C.A. Milson's Blog, page 180
January 10, 2017
Release Blitz – Legacy of Luck
About the Book
Title: Legacy of Luck
Author: Christy Nicholas
Genre: Historical Fiction
Irish Traveler Éamonn loves gambling, women, and drinking, not necessarily in that order. But he’s entangled in a true mess when he falls for fiery redhead, Katie. When she’s married to a Scottish Traveler, Éamonn travels to Scotland to find her, with the help of Katie’s sister and cousin, and the magical brooch gifted by his father. Their quest takes them across the Irish Sea to the Isle of Skye, encountering war, betrayal, death. In the end, Éamonn must make his own luck.
Author Bio
My name is Christy Nicholas, also known as Green Dragon. I do many things, including digital art, beaded jewelry, writing and photography. In real life I’m a CPA, but having grown up with art and around me (my mother, grandmother and great-grandmother are/were all artists), it sort of infected me, as it were. I love to draw and to create things. It’s more of an obsession than a hobby. I like looking up into the sky and seeing a beautiful sunset, or a fragrant blossom, a dramatic seaside. I then wish to take a picture or create a piece of jewelry to share this serenity, this joy, this beauty with others. Sometimes this sharing requires explanation – and thus I write. Combine this love of beauty with a bit of financial sense and you get an art business. I do local art and craft shows, as well as sending my art to various science fiction conventions throughout the country and abroad.
AUTHOR WEBSITES
Blog: www.greendragonartist.com
www.facebook.com/greendragonauthor
www.facebook.com/greendragonartist
PUBLISHER WEBSITE:
Links
Legacy of Luck on Publisher’s Website
Giveaway
Win a copy of Legacy of Hunger, the first book in the series.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js
Filed under: Guest Authors Tagged: Enchanted book promotions, Legacy of Luck, Release Blitz
January 9, 2017
Book Promo – To See a Jaguar
[image error] About the Book
Title: To See a Jaguar
Author: E. Etinger
Genre: Adventure
To See a Jaguar is a fascinating book of adventures.
It illustrates the complex relationship that exists between Humans and Nature. It also considers the discord existing between existential, rational insights, and primordial mysteries such as in ancient legends.
Philippe is a tour guide in the rainforests of the Amazon Basin. He embodies a boundless admiration for nature in its totality, and the duality of bringing people to experience nature, on the one hand, while dreading to disturb the primeval natural balance on the other.
While journeying throughout adventurous sites in the Amazon Basin, the author of the book guides the reader through the unique fauna and flora of the rainforest in a breathtaking manner.
To See a Jaguar describes the Amazon Basin of today and periods in its history over the last several centuries, in an interesting and entertaining way.
Author Bio
E.Etinger has worked with animals all his life. After touring in the savannah and rain forests of South America for a year, he decided to stay a further six years working as a guide on the various reserves. The book gives an account of his experiences and is inspired by the places he visited.
Links
Amazon (eBook): https://www.amazon.com/See-Jaguar-Adventures-Amazon-Rainforest-ebook/dp/B01NBGI9EB
Amazon (Paperback): https://www.amazon.com/See-Jaguar-E-Etinger/dp/9655721027/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=
Filed under: Guest Authors Tagged: E. Etinger, Enchanted book promotions, To See a Jaguar
January 8, 2017
VBT: The Adventures of Fawn – When The Last Snowflake Falls
Book Genre: Literary Fiction and Poetry
Publisher: Screamin’ Skull Press
Release Date: Already out –
Buy Link(s): http://sspbookstore.storenvy.com/
Amazon links to Tony and Nicole –
Tony Nesca – https://www.amazon.com/tony-nesca/e/B002CAVDHK/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1480187858&sr=1-2-ent
Nicole Nesca – https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=dp_byline_sr_book_1?ie=UTF8&text=nicole+i-nesca&search-alias=books&field-author=nicole+i-nesca&sort=relevancerank
Book Description:
Junkyard Lucy is a collection of stories by underground writer Tony Nesca. Stylistically alternating between Nesca’s unique free-flow style, full of that incredible, rhythmic prose that only he can do, and street-tough, short declarative sentences, the writing shows incredible range. The themes are varied and widespread – from love, sex, music, death, old age, rebellious youth and everything in-between, Junkyard Lucy is a subversive celebration of being alive, a romantic, sexually charged discourse on life, alive, unfettered and free.
