A Jedi must be a fearless warrior, a guardian of justice, and a scholar in the ways of the Force. But perhaps a Jedi’s most essential duty is to pass on what they have learned. Master Yoda trained Dooku; Dooku trained Qui-Gon Jinn; and now Qui-Gon has a Padawan of his own. But while Qui-Gon has faced all manner of threats and danger as a Jedi, nothing has ever scared him like the thought of failing his apprentice.
Obi-Wan Kenobi has deep respect for his Master, but struggles to understand him. Why must Qui-Gon so often disregard the laws that bind the Jedi? Why is Qui-Gon drawn to ancient Jedi prophecies instead of more practical concerns? And why wasn’t Obi-Wan told that Qui-Gon is considering an invitation to join the Jedi Council—knowing it would mean the end of their partnership? The simple answer scares him: Obi-Wan has failed his Master.
When Jedi Rael Averross, another former student of Dooku, requests their assistance with a political dispute, Jinn and Kenobi travel to the royal court of Pijal for what may be their final mission together. What should be a simple assignment quickly becomes clouded by deceit, and by visions of violent disaster that take hold in Qui-Gon’s mind. As Qui-Gon’s faith in prophecy grows, Obi-Wan’s faith in him is tested—just as a threat surfaces that will demand that Master and apprentice come together as never before, or be divided forever.
If you love Star Wars and need more Obi-Wan & Qui-Gon, then you definitely need to read this book. This book gives an insight on their relationship and how both of them were as padawans. There are flashbacks to when Qui-Gon was a padawan to Count Dooku, which was really fascinating. I still need to read the book Dooku.
The book itself was written very well and now Claudia Gray is one of my favorite authors and Star Wars authors. She is probably my favorite of the new canon books. After reading this book, I went and gathered the rest of her Star Wars books, and a couple of non-Star Wars books. I can’t wait to read more books by her.
I enjoyed the rest of the characters in this book. The princess was different than the other princess written about in the Star Wars universe, and I liked what Claudia did with her. I also liked the other Jedi and the backstory he had. Each character had great development.
I also listened to the audiobook for this book and really enjoyed Jonathan Davis’ performance. He did a great job sounding like Ewan McGregor and Liam Neeson and it made it feel like I was listening to an actual Star Wars movie. He also did the audiobook for BROTHERHOOD by Mike Chen, which I will be reviewing soon.
All in all, if you love Star Wars, I highly recommend this book!
“It’s that time of year to sit back on the beach, pick up a good book—or a whole bundle of them!—and travel across time and space.
I’ve curated 14 Adventure Science Fiction books for a mind-bending reading roller-coaster ride across the galaxy. Name your own price, and get them all.
In this Great Galaxies StoryBundle, you’ll get a brand-new exclusive novel by legendary SF master Alan Dean Foster, Prodigals—not yet released to the general public! Nexus is the first novel featuring the cosmic superhero by comics master Mike Baron, and Dr. Alien by Rajnar Vajra pits a human psychologist against an incomprehensible alien mindset to avert a galactic war.
The beautiful anthology, Last Cities of Earth—created by fan-favorite artist Jeff Sturgeon—contains 14 stories set in a fabulous post-apocalyptic future, written by David Gerrold, Mike Resnick, Brenda Cooper, Jody Lynn Nye, Steven L. Sears, Cat Rambo, and others, each accompanied by a full-color painting by Sturgeon. And who doesn’t like cats? Space cats? Mary Turzillo has an entire collection of her Cosmic Cats and Fantastic Furballs. For more great stories, Writers of the Future, volume 31, contains the best short fiction from the winners and finalists of one of the most respected writing contests in the genre.
Zeroland by Ryan Winters features a deadly post-apocalyptic America, where a man has been murdered at a research facility in the Arctic Circle and a deadly alien creature is on the loose. And for something a little lighter, Winston Chase and the Alpha Machine by William Van Winkle, offers a YA SF adventure in which Winston realizes that the school bully isn’t the biggest thing he needs to worry about—waking up to being a half-alien freak is worse.
