COVER REVEAL: SECOND CHANCE FATE by ELLA J. SMYTH

 

It's always exciting to get a peek at a new cover. Today, Ella J. Smyth gives us a look at her upcoming novel.

Second Chance Fate

Second Chance Academy

Book One

Ella J. Smyth

Genre: Urban Fantasy Romance / PNR

Publisher: Unapologetic Romances

Date of Publication: Oct 30, 2020

ISBN: 979-8664544787

ASIN: B08CSXWG72

Number of pages: 252

Word Count: 63,800

Cover Artist: Ella J. Smyth

Tagline: Homework on top of a life sentence for murder? You've got to be kidding me.

Book Description:

"My name is Amber Whitman, and I’m seventeen years old. Just over one month ago, I was taken from my home, from my parents and everything I’d ever known. The reason? I’d killed three strangers.

Not on purpose, you understand. It was an accident. But the government decided I was too dangerous to be kept around normal people. I now live at the Farkas Academy for Magical Advancement. I was told I’ll be here for years. Until somebody decides I’m no longer a menace to society. My only solace are three boys who are as trapped as I am.

But things are not as they seem. My survival may depend on figuring out quickly who to trust and who to run from at the Second Chance Academy."

This is book one of the Second Chance Academy series, a #whychoose medium-burn novel with a HFN, a grumpy cat, and three men trapped by their past.

Amazon

Book Trailer: https://youtu.be/49jAMWVB1dQ

Excerpt

 “Welcome to my class, Amber. I expect you’ll get great benefit from it. I hear your powers are elemental in origin?”

I wasn’t sure how to answer this. Aware that every student in the classroom was staring at me, I shook my head. “I’m sorry, I have no idea what my powers are.”

Other than calling down lightning. I wasn’t going to say that out loud, though.

Mrs. Palmer nodded. “That’s okay. That’s what this class is for. To help you figure it out, and, more importantly, how to control it.”

Behind me, somebody hissed, “Before she kills us all.”

The teacher looked up sharply and said, “Ah, yes. Sharon. Why don’t you come forward and show us how much control you’ve learned after your first lesson.”

A shocked, “But—” was quickly interrupted by Mrs. Palmer. “No ‘but.’ Come on. Show us.”

Sharon walked past the front row to stand next to the teacher. As she passed, she threw me a nasty glare as if it was my fault the teacher had her up front to demonstrate.

Mrs. Palmer clapped her hands. “Right, class. Pay close attention. Sharon, please create three water bubbles above your head. One large and two slightly smaller. You don’t have to move them in any way. Just keep them in position for thirty seconds.”

Sharon’s face tightened into an expression of pure focus. Clearly, she’d done this before. She closed her eyes and brought her palms together. I stared at them, wondering if I was imagining the light-blue glow around her skin.

But no, the light grew in intensity. Sharon pulled her hands apart, and between her palms, a shimmering bubble grew. When it was the size of a child’s head, she stretched her hands high and released the bubble. It rotated slowly, catching and reflecting the light, creating fantastic reflections on the walls of the classroom.

This was the first time I’d seen practical magic at play. Sharon had created a water ball out of thin air, right in front of me. The other students were equally spellbound by the beauty of the creation.

But they’d witnessed this before. To me, it was brand-new. Would I be able to do something similar? Could I control lightning the way Sharon seemed to juggle water so effortlessly?

She had created a second, smaller bubble, and was about to finish her task by doing a third one. Soon, all three balls rotated above her head, bathing her in an eerie, blueish light.

That’s when Mrs. Palmer clapped her hands again sharply. “Well done, Sharon.”

My roommate gasped, clearly not expecting the smacking noise. Her concentration broke, and the three bubbles disintegrated above her head into a torrent of water. Her outraged scream was drowned out by howling laughter. Our hysteria increased at Mrs. Palmer’s sheepish, “Oops.”

Sharon’s pretty hair hung around her face like a curtain of beetroot-colored noodles. Her designer top clung to her like a piece of plastic wrap, showing her bra and belly-button piercing. She looked like a drowned rat.

I would have felt sorry for her, had she not acted like such a bitch to me ever since we’d met. Mrs. Palmer rushed to console her, her expression one of concern. Except when she passed me, I could have sworn she winked at me.

