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The Spirit of Grace
The Spirit of Grace by Terry Lynn Thomas is set in the 1940’s against the backdrop of WWII-era California. Sarah Bennett has been living at The Laurels, an asylum, for the past year. When her mother fell to her death in the family home, Sarah was the only witness and prime suspect, but amnesia has erased her memory. Her father gets her released to come home on the one-year anniversary of his wife’s death, hoping that her memory will return so the truth might come out.
But home doesn’t seem to be a safe place. Her new stepmother, Grace, is threatened by Sarah’s presence, the townspeople are still suspicious, and her small town is full of billeted soldiers and rumors of spies. Sarah just wants to clear her name, if only she could remember that night.
Sarah is a young woman, privately educated and raised in a wealthy household. Though she was sheltered, her free-spirited mother raised her with a sense of independence that helps her deal with the suspicious townspeople and invading reporters. Her father is distant, her stepmother is clearly up to no good, but the longtime family housekeeper, Anca is her ally. Her father’s handsome writing assistant, Zeke, seems nice, but there’s something suspicious about him. Despite her attraction to Zeke, she fears he may be a spy.
Zeke has a habit of conveniently popping up whenever Sarah needs him that’s almost too often. He’s also a delightful romantic interest, and the tension gives Sarah and Zeke’s scenes together a lot of life. Both characters develop and grow throughout the story, fighting a battle between distrust and genuine attraction. The story has roots deep in the Gothic romance tradition, all the way down to the old family house that has its own secrets.
The author does a fine job of providing details that bring 1940’s California to life. Little touches like the women wearing hats and gloves in public, blackout curtains at night to hide houses from Japanese bombing, and food rationing are all reminders that this isn’t the modern era. Even the descriptions of the military structures built along the coast are spot on. Ms. Thomas has certainly done her research, and it shows in these important details. We don’t get to spend a lot of time in San Francisco, but its proximity and military history is crucial to the story.
I was disappointed in the paranormal aspect of the story. Strange things do happen, but it’s mentioned in an offhand manner that minimizes a plot point that turns out to be important. It’s dropped in without very little backstory or support, other than a few characters speaking to Sarah about it, but they don’t give her any further information. I feel the story would be just as mysterious and thrilling without it.
If you like classic Gothic romance, this is the book for you. Fans of mystery books and thrillers will also find something to like in this book. The plot is simple, but there are some interesting twists and mysterious encounters that will make you question your assumptions.
Pages: 272 | ISBN: 1626943966
Terrible Journey Towards Emotional Hell
He Count’s their Tears is a about a psychotic killer preying on unsuspecting women. How do you capture the thoughts and emotions of a serial killer?
Wouldn’t it be lovely if I had an answer to this question? The simple truth of it is that I have no idea how I did this. I simply did. I never meant to write a book. I am a Lawyer, not a writer (or so I thought!!). One day I sat down and started writing. I kept writing, and there, on the page, was Aaron, on the ledge, which of course is how the book begins. The character simply unfolded before my eyes.
The writing in your story is very artful and creative, where as other books in this same genre use a language that is succinct, bare, and matter-of-fact. Was it a conscious effort to create a story in this fashion or is this style of writing reflective of your writing style in general?
Once again, if only I had something substantial to say about “my writing style” or “how I conceptualized the book”. This is how it happened; I sat there in front of my computer and typed. The end result was this book.
I thought that you did a great job in creating a genuine connection between the characters. With Aaron being a psychopath do you think he would ever be able to have a meaningful relationship with his cousin Constance?
Hmmm. Your question is answered in the Sequel! Even so, I will say this: Do you remember what Constance whispered to Aaron the day he was born? They were the same words that ruined her life in so many ways. “I will always protect you.” The irony of it is that the psychopath’s victim has no one to protect them during the “relationship” and the terrible journey towards emotional hell. The readers will learn more (much more) about the Aaron/Constance situation in the Sequel, which in itself will explain the very nature of how destructive (and incurable) this personality disorder actually is.
What was one of the hardest parts in He Count’s their Tears for you to write?
The hardest part was finding the time to write! I work full time, and I have a family to take care of. The laundry does not do itself, nor do the dishes! Carving out time to write required making some significant adjustments. My golf clubs have not left the trunk of my car since I put pen to paper, and gone are the days that I can curl up with a good movie on a Sunday afternoon. Even train rides to and from work became “writing time”, and yes I have missed my stop on more than several occasions!
What is the next book that you’re working on and when can your fans expect it to come out?
