March 27, 2012

So mark your calendars and all, everybody!

Also, my friend Stacey Jay’s book DEAD ON THE DELTA released yesterday, and you should all go buy it. Really. I read it and loved it; it’s set in New Orleans, and there are wicked little faeries spreading disease and lots of bayou grime and booze, and it’s so well-written and exciting.

Go visit Stacey’s site to learn more. Or just run to the bookstore and grab it. Seriously. I honestly believe that if you like my books you’ll like this one.

CRAZY busy. We leave next week. I’m almost done with Book 5 and really think it’s pretty damn cool so far; of course, a surprise happened which means I have to go back and rewrite a ton of stuff, but I’m excited about the surprise.

And here’s a short snippet from SACRIFICIAL MAGIC:

His room hadn’t changed. The house hadn’t changed. Only the looks given her by the various guards or enforcers or whoever they were had; from bland acceptance to subtle suspicion.

And she’d changed, it seemed. At least a bit. In the car chatting all had been well, but when the door closed behind her it occurred to her how long it had been since she’d been there. And what had happened last time she’d been there. Happened several times and again in the morning, if memory served, which it did.

Another awkward moment when she started walking toward the bed, remembered, and turned back to the couch against the wall. Lex already sat there, lighting a cigarette, flipping a switch behind him so The Jam started playing in the background. King of his little room-castle, just like how one day he’d be king of this side of town.

“So what’s up?” The question sounded lame even to her, but she couldn’t think of anything else to say. The bed with its plain blue blanket and sheets loomed larger and larger in her vision.

But really quick, how about a little excerpt snippet from Downside 5?

Terrible nodded, then crossed back to Chess and tried the doorknob. Locked. “What you thinkin I oughta do? Break it open?”

“Let me try first.” The lock looked pickable, at least, and if it was pickable she’d be able to pick it. If it was chained Terrible would need to kick it in, but best not to do that unless they had to. She could picture Ben inside, hiding with paranoid sweat dripping off his body. The last thing they wanted to do was burst in and give him a heart attack.

It took her a minute or so to pick the lock. No chain. Blue-braids over there—still watching them—hadn’t lied. The door did sound like a cat being skinned when Terrible pushed it open, a hideous screeching sound that raked up Chess’s spine.

The second the door parted from the jamb it hit her. The power, the deep dark slithering power of dark magic, of ghost magic. Of a particular kind of ghost magic.

Ben had scored, all right. But what he’d bought himself wasn’t very good.

Look, her eye tattoo thingie is shiny!

It's one of those cool fold-over-flap covers! So exciting!

The inside cover. Tell me that is not AWESOME. Can you see the train tunnel? It's to the right & slightly up from my thumb.

Okay. Now for the fun part(s). As I’m sure every other writer in the world does, the first thing I do when I get the foreign-language editions of my books is run to Google Translate and hunt up a sex scene to run through it. Whee! Yes. I am totally mature.

Now. Let me make something clear, here. I don’t speak German. I know they have different rules of grammar. I am absolutely certain that the translator who handled my books did an excellent job. I’m thrilled with the book. This is just for fun, okay? Not to make fun of anyone/any language/any nation/whatever. It’s actually to poke a little fun at Google Translate, really, but even that is pretty good as a tool.

So. Here is the line as it appeared in UNHOLY GHOSTS:

Breathing didn’t matter. Nothing mattered, because he was speeding up, slamming into her with a single-minded force she understood and shared. His left hand shifted; he slipped his thumb down to caress her most sensitive spot…

Here it is–well, as well as my US keyboard can render it–in GEISTERFLUT:

Luft zu kriegen spielte keine Rolle mehr, ja, alles andere war jetzt egal, denn er beschleunigte seine Stobe, rammte sie mit einer Entschlossenheit und Kraft, die sie sehr zu schatzen wusste, und liebkoste dabei mit dem Daumen ihre allerempfindlichste Stelle.

And here…well, here is what Google Translate tells me the passage means (because of my US keyboard it’s missed a couple of words, sigh):

Air get to play no role, yes, everything else was now care because he quickened his Stobe, ram them with a determination and strength that they knew how to appreciate very much, and caressed it with her ??thumb allerempfindlichste place.

And the next bit. From UG:

…and she rocked toward him, matching his rhythm, driving herself and letting herself be driven to another mind-shattering climax.

GEISTERFLUT:

Ihr Körper nahm seinen Rhythmus auf und lieb sich zu einem weiteren bombastischen Orgasmus treiben.

Google Translate says:

Her body began its rhythm and love drive to another bombastic climax.

