Book picks similar to
Lifter by Crawford Kilian


science-fiction
scifi
books-mom-sent
light-fantasy

Alien Infection


Darrell Bain - 2005
    Afraid of being thrown into an isolation chamber, Michael goes home, but quickly falls violently ill. By the time he recovers and returns to work scary things are happening. Everyone who has come into contact with that patient is being systematically killed. On the run, he accidentally infects a woman living in the shadows of the underworld. She becomes ill as well, but survives. Then they begin feeling younger-and younger. Why would the government want to suppress something like this? After barely escaping federal gunmen, the two of them set out to discover what kind of infection they are harboring even though it might mean the end of their freedom.

Girl on Fire


M.C.A. Hogarth - 2018
    So when she discovers that her world is only one among many, she doesn't hesitate to kick off the dust of her provincial estate. That it gets her away from her oppressive mother and a smothering society is only a bonus. But wonder isn't the only thing waiting for a young woman trying her wings for the first time. When Sediryl finds love among the aliens, she's faced with a difficult choice between duty and her heart's desire. Girl on Fire introduces Sediryl, the woman who will go on to figure so powerfully in the future of the Peltedverse. But before she was a firebrand, she had to be set on fire....

Escape


Jasper T. Scott - 2012
    The station is in a security lockdown and the sole apparent occupant, a Union captain, offers Kieran an entire ship if he can disable the lockdown. Kieran realizes that he’s probably dealing with a criminal, rather than an actual captain, but he’s just desperate enough to accept. He flies out to the nearest station and returns with a slicer and some dangerous-looking backup. As he’s making his approach to the station, Kieran hears a garbled cry for help over the comm. He hopes it’s just his imagination.But it’s not. Half the station’s crew is being held hostage, while the other half appear to be masquerading as Union officers. Kieran and his team disable the lockdown, and to Kieran’s amazement, they are given a ship as promised. As they are leaving the station, they see an entire fleet of Union cruisers pouring out of the newly-reactivated space gate. Kieran is confused. What are so many warships doing on the frontier? The Union isn’t at war.Kieran sets out to investigate, but along the way strange things start happening to him and his crew. At first there seem to be logical explanations, but before long the answers are not so clear. As time goes by, Kieran realizes the horrible truth:He wasn’t the only one trying to escape. . . .

Greenwar


Steven Gould - 1997
    Accusing the company of corporate rapaciousness cloaked in environmental green, the group is dedicated to destroying Gulfstream's multi-million dollar ocean research station -- no matter who is killed in the process.

The Four Worlds of Bertie Cavendish


R.R. Haywood - 2021
    The Undead. A Town Called Discovery and The Worldship Humility.A virtual reality.A fleet of spaceships.A shimmering blue door.A virus unleased upon the planet.Four worlds that do not co-habit the same time and space.But things are never quite as they seem…*This book is intended for existing fans of the series, The Undead, Extracted, A Town Called Discovery and The Worldship Humility, and as such, it may not appeal to new readers who have not read those series.

The Loom of Thessaly


David Brin - 2011
    Who guides our fate? And can we ever hope to wrest control for ourselves? In this novella, "The Loom of Thessaly" , classical mythology merges with impudent modern spirit into a science fiction legend that speculates upon the nature of reality.

Luna


Garon Whited - 2007
    It's not as bad as we thought. From the very first line, "Luna" grabs the reader. Where most books start with a world in trouble and ride the story on into a happy ending or to the ultimate destruction, "Luna" starts with the end of the world. Things can only get better, right? With the world destroyed, the story centers on six survivors in the first lunar shuttle, on their way to shake down and tune up a robot-built underground tunnel complex on the Moon. They have to face a number of issues, not the least of which is the self-destruction of their homeworld and the survival of the species. Fortunately, any culture advanced enough to have a lunar colony and the capability to destroy its own civilization is likely to have people who are not on the planet at any given time. From these few survivors, the human race will have to either survive and grow, or wither away into nothing. They have to face many difficulties, ranging from purely scientific ones such as genetics, mechanics, chemistry, and nutrition, to the more complex difficulties of human nature, such as love, sex, and loneliness. The conflict between politics and military command also rears its ugly head, with uncertain results, aside from the obvious: War. Told from the point of view of Max, the officer in charge of the mechanical aspects of the lunar base, "Luna" takes us on a fast-paced tour of our own Moon, the LaGrange points, a number of habitable satellites, as well as the light and dark places in the human soul. Any science fiction reader will delight in the near-future possibilities of lunar colonization, along with the superb character development, snappy dialogue, and the dry humor that are so characteristic of Garon Whited's work.A gripping page-turner, Whited's "Luna" is more than a little reminiscent of Robert Heinlein, mixed with a dash of E.E. "Doc" Smith, and stirred with a sardonic sense of humor uniquely his own. Fans of Garon Whited's "Nightlord: Sunset" will want to add this one to the collection!