I am presently at work on the sequel to He Counts Their Tears. The Suffering Room picks up exactly where the first book left off. It explores the lives of the women Aaron targeted and discarded in the first book. The horrors of “life after the psychopath” (including trauma bonding, post traumatic stress syndrome, depression, suicide, and “overcoming pain”) are explored, as are the ways in which Aaron (here, in the typical fashion of the psychopath) seeks to maintain some connection with the women he has abandoned (purportedly just to “say hi” but in reality to see if he still has power over them). There are some surprising twists in the sequel, which I think will shock some people. I plan to release “The Suffering Room” in 2017. It will be followed by the last in this trilogy, The Parade to Hell, which will tie things up nicely (and yes, I do know what happens to Aaron at the end of the third book, but I’m not telling!).
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Amazon
A handsome, successful, charming man. Healer. Miracle maker. Aaron Stein is all those things. Behind the benevolent facade, however, hides a monster: a destroyer of souls who lusts after power and control. Aaron plays his ruse again and again with unsuspecting women who genuinely believe that they have met their new “best friend,” their “soul mate.” Covert hypnosis, edgy trysts, psychological warfare – they’re all part of the sick game he plays “to have all the power”
He Count’s Their Tears
In this gripping psychological thriller, author Mary Ann D’Alto tells the story of a man who looks perfect on the outside but is pure evil on the inside. Aaron Stein is an incredibly successful fertility specialist, and using his unique skill set of medical knowledge and his easy access to insecure and frightened women, he is able to serially psychologically manipulate and physically harm. But his sin doesn’t come without a price: we first meet Stein while he literally stands on the edge of suicide, prompted by his guilt and shame. When Aaron’s latest victimization takes an unexpected turn, will his sweet cousin Constance be able to get him through? Or will his crimes catch up to him?
Personally, I had a very hard time putting this down. I started out thinking I’d just a read a little before bed, and before I knew it, it was four a.m. and I was finished. The only thing I wasn’t crazy about was the lack of complexity in Aaron’s Stein’s character: the clean-cut, successful psychopath is such a trope at this point that Aaron’s movements at times were a little predictable. Things that were maybe supposed to shock, like his callous responses to the pleading of his victims, his incredible success as a doctor and external perfection, and his internal turmoil over whether or not he’s actually evil, have all been done in Patrick Bateman, Dr. Hannibal Lecter, and tons of other “perfect psychopath” roles. But while this irked me a little, it may be an attractive quality for other people. After all, tropes are tropes because they resonate with readers on some level.
What redeemed this book from a potentially predictable route was the quality of the writing and the uniqueness of Mary Ann D’Alto’s voice. Typically, literature that features the “perfect psychopath”—The Silence of the Lambs, American Psycho, etc.—tends to have the same very succinct, bare, and matter-of-fact tone that reflects how an actual sociopath thinks. Writing in those types of books tends to stay away from too much internal doubt, expanded description, or floweriness. He Counts Their Tears is a rare exception, with D’Alto sparing no ornate description: “the dark brown coffee made a huge puddle on the pale grey rug. Aaron stared at it, and in his mind it was the [spoiler!]’s blood, and he was sixteen again. Instinctively, he wiped his hands on the tablecloth, and in doing so caused the cloth to move. As it moved, one of the glass candlesticks fell onto the table, its flame creating a small bonfire in the pinecone centerpiece” (Page 51).
D’Alto is also extremely skilled at creating genuine connections between her characters, and, unlike many other psychological thriller authors, keeps her list of connections short and meaningful. Without going into too much detail, the relationship between Stein and his cousin Constance is masterfully drawn out from childhood until the end, and we are provided just enough detail to fill in the meaningful gaps ourselves.
Overall, I can’t recommend this one enough. Whether you’re a regular reader of psychological thrillers, fascinated with psychopaths, or just looking for an addictive read, this is definitely the novel for you.
Pages: 196 | ISBN: 1457541858
Nobody Has Dared to Explore
The Bloodless is about a small makeshift band of soldiers and weapons experts that take on the evil GoD Labratories. What was your inspiration for GoD Laboratories and how they bring about the undead?
A lot of the inspiration was drawn from big box companies of today. Some media companies basically do what they want and while there are people who object to their practices, there isn’t much that can be done to stop them because of their deep pockets that afford them virtually unlimited power and they supply services people need. GoD is like that but in a society that has seen science replace almost every deity based religion on the planet, they are practicing what people believe in. So a level of support is there for them but as with any company, they overstep their bounds and take things too far. On one hand they provide critical services to society (i.e. cures for diseases, life extending drugs, and research that benefits nearly every aspect of life) but the other hand delves into parts of the natural order that nobody has dared to explore for mostly ethical reasons.
