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sci fi h-r

Sci fi is a type of speculative fiction that looks ahead and asks “what’s next?” You can also check out these subcategories (h-r):

hard sci fi | hollow earth | hopepunk | human evolution | immortality | latinpunk | litrpg | lost worlds | military | mind uploads | multiverse | mutants | mythpunk | nanopunk | near future | nowpunk | piratepunk | pulp | robots/androids |romance

Note: these books are currently sorted by release date, with newest first.

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Word Count: 78000

Summary: She’s lost her ship, lost her job, lost her reputation, and is on the run from the law. Jez is a damn good pilot, and she’s always worked alone. Until she got picked up for smuggling, that is. Now she’s an ex-con and ex-employed, and there are plenty of people with old scores to settle. So when a mysterious stranger in a battered pilot's coat comes to her with an offer that sounds too good to be true, she reluctantly agrees to listen. All she has to do is fly one little job. Four ex-convicts. One charismatic mastermind. And the most dangerous heist the System has ever seen. Firefly meets Ocean’s Eleven in R.M. Olson’s fast-paced, kick-ass, wickedly fun space opera series, The Ungovernable. Grab a copy and join the crew.

Zero Day Threat - R.M. Olson - The Ungovernable
Zero Day Threat
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Word Count: 55000

Summary: Stranded in space: no fuel, no way home… and no one coming to help. From the pen of Hugo Finalist Gideon Marcus comes the found-family, YA Space Adventure you’ve been waiting for: Nineteen-year-old Kitra Yilmaz dreams of traveling the galaxy like her Ambassador mother. But soaring in her glider is the closest she can get to touching the stars — until she stakes her inheritance on a salvage Navy spaceship. On its shakedown cruise, Kitra’s ship plunges into hyperspace, stranding Kitra and her crew light years away. Tensions rise between Kitra and her shipmates: the handsome programmer, Fareedh; Marta, biologist and Kitra’s ex-girlfriend; Peter, the panicking engineer; and the oddball alien navigator, Pinky. Now, running low on air and food, it’ll take all of them working together to get back home. With illustrations by Hugo Finalist Lorelei Esther.

Kitra - Gideon Marcus
Kitra
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Word Count: 250000

Summary: Can a Warlord and a Prince find love when the galaxy is on the brink of war? Chief Warlord Sohm'lan has a job he loves protecting the family who claims him as one of their own. He has known the loss of a mate and believed he would walk alone for the rest of his life… that is until Prince Mestor demanded more from him than duty. Unable to fathom why Mestor would want a widowed older warrior, Sohm'lan maintains his distance believing Mestor will eventually choose an amor closer in age and experience, even though the thought causes him more pain than it should. Prince Mestor is tired of pretending and his patience is eroding. He needs Sohm'lan to see past their respective ranks and duties to who Mestor is underneath it all. Worried Sohm'lan will be lost to him if he pushes too hard, Mestor and Sohm'lan are caught in a dance of denied desires and tangled obligations. Warlord Sohm'lan and Prince Mestor struggle to find a way to their heart's desire against the backdrop of galactic conspiracies, the dangerous mission escorting the Fal'Amoric royals, and discoveries within the Vondorian family that threaten to tear apart everything they hold dear. The two of them must stand together to fight the coming battle whatever the consequences. *Note: Constant is 250,000 words and is the third book in the series that must be read in order.

