Book picks similar to
Half Sick of Shadows by Richard Abbott


historical-fiction
fantasy
science-fiction
interested

The Monster Spawn


Deckhard Davis - 2017
    He’s more than a little perturbed to discover that he is dead, but it’s not the end of the world. Due to him being in the army, he gets a 2nd chance at existence in a fantasy VR game called Adonis Rebirth. There, Nathan will get to live another life, one filled with heroic quests and epic adventures. A land packed with legend and glory, where anyone can be a hero. But there’s a problem with his transition into the game. His consciousness isn’t loaded into a player character, but instead is transplanted into a beast who lives in the bowels of a mountain. Even worse, he finds out he is the end monster in a new limited-edition quest, where the 1st to complete it wins a unique prize. Soon, hero players are going to come and kill him. He needs to find a way to survive the hero onslaught, all the while trying to discover how to reverse what happened to him. He needs allies, but it’s hard to make them when you look like Nosferatu's ugly brother. Nathan will have to master his skills and learn how to play as the monster - his 2nd life depends on it.

The Grasslands


Kenneth Tam - 2010
    After returning from a campaign in the Third Afghan War, Major Thomas Waller and the Royal Newfoundland Regiment are assigned to escort two mysterious ladies into the unknown lands of the new world. With the help of an American drifter named Smith, Waller and his men must face daunting hordes of 'savages' that roam the steppes of the alien planet, and help to uncover the ladies' secrets - and the secrets of the new world itself. A dangerous mission awaits on the Grasslands...

Talon the Slayer


A.A. Warren - 2019
    But when he makes his final kill, he discovers it was all a lie... Soon he’ll be sold to a new owner, and his blood will forever be registered as a slave to intergalactic scans.A mysterious alien sorceress named Salena holds the key not only to his freedom, but to his past. Amnesia, a byproduct of a life-pod malfunction, has stolen Talon's memories. But Salena has access to dark energy magic, a starship, and a ragtag mercenary crew that might just be skilled enough to make Talon a free man.When an ancient warlord devastates the galaxy with a weapon of terrifying power, Salena’s mission takes Talon into the most dangerous battle he’s ever faced. It will take the secrets locked in Talon’s memories—as well as his trusty plasma axe—to stop the dark forces that threaten the galaxy…Space fantasy fans will love this action-packed series. Featuring epic space battles, alien magic, and a warrior hero with a plasma axe...

The Lakebed


Tim Stone - 2018
    (Book Readers Appreciation Group) Medallion RecipientA murder, a sociopath, an earthquake. And another dimension.It’s 2021 in Hynek, Washington State. Police Chief Michelle Bardo is investigating a bizarre murder and spate of animal mutilations rocking the waters of her resort town. A hard-luck immigrant, Al Dragunov, is searching for answers about his tortured past in war-torn Ukraine. Their paths meet after an apocalyptic earthquake drains Lake Hynek, drawing them into the bowels of the dried lakebed. Underneath is a . . . structure. A simulacrum. A site of inexplicable, irrational experiments since time immemorial.One part police procedural, one part horror tale, and one part journey into high strangeness—time travel, UFOs, and the interdimensional hypothesis.From debut author Tim Stone, "The Lakebed"—a 2019 B.R.A.G. (Book Readers Appreciation Group) Medallion Recipient—is an unpredictable, thought-provoking, and fast-paced sci-fi thriller for fans of "The Twilight Zone" and "The X-Files."

Prelude to Ascension (The Assemblies of the Living Book 1)


Brent Clay - 2018
    When he and a small group of coworkers attempt to respond to an unexpected message, believing it to have originated from somewhere on Earth, they find more than they anticipate. The message is from deep space. Once contact is made, the Remotes, as they are called, will not be dissuaded. Humanity becomes an unwilling newcomer to a staggeringly ancient galactic collective, which regards the Earth as an ‘emerging world’ that is subject to its oversight. As humanity slips further into the grip of the enigmatic consortium, the mysteries become deeper; there is more to Earth’s history than meets the eye, and even the galaxy itself is not what it seems.

The Heavens


Sandra Newman - 2019
    A party in a spacious Manhattan apartment, hosted by a wealthy young activist. Dozens of idealistic twenty-somethings have impassioned conversations over takeout dumplings and champagne. The evening shines with the heady optimism of a progressive new millennium. A young man, Ben, meets a young woman, Kate—and they begin to fall in love.From their first meeting, Ben knows Kate is unworldly and fanciful, so at first he isn’t that concerned when she tells him about the recurring dream she’s had since childhood. In the dream, she’s transported to the past, where she lives a second life as Emilia, the mistress of a nobleman in Elizabethan England.But for Kate, the dream becomes increasingly real and compelling until it threatens to overwhelm her life. And soon she’s waking from it to find the world changed—pictures on her wall she doesn’t recognize, new buildings in the neighborhood that have sprung up overnight. As she tries to make sense of what’s happening, Ben worries the woman he’s fallen in love with is losing her grip on reality.Transporting the reader between a richly detailed past and a frighteningly possible future, The Heavens is a powerful reminder of the consequences of our actions, a poignant testament to how the people we love are destined to change, and a masterful exploration of the power of dreams.

