C Gockel Writes

Featured Sci-Fi: Quiet War: A science fiction thriller (Farewell Amity Station Book 1) by Frank Kennedy

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Featured Sci-Fi: Quiet War: A science fiction thriller (Farewell Amity Station Book 1) by Frank Kennedy

FREE as of December 6, 2025
Click for current price: Amazon US, United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Australia

Fragile peace. Murder at the heart of an empire.

Deputy Trevor Stallion survived an interstellar war, found love, a good job, and a chance to overcome a tarnished family legacy. For what? To pass down a crippling genetic disease to his little girl, to see his wife turn to another man, to almost lose the only job that ever mattered.

At 35, the so-called “Forever Deputy’ tries to salvage his crumbling life aboard the massive Amity Station, heart of the forty-world People’s Collectorate. This three-sector city in space houses the Interstellar Congress and leads the way in scientific and technological advances. Built in the wake of war to unify humanity, Amity Station provides a beacon of hope as dark tidings spread across the galaxy.

When a school-age resident with a brilliant mind dies from an overdose of the deadly drug Motif, which is ravaging member worlds, Trevor and his reluctant partner investigate. The mystery sends Trevor into dangerous territory which may unearth a presence no one on Amity foresaw.

Will Trevor bend his principles in search of the truth, all while dealing with his beloved daughter’s struggling health, his brother’s wayward behavior, and the resistance of his superiors? How will fate steal his joy this time? And is anyone on Amity safe?

Quiet War is the opening stanza in the five-book saga of an empire on the brink, threatened by rising enemies – seen and unseen. Fans of Babylon 5 and anyone who loves solving a mystery will be captivated by this series.

Featured Sci-fi: The Posh Prepper Book 1 by Todd Knight

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Featured Sci-fi: The Posh Prepper Book 1 by Todd Knight

FREE as of December 5, 2025
Click for current price: Amazon US, United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Australia

“A spellbinding apocalyptic thriller with a relentless pace and unpredictable plot.” – WINNER, Literary Titan Gold Book Award

“An action-packed survivalist story with a deeper story of friendship and found family.” – OFFICIAL SELECTION, US Review of Books

“An absolute must-read for fans of the post-apocalyptic genre.” – Robin’s Reviews

An apocalyptic virus. A crisis consultant. A 24-hour head start.
In 2035, in a hopelessly broken world, Nick Ritter is The Posh Prepper, a gifted crisis consultant who sells disaster-survival plans to rich and powerful clients.

Haunted by corrupt clients and a tragic past, Nick lives a reclusive life in overcrowded Boston, counting the days until he can retire to his survival ranch in New Zealand.

But when he gets an insider tip that a deadly virus is tearing through Boston, Nick has 24 hours to escape the city and flee to New Zealand. He has the perfect survival plan, but there’s just one problem…it doesn’t account for company.

As he scrambles toward safety, Nick picks up a ragtag group of followers:

Abby Blackwell, a pregnant teen runaway, is hiding a dark secret. If she can outrun her troubled past, she can start a new life. But trusting anyone could put everyone in danger.

Brian Donahue, a washed-up Navy SEAL, is scraping by as an escape pilot. Torn between family and duty, he’ll risk everything to complete this final mission.

Dana Foster, an overworked ER doctor, is haunted by human suffering. As the outbreak spreads, she faces an impossible choice: who should they save?

Now Nick must call on his disaster-planning skills to survive, facing off against a collapsing society to protect his newfound family and save mankind from extinction.

The Posh Prepper is a dark, tense, fast-paced apocalyptic thriller with an unforgettable cast of complex characters.

A character-driven story where intelligence matters more than firepower, and every survival choice carries a human cost. For readers who want layered characters, moral complexity, and stakes that feel uncomfortably real.

Perfect for fans of T.L. Payne, Grace Hamilton, and Kyla Stone.

