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Thawing A.C. Nielsen
Mystery, suspense, reality television and revenge all come crashing together in this entertaining story written by Paul Carey. Thawing A.C. Nielsen starts off with dated entries, much like a diary, as we gain very little backstory on what is to be a wild ride. It opens to a nameless man being rescued from the depths of a frozen body of water. This revival is short lived, but is important to the rest of the story. Flash forward to Kate, a young and intelligent woman who wants nothing more than to stare into a microscope for the rest of her life. At the urging of her friend she goes for a job interview at the one place that will make her desires reality. Our fierce protagonist gets a little more than she bargained for when she joins up with ExitStrategy, a facility that is devoted to cryogenics and the revival of those who should be dead.
One of the best things about Thawing A.C. Nielsen is how the characters talk. There is a fair bit of dialogue but each person sounds real. They communicate like they would if they were to stand in your living room. This makes reading this tale a lot easier on the mind. Many mystery novels or those who pride themselves on suspense get caught up in setting a ‘mood’ that makes their tales very unrealistic. The fact that the reader can identify with the characters not only through their speech, but through their actions, makes the entire tale feel like something you could read about in the news tomorrow.
This can be a double-edged sword, however. Because the characters speak so ‘modernly’ it’s quite grating to read some of the speech and hear it in your mind as you read. There are some slang words that should never be printed and it does a very good job at showing how reality television stars need to work on their linguistics.
Having a strong female lead who works in an area where women are underrepresented gives this tale a special place in the world. Not only does Kate work in a science-driven industry, she is respected by her male colleagues and never once is she demeaned or demanded of due to her sex. These types of tales are few and far between.
It’s clear that Carey did his research before writing his book. There is a scene where knowledge of medicine and medical terminology is paramount to understanding what is happening. Carey doesn’t skimp on the language and has obviously done more than just do an internet search or watch television. It’s not so in-depth that the average reader with no background would be lost but just realistic enough to bring the characters on the page to life, quite literally.
If you’re looking for a fun adventure with wily manipulative old women and socially challenged geniuses, you will find all that and more in the pages of our tale. Hold on to your hearts and keep your eyes peeled as you try to figure out the mystery of Thawing A.C. Nielsen.
Pages: 368 | ASIN: B01LOHEP7G
A Short Story Thought Experiment
Derek Edgington Author Interview
Immortal: Curse of the Deathless is a fantasy novel bursting at the seams with an intricate world waiting to be discovered. What was the inspiration that drove the development of the world Asher lives in?
Immortal started as a short story thought experiment: I wanted to try integrating a character’s internal thoughts into the story, as well as (at some points) speak directly to the audience. After I started writing, I knew fairly quickly that Asher’s story required me to write something approaching “book” length. So I started world building and writing character descriptions, and Immortal: Curse of the Deathless was the product of that. It definitely is a little rough around the edges (I’m in the process of producing another edition to clean up egregious editing errors), but that was part of its charm. Asher is an unfiltered character, and while his story is one that won’t appeal to everyone, it’s one that I truly enjoyed writing. If you look closely, you may find that I worked in satire— about icons and religious practices, while also de-sanctifying the immortal. One of the guiding notions of Asher’s development is my annoyance about the peril main character’s are put into throughout the regular course of a novel— danger which, if the story is to continue, can never truly put the MC in danger. Creating an immortal character was my way of making a point about this trend.
Asher is a funny and well developed character. Did you create an outline for his character before you started writing or did his characters personality grow organically as you were writing?
Asher’s personality is a permutation of my own, and so a large reason he comes off as so well-developed from the get-go is that I’m fairly well developed as a person myself. That said, as a character he did grow organically (along with his character description) and I did write a fair amount of descriptors for the character even when I thought I was writing a short story. I think any writer should write what they know best first— with the caveat that they should push themselves to develop their style and create better content with each publication. When I wrote Immortal, I was sticking to a fairly known style that came with a limited viewpoint, but a lot of interesting potential. With my latest publication, I pushed those boundaries and created something outside my usual genre, with a different character archetype while shifting my writing approach.
