Showing results by narrator "Steven Barnett" in All Categories

At long last, the dream of a functioning research colony on Terradox has become reality. Thousands of men, women, and children now call the distant romosphere home, with experts in countless fields recruited from Earth to spearhead the most ambitious research projects ever devised. All eyes fall on the closing stages of a colony-defining isolation test within Terradox’s least hospitable zone—the man-made hellscape of Little Venus, where six astronauts-in-training have survived 51 weeks surrounded by an almost impossibly hostile atmosphere.

When Judy Fletcher's life is at its lowest ebb, she jumps at the chance to trial a truly next-gen digital assistant. Oracle promises to change everything. By harnessing live and historical data from billions of users' messages, habits and even real-world conversations, there is almost nothing the app can't do. As Judy's life immediately changes for the better, she feels empowered like never before.

Monsters aren’t real...are they? In Summerset, Kentucky, the McKenzie brothers were well known for their hard work, good looks, and fun-loving nature. Before they vanished, that is. Cole would soon have his drivers license, Seth would leave for a football scholarship, and Liam planned to be a firefighter and marry his high school sweetheart after college. At least that was the plan.... The McKenzie brothers would soon discover that their family history had secrets and a deadly bite.

C.T. Ferguson uses his illicit digital skills as a private investigator. When a teenaged boy wants to find his missing brother, C.T. takes the case. He soon discovers the missing brother is a fellow keyboard wizard, which piques his interest. Then shadowy figures turn up wherever C.T. goes. He gets an offer he’s not supposed to refuse from a budding gangster.

With the Terradox colony stable and established, attention turns to the most ambitious endeavour in human history: the creation of a planet-sized romosphere capable of carrying a sizeable population on a one-way course for the stars.

She’s running from that life, and he’s caught in-between. I’ve killed someone. I had no choice but to pull the trigger. Now I’m leading a new life, under a new name. I’m safe. For now. That is, until he shows up. He’s sexy, sweet, and different from the bikers. But I can’t give in. He represents everything from my past. I left that life far behind me. Getting closer to him might reveal my past. It might lead me back to them. They can’t find out where I am. Or I’m dead. If we keep going, he’s bound to find out. He doesn’t know what I’ve done.

The best thing about the holiday season is spending time with family. At the same time, sometimes the worst thing about the holiday season is spending time with family. The stories in this collection touch on that and more as Mandy Nichols, Jeff Resnick, and Judi Straub struggle through what's supposed to be the joyous season. One family contemplates murder; another wants to end what they see as a bad relationship, while another can only see their loved one for what she can do for them. Sound familiar? Happy Holidays? puts the Christmas fun into dysfunction!

Charlie's the kind of boy that no one notices. Hell, his own mother can't remember his name. So when a mysterious clockwork man tries to kill him in modern day Philadelphia, and they tumble through a hole into 1725 London, Charlie realizes even the laws of time don't take him seriously. Still, this isn't all bad. Who needs school when you can learn about history first hand, like from Ben Franklin himself. And there's this girl... Yvaine... another time traveler. All good. Except for the rules: boys only travel into the past and girls only into the future.

Private Investigator C.T. Ferguson believes justice shouldn’t come with a price tag. As a trust fund baby and former hacker, he uses his resources to track down criminals who prey on society’s most vulnerable members. When an old acquaintance falls on hard times, he vows to solve the mystery of her missing husband and empty bank account. Following the digital trail, he uncovers a grisly hotel room crime scene. But, the husband’s ruthless loan shark won’t draw the line at one dead body.

Billionaire businessman, Cal Sellers had the only woman he's ever loved, but with one careless, arrogant act, he lost her. Now as she stands in his office begging for her old job back, he has no intention of losing her again - or hiring her. He has an altogether different position to offer her....

When alien scientists studying a mysterious object detect unfamiliar DNA, they set to work on cloning the being responsible for the incredible technology. Now, all alone and trillions of miles from home, their fully grown human Seedling is about to be hatched....

I was never the kind to marry for money. Until Rob Michaels offered me the stars, along with a billionaire fortune, glamorous career, and a private island. The job comes with other perks, too. Like a model-hot coworker, Anya Talova, who I still can’t get a read on, until I found out way more than I ever needed to know. There are some risks. Like my husband’s revenge-driven brother (and his abs of steel) out to hurt my husband any way he can. Out to hurt him through me. I was never the kind to betray my husband. Until I did.

When the government's new private welfare system begins rewarding unemployed viewers for watching the right kind of ads, Roger Birch welcomes a Funscreen into his home. Like millions of others, Roger and his family soon depend on ad-viewing income for their survival. Unlike millions of others, the events of one uncomfortable evening leave Roger aware of the government's shadier reasons for investing in Funscreens.

Graham is the sixth generation Doran to become sheriff of the sleepy central California coastal town. As long as a Doran has been sheriff there's been no crime in San Rey, and Graham is counting on that peace and quiet when he returns home after years as an LAPD detective. But when he's called to the scene of the murder/suicide of an old friend, he sets into motion a series of events that rocks the tiny town, and the only way to catch a killer will be to face his own dark past.

Dylan Kline, salesman extraordinaire, eyes Saturn's moons as his ultimate cosmic jackpot. As global attention turns towards the first launch of the billionaire's ambitious project, the stakes could hardly be higher. Kline's advanced rocketry has finally enabled heavy long-distance transit, opening up a new frontier of unimaginable revenue opportunities.

When Dezi North walks into a metaphysical shop to find his date murdered, he doesn’t expect to find his keeper standing there, asking him questions about his alibi. But Detective Lexington Cooper is everything he’s always secretly wanted and nothing he expected to find.

Miyuki Price-Jones knows what sells - and sex sells. Host of a successful home shopping show, Mi has all eyes on her - including one very obsessed ex-convict. The stronger his obsession grows, the more danger Mi finds herself in. When former Navy SEAL turned bodyguard Lucas Vega is charged with heading up her security, Mi realizes that she might need him for more than just protection. She's drawn to the large, sexy, quiet man who guards her. As the heat between them intensifies, Lucas struggles to keep his feelings for Mi separate from his need to keep her safe.

With huge funding behind them, ChronoTonic claims to have achieved the impossible. The corporation is pushing its new machine — a time machine — as the solution to Earth's problems. I'm just not buying it. They want to buzz forward in time, pick up a few technological advancements, and buzz back to apply them in the here and now. They say we can save lives and reduce suffering by learning the lessons of the future — today.

Amanda Shelton is clever, adventurous, and tough - and she's going to have to be, because she just crash landed on a world where her saviors might really be her enemies. It takes fierce determination to prevent the people of this frightening and unfamiliar place from stealing her shuttle technology, or from imprisoning her while they do it. Yet what she knows could save countless innocent lives - including those who keep this world safe. Facing this terrible test of spirit will take everything Amanda has.... If she survives at all.

Life takes an unexpected turn when Prince Paxdon bans Amanda Shelton from Telenia's Summer Palace, but that's just the first step in an incredible journey that has her leading the province's oppressed women into a life of self-sufficiency. The threat of war remains, and others are watching her every move as Amanda leaves the safety and security of the rural north and ventures to the capital city where she faces peril and life altering decisions. Will her future be a life of luxury or despair?