Synopsis

 

The bestselling author of The Witch of Tin Mountain and Parting the Veil mines the subtle horrors of 1950s America in a gripping novel about a woman under pressure—from the living and the dead.

The first day of autumn brought the fever, and with the fever came the voices.

Missouri, 1955. Loretta Davenport has led an isolated life as a young mother and a wife to Pete, an ambitious assistant professor at a Bible college. They’re the picture of domestic tranquillity—until a local girl is murdered and Loretta begins receiving messages from beyond. Pete dismisses them as delusions of a fevered female imagination. Loretta knows they’re real—and frightening. Defying Pete’s demands, Loretta finds an encouraging supporter in parapsychologist Dr. Curtis Hansen. He sees a woman with a rare gift, more blessing than curse.

With Dr. Hansen’s help, Loretta’s life opens up to an empowering new purpose. But for Pete, the God-fearing image he’s worked so hard to cultivate is under threat. No longer in control of his dutiful wife, he sees the Devil at work. As Loretta’s powers grow stronger and the pleading spirits beckon, Pete is determined to deliver his wife from evil. To solve the mysteries of the dead, Loretta must first save herself.

 

 

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Praise

 

“A brilliantly layered suspense thriller and feminist nightmare wrapped into one, The Devil and Mrs. Davenport grips you and never lets go. This book will cement Kennedy as one of the most important voices in modern feminist literature at a time when we need it most.” —Constance Sayers, bestselling author of A Witch in Time

“Paulette Kennedy is the modern Daphne du Maurier with her dazzling ability to usher readers into any point in history while making it feel vibrant and fresh with her magical, gothic touch. Her newest novel deftly captures both the simplicity and horrors of being a midcentury housewife in a patriarchal society. With gorgeous lyricism and a determined heroine, the story spellbinds from the first page until the harrowing end.” —Heather Levy, Anthony Award– nominated author of Walking Through Needles

“Powerful, poignant, and soul-stirring, The Devil and Mrs. Davenport will haunt you with its chilling supernatural phenomena and claustrophobic domesticity, Paulette Kennedy brilliantly explores the limits of forgiveness while centering deep and compassionate love. You’ll weep and cheer for Loretta as she fights a truly terrifying evil. This is a book to treasure!” —Jennifer Sherman Roberts, author of The Village Healer’s Book of Cures

“Mesmerizing from start to finish! Paulette Kennedy delivers suspense, empathy, compassion, resilience, and just a hint of the paranormal in a way that keeps the reader guessing until the last page.” —Mansi Shah, bestselling author of The Direction of the Wind

 

 

Review

 

What devil is worse – the known or unknown?

This book combined many of my favorite genres, with a few others sprinkled in to round out the story. It is a combination of suspense, historical, horror, paranormal, and a touch of romance.

Loretta Davenport is trapped in a marriage that has gone downhill over time. But is it her doing or her husband’s fault? The answer is not that simple, and with the book set in the 1950s, there is more she has to overcome than just a bad relationship. This is a time where women were not allowed to open bank accounts without a male family member’s permission and signature. That alone sends shivers down my spine. Top that with women are considered weak and crazy, it isn’t hard to see why Loretta is fighting for her life and her children.

There is another twist to the story: Loretta is psychic and doesn’t discover her abilities until later in life. She isn’t sure what is going on, but her husband, Pete, is no help whatsoever. However, there is a psychologist who studies parapsychology, and he is able to guide her in these new abilities. It doesn’t hurt that he can use her as a study subject for his field. It isn’t all work for Dr. Curtis Hansen, and there is attraction and admiration for Loretta that brings them closer together.

It is hard to sum up this story in a few words or sentences. The story is gripping, and if you have ever been exposed to the Pentecostal faith and casting out of demons and such, you might understand this book a bit more. There is the time setting that works against Loretta, and then Pete’s religious fanaticism causes issues for them. It is like a train wreck that you can’t look away from because you know what is going to happen.

I rooted for Loretta and admired her attempts to find a way to support herself should she be able to leave her husband. It isn’t easy since women aren’t given high paying jobs, if they can even find one outside of the home as a housewife. But she digs down and finds a way. Top it off with these discovered psychic abilities; she is able to assist in solving several crimes. It is a good thing that some people believe in her abilities!

There are many moments that I held my breath wondering if certain situations would work out for Loretta and those around her. I also appreciated a jump forward twenty years to see where her life ended once everything was resolved.

This was a fantastic read, and we give it 5 paws up.

