Tuesday 28 October 2014

10 Things You Didn’t Know About Caskets from Costco by Kelly Wilson @LiveCheap #Memoir #TBR

10 Things You Didn’t Know About Caskets From Costco

When it’s time for a trip to Costco, shopping for a casket probably isn’t the first item on your list. There are many questions that come with potentially buying a casket from Costco, such as whether or not you should store this purchase in your garage and if Costco would accept a return on such a purchase.

In Caskets From Costco, the author ponders these kinds of questions and more in this funny book about grief. Here are ten things the average person does not know about Caskets From Costco.

Costco really does sell caskets. And urns. And additional funeral…accessories.

Costco doesn’t sell any of these items in the warehouse. They are probably afraid of people like me, who would lay down in the caskets and then pop out, shouting “BOOOOOO!” to scare other shoppers.

When I asked the Costco corporate office for permission to use their name in the title of the book, they answered my request within 24 hours.

All characters in the book except for four of them have fake names; many of the people in the book chose their own fake names.

A few of the fake names are “bar names,” like Rod Johnson and Alexis Everlasting, also chosen by the people they represent.

It took me ten years to complete the book, at the cost of hundreds of trees in drafts.

The title comes from my writing friend Jone, who suggested it after we had gulped down a glass of wine (or two…or three).

I wanted to burn the manuscript in my backyard a couple of times. My writing friends stopped me.

When I didn’t know how else to revise and edit the book, I hired an editor – one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

I have no regrets writing or publishing Caskets From Costco (I thought I would) – although I was nervous-pooping for days before it was officially out.

Author's Bio: 

Kelly Wilson is a Portland, Oregon author and comedian who loves a bargain and will probably end up buying her casket or urn from Costco. She is the author of Live Cheap & Free, Don’t Punch People in the Junk, and Caskets From Costco, along with numerous articles and short stories for children and adults. Kelly Wilson currently writes for a living and lives with her Magically Delicious husband, junk-punching children, dog, and cat, with a stereotypical minivan in the garage. Read more about her at www.wilsonwrites.com.

Caskets From Costco 
For twenty years, Kelly Wilson thought that she had been marching through the stages of grief in a straight line. She had been following the formula, crossing each processed grief experience off her list.

Except that Kelly was totally deluded. And she didn’t discover that until Jim, her beloved father-in-law, died. She found herself drying off from her shower the morning after his death, really hoping that he couldn’t see her naked. Or, if he could, that he was averting his eyes.

From that moment, Kelly's path through grief resembled a roller coaster, spiraling and twisting and turning, circling back around. Echoes of past trauma, including childhood abuse and cheating death, would no longer be ignored. She somehow needed to get from the beginning to the end of this grief adventure, and she doesn't have a good sense of direction.

But what is always present during a journey through grief, regardless of the path chosen?

Hope.

Caskets From Costco is a funny book about grief that demonstrates the certainty of hope and healing in an uncertain and painful world.

Buy Now @ Amazon
Genre - Memoir, Humor
Rating – PG-13
More details about the author
Connect with Kelly Wilson on Facebook & Twitter

#BookReview - Steps Into Darkness by Ben Woodard @benswoodard #Mystery #ReviewShare

Steps Into Darkness (Shakertown Adventure #2)Steps Into Darkness by Ben Woodard
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The plot and story flow is something that has been tested over the years. Nothing unique here. However, what appealed to me most was the author’s characterization and references to an old style Kentucky without making it sound cliche or dull. This really enticed me to keep reading.

In comparison to the first book, I did felt that the pacing Steps into Darkness was slightly different. It was more upbeat and the characters were more involved in each action / reaction.

Steps into Darkness gripped me right from the start with it’s tight plotline and how in the end, every single character made a difference to the story. The mystery was intriguing and sometimes disguised so the reader is kept in the dark of the next step.

Would I recommend this read? Absolutely. This is clearly a book for the teen reader but any adult who likes a good, clean mystery will also enjoy it. This is the second book I have read by Ben Woodard and I can tell you, I definitely wouldn’t spending time with him as he builds and plots his mysteries. Excellent, excellent work.

Overall assessment:
Content: 4.5/5
Editing: 4.5/5
Formatting: 4.5/5
Pacing: 4.5/5

Offensive content?: Based on language and settings, I would recommend this book for anyone aged 10 and up.

Disclosure: I received a review copy of this book from the author. I did not receive any payment in exchange for this review nor was I obliged to write a positive one.(less)


View all my reviews

Tuesday 14 October 2014

MOXIE'S PROBLEM #Excerpt by Hank Quense @hanque99 #Fantasy #AmReading

Scene background: Tristan is rehearsing his latest play and Merlin wants to check it out.
Merlin entered the room in the back of the keep where Tristan rehearsed his new play, Rolf and Hild. The play’s premier was planned for Camelot’s annual Yuletide Feast and Merlin was curious about what abomination Tristan had hatched this time.

A few knights milled about the room while an apprentice knight with a bandaged arm stood on a chair. The apprentice had a woman’s wig on his head and didn’t look happy. Tristan placed a second chair alongside the first. “Let us begin with an important scene. One that will leave not a dry eye in the audience.”

Tristan grabbed a second knight and dragged him over to the empty chair.

“You are Hild,” Tristan said to the apprentice on the chair, “a rich maiden. Let us pretend the chairs are a balcony in a garden behind Hild’s house.” Tristan smacked the second knight in the chest with the back of his hand. “Your name is Rolf. You are wandering knight who has fallen in love with Hild as she has with you. Her family refuses to allow you to marry her or even see her, so you have to meet in secret. Is this clear?”

Both characters looked puzzled.

“Why don’t I just kill her parents,” Rolf asked, “and run away with her?”

“Because I didn’t write the play that way,” Tristan replied. “You stand over there,” he told Rolf, “until Hild calls you. Then you approach the balcony and profess your love.”

“How the hell do I that? And what does profess mean?”

“Never mind. Just go stand over there.” Tristan said in a threatening voice.

Merlin loved to watch Tristan lose his temper. One never knew what to expect when that happened and Merlin suspected a temper tantrum was about to break out.

Once Rolf had been positioned, Tristan stood behind Hild and her chair.

“I’ll whisper the lines to you, and you repeat them, all right?”

Merlin realized Hild couldn’t read and Rolf probably couldn’t either, so the actors had to memorize the lines as Tristan read them.

Hild braced herself, cocked an ear towards Tristan and then said, “Rolf, oh Rolf. Wherefore art thou, Rolf.”

