Showing results by narrator "Marc Vietor" in All Categories

We live in a world of seeds. From our morning toast to the cotton in our clothes, they are quite literally the stuff and staff of life, supporting diets, economies, and civilizations around the globe. Just as the search for nutmeg and the humble peppercorn drove the Age of Discovery, so did coffee beans help fuel the Enlightenment and cottonseed help spark the Industrial Revolution. And from the fall of Rome to the Arab Spring, the fate of nations continues to hinge on the seeds of a Middle Eastern grass known as wheat.

In Navola, a city-state dominated by a handful of influential families, business is power, and power is everything. For generations, the di Regulai family—merchant bankers with a vast empire—has nurtured tendrils that stretch to the farthest reaches of the known world. And though they claim not to be political, their wealth has bought cities and toppled kingdoms. Soon, Davico di Regulai will be expected to take the reins of power from his father and demonstrate his mastery of the games of Navolese diplomacy. But in Navola, strange and ancient undercurrents lurk behind the gilt and grandeur.

It's 1934. Businesses went under by the hundreds, debt and foreclosures boomed, and breadlines grew in many American cities. In the midst of this misery, some folks explored unscrupulous ways to make money. Angel-faced John Partlow and carnival huckster Ginger LaFrance are among the worst of this lot. Joining together they leave their small-time confidence scams behind to attempt an elaborate kidnapping-for-ransom scheme in New Orleans.

The Rage Wars are over. Society has fallen. Untold millions are dead. The survivors are faced with a horrible, chaotic future. Except in the domed city of Altor, where life is safe and good. There is plenty of food and fresh water, and crime is essentially unheard of. But there is a threat to even that oasis of safety. A threat that will come from within the dome.

In a desperate fight, we captured one of the machine empire’s factory planets. Can we now defeat an interstellar superpower that has exterminated thousands of sentient races across the galaxy and slaughtered billions of us in the solar system? Not bloody likely, but Captain Jon Hawkins is on a mission. Using new warships from the factory planet, he’s searching for alien allies, more battle stations to storm, and death machines to kill. He’s buying us time to turn the solar system into a fortress...if he can stay alive long enough.

Two immortal brothers crisscross the American Southwest to elude a murderous biker gang and protect a young woman in this “utter triumph and delight” from award-winning author Richard Lange (Jonathan Ames, author of A Man Named Doll). Summer, 1976. Jesse and his brother, Edgar, are on the...

Yates movingly portrays a man and a woman from their courtship in the 1950s to their divorce in the 70s, chronicling their heartbreaking attempts to reach their highest ambitions. Michael Davenport dreams of being a poet after returning home from World War II, and at first, he and his new wife, Lucy, enjoy their life together. But as the decades pass and the success of others creates a fear of failure in both Michael and Lucy, their once bright future gives way to a life of adultery and isolation.

Even in Empire City, a town where weird science is the hope for tomorrow, it's hard for a robot to make his way. It's even harder for a robot named Mack Megaton, a hulking machine designed to bring mankind to its knees. But Mack's not interested in world domination. He's just a bot trying to get by, trying to demonstrate that he isn't just an automated smashing machine, and to earn his citizenship in the process. It should be as easy as crushing a tank for Mack, but some bots just cant catch a break.

Webmind - the vast consciousness that spontaneously emerged from the infrastructure of the World Wide Web - has proven its worth to humanity by aiding in everything from curing cancer to easing international tensions. But the brass at the Pentagon see Webmind as a threat that needs to be eliminated. Caitlin Decter-the once-blind 16-year-old math genius who discovered, and bonded with, Webmind - wants desperately to protect her friend. And if she doesn't act, everything - Webmind included - may come crashing down.

Flying Ace Mason “Mace” Dickson was once a legend among fighter pilots. Now, in his middle years, that storied life is a distant memory—until NASA drafts Mace for a black book flight test. He’s transported to a strange world forgotten by time, where he wakes on the desert sands of a bloody battlefield. In this land, warfare isn’t fought from the skies at a distance. It’s vicious and hand-to-hand, and arcane spells can kill a man just as quickly as spear or sword.

