Please enjoy the first chapter of ‘The Children of D’Hara’ by Terry Goodkind. Which is set for release on 2/4/2021.
 
“I have come to accept your surrender.” Richard’s brow drew down as he leaned an elbow on the padded leather arm of the massive chair he was in. He was more perplexed than troubled. The rotund man was wearing formal white robes ornately embroidered in gold designs that added an air of dignity to his pear shape. He stood patiently at the head of a line of supplicants stretching back into the distance of the enormous, vaulted room. Windows high up to the side let in streamers of hazy afternoon light that gave the vast room an almost spiritual quality. Fat black marble columns, variegated with red and gold veins, rose up in a tight row to each side of the long room. Gilded capitals atop the columns supported balconies where large crowds watched the proceedings along with the people on the main floor in the shadows behind the columns.
 
At the head of the room, behind Richard and Kahlan sitting in stately chairs at a heavy table on a raised platform, a ring of leaded- glass windows surrounded a two-story-high, carved white marble medallion depicting the long lineage of the House of Rahl. It was an impressive seat of power. Growing up in the woods of Hartland, Richard could never have imagined such a place, much less imagined himself sitting at the head of it.
 
Nearby, palace officials and their aides stood ready to assist with anything needed. Heavily armed men of the First File, between Richard and Kahlan and the rest of the roomful of people, did their best to remain inconspicuous, mostly staying out of the way toward the sides. Behind Richard and Kahlan, in front of the massive marble medallion, six Mord-Sith stood at ease.
 
Five of the Mord-Sith wore their white leather outfits. One, Vika, was wearing red. Richard had requested that they all wear white for the occasion so as to appear less menacing, it being a time of peace, after all. Vika had said that she was there to protect the Lord Rahl and if she looked menacing, all the better. Richard had long ago learned that life was easier if he let Mord-Sith have their way with petty issues. He knew that if it was vital, they would follow his orders. To the death if need be.
 
The people to each side on the main floor and up in the balconies, everyone from farmers to nobility, all fell silent as they waited to hear what the Lord Rahl would say in response to such an outlandish demand. The heavyset man in gold-embroidered white robes waited as well.
 
Beneath an elaborate white cloak pushed open in front by his substantial girth, silver chains around his neck just below the folds of false chins held a variety of small ornaments that reminded Richard of symbols of rank that army officers wore on their uniforms for formal occasions.
 
Richard remembered seeing similarly dressed people in an open tent down in the market at the base of the enormous plateau that supported the sprawling People’s Palace. The people down in the market and tent city had been gathering for weeks to have a chance to witness the kind of event that had never taken place in their life- times—or to profit from it.
 
“My surrender,” Richard repeated in a quiet voice into the hushed air. “My surrender of what?”
 
“Your world.”
 
Some of the nearby soldiers and court attendants chuckled. When they did, many of the people watching joined in to giggle with them. Or, at least they did until they saw that Richard was not amused.
 
His gaze flicked to Kahlan, seated beside him behind the table where supplicants could place maps, contracts, and other documents for their review. Besides the white dress of the Mother Confessor, he saw Kahlan was wearing her Confessor face. Her long hair gleamed in the light coming from the ring of windows behind them. He couldn’t imagine a good spirit looking any more striking.
 
Her beautiful features revealed nothing of what she might be thinking. Despite how unreadable and dispassionate she may have appeared to others, Richard could read the fire in that calm expression. Were she a wolf, her ruff would be standing up.
 
Richard leaned toward her, wanting to know why she seemed to be seething. She finally broke eye contact with the man and leaned toward Richard to speak in a confidential tone.
 
“This man is from Estoria. The medals and awards around his neck mark him as the consul general.” She stole a brief look at the man. “I think I may have met him once or twice, long ago when he was less important.”
 
“What’s Estoria?”
 
“It’s one of the minor lands in the Midlands that I oversaw as Mother Confessor. For the most part the people there earn their living as professional diplomats for hire. The consul general would be the equivalent of a king.”
 
Richard frowned. “You mean they are diplomatic mercenaries?”
 
She nodded. “Strange as it sounds, there are those who need a diplomat to champion their cause. When they do have such a need, they will often hire an Estorian. Estorians sometimes argued the position of a patron before me on the council.”
 
Richard was still frowning. “Who would have need of such services?”
 
“You’d be surprised. Anyone from a wealthy individual having a dispute with a ruler to a kingdom on the verge of war. Skilled diplomacy can in some cases resolve a dispute, or at least stall armed conflict indefinitely while talks drag on and on. Estoria is considered neutral ground, so they often host the different sides in complicated negotiations. Putting up such important guests and their entourage is part of how the people there earn a living. The consul general will often host elaborate banquets for each side of the negotiations. At separate times, of course.
 
“Estorians have a long history as professional diplomats. They live to negotiate. They are very good at it. It is often said that an Estorian would try to negotiate with the Keeper of the underworld himself to try to come to an agreement on a later departure from life. That’s what they do—they negotiate.”
 
“So what has you so upset?”
 
Kahlan gave him a look, as if she couldn’t believe how dense he was being. “Don’t you see? Estorians negotiate. They don’t ever make demands. It’s not in their blood.”
 
Richard finally understood what had her hackles up. This man was certainly making a demand, and apparently such a thing was completely out of their nature.
 
He turned his attention back to the diplomat standing before the gate through the railing not far in front of them. A pair of guards in intimidating dark leather breastplates over chain mail stood at the railing to each side of the low gate to admit supplicants with documen- tation for review or anyone else Richard or Kahlan might gesture to come closer.
 
