A freak electrical storm sweeps over Britain, knocking out power lines in its wake. Without the National Grid, Britain is in left in the dark – no lights, no heat, no electricity...From among the British refugees now scattered across northern France, a young soldier is recruited for a mission that takes him back home, to find a Britain at once recognisable and massively altered.A freak electrical storm sweeps over Britain, knocking out power lines in its wake. Without the National Grid, Britain is in left in the dark – no lights, no heat, no electricity...Three months later, from among the British refugees now scattered across northern France, a nation itself rocked by the crisis, a young soldier is recruited for a mission that takes him back home.This is his story, as he ventures back to find his homeland ravaged, its population scattered, and civilisation on the brink. This is a tale of an alternative future, set in a Britain at once recognisable and massively altered.

than two hundred years into the future, human beings are an endangered species. The planet has been battered by war, its inhabitants plagued by disease and death. Few survived and remained unaffected. Seventeen year-old Avery is alive and unchanged. She has lived on the run for much of her life, in terror. Forced to hide deep in the forest, Avery and her sister are constantly hunted.The world has changed. It’s dangerous, deadly. Inhuman creatures rule the planet. Animals have mutated. The land is hostile. But it’s all I’ve ever known. Hunger. Fear. Panic. Those emotions are my reality. They are my every day. I am Avery, and I am seventeen. My father died a year ago. Since then I’ve been responsible for my eight-year-old sister, June. I worry we are the only humans left.Humans have been hunted for centuries, to the brink of extinction. I must fight each day to protect my sister. It is the reason I wake, the reason I breathe. But how long can I go on fighting? How long will it be before they find us? More than two hundred years into the future, human beings are an endangered species. The planet has been battered by war, its inhabitants plagued by disease and death. Few humans survived and remained unaffected. Most changed dramatically and evolved into something else entirely. Irrevocable alterations caused by chemical warfare have created a new species. North America is in ruins and has been overtaken. Humanity has fallen at the hands of mutants known as Urthmen. Seventeen year-old Avery is alive and unchanged. But she has not been immune to the harshness of the new world. She has lived on the run for much of her life, in terror. After losing her father, Avery is the sole guardian of her eight-year-old sister, June. Avery is now charged with June’s safety as well as her own, a nearly impossible task.Forced to hide deep in the forest and away from the cities overrun by Urthmen, Avery and her sister are constantly hunted. Danger awaits them at every turn. They fear they are the only human beings left, that they are the last of their kind. But are they truly alone?Find out in this raw and riveting first installment of the Planet Urth series.

Book #1 (The Legend of the Gate Keeper)Then the dance of blades began, each pair of arms whirling and pumping in an intricate series of thrusts and parries. Each appeared to have eight arms, as it seemed impossible only two could move with such tenacity! The steel-on-steel blows were so heavy that a shower of continuous sparks fired off in every direction. Each time the sky light up with a flash(Book #1 The Legend of the Gate Keeper)Eric thought he had his life all figured out. The son of a blacksmith, he was born in the small town of Bryer. One day his life is thrown into chaos when flying creatures attack his town. Uprooted from his familiar surroundings, he is forced to embark on a journey for answers. It's now painfully clear that his whole life has been nothing more than a series of lies. Accompanied by his only true friend, along with a beautiful girl with a mysterious past, Eric must begin the journey that will lead him to his destiny.A wonderful, intricately woven tale of heroes and villains, Land of Shadows is the first book in the Legend of the Gate Keeper Series, which follows a band of mismatched companions in a fantastical quest through long-forgotten lands.This book is intended for mature audiences.The Legend of the Gate Keeper Series Reading Order:The Shadow: (A standalone prequel: Book 0)Land of Shadows: (Book 1)Siege of Night: (Book 2)Lost Empire: (Book 3)Reborn: (Book 4)The Trials of Ashbarn: (Book 5) End of Days: (Final Book)

The second in a series of short stories about the I.S.S. Fenghuang, the last faster-than-light starship in the galaxy. In this volume, Governor Caitlin Adair struggles with her place among the crew while they investigate an isolated solar mining platform.The Heilmann Drive allowed humanity to spread across the stars and prosper for nearly two thousand years. But when the use of the device begins to eat into the fabric of the universe, the People's Interstellar Republic bans all faster-than-light travel. A new age begins, one of isolation and stagnation, and becomes known as the Fall.One rebel, Captain Seth Garland, steals the last starship in existence. He is now mankind's only hope of re-uniting the stars.Dobhriathar: As Caitlin tries to figure out how she fits in aboard the ISS Fenghuang, the rebel crew visits an ancient solar mining station in search of materials to improve the ship. There, they discover an abandoned mining team that has been stuck on the station since the beginning of the Fall.

