418: I Am a Teapot is a near-future dystopian science fiction novel that
explores a world where people by choice, birth, or punishment, relinquish
the rights to their physical body. Their brains exist in a
constantly-connected virtual interface where they enjoy a fantasy world of
endless indulgences. However, while their minds have fun, their bodies are
controlled by implants doing the filthiest and most dangerous jobs known to
humanity.
Stripped of their identities, these dredges of society are simply called
staff and they are disposable. But what happens when a staff becomes
cognizant of its situation and tries to break free?
When staff number 418’s physical body is broken, he must come to terms with
reality, and defend himself in a trial for his life. Will an unlikely
friendship save him from permanent retirement?
About the Author
Edgar Scott was born in Houston and grew up in Canada. The last of three
boys born to a brilliant Leukemia specialist and a manic-depressive mother,
Edgar’s childhood was not normal. Through trial and error, Edgar turned his
family situation into an opportunity to become the best version of himself.
He struggled in the classroom but thrived on the field. His love for
baseball and hard training got him a spot in numerous all-star teams,
playing under assumed names in the US. It got Edgar through high school
until he tore his shoulder. The journey of author Edgar Scott is one of
success despite adversity.
In the near future the planet is covered in snow. Nobody knows why. A group of people are living inside a military facility that was designed to be self sustaining and can last forever. So long as the food doesn’t run out. Captain Alec Winter is among the people trying to survive and they will all be tested with the arrival of two strangers and something lurking in the shadows of the storm. Alec will have the fight for his life and everyone that he cares about. He just has to avoid becoming the very thing that threatens everyone’s survival.
I was born in Rocksprings Wyoming, but grew up in various parts of Utah, from Provo to Brigham City. By the time I was in 4th grade was when I moved to Brigham and stayed there until after high school and I left to pursue my own life. I’ve always had a love for writing and knew it was what I wanted to do. I also love sports, played most of them throughout school and still try and play basketball when I can. I love the outdoors, going hiking and camping and would spend every day on a lake if I could. I love my family. My wife Amanda is a wonderful, hardworking mother that still manages to be in school, work as a teacher and still provides time for our children. I have three amazing boys, Kaden, Ryder and Maverick. Nothing brings me more joy than seeing them grow and getting to have fun with them. I love dogs and my Dog Mya was my inspiration for the dog in Black Winter. I owe everything I have to my parents for teaching me hard work and the value of a family. I’m forever grateful for the blessings in my life and I look forward to what the future will bring to me and my family.
I was born in Brigham City, Utah. I have lived in several states but Utah is my home. Reading and writing has always been a big part of my life. I used reading to escape from a lot of things when I was growing up. I also have played sports my whole life. I grew up playing football and basketball, and still play basketball whenever I can. I love everything outdoors whether it is hiking, camping, golfing, or fishing. Being able to get out into the wildlife and smell the fresh air is something my wife Sarah and I love to share together. We both love dogs and love our dog Kumba.
She would do anything for her kids. When she learns the planet is in grave danger, can she save it to protect her descendants?
Ava Andrews puts family above all. Still grieving after her brother’s shocking murder years before, the mother of four is nervous when her husband’s new job relocates them from Arizona to Texas. And when her elderly mom has a stroke back in Phoenix, Ava plunges into a nightmare of visions revealing a dying Earth and her children fighting to survive.
Praying it isn’t too late to reverse course, the determined woman vows to invoke the change needed to ensure a safe future for her offspring. But despite her exhaustive search for answers, she can’t shake the feeling that the solution lies in her own heart.
Can Ava use her foresight to create a world her grandchildren can proudly declare home?
The Call to See is the powerful first book in The Call science fiction series. If you like unique perspectives, advocating for Mother Earth, and family-oriented characters, then you’ll love Sara Enochs’s inspiring tale.
Buy The Call to See to open your eyes to evolve today!