Shall we try some fun at Trickster’s?

From UG:

His arm bulged beneath her palm as she slid it down, finally wedging it into the miniscule space between them so she could feel the ridge of his erection hot through his jeans.

GEISTERFLUT:

Seine Arme wölbten sich prall, als sie mit der Handfläche daran hinabfuhr. Dann schob sie die Hand zwischen sie beide, sodass sie seine Erektion durch seine Jeans hindurch spuren konnte.

Google Translate:

His arms bulged bulging as if with the palm down it went. Then she put her hand between both of them, so they were able to trace his erection through his jeans round.

UG:

Nothing came out because her back was slammed against the wall and her arms were wrapped around his neck and his lips were on hers, ruthless and tender and demanding all at once, and now she really was flying, up toward the ceiling, out of the building.

GEISTERFLUT:

Es kam nichts, weil sie mit dem Rucken gegen die Wand knallte und die Arme um seinen Hals schlang und er die Lippen auf ihre presste, leidenschaftlich und zartlich und fordernd. Und jetzt schwebte sie tatsachlich, zur Decke hinauf und zum Gebaude hinaus.

GT:

There was nothing because she banged his back against the wall and threw her arms around his neck and he pressed his lips to her, and tenderly passionate and demanding. And now they floated in fact, up to the ceiling and the building addition.

Oh, and Lex calls Chess “Tulpi,” which I think is quite cute.

So. I’m around the halfway point in the 5th Downside book and things are going pretty crazy (in the story, I mean; there’s all kinds of madness going on, whee!). I’m toying with the idea of doing metrics again; I haven’t done them since I wrote UG, actually, but they were kind of fun and did motivate me. So maybe I should. I’ll decide on that in the next few days.

Meanwhile, here’s a very little short snippet-y bit from Downside Five:

The stitches gave way under the knife with one quick stroke; the lips of the wound gaped open. Evil flew out of it and into the air like a mushroom cloud, stinking of decay and something else, something she couldn’t quite identify.

Chess and Bump both leaned over to look inside. It was bigger than she’d expected, sort of empty, and then—oh, gross.

“Ain’t seen me no innards in a some fuckin years, dig, but ain’t recall no fuckin black shit in there,” Bump said.

“What? Where’s that?”

He pointed.

Ugh. Time for the gloves.

I hope you enjoy it, and that you’re having a wonderful holiday! I’ll be away for the first few days of next week, but I’ll be back before the new year. (Not that you asked or anything, just that you–oh, never mind.)

(NOTE: This is an excerpt posted free on my blog for anyone to read, yes, but it’s still mine and belongs to me. Sorry, but as the creator and copyright holder I do NOT give permission for this excerpt to be reproduced–on a blog or a website or whatever–without at least notifying me first, much less asking me. Please don’t do that. Feel free to link back all you like, of course, and discuss the excerpt or whatever else. But don’t just copy & paste it elsewhere, okay?)

This is from the unedited manuscript and the final published version may vary.

His eyes sparked too hard behind their darkness as he crossed the kitchen floor, not speaking. Too much energy moved in the air around him, and when he stood right in front of her—close enough to make her tilt her head all the way back—and reached out to touch her cheek she knew what it was. He’d had quite a day, she guessed; violence clung to him like black oil.

Violence and a wild sort of intoxication from that violence, to be more exact. Whatever it was inside him that made him so good at his job, that made him the most feared man in Downside, had been riding him for hours from the looks of it, the feel of it. Now there was nothing else to hit or attack or destroy, and that energy, that almost feral whatever-it-was…wanted to find some other satisfaction. Something or someone else to overpower, something or someone else to subdue, to defeat, to conquer.

She knew he’d never think of it that way. He probably wasn’t even aware of it, that dark bloodthirsty excitement lurking behind his eyes, surrounding him like a vicious cloud. His work—fighting in general—didn’t always do that to him, not that she’d seen, but when it did… Her heart jumped into her throat, then fell straight into her pelvis and stayed there, beating like a hummingbird’s wings.

“The fuck happened here? It hurting?”

“Oh, I just…” She bit her lip. “I got a new case today. And no, it doesn’t hurt, not really.”

“Aye? Ain’t so much?”

“Yeah, it looks worse than it—”

Definitely violence. Even if she hadn’t known from his energy she would have known from the way he kissed her, the way he fisted her hair tight at the nape of her neck, the firm possessiveness of his hand on her bottom as he yanked her up against him, bending her backwards. Rough and eager, and that energy infected her, too, made her grab his shoulders, wrap her leg around his.

