Books Tagged With format - hardcover

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Summary: One month after her childhood friend Gilbert appeared on the doorstep of her library seeking help in fleeing from the Blue Crescent Brotherhood, Lenna Faircloth - librarian, self-proclaimed dormouse, and lover of all things alcoholic - finds herself in the unlikeliest of situations: roughing it in the forest with her mother's people, the Freewomen of Laur. With his dying words Gilbert bequeathed to Lenna one of three powerful artifacts, dubiously named the Godjewels, and it had formed a unique psychic bond with her that only the wards of the Freewoman settlement could mask from the other parties interested in acquiring her gem. As for Lenna? She's just interested in taking a bath, having a tall glass of wine, and forgetting the past month even happened. APPRENTICE continues the tale of LIBRARIAN and follows the adventures of a young woman forced to confront and discover what it means to be a hero (albeit a sometimes tipsy one), a friend, and a person with far too much power at their ready disposal.

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Summary: A land has fallen. An escape was made. It’s a victory, but at what price? Shaleigh has made a terrible mistake, one she may not ever be able to fix. Lost and in a strange land with anger and death all around her, she must navigate her way through treacherous lands on her quest for redemption. Along the way she’ll have to negotiate with the mercurial Queen of the Fae, survive the dangers of the Masked King’s realm, and seek out a terrifying fire dragon. With two powerful beings hot on her trail, Shaleigh has no choice but to keep moving, or else face the dangerous magic of the Madness that has already caused so much pain and heartache. With her sights on helping her friends and her heart longing for home, Shaleigh is determined, but will it be enough? Book 2 of the Stolen series

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Summary: They told him the Lette were monsters. But the truth lies buried on a dead world—and it’s far more terrifying. Commander Zane Renner awakens alone aboard a vast, silent colony ship orbiting the planet Artemis. The crew is gone. The only others aboard are a woman driven to madness—and a Lette, one of the alien race humanity has been at war with for decades. Zane has always believed the Lette started the war. But when he descends to the surface and uncovers the haunting truth behind the colonists’ deaths, everything he thought he knew begins to unravel. A failed alien experiment. A world-spanning mind. A virus that could doom the entire galaxy. And a war that may never have needed to happen. Guided by the being he once called an enemy, Zane must confront a devastating reality: the danger isn’t the Lette. It’s what lies below—and within humanity itself. To stop the threat from spreading, Zane must forge an alliance with the last being he ever thought he could trust. In doing so, he’ll uncover a truth buried beneath generations of lies: the Lette never wanted war. Brothers of Mind is a gripping sci-fi thriller about alien contact, dangerous truths, and the courage to rewrite history. Sometimes the greatest enemy is the lie we’ve lived by. And sometimes the only way forward… is together.

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Summary: Can she stop what she unleashed? How in the world did Shaleigh Mallett find herself standing on a volcanic mountain facing the fire dragon, Tanwen? She isn’t supposed to be here. She’s supposed to be in high school, studying for classes and exploring abandoned buildings with her best friend. But no, she’s stuck on the Peak of Gwern, hoping that the dragon will somehow show mercy and stop the Madness that plagues them. There is still so much to do, so many wrongs to right. She can’t abandon her friends after she’s come so far. She won’t abandon them. Not even Talek, who is all but consumed by the Madness. She must take down Keriam the Magician, she must face the Bloody Forest, and she must lead if she ever wants to see home again. Book 3 of the Stolen series

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Summary: A galaxy in peril The story begun in The Reefs of Time continues. The time-tides caused by Karellia’s defenses have brought the malicious Mindaru AI out of the deep past into the present, threatening Bandicut and Li-Jared, who have arrived at the backwater planet—Li-Jared’s homeworld—to find it on the brink of interplanetary war. Somehow they must forge a peace between Karellia and its neighboring world if the Mindaru threat is to be broken. Back on Shipworld, Ik and Julie Stone risk their lives a second time to stop the Mindaru at their source: a planet near the galactic core, a billion years in the past. Can Antares, the beautiful humanoid who also loves Bandicut, help them? What of Bria the gokat? And Amaduse, the most influential librarian in Shipworld? And in the deep time of the galaxy’s early history, by the light of a million suns, the Mindaru do hideous things to an innocent species. The Mindaru plan for the altered creatures bears momentous possibilities even the deadly AI cannot predict. Time is critical. Time is elastic. And time is running out. Conclusion of the unmissable two-part “Out of Time” sequence begun in The Reefs of Time, from Jeffrey A. Carver, Nebula-nominated author of Eternity's End. PRAISE FOR THE REEFS OF TIME / CRUCIBLE OF TIME: “Classic science fiction with engaging characters and richly imagined worlds!” —Greg Bear; author of The Unfinished Land and The War Dogs Trilogy “Jeffrey A. Carver’s remarkable long-awaited duology The Reefs of Time / Crucible of Time is a welcome addition to The Chaos Chronicles, certifying his continuing mastery of action and adventure at the boundaries of space opera and hard SF.” —Steve Miller, co-author of The Liaden Universe “There are giant, and brilliant, concepts in these books... If you haven’t read it you’re in for a whale of a ride! I, personally, will have to pick up more of Jeffrey Carver—not just this series—because I’ve become a fan of his world/galaxy-spanning imagination! I highly recommend these books.” —Steve Fahnestalk, Amazing Stories Magazine

