Deacon Chalk has hunted every monster under the sun. Now read the stories that happen when no one else is looking.
My Thoughts :
Deacon Chalk, Occult Bounty Hunter, is a special hard-ass of a guy who I love to read about. He is the guy you always want on your side and not one you want to mess with. He has seen and done things that you can't even imagine which makes reading the books about him well worth checking out. No holds barred the series is great Paranormal Urban Fantasy.
This collection of short stories is a nice addition to the series and an interesting selection of information about the man himself. The author also stars in some of the stories and it is fun to how the writer ties up everything in the Deacon universe to fit in with his own life.
Some of the stories may, if you are a fan of the man, be ones you have come across before as guest posts on various blogs. Otherwise there is a nice selection of new original stories that will delight anyone who has been enjoying the series so far.
I am not a huge fan of anthologies or short stories but James R. Tuck does a nice job of putting this one together and obviously made the time to make this reader friendly for the fans by introducing each piece and explaining where it came from and why it was written.
Well worth checking out but don't expect the full length goodness that you are used to in the series so far. Deacon Chalk is too huge in so many ways and can't be expected to fit into such small stories.
Taking out hellish creatures—not a problem. Armed with blessed silver hollow-points and the ability to manipulate magick, he’s ready for anything—except betrayal he never saw coming…
Deacon Chalk knows the biggest danger in fighting monsters is becoming one. Just another day at the office for your friendly neighborhood occult bounty hunter. If keeping three helpless were-dog children safe means battling a malevolent trio of witches by any means necessary, so be it. If that means partnering with a ruthless government agent to stay one step ahead of the allies and friends he must now suspect, he’s not going to cry about it. The only way Deacon can save humans and shape-shifters alike is to embrace a power beyond his imagining, putting his team at stake—and his soul on the line…
My Thoughts :
Before I start my review I have to apologise to the author and publisher of this book. I got this ARC in the post a long time ago. I can't even remember when but as a physical book it landed on my bookshelf and it was forgotten about for a very long time. I can't believe I left this one of my shelf unread for so long but that is what happens when you have a Kindle. So I am sorry this review is coming way after the book made it into my hands and after the book released. Note to anyone interested : Send me Kindle books!
I have read the previous Deacon Chalk books and novellas and was interested in seeing how the series would continue to develop. It didn't take me long to get back into the weird paranormal world the author has dreamt up for this series and within a few chapters I was used to the swearing, blood and general hard-ass angle that shines through in this series.
It sounds very action movie like and it is. Guns are a common occurence which means fighting also takes up a lot of the pages in this book. You may think that there couldn't possibily be a story to all this but there actually is and it is a very good one. Well laid out, the plot, isn't half bad. In fact if it wasn't for the plot, and the characters involved with it, I most likely wouldn't have ever kept up with this series. I am actually eager to see what happens to these people and what happens next. Also the weird and wonderful paranormal world this series offers is just too good to miss.
In regards to this third installment, all I can say is 'WOW'! There were some things that I didn't see coming and the twists they brought with them surprised me so much that I can't wait for book number four. I didn't expect so much of the events that took place and that made this book, for me, a very special read. I get fed up of 'knowing' what is about to happen because things are so predictable but James R. Tuck is keeping me on my toes and I love it!
You may be put off by the whole guns and blood stuff but if you are a true Paranormal Fantasy lover then you will have to give this series a try. If you have already had the pleasure of meeting Deacon Chalk : Occult Bounty Hunter, then you will know that he isn't just fighting, he has a heart and he has feelings. There is a lot more to him than meets the eye and he is the guy you want on your side.
His new release Blood & Silver is now out and is the sequel to Blood & Bullets. The series about Deacon Chalk : Occult Bounty Hunter is certainly Bloody! Action packed and hardcore kick-ass all the way this is a series that isn't scared to pull out some guns and take down the bad paranormals!
To compliment the guest blog James so kindly shared with us, I was giving away one Deacon Chalk book! Winners Choice!
The contest is closed! So who is the lucky winner? Congrats to :
Please contact me via email - Amberkatzes_book_blog at gmx dot eu within the next 7 days to claim your prize. Your claim will go quicker if you send me your address. If you won a contest where you can choose your prize, then please make sure you state in your email which book you would like. This will help things go alot quicker! If you won an e-book please make sure you send me the email address you would like the book sent to!
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Deacon Chalk normally has no trouble telling innocent victims from real monsters. So protecting an abused pregnant were-dog is a no-brainer...until a vicious lycanthrope leader and his brotherhood target Deacon, other shape-shifters, and any humans in their way. Suddenly, Deacon is outnumbered, outgunned, and unsure who - or what - to trust. The only edge he has left is a weapon hungry for his soul and his most savage impulses. And using it will exact a price even this hell-raising hunter fears to pay...
My Thoughts :
Blood and Silver has been on my pile of books to read for a while now but with so many other books on that pile it didn't make it to the top till this week. I have been eagerly awaiting this second full length novel in the Deacon Chalk series after thoroughly enjoying the two novellas in the series. While I enjoyed the first book in the series, Blood and Bullets, it was a little too rough for my liking. I was interested in seeing if this sequel kept to the same violent theme.
Deacon has actually turned into a really nice guy this time around and it was good to see him become a little more human. Although that doesn't change the fact that I would definitely want to be on Deacon's side in a fight because he is completely bad ass! He also seems to be good at taking in strays and getting involved in situations he could have just kept his nose out of. Or in his case, gun!
During all the non-stop action we get to see lots and lots of were creatures. They came in a variety of sizes, from big to small, and in all kinds of strange and wonderful forms. I think the were chickens were maybe a little over the top but it did make me giggle. All those weird creatures did make for great reading. It was a nice concept and a broadening of the paranormal elements the author already established in his previous stories about Deacon.
