NOVEMBER NETGALLEY LISTINGS

Do you like free books? I guess I already know the answer that one…

Do you have a NetGalley account? If so, great! If no, they are free to sign up for and once you have one, you can request all kinds of book to review, some of them before they’ve even released! From large publishing houses and small. Here’s a link to NetGalley in case you want to sign up. 

Things are still in transition with the SFWA NetGalley management, but fortunately, I always schedule my titles out months in advance and the previous person managing the SFWA NetGalley account had already set up our titles for the year. Since October’s titles weren’t sorted out until mid-month, those two are still available through November 11th. And for November we are adding James Chambers’ Vox Astra: The Black Box, a collection of his transformative science fiction stories. You can read more about all three books below. Once you do, we hope you will click the links below to head over to NetGalley and request them.

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Vox Astra: The Black Box

James Chambers

The Stars Will Sing Our Songs Long After We Are Gone…  

…but who will remain to listen? Who will hear their sagas of conflict and discovery, their hymns of honor in the face of political intrigue, their ballads of tough calls made against the opposition of friends and enemies alike?  

 Open your ears to these unyielding revelations which sing of humanity’s place in the cosmos among distant worlds, of beings that exist outside our reality, and of shocking futures. Listen to their tales. Sometimes there are no good choices only hard calls. Though humanity may one day vanish, the stars forget nothing. We can only hope Vox Astra will be kind when they tell of us.

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Even in the Grave

edited by James Chambers and Carol Gyzander

“In death – no! even in the grave all is not lost.”
–Edgar Allan Poe

Wandering souls! Restless spirits! The vengeful dead! Those who die with unfinished business haunt the living and make their presence known from the world beyond: 

A scientist’s invention opens a window onto a terrible afterlife.

A New York City apartment holds the secrets of the dead.

A grandmother sends text messages from the grave.

A samurai returns to his devastated home for a final showdown with his past.

A forgotten TV game show haunts a man with a dark secret.

A tapping from behind classroom walls leads to a horrible discovery.

The specter of a prehistoric beast returns to a modern-day ranch.

And the one seeing eye knows all—including what you did.

Haunted from the other side, these stories roam from modern cities to the shadowed moors to feudal Japan to the jungles of Central America, each providing a spine-chilling glimpse into the shadows not even death can restrain. 

Do you dare open these pages and peer into the darkness they reveal?

Stories by Marc L. Abbott, Meghan Arcuri, Oliver Baer, Alp Beck, Allan Burd, John P. Collins, Randee Dawn, Trevor Firetog, Caroline Flarity, Patrick Freivald, Teel James Glenn, Amy Grech, April Grey, Jonathan Lees, Gordon Linzner, Robert Masterson, Robert P. Ottone, Rick Poldark, Lou Rera, and Steven Van Patten.

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Rags

by Ty Drago

Atlantic City, 1982

One cold December night, sixteen-year-old Abby Lowell and her foster sister are rescued by a mysterious and deadly figure in rags and a large hood. Abby never learns his name and never sees his face, but he’s obviously good with that black-bladed knife of his, very good.

Abby dubs him “Rags.”

But Rags isn’t done, not by a long shot. With her foster family under threat from the ruthless Bernards, who are determined to tear down their dilapidated hotel in favor of yet another casino, Abby finds herself in desperate need of a defender. A part of her is relieved when Rags returns to protect her again. And again. And again.

Now, with an army of thugs and a terrifying Voodoo witch hunting her, Abby must not only understand the dark truth behind Rags. She must accept that truth, frightening as it is, before it’s too late.

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OCTOBER NETGALLEY LISTINGS

Do you like free books? I guess I already know the answer that one…

Do you have a NetGalley account? If so, great! If no, they are free to sign up for and once you have one, you can request all kinds of book to review, some of them before they’ve even released! From large publishing houses and small. Here’s a link to NetGalley in case you want to sign up. 