Cmdr. Lemuel Gulliver XVI returns from space in 2025 after having searched for a planet that could hold the Earth's burgeoning population. He found none. He therefore embarks on a mission to limit population on the Earth. There will be 14 books in the series. Eight are completed. The books will examine psychological, moral and political problems in getting our world to acknowledge the problems.Commander Lemuel Gulliver XVI returns from a 25 year odyssey around the solar system searching for places to put the world's excess population. He found none. He therefore is determined to join others who have recognised this major problem and are attempting to do something about it. Overpopulation is responsible for many of the world's major problems: global warming, the lack of fresh water, famines, poverty, youth unemployment, reduction in natural resources, and the storing of excess wastes in our air, water and on our land. The commander's 25 years of reading and thinking has made him understand the importance of eu-paranting. Many of the problems of our societies are related to the lack of parental love and the inability of parents to effectively educate their children. Several societies have licensed parents to have children based on a number of criteria-- which vary from country to country. Cmdr. Gulliver plans to visit some of these countries and learn what they are doing first hand. He is aware of the anchors of tradition that hold most of us in ruts of ignorance and selfishness. Religions, businesses, bankrupt governments and many other groups have reasons to keep their populations reproducing. The problem, as all thinking people know, is that Mother Nature in all her bounty has not given us enough arable land and freshwater to adequately nourish all of her children. She has also not provided enough natural trash cans to harmlessly hide our wastes. In the ensuing books of the series he will look at the ethical and psychological stumbling blocks that bolster tradition-- a tradition which, if not changed, will destroy most of our human brothers. The commander wants to help present-day humanity to recognise the dangers for its progeny if something is not done yesterday! If we are to reduce our population we must extend our working ages and postpone retirement. But this goes against our selfish natures. We must pay for our own retirements and our medical care and not expect the government to borrow from others to pay for us. But this, too, goes against our selfish natures. Also, in our modern day governments the corruption of power, rather than the good of the governed, is the reality of nearly every democracy and dictatorship of today. His search for utopian principles requires addressing these problems also. They will be addressed in this series that he plans to write.

Sicarius, the emperor’s personal assassin, returns from a successful mission only to discover that the enemy is retaliating by sending an assassin of their own. The target? Five-year-old Prince Sespian. Shadows over Innocence is a 4,500-word short story set fourteen years before the first Emperor’s Edge novel.This collection consists of two short stories.Urban ExplorationAn abandoned Victorian mental asylum, derelict for decades, sits in the middle of the English countryside. Three University graduates decide to explore the decaying ruin one summer day. A week later, one of them returns for a second visit. Will this trip go as planned?The Curse of Chillingham CastleChillingham Castle is one of the most haunted places in England, with a long and bloody past. Over from America on their first European holiday, tourists Mark and Susie take a detour to the atmospheric castle. It was a decision that they would later regret. Life for them will never be quite the same again.Together, the stories come to about 15000 words long. Just long enough to fit nicely in to a couple of lunch breaks!

Two short stories.Urban Exploration.An abandoned Victorian mental asylum, derelict for decades, sits in the middle of the English countryside. Three people set out to explore.The Curse of Chillingham Castle.Over from America on their first European holiday, tourists Mark and Susie take a detour to one of England's most haunted castles.15000 words approx.This collection consists of two short stories.Urban ExplorationAn abandoned Victorian mental asylum, derelict for decades, sits in the middle of the English countryside. Three University graduates decide to explore the decaying ruin one summer day. A week later, one of them returns for a second visit. Will this trip go as planned?The Curse of Chillingham CastleChillingham Castle is one of the most haunted places in England, with a long and bloody past. Over from America on their first European holiday, tourists Mark and Susie take a detour to the atmospheric castle. It was a decision that they would later regret. Life for them will never be quite the same again.Together, the stories come to about 15000 words long. Just long enough to fit nicely in to a couple of lunch breaks!

A technological breakthrough has forever changed the scope and scale of space travel. Tension on earth builds as the inhabitants realize that the vast distance between stars has never been an obstacle for inter-planetary travel. The earth has always been exposed to the threat of an alien invasion. But, what if we find them before they find us?A technological breakthrough has forever changed the scope and scale of space travel. Tension on earth builds as the inhabitants realize that the vast distance between stars has never been an obstacle for inter-planetary travel. The earth has always been exposed to the threat of an alien invasion.The Space Force is commissioned to find them, before they find us. Steve Jenners, Captain of the Galaxy Charger, has been sent to an isolated corner of another galaxy to look for evidence of life. Dark and eerily quiet, he and Tammy Rogers, a beautiful civilian over the research lab, initiate a forbidden romance. Just as this relationship heats up, they discover an inhabited alien world.Questions quickly arise: What makes an alien, an alien? What makes a human, human? Who or what should be feared? How does an alien world's belief in God converge with the faith of those who inhabit the earth?With tensions rising and destruction looming, faith and forgiveness is compared and contrasted to Fear and Aggression.