About The Author
SARA ENOCHS is the author of two trilogies, The Code Trilogy: The Code of Destiny, The Code of Dignity, and The Code of Deliverance, and The Core Trilogy: The Core of Knowledge, The Core of Change, and The Core of the Soul, which are the prequels to The Call Trilogy: The Call to See, The Call to be a Tree, and The Call to be Free. She has a warm place in her heart for kids, moms, women’s health, and the environment. She currently lives in Austin, Texas with her family.
In the course of a morning, Dungsten Crease resurrects his neighbor’s dog, is arrested by TSA for carrying a weapon which never existed, and drowns a woman at an airline ticket counter—or could he be hallucinating? In his panic he locks himself in the men’s room of a coffee shop only to find a strange man in cycling togs sharing the space. The lanky intruder claims to be Dungsten’s neurally implanted concierge unit who has two disturbing messages. Dungsten is a Shaper—an obsolete, genetically programmed tool created by a bankrupt galactic corporation to terraform planetary experiences for vacationing clients; and the woman he inadvertently killed at the airport with his Shaper abilities will be the love of his life. Attracting government agents who want to weaponize him and Galactic Business Council assassins who want to terminate him, fear drives the Shaper within to inadvertently bifurcate, a second Dungsten also now running from his pursuers. But bifurcation comes at a price: loss of appetite, swelling of the hands and feet, an erection lasting longer than four hours, loss of bladder control, rectal bleeding, psychosis, convulsions, and sudden death. To pull himself back together and if he’s lucky, survive, he must master his Shaper abilities before he becomes a victim, or worse, accidentally destroys Earth and everyone he loves along with it.
Excerpt
Hiding in the darkness, door locked, he wanted to feel safe, but he couldn’t shake the feeling he wasn’t alone. As if to ward off the demons, he spoke aloud.
“I am not being followed. They don’t even know where I am.”
“Did they get a good look at you?”
A voice, someone else’s voice, had echoed off the bathroom walls.
Dungsten scrambled away in terror, his movement switching the lights back on and revealing the source of the voice. “Aaah! Who the hell are you? How did you get in here?”
His bathroom companion, for lack of a better term, was tall and lean with an Adam’s apple giving his neck the appearance of being double-jointed. He wore a black Rolling Stones “Sticky Fingers” T-shirt, black baggy biking shorts, emerald green leggings covering long, spindly, knobbed-kneed legs, and gold bike shoes. Atop his head sat a red cycling helmet aerodynamically constructed to give the impression of forward motion. The entire ensemble gave him the appearance of a deformed giant leprechaun.
He smiled a big toothy grin. “Calm down.”
Dungsten moved to a corner by the sink, looking to no avail for a weapon.
“Calm down? You pop in here like Captain Picard and I’m supposed to calm down? How did you get in here?”
“You let me in, Dungsten.”
Let him in. No, I didn’t let him in. I’ve been curled up in this bathroom scared shitless. I haven’t moved an inch. “Let you in?”
“Yes.”
“How? And you better do some explaining because, well, my day so far has been off the chart weird. I’ve killed…I think. Yeah, I’ve killed, and I imagine it will be pretty easy to kill again. So, don’t mess with me.”
“Dungsten.” The giant leprechaun balanced against a wall with one hand, grabbing his foot from behind to stretch his quads. “I guess I could say you let me in here with your mind.”
About the Author
Richard Hacker, lives and writes in Seattle, Washington after living many years in Austin, Texas. In addition to the science fiction/fantasy novels, which include The Alchimeía Series, his crime novels ride the thin line between fact and fiction in Texas. Along the way, his writing has been recognized by the Writer’s League of Texas and the Pacific Northwest Writers Association. As a judge in literary contests shuch as PNWA and ChicLit, and as a freelance development editor, he enjoys the opportunity to work with other writers. In addition, he is the Sci-Fi/Fantasy editor for the Del Sol Review. When not writing he’s singing jazz and creating visual art.
Del Sol Press books by Richard Hacker are available at Amazon
Date Published: Initially published on 12.21.12, revised version 03.02.2021
It was meant to be a place where knowledge could be exchanged peacefully between humans and advanced beings who live among the stars.
It was meant to be a place where amazing feats of science could accelerate the evolution of humankind.
Now, lost and forgotten, the isle drifts aimlessly on the fabric of time and space.
