The Third Annual Self-Published Science Fiction Contest Begins- Team Red Stars Slush Pile

I’m incredibly excited to share that the third annual Self-Published Science Fiction Contest (SPSFC3, pronounced Space-Fic 3) is beginning! Over 200 books have been gathered, many judges assembled, all in the name of enjoying indie sci-fi. Those books were divided among teams, each of which is assigned a slush pile of books from which we’ll draw semifinalists to compete for the finalists and winner! Follow along at this blog for MUCH sci-fi content, including this contest. Below, I have blurbs for every single slush book along with my initial thoughts purely based on the cover and blurb, the cover (of course) and links to each book.

Birthright of Scars: Rising by Laurisa Brandt

Blurb

Disrel of Tourmal has little left except his sister, but he won’t accept death without a fight. When the state mandates that all Pyrons relocate to the walled sector, Disrel does not hesitate to don a mask and replace the capitol flag with one that proclaims Pyron is free. What he didn’t count on was a simple act of defiance becoming the symbol of an empire-wide revolution. By the time dawn breaks, a sable commander renowned for catching renegades is on his trail, and Disrel is driven into the center of the resistance against the state.

Initial Thoughts

I accidentally clicked the book cover on this on Amazon and there are maps inside. Gorgeous maps. I love maps. I also love a good uprising. We’ll see where this one takes us!

Wistful Ascending by JCM Berne

Blurb

The il’Drach have conquered half a galaxy behind the civilization-ending Powers of their mixed-species children. Half-human Rohan, exhausted by a decade fighting for their Empire, has paid a secret and terrible price for his freedom. Now retired, he strives to live a quiet life towing starships for the space station Wistful. His most pressing problems are finding the perfect cup of coffee and talking to a gorgeous shuttle tech without tripping over his own tongue. A nearby, long-dormant wormhole is opened by a shipful of scared, angry refugees, and the many eyes of the Empire focus uncomfortably on Wistful. As scientists, spies, and assassins converge, reverting to the monster the Empire created is the surest way to protect his friends. And the surest way to lose them.

Initial Thoughts

I’ve actually read this book! I read it last year on a whim after seeing it in another group’s slush pile. My reading it before won’t impact the other books here–I will read it again and see how it stacks up to the competition! If you like Star Trek: DS9, superheroes, or Kaiju, check it out.

The Cartographer’s Vault by Richard Houlden

Blurb

Follow Ashra Whistlo as she leads a team to rediscover this station that has been lost to time for over a millennium but heed the warning that she is given from The Curator: Do not lose your grasp on what is your reality. You will be presented with real people and real existences within this room. Their emotions will be palpable as if they were yours. You must detach yourself from their reality and remember that it isn’t yours.

Initial Thoughts

I love the idea of a Collector-type sci-fi novel. What sights, locales, and adventures can await?

The Fall is All There Is by C.M. Caplan

Blurb

All Petre Mercy wanted was a good old-fashioned dramatic exit from his life as a prince. But it’s been five years since he fled home on a cyborg horse. Now the King – his Dad – is dead – and Petre has to decide which heir to pledge his thyroid-powered sword to. As the youngest in a set of quadruplets, he’s all too aware that the line of succession is murky. His siblings are on the precipice of power grabs, and each of them want him to pick their side. If Petre has any hope of preventing civil war, he’ll have to avoid one sibling who wants to take him hostage, win back another’s trust after years of rivalry and resentment, and get an audience with a sister he’s been avoiding for five years.

Initial Thoughts

A play for noble power set in a strange cyborg universe with… a thyroid (???) powered sword? Could be a great ride.

Hall of Skulls by Jamie Eubanks

Blurb

When Kai becomes the youngest provisional leader of Churi, Mokuteki law decrees he must prevail against a brutal challenge. Once the ritualized testing phase begins—one designed to break both body and spirit—Kai discovers more than his title is at stake. As part of that challenge, while blindfolded and chained, Kai learns his betrothed, Asher, has been abducted.

Initial Thoughts

Is the kidnapping legitimately part of the challenge? Is there more going on as someone tries to thwart or destroy the provisional leader? I’m excited to find out.

Beating the Apocalypse by Joyce Reynolds-Ward

Blurb

Rianna and Bobby are Canaries—two of the living toxin monitors who are the Coalition for North American Survival’s best tools for predicting and enduring an outbreak of the poisonous Clouds that threaten to destroy all life under the Dome. Their heightened sensitivity to airborne toxins coupled with bioengineered tweaking, training, and medications means they can take data on current conditions as they affect living beings—and tolerate higher exposures than most people. More than that, Rianna and Bobby are a couple. They’re the two best forecasters of Cloud behavior, prized and protected by their supervisor, LeBrand, because of their complementary talents. So why are their bosses trying to kill them?

