UNLUCKY CHARM-Book 2 of the Hopps Town Series Aidan Lucid January 5, 2022 Jongleur Books Reviewed by Brian “Skull” Lewis Howdy readers! It’s your old pal Skull, with another great book for you to check out. Unlucky Charm by Aidan Lucid is book number two of the Hopps Town series, and it picks up where The Scavenger left off. The main characters have gone off to college and better lives, but that’s not the end of the story. Especially for freshly minted demon fighter, Jared. Someone from the spirit world keeps trying to get his attention, but why? Meanwhile, across town, Richie and Zane find themselves in hot water thanks to a mysterious pawnshop pocket watch. Since Zane purchased the watch, they’ve been having a miserable time being chased down by specters from the past. Not only are these things scary, they’re also deadly. If Richie and Zane don’t get some help quick, it could be curtains for them! Fortunately, Jared is visiting home during a break from college and is available to help. But it takes a hand from his spiritual mentor, Aunt Maybelle to get things moving in the right direction. That’s a good thing, because they’re dealing with an evil demon bent on carrying out a voodoo curse and things get scary fast. Every hour that passes means that Zane and Richie’s lives are getting shorter. Will Jared and Belle succeed or will the demon win? Only one way to find out, head to your favorite bookseller and get a copy of Unlucky Charm by Aidan Lucid! Damaged Skull Writer and Reviewer gives Unlucky Charm A FIVE STAR RATING of EXCELLENT! It’s a gripping read with plenty of positive messages about life, the value of friendship, kindness, and the fact that nobody is perfect. We all make mistakes, and some of them are pretty awful, but everyone deserves a second chance. Well, except for that creepy demon! Your old pal Skull actually recommends starting with The Scavenger book one of the Hopps Town series to get all the background on Jared and his pals for the best reading experience. But Unlucky Charm by Aidan Lucid is also strong enough to stand on its own. This series of books delivers thrills and chills while keeping the language clean and family friendly. Give them a shot, I think you’ll really enjoy them! For more information about Aidan Lucid and his books. Did I mention that The Scavenger is being made into a movie? Go to: www.aidanlucidauthor.com Thanks for stopping by the Skullcave! For more news and reviews, check out your old pal Skull at: www.damagedskullwriterandreviewer.com See you soon.
DIET RIOT-A Fatterpunk Anthology Edited by Nico Bell and Sonora Taylor June 21, 2022 Reviewed by Brian “Skull” Lewis
Hello horror fiends! Welcome back to the Skullcave, where I’ve been reading a very cool collection of stories edited by Nico Bell and Sonora Taylor. Why are they cool? Well, because these stories show plus-sized people in a positive light. Instead of being made fun of or having their bodies be what makes them bad, Diet Riot celebrates bounteous bodies and makes them something to be proud of. Diversity is what makes the world a great place. Forcing others to fit one person’s concept of beauty is way too prevalent in our society and it’s wrong, damn it! That’s why the editors dedicated Diet Riot to: “Everyone who ever felt like they don’t belong.”
This cool, fatterpunk anthology starts off with Stephanie Rabig’s story Cinderella And Her Demon Godmother. When an angry girl calls forth a demon from Hell to kill some body shamers, she gets more than she bargained for. Enter Lucinda, a plus sized and sexy demon ready to get the job done. But, it’s complicated and no smart demon who’s allowed to go topside for a few hours is going to waste a brief reprieve from Hell. So, Lucinda takes her young friend out on the town in style and has some fun along the way. She also makes one last stop before returning home, to burn down a major asshole who thinks it’s funny to shame fat people. GREAT STORY!
Editor Nico Bell contributes her narrative tale Lake House to the collection. It’s the perfect mix of frightening and “fuck you haters!” Erin and her wife Lauren are trying to clean up the big mess of a lake house they’ve just moved into when things go very wrong. There might be a monster in the basement or maybe not, and Erin has an epiphany. Lauren just wanted to mold her like a piece of clay with wacky diet potions and pills. She never really loved Erin for just being her fine, fluffy self. That’s bad enough, but when Lauren drops the bomb of divorce on her, Erin decides to help her lose lots of weight super fast.
