John Wilson's Blog, page 5

Collaborative novel

Really interesting idea and well worth checking out. Twelve authors each write a chapter bringing their characters together for a climax that no one can guess.

http://www.unlimitededitions.ca

Adventures in US History

Here are a few of my eBook titles that deal with American history (okay, geology is stretching the definition of history a bit, but…). I have been to many of the places where the novels are set (the cover photographs used for Flags of War and Battle Scars are of monuments at Gettysburg), the history is well researched and all comes together in exciting, thought-provoking tales.ENJOY Flags of War begins the story of two cousins, Walt and Nate, during the early years of the Civil War. Nate lives in South Carolina and Walt in Canada, but they are linked by a runaway slave, Sunday. As the war develops, they are drawn together at a place called Shiloh in Tennessee.
In the sequel, Battle Scars, the three boys go their separate ways—Nate to Gettysburg, Walt to the New York draft riots, Sunday to Fort Wagner—but they are drawn inexorably back together in Richmond's notorious Libby Prison."…action-filled, tightly written prose. Realistic battle scenes illustrate the senselessness of war…"- Albany Public Library, NY
Flags of War and  Battle Scars are available on Amazon.com or, for all other formats, on Smashwords (Flags of War, Battle Scars).

Set in the harsh desert world of Arizona and New Mexico Territories in the 1870s, Written in Blood follows young Jim Doolen as he searches for his father. As he travels through the scorched landscape, Jim crosses paths with a mystical Apache warrior, a Mexican revolutionary and a mysterious drifter. With each encounter he learns a story and takes one more step back toward a dark, violent past. Finally, in a ruined Mexican hacienda, Jim realizes that discovering his past has also opened the way to his future.
"Told in a terse, present-tense narrative, Jim's adventures will thrill all fans of traditional pulp-style oaters." (Booklist)
Written in Blood is the first book in The Desert Legends Trilogy. It is followed by Ghost Moon and Victorio's War.


Moving way, way back in time, Ghost Mountains and Vanished Oceans: North America from Birth to Middle Age, is nothing less than the story of the continent we live on. In an age of climate change and rovers on Mars, it's easy to forget that the final frontier to understanding ourselves and the planet we live on is below our feet. Based on the latest research, this lively narrative—interspersed with personal anecdotes and historical tales—leads the reader through the fascinating and dramatic story of our world and our place on it.

For UK Readers

Every so often I plan to put up a few Kindle reading recommendations for specific countries. I'm starting with the UK because that's where I started!
Of course, they're available everywhere else, too!
All right, so it's been a miserable cold and snowy winter and you can't afford a flight to the Costa del Sol. How about India? Where Soldiers Lie is set in northern India in June and July—hot enough? The only problem is, it's 1857 and the Mutiny has just broken out and everybody's taking refuge in an entrenchment outside Cawnpore—too hot? Don't worry, relief is on the way. What can possibly go wrong?"A superb work of historical fiction." Amazon review.
Don't fancy the Indian mutiny? How about somewhere the weather's so bad anything this past winter seems like a piece of cake?
North with Franklin: The Lost Journals of James Fitzjames recreates the diary of John Franklin's third in command on the doomed 1845 expedition. Not only will this read make you happy with anything the Met. Office can throw at you, but you'll be thrilled that you are avoiding starvation, scurvy and cannibalism."A richly re-imagined fable." Arctic Book Review
Not your thing? How about alchemy, explorers and mystery in 17th century London?The Final Alchemy is the story of Robert Bylot, a real yet greatly under-appreciated historical figure. Bylot sailed with Henry Hudson in 1611, explored Hudson Bay in 1612 and was pilot on both William Baffin's voyages. That's about all we know about him. Maybe he learned his navigation from the alchemist, John Dee. Perhaps he sailed to the Spice Island with John Davis. Could it be that he survived to be an old man living in squalor in London and reflecting on his varied and exciting life?"A riveting tale of exploration, ambition and betrayal." GG Award Jury
And if you want still more, I have over thirty other titles. Check out my website.

The Heretic's Secret in ONE Volume

The entire, epic, Heretic's Secret (all 250,000 words!) is now available as a single volume eBook, but only on Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.ca and other Amazon sites.