Revenge, the first book in the City of Kaus series by Dani Hoots, is a swashbuckling LGBTQ+ sci-fi Western you won’t want to miss. In Day 9 by Robert Jeschonek, a genius builds a machine to bring mankind closer to God, another genius builds a cathedral with a mind of its own, and three searchers race a serial killer to find the man with the key to salvation.
Starhelm Epsilon by David Viergutz follows a plucky crew consisting of a Han Solo-like mech pilot thrust into a galactic war between three competing factions. And John Wilker delivers in the same genre with Any Job Will Do, where the unification wars happened a while ago, and Jax’s parents fought for the losing side. Now he takes the jobs he can get—smuggling, bounty hunting, hauling cargo. If it pays, he’ll do it.
Wisecracking star-sailor Gus Johansson’s beach-bum retirement suddenly goes from boring to blazing when he pulls a 1400-year-old robot and a sentient spaceship from the sea in Corvus Ascending. Soon, Gus and his crew of misfits are in the fight of their lives against an old enemy.
And finally, rounding out the star-spanning 14 books, Debunked by Dito Abbott launches the Terravenum Chronicles, a wild adventure of explorers and curses, ancient prophecies, sarcastic swords of legend, and mutant slime beasts.
That should be enough to keep your imagination busy throughout the dullest vacation.” –Kevin J. Anderson
For StoryBundle, you decide what price you want to pay. For $5 (or more, if you’re feeling generous), you’ll get the basic bundle of four books in any ebook format—WORLDWIDE.
Corvus Ascending by Dale Sale
Any Job Will Do by John Wilker
Cosmic Cats & Fantastic Furballs by Mary A. Turzillo
Winston Chase and the Alpha Machine by William Van Winkle
If you pay at least the bonus price of just $20, you get all four of the regular books, plus ten more books for a total of 14!
Day 9 by Robert Jeschonek
Debunked by Dito Abbott
Starhelm Epsilon by David Viergutz
City of Kaus #1: Revenge by Dani Hoots
Zeroland by Ryan Winters
Writers of the Future: Volume 31 edited by David Farland
Prodigals by Alan Dean Foster
Jeff Sturgeon’s Last Cities of Earth edited by Jennifer Brozek
Nexus by Mike Baron
Dr. Alien by Rajnar Vajra
This bundle is available only for a limited time via here. It allows easy reading on computers, smartphones, and tablets as well as Kindle and other ereaders via file transfer, email, and other methods. You get multiple DRM-free formats (.epub, .mobi) for all books!
It’s also super easy to give the gift of reading with StoryBundle, thanks to our gift cards – which allow you to send someone a code that they can redeem for any future StoryBundle bundle – and timed delivery, which allows you to control exactly when your recipient will get the gift of StoryBundle.
Why StoryBundle? Here are just a few benefits StoryBundle provides.
Get quality reads: We’ve chosen works from excellent authors to bundle together in one convenient package.
Pay what you want (minimum $5): You decide how much these fantastic books are worth. If you can only spare a little, that’s fine! You’ll still get access to a batch of exceptional titles.
Support authors who support DRM-free books: StoryBundle is a platform for authors to get exposure for their works, both for the titles featured in the bundle and for the rest of their catalog. Supporting authors who let you read their books on any device you want—restriction free—will show everyone there’s nothing wrong with ditching DRM.
Give to worthy causes: Bundle buyers have a chance to donate a portion of their proceeds to the Challenge Center for Space Education!
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StoryBundle was created to give a platform for independent authors to showcase their work, and a source of quality titles for thirsty readers. StoryBundle works with authors to create bundles of ebooks that can be purchased by readers at their desired price. Before starting StoryBundle, Founder Jason Chen covered technology and software as an editor for Gizmodo.com and Lifehacker.com.
For more information, visit our website at storybundle.com, tweet us at @storybundle and like us on Facebook. For press inquiries, please email press@storybundle.com.
Delta of Dead River has always been told to hide her back, where a map is branded on her skin to a rumored paradise called the Verdant. In a wasteland plagued by dust squalls, geomagnetic storms, and solar flares, many would kill for it—even if no one can read it. So when raiders sent by a man known as the General attack her village, Delta suspects he is searching for her.
