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Rise of Dresca by Tim McKay
What evil intended to harm you…
… can become something far more terrible.
Enter a world of fantasy where evil parasitizes the meek and arrogant alike. Where limitless power and knowledge can be yours for a price, not of your soul, but of your mind, your will, and your resolve to be free.
In the land of Naevoroth, a new power is rising.
And it’s yours for the taking.
Neil Johnstone’s soul is heading for eternal torture in Hell when he dies thanks to some dark magic in his employment contract.
For the past twenty years he has worked as an office administrator in Bleak & Fargon, a demonic multinational company that hunts and traps people, and their souls, by signing them up to their sole product called Peace. Peace renders the unlucky recipient practically invisible to the world, wholly insignificant, and forgotten by anyone who ever knew them.
Neil hates his job. His employers make him a tempting offer, a way out of his misery. Either he remains trapped in Peace or he can be freed provided he does the unimaginable and swaps his place in Hell with his own mother.
He’s thinking about it. Neil has some serious mother issues, but can he really do what it takes to save his own damned soul?
He seems to think so.
Targeted Age Group:: 18+
What Inspired You to Write Your Book?
The core idea of the book was influenced by a few factors. In the 1980s there was a speculative TV show called The Twilight Zone. As a teenager I was inspired by the memorable, creative and extreme what-if scenarios. I didn't think back then about writing my own speculative fiction story, that didn't happen until I began this novel a few years ago and discovered that The Twilight Zone's influence had stood the test of time.
For years I worked in various administrative roles in several companies and was saddened at times observing how mindless negative behaviours or actions would conveniently be jotted off to 'just business'. Trapped in Peace at its core is a good vs evil story based in a multinational company and my work experience lended credibility to the setting, and the 'just-business' cop-out attitude, well, that stuck to my psyche just like the Zone. Lastly, the overarching influence and continuing guiding light for this project was a spiritual element, specifically the theme of forgiveness, one that on my own personal spiritual path I have found both intriguing and, admittedly, at times a struggle to apply on a practical level. I've read plenty of non-fiction on the subject but wanted to explore through fiction just how damaging it can be to hold on to anger, fear, resentment and unforgiveness.
Phantom in the Pines by R.K. Latch
Henry Lawton is a young man in 1930’s Mississippi. He works for his father in the family moonshining business and is one of the best bootleggers around.
He is secretly in love with the granddaughter of a woman the locals consider a true-to-life witch. So he has plenty to keep him busy.
But, when a relentless federal agent enlists the aid of the corrupt local sheriff, things take a turn for the worse. Lives and families are destroyed.
As the death toll mounts and the situation grows dire, perhaps the only thing that can fight man’s evil is the supernatural.
When the spirit of the trees walks free, evil runs in fear.
Hammer and Blood by Viktor Bloodstone
Mercenary assassin versus unstoppable, mask-wearing psycho!
Ptolemy Lindquist, one of the world’s greatest assassins, is contemplating retirement. Cali, his daughter, wants to have a fun vacation with her friends and boyfriend at a popular lake. Thanks to Ptolemy being hunted by other assassins and Cali investigating why the guys of the group are acting sketchy, father and daughter find themselves trapped in a house of horror by Zebadiah Seeley, a murderer and rapist who can’t be killed.
The Scare by Robert Shaw
Is a zombie bully committing murder in Emerald Bay? Are his victims coming back to life to do more killing? Ethan, Shay and their friends must solve the mystery to stay alive.
Haunted by the murder of his little brother, sixteen-year-old Ethan Harris finds a kindred spirit when Shay Cassidy moves to Emerald Bay. Like Ethan, Shay is the product of a guilt-ridden, broken past, and Ethan is drawn to her.
But town bully, Viktor Sols, harbors his own dark desire for Shay, and will stop at nothing to get her. When Sols is killed during his latest rampage, a series of grisly murders begins, and Ethan is convinced that Sols is coming after Shay from beyond the grave. His friends agree to help investigate, but mystery and death follow their every step.
After Shay vanishes, Ethan refuses to accept that she’s dead, believing instead that Sols has taken her. He and his friends must launch an attack on the dreaded Sols House to try and rescue Shay.
Can they save her before it’s too late, or will the horrifying secret of the Sols family kill them all?
Set in the stormy coastal town of Emerald Bay, The Scare is a contemporary Gothic horror story in which love and friendship triumph over bitter jealousy and brutal lust. It is not for the squeamish: there are nasty bits and mean bits; love, laughter and tears; good friends and deadly enemies. There is blood and there are screams… and a fight to the death
If you like Stranger Things and IT, you’ll love The Scare.