The Bloodless did a great job in delivering action packed zombie killing fun. How did you balance the blood and gore inherent in zombie novels with character development that we see in successful franchises like The Walking Dead?
There has to be an ebb and flow to any story that is told. When I’m writing I try to think of concerts. In any good concert you go to you will notice that the music selection is varied in a way that lets the audience catch their breath. I, too, want my audience to be able to catch their breath so I try to change it up after an intense moment of combat or violence. Also, things need to be explained, motives and causes, so you can’t just have it be balls out all the time. Readers need to understand the intent behind the characters’ actions/choices, so making sure those moments are included is a big part of my writing.
Justice started out as a hard pragmatic scientist and then develops into more of a hero type. What do you think were some of the defining moments in his characters development?
Simply put: loss. Loss is a huge motivator/catalyst in anyone’s development. First he lost his wife and son, usually that is enough to drive anybody to do whatever it takes to right the wrong. Then he loses the love of his life, Crist, which he feels somewhat ashamed of but knows it to be true. But it’s also his successes. Successfully infiltrating those substations based on plans he developed helped him realize his worth. He deals with the loss in his own way but understands that its inherent with the role he has taken on. A lot of times leadership roles are thrust upon the protagonist, it’s not often you see those characters put themselves into the role, there is definitely a learning curve with Daniel but like any good scientist, he learns best from trial and error.
Zombies are a popular fiction today. How does The Bloodless stand out from the rest?
I think a lot of zombies that are popular in media these days are typically born from a virus, something that is transmitted from a bite or scratch or some type of physical contact. The Bloodless are different in the fact that the genetic structure of a person is being altered and the only thing spreading the “disease” is The Cloud. I think the only similarities that exist are the fact that the body had to be dead at some point and the mindless desire to kill. Classic zombies are driven by the need to feed on fresh human flesh, but the Bloodless have something else driving them, an outside influence rather than instinct. Also, there are two levels of “undead.” One is those who were reanimated within GoD labs, those are the people who regained the ability to talk, think, and feel and have a superhuman ability to generate. Two; are those who were born from The Cloud, these are the mindless killing machines. Both play an important role, roles that will be further explored in the upcoming installments.
I hope the series continues in other books. If so, where will the story take readers?
I am actually nearing the end of the writing phase of book 2 out of a 3 book series. At least 3 books. I am not sure if the series will extend into anything beyond 3, we’ll have to see how things progress. I can tell you that the second book aims to tie up most of the loose ends from the first book and that there will definitely be a final showdown between Daniel and Mendel, because there has to be, right? It’s hard to say anything without giving too much away but I definitely go into more detail about the backgrounds of the individuals fighting alongside Daniel Justice. There is also a brief foray into the world outside the tiny bubble around the GoD campus, which makes for an interesting contrast. However, if you want to know more, you’ll just have to read the next book which I am hoping to have out mid to late spring.
The year is 2100-something, Daniel Justice is just another geneticist working for GoD Laboratories, a big box, publicly traded biotechnology company. Then one day he proved that resurrecting the dead was not only possible, but economically viable. Back in the old days, this would have been a massive ethics debate, but in a world where religion is all but extinct, the conversation is a whole lot different.
Able to Channel Chaos
Sorrow’s Heart revolves around a young slave girl who is being tormented by a sadistic dark wizard. What was the inspiration for the dark wizard and the experiments he performs on the children?
Well, the Girl is a main character in a novel I’ve been working on for several years now. In that book, she, as an adult, is asked by a priest how she could talk to animals without being able to channel Chaos. Due to the story line in that book, I needed her to have some kind of affinity with Chaos, while at the same time hating the priests. So I decided that she’d been experimented on. As to why Ruddick, the priest, is driven to do the things he does … I’ll leave that up to my next book.
The story is told through the viewpoint of the young girl. How did you handle, not only writing from a young girls perspective, but one that is in dire distress?
Well, to be honest, that’s why it is written with a sense of distance. Beyond that I simply put myself in her place. She is someone who’s traumatized and treated as little more than a lab animal, yet she still yearns to live and fight on. It wasn’t easy, that’s for sure.
There is a lot of things that are not directly answered in the book. Was it your intention to leave so many mysteries in the story?
