The Channel Riders Series and World
Pilot: Book One of The Channel Riders
All she wanted was a cup of coffee. What she ended up with was getting knocked out and interrogated by the military. They knew she owned an imports store. They also knew she was a member of the powerful Calabrese family, one of the families that made up the Guild. Elena was once a pilot, capable of taking a sailing vessel from the oceans of earth and into ancient channels that reach across space and into other worlds. After being gone for five years she is suddenly thrust back into the world of Guild politics she had left behind, walking a thin line between mafia like laws and the militaries desire to control Guild technology.
Pilot is a contemporary Sci-fi story that merges elements of military conspiracy, technology and an ancient Guild of Families who can secretly navigate channels in the oceans to cross space. They have built a secret merchant society stretching through a multitude of universes, but the world is changing and soon their secrecy will be at an end.
Storm Chaser Book Two of the Channel Riders
Elena has been welcomed back into the Guild of Families, an ancient guild with the skill to navigate channels to cross space. When she left it was because she feared The Calling, thought to be a disease that crippled pilots. Not wanting to risk her crew, Elena left the Guild and stayed away for five years, building a new life for herself with Calabrese Imports. However the Guild’s secret was leaked and Elena’s return was required.
Caught between the Guild and the military, her options were limited. She returns to life in the Guild aboard her ship, The Storm Chaser, her hold full of off world goods destined to be repackaged and sold in her earth based store. Although Peter is officially designated to serve as the liaison between the Guild and military, the decision is not universally loved and Elena is sought out.
Continuing where Pilot left off, Storm Chaser introduces a number of colorful new characters as well as showing more of the world of the Pilots, the Calabrese family and the politics that keep them all safe. With potential suitors with dangerous intent, business negotiations, alien pirates and determined military personnel, Elena finds herself in high demand. Can she navigate the lines between without disaster?
Alliance: Book Three of The Channel Riders
Earth side, Elena Calabrese, Captain of the Storm Chaser and member of the Guild of families has opened a store settling repackaged alien goods to a earthly population. While the business thrives, she is occupied skyside with the newly opened channel and the planet, RJ457 it leads to. The Council has granted conditional rights. Making those rights permanent depends on the Librarians finding what they need on the planet.
Elena finds herself working with several dangerous councilors as well as the untouchably powerful House of Librarians. While things are going well at the moment, success brings its own complications. Elena has to navigate a minefield of alliances, agreements, betrayals, assassination attempts and the powerful personalities of dangerous Councilors who aren't behaving in predictable ways. Can she keep her people safe and her newly formed House standing while being pushed closer to a Council seat of her own?
Haven: Book Four of The Channel Riders
Elena Calabrese managed to open an earth-based store with very few people realizing that her wares come from several different galaxies. The merchant society called the Guild of Families is conducting business as usual, trying to stay as secret as possible while the military launches their own program of ship building, trying to build their own Channel riding ships that do not rely on Guild trained pilots to operate. The program’s, lead man, Will Thompson, managed to get several of his crew onto the planet RJ457.
While bowing to the inevitability of an alliance with Thompson and his men, Elena and her people try to keep Thompson's men from learning information that will cause some of the more ruthless in the Guild to start arranging accidents. As rumors of Riko's ill health begin to circulate, new House alliances are formed, old ties severed and more and more people begin to wonder when Elena will step forward and take a seat on the ruling Council.
Elena tries to conduct business as usual while dodging a military investigation, plots, political maneuvering and a crazed cousin with a lust for power. Not even Thompson is who he seems. Can Elena keep her balance and keep her family safe? Will picking up the reins of power and stepping into the dangerous political arena be the only way to protect those who depend on her?
Skyside: Book Five in the Channel Riders
After helping a group of families evade capture Elena finds herself stranded skyside during the off season. Despite the presence of Will Thompson, whose ship hitched a ride at the last second, she is feeling pretty good about the situation. Most of the political movers and shakers of the Guild safely returned to Earth at the end of the season taking their mixed political plots with them. Even though there is a lot to do, she feels free of some of the weight that has been placed on her shoulders.
But it isn't all a pleasant vacation.
The Matrovean raiders are still expanding their territory at a terrifying rate, threatening the Guild's stability and as the crew on the planet expands their investigation of the planet, new facts about the former inhabitants come to light. Elena also realizes that the Librarians have political plots all their own and are very interested in helping her to take a seat on the Council. Can Elena survive the increasing hostilities with the Matrovean and live to take a place on the Ruling Council of the Guild of Families?
Councilor: Book Six in The Channel Riders
Against all odds Elena has found herself named as a member of the Ruling Council of the Guild of Families. After the destruction of the Docking Facility and the resettlement of the Guild onto Haven, life is starting to steady and become more stable. For the first time in a while, Elena feels like she can breathe freely. Haven is doing well, her business is prospering and as an added bonus the military has decided to mothball its channel riding program.
Relieved to no longer be pressed for meetings with Smith, Elena is looking forward to a return to her new normal thinking her life might just begin to settle down. Soon however, questions start to arise. Her longtime friend Tina is not who she appears to be and Elena is followed at every turn by people who almost seem to want her to notice she is being followed. And what is with Therese's new friends? They aren't associated with the Guild and seem nearly as shadowy as Tina. Questions and new dangers lurk around every corner. Can Elena figure them out before they turn deadly?
Uncharted: Book Seven of The Channel Riders
Another season is closing and Elena once again remains of Haven. In fact it looks like Haven will be her home base for the foreseeable future as her earth-based businesses were forced to close due to government scrutiny. The Guild is still unsettled after the destruction of the Guild and unhappy with the fact that with the exception of Elena, Mateo and Riko, all the other councilors flee earthside for the off season leaving the remaining Guild to once again fend for themselves.
The world is changing and the Council has yet to accept it. Left skyside and uncertain if she will ever be allowed to go back to Earth, Elena does her best to set the Guild on solid ground while returning to her own trade aboard the Storm Chaser but with Riko's death imminent and more change following close behind, will it be enough?
Cast Adrift: Book Eight of The Channel Riders
The Guild is changing. Elena knows that with Riko's death, change is inevitable. With the Guild still feeling abandoned by the council still causing tensions, the long-term plans between her and the elderly councilor come out into the open.
Not all will be pleased, in fact she expects when he learns of it, Hashi will probably try to kill her.
But before the season opens and she worries over Hashi's retribution, there are trade routes to secure and a planet to run. Mateo and Kiera are expecting the birth of their twins, the first human children born on Haven and while Elena worries about their limited medical facilities, she must ferret out what plans her Aunt Elizabeth has set into motion to regain power from Mateo. Strange dreams start to twist through Elena's nights, and she begins to realize the change is going to be bigger than any of them expected. Can the Guild survive this new twist to reach the next season?
City of Wonder: A Novel Set in the World of The Channel Riders
When his wife died aboard The Defender in the Matrovean attack, all Michael wanted to do was join her in death. He sought oblivion but the Guild needed his skills as a cartographer as they sent teams inland to survey the planet outside of the town limits of Haven.
Pulled back from the edge of oblivion for one last job, Mateo promises Michael that there are plenty of things on the alien world that could kill him if he looks hard enough. Hoping for a quick death, Michael agrees, but soon finds out there is more to the survey than he expected.
Will Michael find the death he craves and doom the rest of his team into the bargain?