An intellectual and literary history of the professionalization of suicidology at the turn of the 20th century which shows that fiction played a significant role in the transformation of the debates on voluntary death.In 19th-century England, the main point of contention around suicide was the punishment. Should “self-murderers” still be staked through the heart? Should the crown continue to seize their assets? In the 20th century, the questions shifted to motives:...

Orson Scott Card and Aaron Johnston return to their Ender's Game prequel series with this first volume of an all-new trilogy about the Second Formic War in The Swarm.The first invasion of Earth was beaten back by a coalition of corporate and international military forces, and the Chinese army. China has been devastated by the Formic's initial efforts to eradicate Earth life forms and prepare the ground for their own settlement. The Scouring of China struck fear in...

A hundred years before Ender's Game, humans thought they were alone in the galaxy. Humanity was slowly making their way out from Earth to the planets and asteroids of the Solar System, exploring and mining and founding colonies.The mining ship El Cavador is far out from Earth, in the deeps of the Kuiper Belt, beyond Pluto. Other mining ships, and the families that live on them, are few and far between this far out. So when El Cavador's telescopes pick up ...

A Horus Heresy AnthologyThe scars of mankind’s great schism will never fully heal. For those left behind, a new Era of Ruin is dawning, promising both new beginnings and fresh peril for an Imperium riven by trauma and war. Meanwhile, a loyal son must face down his traitorous father, grown monstrous with infernal power.READ IT BECAUSESome of Black Library’s most beloved authors explore the death throes and immediate aftermath of the ...

Mega-bestselling author Aaron Blabey, creator of The Bad Guys, is back!OK, here’s the situation:Thanks to a diabolical intergalactic game show, we are all cooked.Luckily, Griff, an 11-year-old kid with innumerable allergies, just got told by a talking axolotl named Bob that Griff is the only one who can save us.I mean, that’s kind of good news, right?Trouble is, Bob’s prophecy comes with a warning: “Watch your back,...

WHAT IS H.O.T.?7 authors have gathered to bring you erotic short stories exploring the place that sex takes in totalitarian societies. Whether it's digital surveillance, classism, queerphobia, how do we resist with our bodies?Stories included5K, by Merlina GaranceSexcrime: Doublemarkgreen, by Joachim HeijndermansObscenity, by Selina ShawNo Cam, by Jana SolInto The Ocean, by Ni...

A petty king sits on the throne of a peaceful nation while wizards and lords play politics. But evil grows restless, and dangerous rumblings threaten the easy prosperity.The dragons are waking. All of them."From all directions, in the darkness, a great terror approaches this world. I mean to fight the terror, Daven, and I would make a weapon of you."Daven Carrickson grew up as a beggar in the filthy alleys beneath the shadows of the palace....

Luisa Stein may be a promising young investigative journalist, but this story she has accidentally walked into might just be the end of her relationship, her job or even her life.Sitting on a train to an unknown destination, with a strange man who has given her no name, Luisa wonders how she ended up in this situation. Was it the mystery of the invitation? Or was it the trance-like feeling that made every hair on her body stand on end when this man asked her to join him.Befor...

An engrossing and macabre exploration of the folklore and early medical practices that led to the New England Vampire Panic in the 1890s, from critically acclaimed podcaster and bestselling author Aaron Mahnke.What would drive a man to exhume the body of his daughter and remove her heart? That question has haunted Aaron Mahnke, creator and host of the award-winning podcast Lore. Fueled by a decade of research, Mahnke excavates the past to understand the hysteria th...

This book offers a unique approach to learning astrophysics by combining rigorous scientific content with an engaging narrative. It introduces readers to the fundamental principles of stellar evolution, star formation, binary interactions, and gravitational astrophysics through the story of seven stars, the Seven Sisters, who were born in the Pleiades cluster and travel through the Milky Way.The Pleiades can be seen with the naked eye from Earth, near the Orion and Taurus constella...

Ice can preserve human remains for hundreds and even thousands of years. So can other natural conditions, including a hot, dry climate. Many long-hidden remains have given a peek into the customs and cultures of the past. Readers will discover some of the most chilling and surprising mummies ever found, as well as the history behind them.

BERNARD BROWN IS MISSING. The unassuming college athlete prone to bouts of solitude becomes a regional news story when he disappears for four straight days. No one has seen or heard from him-not even the hodgepodge group of four that has become his closest circle of friends. While the student body of the small town college gathers in a night vigil for Bernard, his four unlikely friends huddle in their routine study room-this time to process their fifth member's absence and surmise his wher...