The second Gothika anthology is coming out today! This one is called Bones, and it features stories by Eli Easton, B.G. Thomas, Kim Fielding, and me, all based around the theme of voodoo.
Bones is 25% off from now until October 31st!
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5564
My story is called The Book of St. Cyprian and it’s a contemporary, somewhat lighthearted story about two teenage boys who bite off a little more than they can chew. The tone of this story is pretty much YA, so don’t expect lots of raunchy sex. Expect a horror story with a thread of sweet romance running through it.
Alejandro is the grandson of an old woman who runs a botanica—a shop that sells herbs, powders, and religious/magical supplies—in a largely Latino neighborhood in Manchester, NH. When his grandmother (whom he calls “Abuela” (“grandmother”)) sends him to New Orleans, where a friend has recently passed away, he rescues a number of items from the man’s botanica there to send back home.
One of the items he uncovers is a copy of El Gran Libro de San Cipriano—”The Great Book of St. Cyprian.” An old book of black magic, it was rumored to contain so much evil that to merely touch it endangered one’s soul. According to magical tradition, the book is sealed in a wooden box wrapped in a chain and padlocked shut.
Alejandro knows Abuela would never allow the book to be in her shop, or even in her home, so he sends it to his friend Matthew for safekeeping.
Matthew isn’t Latino, but he’s been living in the neighborhood since he was thirteen, and he and Alejandro are best friends. They would both like to be more than best friends, and that wouldn’t seem like much of a problem, since they’ve been out to each other for years. But it’s a big step to take, and one that has the potential to destroy their friendship.
So they just stay… friends….
Things come to a head when Matthew’s beloved pit bull pup, Spartacus, chews his way through the package Alejandro entrusted to his friend, unleashing a dark spirit that takes control of the animal.
At this point, I would like to assure everyone that I adore all dogs, including pit bulls. Spartacus is loosely based upon my friend Carmella’s pit bull, Neela, who is extremely mellow and affectionate. So this isn’t a story about how evil pit bulls are. It’s a story about how Alejandro and Matthew work together to save their little buddy.
Oh… and it’s also about how Abuela is not particularly amused by this mess her grandson caused.
Not at all….
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