This weekend to celebrate the bank holiday local publishing company Excalibur Press is offering a range of its titles for just 99p each on ebook.
From poetry, short stories and ‘how to’ guides to fantasy, historical, drama and crime fiction there’s certainly something for everyone amongst these books.
So here’s a round-up and details for how you can get them:
Fiction
1. The Reluctant Rapparee by Jim McComish
1743 County Downe Ireland. Shane McGrogan, the son of a farmer evicted from his land, has taken to the road as an outlaw fighting a guerrilla war against tyranny and oppression. He has recruited a small band of disparate outcasts ranging from hardened criminals to traumatised famine survivors.
McGrogan hopes to fashion the band into an elite fighting unit, but when they botch a relatively simple ambush and are chased into a haunted wood by an angry militia, their mission becomes a matter of survival.
Archie McClung fell into being a rapparee due to his own peculiar circumstances; it is not the life that he would have hoped for. McGrogan aspires to fight for the common good, but McClung dreams of making a better life for himself.
Cast into an extraordinary landscape where the physical world overlaps with the realm of spirits, the rapparees dare not trust their own senses let alone one another.
Why has Shane risked everything by ambushing a guarded passenger coach? What amongst their ragged stash of recently pilfered possessions is stirring their enemies to hunt the rapparees so voraciously? Who is the mysterious Frenchman in their midst?
And who will be the first to cut and run?
Buy it for 99p HERE
2. The Journey by Jimmy Smyth
At the age of seventeen, Mary Harper has already led a full and hectic life; surviving poverty, hardship, and an alcoholic father, to become a beautiful, charismatic and charming young woman. Mary has a job that she loves; her first boyfriend; wonderful caring friends and money to spend – at last everything is seemingly perfect. That is, until one fateful night when Mary’s world comes crashing down around her.
Having been brutally raped, Mary slowly becomes stripped of everything that made her life great – her happiness, her freedom, her family, her friends and finally, her sanity. After her rapist poisons her father’s mind with vicious lies; a now-pregnant Mary gets a diagnosis that will change her life forever and once she’s locked up in the Lunatic Asylum, it seems like Mary has lost all hope of ever living a normal, happy life. What will happen to her child? How will she cope with the violence, abuse and brutal so-called treatments in the Lunatic Asylum? Will Mary ever be free from the ‘Big House’? Will she ever find the love and happiness that she deserves and so desperately craves?
Set in the rural region of Kilbarra in the 1930’s: The Journey will take you back to a time where life was harder, tougher, and much more challenging. Closely following Mary’s sad story; the lives of her mother, sister, two brothers and the illegal antics of her alcoholic father: this book will draw you into the lives of these characters and the intriguing ways of this small rural community.
Buy it for 99p HERE
3. Trace This Scar by Jessikah Hope Stenson
A Lie. A Betrayal. A Murder.
Daphne has everything she’s been dreaming of since the day her parents died when she was a teenager. A husband, a home and a job. The only problem is her beloved Rich’s ex girlfriend Gina who won’t leave them alone. Filled with jealousy, Gina’s interference soon escalates into harassment.
But one day, Gina disappears. When Rich is sentenced to sixteen years in prison for murdering Gina, Daphne refuses to believe he is guilty.
But what else could explain his mysterious disappearances?
And if Rich didn’t kill Gina…
… Then who did?
Buy it for 99p HERE
4. Tripping by Abby Williams
“We’re a youth culture of hedonists, Scarlet. And we’ll drink, snort, love and laugh ourselves into nothingness.”
Scarlet has never been one for moderation, or doing anything by halves in fact. 2014 is coming to an end, and a generation of disillusioned youth is awakening. Set in the heart of Belfast, Scarlet, Deano and Lauryn find themselves in a restless limbo fuelled by increasing amounts of cocaine. The opportunity for hedonistic extravagance is everywhere in ever-evolving forms, and they are taking full advantage.
Then Scarlet finds her ultimate hit…Jamie Brennan. Their intoxicating affair takes them on a metaphysical journey of love, laughter and psychedelic discovery. But all good things must come to an end, and their beautifully-crafted reality is threatened by the past, the truth and their own self-destruction. Will they realise who they are before it’s too late?
‘Tripping’ delves deep into a world defined by excess, pleasure and soul exploration. When more is never enough, how much are we willing to sacrifice?
Buy it for 99p HERE
Short Stories
5. A Single Drop Of Perfect by Jessikah Hope Stenson
A Single Drop Of Perfect
Carla’s on the cusp of adulthood. As her final weeks in the family home draw to a close she struggles to keep a grip on her true self. With her boyfriend hundreds of miles away, Carla battles with loneliness, finding comfort in unexpected places and experiencing moments of perfection that can never be replicated.
What Isla Did
Isla was young, brave and creative. She is remembered as a golden girl and their beloved daughter, but no one can be perfect.
The Lemon And The Lake
June and Max are exploring the gorgeous countryside of Granada. However, where there’s perfection, there’s horror.
