Indie Spotlight: Sci-Fi and Fantasy Part One

 

L.B. Hazelthorn

ISBN 978-0-648-64730-0

 

Author statement: "Rare Birds is a historical fantasy set in 1920s Britain, where an archaeology student discovers her dog is not a dog. Now she must investigate her grandfather’s alchemy, bargain with shapeshifters, and confront myths and monsters to break the blood curse that ties her fate. The spark of this story was struck while I was studying ancient history a few years ago. I wanted to ground my interests in the chaotic 1920s, whose feminist struggles and social change so closely mirror our own. Along with my passion for mythology runs a long-abiding curiosity in the what-ifs of speculative fiction, so this tale rapidly became an exploration of family ties, queer history, and dangerous magic."

 

Natalie Wright

ASIN B0BSBH9TV9

 

Author statement: "When a dragon destroys Quen’s village and kills people she loves, vengeance fuels her quest to hunt the beast. But Quen soon discovers she is the  hunted as factions vie to control her growing power. This epic fantasy story steeped in magic and mythological creatures was actually inspired by my love of astronomy and sci-fi! The discovery of a binary star system in which the second, smaller sun orbited the larger sun inspired my poem casting the two suns as gods. That poem ultimately led to the creation of the primary religion found in Season of the Dragon—epic fantasy inspired by science!"

 

 

 

Rose Mandelson

ISBN 978-1-73978-143-9

 

Author statement: Cornwall, southwest England: Taking a holiday to forget about her cheating boyfriend, Bettony Gullivant discovers a strange, almost deserted village, ruled by a local magistrate and a likable but highly improbable police sergeant. In truth, the village does not exist but is a shadow reality created by people from Abbuth, another Earth in a different universe. These alternative, party-loving humans are highly intelligent and good-natured but are too trusting, and have been infiltrated by people from a much darker world. Bettony uses her earthly understanding of dishonesty, violence and treachery to help her new friends identify and hunt down their foes across different universes and different versions of Earth. The idea for the plot came from applying my rather flippant sense of humor to a serious academic understanding of subatomic physics.".

 

 

Sara Yager

ASIN B0CMXWPRB6

 

Author statement: "In an artificial intelligence lab in Shanghai, something has gone terribly wrong. Days after a major breakthrough in machine learning, CyberGen Industries' lead AI scientist is dead—and their precious prototype has vanished into ether. An investigation reveals that, against all odds, the lab's “unhackable” system has been breached. I wrote The Doomsday Code because I am a concerned mom who worries about the future our children will inherit. The story is both a high-octane thriller and a somber warning about a technological threat that is, unfortunately, all-too-possible."

 

Sheri T. Joseph

ISBN 978-1-68463-262-6

 

Author statement: "The idea for the story came from a mention in a lecture about how Hitler had tried to develop a blood test to detect Jewish and Roma children who looked Aryan enough to be hiding in the open with German or Polish families. Such a test was not possible back then, but I wondered how that would translate with modern science and tech—not just for any ethnic groups deemed 'inferior' during WWII, but in other historical events around the world, where people who did not stand out by physical appearance, and were perhaps even themselves unaware of their background, would have faced deadly consequences. What if in the Rwandan genocide, the Hutu militias had a screening test to detect Tutsis? Dalits who blended with the upper castes in India? Serbs and Bosnians, Chinese in wartime Japan, too many slices of American history, and countless others."

 

Daniel Maidman 

ASIN B0BWRRBNJ3

 

Author statement: "Claire built a device to fold space and time. It had a flaw. When the smoke clears, she finds herself in ancient Florence, a city state with primitive technology and traces of lost magic. With no device in sight, Claire must team up with local pickpocket turned general Marcus Diophantus. They pledge to help each other get what each one wants: an end to Marcus’s war, a path home for Claire. The entire plot of this book – and its proposed sequels – appeared to me in a single sleepless night in 2005. I was up all night writing the outline, and spent a frenzied year writing the first draft. Which was terrible. I took a decade off, becoming a widely-published art critic. My hundreds of articles taught me how to communicate with a readership. I never lost my passion for this book. When I returned to the manuscript, I knew how to fix it."

 

Drema Deòraich

ISBN 978-1-958461-04-4

 

Author statement: "When humans attack Iridos, killing a majority of the Unammi inhabitants, misfit cleric Alira learns she is a Harvester, able to absorb the memories and personalities of those who die in her presence. She’ll need that knowledge if she is to save her people—except not all Harvesters survive with their minds intact. As a shapeshifter, looking human is easy. Acting human is far more difficult, especially when her Harvests begin arguing in her head. Can she succeed without going insane? These characters and their story have been simmering in my head for many years; they’re ecstatic that their story is finally out in the wild!"

 

 

Ray Wennerstroem

ASIN B0D4VRXXST

 

Author statement: "Billy Winter is spending the summer at Great Grandma Gammy's house. When he discovers that something strange is going on behind the woods at the edge of Gammy's yard, his ordinary summer holiday becomes a wild adventure filled with strange creatures, new friends, and a journey to an alien planet—all thanks to a strange professor and his 'grand experiment.' The Grand Experiment was inspired by my childhood in Norway and an old man named Leo who lived near my great-grandma's house. I still remember Leo’s workshop, a big old wooden structure crammed full of strange and intriguing contraptions, and mind-boggling inventions. I don’t know if he was the great inventor I envisaged as a boy, but I’d like to think so."

 

 

 Stephanie Pascaru

ISBN 978-1-989861-48-6

 

Author statement: "My inspiration for this book came from the enchanting fairy tales and mythical, adventure-filled stories I grew up reading as a child. I wrote this book with the hope of capturing that same sense of wonder and enjoyment. A farm girl in a plague-stricken kingdom decides to use her newfound lightning powers to overthrow the immortal rulers who caused the plague in the first place."

 

 

Stacey Harder

ISBN 978-1-03-582969-9

 

Author statement: "Second Reality is a tale about a young girl who faces her fears in discovering her true self. Hope is reborn into an abusive home, with no memory of her true life and her destiny to help those in need. Now that she had lived through the trauma she was meant to guard others against, could she still be the hero she was meant to be? This novel explores topics such as sexual assault, domestic violence, stalking, physical violence, self harm, and suicide. If we haven’t met yet… I’m a thriller novelist with an anxiety disorder. I research and explore wellness to help myself and others. I write with the intention to create conversation, and to extend a sense of friendship through the pages."

 

Nicholas Keating Casbarro

ASIN‎ B0DBNL7MKC