Gary Starta's Blog - Posts tagged "arrowhead"

Caitlin Diggs
An FBI Agent's Journal
'Blood Web'

I am brazen. I make decisions with my gut. I also happen to own the best conviction rate in the FBI. You wouldn't think I would be torn between grief and rage. Well I am. You see my partner and lover, Geoffrey McAllister, was killed in a sting operation a few months back and now I am desperate to find those responsible. But first I have to stop a serial killer supposedly empowered by a mysterious arrowhead shaped crystal - and that's becoming a problem - because I'm distracted. I'm seeing Geoffrey's death in my dreams - or should I say - nightmares. I see how he was killed - the vivid imagery haunts my waking hours - yet I cannot see the faces of the men responsible. I experience his pain, his anguish and most of all - his anger. I believe the FBI director knew Geoffrey would die in the sting. Somehow I feel Geoffrey realized this as well in his dying moments.

So now I try to pick up the pieces. Get on with my life. Take a new partner. But I already foresee conflict. Deondra Rivers is a rookie and her area of expertise is biochemistry. Under different circumstances her talents might be very useful in capturing our 'paranormal' killer. But here's the thing: Deondra Rivers doesn't believe in the paranormal - or keeping an open mind for that matter. I even suspect she thinks I am unstable. I have to admit my recent behavior does lend credibility to this 'theory.' Nevertheless, we're a team now. I have to forget about Geoffrey - for the moment. Forget about my haunting dreams and the killer's faces who remain masked in shadows - because right now a teen drifter is killing people, possibly even feeding on them to sustain his parasite - a crystal arrowhead he found in his travels.

A Cheyenne man tells me the crystal helped to save lives during the Sand Creek Massacre in the 19 th century. But now its ambition is twisted. It only seeks death because the world we live in is corrupt, polluted and diseased. I can only hope to return the crystal back to its hiding place - to put it back in its dormant state. Yet forensic reports tell me this will be quite difficult. The crystal seems to latch onto its hosts using them to create a biological Internet to track its victims. Still, I must take possession of it. Even it means my life. This is my job and despite losing Geoffrey - it always will be.

Read the whole story in Blood Web...

The adventure continues in Extreme Liquidation, June 2009...

http://www.garystarta.net

My Review of Extreme Liquidation (A Caitlin Diggs Novel: Book Two) by Gary Starta ©2009 (Lyrical Press, Incorporated http://www.lyricalpress.com)

I haven’t read Blood Web, the first installment in the Caitlin Diggs series, but that didn’t keep me from following the plot of Extreme Liquidation with no problem. Although Starta alludes to Book One at times, often to demonstrate more of FBI Agent Caitlin Diggs’ psychic gifts from the past, you won’t be lost, for it’s to embellish the storyline in Book Two. Therefore, it’s easy to catch the gist of what happened before and to understand Book Two more thoroughly. I won’t go into precisely what they are or how items like a crystal and a robe can both aid and mislead federal agent Caitlin Diggs, but suffice it to say, that their roles, as McGuffins of sorts, are well thought out and believable in a willing suspension of disbelief/belief kind of way. The meaning of the title, Extreme Liquidation, is fully revealed on p. 112, but to avoid a spoiler alert, I’ll just say that it refers to the evil plot of Aleister Crowley, reincarnated into another male character, to exterminate all humankind for his own selfish gain. Furthermore, reincarnation also plays a part in one of the female character’s lives, as she was also a former deity in the past; in fact, that revelation caused me to gasp out loud while reading. Yes, it’s that good.
The character development is great. And, I particularly enjoy a novel with a strong female protagonist; in this case, Caitlin Diggs. Plus, another female character is played by a cat named Celeste. She’s no ordinary cat; she actually aids Caitlin and her sister throughout the novel in various ways. In addition, the relationship between Caitlin and her sister, Tara, is well-developed, and the blossoming romantic relationship between Caitlin and Ross Fisher is believable.
There are a lot of cutting edge scientific facts mixed with fiction in this novel of 204 pages, but Starta does a great job of keeping even former English majors like myself, who steered clear of science as much as was possible, up to speed with easy-to-understand explanations. Moreover, his use of cutting-edge scientific facts, blended with his fiction so seamlessly, makes this supernatural/psychological thriller very believable. I could easily see this novel being adapted for a screen of some kind, perhaps in a television format like Fringe. For example, a couple of the topics covered are psychotropic drug development and schizaphysiology. Best of all, there’s a sense of continuity by connecting the past to the present and future through sacred geometry.
In closing, I highly recommend this novel. It’s available as an e-book at www.amazon.com or http://www.lyricalpress.com/gary_starta . Also, be sure to check out his other novels at http://www.garystarta.net and, to contact him by e-mail, write to him at ven123star@yahoo.com

G.L. Giles for Target Audience Magazine
www.TargetAudienceMagazine.com