Sunday, 17 February 2019

Paperback book


Just a quick announcement of the availability of the paperback version of the Hyperian novella : - Night Hunters.  I have also included the three short stories of: -
       
The Chase
The Mechanic's of Love and
Pangs of Hunger


The book can be purchased from Amazon. UK and will be made available on other Amazon platforms in the next few days.








https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1796851779






Tuesday, 9 October 2018

It's Been A Long Time

   It's been a long time since my last post. In fact, it has been exactly three years. I had no intention of it been so long, but, unfortunately, long term illness have been plaguing my life and had made it nigh on impossible for be to do the simplest of things.

   However, I am now almost 75% recovered and am doing all that I can to reinstate not just my writing, but also my blog

Monday, 24 August 2015

Slow Writing

All writers know that feeling when the have not only a great idea, but a great scene for a book they are writing, but, by the time they are in front of the PC, the idea/scene seems to be playing hide and seek with them. So utterly frustrating. Anyway, I'm in the process of writing two books at the same time, to try to stave off writer's block, but life keeps on getting in the way of my writing.

So far, I've written over 100,000 words to the first of a trilogy of novels I plan to publish (entitled: Never Too Late), but the story seems to not want to be written. Just 5-6 more chapters and I should be done with that one. The ideas for the other two are running around in my head screaming to be written, but, Christopher and Denise are taking their time in coming together. Hopefully, I should be able to whip them into shape soon.

As for ShaRone (Hyperian series) and her mysterious alien, I am still in the beginning stage of their story. She is one kick arse heroine with a soft side under all of that outer hardness: just like a hard candy with a soft sweet gooey melt in the mouth center. Can't wait for her to fully materialised on the virtual pages of my PC.

Saturday, 22 August 2015

Night Hunters - A Hyperian Novella

                                                          


                                                     Excerpt




The front door of the house opened and a man walked out of it, followed by a woman. He walked to the edge of the porch and leant against the railing as he surveyed the land surrounding the house. He was looking off into the distance as though he was trying to see something that was hidden from view.
He felt the touch of the woman’s hand as she laid it on his back; she then slid it down to move around his waist as she moved to stand to the left of him. She leant her head on his shoulder letting out a sigh of contentment as she made herself comfortable in her spot by his side.
Turning his head, he kissed her on her head, before turning back to continue his perusal of the environment. The view was having a peaceful effect on him as it reminded him slightly of his home. Soon, after leaving this location, he would be returning to his home with the woman who was currently at his side. Although she was different to the type of women he had being used to, based on where he had grown up, he knew that she would not have to worry about feeling unwelcome in his home once she returned with him.
‘Do you think that they have landed yet?’ she asked him, with her head still on his shoulder, interrupting his perusal of the environment.
‘Yes, they landed about an hour ago,’ he informed her.
‘How do you know that? I did not hear the phone ringing’
‘Mikel contacted me as soon as they cleared customs.’
‘Oh I always forget about that, your secret communication systems.’
‘Yes you always do,’ was the man’s indulgent respond to her statement. ‘Anyway, he said that he and the others should be here in the next two to three hours and it has been almost an hour since he contacted me, so they should be here in the next couple of hours or so. If it is not too much trouble, I would like you to prepare for their arrival.’
‘Do you know how many others are coming with him?’
‘He said that he brought four others with him.’
‘Do I know any of them?’
‘You have met two of them, but I am not sure if they remember you and the other two have been around, but you have not had the chance to meet them yet.’
Turning so that she was now facing him, ‘do you think that will pose any problem for them or me?’ she asked him.
‘Not if they valued their lives,’ was his calm, but deadly response as he kissed her gently on her lips. That action was such a contradiction to the hardening of his eyes as he spoke about their impending visitors that if she had not been so sure of his feelings towards her, the woman might have had second or third thoughts about being with him.
Letting out a sigh of contentment, she snuggled deeper into his embrace, ‘I’ll make sure everything is ready by the time they get here,’ she told him.
‘Thank you for that’ was his grateful response, ‘but, there is no need for you to put yourself out for their visit tonight,’
‘I know, but I want to welcome them anyway,’ she told him, ‘I want them to know that even if they do not accept me, I know how to welcome guests to our home.’
After considering her statement for a while, he nodded his head, ‘I understand now,’ he conceded, ‘if you are to have their loyalty, you have to let them know that in your home you are in charge.’
‘Yes, that’s why I want to get things ready for their arrival.’
‘Ok, do what you feel is necessary.’
‘Don’t you worry, I will,’ she assured him.
With that, they both continued to survey the peacefulness of the land that surrounded the property. The woman was not sure about the man standing at her side, but she knew that there was some anxiety in her about meeting the as yet unknown visitors that were right now on their way to their location. Even though her current position deemed that she should not have any worries, it did not preclude her from being anxious nonetheless.
As though the man knew that she was still experiencing some anxiety despite his reassurance, he pulled her even closer to his side. ‘I can feel your anxiety,’ he revealed, letting her know that he was in tuned to her mood, ‘There is no need for you to worry, be assured that I will not let anything happen to you,’ he reassured her, trying to soothed her nerves.
‘I know that,’ she responded, unable to keep the anxiety out of her voice. ‘But it still does not stop me from worrying. I want everything to be right for you, as what I do and say is a direct reflection on you and what your people will think about the choice that you have made.’
‘I know you do not fully understand, but apart one that you have yet to meet, no-one can tell me that by choosing you, I have made a wrong choice,’ he reassured her once again.
She did not quite understand what he meant by that statement, but felt that he must know what his people would say about her, so she decided to try to put her anxiety aside for the time being, until she meets their impending guests; then she would see if what he has told her is the truth.
‘Alright then, I will try not to worry too much about our guests not liking me,’ she capitulated, before snuggling deeper into her place at his side.
He did not respond in word to her concession, but rather made a sound in his throat as though agreeing with her.