 

 

 

 

About the Author

 

Paulette Kennedy is the bestselling author of The Witch of Tin Mountain and Parting the Veil, which received the prestigious HNS Review Editor’s Choice Award. She has had a lifelong obsession with the gothic. As a young girl, she spent her summers among the gravestones in her neighborhood cemetery, imagining all sorts of romantic stories for the people buried there. After her mother introduced her to the Brontës as a teenager, her affinity for fog-covered landscapes and haunted heroines only grew, inspiring her to become a writer.

Originally from the Missouri Ozarks, she now lives with her family and a menagerie of rescue pets in sunny Southern California, where sometimes, on the very best days, the mountains are wreathed in fog.
As a history lover, she can get lost for days in her research—learning everything she can about the places in her novels and what her characters might have experienced in the past.

 

 

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Synopsis

 

The year is 1901, and Nicky is attacked, then wakes on board the Ormen, a whaling ship embarked on what could be its last voyage. With land still weeks away, it’s just her, the freezing ocean, and the crew – and they’re all owed something only she can give them…

Now, over one hundred years later, the wreck of the Ormen has washed up on the forbidding, remote coast of Iceland. It’s scheduled to be destroyed, but explorer Dominique feels an inexplicable pull to document its last days, even though those who have ventured onto the wreck before her have met uncanny ends.

Onboard the boat, Dominique will uncover a dark past riddled with lies, cruelty, and murder—and her discovery will change everything. Because she’ll soon realize she’s not alone. Something has walked the floors of the Ormen for almost a century. Something that craves revenge.

 

 

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About the Author

 

C. J. Cooke is an award-winning poet and novelist published in twenty-three languages. She teaches creative writing at the University of Glasgow, where she also researches the impact of motherhood on women’s writing and creative writing interventions for mental health.

 

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Synopsis

 

“You will bloom in Versailles like an exotic flower. The vampyres of the palace love anything out of the ordinary. But beware: the Court of Shadows has its codes, its deadly traps, and the slightest faux pas pay with the price of blood…”

In the year of grace 1715, Louis XIV transformed from the Sun King into the King of Shadows when he embraced immortality and became the world’s first vampire. For the last three centuries, he has been ruling the kingdom from the decadent Court of Shadows in Versailles, demanding the blood of his subjects to sate his nobles’ thirst and maintain their loyalty.

In the heart of rural France, commoner Jeanne Froidelac witnesses the king’s soldiers murder her family and learns of her parents’ role in a brewing rebellion involving the forbidden secrets of alchemy. To seek her revenge, Jeanne disguises herself as an aristocrat and enrolls in a prestigious school for aspiring courtiers. She soon finds herself at the doors of the palace of Versailles.

But Jeanne, of course, is no aristocrat. She dreams not of court but of blood. The blood of a king.

 

A major international success, the VAMPYRIA series has been widely translated and is available in 9 languages (French, Spanish, Italian, Czech, German, Russian, Dutch, Finnish, and now English).

 

 

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Excerpt

 

Chapter 4 – Departure

 

I’m paralyzed with fear.

My body feels like it’s sewn to the black leather lining the inside of the ebony carriage, its vibrations reverberating right through to the hollows of my bones.

On the bench opposite mine, the vampyre sits, immobile. His chiseled face is turned toward the nocturnal landscape passing by the window. The dark night obscures his fixed gaze. There’s not the slightest breath to make his nostrils quiver. It’s hard to believe that one hour ago I held his arm to go down the hill until the carriage met up with us. We didn’t cross paths with anyone. As with the villagers, the baron’s staff stayed cloistered in the outbuildings, in keeping with curfew. Perhaps they sensed that a lord of the night was prowling about the castle . . .

Just as in the baronette’s bedchamber, I have the impression of being in front of a statue. The only thing that’s moving is his magnificent red hair, which gently vibrates in rhythm with the carriage.

On occasion, I saw my father prepare the dead bodies of villagers for burial. Supposedly, after one’s demise, the nails and hair continue to grow. In the case of vampyres, that’s certainly true, as Dr. Boniface explained in his sermons celebrating the magical beauty of the lords of the night. Whereas mortal noblemen, along with many noblewomen, adorn themselves with wigs and hairpieces in order to appear more impressive, the immortals don’t need such artifice. Having gorged on the blood of all those on whom they feed, their hair is supernaturally dazzling and vibrant.

I grind my teeth to stifle a groan.

I’m face to face with an undead brimming with life. It’s the paradox of vampyres, a notion that was always an abstraction for me until now. But tonight it’s become horribly concrete. A living death is just that: a total petrification, after which comes the ability of supernatural speed; a coldness that seems to emanate from the passenger and latches on to me in spite of the blanket he threw over my shoulders; and most of all, this awful silence that no intake of breath disrupts. The two dragoons aboard the rear of the vehicle don’t say a word. I can hear only the creaking of the axle, the trotting of the horses, and the brief snap of the coachman’s tongue encouraging them at the front of the carriage.