So, normally I would be making this post at the beginning of the month, but for reasons, that didn’t happen. Our October listings only went live on NetGalley today, and deep thanks to those who made that possible because this clearly is the most ideal month for the following offerings. The first is Even in the Grave, a ghost anthology featuring many of the members of the New York chapter of the Horror Writers Association; and the second is Rags by Ty Drago, a brilliant bit of nostalgia steeped in stark terror. You can read more about both books below. Once you do, we hope you will click the links below to head over to NetGalley and request them.

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Even in the Grave

edited by James Chambers and Carol Gyzander

“In death – no! even in the grave all is not lost.”
–Edgar Allan Poe

Wandering souls! Restless spirits! The vengeful dead! Those who die with unfinished business haunt the living and make their presence known from the world beyond: 

A scientist’s invention opens a window onto a terrible afterlife.

A New York City apartment holds the secrets of the dead.

A grandmother sends text messages from the grave.

A samurai returns to his devastated home for a final showdown with his past.

A forgotten TV game show haunts a man with a dark secret.

A tapping from behind classroom walls leads to a horrible discovery.

The specter of a prehistoric beast returns to a modern-day ranch.

And the one seeing eye knows all—including what you did.

Haunted from the other side, these stories roam from modern cities to the shadowed moors to feudal Japan to the jungles of Central America, each providing a spine-chilling glimpse into the shadows not even death can restrain. 

Do you dare open these pages and peer into the darkness they reveal?

Stories by Marc L. Abbott, Meghan Arcuri, Oliver Baer, Alp Beck, Allan Burd, John P. Collins, Randee Dawn, Trevor Firetog, Caroline Flarity, Patrick Freivald, Teel James Glenn, Amy Grech, April Grey, Jonathan Lees, Gordon Linzner, Robert Masterson, Robert P. Ottone, Rick Poldark, Lou Rera, and Steven Van Patten.

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Rags

by Ty Drago

Atlantic City, 1982

One cold December night, sixteen-year-old Abby Lowell and her foster sister are rescued by a mysterious and deadly figure in rags and a large hood. Abby never learns his name and never sees his face, but he’s obviously good with that black-bladed knife of his, very good.

Abby dubs him “Rags.”

But Rags isn’t done, not by a long shot. With her foster family under threat from the ruthless Bernards, who are determined to tear down their dilapidated hotel in favor of yet another casino, Abby finds herself in desperate need of a defender. A part of her is relieved when Rags returns to protect her again. And again. And again.

Now, with an army of thugs and a terrifying Voodoo witch hunting her, Abby must not only understand the dark truth behind Rags. She must accept that truth, frightening as it is, before it’s too late.

JULY NEW RELEASES

It has been a while. I’m sure I’ve missed a few titles with the chaos life has been. I will try to keep up to date going forward. We have a few titles releasing this month. Two of them are through our NeoParadoxa imprint, and one is under our main eSpec Books imprint. We hope you’ll check them out!

Click the titles below to order.

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Even in the Grave

edited by James Chambers
and Carol Gyzander

“In death – no! even in the grave all is not lost.”
                          –Edgar Allan Poe

Wandering souls! Restless spirits! The vengeful dead! Those who die with unfinished business haunt the living and make their presence known from the world beyond: 

• A scientist’s invention opens a window onto a terrible afterlife.
• A New York City apartment holds the secrets of the dead.
• A grandmother sends text messages from the grave.
• A samurai returns to his devastated home for a final showdown with his past.
• A forgotten TV game show haunts a man with a dark secret.
• A tapping from behind classroom walls leads to a horrible discovery.
• The specter of a prehistoric beast returns to a modern-day ranch.
  And the one seeing eye knows all—including what you did.

Haunted from the other side, these stories roam from modern cities to the shadowed moors to feudal Japan to the jungles of Central America, each providing a spine-chilling glimpse into the shadows not even death can restrain. 

Do you dare open these pages and peer into the darkness they reveal?

Stories by Marc L. Abbott, Meghan Arcuri, Oliver Baer, Alp Beck, Allan Burd, John P. Collins, Randee Dawn, Trevor Firetog, Caroline Flarity, Patrick Freivald, Teel James Glenn, Amy Grech, April Grey, Jonathan Lees, Gordon Linzner, Robert Masterson, Robert P. Ottone, Rick Poldark, Lou Rera, and Steven Van Patten.

