March Limited-Time eBook Deals

Some entertaining (and inexpensive) reads while we wait for Spring. Hope you find something to enjoy.

Bruce

(Prices change constantly. Be sure to verify all prices before purchase.)

Start Date: NOW  End Date: March 8
Name Your Poison (Top Shelf Mysteries Book 3)
By Lolli Powell
Cozy Mystery, Women Sleuths
Usual Price: $3.99  Sale: $0.99

New York and Hollywood come to the Top Shelf!

Ricki and the Top Shelf crew have worked for weeks preparing for the launch party for Logan Parker’s book. Waterton is abuzz, not just about their very own newspaper editor writing what promises to be a bestseller, but also about the movie based on the book that might be filmed on location in Waterton. But when the location scout drinks from the wrong energy drink—well, nothing ruins a party like a dead body!

Ricki’s not so sure the location scout was the intended victim, and Gabe’s not so sure it’s a murder. One thing he is sure of—he doesn’t want Ricki investigating. You’d think he’d know by now that she never listens.

https://amzn.to/2PLob67


Start Date: NOW  End Date: March 10
Damaged: a heart-stopping psychological thriller
By Dan Scottow
Psychological Thriller
Usual Price: $2.99  Sale: $0.99

Journalist Emily Blake is sent back to her hometown to investigate the disappearance of a young girl called Becky Clarke. Emily takes the assignment willingly as the case echoes the disappearance of her childhood friend, Alice Abbott, twenty-five years earlier.

Returning to the village, Emily renews old acquaintances and rivalries. She reconnects with her estranged brother Adam, who has never quite recovered from tragic events from their past.

While she looks into the disappearance of Becky Clarke, Emily revisits Alice’s case but not everyone welcomes her investigation. As lies that have been told for twenty-five years surrounding Alice’s disappearance begin to unravel, Emily is drawn deeper into the mystery. 

What happened to Alice? 
Will Becky ever be found? 
And do the answers lie closer to home than anyone ever imagined?

https://amzn.to/2x6n0aL


Start Date: NOW  End Date: March 11
Augmented
By James D. Prescott
Techno-thriller
Usual Price: $4.99  Sale: $0.99

While investigating hydrothermal vents in the Pacific Ocean, scientist Nicholay Panov and his crew mysteriously vanish. Weeks later, when their vessel is finally found, the hull has been crushed nearly beyond recognition.

Searching for answers, glaciologist Sienna Panov reaches out to Ben Fisher, the rich and enigmatic CEO who commissioned the expedition. Ben is the inventor of a revolutionary neural enhancement device. Once implanted in the brain, it has the power to boost both mental and physical abilities to dizzying new heights.

Except Ben has recently suffered a tragedy of his own, after a savage attack robbed him of his memory and left him framed for murder. Working together, Ben and Sienna soon discover a shadowy conspiracy connecting both events.

https://amzn.to/32RxjeM


Start Date: NOW  End Date: March 10
Murder on the SS Mystique (An SS Mystique Cozy Mystery Book 1)
By Shelly West
Cozy Mystery
Usual Price: $2.99  Sale: $0.99

After Audrey Hughes’s long contract working security aboard a booze cruise ends, she’s craving something different. And what would be a greater change in scenery than a renovated 1940s ocean liner called the SS Mystique?

Audrey eagerly signs up, thinking all she’ll have to do is tend to wealthy passengers and their pets on a quaint old liner. Instead, she boards a ship shrouded in odd superstitions and deadly mysteries.

It wouldn’t be so bad—if not for the two dead bodies appearing right after the ship sets sail. Spitfire Audrey has a few ideas about who might be to blame, but a handsome Officer Gerald is determined to keep her off the trail.

https://amzn.to/2vyvreQ


Start Date: NOW  End Date: March 10
The Thanksgiving Trip: A Cozy Mystery (A Tess and Tilly Cozy Mystery Book 5)
By Kathi Daley
Cozy Mystery
Usual Price: $3.99  Sale: $0.99

The entire Thomas family takes a Thanksgiving trip to a mountain cabin after Tess learns that her father visited the area every autumn to hunt and fish before his supposed death in a fiery truck accident. After arriving at the cabin, Tess and Tony, along with Mike and Bree, team up to investigate a suspicious death, while Tess and Tony secretly talk to people who live in the area and once knew her father. Hoping to finally find answers for her unanswered questions regarding her father's current whereabouts, Tess widens her search which lead her to a startling realization.