Amaryllis Ashley is tired of waiting passively at home for her husband's attention. And she is beginning to hate him for tempting her into divorce. Amy, after all, married for life.Given the options of sleeping with his wife or sleeping on the sofa, Orion Ashley took the sofa. He would never touch her in the home she'd inherited. Orion never bargained on his wife kicking herself out of the bed.Amaryllis Ashley is tired of waiting passively at home for her husband's attention. And she is beginning to hate him for tempting her into divorce. Amy, after all, married for life.Given the options of sleeping with his wife or sleeping on the sofa, Orion Ashley took the sofa. He would never touch her in the home she'd inherited. Orion never bargained on his wife kicking herself out of the bed, and him back into it. Amy is convinced her husband is cheating. Guilt-ridden, Orion begs her for just a little more time. At work the next morning, he receives a call from the housekeeper that lands both him and his wife in the hospital. They leave Dallas in an uproar months later when Orion is seen racing out of a society ball with his wife tossed over his shoulder.Battling pride and fear, the couple comes to the realization that communication and trust are two of the most important tools they'll need to build a successful life together.

The one person Celina fought so hard to get over five years ago is back, and has kidnapped her. He says he wants a second chance to prove his love. Will she allow him to glide back into her life and heart?The twenty original Twilight Zone-like short stories of this diverse fantasy and science fiction collection take place mostly on contemporary Earth, or on some slightly futuristic or altered Earth, where a technology, ghost, dragon, demon, curse, or space-alien intrudes. Vampires and zombies are avoided. Sometimes calamity is averted, sometimes it is not. The perspective is an adult one; a PG rating may be appropriate for some stories, as sex or violence is sometimes alluded to though not graphically depicted. A list of contents with links to each story is provided to aid reader navigation through the collection, and a link back to the contents list is provided after each story. (Note: some e-book formats do not support this feature.) The last story is a continuation of the first story, otherwise the stories are not related to each other and do not appear in any particular order, though some of them are related to subsequent e-book novels. In the list of contents a brief phrase describing each short story has been included to aid story selection. The brief introduction which precedes the stories provides the author's perspective on short story advantages compared to novels. Finally, following the short stories a brief description of the author and pending near-term e-book novels is included.

As if battling a fifteen-foot Great White Shark off the coast of Northern California wasn't enough, Jack McClure must fend off his marine biologist friend who is hitting on the girl of his dreams. Will Jack find his voice in time to land the shark and the girl?The twenty original Twilight Zone-like short stories of this diverse fantasy and science fiction collection take place mostly on contemporary Earth, or on some slightly futuristic or altered Earth, where a technology, ghost, dragon, demon, curse, or space-alien intrudes. Vampires and zombies are avoided. Sometimes calamity is averted, sometimes it is not. The perspective is an adult one; a PG rating may be appropriate for some stories, as sex or violence is sometimes alluded to though not graphically depicted. A list of contents with links to each story is provided to aid reader navigation through the collection, and a link back to the contents list is provided after each story. (Note: some e-book formats do not support this feature.) The last story is a continuation of the first story, otherwise the stories are not related to each other and do not appear in any particular order, though some of them are related to subsequent e-book novels. In the list of contents a brief phrase describing each short story has been included to aid story selection. The brief introduction which precedes the stories provides the author's perspective on short story advantages compared to novels. Finally, following the short stories a brief description of the author and pending near-term e-book novels is included.

In a world of Arabian Nights adventure, a band of heroes is on a quest to reunite the Crystal of Oromasd and save the world. One of their number, the beautiful young djinn named Cari, vanishes on a mysterious island in the Central Sea and the others must avoid being enslaved themselves and defeat a powerful invisible demon if they hope to rescue her.(This is a story from The Parsina Saga.)The twenty original Twilight Zone-like short stories of this diverse fantasy and science fiction collection take place mostly on contemporary Earth, or on some slightly futuristic or altered Earth, where a technology, ghost, dragon, demon, curse, or space-alien intrudes. Vampires and zombies are avoided. Sometimes calamity is averted, sometimes it is not. The perspective is an adult one; a PG rating may be appropriate for some stories, as sex or violence is sometimes alluded to though not graphically depicted. A list of contents with links to each story is provided to aid reader navigation through the collection, and a link back to the contents list is provided after each story. (Note: some e-book formats do not support this feature.) The last story is a continuation of the first story, otherwise the stories are not related to each other and do not appear in any particular order, though some of them are related to subsequent e-book novels. In the list of contents a brief phrase describing each short story has been included to aid story selection. The brief introduction which precedes the stories provides the author's perspective on short story advantages compared to novels. Finally, following the short stories a brief description of the author and pending near-term e-book novels is included.

