James Pyles's Blog, page 157
April 4, 2018
The Next Treasure Dive
She was waiting for them when the two men pulled into the sports center’s parking lot in Pitt’s 1948 Model 135 Delahaye. It was a cool, cloudy Sunday in early April and Arvada’s annual kite festival was on the verge of being rained out. “You sure know how to travel in style, Mr. Pitt.” The […]
The Ghost of the Montreal Symphony House
The Montreal Symphony House had been built less than a decade before, but something much older was there. It caused the ornate lighting to sway and cell coverage was always spotty. His name used to be Erik, and his spirit was first manifest in Paris over a century ago. After departing from there, he has […]
April 3, 2018
Returning to Life
They seemed just two more Asian tourists sitting on a bench watching the ferry at Angel Island. “When did you die here?” During her lifetime, she would never have asked such as direct question of a man, but death is very liberating. “1899.” He was staring at the ferry and the multinational conglomeration of visitors, […]
The New Neighborhood
“I’ll get it.” Ron Moore, his wife Layna, and their almost three-year-old daughter Emily had just moved into the new house in the suburbs the week before, but this was the first time anyone had come to visit. “Hi. May I help you?” “Seth Kennedy. I’m your next door neighbor. Just thought I’d drop by […]
April 2, 2018
The New Apprentice
Landon stood majestically on top of the wind-swept plateau dressed in archaic and stereotypical magician’s apparel. The robe draped over his slight nine-year-old frame from neck to ankle was colored a deep violet with bright yellow crescent moons and five-pointed stars dappled generously across the fabric. His head was adorned with a tall, conical hat […]
The Kaala Experiment
“Oh, crap.” “What is it, Lynn?” At the helm of the Research Submarine Nereid, Marcus Clark scanned the immediate vicinity through the view port while everyone else in the cabin looked toward the navigator. “It’s not the Megalodon we encountered yesterday. Not much bigger, but it reads differently.” “Something even more minatory?” “Cut with the […]
April 1, 2018
The Last Rose of Babylon
The great Bavel had been destroyed long ago and it was time to leave its ruins. She had been hiding among the worshipers of the Church of the East because it was the only place left to go. Like her mother and her mother’s mother before her, Warda concealed the truth of her identity and […]
March 31, 2018
Raising Lazarus: A Book Review
I just finished reading Aidan Reid’s novel Raising Lazarus and I must say I am impressed. I’ve read other works of his including “Sigil”, “Pathfinders”, and his short story “Spectrum”, and I think “Raising Lazarus” is his best authoring effort to date. There will probably be a few “spoilers” in my review, so if you […]
The Praying Man
“Daddy, who’s that man by the river? He looks strange.” “Just some of the local color, Janet. Don’t pay attention to him. They all beg.” “George, stop being racist. We’re here at Gurara Falls for a vacation. Nigeria is his country, not yours.” George Dukes rolled his eyes. Thousands of miles from home and she […]
Blood Libel
Klaus Buchner was running for his life. One minute, he was a guest at his friend Josef Steinbauer’s home expecting to experience his first Passover seder since he was a child. Now these insane fools were chasing him, screaming terrible insults in archaic German. Where did this damned desert come from? Why couldn’t he get a […]
