Showing results by author "A. J. West" in All Categories

Thriller-paced action, shocking twist endings, alternative history, engaging characters, visionary science fiction, suspenseful pause-resisters, epic adventures, and barbaric fantasy all wrapped up in one entertaining bundle. 5 Blades' authors are endorsed by an international and New York Times best-selling author, multiple magazines, and thousands of listeners and readers spanning dozens of countries across the world. This is your one stop for top-tier science fiction and fantasy short stories.

A zany musical comedy, touching love story, and fast-paced adventure thriller combined with “Elvis Presley meets Star Wars” plot twists. Cosmic Cowboy the Musical stars the love-struck alien Prince Remo, from faraway Planet Vegas (complete with glowing blue-grey skin and personal flying saucer), and the object of his adoration, aspiring Nashville country singer Jenna Lee Jenkins.

Gifted housebreaker, Michael O'Connor, awakens inside an ultramodern criminal justice system where prison walls are replaced by surveillance equipment and a host of actors hired to determine if he is worthy of freedom. While he was sleeping, the Supreme Court declared long term incarceration to be cruel and unusual punishment and ordered two million felons released. The result was utter chaos and the backlash from law-abiding citizens and police departments reshaped the United States. Felons now enter reeducation programs where they live freely among the population.

This Vatican thriller is the first novel of a trilogy that will have you on the edge of your seat. Set in "future history" but as a parallel timeline to our own, the story begins with the death of Pope John Paul II and the election of an unknown Spanish bishop. Francis I takes it upon himself to reverse 50 years of changes foisted upon the Catholic Church by a cadre of various subversives. Written from an insider's perspective, the story, although fictional, was crafted upon verifiable facts as its foundation.

Air locks. Gas masks. Skyscraper-sized pipes. Secret trams. Broken elevators. Natural disasters aren’t the only thing that Matt, Cody, Catherine, Stacy, and Darin must overcome. What lurks beneath Camp New Beginnings is the real threat. While the mystery behind the natural disasters and Camp New Beginnings is slowly unraveling, the journey to find the cryovault burns hotter than ever for Matt and his group. But with camp fully destroyed, is "the Sev" their only place for refuge? Or will all their clues lead them to another dead end?

Belfast, 1914. Dimenticata ormai la lunga e pacifica età vittoriana, l’impero inglese è scosso dai cambiamenti. L’inaffondabile Titanic, forgiato nei cantieri navali della città, è affondato ormai da due anni, e la morte che ha portato con sé ha alimentato – specialmente nella classe media in ascesa – una passione bruciante per occultismo e spiritismo. William Jackson Crawford, ingegnere e professore all’Istituto tecnico municipale, benché tribolato da infinite ristrettezze economiche, è pieno di speranze nel futuro, finché sulla sua tranquilla vita familiare piomba, inaspettata, la tragedia.

While Anna and Malcolm welcome the latest additions to their family, complications arise that threaten to end their newfound happiness. Not only does Anna have to contend with the possibility of losing the Cirrus throne to Catherine Amador, but she also has to worry over Helena’s next act of vengeance against her and those she loves. As danger seems to lurk around every corner, Anna’s first priority is the welfare of her family, friends, and citizens.

We want to hear of how people have forged their own epic tale around, through and in their WorthPlace. We want to discover how they found their worth, in their work, and in spite of their work. The WorthPlace Collective is all about creating and holding place for people to know their worth and help them write and forge their own epic tale!!!!

Francis is found. Beyond Francis, a family is found—in archival material that barely deigned to notice their existence. This is the story of Francis Sistrunk and her children, from enslavement into forced migration across South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. It spans decades before the Civil War and continues into post-emancipation America. A family story full of twists and turns, Finding Francis reclaims and honors those women who played an essential role in the historical survival and triumph of Black people during and after American slavery.

As Jess deals with the repercussions of Ravan’s latest earth-shattering actions, she soon realizes that not everything is as it seems. Being surrounded by the enemy on all sides, Jess quickly learns who has her back and who wants to stab it. Once she’s able to carry on with her God given mission, the stakes rise to monstrous proportions for Jess and the other vessels, forcing them to place their lives on the line for a world that is not their own.

This time he’s been hired to recover a secret government project that has been stolen by one of the most vicious booster gangs in the world. The problem is they are hiding out in their high-rise fortress in the Nevada desert, outside the protection of civilization and the rule of law.

Depending on who you talk to, Spider King and his cohorts in the infamous Gordian Net are either criminals or revolutionaries in the ongoing struggle against the corporations that have replaced the federal government of the formerly United States.

Carlisle Homicide Detective Erin McCoy battles the jitters as the first woman in homicide partnered with Senior Detective Christopher Snow. On their first case, they track a serial killer who's stalking family members embroiled in an inheritance dispute. The perp dispatches his victims with toxic chemicals. As the detectives chase clues and connect the related victims, their mutual attraction blooms while she nurses him after a shooting incident. But sparks fly when FBI Special Agent Howard offers McCoy a job if she'll train at Quantico.

Spider King barely knows anything about the mysterious programmer known only as St. Jude, except that she pays well and keeps her cards well-hidden. That’s understandable, considering she’s hiding from Richard Newbridge, a cold-blooded industrialist bent on killing her for stealing priceless secrets.

Spend this Christmas with some of your favorite characters from the Watcher universe. In this collection of short stories, you’ll get an intimate look at certain character’s lives and what happened to them "after the story".