The Grisha Universe by Leigh Bardugo
The Gathering Dark aka; Shadow and Bone - 978-1780621104 - Indigo 2012 ~ Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.
Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.
Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha . . . and the secrets of her heart.
Siege and Storm - 978-1780621135 - Indigo 2013 ~ Hunted across the True Sea, haunted by the lives she took on the Fold, Alina must try to make a life with Mal in an unfamiliar land, all while keeping her identity as the Sun Summoner a secret. But she can’t outrun her past or her destiny for long.
The Darkling has emerged from the Shadow Fold with a terrifying new power and a dangerous plan that will test the very boundaries of the natural world. With the help of a notorious privateer, Alina returns to the country she abandoned, determined to fight the forces gathering against Ravka. But as her power grows, Alina slips deeper into the Darkling’s game of forbidden magic, and farther away from Mal. Somehow, she will have to choose between her country, her power, and the love she always thought would guide her—or risk losing everything to the oncoming storm.
Ruin and Rising - 978-1780621166 - Indigo 2014 ~ The Darkling rules Ravka from his shadow throne.
Now the nation's fate rests with a broken Sun Summoner, a disgraced tracker, and the shattered remnants of a once-great magical army.
Deep in an ancient network of tunnels and caverns, a weakened Alina must submit to the dubious protection of the Apparat and the zealots who worship her as a Saint. Yet her plans lie elsewhere, with the hunt for the elusive firebird and the hope that an outlaw prince still survives.
Alina will have to forge new alliances and put aside old rivalries as she and Mal race to find the last of Morozova's amplifiers. But as she begins to unravel the Darkling's secrets, she reveals a past that will forever alter her understanding of the bond they share and the power she wields. The firebird is the one thing that stands between Ravka and destruction—and claiming it could cost Alina the very future she’s fighting for.

Six of Crows - 978-1780622279 - Orion 2015 ~ Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price—and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can’t pull it off alone. . . . A convict with a thirst for revenge - A sharpshooter who can’t walk away from a wager - A runaway with a privileged past - A spy known as the Wraith - A Heartrender using her magic to survive the slums - A thief with a gift for unlikely escapes -

Kaz’s crew is the only thing that might stand between the world and destruction—if they don’t kill each other first.
Crooked Kingdom - 978-1780622309 - Orion 2016 ~ Welcome to the world of the Grisha.
Kaz Brekker and his crew of deadly outcasts have just pulled off a heist so daring even they didn't think they'd survive. But instead of divvying up a fat reward, they're right back to fighting for their lives.
Double-crossed and badly weakened, the crew is low on resources, allies, and hope. As powerful forces from around the world descend on Ketterdam to root out the secrets of the dangerous drug known as jurda parem, old rivals and new enemies emerge to challenge Kaz's cunning and test the team's fragile loyalties.
A war will be waged on the city's dark and twisting streets - a battle for revenge and redemption that will decide the fate of the Grisha world.
King of Scars - 978-1510104457 - Orion 2019 ~ Nikolai Lantsov has always had a gift for the impossible. No one knows what he endured in his country’s bloody civil war—and he intends to keep it that way. Now, as enemies gather at his weakened borders, the young king must find a way to refill Ravka’s coffers, forge new alliances, and stop a rising threat to the once-great Grisha Army.
Yet with every day a dark magic within him grows stronger, threatening to destroy all he has built. With the help of a young monk and a legendary Grisha Squaller, Nikolai will journey to the places in Ravka where the deepest magic survives to vanquish the terrible legacy inside him. He will risk everything to save his country and himself. But some secrets aren’t meant to stay buried—and some wounds aren’t meant to heal.
Rule of Wolves - 978-1510109186 - Orion 2021 ~ The Demon King. As Fjerda's massive army prepares to invade, Nikolai Lantsov will summon every bit of his ingenuity and charm—and even the monster within—to win this fight. But a dark threat looms that cannot be defeated by a young king's gift for the impossible.
The Stormwitch. Zoya Nazyalensky has lost too much to war. She saw her mentor die and her worst enemy resurrected, and she refuses to bury another friend. Now duty demands she embrace her powers to become the weapon her country needs. No matter the cost.
The Queen of Mourning. Deep undercover, Nina Zenik risks discovery and death as she wages war on Fjerda from inside its capital. But her desire for revenge may cost her country its chance at freedom and Nina the chance to heal her grieving heart.
King. General. Spy. Together they must find a way to forge a future in the darkness. Or watch a nation fall.

