Va-va-va-voom! Here’s the fabulous cover art for the forthcoming noir novella by Graham Wynd, Extricate. Isn’t that Sarah Anne Langton something? I hear the author has been inspired to get right to work on a new novella just to get another gorgeous cover! I’m not saying you can tell everything about a publisher by the great cover artists they pull, but you can sure tell a lot!
‘EXTRICATE is a twisty- turny noir tale of dishonor amongst thieves that is skewered with hot lust and cold blooded murder.’
‘Crime meets erotica in a fevered novella. Graham Wynd has written a fluid and tight story with vivid characters in situations that are inextricably charged with a sexuality from which you will find it hard to extricate yourself.’
Extricate by Graham Wynd
Cover Art by Sarah Anne Langton
Love hurts…but that’s the way she likes it.
EXTRICATE is a violent tale of sexual obsession, unfolding on the dark streets of a nowhere town. Peter falls for Judy the instant he lights her cigarette, but she’s his best mate’s girl — and he’s already married. He decides to begin removing obstacles — starting with his wife. How far will he be willing to go? How far does lifelong friendship go when he finally meets the woman of his peculiar dreams?
‘EXTRICATE is a twisty- turny noir tale of dishonor amongst thieves that is skewered with hot lust and cold blooded murder.’
‘Crime meets erotica in a fevered novella. Graham Wynd has written a fluid and tight story with vivid characters in situations that are inextricably charged with a sexuality from which you will find it hard to extricate yourself.’
‘A fantastic tale of friendship and deceit, interspersed with sex, drink, cards, a loveless marriage, dodgy dealings, but mainly sex as Peter’s obsession and addiction to his best friend’s girl leads him down a dangerous path.’
‘Extricate blends forbidden passion and noir so seamlessly, it’s remarkable. Wynd has a very strong voice, and the prose just floats you through the story. I’m always looking for great stories that come from great writing, and Graham Wynd is someone I’m going to look out for in the future.’
Opening Paragraphs of Extricate
‘Just one kiss.’
‘Just one?’ She paused on the steps, latchkey in hand and turned those big brown eyes on him.
He tipped his hat back, trying to look like it wasn’t much important and he didn’t have a stake in her saying yes or no. ‘I think it’s only fair to get a taste of what my best mate has stolen out from under my nose while I wasn’t looking.’
She smiled. Her teeth gleamed unnaturally white in the dark. The distant rumble of traffic from the motorway provided the only soundtrack to their goodnight on the rundown entry.
That and the hammering in his heart.
‘Stolen,’ she said with a playful air. ‘How could I be stolen you’re already spoken for. You got nothing to kick at about his luck. If that’s what it is.’
He moved up to the next step, closer. Her warmth beckoned to him in the night’s chill. There would be rain later. She had said she slept better with the rain, earlier but after Dud had left.
‘You see my girl gets safe home,’ his best pal had said as he rose to go. ‘The boss needs me just now. I may be late,’ he told Judy as he leaned down to give her a perfunctory kiss on the cheek.
And all he could think was what a waste of a lush pair of lips.
They drew all his attention now. Still parted from her smile, red rouge smudged by the drinks they’d had, the cigarettes she’d sucked eagerly and stubbed out, they none the less looked ripe and ready for a bite and he was damned if he would give up this lucky chance to push his luck and see if he could just get a little taste of what he wasn’t even supposed to touch.
Paperback edition includes two novellas ‘Extricate’ and ‘Throw the Bones’ as well as a dozen ‘Brief Capers’ in a glorious wraparound cover.
Blood Bound by Sarah Cawkwell
Cover Art by Jeff Preston
From Sarah Cawkwell comes a fantastic fantasy novella.
“Agreement is made this night between Jareth De’Roth and Taryanderon ap Pallerion. For the successful procurement and return of the item (as described) in its original state and undamaged, the promised and most generous payment will be made in full. Should this contract be broken, the consequences will be most severe. By signing this oath, you acknowledge your full and complete understanding of these terms.
This is non-negotiable.”
Opening Paragraphs of Blood Bound
BRANCHES WHIPPED AGAINST HIM as he stumbled blindly through the woodland night. In the tumbling and
breathless panic that had taken him into its embrace, their spindly touch invoked terrifying images of groping fingers
reaching out for him; desperate to haul him back to that terrible place. He plunged onwards.
Through bramble and bracken he ran, never once daring to pause and look behind. Hungry, avaricious branches caught
in his clothes and his hair, tearing huge chunks of flesh from his face and leaving red welts wherever they connected with
skin. The stinging pain came and went without much notice. He felt warm blood trickle down his cheek, dribbling its
unmistakable copper tang into his mouth, but he didn’t stop to wipe his face clear. Stopping was not an option. He had to
run.
And so the terrified man did just that.
He ran.
His breathing was ragged, his heart pounding like a battle drum against his ribs. It had been many years since he had
exerted so much energy and the constricting pain across his chest was excruciating. He felt as though his heart was on
fire, a burning ball of flame threatening to consume him from within. Still he ran as though all the demons of hell were hot
on his heels.