Meanwhile, a stray dog seems intent on adopting Mike in spite of Mike's insistence that there is no way he has room in his life for an energetic and mischievous puppy.

https://amzn.to/2THRbN9


Start Date: NOW  End Date: March 9
SUB-ZERO
By Matt James
Sci-Fi Adventure
Usual Price: $4.99  Sale: $0.99

The only thing colder than the Antarctic air is the icy chill of death…

Off the coast of McMurdo Station, in the frigid waters of the Southern Ocean, a new species of Antarctic octopus is unintentionally discovered. Specialists aboard a state-of-the-art DARPA research vessel aim to apply the animal’s “sub-zero venom” to one of their projects: An experimental painkiller designed for soldiers on the front lines.

All is going according to plan until the ship is caught in an intense storm. The retrofitted tanker is rocked, and the onboard laboratory is destroyed. Amid the chaos, the lead scientist is infected by a strange virus while conducting the specimen’s dissection.

The scientist didn’t die in the accident. He changed.

https://amzn.to/3cBGKUb


Start Date: NOW  End Date: March 10
Asylum (Touched by the Fae Book 1)
By Jessica Lynch
Young Adult Fantasy
Usual Price: $2.99  Sale: $0.99

Black Pine Facility for Wayward Juveniles. The asylum. It's a place where they stick troubled cases like me until we age out or they think they've fixed us.

Newsflash: you can't fix what's not broken. And I may have been thrown into Black Pine when I was barely fifteen, but I'm not crazy. I'm cursed.

Because of the fae? They're real. Gorgeous, ethereal, mythical creatures who can't lie but are experts at twisting the truth. Just one touch, that's all it takes. Just one touch and the fae have power over you. Just one touch and your whole world can go up in flames.

https://amzn.to/39vbww2


Start Date: NOW  End Date: March 10
Damned From Birth
By Jon Athan
Horror Suspense
Usual Price: $3.99  Sale: $0.99

While attempting to abduct a teenager from her home, notorious serial killer Victor Brooks meets his match: ten 9mm bullets. In a puddle of his own blood, sprawled across a stranger’s kitchen floor, Victor’s life begins to flash before his very eyes. He sees the living and the dead, peace and carnage, friends and foes, success and disappointment, love and hatred. He sees a life defined by anger, pain, and sorrow.

The light at the end of Victor's tunnel is red—red with blood.

WARNING: This novel contains graphic content. Reader discretion is advised.

https://amzn.to/2TKrgEH


Start Date: NOW  End Date: March 11
Edge of Eons: A Cultivation Novel (The Adept Archives: Book 1)
By Darren Hultberg Jr
Young Adult Dark Fantasy
Usual Price: $3.99  Sale: $0.99

In the realm of Eon, strength is the rule of law.

In daylight, the realm is ruled by the adepts, a group of mighty cultivators that use their spirits to wield world-bending, mystic power. These adepts live in constant strife, fighting for control of relics that hold the divine powers of ancient gods.

In twilight, the realm belongs to the darkbeasts, nightmarish creatures born of a mysterious fog known as the veil. These creatures are drawn to power, hoarding relics in their dungeons and slaying any adepts that dare venture too close.

Together, these opposing forces create a grim balance of power, one only survived by those with strength, cunning and a bit of wit. But balance is not easily maintained...

https://amzn.to/3aAvlBV


Start Date: NOW  End Date: March 9
Shadow of Oblivion (Avenger Book 1)
By Richard Tongue
Cyberpunk Sci-Fi
Usual Price: $2.99  Sale: $0.99

For decades, tensions have risen between the resurgent Terran Republic, formed from the ashes of a century-long conflict, and the Belters, colonists who left Earth at the height of the fighting to build new worlds among the stars. When war erupts, the heart of their battle fleet is Goliath, the largest battleship ever built, the result of years of work in hidden shipyards lost in the depths of space. Earth has no answer to her, no ship in her fleet a match for the overwhelming power of the warship. Defeat seems inevitable.

Until a renegade Admiral concocts a final, desperate plan.

Only one ship, an experimental warship, the Avenger, might possibly stand a chance against the might of Goliath. One ship, with a crew with nothing to lose and everything to gain, gathered from the dregs of Earth’s space forces. The last hope for the Terran Republic. The last, desperate hope for victory.

https://amzn.to/2VPhgg8

Prices change constantly. Be sure to verify all prices before purchase.

I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by Amazon:  linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

February Book Reviews

For your consideration:

• Some historical fiction (Living in a Star's Light);
• A paranormal romance, of a sort (Franny’s Fable); and
• A British satire (Curmudgeon Avenue #1).

