ALTRUISTIC SPACE PIRATES, NUCLEAR-POWERED DJINN, A TIME-TRAVELLING KANGEROO—AND MORE . . .

Three complete novels of humorous adventure, one of them a Hugo Award finalist, plus a trio of witty short stories with the distinctive Leinster touch.

* The Pirates of Zan—When a young man is accused and jailed unjustly, he is given a secret offer—in return for help in escaping, he must shake up the galactic establishment, which is getting dangerously set in its ways. He succeeds beyond anyone's wildest expectations, seemingly becoming a space pirate, but being in reality, the deadliest do-gooder in the galaxy.

* Gateway to Elsewhere—Suppose that somewhere the world of the Arabian Nights is real, including very powerful and dangerous djinns, who are nothing like Aladdin's big blue pal. A man from our world wouldn't have a chance against them . . . or would he

* The Duplicators — A planet where everyone has a machine which can duplicate anything would be the wealthiest world in the galaxy, right Wrong. And unless the hapless voyager who's trapped on the planet can find a solution to its problem, his voyaging will be over—permanently.

Plus three short stories, including "A Logic Named Joe," an uncannily prophetic story of home computers and the internet — written in 1946!

"Murray Leinster was not only a very good writer, he was a pioneer. He invented the field of parallel-universe stories with his "Sidewise in Time," and his "First Contact" set the pattern for all the stories that followed of—well—of first contact with alien civilizations. The wondrous thing about his work is that those great, trend-setting stories read as fresh and timely as they did all those years ago." —Frederik Pohl

". . . good stories, marvelously put together. . . . It's a pleasure to watch such a masterly craftsman at work, producing a couple of hours of diverting reading with unfailing skill." —Robert Silverberg

THE FUTURE WILL BE STRANGER THAN YOU CAN IMAGINE . . .

• In a post-apocalyptic world, telepaths are common, but young Starn had no trace of telepathic ability, and was persecuted by those who had the talent—until he discovered he possessed an even more unusual ability.

• A criminal mastermind has been captured by the Space Patrol, and a Patrol ship is carrying him to a prison planet. Escape seems impossible, but he has a secret weapon. It's only water—but water with a very unusual property.

• In the afterlife, it turns out that one's existence is dependent on being remembered by the living. As you are forgotten, you shrink. How do you avoid this? Why, hire an unearthly public relations firm, of course.

These stories and more, including two full-length novels, fill a large volume of entertaining space adventure and humorous fantasy by a writer noted for original ideas developed with a sardonic wit.

"Howard Myers possessed a voice . . . witty and message-rich. . . . His rescue from the moldering pages of Analog and other 'zines of his day is a welcome treat. . . . What Myers might have accomplished with a longer life remains in doubt; the treasures he left behind are incontestable."
— Paul Di Filippo, Sci-Fi.com

Espionage and Intrigue in the
Far Reaches of the Galaxy
from the Creator of Telzey Amberdon
and Trigger Argee

The Galaxy was not a nice neighborhood, and most would have laid bets that the Vegan Confederacy was too small and weak to survive, let along prosper. But prosper it did, to the bewilderment of observers, who didn't know about the Vegans' secret weapon.

Once, the Galactic Empire had spanned the stars and when it crumbled and fell, star systems were isolated, some barely surviving, many becoming tyrannical feifdoms, others turning to piracy, and all of them often at war with each other. The Confederacy didn't have huge space armadas, and millions of troops to protect itself and re-civilize its neighbors, but it did have the Zone agents. Few outside the top echelons of the Confederacy even knew that they existed, and even fewer had an inkling of how the agents time and again could appear on the spot just when a push in the right place could stop a war, topple a despot, or thwart an invasion of unfriendly aliens.

Their numbers were pitifully few, and they had to patrol vast stretches of space. They were helped by their ships, bristling with hidden armament and piloted by robot brains of high intelligence. But their main weapon was that the minds of their opponents were open books to them. Not all of the Agents of Vega were human, but they were the most powerful telepaths the Galaxy had ever known . . .

Publisher's Note: Part of Agent of Vega & Other Stories has previously appeared separately. This is the first expanded, unitary publication.

"Take my advice and buy TWO copies of this book! You'll want to lend it to friends and (trust me on this: I have years of experience to back up the observation) once people get their hands on a Schmitz book, they don't let go!" - Janet Kagan, Hugo-Winner and author of Uhura's Song

"Wonderfully fresh imagination." -The Horn Book

Orkise is loose. The snake-god of plague has been awakened by Lucia del Maino, the bastard daughter of the recently overthrown duke of Milan, Phillipo Visconti. With the venomous magic of Orkise at her command, Lucia plots to marry and then murder the usurper who now rules Milan, the condottiere Carlo Sforza—known to friend and foe alike as the Wolf the North.

Other trouble is brewing as well. Sforza has his own bastard, Benito Valdosta, who is returning to Venice after having conquered the Byzantine empire. Benito has a score to settle with his father, and he will have the help of his half-brother Marco, who is the embodiment of ancient Etruria’s mighty Winged Lion of Saint Mark.

Adding further to Sforza’s predicament, yet another power has entered the fray. The terrifying sorcerer Count Mindaug has decided to settle in Milan. Will he ally with Sforza, or oppose him? Either will bring trouble, for if Mindaug aids the usurper he will arouse the fury of the Holy Roman Empire and the Knights of the Holy Trinity. Both of those great forces have sworn to destroy Mindaug and anyone who shelters him.

On his side, Sforza has only the skill and cunning of his physician, Francisco Turner—who is on good terms with the Valdosta brothers and may be able to neutralize Venetian hostility. But even if he can, will that be enough to save the Wolf of the North? For out there in the countryside of northern Italy, Orkise is uncoiling all the plagues of hell.