Excerpt One:
And I’m walking through the devil infested streets, and all I see are lights greasy and wanting, and all I see is violence and blood-red intentions, and all I see are the generals feasting on flesh, and there was an old friend of mine standing at a street corner with back against telephone pole just watching the cars go by and the lights from the liquor store red and blue and purple and orange and yellow and it’s metal-to-metal striking that note just right and the midnight crazies looking to fuck someone up, but we stop and talk and we’re not afraid and we’re not unhappy and we’re even bored kinda feeling the end of something,
“I’m just bored with all of this” I say,
He nods and smiles sadly and I wave goodbye and I see all the street-junkies hobbling along with their toothless grins and their one-note thinking, and I see the young girls with sad smiles holding on to nothing at all the predators never far, and I think of losing her suddenly and that tragic afternoon under the sun, sometimes a nice car pulls up to the liquor store and the well-groomed move forward their intentions and true meaning as rotten as everybody else’s and the bank accounts ring like a bell as their fucked-up night-world is about to begin, I think of the 1920’s and Dixieland jazz and Billy Holiday and sipping on cold gin at a Parisian café while Picasso strolls by screaming something wild and crazy, and the young victims died in back alleys then as they do now and as long as people are involved, the shit flows, and I need all your love, baby, all of it day and night…
But I see something else now, I see a movie theater with light bulbs shining on the edge of the billboard full of smiling ideas, and I see a late-night pizza joint with small line-up of guys and gals laughing into the darkness, and I see a middle-aged couple kissing in front of a closed record store and I think of good friends and screaming good times and I’m talking about the light-filled moments everywhere all around –
– and it’s day-time now and I am by a river beams of golden light coming through trees and green all around wooded path leading me into that cool-sunshine shiver and I don’t hesitate, I don’t hesitate to smile and to laugh and to feel alright, and the river ripples in the wind bright-diamond-flickers on its surface, opposite bank showing a few apartment buildings sprouting out from the ever-present green of the ever-present trees, a young woman jogs by thighs jiggling in the hot morning shadow, old man walks slowly leaning on cane smiling lovely and new his youth bubbling just under the surface, and we all wanna get along don’t we, between closed teeth she swears again, between lips parted he smokes and says goodbye, and the college students continue with their misguided learnings, and the proletarians can all kiss my ass, and the rejected rejects triumph once again, and above the skyscrapers the superheroes continue their homo-erotic wrestling, I shake god’s hand and give him a wink, he winks back and smiles and scratches his ass, all my love to you I say, and mine to you he says, then he cranks the electric guitar and starts playing some rock and roll, and all across the universe and beyond and through the back-alley love affairs and the switchblade mornings,
the inside of my mind screams happy thoughts –
________________________________________
Author Bio: Tony Nesca was born in Torino, Italy in 1965 and moved to Canada at the age of three. He was raised in Winnipeg but relocated back to Italy several times until finally settling in Winnipeg in 1980. He taught himself how to play guitar and formed an original rock band playing the local bars for several years. At the age of twenty-seven he traded his guitar for a Commodore 64 and started writing seriously. He has published six chapbooks of stories and poems (which he used to sell straight out of his knapsack at local dives and bookstores), six novels, four books of poetry and stories and has been an active contributor to the underground lit scene for twelve years, being published in innumerable magazines both online and in print.
Author Bio: Nicole I. Nesca was born in Ohio. She developed a love of music, painting and writing early on and continued that love throughout her adult life. While living in Canada, she completed her first three works of poetry and prose collected in the anthology piece, KAMIKAZE WHITE NOISE., and her latest release of poems, Diamond Scarred Alley. She has been published in several E-Zines and has been a part of two anthologies.
Follow The Tour Here
Filed under: Guest Authors Tagged: #VBTCafe, Junkyard Lucy, Screamin’ Skull Press, VBT
January 7, 2017
VBT – Emerge Beyond Circles
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About the Book
Title: Emerge Beyond Circles
Author: John Geers
Genre: Fantasy
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Thuban-Pol is the latest in a lineage of Siberian witches. Their eternal aim is to guide humanity to true love. Their guiding tenet, “For love to bloom, these three endure: sacrifice, perseverance and suffering. But the greatest of these is suffering.” Since the dawn of humanity, they have summoned countless couples, inflicting suffering with the intention to grow true love. They have never succeeded…but now they have their best opportunity in two couples from Wisconsin.
Author Bio
John Geers drew inspiration to begin his debut novel from a dream he experienced.
Hours spent in the caffeinated air of his favorite coffeehouse proved to be the perfect place to complete Emerge Beyond Circles.
