A Most Extraordinary School - A Look At Tompkin's School by Tabi Slick.

Tompkin's School by Tabi Slick

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Izara Torvik thought her life was over the moment that her father sent her and her twin brother to a boarding school in the middle of nowhere Oklahoma. She soon discovers that the school is not as ordinary as she thought and finds herself thrown into a battle against her inner demons that only have one desire...the desire to kill.

Tabi Slick's first entry into her Tompkin's School series is an engaging YA adventure that evolves into a kinetic mystery with powerful paranormal elements. After a somewhat tentative start in which Slick devotes a lot to establishing her cast, the story picks up the pace becoming quite epic in its scope with plenty of action.

Her protagonist, Izara Torvik, is a young woman who is at once vulnerable and wide eyed, having been thrust from a cloistered and privileged New York existence into a totally unfamiliar Oklahoma environment. Along with her twin brother Kain, she has to find reserves of strength and resourcefulness fairly quickly in order to face the powerful and violent forces that reside within the Tompkin's School. Her growth, in particular, is appealing and satisfying to watch.

Slick's grasp of tension and mood is attractive and she is able to infuse an unpredictability into her narrative that keeps you guessing right up to the climax.

Tabi Slick's series crackles with potential and I'm really keen to see where it goes in subsequent entries. Tompkin's School For The Extraordinarily Talented is a gem.

Tabi Slick (image credit: Tabi Slick). 

Tabi Slick was born in Chanute, Kansas, and grew up in the country where she was homeschooled for the greater part of her childhood. In middle school, her family moved to Davis Oklahoma where she attended public school for several years. Here she began her writing adventure and soon the world of Tompkin's Academy came to life. After graduating from high school in 2008, she spent a few years in Puerto Rico and wound up in Texas where she graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Linguistics from the University of Texas at Arlington. She was born with an immense appreciation for literature and continues to dedicate her time to her passion of writing.

Purchase Tompkin's School here. 

Visit Tabi Slick here.

Connect with Tabi Slick here.

Tweet with Tabi Slick here.

View all my reviews

DFA.

Upcoming Event - Dean Mayes Author to Visit Adelaide Library.

The Recipient - International Teaser Trailer.

This May - You Will Meet The Recipient.

Central Avenue Publishing and I are proud to present the International Teaser Trailer for my forthcoming psychological thriller "The Recipient".

When a young heart transplant recipient discovers a terrifying secret about her donor, she is drawn into a deadly conspiracy that will threaten the life she has only just gotten back.

Featuring music by Scottish band Eleven Eleven and show casing the cosmopolitan city of Melbourne, Australia, The Recipient International Teaser Trailer hints at a kinetic and absorbing novel which fans of Dean Mayes will be instantly gratified by.

DFA.

The Water Seer by HMC - A Stylish, Supernatural Thriller.

The Water Seer by H.M.C.

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

MOUSE is a seer. She’s had a vision of a little boy’s death, and it's someone she knows and loves. But how could a champion, junior nipper drown in a calm ocean when he swims better than most adults?

When a strange woman comes to town, her allure is undeniable, but something is off. Mouse’s visions are frequent and vivid, children she works with go missing, and the past, present, and future blur together. Her new enemy is a Bruja Del Agua – Water Witch, who not only drowns her victims, but tortures them for eternity.
 
With the help of her dead Aunt Catalina, her best friend, Trent, and a Wiccan called Anna, Mouse must use her power and wit to defeat the most powerful Bruja she’s ever seen.

The Water Seer is a vivid tale of witchcraft and the supernatural that blends effortlessly with a modern day, Australian narrative about a young woman who is juggling two very different roles in her life.

Author Hayley Clearihan's writing is visually stimulating and satisfyingly intense. Her grasp of the action and the supernatural were, at times, pulse pounding and I found myself quite anxious to see what was going to happen next. The most effective quality of her writing however was the earthy realism Clearihan brought to her narrative. It drew me in immediately and could see myself inhabiting the places and the situations that possessed a unmistakably Australian feel.

Her characters, led by the enigmatic "Seer" Mouse are dynamic and nuanced and Clearihan gives you time to get to know them well and the space to invest yourself in them without bogging the narrative down. Given that this book was quite compact, that was something that impressed me a lot. I found the mythical elements of the story particularly fascinating and I liked the way Hayley brought specific elements of witchcraft and mythology together to create something really original.

