Add one mind-controlling alien . . .

Every epic tale needs its villain. My new Fantasy book Warriors of the Blessed Realms is written against a backdrop of multiple worlds, and follows the adventures of heroes like Finn, from the Blessed Realms, and Liam, from Brisbane in Australia, as they fight the dark forces of the Vault of Seven Horns. They seek to defeat the plans of a cruel overlord, and rescue a captured priestess from a dark ritual that will give their enemy a vast increase in power. So who is the villain? Add one mind-controlling alien . . . the krell lord VoYannan!

So who are the krell? They are a solitary species that propagate without sexual union. Somewhere in their evolutionary history they took a dark, inward turn. In order to reproduce a krell must implant a krell-spawn into a host. The spawn grows in the host as a parasite until it rips its way free as a fully conscious krell. Nice eh? Heh – they are the bad guys! Each new krell possesses all the memories and talents of their progenitor, but their power as newborn krell depends on the choice of host. This is the fate of the captured priestess Sephany — unless our heroes can reach VoYannan’s ruined world and rescue Sephany from the depths of VoYannan’s dark citadel.

So why would a krell — who are always jealous of their power and control — loose a generation of krell-spawn on the universe? Because the sire and the newly born krell are mentally linked. The newly emerging krell can be leashed to their parent, and enhance the parent’s power. Yet there is a trade-off. As the new krell grows in strength, they can in turn consume and destroy their parent, as VoYannan did to his own progeninitor.

Krell don’t socialise well. In fact, they pretty much want to kill and dominate each other. Yet new krell keep coming.

The krell have awesome mind-control powers. Lord VoYannan, the ruler of the Vault of Seven Horns, controls fifty-eight planets, and dominates millions of sentient beings through direct mental control. He draws power from each, and enhances his power with each new mind brought under his control.

The Vaults themselves are dystopian SF worlds. Oppressed millions are kept in check by legions of laser-wielding brutes called Siithe, a savage race that consumes their victims (and even each other if they get the chance). Here are leaden skies, vast ruined cities, and factories manned by slaves from dozens of conquered species.

So, about the story . . .

Warriors is an epic tale spanning multiple worlds and multiple genres — fantasy, urban fantasy, and SF — where magic and high-technology go head-to-head.

VoYannan plots to unleash a devastating assault on the Blessed Realms, a coalition of six worlds with benign technology that is dedicated to preserving life. He uses an ancient Gateway on Earth to strike. His Vault forces capture the priestess Sephany, crucial to his plans, and escape.

Realm warrior Finn Evenstone sets off in pursuit, but cannot pass the Gateway used by the Vault.

Liam Durrow, sole survivor of an ancient Earth lineage, is led to Fraser Island by a vision, and uses his unique magical abilities as Keeper to open the Gateway.

Both Finn and Liam are soon battling the Vault on Earth, and in the Shadow Worlds, planets already ruined by the krell. They need all the help they can get. They are joined by tenacious Federal Agent Yolinda Paris, who has her own score to settle.

Check it out! Grab a copy of the book! Available at selected bookstores and these online retailers!

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Barnes & Noble – Print and Nook

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What is a Realm?

My new novel, Warriors of the Blessed Realms is out into the world, but what is a Realm?

In the exact sense, a “realm” is a community or territory over which a sovereign, such as a king, rules. Or an area or sphere of certain knowledge or activity.

In the case of Warriors, a Realm is a world. A planet.

And there are many worlds in this epic tale. One of them is Earth itself, where the story starts with central character Liam Durrow.

The Vaults of Sheol are fifty-eight planets ruled by a ruthless mind-controlling alien warlord, VoYannan, one of a solitary species called a krell that can dominate millions, growing in strength with each new mind that falls under their sway.

The Vaults are dystopian SF worlds. The enslaved populations are kept in check by legions of laser-wielding brutes called Siithe. Here desperation breeds under leaden, cloud-filled skies, which lower over vast ruined cities, while factories manned by slaves from a dozen conquered species churn out weapons of destruction.

Standing against VoYannan is The Blessed Realms, a coalition of six worlds with benign technology that is dedicated to preserving life, with magic that can stop Vault technology in its tracks. The Realms have fought VoYannan for thousands of years, containing him with steel and magic.

VoYannan plots to unleash a devastating assault on the Blessed Realms. He uses an ancient Gateway on Earth to strike. His Vault forces capture the priestess Sephany, crucial to his plans, and escape.

Realm warrior Finn Evenstone sets off in pursuit, but cannot pass the Gateway used by the Vault.

Liam Durrow, sole survivor of an ancient Earth lineage, is led to Fraser Island by a vision, and uses his unique magical abilities as Keeper to open the Gateway.

Both Finn and Liam are soon battling the Vault on Earth, and in the Shadow Worlds, planets already ruined by the krell. They need all the help they can get. They are joined by tenacious Federal Agent Yolinda Paris, who has her own score to settle.

That that’s Warriors! An epic tale spanning multiple worlds and multiple genres — fantasy, urban fantasy, and SF — where magic and high-technology go head-to-head!

Check it out! Grab a copy of the book! Available at selected bookstores and these online retailers!

Amazon – Print and kindle

Barnes & Noble – Print and Nook

Google Books – Print

Booktopia – Print

Bookdepository – Print

Fishpond – Print

Waterstones – Print

Kobo – ebook

Walmart – ebook

eBay – Print

itsi – epub

Warriors of the Blessed Realms is here!

Warriors’ is an epic tale, spanning multiple worlds and multiple genres — fantasy, urban fantasy, and SF.