Warlock Saga by Christopher Stasheff (1st 4 listed of 27 plus titles)
Escape Velocity - 978-0441216031 - ACE 1987 ~ Democracy is crumbling in the Interstellar Dominion Electorates and if Dar and Samantha can't get their message to Terra in time, a coup is inevitable. What's more, every police ship in space has just been alerted that Dar and Samantha are dangerous telepaths to be shot on sight.
The Warlock in Spite of Himself - 978-0441873029 - ACE 1982 ~ In an interstellar romp that proves science and sorcery can mix, only hard-headed realist Rod Gallowglass can save the people of Gramarye from their doom by becoming--The Warlock in Spite of Himself--if only he believed in magic.
King Kobold Revived - 978-0441444915 - ACE 1984 (originally 1971) ~ Here's Gramarye, a gentle planet where, in the Thirty-first Century, people choose the life-style of medieval England; except they're prejudiced against and persecute their witches and warlocks (espers, naturally).
Rod Gallowglass (dubbed High Warlock in spite of himself) is stationed there as an agent of the intergalactic DDT--Decentralized democratic Tribunal--to protect the precious esper colony from its primitive fellow Gramaryans, and to insure a gradual integration.
This already whacky society is stirred up with a batch of paranoid esper Neanderthals led by the strange King Kobold, brought in by alien futurians to destroy those espers so vital to DDT's future.
When this unhealthy mess starts brewing, our warlock-cum-everyman is the one to watch.
The Warlock Unlocked - 978-0441873258 - ACE 1982 ~ In Gramarye, where everyone who is anyone is a witch, and where Rod Gallowglass has only just begun to learn of the awesome powers he possesses, a battle between worlds has begun. In the fight to preserve freedom, Rod is about to learn if his strength will be enough to save his precious world--and all democracy--from destruction.

Howl's Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
Howl's Moving Castle - 978-0416074420 - Methuen 1988 ~ Sophie has the great misfortune of being the eldest of three daughters, destined to fail miserably should she ever leave home to seek her fate. But when she unwittingly attracts the ire of the Witch of the Waste, Sophie finds herself under a horrid spell that transforms her into an old lady. Her only chance at breaking it lies in the ever-moving castle in the hills: the Wizard Howl's castle. To untangle the enchantment, Sophie must handle the heartless Howl, strike a bargain with a fire demon, and meet the Witch of the Waste head-on. Along the way, she discovers that there's far more to Howl—and herself—than first meets the eye.
Castle in the Air - 978-0064473453 - Greenwillow 1991 ~ Far to the south of the land of Ingary, in the Sultanates of Rashpuht, there lived in the city of Zanzib a young and not very prosperous carpet dealer named Abdullah who loved to spend his time daydreaming. He was content with his life and his daydreams until, one day, a stranger sold him a magic carpet.
That very night, the carpet flew him to an enchanted garden. There, he met and fell in love with the beauteous princess Flower-in-the-Night, only to have her snatched away, right under his very nose, by a wicked djinn. With only his magic carpet and his wits to help him, Abdullah sets off to rescue his princess....
House of Many Ways - 978-0061477959 - Greenwillow 2008 ~ Charmain Baker is in over her head. Looking after Great-Uncle William's tiny cottage while he's ill should have been easy. But Great-Uncle William is better known as the Royal Wizard Norland, and his house bends space and time. Its single door leads to any number of places—the bedrooms, the kitchen, the caves under the mountains, the past, and the Royal Mansion, to name just a few.
By opening that door, Charmain has become responsible for not only the house, but for an extremely magical stray dog, a muddled young apprentice wizard, and a box of the king's most treasured documents. She has encountered a terrifying beast called a lubbock, irritated a clan of small blue creatures, and wound up smack in the middle of an urgent search. The king and his daughter are desperate to find the lost, fabled Elfgift—so desperate that they've even called in an intimidating sorceress named Sophie to help. And where Sophie is, can the Wizard Howl and fire demon Calcifer be far behind?
Of course, with that magical family involved, there's bound to be chaos—and unexpected revelations. No one will be more surprised than Charmain by what Howl and Sophie discover.