Hope you find something for your library,
Bruce

Living in a Star's Light: A novel based on the life of Miss Lotta Crabtree by Steve Lindahl

1870-80s Celebrities Had Their Posses Too 

From the complete book title, you know that Living in a Star’s Light is based on the life of American actress, dancer, musician, and philanthropist Lotta Crabtree. She made her name primarily in the 1870-80s, starting her career at the age of six dancing in the gold-mining camps in California and ending in quiet retirement and philanthropic work at Lake Hopatcong, New Jersey, some 70 years later. But as is often the case with historical fiction, Ms. Crabtree is not the center of this book. Rather, she is a notable, historical figure around whom the fictional characters circulate. In this case, it’s Walter Cain, his wife, and their friends. They are her number-one fans; they provide her feedback on her performances; they reassure her when things go wrong; they worry about her. In short, they are her crew, her entourage, her posse. 

For the complete review, see: https://amzn.to/31sdrOu

Curmudgeon Avenue #1: The Terraced House Diaries by Samantha Henthorn

A British Farce about “nincompoops and intertwined lives” Told by a House

The author of Curmudgeon Avenue #1, Samantha Henthorn describes her work as a comedy-drama. Drama, for example, comes in the form of the death of the parents of our two protagonists, the elderly sisters Edna and Edith at the start of the book. Comedy comes in the form of the parents dying by being crushed by an elephant thrown from a lorry driven by one of Edna’s exes. The elephant broke free of her constraints because the driver smelled so bad. Even so, he later becomes Edith’s romantic interest when he rents a room in the sisters’ home after a long, roof-sitting protest over being evicted from his own. Yes, it’s pretty difficult to find much drama in this book that’s not wrapped in total absurdity. It is truly the story of a group of nincompoops whose worlds never generate enough momentum of their own to escape each other’s orbits. And if that silliness isn’t enough, the story is told by the house, a Victorian terrace. The book even has some house humor. Speaking of the “tiresome” process of evicting someone, the house notes that it’s “… enough to make one's front bedroom windows glaze over.” Drama? Maybe. A farce? Without a doubt.

For the complete review, see: https://amzn.to/2VfLdFA

Franny’s Fable by Heather Harrison

Kill Your Husband, Rinse, Repeat

As we join Franny in the book, Franny’s Fable, she’s writing the story of her life with husband Jamie. He’s lying in bed in the next room, dead, stabbed through the heart. She killed him. There are authors who could turn the hate, the rage, the desperation that must have gone into such a violent act into a book. But Franny isn’t documenting her struggle for survival. She’s writing about the routine of her life, about something she’s done “more times than she can count” to quote the author’s synopsis. And what she’s documenting is … her love.

For the complete review, see: https://amzn.to/2H5HMt1

(I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.)

Two Giveaways & A Literary Tidbit

In this newsletter, I have a couple of very different types of giveaways for you. The first is offering a prize package valued at $200 for Sci-Fi lovers. The second provides previews and short stories that span various genres because, as the giveaway says, who doesn't love a sample platter!

Much of my reading is scientific research - I never know where I might get the inspiration for my next techno-thriller. But you can't be in the field without picking up some literary tidbits from time to time. I've included one you might find interesting.

Happy reading,
Bruce

C.L. Cannon’s Best of Sci-fi Giveaway!
$200 VALUE
1 WINNER

Subscribe to some of today’s bestselling Sci-fi and Fantasy authors for a chance to win one hardback of Star Wars: The Secrets of the Jedi by Marc Sumerak, a paperback of Artemis by Andy Weir, hardback of Aurora Rising (The Aurora Cycle) by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff, a paperback of Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson, The Expanse board game, a Star Trek Poster, and a Fallout magnet.

Get full details and signup here: http://bit.ly/clbestofsf


Sneak Peeks and Previews Giveaway

Have a few minutes to try a new genre or a new author in an old favorite? Then, check out these book previews and short stories: https://storyoriginapp.com/to/PDS5T8S

Your next new favorite book could be waiting.


And In the Writing World

Lee Child is turning the Jack Reacher series over to his brother, Andrew. If you're a fan, check out this podcast from Suspense Magazine on the transition.

http://suspensemagazine.com/blog2/2020/02/14/beyond-the-cover-on-where-is-jack-reacher-with-andrew-child/

Limited Time eBook Deals

Some mysteries, thrillers, and historical fiction to balance out all those sweet romances you downloaded for Valentine's Day. Hope you find something to enjoy.

(Prices change constantly. Be sure to verify all prices before purchase.)

Start Date: NOW  End Date: Feb. 28
Killer in the Retroscape: A Near-Future Mystery
By Bruce M. Perrin
Mystery, SciFi
Usual Price: $3.99  Sale: $0.99

“The parallels to the contemporary world are realistic, frightening, and thought-provoking."  - The Booklife Prize

When Doug Michaels finds his friend dead in 2068, he builds a mental landscape, a retroscape, to find the killer. But as suspects appear, they disappear almost as quickly. It's not the aftereffects of an illness sensationalized in the media as the “zombie pandemic”. It's not an evil artificial intelligence intent on taking over the world. It's not his friend's robot wife, Julia, even if she can't even remember her husband's final days.

