Oil. The Americas have it. The United States of Europe needs it. Without oil, all hope by the time traveling town of Grantville, West Virginia to bring science and industry into the heart of a European continent still crawling out of the Dark Ages is lost. Enter Lieutenant-Commander Eddie Cantrell, daring up-time commander of this venture into western oceans. But Cantrell’s plans could be wrecked in a multitude of ways. The Spanish are after him, and there are other enemies with even fewer scruples determined to hang the commander from a yardarm.

Get the 1636: Commander Cantrell in the West Indies eARC here.

In the year 2035 space exploration is a reality, and the first manned mission to Mars is away. Sending humans into space is risky—but are the risks worth it? The astronauts and mission specialists of the Arrow—a crew set to be the first humans on Mars—think so. But powerful political forces on Earth disagree, and they'll use any mishap to prove their point. And when a fluke collision hobbles the ship, it's not only the lives of the crew that hang in the balance, but the future of manned space exploration itself!

Read the Rescue Mode eARC here.

The land of Kothifir’s proud towers are falling. In order to save the present, Jame, Kencyrath heir doomed to stalk the gods, must search the past, be it fifteen years ago when her brother Tori arrived in Kothifir, or three thousand years ago when the Wastes were a great sea ringed with rich civilizations. Somehow, Tori survived. Somehow, the cities of the plain were destroyed in one catastrophic night.

Get the The Sea of Time eARC here.

Tamara Welder has made a life for herself on the planet commonly known as Funhouse. Performing stage magic in one of the smaller casinos isn’t a glamorous life, but it is an honest one, and as Tam is fond of saying “Outworlders know how to get by.” Thinking that the psychic “ping” she recently felt is a gambler trying to gain an unfair advantage, Tam calls the authorities. But Dr. Trevor Jamieson doesn’t act like a cop, and soon Tam begins to suspect that the good doctor is not really on Funhouse to investigate a card cheat, but something much more sinister. All new fiction from Robert Buettner set in the world of Balance Point, out in April from Baen Books.

Read “Magic and Other Honest Lies” now.

NASA has flown rendezvous missions for nearly a half-century. Since Project Gemini, astronauts and mission controllers have safely brought space vehicles together, whether from one country or more, over the earth or the moon, in a matter of hours or of days, all the while making it look as easy as meeting a friend for coffee. So, what does it really take to get a vehicle from the launch pad into orbit and mated safely with another craft, hundreds of miles high traveling at a blistering 18,000 miles per hour?

Sit down, strap in, and hold on. You’re about to learn why it’s called “rocket science.”

Read “Rendezvous and Docking: a User’s Guide for Non-rocket Scientists” Part One by former NASA Space Shuttle mission controller Terry Burlison now.

Your entries for our best Mars joke contest left the Baen staff rolling in the aisles. Narrowing down the side-splitting entries to one winner was no easy task.

Congratulations to Chuck Patten for cracking us up!

And here’s Chuck’s joke:

Q: Why doesn't Mars have a breathable atmosphere? A: Because it was allocated to everyone according to their needs, and Mars is a Red planet...

And congratulations to Richard Brown. Richard is the winner of a signed Trade Secrets poster.

Fascinating conversations with your favorite Baen writers about the books you love. Interviews with David Weber, Eric Flint, Larry Correia, David Drake, Sharon Lee & Steve Miller, Tom Kratman, and many more. Plus the complete audiobook serialization of David Weber’s Shadow of Freedom.

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Don’t forget to check out the Baen new book releases here. Enter the March Contest here. And for upcoming appearances by Baen authors and editors, check here.