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Vox Astra: When Clouds Die

James Chambers

The Stars Will Sing Our Songs Long After We Are Gone…

…but who will remain to listen? Who will hear the stories they tell of the wisdom of species dying to protect worlds against a cosmic threat, to witness the crisis of warriors faced with unconscionable acts and soldiers determined to cling to hope amidst violence and despair?

Open your ears to these tales of heroes both fantastic and ordinary, who travel among the planets or dwell deep in the canyons of city streets. Hear the voices of the stars as they speak of lost loves, long-slumbering guardians, brutal conflicts, wars beyond time, and the powerful ties that hold people together in the face of violence. Though humanity may one day vanish, the stars forget nothing. We can only hope they will be kind when they tell our stories.

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COVER REVEAL – EVEN IN THE GRAVE

Seems like only yesterday we concluded our funding for this book…

Okay, a week ago, but thanks to a lot of hard work and dedicated hours by those involved in producing Even in the Grave we are just days away from going to press. Crossing our fingers and petitioning our lucky spirits that we can have books in time for Heliosphere (March 25-27), which is in just :::gulp::: eighteen days! Our plan is to launch the book at the convention, Saturday from 8pm to 10pm (see the program book for location). If you are attending, we hope to see you there to celebrate this monumental effort — see what I did there? LOL

The book can be pre-ordered via the eSpec Online Store.

Anyway, enough nattering. I give you the most amazing cover for Even in the Grave, art and design by the esteemed Lynne Hansen.

“In death – no! even in the grave all is not lost.” –Edgar Allan Poe

Wandering souls! Restless spirits! The vengeful dead! Those who die with unfinished business haunt the living and make their presence known from the world beyond: 

• A scientist’s invention opens a window onto a terrible afterlife.
• A New York City apartment holds the secrets of the dead.
• A grandmother sends text messages from the grave.
• A samurai returns to his devastated home for a final showdown with his past.
• A forgotten TV game show haunts a man with a dark secret.
• A tapping from behind classroom walls leads to a horrible discovery.
• The specter of a prehistoric beast returns to a modern-day ranch.
• And the one seeing eye knows all—including what you did.

Haunted from the other side, these stories roam from modern cities to the shadowed moors to feudal Japan to the jungles of Central America, each providing a spine-chilling glimpse into the shadows not even death can restrain. 

Do you dare open these pages and peer into the darkness they reveal?

Stories by Marc L. Abbott, Meghan Arcuri, Oliver Baer, Alp Beck, Allan Burd, John P. Collins, Randee Dawn, Trevor Firetog, Caroline Flarity, Patrick Freivald, Teel James Glenn, Amy Grech, April Grey, Jonathan Lees, Gordon Linzner, Robert Masterson, Robert P. Ottone, Rick Poldark, Lou Rera, and Steven Van Patten.

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT – CAROLINE FLARITY

These interviews are related to our GHOST AND GHOULS AND OTHER CREEPY THINGS campaign. For those just joining us, we are crowdfunding three projects on Kickstarter and also taking some time to introduce you to our participating authors, some of whom are new to eSpec. The campaign has passed the halfway point! Check it out to see how we’re doing, and what awesome rewards are left to be had!

eSpec Books interviews Caroline Flarity, contributor to Even in the Grave, edited by James Chambers and Carol Gyzander.

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eSB: Even in the Grave is a collection of ghost stories, without spoilers, can you tell us a bit about your story and how you came up with the idea?

CF: My story is inspired by the infamous Old Hag Syndrome, a form of sleep paralysis usually reported by men who claim that an evil old hag sits on their chests and tries to smother them in their beds. I wondered, who is the “old hag”? The story is told from her perspective.

