Bandit Book Bloggers - ARTIFICIAL ABSOLUTES,
a sci-fi thriller from Mary Fan
Publisher: Red Adept PublishingRelease Date: February 25, 2013
Genre: Science Fiction (Space Opera/Cyberpunk/New Adult)
Blurb:
Jane Colt is just another recent college grad working as an Interstellar Confederation office drone—until the day she witnesses her best friend, Adam, kidnapped by a mysterious criminal. An extensive cover-up thwarts her efforts to report the crime, shaking her trust in the authorities. Only her older brother, Devin, believes her account.
Devin hopes to leave behind his violent past and find peace in a marriage to the woman he loves. That hope shatters when he discovers a shocking secret that causes him to be framed for murder.
With little more than a cocky attitude, Jane leaves everything she knows to flee with Devin, racing throughthe most lawless corners of the galaxy as she searches for Adam and proof of her brother’s innocence. Her journey uncovers truths about both of them, leading her to wonder just how much she doesn’t know about the people she loves.
Devin hopes to leave behind his violent past and find peace in a marriage to the woman he loves. That hope shatters when he discovers a shocking secret that causes him to be framed for murder.
With little more than a cocky attitude, Jane leaves everything she knows to flee with Devin, racing throughthe most lawless corners of the galaxy as she searches for Adam and proof of her brother’s innocence. Her journey uncovers truths about both of them, leading her to wonder just how much she doesn’t know about the people she loves.
financial marketing. She has also resided in North Carolina, Hong Kong, and Beijing, China. She has been an avid reader for as long as she can
remember and especially enjoys the infinite possibilities and
out-of-this-world experiences of science fiction and fantasy.
Mary has a B.A. in Music, specializing in composition, from Princeton
University and enjoys writing songs as much as writing stories. She
also enjoys kickboxing, opera singing, and exploring new things—she’ll
try almost anything once.
Purchase Links:Amazon US (Kindle e-book)
Amazon US (paperback)
Amazon UK (Kindle e-book)
Amazon UK (paperback)
Barnes & Noble (Nook e-book)
Barnes & Noble (paperback)
Kobo (e-book)
iTunes
Social Media Links:
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Reviews:
“I’d have to say this book combines some of the best robotic AI, like Asimov… It is unlike anything I’ve read before on this subject.”-
James M. Butler, author of the “New Dawn” sci-fi series
“…Engaging characters and a story with conflicts and struggles that are universal to all humans across time...”
- BigAl, reviewer for BigAl’s Books and Pals
“A cracking tale of fights and escapes and conspiracies, set in a wonderfully and intricately evoked future world. The story rattles along at a fine pace, twisting and turning its way to and fro across the galaxy.”
-Mark Roman, author of “The Ultimate Inferior Beings”
“One hell of a sci-fi ride... The mystery in this story was incredible and really kept me at the edge of my seat... It really goes beyond the some other sci-fi reads.”
- Diana, reviewer for Offbeat Vagabond
“Artificial Absolutes is much more thanspaceships and robots... It is a timeless exploration of the complexity of family dynamics, the conflicts between faith and non-belief, and what truly defines a human being.”
- Julie H. Hughs, reviewer for Random Musingsof a Curious Mind
Excerpt:Jane had never been afraid of heights. As a child, she’d enjoyed
alarming her mother by climbing the tallest Venovian evergreens on the
Colt estate. Comparing her size then to her size currently, she probably
wasn’t much higher up. It was a little different hanging from the
underside of an elevator with only a hastily slammed hatch between her
and a killer robot.
Well, this sucks.
That she’d caught the bar after sliding down the hatch could only be
attributed to super reflexes reserved for times of great danger or to
the grace of the Absolute. If only those super reflexes or that divine
grace would allow her to reach the conduit Devin had mentioned...
The faint lights along shaft’s walls let her vaguely make out the
conduit’s square entrance. Jane saw another bar under the elevator,
parallel to the conduit’s top edge. She’d played on jungle gyms when she
was little and remembered the motion of swinging her body to catch a
bar an arm’s length away, but she’d forgotten how much the friction
burned her palms.
