Cirrus@Austlit

'A thrilling, propulsive story of escape as a small-time crook goes on the run across Australia with a stolen secret that will change the world, from the award-winning author of 36 Streets, perfect for fans of William Gibson's All Tomorrow's Parties, Richard Morgan and Ghost in the Shell.

'Jackson Nguyen is a petty crook living slim on the mean streets of Melbourne. When he crosses paths with a desperate, but wealthy, Chinese dissident, begging for his help, Jack responds in the only natural way: he steals her shoes.

'And yet, despite every effort to mind his own damn business, a wild spiral into the worst kind of trouble begins – Murder, mayhem, fast cars, fast-talking, bent cops, and long straight highways into the terrible beauty of the vast Australian Outback.

'In Jack's world, taking a stand against the ruling class is the shortest path to a shallow grave. But when an Earth-shattering technology falls into his hands, he must do everything he can to stop the wrong people taking it. In a world of pervasive government surveillance and oppressive corporate control, it's up to a small-time criminal to keep the spark of human rebellion alive.'  (Publication summary)

'"Your name is Endel 'Endgame' Ebbinghaus. It is Saturday 3rd September, 2101. You're head of security for Mister Long, boss of the Macau Syndicate, a drug cartel. This is your last day on the job."

'Endel wants out.

'Endgame is a violent man, by profession and by nature, the perfect enforcer for the Macau Syndicate. But Endel is also a father and husband, and he longs for a simple life, away from the darkness. But life in the syndicate isn't one you can simply leave.

'All he knows is he has to get out, to protect his family. But in a world where memory manipulation has become a weapon of choice for the powerful, Endel begins to lose faith in his own mind. He can't tell friends and enemies apart anymore, can't be sure if he's a person or a tool. Endgame has to find a way to escape the labyrinth they've made of his mind, and take revenge.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'A direct sequel to Aliens and Alien 3--Weyland-Yutani, the Colonial Marines, and Bishop's creator all pursue the android for the deadly Xenomorph data contained in his brain. Written by T. R. Napper, author of the acclaimed 36 Streets, whose explosive work explores the artificial intelligence and what it is to be human.

'"Do me a favor. Disconnect me. I could be reworked, but I'll never be top of the line again. I'd rather be nothing."

Lance Bishop, model 341-B, on Fiorina 161

'The USCSS Patna has been found.

'Although the synthetic Bishop asked to be shut down forever, his creator has other plans. Michael Bishop seeks the Xenomorph knowledge stored in the android's mind, and brings Bishop back to life--but for what reason? No longer an employee of the Weyland-Yutani Corporation, Michael tells his creation that he seeks to advance medical research for the benefit of humanity. Yet where does he  get the resources needed to advance his work, and with whom do his new allegiances lie? 'The USCSS Patna is pursued by Colonial Marines Captain Marcel Apone, commander of the Il Conde and  younger brother of Master Sergeant Alexander Apone, one of the casualties of the doomed mission to LV-426. Also on his trail are the "Dog Catchers," commandos employed by Weyland-Yutani. 'There are many who would profit from Lance Bishop's intimate knowledge of the deadliest creatures in the galaxy.' (Publication summary)

'Lin 'The Silent One' Vu is a gangster and sometime private investigator living in Chinese-occupied Hanoi, in the steaming, paranoid alleyways of the 36 Streets. Born in Vietnam, raised in Australia, everywhere she is an outsider.

'Through grit and courage Lin has carved a place for herself in the Vietnamese underworld where Hanoi's crime boss, Bao Nguyen, is training her to fight and lead. Bao drives her hard; on the streets there are no second chances. Meanwhile the people of Hanoi are succumbing to Fat Victory — a dangerously addictive immersive simulation of the US-Vietnam war.

'When an Englishman comes to Hanoi on the trail of his friend's murderer, Lin's life is turned upside down. She is drawn into the grand conspiracies of the neon gods - of regimes and mega-corporations — as they unleash dangerous new technologies.

'Lin must confront the immutable moral calculus of unjust wars. She must choose: family, country, or gang. Blood, truth, or redemption. No choice is easy on the 36 Streets.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'A collection of stories about the outsiders – the criminals, the soldiers, the addicts, the mathematicians, the gamblers and the cage fighters, the refugees and the rebels. From the battlefield to alternate realities to the mean streets of the dark city, we walk in the shoes of those who struggle to survive in a neon-saturated, tech-noir future.

'Twelve hard-edged stories from the dark, often violent, sometimes strange heart of cyberpunk, this collection – as with all the best science fiction – is an exploration of who were are now. In the tradition of Dashiell Hammett, Philip K Dick, and David Mitchell, Neon Leviathan is a remarkable debut collection from a breakout new author.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'After nine months in a super tank, Ezra and his crew are barely hanging on, and they’re getting strange messages from an unknown source that seems to have nothing to do with the ongoing war.'

Source: Rocket Stack Rank (http://www.rocketstackrank.com/2018/03/Opium-for-Ezra-TR-Napper.html). (Sighted: 30/4/2018)

'Jack and Col are petty thieves in a near-future Melbourne, Australia, when their lives are changed by an upper-class Chinese woman who begs them for help. Even though all they do is steal her shoes.'

Source: Rocket Stack Rank (http://www.rocketstackrank.com/2017/09/Ghosts-of-a-Neon-God-TR-Napper.html). Sighted: 30/04/2018)

In a future Australia, Chi suffers from PTSD. But when a doctor offers to remove the bad memories, he refuses.