A humorous fantasy tale. An evil wizard has turned the entire royal family into frogs and set them loose in the marshes, and only a kiss can restore them to their natural forms . . . but there are so many frogs, and so much swamp, who is willing to kiss them all?

A hilarious horror rocker from New York Times bestselling author Kevin J. Anderson and Grammy winner Janis Ian. Greatest hits—back from the dead! A famous one-hit-wonder rock star might think his career is over (being dead, for starters), but a group of obsessive fans has other ideas.

WF201505 May 2015 Wordfire Press Books

Clockwork Lives: The Bookseller's Tale

by Kevin J. Anderson and Neil Peart

Chemical Burn

by Quincy J. Allen

Dark Carbuncle

by Kevin J. Anderson and Janis Ian

Frog Kiss

by Kevin J. Anderson

Direct Descent

2015 UPDATED VERSION
by Frank Herbert

All things will pass away. Nothing remains but death and the glory of deeds.
From the Elder Edda

A Science-Fictional Tempest!

The classic novel of man against machine by Canada’s greatest science fiction writer.

It’s all-out combat, Man and Mutant vs. Machine in a gigantic battle for survival and control of GalFed’s trash planet, Barrazan Five, also known as Dahlgren’s World. Years ago, geneticist Dahlgren arrived on the planet with 100 humans and 1,000 ergs. Then the robot-ergs, their intelligence expanded by Dahlgren’s experiments, rebelled and slaughtered their masters. Now it’s a war for possession of Dahlgren’s World, a brutally hot, highly radioactive and barely habitable jungle in space. On one side of the conflict are the ergs, who have evolved into sophisticated artificial intelligences. They are opposed by the mutants, including a talking goat, a mothering gibbon, and a four-armed youth. The mutants are allied with the remaining humans, including Shirvanian, a crybaby boy prodigy who can communicate telepathically with machines and may be man’s last hope for regaining control of the planet.

And then there is the creator, Dahlgren himself ... and a game of chess unlike any other, with the fate of a planet and a people as the stakes.

Born in rebellions and civil war, life on Haven is a constant struggle against the moon itself and its other occupants—animal and human—all desperate to carve out their own niche. On this desolate moon, the Sauron Soldiers not only have to fight the human inhabitants, but face a mutiny in their own ranks, as the Cyborg Super Soldiers make a bid to rule the last surviving colony of Saurons. The Cyborgs are the ultimate product of Sauron’s millennium-long eugenics program and as such are the end-point in the Race’s military development. To the Cyborgs it is unthinkable that a mere Soldier—no matter how brilliant—should command the new Sauron Homeworld.

Brigadier Gary Cummings has fought the Saurons before and knows that the Saurons have no mercy for human norms; this is a war of total domination. The Saurons want to own Haven and use her population as breeding stock for future Soldiers. To fight back, the Brigadier is starting a guerilla campaign in the outback. Castell City and Lermontovgrad have been bombed back to the stone age, but the humans of War World have been tested before...

The Haveners spirited resistance is no surprise to First Citizen Galen Diettinger, but the one thing the Saurons hadn’t anticipated was a mutiny in their own ranks leading to a three-cornered war.

For the first time ever, David Bischoff's definitive UFO Conspiracy Trilogy has been collected in a digital omnibus!

UFOs are real. You may not know it but the government does. And they'll stop at nothing to keep you in the dark ...

For Sprocket and Henry Lee,
it was love at first blow-out.

Henry Lee MacFarland is a big ugly man, a farmer who is so strong that he has to be gentle, whether he’s dealing with livestock or normal people.

Sprocket is a hundred and twelve feet of healthy young male Driller, dark as a moonless night, with a spiked tongue that can bore four miles into the earth in his relentless quest for the thing he loves best—Texas heavy crude oil.

Doc, Razer, Big Mac, and the others in Sprocket’s crew are the roughest, rowdiest bunch in the oilpatch. They live inside of Sprocket’s body and travel like gypsies from one drilling job to another. They work like animals. Party like ‘em, too.

Then there’s Star, the stunning Casing gypsy who has a hankering for fine cigars, a killer instinct at poker, and a taste for big, ugly, strong men.