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Summary: The near future is progressively free from discrimination based on race, class, and sexual orientation. But in a world populated by the gifted, fifteen-year-old Alejandro Aragon (Alé) is part of the only remaining minority—he’s a Deficient. Powerless. The one that accelerated genetics left behind. Alé knows that he’ll need a miracle to graduate and pursue his dream of a legal career in the capital. His only ally is his best friend Yalamba, an outspoken and exceptionally gifted artist renowned for her unique ability to draw things into existence. But when she’s kidnapped in a hate crime against her ability, it appears that Alé has every motive and no believable alibi. To prove his innocence and track down the real culprit, Alé teams up with the other outcasts in school, who each have their own reasons for getting involved. But the deeper they dig, the more they fear Yalamba’s kidnapping is linked to a string of unsolved murders against the exceptionally gifted. With time running out, Alé must discover who he really is if he and his new friends plan to track down the culprit, clear his name, and rescue Yalamba—all before she herself is drawn out of existence.

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Summary: Life after the Crash. Over a century after the end of the Earth, life goes on in Redemption, the sole remaining Lunar colony, and possibly the last outpost of humankind in the Solar System. But with an existential threat burrowing its way into the Moon's core, humanity must recolonize the homeworld. Twenty brave dropnauts set off on a mission to explore the empty planet. Four of them—Rai, Hera, Ghost and Tien—have trained for two-and-a-half years for the Return. They're bound for Martinez Base, just outside the Old Earth city of San Francisco. But what awaits them there will turn their assumptions upside down—and in the process, either save or destroy what's left of humanity.

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Summary: Unseen by human eyes, something sinister is attacking the inner solar system. In his third clone incarnation, Joe has dedicated his life to two unwavering pursuits: the hunt for the elusive Tanakhai starships and the construction of a colossal war fleet. His mission - to protect humanity from the inevitable alien onslaught he believes is coming. An alien fleet suddenly enters the solar system, and the fate of humanity once again hangs in the balance. Positioned beyond Jupiter's orbit, the Fleet of Humanity stands ready, expecting an all-out battle. But, to everyone's shock, the alien intruders don't attack. Instead, four of their enigmatic vessels vanish, leaving the rest in an eerie stalemate. What is their true agenda? Humanity soon discovers the grim truth—a catastrophic crisis unfolds on Mercury and Venus, threatening the very existence of all human worlds. Time is running out, and the stakes have never been higher. "FALCON'S BANE" is the thrilling conclusion to the multi-award winning Falcon Trilogy, by author Mike Waller. Join the indomitable Joe Falcon as he faces humanity's greatest and most relentless adversary in a final showdown that will leave you breathless.

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Summary: One man holds the future of humanity in his hands. Six decades after the Blackship War, Earth is once again under alien attack, the weapon of choice one that humanity could never anticipate, and never hope to counter. Humankind is being attacked by its own planet. Six decades after the departure of the gigantic, alien star-ship dubbed the ‘Minaret’, Joe Falcon thinks it is finally over, and he can settle down to a better, quieter life. He is wrong. At the outermost edge of the Solar System lurks an alien intelligence the like of which humanity has never before encountered, with an agenda of its own. As the leading authority of the Minaret, it falls to Joe to find a solution and travel billions of kilometers to confront Mankind’s greatest ever threat. But how do you deal with a mind so alien, so advanced, and so filled with hatred that nothing will sway it from its destructive course? Joe must find a way. If humanity is to survive, he has no choice.

