Post Valentine Hop

Yesterday's Bloody Valentine Blog Hop was quite fun and there were some stellar posts by those that participated. I especially enjoyed the posts at A Diamond in the Dark, The Cult of Me and Pagan Spirits. I'd like to thank all the bloggers who joined in on the fun.

Now on to the contest.  I woke up in a generous mood today, so instead of awarding one winner I've decided to give away the free books to everyone who commented on my blog post yesterday.  Congratulations, you should be receiving an email shortly.

Welcome to the Bloody Valentine Blog Hop!

Welcome to the Bad Side of Love, as you join in with the Bloody Valentine Blog Hop.  On this day of romance, hearts, chocolate and flowers, a stalwart few writers and bloggers have banded together to celebrate the darker shades of the Valentine.  You'll find no tender affection, no happy endings, as you wander through our morbid maze of love gone wrong, for we will be breaking hearts and trashing romance....

Here's a list of the participating bloggers.  Please visit as many as possible and join them in amorous mayhem.

Love, Romanian Style |   plagueofdissent.wordpress.com |  Dean Harrison-Horror Author
A Diamond In The Dark |  A Bloody Kind of Lust | Keith Pyeatts Horror with Heart Blog
The Cult of Me |  Bestiary Parlor: The Musings of a Zoologist |  Sheila Deeths Blog
Yours in Storytelling |  Bertrams Blog | Laughing for a Living
Worldbinding | Pagan Spirits |  Exile on Peachtree Street | A. F. Stewarts Blog

Here's my little contribution to the Bloody Valentine Blog Hop. 

Bring on the romantic misfortune and Down with Love!

First up, to whet your appetite, is a little Twilight parody:

Rod Serling Meets the Sparkly Vampires

Submitted for your approval.  One teenage girl with severe self-esteem issues being stalked by a conflicted love-sick vampire.  Next stop Twilight Zone...

“Oh, why doesn’t Ned like me enough?  Why does he keep pushing me away?  Oh, Ned, Ned, Ned!”  Ella throws herself onto her bed in a melodramatic huff.  “Maybe I should just forget about drooling after hunky vampires and chase after Jack, my dreamy, supportive, best friend werewolf instead?”  She groans spectacularly, as if in pain.  “Oh Ned, oh Jack, Ned, Jack, which one should I chose?”

Thirty thousand sighs later, she’s pacing the room moaning about Ned again.  “Oh Ned, I love you so, can’t you see that?”  The wind flutters the curtains and she turns to the window.  A shadowy figure sits on her sill, a silhouette in the moonlight.

“I do see that you love me, and I can’t resist you anymore.”  Ned enters her bedroom and crosses the floor to sweep her into her arms.

“Oh, Ned,” she gasps breathily.

“Just remember, you wanted this.”  In a flash, Ned strikes, sinking his fangs into her neck and eagerly he drains her blood from her body.  When he’s had his fill he carries her limp form to the bed and lays her down tenderly.

Ella’s eyes flutter open.  Knowing she is dying, her hand reaches out and her lips part, whispering, “Why, Ned, why?”

“Really, Ella, what did you expect?  I’m a vampire, it’s what we do.  Besides,” he said with a blood-smeared grin, “haven’t you heard, you always hurt the one you love.”

Now follow the decaying scent of the dead roses and read a few morbid tidbits from my new book of poems, Reflections of Poetry:

What Stays Behind

The lingering scent,

memories of rose petals,

drift in the silence

of an empty room

full of fading ghosts.

Alone again,

with cracked dreams

and a broken heart

thumping, an echo

of that slamming door.

Sitting in the shadows

with disappointment

and the promises dead.

Any hope out of reach,

lost this time, forever.

Tea and Tears

The hourglass runs its sand

as the tea pours; her hand, it shakes

in grief, for her heart breaks

with pain, her spirit aches, adrift.

She fills her cup, his gift

Their tea set, bought from thrift, by love,

flaws ignored, prized above

the chip on the edge of the spout.

She drinks, the bitter doubt

gone; her candle burns out in haze.

Somewhere a soft flute plays,

to echo soul’s malaise, so grand.

Spanish Melody

A sweet song in the night

of past love, adrift.

A mournful, raw lament

for the defeated heart.

On the wind it ascends

as the coo of a tender dove,

evoking gentle memories

across the mountains.

The harmony swirls regret, ache

through the swaying trees.

Even the iridescent moon weeps

with the forlorn singer.

Faded

A faded red silk ribbon

tied around an aged box

full of tattered love letters.

Regrets from a past youth.

