Space First Contact

When Zuul-led thugs attack members of the Queen Elizabeth’s Own Foresters leaving the Lyon’s Den, the battles on Cimaron 283133-6A and Peninnah become enemy action, not simply mercs fulfilling contracts. What the Foresters don’t realize is that these attacks have been planned for years as part of an even larger series of plots aided by members of the Mercenary Guild.

Earth's days are numbered. Two very different women race to prepare for the battle to come. The future of Earth is in their hands. One struggles to resurrect her ruined ship so she can navigate the politics at the galactic core in a desperate bid to recruit allies. The other strives to master alien technology to supply the forces of Earth with the tools needed to defend themselves against the ravenous Swarm.

The lines. No ship can traverse the void without them. Only linesmen can work with them. But only Ean Lambert hears their song. And everyone thinks he's crazy.... Most slum kids never go far, certainly not becoming a level 10 linesman like Ean. Even if he's part of a small and unethical cartel, and the other linesmen disdain his self-taught methods, he's certified and working. Then a mysterious alien ship is discovered at the edges of the galaxy.

United States Diplomat Danielle Lowen was there when one of her fellow diplomats committed an unthinkable act that had consequences for the entire planet. Now she’s trying to figure out how it happened before it can happen again. Putting the puzzle pieces together could solve the mystery - or it could threaten her own life. "The Gentle Art of Cracking Heads" is a tale from John Scalzi's The Human Division, a series of self-contained but interrelated short stories set in the Old Man's War universe.

Mars. The red planet. A new frontier for humanity: a civilisation where humans can live in peace, lord and master of all they survey. But this isn't Space City from those old science-fiction books. It's more like Hell City, built into and from a huge crater. There's a big silk canopy over it, feeding out atmosphere as we generate it, little by little, because we can't breathe the air here. I guess it's a perfect place to live, if you want to live on Mars. At some point I must have wanted to live on Mars, because here I am.

My name's Noah Kilmartin. I'm from Ruddock, Ohio, and I'm absolutely, 100 percent unqualified to save the universe from the slavering demonic hordes of the super evil queen Lilith. Too bad nobody asked my opinion. All I've got to do is pass five lethal trials that'll prove I'm the universe's last chance at salvation. To do so, I'll have to lean hard on those three years of Okinawan jiu-jutsu classes I took in high school, learn to wield my new magic sword, and, oh yeah - select five women to flesh out my team.

The things I’m imagining us doing are something no shifter should be contemplating with an alien. But if I’m going to hell, I’d rather earn my place...thoroughly. My desires are about to become the least of my problems however, because like it or not we’re now embroiled in a vicious war of the planets — and that includes Earth. If I want a home to go back to, I need to focus. Yep, I’m screwed.

Years have passed since Earth encountered its first known interstellar object: Oumuamua. Now an even larger one has been discovered, following the exact same trajectory as its predecessor. Scientists around the world theorize that this can no longer be passed off as mere coincidence - the new contact must be an artificial construct of some kind.

Now the McCormacks are finally going to get into space. At least if the big governments on Earth don’t stop them. They’ve managed to accumulate enough money to build a city, and now they’re going to build a space station that will create a safe place to manufacture their new technology, and a way to demonstrate to the world that humans have a future in space. But as they demonstrate more advanced technology, they attract more interest from the world’s governments. What will it take to keep their dream alive?

A new generation comes of age 18 years after humanity arrived on the colony planet Gaia. Now threats from both within and outside their Trident threaten everything they've built. The discovery of an alien installation inside Gaia's moon, terrorist attacks and the kidnap of a man's daughter stretch the community to breaking point, but only two men stand a chance of solving all three mysteries before the makeshift planetary government shuts everything down.

After the vicious attacks on Victoria Bravo, Commander Tara Mason and the newly formed Force 25 have no time to refit and reconstitute their depleted forces. Deputized by the Peacemaker Guild and charged with a time-sensitive mission - finding James “Snowman” Francis - Tara and her mercenaries deploy to the wintry world of Snowmass to follow a 50-year-old lead on Snowman’s disappearance. Snowmass, though, is far from peaceful.

The Conclave is a confederation of 400 alien races - many of whom would like to see the Colonial Union - and the humans inside of it - blasted to extinction. To avoid a conflict that neither side can afford, Conclave leader General Tarsem Gau appoints Hafte Sorvalh to resolve an emerging diplomatic crisis with the humans, before the only acceptable solution is war. "The Back Channel" is a tale from John Scalzi's The Human Division, a series of self-contained but interrelated short stories set in the Old Man's War universe.

Ava lived her life on a spaceship in the stars. Now, she is a lone human in a world of others on Planet Xai. Despite the love around her, Ava is finding her heart is not as easily soothed. She still has questions about her past, and humanity, that remain unanswered. What does it mean to truly live? For someone who never had a chance to before?

Contains books 5-8 of the sci-fi survival horror series Reality Bleed, written by best-selling authors J.Z. Foster and Justin M. Woodward.

Colonel Jake Thomas has found himself at the edge of disaster once more and managed to pull back from the brink. Defeating the alien armada without the use of a re-created doomsday device was a great victory. However, it was a victory tainted by the realization that a new NeHaw leadership was in place, and they knew how to fight a war in space. He was once again fighting a two-front war, one in space and one on the home front.

CDF Lieutenant Harry Wilson has one simple task: Watch an ambassador’s dog while the diplomat is conducting sensitive negotiations with an alien race. But you know dogs - always getting into something. And when this dog gets into something that could launch an alien civil war, Wilson has to find a way to solve the conflict, fast, or be the one in the Colonial Union’s doghouse. "The Dog King" is a tale from John Scalzi's The Human Division, a series of self-contained but interrelated short stories set in the Old Man's War universe.

Kanti had spent many sleepless nights torturing himself with thoughts of the day when he would give up on returning to Tish. Old and grey, back-stooped from decades of labor, he would try to get up out of bed, and change his mind. Why bother? He couldn’t have been more wrong. He was still young, his pelt still tanned, and his back didn’t hurt when he rose. Everything had conspired to keep the two lovers apart: rivals, foes, distance. Now, he needs his friends’ help more than ever if he wants his old life back.

For more than a century, Winged Hussars has been the richest of Earth's mercenary companies, as well as the only one to specialize in space warfare. Led by Alexis Cromwell, they have carved out a reputation in the galaxy for being dependable, unflappable, and lethally efficient. Until people began shooting at them everywhere they went.

Staff Sergeant Markus ‘Spartan’ Nicolos is one of the Intelligence Department’s best. A hacker who can beat any code, he’s in charge of communications intercepts for the Golden Horde’s Computer Operations section. Spartan used to be a frontline CASPer pilot - until he lost his entire squad in an ambush. He also lost his edge in the attack, and he swore he would never pilot a CASPer in combat again. Everything changed, though, when he came up with an idea for a new type of scout CASPer - one that would prevent what happened to him from ever happening again.

The Colonial Defense Forces usually protect humanity from alien attack, but now the stability of the Colonial Union has been threatened, and Lieutenant Heather Lee and her squad are called to squash a rebellion on a colony world. It seems simple enough - but there's a second act to the rebellion that finds Lee captive, alone, and armed with only her brains to survive.