Showing results by narrator "Grant Cartwright" in All Categories

Santhenar is on its knees. The war with the alien lyrinx drags on, and humanity is losing it, but there is worse to come. The Aachim have invaded with an irresistible force - a fleet of battle constructs. Cursing humanity for the loss of Aachan and his own clan, the embittered Aachim leader, Vithis, demands half the world in reparation. The council is in no position to resist. But even if they agree to his demands, can anything satisfy his thirst for vengeance?

Benji: Crafting swoon-worthy happily ever afters is literally my day job. Being a quirky introvert with an overactive imagination, underwhelming social skills, and a few pounds overweight, I'm no leading man. My best friend, though? He's total cover model, call the plumber because I just flooded my basement material. He's also outgoing, charismatic, free-spirited, and basically the best guy ever. I may know romance, but I'm no dummy when it comes to reality. I'm nothing special. And the truth is, a guy like Darren would never fall for someone like me.

The most terrifying thing that you can possibly imagine is your own body in the hands of a monster. Or worse, in the hands of another human being. In this definitive anthology of body horror selected by a World Horror Grandmaster, you'll find the unthinkable and the shocking: a couture designer preparing for an exquisitely grotesque runway show; a vengeful son seeking the parent who bred him as plasma donor; a celebrity-kink brothel that inflicts plastic surgery on sex workers; and organ-harvesting doctors who dissect a living man without anesthetic.

This tumultuous global story begins with democracy's radical core idea: We can collaborate, as equals, to determine our own lives and futures. John Keane traces how this concept emerged and evolved, from the earliest "assembly democracies" to European-style electoral democracy to our present system of "monitory democracy." Today, governments answer not only to voters on Election Day, but to intense public scrutiny (monitoring) every day. Keane calls this media- and communication-driven system "the most complex and vibrant form of democracy yet"-but it is not invulnerable.

When Ryan Campbell was six he fell in love with aeroplanes. It was a passion that was to dominate his childhood and it was no surprise when at 15 Ryan became the youngest pilot in Australia. Inspired by his father and grandfather who were also aviators, Ryan sought a challenge and, like adventurers before him, he found one that spoke to him more than the rest. He wanted to fly around the world, solo, in a single-engine aircraft.

When the Alpha Event struck Earth, the rules of reality itself were rewritten. Millions died as the world was transformed into a lethal realm of magic and monsters. Yet somehow, an overweight, out-of-shape construction supervisor managed not just to survive the apocalypse, but inadvertently became an reluctant hero after saving thousands from one of the many monsters spawned by the mana storm.

The once beautiful land of Hightspall is being carved up by warring armies led by figures from out of legend. One army is headed by the charismatic brute, Axil Grandys, and the other by Lyf, resurrected sorcerer-king and Axil's ancient nemesis. Only the escaped slave Tali and her unreliable magic stand in their way, but Tali's gift grows more painful every time she uses it.

The Sapphire Portal is the shattering fourth and final instalment of Ian Irvine's best-selling fantasy series The Gates of Good and Evil. The Sapphire Portal is ready, and the Merdrun are bringing their long-hidden women and children through. There’s no turning back now. But what is the true purpose of the portal? Is it a horrific new weapon to cleanse Santhenar of all four human species, so the Merdrun can take it for their own world? Only their arch-sorcerer, the magiz, knows. 

 As an operative of the United Forces of Humanity and its secret covert group known as the Knight Hunters, we join Vic as he digs even deeper into the underbelly of humanity's survival. In doing so, he uncovers even more nefarious activities that go beyond the horrors he's already unearthed. And as always, the threat from the Invaders is a constant risk that could end everything he holds dear. 

Magery is failing, the war has been lost and Hightspall has fallen. The Cythonian enemy, led by their reincarnated sorcerer-king, Lyf, are determined to wipe it off the map and build their ancient realm of Cythe anew. Rix, now known as Deadhand, was once heir to the greatest fortune in all Hightspall. Now he’s disgraced, dispossessed and is running for his life. Tali, an escaped slave, is held captive. But when she discovers that her enslaved people face genocide at the hands of the enemy, Tali conceives a desperate, impossible plan. But before she can hope to save her people, Tali has to confront her own darkest fear - a return to slavery.