And when his retroscape is finished, Doug finds the killer ... in one of the most unlikely of places.

Amazon: https://bit.ly/366OsCi
Barnes and Noble: https://bit.ly/2plQu0W
Kobo: https://bit.ly/2MVIigG
Apple: https://bit.ly/2NtyqtY


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Feb. 19
Atlantic Nightmare: The longest military campaign in World War II
By Richard Freeman
Military History
Usual Price: $3.99  Sale: $0.99

The battle that Germany should have won?

No other battle of the Second World War lasted longer than the 2,075 days of the Battle of the Atlantic. It raged from the opening day of the war in September 1939 until it ended almost six years later with Germany’s surrender in May 1945.

Vital supplies of food, fuel and the raw materials needed by the Allies to wage war had to be transported in merchant ships in escorted convoys across the Atlantic Ocean where they were at the mercy of German U-boats and warships. At first, many were lost. The fall of France in June 1940 gave the U-boats bases on the Atlantic coast, and U-boat production increased allowing the Germans to now hunt in ‘wolf packs’.

How seriously did each sides take the battle? How far were they able to innovate their way out of problems they encountered? Who made the crucial decisions on how the battle should be fought? How was the crucial battle for intelligence won?

Amazon: https://amzn.to/38wSvJ5


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Feb. 20
The Napoleon Affair: A Sean Wyatt Archaeological Thriller (Sean Wyatt Adventure Book 18)
By Ernest Dempsey
Thriller
Usual Price: $2.99  Sale: $0.99

When a high-ranking cardinal is murdered in his Vatican apartment over clues he might possess to the whereabouts of a relic considered truly divine, the Vatican calls in the experts.

They enlist former secret agent Sean Wyatt; his wife, Adriana; and his best friend, the renowned archaeologist Tommy Schultz, to help find both the cardinal’s killer and, if at all possible, the missing relic, thought to have been hidden by Napoléon Bonaparte two hundred years ago.

This relic—a ring worn by John the Baptist—is rumored to possess unfathomable power, rendering its wearer nearly invincible, able to wield the very power of God.
And the grand master of a once-powerful order of medieval Catholic knights wants it to help his twisted holy warriors regain their former glory.

They’ll stop at nothing until they possess the ring, kill Wyatt and his friends, overthrow the pope, and enlist believers worldwide into their unholy New Crusade.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/31UthBS


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Feb. 19
Next Girl On The List - A serial killer crime thriller (McRyan Mystery Thriller and Suspense Series Book) (McRyan Mystery Series Book 7)
By Roger Stelljes
Financial Thriller
Usual Price: $4.99  Sale: $0.99

Dating can be deadly when your name is next on the list.

It had been so long since she had someone in her life. She thought he was amazing. The perfect guy – the perfect date. His calculated game of seduction and deception worked flawlessly. He lured her into his death trap, then he quietly slid out the door and disappeared yet again without a trace.

What clues are hidden in a picture-perfect murder?

Complex obscure clues woven into intricate crime scenes challenge Mac McRyan, all while a warped mind taunts him and stalks another innocent soul. As time relentlessly ticks down, Mac is forced to fight not only his own instincts but a deceptively treacherous killer in his most mind-bending and dangerous case yet.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/31Vbj1W


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Feb. 19
SERIAL (CSI Reilly Steel Book 1)
By Casey Hill
Noir Crime
Usual Price: $2.99  Sale: $0.99

Forensic investigator Reilly Steel, Quantico-trained and California-born and bred, imagined Dublin to be a far cry from bustling San Francisco, a sleepy backwater where she can lay past ghosts to rest and start anew.

She's arrived in Ireland to drag the Garda forensics team into the 21st-century plus keep tabs on her Irish-born father who's increasingly seeking solace in the bottle after a past tragedy.

But a brutal serial killer soon puts paid to that. A young man and woman are found dead in a hotel room, the gunshot wounds on their naked bodies suggesting a suicide pact. But as Reilly and the team dig deeper and more bodies are discovered, they soon realize that a twisted murderer is at work, one who seeks to upset society's norms in the most sickening way imaginable...

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2OXB9gv


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Feb. 19
Ten Years Gone (Adam Lapid Mysteries Book 1)
By Jonathan Dunsky
Historical Fiction
Usual Price: $4.99  Sale: $0.99

She gave up her son to save him. Now she wants him back.

Germany, 1939 - Henrietta Ackerland, a Jewish mother in Nazi Germany, makes a heart-rending decision. She gives her infant son to a friend who is fleeing Germany to Israel.

Israel, 1949 - Henrietta finally arrives in Israel but she can't find her son. She hires private investigator Adam Lapid to find him for her.