First, don’t forget tomorrow’s #UFChat on Twitter, which I’ll be answering questions in. You can get a bit more information on it here, if you like. It starts at 6 pm EST (3 PST) and I really hope you all come and say hi! Well, really, I hope anyone comes to say hi. This is the sort of event that gives me nightmares imagining it will just be me sitting there and no one else showing up. Seriously.

Next, there’s a new interview with me at The Literary Project. It’s not really about the books, it’s more about writing and career and personal stuff, and a bit about the difference between urban fantasy and paranormal romance. So worth checking out if any of that interests you.

A review or two! Murder by the Book bookseller John does a joint review of UM and CoG here:

I can’t say enough about how wonderful this whole series [is]. The plotting over the three book arc is top-notch. Once I finished City of Ghosts I felt like the three books together told a bigger story. That doesn’t happen often with books in a series.

And Book Chick City gives CoG a 10/10 review(!!) and says:

Unholy Ghosts and Unholy Magic stayed with me long after I read them and it was no different with City of Ghosts. There’s so many layers from the complex characters to the awesome world building of Downside. It’s full of witchy magic, action and romance, I literally couldn’t put this book down until I had read the very last word. I could go on and on about these books, they are just so brilliant! If you haven’t started this series, you MUST!

And last but not least, don’t forget the big-ass Name a Character Contest! I’m really excited by the number of entries I’ve gotten so far, and I hope to get plenty more, too! And I’m really hoping word spreads and more people give the books a try, too.

But anyway! On to the excerpt!! This is from Chapter Thirty.

And again, it is a bit spoilery. I tried to find one that wasn’t, and this one isn’t terribly so, but do be warned. Click at your own risk!

(As always, this is from the pre-copyedited version of the ms, and may differ slightly from the final published version.)

Chess and Lex are investigating a body and some magic items found in the tunnels under the city, when they realize someone else is down there with them. The lights snap off.

Every muscle in her body screamed to run. They had to get out of there, away from [the] destroyed body, away from the lungs and the fetish, out of the tunnels.

But Lex’s hand squeezed her arm tight, like he knew what she was thinking. She heard the sound of his gun cocked slow in his other hand as his lips pressed to her ear. “Ain’t just go off now, tulip. On the minute, aye? Let’s us have a thought first.”

Water splashed; how far away was it? Was that a foot? Something else? She pictured things dropped into the little stream, curse bags and gris-gris and fetishes, things the water would carry to them and drag against their feet. Her heart pounded so hard she thought it might literally leap into her mouth.

“Ain’t get that flash you got neither,” he continued. “No draggin them eyes our way. Gimme a hold-on, aye?”

She nodded, knew he could feel her move.

“Know my way right, I do. Door ain’t far, dig, back where we come. Stay on me, aye?”

She nodded again. Not enough air, there wasn’t enough air in the tunnel, not enough in the world. Fresh air, clean air, air that didn’t thrum with magic, lay thick and heavy in her lungs with it. Choking her. She clutched his arm, wiry and hard under her hand.

Gentle pressure forced her to step back, to turn slightly. Even her sense of direction started to fail her; had she turned all the way around, or just partway? Which way was she facing? The darkness around them was a solid thing, completely impenetrable.

They stepped forward. Chess tried to keep her feet on the curve at the bottom of the wall, out of the water. Lex tucked her hand around his waist so her chest pressed against his back. It made walking difficult but it wasn’t as though they were just taking a stroll anyway, and she had to admit it reassured her.

Which kind of pissed her off, but this wasn’t the time to start wondering when she’d suddenly gone soft. People, she was discovering, were like cockroaches; if you allowed one in, more were sure to follow.

Another giggle, low and smooth. Her head whipped around, eyes straining to see something, anything in the pitch black air. Was that closer? Where were they?

Lex didn’t stop. They took another step, another. Chess’s foot hit something heavy, something solid and unyielding and yet somehow…somehow dull, against her toes. [The] body. She swallowed hard, kept moving.
Something ran past them. She felt it stir the air against her skin and bit back a scream. Sweat trickled down her face, into her eyes; she wiped them against Lex’s shirt without moving her hand. Without stopping. They had to get out, get out, get—

A sharp tug on her hair. A scream; not hers, not her voice. Hot foul-smelling breath on her cheek; Lex yanked her to the side and the gun went off in a flash of white light. Hot blood spattered on her skin.

And they ran.

