Book picks similar to
Unidentified by Michael McBride
horror
sci-fi
aliens
novella
Who Goes There?
John W. Campbell Jr. - 1938
Campbell classic about an antarctic research camp that discovers and thaws the ancient, frozen body of a crash-landed alien. The creature revives with terrifying results, shape-shifting to assume the exact form of animal and man, alike. Paranoia ensues as a band of frightened men work to discern friend from foe, and destroy the menace before it challenges all of humanity! The story, hailed as "one of the finest science fiction novellas ever written" by the SF Writers of America, is best known to fans as THE THING, as it was the basis of Howard Hawks' The Thing From Another World in 1951, and John Carpenter's The Thing in 1982. With a new Introduction by William F. Nolan, author of Logan's Run, and his never-before-published, suspenseful Screen Treatment written for Universal Studios in 1978, this is a must-have edition for scifi and horror fans!
Maelstrom
Peter Cawdron - 2017
For hundreds of years, the danger posed by colliding worlds has been ignored as a crackpot theory, until now, and now it's too late. Maelstrom contains three novellas set in the Colliding Worlds universe (Collision, Impact and the conclusion, Maelstrom). Collision was commissioned by Vanquish Motion Pictures for possible development in film or on television.
Purified
Brian Robert Smith - 2013
You’re miles from anywhere. You have no clothes, no food, no money... You’re dead, Mason.”As far as everyone else is concerned, Mason Bushing died over a year ago, but now he’s running from Dr. Harlow who is secretly conducting an unauthorized experiment for a drug he calls Purify. It saved Mason’s life, but Mason is focused on getting what he wants most—his old life back. His plans change when he realizes his wife is more interested in the insurance money she inherited than seeing him alive. His best friend doesn’t believe his story, and the police intend on charging him with fraud and assault after he almost kills his wife’s boyfriend.Warren is a detective who’s assigned the case. He’s been on personal leave because his wife died. His investigation turns up suspicions of lying, disturbing coincidences, and related homicides.When Mason becomes the prime suspect, he’s forced to run again.Imagine having to run from someone who saved your life. Imagine everyone thinking you’re dead, but you’re really alive. Questions, accusations, conspiracies… murder. What if this was all caused by a drug that’s creating the next physical evolution of man? What would you do if you were Purified?
The Reapers are the Angels
Alden Bell - 2010
A young girl named Temple is on the run. Haunted by her past and pursued by a killer, Temple is surrounded by death and danger, hoping to be set free.For twenty-five years, civilization has survived in meager enclaves, guarded against a plague of the dead. Temple wanders this blighted landscape, keeping to herself - and keeping her demons inside. She can't remember a time before the zombies, but she does remember an old man who took her in and the younger brother she cared for until the tragedy that set her on a personal journey toward redemption. Moving back and forth between the insulated remnants of society and the brutal frontier beyond, Temple must decide where ultimately to make a home and find the salvation she seeks.
The Untethered
S.W. Southwick - 2017
But when a few unrepentant ladies join his fight to live free, the Las Vegas desert is going to light up like the 4th of July.
