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In its 4.5 billion-year history, life on Earth has been almost erased at least half a dozen times: shattered by asteroid impacts, entombed in ice, smothered by methane, and torn apart by unfathomably powerful megavolcanoes. And we know that another global disaster is eventually headed our way. Can we survive it? How? As a species, Homo sapiens is at a crossroads. Study of our planet’s turbulent past suggests that we are overdue for a catastrophic disaster, whether caused by nature or by human interference. It’s a frightening prospect, as each of the Earth’s past major disasters—from meteor strikes to bombardment by cosmic radiation—resulted in a mass extinction, where more than 75 percent of the planet’s species died out. But in Scatter, Adapt, and Remember, Annalee Newitz, science journalist and editor of the science Web site io9.com explains that although global disaster is all but inevitable, our chances of long-term species survival are better than ever. Life on Earth has come close to annihilation—humans have, more than once, narrowly avoided extinction just during the last million years—but every single time a few creatures survived, evolving to adapt to the harshest of conditions. This brilliantly speculative work of popular science focuses on humanity’s long history of dodging the bullet, as well as on new threats that we may face in years to come. Most important, it explores how scientific breakthroughs today will help us avoid disasters tomorrow. From simulating tsunamis to studying central Turkey’s ancient underground cities; from cultivating cyanobacteria for “living cities” to designing space elevators to make space colonies cost-effective; from using math to stop pandemics to studying the remarkable survival strategies of gray whales, scientists and researchers the world over are discovering the keys to long-term resilience and learning how humans can choose life over death. Newitz’s remarkable and fascinating journey through the science of mass extinctions is a powerful argument about human ingenuity and our ability to change. In a world populated by doomsday preppers and media commentators obsessively forecasting our demise, Scatter, Adapt, and Remember is a compelling voice of hope. It leads us away from apocalyptic thinking into a future where we live to build a better world—on this planet and perhaps on others. Readers of this book will be equipped scientifically, intellectually, and emotionally to face whatever the future holds.<

From Annalee Newitz, founding editor of io9, comes a story of time travel, murder, and the lengths we’ll go to protect the ones we love. 1992: After a confrontation at a riot grrl concert, seventeen-year-old Beth finds herself in a car with her friend’s abusive boyfriend dead in the backseat, agreeing to help her friends hide the body. This murder sets Beth and her friends on a path of escalating violence and vengeance as they realize many other young women in the world need protecting too. 2022: Determined to use time travel to create a safer future, Tess has dedicated her life to visiting key moments in history and fighting for change. But rewriting the timeline isn’t as simple as editing one person or event. And just when Tess believes she’s found a way to make an edit that actually sticks, she encounters a group of dangerous travelers bent on stopping her at any cost. Tess and Beth’s lives intertwine as war breaks out across the timeline—a war that threatens to destroy time travel and leave only a small group of elites with the power to shape the past, present, and future. Against the vast and intricate forces of history and humanity, is it possible for a single person’s actions to echo throughout the timeline?<

Chase’s grandfather is missing, and he asks Odelia to help find him. And since Odelia’s editor has told her to find out who the new Hampton Cove Santa is, she gladly agrees. After traipsing all over New York City in search of Grandpa Kingsley, and the new Santa, they have to declare defeat. Lucky for them, there’s still Max and Dooley, Odelia’s feline sleuths. Will they find out what happened to Grandpa Kingsley? And will they figure out who the new Santa is? Get into the holiday spirit with Max and Odelia and find out in Purrfect Santa.

This Mysteries of Max short story (20.000 words) stands alone, and is told from the viewpoint of Odelia, featuring Chase, Odelia’s family, Max and Dooley, and offers a rare glimpse into Chase’s past. It’s accompanied by two more short stories, Purrfect Christmas Mystery and Purrfect Christmas Miracle, written from the viewpoint of Max, exclusively available to mailing list subscribers: nicsaint.com/newsletter. The three short stories are best read in this order: Purrfect Santa, Purrfect Christmas Mystery and Purrfect Christmas Miracle.

When former actress and lifestyle guru Donna Bruce is found murdered in her sauna cabin, stung to death by bees, Odelia and Chase are on the case. Meanwhile Odelia’s tabby Max has his own issues to deal with. The vet has decided the flabby tabby is too flabby and has put Max on a strict diet. Feeling weak and out of sorts, the blorange cat has a hard time coming up with original ideas to solve the crime his human is grappling with. And then there’s the fact that Odelia has decided that this time Harriet, her mother’s white Persian, is in charge of the case, leading the feline sleuths even further astray.

