M.B. Weston's Blog, page 20
July 15, 2014
Elysian Chronicles Fun Facts: The Story Behind Sarkon the Dragon
In Out of the Shadows, readers begin to discover a bit of the dragon culture in Heaven’s Realm. Rhys, the king of the dragons, should be the most familiar. However, one Baethir dragon named Sarkon makes a few appearances.
The door lifted up, and the wind gusted around the opening. Inside, Davian saw a great room. Round pillars reached from the floor to the ceiling. Three wooden chandeliers that held almost three hundred glow torches each hung on the ceiling, casting green light across the room. Scores of dragons crawled in the stone hallways, up the pillars, and around the ceiling. The sounds of their claws echoed through the tower’s halls.
“I wasn’t expecting it to be this big,” said Marcus.
“Neither was I,” said Davian.
“The hallways are over thirty feet wide,” said Rhys. “I think Ezzer built this place intending we dragons visit—before we turned neutral.”
Davian and the rest of his soldiers flew inside. He expected the temperature to drop the way it did when he entered a cave, but instead it felt warm. He looked around and saw fires crackling in the great hall’s ten main fireplaces. Even some of the pillars doubled as fireplaces and chimneys. He turned to Rhys. “Did you light these for us?”
“For us. It gets cold up here, even for dragons.”
A roar thundered through the tower, and the floor shook. A pale-grey Baethir dragon barreled toward them. His head reared back, ready to spew fire.
Kinole hopped in front of the soldiers and spread his wings to shield them. Rhys growled and sprung. He knocked the other dragon to the floor. A stream of flames, meant for Davian and his soldiers, shot from the Baethir’s mouth and reached the ceiling. The two beasts wrestled and clawed each other, growling in their own language. Rhys pinned the dragon to the ground and hissed. He climbed off and rejoined Davian and his soldiers.
“I apologize,” he said. “Sarkon is in charge of defending the tower, and we forgot to warn him about your arrival.”
Tyce and Theo caught their breath. “Can you tell him to make sure he warns the others?” said Tyce.
“Your nephew talks too much,” Davian muttered to Marcus. He forced a smile at Rhys and Sarkon. “Quite all right. I’m glad to have such a courageous Baethir keeping watch.”
Sarkon barely acknowledged Davian’s compliment. “The birdmen banished us from Earth,” he said to Rhys. “Why are you allowing them here?”
Rhys roared.
Davian and his soldiers covered their ears for a full minute until Rhys finished.
Sarkon bowed to Rhys. “As you wish, your majesty.” He turned and slinked down the hall.
While Sarkon’s role in Out of the Shadows is small, he has a huge role in Book III. I don’t want to give any spoilers, but I don’t see anything wrong with giving clues. Here are two things that influenced my creation of Sarkon:
I needed tension between the dragons. First, I needed realism. All groups are composed of individuals. Individuals don’t always agree. Sarkon and Rhys not seeing eye to eye makes the dragon culture seem more real. Second, tension between Rhys and Sarkon makes for a more exiting, page-turning story. Third… Well, that’s a spoiler. But think about how boring Book 3 would without a bit of dragon-breathed napalm on each side of the battle…
I created Sarkon based on the tale behind the red dragon on the Welsh flag. Here is the summary: a red and white dragon were fighting underground, and the red dragon finally defeated the white dragon. Merlin used that as a prophecy that the Britons would eventually dominate the Saxons. (See here for more detail.) I realized that Rhys was rust colored, which was a version of red. So I made Sarkon a grey color with the intent of bringing up in Book 3 that both dragons were descended from the original dragons who fought.
I realize neither of those give much detail, but I wanted to put the ideas out there without spoiling Book 3.
Be sure to click here for more Elysian Chronicles Fun Facts!
Do you have M. B. Weston’s Elysian Chronicles on your Kindle yet? Get them now for only $2.99–less than the cost of a Starbucks Latte! (Click here for A Prophecy Forgotten on Kindle and Out of the Shadows on Kindle.)
Join in the discussion at M. B. Weston’s Treetop Inn group on Facebook!
Fantasy, steampunk, and paranormal novelist M. B. Weston is the author of The Elysian Chronicles, a fantasy series about guardian angel warfare and treason. Weston is also the hose of The Final Cut In Movies radio show that airs on TMV Cafe Monday nights at 8:00 EST. For more information on M. B. Weston, visit www.mbweston.com. To receive notification of M. B. Weston’s book releases click here to subscribe to Dark Oak Press & Media’s e-newsletter.
