Showing results by narrator "Neil Hellegers" in All Categories

New York Times best-selling and Hugo Award-winning author John Scalzi gift-wraps 15 short takes on the holiday season - interviews with holiday notables, "informational" articles about TV specials and Christmas carols, short stories and poems, and even a couple of nods to Thanksgiving and New Year’s - and puts them all into a stocking stuffer-sized package that makes the perfect gift for friends, family, or yourself.

When a private jet crashes into the Caribbean sea, diving instructor Michael Gannon is the only person on the scene. Finding six dead men and a suitcase full of cash and diamonds, Gannon assumes he's the beneficiary of a drug deal gone wrong. However, it seems one of the passengers was the Director of the FBI - despite the official story that he died of natural causes in Italy.

County Sheriff Brody Hayes is in the midst of a missing person's call - for a five-month-old baby. Deep in the mountains of his hometown, Bowie, Wyoming, Brody's desperate search for the helpless child through a worsening snowstorm leads him on an even greater journey - one through his memories of his childhood, his brother, his son, and a life for himself that he thought was lost.

In 1929, Raymond Geist went to Berlin as a consul, and he handled visas for emigrants to the US. Geist expedited the exit of Albert Einstein just before Hitler came to power. Once the Nazis began to oppress Jews and others, Geist's role became vitally important. It was Geist who extricated Sigmund Freud from Vienna and Geist who understood the scale and urgency of the humanitarian crisis. Even while hiding his homosexual relationship with a German, Geist fearlessly challenged the Nazi police state whenever it abused Americans in Germany or threatened US interests.

Jarl Beckström, Clan Lord of Norvaask, has done the impossible. With the help of his friends, he forged an alliance with Jotungard—their bitterest rival—and installed a new ruler upon the throne. Now he turns his focus inward to strengthen his people for the impending war. But as they prepare, the world crumbles down around them.

Eric McCaffrey is very good at VRMMORPGs; he's played most of them, but the lack of funds is starting to affect his ability to play popular games. It's time to move on to something more...obscure. Battlegrounds Online is the only game of its kind. A VRMMOFPS. A military warfare game so realistic that it scares away most players daring enough to try it.

For teenagers Chris and Miles, working at the city zoo in the summer is a pretty sweet gig. They chase girls, smoke a little dope, and avoid thinking about their rapidly approaching futures. One is headed to college, and one to…who knows? But then the Zombie Apocalypse hits, and things get weird. Deadly animals, psychotic house painters, and a face-humping lemur named Sexy Rexy all get thrown into the mix, with plenty of laughs and chills to go around.

Velius Pyre is the last survivor of his dying realm, abandoned by the gods and left to face annihilation at the hands of the all-devouring Hunger. When a chance encounter with a mysterious god known only as the Swordsman rips his soul free, Pyre awakens in the Nether—an endless expanse of broken realms, fallen souls, and divine secrets.

After failing the most important exam of his life, Kyle is forced into a VR war. Now, he fights on the front lines as cannon fodder for what he always assumed was the government, losing a little part of his memories with every virtual death. When the mission he’s on goes wrong, Kyle is stranded on a planet far from his original destination. Finally given a chance to make an impression in the organization, Kyle will have to risk his mind for a chance at salvation. If he fails, he'll lose all will to resist: making him the perfect soldier.

Hiram Taine is a handyman who can fix anything. When he isn't fiddling with his tools, he is roaming through the woods with his dog, Towser, as he has done for as long as he can remember. He likes things that he can understand. But when a new ceiling appears in his basement - a ceiling that appears to have the ability to repair television sets so they're better than before - he knows he has come up against a mystery that no man can solve.

A new Hero has emerged and with her appearance, some questions have been answered. However, encountering a new enemy to the north has Braskar and the new army rushing to battle once again, even as Matt desperately tries to locate enough units to bolster his defences.

Micah fought the Third Prince of Elsewhere once. He was defeated more thoroughly than he had ever thought possible. Even when he fled from his failure through time itself, the prince pursued him, dogged and unwilling to give up on an injured quarry. The gods gave him a quest: gather the artifacts needed so that he could contend with an evil capable of devouring existence itself. He fought and bled, finally acquiring the tools he thought he would need for the climactic battle waiting for him when he returned home. Unfortunately, his adventures didn't prepare him for one simple truth.

Faced with cavalry and horse archers alike, Matt Fang finds his armies out of position and reeling. He's going to have to pull back, concentrate his forces and pull off some miracle if he doesn't want to be a victim of his latest opponent. Good thing he's got new allies and even more units to play with. Now, all he needs is the time to get them in place.

Tales of blood, magic, and steel by masters of the craft!

Dive into the relentless tides of the Water Plane of Etera, where survival means more than keeping your head above water. The Four Horsemen, led by Desari, seek refuge and aid in the Water Plane of Etera. She reunites with Irshon, an elemental ally from Desari's past, with vast knowledge and power. Though Limos remains out of reach, his wares and information kept from them when they need it most.

Cormac and Amelia take a job at a quaint Victorian mountain lodge: Keep an eye on the famous psychic there to judge whether the place is haunted. Simple, right? Three problems: The blizzard that snows everyone in for the weekend, the murdered body that shows up in the morning, and the fact that everyone is sure Cormac did it. So much for the nice mountain getaway.

Within the serene wilderness of Minnesota is Dr. Jonathan Arthur's renowned clinic, promising solace for those tormented by their deepest, darkest fears. But when corporate consultant Paul Ondragon arrives seeking relief from his extraordinary phobia, his tranquility is quickly shattered. Because a series of grisly murders is sending shockwaves through the community, each victim mutilated in a manner both brutal and inexplicable. Is the culprit truly a rogue bear, as authorities insist, or does something far more malevolent lurk in the shadows?

Will Galvan is no longer a noob to The Realm. In fact, he's no longer Will Galvan. Emerged as Azure and still undecided about his class, the new hero is ready to face the cause of the curse on Crescent Island head-on. Little does he know that in-game decisions may have real-world consequences, up to and including death.

Buried in the catacombs beneath the fortress of Landmoor lies the Silverkin, an ancient talisman that can overcome any Forbidden magic. Thealos Quickfellow has the right to claim the Silverkin but knows little about the deadly consequences befalling those who wield it. Before he can lay claim to it, he must first slip beyond the web of Sorian who have beset Landmoor and battle among themselves for supremacy. On his journey, Thealos will learn personally of the sacrifices required to become a Sleepwalker and how to use the Silverkin to save his people. But will using it destroy him?

Taken together, the works of H. P. Lovecraft create a terrific world of elder gods, ancient aliens, and cosmic horror. This new original collection of Lovecraft's earliest stories lays the foundation for that world and prefigures many of his later infamous tales.