Showing results by narrator "Steven Barnett" in All Categories

When Kurt Jacobs imagines the ultimate gadget—one capable of replacing phones, credit cards, keys, and TVs—the idea consumes his every waking moment. When the Sycamore corporation buys into Kurt's creation and The Seed becomes a reality, his every dream comes true. Power like this has never existed. But amid all of the awe and optimism, there is far more going on behind the curtain than Kurt or anyone else could ever have predicted.

All eyes fall on the closing stages of a colony-defining isolation test within Terradox’s least hospitable zone—the man-made hellscape of Little Venus, where six astronauts-in-training have survived 51 weeks surrounded by an almost impossibly hostile atmosphere. But while the astronauts of tomorrow count down their final few days until freedom, the gravest threat of all might already be on the wrong side of their Isolation Kompound’s impenetrable walls....

After discovering the truth behind Sycamore, tech pioneer Kurt Jacobs rejects the corporation’s offer of a new identity and chooses to fight to expose the truth. But with an overt threat against his family hanging over him, Kurt must act without being seen.

In 10 original stories, Sycamore X explores Sycamore's augmented reality dystopia through the eyes of parents, teachers, job-hunters, Sycamore employees, unwilling celebrities, and more.

In 12 original stories, this super-sized collection picks up right where Sycamore X left off by exploring the mega corporation’s augmented reality dystopia through the eyes of a varied cast of characters, some new and some familiar.

When alien scientists studying a mysterious object detect unfamiliar DNA, they set to work on cloning the being responsible for the incredible technology. Now, all alone and trillions of miles from home, their fully grown human Seedling is about to be hatched....

With huge funding behind them, ChronoTonic claims to have achieved the impossible. The corporation is pushing its new machine — a time machine — as the solution to Earth's problems. I'm just not buying it. They want to buzz forward in time, pick up a few technological advancements, and buzz back to apply them in the here and now. They say we can save lives and reduce suffering by learning the lessons of the future — today.

Behind every cottage door is a liar. Look past the tended lawns and screened windows open to the sea breeze and dusky porch lights shining on waning summer nights. And listen closely. Are those whispers of swaying marsh grasses? Or hushed secrets floating in the salt air? Walking the sandy roads, it's hard to tell. There. There's the imposing Barlow cottage on the bluff. Elsa's shingled inn by the sea. The Fenwicks' last-standing cottage on the sand. Cliff's ramshackle beach trailer. Celia's tucked-away guest cottage.

Dylan Kline, salesman extraordinaire, eyes Saturn's moons as his ultimate cosmic jackpot. As global attention turns towards the first launch of the billionaire's ambitious project, the stakes could hardly be higher. Kline's advanced rocketry has finally enabled heavy long-distance transit, opening up a new frontier of unimaginable revenue opportunities.

Mistakes. Everyone in the New England beach town of Stony Point has made one. Some mistakes are as big as the blue depths of Long Island Sound. Others, as small as a speck of sand. Some mistakes make their presence known, like the call of the gulls feeding on the bluff. Then there are the mistakes that whisper like the slightly swaying marsh grasses. More than anyone, Jason Barlow is ready to admit his mistake. But is it too late?

Placerita Town has always been a place of opportunity, but today, it’s a death trap. Ruthless outlaws led by Jumpin’ John are ripping the town apart, and the sheriff’s nowhere to be found. You came here to trade your father’s ironworks—not to fight for your life. Now, every choice could mean the difference between making it out alive or ending up in a shallow grave. Will you outsmart the gang, brave the desert’s dangers, and find a way to survive?

It was going to be exquisite: a rambling, shingled New England cottage converted into a grand beach inn. Nestled among hydrangeas and swaying dune grasses, this seaside haven would welcome guests on the Connecticut shore. Except the little beach town of Stony Point is no longer feeling like a haven to its residents. Residents including a brooding Jason Barlow, the esteemed architect in charge of the inn's renovation--until a stubborn, grief-induced For Sale sign puts an end to that.

After a heartbreaking summer on the Connecticut shore, a group of beach friends is as adrift as an unmoored rowboat. When a dismayed Jason Barlow drives as far away from the sea as he can, leaving behind his wife, Maris, as well as their stately cottage on the bluff, that news hits like a sudden wave. Gathering over an intimate meal in a coastal diner, the friends make a solemn pact to lean on each other and not make any more rash decisions.

Beyond Horizons explores classic sci-fi themes through a contemporary lens. Continuing the legacy of decades gone by, these fast-paced standalone stories offer wondrous settings, philosophical sci-fi questions, and twists that pack a punch.

Celia Gray finds herself house-sitting a silver-shingled cottage at Stony Point. She arrives with her guitar, a few staging jobs ... and a bit of summertime sadness. That is, until an unforgettable group of beach friends draws her in like a breath of salt air. Sal DeLuca heard the words in a dream: Take me to the sea. So after a decade of demanding work, he takes his first vacation in years.

During two August weeks, denim designer Maris Carrington and coastal architect Jason Barlow prepare for their much-anticipated wedding. Guests arrive early, turning keys in charming cottage doors to begin their New England summer escape. The wedding is a reason for old friends to gather again; to meet in their shabby beach hangout and get the jukebox cranking; to walk that weathered boardwalk beneath a starry sky; to breathe the sweet salt air. "Cures what ails you," one of the friends, Neil, always said long before his life was sadly claimed. But his legacy was not.

When you're the king of the mountain, everyone wants to see you fall. He’s secured all three Relics. All problems solved, right? Wrong. Monsters from the Gate roam deserted Earth and Daniel Hunt is first in line to chase them down. Meanwhile, an invisible enemy increases its hold on the human race; infecting one by one as it spreads across the population. This alien pandemic soon reaches those closest to Daniel.The Galactic Government looks to W.O.L.F. led by Daniel Hunt for help in their darkest hour. Will the aid of the Relics be enough?

When a driver crashes near his classic car shop, retired soldier John Tyler lends aid. He soon learns of more serious and deadly crimes happening nearby. The injured man turns up again asking for Tyler’s help. He’s in over his head with the wrong people. When the two barely survive an ambush, Tyler knows he needs to act.

After years of pursuing a denim design career, Maris Carrington never imagined trading her Chicago studio for a New England shingled cottage. But a forgotten home movie tucked inside a dusty attic box leads to an unexpected summer ... One of uncovering family secrets while settling her father's estate, one of inheriting a forlorn German shepherd, one of reconnecting with old friends on a weathered boardwalk, beneath starlit skies on a beach nestled in a crook of the Connecticut coast.

When Judy Fletcher's life is at its lowest ebb, she jumps at the chance to trial a truly next-gen digital assistant. Oracle promises to change everything. By harnessing live and historical data from billions of users' messages, habits and even real-world conversations, there is almost nothing the app can't do. As Judy's life immediately changes for the better, she feels empowered like never before.