Chapter 1

Heart pounding in her chest, Eve Simpson ran. Each step she took was into the unknown as, apart from the moonlight, there were no other discernible lights to light her pathway. Unfortunately for her, said moon was now obscured by a dark cloud which had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
Running as fast as she could in the terrain, with every step of the way was becoming an ordeal for her as either her tee shirt was snagged by an unseen branch, or she stepped on a stone that she could not see. Although, she was wearing her trainers, it did not have a solid enough traction, or sole to protect her feet from the boulder like stones that she stepped on as she tried to make her way to safety.
Her breathing was becoming more laboured the longer Eve ran. She was also getting stitches in her sides from her prolonged dashed to safety. Right at this moment, Eve did not know why she had decided to wonder so far from safety, but, the night had been so beautiful when she had left the house that she had lost track of time and of where she was.
She had been wondering in the mountains, climbing higher and higher, lost in her thoughts as she admired the beauty of her surrounding with the sounds of the night creatures as company; when suddenly, she heard a noise that was completely different to the noises that she had become used to in all of her weeks in her family home. At first, she had ignored the sounds thinking that it might have been the day creatures settling down for the night; as she herself should have been, instead of wondering about in an unknown terrain.
Ignoring the unusual sounds, Eve had kept on walking and exploring the area as she went. It was not long after hearing the unusual sounds that she realised that she was hopelessly lost. It was around the same time that she realised that she had picked up some unwelcome visitors. That was when panic had set in. Immediately, Eve wanted to go home, but was unclear as to exactly which home it was that she wanted to go back to. Did she want to go back to her home in England, or did she want to go back to the family home that she was currently staying in whilst she was here in Jamaica.
If only there were some street lights around to enable her to see more clearly or even pavements, then she would have been able to move around more freely. Unfortunately for her, that was not the case here. This was Jamaica and not England. To make matters worse, she was not even in one of the major cities or towns; no she had to have families who come from the middle of nowhere with hills, mountains and more trees than humans and maybe animals put together.
The fact that there were no lights or pavements meant that there was also no paved roads anywhere in the locale, all there was were dirt roads and tracks for the residents of the area. Here, there was only the moonlight available to light her path as she tried to find her way back to her family home. If only she had kept to the tracks, she might have been able to find her way back, but no, she had to be even more adventurous and step off the tracks in a bid to explore the interior of the trees.
Eve wished that it was the middle of the day, as trekking through the woods would not have posed a problem to her, as she would have had daylight to find her way back to the route she had originally taken to get back to where she had stepped off into the forest. By leaving the house so late in the night, Eve now knew that what amounts to an enormous mistake had been made on her part. As she tried to find her way back, Eve was beginning to wonder why she had thought that it was a good thing to venture out in the first place.
‘Why did I have to leave the safety of the house?’ Eve asked herself as she once again tripped over an unseen tree root. ‘Great! Just great! Now I’m talking to myself .Just goes to prove that I have officially lost my mind.’
She had decided to go out for a late night stroll ,just as she had done in the last few days, ever since she had been at the house. Even though she knew that it might not be safe to do so, the need to leave the house was too much for her to ignore, so she gave in to in to the urge for a late night walk.
Eve did not like to be cooped up after spending a couple of years in a mental institution where everyone though that she was mad. It was only after certain things came to light that they realised that she was not mad at all; she had just being one of the few people to realise what was going on.
Did any of those know it all jerks apologised to me? NOOO!!! All they did was released me with a “we hope that your stay here did not disrupt your life too much,” like they cared anything about me anyway, Eve thought as she dashed through the woods.
Now here she was; in the place of her ancestors breathing the same air that they had breathed before leaving it for greener pastures. The land that they own before their exodus had been left behind, but not sold off. It was still a fruitful place where one could come to relax and feel at one with nature away from the modernity of life.
