"River in the Galaxy" by Natalie Kelda

When Merlon's parents disappeared, his world fell apart. When his best friend died, he lost the ability to enjoy life.

For Captain Merlon Ricosta, Lanier's death, two years prior, feels like yesterday. But when a map from his parents is discovered, he decides to push aside his grief to get closure and follow the route they vanished along eighteen years ago.
 

Despite political trouble, Merlon leads his crew into the unknowns of strange galaxies in his quest to find out why his parents never returned.

In River in the Galaxy Merlon fights to keep his crew alive and suppress his prolonged grief and depression. But he must face his own struggles in order to protect the ship and the people aboard.

River in the Galaxy is the first book in an interconnected dark space fantasy series. Merlon's story continues in book 2: Outer Universe.

 

 

"Fieres" by Jendra Berri

ABOUT THE BOOK

Fieres

Everyone always said Grace was weird. An albino abandoned at birth, anti-social, and selectively intelligent, she’s never had a friend. Now at 23, she lives alone and quietly runs a dojo in Toronto. But beneath her stony exterior, somehow she’s always known that something— or someone— was coming for her.

The night she meets the quirky Tomiko, everything changes. As they meet three more women, (Julia, Hope and Paetra), one by one they awaken and uncover memories of Fieres, a breathtaking sentient planet. Not only does it link them together, its free existence hangs in the balance and needs their help.

Grace must now face the truth: about herself, her storied past, who— and what— she really is, and the dangerous risk she poses to them all. Not returning to Fieres is not an option. If they fail to stop the threat, Earth will meet the same terrible fate.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jendra Berri is a Canadian author, born and raised in Kingston Ontario, and now living with her husband and son in Toronto.

A former art student turned journalism grad, amateur model maker, sometimes baker, chronic cat lady, and occasional crocheter, her primary love is, and has always been, the written word. Her favourite theme is human nature, wrapped in a package of fantasy, science fiction or a mix of both.

Fieres is her debut novel.