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Summary: This horror collection graphic novel contains the following stories: “And They Lived Long Enough to Bury Their Dead” is a dark fantasy comic zine about a group of Gen X goth/punk folks growing older and processing the deaths of loved ones. A paranormal urban fantasy, it centers around Billie, a nonbinary African-American alternative rocker from Oakland who develops the psychic ability to see and communicate with ghosts. Their nesting partner, Davis, a formerly homeless African-American transgender man, their twin brother Sean, a ghostcat, and the ghost of their mother are other central characters. In the story Billie, Davis, and their Gen X circle of friends are coming to terms with aging, the declining health (and loss) of their parents, and adjusting to a new post-pandemic world. It is an urban fantasy taking place in Oakland and the San Francisco Bay Area “Agrippa” is a dystopic near-future tale that takes place in an unnamed industrialized nation very much like the United States. When foreign creditors demand that the nation repay its considerable international debt or face war it enacts the Dulcetta Reforms, ultra-restrictive laws establishing debtor’s prison, and causing a large number of people – many of them seniors – to go to jail or even face execution if not continuously working to pay off their personal debts to the government. Dr. Tine, an expert in geriatric medicine, is desperately searching for employment at the beginning of our tale, having lost her useful functioning in society as the elders she once treated were rounded up and hauled off to the prison camps. Things were so bad she didn't think they could possibly get any worse. How very wrong she was. Dreamworlds: Beyond Somnalia - the author is plagued by a series of increasing demands from their fictional characters who come to take over the writer's life.

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Summary: “Aye, well, what is an angel, anyway?” At Samhain, things in Llwyncudd are taking a turn for the strange and bizarre. The red dragon is spotted around town trying to dig its own grave whilst his vessel is happily participating in life elsewhere. Did Stewart’s dragon spirit leave him? Michael, can’t live with the thought. Meanwhile, Dr Lilibeth Blackthorne, PsyD, has moved to town at her brother Sam’s suggestion. Many of its residents are in desperate need of her counselling services and she’s uniquely qualified—even if she’s never particularly seen multiple personalities quite like this. Fairy-halfling Arthen also joins the town after being raised in the local fairy village on the other side. Despite the odd cultural clashes of living in a society that requires silly things like clothing, he is making many new friends and is more special than his former masters would have him believe. Join our friends as they battle their demons from the darker side of the veil in Green Hills and Battlefields—the thrilling fifth book of the Green Hills Series by Celyn Kendrick!

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Summary: “Will I always be so alone, living as a dragon among the sheep?” Jane Dawson is an American on a journey of midlife makeover. Abandoning a tech career in Boston, she and her sheepdog, Moss, move to Wales in search of a simpler life, connection and community without the filter of the Internet. But who knew she would stumble over the red Welsh dragon, y Ddraig Goch? Actually, she stumbles over her own suitcase and falls on her face in the middle of Main Street. But her plea for help (or maybe it was just swearing) is answered by the shy local dragon who doesn’t know he’s a dragon—Stewart Rygby. But what rational, sane person believes in dragons and fairies? Why have such myths and legends persisted in the misty green hills of Wales over the aeons? And why does Moss need to mark everything in sight—including her new landlord? Join us as our dragons awaken from their slumber in Green Hills and Daffodils—the exciting first book in the Green Hills Series by Celyn Kendrick!

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Summary: “Ye never ken what beasties lurk in the water…” The white and red dragons have been spiritual soulmates for as long as anyone can remember. Finally, their human vessels Stewart and Michael are together once more—except one of them has a hard time remembering or believing that he’s a dragon. As his mysterious family’s past starts revealing itself, Stewart Rygby has been made aware of his responsibility to manage and protect vast estate holdings that are in his care—which includes the local fairy village. There is also the impending problem of a lake resort planned to be built dangerously close to the dragons’ ancient lair. While Father Aron has the power to prevent this egregious trespass, it may take some angelic intervention to convince him to accept such a crusade on faith. Join us as our dragons come together for another lifetime in Green Hills and Dragon Tales—the momentous second book in the Green Hills Series by Celyn Kendrick!

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Summary: “Who but God could have created such a bewitching creature?” In the 6th century, Brother Elis was simply trying his best to serve God during a time of relative political peace and prosperity. But in a world full of rules written by man, how can he be at peace with the life that God has set before him? Now, in the 21st century, for the first lifetime in their ancient dragon memories, Stewart Rygby and Michael Dougal are free to marry one another. Is this finally their time to shine? When a messenger from the other side arrives on their doorstep, he brings more news from the fairy realm than the simple tidings from the Grand High Council of y Pentref Cudd. His presence demonstrates how little everyone truly knows about fairy society. As the mysterious and inexplicable spirit realm is revealed, retired vicar Father Aron is finally getting some very literal answers to his spiritual questions. Will he be able to keep such secrets to himself so that Stewart and Michael can live in anonymity? Join us for a wedding as esoteric mysteries are revealed in Green Hills and Holy Wells—the fourth book in the Green Hills Series by Celyn Kendrick!

