Showing results by narrator "John Pirhalla" in All Categories

The final moments of the journey in Ancient Greece sets the stage for a revolution ready to explode faster than a poorly brewed potion. The Old Guild and Asguardian Remnants are itching for a comeback tour. Led by Odin's feathered spies, Huginn and Muninn, they’re all set to hunt Artorian down—this time for good. They're betting their last shiny coin on vengeance, aiming to turn Artorian's dream of a New World into a nightmare—permanently.

Poverty-stricken Finn Jagger would give anything to heal his ailing mother. With his father imprisoned, Finn has joined a thieving crew to earn the money he needs to save her. When the latest heist turns to disaster and lands him on death row, Finn’s future seems to be tied up with a noose. Until the king’s executioner claims him as an apprentice.

A killer leaves a deadly wake in Sacramento. Ian's son Brandon, the city's newest homicide recruit, believes the murders follow a pattern: the perpetrator prefers blunt force to bullets. The results are chillingly familiar to his father's methods. Ian thinks the tally belongs to a young assassin he helped train. If he's right, Brandon doesn't stand a chance. The third installment of this bestselling series asks if blood truly does rise above all else.

In Beverly Hills, a wealthy CEO goes on a bloody rampage and videotapes the slaughter. He leaves behind a chilling cryptic message: “This is where it begins." Miles away, an alarmed mother receives an unsettling letter from her estranged husband, stained with bloody fingerprints. And all across California, children are becoming affected by a monstrous change - and their parents by a mounting fear. Social worker Carrie Daniels and reporter Brian Howells are determined to find the link between these baffling crimes....

Mathison and his Marines have been reunited, and they’ve found unlikely allies in their mission to save humanity, which is currently tearing itself apart. SOG systems are rebelling, the Republic wants to run away…and then there’s the whole invasion of the vanhat they have to contend with.

An oral history of the brutal Pacific Theater in WWII, told by many of the last living U.S. Marine veterans. During World War II, over 16 million Americans served in the Armed Forces. Today, less than 1 percent are still alive. The Last of the Old Breed is an unprecedented oral history of the...

Having defeated Chauvan, Gavin now controls the strange destructive nihilar power. Though content back among his friends, his presence in Yoran makes the city a target. When Gavin learns that an ancient enemy has returned to target the El’aras, he wants to help, but doing so exposes Yoran to whatever Chauvan plans. He’s learned he can’t defeat Gavin alone, but what kind of allies will he find? Ancient powers are active in the world, and they all seem intent on destroying Gavin. As preparations go awry, Gavin finds himself far from those he vowed to protect.

When a fierce aetherstorm unleashes a wave of demonic aetherbeasts on New Albion—capital of the Valestra Kingdom—Callum Stross and his friends Quinn and Marcella answer the call, defending the city with a courage befitting the next generation of Great College archmages.

Could you sacrifice the lives of millions to save your daughter? When an archaeologist's daughter is abducted, he must find a powerful ancient relic to save her life but at the cost of millions of lives. Or is there another option?

Leo Surinar is a wanderer, traveling with his mother in the Wayward caravan in the only life he's ever known, finding their own peace while parts of the world descend into war. When a traveling minstrel joins the caravan, everything begins to change. As Leo learns the power of song and begins to dream of a world beyond the caravan—one only the Academy can show him—he starts to think there might be more to the world than what he sees from the top of a wagon. Until his mother's illness forces him to make a difficult choice.

Who am I? What am I? These questions have plagued Joshua since childhood. Mysterious amplified senses and boosted reflexes have helped him survive and thrive in a brutal, lawless megacity, and he leads the notorious Epitaph gang with keen street instincts. When Joshua’s unexplained abilities draw the attention of a covert government entity, he finds himself on the run. Only his skills, street smarts, and a rogue hacker named Shelby keep him one step ahead of his relentless hunters. They know what he is. They know who he is, and they will tear apart a megacity to bring him in.