There was no moon tonight and the inky blackness fed even more fear into him. He glanced distractedly down
at his tunic, where the material had been shredded by inhuman claws and caught sight of the deep gouge in the skin
beneath. The wound did not flow with blood, but the oozing was steady. He remembered the precise moment he had
acquired it. It had been when that… thing had reached out and snatched at him.
The Cult Den Blood Bound : Cue a totally unexpected plot twist and an eventual final battle worthy of any blockbuster movie, and you have a highly satisfying conclusion which still leaves enough questions and possible openings for a continuation.
Tony Lane : This story is short. Too short. There needs to be more. I finished the story and wanted to know more of the back stories. I wanted prequels and a follow-up.
Fifty Shades of Geek : There are no tired clichés here, each character is a real and three dimensional being, and there is not one of them who you can unequivocally love or loathe by the end. Like real people, each of them has strengths and weaknesses, noble and ignoble aspects.
We have kept this one a bit quiet really but in April we are delighted to be releasing a novella by the wonderful Sarah Cawkwell.
Sarah opened Tales of the Nun & Dragon with ‘The Ballad of Gilrain’ which we loved so much we made her write an actual ballad which was recorded by Under a Banner.
Blood Bound is a more traditional fantasy with the wit and tight story telling that is typical of Sarah as well as wonderful characters I hope she will revisit at some point.
Blood Bound
‘Agreement is made this night between Jareth De’Roth and Taryanderon ap Pallerion. For the successful procurement and return of the item (as described) in its original state and undamaged, the promised and most generous payment will be made in full. Should this contract be broken, the consequences will be most severe. By signing this oath, you acknowledge your full and complete understanding of these terms.’
Heart for the Ravens by Colin F Barnes
Cover image by Bill Munster
Layout by Colin F Barnes
This novella was originally envisaged as a short story for Tales of Eve, but the idea had so much potential for a novella that we decided to remove the word limit and publish it separately rather than force it to be squished up into unsatisfying brevity.
A love of science meets a burning desire for life.
In the traditions of Poe and Shelley, Heart for the Ravens is a gothic horror story set in the 19th century following a heroine in search of a man with a good heart.
Katerina Roeslling is the daughter of a wealthy businessman and resents being treated as just another asset by her father. When she meets Willhelm, a rough-hewn, but charismatic, soldier, she thinks he is the right man for her, but he is just the start of a tragic nightmare.
Katerina has to fight her demons of guilt and grief and face her true fate at her family’s Whitby summer home ‘Ravendale.’
It is there she’ll discover what she is capable of and what continues to haunt her from the shadows.
Monday 22nd October sees the official launch of ‘Spares’ a novella by Alec McQuay, through Fox Spirit.
No-one dies anymore. Ever.
In the wake of the virus wars you are either undamaged and whole or a walking corpse, animated by no-one knows what and cobbled together out of odds and ends by doctors who don’t really bare thinking about. In this world a surgical scar too many is the difference between a sheltered life of privilege with the Untouched and banishment to the dark, dangerous streets, where it’s every lurcher for themselves and gang culture is rife.
When one of their number is injured in a terrorist bombing, one such gang finds themselves with a large medical bill and a rapidly dwindling list of options, ultimately leading them on a collision course with the Untouched that could change humanity’s course forever.
Parts break, wear out, fall off or get stolen as humanity turns on itself for the one thing it needs in order to keep going:
Spares.
Alec has created a vivid world in this post apocalyptic cyberpunk novella, where a good surgeon is the ultimate accessory.
Spares by Alec McQuay
Cover Art by Sarah Anne Langton
Alec McQuay’s post apocalyptic novella ‘Spares’ offers an unsettling perspective on what happens if you live forever.
No-one dies anymore. Ever.
In the wake of the virus wars you are either undamaged and whole or a walking corpse, animated by no-one knows what and cobbled together out of odds and ends by doctors who don’t really bare thinking about. In this world a surgical scar too many is the difference between a sheltered life of privilege with the Untouched and banishment to the dark, dangerous streets, where it’s every lurcher for themselves and gang culture is rife.
When one of their number is injured in a terrorist bombing, one such gang finds themselves with a large medical bill and a rapidly dwindling list of options, ultimately leading them on a collision course with the Untouched that could change humanity’s course forever.
Parts break, wear out, fall off or get stolen as humanity turns on itself for the one thing it needs in order to keep going:
Book to Review : This author has an amazing sense of humor, and this book is filled with witty dialogues. From the first page to the last this book is detailed, entertaining and interesting. As a lover of apocalyptic things I kind of want to be there and see this messed up future.
The Curiosity of One : Mental. I loved it! It’s a grim vision of what we could become peppered with humour that kind of makes you want to be there (in that way where you’re comfortably aware of being on your sofa with a lovely cup of tea and the bathroom within easy reach)
Sean P Chatterton : The author illustrates mans inhumanity to man, but still tries to put a human face (quite literally) on the tragedy and suffering.
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