July 14, 2014
Tonight’s Final Cut in Movies Radio Show: Dawn of the Planet of the Apes!
Join me tonight at 8:00 EST for tonight’s Final Cut in Movies Radio Show. I’m bringing in horror expert and film maker Robert Alvarez, and we’ll be discussing the movie, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, staring Gary Oldman, Keri Russell, Andy Serkis, and Jason Clarke, and directed by Matt Reeves.
Listen Live at 8:00pm EST at TMVcafe.com!
Be sure to join in the discussion afterward at M. B. Weston’s Treetop Inn group on Facebook!
Fantasy, steampunk, and paranormal novelist M. B. Weston is the author of The Elysian Chronicles, a fantasy series about guardian angel warfare and treason. Weston is also the hose of The Final Cut In Movies radio show that airs on TMV Cafe Monday nights at 8:00 EST. For more information on M. B. Weston, visit www.mbweston.com. To receive notification of M. B. Weston’s book releases click here to subscribe to Dark Oak Press & Media’s e-newsletter.
July 11, 2014
M. B. Weston Confirmed as CyphaCon’s Author Guest of Honor–April 17th-19th, 215
I’ve officially been confirmed as the Author Guest of Honor at CyphaCon (@CyphaCon on Twitter) in Lake Charles, Louisiana from April 17th to 19th, 2015. I am incredibly honored to have been asked, and I can’t wait for next April. Once I get my schedule, I will post it so stay tuned!
Please click here for my “Speaking and Signing Events” page for a list of scheduled signings and conventions I will be attending
Fantasy, steampunk, and paranormal novelist M. B. Weston is the author of The Elysian Chronicles, a fantasy series about guardian angel warfare and treason. Weston is also the hose of The Final Cut In Movies radio show that airs on TMV Cafe Monday nights at 8:00 EST. For more information on M. B. Weston, visit www.mbweston.com. To receive notification of M. B. Weston’s book releases click here to subscribe to Dark Oak Press & Media’s e-newsletter.
July 10, 2014
Fun Facts: How Jim Henson’s Dark Crystal Influenced The Elysian Chronicles
Believe it or not, Jim Henson’s movie, The Dark Crystal, had a bit of influence on both A Prophecy Forgotten and Out of the Shadows, particularly when I developed the Dungeon of Enbed.
If you’ve read the books, you know that the biggest danger of being a prisoner in the Dungeon of Enbed is the possibility of turning vacuous. In A Prophecy Forgotten, I hint at what goes on there:
Davian watched the mornachts dragging twenty gnomes dressed in sky blue and gray chained together in a line. The gnomes trudged along with dazed eyes and bleeding backs. One fell to the ground. The mornacht nearest him sent a whip into his back, picked him up, and forced him to continue…. A Morvenian commander shouted something to one of the guards. The guard nodded. Davian heard a loud clang and a metallic creak. Then to his surprise, the side of the mountain opened to reveal a hidden fortress.
The gnomes immediately shook off their exhaustion and began to fight. They pushed and shoved and wriggled in a desperate attempt at freedom. Some even tried to kill themselves with whatever sharp objects they found. For better or worse Davian did not know, but the Morvenian guards kept most of them alive and dragged them into the mountain, right before the mountain slammed shut, leaving Davian and his unit alone with the original two guards.
Davian wondered what the gnomes knew about the goings on inside the mountain, which also made him wonder about the thousands of cherubian soldiers Elysia had never found after battle. The thought that the mornachts might have taken them to this dungeon made his stomach churn.
–A Prophecy Forgotten – Chapter 12: The Dungeon of Enbed
In Out of the Shadows, I had to figure out what went on inside the walls knowing I would be putting Davian there. I figured that the mind would probably just “check out” after prolonged torture and work and lack of sunlight. I’m sure that Pavlov’s experiments (they weren’t all about bells and food) filtered into it. In my mind, I saw the prisoners as having lost all their personalities from the unspeakable horrors they would have endured both day and night. –kind of like zombies except not dead. I called it “turning vacuous” and made the process irreversible. Davian begins to succumb to it in Out of the Shadows:
A row of gnomes filed past. Not one trembled at the sound of the whip. Not one cowered when a mornacht struck him. Not one turned when another fell to the ground in exhaustion. They were vacuous: soulless walking bodies devoid of personality and will, a condition Davian knew was incurable. When he first entered Enbed, he watched the vacuous prisoners in horror. Now he gazed upon them with envy. None of them felt the whip’s sting. None of them endured the mine’s toil. Davian felt his mind begging to block out the stimuli…. Davian felt something hit his forehead. He looked down to see a piece of sulfur that had fallen in front of him. I can’t feel anymore.
