It’s a Cyber Monday Extravaganza

Posted on by accordingtohoyt

FROM SARAH A. HOYT, ON SALE FOR 1.99

Darkship Thieves

Athena Hera Sinistra never wanted to go to space. Never wanted see the eerie glow of the Powerpods. Never wanted to visit Circum Terra. She never had any interest in finding out the truth about the Darkships.
You always get what you don’t ask for. Which must have been why she woke up in the dark of shipnight, within the greater night of space in her father’s space cruiser, knowing that there was a stranger in her room. In a short time, after taking out the stranger—who turned out to be one of her father’s bodyguards up to no good, she was hurtling away from the ship in a lifeboat to get help.
But what she got instead would be the adventure of a lifetime and perhaps a whole new world—if she managed to survive….
A Prometheus Award Winning Novel, written by a USA Today Bestseller.

FROM SARAH A. HOYT, ON SALE FOR 99C. EACH:

Deep Pink

Like all Private Detectives, Seamus Lebanon [Leb] Magis has often been told to go to Hell. He just never thought he’d actually have to go. But when an old client asks him to investigate why Death Metal bands are dressing in pink – with butterfly mustache clips – and singing about puppies and kittens in a bad imitation of K-pop bands, Leb knows there’s something foul in the realm of music. When the something grows to include the woman he fell in love with in kindergarten and a missing six-year-old girl, Leb climbs into his battered Suburban and like a knight of old goes forth to do battles with the legions of Hell. This is when things become insane…. Or perhaps in the interest of truth we should say more insane.

Other Rhodes

Lilly Gilden has a half-crazed cyborg in her airlock who thinks he’s Nick Rhodes,
a fictional 20th Century detective. If she doesn’t report him for destruction,
she’s guilty of a capital crime.

But with her husband missing, she’ll use every clue the cyborg holds,
and his detective abilities, to solve the crime her husband was investigating
when he disappeared.

With the help of a journalist who is more than he seems,
Lilly will risk everything to plunge into the interstellar underworld
and bring the love of her life home!

FROM TIM GILLILAND: Lawyer to the Stars: Book One of Damien Durne’s Accidental Adventures on the Frontier of the Galaxy.

What makes a Human?

A frozen world on the edge of civilized space has a deadly secret. The indigenous people, known as the Ixtyl were human-looking to be sure, but they had characteristics so unique there was doubt they were naturally acquired. Human? Or genetically modified creatures? Humans, including Indigenous peoples, were heavily protected by law. Genetically modified creatures were not. They were like lab rats who would have no rights, no hope, and no future. The tribe lives on a planet rich with an invaluable ore: One men are willing to kill for. When Certified Genomist Damien Durne is called to investigate the Ixtyl’s genome, to certify whether they are human or not, he is flung into an intrigue of lies and murder, with an ultimate goal of genocide.

FREE! FROM J. M. NEY-GRIMM

Eurydice Otherwise (The Hades Cycle Book 1)

She’s not Eurydice, but she’s caught the eye of hell’s king…

Phoebe, a nature spirit of ancient Greece, loves her mountain birthplace and intends never to leave it. But the Olympian Artemis’ dazzling glamor lures her away to join the goddess’ retinue of handmaidens.

Initially the handmaidens welcome Phoebe warmly, but their friendship turns to bullying once Artemis turns her back. Phoebe’s inexperience makes her no match for the mean girls, who win every verbal battle.

And when Phoebe chooses a protector other than the often-absent Artemis, she courts a danger far worse than cruel taunts or stinging slaps. Unless she learns to value herself for herself—rather than depending on the regard of others—she will perish in Hades’ depths.

Eurydice Otherwise is the intense first tale in The Hades Cycle. If you enjoy ancient mythology brought to vivid life, you’ll love the entrancing characters, inventive world building, and startling twists in J.M. Ney-Grimm’s gripping short story of the old gods.

AND FROM J. M. NEY-GRIMM AT 99C EACH

Artemis in Chase (The Hades Cycle Book 2)

The goddess of the hunt burns for justice…

When Artemis discovers her handmaiden dead in the forest—slain by Dìs, lord of the underworld—she demands that Zeus punish the murder. But Zeus upholds Dìs, who boasts that he will steal a nymph away to his dark realm whenever he so desires.

The indifference of the other Olympians forces Artemis to take matters into her own hands.

Because Dìs wields powers beyond any Artemis commands, she crafts a complex scheme to secure the magical artifact she needs to bring Dìs to his knees.

