Modern-Day Rosemary's Baby: A Review of Stolen Away by Kristin Dearborn

I have to admit that I’m not very familiar with Kristin Dearborn’s work, but after reading her latest effort, Stolen Away, I’m going to be taking more notice in the future.

The story’s familiar, especially if you’ve read Ira Levin’s book or seen the movie Rosemary’s Baby. That said, this isn't just a simple re-hash of the same old territory. Where Stolen Away differs is in how it blends the subtle creepiness of the old with the directness of modern horror. And while there are many out there who’ve attempted this and failed, Kristin Dearborn succeeds at the task admirably.

We’re introduced to Trisha, a former drug addict who is trying to get her life back on track for the sake of her two kids. When her infant boy is taken by a “monster” one night, she finds herself in a desperate race to save him from Hell itself. She brings her ex, Joel, along for the ride, after convincing him that she’s not crazy. Unfortunately, this also catches the attention of the men who’ve been after Joel to collect a debt they feel he owes them, adding to the danger.

Where this story really shines is in the character of Trisha herself. She is obviously a broken person when we meet her, despite her best intentions, and while she is in a better place by the end of the tale, the transition is not a fast one. It’s gradual, born from desperation and necessity, making it feel extremely natural and even subtle at times. I found myself smiling as she reached each milestone of her development, and mentally cheered her on as she worked toward the next. More telling, I think, is that while Trisha seems like the type of character to elicit pity or sadness, Dearborn has written her in such a way as to avoid those traps, leaving her a strong female lead in a genre that definitely needs more of them.

The supernatural element here is also played brilliantly, adding a creep factor that keeps you sucked in to see what happens next. From Trisha and Joel’s attempts to learn enough occultism to combat their foe, to the brutal scenes of possession and exorcism presented, it all felt firmly rooted in both reality and fantasy, a balance that is needed for the subject matter and is sometimes hard to find.

I had a harder time feeling that terror when the main villain, DEMON, was on stage, though. Rather than coming off as a powerful demonic force, he came across more as the jerk frat boy who stayed out of trouble because of his parent’s money and connections. Maybe this was the image he was trying to present to better lure his prey, but for me it fell a little flat. Still, his manipulations and the way he acted while getting into Trisha’s head made him a worthy opponent, at least when things left the real world for the supernatural one.

There were also a couple of spots near the end where it got a little jumbled, but not enough that I was pulled out of the story or felt it detracted too greatly. Overall, I would say this was a solid effort by Kristin Dearborn, and one that should put her on any horror fan’s radar for a long time to come.

4/5 Stars

Synopsis for Stolen Away

• Publication Date: June 24, 2016
• Publisher: Raw Dog Screaming Press
• Publication Length: 220 pages

Trisha will admit she's made a few mistakes in her life but that checkered past is behind her. She loves her kids, even if it's tough being a single mom. But her loyalties are put to the test when her infant son disappears in the middle of the night, and his big sister says a monster took him.

Now Trisha has to face the full truth behind the one-night-stand that produced Brayden in all its scaly torridness – Brayden's father wasn't human and isn't interested in sharing custody. However, even though DEMON has pulled this stunt many times before, he made a mistake when he chose Trisha. The one thing she won't do is give up her son without a fight. Along with her ex-boyfriend, Joel, Trisha is dragged back into the seedy underworld in a desperate fight to reclaim her son, only this time she's got a lot more to lose.

About the Cover

The cover was created by Italian artist Daniele Serra. He is a winner of the British Fantasy Award and has worked with companies such as DC Comics, Image Comics, Cemetery Dance, Weird Tales Magazine and PS Publishing. Recently his work was featured as interior art in a scene of Stephen King’s The Cell, with Samuel Jackson looking it over. Visit his web site to see more of his art: http://www.multigrade.it

Biography

If it screams, squelches, or bleeds, Kristin Dearborn has probably written about it. Kristin has written books such as Sacrifice Island (DarkFuse), Trinity (DarkFuse), and had fiction published in several magazines and anthologies. Stolen Away was recently a limited edition offered from Thunderstorm Books, which sold out.