Constant - Lexi Ander - Valespian Pact
Constant
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Word Count: 50,139

Summary: They have to find him…but how? A former member of an elite military special forces unit, Leo Bailey can handle anything life throws at him. Except maybe approaching a certain gorgeous, purple mohawk-wearing, heavily pierced artist. Not without his three eye-rolling wingmen along to push him in the right direction. One look at the mouthwateringly muscled, military buzzcut-sporting man with the endearing blush, and Vincent Noland is in love. Or at least in lust. Love comes later. Then marriage…and sweet, adorable Oscar. Life is perfect—the stuff of fairy tale happily ever afters—except for Arthur Fletcher, whose unsettling reactions to them threaten to upset the happy balance of their lives. But it isn’t Arthur who throws their lives into turmoil. A freak event causes Oscar to go missing and leaves both men frantic to rescue their son. As they piece together the clues, they discover that Oscar isn’t somewhere. He’s somewhen. And Arthur Fletcher holds the key—or rather the glass beads—to their one chance of finding Oscar. Will Leo’s training, Vinnie’s determination, and Arthur’s knowledge help them rescue Oscar, or is the little boy doomed to spend the rest of his life at the mercy of a primitive civilization? Could there be a third possibility? Keywords: time travel, lost child, happy ending, novel, ebook, print, paperback

When Are You - Addison Albright
When Are You?
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Word Count: 284

Summary: Third-gender operative Dalí Tamareia thought their life as an ambassador ended when they joined a galactic intelligence agency. When they’re yanked out of the field and tapped to negotiate the surrender of deadly bio-engineered warriors who crashed into hostile territory, Dalí is thrust headfirst back into the tumultuous world of galactic diplomacy. Dalí has faced Shontavians before, but not like these. The stranded mercenaries are highly intelligent and have an agenda of their own. Dalí can’t afford to be distracted from the negotiations by their own demons or the presence of a charming diplomat with a mysterious past. As a brewing civil war threatens to derail the entire mission, Dali must use all their skills to bring this dangerous situation to a peaceful end—but the Shontavians may not be the biggest monsters at the table. Someone is determined to see Dalí and their team dead before they discover the brutal truth hidden in the wreckage.

Peacemaker - E.M. Hamill - Dalí Tamiera
Peacemaker
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Word Count: 48,300

Summary: The final book in The Cassie Tam Files is here! With Angel Tanner, the android that runs California’s criminal underworld, pulling the strings, PI Cassie Tam finds herself thrust into a conflict with New Hopeland’s biggest and baddest. But working with the murderous AI may be the only way that Cassie can get to the bottom of her home’s greatest mystery: What is New Hopeland City? As she struggles to balance her dealings with allies and enemies alike, Cassie is left with a difficult choice. She has always straddled the line between light and dark. Now, the time to decide which side she’s on is drawing close…if she can figure out which is which.

Half-Light - Matt Doyle - Cassie Tam Files
Half-Light
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Word Count: 62000

Summary: Wars are fought on many fronts. A battle is raging across New Colorado Protectorate with both human and demonic players. Todd and Nick Ruger are sentries with an arsenal of talents and training to combat threats from a variety of enemies. Todd and Nick are given a mission to find and stop weapons smugglers by going undercover on the riverboat, Annabelle. These aren't typical arms dealers, they're demons and they're not afraid of a pair of sentries. The Rugers will have to use all their skills and their most powerful weapon, the bond between them, just to stay alive. Stopping the supply of illegal weapons turns to trying, and failing, to thwart an assassination. Todd and Nick have each other, but will they be able to keep their love intact?

Tethered Pair - Elizabeth Noble - Sentries
Tethered Pair
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Word Count: 79,000

Summary: Left for dead behind enemy lines, prince Dominel seeks refuge in an abandoned stronghold of the slaughtered wizards. There he is recruited and trained by undead mages in the once forbidden magics so that he can close the doors into the world of man and halt the advance of the horde of monsters known as the storm. Can the strength of a lone wizard stand against a god of evil bent on ruling all the worlds of monsters and men. Will other races stand as friends or foes in Dominel’s quest? Can Dominel open himself to memories of his past lives without fracturing his sanity and becoming a worse threat than the monsters he seeks to halt? And what of the man who is prince, king and wizard? What space is left for him in a life of crushing duty and wondrous enchantment? For the answers read on

Havens in the Storm - Stephen B. Pearl
Havens in the Storm
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Word Count: 150722