Tristan pointed and Rolf moved to the chairs where Tristan whispered lines to him. “I’m here, Hild, my beloved. Say you’ll be mine forever and a day.”

“I will. Oh, I will. I will be thy wife and change my name to yours. What is in a name? A nettle by other name would still prick thy hand.”

Tristan directed Rolf to climb on the chair, embrace Hild and kiss her.

“I ain’t kissin’ a guy,” Rolf snarled. “What kinda nasty mind do you have, Tristan.”

“It’s a play and she’s supposed to be a woman, so it’s all right to kiss her during the play. It’s part of your role as a character.”

Rolf climbed on the chair and loosely embraced Hild. Hild closed her eyes and puckered up.

“I ain’t kissing’ her,” Rolf said. “She’s got stubble all over her face and her breath stinks.”

Hild opened her eyes and glared at Rolf. “You should talk. Your breath smells like a midden.”

Rolf and Hild both made fists and assumed fighting stances while still on the chairs.

Merlin shook his head. He had seen enough to confirm his suspicion that Tristan’s play writing talent was equal to his poetry talent. Merlin left the room while, behind his back, Rolf and Hild threatened to settle the dispute with swords.

Moxie's Problem

Do you enjoy untypical coming-of-age stories? Well, you won’t find one more untypical that Moxie’s Problem. Moxie is an obnoxious, teen-age princess who has never been outsider her father’s castle. Until now. The real world is quite different and she struggles to come to grips with reality. The story take space against a backdrop of Camelot. But it isn’t the Camelot of legends. It’s Camelot in a parallel universe. So, all bets are off!

Buy Now @ Amazon & Smashwords
Genre – Fantasy, Sci-fi
Rating – G
More details about the author
Connect with Hank Quense through Facebook & Twitter

Saturday 11 October 2014

7 Questions with #Author Kirsten Arcadio @KirstenArcadio #AmReading #GoodReads #Thriller

 

Q: Please tell us how you came to be a writer.
 
In 2012 I completed Faber Academy’s Writing a Novel (online) course. It was a fabulous experience bringing me into contact with some interesting and gifted writers, and it launched me into the world of writing. Before the course I had vague ambitions, but afterwards I was quite determined to write novels and to make it part of my life long term.
 
Q: You generally write in the genre of speculative thrillers. What can readers expect?
 
Readers of this genre would need to enjoy a wide range of genres, I suspect. They can expect page turners which, at the same time, have a layered feel to them.  A touch of supernatural runs through all my stories, but readers can choose to interpret these threads as metaphysical too. So my novels straddle the intersection between supernatural and science fiction.
 
Q: The protagonist in your latest novel is Dr Elena Lewis. What can we expect from her?
 
Dr Elena Lewis is a layered character whose motivations are sometimes ambiguous. If you like complex characters thrown into challenging circumstances which often contain some element of illusion, she’s an ideal protagonist for you!
 
Q: Which is your favourite fictional character and why?

I quite like Lisbeth Salander from the Millennium Trilogy! I like her strangeness and her strength.
 
Q: What are you working on at the moment?
 
I’m currently working on the third book in my series of speculative thrillers The Borderliners Trilogy, ‘WorldCult’.
 
Q: Some writers plot to the last detail and others let the novel develop organically. Which are you?
 
I’m a plotter but I don’t plot to the last detail. I do about twelve major plot points, divide those into four quarters, Act 1, 2 and 3 with Act 2 having two parts, and then put up the structure for my story using that structure to guide me. I won’t plot in any more detail than that as things come up as I go along, and I like that! After my initial draft I go back and layer up using the snowflake method. I see it as chiselling out a basic statue before going back to hew in the detail later.
 
Q: With the number of self-published books increasing exponentially, it is difficult for authors to make their books stand out? How do you go about this?
 
I’m still working this all out, but as a digital marketing professional by trade, I’d say it’s about content surfacing through collaboration with others. And it’s about building readership long term. I’ve always believed email is the killer app and this would appear to be as true of publishing as of any other industry, so collaboration and email are the two main avenues I’m working on in this respect.
 
Q: As a self-published author, how do you divide your time between writing and marketing?
 
With difficulty. I’m still trying to get the balance right. Ideally I’d want to set a stop watch to around 30 minutes a day on marketing and the rest of the time (the time it takes to write or edit 1,500 words) on writing. I’m quite disciplined about the marketing and I have a content plan of blogs, links and quotes which I publish to various different platforms on a regular basis. I would like to do more live events though. Maybe next year!
 
Q: You’re based in the UK, so what’s your readership? Do you have readers in countries outside of the UK?
 
Most of my readers are based in the UK with a smaller percentage of the majority based in the US. I have some readers in Pakistan due to a personal connection there promoting my books. I would like to promote my books in Italy as I have many friends and family there, but they need to be translated into Italian in order to do so. I would hope that my novels have international appeal!
 
Links:

Split Symmetry

Lost meets The Poseidon Adventure with a hint of Sliding Doors!

It's 2015 in the notorious Gran Sasso mountain range of central Italy.
Quantum physicists in a lab beneath the ground begin an illegal experiment. 
A landslide hits and a hiking group is stranded. 
Every decision, every step of the way...changes reality. 

Book #2 of the best-selling Borderliners series, this other-worldly adventure will keep you turning the pages to the very end!
 'A novel about what it is to survive and endure, what defines us, how it is to be ruled by fear, to be a slave to the terror of nature and what it feels like to love.' Five star customer review. 

Buy Now @ Amazon & Smashwords
Genre - Speculative thriller
Rating – PG
More details about the author
Connect with Kirsten Arcadio through Facebook & Twitter

Friday 10 October 2014

7 Questions with #Author Cheryl Carpinello @CCarpinello #AmReading #Tween

author
I love the Ancient and Medieval Worlds! As a retired English teacher, I hope to inspire young readers to read more through my Quest Books. Please follow me on this adventure. On Carpinello’s Writing Pages, I interview other children/MG/Tween/YA authors. At The Quest Books, I’ve teamed up with Fiona Ingram from South Africa and Wendy Leighton-Porter of England/France/Abu Dhabi to enable readers to find all of our Ancient and Medieval quest books in one place.
Tell us a bit about your family.
My husband and I met in college. We have been married many years! Our son and daughter are both married. Our son and his wife have a 5 1/2 year old boy and a daughter on the way. Our daughter and her husband have a 1 1/2 year old boy. We are thrilled to be grandparents to such beautiful children! Our oldest grandson is an expert on bugs! Colorado has always been our home, and we are both natives. Although we have traveled quite a bit, we have found nowhere else where the four seasons are so evident. 