Works of H. Beam Piper (32 books)


H. Beam Piper - 2009
    Beam Piper with active table of contents.Works include:The AnswerThe Cosmic ComputerCrossroads of DestinyDay of the MoronDearestThe Edge of the KnifeFlight From TomorrowFour-Day PlanetGenesisGraveyard of DreamsHe Walked Around the HorsesThe KeeperLast EnemyLittle FuzzyThe MercenariesMinistry of DisturbanceMurder in the GunroomNaudsonceNull-ABCOomphel in the SkyOmnilingualOperation R.S.V.P.PatrolPolice OperationRebel RaiderThe ReturnA Slave is a SlaveSpace VikingTemple TroubleTime and Time AgainTime CrimeUllr Uprising

Master Walk


Sharon Lee - 2003
    He faces pirates, politics, police, and plots. All he has to do is survive. . .In Master Walk, award-winning science fiction authors Sharon Lee and Steve Miller bring a new YA universe to life. Introducing The Advocacy, a rough-and-tumble civilization that has a mix of sentient races and a lot to learn."Sharon Lee and Steve Miller are so good, it's scary." -- S. L. Viehl, author of the StarDoc series"Nobody else in the field combines space opera and comedy of manners with the same deftness and brio as these two." -- Debra Doyle, co-author of the Mageworlds novels". . .classic space adventure. . .is full of action. . . The world building is outstanding. . ." -- Booklist

Oblivion: The Complete Series


Joshua James - 2020
    Captain Lee Saito's massive new starship is sent to seal the uneasy truce.But a series of terrorist attacks on Earth and the mysterious acts of a strange cult threaten to derail the fragile peace.When the mission goes awry, Saito must try to salvage what he can in deep space while his estranged son must navigate a conspiracy back on Earth that could implicate the highest levels of government.As it all spirals out of control, the future of humanity hangs in the balance.Includes all 9 books in the Oblivion series:Lost MissionFirst ContactFinal InvasionStar FallenBeyond RuinOrion InboundEnter AbyssEarth AriseLast StandFive star reviews for Lost Mission, book 1 in the series:★★★★★ "Plenty of high octane action sequences ... Readers should expect a twisting and curving wild ride."★★★★★ "This is a fast moving book that you won’t want to put down."★★★★★ "A rip roaring tale that does a fine job of world building and character development."

Galactic Empire Wars: The Beginning Books 1-3


Raymond L. Weil - 2016
    Weil comes a chilling story of the future.To the Kleese, the Earth is nothing more than a planet full of conscripts to be used to fight in their numerous wars of aggression against other planets. The Kleese are one of several large Galactic Empires that control the majority of the galaxy. To them, Earth is a dangerous planet due to the aggressiveness of the humanoid species that inhabits it. This is a species that cannot be allowed to spread out into the galaxy. Once they have taken their handful of conscripts, the planet will be destroyed.Unknown to the Kleese, their attack against the human homeworld will ignite a war that will spread across the known galaxy. Billions will die in their quest to free themselves from the heartless alien race. Can the human race rise up and lead the few worlds willing to fight against the Kleese? Find out in the Galactic Empire Wars.

Battle Across Worlds


Dean Chalmers - 2015
    Soldiers from two planets unite to face an ancient alien enemy.Captain Jack Chestire has been exiled after a government coup. But this war hero finds a new purpose when he discovers a gate to another planet...Where he becomes a pilot in a squadron of quantum-powered fighters.Their foe is a terrorist organization led by an alien-human hybrid: a warlord who is worshiped as a living goddess. Human courage is pitted against alien technology as the final battle is fought to decide the future of the human race.