Curious Garden by E.E.W. Christman brings us to a horrifying fat camp for kids. Most people, let alone children, don’t think of going to fat camp as a fun vacation. Especially Camp GnuYu where the counselors are freakishly cheerful and bad morale is not tolerated. Failure is also not an option and anyone who passes out from exhaustion disappears in a mysterious way. Jeanie, the camper who narrates this chilling tale, wants to know why. But everything is hush-hush with the counselors acting even stranger as time goes by. They insist that to be loved, a person must be thin, but Jeanie doesn’t agree. Things reach a head when fellow sufferer, Kylie asks Jeanie for help. What they discover is a bizarre hidden garden that’s always hungry.
The past few years have brought many competitive cooking shows to our living rooms. Who’s the best baker, barbecue pit-master, or candy maker? With insane prizes of big money and the chance to launch one’s career, there are always plenty of contestants. So when Crystal gets the chance to become part of the show Easy Bake, she eagerly signs up. But to her horror, the contestants who lose don’t get a big hug from Paul Hollywood and some fond words. Nope, they are eliminated on the spot, striking the fear of God into the survivors. Each round Crystal continues to survive until the semi-finals, but that just brings her closer to dying on the kitchen floor. Then, just as she’s giving up, an escape opportunity presents itself. Will the finalists escape or be cut down by the creepy security team of Scott and Zelda? To find out the ending of this great story by Sonora Taylor, make sure to get yourself a copy of Diet Riot-A Fatterpunk Anthology!
So what does your old pal Skull think of this unique and timely anthology? I give it a Hearty FIVE STAR RATING! In fact, I’m planning on purchasing a few copies when Diet Riot is released on June 21, 2022. One will be going up on the “Wall of Fame” and another will be going to a friend who is really going to enjoy this gift. While I never judge a book by its cover, I must say the cover of Diet Riot is a real beauty! Well done Tori Celeste at Vicki Be Wicked, LLC. For more information about Diet Riot-A Fatterpunk Anthology, visit Nico Bell at: www.nicobellefiction.com Stephanie Rabig at: www.stephanierabig.weebly.com E.E.W. Christman : www.eewchristman.com Sonora Taylor can be found at: www.sonorawrites.com or Twitter @sonorawrites And please follow your old pal Skull at: www.damagedskullwriterandreviewer.com
Damaged Skull Writer and Reviewer recommends giving copies of this book to those you love who suffer poor self-esteem because of fat shaming and body discrimination. Diet Riot is a very empowering anthology that is artfully edited to give people of size a much needed round of applause. Your old pal Skull is a blues fan and agrees with all the musicians who revered a “Big Leg Woman” My mortal host Brian James Lewis is currently working on an essay that celebrates his love of plus sized goddesses. More on that soon! If you don’t like fat people, keep it to yourself. Dig?
UNLUCKY CHARM-Book 2 of the Hopps Town Series Aidan Lucid January 5, 2022 Jongleur Books Reviewed by Brian James Lewis
Howdy readers! It’s your old pal Skull, with another great book for you to check out. Unlucky Charm by Aidan Lucid is book number two of the Hopps Town series, and it picks up where The Scavenger left off. The main characters have gone off to college and better lives, but that’s not the end of the story. Especially for freshly minted demon fighter, Jared. Someone from the spirit world keeps trying to get his attention, but why?
