TIMESLAYERS
TIMESLAYERS
Colin Sephton
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GENRE: Steampunk Adventure Mystery
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BLURB:
In a Steampunk Oxford, Ignatius and Indigo are both agents for the Union Jacks, a secret organisation. The role of the Union is to protect the British Empire, which is at the height of its powers, and help in its technological advances. They have discovered the existence of the mystical Book of Consciousness written by the creator of the cosmos, the genderless Omnisoul. The book is the history of everything that is, that has been and that will be. The agents are aided by Skye, who accidentally calls forth seven merciless immortals called the Charon.
Known as the Beautiful and the Damned, the Charon are the Infernal Dukes of Hell, created to carry out the will of the Omisoul. But they are tired of their immortality and want to end their existence. Elsewhere, the sorcerer Ragnar of Roc has conjured a hole in spacetime, allowing the draconic Elder God Calabi Ya to re-enter the cosmos from the Ghost Worlds. He is as old as the Omnisoul and wants the book to learn his destiny. The two Union Jacks leave Oxford and are taken on a journey across the cosmos in the great ship Taraka, which sails through space and time. Ignatius and Indigo are mere pawns in the cosmic ocean of fate, carried to fabled places, witness to bloody massacres, and half-willing conspirators in the Charon’s plot to thwart the Omnisoul’s plan and defeat the protectors of the Well at the Centre of Time.
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EXCERPT
He ran his hand through a shock of blonde hair that looked permanently wind swept. Isambard Ignatius was a tall young man; he was handsome, dressed in a frock coat of check tweed and an engineer’s waistcoat, complete with a large silver pocket watch and chain.
From previous research, Ignatius had discovered a vague reference to an archaic manuscript that was said to hold the key to reality, the story of the whole cosmos – what had been, what was and that which was to come. This was said to be the biography of the cosmos. Legend had it that the book was unique in being older than the earth, indestructible, and that whoever read it could see the events described within pass before their eyes. Ignatius didn’t believe this but did believe that in the wrong hands the book could be very dangerous.
Ignatius was beginning to realise that the body was, as many eastern aesthetics had taught through the ages, surplus, just a vehicle for the mind. This was a philosophy and science that would make religion obsolete. The view that the real world was nothing more than the physical world was destined to come crumbling down and be lost in the debris of all religious buildings. He knew this was why the Administorium were trying to keep an eye on his activities.
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Colin was born in Coventry and worked in the automotive industry for over twenty years before becoming an Engineering teacher. Obtaining his first library card at the age of thirteen, he became an avid reader of Fantasy and the mysteries of the Universe. He has an inbuilt curiosity for lost knowledge and ancient texts that may help to unlock the secrets of consciousness and the universe. Living in Oxford for many years, he has now moved back to his home county of Warwickshire where he enjoys creating and working with his wife on their garden in which he writes and entertains their two grandsons. He has always been an artist and writer and is inspired by the worlds created by Robert E Howard and Michael Moorcock, with the artwork of Frank Frazetta.
Amazon Buy Link: https://amazon.com/Timeslayers-Colin-Sephton/dp/196230809X/
Publisher Author Page: https://cinnabarmoth.com/colin-sephton/
Website: https://sephtonart.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/timeslayers/
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RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAY
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Q & A With …
Tell us about you as a person.
I was born in Coventry, England and worked as a design engineer and project manager in the automotive industry for twenty-four years before becoming an engineering teacher. I am a very creative person; I think you have to be creative to solve engineering problems and find viable solutions.
I have a love of all things unusual, particularly if it is related to the stars and planets and am an avid reader of all the latest theories regarding the cosmos and consciousness. Obtaining my first library card aged thirteen, I became an avid reader of Fantasy and the mysteries of the Universe. I have an inbuilt curiosity for lost knowledge and ancient texts that may help to unlock the secrets of consciousness and the universe. Living in Oxford for many years, I have now moved back to my home county of Warwickshire where I enjoy creating and working with my wife in our garden in which I write and entertain our two grandsons.
I have always been an artist and writer and sell my paintings online. I have works in France, California, New York, the Channel Islands, and many places in the United Kingdom. But the genre of painting I love the most are fantasy artworks such as those of Frank Frazetta, who illustrated the world of Conan written by Robert E Howard. Howard along with Michael Moorcock, are my favourite authors, probably because I discovered them when I was about fifteen years old and had never read anything like it before. Reading their novels meant I could create a whole new world in my head and a nice place to escape to when needed.
If you could hang out with one famous person for one day, who would it be and why?
If I could hang out with anyone famous, it would have to be Leonardo da Vinci. Such a genius and an all-round scientist, architect, engineer and artist. His powers of observation were remarkable, to the point that he knew something about the human heart that modern science had only just discovered recently. I would also like to know if his assistant actually got to fly using his design for an aeroplane!
What’s the story behind your latest book?
The story behind my novel, Timeslayers has two protagonists Ignatius and Indigo, who live in Oxford, England. They are secret agents for an organisation called the Union Jacks, their purpose is to protect the interests of the British Empire, which is at the height of its powers, but the history of the organisation goes right back to the Trojan war when after the battle Brutus came and founded Britain. They live in a steampunk world and have discovered the existence of a mystical book called the Book of Consciousness written by the creator of the cosmos, the genderless Omnisoul. The book is the history of everything that is, that has been and that will be. The agents are aided by Skye, who accidently calls forth seven merciless immortals called the Charon.
Known as the Beautiful and the Damned, the Charon are the Infernal Dukes of Hell, created to carry out the will of the Omnisoul. But they are tired of their immortality and want to end their existence. Elsewhere, the sorcerer Ragnar of Roc has conjured a hole in spacetime, allowing the draconic Elder God Calabi-Ya to re-enter the cosmos from the Ghost Worlds. He is as old as the Omnisoul and wants the book to learn his destiny. The two Union Jacks leave Oxford and are taken on a journey across the cosmos in the great ship Taraka, which sails through space and time. Ignatius and Indigo are mere pawns in the cosmic ocean of fate, carried to fabled places, witness to bloody massacres, and half-willing conspirators in the Charon’s plot to thwart the Omnisoul’s plan and defeat the protectors of the Well at the Centre of Time.
What advice do you have for other writers who want to get the word out about their latest book?
For other writers who want to get the word out about their book, my advice is to never give up. Believe in yourself and keep going. I know that is sometimes difficult, but if you believe you have a good idea then keep trying. My novel Timeslayers came about because I wrote it for me. It was a side line hobby that kept me entertained for many years and although I always dreamt it might get published, that was the ultimate goal, I believed there was a slim chance of it actually happening. Along the way there were many rejections, but that was okay, I had a body of work that was mine, it was unique and I created it. Many years ago, I heard an interview with the great Stan Lee from Marvel Comics, and he said that the way he got into the comic world, was he started to write the stories he wanted to read. That always stayed with me. So, I am guessing that other writers have written something that they wanted to create because they enjoyed it, it was for them. So keep going, put it out there and see what you can attract in way of opportunities.
List 5 things on your bucket list.
Five things on my bucket list. I am lucky enough to have already achieved two of them!
1/ To get my house featured in a national magazine, my wife and I have achieved this twice!
2/ To get a book published.
3/ Be photographed next to my novels on a bookshelf in a book store somewhere, just to say here’s the proof, I did that!
4/ Have an illustrated version of Timeslayers using my own fantasy artwork
5/ Revisit Japan – I was lucky enough to work there in 1995 and fell in love with the culture and the country. And I would like to take my wife for a visit.
Any final thoughts?
Final thoughts – I am looking to retire soon from my day job as an engineering teacher and write more books.