ALIEN MINDS BATTLE 
FOR BYZANTIUM

In northern India the Malwa have created an empire of unexampled evil. Guided or possessed by an intelligence from beyond time, with new weapons, old treachery, and an implacable will to power, the Malwa will sweep over the whole Earth. Only three things stand between the Malwa and their plan of eternal domination: the empire of Rome in the East, Byzantium; a crystal with vision; and a man named Belisarius, the greatest commander Earth has ever know. . . .

Two complete novels in one volume—
the beginning of the Belisarius saga.

An Oblique Approach: In northern India the Malwa have created an empire of unexampled evil. Guided or possessed by an intelligence from beyond time, with new weapons, old treachery, and an implacable will to power, the Malwa will sweep over the whole Earth. Only three things stand between the Malwa and their plan of eternal domination: the empire of Rome in the East, Byzantium; a crystal with vision; and a man named Belisarius, the greatest commander Earth has ever known.

In the Heart of Darkness: Having conquered sixth century India, the Malwa Empire is forging the subcontinent's vast population into an invincible weapon of tyranny. Belisarius, the finest general of his age, must save the world. Guided by visions from a future that may never be, he and a band of comrades penetrate the Malwa heartland, seeking the core of the enemy's power. And when Belisarius leads the forces of good, only a fool would side with evil.

Continuing the popular Belisarius saga,
with two full-length novels in one volume.

Destiny's Shield: Evil from beyond time: The Malwa Empire squats like a toad across sixth century India, commanded by ruthless men with depraved appetites. But the thing from the distant future that commands them is far worse. Those who oppose the purulent Hell the Malwa will make of Earth have sent a crystal, Aide, to halt their advance. Aide holds all human knowledge—but cannot act by himself. That requires Count Belisarius, the greatest general fo the age and perhaps of all ages, who must outwit the evil empire—and then, when there is no longer room to maneuver, to meet it sword-edge to sword-edge, lest evil beyond human conception rules the world forever.

Fortune's Stroke: Link, the supercomputer from a future that should not, must not exist has used terror and gunpowder weapons to forge the Malwa Empire on the Indian subcontinent. Aide and Belisarius have led the armies of Byzantium and blunted the first assault of the Malwa hordes. Now he and his allies from all the world face overwhelming numbers in a ring that tightens about them. The armies of Good and Evil gathered on the fertile plains of Mesopotamia will decide the fate of the world—and the fate of all the future.

Next

Concluding the popular Belisarius saga,
with two full-length novels in one volume:

The Tide of Victory: The creators of the monster called Link once were human, but that was distant ages in their past. Now, from the far future, they have sent their creation back to rule the Malwa Empire, then to conquer and shape the world of the sixth century A.D. into the form that will make their own foul existence possible. Those in the future who never were human have sent their own messenger to the past: Aide, a gleaming jewel who has come to Belisarius, the greatest general of the sixth century and perhaps any century. Between them they have forged an alliance of all the world against the evil fro the far future—and an army that can be the spear through evil's heart.

The Dance of Time: The Malwa and their evil have been driven back to their Indian heartland, but there they coil to strike again. Ruled by a monster from the future that is part computer and part demon, they prepare a fresh attack whose success will leave them rulers of the world—and the monster that guides the Malwa will rule the whole future. Guided by Aide, Belisarius has arrayed the forces of Mankind against the Malwa evil. There is no hope for Mankind if he fails—so he must not fail! The triumphant conclusion of the Belisarius saga. 

About the Authors

Eric Flint is the co-author of three New York Times best sellers in his "Ring of Fire" alternate history series. His first novel for Baen, Mother of Demons, was picked by Science Fiction Chronicle as a best novel of the year. His 1632, which launched the Ring of Fire series, won widespread critical praise, as from Publishers Weekly, which called him "an SF author of particular note, one who can entertain and edify in equal, and major, measure." A longtime labor union activist with a master's degree in history, he currently resides in northwest Indiana with his wife Lucille.

 David Drake is one of the grand masters of military science fiction, known for his best-selling Hammer's Slammers series and many other novels. A Vietnam veteran, he employs his first-hand experience with the military life and combat to give his work the vivid images and feel of battle that have won him a huge readership. He was attending Duke University Law School when he was drafted. Upon his return from the U.S. Army, he completed his law degree at Duke and was for eight years Assistant Town Attorney for Chapel Hill, North Carolina. A full-time writer since 1981, his other books for Baen include the RCN-Leary series, the latest being In the Stormy Red Sky, and the Belisarius series, written in collaboration with Eric Flint, the fourth and fifth novels of which are now combined in this volume.

Now with new prose material and art!

Paradigms Shift, Worlds Collide!

A daring and resourceful paleontologist uncovers something at the infamous K-T boundary marking the end of dinosaurs in the fossil record something big, dangerous, and absolutely, categorically impossible. It's a find that will catapult her to the Martian moon Phobos, then down to the crater-pocked desert of the Red Planet itself. For this mild-mannered fossil hunter may just have become Earth's first practicing xenobiologist!

In an alternate 15th century where magic still is part of life, the Holy Roman Empire rules Europe. Constantinople is under siege by the Venetians and their allies.  Hekate, Goddess of Crossroads, presides over the conflict and carnage as alternate visions of civilization collide.  And since Constantinople is the crossroad city of east and west, and it is here that Italian captain Benito Valdosta must deal with the powerful magical manifestation of the Weeping Woman, a disguised Hekate,  in order to save his daughter and to destroy the fleets of the Chernobog assembling in the Black Sea before they can cut into the soft underbelly of Europe.

With land battle, naval action, cunning assassinations, and heartbreak aplenty—not to mention the ongoing conflict between Lord of the Dead Aidonus and Benito for the love of a woman, civilization is at the crossroads and choices must be made that will bring victory and freedom for centuries to come—or a new Dark Age.

