Welcome to the Hydra for the Holidays 99 cent sale. For the next week we have many of our best selling novels on sale, from science fiction, to mysteries, thrillers and horror. Stock up now for your winter reading pleasure. Here is a list of the books on sale (click on the book title to make your purchase):
Afterthoughts by Lynn Tincher Psychological Thriller
Detective Paige Aldridge’s family are prey fora serial killer. Desperate to help her sister, she is determined to find out who is behind it all.After being the victim of a kidnapping, she is traumatized by memories she does not know she has. She sees visions of the murders and believesshe is followed by someone she’s only seen inthe shadows. Trying to run from her dreams, sheis sent spiraling down a path of self doubt, fearand betrayal. Paige finds an unlikely friend thattries to help her by telling her unbelievable things.Teamed up with her partner, Jay, she tries to put all of the pieces together. Are all of these things connected? Will Jay believe in her and most importantly will Paige believe in herself? Can she get her thoughts together before it’s too late?
*****
Amy the Astronaut by Steven Donahue YA
Twelve-year-old Amy Sutter steals the experimental spacecraft Liberty Bell to rescue her father and his colleagues from alien captors called the Crownaxians. She is pursued by Lt. Yale Brown, the officer in charge of the ship’s security, who has orders to bring back the Liberty Bell at any cost.
*****
Anon by Peter Giglio Horror
Rory Ellison, victim of his own misdeeds, wallows in misery. Then a door opens. Now he’s got a new job, a dream assignment to rewrite the darkest mistake of his past, and a strange new companion in his head. Wielding powers beyond his comprehension and control, Rory returns to …
… Faith. She possesses the perfect husband, kids, and home. But when Rory falls back into her world, old wounds open wide, shattering her ideal life.
At the center of the mayhem stands Anon, a seemingly benevolent organization with a sinister past of its own. “Helping you realize your dreams sooner,” the company promises. But what do they stand to gain? How far will they go to get what they want? And if they make dreams a reality, what about nightmares?
Only Michelle, a young girl with a strange gift, can defeat the evil threatening her family. But she must face fear, work with the ghosts of her enemy’s past, navigate a maze of terror, and make the tough choice to grow up too soon in a world filled with evil and indifference.
Hold on tight! Anon—a tale of corporate and familial terror—is unlike anything you’ve ever read.
*****
Beyond Anon by Peter Giglio Horror
BEYOND ANON is the long-awaited sequel to last year’s smash-hit, ANON. As Michelle Breedlove travels home from Dexter Ridge, Wyoming, in constant wait for the next wave of terror, she discovers a message from Reggie Ellison. She is safe for now, the communication tells her, but there will come a time when she’ll be needed. Six years later, Michelle is once more drawn into a timeless game between dominions known as The Land of Light and The Land of Shadow. Torn between budding emotions and fighting for a world that has alienated and abused her, Michelle must face her fears for the final showdown with Anon. “Bravo to Peter Giglio—a bright, disarming, and downright scary new voice in horror.” —Amy Wallace, #1 New York Times Bestselling author and Bram Stoker nominee “An invigorating new hand with the poise, polish, and prevision of an established old hand. Peter Giglio arrives on the genre fiction scene with force and vitality. He’s a natural, a keeper, a clean shot of oxygen.” —Eric Shapiro, author of The Devoted and Stories for the End of the World
*****
Bounty Hunter by Kate Lynd Science Fiction
Dare to Fall In Love. Dare to Change the World. Logan Mitchell doesn’t mess around when it comes to business. He is a rarity, a half-breed human/alien who has survived the purge. The product of an illicit affair between a charismatic human rebel and a sympathetic female alien from the planet Lonegal he is an outsider. He is a bounty hunter, and he is the best at what he does. Enslaved from the age of fifteen, Alabama Newsome is a half-breed who’s managed to escape once and exact her revenge on the killer of her human mother and Lonegal father. Labeled a terrorist she was recaptured, tortured, and made to suffer for her actions. With the help of Logan’s imprisoned father she escapes once again and General Runyon wants her back. She’s pregnant with his child and he’s sure she’ll abort it. When her case file comes across Logan’s desk he’s forced to deal with the truth mixed in with the lies. And he must decide, bring her in, or risk everything just to save her life.
