FREE/BARGAIN — Science Fiction & Fantasy

[sufue]

Nice to know that Amazon considers it to be the "#1 Best Seller in Mechanical & Material Engineering"...see the screenshot...

Originally Posted by salty-horse

The Cautious Traveller's Guide to The Wastelands by Sarah Brooks is £1 in the UK (Kobo, Amazon)
Was on my wishlist.
Review by Ian Mond
Review by Mahvesh Murad

[radbaddude]

Play of Shadows: Thrills, Wit And Swordplay with a new generation of the Greatcoats! (The Court of Shadows Book 1) by Sebastien de Castell
Amazon US $0.99

Damelas Chademantaigne picked a poor night to flee a judicial duel.

He has precious little hope of escaping the wrath of the Vixen, the most feared duellist in the entire city, until he stumbles through the stage doors of the magnificent Operato Belleza and tricks his way into the company of actors. An archaic law provides a temporary respite from his troubles - until one night a ghostly voice in his head causes Damelas to fumble his lines, inadvertently blurting out a dreadful truth: the city's most legendary hero may actually be a traitor and a brutal murderer.

With only the help of his boisterous and lusty friend Bereto, a beautiful assassin whose target may well be Damelas himself, and a company of misfit actors who'd just as soon see him dead, this failed grandson of two Greatcoats must somehow find within himself the courage to dig up long-buried truths before a ruthless band of bravos known as the Iron Orchids come for his head.

Oh, and there's still that matter of the Vixen waiting to duel him . . .

[Manabi]

Arc Manor's giving away a free book, The Year’s Best African Speculative Fiction 2021 edited by Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki. Go to this link, then change the price to $0 for free checkout.

Spoiler:

The first ever Year's Best African speculative fiction anthology with works from some of the most exciting voices, old and new, published in the 2020 year.

• Where You Go by Somto O. Ihezue
• Things Boys Do by Pemi Aguda
• Giant Steps by Russell Nichols
• The Future in Saltwater by Tamara Jerée
• The ThoughtBox by Tlotlo Tsamaase
• The Parts That Make Us Monsters by Sheree Renée Thomas
• Scar Tissue by Tobias S. Buckell
• Ancestries by Sheree Renée Thomas
• Breath of the Sahara by Inegbenoise O. Osagie
• The Many Lives of an Abiku by Tobi Ogundiran
• A Love Song for Herkinal as composed by Ashkernas amid the ruins of New Haven by Chinelo Onwualu
• A Curse at Midnight by Moustapha Mbacké Diop
• A Mastery of German by Marian Denise Moore
• Are We Ourselves? by Michelle Mellon
• When the Last of the Birds and the Bees Have Gone On by C.L. Clark
• The Goatkeeper’s Harvest by Tobi Ogundiran
• Baba Klep by Eugen Bacon
• Desiccant by Craig Laurance Gidney
• Disassembly by Makena Onjerika
• The River of Night by Tlotlo Tsamaase
• Egoli by T.L. Huchu
• The Friendship Bench by Yvette Lisa Ndlovu
• Fort Kwame by Derek Lubangakene
• We Come as Gods by Suyi Davies Okungbowa
• And This is How to Stay Alive by Shingai Njeri Kagunda
• The Front Line by WC Dunlap
• Penultimate by ZZ Claybourne
• Love Hangover by Sheree Renée Thomas
• Red_Bati by Dilman Dila

[ZodWallop]

Twisting the Rope by R. A. MacAvoy is $2 at Amazon (only). Sequel to Tea With The Black Dragon.

I remember strongly being encouraged to buy this one last time it was on sale, but I missed it.

The Campbell Award–winning author’s follow-up to Tea with the Black Dragon: “Wow! MacAvoy’s done it again” (Anne McCaffrey, New York Times–bestselling author).

Mayland Long, aka the Black Dragon, has been enjoying a peaceful relationship with Martha Macnamara—but suddenly they face threats from seemingly every side. A wild psychic force is loose in the world; Martha’s three-year-old granddaughter has been kidnapped; and one of her Celtic musician friends has been found dead, hanging by a rope of twisted grass. Now the Black Dragon must use his wits to rescue the little girl and hunt for a killer . . . even if it brings him to a horrifying realization.