Those who linger on Atlantis use her technology to thieve treasure and fuel the ever-growing greed of the population.
Something powerful has been stolen and Atlantis is now treading close to the waters of karma and fate.
Is it too late to change what has been done?
EXCERPT
Even as one of the last war-raging dragons approached Oberon, he lingered in the vast canyon of his thoughts. She slithered up to him, raised her head and arched her neck, ready to fire. The stream of fire, hotter than magma, shot at him with deadly accuracy.
“Oh no, you don’t!” Campanula shouted as she sprinted toward the conflict. The displaced sand shot up with force as she dug her knee in the beach for support. Aiming the hand cannon steadily with both hands, she fired a warning shot across the dragon’s nose.
Though it was just a graze, the pain was searing hot to the dragon, and it had bought Oberon some time to roll out of the way. The dragon had an overprotective mate who butted in, and with his gauntlet, he shoved Campanula so hard that he threw her into a nearby tree. She laid in the cold, wet sand trying to catch the breath that escaped her lungs. The male dragon went in for the kill. Getting up onto his feet, Oberon left his thoughts to save his friend. With all of his might, Oberon summoned strength into his hands, formed an energy blast and launched it at the dragon. The blow sent the dragon into a cluster of ice-glazed trees toward the inland far past Campanula, which was dangerously close to the death. The dragon tumbled out of the trees and landed on his back in the melting snow. He sat there taking a moment to collect himself.
“Enough!” Oberon shouted almost as if he was a drunken, old, bitter man. Even his body movements were jerky as he stumbled around. “We didn’t kill your children. Those responsible are dead. Just leave us alone!” He fell to knees out of exhaustion. Campanula rushed to his side.
Campanula knew what his anger really stemmed from. “You can’t give up. Your family is out there. I know it!” Oberon didn’t seem to care what she had to say. He was so worn out that he did a face plant. “Oberon, look, you have got to see this!”
Oberon raised his head, and through sand-covered eyes, he saw a band of rainbow light, almost like the northern lights, fly from Mt. Caspen headed to the shore. Surely it was his wife accompanied by the Bennu. From his left, there came a bright white flash. When he looked over, he saw his daughter and her friends fall on their butts in the sand.
About The Author
M. Arcturus was born and raised in the Midwest. Yearning to break free from a mundane life, she writes after hours hoping that one day her life will be launched in a whole new direction. Even though her stories are immersed in fiction, she dedicates a lot of time in researching science and history to create believable events and environments to assist the reader along their journey within her books.
Atlantis: City of Mages is her first published book; however, her poetry has been published in several publications such as: 2005 Labours of Love by Noble House Publishers Poetry Division, 2003 Gardens of Youth by The International Library of Poetry, and 1999 Poetic Voices of America by Sparrowgrass Poetry Forum. She is currently working on the sequel to Atlantis as well as another science fiction book, a poetry book, and a children’s book.
Her greatest aspiration is for her books to stir the imagination in others and even create a bit of controversy. She wants her readers to form their own ideas surrounding the topics she writes about. She believes that every point of view has the ability to expand knowledge and spur people into action to follow their dreams and pursue their personal truth.
When she is not writing on her books, you can find her on paranormal investigations, painting, working on her photography skills, and seeking new adventures.
In this city, holo ads lumber like neon giants seeking advertising targets. Men and women pop Oracle tabs in search of relief or enlightenment or both. Creatures of unknown origin stalk the darkest alleys. In the center of it all, NexDev Tower looms over the city, home to hundreds of floors of top-secret research.
And in its shadow, Shan Hayes kills people for money.
Rejecting the mechanical enhancements so popular in DevTown, Shan needs only two things: The resynth serum that can reshape her body’s entire cellular structure, and her hand-cannon containing a sentient parasite capable of converting her blood into weaponized wasps.
As a hired gun for various crime syndicates, there’s little of the city’s underbelly Shan hasn’t encountered. But when a longtime business associate hires her to track down an underling who’s vanished into the neon night, Shan finds DevTown still holds secrets more deadly and terrifying than anything she could imagine.
