Book picks similar to
Hide the Lightning (The Coalition Book 1) by Kevin Steverson
1st-in-series
3-sci-fi
alien-all-sci-fi-and-sci-fi-romance
not-interested-in-sequel
Dying World
Chris Fox - 2020
Soon the continents themselves will break apart. The ships are gone. There's no way off. But I'm not giving up. I'm a Relic Hunter...an archeologist with a gun, and I have a plan. Our people arrived on Kemet thousands of years ago in the wake of a terrible space battle. The Great Ships are still up there, ancient derelict hulks powered by a combination of technology and magic, created by gods we no longer remember or understand. If I can get one of those ships active, maybe I can save myself. Maybe I can save everyone. A brand new series in the Amazon Bestselling Magitech Chronicles universe. Magitech Legacy begins several months after the events of Godswar, and as the series unfolds you’ll encounter your favorite heroes from the perspective of a new protagonist! Want to make your own characters? The Magitech Legacy uses the Magitech Chronicles RPG system, and allows you to be part of the action long after you finish the books. Learn more at magitechchronicles.com or by googling Magitech Chronicles World Anvil
Scimitar's Glory (Swordships Odyssey)
Dietmar Arthur Wehr - 2018
7th Fleet discovers that one of those races is moving to attack. In a moment of panic, the commanding admiral orders the fleet to attempt a risky jump through hyperspace. They miss hitting their target star’s gravity well and end up deep in unexplored space with a shockingly long trip home and not nearly enough food to last that long. With war now raging in their home systems, the officers of 7th Fleet must find a way to put aside their egos, ambitions and fears in order to make it back, and they know that not all of them will. Scimitar’s Glory is the first book in a new, fast-paced, action-packed military SF series: Swordships Odyssey. The second book, Excalibur's Quest, is already available for pre-order. Excerpt: With a long, risky jump like this, Dejanus would have expected Corregidor’s astrogational AI to take at least ten minutes to aim the ship as precisely as possible to the distant star’s center. She was therefore surprised and somewhat alarmed when the flagship signaled to the rest of the fleet that they could start to match her trajectory after only half that time. “Goddammit, what’s the rush?” she said to Koenig who was the only other human on the Bridge. “There’s no possible way the Jab fleet can catch us before we jump, even if we take another hour to do it. Why not take a few extra minutes to get the most accurate trajectory possible?” When it became clear that Koenig had nothing to say, she continued. “Astro, I want you to check the flagship’s alignment with Alpha9 while we match vectors. Let me know if you think the flagship’s vector could be better.” That extra task delayed Excalibur’s alignment, and therefore she became the last ship in the fleet to signal her readiness for the jump. “Fleet Commander on Tac2, Commander,” said the com AI. Dejanus switched channels to her Command Pod. “Excalibur Actual speaking,” said Dejanus in the formal form of address that ship COs normally didn’t bother with. “What’s taking your Astro so long to get aligned, Commander?” Rostov didn’t bother to hide his annoyance. “Just double-checking the overall jump trajectory, Admiral.” Dejanus thought she heard Rostov swear under his breath, but it could have been her imagination. “You tell your Astro that if Excalibur isn’t aligned in the next two minutes, I’ll order him replaced and transferred to a cargo hauler. FC out!” The astro AI managed to get the ship aligned within the deadline to no one’s surprise. With all ships in the fleet now aligned perfectly with the flagship and jump velocity attained, the order was given to enter hyperspace. It was 131.3 hours later when both Koenig and Dejanus were on the Bridge again watching the jump chronometer countdown to the second when the ship should drop back down into normal space. Koenig watched the countdown clock hit zero and then start counting up again. After ten more seconds, Dejanus began shaking her head. She had a horrified expression on her face. “We’ve missed. That bastard has killed us all.” Genre categories: space fleet, military SF, space opera, galactic empire, alien invasion, first contact, space exploration.
Gun Ship
Mark Wayne McGinnis - 2020
During the day, he’s a South Chicago high school janitor, slopping a mop around from nine o’clock to three o’clock five days a week. At night, hiding out in an old boarded-up factory, he attends to his damaged interstellar spacecraft—making repairs—counting the days when he can return to his homeworld of Calunoth. All he needs to do is mind his own business—avoid any messy human dramas for just a few more weeks. But it is on one of those quiet nights when he hears them outside—the MP140s. Named for a police radio code for murder, these bangers are among the worst, most ruthless killers in the entire city. Peering down from the 3rd-floor window, Babar recognizes the quiet hermit boy below him, the one with the ugly facial scars, walking into a death trap. Little does Babar realize at the time that this scared, complicated, seventeen-year-old will be the key to saving the distant Realm of Dom Dynasty.