Initial Thoughts

I think this is a tremendously fascinating set up for a novel. The idea of genetically modified humans as canaries for a future climate catastrophe? It’s super cool. We’ll see where it takes us.

A Quiet Rebellion: Guilt by M.H. Thaung

Blurb

When infectious paranormal powers aren’t a gift but a threat to society, a man’s conscience leads him into increasing trouble as he opposes a corrupt official. Convoy captain Jonathan has a guilty secret: he killed a traveller who was cursed while under his protection. The killing wasn’t to defend the innocent, but to hide governmental employment of curse victims—like Jonathan—who have developed paranormal powers. To assuage his guilt, he bends the rules to help another, younger victim. His growing fatherly affection for her leaves him vulnerable to pressure from an unethical researcher. Can he navigate the bureaucratic web, do his duty and still keep his conscience intact?

Initial Thoughts

This one sounds like it could have some interesting sci-fi twists intermingled with magic. Infections paranormal powers is a mouthful, but also has me interested. We’ll see where this plague/rebellion goes!

In Sekhmet’s Shadow by JD Rhodes

Blurb

The year is 2061, and the world has ended. In the city of Asclepion, Sabra Kasembe dreams of a superheroic future yet wakes to the taste of blood and ash. When her father is shot six times in a heist gone wrong, she resolves to bring those responsible to justice—no matter where the trail might lead.

To do this, she’ll need to team up with a washed-up superhero, a brooding robotic woman, and the very man who shot her father. Because he is her only link to a conspiracy that threatens to shake the Functioning World to its core. But it may be impossible to save a world on the brink of apocalypse without pushing it over the edge. As her reckoning approaches, Sabra realizes that her future may not be filled not with the cries of those she’s saved, but the screams of her victims…

Initial Thoughts

I haven’t read anything on Royal Road, though I’ve always meant to. This appears to be a massive novel, and it is completed with an epilogue and everything (that’s required for the contest, of course–not an epilogue; that the book is completed). Anyway, this book sounds intense. We’ll see where it leads!

Archimedes by Brian Sigmon

Blurb

A thousand years in the future, people kill for Dorium. They threaten war over it. And if the headlines are to be trusted, somebody recently destroyed an entire colony for it. That’s why it’s a big problem when Ben Ashley accidentally steals some.

Initial Thoughts

Whopsies! Sounds like you just accidentally stole an intercolonial war! I kind of love this premise, so I’m looking forward to seeing where this epic heist may lead.

Fog of War by Forest Wells

Blurb

Years of war have taken their toll on the crew of Gold 1, but there’s no rest to be had. Even as forty years of war seem to be ending, a new threat lurks in the shadows which could tip the balance of power against The United Systems Republic.

Initial Thoughts

The blurb and cover both make me think Wing Commander, and that inevitably leads me to think this’ll be some cheesy epic-ness. Here’s hoping!

Caught in the Vortex by A. Elnas

Blurb

After escaping Earth and humanity’s self-imposed destruction, Cockroach has buried the past for a brighter future. A new home and working for the prestigious, all-powerful longevity industry are the base for a peaceful existence. However, darkness looms behind the light, and a threat casts its shadow.
When an attack against the industrial empire occurs, a long-forgotten ghost emerges, shattering the well-constructed serenity.

Initial Thoughts

I love that one of the last survivors of Earth is named Cockroach. Like, I actually laughed out loud at that. I wonder if this is going to be a sci-fi/humor mashup or if it was just a clever chuckle-inducer from the author. We’ll see when I sample it!

The Rave by J.R. Traas

Blurb

When Alina K’vich lost her parents, her grandfather Dimas gave her a home and a purpose. At The School, he trained her to become an Aelfraver—a hunter of arcane beasts, demons, and other anti-human entities. For ten years, they built a life together. Then, one night, in the middle of preparing dinner, Dimas vanished.

Initial Thoughts

Look, the longer blurb describes this as a sci-fi arcanepunk and I don’t really know what that means but between that and the cover I basically just want to read this immediately.

Kwelengsen Storm by David M. Kelly

Blurb

When Logan Twofeathers takes on the job of head of engineering on Kwelengsen, the first habitable planet discovered by Earth, he thinks he’s leaving conflict far behind. But when he investigates the loss of a deep-space communications relay, his ship is attacked and crash-lands back on the planet.

With his new home destroyed by the invaders, Logan is stranded deep in the frozen mountains with an injured sergeant who hates him almost as much as the enemy. Against the ever-present threat of capture, he must battle his way through icy surroundings in a treacherous attempt to find his wife.