It is nice to have another male writer on the scene and it is wonderful to have one with such an amazing imagination. However it seems this series is maybe just a little too male orientated for me. While the content is a fast paced paranormal filled delight it is also extremely gritty, dark and full of violence. I am not new to this rodeo and have read my fair share of violent stories. However I found some of this book slightly overwhelming and kept thinking this is aimed at guys and not so much for the girls.
All in all I liked the story, characters and concept. What I still have a problem with is the amount of violence, the over the top gun/weapon info and continuous action. I have to admit I did enjoy the novellas more than the full length novels and despite all of this I am not giving up on the series. I still want more Deacon. It's like a horrible accident, you should just keep going and not watch but you find yourself stopping and taking the time to check it out.
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James R. Tuck is no longer a new author on the block. With the second book in the Deacon Chalk series due out this week and two novellas that compliment the series, he is really making his mark in the Paranormal Urban Fantasy genre.
So seeing as James was already a guest here once and answered my questions I asked him to if he could send me a guest blog this time around. He obliged, after I sent him some inspiration, and I am sure you will agree that the article makes for very interesting reading.
I hope you enjoy the guest blog and will take the time to check out the Deacon Chalk Series. Oh and enter the contest! You could win a copy of the new release or the debut. Winners choice!
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THE ONCE AND FUTURE MENAGERIE OF JAMES R. TUCK
Amber hit me with a great idea for inspiration for this guest blog and I am eternally grateful. Creatures I would like to bring into my books.
Oh damn. This is going to get interesting.
Okay, to cover the intro, I have already worked with zombies in my short story "He Stopped Loving Her Today" from One Buck Horror. In the Deacon Chalk books (The Deaconverse) I dealt with a Nosferatu in THAT THING AT THE ZOO. Novel 1, BLOOD AND BULLETS, gave us vampires, Were-Spiders, a cursed immortal, a Were-Gorilla, and a family of Tengu who own a drive thru sushi joint. SPIDER'S LULLABY let me bring you killer ghost spiders, a 1500 year old dragon living as a Russian hitman, a sorcerous Yakuza assassin, and a Japanese demon.
Book 2, BLOOD AND SILVER, which hits August 7th we really explore lycanthropy in the Deaconverse and things get wild indeed. (As a side note, I have turned in novella 3, CIRCUS OF BLOOD, and novel 3, BLOOD AND MAGICK. I got to explore witchcraft and magick in the Deaconverse.)
In various Deacon short stories the main man has taken on a Filipino vampire, a Boogey man, and a Wendigo.
I have a sci fi/horror novelette on submission where I put one of the elder gods of Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos in outer space. That was fun.
I have covered a lot of ground in the supernatural world, and I have been able to put my own twist on it all. I gave vampires a new origin, set a more realistic set of parameters for lycanthropy, and did some great things with demons and witches. So what in the world is left?
Everything.
I have a story I am writing now (not a Deacon novel) that stars another elder god of the Lovecraft Mythos. It is an almost straight horror book, heavy on the blood, the guts, and the gore. I have a weird western starring a survivor of the Donner Party massacre and some truly terrifying desert monsters. I also have a strange psuedo-film noir/hardboiled detective gonzo horror with a giant worm and a cult.
In the future Deacon books these are things you will see: Chupacabra, Hunter/Killer cyborgs from an alternate future, Dragonslayers, a family of demons who look like the scariest clowns you have ever seen, unicorns (no I am not kidding), demon hands that use murdered people like puppets, a doppleganger, Nephilim (Human and Angel offspring), the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, a coked-up Elven Prince, a goblin, The Beast of Revelation, skinhead Werewolves, Pamarindo's, Were-Pomeranians, The Wyrm That Dieth Not, and probably a wannabe Antichrist.
Buckle up y'all, it's gonna be a helluva ride.
I am giving away a copy of Blood & Silver or Blood & Bullets! The winner gets to choose!
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He lives to kill monsters. He keeps his city safe. And his silver hollow-points and back-from-the-dead abilities take out any kind of unnatural threat. But between this bad-ass bounty hunter and rescuing the most helpless of victims stands the one evil he can't defeat...
For Deacon Chalk, loyalty is worth dying for. And now that something has taken were-spider Charlotte's un-hatched children and one of his closest friends, he'll tear up the human and supernatural underworlds to find them. But with his allies stripped away by an invincible Yakuza hit man and time running out, Deacon must face down the most ancient of demonic entities. And his last hope means surrendering to the inner darkness waiting hungrily to consume him.
My Thoughts :
After enjoying the prequel novella to the Deacon Chalk series, That Thing in the Zoo, and also the debut book, Blood and Bullets, I couldn't resist reading this short story too.
Spider's Lullaby takes place between the first book and the upcoming second book, Blood and Silver and gives away little of the story so far. It is definitely a great look into the world of Deacon Chalk Occult Bounty Hunter and you get a good feel for the type of storyteller James R. Tuck is and how the series works. I have to applaud the author for writing such an exciting novella. Most writers rush short stories and miss out details but James R. Tuck managed, again, to make a short tale enjoyable.
Action is a main feature in this intense series and even though I had a few reservations after reading Blood and Bullets I am really warming up to Deacon and his crew since reading That Thing in the Zoo and Spider's Lullaby. However I have to say I am not happy with the subject matter this time around. Ewww Spiders!
With lots of detail and depth this is going to be one of those series you can really get your teeth stuck into. With an interesting and strong male lead character this series feels like Harry Dresden but much darker. I am looking forward to reading the second book and can't wait to see where things take Deacon and James. Well worth reading!
The Blurb :