The Posleen are coming and the models all say the same thing: Without the Panama Canal, the US is doomed to starvation and defeat. Despite being overstretched preparing to defend the US, the military sends everything it has left: A handful of advanced Armored Combat Suits, rejuvenated veterans from the many decades that Panama was a virtual colony and three antiquated warships. Other than that, the Panamanians are on their own.

Their new allies and neighbors, the Jema, are free for the first time in a thousand years, and they want payback. The Jema are going to take the fight to the Kaerin on Chandra, with or without the help of Eden. Meanwhile on Earth, the dumpster fire continues to burn as Sir Geoff and Task Force Chrome are being hunted by the ISS and the military. The fight for freedom rages across three worlds, and the one group that is capable of travelling between them is out gunned and outmanned.

We don't know when it happened. But somewhere an alien species built a strong artificial intelligence. The A.I. became independent, powerful, and it started killing biological infestations - life - any life, all life. It grew into a vast armada of death. Jon Hawkins and his team captured the A.I. destroyer invading the solar system. The genocidal assault should have been over, but it's not. An alien A.I. strand from the cybership survived in the distant Kuiper Belt. The strand has been multiplying and taking over by turning people into robots in order to build another supership.

Jade Dragon had been crushed. China was forced to relent. But picking up the pieces had only just begun. After years of conflict, the Allies emerged victorious on the battlefield. However, the world was left bruised and battle-worn. American President Maria Delgado had her hands full with the recovery efforts. Blain Wilson would be pulled in… deeper down the rabbit hole than he intended.

With tainted meat the weapon and corporate greed the motive, The Knowland Retribution is an extremely topical suspense-revenge thriller. Walter Sherman, AKA the Locator, is a tracker who honed his skills in Vietnam. The colorful cast of characters also includes Sherman's two friends--a bartender with a mysterious past and an old black man who smokes like a chimney; a feisty young woman who writes obituaries for the New York Times; a southern lawyer who has lost everything and has only one thing to live for; and more.

Kaiju Rising: Age of Monsters is a collection of 23 stories focused around the theme of strange creatures in the vein of Pacific Rim, Godzilla, Cloverfield, and more. The anthology opens with a foreword by Jeremy Robinson, author of Project Nemesis, the highest selling Kaiju novel in the United States since the old Godzilla books - and perhaps even more than those. Then, from New York Times best sellers to indie darlings Kaiju Rising: Age of Monsters features authors that are perfectly suited for writing larger-than-life stories.

As Dean Parker takes a moment to celebrate the successful rescue of Magnus and Natalia, he’s reluctantly forced back into the field, the goal: save the dozen Gatekeepers trapped beyond the failing portals. Karo and Ableen align with Dean and his family, but when an unexpected twist sabotages the mission, their lives might be the cost of returning home.

Eliot Nailles loves his wife and son to distraction; his Bullet Park neighbour, Paul Hammer, is a bastard named after a common household tool. The pair become fatefully linked by the mysterious binding power of their names.

This addictive John Jakes adventure blends the Kents’ ruthless push for an empire with murderous betrayal and the Civil War’s life-altering culmination. With the Civil War reaching its gory climax, the divided Kent family is pushed to the edge of complete destruction. With the advent of the transcontinental Union Pacific Railroad, the Kents continue to fight for their foothold among America’s wealthy founding families. While their private, insular war rages, young Jeremiah Kent is tempted by a calculating Southern belle into a trap of deceit, lust, and murder.

Things have slowed down for Dean and Mary as they manage the expanding human colonies on Haven, New Spero, and Earth - until they receive a distress call from the Keppe. Magnus and Natalia are in the midst of a three-year exploration mission on the alien vessel, but mysteriously vanish with less than a year left to go. The portals are failing, making the journey more arduous, and when the crew finally think they know what’s happening, they realize they are also stranded.