The thing I love about Warriors, and which makes it a unique read, is having magic and technology going up against each other. I can’t say too much without ruining the surprise, but it was a lot of fun to write! There is what “appears” to be a fantasy world — the Blessed Realms — that can stop an advanced space-faring civilization of bad guys — the Vaults of Sheol — dead in their track. Throw in a mind-controlling immortal alien warlord . . . and that’s just the start!

At its heart its heroic fantasy. Probably because I can’t help myself. My all time favourite author was British heroic fantasy writer David Gemmell. I will never be able to write like Gemmell, but all my writing is in part a tribute to his work & Warriors probably more than most.

The story in Warriors’ starts just before the turn of the last millennium — in the days leading up to 31st December 1999.

Does anyone remember all the fuss about the Y2K bug? We were all going to end up back in the Stone Age after all the computers that controlled the banks, the power, and the nuclear arsenals all went berserk! Thankfully, that didn’t happen. But the conspiracy theorists were in high gear, that’s for sure.

One of the challenges of writing a complex story that extends across so many worlds is where to begin! The story starts in Brisbane, Australia, with Liam Durrow, who goes on to play a pivotal role in events.

Warriors’ opens with a teaser article from a Sydney newspaper, which sets the scene for what has been happening there.

Sydney Morning Mail, 12th December 1999

“Unexplained Homeless Deaths Continue.” By reporter Danny Critchfield

Another homeless man was found dead in Sydney’s western suburbs yesterday, the seventh in less than a month. Police continue to be baffled by the deaths, so far ruling out initial theories of homicide or a new killer drug. The body of Johnny “Longjohn” Walker was discovered at 7:34 am yesterday by resident Majorie Thomas. “I thought it was a prank at first. You know, a dummy dressed up in old clothes. His face was so . . . blank. Empty. But when I got closer . . . oh! The smell! It was like he had been dead a week, not a few hours,” said Mrs Thomas.

Anger is building in the local community, already frustrated by the homeless problem. “We are sick and tired of this. I’m trying to raise children in this street,” said another resident yesterday, who did not want to be identified. “This is the second overdose in this area in a week.” 

Investigating officer Detective Sergeant Peter Holmes said yesterday. “As yet we have been unable to establish any cause of death, but we have ruled out overdose.” State Health authorities continue to play down fears of a new, undetectable virus, but this has not stopped the rumours amongst Sydney’s homeless community of the “Black Breath”. Locals have begun wearing face masks.

The deaths have fuelled the local urban legend of Black Jack. “He’s always looking,” said one homeless man, only identified as “Pete” who was at the scene yesterday. “It’s the End Times. End of the millennium. Jack’s wanting the one that can open the door to the hot place [Hell] to let all the devils out. Midnight on December 31st. That’s when it’ll be. He’s the one what’s killin’ them others.” 

Detective Sergeant Holmes denies any link to a killer. “We have no evidence of homicide, or of any other individual linking these deaths,” he said.

Police investigations continue

Check out what happens next! Grab a copy of the book! Available at selected bookstores and these online retailers!

Amazon – Print and kindle

Google Books – Print

Booktopia – Print

Bookdepository – Print

Fishpond – Print

Waterstones – Print

Walmart – ebook

eBay – Print

itsi – epub

Warriors of the Blessed Realms Launches September 4 2020

The launch of Warriors of the Blessed Realms is finally here!

The online launch of the Warriors’ ebook will be on Facebook on Friday September 4 2020. Click on this link to join the online event!

There will be games and heaps of giveaways. I have prize packs of signed Jakirian Cycle books, and copies of the latest Lanedd Press edition of my SF book The Tau Ceti Diversion to give away, as well as rare editions of other collections with my stories inside to gift as prizes. The last Facebook launch, for the Lanedd Press edition of The Tau Ceti Diversion, was a great event, and I’m looking forward to sending Warriors’ off into the world in style.

Warriors’ is an epic tale, spanning multiple worlds and multiple genres — fantasy, urban fantasy, and SF. At its heart it is Heroic Fantasy, for which the works of David Gemmell gave me a life-long love.

The novel has both traditional fantasy settings as well as urban fantasy based in Brisbane and Sydney in Australia, as well as strong elements of both SF and horror. That’s quite a landscape, and a lot to balance, but readers can expected one Hell of a ride!

And the story . . .

The immortal krell lord VoYannan rules one of the Vault empires, dominating millions with the mind-powers of the solitary krell, drinking the souls of his thralls to fuel his talent. A prophecy foretells that he will leash the power of his Spawn if he can implant it in one special priestess — Sephany — and ensure it feeds on her broken spirit. 

In the Blessed Realms, Finn Evenstone, last surviving son of a once elite clan, waits for the attack. The talented Realm noble knows that the Vault will emerge through the Stonelake Gateway.

In Brisbane, Australia, Liam Durrow struggles to come to terms with strange visions. When his uncle and guardian dies in an accident, he learns he is the sole survivor of an ancient lineage. As Keeper he inherits unique magical abilities.

Using Earth as a stepping-stone, the forces of the Vault strike the Stonelake Temple and capture Sephany. A fierce battle ensues, but they escape with the priestess through the Gateway.

From Earth, Liam opens the Gateway for Finn, allowing him to continue the pursuit. They are joined by Federal Agent Yolinda Paris, who has her own score to settle with the Vault.

Their journey leads them through the Blessed Realms and other darker worlds ruined by the krell, until it reaches its climax in the court of krell lord VoYannan.

Want to read the story? Don’t forget to join the online event!