Summary: It’s raining on Berikatanya. During the day. That hasn’t happened for three hundred years. Stripped of its time displacement before the Battle of Lembaca Ana, the Valley is once again the subject of dispute. Confrontation between the great houses is disrupted by a daytime rainstorm – unheard of since the creation of the malamajan centuries ago. Suspicion falls on the Elementals, especially Lautan, who has not been seen since the battle. Meanwhile, millions of kilometres out in space, the last Prism ship is preparing to make planetfall. Where is Lautan, and why can’t he stop the freakish rainstorms? Can Patrick rediscover his father’s lore and unlock the secrets of the Pattern Juggler in time to help? Or will civilisation be submerged under the influence of the malevolent new Water Wizard? The Elementals continue their adventures in the second instalment of John Beresford’s SF/Fantasy crossover, The Berikatanyan Chronicles. Primordial forces spin out of control in this tale of magic, mystery, and mayhem that will appeal to lovers of Thomas Covenant, Merlin, and Allanon. Get your copy today!

Water Wizard - John Beresford - Berikatayan Chronicles
Water Wizard
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Word Count: 80000

Summary: Other stories will take you to Mars. This one will take you inside the boardroom, the pub, and the bedroom with the people planning the mission. Gurdeep is an engineer and a soldier. Georgie’s a food scientist. One is pragmatic with a tough outer shell; the other’s an optimist, a person of ideas and compassion. In the span of a single afternoon, the couple find themselves in charge of planning a self-sustaining colony on Mars. Together, they’re humanity’s last hope for survival. They have 160 slots to fill with experts from all over the world as they set about designing an all-new society with its own government, economy, and culture – and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Among those chosen for the mission is Devon, an autistic scientist with a unique skill set who finds life on Earth strange and alienating. Maybe a whole new planet is exactly what’s needed. With 1,114 days until the launch, excitement and tensions run high. Earth’s second chance hangs in the balance. Between strict genetic requirements and the dangers of the dystopian almost-present, will everyone make it to the final countdown? This is a work of neurodiverse, culturally diverse, gender-bendy, socio-politico-economic, drunken-arguments-in-the-pub science fiction – not bang-bang-pew-pew science fiction.

Devon's Island - SI Clarke
Devon's Island
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Word Count: Information not available

Summary: It seemed so simple, cross a train yard, hop a train and Todd and Nick would be free, on their way home to Elk’s Ridge in Yellowknife. Nothing is ever simple or easy for the Ruger men, however. Captured by Vice-Chancellor Raleigh, Todd is imprisoned, leaving Nick alone and seeking a way to free his mate. Help comes from an unlikely and unexpected ally. Todd’s freedom places the Rugers yet again into the Chancellor’s debt. He sends them on a fact finding mission to the small village of Eldrid, the same village where Nick was raised a slave. There they discover how past events led to their present society, the origins of sentries and slaves and what made some of them so special. They also uncover a conspiracy spear-headed by Vice-Chancellor Raleigh. An attempt at stopping him isn’t as successful as they’d hoped when old enemies are confronted. The realities of war, and why some people don’t survive, are hard lessons for both Todd and Nick to learn. Through firefights, explosions and a vicious attack from a seemingly unbeatable supernatural being, one thing is reinforced over and over—the most important thing each one has is each other. Will they survive or join an ever growing list of casualties?

Collared Souls - Elizabeth Noble - Sentries
Collared Souls
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Word Count: Information not available

Summary: Kyle Anderson grew up with the lie that he was one of the last humans born. Then Kyle’s quiet, lonely life as a research assistant and student is shattered when he discovers the government has been lying to the world for more than twenty years. Now on the run from authorities who would kill for his silence, Kyle is taken in by Daniel Shanks, a member of a militia group dedicated to discovering the truth. Daniel has seen death and violence in this new, radically changed society, and the closer he gets to Kyle, the harder his fears ride him. They will need to stop listening to the lies told by the government and start facing the lies they’ve been telling themselves, because the only place strays like them may be safe in this uncertain world is in each other’s hearts.

