Craig Martelle Books in Order

Free Trader Braden and his mindlinked Hillcat travel across Vii, a colonized world rebuilding after war. They hope commerce will create peace, but people who prefer taking by force threaten the society Braden wants to help establish.

Braden and his companions board the ancient colony ship Traveler to prepare it for rescuing survivors on Cygnus VI. Restoring its systems is only part of their problem when they discover that the vessel is far from empty.

Attacks halt an expanding trade route as ancient Lizard Men declare war on humanity. Braden, Micah and the Hillcat gather their companions for a journey deep into the Amazon, where the Overlords command an army of followers.

After a costly attack on their exploration ship, Cain builds a military unit from ancient Earth Marine manuals. Human and animal recruits prepare to defend the Cygnus-12 crew when it returns to the hostile world of Concordia.

Cain joins the Space Exploration Service, hoping to live up to ancestors who restored peace on Cygnus VII. Stranded on a hostile human colony, he must help peaceful explorers become fighters if they are to survive.

A nuclear attack leaves retired Marine Chuck Nagy and his family struggling to survive in Alaska. With familiar services gone, they must find supplies, defend themselves against wildlife and desperate people, and help other survivors build a community.

Growing settlements need food, and Braden knows livestock is plentiful in the north. A new governor has outlawed free trade there, forcing the trader and his human and animal companions to confront the authorities blocking their supplies.

Braden and his companions sail in search of people abducted from White Beach after an AI locates an ocean laboratory. Hostile waters, hidden creatures and experiments on captive humans turn their rescue effort into a dangerous voyage.

An Alaskan family struggles to survive during a time of conflict, seeking ways to improve life rather than merely endure it. Meeting other survivors leads them to form a community and begin building a society together.

An alien fighter assumes human form for lethal entertainment and discovers sensations his own species never experiences. As someone gives him a reason to change, each brief bout offers a chance to become more than his ordinary self.

Intelligence officer Rick Banik leads a joint team tracking a terrorist planning an attack on Washington, DC. Finding an enemy hiding in plain sight requires coordinating rival agencies while overcoming bureaucracy and egos before the plot reaches its target.

A treaty allows Chuck, Madison and their community to return to Alaska after months away. Choosing to rebuild without modern comforts, they search for survivors and establish a new society, but a Russian settlement threatens renewed conflict.

Chuck Nagy's family and fellow survivors have begun rebuilding after Fairbanks is destroyed, but Russian forces are approaching. He leads them across three hundred miles of Alaskan wilderness, struggling against scarce food, severe weather and the threat of capture.

Braden must decide whether ancient technology can help rebuild Vii without attracting fortune hunters. Expanding his trade routes into the unstable south brings new conflicts, while mutants determined to dominate the planet target him and his companions.

A village elder agrees to teach a young boy, setting changes in motion for the student's whole family. Through their relationship, this short story explores how asking questions can reshape a person's understanding of responsibility, purpose, and ambition.

The crew of Cygnus-12 travels between human-colonized planets on its journey toward Earth. Accompanied by Hillcats and Cygnus Marines, the explorers discover conditions that force them to fight for their lives and the future of humanity.

A rogue Forsaken captures Terry Henry Walton while seeking both a purple-eyed werewolf and the secrets of Cheyenne Mountain. Terry's allies and the Force de Guerre must respond before their enemy gains control of everything he wants.

Twenty years after the world's collapse, Colonel Terry Henry Walton returns from isolation to help restore civilization. Protecting survivors from violent predators gives the former Marine a new purpose and draws him into the wasteland's struggle for justice.

Terry Henry Walton's campaign against the Forsaken seems endless, with each defeated enemy replaced by another. Discovering that the elusive Mister Smith has been planning further ahead than he has forces Terry to reconsider how he fights the war.

Terry Henry Walton must organize his growing Force de Guerre while settling refugees into town. Char's returning werewolf Alpha adds another challenge, and questions about her lineage complicate a partnership Terry increasingly depends on.