She revels in comments like, “But you look so normal…how do you come up with that stuff?” A life-long New Englander, she aspires to the footsteps of the local masters, Messrs. King and Lovecraft. When not writing or rotting her brain with cheesy horror flicks (preferably creature features!) she can be found scaling rock cliffs or zipping around Vermont on a motorcycle, or gallivanting around the globe. Kristin’s latest DarkFuse release is Woman in White.

Find more about Kristin online at kristindearborn.com or Facebook.

Praise for Kristin Dearbon

“In Stolen Away, Kristin Dearborn writes with a confidence and ferocity that demands you keep turning pages. Where lesser writers would flinch and look away, Dearborn tells the tale the way it should be, with cruelty and fascination for both her characters and the story. Kristin Dearborn isn’t just a writer to watch, she’s a writer to watch out for. If she’s swinging, you might want to duck, because she hits hard!—Bracken MacLeod, author of Mountain and Stranded

“Kristin Dearborn’s fast-paced horror thriller, Stolen Away, will possess readers as they strap in for a demonic thrill ride of sin and redemption.”—Stephanie M. Wytovich, author of An Exorcism of Angels

“Gripping nonstop suspense and unsettling horror that blazes the pages from start to finish. You’ll swear Stolen Away was written by a seasoned veteran of best-selling novels. Expect to want more after reading the second novel by Kristin Dearborn, an author whose work will shoot her straight to the top of reading lists.”—Rena Mason, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of The Evolutionist

“Kristin Dearborn catapults readers into an intricately layered world that is bleak and terrifying but never so damned as to be without hope or redemption.  If the devil, so to speak, is in the details, then this book raises hell, exploring not just demons internal as well as external, but also all the beautiful, heart-wrenching, contradictorily complex, powerful little things that define human experience. This book earns a prominent place of the bookshelf of any fan of demonic fiction.” —Mary SanGiovanni, author of The Hollower trilogy and Chills

“Horror born straight from a nor’easter, Dearborn’s Woman in White is a great read for a winter night—with a monster I’ll never forget.” —Christopher Irvin, author of Federales and Burn Cards

“Kristin Dearborn’s Woman in White is a rip-roaring monster tale with sharp-eyed characterization and something to say about the power dynamics between men and woman. Thought-provoking and entertaining as hell!” —Tim Waggoner, author of Eat the Night

“Great stuff! Suspenseful, quickly paced, unpredictable and wonderfully evil tale. Kristin Dearborn’s best yet!” —Jeff Strand, author of Pressure

“Dearborn has a wonderful sense of the macabre, along with the ability to balance the spookier aspects of her work with well-rendered, solid characterizations…Sacrifice Island is a blazing fast read, with engaging characters and a compelling narrative.” —The Maine Edge

“Sacrifice Island is a fresh and interesting take on a tried and true horror setup.” —Examiner

Purchase Links

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Find out more about RAW DOG SCREAMING PRESS

Want to Feature Kristin Dearborn?

If you would like a copy of the book for review or to conduct an interview with Kristin Dearborn, please contact Erin Al-Mehairi, Publicist, at Hook of a Book Media: hookofabook@hotmail.com.

Random Musings: A General Update

It's strange to look at the posts I've made on here the last month or so and see mostly reviews for other folks, and notices on the Summer of Consequences Publicity Tour, and little else. Don't get me wrong, neither of those are a bad thing at all; it's just a little surprising considering what I expected this blog to be when I first started out with it. So if you'll indulge me a little selfishness, here's a snapshot of what all's going on with me right now.

First, I want to explain why all the reviews. It's simple, really. Since I published Consequences, I've discovered how supportive the horror community is. Doing all these reviews is my way of paying that back somewhat; no more, no less. Plus, I read a lot, so why not toot the horn for some of the great books I've had the privelidge of enjoying the last little while? To that end, there's another one coming later this week, and I'm sure there will be many more in the future.