In the coastal township of Girrawandi, in far North Queensland, a schoolgirl has been murdered and Detective Ken Lincoff arrives from Brisbane to investigate. There's not much to go on – until the murder of a second girl, then more victims, sends Lincoff on a trail that leads to the destructive secret at the heart of one family. Lincoff has much to deal with: a local cop who chills out on illicit substances, an alcoholic dentist with a taste for gossip, a very attractive fisherman with inside knowledge and Lincoff's struggle with his own fatal taste for alcohol. 

Zaina thought she could run from her secrets, but they have finally caught up to her. She's willing to risk her life for those she loves, but even that might not be enough to stop what's coming. Einar has finally let down his guard, but when the woman he trusts takes off in the middle of the night with his people's only hope for a cure, he realizes what a mistake that was. They have been living under the shadow of the same monster for longer than either of them realize. But it's up to them to decide whether that makes them enemies or allies.

In QE44, Andrew Charlton exposes the rift that will shape our future progress versus planet; rich versus poor. Who, then, will save us? Charlton shows there are two leading candidates: economists and environmentalists. Each says they know what is best for our grandchildren. Yet environmentalists see economists as merchants of greed with a blind faith in markets. And economists see environmentalism as an indulgence for the middle class of richer nations; those who enjoy the lifestyle afforded by economic growth, but take its source for granted.

Aika is playing a dangerous game. Torn between the loyalties she thought she had and revelations she wishes she didn't, she will burn the city down to get the answers she needs. To get the vengeance she craves. But when the boy from her past starts asking questions that could get them both killed, she is forced to choose between the people she needs to die and those she wants to save.

Felicity discovers the "Atlantis stone" while scuba diving on the southeast coast of Australia in a treacherous area known as "the ship's graveyard". Her diving is part of her research into the fabled "mahogany ship", a wreck sighted on the beach by early White Australians. She meets Benjamin as a result of her love of diving. He is an indigenous Australian, but past traumas have caused him to disown his aboriginal heritage. 

Through the skillful application of being barely competent, Captain Iridius B. Franklin and the crew of the FSC Deus Ex have managed to triumph in not just one adventure but two. Unfortunately, despite being assured this sort of thing doesn't happen to space adventurers nearly as often as is assumed, Iridius and his crew have been flung almost a year back in time. Now, in order to stop an existential threat to the galaxy and ensure they don't cause irreparable damage to the space-time continuum, the crew of the Deus Ex must set out to find their way back to the future.

When Tobias Richard Vandevelde wakes up in hospital with no memory of the night before, his horrified mother tells him that he was found unconscious. At Featherdale Wildlife Park. In a dingo pen. He assumes that his two rambunctious best friends are somehow responsible, until he discovers that they're just as freaked out as he is.

It’s the near future and the world has descended into chaos. On the surface, everything looks the same yet the unthinkable has happened...the dead have risen. Everyone is haunted by a dead relative, friend, spouse, or stranger, and these spirits are unshakable, silent and watching. No one is safe. Governments the world over fail to deal with the epidemic, they begin to lose control of their economies and their resources. Their people. Crime is rife, and murders commonplace.

The end of the world as we know it couldn't come at a worse time for Adrian. One minute, he's an operations manager overseeing a construction job in the wilderness. The next, an unknown energy force changes the very nature of life itself, from the smallest organism to the top of the food chain. Earth's surviving inhabitants, its environment, and the very laws of physics have all undergone fundamental transformations. Many of those changes aren't pretty. Plenty of them are deadly.

A young girl comes to live in the slums of New Delhi. It is a place of danger where street gangs rule. Through the initiative of a blind beggar, she is taken to work in the home of a rich businessman and his dysfunctional son. There, she observes a world of education and privilege - a world that is out of her reach. But danger still stalks her. A kidnap attempt forces her to flee to her childhood home in the tropical backwaters of Kerala - a land of wooden boats, fishing, and elephants. But she cannot hide forever.