No more secrecy now. No more hiding. Still they didn’t use the light—all she saw were huge red spots before her eyes from the gun—but their feet splashed through the water, pounded the cement beneath them while voices screamed in rage and pain behind them. More than one voice, many voices, echoing around her, reaching into her and yanking out her soul.

Lex ran faster, pulling her along through the darkness. He was the only real thing in the world; this wasn’t real, none of it was real, it was a nightmare she had to wake up from.

They were being chased. The screams turned to howls, catcalls. And then, horribly, to barks.

Dogs. Vicious ones. Baying in the tunnels, their low deep barks scratching her, hurting her, and it wasn’t until her frantic mind realized they hurt that she realized why.

It wasn’t real dogs following them. Not living dogs. It was psychopomps.

A dozen maybe, or a hundred. She had no idea, no way to tell. Didn’t have the breath to tell Lex, and no point anyway; psychopomps couldn’t be shot, couldn’t be stabbed, couldn’t be killed. Couldn’t be stopped without magic, and even if she had time to get her supplies she somehow doubted these particular hounds would respond.

They hurtled around a corner with the barks getting closer, the unearthly howls of the psychopomps, sounds she’d never heard a psychopomp make before.

Her head turned to the left as they entered another tunnel and she almost fell. Their eyes. She could see their eyes, the dogs, their glowing purple eyes. Hundreds of them. Hundreds of eyes, oh shit oh fuck they were going to die, have their souls torn from their living bodies and devoured or savaged, those were not normal psychopomps holy fuck what were they she was going to die—

No! She ran harder. Pushed herself with everything she had, until she was even with Lex. She couldn’t look back, didn’t want to look back, couldn’t stand to see them ready to bite.

Lex jerked her to the side, yanked her arm up. She stumbled on the steps; her right hand hit gritty cement. The dogs were right behind them, so loud she couldn’t even hear herself scream.

See you Tuesday!

Anyway, in anticipation of that release, I’m posting the playlist for CITY OF GHOSTS, and a new excerpt!

1. MURDER CITY NIGHTS–Radio Birdman
2. BORN TO LOSE–Johnny Thunders
3. ONE TRACK MIND–Johnny Thunders
4. I LOVE LIVIN’ IN THE CITY–Fear
5. GLORIA–Them*
6. BORN WITH A TAIL–Supersuckers
7. SEARCH AND DESTROY–Blanks 77
8. GODDAMN BOTTLE–The Lazy Cowgirls
9. GO MOTHERFUCKER GO–Nashville Pussy

*This song was actually cut from the book at the last minute, when I’d already set up the playlist. Also, the list should include BLANK GENERATION by Richard Hell, which would go in between the two Thunders songs and Fear.

You can purchase the list through iTunes here, if you’re so inclined. Remember, I don’t get anything when you buy the lists; the bands do, which is great. I just set them up in case people are interested, and would like to hear/have the songs mentioned in the books.

And here’s a new excerpt! As always, this is from the pre-copyedited version of the manuscript, so may differ slightly from the final version. If you haven’t read UNHOLY GHOSTS or especially if you haven’t finished UNHOLY MAGIC, this will be spoilery, so read at your own risk! Also, if you haven’t yet dowloaded the three-chapter sample of the book and would like to, you can do so on the CITY OF GHOSTS page here on the site.

So, this is from Chapter Eight.

Once inside the car he thrust the file into her hands and shot the car off the curb in a maelstrom of squealing rubber. She looked at him sharply, her back tensing in anticipation of an argument.

She’d fucked him over hardcore. She’d betrayed him and she’d lied to him, and she knew as far as he was concerned she’d led him on and used him as well, had consorted with people who wanted to see him dead and given them information to help them make him so. Most of all she’d hurt him. And if the pain in her chest was anything close to what he’d felt she was more than willing to admit he deserved to get his own back. Was willing to do more than admit it; was willing to take it, in the hopes he’d eventually decide she’d been punished enough and they could maybe move on.

But at that moment they were on their way to interview the man—Ratchet—who’d found the body parts in the vacant lot. She needed her wits about her, not to be waiting for the next verbal barb or dirty look. He could slash at her with knife-sharp words later; maybe if he did it enough her blood would finally flow clean.

Somehow she doubted it ever would.

But he didn’t speak at all. He’d flipped on his sunglasses so she couldn’t see his eyes, but the set of his heavy jaw and lowering brow, the tension in his arms and the way his lips pressed together…

“Are you okay? I mean,” she added quickly, “do you feel okay. That guy back there, I don’t know about you but he made me feel kind of twitchy. He had some power and I felt it. So I just wondered if maybe you did too.”