John is a middle school literacy educator, where he inspires and is inspired by the writers of tomorrow. He is the founder and facilitator of his school’s Creative Writing Club. He is also a columnist for the online magazine Elephant Journal.
He loves a good story, being on the water, and witty puns. He can be found hiking the wilderness, biking big hills, sipping dark coffee, and looking for a chair in the mall.
Links
WRITER WEBPAGE: http://bit.ly/2fSVGDL
TWITTER: http://bit.ly/2fWHdSf
GOODREADS: http://bit.ly/2gSihzI
WRITER FACEBOOK: http://bit.ly/2glo25s
THUBAN-POL FACEBOOK: http://bit.ly/2gTcBTQ
AMAZON: http://amzn.to/2hrV2NL
Giveaway
You can win a stuffed tiger animal (a character from the book), a signed paperback copy and a $10 amazon gift card during the tour.
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http://www.johngeers.com/index.php/giveaways/emerge-beyond-circles-enchanted-giveaway/
Filed under: Guest Authors Tagged: #JohnGeers, Emerge Beyond Circles, Enchanted book promotions, John Geers
January 5, 2017
VBT – Al E. Boy
Book Genre: Children’s Fiction
Print Length: 517 pages
Publisher: Al E. Boy (October 1, 2014)
Publication Date: October 1, 2014
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services LLC
Language: English
ASIN: B00NRZO920
BOOK DESCRIPTION:
The Adventures of Fawn is a ‘coming of age’ series set in the magical world of Santa’s North Pole! The year is 1849, and legendary reindeer Comet and Vixen have a young daughter, Fawn. In this first book, ‘Til the Last Snowflake Falls’ the young reindeer spends far too many days alone in the stable at Santa’s Village with no friends and nothing to do.
While her parents caution her she’s much too young and inexperienced to go exploring outside Santa’s Village by herself, Fawn disagrees. Declaring, “I want some fun and excitement! I don’t care how dangerous it is!” she begins sneaking out each day in search of friends, excitement and adventure. She’ll find them all…but also find herself facing dangers like a fierce hungry wolf, a freezing North Pole blizzard, and the treachery of a sea captain capturing animals of the arctic to sell to a zoo in New York City.
Along the way, she’ll also learn some valuable lessons about what’s really important in life. The Adventures of Fawn are filled with fun and excitement for all ages!
Excerpt #1 from ‘Til the Last Snowflake Falls
Today was going to be the day!
Fawn had it all planned out. The young reindeer would wait until her dad and mum, Comet and Vixen, came home to the stable, and she was going to calmly explain how unhappy she was.
Sure…she’d mentioned it before, (more like every other day), but each time her bad mood had gotten the better of her and she’d wound up arguing with her parents. Each time they had told her she wasn’t old enough…not mature enough…to be going out on her own.
Fawn had often pondered over their words.
Not mature enough?!
She wasn’t exactly sure what that meant…but just the same she didn’t like the sound of it!
I think it’s like saying I’m still a baby! Darnit! I’m four and a half months old!!
Fawn was convinced fun…excitement….maybe even friends could be hers to enjoy if she was free to explore the world outside Santa’s Village.
I blew it those other times by getting too excited. If I can plainly and calmly explain to mum and dad how bored and lonely I am…how I need some friends…surely they’ll see how much I’ve changed…how much more ‘mature’ I am now…whatever that means! I’ll wait for them to come home…and then I’ll show them.
Yes, indeed! She had it all planned out!
But sometimes even the best laid plans can fall apart.
Excerpt #1 from Book 2- The Ona Pendulum
It was at that very moment…something very strange occurred.
Santa and Wajic suddenly became motionless, and their faces appeared in energized
broken patterns…almost like shattered, electrified pieces of glass. Every angle of the fractured pattern sputtered and flashed likenesses of them……but each one different. In some they looked younger…and in others, older…….and older still.
Fawn, Bunny, Snowboy and Doctor Weather were all quite surprised and taken aback.
They had absolutely no idea what was happening…or what they should do. The only choice they had was to stand there powerlessly watching.
Then, just as suddenly as it began, it stopped. Looking a bit
overwhelmed, everyone just stood there…watching Santa and Wajic.
“Are you alright?” asked Fawn.
“Yes…perfectly fine.” Santa answered. He noticed the concerned looks on everyone’s
face, and added, “Why do you ask?”
The Doctor explained, “Well…something just happened a moment ago. Very odd!
You didn’t notice? You didn’t feel anything?”