Exiles


Dan Worth - 2010
    Human and Arkari. Archaeologists with a story about an ancient derelict starship that few believe and a captain’s log that tells of an ancient genocidal war that no-one has ever heard of. But if no-one believes their story, then why are the authorities so keen to suppress it? Captain Michelle Chen of the Commonwealth Navy. Brave, cunning, merciless. Dangerous even. However she may be just the person her superiors have been looking for to start a war.Steven Harris. Secret agent with a conscience, who defied orders, ignored the chain of command and let his morals get in the way of his career.Quickchild. An AI of unknown origin and staggering power that does not know who it truly is.As the colonies of the human Commonwealth stand on the brink of war with the fanatic legions of the alien K’Soth Empire, these five individuals are drawn to the backward, arid planet of Maranos that stands between the two civilisations. As relations between human and alien deteriorate, Maranos is about to give up its ancient, terrifying secrets.

The Jehovah Contract


Victor Koman - 1987
    The job: find God Almighty and destroy Him. The payment: eternal life. With the aid of a mysterious trio of women -- a beautiful lady gambler, an ancient Hollywood witch, and a telepathic hooker -- Dell Ammo breaches the gates of Heaven and Hell to pull the Cosmic Trigger.Before The DaVinci Code, before the Left Behind series, The Jehovah Contract set the standard for adventurous, over-the-edge religious fiction. Hard-boiled assassin Dell Ammo must become a harder-boiled detective in order to track down a God he doesn't even think exists. He enlists the reluctant assistance of blond bombshell Anne Perrine -- a woman with the uncanny ability to beat the gaming tables of the underworld metropolis Auberge. In that crime-ridden realm buried beneath the streets of Los Angeles, Dell discovers an even greater danger -- the religious conspiracy known only as the Ecclesia, dedicated to protecting God at any cost.In a climactic final battle worthy of Philip K. Dick at his most imaginatively paranoid, Dell Ammo clashes with the Almighty in all His varied forms, leading to a confrontation that rocks the universe."A fascinating concept, imaginatively delivered." -- Ray Bradbury"A most unusual and entertaining work of satirical SF." -- Publishers Weekly"A novel of cosmic -- and comic -- proportions." -- Library Journal"Explodes like a string of firecrackers ... The suspense never lets up ... I highly recommend it." -- Robert Anton Wilson"THE JEHOVAH CONTRACT will surely be excoriated in religious and literary circles, but this damnation of God should be pondered objectively by both believers and nonbelievers. It is a good, thought-provoking effort that is that rarity in fiction: philosophy that entertains." -- Piers Anthony"A parody of a Chandleresque detective novel that can hold its own with Chandler and the best of his followers." -- San Jose Mercury-News"Crammed with elements calculated to outrage nearly everyone...." -- The Denver Post"THE JEHOVAH CONTRACT... is conceptually audacious to the max." -- Norman Spinrad"Audacious ... a fine combination of logic and madness." -- Robert Shea"I wholeheartedly recommend this Mission Impossible/Phillip Marlowe/Mike Hammer/John Milton Faith Opera." -- Philip Jose FarmerVictor Koman's screenplay of The Jehovah Contract has been optioned for film. Ray Bradbury says of him, "Would that there were a dozen more writers like him in the field." Koman's short stories have appeared in publications such as The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Galaxy, and the anthologies Weird Menace, The King is Dead: Tales of Elvis Post-Mortem, the Dark Destiny collections, and Free Space.He lives in southern California with his wife, Veronica, and daughter, Vanessa, as well as their cat, Kali. Koman graduated summa cum laude from Redlands University in 2001 as a Bachelor of Science in Information Systems. In 2004, he received his MBA from Pepperdine University.His weblog and bookstore are accessible via http://www.komansense.com/

Supercute Futures


Martin Millar - 2018
    They founded the global business Supercute Enterprises as teenagers, armed only with a phone, a collection of their favourite cuddly toys and a love of all things kawaii. Thanks to them, the Supercute aesthetic is now a way of life.In a world dominated by massive conglomerates, Supercute has continued to grow bigger and more powerful, morphing from an entertainment company to a ruthless organisation fighting for their right to the world's water.Now Mox and Mitsu face a choice. In a world that is tearing itself apart, who will win in the battle for ultimate control - and where will Supercute draw the line . . .