Delta sets out to rescue her family but quickly learns that in the Wastes no one can be trusted—perhaps not even her childhood friend, Asher, who has been missing for nearly a decade. If Delta can trust Asher, she just might decode the map and trade evidence of the Verdant to the General for her family. What Delta doesn’t count on is what waits at the Verdant: a long-forgotten secret that will shake the foundation of her entire world.
My two favorite genres are dark academia and sci-fi western/dystopian, so I knew the moment I picked this up, I would be very happy! And I was! Delta was a great character who simply wanted to survive—and wanted her pack to survive. Although I felt some of her choices were selfish, with the setting, atmosphere, and world, it made sense and was not out of character.
From the gecko, we are thrown into a harsh, desert world where water is running out, supplies are dwindling, and it takes everything just to survive. At first the world felt a bit confusing and I was trying to map it in my mind (BTW it comes with a map!) but later in the book, everything was revealed and I did not see it coming! There are a lot of twists and turns in this book and I was surprised for each and every one of them!
I really liked Asher as well. He has gone through a lot but was still a sweetheart. All the characters were interesting, had a driving force, and made sense. I cannot wait to read more by Erin Bowman! If you love dystopian books, I recommend checking this one out!
Revenge Dani Hoots (City of Kaus, #1) Publication date: November 16th 2021 Genres: LGBTQ+, New Adult, Science Fiction, Western
It has been three years since Elvira “Ellie” Ryder was betrayed by her best friend Cor and watched as her hometown of Kaus was leveled by invaders from a different Zone. Now sworn to seek revenge on him, Ellie has teamed up with her old friend Zach to find their long lost friend.
After getting offered a bounty hunting job—really an assassination job—they find out that part of their payment is the whereabouts of Cor. Without hesitation Ellie and Zach take the job and make their way to the Human Zone to assassinate their target. As they make their way through the desert, and through the Human Zone, they are up against the prejudice of their kind—Kausian, a race that can shapeshift but always stand out with their golden eyes. Nevertheless, they never miss a mark—that is, unless they find out the truth about who destroyed their kind and how their target is right in the middle of it all.
Will Ellie be able to forgive Cor after learning the truth? Or will she forever hold on to that hatred?
Dani Hoots is a science fiction, fantasy, romance, and young adult author who loves anything with a story. She has a B.S. in Anthropology, a Masters of Urban and Environmental Planning, a Certificate in Novel Writing from Arizona State University, and a BS in Herbal Science from Bastyr University.
Currently she is working on a YA urban fantasy series called Daughter of Hades, a YA urban fantasy series called The Wonderland Chronicles, a historic fantasy vampire series called A World of Vampires, and a YA sci-fi series called Sanshlian Series. She has also started up an indie publishing company called FoxTales Press. She also works with Anthill Studios in creating comics through Antik Comics.
Her hobbies include reading, watching anime, cooking, studying different languages, wire walking, hula hoop, and working with plants. She is also an herbalist and sells her concoctions on FoxCraft Apothecary. She lives in Phoenix with her husband and visits Seattle often.
My new book under my pen name Lyra Thorsson is coming out soon! In celebration, I am hosting a blog tour through OverView Media from Feb 4-11th! If you are a book blogger and are wanting to join, please email me at danihootsauthor (at) gmail (dot) com! Here are details about the book:
A debut sci-fi novel by Lyra Thorsson that has the grittiness of Jessica Jones, but the humor of Firefly. All Rebecca wants in life is to sail through space in her ship—is that too much to ask? The moment she lays eyes on her old military buddy Jonathan, Rebecca knew there was no running away from her duties. With her best friend, sometimes with benefits, Nik, she desired to return home to the Nreff Nation, one of the four government powers of the systems, to serve on one last mission. However, the problem with returning is that they all are wanted for treason. It wasn’t their fault, however, as they had been framed by their old admiral, Sebastien Wilde. Fortunately, succeeding in this mission might give them a clean slate, as they are to find evidence of Wilde’s involvement in the illegal human experimentation ring that goes against the Treaty Of World Equality and Rights (T.O.W.E.R.). Rebecca and Nik agree to the mission, hoping to earn a more peaceful life, however Rebecca hides a dark secret: she was once closer to Sebastien than any of them ever realized, and the evidence incriminating him might also implicate her. Now Rebecca has a choice: turn her back on her comrades and run for her life, or face her sins in order to prevent an all-out war.