In the Fae Realm, Asher gets caught up between two feuding noble houses, Summer Court and Winter Court. What were the driving ideals behind these houses while you were developing them?
The Summer Court and Winter Court are two sides of the same coin. There is an obvious patriarchy in Winter, and the matriarchy of Summer opposes it. Although both Courts are inherently dangerous (especially for outsiders), Summer is, like the season, warmer and more welcoming. Winter is a closed fist, and it rules by force. Its manipulations are sharp, jagged edge.
Are you writing a second novel as a follow up to Immortal: Curse of the Deathless? If so, when is that book due out?
A great question. Yes, Immortal: Reckoning is the sequel to Immortal: Curse of the Deathless. The series title is The Immortal Chronicles, and I’ve laid out my projected publication dates of the following two books on my website homepage (along with all my other future publications for most of the next year)>>> www.derekedgington.com. Immortal: Reckoning is due out in November 2016, and Immortal #3 will be published on May 7, 2017 (exactly a year after the first book was published).
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website
Asher Hearst is a college student, and the closest thing he’s got to a superpower is his ability to take a punch. Basically all he has going for him is an edgy sense of humor– and, of course, that he can’t die. As a small-time fixer, he’s about to field a job request best left to the pros, because once he gets involved with witches and the supernatural, there’s no turning back. While Asher becomes immersed in the secret world of the supernatural, he makes few allies and some very powerful enemies. At least traveling across space and time will bring him some unexpected romance, right? “Immortal: Curse of the Deathless” is a humorous, action-filled story with gritty, sometimes horror-inspiring elements. Over its three parts, the book spans multiple worlds: a modern, urban city of the 21st Century, as well as Tír na nÓg, a land that’s home to the Fae (Sídthe) from classic Celtic Mythology.
Hungry Monster Book Awards: August 2016
The Hungry Monster Book Awards are given to books that have astounded and amazed us with unique writing styles, vivid worlds, complex characters, and original ideas. These books deserve extraordinary praise and The Hungry Monster is proud to acknowledge the hard work, dedication, and imagination of these talented authors.
Gold Award Winners
Jabberwocky: A Novella by Theodore Singer
Silver Award Winners
Milijun by Clayton Graham
Derailed by Alyssa Rosy Ivy
Bar Nights by Dave Matthes
Death of a Gypsy by Janet Hannah
Mervyn vs. Dennis by Niels Saunders
Stage Door Comedies by Sally Roger
Asana of Malevolence by Kate Abbott
In the Eyes of Madness by Michael Pang
Welcome to Deep Cove by Grant T. Reed
The Six and the Crystals if Ialana by Katlynn Brooke
Thing Bailiwick: A Collection of Horror by Fawn Bonning
Tarbabies: The Shadow Man of Ichabod Lane by Allen Brady
Books have the ability to entertain and inform us. They can make the impossible possible. They are vehicles of time travel and windows into perspectives. In books, authors are gods and imagination is their power. Transforming letters into words; words into characters and places; and these into emotions and worlds. Even if we never meet, we are connected by the stories we tell.
Visit the Hungry Monster Book Awards page to see more information on the awards. See all award winners.
A Friend We Later Regretted
Niels Saunders Author Interview
Mervyn vs. Dennis is one of the funnest books I’ve read this year. Mervyn struggles with keeping his strange and intrusive boss out of his personal life. What was the inspiration for the relationship between Mervyn and Dennis?
Most of us have made a friend that we later regretted. I wanted to take that idea to its furthest extreme. Likewise, unless you’ve never worked or been extremely lucky, you’ve probably had a boss who made your life a living hell. Both of these situations are familiar comedy tropes but I wanted to combine them into something fresh. In both personality and outlook, Mervyn and Dennis couldn’t be more different. Mervyn is liberal and open-minded whereas Dennis is bigoted and mean-spirited. I wanted to explore whether two such disparate men could ever reconcile their differences or if they’d clash until the bitter end. During the writing process, this was something I was careful not to over-plan. I had some ideas of how their relationship would end up but I wanted it to evolve organically just like a real friendship or enmity.
What I liked about this story is that Mervyn is just trying to make it through life like many people. When you were building Mervyn’s character and background what was one thing you hoped came through in the end?
I wanted Mervyn to be likable, despite his flaws. Mervyn is extremely skilled at getting himself into embarrassing situations but I always wanted the reader to be on his side. Although he has moments of irrationality, I was careful to make his actions believable. Whether he makes the right choices is up to the reader but I wanted those choices to make sense, no matter how poor they might be. Mervyn has roots in picaresque fiction, British comic literature and modern sitcoms. He’s slightly too unhinged to be an everyman character but hopefully he’s relatable enough for the reader to become invested in his story. Comic novels, by their nature, tend to have eccentric characters. Sometimes this results in shallow personalities and caricatures but I wanted all the characters in my book to have believability and depth, especially Mervyn himself.
When Mervyn firsts meets Dennis he pretends to be racist so they can connect. Why did you choose that as the catalyst that propels their relationship?
Mervyn pretending to be racist is set up as a joke but nearly every event in the story is caused by that initial lie. Dennis is emboldened by Mervyn’s faux racism, showing how even a careless racist joke can cause a butterfly effect. Likewise, when Mervyn brings a swastika mug to work in an attempt to shock, it inspires Dennis to do something even more extreme. Although the novel is primarily a comedy, I wanted to explore the causes and consequences of prejudice. Alongside this, however, I was careful to avoid having a didactic message. It’s fairly common knowledge that racism sucks. People do need reminding sometimes but they don’t need it spelled out. What interested me most were the roots of Dennis’s hatred and the depths of his denial. In the wake of Brexit in the UK and the shadow of Trump in the US, racism is unfortunately topical right now, and there’s never been a more crucial time, in my life at least, to take a stand against it.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will that be published?
I’m currently rewriting three of my earlier novels. First off, there’s Grand Theft Octo, another comedy. It’s more satirical than Mervyn vs. Dennis, with less overt social commentary. It’s the story of Jonathan Doe, an entrepreneur of businesses the world has never seen including freelance taxidermy and (you better believe it) octopus teasing. Originally a 140,000 word epic, I’m on target to trim it by at least half. Next up, there’s The Papyrus Empire and its sequel The Black King. They’re dark thrillers that kick off a series about a global secret society. I’m hoping to have Grand Theft Octo ready in the next few months with The Papyrus Empire to follow. To keep up to date, please join my mailing list.
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website
Deep in debt, Mervyn Kirby gets a job he doesn’t want by pretending to be racist. His new boss Dennis Lane thinks he’s found a kindred spirit. When Mervyn confesses he’s not really racist, Dennis thinks it’s just part of the act. Day by day, to Mervyn’s horror, Dennis worms his way into Mervyn’s private life. Despite his fears, Mervyn is torn: his new job pays well but he despises Dennis and everything he stands for. How far will Mervyn go to free himself? How far will Dennis go to become friends? Will they settle their differences or end up killing each other? And why are so many shifty people carrying pineapples around town?
Drop Dead Gorgeous
When Ray wakes up beaten, bloodied, and bound with duct tape in the bottom of a basement, he immediately tries to figure out how he got there and how he can escape. But his captor, the most beautiful woman that he’s ever seen, is hell bent on keeping him in captivity with her. No matter what he tries, he can’t seem to escape her or her captivating story of a husband’s ultimate betrayal and a wife’s twisted revenge that lead Ray’s captor to his town. As details of the woman’s past are revealed, Ray tries to hold onto the hope that he won’t be the next victim.
A story of revenge and insanity, Drop Dead Gorgeous, a novel by Donald Allen Kirch, taps into the craze of scientific experiments, the nature of man, and what actually makes a person a person. A dark imagining and entertaining journey, readers should be able to fly through the quick-witted and often hilarious phrases created by the author.
From the very beginning of the story, Kirch captivates the reader through his description of the setting. The vivid telling of the location of the main male character creates a dark, terrifying, and intriguing straight away.
