The stunning sequel to Elizabeth Kerner's Song in the Silence, THE LESSER KINDRED continues the story of Lanen Kaelar, a young woman who embarked on a search for the great dragons of legend and discovered not only the reality of the myth but her own true love. The course of happiness is not always an easy one, however, and Lanen must make some hard choices. Her decisions could spell the salvation of an entire race-but at the cost of all that she holds dear.
The story, which Tenn described as having been inspired by the Korean War, portrays Earth as the battleground between two powerful alien races, the Troxxt and the Dendi, who repeatedly “liberate” it from each other. The Earth was nearly destroyed in process and abandoned by both parties.
In this stunning debut, author Scott Lynch delivers the wonderfully thrilling tale of an audacious criminal and his band of confidence tricksters. Set in a fantastic city pulsing with the lives of decadent nobles and daring thieves, here is a story of adventure, loyalty, and survival that is one part “Robin Hood,” one part Ocean's Eleven, and entirely enthralling…An orphan's life is harsh – and often short – in the island city of Camorr, built on the ruins of a mysterious alien race. But born with a quick wit and a gift for thieving, Locke Lamora has dodged both ...
Ted Chiang has made his bones in SF as a master of the short story, so a much longer work than is customary comes as a surprise. "The typical science-fiction depiction of AI is this loyal, obedient butler; you simply flip a switch, turn it on and it's ready to do your bidding. I feel like there's a huge story being glossed over," Chiang tells Boing Boing about the genesis of The Lifecycle of Software Objects. To be sure, the ethical issues that he raises and the depth of the technology (even for a novella) overshadow character development and some hasty plotting. Chiang's distinctive voice is evident here — a tech-industry insider, he's always been fluent in geek-speak and has a knack for translating heavy ideas into workable plots — and his first foray into the long form is a success. It would be his readers' good fortune if the author decided to take up novel-writing full time.
The crowning achievement of any professional writer is to get paid twice for the same material: write a piece for one publisher and then tweak it just enough that you can turn around and sell it to someone else. While it’s specious to accuse Stephen Baxter and Arthur C. Clarke of this, fans of both authors will definitely notice some striking similarities between and other recent works by the two, specifically Baxter’s and Clarke’s . follows a soulless tech billionaire (sort of an older, more crotchety Bill Gates), a soulful muckraking journalist, and the billionaire’s ...
Percy Jackson is a good kid, but he can't seem to focus on his schoolwork or control his temper. And lately, being away at boarding school is only getting worse — Percy could have sworn his pre-algebra teacher turned into a monster and tried to kill him. When Percy's mom finds out, she knows it's time that he knew the truth about where he came from, and that he go to the one place he'll be safe. She sends Percy to Camp Half Blood, a summer camp for demigods (on Long Island), where he learns that the father he never knew is Poseidon, God of the Sea. Soon a mystery unfolds and together with his friends — one a satyr and the other the demigod daughter of Athena — Percy sets out on a quest across the United States to reach the gates of the Underworld (located in a recording studio in Hollywood) and prevent a catastrophic war between the gods.
Book three of the Ki and Vandian Quartet.After surviving the conflict between the Windsingers and the Wizard Dresh, life for Ki and her lover, Vandien, settles down. But although Ki’s bargain for the Relic bought their lives and their freedom, the wrath of the Hugh Windsinger council is not easily sated. They are deadly enemies, and even the protection of Rebeke, the most powerful of the Windsingers, is not enough to prevent Ki from being tricked through the Limbreth Gate.In the darkness beyond lives a bored and arrogant local god whose only obsession is collecting minds to manipulate and amuse himself with. He reveals to Ki the secrets of her past. Vandien attempts to free her from the god’s enchantment. But Ki may be content to remain with the god forever…Rise beyond adventure and confront destiny in book three of Megan Lindholm’s stunning Ki and Vandian Quartet.
New York Times bestselling author Michael Connelly delivers his first legal thriller an incendiary tale about a cynical defense attorney whose one remaining spark of integrity may cost him his life.Mickey Haller has spent all his professional life afraid that he wouldn't recognize innocence if it stood in front of him. Haller is a Lincoln Lawyer, a criminal defense pro who operates out of the backseat of his Lincoln Town Car, to defend clients at the bottom of the legal food chain. It's no wonder that he is despised by cops, prosecutors, and even some of his ...
Come visit a world where you cannot draw breath… should its horrifying wildlife allow you. Outlink station Miranda has been destroyed by a nanomycelium, and the very nature of this sabotage suggests that the alien bioconstruct Dragon — a creature as untrustworthy as it is gigantic — is somehow involved. Sent out on a titanic Polity dreadnought, the Occam Razor, agent Cormac must investigate the disaster, and also resolve the question of Masada, a world about to be subsumed as the Line of Polity is drawn across it. But the rogue biophysicist Skellor has not yet been captured, and he ...
For the inspiration for this novel, Guy Gavriel Kay has drawn on the conflicts in medieval Spain, including King Ferdinand's expulsion of the Jews and forced conversion of those who remained during the Inquisiton, and the fall of Granada to the Christians. In this tale, there are two moons looking over a planet which is home to the country of Esperana. The rulers are the Asharites, who worship the stars and who hail from the neighboring land of Al-Rassan. The Kindath, a dispersed people with no country of their own, worship the moons. The Horsemen of Jad are worshippers of the sun. Zealots from the Asharites and Jaddites are bent on taking advantage of the political turmoil in Esperana, and the central characters of the book do their best to keep civilization going.
Locked Room Mystery is dead! Can you work out the culprit in this witty short story by Jasper Fforde, author of the popular Thursday Next mystery novels?