I first heard about the Old Hag Syndrome listening to a paranormal show on Coast to Coast AM, back in the day when legendary broadcaster Art Bell hosted. This show and others on the subject of sleep paralysis fascinated me because I experienced sleep paralysis as an adolescent. There were plenty of nights as a teen when I lay terrified and unable to move in bed, my mind awake, my body numb, and felt the presence of something malevolent in the room.

eSB: Is your story a part of a greater uinverse stemming from other stories you have written, or does it stand alone? Whichever your answer, can you tell us about what makes that universe unique?

CF: This is a stand-alone story told from the perspective of a ghost, a widow who died shortly after the end of WWII.

eSB: Do you foresee writing more stories with this character or in this world? Whichever your answer, why?

CF: No, this is a one-off. I think the ending is the spookiest part, and what happens to the ghost next is best left to the reader’s imagination!

eSB: Do you believe in ghosts, and why? Is there an experience in your life you can share with us that strengthened that belief?

CF: Yes, I believe consciousness survives the death of the body. I believe in ghosts. I had a friend who lived in Santa Cruz, California. When visiting her house, I often felt uncomfortable walking down a mirrored hallway that led to the bathroom, but didn’t think much of it. During one visit, her son was not home and she invited me to sleep in his room. I lasted about five minutes in that kid’s room once the lights were out. I felt like an invisible presence was two inches from my face, glaring at me. I left and slept on the living room couch, waking up in the middle of the night in a state of high alert. Something was buzzing in my ears. I was flooded with adrenaline, my heart shrieking, hoping it was a bug. The blinds stared rattling, but the windows were closed. The buzzing began to sound like something trying to form words. I bolted into my friend and her husband’s bedroom and slept on the carpet at the foot of their bed! The next day she told me that her late mother was a witch who used to practice the dark arts with her peers in the Santa Cruz mountains. For most of my friend’s life, she’d felt the protective presence of what she called “The Watchers.” And her children now felt the same presence. I never went back.

eSB: What are some of your other works readers can look for?

CF: My first novel The Ghost Hunter’s Daughter was published in 2019. Supernatural meets Mean Girls in this YA horror debut for older teens. Anna is the grieving daughter of a paranormal investigator with a hoarding problem. When a parasitic evil invades her town (and mind), she must harness its power before it destroys the only family she has left. To do so, she’ll have to keep her increasingly dark urges at bay. The story is relentless and creepy but ultimately uplifting.

eSB: As a horror author, where do you find support for your writing?

CF: Other horror and dark speculative fiction writers are a great source of support. Sometimes I find that attending writing workshops with people who don’t appreciate horror is counterproductive. Not always, of course!

eSB: What advice would you give aspiring horror writers?

CF: Read as much as you can in your genre and be kind to yourself. Find joy in the process because writing is hard work that’s often unrewarded.

eSB: What projects of your own do you have coming up?

CF: I just finished a solid second draft of my new novel Sometimes in Daylight, a psychological horror with a sci-fi element. A woman is confronted with a terrifying theory about the origins of her insomnia after locating the cousin who abandoned her decades earlier.

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Caroline Flarity is a freelance writer living in NYC. Her fascination with fringe topics and scary movies led her to begin her writing journey penning creepy screenplays. Her debut novel The Ghost Hunter’s Daughter began its life as a feature script, placing in the finals of the StoryPros Awards and as a semifinalist in Slamdance Film Festival’s writing competition. The Ghost Hunter’s Daughter was named a “Best YA of 2019” listee by Ginger Nuts of Horror and won Crossroad Reviews’ 2019 Indie Book Award. Caroline is a proud member of the Horror Writers Association.

Learn more about Caroline Flarity:

Website  *  Amazon  *  GoodReads  *  BookBub

Follow Caroline Flarity on social media: 

Twitter  *  Facebook  *  Instagram

eSPEC BOOKS AUTHOR READING SERIES – 2/12/22

Okay! We have had a rush of activity, so there are going to be a lot of videos to recap here. Many, but not all, are from the #GhostsAndGhoulsAndOtherCreepyThings campaign.