Wajic stretched his arms and yawned.
“Come to think of it…I am a little tired all of a sudden.”
Santa brought a gloved hand up to cover his mouth, as he also yawned.
“Me, too! Hmmm. That’s very strange! What was it you saw?”
Fawn, Bunny,Snowboy and Doctor Weather gave them the details of what they’d seen, and with each piece of information, Wajic looked more and more worried.
Santa noticed.
“What is it, old friend?”
“I’m not quite sure, Kris. It could be nothing…or….it could be something! When we get back to the Village, I’ll head to my workshop and look into it.”
Filed under: Guest Authors Tagged: #VBTCafe, Al E. Boy
January 3, 2017
Book Blast – THE TIGRESS AND THE YOGI
Hot off the presses! THE TIGRESS AND THE YOGI by Shelley Schanfield is
available now! Sign up to win a paperback copy of her book or one of 5 ebooks!
Title:
THE TIGRESS AND THE YOGI
Author: Shelley Schanfield
Publisher: Lake House
Books
Pages: 382
Genre: Historical Fantasy
A talking tigress.
A wandering yogi.
A young woman’s harrowing journey through an ancient land where chaos
threatens gods and mortals alike.
A tigress speaks to the outcaste girl Mala, and as she flees in
terror, she encounters an old yogi. She offers him hospitality. As an
untouchable, her very shadow may sully the holy man, but he accepts, repaying
her kindness with stories that awaken her hunger for forbidden spiritual
knowledge. Soon after he leaves, she is orphaned and enslaved, but the warrior
goddess Durga appears in a vision and offers her hope.
Thus begins her quest for liberation, on which she meets gods and goddesses, high-born
Brahmins and lowly keepers of the cremation grounds, outlaws and kings, and
young Prince Siddhartha Gautama, who is prophesied to become the Buddha. She
finds happiness for a brief time, but when she loses everything, her quest goes
terribly wrong. She becomes an outlaw warrior, worshipping the dark goddess,
Kali. She masters occult powers but descends into madness, misusing the
supernatural gifts the goddess bestows, and when she again encounters the old
yogi, she must decide whether to continue on the path of bloody vengeance or
seek transcendence through the power of yoga.
The Tigress and the Yogi is an historical fantasy that brings to life the
vivid mythical world of ancient India and transports the reader
to the Buddha’s time in a story filled with love and fear, anger and desire. This visionary novel
creates a memorable portrait of a powerful woman, her extraordinary daughter,
and the men they challenge and inspire. It examines the yearning for spiritual
transformation and inner peace, and the ways in which the pursuit of wisdom and
compassion can go terribly wrong.
Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Book Excerpt:
Fragrant trees shaded the
grove, though open patches among the leaves admitted some dappled sunlight.
After the thick, dense forest, this place was like a spacious and cool green
temple. There was a tall, slender stone pillar set in a circle of stones in the
very center. The snake-loving Nagas, the most fearsome of the hidden forest
tribes, must have sacrificed here once. Nagas had not been seen near the
village in years, but everyone still feared them. Sometimes when a village man
disappeared, people whispered that the dark ones had sacrificed him to their
Great Mother, She who was ancient as the earth.
Mala shrugged off a whisper of
unease. It was so peaceful and beautiful, there could be no danger. She crawled
to a tree trunk and curled up against it to rest awhile. The birds and insects
remained silent. Her own breathing was loud in her ears. It felt good just to
rest her hand on her belly as it rose and fell. Soon she was aware of nothing
else.
Her back against the tree and
her head nodding, Mala slipped into a strange new place of lights and sounds. The
tree’s roots cradled her and the earth’s coolness was like a soothing caress.
Light fell from the leaves above like drops of water. Then she gasped.
On a tigress’s back, a many-armed,
beautiful goddess appeared in radiant splendor, waving hands carrying weapons.
One hand the goddess held before her breasts in a strange gesture, thumb and
forefinger touching. The other she held out toward Mala, and from its upward-facing
palm shot a beam of light. Mala prostrated before the vision.
“Om, Divine One,” Mala said. “Om!”
The bejeweled goddess
dismounted from the tigress and with her two free hands lifted her ruby and
diamond garland from around her neck, smiling as she did so.
I am Durga, Mala. Durga held out the garland. One day this will be yours. As Mala reached for the sparkling
necklace, the red jewels began to drip blood. Mala cried out.
She woke. The vision flitted at
the edges of consciousness like a wild animal hiding in the forest’s shadows.