Looking for adventure, Henry Lee leaves the farm behind and signs on with Sprocket’s crew. He gets a helluva lot more “adventure”—as in monsters, murder, and mayhem—than he bargained for.

Terror Stalks the King’s Woods ...

From acclaimed author Chelsea Quinn Yarbro (writing as Trystam Kith) comes the first book in the Trouble in the Forest duology, a medieval fantasy that turns all too quickly to terror. Deep in the forest, trouble is brewing. No one is safe in the thick, dark forest—no peasant, monk, minstrel, merchant, traveler, forester, or King's man may go into the forest without taking his life and his soul in his hands. Those who dare the deep green are found dead soon after, or worse–disappear.

Only former Crusader Hugh deSteny is prepared to lead the fight against the bloodthirsty denizens of the forest, and he knows that the enemy he faces could damn him eternally if he loses the battle. Armed with precious knowledge, deSteny must undertake the fight of his life to preserve the forest and all who live within it from certain catastrophe - and a fearsome enemy the likes of which none save him have ever faced before.

Fact vs. Legend:

FACT: Richard Lionheart bankrupted England twice in his thirteen year reign.

FACT: Prince John was left with the job of bailing England out of his brother’s profligacy the only way he could—by raising taxes.

FACT: Prince John possessed over 300 books and had read them all.

FACT: Unlike the Norman rulers before him, or the next four to come after, Prince John actually spoke the language of the common English people, as well as French, Latin, Greek, and Roman Vulgate (early Italian).

FACT: There were outlaw bands all over England.

The rest is myth, legend, speculation,
fictional devices, and outright lies.

A First-Class Ticket to Danger!

STAR FALL!

THE GREATEST SHIP-BUILDING ACHIEVEMENT OF TWO CULTURES ...

It has taken the combined genius of Human and Morapn civilization to create Star Fall, the vast interstellar liner with luxurious accommodations for every type of intelligent life in the known galaxy, now booking for her maiden voyage. This historic cruise will take her to the legend-shrouded center of the universe itself, old Earth, where her arrival will usher in a new era of peace and understanding.

Or so the brochure said. But someone, or something, hadn’t read the brochure. For hidden on the Star Fall is a box of anti-matter.

Just a small box ... one that is just large enough to implode Earth.

“WELCOME ABOARD THE STAR FALL!”

The floating football spoke with an eager robotic enthusiasm. “I am Albert, your guide. We’ll be getting underway momentarily. On behalf of the crew—human, Morapn, Aslasi, and android—I welcome you upon this voyage... ”

A scream split the robot’s instructions. A woman bounded through a doorway, her face burnt and bleeding. “Get off the ship!” she screamed. “You’ll die! You’ll all die!”

The Stunning Conclusion to the Dragonstar Series!

A STARSHIP OF DINOSAURS ... WITH A HUMAN CARGO

The 160-million-year-old, world-sized starship with its crew of sentient dinosaurs mystified humankind when it entered our solar system. Careers and even governments rose and fell in the fight to board it, explore it, and understand its origin and purpose.

Then, in the blink of an eye, it was gone. Only this time there were humans aboard—men and women lost in hyperspace, allying with the dinosaurs in their mutual fight for survival, trapped between the savage jungle within the ship ... and the unknown horror without.

When the ship dropped into “real” space, they were far beyond the edge of the Universe, orbiting a planet that was old when Earth was young, in the eerie light of a star that was due to go nova at any moment.

And someone—something—waited outside the ship, wanting to get in!

Don’t miss the first and second books in this series: Day of the Dragonstar and Night of the Dragonstar!

#1 in a NEW EPIC FANTASY SERIES by 28-times New York Times and international best seller David Weber, set within his Bahzell Bahnakson/War God universe. A swordsman who has been robbed of his past must confront an evil wizard with a world at stake.

Know thyself. Its always good to know who you are, but sometimes thats a little difficult.

Kenhodan has no last name, because he has no past . . . or not one he remembers, anyway. What he does have are a lot of scars and a lot of skills some exhilarating and some terrifying and a purpose. Now if he only knew where he'd gotten them and what that purpose was . . . .

Wencit of Rūm, the most powerful wizard in the world, knows the answers to Kenhodan's questions, but he can't or won't share them with him. Except to inform him that he's a critical part of Wencit's millennium-long battle to protect Norfressa from conquest by dark sorcery.

