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

Men of Bretton (A Dream of Home #1) – Richard Fox

The soldiers of the 11th Bretton Infantry knew they were being dropped into a combat zone on Dharien. But they didn’t know just how bad things really were, with the entire planet about to fall to the rebel Flags. The orders from the Highest are clear: make their way to Tabuk and keep the city under the banner of the Hegemony.

For Mason Tellec, it’s one more combat mission—with a difference. Noah, his younger brother, is along for the ride this time, and Mason has promised his mother and father he’ll keep an eye out. Noah’s green, but he’s got the makings of a good soldier.

But the jungle of Dharien holds many dangers—something Felix Ibensen knows all too well. He’s alone, lost, and trying to find his way back to Hegemony-controlled territory, the only survivor of a Flag ambush.

Mason, Noah, and Felix are on a collision course, with each other and with their destinies—for the actions of the Men of Bretton may have implications that reach to the highest echelons of the Hegemony.

Operation Endgame (The Last Hunter #16) – J. N. Chaney and Terry Mixon

The clock has run out.

Admiral Jack Romanoff and his people have beaten the Tardans at DuPont, but they failed to get the master control codes that could have ended the invasion without bloodshed. Now, they have no choice but to confront the enemy at the heart of the Confederation: Earth. One last battle for everything they hold dear.

The midnight hour is upon them.

While the battle for supremacy is fought in space, Lisa Gane and Tina Chen will battle the Poseidon Group on the ground. If they can’t overthrow the traitors, humanity will be trapped under their heels. They will do anything to stop their enemies, but will it be enough?

One chance for victory.

With no room for error, they can’t afford to leave anything on the table. This is it. The endgame is upon them, and they will either win or perish, and humanity might go along with them. Will they save the Confederation or doom it to oppression and death? This is the day that they must win, or everything they sacrificed will be for nothing.

A single toss of the dice to win everything or fail humanity at the last moment.

Shadow Wired: Alliance – Gustavo Bondoni

After years of pursuit, Technihilism has finally captured Sked and Akane, and they are shocked when the terrorist group’s fanatical leader, Simon the Advocate, offers them a truce if they will join an alliance against a rogue AI who plans to rule the world. Time is short, however, as its takeover bid is already well under way.

From a secret CIA installation in the frozen wilds of northern Canada to a nest of nano-created vampires in Mexico City, the allies pursue the AI relentlessly, despite the enormous risks involved.

But the enemy is based on the net and can change locations almost at will, and it already has the resources of several governments at its disposal. Even the unholiest of alliances might not be enough to stop it.

The Ship of Ishtar: Centennial Edition – A. Merritt

John Kenton returned from the Great War a changed man. The world he knew had lost its zest; the one in which he could be happy he did not know where to find. But when he uncovered an artifact from ancient Babylon, he was transported to a new world beyond time and space: one which offered pain and the near certainty of a bloody death, but also brotherhood, vengeance, and the most entrancing woman he ever laid eyes on—Sharane, flame-haired priestess of Ishtar!

Upon the Ship of Ishtar, Sharane and the priest of Nergal, Klaneth, wage a millennia-old struggle as proxies for their respective deities. Kenton ends up at cross-purposes with the Nergalite faction, killing several priests before being chained to an oar-bench. Though the gods themselves place obstacles in his way, Kenton will let nothing daunt him in his quest to break free, win Sharane’s heart, and become master—of the Ship of Ishtar!

This special Centennial Edition of The Ship of Ishtar includes the author’s preferred text, as well as nearly two dozen vintage illustrations and previously unpublished ephemera from the Merritt estate.

Kamen America #10 – a Kickstarter campaign by Timothy Lim and Mark Pellegrini

Charlotte ‘Carly’ Vanders was a fashion designer whose fate was changed the day a cosmic collision transformed her into a supercharged henshin heroine! Shedding her corporate overlords and driven by American grit and determination, she is the patriotic paladin known as KAMEN AMERICA!

The Kamen Corps are in Texas-sized trouble! Finding themselves in a precarious situation, the team must confront Kamen Unity during a tense standoff with a rancher and his land. Zener Ecto and Zener Psycho are on the scene — but what do they want with his patch of land, and how does it fit into Cynthia Prestige‘s greater scheme? Slowly but surely, answers are given as we proudly celebrate our 10th volume in just under 4 years of publication!

Find out why Kamen America, the underdog independent comic that could, has set the gold standard for crowdfunded American comics!

This campaign will be open until 13 November, 2024.