Google is flooded with lists such as ‘100 books you must read before you die’ or ‘50 books that will change your life’. The books on these lists are the classic titles you expect: The Great Gatsby, Pride and Prejudice, To Kill a Mockingbird, Little Women, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. The list is endless but rarely surprising.
Today I’m going to give you a different list.
Dozens of Australian indie authors are here at Supanova Gold Coast as I write this, selling incredible, unique and often undiscovered books across multiple edgy genres that you won’t always find in your local conservative bookshop. Luckily, all of these are available online. Here is the list I give you.
20 Indie Books You Should Check Out:
- The Species Within by Kimberley Clark
Kira, a huntress plagued by dreams of fire and pain, has worked tirelessly to rid her city of the scourge that has nearly destroyed it… nostvores, mythlend creatures with dark and vast appetites for blood and sex. She does this not only because they had killed so many people in her life, but because she has an edge that no other human had… she has their abilities. However, these abilities were killing her and she feared time was no longer on her side.
So the moment she found out that Darius, a nostvore leader, was threatening to awaken an indestructible species to help him enslave all humans and mythlends, and that she may be the key to his plan, Kira knew her only choice was to risk her life with the little time that she had left. It meant joining her enemy to find out why, and making sure his plan failed.
If that wasn’t dangerous enough, the more time she spends with the Vanatre nostvore, Emmerich, and the mooran, Kuron, who she brings with her for protection, the less she wants to kill them. Instead, she feels an unexplainable attraction toward them both, and she fears surrendering to such desire with either is a deadly game to play, since she would not only be risking her life, but quite possibly her heart. - Soulless by Jacinta Maree
Welcome to Soulless.
We are the generation that laughs at death.
Reincarnation; what was once considered a gift of immortality has become an eternity of nightmares.
Nadia Richards lives in a world plagued by reincarnation, a system of recycling souls where all past memories, personalities and traumatic events are relived daily in disjointed sequences. Trapped within their own warped realities, not even the richest and most powerful are saved from their own minds unravelling. Madness is the new human nature, and civilisations are crumpling beneath themselves trying to outrun it.
Within a society that ignores death, Nadia appears to be the one exception to the reincarnation trap. Born without any reincarnated memories and with printless eyes, the hot tempered 19-year-old quickly becomes the ultimate prize to all those wishing to end the vicious cycle, or for some, to ensure they could evade death forever. - Pandora Sequence by Alex James
A tour-de-force meta-thriller from Alex James (Venus IA) that dives headlong into the mythologies that are resonant in the world today – conspiracy, the alien agenda, and radical planetary change.
Mitch Pyne is starting to realise that his premonitions – of a devastating Los Angeles earthquake – might be real.
In one night, down-on-his-luck Mitch will have his world turned upside down: a shocking phone call from a woman who knows more about his life than he does; a mysterious gift from an old friend – who has just been brutally murdered somewhere in the jungles of Peru… and the sudden return of the beautiful woman Mitch has loved all his life.
Thrust into a world he never knew existed, Mitch is forced to confront a strange new reality – a twilight world in which no-one can be trusted… but in which he will be forced to choose sides. - The Great Spoon Heist by Sam Colbran
Many stories blossom from the folk of Favinonia, from myths and legends to recent heroic acts of now. All will be uncovered in Favinonian Tales.
Set two weeks after the events of Lake Merrin.
At a stately dinner at Count Darel’s Mansion, WayWocket discovers that there was fake silver cutlery at the high table.
After hearing this information and realising he could use it to gain favour with the Count, Klaus Handwerk, an up-and-coming lumber merchant, hires the Rejects to find the source of these forgeries.
Delve into this new adventure with Joan Stillwater, Gunner Nessuno of the Green, WayWocket Basteln and Lone Solo as they find out there is more at stake than just cutlery. - Chosen by Shayla Morgansen
Chosen is an urban fantasy novel and is book one in The Elm Stone Saga. The White Elm council has governed the magical societies of the world for centuries, keeping the peace, leading the way of the light, but when popular and powerful Lisandro announces his intention to leave the council, a line is drawn in the sand.
Young Irish sorceress Aristea Byrne jumps at the opportunity to compete for a coveted position as an apprentice to the White Elm and quickly finds her powers blossoming. Under the tutelage of the council at their Academy she awakens skills she never knew she had. As she finds herself drawn more into the council’s unfamiliar world, and in particular into the web of mystery surrounding council rebel Renatus, she starts to wonder how much is still within her control and how much has been chosen for her… - Blank by Sabrina Raven
Confined to Oasis after the war, people are genetically matched via matching birth marks. City Ordinance makes sure mutagen free status is maintained. But in a world of marked people, what happens when you’re blank? - The Wandmaker’s Apprentice by Mitchell Tierney
Claude Wells has been hired as an apprentice for the reclusive wandmaker Abraham Crenshaw.
