Book picks similar to
Rogue Stars: 7 Novels of Space Exploration and Adventure by C. Gockel
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Darkness Falls
Paul Teague - 2014
A twin who died in mysterious circumstances ... A family lured to a special place at a particular time ... And then the darkness falls. Separated from his family as the entire planet becomes surrounded by a deathly blackness, Dan Tracy must figure out what's going on below ground. The bunker is at the centre of a conspiracy to destroy the Earth - but there's something special about Dan and his twin that could stop the terrorists dead in their tracks. It's a race against time as the process of destruction has already begun ... Who will be left to hear Earth's final screams? The Secret Bunker: Darkness Falls is the first in a trilogy of books by author Paul Teague.
The Watchers of Eden
T.C. Edge
Her world is her prison. Her fate is bigger than she knows... In the hot and harsh farming region of Agricola, 16 year old Cyra prepares to be tested to discover what duty she'll hold for life. All school leavers across the regions are in the same position, and few expect anything more than to follow in their parents' footsteps and stay in the region they live in.For Cyra, there was never a choice. With her father dead and brother and sister assigned elsewhere, she's desperate to stay close to her sick mother so she can take care of her.On the day of the Duty Call, however, Cyra's world turns upside down in one stroke. She's to be assigned to Eden, the largest and most powerful sea city and central hub of control. Only the most important live there, and no one from Cyra's town has ever been assigned there in her lifetime. So, she sets off on a journey away from everything she knows, without knowing what her duty will be. Soon, she discovers that she, along with a small number of school leavers from across the regions, has a special power; a gift that will pit her as a secret protector of the nation. Only, it's not a gift, it's really a curse, and before long Cyra will learn that her once small world is filled with a great deal more corruption and injustice than she ever thought possible.
Earthrise
M.C.A. Hogarth - 2013
So when a mysterious benefactor from her past shows up demanding she rescue a man from slavers, her first reaction is to run for the hills. Unfortunately, she did promise to repay the loan. But she didn't think it would involve tangling with pirates over a space elf prince...Book 1 of the Her Instruments trilogy is a rollicking adventure set in the expansive Pelted universe, and kicks off an epic space opera series where the fate of worlds hangs in the balance. Fans who enjoyed Firefly or Andromeda will like this series.
Rating: PG-13 for violenceTags: found family, woman protagonist, minority/POC protagonist, adventure, space opera, romance, furries, space elves
The Institute
Kayla Howarth - 2015
Always looking over your shoulder. The source of your fear? The Institute.Allira Daniels will do anything to keep her Defective brother safe from the Institute. They claim to protect Defectives, but it’s human nature to fear the unknown. Defectives are dangerous, they possess abilities that no human should be able to. To Allira and the rest of her family, the Institute seems more like a prison than the safe-haven they promote themselves to be. Protecting Shilah from that fate is their number one priority.When Allira stumbles across a car crash involving two of her school classmates, she ignores all of her father’s warnings of laying low and not drawing attention to herself. By doing so, she may have just caught the eye of the Institute. She’s not Defective, but what seventeen-year-old girl has the ability to pull two teenage boys away from a fiery rubble and walk away without a scratch? It would definitely be seen as suspicious.Allira and her family need to make decisions. Do they stay, or do they flee again? Will they be coming for her? Will her whole family come under investigation? Will they discover Shilah and his ability to predict the future?Are you Defective? The Institute is coming for you.
The Interstellar Age: The Complete Trilogy
Valmore Daniels - 2014
There is no trace of their young son, Alex Manez, or of the asteroid itself. On the outer edge of the solar system, the first manned mission to Pluto, led by the youngest female astronaut in NASA history, has led to an historic discovery: there is a marker left there by an alien race for humankind to find. We are not alone! While studying the alien marker, it begins to react. Four hours later, the missing asteroid appears in a Plutonian orbit, along with young Alex Manez, who has developed some alarming side-effects from his exposure to the kinetic element they call Kinemet. From the depths of a criminal empire based on Luna, an expatriate seizes the opportunity to wrest control of outer space, and takes swift action. The secret to faster-than-light speed is up for grabs, and the race for interstellar space begins! Music of the Spheres The technology for interstellar flight exists through the power of Kinemet, but the key to unlocking its code lies in a thousand-year-old scroll left on Earth by an alien species. When the ancient manual is stolen before a full translation is completed, Alex, Michael and Justine scramble to recover it. Along the way, they stumble on an interplanetary conspiracy and uncover a secret that shatters their view of life and shakes the very foundations of our existence. Worlds Away For a thousand years the Kulsat Armada has ravaged the galaxy searching for the lost legacy of an extinct race of technologically advanced beings. They destroy anyone who gets in their way. Now they have turned their attention to Earth and are gathering their forces for an invasion. Justine, Michael and Alex each hold a key to stopping the enemy, but they are worlds away from each other, and they are running out of time...
