Hello blog friends. I've a treat for you. It's my pleasure to welcome colleague and award-winning author Mae Clair to my site today. Mae is one of the founders of Story Empire, a writers' organization of which I'm proud to be a member.
Her latest book, Things Old and Forgotten, just hit the Amazon shelves, and all who have read it trumpet its creative genius. I've almost finished the collection of stories, and I'm in awe. I think you will be as well.
Let's hear from Mae.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Her latest book, Things Old and Forgotten, just hit the Amazon shelves, and all who have read it trumpet its creative genius. I've almost finished the collection of stories, and I'm in awe. I think you will be as well.
Let's hear from Mae.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Hi, Gwen. Thanks for hosting me today and allowing me to share my newest release with your readers. Things Old and Forgotten is a collection of short fiction that includes stories in several genres—magical realism, fantasy, speculative, even two that touch on mild horror.
Resurrecting Merlin, one of the stories I’ve included has been rambling around in my head for decades. In various ways it’s influenced some of my longer works, including my current WIP. A story of brothers with a toxic bond, it’s the tale of a man unable to let go of the past or the brother he both loathed and adored. In the excerpt below Alec is speaking to an otherworldly confessor. The first section is set in the present, the second is a memory from his past.
EXCERPT:
“When did Sebastian die?” The phantom shifted, stirring the reek of the Netherworld to life.
“I can’t remember.” Alec glanced away, dropping to a seat at the lip of the cave. The .38 dangled from his limp fingers.
“Did you kill him?”
The question opened something black and unholy. He lurched to his feet. “I promised we’d never be separated.” His voice was shrill, combative. He shrank from the tone, confused by the lash of words. “I didn’t kill him.” His gaze strayed to the revolver in his hand, and he blanched. With a curse, he sent it spinning end over end into a tangle of briars. “I didn’t kill him.”
****
The dark-haired boy approaches the coffin. The face framed by white satin is smooth and serene, an angel’s visage graced by a halo of golden hair. The boy hesitates, staring at the face of his brother, the face of his Merlin. He shuffles past, ushered forward by an aunt he hasn’t seen in three years and a cousin he never knew he had. His mother sobs into a lavender handkerchief, streaked black with mascara. He marvels that he should notice this as he takes a seat away from the others. His feet swing above the floor, barely touching.
“Poor child.” His uncle whispers to a woman with auburn hair. “They say he fell from a tree-fort, playing with his brother.”
The dark-haired boy bows his head, secreting a smile. He remembers how thrilling it felt to be the aggressor. How exhilarating to shove Sebastian to the ground. He is thinking of Merlin and trolls when Sebastian’s voice sidles into his head.
“I’m coming back for you, Alec. You swore an oath. You said we’d always be together.”
He lurches to his feet, but no one notices his distress. Hushed conversation continues around him. Jittery, he funnels through the crowd, winding his way to the casket. It is only cold flesh that greets him when he beholds his brother’s still form.
And yet the voice returns, creaking like a rusty seesaw.
“You swore an oath.”
EXCERPT:
“When did Sebastian die?” The phantom shifted, stirring the reek of the Netherworld to life.
“I can’t remember.” Alec glanced away, dropping to a seat at the lip of the cave. The .38 dangled from his limp fingers.
“Did you kill him?”
The question opened something black and unholy. He lurched to his feet. “I promised we’d never be separated.” His voice was shrill, combative. He shrank from the tone, confused by the lash of words. “I didn’t kill him.” His gaze strayed to the revolver in his hand, and he blanched. With a curse, he sent it spinning end over end into a tangle of briars. “I didn’t kill him.”
****
The dark-haired boy approaches the coffin. The face framed by white satin is smooth and serene, an angel’s visage graced by a halo of golden hair. The boy hesitates, staring at the face of his brother, the face of his Merlin. He shuffles past, ushered forward by an aunt he hasn’t seen in three years and a cousin he never knew he had. His mother sobs into a lavender handkerchief, streaked black with mascara. He marvels that he should notice this as he takes a seat away from the others. His feet swing above the floor, barely touching.
“Poor child.” His uncle whispers to a woman with auburn hair. “They say he fell from a tree-fort, playing with his brother.”
The dark-haired boy bows his head, secreting a smile. He remembers how thrilling it felt to be the aggressor. How exhilarating to shove Sebastian to the ground. He is thinking of Merlin and trolls when Sebastian’s voice sidles into his head.
“I’m coming back for you, Alec. You swore an oath. You said we’d always be together.”
He lurches to his feet, but no one notices his distress. Hushed conversation continues around him. Jittery, he funnels through the crowd, winding his way to the casket. It is only cold flesh that greets him when he beholds his brother’s still form.
And yet the voice returns, creaking like a rusty seesaw.
“You swore an oath.”
BOOK BLURB:
A man keeping King Arthur’s dream of Camelot alive.
A Robin Hood battling in a drastically different Sherwood.
A young man facing eternity in the desert.
A genteel southern lady besting a powerful order of genies.
A woman meeting her father decades after his death.
These are but a few of the intriguing tales waiting to be discovered in Things Old and Forgotten. Prepare to be transported to realms of folklore and legend, where magic and wonder linger around every corner, and fantastic possibilities are limited only by imagination.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Thanks again for hosting me today, Gwen. In honor of my love for autumn—a fantastic time to curl up with a book--Things Old and Forgotten will be on sale for .99c through October 31st.
PURCHASE LINKS: Amazon US Amazon UK
Connect with Mae Clair at BOOKBUB and the following haunts:
Amazon| Amazon UK| BookBub| Newsletter Sign-Up
Website | Blog| Twitter| Goodreads| All Social Media
A man keeping King Arthur’s dream of Camelot alive.
A Robin Hood battling in a drastically different Sherwood.
A young man facing eternity in the desert.
A genteel southern lady besting a powerful order of genies.
A woman meeting her father decades after his death.
These are but a few of the intriguing tales waiting to be discovered in Things Old and Forgotten. Prepare to be transported to realms of folklore and legend, where magic and wonder linger around every corner, and fantastic possibilities are limited only by imagination.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Thanks again for hosting me today, Gwen. In honor of my love for autumn—a fantastic time to curl up with a book--Things Old and Forgotten will be on sale for .99c through October 31st.
PURCHASE LINKS: Amazon US Amazon UK
Connect with Mae Clair at BOOKBUB and the following haunts:
Amazon| Amazon UK| BookBub| Newsletter Sign-Up
Website | Blog| Twitter| Goodreads| All Social Media
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