The Water Seer is an effective supernatural thriller and a stylish addition to Hayley Clearihan's body of work.

From her home on Queensland's Gold Coast, Hayley Clearihan (HMC) balances her career as an author with teaching while raising her two children with her "motorbike-loving Viking" partner. HMC recounts that she writes for the pure pleasure of being able to express herself and to think critically about issues that are passionate to her.

HMC says - "I blog about asylum seekers, gay rights, tattooed professionals, robot dancing, baby poo, and so on … you know, the juicy stuff. I’m sometimes serious, but mostly not."

Read my recent feature "Seeing Hayley" here.

DFA.

View all my reviews

The Game Changer - The Recipient Set For International Distribution.

Okay, so I have some news from this end that I wanted to give you about The Recipient.

The news is bad and good.

The bad news is - A little while ago, I had a long and pretty comprehensive Skype chat with my publisher which ran for, I think, about 2 hours. 

The result of this call is that we've had to make the decision to hold off releasing The Recipient on our original October 25 date and push back the release date until early next year.

Now, the reason for this - which is the good news - is that my publisher has just signed a sales and distribution deal with Independent Publisher's Group (IPG) in Chicago.

IPG is a major sales and distribution corporation who handle titles exclusively for independent publishers the States, Canada, the UK and Australia. They have distribution channels with the major bricks and mortar book sellers internationally - as well as digital distributors - and they have a proven track record in sales and marketing. 

Along with several titles slated for release by Central Avenue Publishing, they are going to be marketing and selling The Recipient on our behalf.

In short - This. Is. Huge. 

Think of it like George Lucas signing with 20th Century Fox back in the 70's to sell and distribute Star Wars around the world - although, I don't expect to ever scale the heights of George Lucas. IPG have arrangements with all the major book chains, both bricks and mortar and digital, and they have contacts with all of the major review outlets. It means that we won't have to go it completely alone - as we have done to date - trying to attract reviewers or sales channels because IPG do it all and most of the time, before breakfast. 

Central Avenue and IPG haven't formally announced it yet so I've had to keep it on the down low until they release a joint statement. However, I am able to release this news to my email subscribers in advance.

I'm bummed that The Recipient won't see a release for a while yet and I am sorry. Things were progressing pretty quickly towards our original release date but, when this opportunity came up, both myself and my publisher agreed that we could not pass on it. It is, potentially, a huge step forward for me and Central Avenue Publishing. 

I'll be continuing to share news and updates via my exclusive subscribers portal "Journey To The Recipient". Please do sign up for these updates as I'll be announcing some exciting pre-release content and competitions as we move towards the new release date. 

DFA.

Seeing Hayley - Previewing The Water Seer by HMC Writer.

Continuing on my path of profiling talented Australian artisans, musicians and writers, this week, I'd like to share with you a sublime scribe in Queensland based author Hayley Coates, who goes by the moniker HMC.

(image credit: HMC Writer & Cristal Bettany).

I first encountered Hayley back in 2012 when we collaborated on - and were featured in - an anthology of Australian writers called "Great Southern Land - Tales from Australia". Her contribution to that anthology was a earthy character piece titled 'Bobby, Be Good' which I regarded, at the time, as being perhaps the strongest entry in the book. 

Soon after that anthology, HMC published "White Walls" - a taut, psychological thriller set right here in Australia that, to my mind, cemented HMC as an author to watch. Her command of the genre in White Walls was gripping and it garnered universal praise for its involving story, vivid characterizations and mind bending concepts. 

(image credit: HMC Writer.)

In amongst an impressive body of subsequent short stories, anthology contributions and thought provoking essays, HMC has been working away diligently on a new project called 'The Water Seer'. And now that project is about to see an international release in digital format in September this year, with a print release to follow in October.

The Water Seer promises more of HMC's signature style that has so captivated readers to date but it also promises to showcase HMC's ability to cross genres and meander into themes and situations that are unique and fresh.

(image credit: HMC Writer.)

MOUSE is a seer. She’s had a vision of a little boy’s death, and it’s someone she knows and loves. But how could a champion, junior nipper drown in a calm ocean when he swims better than most adults?

