Showing results by narrator "Mary Robinette Kowal" in All Categories

As a replicant, or "technohuman", Detective Bruna Husky knows two things: humans bioengineered her to perform dangerous, undesirable tasks, and she has just 10 years on the United States of Earth before her body automatically self-destructs. But with "antitechno" rage on the rise and a rash of premature deaths striking her fellow replicants, she may have even less time than she thought. Investigating the mysterious deaths, Bruna delves into the fractious, violent history shared by humans and replicants, and struggles to engage the society that fails to understand her - yet created her.

Raised by her aunt and uncle amidst the rolling hills of the Tuscan countryside, young orphan Virginia Tacci has always harbored a deep love for horses - though she knows she may never have the chance to ride. As a shepherdess in sixteenth-century Italy, Virginia's possibilities are doubly limited by her peasant class and her gender.

Stranded on a desert island, a young man yearns for objects from his past. A local from a small coastal town in England is found dead as the tide goes out. A Norwegian whaling ship is stranded in the Arctic, its crew threatened by mysterious forces. In the nineteenth century, a ship drifts in becalmed waters in the Indian Ocean, those on it haunted by their evil deeds. A surfer turned diver discovers there are things worse than drowning under the sea. Something from the sea is creating monsters on land. 

Katherine Barclift had it all: the perfect job, the perfect car, and what she thought was the perfect marriage. But when her entire world collapses in one stomach-churning instant, she hits the road and keeps driving until that so-called "perfect life" is just a dot in her rearview mirror.

Her devastating marriage behind her, Raylene Hammond is truly thankful for her best friends, the Sweet Magnolias. They’ve taken her in, shielding her from the world. Then she meets sheriff’s deputy Carter Rollins, and suddenly Raylene’s haven no longer feels quite so safe.

The second season of the Tor.com Collection includes ten Tor.com audiobooks originally published separately in the winter of 2016.

Seven years have passed since Pomella AnDone became the unlikely apprentice to Mystic Grandmaster Faywong. Despite having attained significant accomplishments as a Mystic, Pomella feels incomplete. She laments that her Master isn’t teaching her quickly enough. As a rare celestial event approaches, Pomella feels her lack of experience more than ever. The Mystical realm of Fayün is threatening to overtake the mortal world, and as the two worlds slowly blend together, Moth is thrown into chaos. People begin to vanish or are killed outright.

Thanks to the time travel lab at St. Sunniva University, history is no longer a mystery. But when the beloved co-inventor of the university’s time machine is inexplicably smeared across time, academic exploration and the future of St. Sunniva is thrown into doubt. As assistant to the dean of science, Julia Olsen is tasked with helping Campus Security Chief Nate Kirkland quietly examine this rare mishap…then, just as quietly, make it go away.

In a tropical country where shadowy political affairs lurk behind the scenes of its glamorous film industry, three people maneuver inside a high-stakes game of statecraft and espionage: Lillian, a reluctant diplomat serving a fascist nation; Aristide, an expatriate film director running from lost love and a criminal past; and Cordelia, a former cabaret stripper turned legendary revolutionary. Each one harbors dangerous knowledge that can upturn a nation. When their fates collide, machinations are put into play, unexpected alliances are built, and long-held secrets are exposed.

For hundreds of years, high-born nobles have competed for the chance to learn of the Myst. Powerful, revered, and often reclusive, Mystics have the unique ability to summon and manipulate the Myst: the underlying energy that lives at the heart of the universe. Once in a very great while, they take an apprentice, always from the most privileged sects of society. Such has always been the tradition - until a new High Mystic takes her seat and chooses Pomella AnDone, a restless, low-born teenager.

On vacation in Grand Isle, Louisiana, a married woman falls in love with a charming, attentive young man. The relationship spurs Edna Pontellier to explore her longing for independence and creative fulfillment. It also compels her to defy conventions, rejecting the constraints of marriage and motherhood. First published in 1899, Kate Chopin's novel drew criticism for its daring portrayal of female infidelity. Rediscovered decades later, it is now lauded for its lyricism, honesty, and astute social commentary.

Part human and part robot, private investigator Bruna Husky has been hired to locate a stolen diamond. But as Bruna's leads start to drop dead, her case becomes about much more than a stolen gem - and much more dangerous. Traversing the galaxy, Bruna races against the clock to uncover a nuclear power conspiracy that threatens all sentient beings.

Sigrid is a Shield-Maiden who yearns to break free of the restrictions of her father’s home and join the Sworn Men in an actual raiding expedition. When a small diplomatic party that includes members of the Shield-Brethren lands at her family’s holding on Göttland, the party’s second in command, Halldor, sees in Sigrid a vision of beauty and power that might challenge - and even destroy - many men.

Captain Talis just wants to keep her airship crew from starving, and maybe scrape up enough cash for some badly needed repairs. When an anonymous client offers a small fortune to root through a pile of atmospheric wreckage, it seems like an easy payday. The job yields an ancient ring, a forbidden secret, and a host of deadly enemies. Now on the run from cultists with powerful allies, Talis needs to unload the ring as quickly as possible. Her desperate search leads to a planetary battle between a secret society, alien forces, and even the gods themselves.

Katrina Lynden has always walked a straight line in life, an approach that has resulted in a stable career and pleased her hard-nosed parents but that has also left her feeling unfulfilled - and miserable. When her best friend suggests they quit their Silicon Valley jobs and embark on two months of adventure in New York City, Katrina balks at the idea but ultimately agrees, terrified yet proud of herself for finally doing something interesting with her life.But when her friend has to back out at the last minute, Katrina finds herself with a tough decision to make.

A Red Peace, first in Spencer Ellsworth's Starfire trilogy, is an action-packed space opera in a universe where the oppressed half-Jorian crosses have risen up to supplant humanity and dominate the galaxy. Half-breed human star navigator Jaqi, working the edges of human-settled space on contract to whoever will hire her, stumbles into possession of an artifact that the leader of the Rebellion wants desperately enough to send his personal guard after. An interstellar empire and the fate of the remnant of humanity hang in the balance.

In this much-anticipated second installment of Neve Maslakovic’s time-travel series, St. Sunniva University’s Julia Olsen and Nate Kirkland find themselves hot on the trail of a 14th-century artifact, a missing runic specialist, and an all-too-familiar kidnapper who has used the time travel lab’s STEWie (SpaceTimE Warper) for a joyride deep into America’s past. Armed with nothing more than a hunch and a keen understanding of History’s rules, can Julia, Nate, and their teammates track down the kidnapper and the missing researcher before the inevitable - and perilous - clash with history?

In 2003, television journalist Daryna Goshchynska unearths a worn photograph of Olena Dovgan, a member of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army killed in 1947 by Stalin’s secret police. Intrigued by Olena’s story, Daryna sets out to make a documentary of the woman’s extraordinary life and death - and unwittingly opens a door to the past that will change the course of the future.

Beset by crippling headaches from a young age and endowed with a talent for drawing, Sophia is discouraged by her well-known New England family from pursuing a woman's traditional roles. But from their first meeting, Nathaniel and Sophia begin an intense romantic relationship that despite many setbacks leads to their marriage. Together, they will cross continents, raise children, and experience all the beauty and tragedy of an exceptional partnership.

For the first time, these three stand-alone SideQuest adventures, set in the alternate history world of the popular Foreworld Saga, are collected in a single volume!The Beast of Calatrava, by Mark Teppo, is an intriguing alternate history tale in which both a battle-scarred former knight with a blood-soaked history and a monk with a mysterious past face the encroaching Templar crusade and the war coming to Iberia.