Meanwhile, across town, Richie and Zane find themselves in hot water thanks to a mysterious pawnshop pocket watch. Since Zane purchased the watch, they’ve been having a miserable time being chased down by specters from the past. Not only are these things scary, they’re also deadly. If Richie and Zane don’t get some help quick, it could be curtains for them! Fortunately, Jared is visiting home during a break from college and is available to help. But it takes a hand from his spiritual mentor, Aunt Maybelle to get things moving in the right direction. That’s a good thing, because they’re dealing with an evil demon bent on carrying out a voodoo curse and things get scary fast. Every hour that passes means that Zane and Richie’s lives are getting shorter. Will Jared and Belle succeed or will the demon win? Only one way to find out, head to your favorite bookseller and get a copy of Unlucky Charm by Aidan Lucid!
Damaged Skull Writer and Reviewergives Unlucky Charm A FIVE STAR RATING of EXCELLENT! It’s a gripping read with plenty of positive messages about life, the value of friendship, kindness, and the fact that nobody is perfect. We all make mistakes, and some of them are pretty awful, but everyone deserves a second chance. Well, except for that creepy demon! Your old pal Skull actually recommends starting with The Scavenger book one of the Hopps Town series to get all the background on Jared and his pals for the best reading experience. But Unlucky Charm by Aidan Lucid is also strong enough to stand on its own. This series of books delivers thrills and chills while keeping the language clean and family friendly. Give them a shot, I think you’ll really enjoy them!
For more information about Aidan Lucid and his books. Did I mention that The Scavenger is being made into a movie? Go to: www.aidanlucidauthor.com Thanks for stopping by the Skullcave! For more news and reviews, check out your old pal Skull at: www.damagedskullwriterandreviewer.com See you soon.
TODAY MARKS THE DEBUT OF THE EMERGENT EXPRESSIONS IMPRINT FROM GREY ,MATTER PRESS. THE FIRST BOOK IS “RESEMBLING LUPUS” BY AMANDA COOL. CHECK OUT MY REVIEW OF THIS KICKASS NOVELLLA ON GOODREADS VIA THE LINK BELOW
Resembling Lepus Amanda Kool Emergent Expressions April 26, 2022 Reviewed by Brian “Skull” Lewis
Hey there regular readers, it’s your old pal Skull! Today I’m reviewing Resembling Lepus, the first book with the Emergent Expressions imprint from none other than horror powerhouse Grey Matter Press. Why a different imprint? Long story short, it’s because Anthony Rivera wants to help emerging authors while giving readers something new to enjoy. Basically, a real win-win for all involved. What we get with the debut novella is an action-packed detective story placed in the frighteningly possible dystopian future, with some super fly cli-fi to round out the picture. Amanda Kool, the author of Resembling Lepus, kicks things off with a murder. We arrive at the grim scene that’s oddly juxtaposed against a lovely nature preserve. In better times, it would be a wonderful place to visit, but right now it’s sullied by blood and tears. Beautiful groves of trees become potential hiding spots for the murderer, who likes to kill their victims by hand. Yikes! And who is the victim? Why a lovely female rabbit-a real one, to be exact. The detective narrating this story, police officer on scene, and the doctor are deeply shaken. Wait, why? In our current world, we might chuckle and shake our heads at that. But in the future Kool reveals to us, it will be no laughing matter. The way things are going in the present century, there is a serious chance that our luckier descendants will live in a dystopian world. The rest of us will be long gone, riding the extinction train with many plant and animal species. Maintaining the fragile, manmade ecosystem requires many sacrifices. Privacy and personal freedom are things of the past, thanks to 24/7 monitoring by CC TV, doors, and even the furniture we sit on. There will be strict rationing of food and luxury items for working class citizens. City air will be so polluted that everyone will have to wear an air filtration device. Personal use vehicles will be a thing of the past. Everything will be recycled, including life force. Perfection in motion, right? Well…no. During her investigations, the detective uncovers a lot of bugs in the system. One of the major ones being that just like in our current modern day lives, the wealthy have a free pass to do whatever they damn well please. It’s the actions of some of these entitled people that produce a very dangerous killer. Do they care or even consider the situation? Nah! They’re too busy getting ready to go on vacation for a whole month. Even when the detective points this out by saying “Must be nice” to the man of the house, he just replies cheerfully “Oh, it is!” So