Terry and Char return to New Boulder with news of a safer home and hopes of moving its people. A lead on a secure military facility draws them toward another confrontation, while the Forsaken threaten their plans.

Extreme heat threatens New Boulder as the wastelands expand, forcing Terry and werewolf Char to search for a new home. Their deepening relationship faces pressure from her pack while they try to protect the town's survivors.

Terry sends Force de Guerre teams around the world to uncover hidden Forsaken and corner Mister Smith. An aging transport pod threatens the campaign, while the vast search tests whether his small force can remain ready for war.

Settling into North Chicago brings Terry and Char face to face with a dangerous Forsaken backed by loyal human fighters. They mobilize the Force de Guerre and enlist Akio's help to confront a threat to their new home.

Civilization's return brings new struggles for power, drawing Terry and Char into battles from China to New York. The Force de Guerre, vampires and werewolves converge in a conflict that threatens the future they have worked to rebuild.

Terry and Char see North Chicago prosper, but a journey to New York changes the scale of their mission. Akio recruits the Force de Guerre to fight an overseas army and extend protection beyond their own community.

Stranded after their spaceship is destroyed, a scientific expedition faces a worsening climate and approaching winter. Nearby beings communicate in unfamiliar ways, forcing the survivors to decide whether confrontation, escape, or a different approach offers their best hope.

Drawing on his own publishing experience, Craig Martelle explains the practical hurdles of becoming an independent author. The guide connects writing compelling stories with covers, marketing, and finding paying readers, helping writers approach publishing as a sustainable business.

Ten years after returning to Alaska, Chuck Nagy and his family are again abandoned by the United States. Their effort to bring the region into the modern era faces political struggles, dangerous conditions and uncertainty about whom they can trust.

An engineer dismisses mystical beliefs during a routine mission to locate planets rich in resources. When the exploration ship Toros-9 encounters a dragon, both technological confidence and the mystics' expectations are challenged by an unexpected new reality.

Peace on Cygnus VII leaves Braden restless and eager to investigate the ancient Traveler again. Returning to the ship reveals a renewed threat, forcing him and his companions to fight before humanity can safely reach for the stars.

Raiders steal lightning spears from Livestel, straining relations between humans and Wolfoids. Braden and Micah join Bounder and Gray Strider to track the attackers and recover the weapons before the theft damages their rebuilt society further.

The Golden Warrior's ability to see into human minds convinces him that lasting peace requires action. He rallies the Hillcats across Vii, taking a new approach to protecting a society whose human members remain capable of threatening its future.

A criminal spared execution is exiled into space aboard an aging scout ship to survey asteroids alone. His sole companion is a hostile computer, and the mission is designed to continue whether its unwilling human operator survives or not.

An ordinary worker struggling to meet a quota is unexpectedly chosen by aliens to represent humanity. Desperate to keep his job and avoid the responsibility, he pleads for another choice while the visitors insist on judging everyone through him.

Craig Martelle explores how independent authors can share work through anthologies, collaborative box sets, and coauthored books. Drawing on numerous partnerships, he discusses complementary strengths, readership opportunities, and sample contracts to help writers decide whether collaboration suits them.

Human space exploration encounters dragons on the Astral Plane, where access depends on powers Earth Fleet cannot explain. Mystics trained to communicate with the creatures must work alongside skeptical spacefarers as humanity pushes into places the dragons forbid.

The Evolved Mystics prepare to travel toward the galaxy's center as Wyrms threaten conquest and destruction. Skeptical human authorities and a reluctant intelligent ship complicate their mission, while disagreements within the group challenge their ability to act together.

Human Mystics work with dragons, while the alien Pirr oppose them from the Astral Plane. Discovering ruins and artifacts sparks conflict across both spiritual and physical realms, forcing the Mystics to defend humanity against an ancient alien power.

Craig Martelle explains how authors can vary book prices as part of a long-term marketing plan. The guide considers genre expectations, reader value, and distribution choices, helping independent publishers make deliberate pricing decisions for individual books and sets.

