My Billy's Zombie Proof Arrived

About a month ago, I announced the publication of the paperback edition of Billy's Zombie on Lulu.

It's been available on Kindle for almost two years, but I never thought anyone would be interested in a paperback version. Besides, I always thought it was far too short.

Well, I bowed to popular demand last month and put one up for sale. I solved the length problem by including The Witch of Wellington, a story out of my paranormal flash fiction collection, Heaven and Earth.

After putting it up on Lulu, I ordered a proof. It arrived on Friday, and I'm super happy with it:

It's now been approved for distribution, so over the course of the next few weeks, you should find it in online retailers all over the world.

You're welcome!

How creative can you be in just 81 words?

That's the question asked of a new story sharing site (well, new to me, anyway) called 81words.

The site challenges writers to come up with unique, compelling works of fiction, in exactly eighty-one words. No more, and no less.

Readers can then log in to the site and rate and comment on each story, and the best stories stand a chance of perhaps being published in an anthology one day.

I've started submitting some of my own "81's". It's a lot of fun! Click here to see my submissions, and get rating, commenting, and writing.

Book Review: Mind's Eye by Douglas E. Richards

About the Book

When Nick Hall wakes up in a dumpster--bloodied, without a memory, and hearing voices in his head--he knows things are bad. But they're about to get far worse. Because he's being hunted by a team of relentless assassins. Soon Hall discovers that advanced electronics have been implanted in his brain, and he now has two astonishing abilities. He can surf the web using thoughts alone. And he can read minds. But who inserted the implants? And why? And why is someone so desperate to kill him?

As Hall races to find answers, he comes to learn that far more is at stake than just his life. Because his actions can either catapult civilization to new heights--or bring about its total collapse.

Extrapolated from actual research on thought-controlled web surfing, Mind's Eye is a smart, roller-coaster ride of a thriller. One that raises a number of intriguing, and sometimes chilling, possibilities about a future that is just around the corner.

My Review (4 / 5 Stars)

So this guy wakes up in a dumpster, and discovers he has no idea who he is, where he's from, or how he got there.

He quickly figures out that some very dangerous people are out to kill him, but he doesn't know why. He learns this based on a very strange ability he also realises he has: he can read people's minds.

While on the run, he meets a woman, and a romantic entanglement ensues.

If you think you've heard this story before, you may be right... but you've never heard it like this before!

The tale is woven so beautifully, so effortlessly, that everything feels completely natural, and nothing is forced. I was carried away by this story, and fully believed every scenario presented to me. Even the ending, while maybe a little far-fetched, was perfect. It took me totally by surprise (I did NOT see it coming), but everything was explained so thoroughly, I was left absolutely satisfied.

The writing and editing are flawless too, and there's not a single typo, glitch, or plot issue that I can remember.

This truly is a marvelous book, and my hat's off to the writer.

There's one tiny detail, that caused me to dock a star off my review. The Kindle edition which I read doesn't have a linked table of contents. That's important to me, because it means that my Kindle wasn't able to tell me how much longer I had to go in a chapter. It's not an issue in a print book, where you can easily flip forward a couple of pages and figure it out, but it's almost impossible in an ebook.

But no matter, that's easily fixed. Again, great book. Technothriller fans, stop what you're doing, and go read it. Now.

Buy Now

25% Off My Books at the Smashwords July Summer/Winter Sale 2016

From 1 to 31 July, 2016, Smashwords will be holding their annual July Summer/Winter Sale, with massive discounts on e-books.

July is mid-summer in the Northern Hemisphere, but what those northerners often forget, is here in the South, it's the middle of winter. And it is cold!

I love this annual Smashwords event, because I appreciate their inclusivity. So if you, like me, find yourself huddled under a blanket at this time of year, why not read a book?

How it Works

Each book enrolled in the promotion has a coupon code associated with it:

• SSW25 - For 25% off
• SSW50 - For 50% off
• SSW75 - For 75% off
• SFREE - For 100% off

When you click on a book that's part of the promotion, Smashwords will tell you what coupon code you need to use, and what discount you can get. Click the Buy button, and follow the instructions. Don't forget to fill in the coupon codes when prompted.

My Books

This yeaqr, two of my books are enrolled in the promotion: A Petition to Magic and Stingers. And then of course there's Billy's Zombie, which is free anyway. See below for the links (click the cover or title to visit the book's Smashwords page):

A Petition to Magic

Price $1.49 $1.12

25% off with code SSW25

Queen Celeste rose to the throne of Virdura a month ago, after the sudden death of her mother.

Desperate to prove herself, she agrees to hear the case of a simple farmer who claims a neighbour stole his cow.

To help her in this task, she orders her chief advisor, the royal wizard Solon, to cast a spell and divine the truth for her. Solon, however, is keeping a terrible secret.

Stingers

Price: $1.79 $1.34

25% off with code SSW25 

Thirteen year old James Clarke is always being picked on in school. He hates sports, and he particularly hates Stingers, a schoolyard game in which children throw tennis balls at each other. The other kids always seem to throw the ball harder, when it's at him. 

One day, James' mom phones the school to try and put a stop to the bullying, but it only gets worse.

Billy's Zombie

Free

Young Billy MacIntyre has always been a weird kid, always taking every little slight to heart.

One day, he decides that he's had enough of the relentless mocking and bullying at school and around town. 

He decides to exact his revenge on all those simpletons who have done him wrong. And he does it by taking a book of Necromancy out of the library, and raising a zombie from the dead!

Other Books on Sale

Besides those books, there are literally thousands of other books in the catalogue, all with discounts ranging from 25% to 100% off. For the full list of books on promotion, click here.