something that might cost them all their lives.

     Martin L. Shoemaker, author of “Today I Am Paul”, presents stories of ordinary people doing extraordinary work. Planning, exploring, constructing… living and growing and dying… across the Solar System. Includes these award-winning stories: Scramble (second place, Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Award, 2012) Unrefined (third place, Writers of the Future, 2014) Racing to Mars (first place, Analog Analytical Laboratory award, 2016) Plus seven more stories!

    Some are called by adventure. All answer the call of courage.Jump into seven full-length novels exploring the limits of space, science, and courage. Aliens, artificial intelligence, rogue governments, and galactic frontiers--you'll find them all here.Heed the call. Download this collection of series starters today!***About the Books: Archangel Down by C. Gockel Commander Noa Sato doesn't believe in aliens. She's wrong. In the face of genocide she must hatch a daring plan with a ragtag crew to save the lives of millions--and her own. Every step of the way she is haunted by the final words of a secret transmission: The archangel is down. Anti Life by Allen KuzaraThe opposite of life isn't death; it's something far worse. Mission colonel John Alvarez must carry out one last mission, a rescue attempt. Unknown to Alvarez, however, is the hidden threat that awaits him, one that--if he cannot stop it--will doom humanity to a fate worse than death. Allies and Enemies: Fallen by Amy J. MurphyBorn into service of the Regime, Commander Sela Tyron is about as subtle as a hammer. To hammers, any problem can look like a nail. But things aren't always that easy--especially when Sela is forced to choose between the only life she's ever known and rescuing a trusted comrade. Traveler in the Dark by Deirdre GouldSixteen centuries ago, they fled Earth. They've never walked on soil, felt rain, or breathed unrecycled air. At last, they sent exploratory mission to a new planet. It's ideal... but they are not alone. Struggling for survival, they must make a choice. Sacrifice another species or accept their own extinction. Breakers of the Dawn by Zachariah WahrerHumanity has fallen from its once majestic place amongst the stars. Desperate for resources, they seize every available planet, exterminating their alien inhabitants. Sent to subdue an uprising, a government operative unearths an alien relic. The strange device promises extraordinary power, but can he trust it? The Backworlds by M. PaxAfter the war with the Foreworlds, competition among the Backworlds is fierce. Pickings are scant enough that Craze's father boots him off the planet. Cut off from everyone he knows with little knowledge of the worlds beyond, Craze must find a way to survive and get his revenge. Sky Hunter by Chris ReherTerrorists plot to destroy a space elevator on a remote planet. Nova Whiteside, Air Command pilot, is caught behind enemy lines in a bloody uprising. The treacherous and illicit schemes she uncovers there make her question who, really, is the enemy.

    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...

    A fleet surrounded. One AI's struggle to save his machine brothers and sisters--and humanity itself--from complete destruction.Jain and his fleet of elite AI warships hurry to Earth's defense when an alien empire known as the Link stages an all-out attack. Though his fleet is equipped with the most powerful weapons tech ever developed, with enough firepower to raze an entire moon base, even Jain's mighty vessels prove no match for the enemy. When unexpected allies show up, the tide seems to turn in his favor. But will it be enough? Perhaps. The aliens were expecting to find a race of organics barely out of the stone ages.It must have come as quite a shock when they realized they faced a budding AI Empire.

    

    When Ed Walker learns that others have been preparing for the disaster for years, he realize finding them may be his only shot at survival. But time is running out...In a dying world one man makes a choice to keep going, hoping against hope there might be a future after all.Alive is a 10.000 word story loosely based on events in Exodus by Andreas Christensen, but can also  just as easily be read as a stand alone.Notice: this novella is also available for FREE on the author's website.

    Nath Dragon and company are called upon to recover them, but this quest will have dire consequences. Long ago, Nath and Brenwar crossed paths with a dangerous foe, Corzan the Necromancer. The goblin-like magic user has been simmering for decades and plotting vengeance on Nath Dragon. Now, harnessing the power of the Thunder Stones, the evil mage unleashes a trap that should dispatch Nalzambor's greatest hero forever. New adversaries surge in the world of Bish … Suffering one great loss after the other, the underlings unleash a drastic plan. Using their lethal arcane powers they attempt to summon a monster of incalculable power from the mystic realm beyond. Instead, Nath Dragon, with black scales from his arms to his neck, emerges from the portal, but without his memories. The underlings deceive Nath and turn him loose and send him to hunt down and kill the legendary Darkslayer. What will happen when these two titans of battle finally clash? Who will triumph in the end? Only one thing is for sure, this will be an awesome, unprecedented, one-of-a-kind adventure that you will never forget!

    The aliens are Adjudicators, an ancient race whose ethos is to judge other species and reduce their survivors to a stone age existence.Tolvern sends a desperate message back to headquarters and retreats with her damaged ship to friendly systems. By the time she returns, the aliens have already invaded Alliance territory with a powerful fleet of star fortresses and accompanying dragoon ships, trapping and laying siege to the allied fleet.While repairing her ship, Tolvern cobbles together a squadron of damaged allied warships, former raiders, and the local survivors of an Adjudicator attack to drive off the alien fleet.The following books are included in this set:Alliance StarsAlliance ArmadaAlliance Insurgent

    When a young girl is snatched on her way home from school, Matty's police detective father knows that every minute counts. For the first time - but not the last - Detective Roger Turner enlists his son's unique help.With over 130,000 copies sold, the Matt Turner Series launched author Michael Siemsen to bestseller status. The Dig (Book 1) and The Opal (Book 2) hint at the troubled psychometrist's shocking childhood, using his ability to "read" an object's history to help his father solve the worst kinds of crimes. Only now, with the short story Matty are we offered a firsthand glimpse into a young Matt's first case - tracking down a kidnapped girl named Joss Lynn Leland.

    He can rise no higher.Or so he thought.His superior sees more in him and is sending him to a place that will change his life.Welcome to Azophi Academy.A different kind of second chance.Jackson learns fast - the academy believes in active participation – even if you die trying.Can Jackson cope with Cia, his new partner and pilot? She’s unlike him in every way and enjoys making sure he knows it.He’ll have to learn a lot - and fast - if he’s going to survive the Azophi experience. More importantly, humanity needs him to survive, because the aliens are training their best too.Who will have the greatest warriors?

    But even as they rush to unlock the technological secrets in the alien craft, the aliens launched the first step in their plan to invade the Earth and enslave the human race. With a giant mothership approaching the planet and the inhabitants promising peace and plenty, humanity must defeat a vastly superior foe with uncertain motives or lose its freedom forever.On one side, a powerful alien force…On the other side, a divided humanity…The battle for Earth has begun.

    Legend. Role model. He’s none of those.Blunt Yorkshireman and reality TV show winner, Flint Dugdale, has used his large frame and ‘persuasive personality’ to take charge of Britain’s first mission to Mars. Little does he know that the base, built by an advance party of inept robots, is far from ready, with no food, water or doors. And the ship’s scanners are picking up strange signals. There is life down there. But will it be pleased to see him?

    Harry Irons dreams of escaping poverty and an over-crowded Earth by gaining employment with the Braithwaite Corporation. After proving himself in a series of tests, Harry gets his wish and soon enough finds himself struggling to survive on an alien world. TO THE STARS was written for a general audience and is sure to satisfy both younger and older fans of alternative fiction.