About The Author
Taylor Hohulin is a radio personality by morning, a science fiction author by afternoon, and asleep by 9:30. He is the author of The Marian Trilogy, Tar, Your Best Apocalypse Now, and other genre-bending stories. He lives in West Des Moines, Iowa with his wife, where they are owned by two cats and a dog.
Date Published:Initially published on 12.21.12, revised version 03.02.2021
It was meant to be a place where knowledge could be exchanged peacefully between humans and advanced beings who live among the stars.
It was meant to be a place where amazing feats of science could accelerate the evolution of humankind.
Now, lost and forgotten, the isle drifts aimlessly on the fabric of time and space.
Those who linger on Atlantis use her technology to thieve treasure and fuel the ever-growing greed of the population.
Something powerful has been stolen and Atlantis is now treading close to the waters of karma and fate.
Is it too late to change what has been done?
TEASER
I still remember the fall of the Empire. We didn’t have streets paved with gold nor the fountain of youth, but we had corruption and ill-fated greed. In ignorance, we blamed a traveler for the ruin of our culture, when we should have taken the blame for our own destruction. The traveler was never the destroyer we made her out to be. Instead, she was a much-needed outside voice whispering in our ears. She came to us when we were already deep in an era of decay, which sadly drowned her message below the cries of the community. Juron knew where we were headed, yet he pretended to be like us, blind to the situation. He used the traveler as a scapegoat and we, not fully seeing the picture, clung onto the fearful beliefs of the masses. Now, I openly admit that I was wrong, and to the generations henceforth, I want all to know…I’m sorry, Giséi…I’m sorry.
About The Author
M. Arcturus was born and raised in the Midwest. Yearning to break free from a mundane life, she writes after hours hoping that one day her life will be launched in a whole new direction. Even though her stories are immersed in fiction, she dedicates a lot of time in researching science and history to create believable events and environments to assist the reader along their journey within her books.
Atlantis: City of Mages is her first published book; however, her poetry has been published in several publications such as: 2005 Labours of Love by Noble House Publishers Poetry Division, 2003 Gardens of Youth by The International Library of Poetry, and 1999 Poetic Voices of America by Sparrowgrass Poetry Forum. She is currently working on the sequel to Atlantis as well as another science fiction book, a poetry book, and a children’s book.
Her greatest aspiration is for her books to stir the imagination in others and even create a bit of controversy. She wants her readers to form their own ideas surrounding the topics she writes about. She believes that every point of view has the ability to expand knowledge and spur people into action to follow their dreams and pursue their personal truth.
When she is not writing on her books, you can find her on paranormal investigations, painting, working on her photography skills, and seeking new adventures.
Linh Cinder was adopted by her father who has perished, but her stepmother and two step sisters who typically treat her with disdain. Cinder has a booth at the market where she repairs bots, droids, anything mechanical. but when another fall ill at the market with the plague, her life pivots again. She finds herself being sought out by Prince Kai who needs his android repaired and after seeking all avenues he asks Cinder for help. There is banter and Cinder finds herself enjoying Kai’s company but could he really be interested in her? She is a cyborg and after her sister falls ill she begins to unravel secrets about her past that could destroy everything she knows. With a ball on the horizon and a war pending with the Queen Levana who puts on an air of disdain to everyone she meets but there is so much more to the Queen then anyone could imagine.
This was wonderful. I had put off reading this one because I wanted to savor the story and this exceeded all expectations I had. Cinder is a wonderfully unique character and I wanted more. I thought the way this author wrote this story was breathtaking. You can visualize every moment of this book and I so hope this becomes a series or movie. Exceptional.
In the year 2163 a corrupt World Government controls everything on our planet and beyond.
Sixteen year-old Sierra has been so caught up in her own world of saving animal test subjects and her father’s disappearance, she hasn’t paid much attention. When she finally finds his location, she and her friend set off on a covert interplanetary mission to rescue him, she begins to see the corruption first hand.
