Hello friends and fans!
Welcome to my 20th newsletter: August 2018! Coming up in this edition of Another Round @ The Crow Bar:
Regular updates, new releases, and a monthly spotlight on one of my books, this time, the new release of “Dead Beckoning“.
Hello!
I’ve been keeping busy with a few things in the past couple of months, including completing and releasing “Lange’s Legacy” – book 4 in the Galaxii Series (released on July 13) and since then, another project I’ll be telling you about later in this newsletter – look under the “new videos” section for more about that!
As I mentioned last time, MoboReader, a Chinese company that deals with ebook distribution, approached me in June with a request to list my e-titles. I agreed, hoping that this should expand my reach somewhat, and signed a contract with them. I’m curious to see what effect this will have on my sales, if any – which is also why I also made all four books in the Galaxii Series available via Smashwords. So far it hasn’t been very encouraging, since I haven’t seen any notice of sales via these two channels, at least not yet.
The long-awaited fourth title in the Galaxii Series, “Lange’s Legacy” was released via Lulu to Amazon and everywhere else on July 13, 2018. This book features brand new illustrations, and there’s also a book trailer video.
I’ve also been working on book 5 in that series, “Where Darkness Softly Treads”, but I’m still not sure how long that’s going to take me *wink*. I’ll keep on plugging away at it, and keep you posted!
This time, under new releases, I’ll be telling you about “Lange’s Legacy”.
On with the show!
New Releases
“Lange’s Legacy” “Lange’s Legacy” is a story about Sean Lange, a man who works on a huge star-liner as chief of security. It’s a monotonous routine job, and with around 3000 guests and 1500 crew to look after, there’s no rest for the wicked. Space travel is pretty exciting, as he would tell you – which only means you get to see your life flash before your eyes several times a day – but can’t hear much dialog over the sound of your own screaming.
The disappearance of the Red Star Liner “Demeter” becomes one of the great unsolved mysteries of commercial deep-space travel, until one day, a military ship on patrol spots an object drifting in space – which turns out to be a shuttle from the long-lost mystery ship, Demeter. They find a body onboard – a body clutching a very long letter…
“Lange’s Legacy” is the fourth title in the Galaxii Series by Christina Engela.
Back Cover:
“My name is Sean Lange, and you will probably never have heard of me. I always wanted to leave some kind of a legacy in this life, and perhaps to be remembered in a good way. Instead, circumstances have arranged it so that this is probably the last time I will ever use that name, and it probably won’t be remembered very kindly.
By now you will have noticed the name and registration of the shuttle. Demeter. I’m sure when you run it through the interweb, or if you’re from a military ship, through your own database – you’ll see that you’ve stumbled across a relic of one of those great mysteries of deep space, and probably one of those missing ships people like to write spooky stories about. Well, whatever they wrote, buddy, they got it quite wrong. You can take it from me. I was the chief of security on that civilian behemoth, and I saw it all go down. Hell, I was right in the center of it.
‘Paradise between the planets’, they called it. Most of the time, that’s how it was. But not this time. On the last voyage of the Demeter – a deep space star-liner with the Red Star Line, passengers and crew got more than they bargained for. Way more.”
Christina Engela is that rarest of authors – able to seamlessly blend together elements of dark horror and sci-fi to create stories that will stay with you long after the last page has been turned.” – Mark Woods, author of Time of Tides and Fear of the Dark.
Order: Paperback (Lulu) / eBook (Lulu) / eBook (Smashwords)
[UPDATE 20190825 – “Lange’s Legacy” (formerly a short story called “Space Vacation”) was discontinued and then moved into “Life Signs” as part 2 of the second new volume of Panic! Horror In Space.]
Currently Available Titles:
The Galaxii Series
https://youtu.be/OGcxZpVAV7U
The Quantum Series
About The Quantum Series will give you more background about the series, its settings and characters. To get a better idea of what the latest two titles are about, read What Readers Can Expect In “Prodigal Sun”, “High Steaks”, “Fortitude” & “The Last Hurrah”.
Work on the next four titles in this series, (“Underground Movement”, “Moon Jockeys”, “Fortitude” and “The Last Hurrah”) is still pending at this time.
Panic! Horror In Space
Panic! is a sci-fi/horror series, which will have some decidedly sci-fi characters encountering some decidedly horror entities – ghosts, haunted objects, zombies, etc. along with my usual twisted brand of humor! The first three titles are available in paperback and ebook versions on various distribution platforms including Amazon and Lulu.
For Children
Non-Fiction
Edited By Christina Engela
Afrikaans Titles
Some of my titles have been translated into Afrikaans – but as you could imagine, it’s a full-time job – and when you use translation software “sickbay” comes out as “Telaxian stoofpot” instead of “siekeboeg” – so you could imagine!
On A Personal Note
- Fan Mail & Honorable Mentions
Noticed in the past month by my shiny new wife and PA, Wendy K. Engela, ( 😉 ) were the following honorable mentions:
- In July, I had an awesome interview with the folks from “Awesome Gang – where awesome book readers meet awesome writers”. 🙂
I display my Fan Mail & Compliments with pride, gratitude and humility. You are always welcome to have a look.
- Hate Mail & Horrible Mentions
The past month was (another) rather quiet on the hate mail front. (What am I doing wrong?) I’m sad to say I have nothing new to show you this time! (I may have something to show you next time though!)
(I’m rather proud of my hate mail, and you can review it here – but be forewarned, don’t do it while eating or drinking or you might choke while laughing at it!)
- Interviews
In July, I had an awesome interview with the folks from “Awesome Gang – where awesome book readers meet awesome writers”.
If you would like to do an interview with me about my works, please do get in touch!
- New Videos
Have a look at my videos on my Video Channel for book trailer videos, interesting snippets, and other information.
A new video is on its way, based on my short story “Innocent Minds” – or rather on the little story inside that story called “Bang! Splat!” This will be a short animated film, entitled “Bang! Splat!”, with narrative by Morne’ Condon, and some really awesome sound effects! The video and effects parts are already done, pending final edits – and even without the narrative track, it’s already enough to leave me in stitches. No, really. More details about this video next time.
- New Listings
As you can see below, my books now seem to be listed just about everywhere!
CHRISTINA WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU! A few nice words go a long way! Please leave your REVIEWS on Academia.edu, Amazon, Anobii, Apple iTunes, Barnes & Noble, Bol, Book Depository, Dilmot eBookMall, FictionDB, Fnac, Foyles, Goodreads, !Indigo, Kobo , Lulu, Lybrary, MoboReader, Nook, Smashwords, Takealot, 24 Symbols – or wherever you see Christina’s books – or just send her an email via the Contact form!
Support The Author
Although most titles listed are available in paperback and/or ebook formats through most online retailers internationally, Christina prefers readers make their purchases via Lulu. This is because while all retailers charge the same price to YOU the reader, Lulu gives the author the largest portion of the proceeds from your purchase.
Monthly Book Spotlight [Spoiler Alert]: “Dead Beckoning“
“Dead Beckoning” is the tale of Adam – a former Corsair working to expunge his bloody past by doing good… Starting with helping the imperial star ship Antares to track down and capture one of the most powerful and feared Corsairs in legend: Sona Kilroy… aka The Hammer.
The terror of the marauding Corsairs was supposed to be over, but it wasn’t. Not just yet.
Like every warrior who leaves home to go to war, Adam hopes to return to the arms of his love – but Adam isn’t exactly a soldier, and Marsha… well, Marsha isn’t exactly standard spec either… but if he did return, he hoped to return to her.
“Dead Beckoning” is the third title in the Galaxii Series by Christina Engela.
Details:
- Published: Second Edition, June 12, 2018
- Pages: 158
- Words: 51,980 (Flowing Text eBook)
- Binding: Perfect-bound Paperback
- Dimensions (inches): 6×9″ tall (US Trade)
https://youtu.be/8SDMZWwBCU0
Back Cover:
“Meradinis! The stuff of myths and legends! The Turtle Island of the stars – home planet to the fearsome Corsairs – the terrors of the black, the monsters in Human form who killed innocents and waged a campaign of terror against the colonies for nearly a century! Then the day came when the Corsairs luck finally ran out…
The Battle of Turtle Island darkened the skies with the dead. After nearly two days of fierce fighting, the Terrans finally had their venomous, defeated foe cornered in its own den. In orbit, where the battle was fought, the remnants of the once feared predatory Black Fleet drifted, blazing, while the Corsair civilization below breathed its last.
But not all the great Corsairs of legend had been captured. Some – including one Sona Kilroy – the most dangerous of them all – had slipped the Terran’s net, and threatened to rebuild the Corsair menace. It was up to Mykl d’Angelo, captain of the Antares, and a mystery-man called Adam, to stop him.”
“Engela’s eye for the quirky humor of even the darkest situations sets her writing apart from the masses. Her fiction combines oddball humor, in the tradition of writers like Terry Pratchett and Douglas Adams, with the best of traditional science fiction.” – Sarah Rutledge Fischer, Focus Mid-South Magazine.”
CHRISTINA WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU! A few nice words go a long way! Please leave your REVIEWS on Amazon, Anobii, Apple iTunes, Barnes & Noble, Bol, Book Depository, eBookMall, FictionDB, Fnac, Foyles, Goodreads, !Indigo, Kobo , Lulu, Lybrary, Nook, Smashwords, Takealot, 24 Symbols – or wherever you see Christina’s books – or just send her an email via the Contact form!
Synopsis:
[Spoiler Alert]
“Dead Beckoning” is the third title in the Galaxii Series, a saga set in a distant future.
Sona Kilroy is the one that got away – a Corsair – but not just any old space pirate – the most cunning, vicious and dangerous of them all – Sona Kilroy, ‘The Hammer’ – former Admiral of the Black Fleet and brother of the Patron of the Black Palace!
Having survived the Terran invasion of the Corsair home world and the fall of Meradinis, and escaped the full might of the assembled Terran Space Fleet, Kilroy has done the seemingly impossible – he captured the very same Terran warship sent to capture him! Now, using the Indomitable, he has set about gathering Corsair stragglers and rebuilding the Corsair culture on another world in the dark depths of the Omegan Quadrant, from where he threatens to wreak piratical vengeance upon every Terran colonist in deep space – and further, he’s put a bounty on the head of his former colleague Blachart’s for good measure!
Nearly four months later, the Terran Space Fleet discovers what Kilroy has been up to when a small surveillance base in an asteroid field is destroyed, and hastily charges the crews of the Antares and the Mordrake, two very experienced ships, with the task of bringing Kilroy to heel. For Captain Joe Lofflin of the Mordrake, it’s a chance to get back into the swing of things after a three month shore leave on Tremaine following serious repairs for his ship. For Mykl d’Angelo, Captain of the Antares, dealing with Corsairs is not a safe bet without the assistance of someone who knows Corsairs – and Kilroy intimately, so his first goal is to find and recruit the man formerly known as Blachart the Bloody.
Blachart is a reformed Corsair who, while making the most of his new Terran pardon – and going by the name Adam – has only just begun to forge a relationship with Marsha, a girl who came to the fringe to make a fresh start, and to get away from her former male past. For Marsha, life out on the fringe is definitely not what she expected, and for her, having met someone she can finally feel safe and open with is a relief met with the counter-weight of risk to her safety by whatever it is this man has got himself into.
Adam is found on the barely-established new Terran colony of Caries, and recruited by Mykl d’Angelo – the closest thing Adam has to a friend in the universe – to join their task force to help them hunt down Kilroy, to end the threat of Corsairs once and for all, and to put an end to the bounty on his life. They embark on a wild adventure to find, capture or end Kilroy – before it’s too late! This leads to the Second Battle of Turtle Island, and a climactic confrontation between the forces of good and evil, while the fate of the civilized galaxy hangs in the balance.
https://youtu.be/ehLnnSPN5oc
https://youtu.be/RPq2taAiQdw
This is the third episode in the Galaxii Series, consisting of “Blachart“, “Demonspawn” and “Dead Beckoning“.
Summary:
This is the third book in the Galaxii Series, packed with comedy, suspense and action, and tells the tale of Adam – a former Corsair working to expunge his bloody past by doing good… Starting with helping Mykl d’Angelo – captain of the imperial star ship Antares to track down and capture one of the most powerful and feared Corsairs in legend: Sona Kilroy… aka The Hammer.
Reviews:
One Of The Best Voices In Sci-fi Right Now
“Quite simply, Christina Engela is one of the best voices in sci-fi right now and to not read her work would be to miss a treat!