Adam Lapid knows it will take a miracle to find Henrietta's missing child. And Adam doesn't believe in miracles. Not after experiencing the horrors of Auschwitz. Not after losing his family in the Holocaust. But he can't refuse to help a mother searching for her lost son.

What Adam doesn't realize is that this missing person's case will soon land him in a heap of trouble. For what starts as a hunt for a missing child soon turns Adam into prey - and of more than one hunter.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/37AQies


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Feb. 19
The Body Market: A Leine Basso Thriller
By D.V. Berkom
Organized Crime
Usual Price: $4.99  Sale: $0.99

Everything's for sale...

Former assassin Leine Basso is hired by a wealthy Beverly Hills power couple to find their missing daughter, Elise, last seen partying with her boyfriend at a club in Tijuana. At first, police believe the two teenagers are the victims of a carjacking. But when Leine finds their missing vehicle with a mutilated body inside, and the local cartel warns her away, she knows if Elise isn’t already dead, she will be soon, or worse.

In the lethal world of organized crime, there’s always a worse.

As Leine races to uncover the reason behind Elise Bennett’s disappearance, she must also battle the powerful interests fighting to keep her from the truth.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2vCgVlA


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Feb. 19
The Netherwell Horror
By Lee Mountford
Occult Fiction
Usual Price: $4.99  Sale: $0.99

‘Sis, I’m in trouble. Real trouble. And I need help.’

After receiving a worrying message from her estranged brother, Beth Davis sets out to find and help him, ending up in the strange, coastal town of Netherwell Bay. There, she begins to witness terrifying and unexplainable things, and reports of ritualistic murders have the town panicked.

A sinister cult soon makes its presence known, and the dark history of Netherwell Bay is unveiled. Beth then finds herself in a race against time to stop a doorway to Hell from opening… permanently.

The Netherwell Horror is a Lovecraftian mystery that quickly descends into madness, sickening violence, and chaos. Fans of Silent Hill will love this nightmarish tale, but those of a squeamish disposition need not apply…

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2tZlq9u


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Feb. 20
What Happened at the Lake
By Phil M. Williams
Amateur Sleuth Mystery
Usual Price: $4.99  Sale: $0.99

They went on vacation. Not everyone made it back.

The Palmers went to the lake for a week of fun in the sun. But Alex Palmer had an agenda. He wanted his brother to reconcile with their hypercompetitive father. He wanted his daughter to break up with her shady boyfriend. Most of all, Alex wanted them to be a family one more time before he faced his predicament at home.

Evil incarnate and a brutal double murder shifted Alex’s focus from wants to needs. He needed to keep his family safe. He needed to find her. He needed to know what happened at the lake.

NOTE TO THE READER: This is a dark psychological thriller that delves into depraved acts of humanity. For adult readers only who can handle these subject matters. Adult language and explicit sexual violence.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2UT8WLH


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Feb. 21
The End of America’s War in Afghanistan (The Russian Agents Book 3)
By Ted Halstead
Military Thriller
Usual Price: $2.99  Sale: $0.99

Three Russian agents are trying to stop nuclear weapons stolen from Pakistan by the Taliban. The Taliban wants to use the stolen weapons to force America out of Afghanistan for good, and return to power in Kabul.

Will nuclear strikes in multiple locations across Afghanistan let them succeed? Or can Russian agents and American special forces stop the Taliban in time?

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2wkl1iR

Prices change constantly. Be sure to verify all prices before purchase.

I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

January Reviews and Previews

For your consideration:

• A sweet romance (Second Chance);
• A military fantasy (Requiem's Reach); and
• Young-adult science fiction (The Selection).

Hope you find something for your library,
Bruce

Second Chance: The Conclusion of the Flowers in December Trilogy by Jane Suen

A Bit of Sweet, Romantic Escapism – I just Worry that the Leopard Can’t Change Its Spots 

By luck, or maybe poor planning, I ended up with several horror novels right in the midst of the holidays. So, when I saw Second Chance, I knew it was my opportunity to balance out the unthinkable with the sweet. And even though it is the third of a Trilogy, the author’s synopsis describes it as “… a standalone sweet romance.” That worked for me.

Second Chance finds Connor Norton looking for—you guessed it—a second chance with Mary Ann. They met before the funeral for Connor’s mother but lost contact when Connor went back to the city where he worked. Both main characters are well-developed, although a bit stereotypic. I found Mary Ann quite likable as the plucky, no-nonsense business owner. She had suffered through an abusive relationship with a stepfather, making her slow to trust men (one of the stereotypes). But she was open to taking a chance with the right person if she could find him. Author Suen goes to great lengths to make the setting and Mary Ann’s background wholesome but hard-earned. Sometimes, however, this theme went too far. At one point, for example, Mary Ann is recalling her experiences with her grandfather, who had to live “… through hard times.” And then, we transition to his parents, her great grandparents, who lived during the Great Depression, a further elaboration that didn’t seem to advance the story appreciably.