The Snow Queen Cycle by Joan D. Vinge
The Snow Queen - 978-0708880753 - Orbit - 1980 ~ The imperious Winter colonists have ruled the planet Tiamat for 150 years, deriving wealth from the slaughter of the sea mers. But soon the galactic stargate will close, isolating Tiamat, and the 150-year reign of the Summer primitives will begin. Their only chance at surviving the change is if Arienrhod, the ageless, corrupt Snow Queen, can destroy destiny with an act of genocide. Arienrhod is not without competition as Moon, a young Summer-tribe sibyl, and the nemesis of the Snow Queen, battles to break a conspiracy that spans space. Interstellar politics, a millennia-long secret conspiracy, and a civilization whose hidden machineries might still control the fate of worlds all form the background to this spectacular hard science fiction novel from Joan D. Vinge.
World's End - 978-0708881446 - Orbit - 1984 ~ Hot on the heels of The Summer Queen, this novel is a must-read for fans of Vinge's Hugo Award-winning series. BZ Gundhalinu, a policeman who became an outcast after saving the future Summer Queen, quits his job to follow his ne'er-do-well brothers into the godforsaken waste, World's End, to prospect. BZ's odyssey will set the stage for The Summer Queen.
The Summer Queen - 978-0765304469 - TOR - 1991 ~ A story that spans millennia, from the ruins of an ancient interstellar empire to the planets of the Hegemony that rules human space, The Summer Queen is the multi-layered story of Tiamat, a world where the dolphin-like mers are harvested for the youth-prolonging serum extracted from their blood. But Tiamat is much more, for beneath Carbuncle, its capital, lies the old empire's greatest secret: an enormous forgotten technology which, though decaying, continues to affect the fates of the fallen empire's remnant cultures via the sybil-network--a data bank that binds the past and the future in its web of knowledge, As the Smith, genius mastermind of the hidden interstellar Brotherhood, tries feverishly to unlock its secrets, BZ Gundhalinu desperately strives to save the Hegemony, while the Summer Queen herself dares to create a new future for her people and her planet. And though each is acting alone, their fates will entwine in an astonishing climax that will change the universe forever.
Tangled Up in Blue - 978-0812576368 - TOR 2000 - Set during the time of The Snow Queen, BZ Gundhalinu is a by-the-book "Blue" on the trail of high corruption within the force. When a police raid goes horribly awry, BZ finds himself teamed up with Nyx LaisTree, a hard-nosed cop with no respect for the rules, and Devony Seaward, a beautiful hooker with a heart of gold. Together these three must fight the corruption of Tiamat and try to expose it before they all end up dead.
This novel marks the exciting return to the much-loved Snow Queen Universe. While taking place during events in The Snow Queen, this novel is a stand-alone masterpiece of noir suspense--taking a story you think you know, and showing you just how deep and vast the waters really run.

Gentleman Bastard Sequence by Scott Lynch
The Lies of Locke Lamora - 978-0575079755 - Gollancz - 2006 ~ An orphan’s life is harsh—and often short—in the mysterious island city of Camorr. But young Locke Lamora dodges death and slavery, becoming a thief under the tutelage of a gifted con artist. As leader of the band of light-fingered brothers known as the Gentleman Bastards, Locke is soon infamous, fooling even the underworld’s most feared ruler. But in the shadows lurks someone still more ambitious and deadly. Faced with a bloody coup that threatens to destroy everyone and everything that holds meaning in his mercenary life, Locke vows to beat the enemy at his own brutal game—or die trying.
Red Seas Under Red Skies - 978-0553903584 - Bantam 2007 ~ After a brutal battle with the underworld that nearly destroyed him, Locke Lamora and his trusted sidekick, Jean, fled the island city of their birth and landed on the exotic shores of Tal Verrar to nurse their wounds. But even at this westernmost edge of civilization, they can't rest for long---and they are soon back doing what they do best: stealing from the undeserving rich and pocketing the proceeds for themselves.
This time, however, they have targeted the grandest prize of all: the Sinspire, the most exclusive and heavily guarded gambling house in the world. Its nine floors attract the wealthiest clientele - and to rise to the top, one must impress with good credit, amusing behavior...and excruciatingly impeccable play. For there is one cardinal rule, enforced by Requin, the house's cold-blooded master: it is death to cheat at any game at the Sinspire.Brazenly undeterred, Locke and Jean have orchestrated an elaborate plan to lie, trick, and swindle their way up the nine floors...straight to Requin's teeming vault. Under the cloak of false identities, they meticulously make their climb - until they are closer to the spoils than ever.
But someone in Tal Verrar has uncovered the duo's secret. Someone from their past who has every intention of making the impudent criminals pay for their sins. Now it will take every ounce of cunning to save their mercenary souls. And even that may not be enough.
The Republic of Thieves - 978-0553804690 - Del Rey 2013 ~ With what should have been the greatest heist of their career gone spectacularly sour, Locke and his trusted partner, Jean, have barely escaped with their lives. Or at least Jean has. But Locke is slowly succumbing to a deadly poison that no alchemist or physiker can cure. Yet just as the end is near, a mysterious Bondsmage offers Locke an opportunity that will either save him or finish him off once and for all.
Magi political elections are imminent, and the factions are in need of a pawn. If Locke agrees to play the role, sorcery will be used to purge the venom from his body - though the process will be so excruciating he may well wish for death. Locke is opposed, but two factors cause his will to crumble: Jean's imploring - and the Bondsmage's mention of a woman from Locke's past: Sabetha. She is the love of his life, his equal in skill and wit, and now, his greatest rival.
Locke was smitten with Sabetha from his first glimpse of her as a young fellow orphan and thief-in-training. But after a tumultuous courtship, Sabetha broke away. Now they will reunite in yet another clash of wills. For faced with his one and only match in both love and trickery, Locke must choose whether to fight Sabetha - or to woo her. It is a decision on which both their lives may depend.
The Thorn of Emberlain - 978-0575079588 - Gollancz 2021 ~ Locke Lamora, thief, con-man, pirate, political deceiver is back, and now he must become a soldier.
A new chapter for Locke and Jean and finally the war that has been brewing in the Kingdom of the Marrows flares up and threatens to capture all in its flames.
And all the while Locke must try to deal with the disturbing rumours about his past revealed in The Republic of Thieves. Fighting a war when you don't know the truth of right and wrong is one thing. Fighting a war when you don't know the truth of yourself is quite another. Particularly when you've never been that good with a sword anyway...

