Book Promo
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
HEY, YES, I’M GOING TO SELF PROMOTE. AHEM:
If you are looking for the science fiction of your youth, with all its wildly strange lost colony worlds and barbaric glory, Sarah Hoyt’s No Man’s Land is the book for you. If you—like Glory Road’s Oscar Gordon—are looking for a roc’s egg, the hurtling moons of Barsoom, and Excalibur held by a moon-white arm, this is the book for you. And, if you want a romance, and a dash of baking and domesticity sprinkled on top, this is the book for you. –Laura Montgomery
FROM SARAH A. HOYT: No Man’s Land: Volume 1 (Chronicles of Lost Elly)
Sufficiently advanced science is indistinguishable from magic.
On a lost colony world, mad geneticists thought they could eliminate inequality by making everyone hermaphrodite. They were wrong. Catastrophically wrong.
Now technology indistinguishable from magic courses through the veins of the inhabitants, making their barbaric civilization survivable—and Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus Kayel Hayden, Viscount Webson, Envoy of the Star Empire—Skip to his friends— has just crash-landed through a time-space rift into the middle of it all.
Dodging assassins and plummeting from high windows was just the beginning. With a desperate king and an archmagician as his only allies, Scipio must outrun death itself while battling beasts, traitors, and infiltrators bent on finishing what the founders started: total destruction.
Two worlds. One chance. No time to lose.
Volume 1
The Ambassador Corps has rules: you cannot know everything, don’t get horizontal with the natives, don’t make promises you can’t keep.
They’re a lot harder to follow when assassins are hunting you, your barbarian allies could kill you for the wrong word, and death lurks around every corner.
The unwritten rule? Never identify with the natives.
Skip’s already broken that one.
Now he’s racing against time to save his new friends from slavery—or worse—while dodging energy blasts and political intrigue. One crash-landed diplomat. A world of deadly secrets. And absolutely no backup.
Some rules are meant to be broken. Others will get you killed.
https://amzn.to/4n5SJNwEDITED BY BEN YALOW: Best of 2024: Presented by Raconteur Press
Short stories contain an idea. Ask a question, then begin to answer it. In a short story, you can contain a perfect narrative, it may be short in the time it will take you to read, but not in the time it will linger with you provoking you to thought. These are those stories.
Have you ever wanted to try out the very best stories published by Raconteur Press? Well, after their author peers nominated, Ben Yalow himself chose the top ten stories for this very special collection. Truly the cream of the crop, and a perfect selection to sample the wares of the Press, or to introduce a friend into reading Indie SFF.
FROM LISA DOLAN: THE BROOKLYN WITCH: The Battle for Brooklyn
HARRY POTTER MEETS THE SOPRANOS IN A MAGICAL BROOKLYN SHOWDOWN.
The Brooklyn Witch, Speranza O’Rourke, operates a spiritual shop amid the bakeries and bodegas of Carroll Gardens. Raised by her feuding grandmothers, Nonna and Grannie Meg, who only agree on their love for her. Speranza is the fiery fusion of Irish charm and Italian drama, armed with spells, street smarts, and an unshakable loyalty to her family and neighborhood that runs bone deep.
Speranza navigates the secret realm of the Never-Never, where faeries lurk just beyond mortal sight. When Queen Mab, the ruthless Queen of the Sidhe, claims her as a vassal, Speranza must choose between power and her family’s legacy.
With a murder mystery, a legendary monster, a magical haunting linked to Al Capone, and a deadly Warlock threatening Brooklyn’s Magical balance, she’s drawn into a battle royale that could tear open the veil between realms.
This is the first in a series chronicling the adventures of The Brooklyn Witch. A gritty, mystical tale where neighborhood loyalty, Old World Magic, and Mafia sensibilities collide.
Come with us on this Wild Ride as we Take the Cannoli and Leave the Magic.
FROM JOHN BAILEY: The Grey Gentleman Appears: Nine Continental Mysteries (The Detective Stories)
The Grey Gentleman Appears: Nine Continental Mysteries
A Collection of Unsolved Crimes and the Man Who Asked the Right Question
A shadow passes across Europe at the turn of the century. Wherever secrets lie buried, wherever silence carries more weight than speech, a solitary figure in grey is seen—never announced, never explained. Some call him a guardian, others a harbinger, but none can deny his presence when mysteries deepen beyond reason.
The Grey Gentleman collects a series of haunting cases, each unravelled through the eyes of Julian Ashcroft, a reluctant witness drawn into a world where theatre becomes tomb, silence becomes judgment, and the boundary between the living and the unseen grows perilously thin.