“No!” Davian cried out, hoping the words might stimulate his senses. His yell sounded faint and far away. He stood up. I won’t let them win.… He stared at [a] gnome, who seemed to be shouting, but Davian heard only a muffled sound. He fell to the ground, groped for his shovel, and grasped its neck, intending to ram the spade into his throat.
I will not become like them.
–Out of the Shadows – Chapter 5: Flickering Candles
Memories of the The Dark Crystal in my early childhood helped me develop my own concept of turning “vacuous.”. For me, the scariest part of that movie occurred when the Skeksis drained the essence from the podlings so they could drink it and ward off old age. The podlings who had been drained walked around as slaves with no real will of their own. The eyes of the drained podlings were especially frightening. Those were the subconscious images I saw in my head when I wrote my vacuous scenes.
Be sure to click here for more Elysian Chronicles Fun Facts!
Join in the discussion at M. B. Weston’s Treetop Inn group on Facebook!
Fantasy, steampunk, and paranormal novelist M. B. Weston is the author of The Elysian Chronicles, a fantasy series about guardian angel warfare and treason. Weston is also the hose of The Final Cut In Movies radio show that airs on TMV Cafe Monday nights at 8:00 EST. For more information on M. B. Weston, visit www.mbweston.com. To receive notification of M. B. Weston’s book releases click here to subscribe to Dark Oak Press & Media’s e-newsletter.
July 9, 2014
Realms of Imagination is Now Available in Hardcover and Trade Paperback!
I’m excited to announce that Realms of Imagination urban fantasy anthology edited by Kimberly Richardson and published by Dark Oak Press and Media is finally available in hardcover and trade paperback! This anthology contains one of my stories, “The White Rider,” that takes place in The Elysian Chronicles universe between Out of the Shadows and Book III.
I’ve hinted that this story foreshadows a couple plot twists that will occur in Book III, but I never actually explained what it’s about. So here is a little bit of a description. :)
Meet Peter O’Reilly: a narcissist intent on climbing the corporate ladder. He keeps his life well under control, starting with his OCD morning routine:
I showered and shaved by 6:15. I added some gel to my dark-brown hair and ran a brush through it. I put on a pair of grey dress pants and a starched, white shirt. (The starch helped stiffen the shirt, camouflaging my slender frame.) I searched through my tie collection. I had an important meeting this morning, and I wanted to convey power. I chose a red one. I added gold cuff links, a present to myself for graduating from Princeton University, as a final touch. I believed in dressing for the position you wanted, and I was sure the President of the United States wore cuff links. …
Peter has his own moral code:
“Preparedness is a virtue,” [I said]. I had no use for patience.
One thing is for sure, Peter doesn’t need any help from others. He’s going to succeed on his own:
Angel statues in general annoyed me. I felt as though they were watching me no matter where I stood. Others might find that comforting, but not me. I hated it when people searched for help from some outside, spiritual source instead of solving their own problems. Live for yourself was my motto. Take control of your own life and quit waiting on some power to help you out.
All that changes Peter gets inducted into a secret society of powerful, wealthy individuals. He thinks it’s his ticket to success. In actuality, the society is a front for evil he never believed was possible. Now Peter must choose between good and evil, and he comes to the realization that he can’t get out alive without help.
Click here to reach Dark Oak’s Realms of Imagination page, which has links to all major booksellers near the bottom left hand corner.
Also, if you’ve read A Prophecy Forgotten, but haven’t read Out of the Shadows, be sure to get your copy now since Out of the Shadows takes place just a few years before “The White Rider.” Click for:
Kindle
Nook
Trade Paperback
Hardcover
Be sure to join in the discussion at M. B. Weston’s Treetop Inn group on Facebook!
Fantasy, steampunk, and paranormal novelist M. B. Weston is the author of The Elysian Chronicles, a fantasy series about guardian angel warfare and treason. Weston is also the hose of The Final Cut In Movies radio show that airs on TMV Cafe Monday nights at 8:00 EST. For more information on M. B. Weston, visit www.mbweston.com. To receive notification of M. B. Weston’s book releases click here to subscribe to Dark Oak Press & Media’s e-newsletter.