On the publishing front, Consequences has been getting rave reviews, which still blows me away. I never expected this kind of reception when I put it out there, but I am eternally grateful that it's done as well as it has. To think that I managed to break the stereotype of self-published books being poorly written, poorly edited, and therefore poorly received is a relief. And there's more on the horizon! The Journal of Jeremy Todd is currently expected to be released by Sinister Grin on June 1, 2017 (though that can change, in either direction). My short story "In the Moonlit Forest Glade" will be coming out in Full Moon Slaughter, edited by Toneye Eyenot, from JEA Press probably in October. And, to top it all off, I'm working on something now that has me kind of excited. I'll say more when I know more, but keep your eyes peeled for an announcement pretty soon.

I've also been writing like crazy. The killer catfish tale that started as a joke is now finished, as you've seen if you monitor my progress bar. Mudcat ended up being much different from what I expected, hopefully in a good way. Time will tell. It's currently simmering while I work on other things, awaiting the time I start in for the second draft. Alone in Babylon, my post-Apocalyptic tale, is nearing its end as well, and I'm a little sad by that. I really connected with my main character here, and am not looking forward to letting him go. Unfortunately, that's how it works. I've reached the point where I know how the story ends, which means it won't be long now before I type "The End" and move on to whatever's next. I'm thinking something a little lighter in tone for the next one, and have a couple of ideas, so we'll see what pans out.

My self-edits have taken a bit of a back seat as other things play out, like the secret project, and changes at the day job, but as things begin to settle back down, I'll be getting back to them more consistently. I'm currently working on the second draft of Off the Beaten Path, with a long-overdue edit to the third Cochran book, Blood Games, to follow.

Speaking of the Cochran series, Demon at the Window is still making its rounds through submissions, so hopefully I'll have some news on it soon.

And that's pretty much where I'm at right now. Lots going on, but it's all behind-the-scenes stuff that translates to a waiting game. I do have some more meaty posts rattling around in my head that I just need to sit down and write once I have the time. Until then, thanks for stopping by, and keep checking back for more as it comes!

Making Vampires Fun Again: A Review of Hunter of the Dead by Stephen Kozeniewski

As promised, here's the second review for this week; this time, it's the latest from Stephen Kozeniewski, Hunter of the Dead.

Let’s get something out of the way right up front: after the post-Twilight vampire craze, I was pretty burnt out on vampire fiction. While I know that great improvements and new takes have come out recently (Jonathan Janz’s Dust Devils and Kristopher Rufty’s Vampire of Plainsfield come to mind), it’s just been hard for me to get into anything once I see the “V” word in the description.

I’m pleased to say that Kozeniewski has managed to reverse my thinking on the matter.

We’re thrown in right away, with the prologue introducing us to all the factions we’re going to need to know about later in the story. There’s the vampires, of course, split into thirteen houses that are filled with political intrigue and in-fighting amongst each other; the fixers, who function the way they would for the mob, only they’re undead; the Inquisitors, fighting against the bloodsucking legions; and then the eponymous Hunter of the Dead, who doesn’t seem to much care which of those factions he’s killing so long as doing so fulfills his mysterious purpose.

When the story itself kicks off, playing out over the course of four nights, all of these elements come together in something that’s as filled with fun as it is adventure.

The characters here were well-crafted, from the lone-wolf Inquisitor to his erstwhile apprentice and the parallels with the head of House Cicatrice, most powerful of the vampire lords, and his new get. All of these characters get their moment in the spotlight, and all of them manage to shine. Even the protagonists of the story aren’t typical moustache-twirling bad guys. Like true villains, they all believe that what they’re doing is the right thing, even if their motivations are not exactly pure. The Inquisitors, who you might think should be the heroes here due to their mandate to fight the evil bloodsuckers, aren’t even spared from fault, and make some decisions that end up with decidedly unpleasant consequences for the city of Las Vegas.

There’s a depth and history to the ancient characters, too. There’s a danger when exploring that kind of thing to bog down and become mired in exposition hell, but Kozeniewski manages to avoid that here, making what amounts to a history lesson feel exciting.