In this novel, the author of The Book of Kells returns to the modern-day California of Tea with the Black Dragon, blending fantasy, mystery, Chinese lore, and a timeless love story as she so masterfully did in her debut, which earned nominations for Nebula, Hugo, World Fantasy, and Philip K. Dick Awards. “MacAvoy supports her tale with a superbly drawn cast of characters . . . and her usual superior command of language” (Booklist).

[pdurrant]

The John Scalzi Humble Bundle is back. For three days. Get them while they're hot!

https://www.humblebundle.com/books/j...r-books-encore

21 books for just under £15.

If I didn't have all but five of them, I'd get it.

[salty-horse]

Buried Deep and Other Stories by Naomi Novik is £2 in the UK (Kobo, Amazon)
Recent short story collection. Has tales from many of her worlds.

From the dragon-filled Temeraire series and the gothic, magical halls of the Scholomance trilogy, through the realms next door to Spinning Silver and Uprooted, this stunning collection takes us from fairy tale to fantasy, myth to history, and mystery to science fiction as we travel through Naomi Novik’s most beloved stories. Here, among many others, we encounter:

• A mushroom witch who learns that sometimes the worst thing in the Scholomance can be your roommate.
• The start of the Dragon Corps in ancient Rome, after Mark Antony hatches a dragon’s egg and bonds with the hatchling.
• A young bride in the middle ages who finds herself gambling with Death, for the highest of stakes.
• A delightful reimagining of Pride & Prejudice, in which Elizabeth Bennet captains a Longwing dragon.
• The first glimpse at the world of Abandon, the setting of Novik’s upcoming epic fantasy series—a deserted continent populated only by silent and enigmatic architectural mysteries.

Though the stories are vastly different, there is a unifying theme: wrestling with destiny, and the lengths some will go to find their own and fulfill its promise.

[ZodWallop]

A Case of Conscience by James Blish is $2 at Amazon, B&N and Kobo.

A space-traveling Jesuit priest confronts a moral but godless alien race in this Hugo Award–winning novel by the author of the Cities in Flight saga.

Father Ruiz-Sanchez is a dedicated man, a Jesuit priest who is also a scientist, and a scientist who is also a human being. He doesn’t feel any genuine conflicts in his belief system—until he is sent to Lithia.

The reptilian inhabitants of this distant world appear to be admirable in every way. Untroubled by greed or lust, they live in peace. But they have no concept of God, no literature, and no art. They rely purely on cold reason. But something darker lies beneath the surface: Do the Lithians pose a hidden threat? The answers that unfold could affect the fate of two worlds. Will Ruiz-Sanchez, a priest driven by his deeply human understanding of good and evil, do the right thing when confronted by a race that is alien to its core?

The Science Fiction Encyclopedia lauds A Case of Conscience as “one of the first serious attempts to deal with religion [in science fiction], and [it] remains one of the most sophisticated. It is generally regarded as an SF classic.” Readers of Isaac Asimov’s Foundation Trilogy, Mary Doria Russell’s The Sparrow, or Walter M. Miller Jr.’s A Canticle for Leibowitz will find this award-winning novel a gripping, compelling exploration of some of the most intractable and important questions faced by the human species. Includes an introduction by Hugo and Nebula Award–winning author Greg Bear.

[ZodWallop]

Spoonbenders by Daryl Gregory is $3 at Amazon, B&N and Kobo.

Teddy Telemachus is a charming con man with a gift for sleight of hand and some shady underground associates. In need of cash, he tricks his way into a classified government study about telekinesis and its possible role in intelligence gathering. There he meets Maureen McKinnon, and it’s not just her piercing blue eyes that leave Teddy forever charmed, but her mind—Maureen is a genuine psychic of immense and mysterious power. After a whirlwind courtship, they marry, have three gifted children, and become the Amazing Telemachus Family, performing astounding feats across the country. Irene is a human lie detector. Frankie can move objects with his mind. And Buddy, the youngest, can see the future. Then one night tragedy leaves the family shattered.