A Warm Place: Prelude - A Post-Apocalyptic Men's Adventure
Misty Vixen - 2020
Billions are now dead due to starvation, disease, civil unrest, and the plummeting temperatures. What remains of humanity now live in small settlements or isolated makeshift villages, carving out miserable lives in this grim new reality.Some, like Chris Weston, choose to travel among the vast winter wastelands between the bastions of civilization. In the aftermath of the great collapse, Chris finds himself strangely suited for this new world. Strong, motivated, patient, and already possessing a fair amount of knowledge on wilderness survival, he’s lucky enough to feed the strong urge of wanderlust that grips him despite the new, icebound Earth.While walking along a lonely highway, Chris comes across an isolated gas station, an almost-functional vehicle, and a very attractive woman. Her name is Mary, and he learns she is very amenable to some hot fun in exchange for a safe escort to civilization…A WARM PLACE contains detailed, hot sexual encounters and scenes of violence.
Adrift
Timothy Ellis - 2021
Where do you go after being Destiny’s Spacemage?What do you do after wielding an order of magic never seen in the galaxy before?Who have you become?And what is there left to do?Bud saved the Imperium, but didn’t cease to exist as he expected.Now unable to go home because he is actually there, he must find a new purpose.Some higher must want him in the past, but what do they want him to do?For Bud it comes down to one feeling, summed up by one word.Adrift.
Seeker One (Voyages of the Seeker Book 1)
Clint Hollingsworth - 2019
For one thing, Tanner is still recovering from being in stasis for 150 years, with some odd and unexpected side effects.These side effects might be what his commanders are interested in. Is Tanner being used for some purpose which will shorten his career abruptly, or does he have a future with the Deep Space Initiative? Are the DSI's enemies all on the outside, or are some on the ship?Half human and half alien, Tanner is no stranger to being an outsider. Turns out his Laldoralin alien father is behind Tanner's early promotion. Can Tanner trust the motives of an absent father he hasn't seen for 150 years - and then some?This young cadet has a lot to learn about space, alien worlds, working with others on a spaceship, figuring out who is really out to get him, and coming to terms with his own abilities.An amazing journey lies ahead for Cadet Voss.Hopefully he will survive it.By the author of the award-winning Mac Crow wilderness thriller series.
Ripples of the Past (The Pages of Time, #2)
Damian Knight - 2018
Although Sam and his friends are now safe, he has lost the girl he loves and remains no closer to reversing the plane crash that has torn his family apart. As he struggles to make sense of this new reality, Sam sets out to obtain a supply of Tetradyamide, the drug that enhances his ability, and finds himself pursued by forces of both good and evil as he is sucked into a conspiracy that runs far deeper than he could ever have imagined.
Hope Renewed (Raj Whitehall Collection Combo Volumes Book 3)
David Drake - 2014
With planets cut off and reduced to subsistence and ignorance, humanity has nearly forgotten its past greatness. But one battle computer has survived the Collapse. He is Center. And Center is determined to find and aid leaders who can return a star-faring republic to the galaxy. The first of these leaders is Raj Whitehall, a man born to be a general, and molded to retake civilization itself from the jaws of barbarism.The SwordFor five years Raj Whitehall has led his men across the face of the planet Bellevue. With saber and bayonet he has conquered one barbarian nation after another. Now his greatest enemy is his own overlord, Barholm Clerett, who's so paranoid of Raj's victories that he is reduced to onlAbout the Raj Whitehall series:“[T]old with knowledge of military tactics and hardware, and vividly described action . . . devotees of military SF should enjoy themselves.”—Publishers Weekly“[A] thoroughly engrossing military sf series . . . superb battle scenes, ingenious weaponry and tactics, homages to Kipling, and many other goodies. High fun.”—BooklistAbout David Drake:“[P]rose as cold and hard s the metal alloy of a tank … rivals Crane and Remarque …” –Chicago Sun-Times“Drake couldn’t write a bad action scene at gunpoint.” –BooklistThe General SeriesThe ForgeS. M. StirlingDavid DrakeThe HammerS. M. StirlingDavid DrakeThe AnvilS. M. StirlingDavid DrakeThe SteelS. M. StirlingDavid DrakeThe SwordS. M. StirlingDavid DrakeThe ChosenS. M. StirlingDavid DrakeThe ReformerS. M. StirlingDavid DrakeThe TyrantEric FlintDavid DrakeThe HereticTony DanielDavid DrakeThe SaviorTony DanielDavid DrakeOmnibus EditionsWarlordDavid DrakeS. M. StirlingContains The Forge and The HammerConquerorDavid DrakeS. M. StirlingContains The Anvil and The SteelHope RebornDavid DrakeS. M. StirlingContains The Forge and The HammerHope RearmedDavid DrakeS. M. StirlingContains The Anvil and The SteelThe Army took David Drake from Duke Law School and sent him on a motorized tour of Viet Nam and Cambodia with the 11th Cav, the Blackhorse. He learned new skills, saw interesting sights, and met exotic people who hadn't run fast enough to get away.