Yes, I wrote it from her perspective. It’s vague because she simply doesn’t know what’s going on and I felt that the mystery added to the sense of dread. Beyond that, at its heart it’s an origin story. I have more books with her as a driving force where we learn much more about her, her past, and her destiny.
Sorrow’s Heart explores misery, despair, and pain. Were there any parts of the story that were difficult to write?
Very much so. When I first created her I knew her back story, but actually having to write much of it, the pain, the torment, and of course the violation, made me cringe. I love her, and hated the thing that happen to her. I think that really helped.
Will there be a follow up novel to this story? If so, what aspects of the story will the next book cover?
There is a follow up in the works. It’s a monster of a book, well over two hundred thousand words, that I need to split into two and then go through the editing process. Because of this I wanted to have put something out there. Most people aren’t going to pick up something that big by someone they’ve never heard of before. I just finished the first draft of another book, a full length novel titled “Cleansed”, that I hope to have out by the summer, before I tackle the completion of the Girl’s follow up. I have a lot more stories in me that are all interrelated. I have a lot to tell. So if you enjoyed Sorrow’s Heart don’t worry, there is more on the way soon.
Author links: Website | Facebook | Twitter
A young child, abandoned by her family, is enslaved and experimented on by a priest of the God of Chaos. She struggles to endure and find meaning in her fragile, tortured life. She finds help from some unexpected friends, but does she have the heart to not only survive, but thrive?
The Bloodless
The Bloodless is a story of a small makeshift band of soldiers, weapons experts, and one pacifist (who is paradoxically a weapons designer) that are taking on the world, both living and undead. The battle began when GoD Laboratories, a company which began the first reanimation of dead humans, had an unfortunate “event”. Shortly, after “The Cloud” happened and another version of the “undead” was created.
Daniel Justice, a former high-ranking GoD scientist who worked on the “undead” experiment, lost his family to the “undead” (“Bloodless”) and became a prime target for one of the Bloodless in his experiments. He wants to make things right, but to do that he needs to get back to the compound safely and end the death toll left by the Bloodless.
In a world facing this kind of danger, Justice is understandably not the hero that anyone would like to see. He is, however, the only person that might be able to keep that world from becoming Bloodless. With his band of ragtag weapons specialists, Justice leads the mission toward destroying the evil-manufacturing compound that used to be his former job.
The first thing that really stood out was the originality on the same old zombie story. The Bloodless find creative ways to create new types of zombies. There are the traditional zombies, but there are also fast-moving and highly intelligent ones with military training and a tendency toward cruelty.
The two stand out features of this book are its conciseness and use of flashbacks which complement each other. Bloodless doesn’t take a lot of time offering background details or extended character descriptions. Instead it focuses exclusively on action and allows the reader to connect the dots through the use of flashbacks. The book begins with Jackson and his in an intense fight and ends with that same team fighting for their life. Throughout the race to complete specific missions, readers gain small insights into the characters. Justice becomes less of a cold scientist and more of hero trapped within a maze of evil that is bigger than him. Crist becomes less of a mysterious (yet paradoxical) stranger, and more of a reason for Justice to continue fighting.
While I enjoyed how concise the book was I had an issue with the overuse of clichés and loose ends. The book played a little too close to the stereotype for most characters. Almost everyone in the book seemed to fit the composite of the well-muscled hero or heroine who knew how to use a weapon.
Overall, the book reminded me of “The Walking Dead” mixed with characters from the “Expendables”. The book was intriguing, a well-paced plot, along with a unique approach on the zombie theme would make for a great read for action/adventure and zombie fans. I look forward to the rest of the series.
Pages: 230 | ISBN: 1508882142
Overwhelmed by the Darkness
Twisted Reunion is a collection of short horror stories. Did you know that you were going to publish them all in a collection or was that a decision made later?
I have always been a fan of short stories, with Stephen King’s collections at the top of my list. I was amazed by how much story he could tell in so few pages, how much I could care about a character. When I began writing, short stories were where I started, finding some success in selling (and giving) them to small magazines. My focus shifted to producing novels, but every once in a while I would allow myself a treat and knock out another story. Once I realized I had enough for a full collection, I began the daunting, yet enjoyable, process of rewriting all the stories, making sure they were something I’d be proud of.
One of my favorite stories is Woodshop Math. What is your favorite story from the collection?
I’m so glad to hear that you enjoyed “Woodshop.” That story was a lot of fun to write, a little nod to Stephen King’s Carrie. One of the stories that always puts a smile on my face is “Surviving the Holidays,” but if I had to pick one I’d say “Book of Revelation.” Being so heavily influenced and inspired by King, I really enjoyed writing this homage that has “The Stand,” one of my favorite books, as a sort of character.