But unless Artemis learns the essential truth at the heart of all vengeance, her strategy must fail. Will she do what she knows is wrong to defeat Dìs? Or will she do right and condemn her nymphs to death by his hand?

Artemis in Chase is the second tale in the immersive Hades Cycle. If you’re entranced by the gods and goddesses of ancient Greece—if you long to visit their mythic world, to witness their passions and triumphs—you’ll love J.M. Ney-Grimm’s compelling story of revelation and revenge.

Take from Hell (The Hades Cycle Book 3)

Pierced by the hero’s song, she prays hell’s queen will weep…

A nameless shade, newly arrived in Hades’ darkness, struggles to remember her past. As ghosts press around her, she suspects she descended to the underworld deliberately, with a purpose—not just because she died. But what that purpose might be eludes her.

When the mortal hero Orpheus appears—effulgent with the light of the living—the shade hopes she is his beloved Eurydice and that he has come to rescue her.

But unless she learns that her most essential self cannot be stolen and cannot be restored by another, hell will claim her forever, dooming her to silence and forgotten memory—her quest unfulfilled.

Take from Hell is the third tale in the gripping Hades Cycle. If you loathe the despair of lost memory, if you long for the splendor of light vanquishing darkness, if you believe in the power of love, then you’ll revel in J.M. Ney-Grimm’s inventive riff on ancient myth.

Eurydice in Truth (The Hades Cycle Book 4)

When Orpheus sings in Hades’ shadows…

Eurydice longs for life, sunlight on her face, and her lover’s embrace. But no shade ever escapes the dark and dreary land of the dead, until Orpheus dares the undareable, confronting death’s king to win Eurydice’s freedom.

Confused and disoriented by her time in the underworld, Eurydice struggles to remember who she is, why she lied to Orpheus in life, and what she really wants after death.

But unless Eurydice learns that seeking life in the past yields only tragedy, Hades will imprison her forever.

Eurydice in Truth is the compelling third tale in the inventive Hades Cycle. If you enjoy characters who step out of myth into vivid life and ever-ratcheting tension, you’ll love J.M. Ney-Grimm’s heartstopping twist on an ancient legend.

Buy Eurydice in Truth to challenge darkness with song today!

FROM JAY CROWTHER, FREE!

Tales From The Pandemic.

A biologist faces certain death before the devil. A young tennis player evading lockdown is trapped on a tennis court by a wolf demon. A man tries to escape the corona fever in an isolated cabin. Poe’s Masque of the Red Death is reimagined in a Victorian steampunk setting. An isolated grandmother suffering from dementia sees a zombie.

In this collection of horror stories inspired by the coronavirus pandemic, explore these young authors unique view of the pandemic through a creepy, dark, and occasionally uplifting lens with a set of illustrated short stories that give a dark mirror to our own times and a window into the terrors that can stalk mankind at anytime.

Featuring original tales of horror and ones inspired by Edgar Allen Poe classics, come explore the pandemic through the warped lens of horror.

FROM MEL DUNAY, AT 99C:

Shadow Captain (Star Master Book 1)

His one chance to escape slavery could trap his brother in a terrible fate! Jetay has been on the run with his brother for a long time, hiding his psychic powers from the evil Red Knights. Living as a slave on a star freighter, Jetay dreams of freeing himself and his brother, and of wielding his powers openly. On a frontier planet, Lady Lanati of the Partisan Alliance seeks his help for a secret mission. It will take him across the stars to the edge of a black hole, with a Red Knight chasing him every step of the way. He might finally get a chance to use his powers for good. But the price of that chance may be too high, putting his brother in grave danger. Can Jetay save himself and his brother without sacrificing Lanati and her friends? If he can’t find a way to save them all, the battle against evil may be over before it begins….

43 thoughts on “It’s a Cyber Monday Extravaganza”

    1. It’s great. Send it and I’ll do an additional post in the evening.
      Same for anyone else with not-books.
      I also have a press link for the post today that I couldn’t use because seriously, if I made it Amazon it’s like a 100 links. I’ll do it later.

  5. I’ve bought some of your stuff, liked it but I ask you, I grew up in the era when Asimov’s Foundation Trilogy was the exception, not the rule, and why have so many sci-fi authors gone to endless serials? I get you create one world and keep remining it a la the 1632 series which I liked but got bored with it around 1640 or thereabouts. When I buy your story I want to believe I’m getting your best effort, not just more stuff you’re throwing on the wall to see if it sticks.

