C Gockel Writes

Featured Sci-fi: The Great War of the Worlds by Eric Goebelbecker

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Featured Sci-fi: The Great War of the Worlds by Eric Goebelbecker

FREE as of January 1, 2025
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It’s 1915, twenty years after the Martian invasion chronicled in the War of the Worlds failed.

The aliens left behind advanced technology and weapons, and now humanity is on the brink of a catastrophic war. Caught in the middle of the chaos are two unlikely heroes: Emil Zimmerman, a young German soldier, and James Brogan, an introverted radio engineer.

Emil dreamed of escaping his small village and making his way to the big city, but finds himself in the trenches fighting for an army that indiscriminately wields deadly Martian weapons. Meanwhile, James just wants to be left alone, but is pulled into a web of conspiracy when he’s called upon to repair crucial radios on Long Island.

As the world hurtles towards the brink of destruction, Emil and James find themselves on a collision course with fate, each struggling to survive and make sense of a new reality.

Shadows of the Past is a science fiction, alternate history, survival adventure. Do you love War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells? Then the thrilling journey of The Great War of the Worlds, where humanity grapples with the legacy of Martian technology is the ride you’re looking for.

Featured Sci-Fi: The Thief: A Cosmic Shores Novel (Amaranthe Book 21) by G.S Jennsen

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Featured Sci-Fi: The Thief: A Cosmic Shores Novel (Amaranthe Book 21) by G.S Jennsen

99¢ as of December 28, 2024
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* A stand-alone adventure set in the Amaranthe universe *

The Hesgyr are thieves. “Scavengers,” to hear their victims tell it; “repurposers” by their own reckoning.

As Chief of Intelligence for Non-Anaden Affairs, Eren Savitas’ job is to protect the Advocacy from all manner of alien threats: sabotage, assassination, insurgency and, way down the list, theft. So when he spots a Hesgyr running off with valuable technology, he follows the alien home—and discovers a civilization unlike any he’s ever encountered.

Yes, the Hesgyr are thieves. But they are also being hunted. Systematically exterminated by an insidious enemy they can’t see, touch or find. Eren finds himself drawn ever deeper into the Hesgyr’s fascinating yet labyrinthine world as he races against time to solve the mystery of the deadly attacks. What he discovers is a complex web of loyalties and betrayals, of grudges and grievances millennia old—and beneath it all, a secret that may hold the key to the survival of more than one civilization.

The Thief is a humorous, pulse-pounding sci-fi adventure about alien culture clashes, the flaws and foibles that transcend species, and the satisfaction that comes from breaking all the rules to save the day.

Featured Fantasy: Eastside Hedge Witch (Midlife Supernaturals #1) by T.J. Deschamps

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Featured Fantasy: Eastside Hedge Witch (Midlife Supernaturals #1) by T.J. Deschamps

FREE as of December 27, 2024
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If you like witches, hidden truths, a tight-knit community of misfits, and standing up to bullies, this might be the supernatural tale for you.

Miriam Diaz has lived as a typical mundane on Seattle’s Eastside for the past seventeen years. She serves on the parent teacher association, bakes for her daughter’s cheer squad, and is an all-around champion stay-at-home mom. Pretty average and totally boring. Miriam likes it that way. All the better to keep her secrets.

When a hellhound shows up on her morning run, her carefully crafted façade of normalcy comes crashing down. She has no choice but to banish the stinky mutt, revealing she’s a powerful witch.

But wait, there’s more…

Not only does Miriam face heat from below, a wolf comes sniffing around her spellwork. When he shifts into human form, he’s none other than her late husband’s best friend, Gabriel. He’s also the archangel she’s been trying to avoid.

Things heat up even more…

Soon, Miriam discovers she’s not the only one keeping secrets in her sleepy suburban community. Will she run to escape facing her past or accept help from Gabriel and the supe community to face it?