Wounds
Helen’s new husband Steven brings his dog Wilf into the family home. When Helen’s eight year old daughter Maisie finds herself in hospital, suffering from a vicious dog attack, Steven has a lot to answer for. Moral and ethical questions arise when Helen is determined to have Wilf put down in spite of Steven’s desire to keep is beloved pet alive.
The Edge Of A Smile
Walking home at night, university student Heidi is accompanied by a stranger named Bryony. Both of them have secrets which will destroy the other.
Buy it for 99p HERE
6. Watching The Watched by Jonathan Traynor
Watching The Watched – Part One
A lonely wife, feeling betrayed watches life go by commuting by train, listening to the gossip and observing the world through the window…that is until she sees something shocking and embarks to discover its origin.
Justice Follows The Grave
A car in a car park. The ramblings on a tape recorder unveil a tale of murder and a conspiracy to change the world by infection.
In Media Res
In the future the infection has spread and only a tiny group of communes is holding out against the advance of the infected ones and their drones. But a terrible decision must be taken to secure victory.
Voices
A journalist recording conversations stumbles upon a dreadful secret in the heart of Northern Ireland. Piecing together the recordings he decides he must take action.
Veteran
A battle in cyberspace sees alien bots threaten the end of humanity across the cosmos. The only thing that can save the future of mankind is music from the past…heavy metal.
Traffic and Travel<
A tough business presentation the day before going on holiday, stuck in traffic a man is pushing to meet his wife and children before jetting off – but he may have had a drink too many.
Damned
When a horror writer with a healthy disrespect for the supernatural receives a request to hook up with a girlfriend who dumped him his scepticism is truly challenged.
Beginnings
A group of friends hang out together, drinking and enjoying each other. Amidst them an unlikely union takes place. But can it survive for a second date.
Watching The Watched – Part Two: The Husband’s Tale
The lonely wife may have made a horrifying discovery, but her husband has a tale to tell, with the first thought that he was going to kill…and be killed.
Buy it for 99p HERE
Poetry
7. HOPE by Mark Evison
Originally from Prestwick in Scotland, Mark Evison has been living in Belfast for the past 10 years.
After suffering from mental health problems, Mark’s counsellor suggested that he began writing. Throwing himself into the worlds of poetry and short stories, Mark shared his creations with his close friends who encouraged him to pursue publishing his collection.
Influenced by the likes of Charles Bukowski, John Steinbeck, Seamus Heaney and Patrick Magill, Mark brings life’s ordinary experiences into an exciting and innovative light.
Now, working on a journal and collection of short stories, Mark always has a story to tell. He continues to create poetry, with enough poems to fill several more collections.
Buy it for 99p HERE
8. Rhythms Of My Young Heart by J. E. Lindsay
For many teenagers writing poetry can be an expression of emotion that rarely sees the light of day.
This collection of poetry by J. E. Lindsay details her deepest feelings as a teenager during her first experiences with love and heartbreak.
Written throughout her teens and released 10 years later, Rhythms Of My Young Heart charts the teenage emotional rollercoaster that most people can relate to.
From love and heartbreak to anticipation for the future and self-acceptance, J. E. Lindsay allows readers to delve into the mind of a young woman trying to find herself through the most emotionally turbulent years of her life.
Buy it for 99p HERE
How To Guides
9. A Quick & Easy Guide To Finishing Your Fiction Novel by Tina Calder
How many times have you said “I’ve got a book in me” or told a friend “I’d love to write a book”? If you’re reading this I’m prepared to bet it’s once or twice.
From lack of time, resources and inspiration to a whole lot of procrastination and, in some cases, lack of confidence, there are any number of reasons why we haven’t finished our novels.
Sometimes the plot, idea, hook and storyline are all there, swimming around our brains like family we’ve known our whole lives. A lot of the times we’ve starting writing passionately and furiously only to find we’ve ground to a halt the minute we hit an obstacle we’re unfamiliar with.
Many authors are passionate about language, words, grammar and the actual process of constructing their book from word by word, line by line, putting the perfectly presented words together in a contender for the best seller list. But for others it’s all about the story, the characters, the scenes, the hook, the excitement, the build up, the finale….and they see every piece in cinematic detail every single time they think about the book. However, transferring all that data from brain to page can be a daunting process.
So, my answer? Let’s break it down. Let’s strip out the expectations of a timeless literary masterpiece and let’s stop comparing ourselves to the might of today’s best-selling authors with multi-million pound publishing companies behind them.
This Quick & Easy Guide To Finishing Your Fiction Novel, is exactly that, I’m going to show you how to rid yourself of that niggling doubt in your mind that makes you think “sure nobody would buy it anyway”, and turn all that passion for your story and negativity about your ability into a positive force that will help you create the building blocks to what I can guarantee you will become a novel that you can be proud of.
All you have to do, is be willing to give it a go…
Buy it for 99p HERE
If you would like any of the books above in print log onto www.excaliburpress.co.uk/store/products