My jaw dropped. Had I seen this right? Had my new teacher set this up to embarrass Sharon? Her next words confirmed my suspicion.

“Class. Quiet, please. Before Sharon gets a new change of clothes, I would like you to consider this: You’ve all had several lessons in Elemental 101 already. And yet even a star student like Sharon finds it difficult to control her water powers when distracted.

“I would like you to consider how difficult this is for somebody who’d never had any formal training. If I hear anybody else attempting to make new students feel uncomfortable or bully them, I will not hesitate to bring this to the head witch’s attention. Am I making myself clear?”

And just for one moment, the harmless, middle-aged Mrs. Palmer looked dangerous enough to make us think twice about messing with her.

About the Author:

Ella J. Smyth writes steamy urban fantasy romance, full of adventure and excitement. Ever since she discovered #loveislove and #whychoose, she has embraced her motto “Unapologetic romances because love needs no excuses.” She guarantees a happy ending, even though she puts her characters through hell to get there.

Ella is currently working on a Reverse Harem Academy series called Second Chance Academy. Book one of the series, Second Chance Fate, will be released on the 30th of October 2020 and is available on preorder.

Website: https://www.ellajsmyth.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ellajsmythwriter

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/ellajsmyth

Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/ellajsmyth

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Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/EllaJSmythsReverseHaremSisterhood

INTERVIEW WITH KATIE ZABER (BELOW DARK WATERS)

I'm hiding under the covers. This has not been a fun week on the west coast. Thankfully, we don't have the kind of fires that are burning south of us, but we do have the smoke. It's trapped between our beautiful mountains. We need a big rain and wind storm to clear it out, but that would cause other problems.

We had a chance to interview Katie Zaber today. Welcome, Katie!

SC: Tell me a little bit about your main character of this book.

KZ: The main character in Ashes and Blood is Megan. Her life has been hard since her father died when she was an adolescent. Her mother became a heavy alcoholic, so Megan had to raise her snobby little sister until she moved away to college. After that, Megan moved out and now they only talk if there is an emergency…maybe.

Megan has serious trust issues and craves solitude, but she will make time for her close friends Dana, Sarah, and Ciara. They are the only people she trusts and the only ones she has ever been able to count on. After work bartending and waitressing, she likes to spend her time reading, binge watching series, and taking long, luxurious bubble baths in her spa bath tub. She doesn’t like to cook but loves to eat.

She goes on dates, but refuses to commit. Deep down she rather be alone because it’s easier that way.

SC: We can understand that.  Do you believe in the paranormal and if so, do you have an experience you can share?

KZ: My aunt’s house is haunted or at least some crazy things have happened in the basement. Chairs spinning around the room like they were possessed, odd cold and hot spots that would move, growling noises coming from the same spot (they didn’t have a dog or any animals), plus almost everyone who has spent time in that house has seen something like fog coming down the hallway. And a few of my cousins even say they have seen my grandmother and my uncle. He passed away at three years old, so the claim to see a toddler running around.  As kids we NEVER wanted to go down into the semi furnished basement and as adults we still don’t like it down there.

SC: Where does she live? I'm coming over. But seriously, what titles are you working on now that you can tell us about?

KZ: I’m taking some time to finish writing a book called DNA—Demon’s n Angel’s. It’s about a woman who becomes pregnant after her husband has a vasectomy and she hasn’t had an affair. After they run a paternal test, they find out her husband is not the father—no one is. Over the nine months, she figures out she is giving birth to the Anti Christ and has decisions to make.

I hope to have that one finished this winter. Then it’s back to Book 3 of the Dalya series, Strange Shores which I’m planning to have out next summer.

SC: Thanks for stopping by. Let's take a look at your book now.

Below Dark Waters

Dalya Series

Book Two

Katie Zaber

Genre: Fantasy

Date of Publication: Sept 17th

ISBN: 9781005138066

ASIN:  B08GTX3MFP

Word Count: 85,997

Cover Artist: Agata Bukovero

Tagline: A wayward princess, a lethal woman, and a madam trained in espionage—all strangers to each other, but their fates are entwined. Each choice they make will impact the world of Dalya greater than any man’s decision.