When a strange woman comes to town, her allure is undeniable, but something is off. Mouse’s visions are frequent and vivid, children she works with go missing, and the past, present, and future blur together. Her new enemy is a Bruja Del Agua – Water Witch, who not only drowns her victims, but tortures them for eternity.

With the help of her dead Aunt Catalina, her best friend, Trent, and a Wiccan called Anna, Mouse must use her power and wit to defeat the most powerful Bruja she’s ever seen.

From her home on Queensland's Gold Coast, HMC balances her career as an author with teaching while raising her two children with her "motorbike-loving Viking" partner. HMC recounts that she writes for the pure pleasure of being able to express herself and to think critically about issues that are passionate to her. 

HMC says - "I blog about asylum seekers, gay rights, tattooed professionals, robot dancing, baby poo, and so on … you know, the juicy stuff. I’m sometimes serious, but mostly not."

There is bohemian quality to HMC that I find really attractive. Her stories challenge a literary orthodoxy, presenting people and situations that far removed from mere "paint by numbers" genre pieces. They are absorbing and thought provoking.

HMC is most definitely, an author you should know.

Visit HMC here.

Goodreads HMC here.

Connect with HMC here.

Tweet HMC here.

DFA.

The Recipient - Sneak Preview

The following is an exclusive sneak peek from my forthcoming psychological thriller "The Recipient" which is due to hit bookshelves around the world on October 25th 2015. 

In this scene, the protagonist Casey Schillinge, is trapped in a nightmare that has visited her over and over again in the 3 years since her life saving heart transplant. 

I hope you enjoy it. I'd love to hear what you think...

It is happening...

Her body is grasped by a force unseen. It brings her into an upright position, then she feels herself descending.

The heart beats faster, louder.

Her naked skin twitches and shivers. Biting cold replaces the serene warmth. Clothing coalesces over her body: harsh denim that scratches her skin. A cotton, starched singlet that quickly becomes sopping. The wet clothing clings to her cold skin, and looking up, she realises it is raining.

Her bare feet touch onto a hard surface and she looks down, seeing bitumen all around her. She is standing on a road, a lonely outback road in some desolate wasteland that is unfamiliar. She looks around her, searching for a landmark, something familiar that will identify her surroundings. Another disembodied flash lights up the sky nearby and thunder rumbles across the thickening clouds. In that moment, she sees a road sign—not on the road before her, but in her mind’s eye. The lightning reflects off it so brightly, the lettering is too difficult to interpret. Squinting in the fading light, she tries to see.

‘Laster…’, is all she can make out before darkness swallows the image.

Searching around her, she tries to find the sign as it exists in her immediate environment. But it is nowhere to be seen.

Eruptions of light flash from within the cloud mass above. Rain falls harder, denser. It splashes against her skin and runs sticky, viscous like honey.

Dread seeps into her.

The thunder rumbles towards her again, carrying with it a deep, guttural moan that vibrates through her. Her breath quickens. For the first time, she is compelled to move.

She turns, stretches her legs, tries to run. But gravity bears down, making movements incredibly heavy.

A flash of light erupts and in the moment of disorientation that follows, she witnesses something: a scene from her mind plays out in front of her.

A lone figure, shrouded in shadow, stands there—an evil presence. Unnaturally tall, masculine but unidentifiable in the dissipating flash.

The low moan approaches, gaining in volume and pitch. It is filled with torment and pain.

FLASH!

The shrouded figure steps forward and slaps her with an outstretched hand. She crashes heavily to the road, opening wounds in her shoulder and legs. She cries out, but it is a silent cry. She tries to get to her feet but slips on the slick bitumen that streams with the falling rain.

The figure pounces, pinning her body to the road. She feels her hands being lifted above her head in the grip of the stranger who remains shrouded in darkness. Again, she cries out in pain as her hands are shoved against the road.

The figure sits back on its heels. With its free hand, it reaches out and hovers over them both for a moment. Then, balling it into a fist, the figure smashes it down, striking her chest with all the force it can muster.

FLASH!

She screams in horror as pain blossoms through her entire body.

The thunder and the moan meld into what is clearly a female voice. It cries out in terror. Is it her own voice?

The hands disappear into the cavity in her chest. Her fractured mind is inexplicably curious, despite her terror. She struggles against the grip of the figure. The bitumen tears at her skin as she flails impotently. The hands of the figure squelch about inside her. The moans grow more shrill now. They are wails. They are screams.

