Every week, the Castalia House Blog spotlights some of the many new releases in independent, pulp, and web novel-influenced science fiction and fantasy.

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End Watch (The Silent Wars #1) – Adrian J. Smith

In the future, freedom is for the modified.

Three centuries after the Genetic War divided humanity, the natural born are slaves. Fated to work in massive subterranean mines, they are expendable. Life is hell. Few escape.

Fugitive Recovery Agent Eli Miller and his partner Leylani Haru will never see the sun, breathe fresh air, or taste salt on the wind. They live for the thrill of tracking down criminals and bringing them to justice.

When a routine case uncovers a mysterious old journal, Eli is puzzled by its claims of being written prior to the catastrophic conflict and by clues pointing to a way of achieving liberty.

Before he can unveil its secrets Eli and his team are sent into the treacherous labyrinth of tunnels to capture the Mayor’s runaway wife and stop a precarious political fallout. Reluctant to go, he realises that it is another opportunity to locate the masked criminal known as — Simon. A man he holds responsible for the death of his niece.

Following the trail, Eli learns that the two cases are linked and there are those that would do anything to silence his team. But in the unforgiving darkness there’s something far worse waiting for him — something which threatens the existence of all natural born.

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The Greater Good (The Pantheon Saga #9) – C. C. Ekeke

Aegis is back! But are the Paragons no more?

Fresh off a summer vacation to remember, Hugo resumes his role protecting the city of San Miguel. As a teen hero trying to make his way through a dangerous world, he’s been forced to reflect on the impact he’s making around him while juggling his ambitions and romances with his growing responsibilities as Aegis.

On top of all that, Hugo and his friends are now on the cusp of adulthood starting their senior year of high school.

However, the scars from Damocles’s reign of terror have not fully healed, with countless superheroes across America hanging up their capes for good. Hugo is also haunted by mistakes of the past, uncertain if he should continue leading the Paragons or even keep the team together.

But that doubt could prove fatal when a new threat emerges. One that wants absolute power at all costs and will slaughter any superhero who stands in their way.

That leaves Hugo with one choice. Rebuild the Paragons and be Big Damn Superheroes.

If he doesn’t, all of California will suffer.

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Never Again (Blood and Armor #1) – Bill Fawcett

The best steel is forged by the hottest fires and under the greatest pressures. So too, have the Kurdish Peshmerga been shaped by thousands of years of warfare and oppression.

Now, for the first time in history, they have their own nation, and it’s a chance to live, grow, and develop as a unified people.

But they are surrounded by hostile dictatorships intent on the destruction of their young republic. Outnumbered and outgunned as armored columns swarm their borders, the Kurdish Republic’s only hope lies in a canceled DARPA project—an experimental, powered combat suit—and the business tycoon who refuses to allow the nascent nation to go under.

The only question is, will they be enough?

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Rifleman (Conscript #2) – Scott Bartlett

The system erupts into war

Having barely escaped Cycler 3 with their lives, Po Abbato’s battalion is headed for the moon, where the ones who killed their brothers are said to have trained.

A reckoning is being visited on Planet Nibiru, and it’s there the Marines are truly eager to go. But Earth’s moon holds a terrifying secret of its own. Po and his brothers must unravel it first, lest millions perish.

Only then can they cross the system to Nibiru, where they will face the ultimate test.

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Titanica (The Ruined Gods #3) – Alex Robins

All Things Must End.

Zeus’s plan for vengeance has failed. Blinded by hubris and petty hate, the greatest of the Gods unwittingly released his father, Cronos, from the bowels of the Underworld. The Titan now rules Olympus while his son lies imprisoned within, shackled to a throne that is no longer his.

For the inhabitants of Tyrris, there will be no redemption. They have spread too far; changed too much. They riddle the land like a disease, clinging tenaciously to their deluded ideals of freedom. Such a plague cannot be cured, only excised. Burnt and bloodied until there is nothing left. A clean slate from which to start anew.

And so, the human race begins to fall apart. Swallowed by the corruption of The Citrine Wastes. Slaughtered by the relentless myrmidon army. Strategos Dexios and his allies have nowhere to run. Nowhere to hide. They are alone.

Unless. There are others who still resist. Who still believe. Frail and weary, but not yet broken.

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Star Wanderers – a Kickstarter campaign from J. D. Cowan and Cirsova Publishing

Detective Ronan Renfield is a Galactic Enforcer sworn to protect the innocent and bring evil-doers to justice to maintain order throughout the stars.

The Agent is a nameless knight errant tasked with hunting the most brazenly wicked and blasphemous who threaten order and nature across the cosmos.

Alone, they face strange and diabolical horrors on backwater worlds and the corrupt and dangerous criminals who threaten civilization.

Together, they are the Star Wanderers!

This collection features eight thrilling tales of raygun adventure, swashbuckling sword fights, and cyberpunk mystery, including four never-before published adventures!

This Kickstarter campaign will be open through 23 May, 2024.