Spaceships in the Desert

By Kristine Kathryn Rusch

Laurel helps many people who return from the desert shaken by what they've seen—or think they've seen. But Mark seems different. He listens to her, and he makes her obsession with finding the strange silver objects—and discovering their secrets—his own.

But that obsession comes with a cost: one neither might want to pay.

"Kristine Kathryn Rusch is one of the best writers in the field."

—SFRevu

• Language: English
• Publisher: WMG Publishing
• Release date: Jun 20, 2019
• ISBN: 9781393365389

Kristine Kathryn Rusch

New York Times bestselling author Kristine Kathryn Rusch writes in almost every genre. Generally, she uses her real name (Rusch) for most of her writing. She publishes bestselling science fiction and fantasy, award-winning mysteries, acclaimed mainstream fiction, controversial nonfiction, and the occasional romance. Her novels have made bestseller lists around the world and her short fiction has appeared in eighteen best of the year collections. She has won more than twenty-five awards for her fiction, including the Hugo, Le Prix Imaginales, the Asimov's Readers Choice award, and the Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine Readers Choice Award.   

Book preview

Laurel ran down the steps of the post office, clutching two manila envelopes and half a dozen letters. Darkness had fallen even though it was only a few minutes past five. A light, chill drizzle coated the air. She felt rushed, although she had no reason. No one waited for her to come home except the cat, and the cat usually didn’t care when she got in as long as he was fed on time.

She hurried to the twelve-minute parking zone, unlocked the passenger door on her white Datsun, and put the mail inside. Then she crossed around the front of the car and stopped.

On top of Skinner Butte, a cross blazed against the darkness. She had never seen the cross before. Its blue-white light lit up the trees and cast shadows on the hillside below. Mark would have loved it.

But Mark was dead. She cross-watched alone.

She unlocked the driver’s door, got in, and drove off, never once looking back at the cross that stabbed the hillside with unearthly light.

***

The afternoon seemed like any afternoon, even later, when she tried to find the differences. Gus, Big Harry and three others sat in a corner booth and pounded on the table when they ran out of coffee. She marveled at the men, the way they could drink steaming liquid and not seem