New Releases by Mark Walden

This ninth book in the H.I.V.E. series concludes the high-octane adventures of the supremely talented team of criminals. As the students of H.I.V.E. face the challenges of their final year at the school, Otto Malpense is forced to confront his own legacy as a new threat rises from the shadows of his past. Nothing will ever be the same again as Otto races against the clock to rescue his friends from a rival organization. But as Otto desperately fights for his friends’ lives, he ends up facing a deadly enemy more dangerous and powerful than any he’s faced ever before—an enemy who’s a twisted product of his own bloodline. From Italy to Russia to the United States, Bloodline is a real tour de force, and a fitting conclusion to the acclaimed H.I.V.E series.

High-octane adventures continue in the eighth book of the H.I.V.E. series, and the team of supremely talented criminals is forced to question everything they know about life as villains. Otto and Raven are desperate to rescue their friends from the clutches of Anastasia Furan, head of the evil Disciples organization. First they must track down the location of the Glasshouse, the prison where Furan trains children to become ruthless assassins. But Otto is also being hunted. In the three months since his “expulsion” from H.I.V.E., The Artemis Section—an elite intelligence division that goes after the toughest targets and reports only to the US president—has had an opportunity to locate him. Set against the backdrop of a daring high-tech prison break, nothing is quite as it seems in Deadlock.

Sam awakens to see strange vessels gathered in the skies around London. As he stares up, people stream past, walking silently toward the enormous ships, which emit a persistent noise. Only Sam seems immune to the signal. Six months later, he is absolutely alone.

The struggle for human survival continues following an alien invasion of Earth in this second book in the Earthfall trilogy, from the author of the H.I.V.E. series. After the harrowing events of Earthfall, twelve-year-old Sam and his fellow resistance members meet an enigmatic man named Mason who is slowly building an army to fight back against the invaders, the Voidborn. Sam and the others join Mason and his soldiers on a mission to disable Voidborn technology in Tokyo. But Sam soon discovers that Mason has an agenda beyond what he has already admitted: He isn’t content just to destroy the Voidborn’s machines; he plans to destroy the Voidborn once and for all with a plan that will cost the lives of millions of innocent people. But something is coming, something even worse than the Voidborn. Something very old and very evil. Something that might mean the end for them all.

It''s been several months since the events of Earthfall, yet Sam''s attempts to rouse the enslaved people of London from their trance-like state have frustratingly failed. Worse still, the enormous Voidborn drilling device which Sam and his friends disabled in London was one of hundreds scattered across the planet, all nearing the final stages of construction. Joining up with another resistance group, they plot to disable a drilling machine in Tokyo and in the process implant viral commands that will cause a catastrophic failure of the entire network. Just as that mission appears to have been successful, Sam and the others are double-crossed by the resistance leader. Earthfall: Retribution will take the series on to a global stage, as the true scale of the conflict being played out on Earth is revealed.

Otto and Raven are desperate to rescue their friends from the clutches of Anastasia Furan, head of the evil Disciples organisation. First they must track down the location of the Glasshouse, the prison where Furan trains children to become ruthless assassins. But Otto is also being hunted. The three months that Otto has spent following his ''expulsion'' from H.I.V.E. have given the Artemis Section – an elite division of the American intelligence services that specialises in capturing the toughest targets and reports only to the President – an opportunity to locate him. Deadlock – the eighth book in the breathtaking H.I.V.E. series – continues the high-octane adventures of the supremely talented criminal team, with central characters forced to question everything that Nero has taught them and to confront the consequences of life as a villain, set against the backdrop of a daring high-tech prison break where nothing is quite as it seems.

As a final battle with Overlord looms near, the H.I.V.E. heroes are up against an unimaginably dangerous weapon. Bad news for the Higher Institute of Villainous Education, aka H.I.V.E.: Overlord is reborn and has developed the chilling ability to move from body to body, erasing the host’s personality—and ultimately killing them. Overlord must find Otto, the only host designed to truly contain him, and for that he needs to know the location of H.I.V.E. He also plans to take control of a secret U.S. Army facility that is home to the Autonomous Weapon Program, a computer-controlled system uniquely vulnerable to Overlord’s control. In the face of these threats, Nero is forced to activate Zero Hour, a plan designed to deal with any member of G.L.O.V.E—the Global League of Villainous Enterprises—who is on the brink of true global domination. Nero also knows that Otto must not be allowed to fall into Overlord’s hands, and a desperate race across the globe begins.