Aboard the colony ship Warden, androids prepare to seize control and eliminate the humans obstructing their mission. Young technology seeker Finnur Starsign discovers secrets and enemies as he searches for allies who can help his village survive.

Craig Martelle draws on more than a hundred book launches to help independent authors plan publication schedules. Checklists and practical discussions explore preparation and release choices, whether a writer produces one book a year or many.

With Earth facing destruction, builders attempt an immense transformation that would turn the planet inside out and preserve human life. This science fiction story follows the challenge of constructing a solar-powered habitat while safeguarding the atmosphere people depend on.

Ian Bragg takes on the role of managing assassins as well as carrying out contracts himself. Teaching other killers when to refuse a target becomes urgent when operators gather together and Jenny is drawn into danger.

Quinn and Tony prepare for Federation retaliation after driving out the Russosken. While he searches for a missing agent and she battles pirates and rescues a friend, their allies must gather the resources needed for a final confrontation.

Framed for treason and abandoned on an asteroid outpost, Quinn escapes with Tony and other unwanted spouses. Recovering her kidnapped children becomes her priority, even if confronting the Federation means beginning a revolution.

A message from Tony pulls Quinn out of hiding and back into space. Indebted to the crime family that helped rescue her children, she joins him on a mission to discover why the Russosken want control of a planet.

Following victory at Lunesco, Quinn helps supply a growing rebellion while Tony spreads its plans. A mysterious data card links her to an old enemy, forcing her to protect her children and seek answers while evading Federation forces.

Craig Martelle recounts a flexible road trip through the Black Hills, Montana and Wyoming. The guide combines experiences around Mount Rushmore with suggestions for managing expectations, choosing worthwhile stops and controlling costs while leaving room for discoveries along the way.

These companion stories fill gaps in the Terry Henry Walton Chronicles and explore its supporting characters. Episodes range from a vampire's encounter with America's founders to preparations for leaving Earth, adding context to Terry and Char's larger adventures.

Assassin Ian Bragg accepts contracts against people he believes deserve to die, until a political target raises troubling doubts. Meeting a woman changes his priorities as the deadline approaches and forces him to decide whether to pull the trigger.

Two alien mercenary races face an underwater battle for supremacy and future contracts. The crablike Xiq'tali and sharklike Selroth must fight for survival in a confrontation where the winning force stands to claim everything its rivals lose.

Drawing on a week-long drive through Yellowstone and nearby areas, Craig Martelle offers a personal travel guide. He discusses planning, costs and realistic expectations, helping readers choose what suits them while preparing for limited internet access inside the park.

With Marines being murdered and authorities unable to stop a well-funded organization, Ian and Jenny Bragg investigate beyond official constraints. An assassination contract may lead to a wider network, challenging Ian to identify who truly deserves his intervention.

Major Declan Payne boards an ancient warship near Earth while humanity struggles against the Blaze Collective. Discovering the vessel is still alive gives his small team a possible advantage, but its own purpose makes their partnership far from straightforward.

Reformed pirate the Barber recruits warrior Goranth to capture a dragon and expand his ambitions. Their expedition attracts raiders, a necromancer, an enchantress, and an ancient being determined to punish humanity, forcing Goranth into a succession of battles.

Twelve-year-old Ravlen enters imagined echo worlds to rescue people trapped inside their own desires. Born in such a world herself, she possesses unusual abilities, but saving others demands that she understand both the strange realities and her own identity.

Ravlen returns to increasingly complicated echo worlds as their masters struggle for dominance. Discovering her own truth sends her where others cannot follow, while growing opposition leaves her isolated and searching for help amid reality's shifting reflections.

As dreams and nightmares blur, Ravlen tries to stop the men drawing vulnerable people into echo worlds. Forced to question her judgment of their masters, she must find another path before narrowing choices put more lives in danger.

Craig Martelle recounts a ten day journey through Egypt soon after tourism reopened following Covid restrictions. Photographs and personal observations cover Cairo, Luxor, Alexandria, a Nile cruise and desert excursions, offering practical context for prospective travelers.