Dusk was approaching. In the distance, there was something or someone: a horse
whinnied, human voices called and laughed. Or did she imagine it? Was Durga
only a dream?
No. The warrior goddess was
real. Warriors had strength and courage. It was a sign. Mala must be strong and
courageous, too. But what did the jewels dripping blood mean?
That when a warrior fights for
justice, blood is shed.
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About the Author
Shelley Schanfield’s passion for
Buddhism and yoga arose sixteen years ago, when she and her son earned black
belts in Tae Kwon Do. The links between the martial arts and Buddhist techniques
to calm and focus the mind fascinated her. By profession a librarian, Shelley
plunged into research about the time, place, and spiritual traditions that 2500
years ago produced Prince Siddhartha, who became the Buddha. Yoga, in some
form, has a role in all of these traditions. Its transformational teachings
soon prompted Shelley to hang up her black belt and begin a yoga practice that
she follows to this day.
Because she loves historical
fiction, Shelley looked for a good novel about the Buddha. When she didn’t find
one that satisfied her, she decided to write her own novels based on the
spiritual struggles of women in the Buddha’s time. She published the first book
in the Sadhana Trilogy, The Tigress and the Yogi, in 2016 and will
publish the second, The Mountain Goddess in early 2017.
WEBSITE | TWITTER | FACEBOOK
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Giveaway Details:
Shelley is giving away one
autographed copy of The Tigress and the Yogi PLUS 5 ebooks!
Terms & Conditions:
By entering the giveaway, you
are confirming you are at least 18 years old.
Six winners will be chosen
via Rafflecopter.
This giveaway ends midnight January 27.
Winner will be contacted via
email on February 1.
Winner has 48 hours to reply.
Good luck everyone!
ENTER TO WIN!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Filed under: Guest Authors Tagged: #seschanfield, Pump Up Your Book, PUYB, Shelley Schanfield, THE TIGRESS AND THE YOGI
Book Blast – FIRE AND SWORD
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The three volume set of Fantasy/Horror Author Dylan Doose’s SWORD AND SORCERY SERIES is available now! You can find out about all three books below!
Title: FIRE AND SWORD
Author: Dylan Doose
Publisher: Independent
Pages: 332
Genre: Fantasy/Horror
Condemned to hang for their crimes, they’ll march instead to perish as heroes, or live as free men.
A broken nation in need of a savior – ravaged by plague, decimated by dark magic, infiltrated by a foreign evil seeking to dominate from within. Three will rise to save the beleaguered land. But will they be enough?
A fantasy adventure for fans of Joe Abercrombie, Mark Lawrence and Scott Lynch!
Three men condemned to die: Aldous Weaver, a heretic monk turned sorcerer, imprisoned for accidentally incinerating the leader of his order. Kendrick the Cold, an infamous crusader turned fugitive, is a villain who knows he can never be a hero. Theron Ward, an aristocrat with a penchant for slaughtering monsters, and a legend in his own mind.
When the kingdom of Brynth is threatened by a far greater evil, the unlikely trio must make a choice — seek to escape this land that cries for their execution, or find the true heroes within themselves. And then, armed with fire and sword, march together against the forces of darkness. But can three such disparate warriors ever prevail?
**Fire and Sword received an Honorable Mention from Library Journal 2016 and a Shelf Unbound Magazine
Notable 100 for 2015**
Don’t miss the dark fantasy that reviewers are calling ‘gritty, fast-paced and compelling’—get your copy of Fire and Sword today!
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Kobo
About the Book:
Title: CATACOMBS OF TIME
Author: Dylan Doose
Publisher: Independent
Pages: 59
Genre: Fantasy/Horror
A fantasy adventure for fans of Joe Abercrombie, Mark Lawrence and Scott Lynch!
In a world where the Rata Plaga and ghouls feast on the dead, doctor Gaige De’Brouillard believes science, not magic, conquers all.
Even death is just an equation to be solved.
When De’Brouillard is called upon by the Lord Regent to cure a curse and save one of the damned, he must battle for his career, his faith in science, and even his life. In the darkest slums and deepest catacombs, the doctor finds himself staring death in the eye with no scientific solution at hand. Has the doctor finally come across a question that science cannot answer, and will he pay with his life?
Don’t miss the dark fantasy that reviewers are calling ‘visceral,’ ‘fantastic,’ and ‘intriguing’—get your
copy of Catacombs of Time today!
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Kobo
About the Book:
Title: THE PYRES
Author: Dylan Doose
Publisher: Independent
Pages: 268
Genre: Fantasy/Horror
Once again, three unlikely heroes must band together in a fiery conflict between gods and demons.
