Showing results by narrator "James Patrick Cronin" in All Categories

Captured by a man who was once the closest friend of Nate's Prime, from whom he was cloned decades ago, Nate is alive because Robert Franklin needs something from him, something he can use to topple governments and take control of a world gone mad. Once he has it, Nate may be expendable.

In Cool, the neuroscientist and philosopher Steven Quartz and the political scientist Anette Asp bring together the latest findings in brain science, economics, and evolutionary biology to form a provocative theory of consumerism, revealing how the brain's "social calculator" and an instinct to rebel are the crucial missing links in understanding the motivations behind our spending habits.

Both sides take a step back to regroup, after a desperate battle over one system leaves the Combined States and the New Russian Confederacy reeling from heavy losses. Utilizing the might of their allies, the Combined States push for control over systems that would cut the NRC’s supply lines and force them to sue for peace.

Pierce Ambrose. That was the name of the man I'd been sent to kill. The man I'd failed to kill. I have one day left to make good on my contract before the thugs holding my sister and her son start sending me pieces of them. Pierce Ambrose. A man with a secret I didn't uncover until it was too late to turn back, too late to give up on trying to kill him. Now, if I want to see my sister and nephew again, I have to try one last time. My name is Mac Brennan, and this time I'm playing for keeps.

Akashic Books continues its award-winning series of original noir anthologies, launched in 2004 with Brooklyn Noir. This anthology includes brand-new stories by: Tommy Moore, Jessica Breheny, Naomi Hirahara, Calvin McMillin, Liza Monroy, Elizabeth McKenzie, Jill Wolfson, Ariel Gore, Jon Bailiff, Maceo Montoya, Micah Perks, Seana Graham, Vinnie Hansen, Peggy Townsend, Margaret Elysia Garcia, Lou Mathews, Lee Quarnstrom, Dillon Kaiser, Beth Lisick, and Wallace Baine.

On a world scoured by demons, even dragons are prey. Gaia Alpha is safe under Steven’s rule. He’s secured his borders, made allies of the remaining Dragonsoul Primes, and retrieved Icharaam’s Gift, the fabled Holy Grail. But Steven’s war is bigger than one world. On Gaia Beta, the Battle World, Spider Finger, and the Zothoric are gathering, and if they find a path to Steven’s home, everything he’s fought to save will be swallowed in the Great Devouring. It’s time to take the fight to the shadows on a road trip between universes.

A blood-thirsty being is on the rise, resurrecting Old West outlaws. But who is this El Diablo? All evidence points to an eccentric billionaire whose estate lies just outside our jurisdictional reach. Worse, an old-school sheriff seems determined to keep it that way. As menaces teeter into full-blown madness, I’m counting on James to ramp up his smarts and spell-casting. Success will mean the end of the Croft and Wesson era, but failure could condemn all of Grimstone to a hellish oblivion.

Not Alone: Origins is a collection of exciting character origin stories designed to provide exclusive insights into the people who make Not Alone tick, as well as to show how they first became embroiled in the grandest conspiracy of all time. From Emma Ford's early days with Jack Neal at XPR, all the way to John Cole's ruthless rise to the top and Timo Fiore's early interests in space exploration, these origin stories add insight and depth to the characters we love and some of those we love to hate.

The Concord is in shambles after the return of the Statu, but under the guidance of the Zilph'i, trust is slowly being rebuilt. Thomas Baldwin remains confident in his team, the secrets of his ship and the Concord no longer a dire threat. While the Founders continue to appease the Concord members, the Border Wars are picking up steam, and Constantine is sent to the far reaches of space to the Zilph'i homeworld to request the Ugna's aid.

Unfortunately for him, the secrets of the giant machines appear to have been lost to antiquity. Still, he has to try. After returning from a lucrative contract, he secures a base of operation for his Cavaliers in the Karma system, then he sets off toward the galactic core. It’s something he feels he needs to do by himself, so he leaves his overprotective mentor Hargrave behind.