spoiled that he’s unable to view his vast, spacious home with a real lawn, trees, houseplants, and pets through the detective’s thirsty eyes. As the bodies pile up, the detective finds an ally in the forensic doctor who performs the autopsies, runs tests, and even manages to plug them into the brain of a manmade rabbit that lives in the nature preserve along with a mix of real rabbits and ones like itself. While they learn much about the killer, the experience brings some painful realizations about how well this artificial world is really working. Is the doctor truly an ally or is she something else, a spy perhaps? The detective has figured out the mystery and wants to move forward with nabbing the murderer, but her captain wants to follow the rules that perpetuate a system that clearly isn’t doing what it claims. Our detective is a strong woman and she’s not backing down after all she’s been through, which includes nearly becoming one of the murderer’s victims. There needs to be a conclusion. But how much will it cost her? Damaged Skull Writer and Reviewer gives Amanda Kool’s novella Resembling Lepus a FIVE STAR rating and a place on The Wall of Fame! Emergent Expressions’ debut shows readers that this is a brave new imprint producing works that make us think while keeping our eyes glued to the page. There are myriad ways to read Resembling Lepus, and with every pass through the book I saw something new. What always asserted itself was the hard reality that there’s no such thing as a perfect world that works for every inhabitant equally. Humans have tried to play God for centuries and it never works right because no one can be totally objective. Even the Greek Gods of mythology were constantly making mistakes, so what makes us think we’re any better? The murderer in Resembling Lepus reminds me a bit of Michael Crichton’s Terminal Man. Something science claims will work perfectly but doesn’t, with drastic consequences. When caught by the detective, Peter screams “We are vengeful creatures!” And the doctor shows the detective the past when rabbits were considered vermin and hunted for sport because people liked to hear them scream. So why are they protected now? What’s wrong or right? I don’t know, I’m just a book reviewer who calls himself Skull. You catch this book and read it. For more information and to order a copy of Resembling Lepus go to: www.greymatterpress.com For more information about author Amanda Kool go to: www.amandakool.net Tell them your old pal Skull sent you!
Hello everyone, happy National Poetry Month! Something cool that happened to me recently was having a poem of mine placed in the Emma Lazarus Archives at the American JewishHistorical Society. These archives focus on the Jewish-American experience, especially immigrants coming to the U.S. Some stories are about triumphs and others about the difficulties faced. History is a very important component in guiding us towards a better future for everyone. Keeping those records for future generations shows us that things we often think of as new or unique to our lifetimes, such as having to wear facemasks to stop the outbreak of a deadly disease, has been done previously.
Emma Lazarus was a Jewish-American woman who was very progressive for her time. She wrote socially conscious essays and one her best known works was “The New Colossus” which addressed the installation of the Statue of Liberty to welcome immigrants to the U.S. To celebrate this, the American Jewish Historical Society holds an annual contest for poems about the Statue of Liberty. The overall aim is to keep a conversation going about American identity and what it means to each of us. You do not have to be Jewish to enter, nor do you have to produce some sort of brainwashed flim-flam saying that everything is perfect here in the good old U.S.A. Poets choose what the statue of liberty means to them, My contribution, now in the Emma Lazarus Archives forever, is about working class America where all that glitters is not gold and many people experience discrimination while others get away with horrendous crimes against humanity.
HEY, LADY LIBERTY
Brian James Lewis
Hey Lady Liberty, why do you look so sad? Is it because the truth of this country you watch over Might not match the glorious and perfect façade Spun by the history books passed out in schools That seem to miss so much of every decade?
As a lady representing our country Don’t you wish we had a female president? Someone who would choose better school lunches Find homes and good jobs for the homeless Make it illegal to close the government When it’s needed and we’re asking for help?
Hey Lady Liberty, we know freedom isn’t free But the rich want to cut veteran’s benefits Along with mental health care and self-respect What do you think chances are for immigrants Who come here searching for the American dream?
