Video Games Fiction

December 2559. Humanity has its back against the wall after the United Nations Space Command flagship Infinity drops out of slipspace into a devastating ambush launched by the Banished. As this fierce enemy alliance seeks to claim a mysterious object hidden within the ancient Forerunner construct known as Zeta Halo, the surviving UNSC corps finds itself compromised and its leadership out of reach—with remaining personnel forced to abandon ship and take their chances on the fractured, unpredictable surface of the Halo ring.

A mysterious terrorist organisation has carried out several attacks against the Federation and Klingon Empire. Tensions are running high in a region already crippled by conflict. The perpetrators are tracked to the Lembatta Cluster, a mysterious region of space whose inhabitants, the Renao, regard the Alpha Quadrant s powers as little more than conquering tyrants. The Federation are desperate to prevent more bloodshed, and have sent their most powerful warship, the USS Prometheus, into the Cluster to investigate the threat before all-consuming war breaks out.

As the Jedi and the Republic focus on internal struggles, a new threat surfaces beyond the farthest reaches of the Outer Rim. An enemy appears from outside known space, bearing weapons and technology unlike anything New Republic scientists have ever seen. Suddenly, Luke, Mara, Leia, Han Solo, and Chewbacca, along with their children, are thrust again into battle. But this time, all their courage, sacrifice, and even the power of the Force itself, may not be enough.

Brave heroes have banded together to take a perilous journey through the war-torn Overworld to defeat the Arch-Illager and his formidable army. But how did that army come to be? And just where did the Arch-Illager come from? The terrible truth behind the Arch-Illager is that he never asked for ultimate power. Known as Archie, this little Illager is bullied by his fellow Illagers and mistrusted by fearful Villagers. Archie only ever wanted a place to call home, but he finds himself shunned by all. He stumbles upon a dark cavern - with a sinister secret waiting inside.

Adrian Monk is horrified when he learns there's going to be a blue flu in San Francisco. He doesn't understand what the blue flu is - but it sounds terrible. Captain Stottlemeyer explains that it's not really a virus: the police force plan to call in "sick" until they get a better contract. The good news is that the labor dispute will give Monk a chance to get back on the force. The bad news is, it means he'll be a "scab" - and he doesn't like the sound of that, either.

Mal and the crew take receipt of a sealed crate that they are being paid to transport to Badger, no questions asked. Yet once their cargo is safely stowed aboard, River insists Mal should "space" it out of the airlock, for it contains, she insists, ghosts.

It's 2526. It has been almost a year since humanity engaged in its destructive first contact with a theocratic military alliance of alien races known as the Covenant. Now, the hostilities have led to open war, and the United Nations Space Command understands virtually nothing about its new enemy. The UNSC’s only hope lies with the Spartans: enhanced super-soldiers trained from childhood via a clandestine black-ops project to be living weapons. But not everyone wants the Spartans to succeed.

As kids, the three of them were inseparable; as soldiers, they would be torn apart. Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago fought alongside Dom’s elder brother Carlos at Aspho Fields in the epic battle that changed the course of the Pendulum Wars. There’s a new war to fight now, a war for mankind’s very survival. But while the last human stronghold on Sera braces itself for another onslaught from the Locust Horde, ghosts come back to haunt Marcus and Dom.

On a return trip from Germany, Monk and Natalie stop over in Paris. They visit the catacombs - a vast, underground cavern in the center of the city, lined with millions of ancient human bones. Monk picks up a skull and announces that this person was murdered - by a modern weapon made in the last few years. He thinks someone hid a recent murder victim among the old bones.

Captain Leland Stottlemayer is faced with budget cuts and trims Monk's services as an expense. Though he insists it's nothing personal, when Monk's offers to help for no charge are declined, he and Natalie suspect otherwise. But Monk is too compulsive to stop investigating. So when Stottlemayer is arrested for the killing of another cop with overwhelming evidence against him, he must turn to the only detective who can prove his innocence.

More than thirty years ago, Star Wars burst onto the big screen and became a cultural phenomenon. Now the next adventures in this blockbuster saga are poised to captivate old and new fans alike—beginning with the highly anticipated Star Wars: The Force Awakens. And alongside the cinematic debut comes the thrilling novel adaptation by New York Times bestselling science fiction master Alan Dean Foster.

Imagine a Britain stripped of democracy, a world of the not-too-distant future in which freedom has been surrendered willingly to a totalitarian regime which rose to power by exploiting the people's worst fears and most damning weaknesses.

No war can last forever. Now, in the long and punishing battle between the defiant champions of the New Jedi Order and the juggernaut that is the Galactic Alliance, the endgame is finally at hand.

Adrian Monk is actually doing well lately. He's solving murders as fast as they come, and he's been noticeably less compulsive - he doesn't count his morning Wheat Chex until they're in the bowl. Progress is progress, and Monk knows he owes it all to his therapist, Dr. Kroger. So when Dr. Kroger attends a conference in Germany, Monk ends up in trouble. He can't tie his shoes, forgets how to swallow, and loses track of his blinking. Desperate to regain his footing, Monk follows his shrink to Germany. And that's where Monk sees the man across a crowded town square.

After a brutal fifteen-year war for survival, the Coalition of Ordered Governments is forced to destroy mankind’s last city in a final bid to stop the Locust Horde. As the survivors flee Jacinto, they must contend with the last of the Locust, bent on vengeance, as they struggle to stay alive in an icy wilderness. Marcus Fenix, Dom Santiago, and their fellow Gears fight to get Jacinto’s refugees to a safe haven, but find themselves in a lawless new world where the enemy is human—and as desperate and dangerous as any grub.

Fox Mulder and Dana Scully are still reeling from the death of their son William, but cautiously joyous about Scully’s unexpected pregnancy. Determined to raise this child together, Mulder and Scully struggle to find meaning away from the X-Files as they navigate the uncertain waters of their relationship.

One hundred thousand years ago, the galaxy was populated by a great variety of beings. But one species - eons beyond all others in both technology and knowledge - achieved dominance. They ruled in peace but met opposition with quick and brutal effectiveness. They were the Forerunners - the keepers of the Mantle of Responsibility, the next stage of life in the Universe’s Living Time. And then they vanished. This is their story.

It’s 1988 and Dexter Mayhew and Emma Morley have only just met. But after only one day together, they cannot stop thinking about one another. Over twenty years, snapshots of that relationship are revealed on the same day—July 15th—of each year. Dex and Em face squabbles and fights, hopes and missed opportunities, laughter and tears. And as the true meaning of this one crucial day is revealed, they must come to grips with the nature of love and life itself.

When 14-year-old Padmé Naberrie wins the election for queen of Naboo, she adopts the name Amidala and leaves her family to the rule from the royal palace. To keep her safe and secure, she'll need a group of skilled handmaidens who can be her assistants, confidantes, defenders, and decoys. Each girl is selected for her particular talents, but it will be up to Padmé to unite them as a group. When Naboo is invaded by forces of the Trade Federation, Queen Amidala and her handmaidens will face the greatest test - of themselves and of each other.

Showcasing the best of Ernest Hemingway’s short stories including his well-known classics - as featured in the magnificent three-part, six-hour PBS documentary by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick - this new collection is introduced by award-winning author Tobias Wolff.