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

---

Junkyard Mercenary (Junkyard Pirate #8) – Jaime McFarlane

In a galaxy on the brink, old soldiers never fade away—they just get tougher!

Vietnam vet Albert Jenkins, faces one of his most dangerous missions yet. When a high-ranking Galactic Empire diplomat named Cer vanishes while investigating a suspicious buildup of enemy forces on the neutral planet Gnarz-2, the stakes couldn’t be higher. AJ is tasked with tracking down Cer and uncovering the truth behind his mysterious disappearance.

As AJ and his crew follow the trail, they uncover a tangled web of deceit and conspiracy that stretches far beyond a simple disappearance. The planet of Gnarz-2, long considered neutral ground, harbors darker intentions. Their leaders are planning to invade a peaceful system—a move designed to test the Galactic Empire’s defenses and potentially ignite a war that could engulf countless worlds.

Time is running out. AJ must race against the clock, navigating treacherous political waters, and a planet full of hidden dangers. The stakes have never been higher as AJ and his team fight to uncover the truth, rescue Cer, and prevent a devastating conflict before it’s too late.

---

Rebel (Ascent to Empire #2) – David Weber and Richard Fox

The Five Hundred, the elite families who rule the Terran Federation, control its political power and its wealth, and they’ve grown steadily wealthier and more powerful, thanks to the war against the Terran League. War may be hard on the people who get caught in its path, but it’s very good for business, in the short term, and the Five Hundred own the shipyards that build the Navy’s ships. They own virtually all the industry that produces the weapons and matériel the war consumes so voraciously . . . and they’ve made damn sure someone else does the dying.

True, there are a few flies in the Five Hundred’s ointment.

There’s the growing hatred and resentment of the Fringe Worlds, whose children do eighty percent of the dying in the Five Hundred’s war. But the Five Hundred have made sure the Fringe knows what will happen to any system that goes ”out of compliance.”

And then there’s Terrence Murphy, a man of honor who loves the Federation, who springs from the Five Hundred, yet knows it for what it is and is determined to speak for its victims. But the five hundred have dispatched ample force to deal with him and his handful of lunatic followers.

Unfortunately, the Fringe has paid enough of its children’s lives, and it no longer cares what may happen if it dares to defy the Five Hundred.

Worst of all, the Five Hundred have fatally underestimated Terrence Murphy.

---

Roverpowered – Drew Hayes

A wizard’s first quest. An unlikely companion. Grand adventure awaits!

Wanda and Wumble are a small pair with vast ambitions. One an aspiring alchemist, and the other her faithful hound, the pair bond as wizard and familiar to begin their pursuit of magic.

As a newly made wizard without any training, resources, or even a home to return to, Wanda will have to forge her own way on a path where constant dangers lurk. Even the simple act of furthering her alchemy education swiftly becomes a harrowing ordeal.

Luckily for Wanda, Wumble is no ordinary hound.

Contained within her one-eyed companion is a power many factions of the world are actively hunting for. A seed with unfathomable potential waiting to sprout.

And anyone who trifles with Wumble’s wizard is in for a ruff time.

---

Wraith (The Convergence War #1) – M. R. Forbes

A retired captain. An experimental starship. A war like no other.

When the research starship Galileo vanishes without a trace, the powers-that-be are quick to bury the incident, eager to prevent escalating tensions that could lead to war. As a former POW, Soren refuses to give the ship up for lost.

His daughter is one of the missing.

Taking matters into his own hands, Soren starts pulling strings and calling in favors, determined to launch a clandestine mission to bring Galileo home. When an old friend offers him a ship for the operation, he expects a rusty relic headed for the scrapyard.

Instead, he’s given the Wraith—an unfinished, experimental starship with plenty of potential and just as many problems. A marvel of engineering…if his crew can keep her running.

They’d better.

Because Galileo’s disappearance is just the beginning. War is coming to the Federation from the most unlikely of places.

And Soren may be the only one who can stop it.

---

Cantos of Arcadia: a Post Apocalyptic Science Fantasy – a Kickstarter campaign by the World Between the Woods Press

It promised salvation. It delivered only doom.

When Ansel Horowitz stumbles on a solution to Earth’s energy crisis, he’s ecstatic—at first.

But soon reality sets in: the solution didn’t come from Ansel’s own genius, or even from his AI partner. No, the solution to the world’s potential doom has come from a shadowy entity, origin unknown. And salvation comes with a condition: the entity wants a body of its own. It wants to live, even if it means hijacking someone else’s body to do it.

Ansel fights the entity, but humanity—overjoyed to have a solution to its greatest threat—doesn’t look twice. Soon, a golden age begins: poverty is obliterated, our energy debt wiped out. It’s a dream…

…that becomes a nightmare when the entity triggers a massive volcanic explosion: an extinction-level event that forces humanity to take refuge underground.

This Kickstarter campaign will close on September 26, 2024.

---

The Hidden Emperor: An Ayla Rin Sci-Fi Graphic Novel – a Kickstarter campaign by Jon Del Arroz

Ayla Rin, Agent Of The Terran Imperium, returns to face a new sinister plot against the Imperium!

Something is amiss with the Emperor of Mankind. Ayla Rin discovers he’s been replaced by a clone who’s intentionally sabotaging the Imperium on behalf of the evil Scorpio Alliance! 

But worse, the Scorpio Alliance knows she knows. And that means blackmail. Ayla is forced to find a secret superweapon that could unleash devastation on the Imperium.

This Kickstarter campaign will close on September 16, 2024.

---

Honeymoon from Hell – a Kickstarter campaign by Declan Finn

One is a heartless, blood-thirsty monster. The other is a vampire.

The Dragon Award nominated Love at First Bite series had everything Urban Fantasy could want.

• Epic battles with vampires, werewolves, and high explosives.
• Supernatural conspiracies
• Vatican ninjas
• Throwing Stars of David
• Vampire assassins
• SpecOps Minions and werewolves
• Garroting vampires with rosaries
• Weaponized sacramentals
• Vampires who go to confession
• And true love.

And now, it’s getting a sequel: Honeymoon from Hell. This is what happens after “happily ever after.”

Now with even MORE action.

This Kickstarter campaign will close on September 30, 2024.

---

Lord of Fate: An Arkwright Cycle Dark Fantasy Novel – a Kickstarter campaign by Brian Niemeier

A holy warrior plagued by doubt … 

A cloistered mystic yoked with rulership … 

A fated prophet seeking the powers of life and death … 

Besieged by a ruthless prince and a cruel legion, the free port of Dailij seems doomed.

Trapped in the embattled city and lionized by its desperate people, imperial envoy Zebrin finds his faith tested by their newly elevated queen. Spies and traitors seek to topple the walls from within. The quest for the Burned Book stands on the brink of failure.

To survive, Zebrin must discover his place in the prophecies reshaping the world. But when solving an ancient riddle of tragic love means choosing between his honor and his soul, will Zebrin find strength enough to save the fallen savior? Or will evils not of the world reign over it?

The choice lies with the Lord of Fate.

This Kickstarter campaign will close on September 26, 2024.