I also feel the need to mention that the way the vampire’s code is laid out, the way they’ve split themselves into different houses, all felt very familiar to me as a former player of White Wolf’s old Vampire: The Masquerade roleplaying game. The biggest difference, though, is that Kozeniewski presents lore done the right way, and not something that becomes bogged down on itself after a while. Still, I think I’ll be very surprised if I discover he wasn’t influenced by that old game, at least in some small way.

Overall, Hunter of the Dead is one of those books that delivers on every front. While the ending had me swearing out loud, it does seem to promise more from these characters, and more for this world. At least I seriously hope so!  I, for one,  cannot wait for the chance to lose myself again in the world Kozeniewski has created sometime soon.

5/5 Stars

Follow along with the hashtags: #HunteroftheDead #VampireCivilWar #HookofaBook #SinisterGrinPress

Hunter of the Dead, Synopsis and Info

·         File Size: 931 KB

·         Print Length: 314 pages

·         Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited

·         Publisher: Sinister Grin Press (August 15, 2016)

·         Publication Date: August 15, 2016

Someone has begun targeting vampires. 

Vampire leaders of the thirteen Houses attribute the string of recent losses to over-zealous vampire hunters. Only Cicatrice, the most ancient and powerful vampire in the world, suspects that the semi-legendary Hunter of the Dead may be the real culprit. 

Carter Price, a vampire hunter who despises the way his profession is becoming centralized and corporatized, begins to suspect the Hunter of the Dead is back, too – and no longer distinguishing between vampires and mortals. Against his better judgment, Price agrees to work with Cicatrice. 

The uneasy allies attempt to uncover the truth about the Hunter, while a vampire civil war brews in the background. But perhaps most difficult of all, they must contend with their new apprentices, who seem to be falling in love with each other against every rule of man and monster…

Stephen Kozeniewski, Biography

Stephen Kozeniewski (pronounced "causin' ooze key") lives in Pennsylvania, the birthplace of the modern zombie. During his time as a Field Artillery officer, he served for three years in Oklahoma and one in Iraq, where due to what he assumes was a clerical error, he was awarded the Bronze Star. He is also a classically trained linguist, which sounds much more impressive than saying his bachelor's degree is in German.

Praise for Kozeniewski

"I have never enjoyed a writer's writing as much as I have with Stephen Kozeniewski. I cannot wait to get my hands on HUNTER OF THE DEAD!"

- Phillip Tomasso, author of the VACCINATION series

"Kozeniewski is a rich voice that booms over his peers. I am coming to think of him as the closest thing to the reincarnation or spiritual successor of Ray Bradbury."

- David Sharp, Horror Underground (now Cinema Bluster)

"Kozeniewski never fails to entertain with his bizarre and cavernous stories."

- K.P. Ambroziak, author of A PERPETUAL MIMICRY

"I don't know how he does it, but every one of Kozeniewski's books offers something totally unique and compelling to the reader."

- Sharon Stevenson, author of the RAISED and GALLOWS series

"As many people know by now, I am a fan of Kozeniewski, maybe even a bit of a fangirl...It doesn't matter to me what he is writing, I will read it."

- Sheilah Randall, Cellar Door Book Reviews

"I'm not usually a standalone novelist sort of fellow but a friend of mine asked me who I thought was the best standalone novelist I read in independent fiction...after a long time, I decided the answer was Stephen Kozeniewski."

- C.T. Phipps, author of the SUPERVILLAINY SAGA

"What I love most about Kozy's work is that they're unique...It's something fresh and new every time."

- Shawn Remfrey, Literary Litter

Purchase Links

Amazon

Find Hunter of the Dead and more great horror titles for any taste at the Sinister Grin Press site. Horror That’ll Carve a Smile on Your Face!

Also available in paperback!

Media? Wish to Feature?

If you are a member of the media or a blogger that wishes to review Hunter of the Dead, or feature Stephen, contact Erin Al-Mehairi, publicity and marketing, Sinister Grin Press, at hookofabook(at)hotmail(dot)com.