“Ain’t no witch.”

“Yeah, I know, but you look like— He was creepy and I just wondered if you’d felt it too, is all.”

When he didn’t respond, she tried again. “That sigil in your chest, have you been feeling—”

“I’m right.”

“I’d really want to help—”

“Said I’m right, dig?”

She bit her lip and turned to the file. Thanks to his sneaky thief act the night before she hadn’t even had a chance to look through it, only to skim it before trotting outside like a good little doggie to wait for Lauren.

And she hadn’t missed much. At least she hoped she hadn’t; but no, they wouldn’t have stolen anything. Copied it, sure, she had no doubt. But not stolen.

Sun glinted off the heavy chain around Terrible’s right wrist and stung her eyes, and for once she had her sunglasses. She was digging around for them when he pulled the car up in front of an empty-eyed building with dead weeds poking out of the ground floor windows, its walls dark with remembered flames. A squat.

She grabbed her notebook and pen, secured the edges of the file with a rubber band and stuffed it into the depths of her bag.

He didn’t ask if she was okay, but opened his trunk while she climbed out of the car and stood on the patch of crumbled cement that had once been a small parking lot. Ahead of her dried blood crusted the street; she could still see the tire tracks he’d left when he peeled away the night before.

The pig carcasses were gone, of course. And now that she thought about it—yes, the air carried the faint fragrance of roasting pork. She couldn’t imagine the glee that little bit of magic must have left in the hearts and stomachs of the neighborhood, most of whom had probably never seen that much meat in their lives. Didn’t want to imagine if any of those lives had been lost in the battle over who got to eat it, either. None of her concern.

She tried to shrug off the heavy stares she knew the two of them were getting and headed for the empty doorway when she heard the trunk slam shut.

The entire bottom floor was choked with weeds as high as her chest, long spiky stalks of ivory-colored grass gone to seed, spindly bushes. A thin trail had been worn through them into a darker space in the corner. The stairs. Terrible slid in front of her without touching her and pushed his way along the path; the dead plants tried in vain to grab his arms as he passed.

Soft sounds drifted down the stairs when they hit the bottom. Chess paused, took a deep breath. Something rang in the building; so faint it was more of an implication than an actual fact, but there nonetheless. Magic. The slow, deep slither of magic, inching up her legs and along her arms, curling into her stomach.

Not just average magic, either. Almost everyone did some; there was an entire successful industry in spellbooks and items designed for the average person who had little or no skill or natural ability. Most of them didn’t really work. They relied more on the practitioner’s belief that it would be effective than any actual results.

She was familiar enough with how those spells and charms felt. She’d encountered enough of them in the homes of her subjects; dream safes designed to ward away nightmares, or charm bags for wealth or safety, or occasionally sex spells planted in bedrooms. Those tended to be the most effective—and thus the most irritating for Chess, who did not like sex magic—simply because sex was the most accessible type of energy for most people. Any idiot could get turned on.

But this didn’t have the blunt edge of amateur magic, not at all. Too subtle; too well-hidden.

She didn’t realize she was staring at the landing above them until Terrible’s low voice broke her reverie. “Any wrong?”

“Feels like magic in here,” she said, echoing his quiet tone.

“Some do, aye? Them with them luck spells or aught.”

“Not like this, though. Spells like that—spells done by people who really aren’t talented—they don’t feel…finished, if you know what I mean. They’re not well-formed, they’re just like little blobs of weak energy. This isn’t—” She stopped, suddenly aware that they were having a conversation. A normal conversation.

One that wouldn’t last if she even considered pointing that out. Oops. “This isn’t like that. Whoever’s been casting in here knows what they’re doing. And they’ve tried to hide it. The magic, I mean. They’re trying to hide what they’re doing.”

“All Bump’s here, dig. Them to keep the eye out. Ain’t should be doin up that shit here.”

“All of them? They’re all Bump’s people?”

He shrugged. “What they ought, aye.”

“I guess we should go see, huh?”

Another small shrug, like he couldn’t really be bothered to complete the movement, and he preceded her up the cement staircase. The floor had once been covered in linoleum; curled edges of it remained like bookends where the stairs joined the walls.

The smell hit her nose at the same moment her feet hit the landing. Terrible stopped short; she would have run right into him if she hadn’t done the same. He turned to her, and in that moment she wasn’t thinking about what she’d done or what he’d done or what she wished they could do. She was thinking about the scent of death and how it raised the hairs on her arms, and she was thinking things had just gotten a fuck of a lot worse. For everyone.