Harriet’s idea of investigating a crime is surfing the web and sifting through Internet gossip, and since Odelia doesn’t seem to be making any headway in the case it’s up to Max and Dooley to save the day and find that telling clue that will lead them to Donna’s killer. Will Max be able to stick to his diet? Will Gran be able to control her online shopping habits? And will Odelia and Chase finally go on their first date? Find out in Purrfect Crime, the fifth installment in the funny cozy cat mystery series The Mysteries of Max.

When someone takes a shot at well-renowned pop star Charlie Dieber and kills one of his bodyguards instead, Odelia Poole, self-confessed Bedieber and big-time fan, is quick to offer her assistance to help find the shooter. Teaming up with Detective Chase Kingsley, she enters the world of the Dieber, and soon discovers not everything is as it seems.

Odelia’s cat menagerie, meanwhile, is in a state of shock when longtime rival Diego returns to Hampton Cove, and immediately starts stirring up trouble. Diego has one goal in mind: take over Max’s place in Odelia’s home and heart and get Max, Dooley and Brutus sent to the pound. The only one who can help them is Clarice, their feral friend. She got rid of Diego once, and they hope she will do it again. Unfortunately Clarice has been adopted. By Charlie Dieber.

Will Diego become Odelia’s new go-to feline sleuth or will Max strike back? Will they be able to stop the killer before he kills the world’s number-one pop star? And will Grandma move to Washington and go into politics? Find out in Purrfect Rivalry, a cozy cat mystery like no other.

When the Most Fascinating Man in the World is murdered in a Most Fascinating Way, Odelia Poole, who was on her way to interview the man, finds herself embroiled in a Most Fascinating Murder Investigation, along with her boyfriend Chase Kingsley, homicide detective. More Interesting Men soon come crawling out of the woodwork, and all of them had a reason to kill their Most Interesting Colleague. So who’s the culprit? And will he or she strike again?

Meanwhile Max, Odelia’s blorange tabby, has his own problems to contend with in the shape of a pernicious flea infestation that gets him and the other cats sent to the place they fear even more than the loss of one of their nine lives: Vena the vet. And as if that’s not bad enough, there’s a persistent rumor going around that Chase Kingsley might be moving in with their human—and they know what that means: babies! Which would spell the end of their cushy lives.


Between the fleas, the baby menace, a troupe of Most Interesting Cats invading their world, Grandma Muffin’s latest antics, and helping Odelia with the murder investigation, life is once again lived in the fast lane for the cats of Hampton Cove, with not a moment’s respite. In other words, business as usual for the world’s most hilarious cat sleuths.

“This, the third edition of Mr. Knight’s Orbit series, features original science fiction stories which have not appeared previously anywhere. The material has been chosen with an eye to both variety and originality. A novelette by John Jakes, ‘Here Is Thy Sting,’ manages to make death both rousing and quite amusing—a tour de force indeed. The lead story, ‘Mother to the World,’ by Richard Wilson, is a moving variation on the Last Man theme. The late Richard McKenna, author of ‘The Sand Pebbles,’ has a story, ‘Bramble Bush,’ which is good enough to indicate he could have been a top s-f writer had he lived to write more of the same. Perhaps the strongest story is Kate Wilhelm’s ‘The Planners’ in which science fiction remains in its own metier, yet becomes disturbingly real. “A must for discerning science fiction buffs, this is possibly the best of the Orbit series yet, a high rating indeed.” —Publishers’ Weekly<

“This is a choice collection of haunting tales collected by the founder of the Science Fiction Writers of America. Most of the stories typify the emerging new domain of science fiction, with its emphasis less on the ‘out-there’ than on the ‘right-here, right-now.’ Harlan Ellison, for example, in ‘Shattered Like a Glass Goblin,’ paints a picture of a houseful of hippies in the thrall of drugs and bestiality that is much too believable for comfort. In ‘Probable Cause,’ Charles Harness cites the use of clairvoyance in a case before the Supreme Court; and Kate Wilhelm portrays the agonizing problems of a computer analyst working on a robot weapon which requires the minds of dead geniuses to operate effectively. These are only a few of the many celebrated science fiction writers whose stories are included in the anthology, ‘Orbit 4.’ ”<

ORBIT 5 is the latest in the unique semi-annual series of SF anthologies which publishes the best new stories before they have appeared anywhere else. Editor Damon Knight works with both established writers and new talent, demanding the best and freshest of their work, and offering freedom from the taboos and conventions of magazine writing. Mr. Knight is the director of the annual Milford Science Fiction Writers’ Conference, founder and first president of Science Fiction Writers of America, and a Hugo winner for his book of critical essays, In Search of Wonder. His thirty books include novels, collections of short stories, translations, and anthologies.<