When a mysterious figure arrives in town, they must reveal the true reason for his arrival.
Magic has been hidden and pushed underground, but has suddenly made a resurgence.
What is the cause of this sudden upheaval?
The wandmaker has been instructed to make a lethal wand, guards start to fill the streets of Shrub Oak.
The cathedral is suddenly locked with chains.
Claude and Abraham must protect the city, uncover the mystery and stop the unknown visitor from fulfilling his plans. - The Laughing Man by Robert J Barlow
When Adam is saved from monsters by a strange man in a coat he is shown a secret world, a world full of gods and monsters, angels and demons, a world at war.
He is given an ultimatum, head to another dimension and gain power, or never be safe again. Guided by a soldier, a lunatic in a magic hat, and a spider (by adoption) he is taken to meet the Laughing One, a strange creature who seeks to teach him to reach his potential.
But beset by the emotionless Legate, the violent Ursas, the mysterious Kings Man and their army of monsters, and without even a clear idea of what’s going on, how can he hope to survive in this strange new world?
And even if he does reach the end of his path, will he recognise himself in the Laughing Man he is becoming? - Half Blood by Lauren Dawes
“Swallowing her pained sounds, she forced the fear from her eyes. ‘You killed me,’ she breathed, swallowing down on the hard lump in her throat. It wasn’t often that someone got an opportunity to come face to face with their killer.”
A battle for werewolf territory and rights has Rhett fighting for his life and for the survival of the pack. The last half blood—a half human, half vampire hybrid—has been found and Rhett has been chosen as her unlikely Guardian. The pack’s survival hangs on her completing her transformation, but a Sicarii—a vampire assassin—is hunting her to ensure that never happens …
Indigo’s hard exterior is nothing compared to the dark secret she carries within her. Her haunted eyes alone tell of her struggle and desire to live. But what she doesn’t know is that she is hard-wired for survival; the very blood in her veins and the legacy of her father demands it. But when her life takes a violent turn, her heritage and her fate may be the very thing to get her killed … - Amity by Danica Peck
No matter how far you run, fate will catch you.
Amity believes that fate has dealt her a bad hand of cards. She is bonded with the brother of the man she loves and cursed to live a lifestyle that will turn her village against her.
Wes is cursed for loving a girl that leaves town after bonding with him, making his heart ache for her, despite being able to feel her heartbeats within his own chest.
When Wes’s brother Nicholas is murdered, Amity returns to avenge him. But do sparks fly between the bond of Amity and Wes or do to many complications arise upon her return? - The Stray by Amanda Geisler
Life has been anything but easy for Rya Garcia, and life isn’t going to get any easier. With a rogue werewolf in town, humans are closer than ever to discovering the pack’s existence. Meanwhile old and new enemies begin to stir, making secrecy the least of Rya’s concern. - Reflection of Fire by Annalise Azevedo
Golden Cliff is an isolated town in Wyoming with dark secrets – unfortunately for some they are forced to learn the hard way. When a new student arrives in their town, Laria Alfero discovers that she is a descendant of shape shifters and the last Alfero – a gifted individual. Upon awakening her power, Laria soon learns that her childhood friend Brodie Forte is also a shape shifter and that the stranger, Jason Amarel, has a mystery following him. Together, the three will go on a path that pushes them to learn the truth of their origins which changes the future of the town forever. They will face the very threat that is slowly creeping towards the town as they try to not get sucked into the darkness along the way. - Inner Reflection by J. J. Fryer
Anastasia Larson, a young girl with Asperger’s Syndrome, is about to start her first day of high school. However, she soon discovers that she has awoken a magical ability. She and her friend, Fletcher, are thrown into a hidden world where other people with special needs have powers too. She soon realises that there are a few obstacles in the way to find out who she truly is. - Seraphympire by Renee Spyrou
The world is on the verge of apocalypse. A designer drug contaminated with a mutated strain of the Porphyria virus, V5, has hit the streets of London. Humans are on the threshold of an evolutionary change that will bring about their extinction – they no longer need to be bitten to become Vampires. An ancient artefact, the Trinian Globe, has been stolen, and a sinister force is preparing to take control of Earth’s hidden gateways. Makayla Uriel is the one being that can stop the world’s inevitable destruction; and the one person least likely to. She lives on the edge – the fringe of a world that is not her own – where legend is reality. Most days she wants to escape what she is, a Seraphympire, a Vampire Seraphim with two souls, and a craving for rare bloods. When she is saddled with a new partner, she is forced to confront her demons – realising that it’s alright to trust another, even if it means sacrificing all that she has ever known. The clock is ticking. Will Makayla and an elite group of warriors, the Shadow Seekers, save the inhabitants of Earth from annihilation? Can they stop the global distribution of V5 and discover who is behind the burgeoning Newblood infestation before it’s too late? More importantly, will they recover the Trinian Globe before it’s used to destroy Earth? Who will triumph? - Neveah by Jessica Gleave
Duty always comes before love.