Discovering that her father has been on the front lines secretly trying to save human test subjects inspires her to join a revolution. But she is afraid of the collateral damage of hurting the people she loves. Will she find the strength to make a deal with the mad scientist Cromwell to save not just her friends and family but everyone?
Excerpt
To make a smoke bomb all you need is potassium nitrate, sugar, water and a fuse. Programming holograph messaging to be ‘smoke screen projection only’ is much more difficult. It’s a digital version of invisible ink and completely security cam resistant. I pull up Yesha’s incoming call. The smoke allows her image to take shape and it almost feels like she’s in the room with me.
“I can’t believe you talked me into this, you little gomer.”
Yesha frequently begins conversations in the middle, no introduction or formal interrogation into my life. I think that’s why I like her.
“It didn’t take much to convince you.”
“Did you receive the package?”
I hold up the box addressed to me, Sierra, but I’ve removed the contents.
“Yep, right here, see.”
Yesha’s laugh is like a chorus of toads with hiccups. Her image vibrates on the smoke.
“That’s only the box, you drone bug!”
“I know.”
I hold up the syringes that had been inside the box.
“Be careful with those. Check the labels.”
I roll a syringe in my hands like Kitchen, one of our home bots, does with pretzel dough.
“One says healing serum, which I asked for. Why does the other say anti?”
“Backup. You always need an emergency abort mission option.”
“All right. Thanks!”
Yesha interrupts before I collapse the projection.
“Just be sure not to give the anti if you haven’t given the original serum.”
After she’s gone, I look at my subject.
I shouldn’t be doing this, but I find the koala’s eyes drawing me in like a poli-magno crash about to happen. It’s impossible to turn away.
The Science Olympiad team’s going to put me on probation again, which stinks since they’re the only local, human friends I have.
Following protocol gets us nowhere, however.
Mom’s going to be agitated because this isn’t the first time I’ve broken the rules.
I guide the koala out of the cage, leaving her brothers inside. I have to shake off feelings of jealousy. I don’t have any siblings.
“Why ya look so sad?”
Uplifting experiments have given us animals who speak. “Why do you look so sad, Eucarpo?”
The koala glances back at her brothers and then her eyes look up at me past her round, stub nose, and adorable ears. The sensation of an infant wrapping tiny fingers around mine envelops me. I can’t let them endure more unethical testing just so we can have the best DNA combination. I was okay with the testing when the purpose was to help those that were sick and it was beneficial to the koala species, but I can’t stomach testing these sweet things just for superficial reasons.
“Hate leaving ‘em behind.”
“They’re going after you if this works.”
“What ya mean, if?”
“Healing adaptation experiments have just begun.”
“But ya aced the test?”
“Well, yeah, but that was just practice. This is the first time I’ve used it on a living being. Don’t worry, it should all go as planned. I’m just being paranoid.”
It would be nice if I could stop blabbering when I’m nervous. Sometimes you just have to go for it and see where the cards fall. That was something my dad used to say. Before he disappeared, he used to tell me lots of things. He’s been gone almost a decade, but I might as well as have “Missing Dad” tattooed on my forehead.
“Ya paranoid? Ne’er!”
As she raises the fur above her eyes, I scratch behind her ear, and she leans into it like a bear scratching its back on a tree trunk. Her fur is soft as manufactured silk charmeuse.
“Ah yeah, right dere.”
“You sure you’re ready for this?”
“It gets us closer to freedom, so I been ready a long time.”
She takes another glance at her brothers, and I pick up the syringe with self-healing serum. I begin the sedation process as no one wants to be awake when artery lining fortifies, muscles pull with new agility, and brain tissue encases itself with a biting, thin metal sheet. Another reason I’m jealous of Eucarpo is that she responds to sedation, and I don’t.
As Eucarpo drifts into a peaceful sleep, I look out the school windows and see only the steel and glass of surrounding buildings. Their reflections mirror the sky. Today the unending blue gives the impression of being in the middle of the sea. On gray days, it’s as if I’ve been swallowed by thunderclouds. I can only imagine how green fields would look. People used to love the smell of fresh-cut grass. That was before an asteroid broke through the atmosphere damaging our ecosystem and killing all plants, causing our world to work together to save Earth and its remaining, limited vegetation. The only vegetation left is kept in guarded areas and labs.