ORBIT 8 is the latest in this unique series of anthologies of the best new SF: fourteen stories written especially for this collection by some of the top names in the field. —Harlan Ellison in “One Life, Furnished in Early Poverty” tells a moving story of a man who goes back in time to help his youthful self. —Avram Davidson finds a new and sinister significance in the first robin of Spring. —R. A. Lafferty reveals a monstrous microfilm record of the past —Kate Wilhelm finds real horror in a story of boy-meets-girl. —and ten other tales by some of the most original minds now writing in this most exciting area of today’s fiction are calculated to blow the mind.<

ORBIT 9 is the latest in this unique up-to-the-minute series of SF anthologies which present the best and most lively new of the new and established writers in the field, at the top of their form. The fourteen stories written especially for this collection include; “What We Have Here is Too Much Communication” by Leon E. Stover, a fascinating glimpse into the secret lives of the Japanese. “The Infinity Box” by Kate Wilhelm, which explores a new and frightening aspect of the corruption of power. “Gleepsite” by Joanna Russ, which tells how to live with pollution and learn to love it. And eleven other tales by other masters of today’s most exciting fiction.<

When Dick Dickerson, notorious editor of the National Star, is found drowned in duck dung, the investigation quickly gets mired down when trying to figure out who’s behind the attack on the tabloid kingpin. Politicians, movie stars and captains of industry consistently found themselves in Dickerson’s crosshairs, but who would stoop so low as murder?

While Odelia Poole and Detective Chase Kingsley conduct their investigation, Odelia’s cat coterie is up in arms when a newcomer turns the peaceful town of Hampton Cove into a soap opera of gossip, scandal and secrets. Soon the ‘Fab Four’ (Max, Dooley, Harriet and Brutus) are duking it out, their friendship in ruins, Max’s reputation in tatters.

It doesn’t help that Grandma Muffin is waging a personal vendetta against her son-in-law’s new receptionist Scarlett Canyon, determined to get rid of her long-time nemesis once and for all. Against the backdrop of all this bickering, backstabbing and strife, is it any wonder Max starts to wonder if Dickerson’s killer will be the one that got away?

Норвежець Ю Несбьо (нар. 1960 р.) у себе на батьківщині спочатку став відомим як економічний оглядач (він закінчив Норвезьку школу економіки), потім як рок-музикант і композитор популярної групи «Di Derre», а наприкінці 90-х ще і як письменник, автор серії романів про поліцейського Харрі Холе. Перший з романів серії — «Нетопир» (1997) — був визнаний кращим детективом Скандинавії, удостоївся у критиків звання «миттєвого бестселера» й приніс авторові престижну премію «Срібний ключ». У видавництві «Фоліо» вийшли друком романи Ю Несбьо «Нетопир», «Червоногрудка», «Безтурботний», «Привид», «Мисливці за головами», «Таргани», «Леопард», «Сніговик» та ін.　 Офіцера поліції знаходять мертвим на місці давнього вбивства, у розслідуванні якого він брав участь. Коли те саме трапляється з двома іншими поліцейськими, стає зрозуміло, що це не випадковість. До того ж ці давні справи не було розкрито. Нові вбивства скоєно з жахливою жорстокістю, а у поліції немає жодних припущень. І що найгірше: вони втратили свого кращого слідчого — Харрі Холе, який пішов з поліції, щоб викладати у Поліцейській академії…　<

When Leonidas Flake, the world-renowned fashion designer and style icon, is found murdered by his live-in boyfriend Gabriel Crier, police are quickly convinced it’s an open-and-shut case. After all, Leo’s killer was caught red-handed. Grandma Muffin is not so sure, though, and decides to dig a little deeper.

Max and the other cats, meanwhile, are on strike. They feel very strongly that Odelia has been neglecting them lately and they need to teach her a lesson. Unfortunately their strike lands Max and Dooley in more danger than they anticipated, especially when they get mixed up in the saga of Pussy, Leo and Gabe’s famous and very Instagramable white Birman. Soon they are faced with their most formidable foe yet, a Siamese cat appropriately named Tank.

Will Max and Dooley escape Chateau Leonidas alive? Will Odelia be exposed as a cat whisperer? And will Dooley find love for the very first time? Find out in Purrfect Cut, everyone’s favorite cat sleuth’s exciting new adventure.