I did it! After two years of basically not writing at all, I finished Hell’s Sire (Book Three in the Hell’s Butcher series) today. Still needs some renovating to make it publishable, but we’ll get there. Here’s a sneak peek:
Frank sighed and looked Curtis in the eye. “Boy, this mission is too risky for you. I won’t have your blood on my hands like I do…like I do so many others.”
But Curtis was having none of it. He planted his fists on his hips and glared at Frank. “I ain’t your boy,” he snapped. “I ain’t Ron. I can handle this.”
Frank shook his head. “This ain’t about Ron. It’s about you and it’s about me. And I say you ain’t coming along.”
Curtis’s cheeks turned beet red and the boy looked like he might draw the empty six-gun and shoot. Frank was extra-glad he’d emptied it before their lesson.
“You’re gonna need me on this one,” Curtis blurted, spinning on his heel and marching for the steps. “You always need me. Just wait, you’ll see.”
And with that, he stomped up the steps, heels making a thunderous protest as he marched across the porch and into the hotel.
Here’s a fantastic review of the Hell’s Butcher series by Kaye Lynne Booth.
And since she mentions Guilty, the prequel to the series, it is now available for Kindle and in paperback from Amazon here.
That’s more great work from Michelle Johnson at Blue Sky Designs.
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Finally, Hell’s Butcher is available on Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/h9snpmj
Pick up your copy and follow Frank and his ragtag posse as they try to rope John Wilkes Booth and his gang before they can assassinate another U.S. president.
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I am proud to release the cover for Hell’s Butcher, Book Two in the Hell’s Butcher series. This cover maintains the theme of Book One (Hell’s Marshal), while having its own identity, too. Done by Michelle Johnson of Blue Sky Designs, I think it’s PERFECT!
HELL’S MARSHAL:
Gunfighter Frank Butcher is in Hell. Literally. And by his own choice. Even though the judges of the underworld absolved him of the murders he committed, Frank couldn’t forgive himself and chose an eternity of suffering for his sins. Now, eager to get him back for opposing them, the judges have forced him into service as Hell’s Marshal, the soul they send to bring back the prisoners who escape the fiery depths of everlasting damnation.
Frank’s first mission: bring back the soul of Jesse James, who’s gone on a rampage finishing up his business in the world of the living. But when Frank gets to the living world, he finds that James is up to a good bit more than simple trouble-making, and it takes everything Frank and his misfit posse can wrangle up to even stand a chance. Can Frank do the judges’ bidding but still keep himself from becoming a cold-blooded killer again? Find out as Frank and his posse fight to keep all Hell from breaking loose in The Hell’s Butcher Series:
Guilty (Prequel to the Hell’s Butcher series), forthcoming summer 2016.
Hell’s Marshal, Book One, forthcoming spring 2016. I’ll be looking for volunteers to read advanced reader copies (ARCs) of this book later in February, and write HONEST reviews on Amazon and other sites when available. If you’re interested, email me!
Hell’s Butcher, Book Two, tentatively scheduled for winter 2016.
Here’s a blurb from Hell’s Marshal, due out this spring:
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Frank stood, fists at his sides, taking slow, deep breaths. He hated being backed into a corner, but they’d done it nonetheless. He locked eyes with Judge Webber.
“Why me? Out of all the souls you got down here, why pick me?”
Webber never looked away, the corners of his mouth turning up and his eyes burning.
“We have a history, you and me.”
So, it was personal. Frank could understand that, at least.
“One condition. If I do this, you increase my time in the pit so it’s what I deserve.”
The judges conferred, hissing.
“Agreed,” they said as one.
Frank nodded. “If I’m gonna be Hell’s Marshal, shouldn’t I get a badge?”
Webber grinned and a bolt of lightning shot down from the ceiling, crashing into Frank’s chest. His body went rigid, and a searing agony blazed on his chest. Fire arced through his body, making his muscles contract until he felt his bones straining not to snap. He tried to scream, but couldn’t open his mouth even an inch.
The acrid stink of burning flesh filled his nostrils as the skin on his chest sizzled and cooked like bacon over a fire.
An instant later, the lightning disappeared and Frank collapsed to the floor. When he finally mustered the strength to lift his head, a marshal’s badge had been burned in swollen, pink flesh where the lightning had touched him. In the center of the six-pointed star, a skull stared out, flames dancing in the hollows of its eyes. The words “Hell’s Marshal” circled it all. The words “Hell’s Marshal” circled it all.
The judges faded from sight, snickering as they disappeared.
“Send Jesse James back to us, Marshal Butcher,” echoed their voices. “Dead or dead.”
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You can buy Hell’s Marshal on Amazon for Kindle or in paperback.
Chris Barili 