Posts Tagged ‘Horror’

WWW Wednesday

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Hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading

To play along, just answer the following three (3) questions…

• What are you currently reading?

• What did you recently finish reading?

• What do you think you’ll read next?

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What are you currently reading?

Sparks: Anya Kalinczyk #2

by Laura Bickle

Sparks (Anya Kalinczyk, #2)

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WITHOUT A TRACE

Anya Kalinczyk is the rarest type of psychic medium, a Lantern, who holds down a day job as an arson investigator with the Detroit Fire Department—while working 24/7 to exterminate malicious spirits haunting a city plagued by unemployment and despair. Along with her inseparable salamander familiar, Sparky, Anya has seen, and even survived, all manner of fiery hell—but her newest case sparks suspicions of a bizarre phenomenon that no one but her eccentric team of ghost hunters might believe: spontaneous human combustion. After fire consumes the home of elderly Jasper Bernard, Anya is stunned to discover his remains—or, more precisely, a lack of them; even the fiercest fires leave some trace of their victims—and she is sure this was no naturally occurring blaze. Soon she’s unearthed a connection to a celebrity psychic who preys on Detroit’s poor, promising miracles for money. But Hope Solomon wants more—she’s collecting spirits, and in a frantic race against time, Anya will face down an evil adversary who threatens her fragile relationship with her lover, her beloved Sparky’s freshly hatched newts, and the wandering souls of the entire city.

Just finished Embers and grabbed Sparks and immediately started right back into this series!

I can’t wait to tell you about these books!

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What did you recently finish reading?

Embers: Anya Kalinczyk #1

Embers (Anya Kalinczyk, #1)

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Truth burns.Unemployment, despair, anger—visible and invisible unrest feed the undercurrent of Detroit’s unease. A city increasingly invaded by phantoms now faces a malevolent force that further stokes fear and chaos throughout the city.

Anya Kalinczyk spends her days as an arson investigator with the Detroit Fire Department, and her nights pursuing malicious spirits with a team of eccentric ghost hunters. Anya—who is the rarest type of psychic medium, a Lantern—suspects a supernatural arsonist is setting blazes to summon a fiery ancient entity that will leave the city in cinders. By Devil’s Night, the spell will be complete, unless Anya—with the help of her salamander familiar and the paranormal investigating team—can stop it.

Anya’s accustomed to danger and believes herself inured to loneliness and loss. But this time she’s risking everything: her city, her soul, and a man who sees and accepts her for everything she is. Keeping all three safe will be the biggest challenge she’s ever faced.

I had so much fun reading this book. I can’t say much as I’m reviewing Embers and Sparks in June for a tour!

So far, Sparks is every bit as good as Embers.

I’ll be doing my reviews soon!

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What do you think you’ll read next?

Strange Magic

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A MAN HIDING FROM A TERRIBLE PAST…Wilson Kemp is a man living a lie in Billington, Pennsylvania. He’s been in hiding for a long time, running from a dreadful secret that has forced him to change his name, move to this small secluded town, and abandon what had once been a stellar career. Once, he’d been a talented escape artist on the brink of fame and fortune, but now he’s a broken down alcoholic scared of his own shadow. Mind you, he has good reason to be scared because his worst fear has finally caught up with him, and the sleepy little town of Billington is about to be declared a war zone.HIS DARK SECRET ABOUT TO BE REVEALED…With the aid of a malevolent entity trapped within an old wooden trunk, a stranger from Wilson’s past has hunted him down; an insane fellow magician who will stop at nothing to get his twisted, bloody revenge. To survive, Wilson will have to conquer his own inner demons to fight his old enemy in a battle that will lead to the gates of death and beyond. To live, Wilson will have to accomplish the greatest magic trick of all time: escaping from the dark pit of Hell itself…
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I must have my horror fix!
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So, whatcha readin?

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Welcome to My Monday Minis.

This is where I review very short stories and flash fiction.

For today I’ll be telling you about The Red Door by E.H. James.

The Red Door

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We’ve all heard the sayings, “Don’t go in the basement, never say I’ll be right back, and of course, don’t go in there alone.”

I guess some people don’t ever learn, or are just plain stupid. Don’t they ever watch the movies? Sheesh!

Max is the new guy in school. He’s been through this so many times, he heads right to the cool kids, the bullies. Figures to get it over with and move on.

And Jimmy and his cronies don’t disappoint.

So here he is, waiting out in back of the school, wondering if he’s going to get his butt kicked by Jimmy and his buddies.

But nope, he gets off easy. Or so he thinks.

All he has to do is go in a haunted house and bring out something.