See the complete review on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2QLlpNM

Requiem's Reach: A Chaos of Souls Novella (Chaos of Souls Novella Series, Volume 1) by R.M. Garino

A Fantasy as Tension-Producing as Any Fiction Set in the “Real” World

It’s difficult for a fantasy to generate any real tension in a reader … at least, until he/she is totally immersed in the story’s make-believe world. Before that, the threat to life and limb (which may or may not include humans) is often met with a shrug, a roll of the eyes, because, of course, the good guys will have another magical spell up their sleeves to save the day. This limitation, however, is not an issue for Requiem’s Reach. Even without a background in author Garino’s fantasy world, uneasiness rolled over me in waves during the action scenes. Perhaps that’s because these chapters have the feel of a military campaign—gains come only with tremendous personal sacrifice; enemies are allies because they’re less reprehensible than the others. It’s the kind of fantasy you could easily imagine in our world, although you’d rather not. And therein lies the tale’s ability to tie your stomach in a knot.

See the complete review on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2ZMT3GY

The Selection: The Forgotten Chronicles Book 1 by Jason J. Nugent

When Humans Take ‘Survival of the Fittest’ in their Own Hands

If The Selection doesn’t remind you of The Hunger Games, then I suspect you haven’t read the books or seen the movies. In both stories, teens from outlying colonies (or districts) are forced to participate in a competition, often to the death. There are, of course, differences. In The Selection, only the males compete and the reason is basically, survival of the fittest. There is an extreme gender imbalance on the planet, with males outnumbering females ten to one. Only if a male survives the process can he procreate. Our protagonist, Eron, sees this devaluation of human life and forced evolution as wrong, instead preferring compromise and letting nature take its course. As the story unfolds, he suffers greatly for these convictions.

See the complete review on Amazon:  https://amzn.to/38miMsZ

(I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.)

A Short Story and A Sci-Fi Giveaway

My Short Story Garners Recognition

"The concepts of trans-humanism, AI, and where we're headed as a society were all there -- the callback to Amie sitting on the edge of the couch arm was superb. As a fan of science fiction, I would publish that story as is."

Which is what I did.

That was the feedback from the judge for the St. Louis Writer's Guild annual Short Story Contest, where my entry, Amie & Alex: A Love Story, took second place.

Held every year since the organization's founding in 1920, the Guild's contest is one of the oldest in the nation. It's also boasts some impressive winners. Tennessee Williams won first place in 1935 for his story, "Stella for Star." Perhaps if I ever become a playwright, I'll be Missouri Perrin ... but probably not.

Since I'll be giving copies of this short story to new subscribers (see below), I wanted to make sure my current readers got first shot at a free download: https://bit.ly/2FEWkik. Please help yourself.


Want to sample some FREE Sci-fi?

Then check out the "Fantastic Futures" Sci-Fi giveaway: https://storyoriginapp.com/to/spO875f. 

Every work listed is a complete short story, novella, or full-length novel including my short story. Many of the sub-genre of Sci-Fi are represented, so if you're a fan looking to sample some new authors in return for trying out a subscription to their newsletter, give this giveaway offer a look.

January Limited-Time Kindle Deals

Santa bring you a new eReader that needs some books? Then, check out these limited-time Kindle deals.

(Prices change constantly. Be sure to verify all prices before purchase.)

Start Date: NOW  End Date: Jan. 16
It Was Always You: a gripping psychological suspense novel
By Sarah K. Stephens
Women's psychological suspense
Usual Price: 2.99  Sale: 0.99

Love hurts but the truth can kill.

Morgan isn’t sure about her new boyfriend, Justin. Before the couple go on a romantic weekend trip, Morgan attends an appointment with her neurologist, Dr. Koftura, who has monitored her since an accident she had when she was seven years old. Morgan has a history of sabotaging her romantic relationships and the Doctor is concerned that she is following the same patterns with Justin.

On the day of their trip Justin’s behavior becomes erratic and he runs the car off the road into a tree, killing himself and hurting Morgan.

When she awakens in the hospital to find that Justin is dead, Morgan has little time to grapple with this loss before detectives arrive to question her about the crash.

As it becomes clear that the detectives believe Morgan is responsible for Justin’s death, Morgan must unlock the secrets of her past in order to prove her innocence.