Initial Thoughts

I’m getting intense vibes of Timothy Zahn or L.E. Modesitt, Jr. from this blurb and cover, and I’m here for it.

Gabriel’s Watch by Noah Fregger

Blurb

The Fate of Civilization Resides in a Junkyard
It’s ten years after a global catastrophe that has caused the near extinction of the human race; but upon this devastation, a new race had been delivered to occupy the Earth in place of mankind, who’s deathly fate had dwindled in the balance. Yet the remaining humans, fueled by anger, have slaughtered that race of beings.
This is the story, as told by one man, of the chaos that has ensued thereafter.

Initial Thoughts

The Amazon page has a different cover, but this is the one my group got in our folder for the contest and it’s just so intense. The character’s glance just grabs at you. Anyway, the blurb also sounds intense. We’ll see where it takes us.

The Fractured God by Gerard Howard

Blurb

Jaded mercenaries Aelred and Xyla have come across the most clichéd of contracts: rescue a missing princess to end a series of brutal wars waged in her name. Much to everyone’s surprise, the rescue does not pan out too well. A god gets involved and hurls the three of them into another universe where technology rules in lieu of magic. It’s not too bad, though. Saving the multiverse from the destruction of a bored god who wants to experience nonexistence is an additional responsibility that could’ve fallen on anyone.

Initial Thoughts

I… am so intrigued by this. A god who wants to experience nonexistence? What? This is wild. We’ll see where it leads us.

Freedom Hold by Romana Drew

Blurb

Kaylee’s dreams ended when the huge, furless Langons ordered her to marry Ralaf. If she refuses, she will be forced to work in the mine with all the other disposable Cadorie. Determined to find a better life, Kaylee runs away, searching for a mythical land called Freedom Hold, where Cadorie live free.

Initial Thoughts

The extended blurb of this one reads like a great setup for a space opera. That, combined with what looks like a set of sterling reviews, has me excited to try this one out.

Jake’s Magical Market by J.R. Mathews

Blurb

Jake is working at the neighborhood market under his apartment when the world ends. He expected nuclear war, a computer virus, or even climate change burning everyone to a crisp to bring about the downfall of civilization. But cruel and arbitrary gods from another world? Who would have guessed that?

When these cruel gods shuffled Earth like a deck of cards, nothing was in the same place anymore. Monsters, dungeons, and magical items appear scattered across the globe. And suddenly, everyone has access to a new, strange magical card system that gives them magical powers.

Initial Thoughts

This has been sitting on my TBR for ages, so I was absolutely thrilled to see it pop up in our slush pile. The description does only hint at sci-fi content, but the author says it’s there. I am so excited to see where it goes, though. I’ve had this book recommended multiple times.

Crimson Gauntlet by I.O. Adler

Blurb

When a wave of monsters attack the town of Bell Park, Eddie Rush has no idea the invasion is an introduction to a new interactive experience.

Crimson Gauntlet Online wasn’t supposed to go live for weeks. But for Eddie and his group of gamer friends, the chilling realization dawns on them that the promised game is responsible for the spreading destruction and death.

Initial Thoughts

LitRPG! This is a subgenre I have enjoyed immensely at times, but I haven’t dived in as deeply as I’d like. This is a perfect opportunity to try a new one!

Bitcoin Hurricane by Kate Baucherel

Blurb

The SimCavalier is feared by black hat hackers across the world and trusted by corporations and governments to get their systems back online fast. Her identity is a closely guarded secret, but a message hidden deep in the very ransomware she’s cracking tells her that cybercriminals are on her tail.

With the clock ticking and lives hanging in the balance, Cameron clings to the last vestiges of anonymity, but a tenacious journalist blows her cover and she finds herself hunted by the very criminals she’s been trying to stop. They infiltrate her team, laying a false trail while the real threat looms ever closer.

Initial Thoughts

I’m not gonna sugarcoat it; I see anything crypto-related and I tend to run the other way. The premise of this is great, though, and I’m a sucker for this kind of cyberpunk thriller. I am curious to see where it takes me.

Vigil: Knight in Cyber Armor by Lewis Knight

Blurb

Jett scrapes out a living in the oppressive city of Neo York: a crumbling ruin of violence and vice ruled by gangs and crime lords. When a masked vigilante called Vigil dies saving Jett’s life, he adopts Vigil’s mantle and uses his veteran combat skills to wage a one-man war on the city’s criminal elements. Along the way, he’ll partner up with a mysterious man named Incognito, and find a reluctant ally in Ronnie, a tough and ambitious police officer. But Vigil’s enemies won’t go away without a fight, and every one of them wants to be the first to kill the city’s new hero.

