During the pandemic of 2020, Seth Mayhew discovers a long-forgotten recording preserved in the archives of the Library of Congress from 1949. The voice belongs to his great-grandfather Gregory Mayhew, recorded at the age of seventy-nine by Alan Lomax. What follows is the astonishing story of a summer in 1883 when the Kansas frontier witnessed the impossible. Gregory was only thirteen when his uncle Anton came into possession of a mysterious artifact known as the Rod of God, a relic rumored to carry the power to override nature itself. With it, Anton becomes the enigmatic showman of legend called Mr. Miracle, traveling the prairie in a painted circus wagon and performing wonders no stage magician could duplicate, or explain. But miracles have consequences too. Resurrection defies the natural order. Forbidden alchemy brings forth a strange child who may carry the soul of an ancient murdered immortal. And as the Miracle Wagon chases a wandering circus across the American West, faith, greed, and fear begin to follow close behind. Because magic that has been stolen from Creation itself, cannot remain hidden forever. And every miracle comes with a cost.

In 1866, ships of several nations spot a mysterious sea monster, which some suggest is a giant narwhal. The US government assembles an expedition to find and destroy the monster. Professor Pierre Aronnax, a French marine biologist (and narrator within the story) receives a last-minute invitation to join the expedition. As the expedition travels south around Cape Horn into the Pacific Ocean, the crew finds the monster after a long search and then attack it, but the ship is damaged with the three main protagonists thrown into the water. They are quickly captured and then meet the enigmatic Captain Nemo. ~ Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea is a classic science fiction novel by French writer Jules Verne and was originally published in 1870. The novel was originally serialized between March 1869 and June 1870 in Pierre-Jules Hetzel's periodical, the Magasin d'Éducation et de Récréation. An illustrated edition, published by Hetzel in November 1871, included 111 illustrations by Alphonse de Neuville and Édouard Riou. Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea is regarded as one of the premiere adventure novels and one of Verne's greatest works, along with Around the World in Eighty Days and Journey to the Center of the Earth. Cover done by @sinadan

The Invisible Man is a science fiction novella by H. G. Wells. Originally serialized in Pearson's Weekly in 1897, it was published as a novel the same year. The Invisible Man of the title is Griffin, a scientist who has devoted himself to research into optics and invents a way to change a body's refractive index to that of air so that it neither absorbs nor reflects light and thus becomes invisible. He successfully carries out this procedure on himself, but fails in his attempt to reverse it.

The Time Machine is a science fiction novel by H. G. Wells, published in 1895 and written as a frame narrative. Wells is generally credited with the popularization of the concept of time travel by using a vehicle that allows an operator to travel purposely and selectively forwards or backward in time. The term "time machine", coined by Wells, is now almost universally used to refer to such a vehicle. The Time Machine has been adapted into three feature films of the same name, as well as two television versions, and a large number of comic book adaptations. It has also indirectly inspired many more works of fiction in many media productions.

During the American Civil War, five Northern prisoners of war escape during the Siege of Richmond, Virginia, by hijacking a hydrogen-filled observation balloon. The escapees are Cyrus Smith, a railroad engineer in the Union army, his ex-slave and loyal follower Neb; Bonadventure Pencroft, a sailor; his protégé and adopted son Herbert Brown; and the journalist Gideon Spilett. The company is completed by Cyrus's dog Top. After flying in a great storm for several days, the group crash-lands on a cliff-bound, volcanic, unknown island, described as being located at 34°57′S 150°30′W (Southern Pacific Ocean/Asian:Oceanian side), about 2,500 kilometres (1,600 mi) east of New Zealand. They name it "Lincoln Island" in honor of Abraham Lincoln. Welcome to the classic tale of Jules Verne's The Mysterious Island. The upload of this work was done through volunteer effort for the enjoyment and betterment of all to easily read it. This is a public domain story.

Journey to the Center of the Earth (French: Voyage au centre de la Terre, also translated under the titles A Journey to the Centre of the Earth and A Journey to the Interior of the Earth) is an 1864 science fiction novel by Jules Verne. The story involves German professor Otto Lidenbrock who believes there are volcanic tubes going toward the centre of the Earth. He, his nephew Axel, and their guide Hans descend into the Icelandic volcano Snæfellsjökull, encountering many adventures, including prehistoric animals and natural hazards, before eventually coming to the surface again in southern Italy, at the Stromboli volcano.

AND THE JULES VRNE