The story appears to be told in small arcs, each more captivating than the first. There is never a lack of action in the story as the author keeps every part of the story moving along without focusing too long on any one section of the story. Just as the reader becomes interested in one part of the story, the author moves quickly into another section. This keeps the reader on his or her toes as the outcome of the story is eagerly awaited. This style of writing also comes across as being very efficient. The reader is never given more information that absolutely needed in each section of the story.
The characters largely aid in the quickness of the story. But their quick and lively narration may be their biggest redeeming quality. Whether or not the author means for the two main characters to be sympathetic is lost. Though strong characters, neither of them is likeable. While Eve’s backstory tries to give a sort of sympathy to her character, her introduction and elements of her backstory demolish any chance of actual redemption of the character. The character of Ray also has no redeeming qualities. It’s difficult to want either of the characters to end up successful in the story. Although there are a few characters in the story, only one character, the female scientist, is actually sympathetic. But even then, she’s pushed into the unsympathetic category a couple of times during her section of the narrative, as if the goal of the characters is to prove that no person is actually good.
While some descriptions and characterizations delve into an exceedingly awkward and confusing style of writing, there is no doubt that the author excels in creating a believable, albeit disturbing, reality.
Pages: 166 | ISBN: 1523905352
Plenty to Satirize
Victor Schwartzman Author Interview
King of the Moon is a story is about the strange, entertaining, and hilarious life of the king. What was your inspiration for the wild journey you take readers on in only this one week of the kings life?
I have written all my life, and as an adult generally had projects. King of the Moon was the latest—it was time, again, to write I novel. I’ve tried previously but was never happy with the results. For a while an idea had been in the back of my head about someone dying and waking up on another planet as its King. I decided to give the idea a try. The first chapter worked out pretty good, and then the second, and then, with rewrites, it was a year later. Why the subject matter? Our current world demands satire! I look at everything from the current Presidential election campaign to environmental issues to personal politics.
I found this novel to be a cutting piece of satire. What is one thing that you hope readers take away from your novel?
That they enjoyed it and want to read it again.
Most of the book takes place in the kings head, his thoughts and ruminations. What was your writing process to ensure you captured the essence of this character?
Well, each chapter had to satirize something. Sometimes low fruit, sometimes stuff high on the tree. Each chapter had to advance the plot. It also had to advance the main character. For example, it was after the first four chapters that I stopped and figured out what the rest of the novel would very roughly be. Short chapters. For satire, I started with the urge to have Kings and Queens instead of a democracy. Fox News and its impact on media played an important role. People fighting each other rather than a common enemy. Trading jobs for environmental pollution. Our world has plenty to satirize. Also, I played with Game of Thrones and Star Wars, two favorites.
What is the next book that you are working on and when can your fans expect it to be out?
The next book? The first seven or so chapters, unedited, are on http://www.redfez.net, along with a bit of my poetry and short fables. I started this graphic novel (is there another name for what I’m doing?) in 1994. There are 26 completed chapters. Currently I am going back and editing the chapters. As the original desktop publishing software no longer functions with modern Windows, I can only edit the PDFs, but that will do. It is fine tuning. The graphic novel? It is the story of a failed social services manager who wins the lottery. He uses the money to start a community newspaper. To prove he is a good manager, he only hires people who had been fired. He also deliberately creates problems. Each chapter of the novel is one issue of the newspaper. This originated over 20 years ago, when there were community newspapers. Each issue is complete, with news articles, movie reviews, a comic strip and, on the end page, a puzzle. You find out what is happening through those, along with the classified ads. It is reading fiction obliquely. It is reading fiction as if the novel was a newspaper and you could flip from article to article, choosing what you read. The plot for each of the six characters progresses clearly, at least to me. Why have I spent so long working on this? I started almost as soon as I had my first computer. There is something about the concept. I love the format, which allows me to work in jokes and sarcasm.