Obsession Through Time: A Review of Hexagram by Duncan Bradshaw

In an attempt to catch up on all the books I’ve agreed to review, I’ll be posting two this week. First up, Duncan Bradshaw’s  rather unique Hexagram.

When I got this one, I was told to take my time so I could see exactly what Bradshaw was attempting to do here, and I have to admit that was good advice. This is not a book you just want to blast through as quick as you can; it’s one you’ll want to savor instead.

The basic premise is that the ancient Inca believed we are all made of stardust, and if they harvest enough, they can call down their God to save them from the Conquistadors and make the world a better place. When the ritual is interrupted, though, the belief turns to obsession that lasts throughout history until finally enough has been collected that it can be completed.

Don’t think this is just a straight horror novel. While it has elements of it, certainly, it also touches on science fiction, alternate history, and straight fantasy. This is in no way a detriment, either. Bradshaw weaves these things together into a story (or should I say, series of stories) that are compelling and powerful in their own right.

I particularly enjoyed the way he interspersed real-world events such as Jack the Ripper and Jonestown into the story, giving a method to the madness of those who actually committed those atrocities. While I seriously doubt the Ripper or Jim Jones (who goes by a different name here) were harvesting stardust from their victims, it’s a nice thought experiment to think that maybe they did.

Also of note is the way the stories connect to one another, but are their own tales. Each even seems to have a slightly different writing style, based on the point in history they occur, the location, and the characters involved. It kept me entertained since there was always something new right around the corner, and is a testament to Bradshaw’s writing ability to flow so seamlessly between those sometimes disparate styles.

The only complaint I have is that the Prologue and Epilogue felt a little rough in comparison to the rest of the book. While the connection to the whole is there, it still felt a little like an entirely different meta-arc from what we got in the rest of the tales through history. Definitely the most fantastical of the tales woven together here.

Still though, I definitely say this is a book worth reading, and in fact worth re-reading as well. I plan to, if for no other reason than so I can look back over Bradshaw’s presented history with the foreknowledge of where it’s all going to see better how it all fits together. If you’re looking for something a little different from the typical horror fare, grab Hexagram; you will not be disappointed.

4/5 Stars

Follow along the tour with these hashtags:  #Hexagram #IncanRituals #HookofaBook

Hexagram, Synopsis

·         File Size: 3282 KB

·         Print Length: 232 pages

·         Publisher: EyeCue Productions (July 25, 2016)

·         Publication Date: July 25, 2016

Their lands plagued by invaders, the Inca resort to an ancient ritual. By harvesting star dust from people, they hope to accumulate enough to raise the sun god, Inti, and reclaim their lands.

Yet when the collection is interrupted, it sets in motion events which will rattle human history.

Six stories. Six different time periods. One outcome.

We are all made of stars.

When an ancient Inca ritual is interrupted, it sets in motion a series of events that will echo through five hundred years of human history. Many seek to use the arcane knowledge for their own ends, from a survivor of a shipwreck, through to a suicide cult.

Yet...the most unlikeliest of them all will succeed.

Biography

Duncan P. Bradshaw lives in the county of Wiltshire, nestled around the belly button of southern England, with his wife Debbie, and their two cats, Rafa and Pepe. During the day, he is a mild mannered office goon, doing things which would bore you, if he was forced to tell you. At night, he becomes one with a keyboard, and transforms his weird and wonderful thoughts into words, which people, like you, and me, can read.

Why not pop over to his website, http://duncanpbradshaw.co.uk/ or give him a like over on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/duncanpbradshaw or read his ravings on his blog, http://duncanpbradshaw.blogspot.co.uk/

Praise for Hexagram

“Hexagram is a visceral journey through the dark nooks and crannies of human history. Lovecraftian terror merges with blood sacrifices, suicide cults and body horror as Bradshaw weaves an intricate plot into an epic tale of apocalyptic dread.” – Rich Hawkins, author of The Last Plague trilogy

“A rip-roaring boy’s own adventure yarn. This novel contains multitudes, and the sheer scale and breadth of the story is exhilarating. A glorious, unhinged thrill ride.” – Kit Power, author of GodBomb!