For a job that came out of the blue, this latest gig could keep former Delta Forcer operator Dak Harper in the black for quite a while. On his way to London to track a crazed former colonel who wants the ex-Special Forces commando dead, Dak is diverted by an urgent request from his employer, a 13-year-old multimillionaire with a passion for antiquities. Dak’s new assignment? Find the fabled Welsh Crown, a mysterious 13th century artifact that’s been missing for centuries. The gig sounds easy until Dak’s target starts a bloody turf war with a larger, more powerful syndicate.

A new magic threatens to destroy Gavin - or change him forever. Gavin has secured the city, preventing the deadly Fates from bringing their terrible sorcery back to Yoran, but Tristan remains at large. Their fight had been a test, and Gavin knows he can’t fail the next one. When a strange attack pushes him to reveal the depths of his magic, Gavin knows Tristan has returned to finish what he started. This time, he’s working with a power greater than any sorcerer - and something Gavin has never faced.

After scouring the world for rare stolen artifacts, former commando turned treasure hunter Dak Harper is looking forward to a little time back in the States. His boss has sent him to North Carolina to retrieve a set of Civil War pistols stolen from a museum. The legendary Samuel Colt made the guns for President Abraham Lincoln, but some local bigwig has purloined them for himself. Dak learns this Southern tycoon’s interests stretch further than stolen weapons. Turns out he’s holding a town hostage at the center of a sprawling crime syndicate. And innocent townsfolk are dying.

Vincent Donnelly’s life has been one twisted nightmare after another. After waking up in a field surrounded by corpses, he has struggled to discover the secrets of his forgotten past and free himself from the spirits inhabiting his mind. After escaping the horror of Dr. Graham, Vincent finds himself trapped in a sinister mental hospital in the middle of nowhere. Drugged and tormented by the doctor and staff, he is unable to use the strange powers he has learned, though the spirits that normally chatter within his mind are finally silent.

This is the final stand for Vale and its system against the Komran Empire. The council doesn’t even want to call it a war, but the Vale General and Sergeant of the Army have a plan. They needed one ugly marine when the Komran were getting aggressive, but now that the enemy are here in force, they need as many as they can get. Much to his chagrin, Joe is pulled from the fighting. His help is needed as the older soldiers and technicians are thawed out from the cryo storage.

On Terra Earth, war fever grips the populace. Opportunistic politicians and war profiteers manipulate public opinion to demand the United Nations of Terra get involved. It’s a war everyone wants, and it’s a war everyone will get. Brevet Captain Abner Fortis takes command of Tango Company, 2nd Battalion, 2nd Regiment—Tango 2/2—just in time to join the fight. Tango 2/2 is a reconnaissance company, and their mission is to lead the way for the invasion force.

Vincent Donnelly has faced pain, death, and madness. His past is a haze of fractured memories. A host of restless spirits inhabited his tortured psyche once. He has inherited their powers, their magic. But all he wants is to be free of the nightmares that plague him. Fleeing from the confines of a demonic asylum, Vincent and his allies take refuge in a remote mountain cabin. Lost, wounded, unable to access his supernatural abilities, Vincent struggles to sever the link between himself and the personification of Chaos itself. But it is not so easy to destroy.

These stories and more are featured in the third short story anthology for the System Apocalypse, continuing the saga of survival in a world transformed by the arrival of the System. Humanity has adapted to a new reality filled with Classes, magic and monsters, but the struggle for life, love and purpose never ends. This anthology brings together gripping tales from returning authors and two new short stories by Tao Wong.

Young elf prince Drynn has always lived in the shadow of his athletic and popular elder brother. But, when the bookish boy’s mother dies from a mystery illness and he receives the Queen’s Opal, he’s plagued by visions of the past and a growing power. And, with the gem supposedly cursing those who possess it, he must enter the human realm to hunt down the cure…or become the next to die. Outside the forest, Drynn finds much has changed with the world now ruled by greedy wizards coveting more magic.