Free (Kindle DRM-free) The Many by David B. Silva [Horror Coming-of-Age/Family Drama]

[ATDrake]

Frankly, the good stuff in the KDP exclusive or else slushpile is repeats, of which there are quite a few. And apparently it's erotic fairy tale week in the slushpile as well, if you happen to like erotic fairy tales.

Nevertheless, we do have one reasonably decent speculative fiction backlist thing and a few minor treats for romance and horror readers.

The Many by David B. Silva (ISFDB), who reminds us with every blurb that he is a Bram Stoker and World Fantasy Award winner, is a 2004 Delirium small-pressed horror-ish novel which also serves as a family drama/coming-of-age story, according to the sole review. This actually doesn't seem to be listed on his ISFDB page, but sometimes they're missing some of the really obscure stuff.

Anyway, free without DRM for who knows how long @ Amazon main UK DE ES FR IT

Description (I like how the full blurb gives instructions on how to 1-click to buy the book in case any of the Gentle Readers are sufficiently clueless to require such direction; although that doesn't actually get people reading immediately, so perhaps the instructions could use some clarification)
Kiel Reed is beginning to suspect there's something wrong with his eleven-year-old brother, Justin.

After the death of their parents, the two boys have gone to stay with their aunt and uncle. It should be a time of healing, but nothing is as it seems and the scars of their father's torment run deep, especially in Justin.

Deeply haunted by his past, Justin turns to The Many for help.

It's a deadly relationship.

The probably-new stuff as far as I can tell, since about 7 pages in, eReaderIQ decided not to load the covers, thereby blocking off the convenient hover-over blurb pop-up function which is amazingly helpful in distinguishing, if not which titles have a good chance of being backlist, at least the ones which are obviously too illiterate to bother with. Though I admit I did like the one which claimed it was "a copulation of the author's best stories".

(ETA: Apparently more than one aspiring author has done that. It's really rather depressing when you think about it once you stop laughing so hard.)

Anne Frasier probably-repeats her 2007-Onyx psychologist vs serial killer thriller: Hush She also repeats one of her romances written as Theresa Weir.

William Morrow-published screenwriter Ryne Douglas Pearson offers a short crime/horror story: Beholder: A Short Story

Mills & Boon-published Saskia Walker offers a short contemporary f/m erotic romance: Forbidden

Kensington-published Christina T. Crooks offers the self-explanatory: Romance Stories - An Interactive Fiction Collection

The following Lovecraftian tribute magazine contains stories from ISFDBed authors, some of them fairly well known such as Nick Mamatas: Innsmouth Magazine: Collected Issues 1-4

Sourcebooks-published Susan Higginbotham, whose formerly officially freebied historical novel The Traitor's Wife is actually fairly good and which I would recommend reading if you picked it up then and are interested in the historical events, offers a semi-related non-fiction piece set roughly around the same time period: The Prince Who Did Not Become King: Edward of Lancaster, 1453-1471

ISFDBed fellow MR member author Keith Brooke offers a short: Sweats (a near-future science-fiction technothriller

ISFDBed Iain Rowan also offers a crime/horror short: Sighted

Victoria Chatham offers a story set in the mostly-published multi-author shared western romance setting for your collection: Always A Lady (Bandit Creek Books)

Carina Press-published Crista McHugh offers the self-explanatory: The Tears of Elios (A Fantasy Romance) (The Elgean Chronicles)

Zebra-published Lori Brighton offers an historical romantic suspense: A Night Of Secrets (The Night Series)

David Greene says that his US Civil War-set historical interracial LGBT looks-like-love-triangle romance was a winner of the Book of the Year Award, and it seems that the BOTYA do indeed exist as some sort of minor giver-outer of awards to independent authors and you can see the entry on their website here. I have no idea what criteria they apply or how stringent their standards are, but if you're interested in reading a probably-vetted indie: Unmentionables - A Novel

Speaking of independent authors, minor startup-looking probably-UK imprint Sunbury Press has a number of such, mostly in the historical fiction/mystery categories, some of which have interesting looking blurbs, so if you want to take a look: Linkage to the lot

The most significant repeats today are previous main feature titles from A.A. Attanasio and Mary Monica Pulver (highly recommended, her particular SCA-set historical recreationist murder mystery is one of my personal favourites). We've also got assorted minor mystery, historical, fantasy, horror, litfic, and Christian thriller from Alex Irvine, Jane Toombs, Patricia Rockwell, Attic Clown Press, Martin Roth, Annie Bellet, Charles Ortleb, Scott Nicholson, Robert W. Walker, Lee Goldberg if you're missing stuff in series.