Strays - Elizabeth Noble
Strays
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Word Count: 63,700

Summary: Todd and Nick Ruger are on the run after narrowly escaping the war in New Colorado, where they were implicated in the assassination of Chancellor Shaffer. Todd is gravely ill and Nick has serious injuries, but that's the least of their problems. They're alone with dwindling supplies and facing the harsh winter bearing down on them far north in Yellowknife Protectorate. Just when it seems they're trapped between the proverbial rock and hard place, they are offered refuge with a doctor in the isolated town of Elk's Ridge. As they heal, they're offered a fresh start in Elk's Ridge. But just as they begin to rebuild their lives, tragedy strikes. Victor Raleigh, the new Vice-Chancellor of New Colorado, knows all about Nick's psychic abilities, and he'll settle for nothing less than total control over Nick. He's aligned himself with a vicious creature, a type of psychic vampire capable of wielding control over individuals such as Nick. When Nick is betrayed and captured, Todd sees no alternative but to head back into the war zone to rescue him. Will Nick be the same man Todd loves after Raleigh's pet psychic vampire is through with him? Can Nick accept the fact Todd can love him after what Raleigh forces him to do, or will his guilt consume and destroy him?

Chained Hearts - Elizabeth Noble - Sentries
Chained Hearts
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Word Count: 74150

Summary: A Sweet & Spicy D/s Romance! The pretty ones were always trouble... Cut Jones knows Samson from his work, but not really. He knows he’s got money, that he likes his whiskey sours extra sweet, but that’s where his knowledge ends. Samson’s come into the bar every few days for a year but has hardly said more than five words at a time, but Cut didn’t mind. Samson was out of his league. So imagine his surprise when Samson asks for his help with a very personal issue. The pressures of owning his own company and the expectations of his father had Samson Ba walking a razor’s edge. It was only a matter of time before he tried to find a release, but when he does it’s in the worst way. And he’s found by the last person he wanted to see him this way. But things aren’t all bad. Cut offers to help him relieve his stress, and Samson’s sure he’s just being nice, but some opportunities are too good to pass up. 

Served With a Twist - Jet Lupin - Dome Stories Tales From Izanami
Served with a Twist
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Word Count: 18000

Summary: A man arrives at his new job. A woman lets one last customer into her shop. Two teens sneak away to a party. These all sound normal. But these simple actions are on worlds that it's unlikely you've seen before. Twenty short stories bring you twenty weird worlds you won't soon forget.

Weird Worlds - Patricia Loofbourrow
Weird Worlds
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Word Count: 24000

Summary: Chief Engineer Shandi Leavenworth has been crushing on Major Tyra Sur ever since she joined station staff, though the laconic customs officer doesn't give up personal information easily. A few scraps of information lead Shandi to the perfect Solstice present, until of course everything goes horribly wrong. Major Sur took the job on Onwa Station for the stability, the quiet, and out of a need to be useful. It's been all of those things up until the moment the woman she's been quietly flirting with at the bar puts in a desperate call for help. There's no question they need to save the station, but Tyra's not so sure about saving their budding relationship.

The Solstice Pudding - Abgel Martinez
The Solstice Pudding
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Word Count: 19017

Summary: Should he change the past for love? As an agent for the Tempus Institute, Jason Adams’ task is to observe the past, not change it. But when he’s sent to 21st-century Wellington, New Zealand, during the last week of aspiring songwriter Sean Henderson’s life, Jason finds he can’t just watch from a distance. He and Sean quickly become friends and then lovers, and when the song that's haunted Jason for years connects them in a way he never anticipated, he'll risk changing history for the chance of sharing a future with Sean. Author’s note:  This story was originally published in 2012 by another publisher. This edition has some added content, and uses UK/NZ spelling to reflect its setting.  

