Science Fiction Monsters

I’m getting married today, and I’m so freaking depressed. My bridal gown is exquisite. The ring is enormous. But my groom is evil personified, and I’m being forced into this doomed marriage. I’m seconds from breaking into a full-on ugly cry. And right then, as if by magic, the church doors burst open. Women scream and children scramble as a huge, satanic-looking alien stomps down the aisle, flicking his tail, flashing flames, and wreaking chaos in his wake. He’s looking right at me. “Charlotte Cruz?"

Emiko Soong, newly minted Sentinel of San Francisco, just can't catch a break. Just after she becomes the guardian for a sentient city, a murder strikes close to home. Called by the city and one of the most powerful clans to investigate, she traces the killer whose scent signature bears a haunting similarity to her mother’s talent.

Malem's back, and he's free of Vorgon and all things demon. It's time to enjoy the fruits of his labor. His newly acquired army is building a city for him and his companions in the forest. He hasn't figured out how he's going to pay his soldiers, but he's confident things will work out. He has a few princesses and queens serving on his personal advisory board, after all, and they have some experience in nation building (among other special talents). He also has a couple of new women who've recently joined his team, and they need to be brought up to speed in more ways than one.

Treasure hunters and protectors of the Overworld, Noah and Violet stumble upon a chest in a jungle temple. The treasure chest includes a rare enchantment book that can make diamond swords and armor extremely powerful. Daniel, who runs the powerful league of griefers, wants the enchantment book for himself. Noah and Violet have to battle the league of griefers, including the tricky and powerful rainbow griefers.

Gray Lexly, son of a candlemaker, wants to escape his life of old-world technologies and study at the prestigious Astra Academy, a school for arcanists—those who can wield magic. But Gray has a major problem. Every night, as he sleeps, he's visited by monsters. When they injure Gray in his dreams, he wakes with the same wounds in real life . . . On the night Gray might finally die in his nightmares, he is saved by the kind and mysterious Professor Helmith, a powerful arcanist. She offers to protect Gray and invites him to attend Astra Academy.

Will refused to admit to the HR lady at Radical Interactive that he'd never played their debut virtual reality MMORPG The Realm. With the company's failed attempt at entering the gaming industry, they switched their sights to focus on smaller scale educational programs. Being a beta tester for Radical Interactive was not the dream job that Will had envisioned, but he had hoped it would get his foot in the door to one day becoming a graphic designer for the company. He never realized that he was literally signing his life away.

Earth as Riven knew it has merged with Zazir and Elhisterii to form the post-apocalyptic creation of the Elysium known as Panu. Here, errant goblins and vulnerable elves battle it out, ungodly monsters spawn like crazy, suicide zombies run wild, and the streets are strewn with human remains. On a mission to find his sister, Allie—out there somewhere battling her own demons—Riven quickly learns that every time he kills his bloodlust only increases, bringing him ever closer to becoming a full-blown harbinger of doom. But maybe a vampiric hero is just what this mad new world needs.

Malem is emperor. He has an army of monsters at his command, and a harem of beautiful women at his beck and call. He should be happy. And yet he is restless. He yearns for the nomadic existence he left behind...the laid-back days spent roaming the countryside, sleeping under the stars, free of the burdens of rule. Careful what you wish for.... When an old friend flees Malem's kingdom, bringing with him the secret to escaping the demon that binds Malem forever, our restless emperor must pursue.

Every night, Adachi transforms into a nightmarish creature--and every morning, he reverts to human form. When he encounters his ostracized classmate Yano Satsuki in his monstrous state, the two develop a peculiar bond. But daylight brings its own form of terrors. Which is worse, the monsters at night, or the cruel realities of the classroom by day?

Jodie loves visiting her grandparents' farm. Okay, so it's not the most exciting place in the world. Still, Grandpa tells great scary stories. And Grandma's chocolate chip cookies are the best. But this summer the farm has really changed. The cornfields are sparse. Grandma and Grandpa seem worn out. And the single scarecrow has been replaced by twelve evil-looking ones. Then one night Jodie sees something really odd. The scarecrows seem to be moving. Twitching on their stakes. Coming alive...

Zak Nine has been captured and placed in Planet Alcatraz's "Monster Zoo." But this isn't any ordinary zoo. This zoo holds dozens of alien "monsters" who are forced to fight for the entertainment of the prison planet's owners.

His name is Taylor McFadden, survivor of eighty-three trips into the ZOO. Now he's retired, and yet his country still needs his skills to save people in the country he calls home.

Dr. Warthrop is a scientist who tracks and studies real-life monsters. Assisted by his 12-year-old apprentice, Will Henry, Dr. Warthrop discovers a pod of Anthropophagi and launches a hunt to destroy the foul beasts.

Contains books 1 and 2 of Master of Monsters: Lord of Flesh and Baron of Hearts. The Isles are a brutal, nasty place and the capital city, Ansiri, is no exception. Its nobility is rife with infighting, nonhuman races are cruelly enslaved, and violence is the primary currency. It's those very things that Baron Leo VanOrden plans to exploit.

Chris is the guy Cosette always wanted. Fun. Funny. Lighthearted and sweet. Chris always manages to find beauty and laughter, even when fighting a chapel full of demons. He's exactly what she needs. Except he's a werewolf and she's a member of the Lunar Court—the only fey court that holds sway over the werewolves. Even on his best day, Chris isn't strong enough to last a few hours in the Lunar Court without becoming a slave. No matter how much Cosette's heart wants him, she knows she has to let him go.

Zelli Stormclash and the Danger Club have only one goal: save their friend Bauble from the evil clutches of Elgred Morbide. There’s only one problem—the evil machinations of Morbide’s selfish plots have come to a head, and the final battle for Dungeon Academy has already begun. Deep beneath the desert, a monstrous dracolich is about to be unleashed, an evil, undead dragon bent on revenge against everything in her path.

Twelve-year-old Octavia grew up believing the town of Vittoria was the only one left in the world. The sole survivors of a deadly magical war and plague, the people of Vittoria know there’s no one alive outside the town walls - except the terrible monsters that prowl the forest. But then the impossible happens: Octavia meets another girl beyond the walls, someone who isn’t Vittorian. Everything she’s ever believed is thrown into question, and there’s no going back.

After escaping her kidnappers and destroying the black market where she was held captive, all Nita wants is to find a way to live her life without looking over her shoulder. But with a video of her ability to self-heal all over the dark web, Nita knows she's still a prime target on the black market. There's only one way to keep herself safe. Nita must make herself so feared that no one would ever dare come after her again. And the best way to start building her reputation? Take her revenge on Fabricio, the boy who sold Nita to her kidnappers.

Some days I wake up and can't believe that I'm on Sel'Ani. I can't believe that I'm here and that I've fallen in love with the man from my dreams. I can't believe that I said yes to marrying him and becoming the High Queen of the Aunare. I want to stay in bed with him all day where we're safe from everything else that's happening, but saying yes and being in love with Lorne didn't make all our problems disappear. The Aunare don't understand what SpaceTech is capable of.

"You should be here; he's simply magnificent." These are the final words a biologist hears before his Margaret Mead-like wife dies at the hands of Godzilla. The words haunt him as he studies the kaiju (Japan's giant monsters) on an island reserve, attempting to understand the beauty his wife saw. Every story in the collection turns to the fantastic, the mysticism of the past, and the absurdities of the future to illuminate the spaces we occupy when we are at our most vulnerable."