What book should everybody read at least once?
My choice would be the plays of Shakespeare. His histories, comedies, and tragedies contain such insights into the human character! Whether it was one man or several who wrote the plays, it is hard to deny the continued relevance to today’s world. I find that each time I read one, I discover something new I missed in a previous reading. 

What is hardest - getting published, writing, or marketing?
Today, with the ability of writers to self-publish their work, I think that marketing has taken on a bigger portion of a writer’s time. Self-publishing opened up the somewhat hidden publishing arena. Writers are finding out that promotion is not simple; books do not sell themselves; and most writers are not publicists. I’ve found marketing to be a larger learning curve, in part, because I’ve had to learn so much in such a short time. 

What other jobs have you had in your life?
I’m a retired high school English teacher. Teaching is a wonderful profession, and I probably wouldn’t have retired after 25 years, if I could have figured out how to teach writing and literature without having to read and grade between 900 and 1000 essays and research papers each year! I love working with young adults.

My love of traveling fueled my part time job with a major airline. After working nights and weekends for 12 years, I retired and now enjoy life-time flights benefits. I also volunteer at our airport and enjoy helping travelers find their way. 

How do you write - laptop, pen & paper, in bed, at a desk?
I always handwrite all my first drafts. Throughout my 24 years of teaching writing, I have found that students who write on a computer rarely go back and edit. They regard the computer page as the finished product. I’m always amazed at the amount of editing I do when I transfer my written pages to my laptop. Along that same line, I’ve found that printing out the subsequent drafts facilitates my editing. Once again, the computer page is too often considered the final draft.

I try to follow a set writing schedule, but life interferes too much. When I’m unable to physically write, I write in my head. I can write just about anywhere: on the front porch, the back patio, or my living room couch. One constant element of my writing routine is that I either have music on, or one of my favorite movies.

What’s your favorite place in the entire world?
Without a doubt, that would be Las Vegas! Unlike so many people who go there to gamble and see the shows, I love Las Vegas because I like to stay up late and get up late! It’s the perfect place for me. That’s not to say that I don’t gamble a bit, I do. I also love to read by the pool and eat at the Flamingo buffet!

Do you have an organized process or tips for writing well? Do you have a writing schedule?
My writing does follow certain steps. First, I spend time just thinking about what I want to write. This encompasses who my characters will be, what challenges they will face, the background of the story, who my potential readers will be, and what the story may look like as a whole.

My next step is to do a rough outline of the story. This is usually a brief chapter by chapter synopsis. Then I spend some time reflecting on this.

As I sit down to write, I tend to write straight through to the end. This can take me several months depending on how quickly or slowly the story develops. I mark areas that are not working or that need further description and/or research to come back to later.

Once that first draft is written, I let it and me rest for a few days while I catch up on other things. Then I put my written draft in the computer.

From here on out, I print out copies, edit, enter my additions/deletions, and then start over again. I usually go through five or six rough drafts before coming close to my final draft. All of my drafts are read by my copy/content editor. What I consider my final draft goes through a professional edit which usually runs three rounds.

Young Knights

Action Adventure Kindle Book

Three Friends. Three Quests. Three Mysterious Predictions.

At Pembroke Castle in medieval Wales,11-year-old Prince Gavin, 13-year-old orphan Philip, and 15-year-old blacksmith's apprentice Bryan, brought together in friendship by the one they call The Wild Man, embark upon a quest to save The Wild Man's life when he is accused of murder and robbery. If they have any hope of succeeding, the three will have to confront their fears and insecurities, and one of them will have to disclose the biggest secret of all. But it is the arrival of King Arthur and what he reveals that surprises characters and readers.

Author Links:
Author Sites:

Purchase Links for Young Knights of the Round Table: The King’s Ransom

Tuesday 7 October 2014

#BookReview - My Grandma Lives in Florida by Ed Shankman #KidLit #ReviewShare

My Grandma Lives in FloridaMy Grandma Lives in Florida by Ed Shankman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is a delightful book on every count. My daughter loves this book and we have read it every night for the past few weeks. Separation from a child's grandparents is not easy. We moved from England to Singapore in January and we had to explain to the children that they would no longer be able to see their grandparents as often as before.

While our location was different, the message of this book helped my eldest daughter understand that being away did not mean less love in anyway. The sentence structure is easy for a young child to understand and the illustrations are lovely.

Would I recommend this read? Absolutely. Buy it for the message or the illustrations this is a book that will not disappoint.

Overall assessment:
Content: 5/5
Editing: 5/5
Formatting: 5/5
Pacing: 5/5

Offensive content?: Based on language and settings, I would recommend this book for any young reader. My daughter is aged 4 and she enjoyed it immensely.

Disclosure: I received a review copy of this book from the author. I did not receive any payment in exchange for this review nor was I obliged to write a positive one.

View all my reviews

#BookReview - Icarus Rising (A Rock Star #Erotic #Romance, Book 1) by Robb Manary #ReviewShare

Icarus Rising (A Rock Star Erotic Romance, Book 1) (The Icarus Trilogy)Icarus Rising (A Rock Star Erotic Romance, Book 1) by Robb Manary
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

In Greek mythology, Icarus sets an impossible target and falls when he does not heed his father's advice. I think it was particularly smart to use "Icarus Rising" as the title because that's exactly what Brandon does in the story. Once he sets his eyes on Rachel, he knows it won't be easy winning her over.

The book is written in a journal style as he does everything he can to woo Rachel. As Brandon jots down his opinions, one had to admire his honesty which goes beyond his attraction for Rachel and reveal everything the reader needs to know about him.

Icarus Rising has a great storyline and is unexpectedly witty. It does make you think of all the pleasures one feels at the beginning of a relationship.

Would I recommend this read? Yes, despite its appearances that it looks like a steamy novel and nothing, this book is much more.

Overall assessment:
Content: 4/5
Editing: 4/5
Formatting: 4/5
Pacing: 3.5/5

Offensive content?: Based on language and settings, I would recommend this book for adult readers.

Disclosure: I received a review copy of this book from the author. I did not receive any payment in exchange for this review nor was I obliged to write a positive one.

