A Vampire Novel with Actual Bite!
As the modern world establishes itself and pushes the supernatural into the shadows, the supernatural fights back.The Darkening Dream is a chilling new dark fantasy novel by Andy Gavin, creator of Crash Bandicoot and Jak & Daxter. The book has received rave reviews and is on sale for only 99 cents on Amazon Kindle from June 25th-29th! Download your copy here.
In addition, Andy is doing a big giveaway, including a $100 gift certificate to Amazon, signed copies of his books, video games, posters, and more!
Tweet, like, follow, share, blog and grab a copy of his book to enter.
Long-time readers of dark historical fantasy (Tim Powers, Guy Gavriel Kay, Katherine Kurtz) will appreciate the weaving together of mythology, occult, and religion, while younger readers and fans of HBO dramas (True Blood, Carnivàle) or urban fantasy (Laurell K. Hamilton, Kim Harrison, Jim Butcher) will be drawn to the twisted imagination, graphic action, and romantic tension.
About The Darkening Dream
Even as the modern world pushes the supernatural aside in favor of science and steel, the old ways remain. God, demon, monster, and sorcerer alike plot to regain what was theirs.
1913, Salem, Massachusetts – Sarah Engelmann’s life is full of friends, books, and avoiding the pressure to choose a husband, until an ominous vision and the haunting call of an otherworldly trumpet shake her. When she stumbles across a gruesome corpse, she fears that her vision was more of a premonition. And when she sees the murdered boy moving through the crowd at an amusement park, Sarah is thrust into a dark battle she does not understand.
With the help of Alex, an attractive Greek immigrant who knows a startling amount about the undead, Sarah sets out to uncover the truth. Their quest takes them to the factory mills of Salem, on a midnight boat ride to spy on an eerie coastal lair, and back, unexpectedly, to their own homes. What can Alex’s elderly, vampire-hunting grandfather and Sarah’s own rabbi father tell them? And what do Sarah’s continuing visions reveal?
No less than Gabriel’s Trumpet, the tool that will announce the End of Days, is at stake, and the forces that have banded to recover it include a 900 year-old vampire, a trio of disgruntled Egyptian gods, and a demon-loving Puritan minister. At the center of this swirling cast is Sarah, who must fight a millennia-old battle against unspeakable forces, knowing the ultimate prize might be her very soul.
THE REVIEWS ARE IN
"A gorgeously creepy, strangely humorous, and sincerely terrifying tale." ~Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
"Mr. Gavin has brought something refreshingly new to a genre now suffused with poorly-concealed bodice-rippers which have more in common with Fabio than Bram Stoker: depth. His big baddies are scary, not romantic interests, and the added religious lore is complex and engaging. Don't expect another Twilight -- the story can get downright creepy, so be prepared for a return to the old horror sensibilities of supernatural fiction." ~Amazon Review
"With Mr. Gavin's video-game pedigree, I was expecting something aimed squarely at the 18-25 year old fanboy contingent; what I got in The Darkening Dream was something wholly unexpected: A period novel with a female protagonist, a crash-course on Judaism in the colonial years, and multi-layered series of plot arcs featuring a crazy cast of natural and supernatural characters populating turn of the century America." ~Amazon Review
"…A perfect blend of mystery, magic and myth. A grown-up Grimm's fairy tale... emphasis on grim." ~Amazon Review
Read the first two sample chapters here.
About the Author
Andy Gavin is an unstoppable storyteller who studied for his Ph.D. at M.I.T. and founded video game developer Naughty Dog, Inc. at the age of fifteen, serving as co-president for two decades. There he created, produced, and directed over a dozen video games, including the award winning and best selling Crash Bandicoot and Jak & Daxter franchises, selling over 40 million units worldwide. He sleeps little, reads novels and histories, watches media obsessively, travels, and of course, writes. Find out more here.
Sarah Englemann: Our Protagonist
Sarah thinks of herself as a normal seventeen year-old. Well that's not exactly true, she's pretty sure she's exceptional, but only when it comes to school and books. The rest of it: fitting in, boys, that doesn't come as easy.
And she certainly doesn't believe corpses can leave their graves and try to kill you!
But the undead can be convincing. Not to mention that she keeps having these horrible visions.
The bookish thing, that she gets from her father. And he isn't exactly Joe cool either — even if he is named Joseph. But things are clearer for him. He doesn't have to fit in, he's got his Rabbi cronies from the old world to hang with. But this is 1913, and Sarah's a modern woman. No way she's going to put up with corsets, no vote, and popping out a big brood.
Again, none of this takes into account what happens when something really old takes an interest in her. A sorcerer who was ancient when Sarah's people crossed out of Egypt has turned his evil eye her way. And Papa Joseph has his secrets too. Turns out the family wasn't the only thing he brought to Massachusetts from Europe. But he's sure all that is ancient history.
However the dead have all the time in the world. The vampire Nasir has been sent to sniff around. And he loves a good hunt.
To further complicate things, this is finally the year when Sarah meets that boy.
A Big Giveaway for The Darkening Dream
This week, through June 29th, Author Andy Gavin is running a big giveaway to celebrate his 99 cent promo sale.
I have read The Darkening Dream, here is my review and here is my Interview with Andy
Grab yourself a copy and enter the giveaway!
Michelle