The thing is, it’s the Starke house, where Edward Starke killed thirteen boys and buried their bodies in the basement, before he was caught and executed.

Every September 9th, shortly after midnight, it’s said Edward comes back, looking for more blood to spill.

Jimmy tells him he has to get a chip of dried blood off the door in  the basement and come back out. That’s all.

Max accepts the challenge and on September 9th, just before midnight, he enters the Starke house to get his chip of whatever and come back out.

You probably know where this is going now.

Shortly after midnight things get dicey, and bloody.

Similar views of this story have been written, and I love reading how each author comes up with his own twist to scare the pants off ya.

The Red Door is campy and ghoulish. Just long enough to connect with the characters, but not too long in getting to the heart of the story.

What surprised me was how quickly I bonded with Max. I think we’ve all walked a mile in his shoes.

I wish he wouldn’t go in the basement.

4 Stars

Well written, flowed fast, and kept me riveted.

Reminded of some of Steven Kings earlier short story writing and that of Gary Devon.

Scary Good.

About the author

E.H. James is an author writing novels and short stories in the science fiction, horror, thriller, and fantasy genres.

For more about the author and his books visit his website.

Freakin Fridays!

Freakin Fridays is my own little meme. I’ll be posting about books, movies, and all things scary.

Feel free to join in and do your own Freakin Fridays posts!

Tune in every Friday. Get your scare on!

Let’s have some fun!

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I’m so thrilled to hear that Life After Dane is coming soon!

I’ve been waiting a while for this book.

I’ve read other works by Edward Lorn and his horror is gripping and terrifying.

Check out Life After Dane and read on for my reviews of other tales by Edward and enjoy the trailers!

Life After Dane

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A mother’s love is undying… and so is Dane.
After the state of Arkansas executes serial killer Dane Peters, the Rest Stop Dentist, his mother discovers that life is darker and more dangerous than she ever expected.
The driving force behind his ghostly return lies buried in his family’s dark past. As Ella desperately seeks a way to lay her son’s troubled soul to rest, she comes face to face with her own failings.
If Ella cannot learn why her son has returned and what he seeks, then the reach of his power will destroy the innocent, and not even his mother will be able to stop him.

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[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjpkCSgpfuQ]
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            Expected publication:        August 2013         by Red Adept Publishing, LLC

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This post is a bit long, as I added my review of Edward’s What The Dark Brings and his bonus stories. There are two killer trailers to watch. Can’t wait for you to see those!

What the Dark Brings

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Follow Edward Lorn out of the light and into the darkest recesses of his mind.

What the Dark Brings is a collection of 19 short stories, beginning with “Literary Sweets”, a tender jaunt into Christmastime that proves all is not lost for one jaded gentleman. But by the time you reach the final tale, “Come to Jesus Meeting”, the darkness is all encompassing.

Tales of hope, heartache, and horror abound.

Come find What the Dark Brings

***As an added bonus to new fans, Edward Lorn has included his mini-anthology, Three After, complete and uncut, at the end of this collection. A total of 22 tales of terror coming it at over 40,000 words.***

My review

This collection has everything!

A man on awakens on a train headin who knows where, no memory of how he got there.

Detective Franklin learns why the caretaker said, “The thing is no good, I tell ya.”

Penny always believed what her father said about the water, “There’s nothing out to get you.”

The sign said:

Opening December 20th:

Literary Sweets

Books and Candies for all ages

A combination of Treasures Await!

Raul had no idea how giving the homeless a few bucks would change his life.

Walter just had to have the chess set, the one made from the wood of the legendary ship, Titanic.

Everyone’s heard the urban legend about the man who goes missing on Christmas, only later his family finds his rotting body in the chimney.

A picture does paint a thousand words for Valerie. She just should have looked more closely.

Two young men, high on pot, watch the news as Chucklers gleefully rampage around the world.

Two young friends meet The Beast of Briar Bank.

There are so many delightfully wicked and twisted tales in this collection.

They each have their own flavor and many may seem a bit familiar. But that’s where the author steps in and takes you in a whole other direction.

I’ve read  his anthology, Three After, so I knew where he might take me with these.

If you like the macabre, the noir, the twisted and the darkly humorous, you’ll like this collection.

There was no stopping when I started, as I sped from story to story. Each one so different, so engrossing.

I’d love to see these as episodes for Tales From The Darkside or The Twilight Zone.

Or, maybe, the From The Mind of Edward Lorn Show!

Thanks for some really great writing and plenty of shivers. Edward.

What The Dark Brings gets 5 Stars for bringing it on!

. [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gq7FwJfMm2g?version=3&rel=1&fs=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&wmode=transparent] .