Featured Fantasy: The Werewolf of Whitechapel (Miss Sharp’s Monsters Book 1) by Suzannah Rowntree

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Featured Fantasy: The Werewolf of Whitechapel (Miss Sharp's Monsters Book 1) by Suzannah Rowntree

FREE as of December 27, 2024
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Murder, monsters…and a disreputable Victorian lady’s maid.

A killer stalks the grimy streets of Whitechapel—but Scotland Yard seems determined to turn a blind eye. With one look at her best friend’s corpse, Liz Sharp already knows the truth: the killer is a werewolf.

No one important will hold a werewolf accountable—after all, the monsters rule Europe. Certainly, no one will believe a werewolf victim like Liz: the very scars that make her determined to investigate Sal’s death also condemn her as the sort of female who’d sell her blood for easy money.

As it happens, Liz’s best hope for justice might well lie with her emotionally repressed employer, Princess May. Though the princess has connections with werewolf royalty, there’s no one else Liz can turn to. Certainly, she can’t risk trusting the irritatingly personable Inspector Short, who dogs her steps from the slums of Whitechapel to the palaces of St James.

But as corpses mount up, Liz discovers that no one is precisely who she thought: not Sal, not herself, and certainly not the werewolf.

Luckily, she has a few tricks hidden in the pockets of her trusty bloomers…

The first novel of Miss Sharp’s Monsters is a witty historical fantasy adventure, perfect for fans of The Parasol Protectorate or Pride and Prejudice and Zombies! Pick up The Werewolf of Whitechapel and join Miss Sharp on the uncanny streets of Victorian London…

Featured Sci-fi: Eifelheim by Michael Flynn

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Featured Sci-fi: Eifelheim by Michael Flynn

$1.99 as of December 27, 2024
Click for current price: Amazon US, Canada (Paperback and Audiobook available at: United Kingdom, Germany, Australia)

“Carl Sagan meets Umberto Eco. . . . Bursting with pungent historical detail . . . this dense, provocative novel offers big rewards to patient readers.” —Entertainment Weekly

The alien world of medieval Europe lives again, transformed by the physics of the future, by a winner of the Heinlein Award.

Over the centuries, one small town in Germany has disappeared and never been resettled. Tom, a historian, and his theoretical physicist girlfriend Sharon, become interested. By all logic, the town should have survived. What’s so special about Eifelheim?

Father Dietrich is the village priest of Eifelheim, in the year 1348, when the Black Death is gathering strength but is still not nearby. Dietrich is an educated man, and to his astonishment becomes the first contact person between humanity and an alien race from a distant star, when their ship crashes in the nearby forest.

It is a time of wonders, in the shadow of the plague. Tom and Sharon, and Father Deitrich have a strange destiny of tragedy and triumph in Eifelheim, the brilliant science fiction novel by Michael Flynn.

“Heartbreaking. . . . Flynn masterfully achieves an intricate panorama of medieval life, full of fascinatingly realized human and [alien] characters whose fates interconnect with poignant irony.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review

“Meticulously researched, intense, mesmerizing novel . . . for readers seeking thoughtful science fiction of the highest order.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“Eifelheim may turn out to be the best science fiction novel this year.” —Orson Scott Card, Hugo Award–winning author of Ender’s Game

Featured Fantasy: Forgotten Ages Complete Series by Lindsay Buroker

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Featured Fantasy: Forgotten Ages Complete Series by Lindsay Buroker

99¢ as of December 26, 2024
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The greatest military leader of his time.
The most talented code breaker her people have.
Sworn enemies.

When deadly secrets from the ancient past are unearthed, secrets capable of fracturing the world and destroying all life on the planet, these two enemies will have to work together. They are humanity’s only hope.

The Forgotten Ages series is recommended for fans of epic fantasy, action-adventure, mystery, and romance.

This bundle includes:

Encrypted (novel)
Enigma (short story)
Decrypted (novel)
Bonus extras with the author