The viscous rain turns a deep, ruby red and she tastes the metallic flavour of blood. She lifts her head skywards. The sky is bleeding.

The screams become unbearable and in that moment, she realises that, it is she who is screaming.

The hand retracts from her chest and hovers above it. The assailant leans forward to show her the contents within. A disembodied cackle rips through the air, swallowing the horrified screams. Rivulets of crimson course down over a masculine jaw.

She is consumed by terror. Drenched in blood; too paralysed to move.

Then, suddenly, she is free.

She is now standing a few feet away from the figure, yet it is still straddling someone underneath.

She looks at her hands, blinking at them incomprehensibly. She cannot understand. She wants to turn and run but the figure’s silent magnetism holds her in thrall. The figure turns its face towards her, but the darkness shrouds its features.

The figure beckons with what is held in its hands.

She leans forward to see.

It is a heart. A beating and bloody heart, crawling with maggots so numerous that she can hear them squelching over the muscular tissue. A black slick oozes from the severed arteries and veins that feed into the disembodied organ and drip over the hands that hold it...

DFA.

"The Recipient" Copyright © 2015 Central Avenue Publishing & Hambledown Road Imprints. 

Winners Annoucement - The Recipient International Teaser Trailer Competition.

At the end of May, Central Avenue Publishing and I released the International Teaser Trailer for my forthcoming novel "The Recipient". To support the release, I kicked off a competition in which contestants could "Like" the trailer and comment on it at YouTube as well as share the trailer on Facebook and Twitter and tag me in their posts. This would put contestants in the running to win copies of the novel signed by me. 

Well, the competition has closed, the entries have been collated and I can now announce the winners of the Teaser Trailer Competition.

The winner of the signed print copy of The Recipient is - Abi Greig-Skinner (UK).

The 2nd winner of a signed digital copy of The Recipient is - Brian Ward (Australia).

The 3rd winner of a signed digital copy of The Recipient is - Jacque Quick (US). 

Congratulations!!

Winners - please contact Dean at hambledownroad (@) internode (DOT) on (DOT) net.

"The Recipient" by Dean Mayes and published by Central Avenue Publishing is set for an international release on October 25th 2015. 

DFA.

The Recipient - International Teaser Trailer.

Today, I'm pleased to present the international teaser trailer for my upcoming new novel "The Recipient" which will be hitting book shelves in October. 

May I recommend that you place a pair of headphones on and crank the volume up loud to get the full effect of the pretty kick arse audio that accompanies it. Featuring music by Aberdeen based band ElevenEleven and imagery gleaned from the evocative cover art by Michelle Halket, this exclusive sneak peek gives a tantalizing glimpse of the dark world illustrated in the novel.

To celebrate this release and because I want this trailer to get in front of as many eyes as possible,  I am going to offer 3 lucky readers the opportunity to win. Up for grabs, is a signed print copy and 2 digital copies of the The Recipient. 

To be in the running to win, what I need you to do is the following: 

1. Like the video at YouTube and comment on the video at YouTube.
2. Share the video at Facebook and Twitter and tag me in your Facebook share or Twitter share, My Twitter handle is Hambledown_Road.

This competition is open until midnight on Sunday June 7th 2015. I will announce the winner here at Dean from Australia thereafter.

Now, it doesn't matter where you are in the world, you are just as eligible for the print prize as those entrants here in Australia. I will be happy to ship you a copy to your home address. 

So, I hope you will help me out. Remember to Like, comment, share and tag me across YouTube, Facebook and Twitter to be in the running to win‬.

DFA.

Chase-ing Assassins - The Accidental Assassin by Nichole Chase.

The Accidental Assassin by Nichole Chase

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Ava McKenzie is a creature of habit. Life is passing her by and she has nothing to show for it. She’s had the same job since she started college, she orders the same dish every time she goes to her favorite restaurant, and only reads books from authors she knows. There is nothing new or surprising in her life… until her best friend marries a man from London. When her newlywed friend asks her to house-sit while she honeymoons, Ava jumps at the chance. She thinks this could be the very thing she needs to shake up her life. Ava throws herself head first into her new lifestyle; she wants to try everything, go everywhere, and never get stuck in a rut again. Of course, offing a man in a car garage hadn’t been one of the things on her list to try.