And so I’m swept off into the unknown night, traveling farther than my steps ever took me, my body chilled and my mind numb, too shocked to mourn all those I’ve lost.

“Would you like to eat, mam’zelle?”

Slowly, I open my eyes.

A flood of dazzling light washes over me. I promptly close my eyelids.

I have to blink several times in order to banish blinding tears. As my eyes clear, I take in the padded interior of the carriage, its black leather glistening in the sunlight. Across from the bench where I dozed off, the space is empty.

As if the vampyre simply faded come morning.

As if everything had been a bad dream.

“Mam’zelle, are you hungry?” the dragoon asks again as he opens the carriage door to speak to me.

He holds out a wicker basket filled with warm bread and lard.

My muscles, which all night were paralyzed by the presence of the vampyre, recover a little of their suppleness. My mind regains its pluck.

An idea forms: I must escape.

As soon as possible and by any means.

Although the dragoon speaks to me courteously, no doubt under strict orders, his lips do not smile, and his eyes watch me attentively. A gun is slung over his shoulder, and a sword hangs from his belt. It’s a brutal reminder of the sword that decapitated Valère. The vision of Maman’s slit throat stops my breathing.

Swallowing my pain, I pretend to grab the basket when I’m really trying to assess my chances of fleeing. I pop my head outside the door and notice the rear of the carriage: two large iron trunks are strapped under a black leather canopy, where the two other dragoons must have traveled during the night. At present, they’re eating on the grass, taking big, hurried mouthfuls before we set off again.

As for the carriage’s fifth passenger . . .

“The vamp . . . the viscount,” I whisper, only just correcting myself.

“Is he gone?”

A flicker of fear crosses the dragoon’s eyes.

“The viscount is here,” he answers lugubriously.

I absorb his words and tone, but I don’t see the viscount anywhere in the carriage. I open my mouth to question him further, but the mere mention of his employer has sent him into a feverish state.

“Well, I’ll let you eat, in case you’re hungry,” he says, tossing the basket onto the bench. “We have to leave soon if we want to reach Versailles the day after tomorrow.”

“Wait!” I yell, completely disoriented.

Versailles, the day after tomorrow? I thought it took a week to go from the Auvergne to the Île-de-France, the region around Paris.

The door shuts with a loud bang on my protests, and then the lock turns with a click.

So much for my window to escape.

As the carriage sets off again, I lower my eyes to the floor.

There’s an iron ring in the center that I hadn’t noticed until now.

The handle of a trapdoor.

In horror, I realize that the creature is most definitely here—protected from the sun’s rays as he rests in the obscurity of the luggage hold beneath my feet, closer to me than ever before.

 

 

About the Author

 

Victor Dixen is the author of many bestselling French novels, including four series for young adults: THE STRANGE CASE OF JACK SPARK, ANIMALE, PHOBOS and VAMPYRIA; and he is a two-time winner of the Grand Prix de l’Imaginaire, the most prestigious science-fiction and fantasy award in France. Born to a French mother and Danish father, Victor grew up in the city of Versailles. As an adult, he has lived in Denver, Dublin, Singapore, and New York City. He now divides his time between Paris and Washington, DC with his family and his two inquisitive cats.

 

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About the Translator

 

Françoise Bui spent twenty years as an executive editor at Delacorte Press, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, where her list of edited books included numerous novels in translation. Of these, four received the Mildred L. Batchelder Award (for most outstanding children’s book initially published in a foreign language), and two were Honor titles. Originally from France, Bui lives in New York City.

 

 

Synopsis

 

Vesper Wright is in hell. The night she gets fired from her unglamorous restaurant job, she comes home to find an invitation waiting on her doorstep from her estranged family to the wedding of Vesper’s cousin and childhood best friend, Rosemary, the one person she regrets losing touch with. Something inside her is telling her she has to attend the wedding, even if it means suffering through a weekend in the Satanist community she defected from. When Vesper’s homecoming exhumes a horrifying family secret, she’s forced to reckon with her family’s fanatical beliefs and her own unexpected identity.

 

 

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Review

 

I wasn’t sure what category to classify this book. Part of me says horror, and apparently, this is what the author writes, but it wasn’t horror like I usually see. Horror light, maybe? Or perhaps just a dark novel. I will say it wasn’t until I was further into the book that I understood why it was classified in this genre. To give away that would ruin the book for the future reader.

Vesper left her family at 18 and ventured into the real world. Let’s just say she grew up in a religious cult, and when you leave, you are cut off from everyone. However, she receives an invitation to her best friend’s wedding, back in the cult, and she decides to attend. This sets off a chain of events that is just a bit insane. Vesper learns the truth about her family and is put into a position that she really doesn’t wish to be in. I think she regretted going back to the wedding.

The story is quite intriguing, and there are twists that I didn’t expect. At least not until we understood more about her family. It also explains a little bit more about Vesper and some situations that arose during her time away.

While I’m not sure I would read any other horror books, I do like to expand my horizons. This book might leave you in disbelief or perhaps even chuckling at different scenarios. I liked the ending, and it leaves me wondering about Vesper, her father, and the rest of her family.

We give this book 4 paws up.

 

 

 

 

 

About the Author

 

Rachel Harrison is the National Bestselling author of CACKLE, SUCH SHARP TEETH, and THE RETURN, which was nominated for a Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in a First Novel. Her short fiction has appeared in Guernica, Electric Literature’s Recommended Reading, as an Audible Original, and in her debut story collection BAD DOLLS. She lives in Western New York with her husband and their cat/overlord.

 

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Synopsis

 

In her debut collection, Theresa Braun explores the inner workings of the human heart and what it is we most desire—forgiveness, acceptance, love, fame, or merely to escape who we really are. Whether we are battling ghosts, demons, mythical monsters, the past, or other dimensions, we are really facing the deepest parts of ourselves. These thirteen tales of horror and dark fantasy may appear to be a matter of good versus evil, but they are all a reflection of the hidden corners of the soul that are often shades of broken darkness. The characters in these stories must face their inner and outer terrors, or else suffer the consequences.

 

 

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The eBook is currently $0.99 on Amazon until 2/19/23

 

 

Excerpt

 

DEAD OVER HEELS

 

None of this is his fault, but here we sit at the police station. The cold, white walls are scuffed and dirty. Scrolling mug shots of wanted criminals flash by on a mounted monitor. My hand is clutching Sebastian’s, although I’m not sure he’s even aware of it after all we’ve been through.

His eyes are glazed over, his sandy-colored hair both matted and cowlick-y. He wears the circumstantial evidence: a scratched face and a split lower lip. Not to mention, his gray shirt is caked with blood and soaked in sweat.

It’s all rather fuzzy, but there’s dried blood under my fingernails. I’m pretty sure I’m to blame for everything.

My eyes are already swollen, but all I want to do is cry even more. I rest my head on Sebastian’s shoulder and pray he can forgive me. I’m here now. That should count for something.

I guess you could say he’s my boyfriend. Early on he told me he didn’t want to see anyone else. I didn’t either. Even though it’s been only about a month, I have to admit I’ve never felt this way. We’re in love. I’d like to think it’s even stronger now.

The problem is, I never knew finding the one would be such a double-edged sword.

* * *

“Make another candle,” my friend Liz, who worked at the Wiccan shop, advised.

“I’ve already made a shitload of them,” I complained.

“One more. Put your all into it.”

Maybe it was worth another shot. Magic isn’t really an exact science. So, that’s what I did. I had nothing to lose, except a few dollars.

I purchased yet another glass tower of wax, this time red, and sprinkled a smattering of herbs and oils onto that bad boy. This time I didn’t use Cunningham’s Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs, but went on good old-fashioned instinct. The scents of dragon’s blood and sweet amber mixed with what smelled like dried grass. My hands encircled the concoction, and I offered up a pure intention for true love to finally find me. I’d tried dozens of strategies over the years, everything short of frolicking naked in the forest, raising supplication to the ancient gods.

After I ignited the wick, the thing flared up like a Roman candle. I’m no witch, but considered I might have gotten this one right as the flames jumped to heaven with my desires. It flickered and flamed in my bathtub until it wore itself out.

Sometimes things are out of our control or beyond our understanding. I just needed it to work once. How could that have been too much to ask?

 

 

About the Author

 

Theresa Braun has a Master’s degree in English literature and lives in South Florida where she has taught literature and writing for over 20 years. Traveling, ghost hunting, and all things dark are her passions. In 2018 Unnerving released her horror novel Fountain Dead, a coming of age ghost story. Her short works have appeared in The Horror Zine, Sirens Call, Hardened Hearts, and Best Indie Speculative Fiction: November 2018, Double Barrel Horror (Volume 3) and Emporium of Superstition.

 

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Synopsis

 

I’m not me when I kill people. At least, that’s what I tell myself. I wake up, and I know I’ve done something horrible. My hands are covered in blood, my clothes are gone, and my stomach feels full. I don’t remember what I did. All I remember is the pain. It’s impossible to forget.

It starts with the fur. It spreads like fire, melting me. My bones go next, shifting, changing, breaking. I always cry, always scream, but I can live with the pain. I can’t live with what comes next. Something takes control and pushes me into the dark. I sleep a dreamless sleep, and when I wake up, the nightmare begins.

I don’t know them, the people I’ve killed, the ones I’ve eaten. But I do know they weren’t all bad. I live with the pain because I deserve it.

~ Confessions of a Cannibal

 

We all have a monster within… understatement of the year. For 24-year-old Randi Matheson, she quite literally does. On every full moon, it rears its hairy head. She wasn’t always like this. Ever since her attack, the animal comes out to play. And on one full moon, the beast inside tries to eat her younger brother.

Division X, a paramilitary group hellbent on the eradication of monsters, intervenes and saves Randi’s brother from being devoured. They take Randi far away and imprison her in a place no monster can escape. Held captive, Randi is given an ultimatum. Work for Division X as a new weapon in the fight against evil or be dissected. Without a real choice, she chooses the former and experiences the dark underbelly of reality as she faces off against vampires, demons, and redneck serial killers. Promised a cure to her condition along the way, Randi does her best to stay alive.

The monster killing business isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

 

 

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About the Author

 

After receiving an education at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, August Hill started writing Division X, a supernatural horror filled with dark humor, adventure, and sinister creatures that leap off the pages.

His love for all things spooky and scary was unleashed when he discovered Jurassic Park at four years old and the R. L. Stine Goosebumps collection in elementary school. He holds a huge appreciation for 80’s horror and is partial to fun, dark, and witty ensemble casting with younger heroes. Some of his favorite influences include The Lost Boys, Aliens, Gremlins, and An American Werewolf in London to name a few.

Hill’s knack for writing fiction emerged at an early age when he wrote stories for his own enjoyment. He is a collector of horror films and is a board game enthusiast. When not writing, he can be found walking trails with his dog, enjoying movie nights with friends, spending time playing video games, and camping in Maine.

 

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Synopsis

 

The Book of Demons, the much-anticipated sequel to The Book of Souls, finds Jack Kelly in the fight of his life. This time, he’s not battling ghosts. His nemesis is the shapeshifting necromancer, Mr. Philips, who inhabits both the world of the living and the world of the dead.

When Mr. Philips discovers a powerful, cursed painting whose magic he can use for personal gain, he will stop at nothing to acquire it…including murder.

Before he can get his hands on it, the painting goes missing and its artist is found dead. Enraged, Mr. Philips vows to hunt it down. But someone else finds it first: Jack, a teenage mystic who understands the painting’s tremendous power and would do anything to keep Mr. Philips from harnessing it.

Along with two unexpected allies—a non-verbal autistic child and the spirit of a dead nun—Jack battles to keep the painting away from Mr. Philips. But as the stakes rise along with the body count, their epic battle for possession of the painting may cost Jack everything and everyone he loves.

 

 

Amazon – This book releases on 10/11. Preorder it today!

 

 

Excerpt

 

The Duality exhibit of a little-known artist by the name of Kasper Greenstreet was not on Seymore Hunter’s radar, alias P. Philips, when a rich female patron of the arts invited him to a showing at the Guggenheim. Philips stood behind a long line of people enamored by the two paintings of the actress Desiree Diamond, who had died earlier that day. Philips could smell the blood; he knew the artist was using it in his work. Many of the paintings had a mystical look but did any hold real power? Real magic?

That’s when his body began to pulsate. In an area with fewer people, Philips beheld the most amazing painting he had ever seen: the self-portrait of the artist as a child surrounded by three shadows. He moved everyone out of his way and moved close enough to smell it, taste it. Philips felt the energy coming from the painting and knew he had to possess it at any cost. He wanted to be legitimate so he offered every dime he had accumulated or robbed in the bidding process, only to be told he had been outbid. The painting had been sold to some countess.

He knew other ways of getting the painting. Viler, more sinister ways. Before he had a chance, the countess naively returned it to Kasper Greenstreet, overwhelmed by the mystical, dark side of the art without an ability to control its hidden wickedness. Then Philips began following Kasper Greenstreet. He needed to taste his blood, maybe eat his heart. Kasper slipped through his hands due to an interruption by a couple of drug addicts whose bodies were found weeks later. Accidental overdose. The taste of Kasper’s blood would always keep him on Philips’ radar.

