Kale's wake of destruction follows Malcolm to Mars and claims the life of a friend, it's time for the ex-Collector to dust off his pulse-pistol and leap back into a fight he thought he'd left behind.With the solar system divided, heroes are few and short-lived ... but someone has to put the self-proclaimed King Trass of Titan in his place.

Followed Home


Andre Gonzalez - 2016
    When Kyle Wells and his friends take an annual trip to his family’s cabin deep in the Rocky Mountains, a string of events unravel to expose what his family has kept hidden for decades.As an unexpected blizzard pounds the mountains, a friend begins to act different and seems a bit off after a strange encounter in the woods. In their rush for safety, mysterious beings known as Exalls, follow them back to the city where further chaos erupts. Finding himself in the midst of a battle against evil, Kyle learns of a disturbing truth kept secret by his own grandmother, Susan. He and his circle of friends turn to her as their last hope of survival.