Book Description:

Princess Megan, who never had a reason to assume she was anything but human, has been on the run, protected by her friends. With each step toward the city of Delmont, she hopes they will have time to regroup before setting sail to the Ka’Pamau Islands, their final destination.  Instead, her bad luck shadows her and chaos continues to ensue everywhere she goes—including a new part of the world that most air breathers have yet to explore. Confronted with another royal family and a smitten prince whose advances turn cold, she faces another life-altering decision with ramifications she can’t possibly begin to guess at.

Back on land, Lilly reveals more of her secrets, her story, and her goals. Monumental changes and challenges are headed her way as she embraces her new role in life.

On the sea, Aunt Carmia is stirring up trouble while continuing her hunt for the treasure she most desires. She experiences upheavals, but she is always prepared for the unknown.

As their stories unfold, they remain unaware how fate connects them in the world of Dalya.

Amazon     Smashwords     BN     Kobo

Excerpt:

Megan

There’s no point in me lying in bed all night. It’s not like I’m trapped in a Dalya dome. At least there’s a bar for me to sit at while I can’t sleep. Moving as quietly as possible, I change and sneak out of the room. Kilyn is fast asleep and Mana is either asleep or is pretending to be. The hallway is still. There are no voices coming from the other rooms, so I’m going to assume everyone else is asleep.

Downstairs, Meeka sits at a table, chatting with another white-haired man. Two other tables are occupied, but there are at least ten empty tables to choose from. By the fireplace, a low fire crackles and I decide that a seat by the fire is not what I want. It looks inviting but reminds me of too many dark things. I shudder and take a seat on a stool at the driftwood bar. There’s one other man at the far end of the bar, cloaked in shadow, not bothering to look up from his drink as I sit down.

Heda comes from the back of the kitchen with a mug in her hands. She takes a sip before setting it down on the counter. “Can’t sleep, dear?”

“No. Can’t remember when I did,” I say. “Got anything to help with that?”

She gives me a sly smile. “I think I can help.”

Heda slides bottles out from under the counter and starts pouring them into a glass. Most of them are clear, except two. She adds a drop of amber and green liquid. I can’t say if it’s alcohol or not. Last, she takes out a glass jar and takes out a pinch of ground orange powder.

I’m not sure if I should drink this otherworldly concoction.

“Here you go. You’ll sleep till sunrise and feel refreshed, guaranteed.”

I stare down at the eight-ounce glass of mystery. “What’s in it?”

“A bit of everything, plus a little something extra. I make it for Meeka when he can’t sleep.”

“Are you normally this busy at night?” I ask.

“Sometimes. Sometimes busier. The regulars are here, plus an unfamiliar face or two.” She scans the room, glancing over at the two I suspect are new.

The one man her eyes stop on has long, scraggly black hair past his chin and an unkempt beard. He is wearing a hat that reminds me of a witch; it even has a pointy top and wide brim. With his back to us, he faces the fireplace with his shoulders hunched. The other man is the one at the other end of the bar. Neither looks talkative. Good. I’m not in the mood for a conversation either.

The door swings open. A scowling human woman stands in the threshold wearing a brown buttoned-down blouse and pants tucked into calf-high boots. At her hip is a dagger, on her back is a quiver secured tightly to a harness, in her hand an unstrung shortbow. Strands of messy brown hair unravel from a semicontained braid that I’d guess hasn’t been paid attention to in at least a week. Her clothes also reveal that she hasn’t changed them, and the smell confirms she hasn’t bathed. She searches the bar and lands on me.

She dashes across the tavern and my heart pounds. This is it. My father sent her to kill me. I made it easier for her by coming down here all by myself. I have no clue if Mana can sense what’s happening or if I’m too far away from him. I’m not sure if he cares right now.

However, she steps past me and gawks at Heda, who is already mixing another drink. In the few seconds that passed, I didn’t realize that I had held my breath. I let out a lengthy sigh of relief and inhale fresh air that tastes slightly sweeter than before. Relief will do that, especially when moments ago, death seemed so imminent. To help calm myself, I decide to take a sip of the strange drink Heda made me. Surprisingly, it has a peach sangria flavor, like a fruity, potent wine, with maybe a shot or two of something stronger. I could get used to having a drink of this at night, if it helps me get some sleep.

