Your Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Bargains for May 27, 2023

The stars are her prison. Fate is her escape. Can this relentless young woman outsmart a universe full of hate?

Astra would kill for answers. After spending most of her life locked inside her room on an inhospitable planet, the driven seventeen-year-old is thrilled when her twin brother agrees to help her sneak out and interrogate an alien. But her curiosity about what lies beyond the station boundaries shatters when she realizes her parents have been arrested as dangerous insurgents and transported off-world.

Swearing to do whatever it takes to make her family whole again, Astra clashes with a mutant beast that leaves her wounded. And after extraterrestrials tell her she must pursue aid from four isolated, magic-wielding factions, the protective teen grits her teeth to face the impossible task.

Can Astra seek out the truth without falling to her doom?

Missing teens. Long-lost magic. And the sexy nemesis who might drive her to murder.

Detective for hire, Ashira Cohen is having a no-good, very bad day.

When Ash was thirteen, her con artist father disappeared, leaving her with emotional scars and a limp she can’t hide. But she toughened up, determined never to be played again. Is history repeating itself?

First, she’s hit on the head during a stakeout, revealing a mysterious tattoo on the back of her skull.

Even worse? It’s a now-broken ward unleashing dangerous magic that as a Mundane, she shouldn’t possess.

And the icing on this crap cake? Her unruly powers nearly kill her long-time nemesis, Levi, the uptight leader of the magic community. One word from him revealing her forbidden abilities, and everything she’s built will be taken from her… by force.

Other Retailers
Apple Books | Nook | Kobo

Category: Fantasy – Paranormal & Urban

The lucky ones died first… for the survivors a bleak march towards annihilation awaits.

Earth’s core holds a powerful secret, drawing Elder Races from across the Universe. And they have a game to play.

Enter The Cesmial Accords—As unnatural talents awaken within the survivors, they must now face a series of monstrous, military waves sent to eradicate humanity.

Undermined by his powerful father for falling short of expectations, Lyewax now has no choice but to prove otherwise in Earth’s dark and brutal new reality. Somehow, he must rally those who remain to make a desperate stand and face their worst fears.

But amidst the rampaging monsters, someone is manipulating time and Lyewax is the focus of their hate. As the odds stack against him, the threads of fate twist into a noose…

Category: Science Fiction – Post-Apocalyptic

The battle for Raelis is over… the war for Earth has just begun.

As the First Wave continues to dominate, bold decisions must be made.

While humanity cowers from the monstrous threat, it falls to Lyewax and his team to lead the resistance.

Now among Earth’s strongest humans, they must fight their way across the North-West Province, fortifying towns and cities – pulling survivors from the shadows.

If they can convince humanity to Tier-up and unite, then the First Wave will fall…

Fifteen-year-old Jacqueline Talbot’s boyfriend Mal lives in the mirror of her makeup case. There’s never been anything normal about Jacqueline; not during her time in foster care, and certainly not in her new hometown of Mercy Hills.

With rumors of actual monsters in the woods, the popular kids taking an unhealthy interest in her, and the revealing of her own dark past, all Jacqueline wants to do is run away forever with Mal. Too bad he’s trapped in the mirror.

But when she learns the ancient forces of the town want to destroy everything she loves, the race is on to free the boy in the mirror, because he just might be the only one who knows how to stop them.

Category: Fantasy – Paranormal & Urban

When Craig’s high school buddy suggests a road trip, Craig knows its a bad idea. Bryan is out for a good time, no matter the cost, and he has his sights set on Craig’s dad’s van for the journey. Craig agrees to let it be used for the journey. It all feels such an enormous responsibility to him, and his friends don’t seem to share the same outlook he does – except the beautiful Hailey, who joins them on the trip. But Craig cannot anticipate what’s about to happen to them all, or indeed the world, as a worldwide emergency changes everything. He will stop at nothing to get home, even when his friends become unpredictable – or become enemies. He also doesn’t foresee or understand the biggest responsibility of all – a strange gift he discovers that leaves him questioning his sanity and the course of the future…and the past.
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Category: Science Fiction – Adventure

A Dark Fantasy Epic, The God Engine trilogy is perfect for fans of Brandon Sanderson’s Cosmere and Steven Erikson’s The Malazan Book of the Fallen.

What would you sacrifice to be free?

For Senn, former slave turned rebel leader and now the powerful Herald of the Lord of Greed, the answer was everything. He thought he had left hope behind forever. But when a ghostly child with sparkling blue eyes appears to him, Senn’s loyalty is tested. His own God and army turn against him, forcing him to flee into the harsh desert wasteland alone and powerless.

But as he searches for revenge and a new source of power, he must confront his past, including the woman he left behind at the mercy of the Forever King and his Chainkeepers.

Will Senn find redemption and a new purpose, or will he fall to the forces that seek to destroy him and turn all of humanity into thralls?

Category: Dark Fantasy

If only Mother would hurry up and die in the war. Then Miobeth can claim the mansion, take a husband and restore the family bloodline. But Mother insists on staying one more year for a final chance to produce an alternative heir.
It should be easy for Miobeth to wait a little longer. To contain her impudent rage.
Before she can claim her birthright, a mesmerising manservant, a forbidden map and an adventure beyond the mansion walls change Miobeth forever.
Can Miobeth fulfil her duty after glimpsing the outside world?

“Our Vitreous Womb” is a series of four science-fiction novellas that explore a distant post-industrial future where biological technology has transformed humanity.

“Makes my world look timid and old.” – Adolf Huxley
“Sci-fi without robots and rocket ships? Impossible!” – Yusak Asimov
“I too longed to snuggle with the giant beetle.” – Frank Kafka

Category: Hard Science Fiction

Blackmail an assassin? Who would do such a thing? Someone pretty desperate, that’s who. Which is exactly the position Rory finds herself in.

As a scrawny, dreadlocked pickpocket who grew up on the street, life hasn’t given her a ton of options. On top of which, her partner in crime has screwed her over for all her money, so she can no longer pay for the sword master who was supposed to train her—her ticket to a new life.

She’s not prepared to give up on her dream of becoming a great sword fighter, though. Which is why when she stumbles across an assassin’s secret, she immediately sniffs an opportunity. Blackmail can be a pretty effective strategy, after all. If he trains her, she’ll keep her mouth shut.

That is until she realises that the assassin’s she’s blackmailing is nothing like what she thought, and she’s accidentally landed herself in the middle of a dangerous conspiracy…

Other Retailers
Apple Books | Nook | Smashwords | Kobo

Category: Fantasy – Coming of Age