Inside the railing to either side were the phalanxes of palace officials in white or pale blue robes. They dealt with a diversity of matters within the People’s Palace and even D’Hara at large. They seemed to relish minutiae. Once a person had come before Richard and Kahlan to state their case, make a technical request, or ask for guidance, they were often directed to one of the variety of officials who could handle the details of their concern.
 
A number of the people waiting in the long line of supplicants were representatives of distant lands who had come, usually dressed in ceremonial attire, not to ask for anything but simply to swear their loyalty to the newly formed D’Haran Empire. They all wanted to look their best at the banquets planned for later. Peace greased the wheels of trade. Being a willing and cooperative part of the empire made trade with all parts of the empire easier.
 
The man in the gold-embroidered robes showed no emotion as he waited for Richard’s formal surrender.
 
“What are the proposed terms?” Richard asked out of curiosity, expecting some kind of diplomatic proposal that would turn out to be much less ominous-sounding and reveal what was really behind such an odd demand.
 
“There are no terms. The surrender must be unconditional.”
 
Richard arched an eyebrow. That didn’t sound like his idea of a diplomatic negotiation.
 
He sat up straighter. “What is your name?”
 
The man blinked, as if the question had been unexpected and totally irrelevant. For some reason he had difficulty looking directly at Richard. He averted his eyes whenever possible.
 
“My name has no bearing here and is unimportant in the matter before you,” he said, confirming the bewildered expression on his face.
 
“Important or not, I would like to know your name.”
 
Long bracelets dangled from the man’s thick wrists as he spread his plump hands. His droopy eyes searched absently left and right, as if he didn’t know what to do about the unexpected request. “I am only here with instructions to accept your surrender on behalf of my patron.”
 
“Who is this patron?”
 
“The goddess.”
 
Richard was taken aback. He had heard of goddesses only in mythology. He didn’t think goddesses, in mythology anyway, hired professional diplomats.
 
“We are gathered here to address the issues of those who come before us. This ‘goddess’ is not here. You are.” The patience left Richard’s voice. “Give me your name.”
 
The man hesitated, avoiding looking directly at Richard. He picked up a long lock of gray hair that had fallen forward over his dark eyes and placed it back down over the bald top of his head. He licked his finger and then smoothed the lock down to paste it in place.
 
“If it will help ensure that you comply with the demand of the goddess, my name is Nolodondri, but I am known by Nolo.”
 
“Tell me, Nolo, why has this goddess not come in person to request the surrender of the D’Haran Empire?”
 
The man lifted the freshly licked finger to make a correction. “Not your empire, Lord Rahl, your world. And it is not a request. It is a command.”
 
“Ah. My world. I stand corrected. And it is a command, not a request. Duly noted.” Richard rolled his hand. “So you worship this goddess, do you?”
 
Nolo’s brow twitched. “No, not exactly.”
 
“What does that mean?”
 
“Would the sky expect the veneration of the ants on the ground beneath it?”
 
“Well then, why would this goddess send an ant to do her bidding instead of coming herself to make such a monumentally important demand?”
 
Nolo bowed his head slightly. “The goddess does not bother with petty tasks such as the surrender of worlds, so she directed me to come here to command compliance with her wishes.”
 
Out of the corner of his eye, Richard could see Kahlan’s aura darkening.
 
“You say that this was her ‘command’—that I surrender my world?”
 
Nolo bowed his head deeper, as if Richard were dense. “Yes, of course. I thought that I had made that clear.”
 
Cassia’s white leather creaked as she leaned in from behind Richard’s right shoulder to whisper to him. “Please, Lord Rahl,” she said as she pulled her single blond braid forward over her shoulder as if holding her own leash, “I’m begging you. Let me kill him.”
 
Berdine, also in white leather, leaned in beside Cassia. “Lord Rahl, you left me here, unable to protect you, for ages. I think I deserve to be the one to kill him.”
 
“Maybe we can decide that later,” Richard said to them with a small smile. “For now, let me handle this?”
 
Both rolled their eyes as they straightened, but they released their Agiels, letting the weapons hang from their wrists on fine gold chains, always at the ready.

Flight 753 lands at JFK International Airport, and while taxiing to its gate, the plane goes dark. Without having any idea of what could have gone wrong inside the massive 777, first responders are shocked when they find that everyone on the plane is dead. The only clues that CDC employees Doctor Goodweather and Dr. Martinez, (Eph and Nora) are able to find is that the plane's interior is covered in some sort of ammonia  substance that can only be seen using a black light, along with a coffin, half filled with soil and nothing else. A pawn broker from Spanish Harlem is more than happy to enlighten the two doctors with what they are facing, telling them that the bodies from flight 753 should be burned before night fall. This of course is not done in time and now the streets are overrun with the birth of a new virus, the Strigoi (vampire) strain.

The morning following their battle for survival against the Master, Eph, Setrakian and Fet plan their next steps to destroying this virus and its primary carrier. With Master Sardu beaten, but not destroyed the crew decide to head back to the sewers where the fight had started. They need to find and destroy the Master's central point of power, his coffin. But once again, this has been taken from its previous resting point and moved to somewhere safe. Revealing more about his past, Abraham Setrakian recalls more about his time in the concentration camps and what the hands of a young carpenter created before they were shattered by the guards after completing his new master piece, a oversized wooden coffin.   

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Kelly Goodweather is in high spirits, if you can call it that, after being changed by the Master to bring him her husband. ‘It is the nature of the undead to torment the living’, Setrakian notes when the undead return home after waking in the morgue the previous night. Kelly is now on the hunt, since she is charged with finding where her ex husband is holed up with his crew of hunters, along with her only child, Zack so that she can bring him back to the Master to be changed. Zack, who is being put in the middle of his parents once again finds solace in his father’s words and will do as he is told, but will not ever be able to betray his mother, even in death.                     
The Fall, the second entry in The Strain trilogy will take you into the depths of the vampire virus that has already swept through New York and is now threatening the entire world. Still following the characters from the first book, Dr. Eph Goodweather and Dr. Nora Martinez, we come to find out they have left the CDC and are now vampire hunters.  Vasiliy Fet, a local exterminator in the city joins the fight along with the old pawn broker and Strigoi hunter extraordinaire Abraham Setrakian. This crew works well together and with the current leadership and knowledge that Setrakian brings to the table, they are anything but pushovers in the fight for survival.

Another group of hunters has joined the fight in New York, and they are run by the Ancients. They are Vampires that not only want to end the current attack on humanity, but also want to end the reign of Sardu. Recruiting some of the locals, they enlist the help of former gang member Gus Elizalde to join them in their fight. Gus, now a tenured vampire hunter takes to the streets and finds a couple more of his old cabrones that are looking for action and much more importantly money to join in the battle between dark and light. Former Mexican wrestling legend, the Silver Angel joins with Gus in his fight and proves to be much more valuable than previously thought, even if he wears an old silly silver mask while dispatching the vampire menace.  

If you read and enjoyed The Strain, you will love where The Fall takes you. Watching as the Ancients need to team up with their only feared human hunter, Setrakian, they also back him as the only book that has a chance to destroy their race is put on the auction block during the uprising.  Knowing that they cannot beat the Master alone, they have to trust that the old man is willing to help them before destroying them as well.  Fet and Setrakian also join into a father son bond during their time together, and keep Eph at arm’s length, knowing that he may not be up to the challenge up ahead. Once again the family dynamic is the backbone to the story, and so much love between the group is shown, even when something goes drastically wrong. The book is also not too focused on current technology, but it does feature a plan that has been unleashed that could compromise the world’s Nuclear Power stations. Stay Scared.

Caution: This article contains some spoilers for the George A. Romero & Daniel Kraus novel, ‘The Living Dead’.
​
What’s truly fascinating about storytelling in general, is how sometimes stories don’t quite end like we hope they will. Take television shows and movies for instance. For if these particular tales don’t quite hit the metrics expected of them, they can quickly disappear from the silver and small screen, robbing the audience of a proper finale that would have given the characters and the viewer the closure they so desperately sought from this sweeping saga. Or sometimes we stumble across an ending in a book or a comic book that just plain feels rushed. As though the people behind the scenes just wanted to get it over with and cranked out a finale in a hasty manner. Plus of course, there’s also the worst-case scenario when it comes to this little problem, in that, here and there the person behind the story passes away.

Something that breaks the hearts of fans everywhere, because someone wonderful that brought joy to the world with their ability to craft a story is gone from this world, meaning that no one will else will ever experience the wonder of picking up a new entry from that creator and there is something quite sorrowful about knowing that their finest work will never be completed. But while those are all valid reasons for disdain and disappointment, for every story that ends in a sour manner, there are plenty more that come to an end in a wonderful manner. And those are the stories that we need to celebrate as often as possible, since they speak to the wonder of storytelling and how there are so many out there who believe in creating well-layered tales that give back to the fans by getting the ending right. And it just so happens that today is a wonderful day to indulge in that kind of celebration. For today sees The Living Dead arrive in bookstores everywhere, a novel that brings George A. Romero’s ‘Dead’ saga to a close, something that didn’t seem remotely possible all that long ago.
​
After all, George passed away in 2017, before completing this particular finale, meaning that this book was indicative of that ‘doomsday’ scenario in storytelling that we discussed just a moment ago. But thanks to his widow, Suzanne Romero and New York Times Bestselling Author Daniel Kraus, his final story has come to fruition after all. For Daniel received unprecedented access to Romero’s notes and completed portions of the book, and that gave him a blueprint to work with, to assemble what George was thinking in regard to wrapping up this incredible saga and well, what Daniel has done here is nothing short of brilliant. For not only is Daniel talented enough to leave one wondering where his words begin and Romero’s end, he’s managed to help craft one powerful book, one that is perhaps the most epic and sweeping zombie story to ever be created. A feat that Daniel and George accomplish by providing us with an immersive tale, one that takes us back to the beginning of the Romero zombie plague. 

Which is quite frankly, the perfect way to kick off this story. For it not only allows for long time fans of this universe to ease themselves back into this world and all the horror that it has to offer, but it also opens this universe up to fans that have always been curious about the ‘Dead’ saga. For now, they too can experience the wonder and the horror of 10/23 and the Night of the Living Dead, and what an introduction they get to the franchise. For the opening segment of this story truly sets the tone by offering the reader a harrowing encounter with the first reanimated corpse on record and the power and the gravity of that helps to inform the reader this is going to be one chilling tale. A fact that is reinforced by the next segment of this story. Since it outright immerses us in the thick of the apocalypse, and that makes for one intense reading experience.

For Romero and Kraus are methodical in their break down of the end of the world, and that makes one’s skin crawl while reading. Simply because, you can feel the tension building minute by minute as the living dead begin to outnumber humanity, and you know it is only a matter of time before they come crashing through doors to kill, and feast upon and resurrect the unfortunate souls that get in their way. But what matters more here, is that the structure of a novel allows for the worst possible images and thoughts to flood our minds since Romero and Kraus are unrestricted in their descriptions of what’s happening as the dead take over. Something that allows for us to imagine the smells and the sights of the moment and hear the ragged cries of these starving corpses and that definitely stays with you when you put down this book. Because the words that this dynamic duo of writers have assembled are rich and engrossing. 
​
But while it sounds as though this book is nothing more than a re-hash of Dawn of the Dead and other films from the saga that explored the end, that’s simply not the case. Because this tale also offers up some groundbreaking moments for the franchise that have never been covered or featured in a ‘Dead’ story before, and it also takes us far beyond Day of the Dead and Land of the Dead in order to accomplish the seemingly impossible and wrap up this sweeping saga. Which is handled in perhaps the most beautiful way imaginable. Since it respects everything that the franchise stood for all while offering up an epic and supremely satisfying finale. The kind where you put down the book and outright feel satisfied with what has happened because this book manages to tie up every single plot thread present within the novel and within the franchise itself. 

However, while the story in and of itself is satisfying in its own right, what truly allows for this book to stand tall with its cinematic counterparts, is the unique social commentary present within its framework. Because this book has a lot to say about modern America and some of the troubles that plague us and surprisingly, how we can grow beyond those problems and be better. Which makes this story supremely optimistic at times. Something that doesn’t seem possible in a novel that is filled with blood and guts and mindless walking corpses that eat the flesh of the living, but it is there, and it is quite refreshing. As is the story’s more philosophical thoughts on life and death and what it all should mean to us, making this perhaps the most cerebral ‘Dead’ story for certain, since none of its predecessors went to places as deep as this book goes and it may necessitate a few re-readings, to properly capture what Romero and Kraus wanted to get across to the audience. 

If anything, it’s best to call this book what it is, an outright horror masterpiece. Because everything about this novel is downright perfect. Since it leaves you checking the shadows of your bedroom when you put the book down for the night, thanks to the awful images it injects into your mind, and it truly leaves you pondering upon life and its meaning. Which is no easy task. But this book simply reaches into your soul in a way that only Romero zombie stories can, and it is nice to enjoy that feeling one last time. Because despite the wondrous and horrifying nature of this book, make no mistake about it, this really is the end of the line for this fifty-two-year franchise. The death of death, if you will, and boy does this saga end with one hell of a bang, and the haunting whimpers of the living dead.

Author Barbara Barnett has a brand-new book available today entitled, Alchemy and Glass, and we here at NTG were lucky to sit down with Barbara to discuss his new book and the craft of creative writing.

Nerds That Geek: What can you tell us about your new book?

Barbara Barnett: Alchemy of Glass is the sequel to my Bram Stoker Award-nominated novel The Apothecary’s Curse. It’s a story that weaves back and forth between 1826 London and our present day (with some rather surreal forays into what might—or might not—be the future, but I can’t get more specific). 
 
The series itself has (hopefully) something for every fiction fan sci-fi, horror, historical, romance, and fantasy, interweaves the genres and narratives with an alchemist’s brew worthy of the story’s hero.
 
But here’s the pitch for Alchemy of Glass: 

In the catacombs of an ancient ruined monastery, hidden away in the Eildon Hills of Scotland, a land of myth and mystery — the place where immortal apothecary Gaelan Erceldoune found sanctuary as a lad — Gaelan discovers a journal, apparently written by his old friend Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, chronicling an adventure into the Otherworld, a land of fairy castles and filigree trees hung with Spanish moss.

Falling from the journal’s pages, a small piece of glass, which Gaelan recognizes as a fragment long missing from a stained glass panel he’d created a century earlier. When the opalescent glass seems to come alive in his hand, Gaelan is suddenly thrust into strange world far from the fantastical dreamscape Conan Doyle describes.

Alchemy of Glass weaves a tale magical as spun glass and terrifying as a shattered mirror, drawing upon cutting edge science and the most ancient of Celtic mythology, intertwining the magic of fairy lore and the harsh reality of difficult choices, returning us to the world of Gaelan Erceldoune as his past, present and future collide.

NTG: What are you most excited for your readers to experience? 

Barbara: I’m excited for my readers to see how I’ve incorporated Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s well-known penchant for the fairy folk into Alchemy of Glass. I’m also excited for readers to experience the first meetings between Gaelan and Simon Bell—and how they both clash and respect each other. Also, can’t wait to have my readers feel the love story I tell in the novel (two of them actually).

NTG: What is it you love the most about creative writing?

Barbara: I love losing myself in the sometimes-troubled minds of my characters. Diving into their worlds and being transported, even for a short time. It does get exhausting, especially spending so much time in Gaelan Erceldoune’s head—now he’s a troubled soul if ever there was one. I usually have to take a break and play an hour of Candy Crush after writing a really intense scene with him.

NTG: What is a unique story that you haven't tackled yet that you'd love to write?

Barbara: I would love to do space opera, but one that hasn’t been done before. I’ve not found the angle yet, but it would a character-driven, literary novel set in the near future. Tall order, huh? Ideas welcome :)

NTG: What's next for you after this release?
​
Barbara: I have a wonderful 2021 Middle-earth themed boxed calendar coming out July 21 from Sellers Publishing (RSVP). It’s a day-at-a-time trivia calendar, and it’s the first of three LOTR calendars I’ll be doing for Sellers. It was a lot of fun revisiting the trilogy and creating the first one. I also have three works in progress, including a third Apothecary novel.

Author Jon Sprunk has a brand-new book available today entitled, Sun and Serpent, and we here at NTG were lucky to sit down with Jon to discuss his new book and the craft of creative writing.
 
Nerds That Geek: What can you tell us about your new book?

Jon Sprunk: Hello. It’s so nice to speak with you and your audience.
Sun and Serpent is the fourth and final volume of my Book of the Black Earth series. It chronicles the story of a prisoner of war in a harsh empire ruled by nigh-omnipotent sorcerers. In this final book, the main character and his allies must confront the evil that lurks at the center of a eons-long war before the very fabric of the cosmos of torn apart.

NTG: What are you most excited for your readers to experience?

JS: This is the longest series I’ve ever written, so I’m excited for my readers to see the climax, where everything they have read so far comes to fruition. Will they succeed? At what price?

Writing a series is an interesting journey, for both the reader and the author. It’s almost like running a marathon together. By the end, seeing the finish line really gets your blood pumping.

NTG: What is it you love the most about creative writing?

JS: The freedom. A blank page has no limits except the boundaries of your imagination. I love stretching myself to envision more, and then the challenge of translating those visions into words. It’s a magical experience.

Also, the freedom of expression. All of us think of things that we don’t say or do. Writing is a means to explore every aspect of ourselves, and then to share that exploration with others. It can be frightening, but it’s also liberating.

NTG: What is a unique story that you haven't tackled yet that you'd love to write?

JS: Unique is difficult thing to nail down. In one sense, every author is completely unique from all the rest, simply because of their singular perspective. Yet, we don’t write in a vacuum. We share so many ideas through books, movies, and other media that it all gets jumbled together, and writers pick out the themes and situations that appeal to them in the moment.

I would love to write the perfect stand-alone fantasy novel, something that provokes the imagination as well as social consciousness. I would also love the capture the hijinks of my D&D group in story form.

NTG: What's next for you after this release?

JS: I have a lot of ideas floating around in my head, but nothing concrete yet. Sometimes a concept comes to me, so crystal-clear that I know exactly what I want to write. Other times, it’s murky and unclear, and I have to let my imagination marinate for a while. That’s where I’m at right now. I’m just enjoying the chaos. When the right idea comes along, I’ll seize it.

As the days get shorter and the nights get longer, most people are out looking for that last second item that will be that perfect gift for the holiday. As Christmas hopefully brings out the best in most people, there are still some that are not about the season for different reasons altogether. One of the many things that could tarnish this holiday for some used to be believers, would be the loss of a loved one during that time.

Ebenezer Scrooge sits and watches his employee Bob Cratchit work on Christmas Eve. Christmas has lost all appeal to Scrooge as his best friend passed away seven years ago to the day. Not allowing anyone to get close to him again after all these years, Scrooge does not let the holiday get in the way of his one goal, making money. With his nephew stopping by the shop and inviting his uncle to dinner, Scrooge gives off his standard ‘Bah Humbug’ answer and goes about his business. Letting his employee out of work a few hours early with pay seems to be the nicest thing he will do for the night.

When arriving home, Scrooge gets comfortable in his normal fashion, but he hears something in the other room that is slightly disturbing. Jacob Marley, his old partner is dragging along the chains he fashioned in life and wants to deliver a warning to his old friend. As a ghost, Marley is willing to spend his last night on earth to try to help Scrooge get past his death and live life again. Marley tells Scrooge that he will receive three visitors this evening, which does little to frighten the old man, but his night and life will soon change.

Scrooge is first visited by a ghost of a little man that is falling apart. The Ghost of Christmas Past is what he calls himself. Scrooge is not worried until the ghost is able to transport him back to his childhood and show Scrooge what made him upset as a youth, as he was more of a loner when he was a child. But when the ghost transports him to his first real job, Scrooge is dumbfounded when seeing his first employer throwing a ball for the townspeople. Everyone was welcome and thankful for the ball and Scrooge's ex employer, Fizziwig had such a kind heart, he would even thank everyone for coming to the event.

Scrooge is beside himself as he is returned home to his flat when the second visitor arrives on this fateful night. The Ghost of Christmas Present; is a large glutton of a man who once surrounded himself with all of the best things, life had to offer. But now his torch can sprinkle good onto whomever he chooses, and always choosing the poor is how he handles business in the afterlife. For the poor need more help than the rich as evidenced by the next voyage Scrooge goes upon, to the home of the Cratchit’s. Seeing how people are barely getting by with next to nothing opens Scrooge’s eyes, but what really tugs at his heart is seeing their son Tiny Tim struggling to survive, while still wearing a smile on his face and carrying a song in his heart. Scrooge is then transported to the home of his nephew, and witnesses that he is the punch line of many of the family’s jokes, but still in their mockery of him, his nephew Jack still raises a toast to his old uncle and wishes him the best.

Scrooge is very shaken up now, seeing that little Tiny Tim will not survive for too much longer and that his family does not have much of a love for him, he sits and waits for the final visitor of the night. He waits and waits as time must be standing still, but still nothing. Finally, the last ghost makes his way into Scrooge’s room, a dark figure, not showing any aspect of his own being other than a boney hand. Not speaking a word, the ghost takes Scrooge to the outskirts of town to a pawn shop where some women are getting money for hangers and old sheets taken from the dead. The Ghost of Christmas’ Yet to Come only points at things and nods his head as Scrooge tries to get information out of him. Yet, there is only one thing that Scrooge wants to know after hearing all of the ramblings around the town and that is who died. The ghost shows Scrooge the headstone of the newly deceased and Scrooge becomes nearly a ghost himself.

Charles Dickens’ novel A Christmas Carol could be viewed as one of the darkest holiday tales of all, or an enlightening tale of rebirth. Following Scrooge on his adventure through time opens up his eyes as he is able to see that what he has done in the past is truly going to affect his future. Being shown that living life is much more worthwhile than harping on what has happened in the past is one of the things that the ghosts try to get through his head. Seeing what all is currently happening along with what will happen if his ways are not changed enlightens the old man. Trying to find a way to change his doomed future, Scrooge puts on a different hat and shows everyone that he is more than just about money and unhappiness, he wants the world to know that he really does care about others.

As life changing events hit us on a daily, weekly, monthly or yearly basis, we should always make sure to look for the opportunities, rather than get stuck in the past. Scrooge is very fortunate to have the ghosts come in and intervene one night and show him what he is missing out on. Keeping our heads up and looking forward is the only way to view the holiday, and sometimes making someone feel better about themselves with a gift, a smile or even just a pleasant word could be just enough to keep someone going through this time of the year. Forgetting that we are all human and need to be treated as such with a common gesture could be one of the biggest things that we let pass by as Dickens has shown. Stay safe and smiling, and as always, Happy Holidays!

When growing up, you get to learn more about who you are and who you are going to be. With the help of your parents, you are groomed to become the next great person in your family and most of the time you take the lessons they give to you and put them to work. But not all of these lessons are good as there are families out there that don’t care about their kids’ wellbeing and just want them out of the house as soon as possible. I know several people that have been put into bad situations at home and they have dedicated themselves to becoming someone new, someone that their namesake would never know. Which makes these people rock stars, since they never got the helping hand that their parents were supposed to give them when they needed it most.

In ‘The World Below’, Jakabok Botch is just trying to get along in his home. With an abusive father, Jakabok depends on his words and imagination to get him through the day. Writing in his journals about how he will be able to inflict pain and torture those who are mean to him, Jakabok finds out that he has plenty of rage on his hands, but when his mother finds his works hidden in the floor boards of the house, she is less than happy. Forcing her son to burn all of these masterful works, Jakabok’s father comes home and demands an explanation. When Jakabok falls into the fire however, he finds out what the true feeling of hell is, as he has become disfigured by the flames. With that not being enough, his father finds some of the unburned writings and wants to teach his son a lesson.

Chasing Jakabok with his gun and machete, Pappy Gatmuss has no remorse in his eyes as his son needs to understand who is in charge. Running into the hills, Jakabok finds a resting place with meat and beers and takes a breather, but his father is right behind him. Stepping back and making sure that his son understands that tactic is not going to work, Pappy sits and feasts as well, but what he does not know is that the two have fallen into a trap. When the snare releases, Jakabok and his father are pulled up quickly into the sky with no way of escaping. As each level passes beneath them, they are worried about what is awaiting them up above. While his father starts to cry about being taken to ‘The World Above’, Jakabok has a plan to release him of his worries. Pulling a kitchen knife from his pocket, Jakabok cuts the rope hauling his father up and curses his old man as he falls to his doom.

Jakabok is far from safe as he finds out where he is and what the ‘fishers’ are planning to do with him. Being an agent of Hell, the ‘fishers’ take note of Jakabok’s two tails and try to formulate a plan of how to make a lot of money off of the deformed demon. Being able to escape his new captors, he is able to run free in the woods and meets his first and only love, Caroline. As the demon tries to save the young girl, he accidently pushes her into the boiling water that is being used to debone those of his kind. Killing his only love is not the only thing the demon has to face, for people are not willing to have his kind roaming their world. Coming upon a small town, Jakabok is met by a couple of the Archbishop’s guards who are going to await word from their high commander on what his fate will be, but little does he know, there is another in a position of power that can make his life in ‘The World Above’ that much more tolerable.

Hooking up with the former guard, Quitoon, Jakabok is given the name Mr. B and the two head off on their adventures together. Quitoon is a powerful demon that has been living here for many years and is infatuated by humanity and how they are able to create new things that will change their lives forever. Although Mr. B does not feel the same way, he tags along on these trips and finds out more in the thirty some years the two are together. Finding great places to hold up, out of the cities and off the beaten paths, Mr. B is able to go along with his old ways, which involves killing infants and using their blood to bathe in, but nothing lasts forever as he always seems to make mistakes in the short term. Needing to leave their current place of residence, Quitoon hears of a new invention and wants to check it out before the villagers come to smoke them out. The story that follows will leave you breathless as Angels and Demons face off to try and keep The End from coming.

From the mind of Clive Barker comes Mister B. Gone, the life story of Jakabok Botch as he is captured and brought to ‘The World Above’. As he escapes one problem, he seems to find himself in another one just as quickly. All the while, he is speaking to you as you continue to read his story and he takes the time to beg you to burn the book. Without having any luck on his side whatsoever, Mr. B is able to survive with his longtime friend Quitoon at his side, but when the two decide that they will no longer travel together, Mr. B’s life changes drastically. With the human race chasing him, other demons chasing him and Angels chasing him, Mr. B has to find out what the newest invention is that will change the world forever and if it should exist. Not having the same abilities as his counterparts, Mr. B has to make it through his days using his smarts and words to keep himself alive, but that can only work for so long as those that are more powerful than him are looking to end him.

This could be considered a disturbing look at how the forces from below can still control what is happening in the world today, but I think it is just fun. Having the main character talk to you throughout the entire book, begging for you to release him is just epic and I rather enjoyed it, although I did have to look behind myself a couple times to make sure he was not there. I don’t know what else to say about the story without giving it all away, you will just have to read it and decide who is right and wrong in their fight to destroy the world over the next great invention. Even though Mr. B is a demon, it is easy to fall under his spell, even with him doing heinous acts on humans, it is just his way and he will not change in the words that he is putting in front of you. Stay Scared.

Author K.V. Johansen has a brand-new book available today entitled, The Last Road, and we here at NTG were lucky to sit down with K.V. to discuss her new book and the craft of creative writing.
 
Nerds That Geek: What can you tell us about your new book?
 
K.V. Johansen: The Last Road is the fifth and final book in Gods of the Caravan Road. Although there were three separate stories told over the previous four books, there has also been another story weaving through, that of Moth and her long wandering carrying the black sword Lakkariss. Moth was one of the seven devils “in the days of the first kings in the north” -- they were seven wizards, who bound themselves to seven devils to gain greater knowledge and power, as well as immortality. The nature of the devils and their relationship with the Old Great Gods, who exist outside the world, not part of it the way the gods of the high places and the goddess of the waters are, becomes an important aspect of this book. Moth, since she first appeared in the short story “The Storyteller,” has been wandering with her partner, the half-demon wer-bear Mikki, hunting her fellow devils on behalf of the Old Great Gods -- a bargain she made to gain the sword to avenge her brother and Mikki’s mother on the devil Ogada, but she was less than whole-hearted about having to be the executioner of the remaining five.
 
In The Last Road, although some of the not-entirely-human main characters from the other books, like Holla-Sayan, Yeh-Lin, and Ahjvar and Ghu, have vital and central stories, Moth is much more at the heart of it all than she appeared to be in the earlier books. A new god, the All-Holy, has risen to rule as tyrant over the lands of the west and is sweeping east towards Marakand, conquering and forcibly converting as he comes. Holla-Sayan seems to be lost; Ahjvar recognizes the new god as an old enemy with a particular hatred of Ghu and intends to stop him at Marakand to save his god, his lover, and the land he has given himself to serve, even if it means sacrificing himself; the devil Yeh-Lin, sworn to Ghu’s service, seems to feel likewise, if she can be trusted; and Moth, on whom they were all pinning their hopes, has given up the sword that might have been the only weapon capable of destroying the All-Holy.
 
Reading the proofs, I was struck by how much darker and grimmer it felt than the books that came before. Characters, mortal and immortal alike, are losing hope, seeing the end of their world approaching. But the despair is never total; there is both anger and a grim determination to stand and fight until the end, and love of friends and homes and their gods and life itself keeps the embers of hope alive.

NTG: What are you most excited for your readers to experience?
 
KVJ: There are some things with old characters that I’m quite excited about. Ahjvar, in the previous books, has been a badly damaged person, finding his way towards what’s going to be a long, slow healing. The Last Road is almost a couple of hundred years after the end of Gods of Nabban. He and Ghu have grown into one another, become more intertwined, and Ahjvar has really found some peace within himself. We see that in the long flashback that I jokingly described to someone as “In which Ahjvar goes on safari,” where he joins a pilgrim-party travelling in the Nalzawan Commonwealth in order to carry a message for Ghu, and in the present action of the story, where he acquires a follower and is a bit baffled as to how to cope with this young man who goes from having a crush on him to looking for a father-figure.
 
Even more than that, though, I’m really excited for people to see Moth finally showing how very dangerous she was all along. Throughout the series, she has had an inclination to withdraw from engagement with the world, even when doing so meant wrongs she could have prevented were done, but now the one thing that matters to her has been harmed and she’s calmly, coldly, deeply angry. She’s finally woken up and taken fire.
 
NTG: What is it you love the most about creative writing?
 
KVJ: I love making words sing, and I love exploring my people and their landscapes, both the ones they move through and the ones within them. There’s a power in that that’s intoxicating.

NTG: What is a unique story that you haven't tackled yet that you'd love to write?
 
KVJ: I have this half-formed thing that’s been trying to shape for a few years now, just a shadow of an idea, that would capture some aspects of things found in folksongs and a certain type of children’s books and ancient myths and medieval legends, that moved me when I was young -- ideas of wanderers, and countryside and wilderness, forgotten heroes and old ancient dark things lurking. It’s not ready yet -- it’s all fog and shadows and scents and echoes. Someday I’ll do it, I hope.

NTG: What's next for you after this release?
 
KVJ: There are a couple of things. After I finished The Last Road I wrote a book that had been very alive in my mind for a while, a non-fantasy with a contemporary setting about a gardener and musician, a story about chronic depressive disorder and hope and chasing happiness. I’m shopping that around now; we’ll see what comes of it. The current fantasy project is something I’m just calling “the forest thing” at present: a musician and a shapeshifter enmeshed in a complicated conspiracy of treason, and some very convoluted family entanglements -- and a forest, of course.

Author C.R. Richards, a longtime friend of Nerds That Geek has a new novel coming out today! Which gave us the opportunity to sit down with C.R. to discuss Creed of the Guardian and writing as a whole.
 
Nerds That Geek: What can you tell us about your new book?
 
C.R. Richards: Creed of the Guardian is Book Three in my dark epic fantasy series, the Heart of the Warrior. The main character, Seth, has been forced into the military and deployed to an outpost in the middle of a land flooded with dangerous bogs. He has a vision in which he’s commanded to seek an ancient relic capable of helping him defeat the enemy who’ve invaded his homeland.
 
As if his impossible quest isn’t enough of a challenge, Seth also struggles with the powerful beings sharing his body. The Spirit of the Lion Ring holds the power giving Seth his abilities. This creature is every bit the hungry animal its name suggests. Seth is out matched and fears for the safety of his friends who are also trapped in the isolated outpost with him.

NTG: What are you most excited for your readers to experience?
 
CRR: In books one and two of the series, I’ve alluded to the bouts of strange behavior the main character, Seth, exhibits. I’m finally able to show my readers what is happening in his mind. Seth may have started life in control of his body, but now he shares it with other beings. I’m so excited for my readers to experience the other entities living inside his body. It was really fun writing the scenes in which they take control and cause all sorts of mischief.

NTG: What is it you love the most about creative writing?
 
CRR: I love creating new worlds and exploring their possibilities. Writers can live out their fantasy lives within the stories they create. I’ve always wanted to be a Doctor, but I knew it wasn’t for me after working in the emergency room at a hospital on the graveyard shift. Heart of the Warrior allows me to live out my desires of being a healer through the hands of Riley Logan, one of the main characters.

NTG: What is a unique story that you haven't tackled yet that you'd love to write?
 
CRR: The ne’er do well rebel is a favorite character type of mine. I would love to write a story about one of these loveable losers.

NTG: What's next for you after this release?
 
CRR: I’m working on a Dark Fantasy novel set in post-Civil War Colorado Territory. The research has been fascinating. I still have a long way to go, but the book is progressing.
 
Don’t worry Heart of the Warrior fans! I’m working on Book Four as well.

​The keystone to survival is surviving. It seems like that is the easiest thing to remember, but sometimes people are just willing to stay and take the torment. Running away from the situations that you cannot win could be the best way to survive, but sometimes you choose to stay and fight for what you believe is right, even though there is no chance of making it out alive. That is how heroes are born and written about in the history books. 

Private investigators Carson O’Connor and Michael Maddison are just that, heroes. The two fell in love when living in New Orleans and while working on a case together, and have just given birth to their first child, Scout. Having survived their encounter against and killing Victor Frankenstein along with most of his minions, the two are looking to settle down and live a pain free existence. As they take up a very easy assignment, they are met with more possible trouble. For when an old friend, Deucalion, shows up at their doorstep, the couple is going to be faced with the rebirth of Frankenstein and his newest creations.

In Rainbow Falls, Montana, a band of replicates are slowly taking over the town. First replacing the key members of the community, their group is now focusing on everyone else. With a new mind reading technology, the replicates are very difficult to detect since they are able to download the existing memories from their victims. When staying at the local hospital for chest pains, old western writer Bryce Walker notices a difference in the demeanor of the medical staff. Young Travis, who is also staying in the same wing as Bryce, notices that the staff will come into his room and just watch him while he sleeps. Thinking that the staff hates him and wants to bring him harm, Travis joins forces with the old writer as they plan their escape from the hospital of doom.

Nunny has been battling with the loss of his grandmother and now finds himself staying at the local jail under false pretenses. Being paired up with an old killer, Mr. Lyss ,in the same cell, the two discover what is really happening in Rainbow Falls before the rest of the town. Seeing a replicate bring in his own doppelganger and then seeing him harvested, the two know they must escape to save their lives. Nunny is not happy with leaving all of the helpless people behind but does not have enough smarts to keep Mr. Lyss from pursuing his own goal of survival. The two end up holding up in Nunny’s neighborhood and wait for the infestation of replicates to blow over, but when the search parties get closer and closer the two find themselves running once again. 

In Frankenstein: Lost Souls you follow a small town in Montana that is trying to survive the second coming of Doctor Victor Frankenstein. Although the doctor was killed a few years before, he has created a replicate of himself to be fired up upon his premature demise to continue his work in creating the ultimate race. Having to face off against his old creator, Deucalion meets up with his friends from New Orleans, along with Frankenstein’s latest wife, Erika Five and adopted son Jocko. Everyone has a part to play when battling the old scientist, but nobody could expect that his creations have come so in just a year. Not knowing the exact way to kill off the replicates to save the town, the group goes back to their old tricks of slaying and tries to defeat the threat before it grows even worse. But not knowing where Frankenstein’s replicate is held up, they will need to do their research and keep their heads above water until he is located once again.

Just and overall fun read from author Dean Koontz. Frankenstein: Lost Souls is the fourth novel in the series and is setting up for the ultimate showdown between the living and the doctor’s creations. Having plenty of laughs along with enough gore to keep it interesting, this book is a page turner and will keep you in the mood for a good old-time monster showdown. How the characters interact with each other is a delight and watching them grow a little bit more will make you want to pick up the next entry in the series. Having a couple of the old school creations come together with the living to find a way to defeat their master makes for a good story line and although this is a set up book, you will not be disappointed with the results. Happy Reading and Stay Scared.