Decades later, the Telemachuses are not so amazing. Irene is a single mom whose ear for truth makes it hard to hold down a job, much less hold together a relationship. Frankie’s in serious debt to his dad’s old mob associates. Buddy has completely withdrawn into himself and inexplicably begun digging a hole in the backyard. To make matters worse, the CIA has come knocking, looking to see if there’s any magic left in the Telemachus clan. And there is: Irene’s son Matty has just had his first out-of-body experience. But he hasn’t told anyone, even though his newfound talent might just be what his family needs to save themselves—if it doesn’t tear them apart in the process.

Harnessing the imaginative powers that have made him a master storyteller, Daryl Gregory delivers a stunning, laugh-out-loud new novel about a family of gifted dreamers and the invisible forces that bind us all.

[Dazrin]

This deal is back, same vendors as last time, and others.

Originally Posted by Cactus Chef

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir is on sale today for $2.99 from the vendors below:

https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/project-hail-mary-1
https://www.amazon.com/Project-Hail-...dp/B08FHBV4ZX/
https://play.google.com/store/books/...hl=en_US&gl=US
https://books.apple.com/us/book/proj...y/id1526997052
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/pro...=9780593135211

Synopsis

[DrNefario]

Originally Posted by DrNefario

Flesh and Spirit by Carol Berg is £1.99 at Amazon UK at the moment. This is a new Open Road edition (from just last month) of the first half of the Mythopoeic-winning Lighthouse Duet, and the old Ace edition wasn't even available here. I would guess they might be doing the same offer in the US.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Flesh-Spiri.../dp/B0D9352C9T

I noticed this morning that the second book of the Lighthouse Duet was down to £2.99 on the kindle store, and while buying it, that the first is currently £0.99.

Flesh and Spirit
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Flesh-Spiri.../dp/B0D9352C9T

Breath and Bone
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Breath-Bone.../dp/B0D9359TPX

[salty-horse]

Reactor (Tor.com) has released their annual "Best of" 2024 short story collection. Free download.
https://reactormag.com/download-some...-2024-edition/

[lkmiller]

Originally Posted by salty-horse

Buried Deep and Other Stories by Naomi Novik is £2 in the UK (Kobo, Amazon)
Recent short story collection. Has tales from many of her worlds.

Now $3 in the US (Amazon, Kobo)

[salty-horse]

Exodus: The Archimedes Engine by Peter F. Hamilton is $3 in the US (Kobo, Amazon)
New novel. A tie-in to a video game, but Hamilton was involved in the worldbuilding, so don't let this put you off too much.

Forty thousand years ago, humanity fled a dying Earth. Traveling in massive arkships, these brave pioneers spread out across the galaxy to find a new home. After traveling thousands of light-years, one fleet of arkships arrived at Centauri, a dense cluster of stars with a vast array of potentially habitable planets. The survivors of Earth signaled to the remaining arkships that humanity had finally found its new home among the stars.

Thousands of years later, the Centauri Cluster has flourished. The original settlers have evolved into advanced beings known as Celestials and divided themselves into powerful Dominions. One of the most influential is that of the Crown Celestials, an alliance of five great houses that controls vast areas of Centauri. As arkships continue to arrive, the remaining humans and their descendants must fight for survival against overwhelming odds or be forced into serving the Crown Dominion.

Among those yearning for a better life is Finn, for whom Earth is not a memory but merely a footnote from humanity’s ancient history. Born on one of the Crown Dominion worlds, Finn has known nothing but the repressive rule of the Celestials, though he dreams of the possibility of boundless space beyond his home.

When another arkship from Earth, previously thought lost, unexpectedly arrives, Finn sees his chance to embrace a greater destiny and become a Traveler—one of a group of brave heroes dedicated to ensuring humanity’s future by journeying into the vast unknown of distant space.