Heda leans across the bar, passing the traveler a drink. “Rough journey?” she asks. “Where are you going?”

“Nowhere fast,” the woman replies. Her scowl melts away as she cracks open a smile and laughs full-heartedly, throwing her head back.

Carmia

I watch groups of gulls fly back out to sea among the masts, warbling above the crew. They float adrift on the breeze. Their wings don’t pound against the unforeseen air but glide on invisible currents, as my ship does on the waves. Smart birds know when to flap, when to spend their resources, and how to manipulate the world to make their journey easier. They can glide for hours without movement. I crave their knowledge.

To know when to use my strength and when to be weak. When to be bold or meek. When to strike or anticipate.

The birds know. We are so stupid. Driven by destructive emotional impulses and not natural instinct. Once you calm the voices, quiet the bitter arguments feuding from within, becoming deaf to all the voices internal and external, all that’s left is a sensation. A feeling. A truth buried deep inside. A spoken language no one can utter aloud. A forgotten language. One so primal, it is impossible to speak or interpret in any other capacity besides a sense. Born with us, but slowly forgotten when we learn to utter our first words. Almost as if when we learn the spoken tongue, we forfeit our instinctual one.

What makes us so different from the birds? How did our minds become cluttered with pointless information that nags us to change our minds or relinquish a thought?

Gods, I want to be a bird. Free my mind and body of stupidity. Let me base my life on instinct, not sentiment.

Lilly

I walk these city tunnels every day. It keeps me sane, besides healthy. Sometimes, I even run. I haven’t left Uamh, or Capo’s Secret, in decades. The last time I was above ground, not including my job, was well over thirty years ago. I long for the opportunity to run through the fields of flowers that flourish outside the town’s walls. But the woman who I portray to the citizens of Capo doesn’t do such things. Lilly would never frolic through the meadow and pick wildflowers to weave into her hair. She wouldn’t dance in the river, splashing the cool water over her naked body, and then let the sun’s heat dry the water off her skin. No, she wouldn’t behave in such childish ways.

Nirva would. She would run free in the woods barefoot. Feel Dalya breathe life back into her soul. Nirva would climb the tallest tree and gaze upon the town below, pretending she was a bird, soaring high above the forest. She’d hunt alongside the nunda and sleep in their den, her body and soul free to swim with the fish and river bears in the morning, and flutter on the breeze with the glow bugs at night.

Not now. No, she is locked up for safekeeping. There will be a time and place to bring Nirva back to the light of day. Until then, she must continue to be patient. Our job isn’t done. It’s only begun.

About the Author:

Katie Zaber knows the best way to decide who is cooking dinner is with a Nerf gun fight in the living room. Her boyfriend is an exceptional cook. When she isn’t baking, going to wine tastings, or reading, she’s busy planning her next trip to Six Flags Great Adventure or Long Beach Island, New Jersey. As a child, her mother would read stories about Atlantis and other fictional places that she dreamed of exploring, fueling her love of history, adventure, and fantasy. After spending her days working in a coffee shop, she moved up the ladder getting an office job where she unfortunately was involved in a filing accident. Unable to move, bored out of her mind, and desperate for entertainment, she turned to her imagination and began writing. These days, she finds herself captivated by her many projects and enjoys quiet nights at home.

https://zaberbooks.com/

https://twitter.com/Zaberbooks

https://www.facebook.com/dalyaseries

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20290665.Katie_Zaber

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CHARACTER CHAT INTERVIEW WITH BRANDI EVANS (TEMPTED)

 

Character Interview with a Fallen Angel

Joining Brandi on Character Chat today is Seth, fallen angel and hero from her book Tempted. We’re honored Seth trusted Brandi to tell the story of how he met sexy, sassy Lyndi Garrison. Their story took my breath away, and I hope it does yours too! So without further ado...

Brandi:

Welcome Seth! Thank you so much for dropping by. I had such a fun time telling yours and Lyndi's story. You two made quite the pair!

Seth:

Thank you, Brandi. I'm glad to be here. I hada great time working with you while you wrote Tempted. That's such an appropriate, too. Lyndi was certainly one huge, sexy temptation the night we met.

