Book Promo And Vignettes By Luke, Mary Catelli and ‘Nother Mike – VERY Special edition

*Never in my wildest dreams did I think there were enough indie writers within the reach of this blog who didn’t mind being associated with my notorious pro-liberty blog. I thought I’d do maybe two or three extra night posts.

I guess this is what a preference cascade looks like, or as we find ourselves saying these days “Nature is healing.”

Well, I’m traveling on Thursday next week, and I can’t afford to be doing this every night for another week. Fascinating though this new hobby is, I have things I need to do for the health of my business and the well being of my family and this is taking about 2 hours a night. THIS IS NOT A COMPLAINT. I ASKED FOR THIS AND VOLUNTEERED.

However, in the interests of being done by Wednesday night, I’m doing a longer post today, and then hoping from then on I can get done with fifteen or so on the weekend. This is not meant to discourage writers from sending me their book to promote. You send it, I’ll try to accommodate you. And if you’re a writer on the side of liberty, read the rules for the regular book promo, and remember you can send me a link (provided it’s not the SAME book) every week, and if you only have one book you can send me that link every three months.

OH, AN IMPORTANT NOTE: DON’T SEND ME MORE THAN ONE LINK PER WEEK. If I have much more than ten books pimped, and certainly above fifteen, people’s eyes glaze. So if you send me two books a week — if I indulge you because I like you, say — you’re taking away attention from someone else, who just sent a book, or taking away their chance to shine. Don’t do that. Wait for the next week. Which can be a problem, as I don’t read messages above the number I’m promoting that week, and if someone has a special sale they might lose their chance. (ON THAT AND GOING FORWARD, IF YOUR BOOK IS ON SALE PUT THAT IN YOUR MESSAGE SUBJECT. ALL CAPS “BOOK ON SALE”. If I can — no promises — I’ll scan for those and try to give them priority. Sometimes, it’s not possible due to time and number of books, but I’ll TRY.)

If you’re wondering what this ultra-special promo is all about, go here: Where I explain at the top.

And now on with motley, for book promo and vignettes! What a time to be alive! – SAH*

Book Promo (the normal weekly patter.)

If you wish to send us books for next week’s promo, please email to bookpimping at outlook dot com. If you feel a need to re-promo the same book do so no more than once every six months (unless you’re me or my relative. Deal.) One book per author per week. Amazon links only. Oh, yeah, by clicking through and buying (anything, actually) through one of the links below, you will at no cost to you be giving a portion of your purchase to support ATH through our associates number. A COMMISSION IS EARNED FROM EACH PURCHASE.*Note that I haven’t read most of these books (my reading is eclectic and “craving led”,) and apply the usual cautions to buying. I reserve the right not to run any submission, if cover, blurb or anything else made me decide not to, at my sole discretion.– SAH

FROM EDWARD THOMAS: Angels Incorporated (The Troubles of George McIntyre Book 2)

George McIntyre thought his troubles were over, and he’d live happily ever after with Ginny, Charlotte and Brunhilde. Unfortunately the world doesn’t work that way, and new challenges have arrived to test him and the robots of Angels Incorporated. Mr. Bill is still out there making zombies, and new indications are found that there could be more than one alien Toaster on Earth. Possibly one that is older than the Pyramids.

Join George and the Angels to uncover the truth, and defeat the zombie threat once and for all!

FROM LIANE ZANE: The Harlequin & The Drangùe (The Elioud Legacy Book 1)

In a dangerous hidden world of supernatural warriors, she may be the key to winning everything.

Olivia Markham lives a complicated life. By day, she is a star CIA officer working a cover as a graduate student in Vienna. By night, she is a self-appointed, kick-ass superhero wearing a harlequin’s hood and wielding a wicked bō.

Life is about to get more complicated.

The sexual predator that Olivia tracks one July evening to Vienna’s Stadtpark calls himself Asmodeus, a demon’s name. Olivia doesn’t care what he calls himself. She’s just there to save an innocent young woman. What Olivia doesn’t know is that Asmodeus has followers he calls bogomili after an ancient sect of believers. She suddenly finds herself fighting to save her own life against these vicious, soulless creatures whose mission is to release souls from the bonds of a corrupt world.