Impermanent Universe: A Sci Fi Thriller
Vern Buzarde - 2021
I highly recommend it to Sci-Fi fans." - Pikasho Deka...Readers' Favorites.When NASA computer scientist Tess Carrillo watches Ryan Quinn die in a spaceship seventy million miles away, her life becomes a blurry web of misery and vodka.But when a mysterious visionary recruits her to lead a team of eccentric experts in a top-secret effort to create the mind of the first sentient artificial intelligence, her life starts to change in unfathomable ways.And now the machine is waking…But there’s a problem.It’s networking… With another dimension.As the AI evolves, dimensional lines start to blend and fray, opening a door to another world… One with him. Only in this reality, Ryan is in a rock band, and Tess is an artist, both on the cusp of fame.As Tess finds herself moving back and forth between separate realities, she starts to question if either is real. And if so…which one?The answer lies in secrets more terrifying than anything she could imagine.Equipped only with clues scattered throughout her consciousness, time, and space, she struggles to make sense of the separate realities that seem to be colliding.As the puzzle pieces fall into place, a terrible threat is revealed, and she’s forced to face a shocking truth before both worlds end.If you love face-paced page-turners with unforgettable characters and real science, Impermanent Universe will keep you reading well beyond your self-allotted time.Join the adventure.“Outstanding Science Fiction....one of the best things I’ve read in a long time. And I read a lot." - Amazon Reviewer"Both Impermanent Universe and The Navigator are exquisitely crafted novels that will keep you reading well beyond your self-allotted time. Creative beyond belief, they give one a sense of truth regarding the immortality of Being through multifaceted forever-regenerative Consciousness." - Amazon Reviewer"This book is a treasure for those who love in-depth philosophical science fiction material" - Amazon Reviewer
Whom the Gods Would Destroy
Brian Hodge - 2013
His mother and brother shared an unfathomable bond that left him excluded from their lives. Yet his earliest, fragmentary memory of them was so nightmarish, their lives were something he ran from as soon as he could.Now an astronomy graduate student in Seattle, Damien is happy with his place as a speck in a cosmos vast beyond comprehension. Until his brother turns up after 13 years, to make amends and seek his expertise on a discovery that may not be of this Earth. The more the world expands to admit the possibilities of a universe stranger than even Damien has imagined, the greater is his urgency to resist being reclaimed by a past that never seemed to want him…until now.Like a collision of galaxies between H.P. Lovecraft and Carl Sagan, Whom the Gods Would Destroy looks to the night skies as the source of our greatest wonder, and finds them swarming with our worst fears.
Sonora and the Eye of the Titans
T.S. Hall - 2011
With the help of her bumbling warlock guardian Sasquatch and her three best friends, Allora must find the answers to a complex riddle that will reveal the location of a powerful artifact used during the time of the Titan Wars.
Interest
Kevin Gaughen - 2015
It’s nothing that a stiff drink won’t cure. After all, bad news only hurts optimists.But when the mysterious leader of the rebels cherry-picks him to acquire certain information for her, Len is forced to go on an investigative mission where he uncovers millennia-old secrets and unwittingly triggers a chain of disturbing events that will determine the future of humankind.Author Kevin Gaughen’s dynamic debut novel, Interest, creates a seamless alternate reality behind real-world political tensions while keeping pace with its page-turning plot. Interest is as riveting as it is thought-provoking.Who really runs the world we live in? The further Len digs, the darker the answers appear to be…
The Hive
Barry Lyga - 2019
Social media used to be out of control, after all. People were torn apart by trolls and doxxers. Even hackers - like Cassie's dad - were powerless against it. But then the Hive came. A better way to sanction people for what they do online. Cause trouble, get too many "condemns," and a crowd can come after you, teach you a lesson in real life. It's safer, fairer and perfectly legal. Entering her senior year of high school, filled with grief over an unexpected loss, Cassie is primed to lash out. Egged on by new friends, she makes an edgy joke online. Cassie doubts anyone will notice. But the Hive notices everything. And as her viral comment whips an entire country into a frenzy, the Hive demands retribution. One moment Cassie is anonymous; the next, she's infamous. And running for her life. With nowhere to turn, she must learn to rely on herself - and a group of Hive outcasts who may not be reliable - as she slowly uncovers the truth about the machine behind the Hive. New York Times bestselling authors Barry Lyga and Morgan Baden have teamed up for the first time to create a novel that's gripping, terrifying and more relevant every day, based on a story proposal by Jennifer Beals and Tom Jacobson.
14
Peter Clines - 2012
Strange light fixtures. Mutant cockroaches. There are some odd things about Nate’s new apartment.Of course, he has other things on his mind. He hates his job. He has no money in the bank. No girlfriend. No plans for the future. So while his new home isn’t perfect, it’s livable. The rent is low, the property managers are friendly, and the odd little mysteries don’t nag at him too much.At least, not until he meets Mandy, his neighbour across the hall, and notices something unusual about her apartment. And Xela’s apartment. And Tim’s. And Veek’s. Because every room in this old Los Angeles brownstone has a mystery or two. Mysteries that stretch back over a hundred years. Some of them are in plain sight. Some are behind locked doors. And all together these mysteries could mean the end of Nate and his friends. Or the end of everything...