When she originally came to the family home, it was with the thought of getting away from England and all that it entails. From her first day at the house which - over time had been expanded to a modern four bedroom house with funds from family who were living in England, - Eve thought that it would be an ideal place for her to stay in order to not just recuperate, but to put things into perspective and plan her future. Being that the house was situated in a location that made it almost impossible for the normal utilities to become part of the structure of the house; Eve was happy for the seclusion that it afforded her.
However, recently, the overall look of the house had been amended due to changes that had taken place in her life. They now have portable utilities that made living in the house much more comfortable. All she had to do was stay in the safety of the newly modernised house rather than be out in the wilds of Jamaica.
This is what you get just because you had to have a last walk before going to bed, Eve chided herself.
Hearing a noise that was completely different to those that she had become used to hearing since the start of her adventure, Eve came to a sudden stop. With a pounding heart, Eve stood still, as she tried to gauge the direction that the sounds were coming from. It was not clear to Eve the type of creature that was making the sound, but one thing was clear to her; it was not a small one. Eve was unsure as to whether or not there were wild boars or pigs in Jamaica because she was sure that whatever it was it definitely was not a small creature.
Even if it is a creature of the porcine variety, shouldn’t they be fast asleep this time of night and not wondering about like I am? Eve wondered to herself.
Realising that it might not be safe for her to keep standing in the same place for long, Eve resumed walking. Continuing in the direction that she had been heading, Eve hoped with each step that she took that she was not heading towards the creatures that were in the woods with her. At first, she thought that it might have only being one creature in the woods with her, but after listening intently for a while she came to the realisation that there were a number of them out there and that they were definitely tracking and keeping pace with her.
Knowing that there were unknown wild animals following her, only served to ratchet Eve’s fear level even higher than it already was. Now there was no doubt in Eve’s mind that she had to find a way to get back to the house in one piece without becoming the late night snack for whatever it was that was prowling about in the bushes stalking her. In her panic, Eve rushed ahead whilst looking everywhere, but in front of hers.
SMACK!!!
‘OW. Oh you’ve got to be kidding me,’ Eve groaned as she held on to her face upon realising that she had run into a tree. He groan of pain was promptly followed by a string of curses as she moved around in a circle trying to alleviate the pain in her face.
All she could feel was a wall of pain in her face and head, causing her to rest her butt on the trunk of the same tree that she ran into. Eve tried to regain her senses by shaking her head to stop the ringing in her ear as well as the bright lights from dancing in her eyes. Lights that she knew were impossible because it was still dark. With her back resting on the trunk of the very large tree, Eve used one of her hands to rub the side of her head and ear to help dissipate the effect of her run in with said tree.
Once she could see again clearly without the dancing lights Eve took a stock of herself to see if she had sustained any serious damage. She had hit the tree with such force that she was slightly surprised that she had not knocked herself out accidentally. Even though her ears were still ringing and she was still feeling slightly out of it, Eve knew that she could not remain in the same place for long, otherwise she would be making herself an easy target to whatever it was that was in the woods stalking her.
Feeling slightly disorientated as she pushed herself away from the trunk of the tree, Eve started walking, well more like stumble in the direction which she thought would lead her back home, this time, taking care that she did not walk into any other immovable objects.
Stumbling along, Eve was determined not to let the situation get the best of her as she tried to make her way to the safety of the house. She remembered walking further up the hill away from the house before branching off to her left, so that mean she would have to reverse her direction to get back on the right path; if only she could work out which direction to go in.
As she walked Eve swiped at her face trying to remove the trickle of sweat that was running down the side of her face, as well as debris from her run in with the tree.

