sci fi s-z

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Summary: Perhaps casual nudity wasn’t Kim’ s best idea. Dr. Kimberly Storm-Gale has to make it back to Tau Ceti University— and fast— after his peaceful research sabbatical is turned upside down by corporate predators. As he struggles to find a way to remain a free man, he doesn’t expect his research subjects to kidnap him. Grandchild of the Jorann or not, Halla is a burden to the outcastes of Sanctuary Aanesh, where she has struggled for years to survive the loss of her life-partner — a battle she is slowly losing. Kim and Halla begin to dream about one another even before circumstances throw them together on Tolar, but now they have more to deal with than just their growing attraction: Kim may be the unwitting agent of a human government with designs on Halla’s world. Outcaste is the engrossing sixth book in the Tales of Tolari Space science fiction series, but can also be read as a standalone. If you like planetary adventure and heart-warming romance, you’ll love Christie Meierz’ tales of the reclusive Tolari.

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Summary: While on shore leave in an orbital city, Connor Duffy meets a mysterious Gelt woman who entices him into a night of passion. But she has more than pleasure on her mind. Her name is Shrian, and she has discovered an alien device that can transport a ship across light-years instantly. And she wants him to have it. There's a catch. Under Realm law, she's in bondage to a Gelt trader whose family Duffy knows very well. He will have to free her, then convince the Compact to give Shrian political asylum. But it doesn't end there. While taking the device out for its first use in the field, Duffy and Shrian encounter the aliens who created it. They want it back. And they're not above killing to make their point. Duffy and Shrian must figure out a way to give the aliens what they want. Because while they're missing in action, the Compact of Humanity is tearing itself apart.

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Summary: See all formats and editions For thirty years, Rebeka’s people have fought the Earthmen who invaded their planet. Now Rebeka’s father has devised a plan to bring about a peace: Offer the Earthmen a cease-fire and cement it by giving his daughter to their leader as his bride. At first skeptical, Governor Philip Hamilcar is swept away by lust when he meets Rebeka but soon finds he has a rival for his wife’s affections in Darius Marx, Rebeka’s android bodyguard who possesses the abiilty to experience human emotion. Rebeka doesn’t want an alien husband but she’s given no choice, for she has been included in her father's plans for their people's freedon. Once married to Philip, she is to kill him and break the Earthmen’s rule forever. When she and Philip fall in love, Rebeka had to make a choice: her husband or her people.

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Summary: Trapped behind enemy lines in World War I France, Lieutenant Charles Clee stumbles upon an illegal time-travel experiment and finds himself catapulted 850,000 years into the future. Marooned in a nightmare world where prehistoric behemoths tread side-by-side with genetically-altered monsters from the laboratories of tomorrow, hunted by the eon-spanning Time Police and Earth's alien overlords, Clee races across the globe searching for the fabled last time machine—his only chance to go home. If he returns, he can save the men of his command and turn the tide of the war—but if he remains, he can become the symbol of Earth's resistance to centuries of slavery. In the end he must choose: Honor his oaths and rescue the men he swore to protect in the past, or honor his humanity and accept the leadership of mankind in the struggle to save the future? No matter his decision, a world is doomed.

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Summary: There are monsters outside the city walls. Harvard is small, anxious, and plagued by a constant tremor, which is not an ideal combination for a desert scavenger. He and his crew are under constant threat of desertwalker attacks, and Harvard is nearly useless against them. When the biggest mistake of Harvard’s life separates him from his crew, he must learn the secrets of the desert beasts in order to survive the dangers of the dusts. Returning to Bastion with a surprising ally, Harvard is forced to choose between saving his crew or allying with the “monsters” who rescued him. Harvard never saw himself as a hero, but when the beasts of the dusts implore him to aid their rescue mission, he holds the lives of crabs and humans alike in his trembling hands. For awesome post-apocalyptic action, where Earth is ruled by gargantuan crab beasts, get your copy of Empress of Dust today!

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Summary: Tormented by memories of past lives and a general distaste for structure, Sloane dropped out of a prestigious magic college to find themself. During their travels, they came across a curious little creature: a chatty spider that fit snugly in their hands. Unbeknownst to Sloane, this wasn’t a harmless garden or cellar spider. The spider had a thirst that mere flies couldn’t quench. It demanded blood and flesh, and when mice failed to suffice, moved on to bigger and dangerous prey. Sloane appeased it as best they could, but as the spider rapidly shot up in size, turned their focus from butcher shops to farms. Together, they concocted a plan to “solve” a manifested loss of cattle. The spider got a steady supply of food, and Sloane got street cred as a “monster slayer”. “What could possibly go wrong?” – Famous last words of any irresponsible pet owner. So now Sloane has a very real infestation to contend with, along with suspicious rangers and wannabe hunters edging in on their turf. “…I’m gonna need a bigger boot.”