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Summary: “Birth, life and death—we have come full circle once again.” An 18th-century family portrait has been in the dining room of the Lewis family manor house for as long as anyone can remember. But who are the people shown in it? The children are known to be the founding members of the Llynhiraeth empire. But who is the woman depicted? Or the two men with her? And why do they look like Stewart Rygby and Michael Dougal? Stewart and Michael search through their memories of past lives to dig up the exciting tale of their scandalous life, love, family, and escape from France in the years and days leading up to the French Revolution. Along the way, many questions are answered about the origins of the prominent families of Llwyncudd and its most famous citizen. Join us where y Ddraig Goch meets his own tail in Green Hills and Prison Cells—the revolutionary final book of the Green Hills Series.

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Summary: “It was certainly hot and dry, but he hadn’t expected Hell to be particularly sunny.” Ben Davies is no stranger to the strange, but his life just got a whole lot weirder. He’s always battled between doing the morally right, sensible thing and impulse—but this time, his good intentions have landed him in hot water. Trapped in the Land of Nod with Alex’s Dreamtime alter-ego, Ben needs to find a way to get back to Wales—his Wales. With a psychotic psychopomp as their Virgil to guide them on an RV road trip through hell, Ben and Alex get to see America in all its star-spangled glory. It’ll take a transatlantic transdimensional meeting in the middle for these two to keep calm and carry on in their pursuit of happiness. Back in the fairy village, tensions are running at an all-time high. Will y Pentreff Cudd start the new year in an all-out civil war? Or set aside their differences to find peace and goodwill? Join dragons, fairies and transdimensional puppies in Green Hills and Whippoorwills—the thought-provoking sixth book in the Green Hills Series by Celyn Kendrick!

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Summary: Another spaceship, another explosion. Harold Galahad would love to wake from this particular nightmare that is so eerily similar to the events that cost him his beloved wife and destroyed his soul. But the only way out is by saving the ship and its entire crew. If you ask Harold Galahad, he isn’t fit to lead a crew or command a ship. But nobody is asking Harry. Instead, he finds himself back on the bridge, on a ship stranded in space, no help in sight, only kept alive by remnants of a gradually failing life support system. His crew? A nurse running out of tentacles and eyes to care for all the wounded, a chief engineer who knows all about her systems but struggles with people, a chief of security who thinks everything can be solved with paragraphs from the Company’s handbook, a cursing chief of logistics, an anxiety-ridden communications officer, and a first officer who stays mysterious and feigns ignorance. This ship needs a captain to avert a complete disaster that includes the death of everyone on board. Can Galahad overcome his trauma? Can he find solutions where there are none? And worst of all, can he unravel all the mysteries surrounding the ship, its crew and the system they all work for? If you enjoy a complex tale that brings a human element to all species that travel space, combined with a multi-layered mystery, and starring a broken hero, Herald Petrel by Strange Seawolf will deliver. Warning: contains adult language and a considerable amount of swearing -- it is a cargo space ship in a desperate situation, after all.

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Summary: INK (NOUN) Five definitions to inspire writers around the world and an unlimited number of possible stories to tell: 1) A colored fluid used for writing 2) The action of signing a deal 3) A black liquid ejected by squid 4) Publicity in the written media 5) A slang word for tattoos Ink features 300-word speculative flash fiction stories from across the rainbow spectrum, from the minds of the writers of Queer Sci Fi.

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Summary: Time is running out. After saving the world twice, Xander, Jameson and friends plunge headlong into a new crisis. The ithani―the aliens who broke the world―have reawakened from their hundred millennia-long slumber. When Xander and Jameson disappear in a flash, an already fractured world is thrown into chaos. The ithani plans, laid a hundred thousand years before, are finally coming to pass, and they threaten all life on Erro. Venin and Alix go on a desperate search for their missing and find more than they bargained for. And Quince, Robin and Jessa discover a secret as old as the skythane themselves. Will alien technology, unexpected help from the distant past, destiny and some good old-fashioned firepower be enough to defeat an enemy with the ability to split a world? The final battle of the epic science fiction adventure that began in Skythane will decide the fate of lander and skythane alike. And in the north, the ithani rise….

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Summary: With a click, the bread fell into the toaster. One circuit fired the heating coils. Others monitored bread temperature and color. Yet another circuit was quite unlike all the rest— as exotic as it was sinister; when it activated, 368 people would die. In the 22nd century, the justice system is airtight in the domed city of Arcadia. Human error has been removed. Yet somehow, a well-intentioned young kleptomaniac named Rainville falls through the cracks and is wrongfully convicted of mass murder. He is exiled to Wychwood Prison, a crumbling necropolis beyond the dome where the dead outnumber the living, where the inmates are also the guards. News of the crime follows him, and he becomes a marked man. Rainville’s only hope for survival is becoming the first inmate in history to escape Wychwood. Can he do it? The fate of Arcadia depends on it.