No. It was the real Times, in London, the real national newspaper TIMES. They had a pullout section for summer reading, and UNHOLY GHOSTS was one of the six books their reviewer chose as their Summer Fantasy Picks!

So as you can imagine, I’m pretty excited about that.

Second, we have a couple of reviews for UNHOLY MAGIC, which, yes, will be released tomorrow*. From Abigail at ALL THINGS URBAN FANTASY:

Like any drug, the first taste gets your attention but its the second taste that gets you hooked. I though the first Downside Ghosts book, Unholy Ghosts, was an impressive debut, but UNHOLY MAGIC is even better. I am well and truly addicted to this dark, seductive urban fantasy series.

From Wicked Lil Pixie, FIVE stars:

Unholy Magic is book two in the Downside Ghosts series & without a doubt my favorite new series of 2010…I tried real hard to read Unholy Magic slowly, because the wait for City of Ghosts may be too much for me. I think I’m already going into withdrawals. Stacia Kane does not disappoint & crafts one of the most original new series of [the year].

*I’ve heard quite a few reports that the book is already on shelves, and have heard from quite a few readers who have already bought & finished the book. So it’s worth checking at your local bookstore today, if you don’t want to wait. As I’ve said in the past, I don’t care when you buy it as long as you do!

Also, yes, I will be excerpting the first three chapters of CITY OF GHOSTS, which will be out July 27 in the US (I believe the UK/AU release date is August 5[?]) here on the site, and will probably post those chapters next week, along with various excerpts here on the blog throughout the next few weeks.

And of course, since we have a release coming, we have an excerpt today. This is from Chapter Fifteen, as Chess investigates her latest Debunking case at the home of Roger Pyle, a television actor, and his wife Kym (I’ve truncated this excerpt a bit; the sequence is longer in the actual book):

Two hours later Chess sat once again in the orange-and-ivory living room, before a cheerful fire, and checked her notes. After she’d had a few quick words with the Pyles she could leave, and not a moment too soon. She wasn’t itching yet, but it would take almost an hour to get home and she wanted to leave herself some room.

Two other guards had seen ghosts. All of the descriptions were similar, and matched what she’d witnessed herself. The smell—it still seemed to cling to her nose when she thought of it—the man in the loose shirt, another man, the woman she’d seen in the bathroom mirror.

A murderer and two victims. Only one man—she guessed it was the son—was still unaccounted for, unless he was the figure Roger had seen in the guest bedroom.

Then there was Oliver Fletcher. Interesting. Obviously a friend of Roger’s and an admirer of his talent. Just as obviously contemptuous of him and his family, no matter how many sex parties he attended at their house. She wondered if he’d flown in specifically for this one, or if he had some other reason to be there. He and Roger worked together on the tv show. Was he producing the film as well?

She’d ask Roger. Who was just walking into the room. Shit, she was going to have to come back with her Hand, put them all to sleep, and get into his office. Especially since another significant episode had occurred there.

This week was never going to end. Dead hookers at home, a cavernous house full of miserable people here, and not an answer in sight.

It could have been worse, yes. She knew that from experience. But the thought didn’t seem to help her the way it usually did.

“How are things going?” Roger asked. “Is everyone being helpful? They’re giving you everything you need?”

She nodded. “Everyone’s been great.”

He visibly relaxed. “Excellent. Excellent. Please let me know if there’s anything else I can do.”

“Actually, I was wondering something. Most of the staff members who’ve witnessed the entities report a particular smell. But you didn’t mention it when you told me your experiences. Was there an odor that you recall?”

Roger’s forehead creased. “Not…no, I don’t think so. I know I felt a little odd, but I assumed that was just because I’d drunk too much coffee. You know, caffeine makes me jumpy sometimes, a little fuzzy. But I didn’t notice a scent or anything.”

“Was that every time, or just that first time? The night of the attack in your bedroom, for example. You hadn’t been drinking coffee then.”

“No, no I guess I hadn’t. I don’t… I’m sorry, Miss Putnam, it was just so terrifying, I don’t remember if I smelled anything or not. I was so focused on Kym and her injuries.”

She nodded, smiled to let him know she understood. “Of course.”

“Have you read the articles? About the murders, I mean.” Roger shuddered. “I just don’t understand how someone could do something like that. And to think it happened here, on this land. Awful. No wonder they’ve come back.”

“Well, it isn’t always a matter of—”

“Do you think if we discovered who killed them they would go away? I wondered about that. Like in old books, you know, where they can let go of the trauma because the truth is known. Does that happen?”