Here is my review of Three After from an earlier post.

Check out my thoughts on Edward’s Bonus stories.

Edward Lorn’s Three After takes you to the darkside with three chilling tales.

Three after

If you like your horror twisted and dripping blood, these three tales will give you that and then some. I will give you fair warning that Edward writes very descriptive, almost visual scenes, and they ain’t pretty.

1. World’s Greatest Dad

This is every father’s, hell, everybody’s worst nightmare.

Kimmy is gone. While Carl was trick or treating with his daughter, somebody snatched her. He was only distracted for a moment, but that was all it took.

The last time Carl saw Kimmy, she was talking to a man sitting in a rocking chair wearing a wolf costume. Now the chair is empty and Kimmy is gone.

They found Kimmy, but it was too late. Her body was discovered in a garbage bin, thrown away like so much trash.

Carl is consumed by grief and guilt. The police investigation is going nowhere. There is no consolation to be found.

Carl’s friend David inadvertently hands him a cup of coffee, the cup made by Kimmy. It reads World’s Gratest Dad and, yes, that is how she spelled it. Not able to bear it, Carl asks for a different cup. As he passes it back to David, the words on the cup change.

Help Her

He was the only one to witness it. Believing it to be a message from his daughter, Carl uses the messages that appear on the cup to try to save Her and find his daughters killer.

This is a story of redemption, betrayal and vengeance. What wouldn’t you do for your child?

2. An Affair To Remember

Jimmy has crossed the line. His rage at finding out his wife was having an affair, and with a jerk like Ray, pushed him over the edge.

What happens to Ray is horrific, but he has only himself to blame. Should have kept his pants zipped and stopped taunting Jimmy when he was caught.

But after brutally torturing and killing his wife and her lover, things get really bizarre for Jimmy.

Maybe Jimmy should have just walked away from the whole sordid mess.

3. Snuggles

She seems like such a sweet young girl. Elizabeth loves cats and she has three, Cuddles, Snuggles and Bumbles. Her favorite is Snuggles.

One day, her dad accidentally lets Snuggles outside. These are indoor cats and are not supposed to be let outside because of the road.

Yep, you guessed it. Her mom finds Snuggles in the road and tells her that he has gone to heaven.

Elizabeth is heart-broken and what she does to get Snuggles back is beyond belief.

This story goes from shocking to stomach-turning in a blink. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Five screams for really creeping me out!

I was racking my brain a while ago, trying to remember the name of a story I read, and now I’ve found it. World’s Greatest Dad!

That’s how much I love Edward’s writing. That short story is still with me.

About the author
Image of Edward Lorn

Edward Lorn is an American horror author presently residing in the southeast United States. He enjoys storytelling, reading, and writing biographies in the third person. Once upon a time, during a session of show and tell, a seven-year-old Edward Lorn shared with his class that his baby brother had died over the weekend. His classmates, the teacher included, wept while he recounted the painful tragedy of having lost a sibling. Edward went home that day and found an irate mother waiting for him. Edward’s teacher had called to express her condolences. This was unfortunate, as Edward had never had a baby brother. With advice given to her by a frustrated teacher, Edward’s mother made him start writing all of his lies down. The rest, as they say, is history. Edward Lorn and his wife are raising two children, along with a handful of outside cats and a beagle named Dot. He remains a liar to this day. The only difference is, now he’s a useful one.

For more about Edward Lorn and his books:

Website / Twitter / Goodreads / Amazon

WWW Wednesday

looking out a window photo: girl looking out the window girl-looking-out-the-window.jpg

Hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading

To play along, just answer the following three (3) questions…

• What are you currently reading?

• What did you recently finish reading?

• What do you think you’ll read next?

~

What are you currently reading?

Jet (Jet, #1)

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Code name: Jet

Twenty-eight-year-old Jet was once the Mossad’s most lethal operative before faking her own death and burying that identity forever.

But the past doesn’t give up on its secrets easily.

When her new life on a tranquil island is shattered by a brutal attack, Jet must return to a clandestine existence of savagery and deception to save herself and those she loves. A gritty, unflinching roller-coaster of high-stakes twists and shocking turns, JET features a new breed of protagonist that breaks the mold.

Fans of Lizbeth Salander, SALT, and the Bourne trilogy will find themselves carried along at Lamborghini speed to a conclusion as jarring and surprising as the story’s heroine is unconventional.

I see that Jet is free on Amazon. Go here.

Don’t know for how long so make sure you check!

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What did you recently finish reading?