Brandi:

Tell me about it! She is definitely, how shall I say it...headstrong. What do you remember most about the night you met her?

Seth:

That would have to be the incident in the shed.

Brandi:

Oh yeah! There's nothing like a sexy rendezvous in a dark shed to get the libido pumping!

Seth:

No comment.

Brandi:

Moving things to a more serious note...would you tell our readers what you were doing the night you met Lyndi?

Seth:

I was on a job for my bosses, the three Angels of Death. As a Death Worker, it was my duty to make sure deaths occurred according to my bosses' visions and then to transport the newly released souls to the waiting area.

That night started no differently than the countless others--at least until Lyndi exploded onto the scene with her temper and potty mouth cranked to max. She drew me in without even realizing it, and I—

Brandi:

Whoa, whoa, whoa. We don't want to give away too much, Seth.

Seth:

Sorry.

Brandi:

Well, Seth, I don't want to keep you much longer. I know you're busy, but before you go, can you sum up why readers will like hearing yours and Lyndi's stories, especially when there are so many great books out there?

Seth:

Easy...Lyndi. She is the most incredible woman I've ever known. She's passionate. She's funny. She's sexy as hell. Who couldn't fall in love with someone so vivacious and full of life?

She has dark scars in her past, but she never let tragedy rule her. Was it any wonder I was so...Tempted?

Tempted

Redemption Harbor Quartet

Book One

Brandi Evans

Date of Publication: September 15, 2020

Word Count: ~40,000

Cover Artist: Premade Ebook Cover Shop

Tagline: The only thing standing between this fallen angel and redemption is the woman he loves.

Book Description:

Eons ago, Seth fell for another angel—literally—and was cast down from the Heavens. Seeking redemption, he went to work for the Angels of Death, taking the lives of people destined to die. His only desire is to return home, but everything changes when a foul-mouthed brunette walks into his life and plunges his ordered world into chaos, tempting him with the one thing he hasn’t felt in longer than he can remember: love.

A busted radiator strands Lyndi Garrison on a deserted stretch of coastal Maine and puts her in the path of a violent madman. She expertly fends off her attacker just as a stranger arrives offering assistance. She’s instantly enamored by her gentle giant hero, and before the evening is over, they share a devastating kiss and a knockout round of sex unlike any she’s ever known. But happiness and Lyndi have never been long-term friends, and Lyndi can’t help but wonder if she is finally getting a second chance at happiness or if Fate is planning to coldcock her again.

Amazon

Excerpt:

Seth didn’t know which was worse. Spending eternity in hell or working his way out of damnation by becoming a murderer.

Okay, in his defense, he technically wasn’t a murderer, at least not in the terms mortals used. He had, however, been responsible for the termination of more lives than he could count—all in the name of finding redemption. And no, the irony wasn’t lost on him, but at the moment, he didn’t have time to contemplate his penance. He was on the clock.

Franklin Michaels jogged around the bend. Each footfall brought him closer and closer to Seth.

To death.

With the dropping temperatures, the coastal park in Redemption Harbor, Maine, was all but deserted. Seth was grateful for the privacy. Not because he feared his target might see him—the job was easier if Seth didn’t think of his victims by name—but because this termination necessitated solitude. The target had to die alone. No exceptions.

Why? Because his bosses, the Angels of Death, deemed it so. And Seth’s job wasn’t to question but to do. To fulfill his obligations without emotion and with as little deviation from the plan’s parameters as possible. Simple.

Ha! There was nothing fucking simple about carrying out a person’s death, even a scumbag like this one.

For reasons Seth didn’t understand, this asshole hadn’t been slated for termination two years ago when he’d had his first heart attack—with the coronary Seth would cause tonight being the second. No, fate had allowed him an additional two years of blessed breath. Time to see his daughter get married, to see his son welcome his own child into the world.

To rape four more women.

He’d beaten one woman with such animalistic rage that she’d later succumbed to her injuries. Another had died by her own hand when she could no longer withstand the black void Michaels had punched into her soul.

Seth hovered toward the target. A lone spiritual “touch” was all it would take to send this bastard into a lethal episode of cardiac arrest and straight to hell where he belonged. Seth reached out and—

“Son of a bitch! I’m gonna set a blowtorch to your ass and turn you into a goddamn sculpture!”