Hainish by Ursula K. Le Guin
Rocannon's World - 978-0441732968 - ACE - 1966 ~ A world shared by three native humanoid races - the cavern-dwelling Gdemiar, elvish Fiia, and warrior clan, Liuar - is suddenly invaded and conquered by a fleet of ships from the stars. Earth scientist Rocannon is on that world, and he sees his friends murdered and his spaceship destroyed. Marooned among alien peoples, he leads the battle to free this new world - and finds that legends grow around him even as he fights.
Planet of Exile - 978-0441669516 - ACE - 1966 ~ The Earth colony of Landin has been stranded on Werel for ten years--& ten of Werel's years are over 600 terrestrial years. The lonely & dwindling human settlement is beginning to feel the strain. Every winter--a season that lasts for 15 years--the Earthmen have neighbors: the humanoid hilfs, a nomadic people who only settle down for the cruel cold spell. The hilfs fear the Earthmen, whom they think of as witches & call the farborns. But hilfs & farborns have common enemies: the hordes of ravaging barbarians called gaals & eerie preying snow ghouls. Will they join forces or be annihilated?
City of Illusions - 978-0441107025 - ACE - 1967 ~ Scattered here and there, small isolated groups of humanity lived in a state of semi-barbarity. Lost were the skills and science, the knowledge that had been Earth's in the golden age of the League of Worlds.
Each time a colony of Earthmen began to stir the ashes of half-forgotten technology, the Shing, mindlying ravagers of Terra, would crush them like insects.
Only one man dared to stand against the Shing's hunger for Earth conquest, and that man - the alien with the amber eyes - would first have to prove to a lie-tormented humanity that he himself was not a tool of the enemy!
The Left Hand of Darkness - 978-0441478071 - ACE - 1969 ~ A groundbreaking work of science fiction, The Left Hand of Darkness tells the story of a lone human emissary to Winter, an alien world whose inhabitants can change their gender. His goal is to facilitate Winter's inclusion in a growing intergalactic civilization. But to do so he must bridge the gulf between his own views and those of the completely dissimilar culture that he encounters. Embracing the aspects of psychology, society, and human emotion on an alien world, The Left Hand of Darkness stands as a landmark achievement in the annals of intellectual science fiction.
The Word for World Is Forest - 978-0425032794 - Berkley - 1972 ~ When the inhabitants of a peaceful world are conquered by the bloodthirsty yumens, their existence is irrevocably altered. Forced into servitude, the Athsheans find themselves at the mercy of their brutal masters.
Desperation causes the Athsheans, led by Selver, to retaliate against their captors, abandoning their strictures against violence. But in defending their lives, they have endangered the very foundations of their society. For every blow against the invaders is a blow to the humanity of the Athsheans. And once the killing starts, there is no turning back.

Wayfarers by Becky Chambers
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet - 978-1473619807 - Hodder 2015 ~ Follow a motley crew on an exciting journey through space—and one adventurous young explorer who discovers the meaning of family in the far reaches of the universe—in this light-hearted debut space opera from a rising sci-fi star.
Rosemary Harper doesn’t expect much when she joins the crew of the aging Wayfarer. While the patched-up ship has seen better days, it offers her a bed, a chance to explore the far-off corners of the galaxy, and most importantly, some distance from her past. An introspective young woman who learned early to keep to herself, she’s never met anyone remotely like the ship’s diverse crew, including Sissix, the exotic reptilian pilot, chatty engineers Kizzy and Jenks who keep the ship running, and Ashby, their noble captain.
Life aboard the Wayfarer is chaotic and crazy—exactly what Rosemary wants. It’s also about to get extremely dangerous when the crew is offered the job of a lifetime. Tunneling wormholes through space to a distant planet is definitely lucrative and will keep them comfortable for years. But risking her life wasn’t part of the plan. In the far reaches of deep space, the tiny Wayfarer crew will confront a host of unexpected mishaps and thrilling adventures that force them to depend on each other. To survive, Rosemary’s got to learn how to rely on this assortment of oddballs—an experience that teaches her about love and trust, and that having a family isn’t necessarily the worst thing in the universe.
A Closed and Common Orbit - 978-1473621442 - Hodder 2016 ~ Lovelace was once merely a ship's artificial intelligence. When she wakes up in an new body, following a total system shut-down and reboot, she has no memory of what came before. As Lovelace learns to negotiate the universe and discover who she is, she makes friends with Pepper, an excitable engineer, who's determined to help her learn and grow.
Together, Pepper and Lovey will discover that no matter how vast space is, two people can fill it together.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet introduced readers to the incredible world of Rosemary Harper, a young woman with a restless soul and secrets to keep. When she joined the crew of the Wayfarer, an intergalactic ship, she got more than she bargained for - and learned to live with, and love, her rag-tag collection of crewmates.
A Closed and Common Orbit is the stand-alone sequel to Becky Chambers' beloved debut novel The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet and is perfect for fans of Firefly, Joss Whedon, Mass Effect and Star Wars.
Record of a Spaceborn Few - 978-1473647602 - Hodder 2018 ~ Centuries after the last humans left Earth, the Exodus Fleet is a living relic, a place many are from but few outsiders have seen. Humanity has finally been accepted into the galactic community, but while this has opened doors for many, those who have not yet left for alien cities fear that their carefully cultivated way of life is under threat.
Tessa chose to stay home when her brother Ashby left for the stars, but has to question that decision when her position in the Fleet is threatened.
Kip, a reluctant young apprentice, itches for change but doesn't know where to find it.
Sawyer, a lost and lonely newcomer, is just looking for a place to belong.
When a disaster rocks this already fragile community, those Exodans who still call the Fleet their home can no longer avoid the inescapable question:
What is the purpose of a ship that has reached its destination?