*****
Dearly Departed by Rachael Rawlings Paranormal Romance
Dorothy, or Dot to her friends, is the slightly eccentric daughter of the town’s funeral director. Her art is the only medium that she can express herself with, but it sets her apart. Until she meets him. He walks the cemetery looking for something. Something he cannot explain. In him she finds an acceptance she has never had. Yet to keep him, she has to help him find what he has lost. Whether it brings him home to her, or ends his existence completely.
*****
Eternal Patrol by Michael Wallace Science Fiction
Espionage and depth charges were not on the agenda for marine archeologist Dr. George Washington when he left the harbor that morning. While searching for a sunken vessel containing a secret shipment of lost Nazi gold, he witnessed a meteor crash to earth. The impact opened a time gate which propelled him back to World War II where he has been taken aboard an American submarine and imprisoned as a spy. Faced with an execution, he reveals to the sub commander he knows the allies have broken the German code Enigma. Dr. Washington comes to the realization he did not travel back in time; the sub traveled to the future and is manned by German impostors. With the knowledge their valuable code has been broken, the Germans head back through the time gate to 1943. George must now journey to the past and stop this rogue submarine from altering the outcome of the war. While trapped in an era and a war he had only experienced from watching the History Channel, Dr. Washington is forced to kill his grandfather in order to stop the enemy operatives. His life and the war suddenly take a turn he never expected.
*****
The Fire of Heaven by Tom Wallace Mystery
Lexington Detective Jack Dantzler is asked to look into a death that has been ruled a suicide. When he learns how the person died-cyanide poisoning-he immediately suspects that the victim was murdered. Although the death occurred in another county, Dantzler agrees to look into what is a closed case. However, before he can begin his investigation, a medical clinic is bombed and a woman dies in the blast. Within days, the owner of the clinic is murdered. As Dantzler digs deeper into these cases, he begins to suspect that the murders are somehow linked together. But how? And who is the link? Dantzler’s list of potential suspects grows, and so does the body count. Suddenly, Dantzler is scrambling to bring down the killer-or killers-before more blood is spilled. It’s a race he cannot afford to lose. The Fire of Heaven features a cast of memorable characters, headed, of course, by Dantzler, the gifted detective critics have compared to Michael Connelly’s Harry Bosch. Critic Natasha Jackson said it best: “The Fire of Heaven pulls you in right from the very first paragraph, and Tom Wallace does a great job of creating a world-class detective in Dantzler.”
*****
Gears of Golgotha by Rebekah McAuliffe Science Fiction/Steampunk/Dystopian
The year is 3141. Rising out of the ashes of World War Three, Planet Earth has been united into the global nation of New Pangaea. But the people are divided into Mages, those who practice magic, and Chemists, those who rely on science. Society revolves around the Gears, large machines designed to protect and power the Earth.
*****
Gnosis by Tom Wallace Mystery
Gnosis: Greek word meaning knowledge. Murder, mystery and redemption are at the heart of “Gnosis.” Detective Jack Dantzler has no clue why he has been summoned to the prison to meet with the Reverend Eli Whitehouse, a man convicted of committing a double murder twenty-nine years ago. He is stunned when Eli claims to be innocent and wants Dantzler to prove it. But Eli only gives Dantzler a single clue—look at the obituaries in the local paper for a specific two-week period. Reluctantly, Dantzler agrees to look into the case. As he does, two more people are brutally murdered. And although Dantzler isn’t aware of it, he has become a target for the killer. Dantzler goes back to Eli and pleads for another clue. All Eli says is, “think of Jesus’s empty tomb.” It will be this whispered utterance that unlocks the mystery and reveals the killer’s identity. But this isn’t just any ordinary killer. This is a man with a dark and bloody past, a man with connections to the highest levels of organized crime. Dantzler is now on the trail of an ice-cold assassin, fully aware that one slip will mean instant death. Sometimes having too much knowledge can lead to deadly consequences.
*****
The Hand of God by Tony Acree Paranormal Crime Noir
It was 6 p.m. when the Devil walked into my office and had a seat. Bounty hunter Victor McCain always wondered how his brother, Mikey, went from down-n-out loser to one of Louisville’s richest men. Now he knew: his brother sold his soul to the Devil. And in twenty-four hours, Mikey would die and spend eternity in Hell unless Victor agreed to hunt down a thief, a woman as deadly as she is beautiful. On a journey of murder and betrayal, Victor must now put his own soul at risk to save his only brother, battle a dark underground organization with the goal of nothing less than global war between Christians and Muslims, and fight creatures from man’s darkest nightmares. Then there’s the Hand of God, God’s own bounty hunter. In the end, will he be friend or enemy? Only Heaven knows.