Submerged

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Two strangers submerged in guilt, brought together by fate…

After a tragic car accident claims the lives of his wife, Jane, and son, Ryan, Marcus Taylor is immersed in grief. But his family isn’t the only thing he has lost. An addiction to painkillers has taken away his career as a paramedic. Working as a 911 operator is now the closest he gets to redemption—until he gets a call from a woman trapped in a car.

Rebecca Kingston yearns for a quiet weekend getaway, so she can think about her impending divorce from her abusive husband. When a mysterious truck runs her off the road, she is pinned behind the steering wheel, unable to help her two children in the back seat. Her only lifeline is a cell phone with a quickly depleting battery and a stranger’s calm voice on the other end telling her everything will be all right.

*SUBMERGED has a unique tie-in to Tardif`s international bestseller, CHILDREN OF THE FOG.

I’ll be doing my review soon!

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What do you think you’ll read next?

THE JOURNEY HAS BEGUN…
Lieutenant Travis Daniels and his soldiers, having just narrowly escaped death from Martian security forces, must race against time to prepare the transport ship for their return to an embattled Earth. Travis will brave the journey through space while his wife, Annie, struggles to keep her son alive. Everyone must do what is necessary to survive while the newly dominant creatures of Earth seek them out, hunting down the last of humanity without prejudice. Travis and his soldiers must land safely and travel the ruined planet, praying he finds his family before it’s too late.
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I’ve been waiting for this one!
This just released yesterday. You can find it on Amazon.
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Hop over here to read my review of Precipice: The Beginning and enter the awesome giveaway.

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So, whatcha readin?

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A Tag Team Event!

I’m so excited!

 Precipice: The Retrieval, Book Two, has been released and is now available.

What better way to celebrate Kevin’s new release than a giveaway!

Enjoy my review of Precipice, The Beginning.

Don’t forget to enter the awesome Giveaway!

Precipice: The Beginning (Book One)

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I love books about space travel and other planets. I also love stories with horrific creatures.

I found both in Precipice.

A large ship is swallowed up in the ocean and it sounds the death knell for Earth.

Meanwhile, 55 million miles from Earth, Lieutenant Travis Daniels and his elite team are little more than prisoners.

After a FUBAR mission, Travis made a deal to keep his team from a death sentence and they are now on Mars, helping to colonize it.

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When they aren’t mining, they spend most of their time in their cells.

“The excitement of being stationed on the fourth planet from the sun has long since worn off.”

Travis was already on Mars when his wife, Annie, discovers she’s pregnant. Since then, he’s only seen his son, Logan, twice, and that was on a monitor.

When they lose all communication with Earth, and finally do get a transmission, it shows an Earth with deep trenches ripped through it and flashes of strange creatures crawling out of them.

Travis has to find a way to get to his family while dealing with a madman that has control over them and the only ship able to get them home.

I enjoyed the camaraderie between Travis and his team. Each had their own distinct voice and their own place in the story. Without good secondary characters a story falls flat. Not so with this book.

While the situation on Mars is deteriorating, Earth has fallen into ruin. What crawls out of those trenches is terrifying.

They are so fast, you barely have time to blink before they’re on you. With lizard like skin and jaws of a hell hound, once they get close to you, you’re dead. I call them the ‘dobiegators.’

Then there’s the big guy. He is so huge he is beyond comprehension. The best description I can give you is the creature from the movie Cloverfield.

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This thing is so big it crushes buildings, reaching in to grab the people cowering inside.

It’s one thing after another, both on Earth and on Mars.

With Earth overrun and Mars not ready to be colonized yet, these people are between a rock and a hard place.

Kevin has written a thrilling, terrifying story with special ops, the end of the world, madmen, creatures from the bowels of Hell, and action galore.

When I finished reading Precipice, I said, “Yep, just what I needed.”

I love my horror and suspense and that’s just what I got!

5 Stars

Here is the amazing cover for Precipice, The Retrieval, Book Two

Available now on Amazon

precipice Book_Cover_2

Giveaway

I have an awesome giveaway from Kevin!

Alert! This is a Tag Team Event!

Sherry and I, the Tag Team Sisters, are both posting our reviews and having a giveaway.

For a second chance to win visit Sherry at  fundinmental

I’ll be giving away one paperback of Precipice and some Bookmarks from his other thrilling story Faithful Shadow.

An International Giveaway.

To enter, please leave your email address and answer this question:

“Do you think we will ever colonize another planet?”

Giveaway ends June 5th.