Then Kasper Greenstreet did the unimaginable. He committed suicide. He left the painting and all its power in the hands of some teenage kid and a psychologically damaged adult. None of it mattered now. The painting was close to being his. He could feel it. Young Jack Kelly had powers, but in the end, his power would be no match for Seymore Hunter, aka Philip Philips.

 

 

About the Author

 

Kevin Moore is the author of  The Book of Souls, a mystical ghost story, it is his first novel and the first book in the series featuring Jack Kelly and his paranormal abilities.  The Book of Demons (think Harry Potter meets the Exorcist) is the sequel to The Book Of Souls. Moore also wrote Christmas Stories 7 Original Short Stories which is available everywhere. His play Conversations From The Sports Arena was performed at the HBO Theater in Hollywood. He also had his first children’s picture book Me and My Shadow released in 2021. Moore hopes to continue the Jack Kelly paranormal saga in a third book which he is currently working on. Moore practices Lucid Dreaming which has helped him with his writing. He is a Yogi and an Advanced Reiki Practitioner—most importantly he is Matthew and Madison’s father.

 

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Synopsis

 

EVIL IN THE FOREST

When best friends, David and John, are made redundant, they decide to go away with another close friend, Grant, to David’s uncle’s farm up in Scotland in Rothiemurchus Forest. David soon learns of strange and terrible things happening on the farm, where some of the animals are found mysteriously mutilated and slaughtered.

David’s uncle also informs his nephew of other strange phenomena — including whispers in the wind, and a strange and constant sensation of being watched by someone or something. Driven by his concerns for his aunt and uncle and fuelled by curiosity, David is determined to travel up north, against the wishes of his uncle.

Things soon start happening even before David and his friends set off. They become targeted with frightening and inexplicable events, and messages warning them to STAY AWAY, so that one friend is too scared to go, leaving only the two to make the long-distance drive up to Scotland. Despite more frightening and unimaginable things happening on their way up to the Highlands, the two friends, now fearing for their lives, remain determined to reach the farm.

With their minds racing to all sorts of theories, they will soon face an unparalleled horror, with pure evil awaiting them, and an old Scottish folklore proving to be terrifyingly true …

 

 

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About the Author

 

Alan Golbourn was born in Essex, England. He has enjoyed writing stories since a young age when he was recognized early for his writing abilities. Amongst several interests and hobbies, including football and computer games, he holds love and compassion for animals.

 

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Synopsis

 

After the most amazing date of his life, Cousin Lewis falls in love. Unfortunately, the witch boy just happens to be smitten with Nikki Remi, a witch hunter whose family has been hunting witches even longer than the Galloways have been hunting “deer”. But does Nikki have the same feelings or is she just using Lewis to get at a 500-year-old book in the Galloway Hunting Lodge and an ancient witch-hunting weapon? When the star-crossed lovers fall afoul of the local witch covens, the resulting chaos threatens to destroy the cousins and the biggest college campus in South Jersey.

So grab your silver dagger, stock up on holy water, and be careful who you swipe right on because this Halloween, your date from Hell might literally be taking you there.

 

 

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The Series

Book 1 – My Cousin, the Piney

Book 2 – Witch Piney are You?

Book 3 – The Third Grade Piney

Book 4 – Feud of the Pineys

Book 5 – Jersey Shore Piney

Book 6 – The Highwayman Piney

Book 7 – The Paradox Piney

Book 8 – Roadkill Piney

 

 

About the Author

Tony DiGerolamo is a New Jersey screenwriter, novelist, comic book writer, game designer, and comedian. He is best known for his work on The Simpsons and Bart Simpson comic books. He has also been a joke writer for Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher, a scriptwriter for Space Ghost: Coast to Coast, and a blogger for Comedy Central’s Indecision website. He has written screenplays including Mafioso: The Father, The Son starring Leo Rossi. His novels, Fix in Overtime and The Undercover Dragon are available through Padwolf Publishing. After publishing his own comic books (Jersey Devil, The Travelers, and The Fix) with SJRP, he eventually got a publishing deal with Kenzer & Company. Kenzer published The Travelers. Tony also wrote Everknights (another Kenzer comic book), as well as the Hacklopedia of Beasts (Volumes 1 thru 8) and Slaughterhouse Indigo (an adventure for the Hackmaster RPG). He also adapted Mark Twain’s Personal Reflections of Joan of Arc for Campfire.  Performing in the Philly comedy scene for over ten years, Tony performed and directed such improv groups as Next Line Improv, The Cabal, The Ninjas, and Bulletproof Giraffe.