New York Times best-selling authors S.M. Stirling, Mercedes Lackey, Eric Flint, and Jody Lynn Nye return with four novellas. The cat-like Mrem, our heroes, battle the deep reptilian intelligence of humanoid dinosaurs in a Bronze Age world. After the extinction asteroid does notstrike Earth, the dinosaurs keep evolving–but so do the mammals. We mammals have achieved humanlike shapes, but now it’s cold‑blooded, magic‑using reptiles against the hot‑blooded, hot‑tempered descendants of cats.

Listen to the author discuss the book here on the Baen Free Radio Hour.

Worst‑Case Scenario:

Sergeant Samuel Morgan Campbell had been in plenty of tight spots before, but nothing like this. It had happened in a few terrifying seconds: the starship he and his crew travelled on, the Outward Initiative, shattered to pieces before their eyes and disappeared, leaving them stranded in the endless night of deep space on Lifeboat LS‑88—all systems dead, light‑years from any known colony.

Somehow, Sergeant Campbell and his crew of half‑trained children—ranging from freshly graduated Xander Bird down to eight‑year‑old Francisco—have to repair systems with no tools, navigate with no computers, and—if they could find a planet they could live on—land a shuttle whose controls were more than half‑destroyed.

And if they manage all of that, then the real challenge begins; the only planet in range has secrets that even Sergeant Campbell cannot imagine!

NEW ENTRY IN THE BEST‑SELLING BOUNDARY SERIES.

Lost in the dark, half a year into their journey to the colony world of Tantalus, Sakura Kimei, her family, and her best friend, the alien "Bemmie" nicknamed Whips, are torn from the safety of their colony ship. In a crippled lifeboat, they had one chance to find a habitable world. But even then, they would find that their apparent salvation was a world of a thousand secrets.

Listen to the authors discuss the book here on the Baen Free Radio Hour.

NEW ENTRY IN THE BOUNDARY SERIES BY ERIC FLINT & RYK E. SPOOR

Surviving crash-landings and monsters and island-eaters was only the beginning!

The Kimei family and a second group of castaways, led by Sergeant Campbell, had finally joined forces after both had been forced to land on the bizarre planet Lincoln, whose "continents" were huge floating coral colonies, inhabited by even stranger lifeforms. They had survived crash-landings and venom-filled bites and disease, their own despair, and even the destruction—and consumption!—of one of their floating islands, and had learned to live, even prosper, in their strange new home.

Far away, Lieutenat Susan Fisher slowly pieces together the mystery of what happened to the starship Outward Initiative . . . and begins to believe that—just possibly—some of the survivors might have escaped to a mysteriously unsuspected star system.

But even her preparations and the resourcefulness of the castaways may not be enough . . . for Lincoln has far worse in store.

TOIL AND TROUBLE IN THE CAULDRON OF GHOSTS

The Mesan Alignment: a centuries‑old cabal that seeks to impose its vision of a society dominated by genetic rank onto the human race. Now the conspiracy stands exposed by spies Anton Zilwicki and Victor Cachat—one an agent of Honor Harrington’s Star Kingdom of Manticore, the other a Havenite operative. The outing of the Alignment has turned the galaxy’s political framework topsy‑turvy. Old coalitions have disintegrated. New alliances have been born.

For starters, the long and hard‑fought war between the Republic of Haven and the Star Empire of Manticore is not only over, but these bitter enemies have formed a new pact. Their common foe: the Mesan Alignment itself.

But more information is needed to bring the Alignment out of the shadows. Now, defying the odds and relying on genetic wizardry themselves for a disguise, Zilwicki and Cachat return to Mesa—only to discover that even they have underestimated the Alignment’s ruthlessness and savagery.

Soon they are on the run in Mesa’s underworld, not only hunted by the Alignment but threatened by the exploding conflict on the planet between Mesa’s overlords and the brutalized slaves and descendants of slaves who have suffered under their rule for so long. But if Zilwicki and Cachat succeed in rooting out the ancient conspiracy, a great evil may be finally removed from the galaxy—and on a long‑oppressed planet, freedom may finally dawn.

Sequel to national bestsellers Torch of Freedom and Crown of Slaves, Book Three in the Crown of Slaves, ‑ Honor Harrington universe. 

Listen to the authors discuss the book on the Baen Free Radio Hour: Part 1 | Part 2.

NEW ENTRY IN THE DRAGON AWARD WINNING ARCANE AMERICA SERIES from New York Times best-selling alternate history master Eric Flint.

The passage of Halley’s Comet in 1759 is catastrophic. The comet appears to strike the Earth, sundering the New World from the Old. A chain of mountains rises in the Mid-Atlantic. No ship from the Old World arrives in America. No ship from the New World can find a passage to the Old—and most who try simply disappear.

The comet has also unleashed magic forces, which soon spread everywhere. Slaves begin using powers derived from African witchcraft, bringing monsters from that continent into the New World. The native tribes begin doing the same. Some European settlers devise ways to couple Old World technology with sorcery.

Kraken in the Atlantic, revenants in Jamaica, Dry Hands and Floating Heads in the Hudson valley, African ogres and worse set loose in the streets of New York. Magic of all kinds, emerging everywhere, most of it poorly if at all controlled.

The powerful Iroquois Confederacy disintegrates. The Onondaga Council Fire is extinguished; the Seneca and Cayuga follow their own shaman and war leader, and the Mohawks ally with the English.

For their part, the English and the French in North America, who had been on the brink of war when the Sundering came, now have to contemplate what would once have been unthinkable. They must not simply forge a military alliance against the rising dark powers but may even have to unite politically behind the young English prince Edward, now the only person of royal blood left in the terrifying world created by the Sundering.

A NEW SERIES SET
IN THE "HONORVERSE"OF
HONOR HARRINGTON

The Star Kingdom's ally Erewhon is growing increasingly restive in the alliance because the new High Ridge regime ignores its needs. Added to the longstanding problem of a slave labor planet controlled by hostile Mesans in Erewhon's stellar backyard, which High Ridge refuses to deal with, the recent assassination of the Solarian League's most prominent voice of public conscience indicates the growing danger of political instability in the Solarian League—which is also close to Erewhon.