Across the Stadtpark another hears Olivia’s battle with the bogomili. He is a drangùe, a powerful warrior with supernatural abilities who is duty bound to save innocents from Asmodeus. This drangùe will stop at nothing to defeat his age-old enemy—even if it means risking everything to bring Olivia into his world. A world in which the drangùe has his own cover identity. He has good reason to distrust this beautiful young woman who hides secrets that could get him killed or worse…. But the drangùe must keep Olivia close in order to stay one step ahead of Asmodeus. The only problem is that the closer he keeps her, the more the drangùe wants to keep Olivia in his life. And that is not part of his long-term battle plans.

FROM TIM GILLILAND: Lawyer to the Stars: Book One: Icepick

What makes a Human?What makes a Human?

A frozen world on the edge of civilized space has a deadly secret. The indigenous people, known as the Ixtyl are human-looking to be sure, but they have characteristics so unique there was doubt they are naturally acquired. Human? Or genetically modified creatures? Humans, including Indigenous peoples, are heavily protected by law. Genetically modified creatures are not. GeeMo’s are like lab rats who have no rights, no hope, and no future. The tribe lives on a planet rich with an invaluable ore: One men are willing to kill for. When Certified Genomist Damien Durne is called to investigate the Ixtyl’s genome, and certify whether they are human or not, he is flung into an intrigue of lies and murder, with an ultimate goal of genocide.

FROM WILLIAM M. LEHMAN: HARVEST OF EVIL: Book one of the John Fisher Chronicles

For John Fisher, it’s just another day at the office. But his “office” is a black Dodge Durango, rolling through the wild heart of the nation’s federal lands. Legends aren’t myths here; they’re reality. Creatures of shadow and blood, granted their place in the world after the Civil Rights Movement.

The law’s clear: magic is legal… until it’s used against the land, the people, or the rules of the natural order. Then, it’s his job to bring them in.

John’s not just any cop. He’s got the skills of a SEAL, the instincts of a predator, and a network deep inside the supernatural world. Werewolf, vampire, sorcerer – it doesn’t matter. No matter what you are, when you break the rules, he’s coming for you.

FROM ROBERT MULLIN: Bid the Gods Arise (The Wells of the Worlds)

Kidnapped from his home and sold into slavery on an alien world, Maurin joins an unlikely band of misfits attempting to overthrow the sadistic head of the slave ring. Enraptured by the mysterious mute Talauna, Maurin struggles to let go of his past and open his heart to a new life. But vampiric alien gods have set their sights on Maurin’s cousin, whose visions may be the key to unlocking the apocalypse. Bid the Gods Arise is the first novel in The Wells of the Worlds, a dark sci fi fantasy series for adults and new adults.

FROM JANICE SEBRING: Fearful Breakers (Chart and Compass Book 1)

Will José be drawn into the dangerous life of a smuggler? Or settle down to a quiet life in his father’s shop in Havana?

In 1760 Cuba, José Albañez, a free boy of color, resents his charming but unprincipled uncle Domingo’s pressure to join him to sea on one of his smuggling ventures. He would rather continue his studies at the Jesuit school and then follow his father into the joiner’s trade.

Instead, he finds himself struggling to master seamanship, lodging with a Jewish trading family on Jamaica in the aftermath of a slave revolt, and confronting kidnappers on Saint-Domingue. The arrival of a British fleet off of Cuba in 1762 forces him to decide where his future lies.

FROM JASON HUNT: The Hero at the End of His Rope

Richard Thorpe just wants to be left alone. Wanted for destroying a planet, his life is spent keeping under the radar and staying out of trouble. But when his past finally catches up with him, he must finally put an end to his life of hiding and set things right – before another planet gets destroyed!

FROM SHAUL BEHR: Ari Barak: The Free-Will Paradox: A YA Time-Travel Sci-fi Adventure (Ari Barak – Torah in the Multiverse Book 1)

Two Teens, One Extraordinary School, Infinite Possibilities

Ari Barak, a mischievous teenager with a talent for chaos, and Howard Segal, an reserved brainiac, meet at Nekudas Habechira—a school like no other. From the moment they arrive, it’s clear this place defies every expectation: lessons that go beyond the cosmos, staff who are anything but ordinary, and technology that seems ripped from a future yet to come.