Besides writing for various comedy websites, he had a long-running comics review column in Knights of the Dinner Table magazine. He was the marketing director for comics publisher, Silent Devil. He is the creator of Tony DiGerolamo’s Complete Mafia for d20, creator/biographer for the online webcomic, Super Frat, the co-creator of the Webcomic Factory, and writer for the over two dozen webcomics on the Webcomic Factory site including Lester Crenshaw is Still Dead, Pandamodium and Tales of Pizza.  He is the writer for F*ck You, I’m Italian: Why We Italians Are Awesome, from Ulysses Press.  His current project is a comedy/horror novella series about the hunters of the kin of the Jersey Devil called The Pineys.  You can find all his ebooks and books on Amazon and his thoughts on writing and politics on his YouTube, Bitchute, Odysee, and Rumble Channels with his cohost, his dog, Joan of Arc.

 

Tony’s Amazon Page * ThePineys.com * YouTube * Odysee

 

Rumble * Bitchute * Twitter * The Webcomic Factory

 

Super Frat * Gab * Truth Social * Gettr * Minds * Parler * MeWe

 

 

 

 

 

Synopsis

 

It is the duty of the Vanguard to protect the world from unseen demonic forces.

But what if the organization falls to corruption? Their reformation is up to Cato, a disgraced former member who discovers many of the elite using their powerful positions and martial skills for ill-gotten gains rather than fulfilling their true purpose: aiding mankind in a secret war against their eternal foe.

Aldous is a Vanguard who fell from grace after being stricken with vampirism by a mysterious figure known as the White Lady. His increasingly vile appetites are tolerated because his knowledge as an alchemist is vital in the Vanguard’s battle against the demons. When those desires lead to the abduction of the woman Cato loves, Cato wages a one-man war against Aldous and his werewolf henchman.

 

 

Amazon * Barnes&Noble * IndieBound

 

 

Praise

 

“While This World of Love and Strife will reach horror audiences, it also should be included in fantasy and thriller library collections as a strong example of the strengths that can emerge from a story that embraces different genres with powerful characters and scenarios that are unpredictable and engrossing.- D. Donovan, Midwest Book Review

“The thrills build and build and never let up. The characters feel like real people. Even the vampires and werewolf! Best of all was the protagonist. He starts as kind of an eccentric and a bit of a jerk, but by the end I couldn’t get enough of him. I highly recommend this book for people who don’t mind horror with a heaping dose of action.”- John Martin, Amazon

 

Guest Review by Nora

 

This book really intrigued me and kept me guessing! ‘This World of Love and Strife,’ by Shawn Mackey is a one-of-a-kind novel that takes all of the best elements of horror and combines them with a thriller.

The fictional world of Lumina City is such a powerful and vivid atmosphere that, as I was reading, I kept forgetting that it wasn’t a real place—despite the fact that it’s full of demons, vampires and werewolves, of course.

What a world that Mackey has created, and what an interesting plot to set these characters into! The story centers around Cato, a former member of an organization responsible for expelling demons. The organization is called the Vangaurd, and they have members in high political positions all over the world. The Vangaurd’s job is to stop demons from getting into people’s head and controlling their thoughts.

Cato left the organization after a civil war split them apart, and went into hiding, but he still has a bounty on his head from the Vangaurd. Which makes things difficult, because Cato has just received a vision from a disembodied voice that convinced him that humanity is in grave danger.

Further complicating things is the fact that the woman that Cato loves has recently been captured by a vampire. The vampire is another former Vanguard member named Aldous whom Cato has a personal vendetta against.

This book is a wild ride and one that has to be read to be believed. Mackey’s writing is superb and his grasp of plotting is everything a reader could want in a horror novel.

The different character perspectives kept the story fresh and provided a lot of insight into the story that might have otherwise been lost with something so ambitious. This is an incredible five star book in what might seem like an unassuming package. Don’t miss this one!

 

 

Excerpt

 

Maggie went inside, suppressing the urge to run up the stairs, her limbs jittering in anxiety. She stopped at the top floor, bracing for something terrible. Nancy was dead, and if her intuition proved true, Cato wouldn’t survive the night. She continued down the hall, dreading each step. At Cato’s door, she was about to knock, then reached for the knob instead. It was locked.

“Cato,” she said quietly, rapping her knuckles against the door. “It’s me, Maggie. Can you open up?”

After waiting a few minutes, she called his cell phone to see if he was actually home. From the other side of the door, she heard it vibrate against the hardwood floor.

“Hello?” he answered, so low she could only hear him over the phone.

“Open the door, Cato. I’m outside.”

Within a minute, he unlocked the door. Maggie waited for him to open up. A few seconds later, she heard a loud thump, prompting her to barrel inside the room. Cato lay in a heap, pale and trembling. She closed the door, locking it behind her, and then ran to his side.