I’ve also read Faithful Shadow

Faithful Shadow

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Faithful Shadow takes you beyond the splendor of nature to the terror that lies beneath, one that should have never been discovered. Yellowstone is suffering from the largest forest fire in the park’s history. Ranger JOE RAND, once passionate about nature and now drowning in alcohol after the recent death of his son, notices something is very wrong within Yellowstone after a string of disappearances. But when a fireman is found dead in the Old Faithful Inn after falling into a hole earlier that day, his body mauled and deprived of all its fluids, Joe knows he has no choice but to set down his flask and investigate. Joe and Lieutenant DALE CAFFEY of the Billings Fire Department go into the woods to search the hole the fireman had fallen into. They discover a series of tunnels lined with bones, the air thick with smoke. Joe and Dale conclude that the creature that had killed the fireman had left its subterranean dwelling to flee the overwhelming smoke from the fire above. The creature takes shelter inside the Inn, concealing itself within the darkened crevices, emerging to feast on passersby. After staging an evacuation of the park, they lock themselves inside the Inn to hunt the creature. After just a short while it becomes frighteningly clear that it is, in fact, the creature that is hunting them.

Hell has come to Yellowstone and it’s just getting started.

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[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbDBOKgYzts?version=3&rel=1&fs=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&wmode=transparent]

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Go here for my review of Faithful Shadow

You can find all of these on Amazon

About the author

Kevin J.  Howard

Kevin Howard lives with his family in Washington.  He worked in Yellowstone National Park for the summer season as part of a family tradition.  Kevin, his wife Melissa, and his two young children enjoy spending summers there.

Contacts

Facebook

Goodreads

Website

I’m going to have to go read the first book in this series too.

The Brown House, The Visitor’s Series, Book One.

I just love a good scare!

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This book was awesome, scary and definitely gave me the hebie gebies!

I read this in one night, unable to put it down and hanging on every word to see what happened next.

~ Dawn Gray, author of Fire Storm

The Crimson Key (The Visitor's Series, Book Two)

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Buy at Amazon!

The truth can be deadly.

Brylee BransonⳠbest friend and boyfriend have fallen victim to a horrible curse that haunts her home. With the witches who cast it dead she has no choice but to rely on the ghosts inside the Brown house to help her find a cure. But time is not on her side, because Lynley’s illness is spreading rapidly.

Confused and scared, seventeen-year-old Brylee must confront a new ghost in the house she has never spoken to before. This spirit is not a Brown relative and makes no promises to help them unless she can re-unite her with a loved one.

The fate of those she loves now rests on her. Can Brylee put the pieces of this puzzle together in time to save them? Or will the Brown house claim another victim?

The VisitorⳠSeries continues to scare and entice its readers with this gripping second book.

TWITTER PARTY!

Tuesday, May 21 at 8 pm eastern

#CrimsonKey

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Giveaway

Prize pak Includes :
Signed copy of book 1, The Brown House, Key necklace and Handmade official Crimson Key soap

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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About the author

Christy Sloat

Christy Sloat is a SoCal born girl who resides in New Jersey currently with her husband, two daughters and Sophie her Chihuahua. Christy has embraced the love of reading and writing since her youth and was inspired by her grandmother’s loving support. Christy passes that love of reading, writing, and creativity to her daughters, family, and friends. When you do not find Christy within the pages of a book you can find her being mommy, wife, crafter, and dear friend. She loves adventurous journeys with her friends and can be known to get lost inside a bookstore. Be sure to venture into her Past Lives Series, The Visitor’s Series, and watch for many more exciting things to come.

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17787229-the-crimson-key

Christy Sloat
http://www.christysloat.com/

A GWR Publicity promotional event paid for by Anchor Group Publishing. The giveaway is sponsored by the author.

I couldn’t resist giving a shout out about Troy’s free download of Just Past the Trees on Amazon this weekend!

I’ve read several of Troy’s short stories and enjoyed them immensely.

So, I’ve added in my previous reviews so you can learn what I thought of them!

Don’t forget to get Just Past the Trees free here!

Just Past the Trees

I liked this one. It’s got a couple of writers in it.

I’m a young guy, still live at home. Yeah, I know, get a life. But I’m still trying to figure out what I want to do.

I know I want to be a writer, have for as long as I can remember.

I’ve always felt writing is my strongest suit. I hope you agree. Story ideas can walk into my head like strangers at Thanksgiving, and before I know it, I’m fleshing out characters, plotting some pretty evil schemes for them to fall into, and hearing lines of prose…

But until I become famous, got to earn a living. I work for a company that repairs big rigs. I’m the runner. If they need a part of a tool, it’s my job to get it. Not glamorous, but it’s a living.

One of my jobs is keeping the property mowed.

During a Florida summer breathing makes you sweat.

You’d think I was certifiable, cutting the grass with an old push mower in the blazing afternoon heat. It’s a huge piece of property and takes all week. By the time I’m done, it’s time to start all over again.

