Showing results by narrator "Aiello" in All Categories

Before he was “Babe” or “The Sultan of Swat” or “The Great Bambino”, George Herman Ruth was just another teenage misfit at St. Mary’s School for Boys. But Ruth has something the other boys don’t, and when Baltimore Orioles manager Jack Dunn watches him throw a baseball over a building, Ruth gets the chance to punch his ticket out of the orphanage. All he has to do now is make the team.

People work; folk play. That is how it has been in this country for as long as Sam can remember. He is happy, and he understands that this is the way it should be. People are bigger than folk. They are stronger. They do not need food or water. They do not need the warmth of a fire. All they need are jobs to do and a blacksmith to fix them when they break. The people work so the folk can drink their moonshine, fish a little, and throw horseshoes. But once Sam starts to wonder why the world is like this, his life will never be the same.

For years, Connor and others in the colony have unraveled the mysteries of New Earth and the global catastrophes that nearly destroyed its previous inhabitants. Their work led to the discovery of other worlds beyond the known universe. It became clear that many of those worlds had been attacked by an interdimensional invader that left untold amounts of manipulation, hardship, and annihilation in its wake. It’s only a matter of time before the colony becomes the next target.

Experimental psychologist Jim Marchuk has developed a flawless technique for identifying the previously undetected psychopaths lurking everywhere in society. But while being cross-examined about his breakthrough in court, Jim is shocked to discover that he has lost his memories of six months of his life from 20 years previously - a dark time during which he himself committed heinous acts.

Beneath the glitter of Mardi Gras lies the sleaze of Bourbon Street; under the celestial sounds of JazzFest, the nightmare screams of a city once at war within its neighborhoods, but after Hurricane Katrina, seemingly at war with nature and the rest of the country as well. New Orleans is a third world country in itself, a Latin, African, European (and often amoral) culture trapped in a Puritan nation.

An expert, story-driven account of how Coinbase won the cryptocurrency game and set itself up to lead the future of banking and blockchain-based trading. This is the story of the people who made Coinbase, per PitchBook, “one of the most valuable startups in the US,” including the stoic, preppy founder and CEO Brian Armstrong and the bitcoin-obsessed former lumberjack Olaf Carlson-Wee, who turned their backs on the first generation of wild-eyed Bitcoin prophets to build something more profound and practical.

Brand-new stories by: Daniel Woodrell, Matthew Eck, Catherine Browder, Nancy Pickard, John Lutz, J. Malcolm Garcia, Kevin Prufer, Linda Rodriguez, Nadia Pflaum, Phong Nguyen, Andres Rodriguez, and others. Kansas City: where East and West collide, where naked ambition meets broken dreams, where blues and the night go together like rye whiskey, vermouth, and bitters. Yes, Kansas City is a surprising place of grit, gore, and betrayal, at least in the imaginations of our diverse lineup of contributors.

I thought the hard part of helping the Helta defeat the rampaging Tevynians would be the fighting. How wrong I was. To the Helta, we Earthers look just like the Tevynians, their mortal enemies. And convincing their government to ally with humans may be even beyond the crew of the starship James Bowie. But the clock is ticking, because the Tevynian fleet is bearing down on the Helta homeworld. If we can’t talk the Helta into accepting our help to fight them off, then Helta Prime will fall.... And Earth will be next.

Chiyo's father's company is being targeted, and she considers her options. Should she help him? The only problem? There is a dark enemy on the other side who wants her dad's company and wouldn't mind taking a bite out of Kaiden, either. Chief is more integrated than he was before and far more fragile due to his neural link with Kaiden. Kaiden and Chiyo been provided a job opportunity, but they will need extra support. Will they be able to call on their friends, or will they need to hire contractors?

Ten years ago, the Ark II departed on a long journey through interstellar space, but shortly after they reached their destination, all communications ceased. All attempts to re-establish contact have failed. Utilizing prototypical FTL technology that he invented, one brave man will lead a small expedition into the unknown to discover the colony’s fate.

The Hive is gone, but the queen’s effect on the world lingers. As the people of Tranquility rebuild, those touched by the alien creature struggle to come to grips with what was done to them and the pain they’d caused to their friends and family. Joel Lander is no stranger to their hardships, but with a new threat looming, they have precious little time to lose. The fight for Tranquility is not over.

Contains books one and two of the Deadland Drifter series: Deadland Drifter and Deadland Wanderer.

It is time for Kaiden to grow up a little and play with a larger team to accomplish a three-peat. The only problem? The test has been engineered to kill the players. What's a little blood between friends? Who is Kaiden going to be teamed with? Which faculty will be betting on that team? Will it be Sasha, or will someone yank his best opportunity away from him? Exactly what will Sasha do to acquire the team to beat? Finally, can Kaiden accomplish something only hinted about the history of the Nexus Academy? You don't become the best of the best by staying alive.

In keeping with the Akashic Noir series tradition, each story in Boston Noir is set in a different neighborhood of the city - the impressively diverse collection extends from Roxbury to Cambridge, from Southie to the Boston Harbor, and all stops in between. Lehane's own contribution - the longest story in the volume - is set in his beloved home neighborhood of Dorchester and showcases his phenomenal ability to grip the heart, soul, and throat of the reader.

The Consensus ruled twelve hundred worlds - but not Northworld. Three fleets had been dispatched to probe the enigma of Northworld. None returned. Now, Commissioner Nils Hansen must face the challenge of this distant planet - a gateway to nine alternate worlds. There, he will confront a world at war, a world of androids, a world of sentient machines - all unique, all lethal. But deadliest of all are the men who would be gods.

Kaiden Jericho's life just went sideways. He has been working odd jobs since the first school year ended. (People have to eat, right?) The problem? He isn't as prepared as he thinks he is. Out in the jungles of the Amazon, Kaiden meets a new set of nightmares, and death there is permanent. Even with all his previous training in the Animus, will Kaiden survive? You don't become the best of the best by staying alive. In the Animus, you are closer to perfection with each death you suffer. Kaiden Jericho would rather skip the death part, thank you very much.

When a remote island's rain forest is threatened by the greedy timber company Loggocorp, the Humans Who Know (that mice have evolved) develop a secret plan to save the forest. And they need all the help they can get from the Big Cheese, Trey, and their other friends in the Mouse Nation. First the team must unravel a centuries-old mystery: Who actually owns the rain forest? The mission to find that person brings Megan and her family across the ocean to England, where everything starts to go just a little bit...weird.

Six months ago, Connor learned what the alien race that populated New Earth feared - a mysterious enemy who nearly brought about the collapse of an entire civilization. To help the colony prepare for this new threat, Connor rejoins the Colonial Defense Force. Using alien technology, Connor opens a gateway to another universe hoping to learn more about the threat. Instead, he receives a colonial distress beacon. Six months ago, they’d left people behind on a mission, all presumed dead. The beacon might be them, or it might be a trap, but Connor will not ignore the call for help.

Weird Tales magazine is known for launching a number of sub-genres of fiction—cosmic horror, swords & sorcery, dark fantasy, and others. It has also greatly added to existing genres like science fiction, horror, and—a personal favorite of editor Jonathan Maberry—weird mystery stories. Or, as they became known—occult detective tales.

These fourteen science fiction stories reveal Lem’s fascination with artificial intelligence and demonstrate just how surprisingly human sentient machines can be.