So now you have choices, a single volume, a trilogy, or an eleven part serialization. How long is the flight you're planning?

The Heretic's Secret as a Trilogy

If you think serializations went out with Charles Dickens and Alexander Dumas, The Heretic's Secret is available as a trilogy, but only through Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, etc..

So what's it about?

In the style of Bernard Cornwell, The Heretic’s Secret Trilogy is a rollicking historical adventure set during the bloody 13th century wars against the Cathar Heretics of Languedoc. When the armoured knights of Pope Innocent III swept south in 1209, most thought they would be gone by summer’s end but, led by the fanatical Arnaud Aumery and the ambitious Simon de Montfort, they stayed for three fiery decades. In that time they slaughtered thousands of Cathars, burned countless towns and castles, destroyed a thriving country that rivaled France in power and culture, and created the foundations for the shape of western Europe we recognize.

Caught up in the horror are two childhood friends. Peter—an assistant to the shadowy, enigmatic priest who leads the crusade—is convinced that the war against the Cathars is God's will, a mission that will lead him to the highest ranks of power in Rome itself. John—who finds himself drawn to the strange ideas of the heretics—simply seeks the peace to learn and understand through reading the forbidden books hidden in remote castles across the land. As the armoured knights of the crusade destroy city after city and the flames of the Inquisition spread, Peter and John find themselves on opposite sides of  a search for an ancient secret that may have the power to change the world.

"…a brave book, an unsettling book, and one that is very much needed at this time."—The Globe and Mail.

"…an astonishingly nuanced and masterfully told story…"—Quill & Quire

The final four episodes of the Heretic's Secret

Parts 8, 9, 10 and 11 of THE HERETIC’S SECRET (First Blood, Muret, Discovery, and Renaissance), are now available for Kindle on Amazon worldwide and other formats through Smashwords.
Find out more about Adso, John and Peter's adventures and how to pick up copies in the appropriate format on my website.
If you haven't started the series that Quill and Quire called “…astonishingly nuanced and masterfully told.” and the Globe and Mail said was "…a brave book, an unsettling book, and one that is very much needed at this time", Part 1, Gathering Storms, is available for free in any format here.

Stalingrad—Remember

Seventy years ago, the Battle of Stalingrad ended with the surrender of von Paulus's Sixth Army. The biggest battle in human history lasted almost six months and cost over a million lives. Follow the adventures of a German tank commander, a Russian soldier and sniper, and a civilian. http://www.amazon.com/Four-Steps-to-Death-ebook/dp/B008I3Y7WI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1359836555&sr=8-2&keywords=four+steps+to+death

My alter ego at the OLA Conference

While I was sitting in my lonely office on Vancouver Island, working hard on the sequel to the rampantly successful 7 Series (sales have passed 70,000 copies total), my alter ego was having fun at the Ontario Library Association Conference in Toronto.

The sequel is tentatively titled, Broken Arrow, and has Steve going back to Spain—Laia's there so how could he not?






To celebrate, I have put the eBook version of Lost in Spain (an earlier Spanish Civil War story) on all formats for 99c.

More details of this and my other books on my website.

7 Series sequel.

The 7 Series has passed 70,000 copies total. Because the 7Series has done so well (and because Lost Cause was so much fun to write), that there will be a sequel.

I don't know what the other six stories will be, but Steve is going back to Spain (Laia's there so how could he not?), to have another adventure.

To celebrate, I have put the eBook version of Lost in Spain (an earlier Spanish Civil War story) on all formats for 99c.

More details of this and my other books on my website.

7 Series filling Xmas stockings.

The 7 Series tops the 50,000 mark in total sales and still rising. The complete set is currently ranked #507 on Amazon.ca overall and #31 in bestsellers for teens. Looks like it's going to end up in a lot of stockings this year.
This week only, the Seven Series is featured on iBookstore.
Check it out on your iPad, iPhone or iTunes.
Don't have iTunes! An account is free on your computer, as is the iBooks app.
Lost Cause and the other 7 Series books have been selected for the 2013 Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers List by the American Library Association.
More detail on the Seven Series on this blog and on my website.