Featured Fantasy: Wolf Rampant Trilogy (Book 1 Wolf’s Pack) by Aimee Easterling

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Featured Fantasy: Wolf Rampant Trilogy (Book 1 Wolf's Pack) by Aimee Easterling

FREE as of December 3, 2025
Click for current price: Amazon US, United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Australia

Apple, Nook, Kobo, GooglePlay

The complete Wolf Rampant Trilogy: An outcast shifter builds a life around running away from her wolf, until an irresistible alpha makes hiding impossible.

Terra Wilder has spent years smothering her inner wolf, pretending she’s human so she can slip through the cracks.

Then Wolfie Young walks into her life—an untamed bloodling alpha whose very presence shreds the careful control she’s fought so hard to maintain.

Soon, Terra and Wolfie are thrust into a maelstrom of warring packs, deadly secrets, and outcasts who become found family. Together, they must choose between the lives they were born into…and the future they could claim side by side.

Perfect for fans of Patricia Briggs, this complete trilogy blends slow-burn romance with pulse-pounding urban fantasy. Includes Shiftless, Pack Princess, and Alpha Ascendant.

Featured Sci-fi: Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut

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$2.99 as of December 3, 2025
Click for current price: Amazon US (Full-price: United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Australia)

Apple, Nook, Kobo, GooglePlay

“A free-wheeling vehicle . . . an unforgettable ride!”—The New York Times

Cat’s Cradle is Kurt Vonnegut’s satirical commentary on modern man and his madness. An apocalyptic tale of this planet’s ultimate fate, it features a midget as the protagonist, a complete, original theology created by a calypso singer, and a vision of the future that is at once blackly fatalistic and hilariously funny. A book that left an indelible mark on an entire generation of readers, Cat’s Cradle is one of the twentieth century’s most important works—and Vonnegut at his very best.

“[Vonnegut is] an unimitative and inimitable social satirist.”—Harper’s Magazine

“Our finest black-humorist . . . We laugh in self-defense.”—Atlantic Monthly

Featured Sci-Fantasy: Claus Legend of the Fat Man (Claus Series Book 1) by Tony Bertauski

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99¢ as of December 3, 2025
Click for current price: Amazon US, United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Australia

The 1st novel in the Claus Universe. The stories you never heard…

In the early 1800s, Nicholas Santa discovered an ancient race of elven.

Short, fat and hairy, they have lived peacefully on the North Pole since the Ice Age but Nicholas is quickly swept into the colony’s first and only fracture. The elven known as the Cold One has divided his people. His name is Jack. And Jack’s tired of hiding. Why should they live in a shrinking ice cap when humans occupy the rest of the world?

It’s just not fair.

There’s no stopping Jack from world domination until Nicholas Santa, the only human to enter the elven colony, joins helium-bladder reindeer, artificially-intelligent snowmen, and a merry band of big-footed elven to bring peace back to the North Pole.

And becomes a legend.

[Read more…]

Featured Sci-fantasy: Christmas Presence (A Claus Universe Prequel) by Tony Pertauski

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FREE on Amazon
Click for current price: Amazon US, United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Australia

WORLDS ARE WAITING TO BE OPENED.

Van Holloway wanted one thing: survive a Christmas party without looking like a total disaster. Instead, he got dragged into a virtual game that came with glasses that weren’t glasses and rules that weren’t rules.

Oops.

Turns out there’s a world inside the glasses. A place of clockwork toys, abandoned workshops, and secrets nobody ever meant to unwrap. Van and Charli (yes, the crush, yes, awkward) stumble out of the game with more than they bargained for. And something… stumbles out after them.

Now reality’s misfiring like cheap Christmas lights. Something really wants back what they accidentally took from the game.

From droids in Santa suits to gingerbread rebels with attitude, Van and Charli are stuck in a war between belief and machinery, myth and madness. To make it home alive, they’ll have to trust each other, cling to what’s real, and take on the one enemy stronger than magic itself: doubt.

Christmas Presence: The Prequel launches the Claus Universe with sci-fi sparkle, fantasy mayhem, and enough heart to melt the North Pole. Perfect for fans of Stranger Things, The Santa Clause, and Ready Player One.