But in a place brimming with wonder, mistakes can have far-reaching consequences. A careless accident sets off a chain of events that leaves Ari and Howard grappling with a seemingly unsolvable dilemma—one that challenges their understanding of free will, responsibility, and the delicate balance of existence.

With wit, adventure, and mind-bending discoveries at every turn, this is a story that will keep you laughing, thinking, and wondering until the very last page.

Whether you’re a teen looking for an unforgettable journey or an adult who loves thought-provoking tales, this book promises to entertain, inspire, and leave you with plenty to ponder.

FROM JOHN C. WRIGHT: Starquest: Space Pirates Of Andromeda

Space Opera must be Great! Gallant! Gigantic! Grandiose!
This tale told by a Grandmaster vows to return the glory that was lost!
Remember the days gone by, when science fiction was fun?
Now new hope is here!
If you are weary of weak, wan, woke and wasted works, your wait is ended!
Here is an epic, as grand as any tale of old — here you will hear wonders told!

Of course there is a Space Princess, and Space Pirates galore, and an Evil Galactic Empire.

Of course there is a super-weapon known only as the Great Eye of Darkness!
Here meet Athos Lone, Ace of Star Patrol, in his one-man mission of vengeance!
The Ancient Mariner, like an iron ghost, when slain, seems to rise again!
The mysterious spymaster called Nightshadow walks in dark worlds but serves the light!
An Imperial Deathtrooper must reverse his loyalties, and fight his own clone-brothers!

Fate has set these unlikely heroes against the Four Dark Overlords
An utmost evil the unwary galaxy thinks long dead!
Can Darkness fail and Light prevail?
Read On! For All True Tales are but Part of a Greater!

AND JOHN C. WRIGHT IS HAVING A KICKSTARTER WITH TWO WEEKS TO GO!

Catch the Lightning! — The Art and Craft of Writing Romance. Bringing The Art and Craft of Writing Romance classes to video life!

FROM HARDING MCFADDEN: The Judas Hymn

“As you read these stories, get to the know the characters, and lose yourself in imagination for a while.”-Chester Haas, from his Introduction. Here, collected for the first time, is the short fiction of Harding McFadden, co-writer of The Children’s War. Among the quick excursions are visits to Lovecraft and Doyle country, as well as winks of the eye to origional regions of the post-human world. Take a lunch in a garden with a little girl who can shape reality to her will. Go on a trek to possible salvation with a another young girl and her robotic monkey protector. Travel the twisting tunnels that fill the hollow earth, and see the horrid things that inhabit them. All this and more awaits you in more than twenty tales.

FROM RORY SURTAIN: PSYKANA: A Dystopian Science Fantasy Novel (The Sequel to PSYKER) (The Psyker Saga Book 2)

PSYKANA: A murder, a mystery, and a proving ground.

They call it dark energy or chaos or the Warp. It leaks into our universe at an unpredictable rate.
Those sensitive to it can wield its immense power in unimaginable ways. In the Imperium of Mankind, anyone born with such a gift is labeled a psyker and an outlaw, with only one path back to being sanctioned: Schola Psykana.

Paric Silver lands on Terra as an unsanctioned psyker, hoping to regain his standing in the Imperium. Plagued by his past and the murder of a classmate, he sees threats around every dark corner. Something dark is hunting Schola Psykana, and it’s up to Paric to face it.

With the walls of Schola Psykana closing in, can he solve the mystery of a wayward ghost? Or will he join it in the Sea of Souls?

FROM L. JAGI LAMPLIGHTER: The Unexpected Enlightenment of Rachel Griffin (Books of Unexpected Enlightenment Book 1)

“Supernatural meets Narnia at Hogwarts.”

Rachel Griffin has one goal. She wants to know everything.

When someone tries to kill a fellow student, Rachel investigates. She soon discovers that, in the same way her World of the Wise hides from mundane folk, there is another more secret world hiding from the Wise.

Meanwhile, she’s busy learning magic, making friends and, most importantly, finding romance!

Rushing forward where others fear to tread, Rachel bravely faces wraiths, embarrassing magical pranks, mysterious older boys, a Raven that brings the doom of worlds, and at least one fire-breathing teacher.

The Unexpected Enlightenment of Rachel Griffin is a tale of wonder and danger, romance and heartbreak, and, most of all, of magic and of a girl who refuses to be daunted.