Seth pulled back. Curiosity had him turning toward the furious, yet sultry, female voice, a strikingly odd combination.

Just off the main road near the park entrance, a woman stood with her back to him as she kicked the shit out of a hybrid car’s tire. White smoke billowed from the vehicle’s engine. Caught in the soft glow of the streetlight above, she ran her fingers through long chestnut hair that had just a hint of auburn undertones, as if she’d spent much of the previous summer camped out on one of the nearby beaches. No pants protruded from the hem of her dark, calf-length jacket. The skin of those toned legs set off a creamy contrast to her coat—so okay, maybe no long hours spent on the beach.

Wild thoughts flashed through his mind as he wondered what she wore beneath that jacket. A dress? A skirt? Would the material cling to her body like a second skin? Or maybe she wore nothing at all?

Concentrate, he scolded. You’re here on a job.

Seth turned to his mark, but the mark was gone.

Damn it. Seth opened his mind, searching out and instantly finding the target. Up the walk, he’d folded himself into the shadows, his dark arousal filling Seth’s being like onions wrapped in ripe gym socks. Beautiful-Potty-Mouth was exactly this animal’s type. A pretty little brunette who was all alone. The Guardian in Seth would be damned if he’d let the fiend hurt her. Not on his watch.

Yet even as the noble notion entered his mind, so did the warning against intervention. Death Code and Angelic Code both forbade interference in the affairs of mortals, except by Divine Order. Seth had one purpose here tonight. To make sure his target died in the manner his bosses foresaw. No more. No less. To disregard the Code was to risk all hope of ever returning home.

To assure his banishment would, indeed, be for eternity.

Still, he moved toward his target. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what the other man was doing: stalking. Dark anger welled inside Seth. How was he supposed to sit back while this creep raped and possibly killed an innocent? If Seth killed the target now, before he made his move—

Beautiful-Potty-Mouth turned from the car—toward Seth— and something happened that he hadn’t experienced since he’d lost his wings.

His soul stirred.

About the Author:

Brandi Evans was raised by a caravan of traveling Gypsies. She spent her days learning the ways of her people and her nights lost in legends as old as time. Okay, not really, but that's way more interesting than the truth!

In reality, Brandi grew up the oldest child of an ordinary family. Grade school, middle school, high school. Nothing extraordinary happened until she left the nest. She joined the military, went to college, got married, and became a mom. And somewhere along the way, she discovered she liked to read—and write!—stories hot enough to melt eReaders.

Website: www.brandievansauthor.com/index.html

GoodReads: http://bit.ly/eScaNr

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BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/brandi-evans

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Brandi-Evans/674481219297772

Facebook Group for my Readers: 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/600699890836219/

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RELEASE DAY: KNIGHT IN PAPER ARMOR by NICHOLAS CONLEY

 

Hey! It's the middle of the month. How is your COVID bingo card coming along, dare I ask?

What a world, hey? Let's escape for a few moments with Nicholas Conley, who has graciously stopped by for a quick little get together. Welcome, Nicholas!

 SC:Tell me a little bit about your main character of this book.

NC: There are two of them. Billy Jakobek, the character we first meet, is a mysterious figure: quiet but intense, a boy with powerful psychic abilities which render him unable to speak, touch, or look at other people without overpowering them, as well as overpowering himself. He comes from a Jewish background, with his grandmother being a Holocaust survivor. The other main character is Natalia Gonzalez, the daughter of Guatemalan immigrants, a creative soul who longs to escape from the oppressive world she’s been born into. Whereas Billy is reserved and careful, Natalia is assertive, creative, and always challenging the status quo.

SC: Okay, a boy with psychic abilities…some would consider this paranormal.  Do you believe in the paranormal and if so, do you have an experience you can share?

NC: Well, I’m Jewish, both by blood and by practice, so I certainly have a spiritual side. And that sense of a bigger, unknown, and fascinating universe is something that motivates much of what I do. As a Jewish person, I believe strongly in the notion of tikkun olam – repairing the world – and I believe that, essentially, every positive, constructive action that every person makes helps in constructing a better universe. So, I definitely believe that there’s more to this world, and universe, than we realize, and I always keep an open mind when it comes to anything I encounter.