Neveah has seen that her whole life. She is after all the daughter of the Sun and Moon, who have put their weather duties before their love. Growing up she struggles to find her place in the Sky Realm, where everyone has a duty except her. And there are some who believe she shouldn’t exist.
When tragedy strikes, Neveah decides to take up the sword, fighting against Niall the Cloud and his family and their quest for power over the Sky. During one such battle against the Storm twins, Neveah finds herself falling to the Land Below.
Now Neveah must make her way back up to the Sky so that her parents will separate breaking the eclipse they make when they come together.
Blaxton will help anyone in need. So when a young woman asks him for directions to get to Fingerpoint Mountain he decides to guide her there himself.
As the two travelling companions continue their journey, their attraction to one another grows. But neither can confide to each other who they really are.
The Monteris King hears rumours of the female warrior. He knows who Neveah really is and wishes to take her for his bride.
Can Neveah get back to the Sky Realm before the Land Below is plunged into eternal darkness or will her heart make her want to stay with someone who accepts her for who she is? - Femme by Delia Strange
A science fantasy with a touch of romance.
A utopian world with a touch of slavery.
Kaley Blackburn is sent to Femme in her final year of Future Tech studies. The world is a socialist utopia of low crime, great health and advancements in technology that leave other worlds envious.
It is a fantastic place to visit if you’re a woman. Men, on the other hand, are the slaves that tend to all feminine desires. Kaley knew about the world’s culture of slavery but never had to face it until she is assigned a slave, Mecca, for the duration of her stay.
Mecca is handsome, intelligent and obedient, but every answer he gives to Kaley’s questions only feed her growing concerns. Does Femme hide an ugly truth beneath its beautiful surface and can she trust her feelings for a man whose sole duty is to make her feel special? - The Siege of Masada by Jodie Lane
An ancient fortress … A desperate last stand … Trapped in a time she doesn’t belong … Will Gwyn change the course of history just to survive? On holiday from university with her family in Israel, Gwyn stumbles across a strange device while exploring the ruins of Masada. She is unwittingly thrown back two thousand years in time to the bloody siege between the Roman invaders and fiercely nationalistic Jewish defenders. Blending in is her only option to stay alive; but can she escape before the siege comes to a head? Meanwhile, Michelle is the Time Space Agent from the year 2623 AD trying to escape her enemies and recover her lost time machine, all while inadvertently stumbling on a dangerous political plot. The clock is ticking as Gwyn and Michelle’s timelines hurtle towards each other in this historical adventure based on the real events of Roman conquest in Ancient Judea. The actions of these two time travellers, born centuries apart, will impact not just each other’s survival, but the fates of past and future worlds alike. - Legacy Hunter series by Chris Heinicke and Kate Reedwood
Stardrives.
Powerful, beautiful, bio-mimetic energy in its purest form. A benevolent gift meant to launch humanity into a new age of space travel. They were the hope for the future. The key to the next stage in human discovery.
But every gift has its price.
Nearly a thousand years after Earth took its place in the network of galactic commerce, the planet is depleted of resources and on the edge of collapse. Can stardrive technology bring the Earth back to life? Adventurer Axel Ryan is betting his life that it can. But there aren’t any stardrives left to be found on Earth, and ships capable of interstellar travel are hard to come by. His only choice is to enlist the aid of mercenary pirates to steal one. With the stakes high, and the future of Earth on the line, does it matter he’ll have to betray the love of his life? - The Adventures of Viola Stewart by Karen Carlisle
Viola Stewart is a widowed optician with a penchant for dectectiving, who stumbles upon a secret Society of Men in Grey. Set in a Victorian steampunk fantasy world, this series has a gaslamp flavour. - Rilla by Ivana L Truglio
Rilla grew up in a Paradise. A place where humans could live freely from the threat of magic and dangers of the Outworld. What most people in the Outworld weren’t aware of was that the Paradises were becoming just as dangerous to live in as their own world.
From the very beginning, Rilla knew she was different from everyone else. Abandoned by her mother and shunned by her father, the others in her Paradise soon began to treat her as though she was invisible, or worse still, a non-conformist.
But when an Outworlder arrives in Rilla’s Paradise just days before The Choosing, she suddenly becomes more visible than she’s ever been in her life. The balance of four lives rests with her and she is sworn to protect them. Can she possibly keep them all safe and alive when she discovers their secrets?
By Danica Peck
Connect with Danica on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and find her books in the Ouroborus online store.
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