She grabbed the bar and swung forward. Her face banged into the wall. Ow.
After taking a moment to let the pain in her face subside, she
extended her body as far as she could, barely touching the conduit’s
floor with her foot.
Dammit! Wish my legs were longer. Good thing I wore flats today. And pants. If I had to do this in heels and a skirt...
The inane thoughts kept her from freaking out. Something about
talking to her brother had done away with the panic she’d felt before.
She wasn’t about to let it take over again.
The conduit was only half her height. Even if she could stand, she would probably fall backward if she tried.
Why are utility conduits so small? Are maintenance workers all midgets or something?
A small handle below her, right by the conduit, looked within reach.
She grabbed it with one hand. She had to let go of the bar under the
elevator to enter the conduit, but the thought was too scary.
Above her, the machine whirred.
Jane had never been remotely religious, but in a situation as
unthinkable as the one she was in, even she prayed, albeit facetiously.
Hello,
Absolute One. Please let the machine be too big to fit through the
hatch. And please keep me from falling. In return, I will compose a
magnificent motet for You. So be it, truly.
Jane closed her eyes and let go of the bar. She bit her lip to stifle a yelp as she dropped her body weight onto one arm.
She reached up with her free hand and pressed her forearm into the
conduit’s cold metal floor. By pulling, bending, and twisting, she
managed to fold herself into the conduit.
She collapsed against the wall in relief. Whew! Made it!
Jane listened for the machine, half expecting it to appear right behind her. Instead, a beep emitted
from her pocket. Wondering what the hell it was— and why the hell she
didn’t know the contents of her own pocket—she reached in. She pulled
out her company-issued videophone.
Oh, right. This thing.Other Works:
Synthetic Illusions (sequel to Artificial Absolutes)
Publisher: Red Adept Publishing
Genre: Science Fiction (Space Opera)
In the thrilling sequel to Artificial Absolutes,
Jane Colt finds herself combating the one person she always trusted:
her older brother, Devin. After the events of the first book, Jane hopes
to return to her ordinary life. But when the shadowy government agency
Devin works for orders him to capture Adam, the young man she loves, she
ends up in her brother's crosshairs as she helps Adam escape.
Although
Adam looks like any other seminary student, he harbors a secret he
hopes the rest of the galaxy will never uncover. Haunted by a menacing voice, he fights to control his own mind.
Meanwhile,
Devin uncovers his employer's clandestine agenda but, coerced by the
deadly consequences of noncompliance, must remain silent. He reluctantly
obeys the agency's commands while secretly plotting to expose the
truth.
Forced to choose between the two people she
loves most, Jane sets off on a journey that takes her into the darkest
corners of known space and challenges everything she believes.
Flynn Nightsider and the Edge of Evil
Publisher: Glass House Press
Release Date: Summer 2014
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy/Dystopia
Part dystopia and part high fantasy, Flynn Nightsider and the Edge of Evil- Julie H. Hughs, reviewer for Random Musingsof a Curious Mind
Excerpt:Jane had never been afraid of heights. As a child, she’d enjoyed
alarming her mother by climbing the tallest Venovian evergreens on the
Colt estate. Comparing her size then to her size currently, she probably
wasn’t much higher up. It was a little different hanging from the
underside of an elevator with only a hastily slammed hatch between her
and a killer robot.
Well, this sucks.
That she’d caught the bar after sliding down the hatch could only be
attributed to super reflexes reserved for times of great danger or to
the grace of the Absolute. If only those super reflexes or that divine
grace would allow her to reach the conduit Devin had mentioned...
The faint lights along shaft’s walls let her vaguely make out the
conduit’s square entrance. Jane saw another bar under the elevator,
parallel to the conduit’s top edge. She’d played on jungle gyms when she
was little and remembered the motion of swinging her body to catch a
bar an arm’s length away, but she’d forgotten how much the friction
burned her palms.