Please don’t let it be blood, was her fearful thought. The last thing she wanted was to be leaving a trail of blood for whatever animal that was following her to track her by.


Wednesday, 12 August 2015

Is Z Nation a challenge for The Walking Dead?

I've just seen the latest episode of Z Nation and I am not sure if it could prove to be a serious challenge for The Walking Dead; even if the whole series is based on a story line in The Walking Dead. Then again, I might not be giving it much of a chance to really show us what it is all about; considering that I've only seen the first four episodes of S1.

Even so, I think that there is an even better series of books in that genre that would do well if translated to the small screen. It's a series called Living With the Dead by Joshua Guess. The books are written in blog format, which is a step away from the standard novel format. The author made himself, his friends and family the central characters in the series in order I suppose to give it a more story a more visceral impact, or an empathetic feelings from the readers, as well as drawing them in to the lives of the characters. The characters in the series are not waiting for someone to save them, but decides to save themselves and any others who was willing to try to rebuild some form of society in the midst of the apocalypse.

As in any good books and even bad ones, there are betrayals, near starvation, extraordinary feats of bravery, love, friendship and obviously death. It also has the standard format of seeing people for exactly who they are as they respond to the nightmarish situation that they found themselves in. To me, I think this series and its spin off books are one of the better stories that I have read in this genre.

Monday, 10 August 2015

My Books available on Smashwords

Hiya, Sorry to all of you who have stumbled across my page and have not encountered any new updated. I finally decided to put up the link to my Smashwords web page of some short books that I have written thus far. Apologies if there are too many grammatical errors in my writings, but as of yet I am without an editor, but I try my best to edit and clean up my writings to the best of my abilities. As such, I would be appreciative of any views, comments or critiques you might feel my writing requires.




https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/AdinaStevens

Monday, 26 January 2015

The Fast and the Furious

I am sure that I am not the only one who is a fan of The Fast and the Furious franchise, but I bet that most people did not know that it a remake of a old Hollywood movie of the same name.

I did not, but I do now as right at this second as I type, I am watching the original 1955 black and white version of said film, staring John Ireland (who was one of the directors), Dorothy Malone and Bruce Carlisle.

In one of my yet to be published book (Never too Late), my heroine is a fan of action movies and can recount the original films to current movies.

With that said, I have always wondered if we are suffering a dearth of ideas in this modern times if all we are doing is rehashing old ideas and formulas.

Just thought that I would put that out there to any interested parties.