July 8, 2014
Elysian Chronicles Fun Facts: Dragon Clans – The Tatsu
As stated in an earlier post about dragons, I realized that I needed to divide the dragons into races (or clans) when I was writing Out of the Shadows. Today’s post will focus on the Tatsu dragons, and I will focus on the Tatsu in a later posts. (Click the links for the post on my other two dragon races: the Imperial dragons and the Baethir.)
Since two of my dragon races were already based on European dragons, I wanted to include a dragon race that resembled the dragons in Asian myths and legends as well. I discovered that Japanese dragons, called Tatsu, had unique and interesting personalities. I started brainstorming a bit and taking notes about this third race of dragons.
“Tatsu” (needs root)
Smallest
Only three claws
More snake-like with thick, equal length legs
Moves like snake. Even in air.
Troublesome, mischievous, yet winning personalities
Quick litter suckers, so they look like they disappear
Long, floppy ears
Floppy folds of skin on back and tail. These raise and become hard when it becomes angry
Folds of skin under chins, resembling a beard
Flat snout, (like a shi-tsu) raised nostrils
12-15% of total dragon pop
Kinole is one of these.
Brighter colors
Fire streams, slightly thinner than lung, and not as far reaching. Quickness makes it okay. The streams are hotter than any other dragons. Incineratingly hot with blue flame. (This is the dragon the gnomes used to make the [***spoiler protection***].)
A few things about my notes:
The “needs a root” was a note to myself to not call them Tatsu, but the name stuck. Sometimes it’s just impossible to come up with a new name after something sticks. That’s designate yet-to-be-named characters with a letter and a number. That way I don’t have a name that sticks.
I can’t remember exactly what I read, but some varieties of Asian dragons disappear. I decided that I would make my Tatsu dragons move so quickly they looked like they were disappearing.
Because they were so small, I wanted to give them the hottest fire as an equalizer.
Here are a couple excerpts from Out of the Shadows about Kinole, the only Tatsu in the story.
One [dragon], thinner and more serpent-like, wound back and forth beneath the red dragon’s legs. It stood only eight feet tall on all fours. Its snout was flatter than those of the rest, and its long, pointy ears stood straight up. Its teal scales reflected both purple and green with each movement. Its tail swished back and forth as it watched Davian’s every move.
–Out of the Shadows – Chapter 32: Weapons, Swords & Daggers
Gabriella woke up with a cough that sent pain around her chest, especially the left side. She remembered little since Cassadern had brought her to Davian, save a few visions of waking up in the middle of the night and seeing the seraph’s blurry outline or that of a unicorn in the moonlight. She opened her eyes, realizing she lay on a bed in a stone room. Sun poured in through the windows to the right. Behind her, a fire burned and popped, and a warm breeze blew through the room every now and then. She turned her head and saw the source. A teal dragon was lying on the floor with his head resting on her bed, staring at her with half-open eyes. Warm air enveloped her each time he exhaled.
Gabriella screamed and flung herself off the bed, yelping when her hip hit the floor. She pushed herself back to the wall with her legs, looking for something to use as a weapon if the dragon tried to attack her.
The dragon’s ears stood straight. Ridges formed on his back. He jumped in the air and hit his head on the ceiling. He backed up, shaking his head, smoke pouring out of his nostrils. Gabriella ran for the door, but stopped. The dragon had somehow dashed across the room and pushed his backside against the door in less than a second.
–Out of the Shadows – Chapter 33: Rest for the Weary
Be sure to click here for more Elysian Chronicles Fun Facts!
Join in the discussion at M. B. Weston’s Treetop Inn group on Facebook!
Fantasy, steampunk, and paranormal novelist M. B. Weston is the author of The Elysian Chronicles, a fantasy series about guardian angel warfare and treason. Weston is also the hose of The Final Cut In Movies radio show that airs on TMV Cafe Monday nights at 8:00 EST. For more information on M. B. Weston, visit www.mbweston.com. To receive notification of M. B. Weston’s book releases click here to subscribe to Dark Oak Press & Media’s e-newsletter.
July 7, 2014
Tonight’s Final Cut in Movies Radio Show: Deliver Us From Evil
Join me tonight at 8:00 EST for tonight’s Final Cut in Movies Radio Show. I’m bringing in horror expert and film maker Robert Alvarez, and we’ll be discussing the movie, Deliver Us From Evil, staring Eric Bana, Édgar Ramírez, and Olivia Munn, and directed by Scott Derrickson.
Listen Live at 8:00pm EST at TMVcafe.com!
Be sure to join in the discussion afterward at M. B. Weston’s Treetop Inn group on Facebook!
Fantasy, steampunk, and paranormal novelist M. B. Weston is the author of The Elysian Chronicles, a fantasy series about guardian angel warfare and treason. Weston is also the hose of The Final Cut In Movies radio show that airs on TMV Cafe Monday nights at 8:00 EST. For more information on M. B. Weston, visit www.mbweston.com. To receive notification of M. B. Weston’s book releases click here to subscribe to Dark Oak Press & Media’s e-newsletter.
M. B. Weston’s Short Story, “The White Rider” Now Available in Realms of Imagination, an Urban Fantasy Anthology!
If you are waiting for The Elysian Chronicles: Book III, you need to read “The White Rider.” It takes place between Out of the Shadows and Book III, and it’s now available in the Realms of Imagination urban fantasy anthology edited by Kimberly Richardson and published by Dark Oak Press and Media!
Here’s a little preview for you:
*****
The White Rider
I shoved a piece of bread speckled with mold into my mouth. I convulsed as I chewed and forced myself to swallow. I had not eaten in a week, and moldy bread was better than no bread. You’ve swallowed worse, I reminded myself. I shook the crumbs off my matted beard. Don’t start getting prissy again.
I crouched behind the dumpster near a restaurant door’s inviting glow. The patrons’ voices and the soft clinking of silverware comforted me. Part of me cautioned myself to keep my distance, but I yearned for human interaction that I had not enjoyed in months.
You’re safe, another part of me said. No one will venture near this dumpster, and if they do, they’ll run away from your stench. I had not bathed in weeks, and my tattered clothes—once a dress-shirt and pants—reeked of perspiration and filth.
I flexed my fingers, trying to keep circulation flowing. Though it was only late afternoon, the December air hovered near freezing. I leaned against the dumpster and listened, wishing I spoke Romanian.
Glass shattered at the end of the alley. I crouched behind a few stacked boxes and peeked out. My heart started to pound. I inhaled for five seconds, counting each beat—the quickest way I knew to calm my fear.
They lost your trail in Italy, I reminded myself.
I exhaled for five seconds, again counting each beat.
Another part of me chimed in. They might have picked your trail up again.
Inhale. One, two, three, four, five. I focused on the alley, searching the trash, scraps of metal, and shadows for movement. My fingers combed the ground for a potential weapon. I found a metal pipe and pulled it to my chest in silence. Only my breath turning to fog betrayed my existence behind the dumpster.
A shadow leapt across the walls twenty feet away.
My body tingled with adrenaline. I laced my fingers around the pipe and crouched, ready to spring once whatever it was showed itself.
A tomcat emerged from the darkness and hobbled toward me. I released the pipe. My heart rate slowed as the old thing wound around my leg.
Stupid cat.
I offered it the last of my bread. After a few sniffs, the cat took the morsel and sat next to me as it ate. I ran my hand down its fur, ignoring the fleas and dirt. It curled up next to me and purred. I had to admit it was nice to have a temporary companion—especially a warm one.
I twirled my Princeton class ring around my finger, and again contemplated pawning it. I had already sold my prized gold cuff links. Keep the ring, I told myself. I needed something to remind me of my former life. The ring would also identify my body if I died, and my brother would finally know what happened to me. Though I had not seen him for six months, thoughts of Dean still made me grin.
The street lights flickered. Night was approaching. I hid my thoughts of Dean away and grabbed the pipe. I needed all my senses alert to outsmart those who pursued me. Please understand, of all those who have been hunting me, I fear the humans the least.
*****
The Realms of Imagination anthology is currently available on Kindle (click here) and Nook (click here), and will soon be available in trade paperback and hardcover.
Also, if you’ve read A Prophecy Forgotten, but haven’t read Out of the Shadows, be sure to get your copy now since Out of the Shadows takes place just a few years before “The White Rider.” (Click for Kindle, Nook, Trade Paperback, Hardcover.)
Be sure to join in the discussion at M. B. Weston’s Treetop Inn group on Facebook!
Fantasy, steampunk, and paranormal novelist M. B. Weston is the author of The Elysian Chronicles, a fantasy series about guardian angel warfare and treason. Weston is also the hose of The Final Cut In Movies radio show that airs on TMV Cafe Monday nights at 8:00 EST. For more information on M. B. Weston, visit www.mbweston.com. To receive notification of M. B. Weston’s book releases click here to subscribe to Dark Oak Press & Media’s e-newsletter.
