A Deranged Human Who Lives to Deal Death
Stalks an Alien Who Cannot Bear to Kill,
with the Galaxy's Future in the Balance.

Science Fiction Adventure in the Posleen War Universe from a New York Times Best-Selling Author and a New Star of Military Science Fiction.

It's a matter of trust.

For thousands of years the Darhel, a warrior species conditioned to be incapable of killing, manipulated and controlled the human race. Then the humans threw off their yoke and, as humans tend to do, attempted to exterminate them.

Now, for the first time, a Darhel has been assigned to the elite Deep Reconnaissance Team commandos.

Trust, in a small unit, is vital. And there was no trust to be had on either side.

But when the mission encountered an alien device worth more than a king's ransom, it was the humans who betrayed the trust.

Now the despised Darhel must race against the team's sniper to prevent the artifact falling into the wrong hands. The Darhel has empathic powers, superhuman strength and the speed of a cheetah. The sniper has years of experience and enormous ability. The sniper can kill. The Darhel cannot.

The fate of the galaxy and the human race for the next thousand years hangs in the balance and that balance rests on the shoulders of a Darhel.

The Hero has a thousand faces, but is one of them the face of an elf

Praise for the Science Fiction of John Ringo:

"If you want military Sf with a difference, read John Ringo . . . You'll get as much action as you could hope for. . . ."
—Eric Flint

"[Ringo's SF is] peopled with three-dimensional characters and spiced with personal drama as well as tactical finesse."
—Library Journal

"Ringo has become one of the writers whose work I jump first to when books arrive. . . ."
—Philadelphia Weekly Press

". . . Ringo's penchant for describing military action has also grown exponentially . . . a sequel capable of standing on its own."
—Starlog

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

John Ringo is author of the New York Times best-selling Posleen War series which so far includes A Hymn Before Battle, Gust Front, When the Devil Dances (New York Times best seller), and Hell's Faire (New York Times best seller), and is the hottest new science fiction writer since David Weber. A veteran of the 82nd Airborne, Ringo brings first-hand knowledge of military operations to his fiction. He had visited 23 countries and attended 14 schools by the time he graduated high school.

Michael Z. Williamson, an 18-year veteran of the US Army and US Air Force, is a state-ranked competitive shooter in combat rifle and combat pistol. As with John Ringo, Williamson's military experience gives him the first-hand knowledge to bring an adventure yarn to vivid life and keep it moving at a breakneck pace. Williamson's first novel for Baen was Freehold (January 2004). He has also written three action-suspense novels in the Target: Terror series for Harper-Collins, which will publish One Shot, One Kill; Scope of Justice; and By the Book in 2004.

When it all began, it was just supposed to be a game: Seven college students sitting down for an evening of role playing. But a real wizard intervened, and the students found themselves in a world where magic worked—too well—with their only way home the near-mythical Gate Between Worlds.

Years later, their earthlike existence now seems like a fading dream. They have fought and tricked their way into positions of power, seeking justice for all and the abolition of slavery. But they have also made many powerful and dangerous enemies. And one of these in particular has decided that the time is ripe for eliminating these idealistic troublemakers once and for all. . . .

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Joel Rosenberg was born in Winnepeg, Manitoba, Canada and raised in North Dakota and Connecticut. His occupations have included driving a truck, caring for the institutionalized retarded, bookkeeping, gambling, motel desk-clerking, and passing himself off as a head chef.

His first sale was an op-ed piece favoring nuclear power, appearing in The New York Times. His Guardians of the Flame novels have been bestsellers, and given him a huge readership in fantasy. His science fiction novels, including Ties of Blood, Emile and the Dutchman, Not for Glory, and Hero have been equally popular and received critical acclaim. With his new novel, Paladins (Baen), he has begun a new heroic fantasy series.

He lives in Minneapolis with his wife and daughters.

Strange Adventures on Other Worlds,
the Universe of the Future.