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Summary: A remote resource planet. A mysterious illness. And a rescue team frighteningly out of their depth. It was supposed to have been an easy job: go in, kidnap or kill his mark, get out. Shine's done plenty of jobs like this before, no problem. But when it all goes suddenly wrong, he has only one option left to save his skin. He finds himself an unwilling volunteer on a medical mission to a remote resource planet. It sent in a distress call a week earlier, and then promptly went silent. No one knows why, and no one can contact them to find out. And, Shine is increasingly beginning to realize, every person on this mission is politically unimportant--a perfect crew of disposables. Their mission is to go in and figure out what happened, and save whoever they can. But he's smart enough to realize that anything that could cause an entire mining colony to go silent is probably not something accustomed to leaving its victims alive. And after meeting the rest of the crew, he's not sure that they're any safer than what's waiting for him out on the planet ... Set in the world of The Devil and the Dark, Inhuman is the first book in R.M. Olson's gripping new space-horror series, The Dark Between Stars.

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Summary: Aik will never be the same … and neither will his world. War is coming. Aik has become the Progenitor, and the Seed Mother has released him to transform the world for her alien brood. Silya and Raven, Aik's former friends, are the only ones who can save him and the world. But what if the cure is worse than the invasion? As Silya rushes to prepare Gullton for the battle to come, she's determined to save as many people as she can. But new crises emerge that demand her attention. Raven has his own hands full, keeping the dragon-like verent in line, while helping Silya to save the world. But what if the only way to do so is to sacrifice Aik, the man that he loves? It's the end of the world … or could it be the start of something new?

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Summary: Running on caffeine and spite with nothing left to prove.  GOLDEN GIRLS meets FIREFLY in this rollicking space opera adventure! Maryn Alessi retired from mercenary service after her last assignment went horribly sideways and settled down on a quiet planet with the love of her life. Unexpectedly widowed, Maryn must fulfill a promise to return her mate’s ashes to zer home planet for funeral rites, but a brutal civil war has destabilized space travel. Former Artemis Corps sisters-in-arms and their sassy ship, the Golden Girl, are up to the task, counting on luck and their rather sketchy cargo business to get Maryn passage through the contested star lanes. But when the crew of the Girl rescues survivors of a ruthless war crime, Maryn and her ride-or-die friends must take up their old profession to save the lives of innocents from a genocidal dictator.   WHISKEY AND WARFARE is the first of The Team Huntress Flights.  

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Summary: Welcome to the Museum of the Omniverse where you can safely experience actual events from every possible part of time and space. The museum is having some technical difficulties, however. Space time rifts have been opening throughout the museum and everyone has disappeared except for Mirandum, an exhibit curator. When a small group of visitors appears, Mirandum gives them a tour of the museum’s Dragon Exhibit while searching for clues to the museum’s ultimate fate. This full cast cinematic audio experience features an original musical soundtrack by Nashville recording artist Jeff Moon and an immersive soundscape, which brings stories by Timothy Zahn, David Lee Summers, Carol Hightshoe, Patrick Thomas, and Jeremiah Lynch to life.