She couldn’t help but smile. He looked so hopeful. “I’m afraid not, Mr. Pyle. It’s been tried, but we’ve discovered it really makes no difference. Even if we discover the truth, the dead don’t feel that knowledge. It just doesn’t affect them or get through to them, so they can’t move on. The ones who are trapped by it, I mean.”

And that was conversation number three on that subject. Surely that wasn’t a coincidence? What was she trying to tell herself there, what was she missing?

She changed the subject. “I met Oliver Fletcher. In the security office.”

“Oliver? That’s great. He’s an interesting man, Oliver. Helped me…well, I guess he’s been the best friend I ever had, really. I owe my whole career to him.”

“Now, darling, don’t be so modest. You got where you are by hard work.” Kym Pyle knew how to make an entrance, Chess had to give her that. Today she wore a snug black sweater with a deep v-neck and a pair of red cigarette pants, and her blonde hair was swept up into a smooth knot on the back of her neck.

She ran crimson fingernails through Roger’s hair, giving him a smile much warmer than anything Chess would have expected to see. Perhaps she’d worked off all her tension at the party.

Or perhaps the Pyles had decided it would be less suspicious if Kym didn’t act quite so much like a dominatrix who’d had a bad day.

Kym turned to her, the smile fading. “Miss Putnam. I thought you’d left over an hour ago, didn’t anyone tell you?”

“Tell me?”

“The snow. Haven’t you seen? It’s an absolute storm out there. I thought one of the staff had let you know—”

Chess leapt from her seat, Kym’s voice fading to a drone in the background. Thick orange curtains covered the broad windows; Chess yanked them apart and gasped. It wasn’t just snow. It was a blizzard, huge fat flakes obscuring everything.

Oh fuck. Oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck—

“I should go.” She snatched up her bag and yanked the zipper open. “I’m sorry, but I—”

“You can’t go,” Kym said. “It’s terrible out there. The roads—”

“But if I don’t try now who knows when I’ll be able to get out of here, right?” Keys, where were her keys? The security room, on the hook. She’d relinquished them when they parked her car.

“But I don’t think you’ll be able to get out of here now.” Kym settled into a chair. “Arden says it’s been snowing for over an hour. I’m so sorry. I was napping, and I guess with the curtains closed…I can’t believe no one warned you. Roger, I’m going to have another talk with the security staff, they’re not being very attentive. What do we pay them for?”

“No, I’m, I’m sure it will be fine, I mean, I’ve driven in snow before, so—”

“They don’t salt the roads out here,” Roger said. “The plows will be along eventually, but not until after it stops.”

“I’m sorry.” Chess slung her bag over her shoulder, blinking back tears. Oh shit oh fuck how had she let this happen? “I really need to at least try, I can’t impose—”

“It’s no imposition, don’t be silly. You must stay here, Miss Putnam. Have dinner with us, stay the night. We have plenty of room. It’s so miserable out there, you can’t drive in that.”

“I’m just going to have a look,” she managed, before escaping from the room and throwing herself down the long bright walkway.

It was impossible. Snow fell fast and thick, clinging to her eyelashes, coating her clothing. At least three or four inches of it already covered the ground; she couldn’t make out the wall at the edge of the property. Everything was white. No landmarks, nothing.

Nothing to look at. Nothing in her pillbox. Her hands shook as she raised them to her face, jammed her fist against her mouth.

How long did she have? Two hours, three maybe, before it started, and another couple of hours before it got really bad? There were a few hard candies in her bag, the sugar would help for a little while, but…a whole night?

Her eyes stung and she swiped at them, trying to will her heart to slow down. It was okay. It would be okay. The snow would stop in a few hours. It could stop any minute, right? And it was early evening. People would be commuting, the plows would come through, she could get out.

Surely the Pyles had a small plow or something, living out here. Maybe one of the security guys—maybe Merritt—would help her get out. If she could just hold on for a little while, an hour, two… She’d be okay. She’d planned on staying until six or so anyway, right?

Right. So she would be fine. All she had to do was wait it out, just hang out for a little longer, and she could go home and get her pills.

Just a little longer.

Keep in mind that although the excerpt isn’t continuity-spoilery, it is a bit plot-spoilery, pretty much by definition. But I didn’t want to post something from the first three chapters, because then this wouldn’t be special, would it?

This is a Sneak Peek excerpt, so I will probably delete it first thing Tuesday morning. Enjoy!

Sorry, gone bye-bye!

But you can now download the first three chapters of UNHOLY MAGIC as a PDF! UNHOLY MAGIC excerpt

Enjoy!