Curiosity may kill a cat, but nothing stops Rachel Griffin!

FROM ROB HOWELL: A Lake Most Deep: The Edwardsaga (Firehall Sagas Book 1)

“Rob mixes intrigue, murder, and magic into his own cool blend.” – Larry Correia

Edward sought a future of honor and hope, but only got murder and mayhem.

He came to the Empire of Makhaira to join the Imperial Guard, who admit only the best. Instead, he pledges his sword—and his life—to an innkeeper rather than the emperor.

In a land known for intricate plots and ancestral enmities, the empire’s corruption seeks to end his life with knives in the night and hidden treachery. And he must face these blades while memories of a father slain, a king defied, and oaths broken threaten his soul.

Can he find the one bringing schism, death, and hate before that steel tastes his blood? Or will be just another who came to the empire to lose everything?

FROM HOLLY CHISM: Highway to Tartarus (Modern Gods Book 2)

Insanity seems to run rampant in the immortal population, and Hades seems to be the one the Fates tap to contain them all; however, this time, Hades, and Kyra, the former goddess of War from Atlantis, have to find and catch the one who’s gone dangerously insane: Deshayna, Kyra’s identical twin, and the former goddess of Death.

Along for the ride are a pregnant Persephone, Hel from the Norse pantheon (and Hades’ and Persephone’s lover), Tyr and Thor, and Kyra’s adopted daughter Rowan.

The seven of them follow rumors, leads, and death-god connections around the world in an RV that’s bigger on the inside than on the outside, while trying to maintain a bare semblance of normalcy despite the chaos of never knowing when or where their Fates-assigned mission will end…or if it will end them.

FROM TOM VEAL: I Went to the Fantasy Fair

In Angland, matter obeys mind. Upon demand, raindrops swerve to avoid drenching pedestrians, walls change from opaque to transparent and back, coaches push themselves forward, quill pens take dictation, and sky-ships sail among the clouds. All that is quite ordinary and dull. Imaginative souls conceive of wondrous mechanical devices: steam locomotives, flying machines, jet engines, radios and a hundred more.

Aethelstan Tiefring has no particular interest in “technofantasy”. He has made his career as a renowned art-wright by directing pigments to recreate the images that he sees in his mind’s eye. Then his beloved wife succumbs to a mysterious sickness, her body vanishes from its casket, and he is stricken with overpowering melancholy.

His recovery begins when a glorious sunrise inspires him to resume painting and, on the same day, he receives an invitation to cross the Sea of Atlas to deliver a series of lectures to Atlantis’s foremost art institute.

He sets out for the New World, traveling in a sky-ship guided by golden swans and accompanied by his beautiful, flirtatious daughter. Lyonessa Tiefring has just turned down a shameful offer from the nephew of a powerful nobleman. She does not know that the disappointed suitor’s vengeance pursues her.

The journey will take father and daughter farther than they can imagine: to Atlantis, to the gathering of technofantasy enthusiasts at the Fantasy Fair, and then through death to a universe governed by entirely different natural laws.

FROM DANIEL ZEIDLER: The Standard-Bearer’s Oath (Sarbotel Rising Book 1)

Avenge the fallen. Restore honor to her people. Someone else can be inspired to liberate the kingdom.

Fourteen years after Sarbotel fell to the armies of a mad alien mage, Ilse is the last surviving member of her resistance cell. When she’s offered a chance to return to her homeland, she chooses vengeance instead. Allying with an immortal Guardian who has reasons of his own to want the mage slain, she’s out to put an end the Tyrant’s despotic rule.

The stakes are higher than she knows, for if Ilse fails to defeat the Tyrant, the entire planet may be destroyed…

FROM DEX QUIRE: Crocodile Words

Crocodile tears are fake tears, can crocodile words be fake words?
Joffrey Simpson O’Day moves from the dry badlands of Eastern Washington State to the lush greenscapes of Western Washington to a Seattle-like city called Sunbreak City. Hayseed, Joffrey attempts to turn himself into a big-city sophisticate but he commits the ultimate faux pas—he insults a book held sacred by millions. He draws upon his head the wrath of everybody. Crocodile words come at him from all quarters. Will he survive?

