Book picks similar to
Aliens in the Gift Shop by D.E. Morris
e-o
explore
fantasy-paranormal
first-reads
Jennifer Government
Max Barry - 2002
It's a globalised, ultra-capitalist free market paradise! Hack Nike is a lowly merchandising officer who's not very good at negotiating his salary. So when John Nike and John Nike, executives from the promised land of Marketing, offer him a contract, he signs without reading it. Unfortunately, Hack's new contract involves shooting teenagers to build up street cred for Nike's new line of $2,500 trainers. Hack goes to the police—but they assume that he's asking for a subcontracting deal and lease the assassination to the more experienced NRA. Enter Jennifer Government, a tough-talking agent with a barcode tattoo under her eye and a personal problem with John Nike (the boss of the other John Nike). And a gun. Hack is about to find out what it really means to mess with market forces.
Terminal Alliance
Jim C. Hines - 2017
This would have worked out better for all involved if they hadn’t arrived after a mutated plague wiped out half the planet, turned the rest into shambling, near-unstoppable animals, and basically destroyed human civilization. You know—your standard apocalypse. The Krakau’s first impulse was to turn their ships around and go home. After all, it’s hard to establish diplomatic relations with mindless savages who eat your diplomats. Their second impulse was to try to fix us. A century later, human beings might not be what they once were, but at least they’re no longer trying to eat everyone. Mostly.Marion “Mops” Adamopoulos is surprisingly bright (for a human). As a Lieutenant on the Earth Mercenary Corps Ship Pufferfish, she’s in charge of the Shipboard Hygiene and Sanitation team. When a bioweapon attack by an alien race wipes out the Krakau command crew and reverts the rest of the humans to their feral state, only Mops and her team are left with their minds intact.Escaping the attacking aliens—not to mention her shambling crewmates—is only the beginning. Sure, Mops and her assortment of space janitors and plumbers can clean the ship, but flying the damn thing is another matter. As they struggle to keep the Pufferfish functioning and find a cure for their crew, they stumble onto a conspiracy that could threaten the entire alliance.A conspiracy born from the truth of what happened on Earth all those years ago…
Hybrid
Greg Ballan - 2007
Keener senses, heightened awareness and an enhanced physical strength that could be called upon by his sheer will. Erik becomes involved with a team of high profile investigators and local police trying to locate a girl who was kidnapped in the middle of a playground amongst dozens of adults and children. None of the adults saw anything and what the children claim to have seen is too far fetched to be believed. The search evolves into a full-scale manhunt into the dark and desolate woodlands of the Hopedale Mountain. After a lethal encounter and a fatality, Erik, the investigators and police realize that what they're dealing with isn't a man and possibly isn't of this world. What they're dealing with is a sentient evil that has an appetite for young children.
The Yanthus Prime Job: A Pepper Melange Novella
Robert Kroese - 2016
But when she finds herself in debt to the Ursa Minor Mafia, she decides to bet everything on one more score: the theft of the Emerald of Sobalt Prime, the most valuable gem in the galaxy. To pull off the heist, Pepper has to recruit some very unusual allies--as well as outwit local law enforcement and the Mob. It's a delicate and dangerous balancing act, and when Pepper learns the truth about the Emerald, she realizes she's only a pawn in a game far beyond her understanding....
The Immortalists
Kyle Mills - 2011
Richard Draman is trying desperately to discover a cure for a disease that causes children to age at a wildly accelerated rate—a rare genetic condition that is killing his own daughter. When the husband of a colleague quietly gives him a copy of the classified work she was doing before her mysterious suicide, Draman finally sees a glimmer of hope. The conclusions are stunning, with the potential to not only turn the field of biology on its head, but reshape the world. Soon, though, he finds himself on the run, relentlessly pursued by a seemingly omnipotent group of men who will do whatever it takes to silence him.