So I have some stuff to share with you about UNHOLY GHOSTS, but first, this morning my Faerie had her preschool graduation, which was a big teary deal for Mommy. She’s been going to a Baptist preschool nearby; a Baptist school because A) it’s close; B) it’s not as expensive as most of the other schools; and C) most importantly, when we went to take a look at the place the staff were so friendly and charming and non-judgy, and they were so kind to Faerie, and she liked it so much. I haven’t regretted it once, although I admit it’s a tad weird when she starts asking questions about religion etc. etc. I’m happy for her to learn about religions, though, and about different people believing different things, and the school is seriously fantastic. Her official last day is Friday and I know I’m going to be a gibbering mess.

Aaanyway. Graduation was this morning, and the kids gave a little concert, which is awesome. Awesome not just because, you know, it’s our baby on that stage, but because there’s always that one boy who refuses to play along. At the Christmas concert he just stood and stared at the audience the whole time, leading the hubs and I to invent dialogue for him, such as “I don’t trust you people,” or the classic Buscemi-on-SNL-inspired, “You’re all dead and you don’t even know it.” Today he played along a little more, but when the kids sang how God is watching and knows everything, he stood there arms akimbo rather than doing the hand movement; the rest of the class was happy in the knowledge that God knows everything, but Surly was berating us. Warning us. Informing us that we’re not going to get away with shit, so we shouldn’t even think about it. Surly is awesome.

So some new reviews have come in for UNHOLY GHOSTS! First, we have a Reviewer Top Pick from Nite Owl reviews:

Unholy Ghosts is the first book in Stacia Kane’s new series and is absolutely a full on winner!…The characters are kick ass and the plot will have you on the edge of your seat. I absolutely recommend it!

Of course, there’s also 5 Blue Ribbons from Romance Junkies:

Stacia Kane has written an engrossing fantasy novel whose characters with their mix of vulnerabilities and friendships will worm their way into your heart… Her talent for world-building and ability to outline the concepts of the Church of Truth in easily understandable terms lend credibility to her work. Kane’s characters may have flaws, but they’re strong, likable and well-developed… I read the book straight through and eagerly await the second book in the series, UNHOLY MAGIC.

Next, some love from Coffee Time Reviews:

The action, suspense, sexual tension, and chills make this an intense book. Once you get into this novel, you will not want to put it down, and I am looking forward to more Chess Putnam adventures in the future.

Fresh Fiction says (no grade/rating given):

Intricately plotted within a disturbing setting, UNHOLY GHOSTS will be riveting for many readers…

Last but definitely not least, we have BSC Reviews (no grade/rating given):

In short? I loved [Chess], and not just because I love the Betty Page haircut (even though I really, really do). I went in expecting her to be a cardboard cutout ass-kicker and, instead, found an extremely flawed woman who, like all of us, makes bad decisions and then has to get out of them. She certainly doesn’t consider herself a hero. … As far as she’s concerned, she’s just trying to keep herself alive however she can. …
As I mentioned in my brief list of reasons-why-this-book-is-awesome, there’s a lot of action and very little fluff. …
If you like urban fantasy, ghost stories, or maybe you just want to try something exciting, definitely pick up this book. At the very least, it’ll be a fun ride. As for me, I think I’m a Chess Putnam fan for good.

VERY excited by all of these! I have to admit I’m especially thrilled by the last one, simply because what seemed to connect with the reviewer the most were exactly the things I tried hard to do/convey, but honestly, I’m really, really pleased/happy about all of them, and humbly grateful, and just hope readers feel the same way or at least give the book a try.

And speaking of giving it a try…how would you like to? You can! I have a PDF file of the first five chapters, and you can download it just by clicking here! UNHOLY GHOSTS sample Feel free to share this PDF, to email it to friends, to print it out and give it to pals who don’t read onscreen–anything, in short, save selling it, uploading it onto a filesharing site, or loading it onto your own website for it to be downloaded from there; I’d like to keep this site as the main source for the file if possible. (Also, of course, feel free to talk it up on your own website/blog/Twitter/Facebook/whatever you like.)

Next week I’m going to be announcing a special Buy-UNHOLY GHOSTS-giveaway. It’s not much–I’m frankly broke–but hopefully it will be something you’ll like, and everyone who buys the book gets it regardless or where, when, how, or in what format they purchase the book.

I’ll also be back in a few days with a “regular” blog, I promise, but like I said above…I’m kind of freaking out, and am very nervous, so I’m having a bit of a hard time concentrating.

Enjoy the free chapters!