Immortal Vegas Boxset, #0.5-3
Jenn Stark - 2017
One Wilde Night Tarot-reading artifact hunter Sara Wilde has had her share of tough assignments, but this one just might take the cake. When her newest client hires her to steal a fertility idol from an Amazonian sex-and-death cult, she finds herself south of the equator and shoulder deep in true believers, while Rio de Janeiro gears up for the closing celebrations of Carnival. Stealing the idol is one thing, however. Keeping it is another.The arcane black market has drawn a host of cutthroat operatives and Sara's now in their sights. In a race across one of the most colorful cities in South America on its most famed night of the year, Sara must navigate cunning enemies, backstabbing allies, a fifty-foot wedding cake float and a new, sensually mysterious contact who may be friend or foe...and whose name she’ll never know if she doesn’t make it to dawn alive. Getting Wilde Using her well-worn Tarot deck, magical-artifacts hunter Sara Wilde can find anything--for a price. And the price had better be right, since she needs to finance her own personal mission to rescue several young psychics recently sold on the paranormal black market. Enter Sara's most mysterious client, the wickedly sexy Magician, with a job that could yield the ultimate payday. All she'll have to do is get behind Vatican walls... and steal the Devil himself. But play with the Devil and you're bound to get burned. From the twisting catacombs of Rome to the neon streets of Vegas, Sara confronts ancient enemies, powerful demigods, a roiling magical underworld about to explode... and immortal passions that might require the ultimate sacrifice. But oh, what a way to go. No matter how the cards play out, things are about to get Wilde. Wilde Card All that glitters may not be gold. When an antique gold show comes to Vegas, artifact-hunter Sara Wilde's job is simple: to locate and liberate a set of relics rumored to give their bearers access to an ancient, incredible power. Yet within the Connected community, whispers of a war against magic draw every psychic, mystic, warlock, and witch to Sin City. The most powerful Connected also covet the infamous relics, but no one wants them more than Sara's client--the insufferably arrogant, criminally sensual, and endlessly evasive Magician. Sara's heist takes a turn for the trickier as the smoky-eyed specter from her past, Detective Brody Rooks, is assigned to investigate a break-in at the gold show, forcing her to confront the one man in Vegas she can't bluff. Worse, as the game changes anew, Sara is forced to turn to the one person she knows will manipulate, obfuscate and beguile to get whatever he craves. Only now, it seems, the Magician wants her. Sometimes, when the deck is stacked against you... you've got to play the Wilde Card. Born To Be Wilde The past has a way of catching up with you.If there's one thing that Tarot-reading magical artifacts hunter Sara Wilde has never been able to track down, it's the truth about her own past. But now a powerful new threat to the psychic community will take Sara back to where it all began: the last job she worked with Officer Brody Rooks as "Psychic Teen Sariah," the job that destroyed her life and sent her on the run. Because the enemy she fled all those years ago has returned... with a posse of demons as his personal entourage.
The Underworld Saga, Books 1-3
Eva Pohler - 2015
A teen becomes entangled with the gods of Mount Olympus when Thanatos, the god of death, wants to meet her. He makes a deal with his father, Hades, to go to the upperworld. The deal requires that a murder be avenged with the help of his sisters, the Furies.Part paranormal romance and part adventure story, this trilogy follows Therese's adventures as she struggles to overcome challenges by the gods her in her quest to become like them.This series was initially written as a trilogy and can end with the third book, or you can keeping reading through all six. This box set includes the first three books only. Follow Therese's adventures as she strives to become a goddess in the ancient Greek pantheon.contains:#1 Thanatos (formerly The Gatekeeper's Sons)#2 Challenge of Hades (formerly The Gatekeeper's Challenge)#3 A New Goddess (formerly The Gatekeeper's Daughter)
Ghost Legion
Andreas Christensen - 2017
18 years ago they came to destroy us... A race of conquerors from deep space had set their eyes on Earth´s riches. Their invasion slaughtered billions... But humanity united under a common leadership and fought back. We chased them off Earth and most of the Solar System. The war still rages on, and every year young people are sent out to die, far away from Earth. Ethan Wang was born on the day of the invasion, during the chaos and turmoil of war, and now he´s ready to join the fight. But first he has to become a soldier, and survive his initiation into one of the toughest military units Earth ever mustered, the Ghost Legion. “Andreas Christensen is a master storyteller!” –SteadyRollingMan, Amazon reviewer With Ghost Legion, Andreas Christensen kicks off the Legionnaire Series, a military science fiction set in the near future. Suit up, and get ready for a roller coaster ride into space!
Magic and Mystery: Series Starter Boxed Set: 4 Series Beginnings
C.J. Archer - 2020
4 series beginnings. Magic and Mystery is a collection of the first books in four different series written by C.J. Archer. Each novel is intended to give you an introduction to fascinating new stories featuring magical fantasy, puzzling mysteries, enigmatic heroes and independent heroines. Hopefully you will find a brand new series to start (or maybe four!) The Watchmaker's Daughter (Glass and Steele book 1) India Steele is desperate. Her father is dead, her fiancé took her inheritance, and the only person who'll employ her is a mysterious man from America. A man who possesses a watch that keeps him alive. The Last Necromancer (The Ministry of Curiosities book 1) A waif, her kidnapper, and a twist you won't see coming. Charlie is being hunted for her dark magic, but only one man succeeds in capturing her. A man known as Death, as compelling as he is frightening. The Palace of Lost Memories (After the Rift book 1) The king's magnificent palace was built in a matter of weeks. No one saw the builders and no villagers are allowed beyond the gilded gate until a noblewoman is poisoned. The village doctor and his daughter, Josie, are allowed inside, but Josie soon learns the palace won't surrender its secrets easily, for not a single resident has a memory from before the palace existed. The Wrong Girl (The 1st Freak House book 1) It's customary for Gothic novels to include a mysterious girl locked in the attic. Hannah just wishes she wasn't that girl. As a narcoleptic with a strange affliction, Hannah knows she's lucky to have a roof over her head. Yet freedom is something she longs for. She did not, however, want her freedom to arrive in the form of abduction. Especially when she realizes her kidnappers got the wrong girl.
The Enemy of an Enemy
Vincent Trigili - 2010
A secret research colony has fallen silent and the forces sent to investigate were never heard from again. A new enemy has come to the Empire bringing with it dark powers that were abandoned long before the Empire was born. Powers that were thought to be legends and myths. It's up to Vydor to keep this force at bay and protect the Empire, but it may come at the cost of his faith and shake the foundations of the Empire itself. The Lost Tales of Power is an open-ended series of Sci-Fi/Fantasy books set in a vast multiverse featuring a mixture of traditional fantasy and science fiction elements. Lost Tales Series: Volume I - The Enemy of an Enemy Volume II - The Academy Volume III - Rise of Shadows Volume IV - Resurgence of Ancient Darkness Volume V - The Sac’a’rith Volume VI - Spectra’s Gambit Volume VII - The Sac'a'rith: Rebirth Volume VIII and beyond - TBA
The Honour of the Knights
Stephen J. Sweeney - 2009
And it would not be long before they themselves would come face to face with that which destroyed an empire: an unforgiving, unstoppable, and totally unrelenting foe.There seemed to exist only one glimmer of hope of driving back the darkness: The ATAF Project - a secretly developed set of starfighters that may well just harbour some terrible secrets of their own.Reviews:"A tightly plotted action-adventure yarn with a good mix of likeable, interesting and nasty characters" "Written with perspicacity and drive, with a strong voice and good attention to detail."124,000 words~ 450 pages
Hellfire
Drew Avera - 2014
Military Science Fiction Short Story Nate is a test pilot for the United States Army. Actually, he is the best damned test pilot period, even with the headaches. The United States is developing a new kind of piloted war machine with the help of Franklin Industries and they have secured some of the most high tech, abrasive equipment on the planet. Does it work? According to the test pilot, it works like a champ. If that's the case, then why is everything shrouded in mystery at the end of Nate's test flight? Furthermore, why does Nate suffer such horrific migraines? Read here to find out!
Ravenstone
M.S. Verish - 2018
The unlikely company sent to retrieve it consists of Arcturus, an exiled politician with a fondness for wine, Kariayla, a winged slave girl on a quest for redemption, Jinx, an unlucky thief and his imp counterpart, and Hawkwing, the wizard’s personal spy, at the helm.Distrust, secrets, and inexperience threaten to compromise the mission as the group is forced to travel in the company of the enemy. Doubt turns to the wizard who employed them on this precarious quest, and as the Priagent marches toward his goal, a second Cataclysm is imminent. Yet even he is driven by another—a darker force that has yet to reveal itself.The Ravenstone's ominous Shadow obscures the fate of Secramore, and unless the threat is vanquished, none will be spared the curse of its darkness.
Vesik: Box Set I
Eric R. Asher - 2016
I am a necromancer, an ability feared and hated as much as the powers my master and I set ourselves against. We've vanquished many evils, but now something is releasing an old darkness, forcing us to hunt an enemy beyond anything I’ve faced before. I was already busy enough with vampires, fairies, witches, Watchers, weddings, and … damn, I need a vacation.Wolves and the River of Stone (Book 2) Philip, Zola’s boyfriend from one hundred and fifty years ago, is not nearly as dead as we thought. I really wish he was. Not only has he kidnapped Zola, but he’s raising an army to scour humanity from the earth. Hopefully the local werewolf pack will help. What could possibly go wrong?Winter's Demon (Book 3) Some things can never be undone. The horrors I've defeated—or even caused—with my own hands … they are nothing compared to what’s coming. Philip Pinkerton has brought his madness upon my family, my own blood. His army of necromancers is on the move, harbingers of a great darkness. I fear the war has begun... and damn, I don't get paid enough for this.
Peace Warrior
Steven L. Hawk - 2010
Grant awakens to a civilization that has abolished war. A civilization that has outlawed violence and cherishes Peace above all else. A civilization that has been enslaved by an alien race called the Minith. Grant is humankind s final hope against the alien menace. He must be the Peace Warrior.Professionally re-edited edition of Peace Warrior, dated August 2011.