In Shambles - Released!

In Shambles … that was my life. I sat in a cell all day wondering what could have been. Thinking

Makes a great gift, too!

about it only made me feel worse. I was lost until someone left me this book about people just like me. People that made mistakes … people that tried to redeem themselves … people that failed. It helped me cope with the things I’ve done. It helped me find peace.

To those whose lives are In Shambles, crack open this book. See what it can do for you …

Nine authors, including Kevin J. Anderson, have contributed to In Shambles to create a spine-chilling collection of stories.  Following is an excerpt from And into a Watery Grave by R.A. McCandless:

Constable Aubrey Hartmann thought she’d left all the horror and pain behind her.  A veteran of the Cimarron battlefields, Aubrey’s commission in the sleepy town Aqualinne was supposed to guarantee a quiet retirement from the army.  But when a murdered woodcutter is found at one of the mill ponds, Aubrey’s world will be tossed into shambles as she tries to track down the killer:

“The fae aren’t like the stories,” Aubrey said. “Or rather only half like the stories. They’re practically immortal, with experience both broader and deeper than any mortal can possibly have, even an empress. We’re mere children to them. They play games with us and tease us—they like to see us embarrassed and foolish. They have a darker side as well. You don’t want to make one of them angry. It rarely ends well.”

“Like being spanked by your da?” Sergeant Hamnar laughed.

“Yes, except with teeth and claws and blood.”

“How do you keep from that?”

“Avoidance, mostly,” Aubrey said with a shrug. “Fae don’t usually seek us out, we tend to trespass without knowing. Keep out of their way. Endure them when you can’t.”

They were within a few dozen yards of the naiad, and Aubrey held out her hand, opening it to expose the bright silver to the sunlight.  She rocked her hand lightly, back and forth.

“Ooooo,” the naiad responded.  It was an ethereal note that rose and fell and rose again.  It sounded like Brunhilde’s operatic ending.

Aubrey continued to move her hand back and forth, and moved forward toward the naiad, whose full attention was on the two women.  Aubrey moved closer to pond’s edge, holding her hand out over the water.  The coin slipped from one side to the other, and finally dropped into the water with a soft plop.

“Oooo,” the naiad said again.

The fae skated over the water, leaving two V-like trails in her wake.  She stopped a few feet from where Aubrey and Hamnar stood on the shore, knelt down on the water, and reached in to retrieve the silver coin.

“Ahh, so pretty, so pure, so shiny,” she mused.  She turned the silver over and over with her long, delicate fingers.

Buy Your Copy Today!