Star Crusades Uprising: The Second Trilogy
Michael G. Thomas - 2012
This epic science fiction series chronicles humanity's first interstellar confederation, torn apart by religious strife and extremism.BATTLE FOR PROXIMAIn this latest book of the Star Crusades Uprising series the Confederacy is on its knees. Months of war have lost them most of the populated colonies and more will surely follow. Spartan, now a Lieutenant in the Marine Corps has been given his own special platoon, the Vanguards. Using the best weapons and armour in the Confederate arsenal, his unit is thrown back to the Bone Mill to locate information that could change the war.FALL OF TERRA NOVAThe action shifts to Terra Nova, the shining beacon of humanity and the single most important planet in the Confederacy. Guarding access to this isolated planet is the Anomaly. This mysterious location is the gateway to Terra Nova and the rest of the Confederacy. When the Echidna Union begins moving scores of ships to the Anomaly, Admiral Jarvis must make a critical decision that could win or lose the war. Either she continues Operation Perdition and reclaims the lost colonies of Proxima Centauri, or she sends the fleet to take control of the Anomaly and the route to Terra Nova in one final apocalyptical battle.SLAVES OF HYPERIONThe newly founded Alliance rises from the ruins of the old Confederacy. Scattered groups of the enemy remain, but organised resistance has been crushed. Amnesty has been granted to those still at large and peace has returned to the war torn colonies. Or has it? This expanding saga includes the Star Crusades Uprising and new Star Crusades Nexus series that follows the story of the Centauri Alliance seventeen years after the end of the Uprising.
The Bear That Fell From The Stars
Keith C. Blackmore - 2011
On the night he decides to strike, his life, and his world, are forever changed. Alien scientists from across the cosmos, abduct and place Kazaka in deep storage for centuries. When they revive him with the intent to subject him to extraterrestrial evisceration, the ninja escapes. The shadow warrior then begins to hunt his captors, one by one, leading up to a battle that will shake the galaxy.The Bear That Fell From the StarsA different kind of alien terror. NOTE: This is a Novella of approx. 20,000 words, or about 60 pages.Science Fiction Fantasy and not hard SciFi.Some scenes of graphic violence.
Dial D for Deadman
Barry J. Hutchison - 2017
In an alien city torn apart by crooked cops and ruthless criminals, private detective, Dan Deadman, specializes in cases unusual and bizarre. Sure, he doesn't smell great, and he's technically been dead for quite some time, but if you've got a rampaging Hell-beast tearing up your street, or a portal to another dimension appearing in your bathroom, Dan's your man. After saving a mysterious young woman named Ollie from the clutches of something big, slimy, and unpleasant, Dan gets entangled in a missing child case, a string of grisly murders, and a severed woman's arm that just won't leave him alone. And then there's the demonic entity who'll stop at nothing to get its tentacles on Ollie, even if it means destroying the whole damn planet. Times like these, Dan would give his right nut to be a real detective. If he still had nuts. From the pages of Space Team: The Guns of Nana Joan, "Dial D for Deadman" is the first darkly comedic action adventure novel starring Dan Deadman, Space Detective.
Echo of Tomorrow: Book One
Rob Buckman - 2014
They say that vengeance is a dish best served cold, but to the men and woman who went with him over the border to deliver that vengeance, it was dish served hot, and out of the barrel of a gun and cannon, and from the air. Yet in victory came defeat as he found three hundred years later in the world he woke up in. One far different from the one he'd left behind when he went into cold sleep. Now he had to find a place in this strange new world, one without the means to wage war against an alien race raping the planet of its young people. First, he had to build an army, navy and air force from scratch while fending off attacks from the aliens and the secret government that wanted to put him and his men back into cold sleep or the grave.
I, the Provocateur
Vardan Partamyan - 2013
Take a stroll on the beach and be mesmerized by the perpetual eruptions of our volcano mines – number one suppliers of interstellar travel fuel in the colonized galaxy! Head to a government approved bar and enjoy our exclusive brand of alcohol that is strong like a real patriot should be. While there, you will listen to our national songs that you will memorize before your departure. The capital Nerayah is full of landmarks and attractions not to be missed by any respectful visitor. You will stay in the best hotel in town – The Imperial Star of Glorious Remania. You will go to the Central Media Tower, visit the Eternal Freedom Square to pay your unquestionably profound respect to the Supreme Council residing there. You will attend cultural performances and visit other landmarks required by the itinerary provided to you on your arrival. While in Remania, you will be watched on a permanent basis. You are not to deviate from your route or make any unauthorized contact with any citizen of our peace-loving land. You are to watch at least four hours of Truthovision every day of your stay on the planet. Your movements will be monitored by the Police, the Secret Police, the Elite Guard, as well as by our clerical staff. The patriotic citizens of Remania will also be watching you and reporting any unlawful behavior at their local honesty hub. Enjoy your stay in Remania – your experience will be unforgettable in more ways than you can imagine. * This ad was approved by the Central Media Committee – resolution 75478.