In desperation, Queen Elizabeth tries to defuse the situation by sending a private mission to Erewhon led by Captain Zilwicki, accompanied by one of her nieces. When they arrive on Erewhon, however, Manticore's envoys find themselves in a mess. Not only do they encounter one of the Republic of Haven's most capable agents—Victor Cachat—but they also discover that the Solarian League's military delegation seems up to its neck in skullduggery.

And, just to put the icing on the cake, the radical freed slave organization, the Audubon Ballroom, is also on the scene—led by its notorious and ruthless assassin, Jeremy X.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

David Weber: New York Times best-selling Honor Harrington series, arguably the most popular series in science fiction, which has led to reviewers comparing him to C.S. Forester, celebrated creator of Captain Horatio Hornblower. Weber's work ranges from epic fantasy (Oath of Swords, The War God's Own) to breathtaking space opera (Path of the Fury, The Apocalypse Troll, Empire from the Ashes) to military science fiction with in-depth characterization (the Honor Harrington novels). With John Ringo, he inaugurated the Prince Roger series of space adventures with March Upcountry and has continued it with March to the Sea and March to the Stars. Weber and his wife Sharon live in South Carolina with their three children.

Eric Flint: is a new master of science fiction. His alternate-history novel 1632 received lavish critical praise from all directions and enjoyed high sales. The sequel, 1633, written in collaboration with David Weber, has also been highly praised and popular. His first novel, Mother of Demons, was picked by Science Fiction Chronicle as a best novel of the year. He has also shown a powerful gift for humorous fantasy adventure with Forward the Mage and The Philosophical Strangler, which Booklist described as "Monty Python let loose in Tolkien's Middle Earth." With David Drake he has collaborated on five novels in the popular "Belisarius" series, and is working on the sixth, The Dance of Time. A longtime labor union activist with a master's degree in history, he currently resides in Indiana with his wife Lucille.

EVIL FROM BEYOND TIME

The Malwa Empire squats like a toad across 6th century India, commanded by ruthless men with depraved appetites. The thing from the distant future that commands them is far worse.

AN ADVISOR WITHOUT A BODY

Those who oppose the purulent Hell the Malwa will make of Earth have sent a crystal, Aide, to halt their advance. Aide holds all human knowledge-but he cannot act by himself.

A CHAMPION FOR ALL TIMES

Count Belisarius, the greatest general of the age and perhaps of all ages, must outwit the evil empire — and then, when there is no longer room to maneuver, to meet it sword-edge to sword-edge, because,

no matter what it costs

EVIL CANNOT BE ALLOWED TO RULE MEN!

"It isn't often you come across a book or series you recommend to everyone. This one is an exception. Buy all the Belisarius books. Read them. No! After all, misery, loves company, and I shouldn't have to be the only one waiting this hard for number four!"
—David Drake

"The battle scenes and strategies are as expert as expected in a book with Drake's name on it. . . "
— Publishers Weekly

A four-part, full cast audio play adaptation of "Islands," a novella by Eric Flint set within the world of the Belisarius alternate history series created by Eric Flint and David Drake.(Running time: 1 hour, 28 minutes.)

Epic adventure, the horrors and glory of war, and the dawning of authentic love combine in this drama based on a classic novella of the Belisarius series.

751 A.D. The being from the future known as Aide has brought technology to Byzantine Rome in an attempt to oppose another nefarious A.I. from the same future. This is a Roman Empire with the telegraph, muzzle-loading rifles, and steam-powered ships. In the midst of this transformed world: Calopodius Saronites, seventeen-years-old, and a Constantinople aristocrat who has gone to the front with General Belisarius to seek glory. And Anna Saronites, also seventeen, Calopodius's wife by arranged marriage who seeks a life for herself outside the strictures of Constantinople society. As Anna journeys into the horror of war's rear area hospitals and uprooted lives, she finds uses for her talents of which she never dreamed, even as her husband Calopodius remakes his life on the front after he is blinded by a terrible wound.

CAST AND CREDITS
"ISLANDS"

An Audio Drama Based on the novella "Islands," by Eric Flint

Set in the world of the Belisarius series created by Eric Flint and David Drake

Adapted by Tony Daniel

CAST
Calopodius: Paul Kilpatrick
Anna: Tracey Coppedge
Illus: Lex Wilson
Belisarius: Jeff Aguiar
Luke: Lex Wilson
Sister Catherine: Izzy Burger
Irina: Rika Daniel
Telegraph Operator: Carter
Stavros: Paris Battle
Menander: Samuel Montgomery-Blinn
Abdul: Paul Kilpatrick
Cottomenes: Paris Battle
Riverman 1: Jeff Aguiar
Dryopus: Gray Rinehart
Captain: Paris Battle
Orderly: Paul Kilpatrick
Native Woman: Pj Maske
Vendor 2: Pj Maske
Patient 1: Jeff Aguiar
Sunila: Cokie Daniel
Sergeant Gray Rinehart
Soldier 1: Paris Battle
Soldier 2: Samuel Montgomery-Blinn
Riverman 2: Paris Battle
Abelard: Paris Battle
Soldier 3: Gray Rinehart
Malwa Attacker 1: Jeff Aguiar
Malwa Attacker 2: Paris Battle
Boat Helmsman: Paris Battle
Sailor 1: Carter
Sailor 2: Gray Rinehart
Row Master: Jeff Aguiar
Supplicant: Pj Maske
Official: Jeff Aguiar
Slave Auctioneer: Paris Battle
Slave Girl: Tracey Coppedge
Vendor 1: Paul Kilpatrick
Doctor: Samuel Montgomery-Blinn
Patient 2: Paris Battle
Khusrau: Jeff Aguiar
Tribune Gray Rinehart
Staff Officer: Paris Battle

CREW
Sound Engineer: Barry Jaked
Music: Matty Karas & Cheri Leone
Script: Tony Daniel
Director: Jerome Davis

Baen Publisher: Toni Weisskopf

Baen Audio Drama: full cast productions with original musical score, and film-quality sound effects.