Blending elements of detective fiction, Gothic atmosphere, and moral parable, these stories unfold under the constraints of the old Hays Code: suggestive but restrained, dark but never lurid, always circling the eternal questions of guilt, redemption, and unseen judgment.
For readers of Arthur Machen, M. R. James, and G. K. Chesterton’s Father Brown, The Grey Gentleman offers a tapestry of uncanny tales that linger long after the curtain falls.
EDITED BY RITA BEEMAN: Moggies of Mars (Raconteur Press Anthologies Book 60)
Felines rule the universe, just ask them. These stories pay homage to the greatness that was portrayed by a master of sword-and-planet, only there are a lot more tails than there were in a Princess of Mars! Tales of derring-do, claws sharp as steel, soft cheeks smoothing ruffled warriors, and these cats back down from no-one. Read on, Fair Human! You will like what you find in these covers!
BY ED LACEY, REVIVED BY D. JASON FLEMING: Enter Without Desire (Annotated): The pulp noir classic
Marshall Jameson was an aspiring artist at the end of his rope. On New Year’s Eve he wandered into New York City on his last pennies, and stumbled onto a radio game show, won it… and found the perfect girl.
How could he know his good luck would lead him step by step into murder? But Elma was worth it, worth murder, and more!
- This iktaPOP Media edition includes a new introduction giving genre and historical context to the novel.
FROM EDWARD WILLET: Fireboy
“I knew things were getting weird when I saw my best friend’s face in the campfire. I didn’t realize how weird until the campfire followed me home . . .”
Thirteen-year-old Samantha “Sam” MacReady is nervous about the start of Grade 8, especially science class, which isn’t too surprising: last year, her Grade 7 science class mysteriously disappeared on the way to a field trip she missed out on.
But when her best friend, Lorenzo—who no one has seen since he got on the bus with the rest of that class—suddenly appears in a campfire, she moves from nervous to freaked out. She teams up with Meg LeBlanc, the sole student survivor of what all adults refer to as “The Tragedy,” to uncover just what went on that day and why Lorenzo is now showing up in her back yard made entirely of flames.
What the two girls find out is far freakier and scarier than they ever imagined. Sam and Meg must use all their grit and intelligence to save the day and free their friends from magical enslavement . . . or fall victim to the very same fate.
FROM NATHAN BRINDLE: The Tale of the Crane Princess (Timelines Universe Book 6)
Ordinary, everyday shopkeeper Horiuchi Tsurue is running a little general store and mini-café on a small island in Japan’s inland sea, two centuries after mankind was nearly wiped out by a virus.
One day, Yamaguchi Yukiko, the kamaitachi of legend (The Cross-Time Kamaitachi), and her daughter Mikoko, appear in front of Tsurue’s shop, and she invites them in for tea.
That’s when Tsurue discovers she is anything but ordinary. And in the end, the island she is sworn to protect will depend upon it.
FROM HOLLY CHISM: Whine in a Box (Liquid Diet Chronicles Book 3)
Maybe chasing murderers wasn’t so bad after all…
Meg Turner, vampire, accountant, and investments advisor…is a political radical. By vampire standards, at least. She’s young, American, and wasn’t inducted into the unlife in the usual way. Which means she’s not a European feudalist. So, when other vampires started asking to move into her territory, she wasn’t sure how to react, other than to welcome some of them. She has a chance to shape an entire territory, if she wants.
(She doesn’t)
Her allies have other plans, though. And, between those plans being sprung on her without much warning, her nearest neighbor coming under attack (and sending his helpless civilians to her for shelter), her mother showing up on her doorstep, looking for answers to why she’d not gotten in contact in the last twenty years…yeah. She’s got a reason to whine.
And that’s not even counting the rising panic over a brand new virus…that shouldn’t affect her people, but will anyway.
EDITED BY WILLIAM JOSEPH ROBERTS: Convoy of Chaos : A Car Warriors: Autoduel Chronicles Anthology
Despite the grain blight, fuel shortages, and wasteland raiders, supplies still need to get through.
Ride along with the big rig convoys, road crews, and race teams of the wasteland, keeping civilization civilized one delivery at a time.
Convoy of Chaos— where every mile is an unforgiving battlefield, and survival rides shotgun.
FROM BLAKE SMITH: In Pursuit of Justice: A Novel of The Garia Cycle
When love sparks a war, can four hearts survive the flames?
Zara thought escaping to freedom with Téo was the end of her story. She was wrong—it was only the beginning.
