Showing results by narrator "Beau Thomas" in All Categories

Sick of toiling his life away on the Thistlethorn estate, Rylan tries everything he can think of to unlock his first Skill—from juggling, to sewing, to singing—until one day, he unexpectedly succeeds. However, instead of celebrating Rylan's achievement, the Thistlethorns attempt to trap him in a Spirit Contract. Seeing no other choice, Rylan flees into the cloudsea, carrying only what supplies he manages to grab on the way out and a mysterious note bearing a cryptic warning...

No one saw it coming. It started with isolated reports of people kidnapping babies and blending them to drink their ‘essence’—a highly potent and highly addictive chemical compound found in infants. The phenomenon spread through social media, infecting other addicts. Cases of kidnapping and murder—femicide and infanticide—skyrocketed, leading to governments around the world to issue state of emergencies and strict shelter-at-home orders. But it was too late. Society had collapsed into itself.

During a break from work, Lucas Flores brings his six-year-old daughter, Alexis, to Buddy’s Burgers—a local fast food joint—for a quick bite and some playtime at the attached indoor playground dubbed "Buddy’s PlaySpace." But after he awakens from a lengthy, impromptu nap, he finds the playground vacant with only his daughter’s shoes near a tube entrance.

Captain Cirilo Webster is a loyal officer of the Santiago Corporation, the multistellar megacorporation that controlls all travel between the Seventy-Seven human colonies. Finally given command of his first interstellar freighter, he is determined to do well by both his crew and his employers—but nothing is ever that simple. His crew is used to Captains passing through on their way to better ships. The Company’s policies have made more enemies than he can count. Their mission is unusual and the client might be lying to him. And if all of that wasn’t enough?

While walking through the woods, a group of boys—Daniel Burke, Gavin Graves, and brothers Connor and Tyler Parker—discover an abandoned body.

A bear-like man leaves a pub just before last orders—a man you’d much rather regard as a friend than an enemy. But, to Roland Raynott, Clement is most definitely the enemy. Minutes later, Clement is lying dead in a rain swept alley as Roland Raynott scurries away.

Nestor Castle—a bestselling, award-winning extreme horror author—has the perfect life, having transitioned from indie darling to mainstream success. Although he dislikes the limelight, he finds comfort cooped up in his lake house with his loving wife and healthy daughter. However, after announcing his next book—a departure from the horror genre—he finds himself targeted by a disgruntled fan who calls himself ‘Butterfly.’

After years apart, a group of estranged friends gather at a secluded cabin in the woods for a reunion party. Their celebration is interrupted when Chase Bowen—a mysterious, handsome young man—shows up at their door, wet, cold and stranded. Despite some reluctance amongst the guests, the visitor is invited into the cabin to wait for a mechanic.

Heading out for their first date night in two long years, Yoselyn and Joel Cooper entrust their son, two-year-old River, to their frequent babysitter, Kristine Sloan. Kristine has proven to be reliable and caring, looking after River like a little brother. So, it was supposed to be a quiet, peaceful, romantic night for the couple.

Neglected by his wife and haunted by his past, Scoot McDonald, a taxi driver, succumbs to his sex addiction and visits a brothel. He awakens the next morning in his taxi in an abandoned multistory parking garage, aching all over and bleeding internally. He tries to bury and forget his secrets, but he soon finds himself blackmailed into working for Vincent Luciano, the leader of a local crime syndicate. He refuses at first, but the truth concerning his night at the brothel turns out to be much more sinister than he had imagined...

While her parents attend a work party, eighteen-year-old Ella Romero is left in charge of her two siblings—thirteen-year-old Nicholas and eight-year-old Arianna—at their secluded lake house. In her usual fashion, Ella invites her friends to hang out while her parents are away, too. It was supposed to be an easy, quiet, normal night.

While attempting to abduct a teenager from her home, sadistic serial killer Victor Brooks meets his match: ten 9mm bullets. In a puddle of his own blood, sprawled across a stranger’s kitchen floor, Victor’s life begins to flash before his very eyes. He sees the living and the dead, peace and carnage, friends and foes, success and disappointment, love and hatred. He sees a life defined by rage, suffering, and despair. The light at the end of Victor's tunnel is red—red with blood. Jon Athan, the author of "The Groomer" and "Are Your Parents Home?

It is 1985 and Jane, a glamourous MI5 officer, has entrusted a new high stakes mission to Sergeant Tommy Henshaw, a Royal Marine Commando, agent handler, and covert intelligence specialist. While working as an agent handler in South Armagh, he has volunteered for a deep cover operation, sanctioned by the Government, to target the covert activities of the Provisional IRA’s secret England Department. Their sinister plot involves using London’s underworld to facilitate the assassination of Margaret Thatcher and her entire cabinet once and for all.

Having escaped from the depths of the cloudsea, Rylan finds himself at last approaching the city he’s long dreamed of making a life in: mighty Cliffport. Of course, there’s still the matter of his unresolved debt hanging over his head, though perhaps the sender of that mysterious letter could be of some assistance... Many questions still surround Rylan’s birth, and the number has only grown since he learned of his ancient Hermean bloodline that grants him authority with Ethereon. Could the answers be found in The Knackered Hag?

Nirel hides her healing magic from everyone except her family. If anyone discovers her secret, she'll be forced to serve as the king's healer—an honor most healers do not survive. When soldiers invade her village and fatally wound her brother, she must decide between keeping her secret or saving him. The soldier leading the invasion remembers her but can't recall how. Having witnessed her power, he must bring her to the king or forfeit his life. Once she reaches the capital, the seer sets his plans in motion to secure his future and her hand.

After centuries of intellectual evolution, from the worship of nature to the rise of monotheism, from Augustine to Nietzsche, Western culture has now canonized a materialist worldview that insists life is an accident, and meaning is a myth. And yet, as author Grant J. Hallstrom shows, even self-proclaimed atheists exhibit religious fervour in causes like climate justice and social activism. The problem? We’ve rejected the very roots that once gave us a sense of self, morality, and destiny.

To stabilize the kingdom, Zaria agrees to make a secret heir with the ruthless prince who tried to assassinate her. Twice. But now that he’s flipped from disdain to desire, she’s sure the keylord couldn’t mean her any harm. Most of the time. To maintain peace, Zaria’s husband understands the shrewdness of their decision during this crisis. Ever practical, she’s fairly certain he wouldn’t let jealousy threaten their well-intentioned scheming.

Deacon: I was born an Alpha with no desire to lead. My role is to protect my pack, support my Alpha, and pretend to be less than I am. If I do that, I can have the life I want—the one with Grace by my side far away from here. She is the only one who sees the real me. Not the spare. For the next eight months, I must prove my loyalty to my pack, establish alliances, and survive. All without her. She can't come with me, not yet. But I will be back to claim what's mine.

"STORY BY NUMBERS" is an step-by-step, deep dive into story structure that will take your story from an underdeveloped storm of “cool ideas,” to a slick, compelling work with fully dimensional characters. It uses the protagonist’s inner conflict as the guide to developing plot points and meaningful conflicts.

Michael Devlin returns to Ireland for his brother Thomas's funeral, to find that he is even more of an outsider than he imagined. Curiosity about the life and death of his brother leads Michael to unearth a history shrouded in secrets and lies, and results in an unwanted dilemma for him. Love, regret, revenge, and murder conspire to test his ideals.