Ape Man, Space Man

Earth's colonists have spread throughout the cosmos, and have almost divided into two separate species. One is the Swimmers, who have adapted to living in zero-gravity, and regard themselves as the next step in evolution, and those who prefer to live on the surface of a planet as little better than apes. The latter group, the Walkers, are not about to say farewell to the planets they grew up on, and think the Swimmers are not so much advanced as deranged.

Crowell, born a Swimmer but now a Walker by choice, is caught in the middle as the two sides seem headed for war. Then he discovers the true cause of the altercation: a hidden alien race moving behind the scenes to provoke a war so that they can pick up the pieces after the two sides have obliterated each other. And if Crowell cannot head off the war and convince both sides of the existence of the real enemy, both branches of the human race may be headed for untimely extinction.

This full-length novel and much more, fill a huge volume from the master of science fiction adventure.

"Much has been made of the 'sense of wonder' that science fiction evokes, and believe me, there was nothing to evoke that sense quite like the worlds of James Schmitz. . . . Thank you, James Schmitz, wherever you are. And thank you, Eric Flint and Jim Baen, for bringing his Right Stuff back again."
 —Mercedes Lackey

"Take my advice and buy TWO copies of this book! You'll want to lend it to friends and (trust me on this: I have years of experience to back up the observation) once people get their hands on a Schmitz book, they don't let go!"
— Janet Kagan, Hugo-winner and author of Uhura's Song

The Icarus Plot

by Timothy Zahn

Tower of Silence

by Larry Correia

Into the Vortex

by Charles E. Gannon

Wraithbound

by Tim Akers

A NEW NOVEL IN THE BEST-SELLING TERRAN REPUBLIC SERIES

It has been 15 Terran months since Colonel Rodger Murphy and his Lost Soldiers were dropped in the 55 Tauri binary system. Since then, they have forged an uneasy alliance with space-dwelling descendants of the Ktor, liberated the earlier human inhabitants of the planet R’bak, and driven their oppressors from the neighboring system back into a few fortified cities.

But there’s another pivotal battle looming before them: intercepting the Harvester fleet sent by those same oppressors, the Kulsians. And time is growing short. The two stars are nearing periastron, which the natives of R’Bak call the Searing, due to the approach of the blistering F-class star. That’s when the Kulsians cross the 10 AU separating the systems to strip R’Bak of rare biological resources and destroy any powers that might become a challenge to future Harvesters. But Murphy has a plan to break that cycle of interstellar rapine. With the cooperation of both indigenous R’Baku and the mutually suspicious Spindogs and Rockhounds, the Lost Soldiers—now sporting the nickname Murphy’s Lawless—have pulled off a delicate scheme to capture an advanced Kulsian corvette. The objective: to improve the cutting-edge warship and use Spindog “autofab” technology to create a flotilla with which to repel the Harvester fleet.

But true to the source of the Lawless nickname, Murphy’s Law may be their greatest foe. Murphy’s worsening multiple sclerosis is becoming impossible to hide, and the corvettes are proving far more difficult to replicate than anything the Spindogs have ever attempted.

However, it’s the job of training and forging crews from the highly competitive Spindogs and Rock Hounds that is pushing both groups toward mutiny—and possibly murder. The only chance to bring all those forces together? Ex-Navy fighter jock Kevin Bowman—now known as “The Admiral”—who has his work cut out for him.

Problem is, both Bowman and Murphy are running out of time. Not only is the Harvester fleet coming earlier than expected, but it’s bigger than ever before. Much bigger. And its objective is clear: to reassert complete control over the system and annihilate Murphy’s Lawless, their allies, and any who would stand with them.

A NEW NOVEL IN JOHN RINGO'S BEST-SELLING BLACK TIDE RISING SERIES BY NEBULA- AND DRAGON AWARD–NOMINATED AUTHOR CHARLES E. GANNON

It was supposed to be fun. Six teenagers and their British captain aboard the ketch Crosscurrent Voyager, headed on a senior year summer cruise to excitement and adventure. Then the world as they knew it ended.

A plague spread throughout the globe, killing millions and turning the survivors into cannibalistic rage monsters—zombies, in so many words. Only by putting aside their differences were the young crew able to survive.

Now, they seek others like them, those fortunate souls who have made it through the zombie apocalypse. After all, maybe it's not the end of the world so long as GPS can help survivors navigate deadly terrain, to link up, and maybe—just maybe—ensure the continuation of the human race.

But the Earth’s GPS systems are failing. It falls to those aboard the Crosscurrent Voyager to keep the unthinkable from happening. In order to do so, they must traverse dangerous seas to a European Space Agency complex in French Guiana.

And thousands of infected stand in the way.

If they succeed, humankind has a chance of rebuilding. If they fail, humanity may well be at the end of its journey.

A NEW NOVEL IN JOHN RINGO'S BEST-SELLING BLACK TIDE RISING SERIES BY NEBULA- AND DRAGON AWARD–NOMINATED AUTHOR CHARLES E. GANNON

CASTAWAYS IN A ZOMBIE PLAGUE

Six kids ranging from suburban geeks to street-smart pariahs. A British captain who rarely talks and never smiles. All on the 70-foot pilot house ketch Crosscurrent Voyager, bound on a senior summer cruise to adventure and serious fun.

Except most of the kids don’t get along. And they’ll be gone all summer. And none of them have sailed before. And worst of all—because they booked at the last minute—they got the destination nobody else wanted: the frigid and remote South Georgia Islands.