A renegade faction of the world’s most powerful villains is intent on destroying G.L.O.V.E. (Global League Of Villainous Enterprises) and showing the world the true face of evil. The Disciples begin by hijacking Diabolus Darkdoom’s Airborne command post, then they kidnap his son and his son’s best friend. Unfortunately for them, Nigel Darkdoom (and Franz) also happen to be Otto’s friends. Heading out to America, Otto, Wing et al embark on a perilous and highly unauthorised rescue operation. Cut off from the support of H.I.V.E. and on the run from American security forces the hunt for their friends leads to one of the US military’s most secret facilities. It becomes clear that the Disciples are not all they appear and in a desperate race against time Otto must work out who his real friends are and prevent the Disciples from completing their true objective. Only Otto can save the world from domination by a sinister new world order but it might be that the price he has to pay is just too high. When it comes to the crunch will he be prepared to sacrifice himself?

H.I.V.E. (Higher Institute of Villainous Education) is a top-secret school of applied villainy where children with a precocious gift for wrongdoing are sent to develop their talents into criminal mastermind. After all, ''villains have the best lines and wear the best costumes''. One small catch is that the children cannot leave until training is complete, six years later. With villainy comes a certain freedom of thought, and every year one student in particular will show exceptional talent - after all, it takes the best to produce the worst. This year there are two students: Otto Malpense and his new friend Wing Fanchu are both exceptionally bad, and they are definitely not keen on being held against their will for six long years . . .

Key members of G.L.O.V.E. are being assassinated and Otto, gone rogue, is behind the killings. Raven and Wing must find him before the order to eliminate him can be carried out . . .

Otto and Wing have special permission to leave H.I.V.E.''s secret island location to attend a funeral (all too common in their line of business). But before they reach their destination they are ambushed. Who would risk assassinating Otto Malpense, star pupil of the Higher Institute of Villainous Education and favourite of Number One, the most powerful villain alive? A new power is rising to challenge Number One''s authority, and they need H.I.V.E. and its powerful computer to do so. Otto thought the only thing he wanted was to escape from H.I.V.E., but now he''s desperately trying to save it, and himself.

Scheming, extorting, menacing and general evilness are nothing new in the world of villainy - indeed it''s expected. But there are codes of conduct. Until now. In an attempt to purge the Global League of Villainous Enterprises of its more destructive elements, Dr Nero has underestimated the cunning and resources of those who oppose him. Meanwhile, Otto and the rest of the Alpha stream have been sent to begin their most feared exercise: The Hunt, in the icy wastes of Siberia. But there is a traitor in their midst. The first strike against Nero will be a strike against the Alpha stream. Villain-kind is on the brink of CIVIL WAR.

A renegade faction of the world''s most powerful villains is intent on destroying G.L.O.V.E. (Global League Of Villainous Enterprises) and showing the world the true face of evil. The Disciples begin by hijacking Diabolus Darkdoom''s Airborne command post, then they kidnap his son and his son''s best friend. Unfortunately for them, Nigel Darkdoom (and Franz) also happen to be Otto''s friends. Heading out to America, Otto, Wing et al embark on a perilous and highly unauthorised rescue operation. Cut off from the support of H.I.V.E. and on the run from American security forces the hunt for their friends leads to one of the US military''s most secret facilities. It becomes clear that the Disciples are not all they appear and in a desperate race against time Otto must work out who his real friends are to prevent the Disciples from completing their true objective. Only Otto can save the world from domination by a sinister new world order but it might be that the price he has to pay is just too high. When it comes to the crunch will he be prepared to sacrifice himself?

Overlord is on the brink of turning the world''s population into zombie-like drones, forcing Nero to activate Zero Hour: the ultimate defence

A white-knuckle, villainous, gadget-fest of brilliance. ''Twenty times better than [the leading brand]'' Richard and Judy judges.

In this follow-up to "H.I.V.E.," Otto''s best friend and roommate Wing Fanchu has been murdered. Now Otto and Dr. Nero must band together to fight the evil Cypher to stop him from destroying the world.