Praise for Bradshaw's Writing

“Duncan Bradshaw has a fantastic writing style. He gets you engrossed in the characters from the very outset. His mix of comedy and horror and real life are superb.” – Confessions of a Reviewer

“The true genius of Duncan P. Bradshaw is the rollercoaster ride of words and expressions.  I have never seen an author go from the depths of dark and gore to laugh out loud all within the same paragraph.” – 2 Book Lovers Reviews

“Remember, you’ve now willingly plunged yourself into the mind of Duncan Bradshaw. You’re completely at the mercy of his strange imagination and all the eccentric oddities that his curious mind can conjure up.” – DLS Reviews

“Bradshaw is able to weight the horror set pieces with a dry humour and plenty of laugh out loud moments.” – UK Horror Scene

“One of the first things that I did after reading The Black Room Manuscripts, was to go out and buy Class Three by Duncan Bradshaw. I just found his writing in Time for Tea to have this gleeful kind of undertow to the carnage he wrought on his tea drinkers and wanted to see what his writing was like in a longer format.” – Ginger Nuts of Horror

Purchase Links

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Sinister Horror Company Website

Want to Feature Duncan Bradshaw?

If you’re a member of the media or a blogger and you’d like to feature Duncan Bradshaw or Hexagram, then please contact Erin Al-Mehairi, publicist, at hookofabook@hotmail.com

Summer of Consequences: Review at The Scary Reviews

Up next for the Summer of Consequences is a review posted by David over at The Scary Reviews, and once again, it's highly favorable! Be sure to check it out, and feel free to click the links to the right of this post to pick up your own copy if you haven't already!

More to come as the Summer of Consequences rolls on into fall!

Move Over Punisher: A Review of Stone Work by Dominic Stabile

I actually finished this one over a week ago, but life has kept me busy so I didn't get the chance to sit down and write this until just now. Without further ado, here's my review of Dominic Stabile's Stone Work.

I hadn’t heard of Dominic Stabile before, but the premise behind Stone Work was intriguing, so I decided to give it a shot. I can definitely say it was worth the chance.

City is, well, any big city you can think of, only in a future where the country’s gone to hell in a hand basket, and violence reigns supreme. After escaping from his confinement at The Wall, our anti-hero, Stone, sets off to make a living as a soldier of fortune. Along with his technophile assistant Megan, he takes any job that pays, be it thieving, killing, or anything between the two.

For folks like me who grew up reading about the Punisher or Judge Dredd, Stone feels familiar enough that we can root for him despite his unlikable demeanor, but is still original enough to feel fresh. By his own admission, he’s not that smart, but he’s got cunning for days, and that’s usually enough to get him through whatever situation he finds himself in.

When it’s not enough, he isn’t afraid to call on Megan for help. She is definitely the brains of the pair, and the relationship between the two is actually fun and complex. I have to wonder what circumstances transpired to bring them together, since in many ways they are polar opposites of one another. Where Stone is a hard man, Megan has compassion. Stone kills without mercy, Megan will only kill if there’s no other option. Not to say that she’s not every bit the bad-ass Stone is; she just manages it in a different way. That they have what feels like an at-times grudging friendship was a wonderful thing, too. It’s way too easy to have some kind of unrequited love between two characters like this, and that Stabile didn’t go that route—at least not that I picked up on—was a breath of fresh air.

The book itself is actually a collection of three novella-length stories. While they are obviously chronological, don’t require you to be aware of the previous events to enjoy them. I kept expecting that I’d run across one that didn’t feel as strong as the others, but thankfully that never happened. I enjoyed all three equally, and the format actually made a perfect introduction to the characters and the world, since nothing went on overlong, nor did it get bogged down in exposition. It’s been a while since I’ve seen such a textbook example of showing instead of telling, and it made everything clip along nicely.