*****
The Heart Denied by Linda Anne Wulfe Historical Romance
In 1728, THORNE NEVILLE leaves Oxford University and one devastated courtesan to take his deceased father’s title, occupation, estate and advice–that being to marry the Viscount Radleigh’s convent-schooled daughter, and thus spare himself the potential heartache of a love match. Having watched his father grieve away eighteen years for his dead mother, Thorne grimly understood that advice–though he doubts it will matter. His own heart was buried years ago, along with his childhood love.
But Thorne is about to learn that fate doesn’t bow to plans, and that denying his heart will cost not only him, but others as well. The lesson involves four strong-willed women: KATY, the spirited courtesan who loves him and plots to conceive his child; GWYNNETH, the rebellious wife whose preference for convent vows over marriage vows makes Thorne’s domestic life hell; CAROLINE, the sultry socialite who not only schemes with Thorne’s half-brother to ruin him, but tries to seduce Thorne while pretending to be Gwynneth’s dearest friend; and ELAINE, the chambermaid who must at all costs keep Thorne from guessing her true identity.
As Thorne’s carefully constructed world disintegrates in a succession of murder, rape, suicide and betrayal, he must begin the painful recovery of his heart, in order to rediscover the woman who has held it for so long.
*****
Heart of the Hunter by Linda Anne Wulfe Historical Romance
Eight years ago, Fianna Morgan defied royal forest law and her father by entering Dinsmore Wood – and then ran for her life after witnessing a crime. Since that day, she has kept a hopeful eye out for the young man who saved her life, swore her to secrecy, and disappeared into the forest.
Now nineteen, Fianna is burned out of her tenant home and forced to serve Lord Graham at Dinsmore Hall – where she recognizes his son, Gareth, as her rescuer from Dinsmore Wood.
Yet Gareth claims he has never met Fianna. Confusing her even more, he seems concerned for her safety, but acts rude and distant; nothing like her caring rescuer of eight years ago.
Determined to make Gareth acknowledge their past connection, Fianna corners him – and gets far more than she bargained for.
*****
The Human Equations by Dave Creek Science Fiction
In Human Equations you will go on a voyage of discovery. From the untold story of how the great Chinese explorer Zheng He made Earth’s First Contact with aliens, to how a rescue mission on the aquatic planet Welkin forces one man to come to terms with a tragedy from his past, to why a resident of an orbital habitat must decide between his people’s traditions and his habitat’s survival, to the attempt to save a gigantic sea creature’s baby — from the inside! And more!
*****
Interstate Providence by Samuel Miller Inspirational
Hunter Damon got jilted at the altar and fired from his job within 60 seconds. With his assumed ‘perfect-life scenario’ now destroyed, Hunter takes a long cathartic drive before getting a hotel room hundreds of miles away. Waking up the next morning, Hunter realizes there’s nothing left for him back in his hometown, and decides to keep going on what becomes a metaphorical and literal Odyssey.
But he’s not alone on his journey. Along the way, Hunter is joined by the spirit of his dead father, who pops-in periodically to offer sage advice, observations from the Other Side and other Universal wisdoms.
With no plan, and little direction, Hunter Damon unknowingly relies on fate and the
open road to deliver him to his ultimate destiny.
*****
The Know it All Girl by Joanna Foreman Memoir
Knock, knock . . . Who’s there? . . . Jehovah’s Witnesses . . . Uh-oh.
That’s how it started for Joanna Foreman at the age of five. From there, she gave up almost everything in exchange for the promise of “Everlasting Life in Paradise on Earth.” No Christmas tree, Independence Day fireworks, Halloween costumes or birthday parties. Surely she could celebrate Easter? No, again. She was not to pledge the flag in school or stand to sing the National Anthem. She wasn’t allowed to attend college or vote in political elections. As a youth, she was instructed to dump her worldly friends and would not be allowed to date or marry outside of the religion. Forty-five years later, when she backed away from religion’s grasp, her congregational comrades rapidly vanished—she stood entirely alone.
The author portrays herself happily waltzing her way through life despite all religious obstacles, until she has the emergent need for a blood transfusion after the birth of her third child. Obeying yet another rule, she refuses the treatment and survives to proudly wear an invisible halo which congregation members had bestowed upon her. She keeps her doubts secret until Emma, her best friend of twenty-five years, also refuses a transfusion with tragic results. Cancer didn’t kill Emma—religion did. The lies and back-stabbing that occur immediately after Emma’s death allow Joanna to finally see the real truth. While she’d thought she knew it all, the answers Jehovah’s Witnesses spoon-fed her no longer satisfy. As she gains the freedom to think for herself and choose her own beliefs, she finds herself more content living in a world among millions of people who don’t have all the answers than trapped within parentheses with a few hundred-thousand know-it-alls.(less)
*****
The List by Tom Wallace Mystery
Detective Jack Dantzler always believed his father was killed by a sniper in Vietnam. Dantzler’s world is rocked when a stranger shows up and informs him that his father died in Laos, and was killed by the CIA. Dantzler asks the stranger how he can uncover the real truth. The stranger tells Dantzler there is only one man who can help him—the legendary assassin called Cain. Dantzler contacts Cain, and Cain agrees to help. But when a U.S. general is assassinated in Las Vegas, Cain’s priorities change. He knows who killed the general, and he knows the names of the men who ordered the hit. He also knows they must pay for their sins, and he’s the one who will collect the bill. Cain and Dantzler are on the trail of dangerous men who will stop at nothing to save their empire, an empire built on greed, treason and murder. But what Cain doesn’t know is that a Russian assassin has him in her crosshairs. The hunter has become the hunted. The List is a fast-paced thriller that takes readers on a deadly journey, and proves once again why Night Owl Review called Tom Wallace a “powerful and compelling” writer.
*****
Love Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me by Lyndi Alexander Thriller
Running away isn’t necessarily the answer.
In her mad rush to escape a failed marriage, Sara Woods takes the first job available and lands in the middle of a mystery. Her first assignment as a news reporter for the Ralston Courier is the investigation of a string of deaths, all young women, all her age.
She becomes a patient at the Goldstone Clinic, a local mecca of healing, to deal with chronic pain from her past. But all is not as it seems at the Goldstone, its doctors and nurses are all the picture of perfect beauty and health. Patients at the clinic first seem to get better, then they deteriorate. Sara enlists the help of Dr. Rick Paulsen, who teaches her how to access her internal power, skills she never knew she had, revealing secrets from her past. Police officer Brendon Zale also takes an interest in Sara, but he acts like a stalker, watching her every move, and he won’t leave her alone.
As she digs deeper into the story, and more young women die without explanation, she tries to choose allies wisely, but not till the last confrontation does she discover the identity of her true enemy.
*****
The Parrot Told Me by Rachael Rawlings Mystery
Who would believe the words of a bird brain, anyway? When Camille inherits Simon, an African grey parrot from her deceased neighbor, she sees the challenge of owning such a noisy, spoiled pet. But when the music plays, and Simon starts to replay a violent scene in the voice of his former owner, Camille begins to realize that she has inherited more than she bargained for. Could a bird really recall the last moments of his owner’s life? And stranger yet, could he really be repeating a death scene that he witnessed? Camille’s best friend, Leo, has his doubts, and after the disappearance of Camille’s sister, he wonders if her tragic past is coming back to haunt her and she is finally breaking down. But she has no one else to go to, no one besides the questionable other neighbor who might well have been involved with the murder victim. It’s a question of a bird’s word against the truth and a race to find out what it all means.
*****
Reality Check by Chrissy Garrison Steampunk/Science Fiction
When a quantum supercomputer’s “reality simulator” program causes temporary insanity in its beta-testers, Lee Green rolls up his sleeves and dives into a virtual world to debug the problem. Only he discovers that place is more real than anyone imagined. He finds alternate versions of his friends in that mad science reality, their lives and relationships very different from those in the “real” world. Quantum entanglements become romantic entanglements as he meets his love again in each new dimension. Lee must save these other lives, decide which destiny is truly his, and what he’s willing to sacrifice to get there.
*****
Sins of Retribution by James C. Gillen Horror
Being a vampire assassin is a deadly way to make a living, but when you’re also considered the new master vampire of Orlando, things can get complicated. It’s a dilemma that has become Paul Isaac’s reality. A late night knock at the door forces Paul to make promises he knows he won’t be able to keep. But when human lives of old friends hang in the balance of vampire politics and law, no choice is easy. After an attempt on his life by a couple of old adversaries, Paul learns no matter which side of the grave or which side of the law, nothing can be trusted. This game of death had become personal and only his spilt blood can stop it. Something is out there hunting him. Old. Powerful. Deadly. And killing it will only make matters worse.
*****
Ukishima by Nigel Sellars Fantasy
In the waning days of World War II, dying Japanese fighter pilot Minamoto Ichiro joins a kamikaze flight with plans to die honorably by sinking an American warship. At the last moment, however, Ichiro is plucked from his plane by Hachiman, the Japanese god of war. It seems Hachiman needs Ichiro to save the universe.
Ichiro, now a samurai, finds himself in a parallel Japan—Nihon—where magic is real and Europeans have not yet arrived. He soon learns of Lord Taira, a warlord in league with dark forces. Taira has already stolen two of Nihon’s sacred icons, the sacred jewel and sacred mirror The warlord now only needs the sacred sword, the legendary Kusinagi, the Grass-Mower, in order to control the universe. But sword is in Ichiro’s hands, as only a member of the powerful Minamoto clan can wield the sword safely.
With the aid of a female ninja named Shizuka and Yukio, a naive young Buddhist monk, Ichiro must battle a series of evil forces, including dragons, undead warriors, river demons, a giant spider and a Dutch vampire sea captain in order to rescue the imprisoned young emperor.
But rescuing the emperor is not enough. Ichiro soon realizes the only way to save the universe is to reach the Bridge of Heaven, located on the island of Hokkaido, the home of the barbarian Ainu. Only then can he hope to bring the sacred sword, the sacred mirror, and the sacred jewel together to restore the Emperor’s power and divine status. Assuming, of course, that he can defeat Taira’s naval forces and somehow close the demonic gateway through which the forces of chaos might escape to overwhelm everything. That, however, will require Ichiro to enter Yomi, the very domain of Death itself…
*****
The Wall Outside by James Peercy Fantasy
Step across the barrier and what will you find?
A place of magic just out of sight?
A pixie, a leprechaun, or even a sprite?
What starts as a vacation, turns into a mess. For Jonna, there’s
more at stake than meets the eye. Through pouring rain,
misdirection, and a curious mind, Jonna crossed the barrier
between our world and magic.
Now forced to return across the barrier, Jonna battles Dark Mages, angry leprechauns, and a ruthless Minotaur, all in an effort to find his wife. To do this, he must locate the stolen Rune Blade and rescue a beautiful elvish princess.
But what can a human do when faced with a world of magic?
*****
What Matters Blood by Tom Wallace Mystery
Legendary homicide detective Jack Dantzler has never failed to solve a murder. Thirty-three killers apprehended, tried, convicted. Perfect, like God’s soul. But Dantzler’s perfection ends when three college women are brutally murdered, victims of a serial killer who strangles his prey, decorates their bodies with a St. Jude medal and photo of Michelangelo’s Pieta, then lacerates the jugular post-mortem. The series of murders reawaken Dantzler’s memories of his own mother’s murder when he was still a young boy. As he delves deeper into the case, haunted by thoughts of his mother, Dantzler must first regain control of his own emotions. What Matters Blood presents Dantzler with his ultimate challenge, entering into the dark and twisted mind of a cunning adversary, who will stop at nothing to prevail in what he calls this “Waltz of Death” with the great detective.
*****
Without a Conscious Thought Mystery
They tried to kill a nation.
Revenge and genocide, is that even possible?
Walk into the arena of ‘Without A Conscious…’ where an unsuspecting college student is dragged into a world he never knew. Under a ruthless plot carried out in the name of progress and greed, our nation is attacked. Hindered from the truth by those in power, it’s a fight for the right to survive.
When Cliff finds a photo of his murdered grandmother under the door of his apartment, his whole world explodes. Haunted by a mysterious caller, hunted by an unknown murderer, this mystery drags an ordinary college boy into a foul formula for genocide.
With only twenty-four hours to deliver what the caller wants, without knowing what it is, Cliff encounters a seductive temptress, a helpful turncoat, a broken heart, and a mystery which started in 1950.