“Job security” is what my dad calls it. “Perpetual motion through redundancy” is what I call it..

Anyway, that’s how I discovered the body, or what was left of it.

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Like I said , it has two writers in the story. The other one is Doug Robbins. He’s a crypto-zoologist traveling through Florida on the trail of the Skunk-Ape. Ever heard of it? It’s the southern version of Bigfoot.

After hearing about the dead body, Doug suspects the skunk-ape may be involved. He’s here to finally get proof it exists and hopes to write a book about it.

The two young men hatch a plan to get said evidence of its existence and that’s when it gets hairy! Pardon the pun.

Troy can condense a story and make it have such an impact. I felt like I knew these guys. And a story about writers, the struggles they go through and how far they’ll go to write that story is interesting and fun. You get two different views from two writers.

Visually written. You’ll feel like you’re there, looking into the woods, and wondering what may be looking back at you.

Nothing less than Five Stars will do!

~~~

        Here is my review of Little Bernie’s Map.

Little Bernie's Map

This was just supposed to be a nice, relaxing family trip. A way to escape the daily grind and forget, for a while, the problems and worries at home.

Daniel and Gina, along with their son Bernie, are heading home after a trip to Disney World.  Daniel just lost his job, but they decide to go on this vacation anyway. It may be the last one they can take for a long time.

Bernie and his father have a game they play. Bernie loves map, he collects them. At random points in their trip, Daniel would ask Bernie how much farther they had to go and he would look on the map to track their progress.

Bernie had one map that was special. A map given to him by an old woman when they stopped for a break at the Florida Welcome Center. She told him to be careful with it and Bernie tried to be.

But when weird and frightening things start to happen, the map is not first on any of their minds. All they can think about is what just happened.

What came down from the sky that day would be discussed for years to come. Each person would draw their own conclusions. One thing most agreed on was what they saw, what it looked like.

My Thoughts

It has been a long time since I have been this surprised by a story. I had to reread several scenes just to wrap my mind around what was happening. I wanted to try to form an image in my head. I sure wish this had been a movie. You’ll know what I mean when” The Flashpoint” happens.

Troy has a wonderful way of leading you into the story. There is much about this family that you can relate to. The characters are genuine and very likeable. I felt their anguish and their perseverance and really wanted things to be alright for them.

When the event happens I am stunned. I can’t wait for you to read it. It is so wild and kind of funny. It definitely makes you think. Think and say, yeah, I hear ya.

If you like Twilight Zone and Tales From the Darkside, you will love this. I also got a flash of that dread you feel in the scene from the movie The Mist by Stephen King. The one where they are driving into the mist and you just know something inexplicable is going to occur. The feeling lasts long after you finish reading.

Another 5 Star story from Troy

   

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And last, but certainly not least, The Uninvited Guest.

The Uninvited Guest

Looks can be deceiving as is the cover for The Uninvited Guest.

It was supposed to be a celebration. Good times for all. A wedding and new beginnings.

Harlan is crashing the party, kind of. Jose’s mother insisted he go to the wedding and when he asks Harlan to go, he figures why not. There’ll be free food and booze and maybe some babes to dance with.

It seems like it takes forever to get there. The wedding is being held in a lodge surrounded by dense woods.

Finally, they arrive. The wedding goes off without a hitch. Now it’s time to eat, drink, and be merry. Except it’s taking forever to get to the dancing.

Finally the music starts and the happy couple do the traditional bride and groom shuffle. Everyone is oohing and aahing, taking copious pictures and video.

Harlan, standing at the back of the gathering, happens to glance out one of the windows. Everyone else is watching the happy couple, but something made him look.

Something outside, maybe a shadow, slid along the windowsill.  No, not a shadow, it had bulk. It seemed to take a long time to pass.

The windows are spaced about 5 to 6 feet apart. In the time it took to glance to the next window, it was sliding past that one too!

Everyone is still watching the couple. Harlan feels frozen in time. A look at the doors shows they’re still standing wide open.

An overwhelming feeling of dread passes over him. Something is coming. It’s almost to the doors.

The author wrote this story from Harlan’s point of view. It worked really good. I experienced everything with Harlan, felt his confusion, dread, and disbelief. And then his terror.

Have you ever had that feeling like something really bad is going to happen? That’s how I felt, right along with Harlan.

Harlan may have been an uninvited guest, but he’s not the only one.

This gets a Five from me!