Bahzell Bahnakson, champion of Tomank, doesn't know those answers and the War God isn't sharing them with him. Except to inform Bahzell that the final confrontation with the Dark Lords of fallen Kontovar is about to begin, and that somehow Kenhodan is one of the keys to its final outcome.

Wulfra of Torfo doesn't know those answers, either, but she does know Wencit of Rūm is her implacable foe and that somehow Kenhodan is one of the weapons he intends to use against her . . . assuming she can't kill both of them first.

But in the far northern port city of Belhadan, an eleven-year-old girl with a heart of harp music knows the answers to all of Kenhodan's questions. . . and dares not share them with anyone, even the ancient wild wizard who loves her more dearly than life itself.

It's not easy to face the future when you can't even remember your own past, but if saving an entire world from evil sorcerers, demons, devils, and dark gods was easy, anyone could do it.

THE DREAM HUNTERS of the HYBRID UNIVERSE

The only humans left on Earth are aristocratic immortals, doomed to live out their perpetual youth as sex-cultists, lost in the euphoria of the dream game. Meanwhile, the all-powerful computer Cybermind commands the galaxy with its army of youthful Hybrid super-soldiers, captured and equipped with artificial memories and passions.

But random acts of terror have broken out—massive robberies and brutal mind-deaths that are perpetrated while the helpless victims swoon in the imagined ecstasies of virtual reality passion.

Enemies of the Cybermind, masters of illusion, two rebel Hybrid soldiers have become the ultimate terrorists. Fighting against the decadence of Earth, in search of their own pasts, Nate and Rissa are now the most feared of warriors. Living, loving, and killing as one, they are the Dream Hunters ...

THE STRANGEST SOLDIERS AND REBELS CLASH ON THE MOST INCREDIBLE BATTLEFIELD

They were no longer human—they were hybrids, genetic/cyborg soldiers. They fought each other in savage battles through the ice forests of Saturn's moon. They held the constant terror of death and destruction at bay only by indulging in fantastic cybernetic dreams and the distutbing pleasures of their altered flesh.

A Combat Hybrid ...

Joints reinforced with polymer mesh. Nictating occular membranes. Sphincters where there were none before. Regenerated limbs. Subcutaneous vitalium wires instead of hair. They were no longer human. They were combat hybrids—genetically-modified cyborgs bioformed for fhe express purpose of waging war in hostile environments.

Marc Detrs hadn’t wanted to become a hybrid. But it was that or jail. That or have his true past discovered. That or be forced to reveal his knowledge of the all-seeing timestone. He became a hybrid, fighting for the chance to die in a guerrilla war that is waged in the frozen methane forests of Saturn’s moon.

And then Grychn reappeared–a ghost from his past, the lover who knew all his secrets. They would either kill each other or help each other to find the timestone, the most valuable object in the Universe.

Don't miss Dream Games, the second novel of the Hybrid Universe.

“Here begin the adventures of Erwyn, Journeyman Sorcerer ...”

After six years at the Sorcerer’s Apprentice school, Erwyn must take his final exam. For four years, he must wander through the world, alone and and unarmed, equipped with the thirteen basic spells and not much else—and then survive long enough to return to the school for graduation.

What were his teachers thinking? Or perhaps it’s just their way of thinning down the competition.

Of course, the alone part doesn’t last very long for Erwyn, since everything and everyone in the neighborhood seems to gravitate in his direction—orcs, evil magicians, cranky old men, plus an odd number of women with an arsenal of swords, knives, and curlers at their disposal.

And unarmed is, more or less, a matter of one’s point of view. Especially when one has the ability to create magic sandcastles out of thin air. But the sand has to come from somewhere, doesn’t it? And can he learn to use it as an offensive weapon so he can stay alive long enough to get home?

Erwyn needs to find out fast. A good spell-checker charm wouldn’t hurt, either.

A story of aliens, adultery,
and one bitter lawman ...

Six years ago, the world ended. But in Coomey, Texas, life goes on. The alien Torku keep things moving with gasoline, VCRs, Twinkies, and cryptic advice. But after six years of living within the confines of the Line—the paisley barrier erected by the Torku—even a small town can go stir-crazy.

