Blood, part 4 of 4

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Richard threw the book away in disgust.  The pages fluttered as the book spun across the room to slam into the far wall with a resounding thud.  He grabbed his hair with both hands and pulled his head between his knees to keep from screaming.  Even then, a guttural sound, somewhere between a moan and growl, escaped his clenched jaws. 

Nothing.

He’d spent months now researching, following every lead he could find, digging into the depths of the most obscure references and causal mentions, trying to find a single piece of hope that he could keep his new found power without it resulting in the crushing loss of health he had experienced as a result.  And all that time spent had resulted in nothing.  There was no hope.  There was no way to continue doing blood magic at the level he desired and stay healthy at the same time.

“So be it.”

He released his head and his eyes, red and wet from frustration and pain, scanned the room to where the book had fallen.  The book wasn’t the problem, it had just been the final fruitless hope and, as such, had borne the brunt of his exhaustion and exasperation. 

Standing and crossing the room, he retrieved the book, closed it nicely, and placed it on the stack of books that now needed to be returned to their owners.  That wasn’t going to be cheap.  Some of these books had come from halfway around the world.  Some had come from further.  But return them he would.  Just because he wouldn’t sacrifice his health for this craft didn’t mean he would keep the knowledge from others.  Perhaps they had more self-control than he did.  Perhaps they were willing to give up their health.

Richard locked up and headed for his car, waving to Bree across the street as he stood at the driver door.

“Glad to see you are feeling better,” she called across to him.

“That obvious?”

“Your color is back and you no longer look like a stiff wind could knock you over.”

Richard laughed and leaned against the now opened door.  “Yeah, I am feeling better, thank you.”

She smiled and nodded and then asked, “Where you headed.”

“Going to the beach.  Trying to get some more of that fresh air and sunshine a friend of mine recommended.”

“Have fun,” she replied, even as she returned her attention to the garden patch she was weeding.

He smirked as he started the car and drove off.

Fun?  That wasn’t really the idea at all.

Power?  Now that was what he was after, what he wanted, what he craved.

Blackmoon WarMage

Have you read Blackmoon WarMage yet?  Do it!!  Do it now!!!  That’s an official Kingdom directive.  When the First Knight of the Matticus Kingdom publishes a story, I insist that all layal kingdomites go forth, purchase, and read that book.  Furthermore, I require that reviews be left afterwards as feedback for both the author himself and for potential future readers.  So… stop reading this silliness and go read Revis’ book!!

The Seven Sceptres

It’s been a busy and weird kind of week, and isn’t it interesting how those go together as often as they do.

So far this week, I’ve learned that in some circles “3 – 5 business days” can actually mean less than 8 hours… and, I’ve learned that “3 – 5 business days” can also actually mean more than a month.  See, being a fan of words and definitions, I have a problem with that…  But, when enough people accept something for the way it is, I know I have to cool my frustration and just let it be…  Don’t I?

And, during this weird and busy week, I’ve also learned that I can survive on far less sleep than I normally do – and, let’s face it, I don’t usually get that much sleep to begin with – as I pushed my bed time back each night to work, work, work… on a certain book, book, book.

A new one…

This one:

Image shows the cover for the anthology “The Seven Sceptres” by Michael Hansen, Matthew Blashill, Arden Ruth, and Ethan Stein.  The cover was done by CardCastles and depicts seven spheres that represent the various gods within the stories.

This beautiful book, that has been compiled with all the guile, wit and love of Revis, Arden, Ethan, myself and CardCastles too, was supposed to become available on Tuesday, February 20th…  This is the part where we get back to the various definitions of “3 – 5 days” and how the book has actually already been released and is ready to purchase…

So, just to be silly, you could wait to order it until Tuesday, or you could be even sillier and order it now…

Paperback: CLICK HERE

Kindle: CLICK HERE

For those of you who actually want to know what the book is about before purchasing it and supporting several wonderful and deserving writers, here is the synopsis:

Accura, the goddess of chaos, has begun to unleash her newest plot to send Cetros spiraling into turmoil. Once her brother and sister gods and goddesses learn of her scheme, most bring forth their champions to try and restore order while the others attempt to take advantage of the situation for their own purposes. Will their lack of a cohesive plan only serve to further Accura’s cause and doom Cetros to be forever ruled by chaos? Or will the champions succeed in their quests and allow their world to regain some semblance of normalcy?

This anthology includes seven stories, one for each of the gods and goddesses of Cetros: Chaos, Magic, Death, Plants and Earth, Animals, the Seas, and Weather.

Sounds amazing right?  I can tell you with 100% certainty that it is amazing.  And, while you may think I’m biased, and you may be right about that, please do not let that influence your purchasing decision.  Thank you, in advance, for your support.  You faithful kingdomites surely do know how to make a Jester feel special.

I will continue to plug the new book over the coming days.  There will be info on purchasing signed copies.  There will be snippets from my contributions to the anthology.  There will be links and shenanigans.  So, stick around.  Leave a comment.  Buy a book.  And we’ll all have a grand time.

*cough cough*

So… it’s been a while since I’ve been here with any sort of regularity.  I guess I should get a broom out and take care of some cobwebs (safely transporting the spiders outside first, of course) and maybe do some dusting.

Ugh.  Dusting.  Really?  It’s the worst.

You might be seeing a bit more of me this year…  I don’t want to promise and than not deliver, hence the “might,” but I should have a lot of good news to share throughout the year.

And that starts now.

This is a picture of fireworks, which has nothing to do with this post but fireworks!

Revis, Arden, Ethan and I have a book coming out soon… very soon…  Tuesday of next week or so…  Yes, I’m just teasing you for now, no specifics, no details, just an anthology of fantasy stories related to a world you may or may not be familiar with already.

So, there’s that bit of awesome…

What?  You want more?

Okay, okay… here’s some words for you:

New book!  New book!  New book!!

What?!  Not the words you were hoping for?  Be patient my faithful kingdomites, and you shall be rewarded…  A cover reveal?  Some tantalizing quotes from the various stories?  An author interview?  Okay, maybe not that one, but we shall see.  Indeed, we shall see!

You’re right. It should be free.

And so, for a limited time, it shall be FREE.

Fauxpocalypse is currently being featured on Story Cartel, and you can download a copy of the book… for…  FREE!  That’s zip, zero, nadda, nothing.  Did I mention FREE?

All those stories.  All the drama.  The love.  The action.  The mystery.

Free.  Free.  Free.  Free.  Free.

Your money is no good.  (“Nobody drink the beer, the beer has gone bad.” – Can’t Hardly Wait.  Anybody?  Anybody?  Okay, moving on.)  We don’t want your money.  Though, we wouldn’t mind a review or two or twenty, anywhere and everywhere you can post a quick word about it.

Oh, and before I forget, have I already said it is FREE!?

So, pop on over to Story Cartel (http://storycartel.com/books/fauxpocalypse) and pick up your FREE copy of the book.

What are you waiting for?

Do you need a reminder of what Fauxpocalypse is all about?

Here you go:

“Life on Earth is predicted to end on 15 July 2015. But the oncoming megatons of rock and ice break up shortly before impact. Now humanity must live in a world most believed would not exist. Across the planet, people are haunted by the future they did not fear, and even those who did not embrace death must face the consequences of others’ decisions.

A collection of twelve stories about rebuilding hope.”

So…  FREE.  And Awesome.  And FREE!  Why haven’t you already popped over and gotten your FREE copy?

Did I take it too far?