The first wave of space exploration in the 20th century all but ground to a halt, the victim of national and ideological rivalries which had spent themselves, and of politicians who gutted the funding for special interests and pork barrel spending. But the universe still beckoned, and a generation grew up knowing that there was nothing impossible about space travel, and wondering why we had gone to the Moon—and then stopped cold. New propulsion systems and more efficient reaction drives were developed, making spaceflight less expensive, taking it away from the exclusive club of government-funded programs. Humanity moved out once again into the infinite ocean of space, this time to stay. All new stories of the conquest of the solar system by: Charles Sheffield, Gregory Benford, John Ringo, James P. Hogan, Wen Spencer, Margaret Ball, Jack McDevitt, Fact & fiction by space scientist Travis Taylor, and more!

Praise for the Anthologies of T.K.F. Weisskopf (with Greg Cox):

"[Tomorrow Sucks is] an unusual theme anthology that should appeal to Sf and horror fans alike."
—Science Fiction Chronicle

"[Tomorrow Sucks has a] wide range of ideas and variety of styles presented. Well worth the money for any fans of vampire fiction or classic SF."
—Dark Carnival

"The stories in Tomorrow Bites are no mere literary snacks . . . this book gives you something to sink your teeth into!"
—Absolute Magnitude

"[Tomorrow Bites is] a worthy addition to one's werewolf collection."
—ConNotations

YOU DON'T NEED SAINTS TO FACE
RUTHLESS ENEMIES—YOU NEED HEROES!

The Khalians are weasel shaped and weasel vicious; their main concern with humanity is the way humans taste. Behind the Khalians are others: stronger, smarter, and more vicious still.

Captain Miklos Kowacs and the men and women of Marine Reaction Company 121, the Headhunters, have faced the Khalians on the front lines: now they're taking the war to the enemy, freeing captured planets from their bestial conquerors and penetrating even the Khalian horneworld.

But the worst dangers to Kowacs and his Headhunters come from traitors who wear the same uniform!

The only chance of defeating the Ichtons is to capture one one alive. No human battlefleet could hope to do that—but just maybe a lone scout like Sergeant Dresser could.

Anyway, he has to try. The Ichtons don't conquer their enemies: they destroy them utterly.

In the not-too-distant future, government cameras watch every soul in North America. Only the most cunning and powerful imagine they can commit a crime and escape punishment, and they become the prey of hunters like Jed Lacey.

Lacey has neither hopes nor fears, and he has no mercy at ad. There's never been anybody better at what he does.

There've always been men and women willing to stand between humanity and the worst the universe has to offer. The trouble is, they can't stay human and do their jobs—and they must do their jobs.

FROM PALACE . . . Dennis flees the crystal walls of Emath when he learns the truth behind the city his father rules.

TO WILDERNESS . . . The jungle enfolds him, tests his sword arm with monsters and his courage with nightmares more terrible than any monster.

FROM LOVE . . . Sword and spirit can win Dennis a princess--

TO BLACKEST WIZARDRY . . . But he can overcome the final evil only at the risk of all he has become--and his soul besides.

NO NIGHT LASTS FOREVER ...

Centuries after the civilized world destroyed itself in a dimly-remembered final war, a few rebels courageously searched through the shattered cities/ trying to regain old knowledge.

One was Fors-driven from his clan for the crime of being a mutant. Though his people had long searched the remnants of the old world to regain the knowledge and skills of their ancestors, the land to the north was forbidden. Having nothing to lose, Pars and his feline companion set out to the north, little realizing what a staggering discovery they would make.

Elsewhere/ Sander also searched-for the Before People who were said to have survived the great devastation. Then he encountered Fanyl, engaged in her own quest for the knowledge of the Before People. And soon they would find themselves threatened by an ancient evil which destroyed not just lives, but minds as well....

Publisher's Note: Darkness and Dawn has been previously published in parts as Star Man's Son and No Night Without Stars. This is their first combined publication.

"The sky's no limit to Andre Norton's imagination ... a superb storyteller."
—The New York Times

"Extraordinary!" —Washington Post "Imaginative and exciting."
—San Francisco Chronicle

"Gripping adventure that will keep the reader on the edge of his seat until the final page."
—Seattle Times

"First rate entertainment. . . you should not miss it!"
—Fantasy & Science Fiction