    1. How do you get from “serials”, to “just more stuff you’re throwing on the wall to see if it sticks.”?

      Aside from that; this has been talked about a number of times: the indie market as determined by actual buyers wants serials. The one book a year at most system is an artifact of the publishers.

    2. Not Sarah.

      The first thing to remember about Books is YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary). IE The Series that you think “Has Gone On Too Long” can be the Series that others “Want More Of” and both you & the others “can be correct”.

      Having said that, IMO there are basically two types of Series. One type is where the author has a Story that takes more than one book to tell. The other type is where the author “creates” a world/character and believes that there can be more stories to be told in that universe and/or about that character.

      C. S. Forester’s Hornblower series was the second type. Forester created a character for one book but decided to tell more stories about Hornblower.

      David Drake’s RCN Series is another example of that type. Drake created that universe with one book but had other stories he wanted to tell and decided to use that universe to “tell them in”.

      David Weber’s Honor Harrington series is the first type. Weber had a long story that he wanted to tell that took more than one book to tell.

      Having said the above, there have been series where the author continued writing after he “got tired of the Character” but readers were still interested in purchasing those books. And yes, sometimes the quality is lacking.

      There are those who said that Sherlock Holmes was never really the same after Doyle “killed him off” but brought him back. 😉

      But again, YMMV always applies. There are plenty of books/series that I dislike but others enjoy and that’s OK. Tastes will always vary.

      1. Oh, Robert A. Heinlein created a “Future History” where the stories were “stand-alone” but were seen by him and others to be the Same Universe. Different characters but set in the same History.

        1. And some of the upcoming things: like the rest of Rhodes and No Man and … all of those are actually in the same universe, but very different worlds. Thats the schrodinger universe.

      2. L. Frank Baum tried to stop writing the Oz book several times, but had to keep coming back to them. Because that’s where the money was, and he could make a fortune, but not keep it.

      3. This! I just finished binge re-reading TXRed’s Familiar series, all 20+ books. The whacking great stories are the main point, as always, but it’s nice seeing how both the main and the secondary characters grow/change over the years, and the subtle way some of the longer story arcs that (successfully!) come in and get dealt with over a few books.

        I’m looking forward to the spinoff series (supporting characters get more of their own stories while the main characters take a background role).

        At least all our owls are local…

    3. Mr. Allison I wonder how familiar you actually are with Sci-fi/fantasy of the 50’s to early 70’s vintage that is contemporary with The Foundation Trilogy. Looking to period authors we have the following series:
      Heinlein: Future History
      E.E. “Doc” Smith: The Lensman series
      Philip Jose Farmer: Lavalite World and Riverworld
      Fritz Leiber: Fafhrd and Grey Mouser
      Robert E. Howard: Conan the Barbarian and Solomon Kane
      Andre Norton: Witchworld
      Anne McCaffrey: Pern and The Ship Who (blah)
      Niven: Known Space
      Pournelle: CoDominium
      Dickson: Dorsai and the Dragon Knight
      Bradley: Darkover and Arthur works
      LeGuin: Hainish Cycle and Earthsea
      Lewis: Space Trilogy and Narnia

      There are several reasons I suspect. The first is that stories in excess of 200-300 pages were often split up to make book sizes tolerable to the publishing of the period. They also tended to need to be easily broken up to be serialized for the magazine world. Also given the effort required for world building in Sci-Fi and Fantasy the reuse of a world/universe increases the productivity of the author. And honestly the readers often LIKE more of the same, being a bit hobbitish/toddlerish and not liking change. And of course ultimately the authors are in this for a living. It’s not just a calling its a job and the authors like to eat and have minor conveniences like a roof over their head. Doing something you suspect will sell will often lead to a bit safer income. Not that our esteemed hostess plays it safe, Darkship is very different from Shifters is different from Rhodes is different from Magis, and there are hordes of shorts available as well as a couple collaborations.
      Give it a try Darkship Thieves is a $1.99 right now. You can hardly get a decent cup of coffee for that these days. And as always read what you enjoy. If it’s not to your taste try others, the world of Sci-fi has a VERY broad tent with the advent of self publishing. It can be a bit hard to find things, but many authors provide some of their material free (the old free taste from the drug dealer technique 🙂 ) or at very reduced cost. Also ask around and find folks that read stuff you like and see what else they’ve found.

        1. Then there is James H. Schmitz’s Federation Of The Hub stories.

          There were no novels involved but there were plenty of interconnected stories which were set in a common “universe”.

          Some of the stories focused on a single character but others were only connected by being in the Federation of the Hub (a region of space settled mainly by humans).

