Book picks similar to
Rust and Ruin by Monica Enderle Pierce


science-fiction
romance
short
sci-fi-romance

Vaant


Layla Nash - 2016
    When he finally does, Isla's big break turns into chaos and panic as she and all the female crew members are traded to an alien ship in exchange for the Argo's safe passage. The giant Xaravian warriors are intimidating, covered in scales, and... way too attractive. Isla and her friends won't surrender quietly, but it seems like the Xaravians are looking forward to that kind of fight...The moment Vaant sees the beautiful, sassy interpreter, he knows he can't leave her in danger. She thinks he's a pirate and a dangerous rebel - and that he bought her and her friends. Vaant must prove his honourable intentions, even as her flashing eyes and curvy figure drives him mad with desire. He'll even endanger his ship and go to the edge of the universe to keep her safe!When her former captain frames Vaant for destroying an innocent ship and murdering another crew, Isla must face that the Alliance she served so proudly is not what it seems. Starting a new life as a rebel with Vaant sounds more and more appealing, but first they'll have to fight through half the Alliance fleet, escape a crumbling space station, and find love among the stars.

Ghost of the Gods


Kevin Bohacz - 2014
    Ghost of the Gods was the #1 hottest new bestselling techno-thriller on Amazon March 2014.Publisher's Weekly STARRED review: In this sequel to Bohacz's Immortality, two years after the devastation of mass human extinctions in kill zones, mankind is still grasping for survival. An oppressive union of government and big business controls an exhausted America, which is divided between walled-in Protectorates and the unpoliced Outlands. Against this chaotic backdrop, paleobiologist and genetic researcher Mark Freedman and policewoman Sarah Mayfair continue their evolution into transhumance - nanotech hybrids with a connection to the god machine, the artificial intelligence that caused the recent massacres, in an effort to derail the destruction of the Earth's biosphere. Bohacz provides mind-bending portrayals of factions vying for power and reflections on the essence and fragility of humanity. But philosophical concerns never obtrude on the fast-paced plot, as authorities investigate communes of hybrids, and Freedman and Mayfair must choose between absorption into a collective mind or fidelity to their remaining humanity. The question of who can be trusted impels the reader to keep turning the pages of this highly satisfying and dynamic techno-thriller.

Alpha Hunger


Milana Jacks - 2019
    They didn’t do much sightseeing before they conquered and marked the human Omegas. They call themselves the Regha Horde. We call them the Hordesmen. And Hunger is my new boss.

The Linden Legacy (Conclave Worlds Book 3)


Kenley Davidson - 2021
    Her life is all about high heels, high speeds, and high stakes, and heaven help any guy who gets in her way. After years of living from one thrill to the next, no one takes her seriously, and she’s careful to keep it that way.Callista has big plans for the corporation her mother and grandfather have nearly destroyed, but to gain control, she’ll have to play—and win—a dangerous game that already claimed the life of her older brother. Which makes it even more of a shock when that brother, Phillip Linden, turns out to be less dead than everyone was led to believe.Killian Avalar is a pirate, a liar, and a fraud. He’s also ruthless when it comes to getting what he wants, and he’s not above impersonating a dead man to gain control of the largest corporation on Earth. But standing in his way is a powerful woman more than willing to fight for what’s hers, even if it means taking on family.Their collision is inevitable, but if they can’t work out a compromise, it may end in the destruction of everything they’re fighting to save. Not just a family or a corporation, but all life on Earth. An invasion is coming, and if the humans can’t stop fighting each other, they won’t have a prayer of stopping it in time.

We Are Not Prey


Taki Drake - 2016
    This science fiction adventure blends magic and technology with the adventures of Ruth, a normal human, pushed into extraordinary situations. Ruth’s transformation takes her from Earth to worlds and situations of which she never dreamed.

Writing on the Wall


Tracey Ward - 2013
    Since Joss watched her parents die at the hands of a nightmare, a nightmare that stalks her even now, all these years later. That's the problem with the Risen - they refuse to die.But Joss is a survivor. A loner living in the post-apocalyptic streets of Seattle. It's a world dictated by Risen and the looming threat of the Colonists, a group of fellow survivors living comfortably in their compounds and patrolling the wild, looking to "save" the orphans of the end.Orphans like Joss.Like Ryan.As a member of an all male gang, Ryan is a threat as real as the Risen, a threat Joss avoids at all costs. Then one night their paths cross and Joss makes a choice that goes against all of her instincts. A choice that will threaten everything she has.Now a new outbreak is imminent and the Colonists are closing in. Joss' solitary, secret world will be blown wide open and the comfortable numbness she's lived in for the last six years will burn away leaving her aching and afraid.And awake.