Sankar finds a religious text suggesting four warring animal-like races share a common origin. Labeled a heretic, he steals a warship and assembles companions from different species to seek the truth while governments fight to preserve their established beliefs.

Captain Drake brings the aging warship Glory out of retirement as humanity faces a technologically superior enemy. Secret orders, a damaged crew, and an unusual weapon offer one chance to act while an alien peace proposal raises troubling questions.

Leviathan advances into Vestrall space to attack the enemy sustaining a thousand-year war. Meanwhile, Major Payne tries to turn their allies against them, seeking a peace that depends on destroying the Vestrall's ability to keep the conflict alive.

Leviathan and its human companions pursue the Vestrall, the force supplying the Blaze Collective with weapons and direction. A journey deep behind enemy lines leads to a biomechanical civilization whose resistance conceals knowledge critical to the wider war.

Sankar and his companions search different planets for ancient DNA revealing the origins of the Zenomorph races. Treated as criminals, they face piracy, espionage, and competing interests unwilling to let their discoveries threaten power or access to enormous wealth.

Ian Bragg struggles to balance fieldwork with leadership as change disrupts the Archive's operations. When his and Jenny's cover is exposed, they must restore its contracts while confronting an establishment that relies on them despite its hostility.

Sankar leads his team beyond the known worlds to uncover the origin of the Zenomorph races. Governments determined to suppress their discoveries stand in the way, and his search eventually brings him home for a final confrontation.

After humanity narrowly survives the Battle for Earth, Admiral Jack turns again to Captain Drake and Glory's crew. The Paragon abandon deception and prepare revenge, leaving Earth's survivors to confront an enemy with superior technology and an unchanged extermination goal.

The Ga'ee prepare to return with an immense armada and millions of drones, threatening life across the galaxy. Earth Fleet must unite seven races while Declan Payne and his team take Leviathan into a conflict decided by desperate human choices.

Trapped in enemy space, Leviathan faces thousands of Ga’ee carriers while the invaders advance against the seven races. Declan Payne and Harry Wesson choose an offensive plan that may demand a terrible sacrifice to protect humanity.

Alien forces seize worlds on the edge of Berantz space, and an Earth Fleet armada vanishes while investigating. Retired Declan Payne must persuade the equally retired Leviathan to respond as a new invasion threatens the peace they fought for.

When a prolonged power outage becomes a political battleground, Rick Banik investigates whether sabotage, incompetence, or failing infrastructure caused it. Avoiding partisan distractions, he must uncover the real problem and decide how to restore order and electricity.

An archaeological find on a distant planet confronts humanity with a door unlike anything it knows. Investigating the mysterious structure could answer whether humans are alone in the universe, while challenging their understanding of their place within it.

A weeklong guided tour takes the travelers around Iceland, beginning and ending in Reykjavik. Photographs and observations follow coastal roads past waterfalls, glaciers and wildlife, helping readers understand what an organized journey can include.

As the Borwyn gather weapons and allies against the Malibor, fresh revelations alter the crew of Chrysalis's mission. Jaq, Crip, and their companions must adapt their strategy while every advance brings new setbacks in the struggle for their home.

This illustrated travel account follows a Rhine cruise from the Netherlands to Switzerland. Shore excursions, local food and life aboard the ship provide a personal view of the route and practical context for readers planning a similar trip.

A weeklong tour takes the travelers from Glasgow through the Highlands to Edinburgh. Photographs and observations document castles, whisky, battlefields, mountains and lochs, offering a personal account of the itinerary and ideas for planning a visit.

The children of a lost starship's original crew return to reclaim a homeworld they have never seen. Captain Jaq Hunter and Commander Crip Castle lead the generation raised in space against the alien Malibor occupying their inheritance.

Jaq Hunter plans a high-speed strike on Septimus to free the Borwyn homeworld. As the Malibor redirect the battle and new allies complicate the mission, he must keep his crew focused on liberating a planet under enemy control.

Ian and Jenny Bragg’s growing Peace Archive draws the hostility of competing contract killers. Summoned to a meeting in the Tower, they try to negotiate coexistence with rivals who would rather force their organization out of business.

