Story of a missing girl.

The second and concluding volume of Ian Watson's extraordinary epic, The Book of Mana. Kaleva is Earth's first and only interstellar colony, discovered by Lucky Sariola who was transported there by an Ukko, a mysterious asteriod-like entity that responds to stories told to it - in Lucky's case, those of her Finnish grandmother. Now Queen Lucky, half-mad and newly widowed, is obsessed by relocating that Ukko - but this is potentially disastrous, as the snakelike alien Isi are also on its trail as part of their design to enslave humans. Understanding this, one of Lucky's daughters (with obsessions of her own) crowns herself rival queen. A summer turns into unseasonable winter and elysian peace turns to bitter civil war and Ukko, once more, has a role to play in the history of Kaleva.

The saga of Cal Harper and the crew of the Star Splinter continues...Author's note - This version of Shattered Moon has the novella Callacean merged into it to make it an even longer, more epic adventure!After eight desperate months of searching, Cal Harper and his crew still haven't discovered Kaia's whereabouts. Taken by pirates during the rescue of Federation survivors, her fate remains uncertain. But so too is the fate of humanity itself... With the destruction of Earth, the Insidions have struck a devastating blow only to sink back into the shadows to let the poison spread. Thousands of colonies have been forced into self-sufficiency, and the loss of interstellar communications is making the situation infinitely worse. Riding on the building chaos, the pirates are proving increasingly organized. So much so that Cal fears a leader may have arisen--one powerful enough to unite the disparate clans. But Cal isn't about to give up his search, not by a long shot, and his crew are sticking with him every step of the way. But trouble is brewing in ways few could have predicted, and fortunately or not, Cal and his friends have a talent for finding the worst of it."Kinda like Star Wars, Firefly and Guardians of the Galaxy all mooshed together." One of the authors extremely eloquent friends

This 2006 text covers all aspects of planetary rings with particular emphasis on ring history and evolution.

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Anathem, Reamde, and Cryptonomicon comes an exciting and thought-provoking science fiction epic—a grand story of annihilation and survival spanning five thousand years. What would happen if the world were ending? A catastrophic event renders the earth a ticking time bomb. In a feverish race against the inevitable, nations around the globe band together to devise an ambitious plan to ensure the survival of humanity far beyond our atmosphere, in outer space. But the complexities and unpredictability of human nature coupled with unforeseen challenges and dangers threaten the intrepid pioneers, until only a handful of survivors remain . . . Five thousand years later, their progeny—seven distinct races now three billion strong—embark on yet another audacious journey into the unknown . . . to an alien world utterly transformed by cataclysm and time: Earth. A writer of dazzling genius and imaginative vision, Neal Stephenson combines science, philosophy, technology, psychology, and literature in a magnificent work of speculative fiction that offers a portrait of a future that is both extraordinary and eerily recognizable. As he did in Anathem, Cryptonomicon, the Baroque Cycle, and Reamde, Stephenson explores some of our biggest ideas and perplexing challenges in a breathtaking saga that is daring, engrossing, and altogether brilliant.

Fully updated and expanded, this new edition presents a cutting-edge summary of planetary rings, including results from Cassini's Saturn System, Equinox and Solstice missions, and the New Horizons flyby of Jupiter. The book introduces basic physical processes and simple mathematical approaches in an accessible manner, including N-body and stochastic models of ring dynamics. Further revised chapters present highlighted topics including Saturn's F ring, Uranus' rings and moons, Neptune's partial rings, dusty rings, and Jupiter's ring-moon system after Galileo and New Horizons. Cassini results are fully integrated throughout, including new images in color, and a new Afterword links ring images in the Cassini 'Hall of Fame' gallery to the relevant explanation in the text. An online cache of images and videos from NASA's collection makes it easy to locate relevant and beautiful illustrative materials. This is a key resource for students, researchers and professionals in planetary science, astronomy and space-mission research.

The tangled fates of lost loves, the clash of rival packs, and the simmering heat of rekindled passion all collide in the exciting second installment of the Nightwind Pack series. Amber Daniels returns to Hollow Mountain to care for her dying mother after staying hidden for so long. She plans on avoiding the local paranormal element that sent her running away years ago, but a chance encounter with a werewolf at the local shifter bar forces her into a dangerous situation she can’t get out of. To her shock, her rescuer is none other than Desmon Nightwind, her long-lost love. No longer the young werewolf she left behind, now he’s a commanding and respected alpha who has yearned for her all this time. The moment they meet again, the sensual chemistry between Desmon and Amber reignites like she never left. But Desmon isn’t just any man – he's the alpha of his pack, with deadly enemies that lurk around every corner. As a dangerous territory war threatens their second chance, Amber faces a choice. Can she embrace the untamed, passionate world Desmon offers, or will the haunted memories of the past force her to flee again?