A country ravaged by civil war, now threatened with evil unleashed by rivers of blood. Three must rise again to save the beleaguered land and thwart a dark prophecy.
A fantasy adventure for fans of Joe Abercrombie, Mark Lawrence and Scott Lynch!
Theron Ward, Aldous Weaver and Kendrick the Cold must band together and fight again. This time, they are caught in the timeless clash of gods and demons, and led by the dark prophecy of dreams.
A ruthless warlord, the Dog Eater, rises out of the rivers of blood from civil war. As friend and foe reach out from futures past, the three will see a city of white stone turn black with ash … and the only way forward is through the fire. One thing is certain, none of them will ever be the same. And one will be transformed in ways he never dreamed. Dare the three depend on the blood ties of the past to carry them through this terrible night?
Don’t miss the next thrilling installment in the dark fantasy that reviewers are calling ‘gritty, fast-paced and compelling’—get your copy of The Pyres today!
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Kobo
Book Excerpt from FIRE AND SWORD:
The thing left a trail of thick black blood and green pus.
More a stream than a trail, if Theron Ward, hunter of monsters, wanted to be
precise. It was wounded and wounded horribly, but not dead.
Grimmshire was not the only town ruined by the plague. As
far as Theron knew, the whole country had a piece of it. The rats came with
those terrible black boils. Rats larger than dogs. In the beginning, they came
in swarms. Now they appeared alone or in small roving packs, as if a once
powerful tether that bound the group had been weakened.
Four years ago, they had come and spewed their filth into
the town. Two days was all it had taken until half the town was crawling and
squealing with the rats, puking up pus and bursting black boils. The other half
of the town became the swarm’s feast.
Those who didn’t turn simply couldn’t. The priests said that
only the sinners turned, that the pious were protected from the plague. Theron
doubted that, for he was not a pious man and he knew a thing or two about
sin—sins of the flesh mostly—and he had been exposed to enough plague to wipe
out a city.
Yet he had not turned.
Theron suspected something more sinister than nature, or the
work of gods and devils to be the villainy incarnate that had unleashed such
wickedness upon the land. He suspected something more human, or slightly more
than human. Unpopular opinion, but his opinion nonetheless.
It was midday, but
it was dark in the ruined town. The clouds shrouded the sun, gray and
threatening, but not a drop of rain. The once green pastures were yellow as far
as the eye could see. Once this had been a bustling, happy little town. Now
there were just the colors of pus and piss and ash all around, beneath those
suffocating gray clouds.
There came a rustling sound from the chapel, the one
building in the town not entirely burned to the ground. It had been painted
white when it was built, and painted black with soot and ash when death had
come to its town. The stained glass windows were shattered, shards of the
vibrant panes scattered round in the dirt and the yellow grass.
Theron burst through the door. His skin crawled at the sight
of the wounded thing within the chapel; they always made his skin crawl, though
he had killed over a hundred. He could kill over a thousand and still his skin
would crawl.
Theron was a beast hunter, had been for nearly a decade, but
the rats had always disturbed him the most, more than any creature or demon.
What made the things so terrible was not the giant, rotting buckteeth that
burst from the mouth. It was not the boils or the tufts of matted fur. Not the
long tail or the brutish muscles, not the naked, sagging female breasts or the
male parts dangling, filthy and crusted.
It was the eyes, for the eyes remained entirely human. And
so, Theron was certain that a human being was still left in there, with no
control over what it had become and begging for its torment to end.
This one had been a woman once, perhaps a mother, a lover, a
sister, a daughter. For a dreadful moment he pictured his own sister taking the
form of the wretched thing before him.
About the Author:
Writer. Sculptor. Bad fitness advice. In between writing books, award winning fantasy author Dylan Doose fills his not-so-busy schedule with martial arts, mountain biking, paddle surfing, weight lifting, and of course HBO, PS4 and increasing the size of his beloved personal library. Dylan’s Fire and Sword received an honorable mention from Library Journal in 2016 and was a Shelf Unbound Notable 100 for 2015.
Filed under: Guest Authors Tagged: #Dylan_Doose, CATACOMBS OF TIME, Dylan Doose, FIRE AND SWORD, horror author, Pump Up Your Book, PUYB, SWORD AND SORCERY SERIES, THE PYRES
January 2, 2017
Blog Tour – Never Go Alone
Hot off the presses! NEVER GO ALONE by Denison Hatch is
available now! Please a comment below and say hi!