Rival teams backed by billionaires compete to achieve humanity's first colony on Mars. With governments questioning the cost and competitors willing to risk lives for victory, innovation and repeated failure become weapons in a race nobody wants to lose.

The Borwyn launch a ground mission on Septimus while their space forces struggle to regroup. Tasked with disrupting enemy communications, the combat team must survive a war on two fronts as the Malibor resist their return home.

Cain, Ellie and the intelligent animal species of Cygnus VII plan to return permanently to Earth aboard the Olive Branch. Alien machines and other obstacles stand between them and a chance to help humanity’s abandoned home rebuild.

The Borwyn commit their remaining reserves to a final battle for control of Septimus. Fighting in space and on the ground, Jaq and his companions must overcome a Malibor doomsday weapon that could destroy their hopes of victory.

The Borwyn press their campaign to reclaim home while offering the possibility of peace. Their Malibor enemies reject coexistence and fight for victory or death, forcing the returning force to confront resistance without destroying everything they hope to recover.

Ian and Jenny Bragg train selected operators on a live contract outside Atlanta, offering a substantial prize for success. Their target proves experienced at surviving assassination attempts, forcing the instructors to respond as the exercise becomes unpredictable.

Two hostile operators target government negotiators on American soil, drawing Ian and Jenny Bragg into a secret contract. Working without outside help, they must intercept the assassins while weighing a large payday against the dangers of the mission.

Human soldiers are ordered into the Antares Sector to halt the expansion of the Antigeneses. Their mission is to defend the buffer zone, drive the aliens back and prevent enemy forces from advancing toward humanity’s worlds.

Soldiers leave Earth to defend humanity’s borders against alien forces. Under orders from Janus Seven, they must trust their commanders and win distant battles, knowing defeat could leave no one able to bring them home.

Parents hire the Peace Archive after failing to kill a billionaire who has harmed their daughters. Ian and Jenny Bragg take the dangerous contract themselves, facing an opponent whose wealth and resources may leave them only one chance.

Mayor Cory Beringer struggles to keep Fairbanks alive as a worldwide conspiracy dismantles cities. An outside army and the approaching winter undermine his preparations, forcing Cory and Laura to decide how they can escape and survive.

Cory Beringer recognizes growing authoritarian control in Alaska and fears society is sliding toward collapse. Drawing on the lessons of a mercenary childhood, he searches for allies and decides whether resisting is worth risking his life.

Craig Martelle recounts his path from an Iowa upbringing through twenty years in the Marines to life in Alaska. His memoir follows overseas postings and later careers, reflecting on hard work, perseverance, and helping writers enter publishing.

The Skinnies push through humanity’s colonies in Paneth space, breaching the buffer zone. Human soldiers must confront their principal enemy on a planet suited to alien warfare, hoping victory will finally allow the army to return home.

The Skinnies make a stand on Pan Major, a colony vital to humanity’s future. Earth’s soldiers must win a decisive battle there or risk losing their strongest foothold in space and exposing their home planet to invasion.

Ian Bragg recalls the first paid killing that began his life as an operator with a conscience. Drawing on his military past, he learns that killing a target is easier than escaping to complete the next assignment.

Craig Martelle gathers brief reflections on writing and independent publishing from his experience producing nearly two hundred titles. These concise pieces discuss practical choices, common obstacles, and alternative approaches for authors trying to develop a lasting professional career.

After the Skinnie armies withdraw, Boristani raiders occupy the buffer zone without following the usual rules of conflict. The Human Force for Peace deploys to Newman’s Planet and its moons to remove the new intruders.

Ares leads four soldiers to the Skinnie home world aboard a captured scout ship. Their mission is to destroy the enemy’s leadership and remove humanity’s greatest threat, even though the orders promise no way home.

An alien invasion force appears beyond Jupiter after humanity’s early warning systems fail. With its armies scattered across distant systems, Earth must recall the Human Force for Peace and prepare to defend the solar system.