Book
1
LD
Towers
Genre: Paranormal Thriller
Publisher: BadBird Publications
Date of Publication: September 20,
2016
Word Count: 100k
Cover Artist: Pranav Lohani
Photo by Blackbird Photography
Book Description:
On 26 May 1897, Bram Stoker brought
us the story of Dracula; an undead creature who terrorised the living by
drinking their blood. He based his creature on the legends of Ireland and
Eastern Europe, bringing it to life with all the pomp of Victorian literature.
What if his concept was correct, but the execution was not? What if there was
not one creature, but a band of twenty-four? Crusader knights who committed
such a terrible act that the Pope of Rome and the Rabbis of Jerusalem joined
together in petitioning God to bring a terrible curse upon them.Sentenced to
eternal life as punishment for their crimes, yet hounded by both the clerical
and the secular as they struggle to live them. The Jews called them
Ga’ashekelah: the Raveners. To the Catholic Church, they are the Accursed Ones.
Feasting on the bodies of the living to maintain their power.
What starts as a simple trip on the
Eurostar to the buried trenches of World War One in Northern France is going to
take Imperial War Museum expert Dr. Alexandra Horne on a journey she could
never have conceived. From the bustling streets of Paris to the azure waters of
Collioure and the very Vatican itself, Lexa will discover the Raveners and
those who have sworn to hunt them down.
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Excerpt:
She found herself
going from map to map. This was sometime around the second phase of the battle,
before Beaumont-Hamel was finally taken. Thiepval as well. “This must be from
the middle of September 1916. Maybe October. It’s obvious from this that he was
trying to bring men around to penetrate the Allied lines from the areas they
couldn’t budge.” She found herself gnawing on a thumbnail. “Dear God! With a
counteroffensive like this, he might have shifted them. It’s a bold plan.
Whether or not he could have managed it, with the Germans bleeding to death at
Verdun, would have been the question. But damn! This might have changed the
battle. Maybe even the war.”
“I wondered about
that.” Another voice behind her.
Lexa turned and coloured,
realising that in her wonder she had completely ignored the stranger in the
room. “Oh! I am Sorry! Dr. Lexa Horne of the Imperial War Museum.” She held her
hand out.
“Dr. Jack Bennett.
Pleased to meet you.” Bennett was a large, fit man in his mid fifties with
close-cropped, iron grey hair and a face lined from years digging in the sun.
He had a bit of the George Clooney about him and Lexa was sure that all the
archeology undergrads wanted him as a prof. He was a trifle swoon worthy. “Call
me Jack. It was great that you could come out here at such short notice. We
will be wrapping all this up in the next week or two.”
“The pleasure is
entirely all mine,” Lexa told him in all earnestness. “This is simply
unbelievable. This is like walking into heaven for me.” Ok. A small lie. Dead
men and unexploded ordinance aside, it was heaven.
Bennett gestured
back with his head and stepped aside. “I doubt the major there would agree.”
Lexa gasped as she
saw the body at the desk. He was perfectly mummified, just as Darby had told
her. He was hunched over, as if sleeping, and his golden hair gleamed in the
light. His skin was the colour and texture of tanned leather, and his lips
under a large moustache had pulled back to show his teeth. His head lay on on
crossed arms, sunken eyes closed in eternal repose. The fingers were slightly
curled; a large ring on one hand and a wedding ring on another. His light blue
uniform hung on what was left of his frame, but was in decent condition through
the shoulders. In fact, there were no real decomposition of the fabric. His
side arm rested on the chair, the belt having slid down with time. The silver
bullion on his uniform had a dull tarnish and the aiguillettes on his shoulder
seemed suspended as if by magic. Beside him, his uniform cap was on the desk.
“Oh dear God!”
Lexa exclaimed. “You’ve just left him there? How could you do that?”
“The question is
how to get him out of the trapdoor without disturbing him. We have another
specialist coming in from Germany. He is one of theirs, after all,” Bennett
shrugged. “And you know the Germans. They are trying to find the right person.
I would move him, but he is perfectly preserved. Outside of this environment, I
expect he would not last long. It seems a shame to compromise his remains unnecessarily.”
The body rooted
Lexa to the spot. She felt a terrible weight on her chest. “I’ve never seen a
dead body before.”
Darby walked over
and put a hand on her shoulder. “It’s ok. He can’t hurt you.”
“It also feels a
bit indecent to be looking at him.” But she found she couldn’t tear her eyes
away.
“We treat all
remains with the greatest respect,” Bennett said quietly. “As you know, there
is a lot we can learn from him. He is so perfectly preserved. When we have
learned from him, we can return him to his family, if they still exist. He can
be reburied with honour. He was lost and we found him. There is nothing
indecent about that.”
“I just feel so
strange with him there. I feel like a thief in his home.”
“The first time
you see remains is always the hardest,” Darby told her. “Just remember that he
is gone. What made him a person is gone. He is in a better place.”
Lexa nodded and
walked closer to the desk. Her mouth was rather dry but now curiosity was
getting the better of her. They were right. She was just being a ninny. Yes.
This man was dead and he couldn’t hurt her. “Yes. I suppose you are right.”
Bennett quirked up
a little smile. “Just don’t touch him.”
It was the
moustache. The moustache was so familiar. Even in death, it had that upwards
curl which was so familiar. A vain bushiness. When she had seen it in pictures,
it always made her smile. “I think I know who this is!” Lexa exclaimed and
reached into her bag for her iPad.
About
the Author:
LD Towers travels the world like a
rootless vagabond! A military historian, she searches out places of conflict to
find a deeper insight to the things she writes about. Presently enjoying the
warm weather and azure seas of Central America, she has lived all over Western
Europe, including 5.5 years in the incomparable Berlin.
Primarily working in Historical and
Military Fiction, LD sometimes sneaks in the odd Dystopian or Modern Thriller
piece. In fact, her new book is a complete redo on the vampire concept. Look
for The Raveners; coming September 20, 2016.
https://ldtowers.net
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