Books/Short Stories

NOVELS

SCIENCE FICTION

MAELSTROM: Steve Collins was just trying to save the world from the next killer asteroid. He wound up killing over seven billion people instead. A century later, he’s now the only hope to save the surviving one million humans left alive in the entire universe – UNIVERSAL PURCHASE LINK.

ESCAPING INFINITY: Lost on a dark desert highway, Pete Childress just wanted a good night’s sleep. Now he must find a way back out of a hotel with no exits and where tomorrow never comes. Worse yet, the fate of a ruined world, and the future of all humanity, hangs in the balance. UNIVERSAL PURCHASE LINK.

EXPLORING INFINITY: A collection of stories by nine authors based on The Infinity Hotel from the 2017 Dragon Award Finalist for Best Sci-Fi Novel, Escaping Infinity. UNIVERSAL PURCHASE LINK.

GALEN’S WAY (Starquest 4th Age #1): Millions of years in the future, humanity has been driven out of the Milky Way and now calls the Andromeda Galaxy home. Lost in their murky past are the tales of great knights that held the line against the invasion of a dark force until the rest of humanity could escape their doom. The last and greatest of these knights was Galen Underwood. Long after that heroic stand, a mercenary by the name of Galen Dwyn has been hired to rescue a kidnapped princess. Enticed by a healthy down payment and a chance to settle an old score, Galen accepts the job, only to find out it’s a lot more than he bargained for. Soon Galen finds himself weaving and dodging through a web of political intrigue as the very forces that chase him have set in motion plans that will throw the galactic alliance into civil war. UNIVERSAL PURCHASE LINK.

GALEN’S BLADE (Starquest 4th Age #2): The journey of Galen Dwyn continues in the second book of the Starquest 4th Age series. While Dwyn lies in stasis, recovering from his injuries in his stand against Harmool’s fleet, Rhea has assumed the title of Regent of Salacia while leading the search for her missing father, King Iodocus. She is also helping repair the damage done to the Alliance in her Uncle’s and Mother’s mad quest to launch a new Empire. A shocking assassination attempt is thwarted at the last second by Dwyn, who seems to be a changed man now that he has exited stasis to save his love. Dwyn must now mount a second rescue while finding a way to rally a rebellion against this threat to peace in the Hominids’ corner of the Andromeda Galaxy. UNIVERSAL PURCHASE LINK.

WHEN THE GODS FELL: The first mission to Mars discovers our origin stories were wrong. Earth’s gods, led by Zeus, Odin, Ra, and Lucifer, waged a terrible war on the Red Planet millions of years ago; but the final battle still looms, and Earth will be the final battlefield. UNIVERSAL PURCHASE LINK.

THE CALLING: Bari Forelni is a Prince of Etalya, a world founded by humans fleeing the atrocities of Earth’s Third World War. He will join Starfleet in its early years and have adventures with it’s finest Captains: Archer, April, Kirk, and Picard. He will guide Starfleet and the Federation through dark times and set off on one final adventure. This three-part series is free to read. FREE DOWNLOAD LINK.

MYSTERY / THRILLERS

RESERVATIONS (Del Rio #1): DEATH STALKS THE RES! Who – or what – is killing members of the Navajo tribe? RESERVATIONS, the first book of the Jack Del Rio political mystery/thriller series, is set near Gallup, New Mexico, where the Navajo, Hopi and Zuni reservations lie adjacent. Three tribal leaders have been murdered – murdered in a fashion that suggests the deeds were carried out by COYOTE, a legendary supernatural evil trickster feared by many Native Americans. The tribal president contacts an old friend in the FBI for assistance in solving the crimes and preventing more murders. Star agent, Jack Del Rio, is dispatched to New Mexico where he finds a situation tangled in political intrigue. Jack must work his way through those issues on his way to solving the mystery. Sparks fly as Navajo police officer Lucy Chee is assigned to assist him in his quest. Question is can Del Rio and Chee solve the mystery and find the killer before he strikes again? Because the killer is on the hunt and he has his sights on Del Rio himself. UNIVERSAL PURCHASE LINK.

BETRAYALS (Del Rio #2): In the second book of the series, Betrayals, FBI Special Agent Jack Del Rio is still recovering from the dramatic conclusion of the events on the Navajo Nation and quickly finds himself as the only man in America who can stop the strings of assassinations and conspiracies that threaten to topple the entire government administration and bring the United States under the thumb of evil dictatorship. Unable to trust even his closest friends and allies in the Bureau, Jack must first survive multiple attempts on his own life then sort out the evildoers who have wormed their way into top positions and do this in time to save the President of the United States – who may just be one of the conspirers himself. It’s a race to the finish with the free world hanging in the balance and Del Rio soon finds that no one can be trusted not to betray everything he holds dear. UNIVERSAL PURCHASE LINK.