I think I can hear the machines used to keep the atmosphere from collapsing but the sound isn’t right. Instead of a hum, I hear iron clanging. The serum glides through the syringe into Eucarpo and her breathing intensifies as the cells within her body multiply. No, that isn’t the machines. It’s locker doors slamming, followed by footsteps of someone coming down the hall. No one should be here now. They should all be at the assembly that I’m skipping. I must finish before anyone else arrives. I look at the oxygen and pulse readings, cringing with every spike. It feels like an hour passes as I look at the screens, but I know it’s only been seconds. I count breaths and clock ticks, staring at Eucarpo’s oxygen and platelet numbers rising.
“Come on, the science minds keep refreshments in here.”
I think I recognize the voice coming down the hall. Every muscle in my body wants to stiffen, but I can’t freeze now.
Luckily, the serum is fast acting and Eucarpo’s readings are settling. I inject the awakening treatment and then I throw the syringes and all remaining evidence into the incinerator. The burning and sanitizing process will turn these things into energy or something else useful. Eucarpo stirs a little when I hear the door sensor click.
As the voltball captain and visual arts queen walk in, I step in front of Eucarpo.
“Look, we found someone avoiding the assembly,” Milcah says as she nudges Danver in the ribs with her elbow.
About The Author
Stephanie Hansen is a PenCraft Award Winning Author. Her novella series, Altered Helix, released 2020. Her short story, Break Time, and poetry has been featured in Mind’s Eye literary magazine. The Kansas Writers Association published her short story, Existing Forces, appointing her as a noted author. She has held a deep passion for writing since early childhood, but a brush with death caused her to allow it to grow. She’s part of an SCBWI critique group in Lawrence, KS and two local book clubs. She attends many writers’ conferences including the Writing Day Workshops, New York Pitch, Penned Con, New Letters, All Write Now, Show Me Writers Master Class, BEA, and Nebraska Writers Guild conference as well as Book Fairs and Comic-Cons. She is a member of the deaf and hard of hearing community.
The Jade Talisman Alanna Mackenzie (The Jade Chronicles, #2) Publication date: March 2021 Genres: Adult, Dystopian, Fantasy, Science Fiction
A talisman. A song. A story about time itself, as it moves through each winding branch in the tree of life.
It is the year 2762 in the Empire of Khalendar, and AI Masters rule the civilized world, striving to crush all dissent. But they have not yet managed to quell the Jade Rebellion or its leader, Walter Saltanetska. The Jade Queen, once a prison ship commandeered by the AI Masters, is now a rebel stronghold. Walter and his companions have sailed all the way to Vei’arash, a lush island reputedly home to exiled dissidents and evil shamans. Their mission is to fulfill a pact with their Mage allies—to find animal spirits exiled to Vei’arash long ago by the AI Masters.
As the rebels plunge deeper into the jungle, physical laws are upended. The plants and animals of the rainforest are inextricably linked to divine beings. The most powerful of these beings entrusts Walter with an enchanted gemstone, the Jade Talisman, that warps the basic rules of time and space.
The Talisman allows Walter to gaze into a mesmerizing labyrinth of future possibilities. But the visions it offers up are troublingly dark, giving Walter insight into the deepest recesses of the human soul. While he needs to remain emotionally distant from them, he cannot. The people in these visions are not strangers, but Walter and his loved ones. This gift proves to be a crushing burden, and Walter desperately longs for an ordinary life. But there is no going back…
The gripping sequel to The Jade Rebellion, The Jade Talisman is a tribute to the perseverance of spirituality in a world dominated by the cold logic of artificial intelligence.
Alanna Mackenzie lives in Vancouver, Canada. She holds degrees in History, French studies, and Law from the University of British Columbia. An environmentalist at heart, she believes in using the law as a tool for social and environmental change. When she is not pursuing that passion, she can be found brainstorming the next chapter in her novels, playing Irish fiddle tunes on the violin, and hiking West Coast trails.
Musings From An Addicted Reader 