Thanks for reading! For more information about the American Jewish Historical Society go to: http://www.ajhs.org.
Resembling Lepus Amanda Kool Emergent Expressions April 26, 2022 Reviewed by Brian “Skull” Lewis
Hey there regular readers, it’s your old pal Skull with some great news and a review of Resembling Lepus the first book of the Emergent Expressions imprint from none other than horror powerhouse Grey Matter Press. Yes! Is that cool or what? And, here’s a little secret from the Skull to you: If you go to the link below and pre-order your copy of Resembling Lepus before its release date, Grey Matter Press will give you 25% off the cover price. Now that’s something to smile about with a big, boney-toothed grin! See my previous post to learn more about EmergentExpressions and its plan to broaden readers’ options along with opening minds. Now, on with the show.
Amanda Kool, the author of Resembling Lepus, kicks things off with a murder. We arrive at the grim scene that’s oddly juxtaposed against a lovely nature preserve. In better times, it would be a wonderful place to visit, but right now it’s sullied by blood and tears. Beautiful groves of trees become potential hiding spots for the murderer, who likes to kill their victims by hand. Yikes! And who is the victim? Why a lovely female rabbit-a real one, to be exact. The detective narrating this story, police officer on scene, and the doctor are deeply shaken. Wait, why?
In our current world, we might chuckle and shake our heads at that. But in the future Kool reveals to us, it will be no laughing matter. The way things are going in the present century, there is a serious chance that our luckier descendants will live in a dystopian world. The rest of us will be long gone, riding the extinction train with many plant and animal species. Maintaining the fragile, manmade ecosystem requires many sacrifices. Privacy and personal freedom are things of the past, thanks to 24/7 monitoring by CC TV, doors, and even the furniture we sit on. There will be strict rationing of food and luxury items for working class citizens. City air will be so polluted that everyone will have to wear an air filtration device. Personal use vehicles will be a thing of the past. Everything will be recycled, including life force. Perfection in motion, right?
Well…no. During her investigations, the detective uncovers a lot of bugs in the system. One of the major ones being that just like in our current modern day lives, the wealthy have a free pass to do whatever they damn well please. It’s the actions of some of these entitled people that produce a very dangerous killer. Do they care or even consider the situation? Nah! They’re too busy getting ready to go on vacation for a whole month. Even when the detective points this out by saying “Must be nice” to the man of the house, he just replies cheerfully “Oh, it is!” So spoiled that he’s unable to view his vast, spacious home with a real lawn, trees, houseplants, and pets through the detective’s thirsty eyes.
As the bodies pile up, the detective finds an ally in the forensic doctor who performs the autopsies, runs tests, and even manages to plug them into the brain of a manmade rabbit that lives in the nature preserve along with a mix of real rabbits and ones like itself. While they learn much about the killer, the experience brings some painful realizations about how well this artificial world is really working. Is the doctor truly an ally or is she something else, a spy perhaps? The detective has figured out the mystery and wants to move forward with nabbing the murderer, but her captain wants to follow the rules that perpetuate a system that clearly isn’t doing what it claims. Our detective is a strong woman and she’s not backing down after all she’s been through, which includes nearly becoming one of the murderer’s victims. There needs to be a conclusion. But how much will it cost her?
Damaged Skull Writer and Reviewer gives Amanda Kool’s novella Resembling Lepus a FIVE STAR rating and a place on The Wall of Fame! Emergent Expressions’ debut shows readers that this is a brave new imprint producing works that make us think while keeping our eyes glued to the page. There are myriad ways to read Resembling Lepus, and with every pass through the book I saw something new. What always asserted itself was the hard reality that there’s no such thing as a perfect world that works for every inhabitant equally. Humans have tried to play God for centuries and it never works right because no one can be totally objective. Even the Greek Gods of mythology were constantly making mistakes, so what makes us think we’re any better? The murderer in Resembling Lepus reminds me a bit of Michael Crichton’s Terminal Man. Something science claims will work perfectly but doesn’t, with drastic consequences. When caught by the detective, Peter screams “We are vengeful creatures!” And the doctor shows the detective the past when rabbits were considered vermin and hunted for sport because people liked to hear them scream. So why are they protected now? What’s wrong or right? I don’t know, I’m just a book reviewer who calls himself Skull. You catch this book and read it.