ENDGAMES (Del Rio #3): In the thrilling conclusion to the Jack Del Rio series, Endgames, the former FBI Special Agent has fallen off the grid and is content to let the rest of the world believe him dead. He has taken the name John Rivers and lives a secluded life on the Navajo Reservation. But the shades of his past are not yet done with him yet. Surviving elements of his enemies from London and Washington D.C. want to see him actually filling out a grave and are coming for him. Compounding matters, a newspaper reporter from Phoenix is also on his trail and a former flame is coming from England and is bringing news that will change everything for Del Rio. A pair of deadly ambushes just outside his new home proves to be the last straw and Del Rio returns to the fight with a vengeance. By the time he is done he will dispatch enemies on U.S. and foreign soil and be named an international terrorist. But even as the world turns against him, Del Rio uncovers one last gasp effort by the conspiracy he has fought for so many years to overthrow the U.S. government. As his final battle draws to a close, Del Rio makes his final moves in an endgame no one will see coming. UNIVERSAL PURCHASE LINK.

WESTERNS

THE LAST LONELY TRAIL: U.S. Marshal. David Crockett Hall and Texas Ranger, John Barclay Armstrong have set out chasing men, each for their own reasons. When their paths converge in Kansas, they discover the men they were following separately have now joined together and are heading for a giant payday somewhere, but where the two lawmen don’t know. This story is about camaraderie, friendship, hardship and an unerring desire to complete their jobs at any and all costs. Set against the background of the late 1870’s, the story takes us across the mid-west, southwest and into Colorado, unfolding a tale of two strangers becoming friends. UNIVERSAL PURCHASE LINK.

NON-FICTION

FROM THE FIELDS: This second edition of From The Fields provides an updated narrative account, written by award-winning sports journalist Richard Paolinelli of the first century of high school football played in Turlock, California. This includes stats, rosters, and interviews with former players and coaches. Starting with the first team of 15 players from the 1920 Turlock High football team all the way through to the 2019 season. Players spotlighted include former pro football players from Turlock – Bob Mitchell, Paul Larson, Jeff Winans, Jonathan Quinn, Tom Brandstater and Colin Kaepernick – along with moments in the history of Turlock connected to the football program. UNIVERSAL PURCHASE LINK.

PERFECTION’S ARBITER: On October 8, 1956, New York Yankees pitcher Don Larsen threw the only perfect game in World Series history against the Brooklyn Dodgers. But the story you have never heard, a story that, had it not happened the way it did, might have changed the very history of baseball is the story of the man in the mask and blue umpire suit standing behind the plate and Yankees catcher Yogi Berra. That man was Ralph “Babe” Pinelli. Had it been any other umpire that day other than Pinelli, Larsen’s perfect game might never have happened, if not for how Pinelli grew up in early 20th Century San Francisco, how he overcame losing his father in the 1906 Quake, how he overcame his hot temper to become a major league baseball player and umpire. Perfection’s Arbiter looks at the amazing life and career of Ralph “Babe” Pinelli, the man fate chose to be exactly where he needed to be on one of the game’s greatest days. UNIVERSAL PURCHASE LINK.

SHORT STORIES

All of the short stories and pastiches listed below are available exclusive on Amazon. They can be downloaded on Kindle for $0.99 each. All of the stories below are also available for free to Kindle Unlimited subscribers.

SCI-FI/FANTASY/HORROR

THE FALL OF DENVER: The Fall of Denver takes place simultaneously with the events unfolding in England during Wells’, War of the Worlds. Doubtless, even as England was being invaded, so were all the other countries around the globe. In this story we will find out how the invasion of the United States plays out in general, and how it affects the men, and their families, stationed at a U.S. Army Fort near Denver, Colorado. For Major Daniel Wayne, an arrow in his knee has ended his career in the U.S. Army. Shortly after he arrives at Fort Logan outside of Denver to hand in his retirement papers, word is received of an extra-worldly invasion of England. Before he and the Fort’s commander can begin to process this information, the first Martian cylinder lands to the east of Denver. Wayne is entrusted with the safety of the civilians at the Fort and in the surrounding area, taking them to the safety of the nearby Front Range even as the battle to defend Denver rages behind them. Wayne must keep the trust of his fellow officers to keep their families safe, and confronts the ghosts of his own past, even as he longs to join the battle. AMAZON LINK.