The Thirteenth Man
J.L. Doty - 2012
Larson, Lois McMaster Bujold, and more!
When Commander Charlie Cass, the bastard son of the Duke de Maris, returns from five years in a squalid Syndonese POW camp, he finds that little has changed in the Realm. As always, the King and the nine Dukes are conspiring against each other, but now some of them are plotting with Charlie’s old enemy—and as interstellar war looms, they certainly don’t need Charlie Cass messing up their delicate plans. Unfortunately for them, that’s what he’s best at.Which means he’ll likely face the headsman’s axe. Spanning the galaxy, The Thirteenth Man blends the best traditions of space opera and military sci-fi into a non-stop adventure that’s as much Patrick O’Brien as it is John Scalzi.
Carrots
Colleen Helme - 2011
Her life is organized and predictable, revolving around her husband and two children. All that changes the day she stops at the grocery store for some carrots. As the cashier rings up her purchases, a gunman is busy robbing the bank inside the store. When a customer grabs the robber's mask, he is shot and everyone runs for cover. Everyone except Shelby, who finds herself face to face with the killer. The next thing she knows, she's lying on the floor with a bullet wound to her head. Luckily, the bullet only grazes her scalp, and she doesn't suspect any lasting affects until later, when she suddenly 'hears' what people are thinking. With this uncanny ability, her life takes on a whole new dimension. Her kids think she's bossy and too old to understand them, but that's nothing compared to her husband. He says he loves her, but what is it about the redhead at work that he doesn't want her to know? As if that isn't enough, the gunman knows she can identify him, and he's out to silence her forever. In her fight to stay alive, she is saved from certain death by a handsome hit-man with ties to organized crime. This pulls Shelby even deeper into danger, where knowing someone's thoughts can not only hurt her feelings, but get her killed.
Alive
Scott Sigler - 2015
Total darkness. I hear my own breathing, but nothing else. I lift my head…it thumps against something solid and unmoving. There is a board right in front of my face. No, not a board…a lid.A teenage girl awakens to find herself trapped in a coffin. She has no idea who she is, where she is, or how she got there. Fighting her way free brings little relief—she discovers only a room lined with caskets and a handful of equally mystified survivors. Beyond their room lies a corridor filled with bones and dust, but no people…and no answers.She knows only one thing about herself—her name, M. Savage, which was engraved on the foot of her coffin—yet she finds herself in charge. She is not the biggest among them, or the boldest, but for some reason the others trust her. Now, if they’re to have any chance, she must get them to trust one another.Whatever the truth is, she is determined to find it and confront it. If she has to lead, she will make sure they survive. Maybe there's a way out, a rational explanation, and a fighting chance against the dangers to come. Or maybe a reality they cannot comprehend lies just beyond the next turn.
The Indestructibles: Breakout
Matthew Phillion - 2014
When Doc, their mentor, went missing, the five teenaged heroes did their best to make the world a better place, stumbling from adventure to adventure without an overall strategy.The general public seems to be cheering them on, but a shadowy government agency lurking in the background, wants to round them up and force them to play by their rules. And they aren't going to take no for an answer — even if it means making an example of the young heroes. Meanwhile, a bigger threat, an escaped experiment who spreads sickness wherever he goes, is working his way toward the City to meet the Indestructibles head on, blaming them for what he has become. With Doc Silence gone, Fury apparently missing, and the Dancer slipping away into her own silent brand of vigilanteism, will Solar be able to hold her team together in the face of this looming threat? And who is the mysterious, neon-pink haired stranger who keeps appearing and then disappearing like an illusion on the Indestructibles' flying base? The Indestructibles have become a national sensation — but will they survive the fame? Please tune into the sequel The Indestructibles: Breakout to find out for sure.
Angry Young Spaceman
Jim Munroe - 2000
In this new work by the author of "Flyboy Action Figure Comes with Gasmask", a punk of the future undergoes intergalactic culture shock when he travels to the underwater planet of Octavia.