Showing results by narrator "Andrews MacLeod" in All Categories

As a childfree woman, Dr. Amy Blackstone is no stranger to a wide range of negative responses when she informs people she doesn't have - nor does she want - kids: confused looks, patronizing quips, thinly veiled pity, even outright scorn and condemnation. But she is not alone in opting out when it comes to children. More people than ever are choosing to forgo parenthood, and openly discussing a choice that's still often perceived as taboo. Yet this choice, and its effects personally and culturally, are still often misunderstood.

A year ago, Flynn Cormac and Jubilee Chase made the now infamous Avon Broadcast, calling on the galaxy to witness for their planet and protect them from destruction. Some say Flynn's a madman; others whisper about conspiracies. Nobody knows the truth. A year before that, Tarver Merendsen and Lilac LaRoux were rescued from a terrible shipwreck - now they live a public life in front of the cameras and a secret life away from the world's gaze.

Sergeant Gastovsky—Gas to everyone but his superior officers—never wanted to be a soldier. Far from it. But when a con goes wrong and he needs a place to lay low for a while, he finds himself wearing the power armor of the augmented infantry. After three years on a six-year contract, Gas has found his groove running low-level cons and various illegal activities that make him good money on the side. He’s the guy who can get you what you need. But he’s always had his eye out for a big score—the one that might set him up for life after the military.

The world of Dematr had been locked unchanging for centuries by the Great Guilds, most people living in a world of oil lamps, crossbows, and horse cavalry, the Mechanics reserving to themselves the technology for steam locomotives, rifles, and far-talkers while the Mages treated all others as if they were nothing - until Master Mechanic Mari, dragon slayer and pirate queen, and Master of Mages Alain raised the army of the new day to free their world.

Whilst working on a spreadsheet for a New York-based PR firm, Gerald has his consciousness uploaded into his company's Slack channel. He posts for help, but his colleagues assume it's an elaborate joke to exploit the new working-from-home policy and, now that Gerald's productivity is through the roof, his bosses are only too happy to let him work from...wherever he says he is. Faced with the looming abyss of a disembodied life online, Gerald enlists co-worker Pradeep to care for his body and Slackbot, the service's AI assistant, to help him navigate his new digital reality.

Logan West and Emma James grew up together but are now high school seniors going in totally opposite directions after graduation. When they are assigned to work together on one last history project, they hardly expect the monotony of high school life to change. Instead, as they decode a series of unexplained clues hidden within their history project itself, Logan and Emma manage to unfold an ancient mystery that has baffled scientists and archaeologists, one with powerful implications for the present day.

After losing one of his nine lives, ThunderClan’s leader, Bramblestar, became intent on rooting out and exiling cats he claims are traitors to the warrior code. But some cats know the truth: This isn’t the real Bramblestar, and their leader’s true spirit is desperate to return to its rightful place before the rising tension among the five Clans erupts into outright war.

ShadowClan has returned under the leadership of a new Tigerstar, but their renewed strength has brought the tensions around the lake to an explosive breaking point. SkyClan’s place among the Clans is about to be decided once and for all.

The area surrounding Cashiers, North Carolina, is home to people of all kinds, but the world that Jacob McNeely lives in is crueler than most. His father runs a methodically organized meth ring, with local authorities on the dime to turn a blind eye to his dealings. Having dropped out of high school and cut himself off from his peers, Jacob has been working for this father for years, all on the promise that his payday will come eventually.

The government has accelerated their super soldier program. Their new Virtual Reality system is the perfect tool to train soldiers for the coming war. There is a shortage of enlisted men and women that possess the "talent". Everyone from athletes to professional gamers must be sorted and vetted. Humanity is on the line. Lucius is one of those lucky few selected to participate in Codename: Freedom, a new game that promises to push Virtual Reality to the ultimate level.

The apocalyptic event known as the Reset took place five years ago... In the span of a few seconds, ninety percent of the world's population was killed by a mysterious alien force. The ten percent left had their memories wiped. They were given incredible superpowers and a LitRPG stat system that allowed them to advance their skills. But they lost a lot of technology in the process. Many lost their humanity. Sterling Monedero was one of these survivors.

The time has come to return to the Dark Forest. ThunderClan’s deputy, Squirreflight, has vanished with the cat now known to be an impostor, sowing suspicion and mistrust among the five clans. The cause of their ancestors’ silence is finally clear - but so is the terrifying truth of the danger they must face if they hope to bring light back to the darkness....

Micah Mortimer isn’t the most polished person you’ll ever meet. His numerous sisters and in-laws regard him oddly but very fondly, but he has his ways and means of navigating the world. He measures out his days running errands for work – his TECH HERMIT sign cheerily displayed on the roof of his car - maintaining an impeccable cleaning regime and going for runs (7:15 every morning). He is content with the steady balance of his life. But then the order of things starts to tilt.

This collection features a menagerie of horror stories. Some are scary. Some are disturbing. Some are funny. Meet werewolves, vampires, zombies, psychopaths, aliens, cannibals, ghosts, and various things that go bump in the night. Previously published in dozens of anthologies and magazines, some of these tales are mild, but some are extreme. Let the reader beware...

They are voices lost to time. Beginning in the late 1970s, five veteran airmen sat for private interviews. Decades after the guns fell silent, they recounted in vivid detail the most dangerous missions that made the difference in the war. Ed Haydon dueled with the deadliest of German aces - and forced him to the ground. Robert Johnson racked up 27 kills in his P-47 Thunderbolt, but nearly lost his life when his plane was shot to ribbons and his guns jammed. Cigar-chomping Curtis LeMay was the Air Corps general who devised the bomber tactics that pummeled Germany's war machine.

There is a new Animorph. And he's arrived just in time, because the Yeerks are preparing their biggest takeover ever. Their ultimate target: the world's most powerful leaders, all gathered together in one place. What better way to get into the minds of humans? Literally. At first, David joins the fight with a vengeance. But there's definitely something wrong. Because he's starting to break the rules, taking risks that could get them all captured. Or killed. The Animorphs don't know what to do.

Ten years ago Trumanell Branson disappeared, the only clue she left behind being a bloody handprint. Her pretty face still hangs like a watchful queen from the posters on the walls of the town's church, police station and high school. They all promise the same thing: we will find you. Meanwhile, her brother, Wyatt, lives as a pariah in the old family house, cleared of any involvement by the police but tried and sentenced in the court of public opinion and now in a sensational TV documentary about the crime.

Elfangor-Sirinial-Shamtul is an Andalite war prince--the one who gave the Animorphs the power to morph. "The AndaliteChronicles" is the story of how this warrior-cadet ended up on planet Earth.

When fear reigns supreme, only hope can save the Clans. The impostor’s reign of terror has brought the Clans to the brink of destruction, and now, every warrior - living and dead - must unite to defeat him before he delivers his final blow. To ensure their future and protect their past, StarClan, the Dark Forest, and all five Clans must band together to turn back the tide of darkness - before the impostor’s fury destroys them all.

As President Borg Lecter threatens to annihilate the Country tribes in order to expand his glass-domed empire, Adele ventures into the belly of the beast. Her only hope of survival is the consolidation of Dwellers and Country power before it's too late. Former demagogue President Nailin is eliminated, yet civil unrest infects every alliance. To save Adele, President Tristan faces his greatest challenge yet: unifying unfriendly Dwellers in the Tri-Realms to raise an army against Lecter.