She grabbed the bar and swung forward. Her face banged into the wall. Ow.
After taking a moment to let the pain in her face subside, she
extended her body as far as she could, barely touching the conduit’s
floor with her foot.
Dammit! Wish my legs were longer. Good thing I wore flats today. And pants. If I had to do this in heels and a skirt...
The inane thoughts kept her from freaking out. Something about
talking to her brother had done away with the panic she’d felt before.
She wasn’t about to let it take over again.
The conduit was only half her height. Even if she could stand, she would probably fall backward if she tried.
Why are utility conduits so small? Are maintenance workers all midgets or something?
A small handle below her, right by the conduit, looked within reach.
She grabbed it with one hand. She had to let go of the bar under the
elevator to enter the conduit, but the thought was too scary.
Above her, the machine whirred.
Jane had never been remotely religious, but in a situation as
unthinkable as the one she was in, even she prayed, albeit facetiously.
Hello,
Absolute One. Please let the machine be too big to fit through the
hatch. And please keep me from falling. In return, I will compose a
magnificent motet for You. So be it, truly.
Jane closed her eyes and let go of the bar. She bit her lip to stifle a yelp as she dropped her body weight onto one arm.
She reached up with her free hand and pressed her forearm into the
conduit’s cold metal floor. By pulling, bending, and twisting, she
managed to fold herself into the conduit.
She collapsed against the wall in relief. Whew! Made it!
Jane listened for the machine, half expecting it to appear right behind her. Instead, a beep emitted
from her pocket. Wondering what the hell it was— and why the hell she
didn’t know the contents of her own pocket—she reached in. She pulled
out her company-issued videophone.
Oh, right. This thing.Other Works:
Synthetic Illusions (sequel to Artificial Absolutes)
Publisher: Red Adept Publishing
Genre: Science Fiction (Space Opera)
In the thrilling sequel to Artificial Absolutes,
Jane Colt finds herself combating the one person she always trusted:
her older brother, Devin. After the events of the first book, Jane hopes
to return to her ordinary life. But when the shadowy government agency
Devin works for orders him to capture Adam, the young man she loves, she
ends up in her brother's crosshairs as she helps Adam escape.
Although
Adam looks like any other seminary student, he harbors a secret he
hopes the rest of the galaxy will never uncover. Haunted by a menacing voice, he fights to control his own mind.
Meanwhile,
Devin uncovers his employer's clandestine agenda but, coerced by the
deadly consequences of noncompliance, must remain silent. He reluctantly
obeys the agency's commands while secretly plotting to expose the
truth.
Forced to choose between the two people she
loves most, Jane sets off on a journey that takes her into the darkest
corners of known space and challenges everything she believes.
Flynn Nightsider and the Edge of Evil
Publisher: Glass House Press
Release Date: Summer 2014
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy/Dystopia
is the first book in a YA series that follows a spirited teen's efforts to
overthrow an evil government while battling supernatural beasts.
Long ago, the evil Lord of the Underworld ravaged the Earth. The
Enchanters, magical guardians of the Earth, defeated him, but his
monsters lingered. Nearly a century later, the Enchanters have turned
the former United States into the totalitarian Triumvirate, where
non-magical humans, known as Norms, are treated as second class
citizens.
Flynn,
a Norm boy, was ten years old when he witnessed his mother's death at
the hands of an undead giant. No one would tell him where the giant had
come from or what his mother had been doing that night. After six years
of wondering, he finally finds a clue and is determined to uncover the
truth - whatever the consequences. His journey takes an unexpected turn
when he accidentally commits an act considered terrorism by the
Triumvirate. He soon finds himself hunted not only by the government,
but also by supernatural monsters and a man with power over the undead.
Rescued by underground rebels, he is enticed by their vision of a
better world and joins their revolution. But as he struggles to
reconcile what he sees with what they tell him, he starts to realize
that the rebellion is not everything it seems.
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