An ancient virus is accidentally unleashed on a sleepy unsuspecting town. As the virus rapidly spreads through the town, killing the residents and resurrecting them as bloodthirsty zombies, Lori, a nurse, fights to stay alive and protect her family. What readers have said so far:"...it got me in from the start!Plenty of action!" DeanThe twenty original Twilight Zone-like short stories of this diverse fantasy and science fiction collection take place mostly on contemporary Earth, or on some slightly futuristic or altered Earth, where a technology, ghost, dragon, demon, curse, or space-alien intrudes. Vampires and zombies are avoided. Sometimes calamity is averted, sometimes it is not. The perspective is an adult one; a PG rating may be appropriate for some stories, as sex or violence is sometimes alluded to though not graphically depicted. A list of contents with links to each story is provided to aid reader navigation through the collection, and a link back to the contents list is provided after each story. (Note: some e-book formats do not support this feature.) The last story is a continuation of the first story, otherwise the stories are not related to each other and do not appear in any particular order, though some of them are related to subsequent e-book novels. In the list of contents a brief phrase describing each short story has been included to aid story selection. The brief introduction which precedes the stories provides the author's perspective on short story advantages compared to novels. Finally, following the short stories a brief description of the author and pending near-term e-book novels is included.

The twenty original fantasy and science fiction Twilight Zone-like short stories of this diverse collection mostly take place on contemporary Earth or some slightly futuristic or altered Earth, where a technology, ghost, dragon, demon, curse, or space-alien intrudes. Some of the stories relate to subsequent e-book novels soon to be released.The twenty original Twilight Zone-like short stories of this diverse fantasy and science fiction collection take place mostly on contemporary Earth, or on some slightly futuristic or altered Earth, where a technology, ghost, dragon, demon, curse, or space-alien intrudes. Vampires and zombies are avoided. Sometimes calamity is averted, sometimes it is not. The perspective is an adult one; a PG rating may be appropriate for some stories, as sex or violence is sometimes alluded to though not graphically depicted. A list of contents with links to each story is provided to aid reader navigation through the collection, and a link back to the contents list is provided after each story. (Note: some e-book formats do not support this feature.) The last story is a continuation of the first story, otherwise the stories are not related to each other and do not appear in any particular order, though some of them are related to subsequent e-book novels. In the list of contents a brief phrase describing each short story has been included to aid story selection. The brief introduction which precedes the stories provides the author's perspective on short story advantages compared to novels. Finally, following the short stories a brief description of the author and pending near-term e-book novels is included.

When Martians with their battle machines and Heat-Rays invade the Earth, will any women survive? Particularly when the aliens like to eat them!A Gender Switch Adventure.For many in war-torn 1944, love blossoms in the dance hall, and airman Arty Clarke is no exception. He’s a thinker and a dreamer; however, it’s not the beautiful, talented dancer in his arms—his best friend Jean—who inspires his dreams. For when his gaze meets that of Technical Sergeant Jim Johnson, Arty dares to imagine a different dance.Their love is forbidden, by both the armed forces and the law, but with Jean’s cunning and support, Arty and Jim try to bridge the distance between them and find true love despite the danger and a life-threatening disaster that could destroy Arty’s dreams for good.Can the pair stand strong together, no matter how many skies have fallen?----Winner of the Lambda Literary Award for Gay Romance.Part of Love is an Open Road (Don't Read in the Closet 2015), based on the prompt:Life isn’t a fairy tale. These two know that better than most. These men are survivors. Against all odds, they made it through hardships, separation, and war. They clung to hope where little existed and, as the skies fell around them and the world was torn apart, found strength in loving each other.Suddenly, the war was over. Battlefields lay silent and troops prepared for the journey home. These two were more than ready. They had experienced enough loss, grief, and pain to last ten lifetimes. The country they left behind may not have been ready to accept them, but they were prepared to live no matter how many skies had fallen.You can tell me the story of how these men met, but what I really want to know is what happened to these men after this photo was taken. Did their love endure the trials of a return to civilian life? Were they able to overcome the trauma of war and find peace together?Sincerely,Tiffany