But there’s one other hitch: They’ll never see their families or friends again. Because just days after they leave, a plague starts spreading like wildfire, turning most of its survivors into shrieking, cannibalistic rage-monsters. So with their past dying as fast as the world that shaped it, the kids’ hated destination becomes their one hope for survival.

But it’s an uncertain hope. Not only are other hostile survivors headed there, but South Georgia Island is unable to support permanent habitation. So if the strange crew of the Voyager doesn’t come up with a further plan, they are—in every sense—heading straight toward the end of the world.

A new entry in the critically acclaimed Caine Riordan science fiction series by three‑time Nebula nominee Charles E. Gannon! Science fiction on a grand scale. Prequels Raising Caine, Trial by Fire and Fire with Fire were all Nebula Award finalists. Charles E. Gannon is also the winner of the Compton Crook Award.

Caine Riordan, fresh from serving as envoy to the aliens known as the Slaasriithi, has been given yet another daunting task: apprehend raiders that are terrorizing a distant planet.

As difficulties mount, Caine becomes aware that the mission his superiors sent him to perform may not be the one they actually hope he will achieve. Which means Caine may be forced to choose between honoring a promise to friends or following orders—a choice that could ultimately put him in front of a board of inquiry. Or a firing squad.

CAINE RIORDAN RETURNS . . . AND FACES DOWN HIS BIGGEST CHALLENGE YET!

Caine Riordan has faced many crises in his unintended career as diplomat, soldier, and first-contact specialist, but none more challenging than the one he faces now.

He and twelve of his crew are adrift in uncharted space, so far beyond Earth that the starfield is unrecognizable. And with the controls and computer destroyed, they have no way to calculate their position or call for rescue.

Instead, trapped on a derelict alien ship, they have only forty-eight hours before its decaying orbit causes it to burn up in the atmosphere of the strange planet beneath them. It’s a silent and forbidding world of bleak deserts and turbulent seas, without any sign of life and dominated by violent storms.

But since the ship's lander is also useless, they've got only one way to reach the surface: flimsy, foam-inflating cargo drop pods never intended for human use, let alone an emergency planet-fall. And even if they live through the fiery plummet from low orbit, they have almost no portable gear with which to survive in an arid alien wilderness.

However, those who make it to the surface discover that the dangers they couldn’t see from space are by far the most deadly. A variety of bizarre, carnivorous species roams the barren wastes, desperate for food. Their primary competition? Deeply devolved transgen humans that are as uncommunicative as they are primitive and ferocious.

Even more ominous, the world’s blasted cities have telltale signs which indicate their original masters were none other than humanity's most dangerous foe: the Ktor.

And worst of all, they may still be here.

Steve White, co-author with David Weber of the New York Times best-seller The Shiva Option, joins with Charles E. Gannon to carve another notch in the Starfire adventure saga. A resurrected star navy hero attempts to keep a fragile interstellar alliance together while battling an implacable alien adversary.

Steve White, Vietnam vet, long-time David Weber collaborator and co-author, with Weber, of the New York Times best-seller The Shiva Option, joins with Analog contributor and military SF scholar Charles E. Gannon to carve another notch in the Starfire adventure saga.

An implacable foe with telepathic cohesion in battle, near-immortality, and eons-advanced engineering skills threatens to wipe humanity from the galaxy. What’s more, they’ve overcome their one weakness–no faster-than-light travel–and have followed humanity through our star gates and beyond. But humans are the master of adaption, and have got a counterpunch of devastating proportions in reserve. Now a hard-bitten and brilliant admiral must face down renewed alien attack and somehow communicate to the enemy that if he is forced to use his ultimate military option, galactic civilization itself may come to a fiery end.

2105, September: Intelligence Analyst Caine Riordan uncovers a conspiracy on Earth's Moon—a history-making clandestine project—and ends up involuntarily cryocelled for his troubles. Twelve years later, Riordan awakens to a changed world. Humanity has achieved faster-than-light travel and is pioneering nearby star systems. And now, Riordan is compelled to become an inadvertent agent of conspiracy himself. Riordan's mission: travel to a newly settled world and investigate whether a primitive local species was once sentient—enough so to have built a lost civilization.

However, arriving on site in the Delta Pavonis system, Caine discovers that the job he's been given is anything but secret or safe. With assassins and saboteurs dogging his every step, it's clear that someone doesn't want his mission to succeed. In the end, it takes the keen insights of an intelligence analyst and a matching instinct for intrigue to ferret out the truth: that humanity is neither alone in the cosmos nor safe. Earth is revealed to be the lynchpin planet in an impending struggle for interstellar dominance, a struggle into which it is being irresistibly dragged. Discovering new dangers at every turn, Riordan must now convince the powers-that-be that the only way for humanity to survive as a free species is to face the perils directly—and to fight fire with fire.

Listen to the author discuss the book here on the Baen Free Radio Hour.

The second, expanded edition includes not only 21,000 words of excluded scenes and background details on the worlds, blocs, and culturescape of the Consolidated Terran Republic, but blueprints and renderings of its various spacecraft, including the Commonwealth-class shift-carrier.

2105, September: Intelligence Analyst Caine Riordan uncovers a conspiracy on Earth's Moon—a history-making clandestine project—and ends up involuntarily cryocelled for his troubles. Twelve years later, Riordan awakens to a changed world. Humanity has achieved faster-than-light travel and is pioneering nearby star systems. And now, Riordan is compelled to become an inadvertent agent of conspiracy himself. Riordan's mission: travel to a newly settled world and investigate whether a primitive local species was once sentient—enough so to have built a lost civilization.

However, arriving on site in the Delta Pavonis system, Caine discovers that the job he's been given is anything but secret or safe. With assassins and saboteurs dogging his every step, it's clear that someone doesn't want his mission to succeed. In the end, it takes the keen insights of an intelligence analyst and a matching instinct for intrigue to ferret out the truth: that humanity is neither alone in the cosmos nor safe. Earth is revealed to be the lynchpin planet in an impending struggle for interstellar dominance, a struggle into which it is being irresistibly dragged. Discovering new dangers at every turn, Riordan must now convince the powers-that-be that the only way for humanity to survive as a free species is to face the perils directly—and to fight fire with fire.

