Science Fiction War

Dying the first time sucked. Matt's trying to avoid a repeat performance. Having to save the world after being reincarnated is rather enjoyable. In a soul-crushing responsibility kind of way. For Matt, joining Earth's last line of defense in a magical realm might just be what he was re-born for.

Jim, the Mayor of Noobtown, journeys to the depths of Ordinal in search of Jarra before he prepares for war against the Dark Overlord. He is doing his best, but outside forces keep getting in his way. Between playing politics, the increasing difficulty of avoiding the admins, and building an army, does Jim even have time to formulate a plan for victory?

Commander Dalton Reeves is a maverick officer with exceptional genetic strength and a dark family history—a history that will come back to haunt him. Punished for exceeding orders one time too many, he’s packed off to the "The Abyss"—the most dangerous space station in the galaxy. But a posting that should have led to five years in obscurity will propel Reeves into the center of an interstellar war against a long-forgotten alien adversary with a bitter grudge.

Keeping up-to-date with the most buzzworthy and cutting-edge science fiction requires sifting through countless magazines, e-zines, websites, blogs, original anthologies, single-author collections, and more - a task accomplishable by only the most determined and voracious readers. For everyone else, Night Shade Books is proud to introduce the latest volume of The Best Science Fiction of the Year, collecting the finest that the genre has to offer, from the biggest names in the field to the most exciting new writers.

The universe is a dangerous place for humanity—and it's about to become far more dangerous. Three races that humans have clashed with before have allied to halt our expansion into space. Their linchpin: the turncoat military scientist Charles Boutin, who knows the CDF's biggest military secrets. To prevail, the CDF must find out why Boutin did what he did. Jared Dirac is the only human who can provide answers—a superhuman hybrid, created from Boutin's DNA, Jared's brain should be able to access Boutin's electronic memories.

A collection of the year’s best science fiction and fantasy short fiction selected by New York Times bestselling author of the Silo series Hugh Howey and series editor John Joseph Adams. “These are dangerous stories. The kind that warp reality and threaten to change the world” warns...

Humans expanded into space...only to find a universe populated with multiple alien species bent on their destruction. Thus was the Colonial Union formed, to help protect us from a hostile universe. The Colonial Union used the Earth and its excess population for colonists and soldiers. It was a good arrangement...for the Colonial Union. Then the Earth said: no more.

With my clan threatened, I don’t have time for romance with a pesky Earth female. Until I meet Piper. She and her youngling son are part of our planet’s new settlement. Soon, I find myself helping her plan her home and talking about odd Earthling activities. What is a square dance, and must I do it? She’s soft and lush in all the right places, and I could pick her up and carry her around with one arm. And her son…I ache to show him how to tame a mighty winged trundier. Piper may say she doesn’t need love, but I'll do whatever it takes to win her heart.

Forged in the fires of the lawless wasteland, Clay, Alex, and Joe have finally earned the unimaginable power of Incants. All they want now is to settle down, drink a few beers, and carve out a new life west of the containment wall. Not everyone in the IZ has such noble goals at heart, however. When the Jaeger Squad learns that another group of magic-slinging Incants are enslaving homesteaders to farm gold and harvest enchanted items to sell on the black market, they can’t just turn a blind eye. Especially since Clay and the others are the only ones with the power to make things right.

Following the fall of a beloved prince, division brews across the north. Elyon Daecar, freed of the Warrior King’s cells, rides to Dragon’s Bane to defend the border of Vandar against an incoming Agarathi horde. He must become a prince, and a champion, to his people. But will it be enough? Having finally arrived in Aram, Saska finds herself a captive yet again, this time by the sinister Sunlord Elio Krator, the man once betrothed to her mother. When a Tukoran army arrives to siege the great fortress of Eagle’s Perch, Krator marches to defend it, taking Saska with him.