Endworld: Lord of Ends


Sam Ryder - 2019
    Survival depends on your ability to kick ass and take names.Radiation transforms select humans into mutated creatures who are banished from society--Enders. The males are libido-less wild animals incapable of satisfying the females, who are hot, forward and badass.Cutter has kept to himself for ten years, avoiding the conflict with a sharp tongue, stiff drink and his two best friends, his six-shooters Alpha and Beta. But the perils of the wastelands won't leave him the f--- alone. Two sisters, one human and one Ender, offer him a generous salary to protect them as they set off on a doomed peace mission. It's an offer he can't refuse, even as he knows there's no chance in hell of their succeeding.All the odds are stacked against them, but Cutter soon learns his destiny is to be more than just a bodyguard, even if it involves forging together a crack team of gorgeous human and Ender operatives who will make the insane mission much more pleasurable.Warning: Contains a harem.

The Forever Gate Ultimate Edition: Books 1-9 (Complete Series)


Isaac Hooke - 2019
    It has been one of the highest-rated sci-fi series on Amazon over the last three years. This bundle contains books 1 through 9--the complete series--and will captivate fans of science fiction, fantasy, thrillers, and cyberpunk. In this riveting nine-volume set, Hoodwink Cooper infiltrates a tyrannical alien regime and traverses multiple realities in a daring attempt to save his daughter from certain doom... There's only one problem. He might destroy the last living remnants of humanity in the process. This ultimate edition contains THE FOREVER GATE volumes one through nine. Strap yourself in, because the mind-bending thrill ride that explores what it means to be human has only just begun.

Gates of Eden: The Druid Legacy 1-3


Theophilus Monroe - 2020
    Book 1: Druid’s Dance (newly revised/edited edition) Elijah Wadsworth lost his parents and twin sister in what he thought was little more than a tragic accident. But five years later, when Elijah begins manifesting strange abilities--which he neither understands nor can control--he discovers his family has been at the center of a cosmic battle for centuries... and his family's death was likely no accident at all. A mysterious "girl in black" with dark, magical abilities pursues him, hoping to lure him to her cause. After coming into possession of a mystical stone, which transports Elijah into his deceased father’s ancient memories, Elijah and his closest friends must discover the source of his power together lest his newfound abilities drain his very soul, and open up our world to the blight of Samhuinn. When a girl he loves, however, is threatened he must make a choice to either save her by joining the sorceress, the "girl in black," or save the world. Book 2: Bard’s Tale The Tree of Life—the source of Elijah’s power—is failing. Creatures from Samhuinn are breaking through the veil and terrorizing St. Louis. As the Tree weakens, Elijah’s abilities are failing. Will Elijah be able to stop the incursions before his powers fade completely? Book 3: Ovate’s Call Elijah’s Ovate—Tyler—is visited by a strange, but alluring, princess from Annwn. He's immediately captivated by her--but Elijah fears the princess has ulterior motives. Is the princess who she claims to be, or is she another pawn in the Morrigan's scheme? The cosmic struggle between Elijah, his Order, and the Morrigan and her legions comes to a head in the final installment of the Gates of Eden: the Druid Legacy Trilogy. Readers of Theophilus Monroe’s Voodoo Academy from the Gates of Eden: The Voodoo Legacy series will naturally adore the Druid Legacy. Combined with Celtic mythology and Arthurian lore, this druid urban fantasy is a compelling installment in the Gates of Eden world. With magical fantasy adventure romance, a snarky male hero, and a plethora of characters taken straight from Arthurain lore and the Celtic world of myth, this time travel epic fantasy will keep readers enthralled from start to finish.

Acts of War


James L. Young Jr. - 2014
    303 (Polish) SquadronAugust 1942. London is in flames. Heinrich Himmler's Germany stands triumphant in the West, its "Most Dangerous Enemy" forced to the peace table by a hailstorm of nerve gas and incendiaries. With Adolf Hitler avenged and portions of the Royal Navy seized as war prizes, Nazi Germany casts its baleful gaze across the Atlantic towards an increasingly isolationist United States. With no causus belli, President Roosevelt must convince his fellow Americans that it is better to deal with a triumphant Germany now than to curse their children with the problem of a united, fascist Europe later.As Germany and Japan prepare to launch the next phase of the conflict, Fate forces normal men and women to make hard choices in hopes of securing a better future. For Adam Haynes, Londonfall means he must continue an odyssey that began in the skies over Spain. American naval officer Eric Cobb finds that neutrality is a far cry from safety. Finally, Rear Admiral Tamon Yamaguchi must prepare himself and his men to fight a Pacific War that is far different than the surprise attack Imperial Japan had once planned but never executed.Acts of War is the continuation of the Usurper's War series, which charts a very different World War II. As young men and women are forced to answer their nation's call, the choices they make and risks they take will write a different song for the Greatest Generation.