Tucked away, overlooked,

but still there, dusty, waiting.

Someday fingers will unfold

the pages of pale memories.

~

Reflections of Poetry

Go through the looking glass into the world of verse and discover this eclectic collection of poetry. The poems range from musings on Celtic heritage to embracing emotional turmoil. Throw in a little moonlight, the soothing sounds of the sea, and mix well with some sci-fi and fantasy for a lyrical medley of reading enjoyment.

Available at:
Smashwords
Amazon 

And now, if you've made it all the way to the end, you get to read about my contest.  If you'd like to win a free Smashwords ecopy of both my new poetry book, Reflectons of Poetry and my short story collection, Killers and Demons (complete with a story of a very bad Valentine date) just leave a comment telling me which of the poems in this post you liked the best.  The more morbid and outrageous the reason, the better.  I'll pick my favourite as the winner.  Good Luck!

Redeye Cover Reveal

My fellow writer, Michael Shean, author of the Wonderland Cycle (Shadow of a Dead Star and the upcoming Redeye) and the novel Bone Wires has a new book debuting in April.
Today he's previewing the cover art for that book, the aforementioned Redeye, (and sequel to Shadow of a Dead Star) around the internet and he's kindly asked me to be a part of the big cover reveal, so here it is:

For more on Redeye, you can pop over to Michael's website and read this post:  http://michael-shean.com/wordpress/?p=857



Check out the Wonderland Cycle:

SHADOW OF A DEAD STAR:

Seattle, 2078. The future hasn’t been kind to the spirit of humanity; commercial obsession and technological fetishism rules the day, religion and belief has died screaming in the fires of war, and what remains is moral decrepitude. Life in the future is hard on the soul.
As an agent of the Industrial Security Bureau, Thomas Walken knows that better than anyone. His job is to keep the worst kind of black-market technology out of the hands of citizens, technology born out of the shadowy nation nicknamed Wonderland. But the kind of fantasies that come out of that place aren’t for the good people of the world. Wonderland technology is like black magic made real.
Walken’s newest assignment starts out simply: intercept a smuggled shipment of Princess Dolls, little girls turned into sex toys, and bring them into custody. But when the girls are hijacked from federal custody and Walken gives chase, he finds a trail of bodies in their wake. Before he’s through, Walken will find himself confronted revelations that will answer every question that the troubled lawman has ever had about himself and the world he lives in – but his mind and soul may not survive it.

"A dark, brooding piece of future noir, SHADOW OF A DEAD STAR will take you down the rabbit hole on a ride you won’t soon forget."


REDEYE:

Two years have passed since Agent Thomas Walken and Bobbi January found themselves at the heart of a conspiracy of unimaginable greed and cruelty. The Genefex Corporation remains shrouded in mystery and Bobbi January faces a life of unanswered questions and mounting disillusionment to look forward to. But when she receives a mysterious message from one of Walken's former comrades, she is drawn back onto the trail. Now, Bobbi will find herself newly equipped to discover the truth - about Walken, about Genefex and the Yathi race - and the key to unlocking those secrets rests in the hands of a cyborg terrorist known only as Redeye.
But the road to truth will be a dangerous one, from the glamour of Seattle's ultramodern core to the sprawling wastelands of the Old City and beyond. Alongside a band of lethal comrades, Bobbi will face death and worse amidst urban rot, abandoned subway tunnels, and ultimately the nightmarish halls of the Yathi themselves in a race to stave off what may prove to be the death of humanity itself. For the Mother of Systems will not be denied, and it will take all of Bobbi’s intelligence and wit to stave off annihilation. Drenched in blood and neon, Redeye is a tale of humanity on the edge of a new and terrible reality.


BONE WIRES:

A thrilling mystery set in the same world as the Wonderland Cycle, Bone Wires is a grim trip into the streets of the empty future.

In the wasteland of commercial culture that is future America, police are operated not by government but by private companies. In Seattle, that role is filled by Civil Protection, and Daniel Gray is a detective in Homicide Solutions. What used to be considered an important – even glamorous – department for public police is very different for the corporate species, and Gray finds himself stuck in a dead end job.
That is, until the Spine Thief arrives.
When a serial killer begins harvesting the spinal tissue of corporate employees all over the city, Detective Gray finds himself plunged into the first truly major case of his career. Caught in a dangerous mix of murder, betrayal and conflicting corporate interest, Gray will find himself not only matching wits with a diabolical murderer but grappling with his growing doubt toward his employers in the dawning months of the American tricentennial.

You can find all the latest details and updates on Michael's website: http://www.michael-shean.com/