New research has uncovered deeply buried military secrets—both the Allied and Axis special operations during WWII included monsters. Did the Soviets use a dragon to win the Battle of Kursk? Did a vampire fight for the Canadians in Holland? Did the US drop the second atomic bomb on a kaiju? This collection takes real events from World War II and injects them with fantastical creatures that mirror the “unreality” of war itself. Each story—and two poems—feature mythical, mystical, and otherwise unexplainable beings that change the course of history.

On a mountainside at the edge of the Kaigenese Empire live the most powerful warriors in the world, superhumans capable of raising the sea and wielding blades of ice. For hundreds of years, the fighters of the Kusanagi Peninsula have held the Empire's enemies at bay, earning their frozen spit of land the name "The Sword of Kaigen". Born into Kusanagi's legendary Matsuda family, f14-year-old Mamoru has always known his purpose: To master his family's fighting techniques and defend his homeland.

Cadmus Errol is the greatest inventor that Tellurak has ever known. His clockwork graces the spires of cities across the world. Yet in another, darker world, he lives the life of a slave. There, humanity is held underfoot, bound in service to the victors of a war fought untold generations ago. It will take all the wits and resources of the best that humanity can muster to break that hold. Can Cadmus Errol, the Mad Tinker, be the one to free them all? Or will his daughter take a shortcut through dangerous science to wipe out humanities oppressors? The Twinborn Chronicles: War of 3 Worlds is an epic fantasy series with multiple point of view characters. If you love steampunk gadgetry, heroes who get their hands dirty, and a DIY heroine, this series is for you!

In this, the first volume of renowned author and historian Peter G. Tsouras’s alternative history trilogy, Great Britain’s support for the Confederacy takes it to the brink of war with the Union. The escape of a British-built Confederate ironclad finally ignites the heap of combustible animosities and national interests. When the US Navy seizes it in British waters, the ensuing battle spirals into all-out war. Napoleon III eagerly joins the British and declares war on the United States.

Humanity's war is eternal, spread across the galaxy and the ages. Humanity's best hope to end the endless slaughter is the Livesuit forces. Soldiers meld their bodies to the bleeding edge technology, becoming something more than human for the duration of a war that might never end.

Lieutenant Magnus survives the harrowing rescue of his unit only to find himself charged with treason by the very military he’s pledged his allegiance to. Now, he must attempt to escort Piper to the Luma, homeward of Worru before dark forces discover her otherworldly abilities. But once there, Magnus finds himself confronting new enemies in the place he least expects to find them. Meanwhile, Awen uncovers a new plot that threatens to upend order throughout the galaxy. She and Magnus find their way to an alien world where they must work together to build a new team from the ruins....

The lines between good and evil are blurred in Revenge of the Sith. Characters once considered good may be revealed to be on the dark side. Others must make difficult decisions about where their allegiance lies. Join Padme Amidala, Anakin Skywalker, and Obi-Wan Kenobi as they fulfill their destinies!

With over 10 million copies sold, The Expanse has become one of the biggest science fiction phenomenons of the decade. The fifth book in the New York Times bestselling Expanse series, Nemesis Games drives the crew of the Rocinante apart, and as they struggle to survive, the inner planets...

Some say that in the city of Orlyn, godhood is on sale to the highest bidder. Thousands flock to the city each year, hoping for a chance at immortality. Lydia Hastings is a knowledge sorcerer, capable of extracting information from anything she touches. When she travels to Orlyn to validate the claims of the local faith, she discovers a conspiracy that could lead to a war between the world's three greatest powers. At the focal point is a prisoner who bears a striking resemblance to the long-missing leader of the pantheon she worships.

Jake has united and empowered the beastkin into a formidable force, marching towards Life's Haven to reclaim their city and exact payback for countless lives lost. Yet danger lurks as enemy Champions, reptile betrayers, and a horrible curse tests their resolve. The war to reclaim the world stretches beyond a single battle, for it is an unrelenting war for survival. With the help of Jake's new beastkin mate and his bonded wives, they press on, rallying their people to face the enemy head-on.