On a world brought to the brink of destruction, life now clings to the shattered remains of the planet's crust. These fragments are the Shells: fragile wastelands of desert and rock, protected from the cold of space by a water shield. In the struggle for survival, its people have depended on ancient technology, controlled by the omnipresent Network, to sustain the entire population. But the Network is breaking down, water is sparse, and a complete societal collapse is imminent.

There are more than 320 million Chinese between the ages of 16 and 30. Children of the one-child policy, born after Mao, with no memory of the Tiananmen Square massacre, they are the first net native generation to come of age in a market-driven, more international China. Their experiences and aspirations were formed in a radically different country from the one that shaped their elders, and their lives will decide the future of their nation and its place in the world.

Pursuit, book five: Earth's mighty warship, The Behemoth, has been selected to receive the honor of formally joining the alliance. This momentous occasion opens new opportunities for the human race, a chance to help decide the fate of the universal government and participate in galactic affairs. As they prepare for the voyage and ceremony to come, not all are easy aboard the battleship. Clea An'Tufal, liaison aboard The Behemoth, wakes from a revelatory dream. Her first assignment ended in tragedy, the ship she served on was destroyed in a massive battle.

It's late Thursday night, and Inspector Ross Carver is at a crime scene in one of the city's last luxury homes. The dead man on the floor is covered by an unknown substance that's eating through his skin. Before Carver can identify it, six FBI agents burst in and remove him from the premises. He's pushed into a disinfectant trailer, forced to drink a liquid that sends him into seizures, and is shocked unconscious. When he awakens, Carver works to find out what happened to him, soon realizing he's entangled in a web of conspiracy that spans the nation.

A young Amish boy ventures from Pennsylvania to California in this richly imagined historical novel from the author of An Unseemly Wife. It's 1867. Growing up among the Pennsylvania Amish, 11-year-old Joshua knows that his father is a respected church deacon who has the ear of God. But he's also seen his father's weakness for drink and borne the brunt of his violent rages. In the aftermath of a disastrous fire, Joshua fears his father's reprimand enough to run away from home.

They have absolute power; after all, they are the ones with the weapons. The only other armed agency, the Peacemaker Guild, is far smaller and unable to bend them to their will. But absolute power has the tendency to corrupt absolutely, and this is becoming increasingly apparent as the guild’s members pursue their hidden agendas.

When the Colonial Marines set out after their deadliest prey, the Xenomorphs, it’s what Corporal Hicks calls a bug hunt—kill or be killed. Here are fifteen all-new stories of such “close encounters,” written by many of today’s most extraordinary authors. Set during the events of all four Alien films, sending the Marines to alien worlds, to derelict space settlements, and into the nests of the universe’s most dangerous monsters, these adventures are guaranteed to send the blood racing—one way or another.

An epidemic of violence is sweeping the country: musicians are being murdered onstage in the middle of their sets by members of their audience. Are these random copycat killings, or is something more sinister at work? Has music itself become corrupted in a culture where everything is available, everybody is a "creative," and attention spans have dwindled to nothing? Destroy All Monsters tells a haunted and romantic story of overdue endings and unlikely beginnings that will resonate with anybody who’s ever loved rock and roll.

Nathan Runkle would have been a fifth-generation farmer in his small Midwestern town. Instead, he founded our nation's leading nonprofit organization for protecting factory farmed animals. In Mercy for Animals, Nathan brings us into the trenches of his organization's work; from MFA's early days in grassroots activism, to dangerous and dramatic experiences doing undercover investigations, to the organization's current large-scale efforts at making sweeping legislative change to protect factory farmed animals and encourage compassionate food choices.

New allies. New enemies. New life. Admiral Thomas Baldwin has more to live for after the recent news. All eyes are on him as the biggest war in Concord Space history begins in earnest. Captain Treena Starling is sent to stop High Elder Wylen's allies from wreaking havoc on their already weakened partners. Ven Ittix is torn between his people and the Concord, and is offered something he could never have imagined. Lark Keen makes a decision that will affect the outcome of the Concord forever. Legacy is the end of an era. But to many, it's just the beginning....