THIRD EDITION: New edition of the best-selling, award-winning first entry in the Caine Riordan series, with new material by author Charles E. Gannon.

2105, September: Intelligence Analyst Caine Riordan uncovers a conspiracy on Earth’s Moon—a history-changing clandestine project—and ends up involuntarily cryocelled for his troubles. Twelve years later, Riordan awakens to a changed world. Humanity has achieved faster-than-light travel and is pioneering nearby star systems. And now, Riordan is compelled to become an inadvertent agent of conspiracy himself. Riordan’s mission: travel to a newly settled world and investigate whether a primitive local species was once sentient—enough so to have built a lost civilization.

However, arriving on site in the Delta Pavonis system, Caine discovers that the job he’s been given is anything but secret or safe. With assassins and saboteurs dogging his every step, it's clear that someone doesn't want his mission to succeed. In the end, it takes the broad-based insights of an intelligence analyst and a matching instinct for intrigue to ferret out the truth: that humanity is neither alone in the cosmos nor safe. Earth is revealed to be the lynchpin planet in an impending struggle for interstellar dominance, a struggle into which it is being irresistibly dragged. Discovering new dangers at every turn, Riordan must now convince the powers-that-be that the only way for humanity to survive as a free species is to face the perils directly—and to fight fire with fire.

WINNER OF THE COMPTON CROOK AWARD FOR BEST FIRST NOVEL

CHECKSUM Checkmate
by Tony Daniel Grayson Navy Letters Home
by Joelle Presby Like Ghost Cat and a Dragon's Dog
by Dave Freer A Murder of Crows
by Alex Hernandez The Age of the Warrior
by Hank Reinhardt Taking the High Road
by R.P.L. Johnson Conella and the Cyclops Sea Serpent of Doom
by John Ringo Landed Alien
by Sharon Lee & Steve Miller Kinderspiel
by Charles E. Gannon Peace Offering
by Wen Spencer Angel in Flight
by Sarah A. Hoyt Away in a Manger
by Wen Spencer

Eleutherios
by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller Seven Miles
by T.C. McCarthy To Spec
by Charles E. Gannon Skyspark
by Ryk E. Spoor The Krumhorn and Misericorde
by Dave Freer Pittsburgh Backyard and Garden
by Wen Spencer Haunts of Guilty Minds
by John Lambshead The Lamplighter Legacy
by Patrick O'Sullivan Dog's Body
by Sarah A. Hoyt The Sorcerer of Daigawa
by Jon F. Merz Sweothi City
by Larry Correia Out of True
by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller Mars Farts
by Ben Bova The Virgin of Hertogenbosch
by David Drake Murder on the Hochflieger Ost
by Frank Chadwick

The Gift of Music
by Sharon Lee The Aristocrat and the Free Man
by Robert Conroy Stealing Arturo
by William Ledbetter Magic and Other Honest Lies
by Robert Buettner Soft Casualty
by Michael Z. Williamson Songs of Waste and Wood
by P.C. Hodgell The Last Secret of Mary Bowser
by Steve White Low Arc
by Sean Monaghan Balance
by Marina J. Lostetter A Thing of Beauty
by Charles E. Gannon An Imperium Pursuit
by Jody Lynn Nye Picket Ship
by Brad R. Torgersen The Golden Knight
by K. D. Julicher Bare Snow Falling on Fairywood
by Wen Spencer Bait and Switch
by Ryk E. Spoor The night don't seem so lonely
by Sharon Lee Long Nights Moon
by David B. Coe

In January of 2011 we started posting free short stories we thought might be of interest to Baen readers. The first stories were "Space Hero" by Patrick Lundrigan, the winner of the 2010 Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Contest, and "Tanya, Princess of Elves," by Larry Correia, author of Monster Hunter International and set in that universe. As new stories are made available, they will be posted on the main page, then added to this book (to save the Baen Barflies the trouble of doing it themselves). This is our compilation of short stories for 2015.

As is usual with such copyrighted material from Baen, the contents may be copied and shared but NOT sold. All commercial rights are reserved to Baen Books.

Disaster
by Ryk E. Spoor When the Lion Feeds
by John Lambshead Lion Country
by Whit Williams The Adventurer and the Toad
by Ryk E. Spoor Chimera
by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller We Fly
by K.B. Rylander The 100 MPG Carburetor and Other Self-Evident Truths
by Robert Buettner New Moon Wolf
by David B. Coe The Teacher
by Robert Conroy and J.R. Dunn Not For Ourselves Alone
by Charles E. Gannon Kiss From a Queen
by Jeff Provine Ember of the Past
by Mike Kupari Imperium Resource
by Jody Lynn Nye The Siege of Denver
by Brendan DuBois

In January of 2011 we started posting free short stories we thought might be of interest to Baen readers. The first stories were "Space Hero" by Patrick Lundrigan, the winner of the 2010 Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Contest, and "Tanya, Princess of Elves," by Larry Correia, author of Monster Hunter International and set in that universe. As new stories are made available, they will be posted on the main page, then added to this book (to save the Baen Barflies the trouble of doing it themselves). This is our compilation of short stories for 2021.

As is usual with such copyrighted material from Baen, the contents may be copied and shared but NOT sold. All commercial rights are reserved to Baen Books.