If you like classic space opera with an ultra-modern twist, you should check her out. Having read previews of her forthcoming work [Dead Beckoning], I can guarantee you the best is yet to come…” – Mark Woods, author of ‘Fear of the Dark’ and ‘Time of Tides’
Author Questions:
1) In Dead Beckoning you bring Mykl d’Angelo and Blachart the Corsair back together again as a team; what is the nature of their relationship?
Mykl and Blachart started out in “Blachart” as adversaries, but by the end of that story they were already friends. Their initial adventure concluded, Blachart went on his way to try and make a fresh start in life, traveling, trying to leave his Corsair past behind him as ‘Adam’.
Blachart is found on a small fringe colony, trying hard to make the most of his Imperial pardon, and experimenting with alternate identity… He has been living under assumed names for so long, this man of mystery can barely remember his original names… if at all. The new freedom given him by his pardon is balanced out by the price on his head, offered by his former masters who had fled Meradinis.
In “Dead Beckoning”, Blachart is re-introduced as a ‘special consultant’ engaged to assist the Space Fleet in hunting down Sona Kilroy. They pick up the the threads of their friendship, and build on it, learning to trust each other further.
2) Tell us more about the character of Marsha. Who is she, what is she, and what part does she she play in relation to the character of Blachart?
Marsha is a girl who came to the fringe to make a fresh start, and to get away from her former male past. Life on the fringe is definitely not what she expected, and for her, having met someone she can finally feel safe and open with is a relief met with the counter-weight of risk to her safety by whatever it is her love interest Adam/’Blachart’ has got himself into.
Adam finds himself fighting off would-be Corsair assassins working to track him down to earn the bounty put out on him by Kilroy – and this is not only annoying, but also endangers the life of his new love – a girl who seems to have ‘a few extras the other girls didn’t leave the factory with’.
Marsha is someone who he fears sharing his background and past with, on account of it being so ugly and filled with horror that he thinks she will leave him if he does so. So they play a ‘name game’ every day, in which they both adopt different names and pretend they have never met before. At least, until the weight of reality intrudes in the form of another pair of assassins that he is forced to put down in front of witnesses, including her.
She represents Adam’s motivation to get through the trials ahead, someone to return to when it’s all over. Marsha represents the challenge: what would you do to earn the right to come back to the one you love? What would you do to make yourself worthy of a future with that person?
3) In “Dead Beckoning” you include the main characters from the two previous books, “Blachart” and “Demonspawn” – since these are two different sets of main characters, did this create any problems for you?
Yes, but nothing I couldn’t overcome! The main characters in “Dead Beckoning” were pretty much the main characters from “Blachart”, while the characters from “Demonspawn” played mostly supporting roles in this story. Actually, it was mostly just Captain Joe Lofflin from “Demonspawn” who made a few appearances and had some dialog in the new story, with mostly just ‘mentions’ of his ship and crew appearing in “Dead Beckoning”.
4) Tell us about the villain in this story – Sona Kilroy?
Sona Kilroy is a famous Corsair, the main Admiral in their black fleet. He is experienced, sly and also without conscience. “Dead Beckoning” picks up just after the resounding defeat of Meradinis, the former Corsair homeworld in “Blachart”. In the ensuing chaos, several powerful Corsair figures manage to escape the long arm of Terran justice – including Kilroy! But not all Corsairs are so willing to let go of their way of life, and of these, none is more feared – and respected – than the man known as Sona Kilroy, the Admiral of the Corsair fleet!
Seeking vengeance, Kilroy puts a bounty on Blachart’s head, and sets out to rebuild the Corsair civilization on another planet hidden deep within the Omegan Quadrant. In a big way, he represents everything Blachart could have been if he’d continued on the Corsair path – a nemesis for the new Adam.
In Closing
Well, that’s all, folks! 🙂
Thanks again for all your support, friendship and interaction! Until next time, keep reading!
Cheers! 🙂
If you would like to know more about Christina Engela and her writing, please feel free to browse her website. If you want to know what Christina Engela’s focus group or target market is, please read here. If you would like to read more about Christina’s life and experiences, please go to her Biography and the article “Timeline of Milestones, Awards & Achievements“. To leave her a message, please use the Contact form. Visit her Shop. ‘Add’ Christina Engela on Facebook (Profile). ‘Like’ Christina Engela on Facebook (Page). All material copyright © Christina Engela, 2018.