My Father, My Enemy: Juliane, Daughter of Henry I (Medieval Babes: Tales of Little-Known Ladies Book 6)


J.P. Reedman - 2019
    When her father weds her to a young Norman lord, Eustace de Breteuil, she thinks she has done well in life for the daughter of a Saxon concubine. But Eustace wants a castle he cannot have. He starts hostilities with its castellan, Ralph Harenc, egged on by the dubious Amaury de Montfort. To keep the peace, King Henry orders a hostage exchange between Eustace and Ralph. Juliane's pretty young daughters for Ralph's son. In a drunken rage, fuelled on by Amaury, Eustace breaks the truce and blinds Harenc's boy. Furious, the King allows Ralph to take his own brutal vengeance upon Henry's own granddaughters. Crazed with grief, Juliane plots revenge for the maiming of her children. The Wheel of Fate spins. The King must die, his own daughter judge, jury, executioner...

How to Stop Time


Matt Haig - 2017
    I had existed whole years without her, but that was all it had been. An existence. A book with no words."Tom Hazard has just moved back to London, his old home, to settle down and become a high school history teacher. And on his first day at school, he meets a captivating French teacher at his school who seems fascinated by him. But Tom has a dangerous secret. He may look like an ordinary 41-year-old, but owing to a rare condition, he's been alive for centuries. Tom has lived history--performing with Shakespeare, exploring the high seas with Captain Cook, and sharing cocktails with Fitzgerald. Now, he just wants an ordinary life.Unfortunately for Tom, the Albatross Society, the secretive group which protects people like Tom, has one rule: Never fall in love. As painful memories of his past and the erratic behavior of the Society's watchful leader threaten to derail his new life and romance, the one thing he can't have just happens to be the one thing that might save him. Tom will have to decide once and for all whether to remain stuck in the past, or finally begin living in the present.How to Stop Time tells a love story across the ages--and for the ages--about a man lost in time, the woman who could save him, and the lifetimes it can take to learn how to live. It is a bighearted, wildly original novel about losing and finding yourself, the inevitability of change, and how with enough time to learn, we just might find happiness.Soon to be a major motion picture starring Benedict Cumberbatch.

Earth Bound


Michael Anderle - 2021
    Psychopaths who might, or might not, be human.Intergalactic lawman Terry Victor is betrayed by fellow officers and sent to a backwater planet on the interstellar arm of the universe.In short, he was sent to the planet called Earth.Fed up, he quits in a fit of disgust and seeks a peaceful retirement among the humans.Unfortunately, trouble has a way of finding Terry Victor.Keep his head down and away from Earth’s authorities, or help a woman about to be attacked by a gang?Can Terry Victor resist the siren call that could ruin his future on this planet?Is he willing to give up his forced retirement to take on Earth’s troubles?Finally, what happens when a string of deaths points to something even he fears?Will Terry Victor survive? If he survives, will the authorities realize there is an alien living among them?

Vesik: Box Set 2


Eric R. Asher - 2018
    A vile betrayal. Necromancer Damian Vesik faces his darkest hour, but he's not dead yet.THIS BROKEN WORLD (Book 4)An ocean of darkness lives in the journal of Philip Pinkerton. Ancient things with no place in our world are rising from the Abyss. Ezekiel, the arrogant, mad god has called us into battle. Does he think we can't touch him, or does he know we can't? I wish I knew. The world’s only hope lies in a forgotten weapon, the strength of our allies, and one necromancer of questionable ancestry. Yeah, this is going to end well.DESTROYER RISING (Book 5)It's been three years since we failed Vicky, the child once known as Elizabeth Gray. Three years she's lived as something not quite alive, but far from dead. Her path grows darker, even as she spreads light and hope through a tortured world. The Destroyer has come to claim her, and I can’t fail her again. I won't. Elizabeth's fate lies in the Burning Lands, and we will storm the gates.RATTLE THE BONES (Book 6)Much has been lost in the conflict with the Fae king and his allies, a conflict we hadn’t known we were in until one of our own fell at his hand. And while a great Seal between realms may have been rebuilt, dark things slipped through in the chaos, creatures who would overrun this world. Our allies are many. Our enemies are terrible. And someone ate my last chimichanga despite the fact I had clearly marked it with a note that said it was mine.This collection includes books 4, 5, and 6 of the Vesik urban fantasy series. Jump into the madness today!

The Hammer's Fall


Derick J.M. Summers - 2008
    And with curses and stares and sometimes with fists, the villagers of Solan Bay did their best to make sure he would never forget it.But on that day, the day the slavers came to Solan Bay and left him for dead in a pool of his own blood, everything changed. Logan learned the truth of his existence, of his destiny. Forged in the heat of battle, tempered in blood, Logan was an instrument of change. Fuelled by rage and loss, Logan begins a journey to set things right. If setting things right means changing the world – so be it!