An Assassin Is Born
Simon Harrak - 2018
AND HE’S ABOUT TO BE UNLEASHED.
Frederich Abel knows he’s not normal, but being adopted age seven by an elite soldier isn’t why. It lies deeper inside - a morbid, unhinged savagery. Invisible. Deadly.Luckily, his father helped him control it with a mixture of weapons, combat and survival training. Now, his father is dead, and the shadow has emerged stronger than ever. He flees in panic, ending up in cold, grimy Berlin.He’s on edge, until Ida’s scream through the rain pulls him into action. He’s forced to kill, unaware that the perpetrator had dangerous friends - powerful enough to tame world governments. It's time to decide; flee again, or face the darkness - both inside and out.
‘An Assassin Is Born’ is the intriguing origin story of Frederich Abel and the first book in the ‘Wrath Of Abel’ crime-action book series.
Blackout
Tim Curran - 2014
First come the flashing lights, then the heavy rains, high winds, and finally a total blackout. But that's only the beginning... When the whipping black tentacles fall from the sky and begin snatching people at random, the denizens of Piccamore Way must discover the terrifying truth of what these beings have planned for the human race.
Two Truths and a Lie
Sarah Pinsker - 2020
But he does remember. And so does her mom. So why doesn’t Stella? The more she investigates the show and the grip it has on her hometown, the eerier the mystery grows.At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Criterium
Tyler Jones - 2020
The prose is perfect, the story beautifully balanced, and the atmosphere is so strong it feels like you could cut it with a knife. Haunting, uncanny and profound: the strongest and most compelling new voice that I've read in a very long time."- Michael Marshall Smith, author of Only Forward and The Straw Men“A haunting masterclass in storytelling.”– Eric LaRocca, author of Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke"Criterium is a haunting, visceral, gripping story filled with symbolism and allegory. Buckle up for a wild ride that will leave you bruised, shaken, and filled with dread. Tyler Jones is an author to keep an eye on."- Richard Thomas, author of Disintegration and Spontaneous Human Combustion"Jones’ prose in Criterium is like a shot of adrenaline to the heart. Once you turn that first page, you give over any control you once had, and this book will steamroll you into the ride of your life…you can almost feel the wind in your face and the heat on your flesh…he writes this story to within an inch of its life… there are moments of frenzied paranoia and then subtle and melancholic moments of sadness, grief and aloneness. It’s intoxicating.- Ross Jeffery, Bram Stoker nominated author of Juniper and Tome“Criterium is a high-octane ride in every way imaginable. A magnificent example of the type of storytelling that can be achieved through the novella form…mixes relatable real-life grief with metaphor that embodies what addiction horror can be.– Brennan LaFaro, author of Slattery Falls“Criterium is a gut-wrenching emotional rollercoaster into the real-life horrors of addiction and sorrow. Tyler Jones knows how to hit you where it'll hurt. I highly recommend this story to readers of the supernatural horror genre that are looking for a story that will leave you numb and breathless.– Andrew Fowlow, The Horror Oasis“Jones managed to write one of my favorite books of the year and I don’t say that lightly. His prose is flawless, the ambiance is stunning, and the story has a beautiful darkness…it consumed me in a big way. It will eat you up and spit you out. Criterium is intelligent, haunting, and emotional with a compelling plot that combines the hell of addiction with horror seamlessly. I couldn’t put it down if I wanted.– Janelle Janson, SheReadsWithCats“Tyler Jones’ first novella is an unflinching and compassionate view into the black hole of addiction and grief. An intriguing and novel premise that drags real life horror into the depths of the supernatural—compulsively readable.”– Laurel Hightower, author of Crossroads and Whispers in the Dark“What a ride. Criterium is unpredictable, fast-paced, and bleeds with heart. Tyler Jones is one to watch.– Scott J. Moses, author of Hunger Pangs"This book spoke to me on an emotional and spiritual level. I was moved. Haunted. An arresting story from start to finish...such a powerful piece. I'm adding Zach Ayers to my list of fictional characters who live in my soul forever. His story is achingly beautiful."- Sadie Hartmann, Cemetery Dance