Lightbringer by Brent Weeks
The Black Prism - 978-1841499055 - Orbit 2010 ~ Guile is the Prism, the most powerful man in the world. He is high priest and emperor, a man whose power, wit, and charm are all that preserves a tenuous peace. Yet Prisms never last, and Guile knows exactly how long he has left to live.
When Guile discovers he has a son, born in a far kingdom after the war that put him in power, he must decide how much he's willing to pay to protect a secret that could tear his world apart.
The Blinding Knife - 978-0316079914 - Orbit 2012 ~ Gavin Guile is dying.
He’d thought he had five years left—now he has less than one. With fifty thousand refugees, a bastard son, and an ex-fiancée who may have learned his darkest secret, Gavin has problems on every side. All magic in the world is running wild and threatens to destroy the Seven Satrapies.
Worst of all, the old gods are being reborn, and their army of color wights is unstoppable. The only salvation may be the brother whose freedom and life Gavin stole sixteen years ago.
The Broken Eye - 978-1841499109 - Orbit 2014 ~ As the old gods awaken, the Chromeria is in a race to find its lost Prism, the only man who may be able to stop catastrophe, Gavin Guile. But Gavin's enslaved on a galley, and when he finally escapes, he finds himself in less than friendly hands. Without the ability to draft which has defined him . . .
Meanwhile, the Color Prince's army continues its inexorable advance, having swallowed two of the seven satrapies, they now invade the Blood Forest. Andross Guile, thinking his son Gavin lost, tasks his two grandsons with stopping the advance. Kip and his psychopathic half-brother Zymun will compete for the ultimate prize: who will become the next Prism.
The Blood Mirror - 978-0356504612 - Orbit 2016 ~ Stripped of both magical and political power, the people he once ruled told he's dead, and now imprisoned in his own magical dungeon, former Emperor Gavin Guile has no prospect of escape. But the world faces a calamity greater than the Seven Satrapies has ever seen... and only he can save it.
As the armies of the White King defeat the Chromeria and old gods are born anew, the fate of worlds will come down to one question: Who is the Lightbringer?
The Burning White - 978-0316251303 - Orbit 2019 ~ Gavin Guile, once the most powerful man the world had ever seen, has been laid low. He's lost his magic, and now he is on a suicide mission. Failure will condemn the woman he loves. Success will condemn his entire empire.
As the White King springs his great traps and the Chromeria itself is threatened by treason and siege, Kip Guile must gather his forces, rally his allies, and scramble to return for one impossible final stand.

Pip & Flinx by Alan Dean Foster (1st 3 listed of 14 plus titles - in order of the universe)
For Love of Mother-Not - 978-0345305114 - Ballantine 1983 ~ Flinx was just a freckle-faced, redheaded kid with green eyes and a strangely compelling stare when Mather Mastiff first saw him an the auctioneer's block. One hundred credits and he was hers.
For years the old woman was his only family. She loved him, fed him, taught him everything she knew--even let him keep the deadly flying dragon he called Pip. But when Mother Mastiff mysteriously disappears, Flinx tails her kidnappers on a dangerous journey. Across the forests and swamps of the winged world called Moth, their only weapons are Pip's venom . . . and Flinx's unusual talent.
The Tar-Aiym Krang - 978-0345908575 - Ballantine 1972 ~ Moth was a beautiful planet, the only one with wings -- two great golden clouds suspended in space around it.
Here was a wide-open world for any venture a man might scheme. The planet attracted unwary travelers, hardened space-sailors, and merchant buccaneers -- a teeming, constantly shifting horde that provided a comfortable income for certain quick-witted fellows like Flinx and his pet flying snake Pip. With his odd talents, the pickings were easy enough so that Flinx did not have to be dishonest ... most of the time.
In fact, it hardly seemed dishonest at all to steal a starmap from a dead body that didn't really need it anymore. But Flinx wasn't quite smart enough. He should have wondered why the body was dead in the first place...
Orphan Star - 978-0345255075 - Ballantine 1977 ~ It is a strange childhood for a kid, to be adopted by the restless Mother Mastiff and raised in the bustling marketplace of Drallar. Flinx never knew the mom and dad who abandoned him years ago. In fact, his birth has always been shrouded in mystery. But Flinx eventually discovers that his unknown parents have left him a curious legacy–extraordinary mental powers that are both a marvelous gift and a dreaded curse.
This double-edged legacy will lead Flinx, along with his loyal protector, the mini-dragon Pip, on a harrowing journey in search of the truth . . . about who he is and where he comes from. It is a daring adventure that brings him to another world–and into the clutches of one of the most evil and powerful men in the galaxy. . . .