For more information and to order a copy of Resembling Lepus go to: www.greymatterpress.com For more information about author Amanda Kool go to: www.amandakool.net Tell them your old pal Skull sent you!
Nothing says Easter like some festive Damaged Skull Eggs! But even more special is the fact that we’re in the middle of National Poetry Month. In this case we’re looking at some excellent dark poetry from Lucy A. Snyder that you can win a paperback copy of right here. But, you gotta hurry, because when the sun rises on Easter Morn it’ll be time for your old pal Skull to collect all the entries in his hat, give ’em a whirl and pick a winner. Then I’ll reach out to them so I can ship a copy of EXPOSED NERVES to their door. Thank you to Raw Dog Screaming Press.
All you have to do, is like, leave a comment, and follow Damaged Skull Writer and Reviewer. Yes, you have to enter your information to leave a comment for security purposes, but nobody except the WordPress security people get to see it. No one will send you spam or those weird phone calls telling you that your car’s warranty has run out. I tried to get them to fix my 87 Dodge Ram and they declined. Good Luck!
Hello friends, it’s your old pal Skull with some exciting news. To celebrate National Poetry Month Damaged Skull Writer and Reviewer is giving away a paperback copy of Lucy A. Snyder’s recent poetry collection Exposed Nerves. Published by the rapidly growing Raw Dog Screaming Press, this collection of poetry runs deep and strong.
I’ll have a review up a bit later this week, but for now I encourage you to enter this completely free, no strings attached giveaway. Just like, comment, and share this post with your friends, so we can support independent authors and presses. Your old pal Skull would also appreciate it if you’d follow this blog as well. The deadline for entries is 6 pm EST on Good Friday and I will announce the winner on Easter Sunday. Best of luck to all!
April is always one of your old pal Skull’s favorite months. Yes, there’s the possibility we in the northeastern portion of the U.S. might actually get some warm weather, but the real exciting thing is that it’s NATIONAL POETRY MONTH! Over the past decade or so, I’ve come to realize that poetry is a lot more exciting than the overly sweet, must rhyme at any cost stuff that appears in greeting cards. In fact, I’m a little bit proud of turning some of my friends onto poetry. A big reason that poetry is cool? Independent Presses! In the picture above, four cool presses are represented:
RAW DOG SCREAMING PRESS: Exposed Nerves by Lucy A. Snyder Monstrum Poetica by Jezzy Wolfe http://www.RawDogScreaming.com
There’ll also be some other interesting posts, maybe even a few about yours truly. But the priority will be on promoting works of poetry, with maybe a few side excursions along the way. Until then, be sure to immerse yourself in the kinds of poetry that appeal to you. Take a trip to your local bookseller, check out the presses above, and/or hit the library to fuel your journey of discovery. We may not always be able to depend on the weather, but poetry is guaranteed to touch your soul.
Hello there readers, it’s your old pal Skull with some great news from Grey Matter Press! After ten years of doing great things in the Horror Community, editor and publisher Anthony Rivera is bringing forth the Emergent Expressions imprint to provide new opportunities for emerging authors. He also wants to widen the scope of what readers can expect from Grey Matter Press in the very near future. Please check out the press release below and consider pre-ordering your copy of Amanda Kool’s novella Resembling Lepus by clicking their link. If you order before the release date, you’ll save 28 percent off the cover price! There’s also a super Kindle offer as well.