Author Links: GoodReads
Mervyn vs. Dennis
Mervyn vs. Dennis tells the story of Mervyn Kirby dealing with his crisis of a life. The story begins with Mervyn going into an interview to be a video game tester. A job that Mervyn is not interested in nor good at, but he desperately needs. When he finds out his boss is racist he pretends to be as well so that he will get hired. Dennis finds Mervyn to be a kindred spirit so he hires Mervyn. Dennis is disliked by many of the employees and doesn’t have many friends, but he doesn’t care. All he cares about is Mervyn. Things get out of hand when Mervyn tries to keep his distance and Dennis keeps pushing their friendship further. Dennis shows up everywhere Mervyn is, invites him for dinners and to his house. Mervyn realizes that Dennis has a secret. Determined to find out what it is, Mervyn discovers something horrifying and unbelievable.
Mervyn Kirby is smart, determined, and willing to take risks. He has no experience in his job but he takes it anyway. Dennis Lane is weird, funny, and understanding. The story reveals that not everyone is as they seem. Everyone fights their own devils and just because you think you know someone doesn’t mean you know what’s going on in their head. Dennis has a dark side that he hides from people very well.
I enjoyed the setting of this contemporary story. It was easy to immerse myself in the world because it’s delivered effortlessly. The humor is sharp and unexpected, even making me literally laugh out loud at times. The interactions between Dennis and Mervyn are something I always looked forward to when I picked the novel up to continue reading. And really it’s Mervyn’s interactions with everyone in the story that is entertaining; like with the CEO, with his first date, with his brother and his friend, and his colleagues. The reason why I liked this story so much was because it was believable. The struggles that Mervyn faced is much like the struggles we all face; a job he dislikes, trying to make ends meet, first date crisis, fussy boss, and family problems. The story is easy to connect to; however, I found that there was an overabundance of description rather than dialogue. Nonetheless, the mystery and the suspense of who the actual Dennis Lane is kept me going. I love a good mystery and this book has it all. The ending was spot on and will someone please tell me why everyone is carrying a pineapple.
Pages: 253 | ASIN: B01I1TAID0
King of the Moon
King of the Moon by Victor Schwartzman is a story about a young king who truly does not want to be king. The book focuses on one week in the life of the king and everything that he has to deal with from politics to courting women. It is a hilarious satirical look at other works of art such as Gulliver’s Travels, Star Wars, mixed in with Game of Thrones. There are moments of jokes (some of which are dirty such as the title of Chapter 2), and cheap shots. Just a few things that makes a book incredibly entertaining, especially for someone who may not enjoy reading.
This was definitely an interesting story straight from the beginning. Some of the sentences get confusing while reading them such as “I needed it cleared because I needed to get my head clear to me I clearly needed to get out of here!” the multiple uses of “clear” shows how silly the English language is, and the lack of punctuation makes it difficult to understand what Schwartzman is really trying to say. Readers are in the head of the king, so they get his silly random thoughts from dancing like Gene Kelly to trying to make serious decisions for the kingdom. It is an interesting idea that the king gets reincarnated, though the king doesn’t come back at birth. He comes back as twenty seven year old man. I’ve read a lot of stories where people who are reincarnated start out from birth, but this is the first story that I’ve read where the person gets reincarnated as an adult and I enjoyed the originality in the way that it was presented.
Schwartzman does a great job at presenting the inner thoughts of his character in a way that reflects how many of us think, random and all over the place. He pokes fun at a lot of different things; some are obvious while others seem a little more allusive. There is even a little bit of romance in the tale for those who enjoy romance. Dialogue between characters was funny and natural, transitions and description scenes were not forced nor were they too extensive. Everything fit perfectly and made the reader get lost in the story, in turn losing track of the time! A lot of things happen within this one week of the king’s life, but it keeps things interesting. It keeps the story moving and the readers interested to see what will happen next.
There are many different literary genres wrapped into one story. There is truly something for everyone in this book. I would recommend this to anyone who wants a good book to read regardless of preferred genre. If you are not much of a fan of reading, even you will enjoy this book. It is hard to find something that is not entertaining about this book. I would give it a rating of 4 out 5 because frankly it felt like there was more story to be told. The story really leaves the reading wanting more, and hoping to see more things by Victor Schwartzman.
Pages: 450 | ASIN: B01D83TNPI
LITERARY TITAN 