DRUID

 Hi Guys,

Just to let you guys know that I am actually working and the first draft of DRUID is now complete and the revisions / edits are underway.

Druid is a basic urban fantasy and the tattoos are a part of the magic of the man - Krys Ingrim. In fact in this world all those with magic can only use it by shaping the gift within them through markings painted on their bodies - which makes it kind of tricky to hide what you are from the rest of the world if people know that secret! Of course the background to the story is that the secret gets out and the magical have to try and keep their heads down while battling a traitor within their own number and an international intelligence agency wanting to utilize their gifts. 

The story is set in Rotorua, New Zealand and the main protagonist lives not that far from my door. Just on the other side of the lake in fact - a place called Haumarana. So be warned, there are some Maori names in the work which are going to sound odd to non-kiwi ears. (The spell checkers didn't like them either - and some of the auto-corrections were hilarious! Haumarana for example they believe should be either maharani or amaranth - neither of which I'd ever heard of before.)

Meanwhile Freaksville is still in process. I've reached the final chapters and love the story but can't quite figure out what the ending is. (Oh the joys of being a pantster!) But I will keep working on it and I'm hopeful it will be out shortly.

As always I hope you're all doing well and keeping out of trouble - or not getting caught!

Cheers, Greg.

Alone In The Dark Is Out In The Open!!!

Hi Guys,

 

Well it happened guys! I was supposed to be working on Freaksville (which is almost done - still) and got side tracked again. As usual! And I ended up finishing off Alone In The Dark - which is another detective / police procedural.

But I will say this one does touch just a tiny bit on genetic engineering - in as much as it has some skin pigmentation etc mixed in with cosmetic surgery. But in this case, that genetic tweaking, is really not a lot more advanced - if it's more advanced at all that is - than what's currently available, which is why I felt comfortable including it in what is essentially a basic detective novel.

In essence this is a book about a woman in witness protection who is offered the ultimate don't get killed card - change your name, face and race and then take up residence as a new person in a foreign country. And so Maryanne Simpson was born. (Her old name is deliberately never used in the book because the story is not about who she was, only who she has become!) And I have a detective of course - Dan Murdock with the New Zealand police whose job it is to track down criminals using exactly the same sort of technology through the black market clinics, to escape justice.

I wanted to explore in this book, a lot of the reasons that people might use this sort of technology, both for good and ill, as well as of course, what it would be like to live as a different person of a different ethnicity, in a strange land - all while living with the threat of a violent death hanging over you if you get caught. As well as throwing in a murder mystery to round everything out! (There may be a few odd jokes as well!)

Anyway, I hope people enjoy it and as always to all of you, be good or don't get caught!

Cheers, Greg.

Progress At Last!

Hi Guys,

 

 

 

Yes, it's happened at last. Gorgon's Run is finished and out. And I'm absolutely thrilled about that! There was a time there that I thought I'd never finish it. That I'd never even be able to get out of bed again!

Thankfully I seem to have started healing - though oddly the nurses who visit me still say there's a gaping golf ball sized hole in my back which is going to take maybe months more before it closes over. (I did get my sister to take some pictures and was going to show you guys, but she says no. It's just too horrible to look at! Even better, the cyborg bandage was removed from my back and I can now walk about freely without tripping over cords and tupes or listening to the non-stop chugging of the pump sucking the endless ooze out of the wound. (Whoever invented that thing is an evil genius - and not in a good way!)

I'm still not a hundred percent yet. Mostly I'm just tired - and my back itches like crazy - probably because it's reacting to the adhesives of the bandages holding everything together. That ironically leaves me back at square one, looking for door posts to rub against like a cat!!! (Which reminds me - must start sterilizing them so I don't end up developing more abscesses  again!)

 

By the way - have to say that the district nurses who visit me every couple of days and all the staff at Rotorua Hospital are absolutely wonderful. We don't give enough praise to our healthcare people.

 

Anyway, Gorgon's Run is out in Kindle, paperback - and for the first time ever - hardback. (Can't wait to see what that looks like!) You'll notice that the covers are different - it's simply because the book sizes are all slightly different. And in case you're wondering what it's all about - here's the blurb:

 

Gorgon's Run

Life as a rural detective in the Waikato wasn't what Clem had always dreamed of. He wanted to investigate homicides not missing farm equipment. And to add to his woes his commander hated him. But he was a gorgon. He might hiss a bit, but he would endure.

Then he was handed the worst murder possible. One he couldn't solve because it had been committed by magic. The Council could never allow the existence of magic and magical creatures to be revealed to the world.

A thief's life was a better one, and Acadia was pleased with what she did. Until the night the FBI rang her up to tell her her baby sister had been killed. Then she was plunged into a world of grief and pain. Worse, she found herself immersed in a world of the supernatural as she investigated the murder. Of wizards and gods and ancient Greek myths. A world she'd never even imagined.

And somewhere in the middle of it all were the revenants.

As always, best of luck to you all, and be good or don't get caught!

Cheers, Greg.