Icerigger Trilogy by Alan Dean Foster
Icerigger - 978-0345238368 - Ballantine 1974 ~ Ethan Fortune was simple salesman — knowledgeable and civilized . . . a sophisticated traveler between many worlds. But he had certainly never thought of himself as a hero.
Skua September, on the other hand, never thought of himself as anything else.
A matched pair, if ever there was one!
When the two of them were suddenly stranded on a deadly frozen world, Ethan Fortune incredibly found himself cast in the role of Leader.
And he didn't find that at all amusing . . .
Mission to Moulokin - 978-0345276766 - Ballantine 1979 ~ Ethan Frome Fortune had been on Tran-Ky-ky long enough...too long in fact. He wanted out. He wanted to get back to business. He wanted to go home. So he and his sidekick Skua September headed their giant icerigger toward Brass Monkey, the busy off-world trading post where they were sure they could book passage home.
But when they discovered that their Tran friends were being victimized by ruthless profiteers, they decided to stick around and organize the isolated city-states into a functioning confederation...a governing body that the Commonwealth Council would have to recognize and protect.
But the Tran had enemies--deadly ones, at that--and Skua September and Ethan Fortune quickly found themselves back aboard the icerigger Slanderscree, leaving a crimson wake on the frozen seas and hurtling toward the most chilling encounters either had ever known.
The Deluge Drivers - 978-0345333308 - Ballantine 1987 ~ It looked as if Ethan Fortune was stuck on the icy world of Tran-ky-ky, never to enjoy the warm comforts of civilization again. But when the scientists at the outpost of Brass Monkey detected an odd atmospheric phenomenon, things began to heat up.
Only the great icerigger Slanderscree could make the dangerous journey to the isolated southern continent, and only Ethan could convince the primitive Tran that the mysterious warm spot was worth the trip. Nothing could have prepared Ethan and his Tran and human companions for what they encountered as they sped southward, for its like had not been seen for thousands of years -- open water on the ice oceans of Tran-ky-ky!
But the worst was yet to come. This was no natural phenomenon. Someone was systematically raising the temperature of the frozen planet. If Ethan and crew of Slanderscree couldn't stop the process, soon Tran-ky-ky would become a paradise for humans -- and a living hell for the Tran.

Children of the Stars by Juanita Coulson
Tomorrow's Heritage - 978-0345310651 - Del Rey - 1981 ~ A futuristic, post-cataclysmic, sci-fi soap opera.
On an Earth whose population has been decimated and whose landscape has been forcibly altered by natural causes and the effects of humankind's weapons, political and national boundaries have been altered. The Saunder family has gained wealth and power due to the actions of the manipulative matriarch, and the three offspring are in positions of great power and responsibility. But the family has cracks that ultimately will risk tearing the family apart. And into this volatile mix comes news that an alien spacecraft is approaching Earth.
Hysteria, propaganda, deceit, betrayal and redemption. What every good stereotypical soap opera needs. Throw in some advanced technologies and alien visitation, and you've got a rather interesting result.
Outward Bound - 978-0345281791 - Del Rey - 1982 ~ Quol-Bez, alien ambassador on Earth, was offering planets, other stars to man - if man could reach them! Oh, the aliens had faster-than-light travel. But if men wanted that they must find it for themselves. And without it, the nearest such world lay a lifetime or more away.
Brenna Saunder's aunt and uncle had died in an experimental ship, seeking for that way. And now Brenna was devoting her life and her share of the vast Saunder family fortune and prestige to solving the problem of such faster-than-light travel.
She had lost her lover to a hiber-ship, one in which those who dared would spend the years of travel in hibernation. Now she watched another of her group try and end in disaster.
Finally there was time and means for only one more attempt - one more chance for man to find his destiny among the stars!
Grimly, Brenna buckled herself into the pilot's seat of the final experimental ship and reached for the ready button!
Legacy of Earth - 978-0345281807 - Del Rey 1989 ~ Faster-than-light travel to the stars was a discovery of the great Saunder family, and the vast Saunder fortune helped in the colonizing of alien worlds, among strange, nonhuman races.
But Anthony Saunder had no share in that fortune or heritage. He was only a clone, the illegal result of a cruel woman's whim, not truly human. And the business he had started on Procyon Four, making colonist's emoto-tapes, was on the brink of failure.
Then the catlike humanoid Whimeds came, asking him to use his skill in directing a presentation for the coming Interspecies Conference. And once he saw Yrae, their beautiful, almost human-seeming star, he could riot refuse, though the job seemed impossible and led to endless trouble.
But all that was simple, compared to what he found at the Conference. There he ran squarely into the middle of a secret war between Whimeds and equally alien Vahnaj, fought across the bodies of his bitterest enemy and his best friend!
The Past of Forever - 978-0345281814 - Del Rey 1989 ~ Dan McKelvey, poor relative of the powerful Saunder-McKelvey family, was stranded on a world where aliens and human archaeologists sought evidence of the past of a strange race. Members of that race were stunted savages now, but long before they had been a mighty, star-roving people.
By now, Dan had become fascinated by the project. With his mechanical skill to help, the scientists were about to uncover a temple or museum of the distant past.
But none could guess what lay within, and Dan worried as he helped to open the strong, buried doors that guarded it. Would they find secrets that could enrich the present races? Or would they discover an ancient horror that could threaten all life? Some alien force had certainly ruined these once-great natives.
As they neared success, Dan's fears grew -- until...