View all my reviews

Monday 6 October 2014

#BookReview - Rising Tide by Claudette Melanson @Bella623 #Vampires #ReviewShare

Rising Tide: Dark Innocence (The Maura DeLuca Trilogy, #1)Rising Tide: Dark Innocence by Claudette Melanson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is not your ordinary vampire story but it's definitely a fantastic one. Be warned though that as much as I loved the book, it does have a cliffhanger ending which some readers may not like.

Just as I finished the book, the papers were reporting about renewed sightings of black-eyed children around the globed. At that moment, the book's cover took on a whole new meaning and now, I'll definitely remember this book for a long time.

What appealed the most to me was her writing. The plot in itself has been done before but her description, sense of drawing out the characters and turning even the nastiest of moments into juicy reads, well done is an understatement.

On a side note, this was another delightful author to have on a blog tour. She was organised, lots of fresh posts, comments and I love that she has so many things happening on her site.

Would I recommend this read? Absolutely. This was an intriguing read. Excellent book and author. Highly recommended.

Overall assessment:
Content: 5/5
Editing: 5/5
Formatting: 5/5
Pacing: 5/5

Offensive content?: Based on language and settings, I would recommend this book for readers aged 13 and above.

Disclosure: I received a review copy of this book from the author. I did not receive any payment in exchange for this review nor was I obliged to write a positive one.

View all my reviews

#BookReview - Conspiracy of Silence by Glede Kabongo @gkabongo #Suspense #ReviewShare

Conspiracy of SilenceConspiracy of Silence by Glede Browne Kabongo
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was a fantastic book in more ways than one. Think Kalinda from The Good Wife meets Emily from Revenge. Nina has created a whole new world to escape from her past. But one day, her past shows up on her doorstep and she is forced to choose between going back and moving forward.

I loved the fact that the author does not immediately spill the beans about who Philip is or how much his presence actually affects Nina. As you start to turn the pages, you have one question and then another and another.

Then just as you are about to pop, all is revealed. And oh what a reveal. Definitely an author to watch. The book is well-written AND well-edited. An interesting novel that definitely makes for good reading.

Would I recommend this read? Absolutely. This was a plot driven book with plenty of twists, well-developed characters and symbolism that worked.

Overall assessment:
Content: 5/5
Editing: 4.5/5
Formatting: 4.5/5
Pacing: 5/5

Offensive content?: Based on language and settings, I would recommend this book for adult readers.

Disclosure: I received a review copy of this book from the author. I did not receive any payment in exchange for this review nor was I obliged to write a positive one.

View all my reviews

#BookReview - The Three Sisters by Bryan Taylor #Parody #ReviewShare

The Three SistersThe Three Sisters by Bryan Taylor
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was raised a Catholic and was looking forward to this book. Satire and parody when done well may mean stomach aching laughter. This book had some of that. But it had also missed a good editor. While some unstructure in a book may mean style this was a slightly too disjointed for my liking.

I loved the author's take on the media and the hypocrites from church because truth be told we see that everyday. Love one another, but yes I'm going to gossip till I turn blue. The rules of religion that are adjusted as some people go along in life.

All of that made me laugh. If you are looking for a life changing read this book is definitely not for you. If you are looking for a few laughs and a good time, this is it.

Would I recommend this read? Yes, you will definitely be entertained by this book.

Overall assessment:
Content: 4/5
Editing: 3.5/5
Formatting: 4/5
Pacing: 3.5/5

Offensive content?: Based on language and settings, I would recommend this book for adult readers.

Disclosure: I received a review copy of this book from the author. I did not receive any payment in exchange for this review nor was I obliged to write a positive one.

View all my reviews

#BookReview - The Truth About Emily by Madi Brown @Madithe1brown #ChickLit #ReviewShare

The Truth About EmilyThe Truth About Emily by Madi Brown
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Right from the description, something about this book made me think of Anne Hathaway in The Devil Wears Prada. Emily is not where she wants to be in life and this book shows us how she pursues "her path, her way" which proved to be a light, fun read.

Sometimes her insecurities become slightly annoying because you just feel like telling her, "grow up" but for the most part Emily is an entertaining character. Many younger female readers will definitely be able to relate to her.

I liked the author's easy flow of telling the story and Emily was consistent throughout the book which was a plus in my books. Sometimes with strong female leads, you find that their behaviour patterns change in the book and they become confusing.

Would I recommend this read? Yes, this was an enjoyable read and I enjoyed the author's finishing touches when it came to "making it" in a competitive environment.

Overall assessment:
Content: 4/5
Editing: 4/5
Formatting: 4/5
Pacing: 4.5/5

Offensive content?: Based on language and settings, I would recommend this book for adult readers.

Disclosure: I received a review copy of this book from the author. I did not receive any payment in exchange for this review nor was I obliged to write a positive one.

View all my reviews

#BookReview - A Lady in France by Jennie Goutet @ALadyinFrance #Memoir #ReviewShare

A Lady in FranceA Lady in France by Jennie Goutet
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A Lady in France is one of the most thoughtful and sensitive memoirs I have read in some time. The author chronicles her past journeys with such grace that it is able to captivate the reader immediately. The parts about Asia especially reached out to me because we have just moved here in January and it has been a whirlwind of adventure and new experiences.

As a woman, Jennie Goutet gives us a fantastic account of thoughts, emotions and perspective. I particularly like memoirs because good ones offer readers a slice of someone else's life and lessons we can take away for ourselves and our own relationships. Jennie Goutet did this.

Her life story is unique, her writing is straightforward and realistic. This is definitely one of those books you will think about long after you have finished.

Would I recommend this read? Absolutely. I loved every page of it and as I say to other memoir writers I like, thank you Jennie Goutet for sharing your story.

Overall assessment:
Content: 4.5/5
Editing: 4.5/5
Formatting: 4.5/5
Pacing: 4.5/5

Offensive content?: Based on language and settings, I would recommend this book for readers aged 13 and above.

Disclosure: I received a review copy of this book from the author. I did not receive any payment in exchange for this review nor was I obliged to write a positive one.

View all my reviews

Saturday 4 October 2014

ENEMY OF MAN (Chronicles of Kin Roland) by Scott Moon @ScottMoonWriter #AmReading #SciFi

CHAPTER TWO from Enemy of Man (Chronicles of Kin Roland)

FLEET troopers occupied the area. Dozens of squads moved along the next street as Kin cut between several makeshift homes to avoid detention. He could no longer see Laura but thought she was moving away from him toward the most devastated section of Crater Town. She was doing her job. He surveyed the town and started doing his.
The first three houses Kin checked were damaged, but had already been evacuated. The next three were family dwellings, and by Town Protocol, the parents should have moved their children to fallout bunkers at the first sign of a meteor storm. He ducked inside each and looked around. Finding them empty, he hurried to the home of Brian Muldoch.
Kin didn’t admire the man, because Muldoch had found religion halfway through his mandatory ten-year enlistment as an Earth Fleet trooper and decided he was a conscientious objector. After two years in a labor camp, Muldoch escaped and stowed away on the Goliath. When Fleet troopers found him, he was a dead man. The only thing that remained was how quickly they would identify him and carry out the sentence for deserters.
Kin told himself to focus on his job, find critically wounded survivors, make sure everyone in Crater Town did their part, and create a list of structures rendered unsafe by meteor strikes. He had no business interfering with the Fleet, especially since his status would earn him death, preceded by torture, yet he hurried toward Muldoch’s home.
Though the man was a deserter, much of his Fleet training remained. He performed every task efficiently and kept his quarters squared away. He had helped Kin fight raiders who came down from the mountains. He had scoured the foothills to find a missing child. Kin often wondered why Muldoch refused to fight for the Fleet. He had shown bravery many times on Crashdown.
Several Fleet troopers surrounded Muldoch in the street near his small house. One shouted, “On your knees. Don’t move.”
“I must report to the well to help with the bucket line. Can’t you see the fires?” Muldoch asked, desperation in his voice. His eyes darted from one man to the next as color left his face.
The trooper nearest Muldoch had a new helmet, though the rest of his armor was scarred and scorched. “Don’t move and don’t talk.” He pointed his rifle at Muldoch’s neck where a Fleet labor camp tattoo marked him. “This is doing the talking for you, traitor.”
Two troopers, a corporal and a lance corporal, stood facing each other, heads bent as they listened inside their helmets to an electronic message Kin couldn’t hear. When they looked up, they nodded. FSPAA helmets didn’t reveal emotion, but Kin could sense the smiles behind the visors by the rhythm of their nods. They returned to the group.
“I have confirmation. This man is Brian Muldoch, a deserter and coward,” the corporal said.
Kin watched New Helmet elevate his weapon a few inches and fire one round before Muldoch could beg for mercy. Blood splattered the street and armor of the men standing in a circle. Muldoch’s body fell forward. Nothing above his teeth remained.
“Do you have a problem?” The corporal’s tone implied having a problem would be a problem for Kin.
“What did he do?” Kin asked.
“Deserter.”
“No trial?”
“No need.” He stepped close to Kin and looked at his neck and hands.
Kin focused on the body of Muldoch and exhaled slowly, steadying his anger and fear. His tattoos had been removed. The painful procedure cost a fortune. Muldoch should’ve done the same thing. Kin clenched his fists and hoped the troopers didn’t notice the tension coursing through his arms, shoulders, and neck. Before Hellsbreach, Kin always maintained control over his unit and forbade frontier justice, but he wasn’t their sergeant and they wanted blood.
New Helmet moved closer. “Does he have a marker?”
The corporal looming over Kin hesitated. “No. I thought he would. He walks like he was Fleet.”
Kin stared at Muldoch’s body and said nothing. These troopers were as unprofessional and violent as any Kin had encountered, but he didn’t confuse their sloppy gear and mob mentality for incompetence. Killers who enjoyed killing barely needed a reason to pull the trigger.
“I asked you a question.”
“No you didn’t,” Kin said. Shouldn’t have said that. Shouldn’t have come here at all.
The trooper stared at him, shifting the weight of his armor from foot to foot several times. Without the armor, he might be Kin’s size, but in full FSPAA gear, he was a giant. “Get out of here.”
The lance corporal, the smallest in the group, slid his hand back and forth on the barrel of his rifle with increasing intensity, as though stoking his courage. “Shoot him like you did that Reaper on Hellsbreach.”
New Helmet pushed the lance corporal aside. “He never shot a Reaper. A Reaper wouldn’t hold still like this corpse and if it did, one bullet would only make it angry.”
“Don’t fucking touch me, Raif.” The lance corporal started to point his rifle at New Helmet, but lowered the weapon and backed away. Raif didn’t even look at him. He watched Kin like a hungry wolf.
The corporal stared at his men until Raif stopped advancing and the lance corporal walked back toward the rest of the platoon. A moment passed before the corporal seemed satisfied. He faced Kin, pointing his rifle at the sky with one hand. His elbow rested on his hip to support the weight of the weapon. “Start walking, dead man.”
Kin walked away, stopping once he neared the crest of the hill where the street twisted toward the center of town. He looked back. The Fleet troopers watched him. He directed his gaze toward Muldoch’s house. Like many homes in this part of town, it was built into the side of the hill, jutting out ten feet. Rough-hewn beams of wood supported the metal siding scavenged from the wreckage of the Goliath. He remembered the day Muldoch had scrubbed the metal clean and painted it, despite Kin’s warning that the paint would never adhere properly. Weather had taken a toll on the surface and the green color was uneven. Mixing touch-up paint from limited resources wasn’t an exact science, yet Kin recognized the effort put into maintaining the home.
The troopers continued to face him. How many were trying to decide if they knew him, wondering if they recognized him from past campaigns or security bulletins? The Fleet had probably buried his scandal deep, erasing every record of their failure—of his failure. That was what Kin hoped for. With his luck, the Fleet had his picture on every security threat alert for the last ten years. What could he do? Flee into the wilderness of Crashdown?
A gust of wind from the sea blew sand, dust, and ash between them. Kin studied the red dragon insignia on each of these troopers and committed it to memory. He rested his hand on his pistol in the leg holster and realized the trooper was waiting for him to draw it. Holding his gun was a habit, unintentional, but now that the familiar grip was in his hand, he wanted to use it.
He never liked Muldoch and told himself they were nothing alike. Their situations were different. Muldoch, despite the fortitude he had displayed since the Goliath crash landed, would’ve died within seconds of landing on Hellsbreach. Muldoch hadn’t been forced to choose between duty and his soul.
“Pull that pistol or go away,” the trooper said. The sound of his amplified voice came just as the wind vanished, and Kin heard it clearly. He released his grip and walked away. There were others like Muldoch, none of them deserters, but men and women likely to run afoul of Fleet justice.
Kin couldn’t protect them.
Making his way toward the town meeting hall, Kin kept an eye on Fleet checkpoints. The people of Crater Town fought fires and moved wounded to the simple hospital. He slowed as he approached the town hall, realizing he was too late.
Fleet troopers escorted the council members, though Laura seemed to treat the troopers as her personal escort rather than her jailers.
Please, Laura, be careful.
Love wasn’t the perfect word to describe his feelings for Laura, but something burned hot and miserable in his chest as he stared after her. The Fleet was a juggernaut of violence—not an organization to be manipulated, not even by a savant of intrigue like Laura.
Strykers blocked the next street. The engines of the eight-wheeled, light armor vehicles chugged. Exhaust fumes, from diesel rather than jet fuel, mingled with the cool evening air. The archaic technology remained a favorite among ground forces because fuel could be foraged or fabricated when resupply wasn’t an option. Diesel, jet fuel, moonshine—it didn’t matter. They ran on anything.
Kin crept forward until he saw two troopers arguing. Wind blew dust, obscured vision, and concealed him as he lurked in an alley near the conversation.
“We don’t have time for this,” the larger of the two said.
Surplus armor stamped with the standard Earth Fleet icon caught Kin’s attention, because the external armaments were expertly placed and easy to access in a fight, not the setup of inexperienced recruits. Elite commandos couldn’t have done better.
Strange. Why are two badasses like you slumming in that junk?
Something exploded. The ground rumbled under Kin’s feet. Flames thrust skyward from a building nearby. Townspeople screamed for help, their voices ethereal and broken in the silence following the boom. Kin wanted to know why these troopers were in disguise. Were they saboteurs intent on destroying Earth Fleet, or were they merely high ranking officers spying on their troops?
“If Imperials came through the wormhole after the battle, we’ll find them. We have time. You’re such a pussy,” the smaller trooper said. The voice was familiar and possibly a woman’s, but Kin immediately doubted himself. FSPAA vocal filters were nearly gender neutral by default, though most troopers disabled them.
“You had to go there,” the larger trooper said. “Watch and learn.”
Imperials. Whoever they were, Kin had never heard of them. His first impression was of a human, or at least humanoid, adversary. Until now, all enemy races of the Fleet had been monstrous—Reapers, Soul Catchers, Shape Shifters, and Cyborgs. War between human nations was ancient history.
Kin followed the troopers sprinting toward the burning buildings. They quickly outdistanced him. He’d forgotten how fast a trooper could move in armor. By the time he caught up, both troopers emerged from a building holding armloads of terrified children.
Cassie Davis fell at their feet, wailing for her babies.
Kin wanted to comfort her. He took a few steps forward, but stopped when the smaller trooper looked at him sharply.
Kin broke eye contact, though he couldn’t actually see the trooper’s eyes, and yelled. “Cassie! Are you okay?”
The trooper watched him a moment longer before pushing free of the Davis family reunion. “Get a support team here on the double! We have collateral damage.”
Fleet medics and firemen arrived, helping the townspeople extinguish the flames and triage the wounded. The two mystery troopers took charge of the chaotic scene.
Kin took the opportunity to leave.
Something changed after the invaders rescued Cassie’s children. The routine protocols of occupying strategic and tactical positions, detaining key people, and requisitioning resources seemed more benevolent. Kin witnessed Fleet troopers using war-fighting technology to rescue people. An FSPAA unit had to burn for a long time before the person inside became uncomfortable. Muldoch’s execution remained vivid in his mind and he wasn’t swept away by the heroics of the Fleet.
Kin scoured the town for people who needed help or direction. Laura was in the hands of the Fleet. She would either betray him or not betray him, regardless of what he did now. He faced a dangerous choice: flee the city while he had the chance or help the innocent victims of the invasion.
It wasn’t a difficult decision. Who was he? What did his life matter? He had fought for it—lied, killed, robbed people to pay for a new identity—but was his existence worth more than Crater Town?
When the sun came up he was exhausted, but felt good. Crater Town had been a better home to him than he had known before or after the Fleet. He began a final circuit of the town, drinking water from a skin and nodding at people who seemed glad to be alive.
TIRED men and women wandered the town square, wiping sweat and soot from their faces with rags. Rows of Fleet troopers stood guard, seeming like statues come to life, if only briefly. The younger Crater Town folk played fiddles and pipes near the fountain. Celebration filled the air. Children played as though they would never grow up while the adults laughed and encouraged them.
Kin walked past guards flanking each intersection—avoiding looking at them when they turned their helmets to follow his progress. He doubted any of these men or women could have been on Hellsbreach, but they might have attended his court-martial. That farce had been held in the bay of a Titan Class Battlecruiser with thousands of soldiers standing at attention. Nine generals and three admirals had presided over the hearing and passed judgment.
One friendly face at his execution cried without wiping tears or moving from her position of attention. She hadn’t dared to look directly at Kin, because discipline demanded all eyes be directed straight ahead. He didn’t like to think of Becca that way. He walked toward the town meeting hall under the stare of soldiers—trained killers with the most advanced weapons known to mankind, men he understood, men who were just like he had been.
The last time Kin had seen Becca before Hellsbreach, she had been running through a wheat field with her hair down. He still saw the girl behind her intelligent eyes, especially when she was off duty and in a playful mood. He remembered her bright-blue dress dancing below her knees, the neck line modest but open, nothing like the high collar of her cadet’s uniform. Her shoulders and arms had been bare. The fabric of her dress fit her hips and body snuggly. He thought he could wrap his hands around her waist and touch his fingertips, but never worked up the courage to try. He smiled, remembering her looking over her shoulder and laughing. He wished he could chase her again and be in love.
They had hiked all day and sprawled in a meadow overlooking a green valley of Earth VI. Farmers worked terraced fields in small, open-topped tractors. The crops were distributed locally, not to distant colonies or industrial planets with barely enough plant life to photosynthesize oxygen, much less provide their own food. Countless agriculture colonies filled that need. Earth VI was a liberty planet, a place of rest and revitalization for travelers. A day on an Earth Class Planet healed humans with almost magical power.
In his mind, Kin sat next to her. She leaned back on her elbows, wriggling her toes in the grass. He smiled, gazing at her, speaking infrequently, attending her every word as though it were music.
“I’ve been thinking of my father and brothers all day, my real brothers, not you, Kin,” Becca said. “I’m trying not to be sad. Trying so hard.”
“No one should be sad on a day like this,” Kin said. “So, I’m like a brother?”
She leaned toward him, freeing her left arm to swat his leg. “You know you’re beautiful, Kin. I’m going to have a long talk with the girl who thinks she can marry you.”
Kin tied a piece of grass in a knot, staring at each twist he made. “I miss your brothers.”
He could have avoided mandatory enlistment, but it seemed wrong to enjoy the safety the Fleet provided without doing his part. He wasn’t from a military family like Becca was. His father had been a smuggler and had taught him two things when he wasn’t in boarding school; how to fight dirty and how to survive. Good lessons for boarding school. Good lessons for storming a hostile planet. Perhaps Becca’s father and brothers wouldn’t have been killed by Reapers if they’d learned the same lessons.
“I miss them so much I can barely breathe,” she said. Tears welled in her eyes. She turned them to the horizon, fixing them on something in the distance. “The Reapers tore them apart, Kin. I have nightmares.”
Kin held her and she leaned into him. They were silent for a long time.
“I’m going to volunteer for the Hellsbreach Campaign.” He spoke softly into her hair, but his heart raced.
“I don’t want you to go, because no one returns from Betaoin. But I want vengeance. You’re the only man in the Fleet who can deliver it,” Becca said.
“I’m just one man, but only the best are allowed to volunteer for this mission. If the Reapers can be wiped out, we’ll do it,” Kin said.
He didn’t want to go. He wasn’t afraid. The reality of the battle to come was too far in the future. The danger seemed abstract. He didn’t hold the same hate as Becca did. All men die. Some die badly. He didn’t need vengeance, but Becca did, so he would deliver it. If he survived, she’d be thirty by the time the Hellsbreach Campaign ended and ships traveled back to Earth Fleet controlled space. She’d be married and barely remember her childhood friend.
Memory was a cruel sorcerer. He held the vision of Becca in his mind, but the spell was destroyed by the fires of Hellsbreach and the sounds of gunfire and plasma bolts. He saw splashes of red, explosions of orange and gold. He smelled smoke from the past and present.
He fled the images in his mind and focused on what needed to be done. Fleet troopers watched as he walked. They towered above him in their assault armor.
Kin examined the squad’s sergeant from a distance. There was something about the way he moved—arrogant and cruel. He towered over the other troopers, swaggering aggressively. They jumped when he said jump.
Kin shortened his stride when he saw the etching on the ceramic exoskeleton of the suit. The design differed from what he remembered, but the style was familiar. Sergeant Orlan decorated his armor with etchings despite regulations forbidding it. Many troopers on Hellsbreach had done the same thing, putting notches on armor for every kill, carving pictures of loved ones or enemies or religious symbols to match the tattoos on their skin, or merely decorating the ceramic shell with art. Sergeant Orlan’s talent for ornamentation was impressive, despite his large, thick hands.
Kin knew he should go around the man, yet he moved closer and saw a lion’s head skillfully engraved on the breastplate. On Hellsbreach it had been a wolf, but Kin recognized Orlan’s handiwork. It was unfair such a brute could create something so magnificent.
Kin abruptly turned down an alley. A guard noticed him and followed.
“You there, where are you going? Why are you armed? Do you have a permit?”
Kin faced the guard, taking another careful step into the shadow of the building. He glanced down the street, noting Orlan still faced the other direction. The worst danger was over, or so he thought. But then he realized this was the same trooper who saved little Kylee and Samantha Davis from the fire before recognizing him.
This guy is stalking me.
“I have a permit.”
The guard accepted the paper, pretending to not recognize Kin. The mechanized gauntlets looked too large to hold such a delicate object, but Kin knew the assault armor was capable of both fine motor skills and feats of incredible strength. He also understood the suits required charging, despite the solar power they gathered to extend battery life. In time, the fierce machines would be men and women, mere mortals without shells of technology. Kin doubted this soldier would follow him into an alley alone without the armor, even if he hoped to collect a reward for capturing the Enemy of Man.
“Who wrote this permit?” the trooper asked. The depersonalized voice sounded neutered by the amplifier projecting it. The sound and deception it represented bothered Kin.
“All permits for firearms are approved or denied by the Crater Town Council. Councilwoman Laura Keen signed that particular paper,” Kin said. Prior to the arrival of the Fleet, Kin had been in charge of enforcing the permit laws, but never bothered. Crater Town was a frontier settlement on an uncharted planet. Life was dangerous. People carried weapons when they could find or make them.
“You are Kin Roland? Security officer for Crater Town?” the trooper asked.
“I am. Is there a problem?”
“Most people with that unfortunate name changed it after Hellsbreach,” the trooper said, studying his reaction.
Kin shrugged.
“Commander Westwood wishes to know who doused the lighthouse as we approached.”
Kin nodded. “I’ll ask around.” He turned away from the trooper.
“Wait.”
Kin faced the trooper again, who seemed to be listening to a command sequence inside the helmet.
“You are to appear before Commander Westwood and the Crater Town Council in the meeting hall.”
Kin hesitated, but knew he couldn’t delay for long. “I need to check one more person, then I’ll head that way.”
The trooper shook his head and stepped closer to Kin, towering over him. “My orders are to bring you without delay.” Another pause. “Who are you looking for?”
“Sibil Clavender,” Kin said.
“Who is Sibil Clavender?” the trooper asked.
Kin pointed at the wormhole, discolored and turbulent from the disturbance of the planetary assault. “She’s the person who soothes the spirit of the wormhole.” Kin couldn’t hear if the soldier snorted without activating the helmet speaker, but he probably did. Kin held the trooper’s gaze until the helmet slowly turned toward the pulsating wormhole.
The trooper faced Kin and waited for what had to be an order from Fleet Command. “You may look for her. I will escort you.”
Kin turned, stepping through the alley to emerge on a street not much wider than the path between buildings. He trudged up the steep dune, navigating twists and turns, avoiding the direct route in order to disorient his guard.
“This is the wrong way,” the trooper said. “Our drones have already mapped this area. What are you doing?”
“Making a fool of myself, apparently.”
“Don’t.”
Kin studied the reflective visor and searched for clues in how the trooper stood and how he chose to arrange the accessories on his armor. There were no engravings or unit markings beyond the Earth Fleet emblem. “Do I know you?”
Silence. They stared at each other.
“Please continue.”
Kin waited a few moments and turned away. He walked slowly, sensing it would annoy the trooper. This type of guard duty was a waste of time. A good soldier would resent it.
“I thought you’d be looking for Imperials,” Kin said.
“Why would you think that?”
“I heard some troopers talking about them.” Kin waited. He assumed Imperials blasted this Fleet Armada through the wormhole, but had never heard of them. Whoever they were, their presence in Earth Fleet controlled space occurred after Hellsbreach.
The trooper didn’t respond.
Kin led the unhelpful guard to a cottage set into the side of a dune. Little more than the door betrayed the location of Sibil Clavender’s home. A gaggle of hopper birds loitered near the threshold. Fur grew around the faces and forelegs of the strange creatures. The hopper birds also possessed strong hind legs for running and multicolored wings in perpetual motion.
Kin squatted, waiting until each hopper bird scrambled to him and pecked his hands. “I am Kin Roland. I mean no harm,” he said several times, making sure they recognized his scent and the sound of his voice.
“Why do you do that?” the trooper asked.
“They’re my friends.” Kin stood.
“They’re messenger birds.”
“They are.”
The trooper stood motionless while receiving an order Kin couldn’t hear, but could remember from a hundred missions.
Secure all forms of communication. You’re the tip of the spear, Trooper. Report success to Command and Control. Do you copy?
Roger that.
The trooper looked at Kin. “They will be confiscated.”
“Good luck.” Kin ducked inside the dwelling, leaving the Fleet trooper to chase birds around the yard.
Dimly glowing stones illuminated the surprisingly large room. As his eyes adjusted to muted light, he noted simple items—a pitcher on the low table, a bowl of local fruit, and silver beads in a pattern representing the ring of moons around the planet. Glow stones were set in the walls, like oval windows or portals to unknown worlds.
Kin moved to the table. He studied a book Clavender never allowed him to open. Something like an angel graced the cover, with multicolored wings, noble beard, and the face of a warrior king. The eyes reminded him of Clavender.
His fingers grazed the book.
“Are you well, Kin Roland?” Sibil Clavender emerged from the shadows in all her alien glory. She wore a silk tunic narrowly covering her small breasts and gathered at the waist by a decorative chain. The fine metal made Kin think he could hook one finger under it and rip it off. Her back, naked all the way down, gave room for white wings tipped in blue and dusted with diamonds. The hem of the tunic reached her ankles—slit up the sides to her hips. Her unruly hair was tied high enough to expose her slender neck. Her eyes, blue-green like a tropical lagoon, welcomed him.
Kin stepped away from the table and cleared his throat. “As well as might be expected.”
She smiled, moved closer, sent his heart racing. The exotic way she walked fascinated him. Her wings dazzled his vision. The silver beads in her hair seemed magical.
“Have you been outside?”
She nodded, pressing against him. Kin felt the warmth of her body.
Don’t move. She’ll disappear from this dream. He held his breath. Not everything on Crashdown is dangerous. A battle scared veteran like me could be healed in this room.
“I have seen the strangers. They wear armor. Are we so dangerous?”
“I doubt they came here on purpose. Uncharted planets are always assaulted,” Kin said.
He forced himself to think. Few people could withstand Clavender’s presence for long without being enthralled. Crater Town people thought of her as some kind of spirit or goddess in communion with the weather and the wormhole. She appeared young. For all he knew she was immortal.
She touched him, gripping him with both hands. His pulse raced with something more powerful than lust or love. Clavender’s touch was like morphine, caffeine, and a childhood memory of spring pressed into a shiver.
“I am not so young,” she said.
Kin blushed, which should have been impossible for a genocidal maniac. “I worry about you. Crater Town needs you,” Kin said, shifting uncomfortably.
She smiled dreamily and took his hand. Sensation diffused throughout his body, filling him with peace.
“I wish to see the sky. Walk with me,” she said.
“There’s a Fleet trooper in your yard chasing the hopper birds.”
She turned her face up to him, still smiling like a satisfied lover but also with slyness in her eyes. She led him through a narrow tunnel that forced him to stoop as he walked. Moments later they emerged on the opposite side of the dune, then climbed a goat trail to a place where they watched the frustrated guard below.
Servomotors whirred as the trooper jumped left and right, grabbing at the local birds. Beyond that spectacle, the town spread out to the sea. Cleanup had begun with military precision. Crater Town thrived with activity.
Clavender looked at the sky. “She wants to come home.”
Kin looked at the wormhole and thought the space anomaly seemed masculine rather than feminine, as though it wanted to devour Crashdown. “You understand what that is?”
“I understand,” Clavender said. “You do not. Perhaps it is correct to call it a wormhole, but it did not come to this planet. It came from this planet. There is only one.”
Kin shook his head. “There are more than a thousand charted wormholes. I’ve been through a hundred of them.”
“There is only one,” she said, still gripping his hand firmly and nestling her small body close to his.
Kin shivered, not because her warm skin electrified his imagination, but because the thought of a single wormhole intruding into every corner of the universe terrified him. He pointed to it. “Look at the colors—red and orange and purple after the lightning flashes. Other wormholes are blue and silver, or green like your eyes.”
“Or like the reflection of the sea,” she said.
Kin suddenly imagined every wormhole looking down at Crashdown and soaking up color from the ocean. The thought unnerved him, because it felt right. Was he standing in the center of the universe? If he were, who was this young woman next to him who changed the color of the waves and the thrashing of the sea with her moods?

Lost Hero

Changed by captivity and torture, hunted by the Reapers of Hellsbreach and wanted by Earth Fleet, Kin Roland hides on a lost planet near an unstable wormhole.

When a distant space battle propels a ravaged Earth Fleet Armada through the same wormhole, a Reaper follows, hunting for the man who burned his home world. Kin fights to save a mysterious native of Crashdown from the Reaper and learns there are worse things in the galaxy than the nightmare hunting him. The end is coming and he is about to pay for a sin that will change the galaxy forever. 

Books

Enemy of Man: Book One in the Chronicles of Kin Roland was written for fans of military science fiction and science fiction adventure. Readers who enjoyed Starship Troopers or Space Marines will appreciate this genre variation. Powered armor only gets a soldier so far. Battlefield experience, guts, and loyal friends make Armageddon fun. 

Movies


If you love movies like Aliens, Predator, The Chronicles of Riddick, or Serenity, then you might find the heroes and creatures in Enemy of Man dangerous, determined, and ready to risk it all. It’s all about action and suspense, with a dash of romance—or perhaps flash romance. 

From the Author

Thanks for your interest in my novel, Enemy of Man. I hope you chose to read the book and enjoy every page. 

If you have already read Enemy of Man, how was it? Reviews are appreciated! 

Have a great day and be safe.
Buy Now @ Amazon
Genre – Science Fiction
Rating – R
More details about the author
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