Title: Never Go Alone
Author: Denison Hatch
Publisher: Lookout Press
Pages: 300
Genre: Thriller/Mystery/Police Procedural
A rash of elaborate cat burglaries of luxury buildings in Manhattan
has the police and mayor panicked. When a group of social media obsessed
millennials—a loosely organized crew that call themselves “urban explorers”—are
suspected in the heists, NYPD detective Jake Rivett is assigned the case.Already undercover with one foot on each side of the blue line, Rivett is
ordered to infiltrate the group and discern responsibility. Battling against
both his own personal demons and misgivings regarding his superiors, Rivett
dives deep into the urban exploration scene in pursuit of the truth. But what,
and who, he finds—deep in the sewers, up in the cranes above under-construction
skyscrapers, and everywhere else in New York—will
change not only Jake, but the city itself.
Purchase at Amazon.
Book Excerpt:
Two feet hammered the pavement. With movement as rapid as it
was controlled, the explorer’s muscles tensed for what was to come. The target,
all twenty stories of unabashedly neo-classical splendor, towered across the
street. Infiltrating the building would be easy, but the next step was
difficult. And the rest? Brilliant meets impossible.
The explorer was wearing a small camera on his chest, which captured his
viewpoint with slightly shaky but high-definition clarity. A parking post stood
ahead—cement poured into a strong iron tube. The man sprinted forward and
vaulted onto the post. He maintained his momentum, springing off the top of the
post onto an enormous industrial air-conditioning unit. Now eight feet in the
air, he had only one stride before his next jump. He sailed through the empty
air, arms outstretched, fingers tensing—a twelve-foot-high brick wall ahead.
Just reaching the wall, the explorer’s fingers grasped the edge. His right hand
couldn’t find traction. His fingernails scraped desperately as he started to
fall. But two fingers on his left hand did their job. He hung on, swinging
precariously before centering himself and pulling his body up and over the
wall.
The explorer dropped down on the other side. His body contracted into a tight
ball as he careened toward the construction gravel below. At the last moment,
he rotated and achieved a rolling landing—lessening gravity’s impact. He came
to a stop. Breathing heavily, he took a brief respite from the task at hand.
His chest heaved as he peered around the construction site that he’d just
infiltrated. He knew that a lone security guard sat in a booth on the other
side of the block. But he also knew the guard was engrossed in his cell phone,
only stopping occasionally to gaze onto an adjoining street. As long as the
explorer was quiet, the guard would be none the wiser. The coast was clear. He
reached for a mic attached to the side strap of his backpack.
“All silent. Only one clown in the circus,” the explorer whispered into the
microphone. Still out of breath, he reached for his hydration tube and took a
long sip of water. Then he rotated and watched as three more compatriots
covertly slid over the top of the tall brick wall.
They each hit the ground in the same rolling manner, limiting trauma with
expert precision. The entire crew was clad in dark outdoor technical clothes,
breathable shirts, top-of-the-line Gore-Tex pants and trail runners with all
reflective surfaces blocked out by black Sharpie. Their faces were covered by
bandanas or ski masks. Respirators, climbing gear, knives, and cameras were
both hanging from and strapped to their belts and backpacks.
The crew split in three different directions, acting as lookouts for any errant
guard or construction manager onsite in the middle of the night. It was
unlikely, but their plans called for extreme caution. That’s what had made them
so successful—their secret sauce was not daring; it was preparation. After
confirming that the others were in position, the explorer focused on the
mission at hand.
An enormous tower crane stood against the edge of the construction site. Built
like a towering T, the machine’s base was a concrete shithouse holding up three
hundred feet of crisscrossing steel. The explorer expertly grabbed the side of
the crane. Instead of heading for the control booth at the bottom, he simply
began to ascend up the latticework that made up the sides—hands followed by
legs on an upstream ladder.
Stopping midway to catch his breath, the man couldn’t help but look down.
Vertigo’s tendrils reached out like forbidden fruit. His foot wavered to catch
hold of a one-inch bar of the latticework. But he controlled the panic,
centered himself, and continued climbing.