Their forbidden love has ignited a war between two kingdoms, and now they’re refugees fighting for survival in a hostile land where every shadow could hide an assassin and every stranger might be the end.
Meanwhile, back in the marble halls of the East Morlans, Prince Hanri races against time to contain his father’s burning thirst for revenge before it consumes everything in its path. And in the glittering palace where whispers are weapons, Alia must navigate a maze of deadly rumors and half-truths to uncover the secrets that could save them all—or destroy everyone she loves.
With armies gathering and alliances crumbling, four young hearts must learn that sometimes the greatest battles aren’t fought with swords, but with courage, loyalty, and the unbreakable bonds of love.
In a world where kingdoms clash and hearts collide, who will you trust when everything falls apart?
War changes everything. But love? Love endures.
Perfect for readers who crave epic romance, political intrigue, and characters who will fight to the end for what they believe in.
FROM LEIGH KIMMEL: The Shadow over Leningrad
In Stalin’s Soviet Union, Tikhon Grigoriev lives a precarious life. He knows too much. He’s seen too much. A single misstep could destroy him, and if he stumbles, he will take his family down with him. With Leningrad besieged by Nazi armies, the danger has only increased.
He’s not a man who wants to come to the notice of those in high places. But when he solved a murder that seemed supernatural, impossible, he attracted the attention of Leningrad’s First Party Secretary.
So when a plot of land grows vegetables of unusual size and vigor, and anyone who eats them goes mad, who should be called upon to solve the mystery but Tikhon Grigoriev. However, these secrets could get him far worse than a bullet in the head. For during the White Nights the boundaries between worlds grow thin, and in some of those worlds humanity can have no place.
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: RISK
According To Hoyt 
At the risk of being even more of a bore than usual…
—-
But as he scrolled through a batch of improperly erased records, something caught his eye. It was a file that should not have survived the purge: FCC Directive 16. The letters were innocuous enough, the sort of bland title designed to discourage curiosity. Yet the acronym didn’t belong to the Federal Communications Commission. A quick cross-reference suggested something stranger: Forward Continuity Compliance.
—-
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Risky business. Reading Promos that is. Might be tempted to purchase more books than I “need”. 😉
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Is that actually a thing?
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That’s why need is in quotes.
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Concept unclear?
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A scream of rage rose. Honor hesitated. From where she had been sleeping.
Wiser to know, she told herself, and inched toward the noise.
Marcella shook the chain with her charms in the air. “Look at this! She ran off! Left us all at risk of poison! Such an ingrate!”
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Just had a 20 minute blackout here in Southern Kalifornia — or an ‘unplanned power outage’ as the Electric Co. called it. Long enough for some of my power backups to run down.
But the government’s highest priority is not reliable public utilities, or fire prevention, or dealing with any of our other glaring problems; no, they put all of their efforts into ‘Trump-Proofing’.
As well as ‘Joint Amended Hydrogen Blending Demonstration Projects’ for which I received a Notice Of Public Participation Hearing.
What they’re planning to do is ‘request $21.1 million to design, build and operate a closed-loop pipeline system and determine how to safely blend up to 20% by volume of hydrogen with natural gas.’
I plan to attend, and present the following comment:
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“f you go forward with this, keep in mind that some of us know it’s a waste of our money that will never provide any benefit to the public.”
Thomas Sowell comes vividly to mind …
https://www.creators.com/read/thomas-sowell/11/09/solving-whose-problem
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Number 3 is collecting all the <s>bribes</s> political contributions they possibly can, and generally using their positions in government for self-enrichment.
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For Democrats, number 4 is banging anything that holds still long enough.
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“It’s a non-zero risk.”
Reggie Waite turned to glower at the younger man. “Cut the bureaucrat talk. There’s no such thing as a risk-free mission, just people who’ve forgotten what every mariner and every aviator knows. We’ve got people out there that need our help, and we’re not going to just leave them to their own devices.”
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“You’re buying Cari that?” said Bopo, Max’s best pal. “That’s really risky!”
“How?” returned Max.
“Let me count the how’s,” said Bopo. “First, does Cari like perfume? Second, does she like that kind? Third, will it smell right on her? Finally, do you even know what it smells like!”
“Oh…”
Based loosely in historical antecedent…
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Well, The Brooklyn Witch sounds like a nice companion to Harry Dresden, so that gets a buy. But Irish-Italian? My first high school room-mate was Italian, from the North End of Boston; granted that was 60 years ago, it seemed then to be an unlikely combination. But then, ‘witch’.