“What happened?” she asked, feeling his forehead. It was cold.

“I saw it,” he mumbled. She grabbed him by the face and got in close.

“Open your eyes. Look at me!”

“Maggie?” he said, blinking heavily. He shot upward with a gag. She helped him to the toilet, where he continued to wretch, but didn’t vomit.

“Tell me what happened. What did you see? Was it Nancy?”

“Everyone,” he said. When he didn’t elaborate, she shook him.

“Come on, damn it!”

“You have no idea how dire things are. We’re all fucked.”

“Cato,” she screamed, shaking him harder. She slapped him lightly across the cheek. “Snap out of it.”

“How can I begin to explain it to you? You wouldn’t even believe me.”

“Say it in your own words. I’ll figure the rest out.”

“You were a nurse, right?” he asked with a grunt, leaning against the bathroom wall. She noticed a gash on his forehead.

“Almost. A nurse’s aide,” she said, looking through his medicine cabinet. It was filled with empty bottles of unlabeled pills. She tossed them one by one into the garbage, searching for disinfectant.

“You understand how prevalent bacteria are.”

“You certainly don’t. I found bandages. Got rubbing alcohol?”

“Not anymore.”

“Then this will have to do,” she said, sticking a bandage on his wounded head after a light wash with soap and water. It wasn’t very deep. “What about bacteria?”

“Evil seeps into this world as pervasively as bacteria. Like diseases, it takes on forms—”

“What are you babbling about?”

“I thought you wanted to listen?” he snapped. She lapsed into silence, and he continued: “As nurse, you’ve got plenty of protocols to adhere in order to prevent bacterial infections. The same goes for evil, only the procedures are much more difficult. It takes more than surgical gloves and disinfectant to stop Nergal. Plentiful food won’t save you from Pazuzu and frugality isn’t enough to fend off Mammon. These demons, billions of them, maybe trillions, are more pervasive than bacteria. Their influence can’t be understated. They squash human will to such a degree, I doubt we’re any more than golems for these creatures. I can’t even trust my own thoughts.”

“These creatures,” Maggie said, feigning calm. She was aghast by the nonsense he spewed, but the concern for him trumped it enough to humor him. “You call them creatures. Can you see them?”

“They manifest all over the world. I’ve killed some before. So has Reggie, unless he lied.”

“Reggie never told me about this.”

“He hasn’t seen what I’ve seen.”

“Explain.”

“I saw Hell,” he said, then after a long pause: “Human souls cling to the bottom like dead insects, and the ones with the courage to escape are battered down by a legion of demons. It’s going on right now and will continue for all eternity. I’ll never know a moment of peace ever again.”

“It sounds horrible. Do you remember what happened before this?”

“No.”

“I saw an ambulance and police cars at Nancy’s apartment. Do you know anything about it?”

“No.”

“Are you sure?”

“The only thing I’m sure of is what I saw, and what I’m going to do from here on. There’s a spiritual sickness that needs curing. I won’t let my soul stay bound. I’m going to destroy Hell.”

“That’s a—” she started, but didn’t know how to finish. Cato closed his eyes and rested his head against the wall. “Cato, are you okay?”

“No.”

“What can I do for you?”

“Save yourself. Don’t trust me to do it for you.”

“How?”

“To start, stop viewing things through the eyes of the world. Someone told me that a long time ago, and I didn’t listen. I’ll never do that again.”

“Who?” she asked. He covered his face with his hands and let out a groan. There was a sad tinge to it. Maggie considered probing further, but it was best not to agitate him. Nothing good ever came from questioning Cato’s past. She crawled forward and caressed his head. “Let’s go to sleep.”

“That’s a good idea,” Cato said, standing. He nearly stumbled into Maggie. She helped support him to his bed, tucking the blanket in and pulling it over him, then laying by his side.

“Will you tell me about Nancy in the morning?” she asked. He nestled his head on her shoulder and muttered something incoherent. Rather than ask him to clarify, Maggie closed her eyes. She was exhausted, and rather than linger in this maddening night, closed her eyes and quickly fell asleep.

 

 

About the Author

 

Living in New Jersey for all his life, Shawn Mackey has been writing since childhood. Though his favorite genre is horror, he has a deep appreciation for fantasy influenced by mythology and science fiction that questions the modern world and its future.

 

Website * Twitter * Facebook

 

 

 

Giveaway

 

This giveaway is for 1 print or ebook copy.

Print is open to the U.S. only. eBook is open worldwide.

This giveaway ends on July 23, 2022 midnight, pacific time.

Entries are accepted via Rafflecopter only.

 

 

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