Cipher


Aileen Erin - 2014
    She can’t let anyone get that close. At least, she shouldn’t.Knight is working undercover for the bad guys. He’s done things that have marked his soul, but it’ll all be worth it if he can save the girl who means everything to him—the girl who saved his life by putting herself in danger. It’s been twelve years, but Knight knows she’s still alive, and he’s made it his mission to find her and keep her safe.When Knight finally catches up to Cipher, electricity sparks. He’s crazy gorgeous, stupid brilliant, and begging to lift the burden from Cipher’s shoulders. Can she really trust him with her secrets? With her life?She doesn’t have long to decide, because Knight isn’t the only who’s been looking for her. Now Cipher can’t run without leaving him behind. What good is being together if they’re both dead?To save Knight, Cipher will finally stop running…one way or another.

The Host


Stephenie Meyer - 2008
    The earth has been invaded by a species that take over the minds of human hosts while leaving their bodies intact. Wanderer, the invading "soul" who has been given Melanie's body, didn't expect to find its former tenant refusing to relinquish possession of her mind.As Melanie fills Wanderer's thoughts with visions of Jared, a human who still lives in hiding, Wanderer begins to yearn for a man she's never met. Reluctant allies, Wanderer and Melanie set off to search for the man they both love.Also see: Alternate Cover Editions for this ISBN [ACE] ACE #1 - ACE #2

New World Box Set, Volume 1


C.L. Scholey - 2014
    Scholey's popular science fiction & romance series are available in one ebook bundle, including:Book 1: SHIELDEarth is all but dead. With meteors exploding in their midst, the shuttle Grace boards takes flight in a last ditch effort to save human lives. With little food, water and eight stowaways the situation is volatile while they race to the new planet, Ulsy. A wormhole and a crash are their undoing. While fleeing into the strange surroundings on an even stranger planet two of Grace’s shuttle pilots are killed by a massive ebony creature with fangs as white as ivory.Rask is a full blooded Castian warrior who thinks his planet has been stormed. When he comes across the little being that cowers from him he is intrigued. After four hundred years and virtual immortality Rask thought he had seen everything. When the being before him declares herself to be a human female he is beyond amazed. Females have been extinct as long as he can remember. But there is no denying her sweet scent. One inhaled breath is all it takes to drop his shield and reveal the muscular tanned male beneath.Rask had thought his armor impenetrable - but one touch from a slender hand and he realizes he is powerless against the tiny human he must have.Book 2: ARMOREarth is a fiery pile of rubble. Amy, a woman left to fend for herself on the volatile planet, seeks to feed a pitiful group of women and children, misfits left to perish because of various and devious reasons. Amy was diagnosed with cancer the year her world fell apart and not given a shuttle pass to the new planet, Ulsy. That she is still alive is all but a mystery to her. When strange beings land on Earth’s surface, Amy presumes the armored, hideous creatures are looming death.Dasks is a full-blooded Castian warrior from Dargon. He and his warrior mate have come to Earth seeking human females to bond with. A male of almost four hundred years old, he can’t believe how captivating his new human female, Amy, is. But Dasks’ race can sense deception and lies—he can smell fear. Amy is keeping a secret from him.When a Castian mates, he mates for life. If Amy dies, so will Dasks. Dasks must decide if he can live without her—because if they mate he will surely die with her.Book 3: IMPENETRABLEKidnapped from dying Earth by the heinous Tonan race, Piper is locked in a small cell, deprived of light and human companionship and tormented on a daily basis. When the door to her hell opens unexpectedly Piper is blinded by the light and walks headlong into a massively built creature. She is tossed over a shoulder, taken on the wildest ride of her life then placed into a healing pool.Jago is a four-hundred-year-old immortal who has never seen a living breathing female before, but he knows of their existence. Their ship was headed to the planet Earth to see if they could find these rare human gifts when they accidently stumbled onto the Tonan vessel. Desperate to find a mate Jago was thrilled when the little female walked right into his arms as though she was waiting for him. Unfortunately Jago’s leader, Cobra, has asked to impregnate Piper, thinking Jago too young. Ultimately, the choice is Piper’s. Who will she choose?Book 4: APPARITIONHalf Castian and half Tonan, Doss is considered nothing more than a Tonian hybrid. A being to be feared, with the power to kill by penetrating what is supposed to be impenetrable.Loathed by many, feared by more, Doss has spent the last 700 years alone, shunned by the Tonans on his planet. He prefers it that way until a nude female rider on a huge, black stallion, fleeing for her life, catches his eye. If left alone, both beast and human would be killed by their pursuant, an enraged Tonan warrior. When the scent of the female invades his nostrils, Doss is captivated. He must have the female human and will go to great lengths to secure her safety.Zoe hates both Castians and Tonans. The promise of salvation from dying Earth, on planet Ulsy, had been nothing more than a lie. Human males were slaughtered, and human women were captured to lure secrets of the Castian planets, Bagron and co-planet Dargon, from enslaved warriors with the promise of sex. When met with the six-foot-six hybrid warrior who moved like an apparition in battle to save her and her beloved stallion Caveat, Zoe is unsure what to do. She has no idea of his intentions, but from the shiver that runs down her spine she is certain she's about to find out.Book 5: ENGULFFor a year, Abri and five other women have found themselves trapped on a lonely planet, after their shuttle crashes on its way to Ulsy. They have fled Earth and the fiery rubble it has become. The crash has left Abri deaf and hurting with her aloneness. When sound becomes nothing, her other senses heighten, especially when they encounter two huge, handsome aliens.Raiden has seen human women, but on his planet, females are few and far between. He and his warrior mate Cace can't believe their good luck when they stumble across six of them on a deserted planet. The little deaf female, Abri, catches Raiden's heart the moment her essence seeps into his skin. He must have her. Their healing waters or his shield will cure her strange malady once they have mated. Or will it?