*This novel contains sexual content, violence, drug abuse, and mental, sexual, and physical abuse.
If you aren’t a book blogger, but are interested in preordering, the link is below!
From USA TODAY bestselling author, Maureen A. Miller, comes this young adult cosmic adventure.
With a father from the planet, Ziratak, and a mother from Earth, Zon’s challenges are galactic. Zon doesn’t possess superpowers, though. If anything, he’s a bit of a klutz.
In Ziratakian folklore, the tale of the Temple of the Monarch has been passed down for generations. As legend has it, a series of miniature globes lead to the temple’s gate.
Folklore…nothing more.
Except, Zon knows of a cave with small globes in it. And with one clumsy mishap, he triggers the gate–opening a portal to other worlds.
A trip through this vortex transports him to Earth, where the first human he encounters is a young woman with challenges of her own.
This is a brand new saga, and a new generation. There is no need to read the BEYOND series. However, for readers of the series, you will enjoy this continuation of the epic science fiction adventure.
*I received a copy from YA Bound Book Tours for my honest opinion*
This was a nice lighthearted YA Sci-Fi novel that is quick to read. I read it all in one sitting and found it to be delightful. It follows Zon as he is transported to Earth and becomes friends with a human girl who he later must save. At the same time, he is supposed to be practicing and getting ready for a big test that is coming up. Will Zon pass this test or will he sacrifice it to help his new friend?
I haven’t read the rest of the series, which is more about Zon’s mother and father, but I wasn’t confused at all. This definitely can be read as a standalone. The only problem I had with it was that I felt it could use more description and sometimes I was confused as to where exactly he was until another character came into the picture.
All in all, this was a nice read for those who like light-hearted YA Sci-Fi. If you need something to read on a lazy Sunday afternoon, I definitely recommend this book!
~Dani
Enter the Giveaway below to win a $10 gift card to Amazon!:
USA TODAY bestselling author, Maureen A. Miller worked in the software industry for fifteen years. She crawled around plant floors in a hard hat and safety glasses hooking up computers to behemoth manufacturing machines. The job required extensive travel. The best form of escapism during those lengthy airport layovers became writing.
Maureen’s first novel, WIDOW’S TALE, earned her a Golden Heart nomination in Romantic Suspense. After that she became hooked to the genre. In fact, she was so hooked she is the founder of the JUST ROMANTIC SUSPENSE website.
Recently, Maureen branched out into the Young Adult Science Fiction market with the popular BEYOND Series. To her it was still Romantic Suspense…just on another planet!
He’ll sacrifice anything to save these children. . . except being human.
The world became aware of them sixty years ago: people with remarkable physical and sometimes psychic powers, often with terrifying deformities. Most folks call them deviants; deevs for short. Rejecting the slur, they call themselves omnihumans.
Manic is a federal officer tasked with taking down allegedly dangerous deevs. He loves his job, and he’s damn good at it. He’d wipe ’em all off the face of the earth if he could, because he believes every deev out there is a threat to mankind, just by their very existence. Not everyone agrees with him, though, including his only child—a naïve college girl who has devoted her life to protecting the civil rights of those very same deviants that he hauls in off the streets.
When his daughter’s tuition funds suddenly run out, Manic accepts a high-paying, off-the-books gig assassinating individual deevs. But after learning a deviant he’s killed was hunting down gangsters trafficking in the minds and bodies of human children, Manic decides to inherit the deviant’s quest.