Because most of these are from the anthology Even in the Grave, edited by James Chambers and Carol Gyzander, I’m going to put the book description here, rather than repeat it with each video:

“In death – no! even in the grave all is not lost.” –Edgar Allan Poe

Wandering souls! Restless spirits! The vengeful dead! Those who die with unfinished business haunt the living and make their presence known from the world beyond:

• A scientist’s invention opens a window onto a terrible afterlife. *A New York City apartment holds the secrets of the dead.
• A grandmother sends text messages from the grave. *A samurai returns to his devastated home for a final showdown with his past.
• A forgotten TV game show haunts a man with a dark secret.
• A tapping from behind classroom walls leads to a horrible discovery.
• The specter of a prehistoric beast returns to a modern-day ranch.
• And the one seeing eye knows all—including what you did.

Haunted from the other side, these stories roam from modern cities to the shadowed moors to feudal Japan to the jungles of Central America, each providing a spine-chilling glimpse into the shadows not even death can restrain. Do you dare open these pages and peer into the darkness they reveal?

Stories by Marc L. Abbott, Meghan Arcuri, Oliver Baer, Alp Beck, Allan Burd, John P. Collins, Randee Dawn, Trevor Firetog, Caroline Flarity, Patrick Freivald, Teel James Glenn, Amy Grech, April Grey, Jonathan Lees, Gordon Linzner, Robert Masterson, Robert P. Ottone, Rick Poldark, Lou Rera, and Steven Van Patten.

Hope you enjoy!

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Teel James Glenn reading an excerpt from “The Red Mare” from the upcoming EVEN IN THE GRAVE, edited by James Chambers and Carol Gyzander, funding now on Kickstarter.

About the Author

Teel James Glenn’s poetry and short stories have been printed in over two hundred magazines including Weird Tales, Mystery Weekly, Pulp Adventures, Space & Time, Mad, Cirsova, Silverblade, and Sherlock Holmes Mystery. His novel A Cowboy in Carpathia: A Bob Howard Adventure won best novel 2021 in the Pulp Factory Award. He is also the winner of the 2012 Pulp Ark Award for Best Author. His website is: TheUrbanSwashbuckler.com

Gordon Linzner reading an excerpt from “Moshigawa’s Homecoming” from the upcoming EVEN IN THE GRAVE, edited by James Chambers and Carol Gyzander, funding now on Kickstarter.

About the Author

Gordon Linzner is the founder and former editor of Space and Time Magazine, as well as the author of three published novels (The Troupe, The Oni, and The Spy Who Drank Blood) and dozens of short stories in F&SF, Twilight Zone, Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine, and numerous other magazines and anthologies, most recently Corporate Cthulhu, Baker Street Irregulars II, Release the Virgins! and the forthcoming The Mountains of Madness Revealed. He is a lifetime member of SFWA, a licensed New York City tour guide and lifelong resident of that city, edits, cat-sits, and leads the Saboteur Tiger Blues Band, among other distractions.

Amy Grech reading an excerpt from “Bruised and Battered Nevermore” from the upcoming EVEN IN THE GRAVE, edited by James Chambers and Carol Gyzander, funding now on Kickstarter.

About the Author

Amy Grech has sold over 100 stories to various anthologies and magazines including: A New York State of Fright, Apex Magazine, Dead Harvest, Flashes of Hope, Gorefest, Hells Heart, Hells Highway, Hells Mall, Needle Magazine, Punk Noir Magazine, Scare You To Sleep, Tales from the Canyons of the Damned, Tales from The Lake Vol. 3, The One That Got Away, Thriller Magazine, and many others. She has a poem forthcoming in the Under Her Skin anthology. Amy is an Active Member of the Horror Writers Association and the International Thriller Writers who lives in New York. You can connect with her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/amy_grech or visit her website: https://www.crimsonscreams.com.

Caroline Flarity reading an excerpt from “I Am Helen Gunthe” from the upcoming EVEN IN THE GRAVE, edited by James Chambers and Carol Gyzander, funding now on Kickstarter.