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Summary: “IMMORTALITY BYTES: Digital Minds Don’t Get Hungry” by Daniel Lawrence Abrams won “Best Science Fiction: Cyberpunk” in the 7th Annual American Fiction Awards (2024), won “Best Humor/Satire” in the Story Trade Awards (a Reedsy "Best Writing Competition), and the book made the 3rd cut/shortlisted and is still in contention to win Chanticleer's Cygnus Award for Best Science Fiction (2025). Tagline: “Living forever... it's almost worth dying for.” Genre: Sci-Fi/Humor/Political Thriller The Hook: Strives to be a satirical, progressive antidote to Ayn Rand’s ATLAS SHRUGGED. One-line Story Pitch: “When an idealistic hacker’s ex-girlfriend nears inventing digital immortality, an indicted tycoon compels him to steal it.” Back Cover Blurb: “Yay, free money and a life of leisure! Except… only if you never have children. Sure, a cute little version of you (but not yet so screwed up) sounds fun. But with AI robots taking more jobs, who can reject that “bargain” hoping to afford kids someday? Stu Reigns does. He’s an idealistic AI programmer and part-time influencer. His demisexual ex-girlfriend, Roxy Zhang, nears perfecting electronic immortality. Add in billionaire banking rascals, and there’s no more certainty — not even “Death & Taxes.” An old-money Southerner is buying Roxy’s company. This infuriates a sick, rival oligarch — who is about to be rightfully convicted of epic fraud. To escape to this digital eternal life, he compels Stu to steal it. You’ll never guess all the twists, but maybe the reader peering over your shoulder will.” LINKS to accolades and 5-star reviews for "IMMORTALITY BYTES: Digital Minds Don't Get Hungry" by Daniel Lawrence Abrams : - https://www.americanbookfest.com/2024afapressrelease.html - https://2024.storytradeawards.com/ - https://www.chantireviews.com/2024/09/03/the-2024-cygnus-awards-semi-finalists-for-science-fiction/ - https://readerviewsarchives.wordpress.com/2024/09/02/immortality-bytes-abrams-2/ - https://readersfavorite.com/book-review/immortality-bytes - https://sanfranciscobookreview.com/product/immortality-bytes-digital-minds-dont-get-hungry/ BOOK TRAILER: https://vimeo.com/1005688225  

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Summary: There is a magic in the Universe that flows like a Bucket Full of Moonlight. There's a magic in towns, cities, and empires, and each of those has stories to tell. A traveler could wander from city to city and experience the magic that teems from the greatest towers down to the most innocent lives. There are stories of Fallen Angels. vampires, werewolves, devils, and used-car salesmen. There superheroes and villains and those in-between. There are space stations, travels through time, mothers in GPS systems, and last dances before last call. And a bunch of thrice-told tavern tales, retold.

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Summary: A long-dead genius. A hidden invention that could save—or doom—humanity. Can Leif find it before it falls into the wrong hands? The Martian Girl is a myth, some people say, created in the dark years after an apocalyptic global war. Perhaps she was a genius in mathematics and the greatest theoretical physicist since Einstein and Hawking.  She may have made a mathematical breakthrough or a powerful weapon. No one knows for sure. In AD 2726, Leif Grettison, former army ranger and exoplanetary scout, returns from the stars a weary man.  Four and a half centuries have passed since he was last on Earth. Now, statues honor him, and history books extol the almost-accurate legends of Lucky Leif. But all he really wants is a small cottage on a hill with a good view and no neighbors.  (Good luck with that, Leif!) Leif knows nothing about the Martian Girl.  But when he agrees to a simple request, his path leads to a relationship he never expected, two teens nobody wants, and a scheme to revive the Martian Girl’s former home, a dead city on Mars. Suddenly, discovering what the Martian Girl did is the center of Leif’s life. Bringing a city on Mars back to life is hard enough, but some of the team are agents of competing powers, each determined to find what the Martian Girl created. They will resort to anything, even murder, to possess it. If there is a weapon and Leif cannot secure it, his friends will be in danger, the shaky peace on Earth will collapse, and the world may plunge into devastating wars. Can a legend still gripped by his past save our future? Or will the Martian Girl’s invention push humanity over the brink?

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Summary: Can you leave your heart on the other side of the galaxy? When Wouter, a down-to-earth dyslexic caretaker, accidentally activates a travel disc sent by his late brother, he finds himself whisked away to a distant planet. Desperate to go home and reassure his grieving mother he’s alive, he’s instead stuck struggling to fill his brother’s shoes to keep the amphibian bani from freezing to death. Nif, a bani healer, clings to human music as a lifeline to memories of joy and a world beyond grief after losing his mate. Intrigued by the culture behind the songs he cherishes, he volunteers for Wouter’s support team—even as many of his kin distrust the humans, fearing exploitation of their fuel production. Their first meeting is one of necessity—a human in need and a bani ready to mend. As they navigate mistranslations, killer plants, and space pirates, a deeper connection blossoms between them. Each shared moment and conquered challenge draws them closer to an inevitable farewell. Will Wouter leave his heart or his home? In this slow-burn ace romance, discover a low-angst intergalactic adventure where true connection transcends stars and species. ___________________________ Content notes are available in the book's front matter and on the author's website.

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Summary: Seven stories of the gap year for the Children of Amargosa between Storming Amargosa and Suicide Run: Tishla must decide if Hanar can accommodate a group of socially inept sentient turtles. JT Austin has a ghost. Eric Yuwono must deal with his former enemies, who are now refugees on Amargosa. Davra Andraste tries to save a group of mean girls in space. Connor Duffy hacks the Boston sewer system. Ellie Nardino ponders her future, which might include terraforming. Mitsuko Yamato confronts squid people

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Summary: Half a century before Ray M. Holler sets off for the stars for the first time, a chance encounter near Neptune forever changes not only the course of human history but that of the entire Galaxy. Colonel Milan Pavel is a highly decorated officer in the Visegrád Union Navy, serving his last few months in command of the Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, the flagship of the VU’s Third Fleet. When an alien ship appears near Neptune, he initially dismisses it as an elaborate pre-retirement prank by his crew, but he is quickly proven wrong. The situation escalates rapidly as it turns out that the ship is on the run from a powerful enemy who is not far behind. Colonel Pavel has a decision to make: Either follow protocol and leave the aliens to their cruel fate, or risk his ship and crew in an attempt to save them.

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Summary: Perry's mother told him he'd develop the superpower of flight, like his grandfather. She even named him Peregrine, so folks would call him "The Falcon." Spoiler— they don't. Because when he did come into his power, all he got was the ability to change colors. Not even himself, like some kind of Chameleon Man, but the color of objects. He can de-pukify the shade of his bedroom curtains, turn a bully's sweatshirt pink, or even turn a red traffic light green. (Not a good idea.) He hasn't told anyone except his disappointed mom about his power. What would they call him? The Interior Decorator? Back in high school, under stress, he did convince his power that transparent was just another color. Now that ability's sometimes fun in an illicit way. Then one morning, in the mailroom at work, he turns a cardboard box transparent and sees a bomb inside. And Perry's ordinary life explodes. Sergeant Deckard of the Nova City Bomb Squad never thought much about superheroes, or supervillains for that matter. He has plenty of work with ordinary humans and their explosives. Until he and his bomb-sniffing dog, Nix, get called to a possible-explosives situation in a highrise mailroom. The guy who reported the bomb is a nerdy twink in dark-framed glasses who pushes all of Deck's buttons. When he finds out the young man has a weird superpower and may be the target of a villain, every protective instinct comes into play. Deckard's goal is to keep his job, his dog, Nova City, and Perry intact. His libido can just sit down, shut up, and take a number. But as their attraction gets hotter and the villain closes in, their future might be blown apart before it even has a chance to start. Transparent Is a Color is a part of the multi-author Subpar Superheroes MM romance series. (Content warning for abduction, parental emotional abuse)

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Summary: Embark on adventures to discover stories about science, magic, the tarot, Haitian vodou, the clash of epistemologies, and addiction. These stories are about people trying to control their environment, their sense of self, even the smallest of things within their power… …and failing.

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Summary: In Space, No One Can Hear You Sing … Grayson Eck's life is a drag, in all the best possible ways. He's perfectly happy working in the belt alone as a wildcatter, prospecting asteroids by … well, not exactly by day. At night, he transforms into the Inner System's most famous Valeriana Storm — a secret identity that even his closest friends and family don't know about. When someone tries to steal one of Greyson's mining scores, he has half a mind to just toss the guy off his rock and into open space. But that all changes when he discovers the stranger's identity — and that he knows Greyson's secret. Now he's being chased by a pirate, and has to decide what to do with the apparent thief while also putting on his show. What's a space drag queen to do?

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Summary: Earth on the Cusp of the Twenty-Second Century Just think how the world has changed in the last seventy-six years. In 1948, scientists ran the first computer program, and "the Ultimate Car of the Future," the futuristic, three wheeled Davis Divan, debuted. Since then, a succession of inventions—the personal computer, the internet, the World Wide Web, smart phones and social media—have transformed every aspect of our lives. How might the next seventy-six years change us, in ways we can barely even begin to imagine, as culture, climate change, politics and technology continue to reshape the world? Earth in 2100 will be as unrecognizable to us as today would be to someone from 1948. Eighteen writers tackled this challenge, creating an amazing array of sci-fi possibilities. From emotional AI's to photosynthetic children, from virtual worlds to a post-urban society, our writers serve up compelling slices of life from an Earth that's just around the corner. So dive in and and take a wild ride into these amazing visions of our collective future.