Manic’s identity and clarity of purpose are thrown into chaos when he uncovers the concrete labyrinth where the gangsters are doing their dirty work. There, he finds a vigilante deviant who’s also trying to destroy the organization. Manic discovers deevs may be more human than not, as it becomes irrevocably clear that rescuing these most innocent of humans may not only cost Manic his life . . . but his humanity . . .
This book reminded me a lot of the show Heroes and the X-Men, but if it was told in the perspective of those who were hunting the mutants. The press portrays these omnihumans as being dangerous, and Manic really could use the money for his daughter’s tuition. And at the same time, he would be keeping the city safe, right?
Right?
Leveen does a great job portraying the mental process of reasoning out what is right and wrong for someone in this possession. Manic wants to do what is right, but how does one know what is right? At the same time, Malakai, an omnihuman, is trying to save someone child from a human trafficking wring. What will happen when these two go head to head? Will Manic be faced with the realization that maybe these omnihumans aren’t as dangerous as they are? Or will he follow orders?
This is a great military sci-fi for anyone who loves this aspect of X-Men. I highly recommend to fans of this genre!
An immersive new space opera featuring an unforgettable ensemble cast, set in a sci-fi world with a fantasy twist.
In this evocative science fiction series, four strangers are swept up in a gripping adventure of thrilling battles, ravenous creatures, and the return of forbidden magic.
Ranger.
Warrior.
Tyrant.
Arcanist.
As their paths interweave in love and hate, redemption and revenge, one threat will eclipse their greatest fears: a being of utter darkness and its imminent return.
This is a great, interesting space opera mixed with some magic! It had an ensemble of characters but it was easy to keep track due to the different voices each had, and the use of symbols for switching POV. Instead of *** they used a fox (yay!) and some other symbols so you had a mental note of who to think about. I thought it was really cleaver! I just wished Ban was the fox symbol (even though Fall had a reason he was a fox) for obvious anime “Seven Deadly Sins” reasons. 😛
But all in all, the world was really clever, the military aspect was well research and made sense, but wasn’t overly technical where you couldn’t understand what was going on. It had a nice mix of fantasy that was really cool to have in sci-fi. I thought it was really interesting and if you like Space Opera and Sci-fi military, I definitely recommend!
I decided to write a story for Wattpad and Tapas. Please check it out and follow it! I will also be posting another book I am working on next month on Wattpad and Tapas so be sure to follow me to get updated!
Book Blurb:
It has been five years since Elvira “Ellie” Ryder was betrayed by her best friend, and watched as her home was leveled by invaders from a different Zone. Now sworn to seek revenge on him, Ellie has teamed up with her old friend Zach to find their long lost friend. As they search for him, the are up against the hatred of their kind, secrets that they never knew about their people, and what really happened the day of the attack.
James Patterson presents a bold new heroine — a cross between Katniss Everdeen and Annie Oakley: Serendipity Jones, the fastest sharpshooter in tomorrow’s West.
Seventeen-year-old Serendipity “Pity” Jones inherited two things from her mother: a pair of six shooters and perfect aim. She’s been offered a life of fame and fortune in Cessation, a glittering city where lawlessness is a way of life. But the price she pays for her freedom may be too great . . .
In this extraordinary debut from Lyndsay Ely, the West is once again wild after a Second Civil War fractures the U.S. into a broken, dangerous land. Pity’s struggle against the dark and twisted underbelly of a corrupt city will haunt you long after the final bullet is shot.
I am so in love with this book! YA SFF Westerns is apparently a genre I need more of as I realized my favorite anime is Trigun and I am in love with K. Lynn Smith’s graphic novel Plume, which will be getting a review shortly as well. I really loved the character in this book, Pity Jones, who just wanted to get out of her small abusive farming community and see the world, and more importantly, to be free.
The characters in this book are all spectacular and I loved how Ely weaved together her city and her community. It has great world building, great tech ideas for post war, and brings on enough mystery to keep me wanting more.
It is rare for me to want to reread something, but this is definitely a book I want to read again, and wish for another book that I know won’t be coming 😦 It wraps up well, leaving your imagination to fill in the future.
A definite recommendation from me! Check this book out!
What does the fox say 