Throughout human history wildcatters, the first great explorers and prospectors to lay claim to newly discovered lands, have marched to the beat of a different drummer — motivated by a deep yearning to be the first to walk on uncharted land and benefit from treasures yet to be discovered.

In the future, wildcatters in space will travel to exoplanets, located in The Big Nothing, to search for new chemicals which, when transformed into pharmaceuticals, might bring untold wealth and fame to the individuals and corporations that stake their claim for exclusive exploitation rights.

Such is the quest of the crew of the independent starship Golden Hind, whose mission is to travel a year and a half to “Cacafuego”, beat the larger corporations to the exoplanets’ resources, and strike it rich for themselves.

But will a yellow warning flag, already planted above the planet, stop them? Or will the Golden Hind’s prospector foray to the planet’s surface, possibly never to return alive?

Set on a distant planet, far in the future, tells the story of a world in which time moves very slowly. Because it takes a lifetime for each region of the planet to experience dawn, midday and dusk, the planet’s population does not remember the catastrophes that occur as the sun moves across the sky-entire civilizations have been scorched into oblivion. The only people who remember the dangers of the past are the planet’s “angels”—a people who have tried to preserve past technologies to save the planet. This action-filled story of a very strange planet showcases Duncan’s remarkable ability to create unique worlds.

Originally from Scotland, Dave Duncan has lived all his adult life in Western Canada, having enjoyed a long career as a petroleum geologist before taking up writing. Since discovering that imaginary worlds are more satisfying than the real one, he has published more than thirty novels, mostly in the fantasy genre, but also young adult, science fiction, and historical. He has at times been Sarah B. Franklin (but only for literary purposes) and Ken Hood (which is short for “D’ye Ken Whodunit?”).

With bullets flying, wounded soldiers scream out in pain as the Chinook comes in to land in one of the most dangerous parts of Afghanistan. At the machine’s controls is one man and if he doesn’t stay calm then everyone could die.

That man is Flt Lt Alex ‘Frenchie’ Duncan and he’s been involved in some of the most daring and dangerous missions undertaken by the Chinook force in Afghanistan. In this book he recounts his experiences of life under fire in the dust, heat and bullets of an active war zone.

At 99ft long, the Chinook is a big and valuable target to the Taliban, who will stop at nothing to bring one down. And yet Frenchie and his crew risk everything because they know that the troops on the front line are relying on them. is the true story of the raw determination and courage of men on the front line – and it’s time for their story to be told.

Ava, a teenage girl living aboard the male-dominated, conservative deep space merchant ship Parastrata, faces betrayal, banishment, and death. Taking her fate into her own hands, she flees to the Gyre, a floating continent of garbage and scrap in the Pacific Ocean.

This is a sweeping and harrowing novel about a girl who can't read or write or even withstand the forces of gravity. What choices will she make? How will she build a future on an earth ravaged by climate change?

Named by the American Booksellers Association as a Spring 2014 Indies Introduce Pick.

Andy Duncan teaches freshman English at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, where he is working on a masters of fine arts. In 1995, he graduated from North Carolina State University in Raleigh with an MA from the creative writing department. Originally from Batesburg, South Carolina, Mr. Duncan also spent seven years as a newspaper reporter and editor in Greensboro, North Carolina. Although “Beluthahatchie” is his first fiction sale, he has since sold stories to and The author is currently at work on an alternate-history novel.

SUMMARY: On the heels of his resoundingly praised fantasy series THE GREAT GAME, author Dave Duncan returns to the form with which he originally established his reputation: the epic sword-and-sorcery adventure. The breathtaking saga of THE KING'S BLADES begins with THE GILDED CHAIN, the relentlessly exciting story of an unparalleled swordsman trained from early childhood to take his place among the King's elite corps of warrior/bodyguards in a dangerously uncertain fantasy realm. Audaciously taking as his own name of Kingdom's most fabled champion of long ago, Durandel sees his lifelong dream of serving his liege dashed to bits whenhe is bonded for life, not to his beloved king, but to an effete noble fop. ButDestiny has inscrutable plans for this able young knight in an ancient, isolated cityin a land far from the blood intrigues of the perilous court. On a mission thatpromises glory and great treasures, grisly secrets of opulence and immortality willbe revealed--while countless betrayals and untold horrors combine to threaten a remarkable future prophesied for a warrior who could be the mightiest hero in the history of the monarchy.

SUMMARY: As unwanted, rebellious boys, they found refuge in Ironhall. . .Years later they emerged as the finest swordsmen in the realm— The Kings Blades Once bound, a Blade's life is no longer his own. Only death can break the gilded chain of enchantment that binds the bodyguard to the man he is sworn to defend. And never in living memory has a candidate refused the honor of serving his king. . .until now. Young Wasp never intended to be a rebel. Yet, at the sacred ceremony of binding, he follows the lead of his friend Raider, and together they spurn the wishes of King Ambrose himself. Now Raider and Wasp are outlaws hunted by the very Blades whose ranks they were a breath away from entering, and joined together by a destiny that binds them more securely than any knot tradition and sorcery might tie. Amid the turmoil their "treachery" has inspired, Wasp and Raider must undertake a desperate journey into the heart of the dreaded Fire Lands. And the outcome of their terrifying confrontation with dark truth and darker magic in this realm of monsters, ghosts, and half-men will ultimately determine the fate of two kingdoms.

SUMMARY: When the king is killed, Princess Malinda realizes that is up to her to protect the heir to the Kingdom, her baby brother Amby, and that the only ones that can help her are the Blades of the Royal Guards.