Earth’s sixth mass extinction has ended, and survivors who have struggled with unhealthy air, food rations and regimented energy consumption are now faced with disturbing new challenges when a detective leads an investigation into a string of inconceivable murders that have rocked her city. This is the futuristic urban setting for Resembling Lepus, the new dark speculative fiction novella by Amanda Kool that becomes the inaugural release in the Emergent Expressions imprint from Grey Matter Press (GMP) when the title publishes on April 26.
Kool’s Resembling Lepus is a tautly written, multi-layered crime mystery set amidst a post-dystopian urban landscape at the end of the current Holocene Era after humans have caused irreversible damage to the planet. Citizens of this surveillance state now required to live with a higher reverence for all life are horrified by a series of murders in this cli-fi dark thriller that investigates the repercussions of man playing god.
“I’m thankful that GMP chose this story,” said Kool, the Melbourne-based author. “And being the first cab off the rank for the Emergent Expressions imprint is an incredible honour. What an exciting line to be a part of.”
Resembling Lepus is the first of four titles to be published by GMP during the 2022 calendar year in its Emergent Expressions line that features genre novellas by the ascending voices of modern fiction writing in the thriller, horror, science fiction, crime/noir, horror, speculative fiction, fantasy and other dark genres.
“Amanda Kool’s Resembling Lepus is our first stand-alone, long-format speculative fiction title in ten years, and because of that it’s the perfect novella to kick off Emergent Expressions,” said Anthony Rivera, editor and publisher at GMP. “Kool’s impressive imagination, remarkable world-building and straightforward approach to complex storytelling combine to create this evocative and captivating story, made even more so due to tackling some disturbing moral concepts. Resembling Lepus proves she’s an ascending voice and one I guarantee readers will be hearing a lot more from in the future.”
The company’s Emergent Expressions imprint seeks to elevate the fiction of emerging authors by offering a viable, collaborative and professional publishing outlet committed to highlighting exceptional talent and generating greater awareness for their work under the banner of Grey Matter Press.
When Resembling Lepus is released on April 26th, it will be available in both trade paperback and electronic formats at bookstores worldwide.
Earth’s sixth mass extinction has ended, and in its wake a post-dystopian civilization has struggled to rebuild after a global cataclysm shattered its ecosystems and propelled all life to the brink of eradication.
In a world where the air is unhealthy, food is strictly rationed, and the energy consumption that triggered the destruction is highly regimented, scientists experiment with artificial biospheres to secure survival and techno-mimicry to breathe life into long-dead species. It’s an unavoidable surveillance state where every living thing is tracked, numbered, and categorized.
In this fledgling society born out of catastrophic loss and now challenged with a new reverence for all life, a lone detective is haunted by a series of murders traumatizing the populace. Assisted by a medical colleague, she finds herself entangled in a crisis with far-reaching consequences and dangerous repercussions that threaten the fragile balance of all existence.
What is the impact on humanity when mankind is required to play god to the creatures they have all but destroyed?
* * *
ABOUT AMANDA KOOL
Amanda Kool has been writing for most of her life, starting on her mother’s typewriter. Employed as a technical/proposal writer, she hones her fiction skill authoring crime, speculative, and science fiction. Kool co-authored 1000 Mettle Folds with horror author Steve Gerlach, and she wrote the children’s book The Paper Fox with her brother, Jeremy Kool, as illustrator. More information about Kool is available at http://www.amandakool.net.
ABOUT GREY MATTER PRESS
Grey Matter Press is a Chicago-based publisher whose mission it is to discover and cultivate the best voices working in the dark fiction genre. The company is committed to producing only the finest quality volumes of fiction containing exceptional tales from the suspense-thriller, crime-noir, dark fantasy, literary fiction, horror, and speculative genres. More information about Grey Matter Press is available at http://www.greymatterpress.com.
Thanks for taking a few minutes to visit Damaged Skull Writer and Reviewer! It’s exciting to be involved with the inaugural release of Emergent Expressions-an imprint that will show readers a whole new side of Grey Matter Press. Please consider following my blog and stay tuned for my upcoming review of Resembling Lepus.
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