THE ENEMY OF MY ENEMY: When the Zombie Apocalypse struck, Connor Osborne and his family took shelter in a remote island off the Alaskan coast. They have shelter and enough livestock and seed to survive as long as it takes. The one thing they lack is fuel. Twice a year Connor must make the journey to the mainland to gather enough wood to get the family through. But on this trip Connor will find himself hunted by a pack of zombies. His flight to safety brings him face-to-face with several grizzly bears. Literally caught between a rock and a hard place, Connor will discover the meaning of “the enemy of my enemy is my friend.” AMAZON LINK.

EXTINCTION POINT: Every civilized planet reaches a point when its technological advances lead to its ultimate demise. Major Adam Armstrong has just discovered that Earth has reached its extinction point and he is racing against time and space to try and warn his home world before it is too late. AMAZON LINK.

POLAR SHIFT: Sam Peck’s biggest worry was serving as best man at his friend’s upcoming wedding as soon as he returned home from space. Before long his biggest worry will be finding out whether or not he is the last living human being in the entire universe. Because the Earth’s magnetic poles have violently shifted, forever changing the face of the planet. AMAZON LINK.

THE LAST HUMAN: Anne Fontana needed a getaway, a vacation all to herself. But some vacations are just too short. When she returns to civilization she discovers that the world has changed. To her horror, she discovers that she alone holds the power to save humanity, or change it irrevocably and she must choose before time runs out. AMAZON LINK.

THE INVITED: When Duncan Sinclair dropped off a beacon outside of Earth’s solar system inviting any alien species to drop by for a visit he had no idea if anyone would accept it. Now, years later, he must lead one last mission to try to save the planet from the one species that has. A species that only wants one thing: To end humanity and strip its home world of all of its resources. AMAZON LINK.

AT HOMEWORLD’S END: Earth, long into the future, has been abandoned by her children. As the swelling Sun reaches out to consume the planet, one of her children returns. On Earth’s final day, she will not face her impending dissolution alone in the night. AMAZON LINK.

ICARUS FALLS: It was supposed to be Jim Watson’s final mission to space. But the catastrophic destruction of Earth’s massive space station has left Watson on the wrong side of a debris field encircling the planet. Now he has a choice: Spend the rest of his life alone on the deserted Moon Base or risk a suicidal dive for the surface and home. AMAZON LINK.

NOTHING EVER HAPPENS HERE: A reality television crew gets more than they bargained for when they travel deep into a remote national forest in search of an urban legend. They encounter a set of stairs, unattached to any structure and seemingly leading nowhere. But despite the park ranger’s statement that “nothing ever happens here” they will encounter a supernatural horror beyond their wildest imagination. AMAZON LINK.

THE 13TH MEDALLION: An alien race has a brilliant plan to rid the universe of their hated enemy: The humans from Earth. Twelve medallions will spell the doom of mankind, forever chaining the entire altered species beneath the waves of an Earth turned into a water world. The 13th Medallion, however, could just be humanity’s ultimate salvation. AMAZON LINK.

BARN WARS: Old MacDonald’s Farm is a pot about to boil over. Brooster Motherclucker has had just about enough of the antics of the Evil Empire – the four-legged creatures that roam the barnyard in league with the Dark Lord, Old Farmer John MacDonald. He wants to lead an alliance of rebels formed from his fellow two-legged fowls to throw off the yoke of the Evil Empire and their minion, the Dark Lord. But he fails to inspire the uprising. Then, a spider named Naebi Obiwonk – the last of the Araneae Order – appears and begins to train Brooster in the ways of the Aranae, the light side of the Great Web. This training he will need to overcome the Dark Lord, who serves the Dark Side of the Great Web. Only then will Brooster be able to defeat the Evil Empire. AMAZON LINK.

CAG: Air Group Commander Robert “CAG” Carrington serves in the United States Space Force in the early 22nd Century. While on normal near-Earth patrol he and his wingman are informed of the approach of an asteroid on a direct collision course with Earth. As their attempts to stop the planet killer fail, Carrington is left with one final option. As every pilot knows, there is always one way to hit the target. AMAZON LINK.