July 3, 2014
M. B. Weston Confirmed for DragonCon, August 29 – September 1, 2014
I’ve officially been confirmed as a guest at DragonCon in Atlanta from August 29 – September 1. Once I get my schedule, I will post it so stay tuned!
Please click here for my “Speaking and Signing Events” page for a list of scheduled signings and conventions I will be attending
Fantasy, steampunk, and paranormal novelist M. B. Weston is the author of The Elysian Chronicles, a fantasy series about guardian angel warfare and treason. Weston is also the hose of The Final Cut In Movies radio show that airs on TMV Cafe Monday nights at 8:00 EST. For more information on M. B. Weston, visit www.mbweston.com. To receive notification of M. B. Weston’s book releases click here to subscribe to Dark Oak Press & Media’s e-newsletter.
July 2, 2014
Take a Sneak Peek: My Paranormal Thriller (Work in Progress)
I have decided to post a bit about of the projects I’m working on to give people a sneak peek at what’s coming down the pike. This is a section from a paranormal thriller novel I’m finishing up (working title: Unleashed). (Note: 50 other books currently share that title, so I need to figure out a new one.) The main character’s name is Abby, and she’s staying at a friend’s house in the guest bedroom, trying to go to sleep after a bit of a scare.
I try to post bits and pieces of what I’m working on in my facebook page as well as the M. B. Weston’s Treetop Inn Group, so please feel free to follow and join. :)
Please note: this has not yet been edited, and it probably contains a few mistakes.
*****
[Abby] closed her eyes, trying to quiet her thoughts. A thunderstorm had started, and webs of lightning decorated the sky. Wind howled through the trees outside.
Abby started shivering, even under the covers. The rain must have cooled down the house. Lightning lit up the sky, and Abby gasped.
Someone was looking at her through the window.
They sky went dark. Abby clutched the comforter to her chest and scooted against the headboard, trying to figure out if she was dreaming or awake and too terrified to yell. Lightning again lit up the sky and the window was empty.
Abby blinked a couple of times, trying to figure out if she was dreaming.
I’m on the second floor, she thought. No one could be outside her window looking in without scaffolding or serious acrobatic skills.
Lightning flashed again. The window remained empty.
Abby relaxed her grip on the comforter. She stared at the window until she drifted off to sleep.
***
The next morning, Abby woke to the blare of her cell phone’s alarm. She forced herself to sit up, knowing she would fall back to sleep if she didn’t. She kept her eyes closed. As long as she didn’t lie down, she convinced herself. When she finally opened them, she saw a thin line of sunlight peeking through the window—and through her hair, which had fallen across her face.
After letting loose a yawn, Abby tossed her hair back and rubbed her eyes. She stood up, stretched, and opened the suitcase she had brought to Brandi’s, trying to focus on something other than wanting to stay in bed.
Uniform shirt. She grabbed one of the department’s dull, grey polo shirts. She frowned, wishing for something other than grey for a change.
“Purple,” she muttered. “They should give us purple.” She scowled as she pulled out a pair of khaki slacks. Her desire to stay home from work was increasing, especially since everyone would try to talk to her and find out how she was doing after last night’s break in incident.
Abby’s stomach and neck started to tense up as she remembered the events from the night before. “Stop,” she whispered. She was safe at Brandi’s. She couldn’t work herself into a state of fear the way she had when she imagined the person staring at her in the window the night before.
Abby chuckled at her own silliness. She was on the second floor; no one could possibly have looked in her window. She checked outside just to prove the point to herself. A quick glance confirmed it. No one could have climbed the smooth stucco wall. She didn’t see any balconies or tree branches anywhere near the window. No one could have been outside her window last night—and certainly not the person who broke into her house.
The smudged dirt in the shape of handprints on the outside windowsill told a different story…
Fantasy, steampunk, and paranormal novelist M. B. Weston is the author of The Elysian Chronicles, a fantasy series about guardian angel warfare and treason. Weston is also the hose of The Final Cut In Movies radio show that airs on TMV Cafe Monday nights at 8:00 EST. For more information on M. B. Weston, visit www.mbweston.com. To receive notification of M. B. Weston’s book releases click here to subscribe to Dark Oak Press & Media’s e-newsletter.