A few minutes later, the explorer reached the top of the crane. He pulled
himself over the T’s edge and gazed along the hundred-and-fifty-foot-length
atop the long horizontal span. Instead of traversing in the direction of the
construction site from which he’d originated, the explorer headed the opposite
way. Careful with the placement of his feet, he headed towards the side of the
crane that extended halfway across the street below. It was a slow process. The
latticework consisted of both ninety-degree and diagonal pieces of steel, like
a series of bars with a crosshatch pattern strung across it. And between the
pieces of the crane’s structure was nothing—a dark void. One misstep, one
hesitation, one dash of grease and the explorer would plummet over twenty
stories through thin air and become one with the blacktop of the city. It was
not a pleasant thought, making the already difficult process deeply
nerve-wracking.
“You will not bust.” The man talked himself through the fear as he reached the
far end of the crane. He was now extended as far across the street below as the
machinery would take him.
The explorer gazed down the gleaming city from the Upper West Side,
all the way through Midtown and into Chelsea.
It was more than a place now, more than a landscape. By this point at its
evolution, Manhattan represented a
geospatial-and-social coordinate on the razor’s edge of modernity. It was no
longer what the future could be. It was the future itself, right now, happening
in front of one’s eyes and reaching the stage of infinite singularity. As the
years had gone on, the surfaces of the metropolis had become smooth, the lights
perfect, the façades utterly complete. It no longer beckoned for the masses
humbly—it repelled them. The construction site the explorer had ascended from
would soon consist of glass, marble, and sex. That was all, and that was
everything, and if one was rich enough, one could buy it. The new culture
didn’t care for culture itself. It did not bow to subtlety of argument or
freedom of soul. It only knew money—astronomical levels of money. The only
people who could afford to live here would be the progeny of sovereign wealth
fund managers, tech moonshot winners, and industrial titans. Nothing was free,
for anyone—not even the views.
Except for our explorer—right now. It was his, alone. He admired the panorama
of New York. Yes, there was the
mission, but this was deserving of a photograph. He pulled the camera off his
chest harness, activated selfie mode, and turned it towards himself. He lined
up, framing the background of the city behind him. Click. The camera’s flash
erupted. He flipped his hand down, as if to form an upside down V slogan.
Click. Another flash—another selfie—his face shrouded by a hood throughout the
entire process.
Having finished memorializing the scene, the man ducked down towards the crane.
As he secured something to the crane, he gazed away from the construction site
and towards his target.
A sharp contrast to the modern structures popping up like weeds, the limestone
apartment building across the street was built during the turn of the
century—the last century, not this. Its hulking body did not undulate as it
rose. Instead the building consisted of strong vertical bands that ran up to
form elaborate choragic arches and support the pointed top of the roof. Four
large penthouse balconies graced each corner of the building, easily visible to
the explorer who stood above them on the crane. He breathed deeply, then jumped
off the crane into the darkness below.
Suspended by a climbing rope, the man careened from the top of the crane and
over the street, until he was positioned directly above the penthouse balcony
of the old building. The pendulum continued, however, and he swung back.
The second time he was ready. His toes landed lithely on the penthouse’s
balcony. He paced towards the enclosed glass greenhouse. One of the small
windows of the greenhouse was unlatched, exposing a sliver of access.
The explorer carefully maneuvered the window open.
He climbed into the penthouse.
And the city’s lights twinkled as if nothing had happened at all . . .
About the Author
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Denison Hatch is a screenwriter and novelist based in Los Angeles.
Although he lives in the proverbial desert now, he is originally from Delaware—land
of rolling hills and DuPont gunpowder. Denison
has a number of feature and television projects in development, including his
original screenplay, Vanish Man, which is set up at Lionsgate. A graduate of Cornell
University, Denison
lives with his wife and big dog in a little house in Hollywood.
Never Go Alone is the second novel in the Jake Rivett series.
WEBSITE | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | GOODREADS
Filed under: Guest Authors Tagged: #denisonhatch, Denison Hatch, Never Go Alone, Pump Up Your Book, PUYB
December 26, 2016
COTC – Guest – Darkness Visible
For those that missed it, here is the recent tv appearance of Darkness Visible on Creatives on the Couch.
As a present, here is the Darkness Visible tv appearance where we are promoting Breaking Point.
http://www.c31.org.au/episodes/7383
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Filed under: Events Tagged: Axle Gunn, C31 Melbourne, Christine Madafferi, Creatives On The Couch, Darkness Visible, David Black
December 25, 2016
Axle Gunn on The Pulse 94.7
Tune into Pulse Radio 94.7 at 2.30PM.
Axle Gunn will be chatting about his movie career and the new section devoted to him on fizzy.tv!.
If you missed the show, there will be a link to it soon.
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Filed under: Events Tagged: actors, Axle Gunn, fizzy.tv, movie career, Pulse Radio 94.7