But can she really trust her own mind?

https://amzn.to/2Rcu9g4


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Jan. 15
Flowers From Berlin - The Classic American Spy Novel (25th Anniversary Edition)
By Noel Hynd
Political fiction
Usual Price: 3.89  Sale: 1.99

It is 1939. Roosevelt is winding down his second term in the White House. The Nazis have taken Austria, and Stalin’s Red Army is systematically eliminating the Kremlin’s enemies. Europe is going to hell in a handbasket. With isolationist sentiment running high in America, and the president’s popularity at an all-time low, Hitler seizes the moment and dispatches his secret weapon: An agent named 'Siegfried' who conceals himself behind the mask of middle-class America. A chameleon who can change identities and personalities at will. A cold-blooded killer who will win the war for Germany.

A banker, linguist, and demolitions expert who has successfully infiltrated German intelligence, FBI Special Agent Thomas Cochrane is handpicked by Roosevelt for an impossible mission: To find Hitler’s spy before he carries out a plan that will remove the president from office at a critical moment in the century’s history. As Cochrane, with the help of British Intelligence agent Laura Worthington, circles closer to his elusive quarry, a spy with supporters in the highest levels of U.S. government readies the world stage for a final act of annihilation that will alter the tide of war--and the future of the free world--in unthinkable ways.

Imagine a world where your most precious inalienable rights are denied. Where individual freedom is a thing of the past. Imagine World War II without FDR ...

https://amzn.to/2QIIPoc


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Jan. 15
Stalin in Power: The Russian Revolution From Above, 1928-1941
By Robert C. Tucker
Communism and Socialism
Usual Price: 2.99  Sale: 0.99

In 1929, Stalin plunged Soviet Russia into a coercive "revolution from above", a decade-long effort to amass military-industrial power for a new war. He forced 25 million peasant families into state-run collectives and transformed the Communist Party into a servile instrument. In 1939, he concluded the pact with Hitler that enabled him to grasp at Eastern Europe while Hitler made war in the West.

This book forms the second volume of Robert C. Tucker's biography of Joseph Stalin, following Stalin as Revolutionary. The author shows that Stalin was a Bolshevik of the radical right whose revolution cast the country deep into its imperial, autocratic past.

Tucker brings a fresh analysis to these events and to the terror of the 1930s, revealing the motives and methods of what he calls the greatest murder mystery of this century.

https://amzn.to/2ThRSOG


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Jan. 16
Compound 26: The Makanza Series Book 1
By Krista Street
YA Sc-Fi
Usual Price: 3.99  Sale: 0.99

A deadly virus. A brilliant, young researcher. And an infected survivor who threatens to steal her heart.
In a society ruled by sanctions and curfews, Dr. Meghan Forester emerges as the youngest and most promising scientist to join the fight against Makanza—the deadly virus that's ravaged the world.

Inside Compound 26, a giant government-controlled research facility, Meghan's new job involves studying the Kazzies, the rare survivors who carry the virus and now exhibit supernatural powers. But as her work unfolds, Meghan's horrified at the brutal and unethical practices the Kazzies are subjected to.

And most surprisingly, she falls in love with one.

Faced with growing conflict over helping the Kazzies versus following the Compound's strict policies, Meghan must choose: obey the government's unethical practices or risk everything to save the only man she's ever loved.

https://amzn.to/36RpC9K


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Jan. 17
The Second Korean War (The Russian Agents Book 1)
By Ted Halstead
Korean War History
Usual Price: 2.99  Sale: 0.99

"... a well written, Clancy like spy novel"

"What a delightfully fast paced novel."

Two Russian agents discover a missing nuclear weapon was hidden in an American city by North Korea. Another nuclear weapon nears Seoul in a tunnel built by North Koreans. And North Korea's new military dictator launches an all-out invasion.

Will Seoul or Pyongyang be the new capital of a united Korea?

https://amzn.to/2Tgm4K8


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Jan. 17
Sober Ever After: A Memoir
By Jackie Elliott
Substance abuse
Usual Price: 6.99  Sale: 1.99

Jackie Elliott loves her wine. It makes her feel confident and helps to relieve her anxiety. Drinking wine is normal! Drinking wine is fun!

Until it isn’t.

Jackie refuses to believe she has problem, after all she doesn’t live under a bridge, she is still quite thin (and therefore healthy), and is quite able to function!

As Jackie’s “Drunken Magical Thinking” propels her into a toxic relationship, and her life begins to disintegrate, Jackie has this nagging thought that maybe she should cut down on the booze. When she starts to have blackouts – complete gaps in her memory after only a few glasses of wine, she suspects that the party might be coming to an end.

From the lowest moments, to her first stumbling sober steps, Jackie shares her thought provoking, sometimes funny, sometimes sad journey to sobriety.

https://amzn.to/2FHJAaT


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Jan. 16
Zero Percenters: A Novel
By Scott T. Grusky
Metaphysical science fiction
Usual Price: 4.99  Sale: 0.99

Conservationist Anja Lapin always stood firm against her father’s profiteering. But in her wildest dreams, she never guessed his tech company would stumble on an algorithm enabling humans to digitize their bodies and secure artificial immortality.

