Just A Quick Update

This will be very brief, simply because I do not the time to do a real post.  In short I am close to completing my second anthology book.  I am also starting on my first partnership project.  It will be a novel about the Titanic, but I doubt it will be finished this year.  My novel is going no where.  Due to an excessive lack of time I have been unable to work on it for weeks.  My schedule just got even tighter this week, though I think I will be able to steal little time for it soon. 

I am also working on two new features for my blog, and once I get some content ready they too will be ready to go.  The first is a flash fiction section, which is pretty self-explanatory, the second which also needs no explanation, will be a review section.  It will cover whatever the hell I feel like reviewing; books, movies, TV shows, games whatever strikes my fancy, but books will be the majority of it.

So that's where I am.  Time it seems is always against me and it is a recurring theme in my posts.  I have no doubt many of you can sympathize.

A Scribe's Work VII

This story in my newest anthology book is by far the longest short story I have ever written to date.  It is set in Stave, like several other of my short stories, I introduce several new characters in this story that I hope to use later.

The lead constable, Gunther, is called to the scene of a grisly murder of a shop keeper.  Though Gunther had seen many slayings in his career, the sheer violence and brutality of the act shocks him.  He also has no leads to go on.

He is forced then to turn to a mysterious woman named Jenna, a seer who works as fortune teller in the town.  Neither Gunther, nor Jenna is pleased by the idea, but Gunther is forced to admit she may be useful and Jenna knows it would be useful to have some good karma with the local authorities, especially since her neighboring shop keepers have tried to have her removed before.

The investigation begins with them both going to the scene of the first murder, but things go badly, and Gunther begins to believe that Jenna is hiding something.  Then they are informed that there is another murder, and the two proceed to the second scene, which is fresh.  They enter and Gunther is shocked to find that it actually worse than the first scene.  Once again they gain very little information and Jenna is forced to conduct a ritual, to see who the next victim might be.  In the meantime Gunther sends one of his men to nearby town to learn what he can about Jenna.

The ritual works and the pair learns who the next target will be.  They set up a trap to catch the killer, which of course goes badly.  The killer manages to make it to the victim, but in the ensuing fight, the killer is defeated by an old magi brought back from Jenna’s home town. 

Afterwards, Jenna realizes that she can no longer function as a seer and wonders what will happen to her.  Fortunately Gunther knows right where she can go in the town to start over.  Gunther leaves the young woman with Suman then the story ends.

This is one of the more involved stories I created.  It borders on being a novella, but I am especially pleased with the new characters I have developed for it.  Later on, maybe two or three more anthology books later I am going to create a combined story arc that will incorporate characters from different serials, and from these kinds of short stories.  It will be awesome, and I am looking forward to it.  Until then I hope you check out my work.  I have another anthology almost ready as well as a full novel I am working that I hope to have done soon.  Until then I’ll keep everyone posted!

A Scribes Review, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter

I must admit, I had little to no expectations going into this book.  The only reason I read it was because a friend of mine suggested it, and we have similar tastes.  I must admit the concept was awesome.  I mean seriously, the 16th President of the United States, a man that arguably saved the nation from imploding, was a vampire hunter?  The first thing that I thought of was, where did he find the time?  How did he not get caught in his endeavor?  As well as various other things I tried to nit-pick.

 When I began the book it was about twelve-thirty in the morning or so, and I was just expecting to read for maybe a half an hour.   I put it down around three hours later, and only then because I had to work the next day.  To put it simply, I was amazed.  It may have had something to do with the fact I thought it would be adequate at best, after all I got my hopes up about A Game of Thrones, and I was disappointed (insert your gasp here), so it had no where to go but up.  The more I read the more I realized, that I simply loved this book!  So here is my honest opinion on the book.  I will do my best to divulge as little as possible, because I do not want to ruin it for you.

In a nut shell, the story begins with Abraham's childhood.  He was already gifted at telling stories and the like.  When he discovers that his mother was killed by vampires he resolves to kill very single vampire he can.  His first attempt proved quite successful, and it leads you to believe that he is like Blade and some sort of natural vampire killing machine.  However, his second mission goes very badly and he is nearly killed himself.  He is saved by the Yoda type character, Henry.  He takes the young Abraham under his wing and teaches him the right way to hunt vampires. 

After several years of killing the foul beasts, he is introduced to a plot by the vampires to actually seize control of the United States, and make humans no more than cattle.  I must apologize for the next few sentences, it will give a little away.  Henry and a group of like minded people who called themselves the Union aid Lincoln in getting elected to President and in fighting the civil war.

He obviously wins the war, and the Union is preserved, this book just adds a lot more behind the scenes action than recorded history.  In truth if it were not about vampires it could almost be believed! 

How Lincoln dies is obvious.  The book does not deviate from major historic accounts about our sixteenth president's life, it just adds a few extra unoffical entries to the official record.  I gave the book the four stars.  Why not five?  As much as I prased it, that should be a given right?  The answer is simple, the ending.  Call it my nit-picking, but I cannot overlook it.  Don't get me wrong the ending is sheer genius, I love it, but it leaves a question open, that begs to be answered.  There are answers to this question, good answers, but I'm not able to accept them. I guess I'm too logical.  It probably also doesn't help that the book is so well written that it actually sounds like a true historical account.  So in a sense you do not have suspend your sense of logic to accept what is written, but if you do, it's much more enjoyable.

Obviously I will not go into the ending, it would ruin a huge treat  if you decide to read it.  Suffice it to say I highly recommend this book, if for no other reason than sheer curiosity (you can't tell me you're not).  It would be well worth your time.  I just hope the movie adaptation will be half as good, but I must admit I have more faith in authors, than in Hollywood.