Crazy enough to covet.
Crazy enough to kill.

THIRST FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS ...

The Vanguard spend their lives defending the weak, protecting the innocent and slaying the malevolent, but what happens when the best of them realizes he not being taken seriously?

When Obidaan, Paladin of the Seers, begins to have nightmares about the loss of his family, he decides to do something about it. Granted by the gods a Soul Weapon – one of the most powerful artifacts in the world, and betrayed by the man he trusted, he decides to remake the world in his image of justice!

But where will his thirst for righteousness lead him? Can the Vanguard – Alister, Terry, Don and Obidaan’s own wife Relina save Obidaan before he succumbs to the hate he now feels in his heart? How will the now fractured Paladin Corps deal with this unprecedented situation?

What’s a good man to do when he realizes no good deed goes unpunished?

A Vision of War

Obidaan felt something and looked down at his hands. They were full of blood—blood that wasn’t his. At his feet lay many dead bodies. Soldiers, mages, paladins, all sprawled out before him. He looked around again. None of the other scenes were here, only the battlefield and the two combatants. Still they refused to give up as each took large chunks out of the other, with no affect. They stopped briefly, leaning on their weapons and catching their breaths. They looked back at Obidaan.

This got Obidaan’s attention, and caused him to jump with a start. They raised their weapons to him in a salute, and then continued with their bloody, pointless fight. Obidaan raised his hand and waved at them. They didn’t see it—they were back to fighting. A cheer arose behind him. He looked behind him, a vast army now stood there, shiny and gleaming, and ready for action. He looked at his hands. They were clean. He looked down, no bodies. He looked ahead—the two fighters were there still, but obscured now by fog and mist.

In this dramatic sequel to MOONSPEAKER, accalimed writer K. D. Wentworth continues the adventures of Haemas Sennay Tal, the liason to the mysterious aliens known as the old ones, and the only human permitted to traverse the aliens timeways. Unknown to her Lord Chee, a bitter and treacherous lord, has devised a horrible scheme to wrest control over the timeways - and over the rich and beautiful Moonspeaker herself. Only Haemas can hope to stop him, pushing her extraordinary mind talents to unprecedented heights, before Chee destroys everyone and everything ever known - including herself.

In this thrilling science fiction classic, author K.D. Wentworth sets the stage for her ground-breaking House of Moons series, introducing Haemas Sennay Tal—the Moonspeaker.

Daughter of one of the most powerful families of the mindtalented Kashi, Haemas lived a life of privilege until her life was shattered by a brutal attack on her father and the accusation that she committed the heinous crime. Forced to flee across the forsaken Barrier, she learns that her father’s death was only a small part of a much larger plot to destroy the fabric of reality itself. Haemas must master her extraordinary mindtalents before she is killed—and the fabric of the world is torn asunder.

This first novel in Darlene Bolseny's Duanor series is a rip-roaring, swashbuckling fantasy adventure, a blend of The Three Musketeers, The Adventures of Don Juan, The Lord of the Rings, The Thief of Baghdad, and the 87th Precinct mysteries.

Knives in the Night
Welcome to the shadow-haunted, twin-mooned world of Duanor.

Meet Morticai ...
He’s a rogue and a ladies’ man, a gambler and a thief, a duelist and a troublemaker and ... a lawman!

Surviving on the mean streets of Watchaven wasn’t easy for an unwanted corryn orphan, but Morticai managed to escape the criminal underworld by joining the Northmarch, the kingdom’s elite peacekeeping force.

When Morticai discovers that a nest of Droken - the same bloodthirsty devotees of an outlawed god who murdered his parents - have infiltrated his city, he will risk his commission and his life to bring them to justice.

It’s not the first time that Morticai has found himself in over his head, but it may turn out to be the last.

An eclectic collection of song lyrics, poems, ruminations and stories from New Orleans bard Beth Patterson, one of today’s hardest-working singer-songwriters.

About the Author:
Beth Patterson has been a self-employed musician, songwriter, and recording artist for over two decades, finally deciding to sidestep into the world of fiction writing to see what might happen. She currently resides in the French Quarter of New Orleans, where she partakes of good food and wine, observes the absurd, and attempts to blend in with the shrubbery.