Why write horror stories? Why not write about rainbows and sunshine?
I must confess I’m no longer much of a fan of reading or watching horror. Most of the time, I’m a fun-loving, stay-at-home dad who likes to keep things peaceful and playful. But I do have my dark side, the part of my brain that won’t turn off, dirty and disturbing, usually best left unsaid. Writing these short stories satisfies that voice, and helps me deal with fears of death, disease, and all that fun stuff we pretend won’t ever happen to us or our loved ones. I’ve tried writing about rainbows and sunshine, but these stories always take a little turn, like in “Every Precious Second.” I love bringing cute little puppies, darling little boys, and sweet old ladies into my stories, but I have a very hard time keeping them alive. Perhaps we need to be overwhelmed by the darkness before we can truly appreciate the light.
Are there any stories that you left out of the collection for any reason; maybe because they were a little too twisted?
There were quite a few stories that didn’t make the cut for Twisted. Some were strong enough but too similar in subject matter while others were just too tame. And there were a couple that will never see the light of day because they are just too brutal, like “Bound to Suffer,” which incorporated Viagra, a naked man, rope to bind him to the bottom of a truck’s lift gate, and a very angry husband. This one was too painful to make it through.
Your book, 25 Perfect Days, was named IndieReader’s Best Indie Books of 2013, you have a sociology degree from Brown University, and you competed in Mixed Martial Arts. This creates the perfect recipe for you to write a book like Unlocking the Cage. What is that book about and what was your inspiration for writing it?
When I found myself fighting after college, I was often asked why I was doing it. I was never able to come up with an honest answer, so I decided to go on quite a journey, traveling to 25 states and talking with over 400 fighters, attempting to discover who they are and why they fight. Although I often struggled with having to give up so much of my time to the project because it took away from my fiction, it was by far the best thing I’ve ever done. Self-reflection, becoming physical, pushing limits, and learning new skills, has me more motivated and inspired than ever before. I can’t wait to present these powerful stories to the public and show them what MMA fighters are all about.
Author Links: GoodReads | Website
This collection is composed of all the stories in Each Dawn I Die, Every One’s Lethal, and Repackaged Presents, plus two bonus stories.
Sorrow’s Heart
Sorrows Heart by G. S. Scott is a dark fantasy novel with elements of horror weaved within. This haunting tale revolves around a young slave girl who is being tormented by a sadistic dark wizard. The wizard performs a multitude of experiments on the children he acquires, many of which perish during these experiments. Somehow The Girl manages to survive the experiments and become the Master’s most prized possession. She gains several new abilities including communicating with animals of the True Tree. But the question remains; will she able to survive and fulfill the dreams she dares to dream?
While this tale is short, it tells a great deal of story. The story is told through the viewpoint of the young girl and there is some content within the story some readers might find difficult to handle. Scott utilizes experience to build a realistic world, which is compelling and draws the readers in. Immediately readers wonder what the “Master” is doing to the children and what his end goal is. One cannot help but feel compassion for the children, even for the cook who strives to take care of them the best she could. When it comes to the Master, he is a character that is easy to hate. The descriptions of the horrible things the Master does to the children and The Girl are so vivid, there are points when it becomes difficult to read.
The Girl is an interesting character surrounded by mystery. While we see things through her viewpoint and understand things through her thoughts and feelings, we still know very little about her. Readers don’t even know her name, other than The Girl. There is something special and unique about her that enables her to be able to withstand the Master’s experiments and later torture. With the story being short, many things are left to the imagination, or hopefully wishing there will be more books after this one. There are moments where it seems the author plays with some psychological elements such as Stockholm Syndrome as the girl begins to wonder if the Master cares for her and begins to care for him.
This is not a happy uplifting tale. It is one that explores misery, despair, and pain. The few moments when it seems that The Girl might have some happiness, it is quickly snatched away from her and she endures more torment. The one moment she tries to defend herself, she is treated as an animal and punished harshly. Despite all the harshness she experiences in life, she is a strong and determined young woman. It’s evident that she will persevere and be able to escape the clutches of the dark Master.
There are many elements mentioned that causes interest and intrigue, and those being the Lord of Chaos and the True Tree. It is interesting how G.S. Scott can have the whole story revolve around the Master wanting to connect with the Lord of Chaos, but leave that as a complete mystery. It makes the reader crave more.
Pages: 162 | ASIN: B0134S38A8
LITERARY TITAN 