Happy reading, if you happen to spot something you think you might like and neither the shadows over Innsmouth nor the rats in the walls get you.

[Dr. Drib]

Silva may have an inferiority complex, but I thoroughly enjoy his writing.

I discovered him about 20+ years ago when he came out with his first novel, the one listed above. He's changed the title, but the book is a very enjoyable horror story.



Don

[koland]

working link for Walker's Forbidden:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0056VAXMI

Sweats (a near-future science-fiction technothriller) by Keith Brooke:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005VPXHCM/

[ATDrake]

I admit, having a specified award declaration in a blurb does catch my attention, and even if he does it each and every time, at least it gives some reassurance that his writing is worth taking a look at, unlike those "authors" who try to charge $9.99 a pop for "copulations" of their stories.

[ATDrake]

Feature still free, updates in here.

It's actually a pretty good day for actual backlist work, especially for romance readers, as I counted no fewer than 7 things which matched up to a paper edition from an actual publisher (one of them a very promising historical saga, and there's some probably-Christian fiction for the probably-Christian fiction readers, whom I freely admit I normally don't even look at stuff for in the KDP Select exclusive-or-else slushpile) and there are the usual established author self-pubs.

Les Edgerton, who writes how-to books for Writer's Digest (we got one of his free last year) and weirdly enough, seems to have mainly writen cosmetology business guides besides that, offers what looks like a noir-ish heist caper: The Perfect Crime

Sourcebooks-published Loucinda McGary offers a contemporary romantic suspense: High Seas Deception (Adventure Cruise Lines)

Joel Gross returns with a 1984 New American Library-hardcovered prequel to his Jewish historical family saga which was freebied earlier. This one follows the family from ancient Judaea to Arthurian England: The Lives of Rachel (THE BOOKS OF RACHEL)

Leigh Greenwood offers a 1998 Dorchester/Leisure western romance which is 3rd in his series: Buck (The Cowboys)

Sourcebooks-published Lisa Renee Jones returns with a revised version of a 2005 Ellora's Cave paranormal supersoldier f/m erotic action romance. I think this is a repeat, but it's old enough I don't have it in the newer KDP-auxiliary account.: UNDERGROUND GUARDIANS: PROTECTOR (Underground Guardians 1 She also helpfully mentions in the blurb that another work of hers will be on sale for a limited time.

Connie Mason offers a 1993 Dorchester/Leisure western historical romance: A Promise of Thunder

Berkley-published Michele Scott/A.K. Alexander offers a kids/YA fantasy adventure which involves teens entering their favourite video game which contains "acid-poop-bombing pterodactyls": The Clover Siblings and the Evil of Desmal

Ten Talents Press looks to have a variety of novels in different genres, many of which are either actual backlist, or self-pubs from established authors such as Carina/Kensington's Mia Marlowe and Avon/University of Hawaii-published Joyce Lebra, Zondervan/Revell-published Jane Peart, etc.: Linkage for the lot

Previously title-featured Canadian winner of the Governor General's Award for Children's Literature Arthur Slade returns with the self-explanatory: Fairytale (Short Story)

Previously-included Canadian Pearson Moore, who apparently has something of an internet presence on fan forums for certain TV shows, offers his guide/essay collection to the A Game of Thrones HBO adaptation if you're interested: Direwolves and Dragons Volume 1.02

Frankly, I skipped and don't even remember the repeats now. But I think there was one from Harlequin's Carol Grace, in case you're missing anything from your collection of her stuff.

Happy reading, if indeed you manage to spot something you think you might like.

[Dr. Drib]

Got one.

Thank you.



Don