The ninth shared-world anthology laid in Niven's Known Space universe during the wars against those fighting felinoids, the alien Kzin, offers four notably readable long stories. In the late Poul Anderson's "Pele," a human couple on a research expedition rescue a Kzin with more courage than sense. Hal Colebatch's "His Sergeant's Honor," probably the book's strongest entry, features a Kzin who backs up his race's fanatical concept of honor with keen tactical sense. In Paul Chafe's "Windows of the World," a member of the UN police, ARM captain Joel K. Allson, and Allson's Kzin partner confront a mysterious murder aboard an orbital habitat, along with several conspiracies and a beautiful suspect. Niven's own "Fly-By-Night" features Beowulf Shaeffer rescuing the title character from another Kzin with vaulting ambitions and a keen eye for legal loopholes. For action and military SF fans, these four tales intelligently develop the Kzin, who still have all the ferocity of their carnivorous, predatory ancestors but have assumed more complexity as they carry their civilization into space. At a time when mindless brutality may strike a somewhat negative note with many readers, more sophisticated Kzin will add to the audience for these well-wrought aliens and their human friends and foes. Stephen Hickman's menacing, prosthetically enhanced catlike hero from "His Sergeant's Honor" almost jumps off the jacket. Views: 14
Imagine a modern spin on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein where a young couple’s undying love and the grief of a father pushed beyond sanity could spell the destruction of them all.A string of suspicious deaths near a small Michigan town ends with a fall that claims the life of Emma Gentry’s boyfriend, Daniel. Emma is broken, a hollow shell mechanically moving through her days. She and Daniel had been made for each other, complete only when they were together. Now she restlessly wanders the town in the late Fall gloom, haunting the cemetary and its white-marbled tombs, feeling Daniel everywhere, his spectre in the moonlight and the fog.When she encounters newcomer Alex Franks, only son of a renowned widowed surgeon, she’s intrigued despite herself. He’s an enigma, melting into shadows, preferring to keep to himself. But he is as drawn to her as she is to him. He is strangely…familiar. From the way he knows how to open her locker when it sticks, to the nickname she shared only with Daniel, even his hazel eyes with brown flecks are just like Daniel’s. The closer they become, though, the more something inside her screams there’s something very wrong with Alex Franks.And when Emma stumbles across a grotesque and terrifying menagerie of mangled but living animals within the walls of the Franks’ estate, creatures she surely knows must have died from their injuries, she knows. Views: 14
Review: U.S.A Best Selling Author R.E. Butler~ This book was full of suspense from start to finish with a rich tapestry of characters, kidnappings, matings, new families, and a jaw-dropping ending that makes me anxious for the next book. If you like your heroes with fangs and heroines who can hold their own in a fight, look no further than Destiny of Blood, another great addition to the Love of a Shifter series.Still nursing a broken heart, Lily Wilder is focused on enjoying the single life. She's had enough betrayal and heartache to last a lifetime, so finding a man isn't in her plans, but the night of her pack's Valentine's Dance her plans get rerouted. Sindrid Abner is the Vampire King, and it's his duty to find a strong mate who can help him lead his people into a peaceful future. He never imagined a pretty werewolf would set his soul aflame. Imagine his dismay when his fated mate avoids him at every turn? When shifters and vampires begin disappearing, Lilly will either face the truth or continue to live in fear. The only soul that can make her blood sing, is the Vampire King, but can they both survive to create a life together? Or will they find their Destiny by Blood?** Views: 14
Rex Dravon, a notorious smuggler, is one of the Outcasts' most important allies. Many of the Outcasts' philosophies and approaches to life in general appeal to him, but he's hesitant to commit to any cause. Hoping to entice Rex into committing, Arton the Heretic, tells Rex that he is genetically compatible with one of the "captive brides", a feisty blonde named Thea Cline.Thea is still enraged that she was dragged from Earth without her permission, and she's recovering from a horrendous tragedy. She sneaks aboard the Marauder hoping to steal a weapon. Instead she's confronted by the ship's handsome commander. She knows to be wary of Rex because of his reputation, but she's instantly, and powerfully, drawn to him. His offer to help her escape comes a little too quickly and she fears he has ulterior motives. Is he simply hoping to lure her into his bed--a fate she's not sure she'd mind--or is his motivation more nefarious?Note to Readers: This book contains detailed descriptions of sizzling passion only suitable for mature readers. Certain plot elements carry on from book to book. Though Marauder can be read as a standalone, it's more fun to read the series in order. Enjoy! Views: 14
Casserine takes the reader on a futuristic journey with a conservative bent. Duty and honor, in this Sci-Fi adventure, infuses the tale from beginning to end. If you love it when political correctness takes a hit, and touchy feely space operas bore you, Casserine will take you where you want to go. This nonstop rush across space, from one battlefield to another, illustrates a far different handling of Alien cultures. A nearly superhuman Marine finds love in a most unusual way, and when duty rips him from her, he uses any means necessary, within his code of honor, to return to their small universe. Chosen to lead the most powerful space force ever assembled, because of a fluke mixing of DNA with an Alien monster, Jake Matthews spares no entity standing in the way of his mission. He vows to forge an unbeatable engine of destruction, powerful enough to force peace across eternal space. Casserine provides a wild ride for a reader who wishes to see a vista of future America, where citizens across the galaxies pledge allegiance to one Earth nation’s flag. In so doing, they birth an empire of single minded purpose, and incredible power. Views: 14
Kylara Vatta, risk-taking, rule-breaking, can-do heroine of “Trading in Danger,” is back in business—the kind that’s anything but usual—in the new military science fiction adventure by ace action storyteller Elizabeth Moon. The exciting military career she hoped for never got off the ground—but Ky Vatta ended up seeing plenty of combat when she took the helm of one of the commercial transport vessels in her family’s fleet… and steered it into a full-blown war. Now the lessons she learned in that trial by fire are about to pay off: because this time, the war has come to her. To be exact, someone unknown has launched a full-throttle offensive against Vatta Transport Ltd., Ky’s father’s interstellar shipping empire. In short order, most of Ky’s family is killed, and subsequent attacks sever vital lines of communication, leaving Ky fighting, in every sense, to survive. Determined to identify the ruthless mystery enemy and avenge her family’s name, Ky needs not only firepower but information. And she gets both in spades—from the band of stranded mercenaries she hooks up with, from her black-sheep cousin, Stella, who’s been leading a secret life, and from Stella’s roguish ex-lover, Rafe. Together they struggle to penetrate the tangled web of political intrigue that’s wreaking havoc within InterStellar Communications, whose effective operation their own livelihoods—and perhaps lives—depend on. But the infighting proves to be infectious, and it isn’t long before Ky’s hired military muscle are turning their suspicions on the enigmatic Rafe, whose wealth ofknowledge about ISC’s clashing factions and startling new technologies has begun to make him smell like a rat… or a mole. With swift, violent destruction a very real possibility, the last thing Ky needs is a crew divided against itself—and she’s prepared to take whatever measures are necessary to ensure that Vatta stays in business, as well as in one piece. What she’s not prepared for is the shocking truth behind the terror— and a confrontation with murderous treachery from a source as unexpected as it is unrelenting. Views: 14
LOVING JACK: Somehow her own fictional brooding hero had turned up in person right under her own roof, and now all romance writer Jackie MacNamara had to do was convince stubborn Nathan Powell that happily-ever-after began at home - and in her arms ... Views: 14
