Showing results by publisher "Recorded Books" in Space Opera

After deactivating Parallax and restoring access to Earth, Deadeye and the Redshift Runners have become the most infamous pirates in the Orion Spur. Yet the old order has its hands full with Dying Suns, a political movement calling for a return to Earth—while leaving the barren, ‘dying’ worlds they were forced to colonize. Miners, farmers, and other settlers petition the Runners to fly them to humanity’s birthplace.

Priscilla “Hutch” Hutchins discovers an interstellar message from a highly advanced race that could be her last chance for a mission before the program is shut down for good. Hutch has been the academy’s best pilot for decades. She’s had numerous first contact encounters and even became a minor celebrity. But world politics have shifted from exploration to a growing fear that the program will run into an extraterrestrial race more advanced than humanity and war.

When Shuos Jedao wakes up for the first time, several things go wrong. His few memories tell him that he's a 17-year-old cadet - but his body belongs to a man decades older. Hexarch Nirai Kujen orders Jedao to reconquer the fractured hexarchate on his behalf, even though Jedao has no memory of ever being a soldier, let alone a general. Surely a knack for video games doesn't qualify you to take charge of an army?

Claws That Catch is the fourth volume from their popular Looking Glass series. Humankind’s only interstellar craft, the Vorpal Blade is dispatched to investigate an ancient civilization that may have left vital technology behind. But when the crew finds more than they bargained for, they’ll have to scramble to survive.

Keeping up-to-date with the most buzzworthy and cutting-edge science fiction requires sifting through countless magazines, e-zines, websites, blogs, original anthologies, single-author collections, and more - a task accomplishable by only the most determined and voracious readers. For everyone else, Night Shade Books is proud to introduce the latest volume of The Best Science Fiction of the Year, collecting the finest that the genre has to offer, from the biggest names in the field to the most exciting new writers.

In the midst of fighting a reignited war with the deadly Nimic, Lt. Commander Johnny Rangers of the Confederation of Aligned Planets is dragged into a rescue mission by mysterious agent Koya Nyrus. With his best friend’s life at stake, he finds himself on a restricted world full of secrets that could alter the course of the war. Meanwhile, Rangers’ father, Inspector Frank Branza of the Gravity City Police Force, sets out to uncover a vast conspiracy with plans to affect the very fabric of reality.

The laws of physics acting on the planet of Jai have been forever upended; its surface completely altered, and its inhabitants permanently changed, causing chaos. Fearing heresy, the artificially intelligent Gods that once ruled the galaxy became the planet’s jailers. Tiv Hunt, who once trusted these Gods completely, spends her days helping the last remaining survivors of Jai. Everyone is fighting for their freedom, and they call out for drastic action from their savior, Tiv’s girlfriend, Yasira. But Yasira has become deeply ill.

After being lost in space for 11 years, Gabe finally makes his triumphant return to reunite with Alex and Chase and retrieve a possibly alien artifact - which may lead them to solve the greatest archaeological mystery of their careers, in the eighth installment of the Alex Benedict series.

He's desperate to see Luna again. It might be the only thing keeping Alistair from giving up, because their situation looks grim. As he sits in the captain’s seat, looking out at the vastness of space, he knows what was on its way.

Time is running out for the planet Jai. The artificially intelligent Gods who rule the galaxy have withdrawn their protection from the chaos-ravaged world, just as their most ancient enemy closes in. For Yasira Shien, who has devoted herself to the fragile planet's nascent rebellion, it's time to do or die—and the odds are overwhelming. Enter Dr. Evianna Talirr.

Now privateers rather than criminals, the Redshift Runners protect Earth and its colonies from pirates... Until trade routes are attacked by the unmanned fleets of the Prestige, the former protectors of ancient Earth. Though the deadly raids threaten the stability Deadeye and Talon have sacrificed so much to achieve, they discover its true purpose: an operation code-named Termination Vector, which has targeted the Runners for destruction.

Luzia N.E. Drainway never really thought too much about the Astrosi. They lurk above and below Bastion City—a giant multileveled megalopolis she calls her home—and they tend to keep to themselves. On the rare occasions they use their magics to meddle with human affairs, most people with an ounce of sense steer clear of whichever unfortunate soul happens to be their victim. Luzia is far too dedicated to repairing and maintaining the frequently damaged Bastion to pay them much attention, and prefers to ignore the Astrosi just like everyone else.

Captain Ripley Willis Lee had faced danger before, but this new mission was even more threatening. Deep behind enemy lines, he and Primord Captain Dharek were forced to work together to unravel Zodark supply routes, sabotage infrastructure, and pave the way for the Republic’s liberation of Rass.

George-Étienne and his children have formed The House of Styx, after finding a mysterious artefact on the surface of Venus herself. But with the discovery comes great risk, not only from a planet that kills with its very touch but also from the banks and powers of old Earth, who will stop at nothing to claim this new technology for themselves. From humble origins, The House of Styx is determined to become one of the most powerful families in the known galaxy or die trying.

Battle lines have been drawn. Only one species will survive. The Primordials are crossing into our universe. Their mission is simple: Burn every planet to ashes. The only hope for all life is the culmination of the Kane bloodline. Prometheus finds his back against the wall. Can he hold off the horde long enough for his grandson to face a god? Or will defending his home require the ultimate sacrifice? Constantine and his warriors are out of options. They must find the alien god-king and kill him before time runs out for everyone.

Commander Ripley Willis Lee knew the stakes couldn’t be higher. As captain of the Republic’s newest warship—RNS Poseidon, he’d been given command of a task force to conduct hit-and-run operations against Zodark convoys and reconnaissance missions behind enemy lines. With the Battle for Intus underway, the Rass system—a Primord colony captured by the Zodarks—was the next planet the Republic intended to liberate.

Selei City is the capital of the Imerialte and one of the most desired locales in all of the Skolian Empire. But its thin veneer of civilization is cracked when a series of brutal crimes implicates those in power in a vast conspiracy. Three prominent scientists have lost their lives to a serial killer—and notes at the scenes lead to a connection to the Royalist political party. Major Bhaajan, private detective, is called back to Selei City to solve the crime. Bhaaj and her crew plunge into the Byzantine world of imperial politics—a jigsaw world where none of the pieces seem to fit.

Alistair made a single wrong assumption, and now he, Thoreaux, and Caesar battle for their lives in a cruel set of games designed to weed out the weak. Losing means death. The game’s giants aren’t the only threat. The corporation’s CEO is hunting them, too. Faced with the horrible reality of an entire race born into servitude, Alistair now only has one option. Find a way to free them...or die trying.

Centuries after a war with the Mutes, the first aliens to be encountered by humankind, a startling new discovery in the far reaches of the Orion Nebula appears. On a planet with conditions favorable to life, explorer vessel The Columbia comes across a small town seemingly inhabited by an intelligent species not yet discovered. But when a highly publicized follow-up mission is sent to make contact mere months later, the entire town has vanished, leaving no trace—or such is presumed to be the case until Alex Benedict and his archaeological crew show up to investigate.

The problem is, we didn't come home alone. No one has ever seen anything like this. What they're calling it sends shivers down my spine: a parasitic alien pathogen. It could be a virus, a toxin, or maybe something even worse. And believe me: what we don't know definitely can hurt us. It's too late for me—I've been exposed. But this has never been about me. It's going to take some incredible risks and another long-shot space mission to get to the bottom of this, but I'll fight until my last breath to undo the damage I've done.