        2. Sometimes people try to shoehorn E.E. “Doc” Smith’s Subspace books into the Lensman universe, not sure I buy that. And my copies of the subspace books got loaned out in College and never returned GRRRR, though my vague memories say it wasn’t that much of a tragedy.

        1. My first exposure to series was when I picked up Blish’s The Triumph of Time (AKA Book 4 in the series) while on a weekend camping trip punctuated by lousy weather. ‘Twas still better than the Mike Hammer one that came with. The Blish was a little jarring until I found the rest of the series a bit later. One high school English final was interesting since I couldn’t put down one of the books and got little sleep the night before. OTOH, I did OK on the test. 🙂

          Series that didn’t work for me: Clark’s Rama. I liked the first book, disliked the second, and now I see there were several. His Space Odyssey; 2001 and 2010 worked. 2061 didn’t for me. No idea if it’s gone further.

          FWIW, when book (or eBook) prices come into play. For me, hardcover series have to be really good (looks at the Heinleins in the bookcase), and eBooks are a lot easier to justify reading in series when each dose volume is $5 or $6 or so. It’s my beer money, and since I don’t drink any more…

        2. ANd bringing up Mr Blish brings up an inverse category. Often a series of stories published in the magazines that are in the short story length to maybe novellette length (i.e. short enough that they would have been published in 1 magazine issue as a single story. Blish’s “The Seedling Stars”, Asimovs “I Robot”, Miller’s “A Canticle for Liebowitz” all fall into this class. In some cases (e.g. Canticle For Liebowitz) the stories are slightly jiggered and/or material is added to make a more cohesive whole.

            1. Right Triplanetary was retconned into Lensman and I think First Lensman was essentially a prequel (Galactic Patrol was first published I believe). And I think it was all serialized in various magazines before publication. That was pretty much de riguer well into the ’60s for almost everyone. Why not make money on it twice 🙂 .

          2. Which is why books that are collections of short-story cycles are known as fix-ups.

            Operation Chaos is another.

    4. Because the readers like it best.
      I will do a lot more series, though.
      OF COURSE you’re getting our best effort. Series are actually very difficult for me, so they require more effort. In fact, I just had to up the game in shifters, because I was tired of the “small” world I was boxed in.
      I also tend to lose patience with series, but the numbers don’t lie. People like endless series. The only one I’ve never lost patience with was Pratchett.
      Note that Darkships has some with the same characters, but the “adventure” is very different, and in the middle there’s completely different characters, or I’d go nuts.
      And don’t worry. I have another half dozen series and a whole different universe with….. um…. many different worlds. I just need an extra me, to write faster.

      1. Damn it Mr. Long I KNOW we’re not supposed to use the cloning technology for that, but this is a case of the greater good. Without the additional authors these universes will never get written and will never exist in the multiverse. And like you’re one to talk with two female clones of yourself, two clones devoted to rescuing/pleasing errant AI and another clone of your best buddy sex swapped. Sheesh…

    5. Time was that people were grousing about the trilogy and that they didn’t used to need a word to indicate a stand-alone book. . . .

      1. “As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be…..”

        1894
        “The three-volume novel is extinct.”

        https://www.poetryloverspage.com/poets/kipling/three_decker.html

        “Her crews are babes or madmen? Her port is all to make?
        You’re manned by Truth and Science, and you steam for steaming’s sake?
        Well, tinker up your engines – you know your business best –
        She’s taking tired people to the Islands of the Blest!”

    6. And then there are books that were written as a one-off, but then decades later somebody else came along and made a series out of ’em. The Witches Of Karres, anybody?

  6. From the Insty-reference, we get “WERE EBOOKS”.

    When they are not ebooks, perhaps they disguise themselves as greeting cards?

    1. These are ebooks. Did I misstype at insty?
      I was in the middle of a protracted battle with Amazon to take the hardcover of the next DST and had got a little unhinged.

      1. No, no, the Insty promo link was fine, I just thought the idea of ‘were ebooks’ , like ‘were wolves’, split out from ‘were ebooks on your Christmas giving list’ was an odd way to look at things, and I do kind of specialize in that.

  7. Ooh, just went shopping. Note to self: Set a reminder. Write a review when I’m done. Write a darned review, darn it. Don’t let a good book pass by without a review.

  12. I want to thank everyone here! Between you all, you pushed TAKE FROM HELL to #1 and EURYDICE IN TRUTH to #2 this morning on the Hot New Releases list for Greek & Roman Myths. Much appreciated. Happy reading!

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