Owen Walker spends every day in a new place with a new case. As one of the most renowned assassins in the world, he has his choice of marks—and he’s never failed in a mission. When a new hit takes him back to his hometown, he looks forward to spending time somewhere familiar. What he isn’t expecting is to help an attractive, confused American woman find out how she’s ended up on a hit man’s list. 

As Ava and Owen dodge bullets, will they be able to escape their undeniable attraction to each other? Or will all of that chemistry blow up in a shower of hot and dangerous sparks?

To me, Nichole Chase has become the literary equivalent of a sure thing. As a story teller, she has consistently delivered with each title she has added to her CV. You are guaranteed an engaging and entertaining tome and you can expect that Nichole will give you something new. She does not tread the safe path nor stick to the same formula. She is a risk taker, extending herself in both genre and style and it has been meteorically successful. Having earned the rare distinction of being a New York Times best seller is testament to that.

The Accidental Assassin is testament to that also and I think it is Chase's most accomplished work to date. Part action, part thriller, Assassin takes the fish out of water scenario and offers it up anew in a frenetic chase story that evolves masterfully through the dual protagonists, Owen and Ava. Chase's grasp of action and tension is confident from the get go. The mystery and conspiracy elements unfold beautifully and keep you guessing throughout and there is a sexual energy between the two leads that burns seductively towards a satisfyingly electric, erotic encounter later in the book.

When we first meet Owen and Ava, a mutual attraction is evident but as their arcs evolve, we find a pair of characters who feel trapped in their respective existences - playing it safe by sticking to what they know. This is used as a primer that draws them towards each other and though it is a subtle thread, I found it really appealing.

One of the most effective devices Chase uses throughout the story is the first person narrative which she shares equally between Owen and Ava. By switching between the two chapter by chapter, Chase builds the narrative and drives the plot forward in a way that I found engaging. I felt invested in both of them. One could argue that this type of switching has the potential to be confusing but Chase handles it beautifully.

The Accidental Assassin ticks all the boxes for me. It's a smart and sexy thrill ride that is signature Nichole Chase and it was a pleasure to delve into.

DFA.

View all my reviews

The Recipient - Update No. 2: Revision 6.

After a while, it becomes apparent how treacherous revising and editing can be for an author. Looking at the same words on the same page in the same document over and over again can lead one towards losing perspective. The words blur into one another - as does the plot, the characters and their motivations - and you can't look at the document objectively anymore. And yet, as I've said before, this is the one part of the writing process that I profess to enjoying the most.

Draft 5 of The Recipient - the draft that went into my publisher - was returned to me a little over a fortnight ago, and I was excited (I know, right!) to see digital "sticky notes" plastered all over it from my Vancouver based publisher, Central Avenue. In short, while there was a lot of work to do on the manuscript structurally, the core story was sound and the characters were well cast. 

Over a couple of video conferences, Michelle and I discussed the notes, numerous minor tweaks to the manuscript and a couple of more significant ones and in the course of those discussions, she really helped to defragment my objective software and reboot my system. The subsequent round of revisions - which I've dubbed Revision 6 - allowed me to approach the manuscript with fresh eyes.

image credit alittlepieceofeverything.

So often, we write in isolation, without anyone to bounce ideas off. The first stage of my edits involving my beta readers was a great first step in getting a feel from a set of readers who came to the story cold. Their individual suggestions and comments helped me to refine the story, address glaring plot holes and gauge their reaction. But it was only the first step in the journey. Before long, I found myself back in the place where I was struggling with my objectivity. The process I am in now with my publisher Michelle has been my savior. With Michelle's astute eye for both the technical and literary aspects of story telling, I am in a space that is much more focused and I am relishing it. 

Late last week, Revision 6 went in for review by Michelle and the editing team. I feel confident that the story is pretty much perfect. Now, the polishing process begins. We'll go line by line, ensuring that we've eliminated any and all grammatical errors and we'll review the document after that to make sure that there isn't anything else to add or subtract. 

We've also begun to discuss the cover art for the novel. While these discussions are at their very early stages, we've already hit upon some ideas that really excite us. The eventual design will help guide the marketing effort we plan for the book.

So there is a lot happening, even if it doesn't seem like a lot is happening.

Stay tuned. 

DFA.