And, might as well jump on the bandwagon and join the Elly crowd; bought the one, pre-ordered the other two.
I find I am unable to wield my Evil-Countering Tennis Racket with my customary aplomb – I seem to have sprained my risk.
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Nomination time:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/23225260-october-2025—-dead-author
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Max enjoyed visiting any of the Ayalu Markets, which Cari’s father owned. The aromas from the food stalls were so enticing! Max knew Elvic food was spicier than he was used to, but presented with a bowl of eye-watering noodles and Cari’s gaze, he knew he had to risk it.
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She stood with the rest as he entered.
Emalie had met him, of course, and Jasper calmly introduced Giles and Helena.
Giles looked over at her as Theodoric greeted her. Then he blinked. “The swan? You meet him for that?”
“The swan?” Theodoric looked between them.
Violetta felt her face burn. “After the wolf, I thought the risk was too great if they remained ignorance. Except that when I made my case to Jasper and Augustus, I did not do it in enough secrecy.”
Lord Theodoric looked at her.
“It was of great aid in facing the snakes,” said Sonia.
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“Attacking Yakutsk from Kamchatka,” said John.
“It’s only turn five, and you’re already getting involved in a land war in Asia?” asked Susan. “It’s a bold move, Cotton. Let’s see how it works out for him.” She picked up two dice and rolled. “Pair of sixes. Not working out too great for you so far, is it?”
Wordlessly, John removed two soldiers from Kamchatka, then gestured for Susan to roll again as he picked up three dice of his own.
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“Worth the risk. Worth the riiiissk.” She was staring hard at his face, tapping her nails on the diner table between them. “You wonder if I am worth the risk of…hurt feelings?”
He looked back, his expression steady, as he finished his shake. “No, worth the risk that you’ll tear my face off when you shift. I mean, you are totally hot in any form, and I do quite enjoy your company, but are you totally you when you are a wolf?”
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“There’s a risk,” Deborah admitted.
“What kind of risk?” I asked, eyebrow raised.
“Well, if I don’t get the shield binding nodes correct, you set off the explosion, the entire tunnel system and most of the hillside comes down on us and if we’re lucky,” she shrugged, “we die instantly as several thousand tons of rock and tuff and limestone crash down on us like the fist of God.”
“And if we’re unlucky,” I asked again, as I could hear the moaning of the Feeders coming closer.
“We’re just trapped under the overburden until we run out of prana for our shields and die either from suffocation or being slowly crushed to death,” Deborah’s reply was a perfect deadpan British response to a disaster.
“You’ve been talking with Ian again,” I sighed. “Learning SAS officer sarcasm.”
“He is good at it,” she admitted. “And I’ve almost got the nodes done,” as she held out her left hand. “Are you ready?”
I put my hand in hers and raised Whisper. “I’m ready. Shield up.”
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I bought vol. 1 of No Man’s Land on 9 September, and have read it and found it interesting, especially some of the parts about reproductive strategies. I’m planning to buy vol. 2 on 23 September, and in all probability vol. 3 on 7 October. I’m definitely curious about how Clarke’s third law is going to be applied once the mystery is revealed.
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“Did you look in the game box, because I’ve put some more cards and other games in there” Constance said.
“Oops” Rachel said.
“I’ll check the box” Betty said.
“Oooh Risk” Betty said, opening the lid.
“Ya Risk” Dianne agreed.
“Risk?” Princess Elizabeth asked.
“We all have brothers, after Magicopoly the next game boys play is Risk. We were kind of forced to play” Betty said.
“At first, then we started playing each other for practice and now we beat them at it” Rachel said.
“What is this game?” Princess Elizabeth asked.
“You take over the world” Betty avidly said.
“Ya and with four people it’s even more fun than three people” Rachel said.
“How many people can play?” Corrine asked.
“Up to eight people can play, Grandma” Rachel answered.
“Mother feel like taking over the world?” Constance asked.
“Sure, every Dutchess wants to take over the world every once in a while” Corrine amusingly replied.
“Plus, it’s only a paper world so even the Wizards won’t mind” Elizabeth said.
“Unless a wizard is playing” Munger the Wizard said.
“Justice!” Rachel yelled out.
“Rachel don’t yell go in the other room and ask your brother” Constance her mother scolded.
“Yes” Justice asked sticking his head in the parlor.
“Lighten up Connie” Corrine teased.
“Wanna play Risk with us and the Princess” Rachel asked.
“Before you answer, Grandma and I are thinking of playing as well” Constance informed him.
“Okay, it’ll be fun” Justice said.
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