SC: Well, the world certainly needs a little repairing right now. What titles are you working on now that you can tell us about?

NC: Currently, I’m funneling all of my creative passion and energy into Knight in Paper Armor. I’ve been working on this book for a long, long time, and it feels deeply moving to finally see it meeting the world. That said, there always has to be something around the corner, right? So, yes, I have a pretty good idea of what my next few projects are, and I’ve done a number of drafts for them. One of them is massive in scope, and the other is smaller and more intimate, so it’ll be interesting to see which one makes it out the gates first.

SC: No doubt! Thanks for chatting with us today, let's take a look at your novel now.

Knight in Paper Armor

Nicholas Conley

Genre: Dystopian

Publisher: Red Adept Publishing

Date of Publication: September 15, 2020

ASIN: B08CLSSX8Z

Word Count: About 113,000

Book Description:

Billy Jakobek has always been different. Born with strange and powerful psychic abilities, he has grown up in the laboratories of Thorne Century, a ruthless megacorporation that economically, socially, and politically dominates American society.

Every day, Billy absorbs the emotional energies, dreams, and traumas of everyone he meets—from his grandmother’s memories of the Holocaust, to the terror his sheer existence inflicts upon his captors—and he yearns to break free, so he can use his powers to help others.

Natalia Gonzalez, a rebellious artist and daughter of Guatemalan immigrants, lives in Heaven’s Hole, an industrial town built inside a meteor crater, where the poverty-stricken population struggles to survive the nightmarish working conditions of the local Thorne Century factory. Natalia takes care of her ailing mother, her grandmother, and her two younger brothers, and while she dreams of escape, she knows she cannot leave her family behind.

When Billy is transferred to Heaven’s Hole, his chance encounter with Natalia sends shockwaves rippling across the blighted landscape. The two outsiders are pitted against the all-powerful monopoly, while Billy experiences visions of an otherworldly figure known as the Shape, which prophesizes an apocalyptic future that could decimate the world they know.

Amazon

Excerpt:

“So,” Roseanna said, “according to my superiors, young Billy came to the attention of Thorne Century due to his long medical history.” She opened her folder and riffled through. “Dozens of child therapists, doctors, prescriptions, treatments… wide range of disease symptoms and ailments as well as wild mood swings but no evidence of any physical illness or precise mental disorder. The word psychosomatic is bleeding from these papers. I don’t buy it.” Roseanna leaned forward. “I think it all fits a certain pattern.”

“The doctors don’t understand.” Tzeitel bit her lip, paused, then spoke again. “Neither do his parents, though I love them. No. They merely say that he imagines things. Hallucinations, they claim.” She glanced at her frail grandson still shivering in the humidity. “I disagree. He often gets sick, but the sickness comes not from him.”

“Can you explain?” I think she gets it.

“As a baby, he constantly changed personalities, like this”—Tzeitel snapped her fingers—“depending on who held him. Smiling or shrieking, it flipped constantly, and whenever he cried, all of us cried with him for no reason. Not like a normal baby. His brother was not like this, either.”

“I see.”

“It was not so extreme when he got older. But when others are sick…” She knotted her fingers. “He goes to them, touches the place it hurts, and the pain goes away. It goes inside him, instead, until it fades. Very strange.” She frowned. “When people are sad? He walks into a room, makes himself smile—poof, no one is sad anymore, except he becomes sad. Sometimes, I catch him sneaking out across town to help people who are troubled.” She eyed him. “I don’t like it when he does that, though it is very nice of him.”

 “He senses things?”

“Doctor, my grandson has a gift. Yes, he senses things. He feels things. He does things to people… things that, perhaps, the world is not ready for.”

Despite the heat, Roseanna felt chills. “I believe you.”

About the Author:

Nicholas Conley is an award-winning Jewish American author, journalist, playwright, and coffee vigilante. His books, such as Knight in Paper Armor, Pale Highway, Intraterrestrial, and Clay Tongue: A Novelette, merge science fiction narratives with hard-hitting examinations of social issues. Originally from California, he now lives in New Hampshire.

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