30 - Michael Bourke I opt to meet her in the office, not the house. The church had to be re-opened anyway: outrageously selfish of me to have kept it closed. I also hope to project a more officious nature, surrounded by the trappings of ecclesiastical power. Not to impress the journalist – she … Continue reading From “The Angel of the Streetlamps” by Sean Moncrieff
Video trailer and excerpt from PERMANENT FATAL ERROR by Hadley Colt
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nZICG3qjKeQ The following excerpt refers to Everett Hyde's letter: "Ashley’s former professor drew a deep breath and said, “Tough stuff, isn’t it? I received it, via his publisher, about three months after the publication of his third novel, Rain Dogs. About a year before the death, as I recall it. I was asking his … Continue reading Video trailer and excerpt from PERMANENT FATAL ERROR by Hadley Colt
The Hector Lassiter competition: Day 7
Tell us which novel is this and win two Hector Lassiter e-books of your choice if you are one of the first three people to give the correct answer: The clerk shrugged and slid across a ten-dollar bill at the old man who scooped it up. Fragments of brick rained down on me. But my … Continue reading The Hector Lassiter competition: Day 7
The Hector Lassiter Competition: Day 6
Tell us which novel is this and win two Hector Lassiter e-books of your choice if you are one of the first three people to give the correct answer: Hector sipped more of his wine. He said, “Progress?” “Yes,” Gertrude said. “What have my mystifiers learned since last night?” As if suddenly reminded about the … Continue reading The Hector Lassiter Competition: Day 6
The Hector Lassiter Competition: Day 4
Tell us which novel is this and win two Hector Lassiter e-books of your choice if you are one of the first three people to give the correct answer: “Old man, I do so appreciate you playing bodyguard to me,” Orson said. “I truly do. But I am racing the clock on multiple fronts as … Continue reading The Hector Lassiter Competition: Day 4
The Hector Lassiter competition: Day 3
Tell us which novel is this and win two Hector Lassiter e-books of your choice if you are one of the first three people to give the correct answer: He held up his Zippo and opened it with a one-handed flick. She leaned in, holding his hand to steady it. Her hand was still cold … Continue reading The Hector Lassiter competition: Day 3
The Hector Lassiter competition: Day 2
Tell us which novel is this and win two Hector Lassiter e-books of your choice if you are one of the first three people to give the correct answer: “The kind of woman a man would burn his life down for,” Hector said, “I know.” Hector specialized in writing such women. “That’s it, exactly,” von … Continue reading The Hector Lassiter competition: Day 2
The Hector Lassiter competition: Day 1
Tell us which novel is this and win two Hector Lassiter e-books of your choice if you are one of the first three people to give the correct answer: The clerk shrugged and slid across a ten-dollar bill at the old man who scooped it up. The old man frowned. “Oh, must have miscounted.” He … Continue reading The Hector Lassiter competition: Day 1
“Lying Still” by David Hogan
David Hogan’s The Last Island is currently on promotion in Australia.
When I was 17 years old, I dove into a swimming pool and broke my neck.