FROM GERALD L. HALL: Unwanted Gifts

Unwanted Gifts is a near-term science fiction novel set in the current day Mid-West. It is about a seemingly ordinary person with a very powerful gift. When he creates numerous tools for America’s defense while healing his crippled wife, he gains the unwelcome notice of very powerful interests including the US President. The unintended consequences of the main character’s gifts lead to very dramatic events in America and several other nations.

FROM S. T. GAFFNEY: Prayers & Meditations of a Lost Soul: Forty Days of Lent

I first wrote this in 1992 as a Lenten discipline. Having suffered
severely for a number of years with fibromyalgia, I no longer gave
something up for Lent. Instead, I did something that I could do that
I thought would help me spiritually. One year I simply wrote down 10 things I was grateful for every day. It did nothing for the pain I was dealing with, but it did a great deal for me emotionally and psychologically. It changed my perspective, I guess. Several months previously to undertaking this particular Lenten discipline, I had written my first prayer. I’ve been writing poetry since I was in high school. A prayer, to me, is simply a poem written with God in mind; sometimes it is a conversation or request, sometimes it’s just an attempt to see how God sees His creation or how we try to understand Him. To be quite honest, I didn’t think I would be able to write a prayer every day for 40 days(for those not familiar with Lent, it starts on Ash Wednesday, excludes Sundays, and ends on Holy Saturday, the day before Easter), but I would not be left in peace on this. For those of you that have experienced the still small voice of God you will understand. For those of you that haven’t or don’t believe in it, then you can relegate this all to my subconscious that perhaps knows what I can and need to do better than my waking self does. I was, in spite of my back going out, actually able to accomplish this Lenten discipline.

I thought that would be the end of it. But no, whatever the source of that voice in my head, the following year I was driven to show it to the woman priest at the church we were attending. For me, poetry has been more private than not. It is where I honed my skills at telling the emotional truth. One writer once said that fiction is a lie. I stand on the other side and believe that the best fiction is the truth, just the names and faces have been changed to protect the innocent. So, I was absolutely horrified that I was being nagged to show this to somebody. But I did. The decision was made to publish it for cost only, with the help of a woman who owned a small press. Then a very interesting thing began to occur. I started getting written notes from the older parishioners thanking me for writing it. I had put into words what they could not. Even a woman more than twice my age and one of the founding members of the church(I believe she was already in her 90’s at the time), came up, apologizing that she hadn’t written me a thank you note yet. I told her not to worry about it. She then went on to say how she kept it by her bed and would randomly open it, and read from it every night. I was stunned. And I informed her that she had just given me the best compliment that a writer could ever receive. To have someone read your work and enjoy it is one thing. To have them continue to re-read it, is quite another. What had started out as a simple Lenten discipline, turned into something very powerful and affected the way I looked at myself as a writer. I will forever be grateful to that still small voice.

And once again, I find that I must make this available to a larger audience. A familiarity with the New Testament and the Easter story is useful for many of the poems/prayers. But there are also many that do not require such a background for those who are simply curious, as I have been, about other spiritualities. One of the quotes I came across when I was 12 was from Ghandi, “All men seek God in their own way.” I think it is too easy to forget that and to build walls between ourselves when the only important spiritual lesson is to learn to love one another. At least, that is what I have gleaned from the New Testament and its stories. It is what I have gleaned from my spiritual journey. And it is what I believe about God, that He loves us more than any of us can possibly imagine, even on our good days. So, I will continue to say yes to that still small voice, and see where the path goes.

Vignettes by Luke, Mary Catelli and ‘Nother Mike.

So what’s a vignette? You might know them as flash fiction, or even just sketches. We will provide a prompt each Sunday that you can use directly (including it in your work) or just as an inspiration. You, in turn, will write about 50 words (yes, we are going for short shorts! Not even a Drabble 100 words, just half that!). Then post it! For an additional challenge, you can aim to make it exactly 50 words, if you like.

We recommend that if you have an original vignette, you post that as a new reply. If you are commenting on someone’s vignette, then post that as a reply to the vignette. Comments — this is writing practice, so comments should be aimed at helping someone be a better writer, not at crushing them. And since these are likely to be drafts, don’t jump up and down too hard on typos and grammar.

If you have questions, feel free to ask.

Your writing prompt this week is: DESIRE