~~~

And now from Troy

If you are looking for a story behind the story, I can’t honestly recall what sparked the idea for Little Bernie’s Map all those years ago when I originally wrote it. Although I can say that after hearing about the disheartening news about the debt crisis, along with the various problems many people in the Rust Belt were experiencing – a personal hit for me since I’m from southwestern Ohio – a terrifying thought started eating at the back of my mind: What if I was in one of those situations? What if I had a family to feed and I was out of work? It’;s scary, and my heart truly does go out to those families. Of course, this was around the time that I found Little Bernie’s Map(originally conceived as Little Ian’s Map for those who care) in my writing desk. Naturally, the cogs and gears started turning like they do when I start thinking about the serious issues in the world and how I would express my feelings toward them. In other words, when guys like me consider the money problems of the world, we consider how we would react to a giant mutant….(left blank by me so as not to avoid spoiler). Then again, maybe that’s just me and why I’m not running the show.

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About Troy Aaron Ratliff

Troy Aaron Ratliff was born and raised in Hamilton, Ohio and self-educated in writing, art and voice impersonations. When he’s not reading, writing and cooking up his next monstrosity, you can generally find him defending the galaxy from the forces of evil, feeding hippopotamuses, dining with foreign dignitaries and Zen masters, waking up to his supermodel wife, altering the space-time inter-dimensional warp or, more than likely, stuck in traffic somewhere in Southern California.

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I have read every book Evans has written.

All of them are so scary good and I can’t wait to read Screamscapes.

I’ve read most of the stories in it, but a couple are new to me.

Check out this cover!

Screamscapes

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Feast your bloodshot and festering maggot-filled eyeballs on the new trade paperback cover art for Screamscapes, designed by none other than illustrious Bram Stoker Award-winning horror maestro Kealan Patrick Burke, author of Kin and The Turtle Boy.

SCREAMSCAPES: This new collection showcases the dark fiction of  Evans Light.
(Paperback and Special Limited Edition available June 1, 2013.)

Prepare to find your way through a dark world as nightmares and screamscapes unfold in these ten strikingly original tales. Lingering lovesick ghosts, wives hellbent on revenge,along with sinister demons, underground dwellers, forgotten campgrounds and malintent friends haunt this compelling collection of modern horror.

Includes the bestselling novella, ArborEATum!

Stories include:

* Crawlspace
* Whatever Possessed You?
* ArborEATum
* Dark Curtains
* Gertrude
* Black Door
* The Mole People Beneath the City
* Pay Back
* Nose Hears
* The Package

This edition of Screamscapes will be available from Purveyors of Fine Horror everywhere on June 1, 2013.

Be sure to visit THE LIGHT BROTHERS web portal at www.evans-light.com for exclusive discounts and giveaways.

 Check out my reviews!

ArborEATum

Payback

The Mole People Beneath the City

Whatever Possessed You?

Crawl Space

Dark Curtains ~ Reviewing soon

Stories, Inc. ~ Reviewing soon

***written with Adam Light***

Corpus Corruptum – Reviewing soon.

Evans Light

Evans Light

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You can also stalk Evans here.

WWW Wednesday

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Hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading

To play along, just answer the following three (3) questions…

• What are you currently reading?

• What did you recently finish reading?

• What do you think you’ll read next?

~

What are you currently reading?

The Showing

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Based on more of a true story than you might wish to believe.
It was a house Mister Jones knew from his childhood, his grandparents’ house, a house that everyone in his family feared, a house with a tangible sense of evil seeping through its walls.
However, when he saw that it was up for sale yet again, Mister Jones couldn’t resist visiting it one more time, so he contacted the agent and arranged a showing.
Throughout the visit he sensed the evil re-emerging and, sure enough, after he left, the agent was nowhere to be found.
When the police interrogated Mister Jones, it was obvious that he knew more than he was telling.
What kind of evil was inhabiting the house and what part was Mister Jones playing in its plan?

Scary good so far!

It’s free right now too. Get yours here.

Don’t know for how long so make sure you check!

~

What did you recently finish reading?

Bound (The Crystor, #1)

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When a photo shoot ends in tragedy, Kira discovers her best friend, Lydia, has been keeping a secret. Knowing the truth, and accepting it, will change Kira’s life forever and thrust her into a world of ancient curses, magical objects, and savage enemies. What happens next will challenge everything Kira knows about her world, herself and the shape-shifting warrior she’s falling in love with. No longer the timid mouse her mother accused her of being, but a woman who finds the mental and physical strength to endure and survive.

BOUND is a heroic tale of true friendship, infinite sacrifice and untamed love.

I’ll be doing my review soon!

~

What do you think you’ll read next?

UNTIL I BREAK 4-8

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“I’m intrigued.  Tempted beyond what I’ve ever been before.  To know her, to open her up.  To break her.”