Slow Dreaming - Anne Barwell
Slow Dreaming
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Word Count: 98926

Summary: An unbidden journey to a new world. A mind-bending search for intergalactic empathy. Will mankind ever understand the true meaning of the alien interactions with Earth? Amidst Alien Stars, the standalone second book in a spellbinding First Contact series from Clayton Graham, takes readers on an interplanetary journey to a strange and dangerous alien world. Fans of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Contact, and Arrival will be captivated by this gripping tale of mystery, betrayal, and alien intrigue. ★★★★★ "There is world building of such depth and lush detail that you could almost feel it." ★★★★★ "Not only is this an exciting, action-packed page turner—I love the intelligence reflected, the witty dialogue, and the genuine depth in the characters’ emotions." ★★★★★  "Admirable world-building and the unsurpassable, indefatigable, drive of the human spirit to not just survive, but to thrive, power this engrossing sequel to the author's debut science fiction novel, Milijun." Following their terrifying capture from their home planet, Laura Sinclair and son, Jason, lead a group of desperate humans in a bid to forge their own future, and that of the entire human race. Aboard an alien space station, orbiting a mysterious planet in a strange new galaxy, they find themselves as collaborators in a breathtaking scheme of cosmic survival—for aliens and humans alike. But who can they really trust as they struggle to understand the challenging and hostile environment that holds them in a grip of iron? To succeed, they must solve the puzzle of extraterrestrial races in the throes of a perplexing and historic conflict. But will that be a bridge too far?

Amidst Alien Stars - Clayton Graham - Milijun
Amidst Alien Stars
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Word Count: 127121

Summary: What would you do if you let slip information that could start a war? What if the person you divulged said information to is a rebel queen with a thirst for blood? In a world where metal is rare, you probably wouldn’t make matters worse by revealing a map showing the location of the hoard of steel you just told her about. Steel she could turn into swords, spears, and axes. Steel that will destroy her foes with their pathetic hardened glass weapons and leather armour. Unfortunately, Drome isn’t the most gifted of people when it comes to discretion. Or thinking things through. The consequences hurl him down a path riddled with folk keen to boil him alive, stick pointy objects in his tender flesh or blow him into tiny pieces. With the real queen gunning for him too, Drome reluctantly embarks on a secret mission to fix the mess he started. The civilised world depends on him. All he has to do is end a savage war. With a princess and a sorcerer on his side, what could possibly go wrong? If you like Terry Pratchett, Douglas Adams, and Joe Abercrombie, you won't be able to put down the addictive Hollow series.

A Taste of Steel - Kent Silverhill - Hollow Series
A Taste of Steel
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Word Count: Information not available

Summary: Nisi Shawl’s steampunk-flavored alternate history of the “Belgian” Congo, Everfair, has taken the science fiction and fantasy world by storm. No surprise there. Their swift, sure, and savvy short stories had already established them as a cutting-edge Afrofuturist icon whose politically charged fiction is in the grand feminist tradition of Ursula K. Le Guin, Octavia Butler, and Suzy McKee Charnas.   In these previously uncollected stories, Shawl explores the unexpected possibilities and perils opened up by SF&F’s new intersectionality. In Shawl’s side-slippery world, sex can be both commerce and worship, complete with ancient rites, altars, and ointments (“Women of the Doll”); a virtual reality high school is a proving ground for girlpacks and their unfortunate adversaries (“Walk like a Man”); and a British rock singer finds an image in a mirror that reflects both future hits and ancient horrors (“Something More”). Also included is a presentation at a southern university, in which they patiently (and gleefully) deconstructs the academic and arcane intersections between ancient rites and modern tech. Ifa, anyone?   Plus: Our Outspoken Interview with Shawl, in which unapologetics are proffered, riddles are unraveled, and icons are, as always, clasted.

Talk Like a Man - Nisi Shawl
Talk like a Man (Outspoken Authors Book 24)
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