Before Anja can stage a protest, terrorists take out the research team, along with her father. Billions adopt the new technology in record time, lured by an eternity free from pain and filled with pleasure—even if it means losing a few pieces of their identity.

Anja finds she’s one of the last two flesh and blood humans remaining on Earth. But while her worries turn to the future of consciousness, her father’s rival plots to hijack the network of digitized people and claim ultimate control.

Can Anja counter the attack and safeguard a brave new stage of human evolution?

https://amzn.to/30c05VW


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Jan. 16
A Warrior's Path: An Anchored Worlds Novel (The Castes and the OutCastes Book 1)
By Davis Ashura
Asian Myth and Legend
Usual Price: 2.99  Sale: 0.99

Two thousand years ago, the Sorrow Bringer destroyed the First World. She stirs once more.

Into this world is born Rukh Shektan, the finest warrior of his generation. Like all members of Caste Kumma, he has always understood duty, dedicating his life to the mastery of the sword. But defending his home against the Sorrow Bringer will require more than just peerless skill with the blade. It will require the hardest of sacrifices.

It is a lesson taught to him by Jessira Grey, a beautiful woman who Rukh knows to be an abomination. The holy texts warn against her kind: ghrinas, children of two Castes. They are to be executed whenever discovered, but for the first time in his life, Rukh defies duty. Jessira may be the key to the world's survival.

She offers Rukh the promise of terrifying Talents, abilities most name evil but which may also be the only means of saving his world.

For Rukh, the choice was always easy.

https://amzn.to/3a6kfWe


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Jan. 17
The Broken Academy 5: Bonds
By Jade Alters
Fantasy Romance
Usual Price: 2.99  Sale: 0.99

The Gray Fiends are gone. The Broken Academy and the Kyrie share a tenuous truce. All would finally seem to be back to normal. That is, until the ancient organization of magical power control returns to tighten their hold. The Lotus. Safety is but a memory now.

At the center of the dawning war are two of the most powerful students ever to walk the Academy’s halls. One, a magical prodigy. The other, a unique hybrid-gone-rogue that the Academy once sought to snuff out.

Emery Dalshak and Cece Ford hold the fate of both groups, and all the supernatural, in their hands. Much as they hate to admit it, they need each other.

And yet, in the shadows of this uncertain alliance of necessity, a scheme begins to snowball. A truly broken heart threatens to steer the conflict in a different, and truly treacherous direction.

https://amzn.to/2ThVxfA


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Jan. 16
Hidden Part One: A Michael Sullivan Mystery
By Linda Berry
Mystery
Usual Price: 2.99  Sale: 0.99

Upon his return from combat, a wounded Marine faces brutal battles at home. Sully’s parents are estranged, his father is an invalid, and the family ranch is nearing bankruptcy. Murdering thieves are stealing champion horses and disappearing into the desert like ghosts.

While attempting to make peace with his abusive father, Sully discovers the shocking secrets that drove his parents apart. Deeply resentful, he works with his father solely for the survival of the ranch.

Sully finds comfort in Maggie, the mother of a young marine killed in action. Despite their age difference, he connects with her in a way he never thought possible.

When a close friend is murdered, Sully and his Paiute companion track down the renegades. The epic violence that waits in the desert will test their survival skills—skills they never thought they’d use on American soil.

https://amzn.to/2NiCYE2


Start Date: NOW  End Date: Jan. 17
Murder Travels in Threes (A Helen & Martha Murder Mystery Book 2)
By Sigrid Vansandt
Cozy mystery
Usual Price: 3.99  Sale: 0.99

“We've got gypsies!” Old Grimsy, Marsden-Lacey's cantankerous town gossip, warns the patrons of The Traveller's Inn one golden autumn afternoon. Soon, the quaint Yorkshire village is playing host to a family of exotic Romanis, three colorful narrowboats, and a rough bunch of Russian mafiosos who'll stop at nothing to get their hands on a royal treasure lost to time.

Martha Littleword and Helen Ryes find themselves up to their necks in chasing mobsters, running from Russians, inciting ghostly visitations and wreaking havoc in their love lives. Chief Johns has his work cut out for him keeping the villagers from rioting, corralling two adventure-loving Southern girls and investigating the frightful deaths of two innocent women who knew too much.

For good measure, Martha and Helen will throw in some sassiness, mix well with laughter, and add three heaping helpings of love from two cats and one fearless canine hero, Amos. It's mystery and high jinks that only two Southern women can pull off with fun, flair, and the occasional bowl of jambalaya served cajun style.

https://amzn.to/2NhfD5u

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