Foreigner Universe by C. J. Cherryh (1st 6 listed of 21 titles)
1st Foreigner Sequence
Foreigner - 978-0886776374 - DAW 1994 ~ The first book in C.J. Cherryh's eponymous series, Foreigner begins an epic tale of the survivors of a lost spacecraft who crash-land on a planet inhabited by a hostile, sentient alien race.
From its beginnings as a human-alien story of first contact, the Foreigner series has become a true science fiction odyssey, following a civilization from the age of steam through early space flight to confrontations with other alien species in distant sectors of space. It is the masterwork of a truly remarkable author.
Invader - 978-0886776879 - DAW 1996 ~ Nearly two centuries after the starship Phoenix disappeared, leaving an isolated colony of humans on the world of the atevi, it unexpectedly returns, threatening the stability of both atevi and human governments. With the situation fast becoming critical, Bren Cameron, the brilliant, young paidhi to the court of the atevi is recalled from Mospheira where he has just undergone surgery. Upon his return to the mainland, he Cameron finds that his government has sent in his paidhi-successor, Deana Hanks—representative of a dangerous faction on Mospheira who hate the atevi.
Haunted by the threat of assassination, Bren realizes his only hope may be to communicate with the Phoenix as the spokesman of the atevi—an action which may cut him off for good from his own species. Yet if he doesn't take this desperate action, he may be forced to witness the destruction of the already precarious balance of world power.
The long-running Foreigner series can also be enjoyed by more casual genre readers in sub-trilogy installments. Invader is the 2nd Foreigner novel. It is also the 2nd book in the first subtrilogy.
Inheritor - 978-0886777289 - DAW 1997 ~ Six months have passed since the reappearance of the starship Phoenix—the same ship which brought a colony of humans to the hostile environment of alien atevi nearly two hundred years ago. During these six months, the atevi have reconfigured their fledgling space program in a bid to take their place in the heavens alongside humans. But the return of the Phoenix has added a frighteningly powerful third party to an already volatile situation, polarizing both human and atevi political factions, and making the possibility of all-out planetary war an even more likely threat.
On the atevi mainland, human ambassador Bren Cameron, in a desperate attempt to maintain the peace, has arranged for one human representative from the Phoenix to take up residence with him in his apartments, and for another to be stationed on Mosphiera, humanity's island enclave. Bren himself is unable to return home for fear of being arrested or assassinated by the powerful arch conservative element who wish to bar the atevi from space. Desperately trying to keep abreast of the atevi associations, how can Bren possibly find a way to save two species from a three-sided conflict that no one can win?
The long-running Foreigner series can also be enjoyed by more casual genre readers in sub-trilogy installments. Inheritor is the 3rd Foreigner novel. It is also the 3rd book in the first subtrilogy.