Until that moment, I’d been relentlessly active, my days taxed with dread of missing something somewhere. I was on the student council and participated in a wide variety of school clubs. I always secured a part in the school play and rode a unicycle in talent shows. I ran cross-country in the fall, track in the spring and was co-captain of the basketball team in between. I was an honor student who worked full-time in the summer and caddied most weekends in the spring and early fall, except on certain Sundays when I served as an altar boy. I’d never had a drink or a smoke, and I rarely swore. Yet that pleasant summer day, for reasons still unclear to me, I plunged into a six-foot deep above-ground pool and slammed the top of…
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Willow Weep for Me
"By the time the singer appeared, the house was full. Arlene Gray stepped elegantly on the stage and approached the microphone, one hand moving in time with the music, the other resting against the curve of her hip. There was warm applause. Light-skinned and full-figured, she wore a black, strapless sheath with sequins that sparkled … Continue reading Willow Weep for Me
A single kiss
"A shooting star zipped across the sky. I watched it streak behind the mountain on the other side of the island as I thought about the woman against the opposite side of the concrete wall, so very different from me – or anyone. She was a genuine being, pure in spirit and without pretense, willfully … Continue reading A single kiss
Hey, hey babe I’ve got blood in my eyes for you
"She takes out the tape from its box and inserts it into the stereo. Then she removes her flimsy dressing gown and crawls back into bed. Her legs feel heavy. She doesn’t know if she’s coming down with something or whether it’s the after-effects of last night’s dancing. She’s not as young as she’d like … Continue reading Hey, hey babe I’ve got blood in my eyes for you
Love to travel? Read from THE LAST ISLAND by David Hogan
The Last Island is currently on promotion in Australia. "A full white moon glistened above and lit my way along the dusty road back to the cove. The walk was pleasant, and I took it leisurely, thoughtfully, kicking up rocks and staring at the sky, until I turned off the road into the unpaved path that led … Continue reading Love to travel? Read from THE LAST ISLAND by David Hogan
Love fashion? Read from SILK FOR THE FEED DOGS by Jackie Mallon
Silk for the Feed Dogs is currently on promotion in Australia. "I got into my dress and new Prada shoes, smeared Ravish-Me-Red on my lips, and arranged the netting of my hat over one eye. I grabbed my coat and couldn’t get out of that draughty warehouse fast enough. Instead of traffic, the streets were now … Continue reading Love fashion? Read from SILK FOR THE FEED DOGS by Jackie Mallon
From LA FRONTERA by Sam Hawken
"He was in the storeroom when the soldiers came. They smashed through the front door, tearing the bells off their mount and cracking the glass, eight men in green uniforms with weapons. Luis had an armload of shoeboxes with him; he dropped them when they began to tear the store apart. “Wait! What’s going on?” … Continue reading From LA FRONTERA by Sam Hawken
From ONE TRUE SENTENCE by Craig McDonald
"Snow falling on the Seine. It was half-past-two and it was quiet as it gets with the heavy falling snow and Hector was just starting to cross the Pont Neuf, heading home after a long night of writing. He was alone and cold and slightly drunk. Icy fog crawled across the river. The lights of … Continue reading From ONE TRUE SENTENCE by Craig McDonald
Praise for the opening line of HEAD GAMES by Craig McDonald
"From a much newer novel, Head Games by Craig McDonald, the first line is: “We were sitting in a backroom of a cantina on the outskirts of Ciudad Juarez, three drinks in, when Bill Wade reached into the dusty duffle bag he had tucked under the table and plunked down the Mexican general’s head.” The … Continue reading Praise for the opening line of HEAD GAMES by Craig McDonald
Kindle edition of GIFTS free this week!
Christmas is not always magic but good books always are. Whether you love or hate Christmas, you might enjoy a good story. Our collection GIFTS: NINE BITTERSWEET CHRISTMAS STORIES is free on Amazon this week: getBook.at/FREE_GIFTS
Promotion in Australia on Dec. 15: KILLARNEY BLUES (read excerpt)
Excerpt from KILLARNEY BLUES by Colin O'Sullivan "Cathy is ignoring Janet’s requests to open the door. She stays in the same position. On the floor. On that nice soft carpet. Her legs are stretched out in front of her. Her head hangs low. She is a collapsed marionette. But who will pick up the strings … Continue reading Promotion in Australia on Dec. 15: KILLARNEY BLUES (read excerpt)
Excerpt: The Running Kind by Craig McDonald
“It is a long road that has no turning.”— Irish proverb 1 No happy ending ever started in a bar. The old friends had chosen to murder the afternoon drinking in the shadowy hotel pub mostly to evade December’s bitter chill. “All I’m sayin’ is that any son of a bitch who sets off … Continue reading Excerpt: The Running Kind by Craig McDonald
Betimes Books 
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