And while elements of the stories are similar, they’ve got enough variety that they stand on their own nicely. ‘Roid Rage is a bizzaro take on zombies with a nice amount of gross-out horror to keep it moving. Plumb Inc feels like Lovecraft mixed with Blade Runner. And Godless City is pure dystopian adventure, throwing a bit of everything into the mix for a stew that’s absolutely glorious.

Of all the elements Stabile has woven together, it’s his particular take on religion in this blasted-out new world that stuck with me the most. Without giving too much away, it’s something I could see happening in the real world, a well-thought-out extrapolation of some of the country’s less intelligent tendencies, thanks to our culture’s current obsessions. And honestly, thought of in that light, it becomes perhaps the most frightening aspect of the entire collection.

Stone Work was a fast read, and left me craving more of these characters. I hear he’s got more coming from Stone and Megan soon, and I for one, cannot wait to see what’s next for them!

5/5 Stars

Grab your copy of Stone Work from Amazon here.

Follow along the tour with the hashtags: #StoneWork #finalwar #wasteland

Synopsis for Stone Work

• Publication Date: June 15, 2016
• Publisher: Mirror Matter Press
• Publication Length: 120 pages

City stands in the irradiated dunes of America, nearly two centuries after the Final War. The wall surrounding it is a buffer for the wasteland inhabitants who covet entrance, and a trap for the citizens smothering in its polluted air and drowning in its blood-filled streets.

Stone is a criminal for hire. Robbed of his loved ones and scarred almost beyond recognition, he navigates City’s darkest corners, doing some of its darkest deeds. In this collection, he'll pursue an elusive thief, bent on raising an army of juiced up mutants. He'll break into the office building of a mysterious corporation, only to find the executives are less into sending faxes and more into performing hexes.

In the final chapter, he'll track a man through the Alleys of South City with the help of his tech savvy partner, Megan, and together they'll face the sentient darkness of City's deepest underbelly, and confront the violent potential of City's most dangerous cults.

Part Blade Runner. Part Sin City. Stone Work is an action-packed ride through the rain-slicked streets of a dark, unforgiving urban landscape, rife with sadistic criminals, inter-dimensional abominations, and a creeping darkness that seeks to erase the last, now almost mythical traces of human goodness left in a world always teetering over the edge of its own extinction.

Biography

Dominic Stabile's short fiction has appeared in Fossil Lake III: Unicornado!, Sanitarium Magazine, The Horror Zine, Atticus Review, Far Horizons, and has been adapted as a radio play by Manor House Productions. He has held jobs as a warehouse worker, cashier, bookstore associate, textbook manager, and carpenter. He’s a born southerner, transplanted to Penobscot, Maine by a desperate desire to escape retail work. When not writing or reading, he enjoys horror, sci-fi, and noir films, westerns, and bourbon.

Read his blogs on all things horror at dominicstabile.com.

Praise for Dominic Stabile

"With Whiskey for Breakfast, Dominic Stabile provides a page turning mystery that kept me guessing as to who the real killers might be." - Brenda Casto, Readersfavorite.com

Purchase Links

Amazon US

Watch for more links to come!

Want to Feature Dominic Stabile?

If you would like a copy of the book for review or to conduct an interview with Dominic Stabile, please contact Erin Al-Mehairi, Marketing and Publicity at Mirror Matter Press and Hook of a Book Media: hookofabook@hotmail.com.

Summer of Consequences: Video Review

Erik Smith over at The Low Budget Reviews channel on YouTube has posted a video of his thoughts on Consequences, and it seems that he quite enjoyed it! Make sure to check it out and see what he had to say, and if you still haven't grabbed a copy for yourself, make sure to do that as well using the links to the right of this post. Or not; it's up to you if you want to miss out.

On a side note, it was a little surreal to hear someone else talking about my book. I can read reviews all day long and it doesn't feel as strange. Not strange in a bad way, I should point out; I guess I just have some things to get used to as my career gets rolling.

Stay tuned for more on the Summer of Consequences tour, and feel free to use the contact information on the Publicity page if you'd like to be a part of it yourself!

Don't feel like clicking over to YouTube? Check it out here: