occult | CW Hawes

Riffing on The X-Files

Since his debut in Nightmare In Agate Bay (January 2018), Pierce Mostyn and his paranormal investigations has been my bestselling series.

The genesis for the series was The X-Files. And while the overarching story arc of the TV series was about space aliens (a storyline very similar to the earlier TV series The Invaders), it was the “monster of the week” episodes that I found most interesting. I liked the concept of a government agent investigating those things that go bump in the night.

The biggest things that go bump in the night, IMO, are Cthulhu and his ilk. So it was only natural for me to mash up The X-Files concept with The Cthulhu Mythos, with the “monster of the week” idea finding its way into the sub-series with diabolical mastermind Valdis Damien van Dyne.

Van Dyne lets me play with the whole cryptid menagerie, much as the producers and writers did with The X-Files. Let’s face it — we like monsters. We like weird, paranormal critters and beings. And while the cosmic horror of Cthulhu and his fellow Old Ones is terrifying, there is nothing immediately scarier than a good old-fashioned monster. Hence, the perennial popularity of the “creature feature”.

On Monday, the 20th of July, you will be treated to a rare and unusual cryptid: the zuvembie. The creation of Robert E Howard, drawn from the spooky stories his grandmother told him.

The zuvembie is a top-drawer creation, yet to my knowledge it only appeared once in the Howard oeuvre in the story “Pigeons from Hell”. I’m pleased that arch-villain Valdis Damien van Dyne learned the secret of the Black Brew and planned his zuvembie apocalypse. It will make COVID look like the common cold.

Make sure your hearing protection works, because you’re going to need it in two weeks.

Comments are always welcome! And until next time, happy monster hunting!

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Pierce Mostyn Continues

In two weeks, the sixth Pierce Mostyn Paranormal Investigation, Demons in the Dunes, will hit the virtual bookshelves. And the word is that it’s the best Pierce Mostyn thus far. Which has me quite jazzed. I enjoy writing the Pierce Mostyn books and it’s good to know they are getting better and better.

I follow the school of thought that says don’t fully define your characters. Just start with a brief sketch and let them grow from story to story.

In practice, this means the characters may not come across as fully developed in the first book or two. Personally, I’m okay with that. I like to see a series character grow. And if what my advance readers are telling me is true, the characters are growing. Which means I am becoming more and more comfortable with them. And that is a very good thing.

Demons in the Dunes is also a bit different from the other books in the series in that the setting is not in the United States, but in the Empty Quarter of the Arabian Peninsula. There is nothing like an exotic location to spice a read!

For me, one of the most interesting things to watch in the series is the development of Dr. Rafe Bardon. And Demons reveals yet another side of the good doctor that we haven’t seen before. He is truly one enigmatic fellow!

You can find the entire series here. If you become a VIP reader, you’ll get the novelette “The Feeder” as a gift. It’s another rousing paranormal tale of adventure, and it’s not available in stores.

I’ll have more next week, so stay tuned!

Comments are always welcome! And until next time, happy reading!

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Tony Price: Confidential

Good Books You Probably Never Heard Of – Part 11

Tony Price: Confidential by Richard Schwindt

https://www.amazon.com/Tony-Price-Confidential-Richard-Schwindt-ebook/dp/B01MSYGO6F

Richard Schwindt is a phenomenally innovative and creative writer. His storytelling is nonpareil. His characters are amazingly realistic and his word paintings put you on location with them.

Tony Price is one of Schwindt’s wonderfully delightful characters. He’s a chain smoking, vodka drinking, burnt out social worker with a knack for finding and fighting monsters. Yep, you read that right. A monster fighting social worker. Right out of Paranormal Land. Only Schwindt makes it all seem as real and ordinary as crossing a street.

Tony Price: Confidential is the collection of all three Tony Price novellas. Below is a brief synopsis of each tale.

Scarborough: Confidential takes place in 1987. To Tony’s dismay, his clients are being brutally murdered one by one. Who or what is doing this? To find the answer, Tony ends up not only scouring the dark corners of Scarborough, but winds up traveling to the Venezuelan back country. And there he finds that only he can defeat the evil killing his clients.

Sioux Lookout: Confidential sees Tony taking a vacation at the urging of his girlfriend. What was supposed to be a time of fishing, drinking, smoking, and relaxing, suddenly vanishes when something evil comes to the little town of Sioux Lookout. And it is upon Tony to send the monster back to the hell it came from.

Kingston: Confidential finds our hero forced into retirement all because he was being a good Samaritan and rescued a woman and her child from a notorious hardcore druggie who was armed and threatening their lives.

So he and wife Brenda move to Kingston to be closer to their twins who are attending college there. As often happens to those forced into retirement, Tony is bored. He has too much time on his hands. That is until a monster comes to town.

This time Tony is aided in his battle with the homicidal maniac ravaging Kingston by his daughter, Ashley, who’s inherited her father’s gift and much of his personality.

Schwindt’s books are filled with humor, horror, fascinating people, and scary monsters. If you’re into the paranormal or urban fantasy, Tony Price: Confidential is for you.

Very Highly Recommended!!

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