THE TIMELESS (Timeless #1): Earth’s Past Is Under Attack! In the far distant future, with the galaxy locked in an area of dark space where electronics will not work, Little John Singapore sits in a prison cell on Pluto awaiting execution. Singapore is the First Mate of the pirate ship, the Timeless. As he awaits his fate he agrees to tell a young author one story each day about his ship and his Captain, Rock Congo. Singapore tells how the Governor of the Sol system Garabaldi enlisted the ship and her crew to pursue Duchess Moran. Moran is an infamous interstellar thief tired of her plans being interfered with by the Earth-led Alliance. She has stolen the Amulet of Geraint, allowing her to travel through time at will. Her target is ancient Greece, where she plans to prevent democracy from ever taking hold by stopping King Leonidas from reaching the famed Battle of Thermopylae. By changing Earth’s past she hopes to prevent the Alliance from ever forming. The Timeless, a ship that can sail through space, air and water with equal ease, is the only ship capable of time travel, and Earth’s only hope to save its past, present and future. Despite being crewed by pirates, Garabaldi sends them through time in pursuit of Moran. When the Timeless arrives in ancient Sparta, the find Moran has already been there and has kidnapped Leonidas and his Queen. Now they have just a matter of days to find her and the King to keep his appointment with King Xerxes of Persia and preserve Earth’s history. The first book of the Timeless series, a middle grade/YA science fiction/steampunk hybrid, is sure to be a hit with readers of all ages. As well as fans of historical fiction as the Timeless and her crew will be very busy in Earth’s storied past in future books in the series. AMAZON LINK.

SECRET OF THE SPHINX (Timeless #2): Interstellar thief Duchess Moran continues her assault on Earth’s history. This time she travels back to ancient Egypt in search of a deadly secret: A gem that can raise an army of the undead to wipe out every living creature on the face of the Earth. But to find the stone, she must first locate a scroll hidden away deep within the Sphinx. Captain Rock Congo, his First Mate Little John Singapore and the crew of the Timeless remain hot on her trail through time and space. From the Library at Alexandria during Caesar’s siege of the city to the construction of the Sphinx and even further back as the legendary architect Imhotep tries to steer his Pharoah, Djoser, from disaster. When Moran arrives looking to gain possession of the Eye of Anubis all of Egypt, and the entire planet will find itself on the brink of annihilation! The second book of the six-book series is sure to please any reader from age 10 to 100. AMAZON LINK.

PHANTOMS’ LODGE: Eric Christopher is an heir finder looking for a man who disappeared a quarter of a century ago. What he finds when he steps inside the Phantoms’ Lodge near the mysterious Half Moon Bay south of San Francisco will change everything he thought he knew about life, love and death. AMAZON LINK.

LEGACY OF DEATH: Inspector Mackenzie Bolton is caught up in the worst string of serial murders San Francisco has ever seen and the price of bringing the killer to justice may be Bolton’s very own soul. AMAZON LINK.

SHERLOCK HOLMES PASTICHES

A LESSON IN MERCY: Most of Arthur Conan Doyle’s Holmes stories were told from the perspective of Dr. John Watson. In this case, Winston Churchill recalls a time in his youth when he was accused of theft at school. At Churchill’s beloved Nanny’s insistence, Holmes and Watson are called in on the case. The future Prime Minister will receive a shooting lesson from Watson and learn a valuable lesson in mercy from Holmes himself. AMAZON LINK.

THE WOMAN RETURNS: For a brief period of time the world thought Sherlock Holmes had perished in his battle with Professor Moriarty at Reichenbach Falls.
While Holmes was away from London, he traveled the world. Shortly before his return he took up residence in the south of France. To his surprise Irene Adler showed up on his doorstep.
She is looking for revenge. The man who murdered her husband has escaped justice and she wants Holmes to help her in her quest. AMAZON LINK.

THE MISPLACED MYSTERY WRITER: H.G. Wells has built his time machine and taken American author Edgar Allan Poe on several trips through time. Unfortunately, he has become separated from Poe while hunting for Jack The Ripper in London. Wells enlists the aid of Holmes and Watson to find Poe and return him to his correct time frame. AMAZON LINK.

NEVERMORE: Once upon a midnight dreary Sherlock Holmes, though not weak and weary, finds himself in a tale connected to forgotten lore. Now he must solve the mystery of an albino raven that seems to be a harbinger of death for the owner of the manor it has taken up residence in. AMAZON LINK.

THE SUBSTITUTE THIEF: When a valuable manuscript has been replaced with a forgery, Holmes is called in to find the thief and recover the manuscript. AMAZON LINK.

THE ASSASSINATION OF ALAN PINKERTON: History records that the famous Alan Pinkerton – founder of both the Pinkerton Detective Agency and the United States Secret Service – died from a head injury suffered from a fall in Chicago. But a mysterious visitor to 221B Baker Street in London has a story to tell Holmes and Watson. A story that calls into question the cause of Pinkerton’s demise. Months later, and thousands of miles away, can Holmes deduce the truth about Pinkerton’s death? AMAZON LINK.