About the Author

Caroline Flarity is a freelance writer living in NYC. Her fascination with fringe topics and scary movies led her to begin her writing journey penning creepy screenplays. Her debut novel The Ghost Hunter’s Daughter began its life as a feature script, placing in the finals of the StoryPros Awards and as a semifinalist in Slamdance Film Festival’s writing competition. The Ghost Hunter’s Daughter was named a “Best YA of 2019” listee by Ginger Nuts of Horror and won Crossroad Reviews’ 2019 Indie Book Award. Caroline is a proud member of the Horror Writers Association.

Michelle D. Sonnier reading an excerpt from her novel Death’s Embrace, an ancillary prequel to The Clockwork Witch.

There is no aspect of life that magic does not touch, including death.

Raised to follow in her mother’s footsteps, groomed to be a proper hedgewitch, Macaria longs to blossom and bloom both into womanhood and her magic. But deep inside, doubts have begun to take root.

During a springtime ritual meant to ensure a fruitful growing season, fate conspires to redirect Macaria’s path. Falling victim to ill omen after ill omen, she returns home bloody and bruised to meet her destiny.

With the dawn, and an unfortunate sacrifice, her magic unfurls and her new vocation as a death witch is revealed. Can Macaria learn to see the beauty in Death? Or will the Council of Witches force her into its final embrace?

About the Author

Michelle D. Sonnier writes dark urban fantasy, steampunk, and anything else that lets her combine the weird and the fantastic in unexpected ways. She even writes horror, although it took her a long time to admit that since she prefers the existential scare over blood and gore. She is the author of The Clockwork Witch and Death’s Embrace and has published short stories in a variety of print and online venues. You can find her on Facebook (Michelle D. Sonnier, The Writer). She lives in Maryland with her husband, son, and a variable number of cats.

PRESS RELEASE – EVEN IN THE GRAVE

NeoParadoxa Steps into the Shadows with Even in the Grave

A new anthology of chilling tales edited by James Chambers and Carol Gyzander

Pennsville, NJ—January 10, 2021—NeoParadoxa, an imprint of eSpec Books, is excited to announce a new anthology of original ghost stories, edited by award-winning authors James Chambers and Carol Gyzander. The book will be supported by a crowd-funding campaign set to launch in February 2022. 

“The ghost story as a literary device offers endless opportunities for storytelling,” said editor, James Chambers. “Ghosts exist in some form in nearly all cultures and societies and have long fascinated readers. From traditional tales of ghosts, like those of M.R. James, to the wild reinventions of modern authors, tales of spirits and the world beyond death provide authors opportunities to tackle almost any theme. I’m thrilled to bring readers this new collection of ghostly tales.”

This anthology of creepy and evocative ghost stories assembles tales from twenty talented authors, including award-winners Marc L. Abbott, Teel James Glenn, Caroline Flarity, Robert Masterson, and Steven Van Patten. Haunted from beyond, these stories travel from the modern city to the shadowed moors to feudal Japan to the jungles of Central America to the prehistoric past, each providing a spine-chilling glimpse into the shadows not even death can restrain. 

“Just as early religion can be seen as an attempt to explain of the world around us and our place in it, ghost stories can be one way to explore what happens after we are gone,” said editor, Carol Gyzander. “Some are spooky and scary, offering social commentary or cautionary words about how to live our lives, while others are heart-warming and reassuring. I love that we run the gamut with the ghost stories in this collection.”

Even in the Grave also features stories by Meghan Arcuri, Oliver Baer, Alp Beck, Allan Burd, John P. Collins, Randee Dawn, Trevor Firetog, Patrick Freivald, Amy Grech, April Grey, Jonathan Lees, Gordon Linzner,  Robert Ottone, Rick Poldark, and Lou Rera.

“I have to tell you something,” said publisher Danielle McPhail. “I am not a horror person. As a writer or a reader. That’s me, my preference, not a smack-down of the genre. I tell you merely so you can appreciate that if I have accepted these manuscripts for publication it is because the authors have impressed me so very much, enough to overcome my own personal preferences.”

Other books to be featured in the campaign are Ty Drago’s Rags and Eyes of the Dead, the final volume in James Chambers’s Corpse Fauna Saga.

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For More Information contact Danielle McPhail, especbooks@aol.com