APPLESEED: A Founder Effect Legend by Robert E. Hampson
Latuda’s Lady in White by Aaron Michael Ritchey
Misfits by A.C. Haskins
All Orca Go to Heaven by Joelle Presby
The Paoshi Puzzle by James L. Cambias
Of Shadows and Caves by David Weber and Richard Fox
Salvage Judgment by G. Scott Huggins
Murder in Space by Les Johnson
The Man Who Would be Dracula by Simon R. Green
Shattered Trust by Dave Bara
Echoes of Meridian by M. Elizabeth Ticknor
The Rot’s Last Laugh by Charles E. Gannon
Fire-Bright Rain by Jane Lindskold
From Every Storm a Rainbow by Sharon Lee & Steve Miller

ORIGINAL TRADE PAPERACK. Steve White, co-author with David Weber of the New York Times best-seller The Shiva Option, joins with Compton Crook Award Winner Charles E. Gannon to carve another notch in the Starfire adventure saga.

The war with the Arduans—profoundly alien invaders who originally arrived in STL ships—is over. Most of those attackers are now probationary (and very productive) citizens of the Rim Federation.

However, many among the Arduans' warrior caste have neither accepted defeat, nor the personhood of any of the other intelligence races. Their leader, the ruthless admiral of the second Arduan exodus—Amunsit—is in firm control of the Zarzuela system. Along with a fifth column among the peaceable Arduans, she hopes to find allies in subsequent refugee fleets that abandoned their race's now-dead home system long ago.

But as the victors' diplomats attempt to soothe tensions with these warlike neighbors, two heroes of the last war—veteran Admiral Ian Trevayne and young trouble-shooter Ossian Wethermere—suspect they have stumbled upon a deeper Arduan plot: one which could shatter the Pan-Sentient Union, and perhaps interstellar civilization itself.

BOOK TWO IN CHARLES E. GANNON’S VORTEX OF WORLDS EPIC FANTASY SERIES

A little bit of knowledge can be a dangerous thing . . . but knowing the full truth might get you killed.

Druadaen, Outrider for the once-mighty Dunarran Consentium, has proven that there are irreconcilable contradictions between magic and physics on Arrdanc, the world of his birth. And what is his reward for this important discovery, made against all odds and at considerable personal risk? Exile—organized and compelled by nervous temple hierarchs.

However, Druadaen remains determined to uncover what several ancient persons and beings have urged him to seek: “the truth of the world”—which might only be gained by traveling beyond it. Indeed, the mysterious Lady of the Mirror speculates that he might find the answers by journeying to the other side of her unusual looking glass: a reflective, ethereal portal that she calls a “shimmer.”

But there’s a catch: because the mysterious portal only allows a single person to pass through, Druadaen must leave his companions behind. Unfortunately, once he has, they discover that the “shimmer” only allows travelers to leave Arrdanc, not return to it. So his friends, led by stalwart swordsman Ahearn, resolve to find another means by which they can retrieve Druadaen—and with him, the truth of the world.

There’s just one small problem with their quest: the closer they come to finding a solution, the more obvious it becomes that various powers on Arrdanc don’t want them to succeed. In fact, they’d rather Druadaen doesn’t return at all.

So much so that they might kill both him and his friends in order to prevent it.

Larry Niven's bestselling Man-Kzin series continues! The kzin, formerly invincible conquerors of all they encountered, had a hard time dealing with their ignominious defeat by the leaf-eating humans. Some secretly hatched schemes for a rematch, others concentrated on gathering power within the kzin hierarchy, and some shamefully cooperated with the contemptible humans, though often for hidden motives. In war and in uneasy peace, kzin and humans continue their adventures with a masterful addition to the Man-Kzin Wars shared universe created by multiple New York Times best seller, incomparable tale-spinner, and Nebula- and five-time Hugo-Award-winner, Larry Niven. Stories by Jane Lindskold, Charles E. Gannon, and more.

Book 5 in the critically acclaimed Caine Riordan science fiction series by three-time Nebula nominee Charles E. Gannon. Science fiction on a grand scale. Prequels Raising Caine, Trial by Fire and Fire with Fire were all Nebula Award finalists. Charles E. Gannon is also the winner of the Compton Crook Award and a Dragon Award nominee.

It’s been two years since Caine Riordan was relieved of his command for following both his orders and his conscience. Now he’s finally received the message he’s been waiting for: a summons to visit the ancient and enigmatic Dornaani. And this time, making direct contact is not just professional, but personal: the Dornaani still have his mortally-wounded love, Elena Corcoran, in their unthinkably advanced medical facilities.

But instead of arranging a swift reunion, Riordan’s new Dornaani hosts are not only disinterested in human affairs, but are in such social disarray that they have lost track of Elena’s surgical cryocell. Riordan must blaze his own trail through dying and dangerous worlds to find the mother of his child, her fate as uncertain as the true agenda of the Dornaani leaders.

However, as new clues and new threats push Caine’s quest beyond the edge of known space, he discovers that the Dornaani empire is not merely decaying; there are subtle signs that its decline is being accelerated from without. Which means that rescuing Elena is just half the mission: Riordan must report that the Dornaani collapse is not only being engineered, but that it is the prelude to a far more malign scheme:

To clear a path for a foe bent on destroying Earth.

SOLDIERS LOST IN TIME, 152 LIGHT-YEARS FROM HOME, WITH A DAUNTING TASK FOR SURVIVAL

NEW NOVEL SET IN THE AWARD-WINNING TERRAN REPUBLIC SERIES

Taken from their planet and their century, they are not just the Lost Soldiers: they are Murphy’s Lawless.

Major Rodger Y. Murphy should have died when his helicopter crashed off the coast of Mogadishu in 1993. Instead, he woke up in 2125, 152 light-years from home. Murphy and a hundred other “Lost Soldiers” have been retrieved and awakened by two officers of the Consolidated Terran Republic: Trevor Corcoran and Richard Downing.

Promising to return, Corcoran and Downing leave the twentieth-century castaways with a daunting objective: establish a base of operations on the main world of R’Bak using local allies they have yet to recruit and enemy equipment they have yet to seize.

They haven’t been back yet.

But the company of misfits and ne’er-do-wells who’ve taken the nickname Murphy’s Lawless rises to the challenge!