High Mountain Hunters
William Alan Webb - 2020
Now one man—Ganju Limbu—wants to use their heritage of courage and loyalty to bring prosperity to Nepal, and he is one of two men selected to head Mercenary Guild-sanctioned Ghurka mercenary companies.Nothing is ever easy, though, and there are forces—both Human and alien—who don’t want to see the Ghurkas succeed, and they will go to great lengths to stop the Ghurka Rifles from ever getting off planet. Other forces hope they do get off planet…so they can take advantage of them.When Limbu and the Rifles take their first contract, everything seems easy—too easy for what they’re being paid to do—leaving Limbu to wonder what he isn’t being told. Treachery abounds, and the Rifles are on a collision force with an alien army that outnumbers them ten to one, leaving them with only their courage and guile to stave off defeat.For the Ghurkas, though, it’s better to die than be defeated, so they will have to come up with a strategy that turns the tables on the enemy, or the Gurkha Rifles’ first contract will also be their last!
When Eagles Dare
Doug Dandridge - 2018
Land on the middle of a 7.5-mile-high plateau, walk six miles to the edge of the cliff, and scale down the 39,000-foot-high cliffs to the foothills of the canyon below. Nothing to it, right? But then there was the swamp they had to cross, full of large indigenous life forms that thought Humans made good snacks. And the rivers, full of other killers, they would have to negotiate. And then there were the Xlatan, a race of six-legged killers guarding the target. A relatively new mercenary race, although one more established than the Humans, the Xlatan were supposed to be tough. Maybe not—quite—as tough as the Besquith, but close enough to give a number of other merc races the chills when they went up against them. The Fierce Eagle Company only needed to traverse the planet, stay alive, and then surveil the operation the Xlatan were guarding to gather intelligence for the CASPer-equipped merc company that was enroute to destroy the operation. The mission would have been nearly impossible, all on its own. There’s just one more thing, though, that they don’t know. They’ve been set up, and the heavy forces aren’t coming. Still, anything is possible…When Eagles Dare.
Resurrection
Scott Nicholson - 2018
A researcher studying the virus suffers a fever and launches into a bloody killing spree that ends with two police officers dead. A second researcher, Dr. Meg Perriman, has just flown home for the Easter holiday with her family in North Carolina, unknowingly carrying the virus. Within days, the infection spreads across the planet, sparking martial law, chaos, and widespread slaughter as many of the infected turn into flesh-eating zombies. Meg and a few others appear to be immune, however, and the survivors gather in a megachurch called Promiseland that the U.S. government has established as an emergency shelter. The Rev. Cameron Ingram, a charismatic televangelist the president has appointed as the “zombie czar,” believes the catastrophe is a sign of the Biblical apocalypse. When a rash of natural disasters accompany the outbreak and civilization breaks down, people turn to Ingram for salvation in the face of fear and despair. But Meg and her group of friends soon discover Ingram is not what he appears, and they are caught between the devil and the living dead.
Inadvertent Adventures
Loren K. Jones - 2016
Shanghaied after he thought his luck had changed for the better, Sterling Stevenson was finding his luck changing in totally unexpected ways. Now called Silver Garand, the navigator of the small trade vessel Jolly Jane, his luck was leading him from one inadvertent adventure to another.
Earth Warden
Tony James Slater - 2018
Their sacred duty: to protect humanity from itself… and from everything else. Lord Anakreon, Warden of the First Circle, has a problem. He’s been forced to kill another apprentice, and he’s rapidly running out of candidates. In fact, there is precisely one left… On Earth, Tristan Andrews is in trouble. He has been ever since the day his dad left for work – and never came home. Seven years later, living with one foot on the street, Tristan is struggling to survive. Until a tough old man with a scarred face breaks into his house. He claims to have the answers Tristan seeks… But there’s a price.