Initial Thoughts

The elevator pitch for this is Batman x Iron Man, possibly minus the billionaire side. I don’t hate it, and I love Batman. So color me quite intrigued. Also the cover gives me intense Dark Knight vibes, so I’m ready.

Watcher of the Damned by R.H. Snow

Blurb

The Happening wreaked havoc as Humanity got a hard reset from a deadly gender-cidal Virus – and for TransMutated Survivors like The Watcher, life in Post-Apocalyptic Texas just got a whole lot bloodier and a whole lot lonelier. In a cyberpunk Wild West gone awry, The Watcher was a Rebel without a clue under the System: a brutal, high-tech Social Construct engineered to serve the Enlightened and oppress the Damned. But that’s all about to change, thanks to a cheeky chaos agent named Rose…

Initial Thoughts

Books with a gender-cidal anything tend to go to extremes, and can sometimes have a compelling story, sometimes dip into some pretty rough content. We’ll see where R.H. Snow takes us in this novel.

The Complete Guide to Exploring Your New Planet by Mark Weaver

Blurb

In the Golden Age of Planetary Exploration, high adventure met tedious monotony, and easy living and hard dying went hand in hand. Those days are gone, apart from the monotony and dying bit. All the best planets have been taken and sure, a few people have become immensely rich, but it is only a few and they’re quite keen to keep it that way.

This is where the budget interstellar exploration companies come in. 

Initial Thoughts

I am so in love with this book even before opening it up. I love the cover. I love the premise. I love the tongue-in-cheek nature of it all. I can’t wait to see where it takes me.

Psycho Hose Beast from Outer Space by C.D. Gallant-King

Blurb

Gale Harbour hasn’t seen any excitement since the military abandoned the base there thirty years ago, unless you count the Tuesday night 2-for-1 video rentals at Jerry’s Video Shack. So when a dead body turns up floating in the town water supply, all evidence seems to point to a boring accident.

Niall, Pius and Harper are dealing with pre-teen awkwardness in the last days of summer before the start of high school. The same night the body is found, the three of them witness unusual lights in the sky over the bay. Is it a coincidence? Are the lights connected to the rapidly-increasing string of mysterious deaths? And what does the creepy old lady at the nursing home have to do with it?

There is an evil older than time hidden deep beneath the waters of the North Atlantic.

Initial Thoughts

What even is this!? I don’t know, but it seems whacky and campy and I want to know more.

The Great Migration by Steve Ramirez

Blurb

Bellona has been taught to hate and fear the mysterious beings known as the s’orne since she was a girl. She knows if she were ever infected with the fever they spread, she would go insane within seconds and die within hours.

As the local defenses mobilize to fight a s’orne invasion, Bellona scrambles to save her loved ones from the impending attack. Desperately, her group races to escape the city’s walls before a contagion of insanity erupts.

Initial Thoughts

Another group member pointed out the extinct rhino-things on the cover and how they’re all about that and I’m here for it, too. I don’t know what they have to do with a virus that drives you insane, but I definitely want to find out!

The Beckoning Void by Patrick LeClerc

Blurb

Emelia DuMond is an actress, her skill at adopting and changing her identity lifting her from her humble beginnings to success on the stage of Victorian London. And to the attention of the Ghost Society, a secret organization who work to defend the world from threats of the paranormal. After centuries of seeking, the sinister Disciples of the Void have obtained an arcane book of great power. A power that could tear the veil between dimensions and plunge the world into a dark, unspeakable future.

Now she has recruited an aging soldier of fortune burdened by a conscience, the sword wielding daughter of an Afghan brigand and an airship whose captain escaped slavery during the Civil War by stealing a Confederate vessel.

Can Emelia and her band of plucky outcasts save the world from a cult of fanatics intent on unleashing an ancient horror?

Initial Thoughts

The Cthulu and Victorian vibes are strong in this cover. The blurb has me thinking of a lot of comparison-reads and I have enjoyed many of those. I’m looking forward to seeing where this swashbuckling, paranormal adventure may lead.

Conclusion

What a wonderful array of books we’ve got aligned for us! I hope you’ll let me know which ones intrigue you, and follow along at this blog to find out more about the books as I sample them! Thanks for joining me!

All Links to Amazon are Affiliates

Links

The Self-Published Science Fiction Contest (SPSFC) Hub– Check out all of my posts related to the SPSFC here!

Science Fiction Hub– I have scores of reviews of Hugo nominees, Vintage Sci-Fi, modern sci-fi, TV series, and more! Check out my science fiction related writings here.

Be sure to follow me on Twitter for discussion of posts, links to other pages of interest, random talk about theology/philosophy/apologetics/movies/scifi/sports and more!

SDG.