Jean Davis – författare

Aliens, time travel, distant futures, and far-off words. A collection of five short stories.

Poverty has shaped Tia''s life since childhood, labeling her a roach. A day without hunger pains or despising looks is pure fantasy until she accepts a job offer to explore a wondrous deserted city on a distant world. All she can think about is the life-altering payout she''ll receive in six months.

A hundred roaches are set free in the city of crystal spires. Their mission: To learn what they can about the previous occupants and to verify that the place is habitable for the host of wealthy future occupants waiting in orbit.

Well-provisioned, Tia and her fellow roaches scatter to explore the dunes and spires. Then people start to disappear. Are they being picked off to lessen the payout or is there a killer among them? All the credits in the world won''t matter if she''s dead.

Rumors of Tyrant Ta''set''s killing sprees have spread throughout the known universe. Or are they truths?

Vayen''s hold on his deadly Arpex abilities is slipping. If he loses control, he''ll be executed and his mission of unification and peace will die with him. Desperate to help Vayen maintain his precarious balance, Anastassia is willing to offer him a week with another woman as a diversion from his dark urges. Can she live with her decision if he wants more?

In the public spotlight by association, Daniel unwittingly ignites a political uprising when, in the spirit of love and unity, he adopts the Jalvian practice of taking a second wife. While he works with Neko to guide the debate within the Narvan, he must also work alongside his volatile, tyrannical father as they race the rumors to seek out amiable worlds for their advisory union. Daniel struggles to take on the brunt of his parent''s mission while facing his own darkness.

Spending a guilt-free week with Vayen is a dream come true for Buria. She''s had her eye on him for years. Securing a place within his inner circle could mean a serious job upgrade and notoriety. Managing Vayen''s addictions and temper will require every skill beaten into her as a slave if she is to stand a chance at coming out on top.

Is the Ta''set family, the Narvan, and the newly-formed advisory union prepared for a future where Vayen takes the one life that will send him over the edge?

God doesn''t make mistakes.

That choice to give man free will, though, that has caused nothing but problems. Problems that need fixing.

When an angel shows up to hand Samuel Mason a task he never asked for, his first reaction is to refuse. Killing the little boy next door is unthinkable. But there''s a contract with Sam''s name already on it and the angel won''t take no for an answer.

Fulfilling his task will ruin Sam''s life, his family, and devastate the boy''s mother. How long can a good kid hold out before he becomes the very thing society expects him to be? 

On idyllic Veria Minor, Anastassia struggles to fit into a life she never wanted. She''s lost everything she''s worked so hard for. 

According to her cover story, she''s now an acolyte Seeker, a mother, and wife of Isnar Ka''turoc. In reality, the Council''s torture has left her with only a whisper of her telepathy, she doesn''t know the first thing about raising a kid, and the man she''s stuck with is the same one who ruined her life. If she wants to stay among the living, she must learn to forgive and adapt.

When the Narvan unexpectedly falls into Jey and Merkief''s hands, the one thing on both of their minds is revenge. Kess killed Anastassia and Vayen, but he now has the High Council''s protection. To make things worse, he''s been awarded the advisory position for the Narvan''s neighboring system, including control over the wealthy planet of Merchess, which had provided much of the Narvan''s funding.

Strapped for credits, at each other''s throats, and attempting to meet the High Council''s demands, Jey and Merkief wage a covert battle with Kess. If the violence explodes, everyone will suffer.

A fairy tale for all ages...

In the heart of the beautiful city of Katra, princess Amira has spent all her eleven years confined to her room. Cursed with a spell, poison runs through her veins and must be drained away every day or she will die. Kept company by only a stream of temporary maids and the king and queen when they have time, she dreams of what lies outside the castle walls, a sibling to play with, and a future she will likely never live to see.

As Amira''s strength wanes, the king thinks that her salvation may lay in the distant forest, but the Spindelskov is inhabited by the nightmarish Spindelkin. The king and queen are unwilling to face them, fearing the creatures will plunge all of Katra into ruin.

When the queen gives birth to a prince, Amira begs her maid to help her sneak out to meet her brother. Born with a tail and golden scales, the queen declares the baby a monster and he is left to die.

Not bothered by his appearance, Amira promises the tiny prince that she will help him. Gathering her remaining strength, Amira sets out on a journey through the Spindelskov, searching for answers that may save them both.

Political upheaval threatens to erupt into a war that will tear the Narvan apart.

The alteration undergone by Vayen and his hunters may have saved everyone from the Arpex but it also created the possibility of bullet-proof soldiers. Vayen''s fellow advisors will do anything to get that prize for themselves.

Not only is Vayen''s daughter not speaking to him, he''s been stuck at home for weeks recovering from surgery and being smothered by Anastassia''s efforts to keep him safe and healthy. Attempting to advise three worlds from his home office has him on his last nerve.

Vayen slips out to search for a new bodyguard.  A few strong drinks later, he ends up on a distant colony,  busting up a slave operation. The adrenaline rush and possibility of having done something good to get back into his daughter''s favor offers a momentary release. He even has a host of well-trained bodyguard slaves to pick from. He''s also gained a new enemy, discovered his bond to Anastassia isn''t what it used to be, and reawakened his old drug addiction.

In spite of doing everything he can to be good, the public has labeled Vayen a mutant and a tyrant. To bring peace to the Narvan and beyond, he''ll need to become exactly what they say he is. 

Death lurks in the choices we make.

Alex is awarded the best birthday present ever, a full exclusive weekend pass to the Spindle, a space station high above the Earth. There, everyone is healthy, the food is real, and there are even living trees. Being one of the chosen will set him and his family up for life, but in winning he may lose everything.

Fray Farm is up for sale but the current occupants are very particular about who the new owner will be. They have no intentions of leaving. Long-term ownership only, no kids, cats are optional.

Fate landed Ashleigh in a thankless job. At thirty, she''s nowhere close to what she''d envisioned. She never saw herself in a dungeon-like basement at any age, but no one ever said fate was good at do-overs.

Otherworldly creatures, the not-so-dearly departed, fellow man, and creations of our own demise patiently wait while we bumble through life, thinking we are in control.

The end is always near.