In love, sometimes what you fear most is exactly what you need.

Laura Drake is an author.  She writes bestselling paranormal romances that continue to top the charts.  She is sharp.  She is confident.  She is in control.

And she doesn’t exist.

Samantha Jansen is the woman behind the wig, the woman most of the world doesn’t know exists.  She is shy.  She is insecure.  She is nothing like her main character or her alter ego.  She is scarred—deeply scarred—by a past she can’t let go of and a present she can’t make peace with.

Samantha’s dreams are consumed by one man, the broken hero from her books.  Mason Strait is both her wildest fantasy and her most terrifying nightmare.

When Samantha meets Alec Brand, a corporate consultant, it is as though Mason has come to life.  Alec is handsome to a fault, as elegant as he is arrogant, and more intense than any man has a right to be.

Samantha is soon sucked into a world that mirrors the fiction she writes.  Just like her main character, Daire Kirby, Samantha finds herself unable to resist the forbidden lure of Alec.  And just like Daire, she also finds that she is faced with taking a chance on a man who could either set her free or destroy her.

The scale tilts toward destruction when Samantha finds out that Alec is as much a work of fiction as Mason.  And he has scars of his own, scars that could ruin them both.

**This book may be read as a stand-alone, as the story of Alec and Samantha comes to a conclusion in this book**

This promises to be very good.

Got a giveaway going on right now.

Want to win this book? Go here to enter.

~

So, whatcha readin?

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I’ve been waiting for the fragile things to be released!

It’s here and I’ve just finished reading it.

the fragile things is episode one of V. Shaw’s 4 part serial horror story.

The Fragile Things

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My Review

Jennifer has kicked her long time drug habit, but temptation is great as she’s living with her drug dealing boyfriend, Tony.

In desperation, she flees Tony and his druggie friends and camps out in the woods. She’s estranged from her family and has nowhere to go.

Her neighbor, Ebony, from across the street, happens upon her and they form a tentative friendship.

It’s difficult for either woman to trust anyone, or themselves, as they both have baggage.

Jennifer is fighting her soul-eating craving for drugs and Ebony is fighting her craving to not drink Jennifer dry.

Two damaged women with no one to turn to but each other.

This book reads like a serial episode on TV.

You know before you start reading it,  it’s going to be short and leave you hanging.

That didn’t bother me, as I’ve read another of the authors books and loved her writing.

This book is a dark, psychological read about hope, friendship, and overcoming huge adversities.

I was immediately drawn to Ebony and Jennifer. These flawed characters are genuine and my heart went out to them.

Sure, ones an ex-addict and the other is a vicious vampire, but you forget that somewhat as you learn what makes them tick.

The town of Blackcross has its secrets and something evil is coming.

There’s no shortage of suspense and the horror jumps out and says Boo!

A great beginning to this series and excited to read more, for sure!

I hear Part II will be available later in May.

5 Stars for excellent  campfire storytelling.

~

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tx_jDqd8eAg]

~

I’ve also read and reviewed V. Shaw’s The Lady of Chains and Other Stories

The Lady of Chains and Other Stories

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Description from Amazon: “Remember; you have seventy-two hours to do the deed and not a moment longer. Cut her throat and remove her heart. That, my girl, is the only way to destroy the wretched creature.” Greylock. A city supported by a network of scaffolding, bleeding rust and wheezing steam. Patrolled by an army of ‘metal men’ – creatures who’re designed for nothing more than to kill and destroy. Nothing grows. Nothing truly lives. Viola, a young orphan girl, has been thrust into this nightmarish world by the devious Mrs Casket, caretaker of the mysterious tower and maid to the Lady of Chains, a woman imprisoned without a sentence. A woman who almost single-handedly destroyed the world . . . Viola has been gifted with a task which could either see her demise or be her salvation. But who is the Lady of Chains? And why does she insist that she is connected to Viola? With the clock ticking and the metal men drawing near, Viola is about to learn that not everything in Greylock is what it seems. A spellbinding novelette with elements of steampunk. **** ALSO INCLUDES THE SHORT STORIES; Hansel and Gretel Rogan and the Gargoyle The Silent World BONUS MATERIAL: Also contains a preview of the up-coming horror serial, The Fragile Things.

You can read my review here.

About the author

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V. Shaw is the author of the short fiction collection, The Lady of Chains and Other Stories. Born in Scotland, she studied Film and Media at Stirling University. Having reviewed horror films for the now defunct FatallyYours.com, she has turned her attention to creating her own stories.

Writer. Urban explorer. Climber. Horror junkie. Beer guzzler. Book obsessed. Cinema and television fiend. Nerd for life.

Her blog

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