Seeking redemption, a discredited agent investigates the perplexing death of an elderly millionaire, unearthing a macabre scheme that might involve himself. A sci-fi noir thriller, in the Philip K. Dick style .” ★★★★★ – Goodreads “Nerve is the best introduction to the feast that continues in Pulstar. Roversi has created a precise work of art.” ★★★★★ – Goodreads “Being absolutely masterfully written, reading it three times, or more, sounds like a fantastic idea indeed.” ★★★★★ – Goodreads Astralvia: a nation on the verge of collapse. Jon Creepel, an elderly millionaire and CEO of a leading high-tech corporation, is dead. Discredited Agent Graham Squirrel investigates this disconcerting death. It’s his chance to clear his name and return to the Federal Police job he lives for. As he delves deeper into the inquiries, he discovers layers of intrigue, secrets, and plots on a significant macabre scale. Working alongside Zabrinah Yorkt, a mysterious and complicated intelligence agent, brings extra challenges and triggers questions Squirrel would never have anticipated. He has to escape the sinister threat looming over him and find out why they assigned him to the case, but nothing is what it seems. And he’s about to discover the truth … he’s about to meet the Nerve. Join Agent Squirrel to see if he cracks the mystery of Creepel’s death and survives the investigation in this suspenseful, mystery-packed sci-fi thriller. Nerve is the enigmatic prequel to the gripping Pulstar trilogy (although you can also read it as a stand-alone novel), which took over ten years to make and has a soundtrack in production.

No one is safe, not even you. "Pulstar I is a fantastic opening to what promises to be a stellar sci-fi trilogy." ★★★★★ - Readers' Favorite "The depth to which Giancarlo Roversi takes this book cannot be compared to anything I've read so far. I really, truly recommend this book." ★★★★★ - Goodreads "I cannot wait to enjoy more cinematic thriller delights from this talented author." ★★★★★ Readers' Favorite "I found myself filling an afternoon reading this in one sitting as I found it so enjoyable." ★★★★ Netgalley Astralvia: a nation vibrating with change. The most crucial presidential election in the country’s history is three days away. Journalist Larianne Blunt will interview the opposition candidate who embodies the hope of millions of Astralvians. It’s the most significant interview in Larianne’s career and could influence the election outcome. But she doesn’t suspect that Astralvia is about to cross into a stage that will shape it forever, a change both radical and irreversible for the nation, the world—and Larianne. In turn, Jens faces the rise of involution, which is seizing her home and infecting everything in its path. It seems unstoppable. Jens must fight against it, even though she might also catch this incurable involution. The Pulstar universe expands in this second installment, approaching its climax. Pulstar II is the continuation of the mystifying events of Pulstar I. If you thought the first book blew your mind, brace yourself. Pulstar II will not only explode your brain, it will shake your ideas, your convictions, and everything you believe to be real—and safe.

Three strangers who share a forgotten past confront a vengeance they incited when their bodies weren't human. "Pulstar I is a fantastic opening to what promises to be a stellar sci-fi trilogy." ★★★★★ - Readers' Favorite "The depth to which Giancarlo Roversi takes this book cannot be compared to anything I've read so far. I really, truly recommend this book." ★★★★★ - Goodreads "I cannot wait to enjoy more cinematic thriller delights from this talented author." ★★★★★ Readers' Favorite "I found myself filling an afternoon reading this in one sitting as I found it so enjoyable." ★★★★ Netgalley In Astralvia, a nation on the brink, astronomer Jeral Murh's life is in limbo. She's woken from a coma with fresh memories and is certain of two things: Her past actions are already haunting her present. She is not entirely human. She must abscond from Astralvia before an ancient enemy wreaks revenge. Everything is against her. Also, she must find Aris Castilho, her former ally, and make him remember what they once meant to each other. She can't leave without him. Will she find Aris and convince him of their common past? Will they reach Esther, their third ally? Time is short ... the ultimate reckoning is coming ... and it's unthinkable, indescribable—the worst thing that can happen to any human being. Find out the fate of this trio of allies in this puzzling sci-fi thriller, where the stunning ending is just the beginning. Get ready to reflect on your place in the cosmos, your raison d'être, and what being human actually means. Riddled with mystery, suspense, and a smattering of romance, Pulstar I: The Swan Barely Remembers is the enigmatic and addictive first installment in the Pulstar trilogy; although you can also read it as a stand-alone novel. It took over ten years to make and has a soundtrack in production.

A thrilling epic about an ancient clash reignited in our time--between a hidden society and heaven's darkest creatures There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bore children to them. --Genesis 6:5 Sister Evangeline was just a girl when her father entrusted her to the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration in upstate New York. Now, at twenty-three, her discovery of a 1943 letter from the famous philanthropist Abigail Rockefeller to the late mother superior of Saint Rose Convent plunges Evangeline into a secret history that stretches back a thousand years: an ancient conflict between the Society of Angelologists and the monstrously beautiful descendants of angels and humans, the Nephilim. For the secrets these letters guard are desperately coveted by the once-powerful Nephilim, who aim to perpetuate war, subvert the good in humanity, and dominate mankind. Generations of angelologists have devoted their lives to stopping them, and their shared mission, which Evangeline has long been destined to join, reaches from her bucolic abbey on the Hudson to the apex of insular wealth in New York, to the Montparnasse cemetery in Paris and the mountains of Bulgaria. Rich in history, full of mesmerizing characters, and wondrously conceived, Angelology blends biblical lore, the myth of Orpheus and the Miltonic visions of Paradise Lost into a riveting tale of ordinary people engaged in a battle that will determine the fate of the world.

As a child, Philip Sherlock loved to listen to folk tales. Since then he has made a significant contribution to Caribbean folklore by recording many of them in print for the first time. Here are fables of the birds and animals of the West Indies: jaguar, snake, crested curassow, wild pig, parrot, wise owl, and of Anansi--the spider who can assume human form. These twenty-one stories are a wonderful mixture of early tales from the Arawak and the Carib people, the original inhabitants of the Caribbean, and from the Ashanti people of West Africa. Read together they help to provide a background to the history of the West Indies. The stories are retold here in a warm, rich style--some tales gentle and philosophical, some humorous and full of action.

In the early days of Pong and Pac Man, video games appeared to be little more than an idle pastime. Today, video games make up a multi-billion dollar industry that rivals television and film. The Video Game Theory Reader brings together exciting new work on the many ways video games are reshaping the face of entertainment and our relationship with technology. Drawing upon examples from widely popular games ranging from Space Invaders to Final Fantasy IX and Combat Flight Simulator 2, the contributors discuss the relationship between video games and other media; the shift from third- to first-person games; gamers and the gaming community; and the important sociological, cultural, industrial, and economic issues that surround gaming. The Video Game Theory Reader is the essential introduction to a fascinating and rapidly expanding new field of media studies.

Chris Crawford on Game Design is all about the foundational skills behind the design and architecture of a game. Without these skills, designers and developers lack the understanding to work with the tools and techniques used in the industry today. Chris Crawford, the most highly sought after expert in this area, brings an intense opinion piece full of personality and flare like no other person in this industry can. He explains the foundational and fundamental concepts needed to get the most out of game development today. An exceptional precursor to the two books soon to be published by New Riders with author Andrew Rollings, this book teaches key lessons; including, what you can learn from the history of game play and historical games, necessity of challenge in game play, applying dimensions of conflict, understanding low and high interactivity designs, watching for the inclusion of creativity, and understanding the importance of storytelling. In addition, Chris brings you the wish list of games he'd like to build and tells you how to do it. Game developers and designers will kill for this information!