Cassandra's Challenge


M.K. Eidem - 2013
    It's hard not to at 6’1” and 165 pounds with jet black hair and sapphire blue eyes. And if that wasn’t enough she is also brilliant, graduating from Harvard at fifteen, teaching at MIT at nineteen and up for the prestigious Magellan Award at twenty five. But she’s never really fit in. Not with her peers, not with her contemporaries, only with her family. But everything changes when the Earth is attacked and Cassandra and her niece Victoria are the only survivors. Suddenly the smartest woman on the planet has to relearn everything. Everything she’s believed to be true is challenged and she has to learn to survive, not only for herself but for Victoria, because someone wants them dead.Admiral William Zafar is the youngest Admiral ever in the Coalition fleet, the hero of the Battle of Fayal. At 7’1” he’s 325 pounds of Carinian male in his prime who is feared and respected throughout the fleet. He is a royal from the House of Protection, carrying its birthmark and considers its King one of his oldest friends.But when the Regulians destroy a previously unknown planet leaving only two survivors he finds he's willing to risk it all to protect the woman he loves from the Regulians and the Carinian traitor that wants her dead.

Configured


Jenetta Penner - 2016
    Divided into three levels of intellect, Citizens focus solely on duty.Due to her advanced intelligence, seventeen-year-old Avlyn Lark is separated from her twin brother at birth and raised by adoptive parents. She gains privilege, the ideal future. He dies. Avlyn barely knows him yet remains linked to his memory.But following a string of rebel intrusions on the city, Avlyn receives a cryptic message and begins seeing visions of her dead twin. The mysterious radical who urges Avlyn to join their fight becomes her link to answers. Freedom.Opportunity awaits, but if she says yes will she lose it all?Configured is the first novel in a trilogy YA dystopian/light romance that poses the question: does humanity need love for survival? Fans of Divergent, Matched, and the Maze Runner will love this world of dark secrets, intrigue and desire for a better tomorrow.

Ashfall


Mike Mullin - 2011
    Most people don't know it's there. The caldera is so large that it can only be seen from a plane or satellite. It just could be overdue for an eruption, which would change the landscape and climate of our planet.For Alex, being left alone for the weekend means having the freedom to play computer games and hang out with his friends without hassle from his mother. Then the Yellowstone supervolcano erupts, plunging his hometown into a nightmare of darkness, ash, and violence. Alex begins a harrowing trek to search for his family and finds help in Darla, a travel partner he meets along the way. Together they must find the strength and skills to survive and outlast an epic disaster.

Exiled


RaShelle Workman - 2011
    DESTINY BROUGHT THEM TOGETHER. ONLY LOVE WILL SAVE THEM.Venus isn't from Earth, she's from Kelari. On her planet she's next in line to rule, but there are those who will go to great lengths to make sure that doesn't happen. Including frame her as a traitor.Accused and sentenced, the gods of her planet exile her to Earth. They've given her one week to help a human find his true love. If she doesn't succeed, she'll die, but if she does she might lose her heart. Praise for this series:  "Michael and Venus have probably been the best pairing/couple that I've read about this year! GO READ THIS BOOK! You will love it. Seriously." Nancy, reviewer Tumbling Books"Writing that moves readers to ponder their hearts is good writing, and that's what readers will find with Workman. Her protagonist is strong willed, her antagonist is easy to hate, and her mentor is easy to love." Kathleen Brebes"What a ride!" Taffy Lovell Books in the Immortal Essence Series: EXILEDBANISHEDDISPLACEDBEGUILEDTEMPTEDMERGEDUNITED

A Time to Die


Nadine Brandes - 2014
    Like everyone else on the east side of the Wall, Parvin Blackwater has a clock counting down the days until her death. At only seventeen, she has only one year left.When the authorities find out she has been illegally sharing a clock with her twin brother, she is cast through the Wall—her people's death sentence. What she finds on the other side about the world, about God, and about herself changes Parvin forever and might just save her people. If she can get the word to them before her time runs out.

Origins


Kristen Middleton - 2012
    Seventeen year old Cassandra Wild thought living in the chaos of her mother’s home daycare and dealing with her developing feelings for Bryce, her new Martial Arts’ instructor, was a struggle, until the night her world turned upside down.When an untested vaccine kills more than just a rampant flu virus, Cassie learns how to survive in a world where the dead walk, and the living…run!