2nd Foreigner Sequence
Precurser - 978-0886779108 - DAW 2000 ~ Over three years have passed since the reappearance of the starship Phoenix, which two centuries before left an isolated colony of humans on the world of the volatile atevi. Since that time, humans have lived in exile on the island of Mospheira; but the unexpected return of the Phoenix has shattered the fragile political balance of these two nearly incompatible races. For the captains of the Phoenix offer the atevi something the Mospheiran humans never could—access to the stars.
For three breakneck years, the atevi labor to build a space shuttle which will bear their representatives to the Phoenix, to strengthen connections with their new human allies and retain their bid for control of their world. But as soon as the shuttle proves spaceworthy, the captains of the Phoenix suddenly recall their planetary delegates, breaking diplomatic contact and initiating a vicious bid for political dominance.
But the powerful head of the atevi's Western Association is not to be outmaneuvered, and he sends his own diplomat, or paidhi, Bren Cameron, into space to negotiate. Thrust into a political maelstrom with almost no preparation, can Bren gain control of the station and political supremacy for the atevi without sparking a three-sided interspecies war?
Defender - 978-0756400200 - DAW 2002 ~ Nearly ten years after the unexpected return of the starship Phoenix, the alien atevi have three functioning space shuttles, and teams of atevi engineers labor in orbit to renovate the space station. But these monumental advances not only add a dangerously powerful third party to an already precarious diplomatic situation, but rouse pro- and anti-space factions in atevi society to incendiary levels. To help negotiate these treacherous diplomatic waters, Tabini-aiji, the powerful head of the atevi's Western Association, has sent the only human he fully trusts into space: his own paidhi, Bren Cameron.
However, the threat of possible invasion by hostile aliens who attacked Phoenix's station in a far-off sector of space hangs over them all. And when one of the senior captains of the Phoenix confesses that this station was not completely destroyed, as had been previously thought, the crew mutinies. How can Bren hope to mediate on a station overcome by a rebellious crew intent on taking the Phoenix on a rescue mission back into hostile alien territory?
The long-running Foreigner series can also be enjoyed by more casual genre readers in sub-trilogy installments. Defender is the fifth Foreigner book and the the second book of the second sub-trilogy.
Explorer - 978-0756401313 - DAW 2003 ~ It has been nearly ten years since the starship Phoenix returned to Alpha, the station orbiting the world of the atevi, which had been abandoned following a rift between a faction of the station's inhabitants and the spacers' Pilot's Guild. The unexpected return of the Phoenix has forever changed the lives of both atevi and Mospheirans, for over the ensuing decade, the captains of the Phoenix have brought both species into space. Their motivation seemed simple: Reunion Station, a human station in another sector of space, had been destroyed by aliens.
But on his deathbed, the senior captain of the Phoenix admits that he lied to the crew—that Reunion was merely damaged, not destroyed, and many people may have survived. At this disclosure, the crew rebels and forces the Phoenix to undertake a rescue mission to Reunion. Onboard the rescue mission are Bren Cameron, brilliant human paidhi representing the atevi ruler Tabini-aiji, and Tabini's grandmother Ilisidi, a fearsome and ambitious atevi leader with an agenda of her own. Trapped in a distant star system with little fuel left, facing a bellicose alien ship, how can Bren help to avoid interspecies war when the notoriously secretive Pilot's Guild aboard Reunion Station refuse to cooperate, and may have kept the inhabitants of their own station ignorant of their true situation?
The long-running Foreigner series can also be enjoyed by more casual genre readers in sub-trilogy installments. Explorer is the 6th Foreigner novel. It is also the 3rd book in the second subtrilogy.

The Seafort Saga by David Feintuch
Midshipman's Hope - 978-0446600965 - Aspect/Warner 1994 ~ A hideous accident kills the senior officer of UNS Hibernia, leaving a terrified young officer to take 300 colonists and crew aboard a damaged ship, on a 17-month gauntlet to reach Hope Nation. With no chance of rescue, Nicholas Seafort must save lives and take them, in the name of duty.
Challenger's Hope - 978-0446600972 - Aspect/Warner 1995 ~ In the aftermath of an alien attack and an admiral's traitorous desertion, Commander Nicholas Seafort is left in charge of a doomed ship that carries arrogant colonists, violent street children, and dwindling supplies.
Prisoner's Hope - 978-0446600989 - Aspect/Warner 1995 ~ Recovering from injuries at Hope Nation, Captain Nicholas Seafort is appointed liaison to the wealthy planters of the verdant colony planet and finds himself called upon to halt a revolution and rally his people against alien invaders.
Fisherman's Hope - 978-0446600996 - Aspect/Warner 1996 ~ Newly appointed Naval Commandant Nicholas Seafort's past unexpectedly catches up with him when an evil politician blackmails him into giving up his commission. But then an alien attack revives Nick's career, and soon he will lead Earth's defenses against annihilation. Alone at the center of a cosmic apocalypses, Nick will face his most challenging battle.
Voices of Hope - 978-0446603331 - Aspect/Warner 1996 ~ A guilt-ridden politician, an earnest young boy, a sick old man eking out a living in the broken streets -- can they alone stop humanity from destroying itself in urban Armageddon?
In a divided world, wealthy citizens look down from skytop aeries to crumbling streets where the urban poor grow ever more desperate.
As war brews, brilliant young Philip Seafort -- only son of the tormented hero Nicholas Seafort -- plunges into the bowels of the city to find his lost friend. Humanity is about to destroy itself. Children are in the line of fire. And a father with an iron will is at Ground Zero...
Patrarch's Hope - 978-0446608466 - Aspect/Warner 2000 ~ U.N. SecGen Nicholas Seafort is the most powerful person on Earth, but his merciless sense of honor and faith is about to be tested. The ecology of the planet is on the point of collapse -- a crisis Seafort himself helped cause. And from a hijacked orbital platform, political renegades hold millions hostage. Now, unarmed, with only civilians and children at his side, Nick Seafort must go to war against the most dangerous of enemies -- those from within. And the cost may be more than even Seafort's iron will can bear...