Civilians.
No, that was not the right word. Non-combatants, then. That didn’t work either.
Everyone was affected by the global war of the past nineteen years. The best description was people with no control over their lives. Fallen leaves, waiting to be swept and whirled by a sudden gust of wind. Ghosts, with brittle smiles.
One such specimen stood at the corner of the street. Smiling that empty smile of people living through hell.
Commander Lip sure didn’t waste time.
He tried to kill Lee Qiang the very next day.
They were riding an APC to the front lines for a routine inspection and familiarization. It was one of the new prewar models, a Kismet urban warrior, with an anti-tank mesh on both sides. A squeaky clean example of a dwindling inventory.
Eyes squinted against the daylight glare, Lee Qiang stepped out of the tin-can transport, together with seventeen other soldiers, all new recruits—except him. They milled quietly, rubbing shoulder against sweaty shoulder, trying to get some sense of where they were.
Hell, Lee Qiang thought.
A familiar place.
Readers of mine and random curious souls, rejoice! I am going to try something new vis-a-vis writing. At least, new for me. In a few weeks, I will begin a year-long journey of a serial book publication, releasing a fresh new chapter every week, right here on this website, for free. Which book, you’re asking?
There are heroes. There are anti-heroes. And then, there’s Prince Dietrich.
Freshly returned to Monrich from his little escapade of war and deception, the newly wed Prince Dietrich—Dick to his friends—just wants to be left alone, so he can gamble, drink and keep on wishing for the early demise of his father. But King Ulaf is having none of it. He has devised a new challenge for his recalcitrant heir: Dietrich must go to Ostfort and assume the wardenship of the palatine. Or else.
What could possibly go wrong?
Well, since it’s Dick we’re talking about…everything. For starters.
The Glorious Adventures of Glamorous Prince Dietrich continues the absurd series of mishaps, accidents, machinations, lies, treachery, lewdness, greed, malice, and mischief that embody our troublesome, misunderstood protagonist.
We are only days away from the fabulous publication of the second book in my (un)humorous series Woes & Hose (geddit, geddit?). The book aptly-titled The Glorious Adventures of Glamorous Prince Dietrich is undergoing final treatment ere it goes live. For the time being, we have a mighty cover to consider, to wit:
The Amazing Adventures of Dashing Prince Dietrich, the first volume in the most cunningly named fantasy series in the world, Woes & Hose, shall be free on Amazon Kindle from April 29 till May 3. The reason? A sequel is coming soon.
What is the price of the world? Vasher the unicorn hunter is after his one last kill. Once he’s slain the magical beast, he intends to retire and enjoy his wealth. He is willing to risk everything, but the cost he must pay may be greater than he ever imagined.
Like the Guns ‘n’ Roses song, only books. This week, March 3 through March 9, Smashwords is running a big promo week, and that means big discounts. As it happens, I’m feeling generous. The Lost Words series is available for free, all four books. Go, go, go!
The second book in the Woes & Hose series is coming along nicely. There’s a cover! A glorious cover for The Glorious Adventures of Glamorous Prince Dietrich. As always, designed by legendary Anton Kokarev. I asked him for an appropriate sequel to the first book, plus an even more punchable face for our anti-hero protagonist. To wit, the results.
