Double-Whammy Cover Reveal: THE LAST CASKET By Jack Wallen & DEAD TREES 2 By Eli Constant

9/3/2014

Yeah, you read it right. A double-whammy cover reveal. Two of my favourite authors decided to have kick-ass covers at the same time, so I thought what better way to celebrate the fact than to have both of them reveal all on my blog? Oooh err, not that kind of reveal! Though I'm sure if you ask them both nicely...

First up, meet Jack Wallen. Jack's been writing books for a long time, as you can see from his long list of books, but he's actually relatively new to me. I met him through a group last year and I haven't been able to put down his books since.

HIs fans call him the Zombie King, and I can see why.

Jack Wallen is a seeker of truth and a writer of words. Although he resides in the unlikely city of Louisville, Kentucky, he likes to think of himself more as an interplanetary soul … or so he tells the reflection in the mirror. He's also the author of:

I Zombie I
My Zombie My
Die Zombie Die
Lie Zombie Lie
Zombie Radio
T-Minus Zero
Hell's Muse
Screampark
Shero
Shero II: Zombie A GoGo
A Blade Away
Gothica
Endgame
Klockwerk Kabaret

If you want to receive an automatic email when Jack's next book is released, sign up here. Your email address will never be shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Find out more about Jack via the following links:

Website
Facebook
Twitter
Google+
Amazon
Goodreads

So if you're looking for a new series to sink those pretty teeth into, try out Jack. He has enough to keep you busy for a while, and I highly recommend him

But now for one of the most awesomely original covers I've seen in a while. Be sure to add this to your Goodreads shelf. I was honoured to beta read it, and I LOVE IT!

Jack Wallen's
THE LAST CASKET COVER REVEAL

And To Whet Your Appetite, Below Is An Excerpt From The Upcoming Book

Last Casket Excerpt

ACT 1 one | a hell of a show Everything has changed 

Standing here alone again 
It's time for my revenge 
You put me in this casket 
But this won't stop me 
You need to burn in hell
 No need to run away
 I will find you anyway  
...Bride of the Monster

Wham! The crunch of the heavy Ibanez ARZ-Series guitar against the back of the zombie's skull sent a screeching feedback through the Blackstar Club 50s amplifier speaker. The sound momentarily stopped the undead bar fight.

“Kitty,” Todd Flash shouted. “Run.”

Kitty Casket was at the lip of the stage, surrounded by zombies, mic in hand and ready to crush any skull to get within striking range.

“Come on, baby,” Kitty squealed, “it's open mic night.”

With a quick windup, Kitty drove the back side of the mic through an eyeball of the nearest undead groupie. The pop of the optical membrane sent chills down her arm and bile up her throat.

“Oh hell,” Kitty protested. “I think I'm going to barf!”

Kitty withdrew the blackish-brown goo covered mic and the zombie dropped with a hollow, wet thud.

“Incoming.”

The shout came from behind.

“Kitty, duck.”

The raging voice belonged to Mike Machine. Kitty knew better than to not comply. The second she dropped to a crouch, a golden cymbal flew over her head and embedded itself into the neck of a monster. The beast didn't drop.

“Fuck,” Tom screamed as he continued forward.

“Tom, don't,” Kitty pled.

Tom was never one to listen. He jumped and landed the sole of his creeper into the symbol to finish the job.

The head and the symbol crashed to the floor.

“Come on, ya ugly bastard.” Billy the Bat was still cranking out power chords as he shouted threats to the undead audience. With each chord the zombies stuttered – almost as if the sound was painful.

“Billy, the zombies say you suck,” teased Kitty.

“Oh yeah,” Billy replied. “They can suck on this.”

Instead of battling back the approaching undead duo, Billy began playing a rockabilly take on Ozzy Osbourne's Crazy Train.

The zombies weren't impressed and marched onward.

It was Tom Mooner to the rescue. He hefted his Fender Squire above his head and dropped it down to cave in the skull of one of the zombies.

“That's how it goes,” laughed Tom.

One moaner remained. The entire band gathered together, encircling the monster.

“Here zombie, zombie, zombie. Kitty wanna play. Rowr.” Kitty teased the zombie. When it turned to face her, Billy the Bat ran a switchblade into the base of its skull. As the zombie dropped, lifeless again, to its knees, the band booed and hissed.

“What? I killed it.” Billy protested.

“Yah, but we were feeling kinda playful. Ya know, give the fucker a show and then, blamo, cave in its frontal lobes.”

“Hey, they're all dead. We did it.” Kitty was glowing with pride. “That was a hell of a show.”

Billy the Bat cleaned off his knife as he spoke. “Our best yet...if you take into consideration our entire audience was comprised of the undead. Actually, this kind of sucked. We need real, living people to play for.”

“And to pay us.”

Tom's interjection sucked the wind out of the band.

“This damned apocalypse,” Kitty started, “it's impossible to find gigs. Before, our only competition was the likes of Nekromantix and Horror Pops. Now we're facing down the living dead and empty venues. I thought the apocalypse would bring a sort of perfect storm for us. I mean, come on, this is our schtick. We own this theme, right?”

The band nodded their heads in unison.

“So why in the hell can't we find gigs?”

Billy raised his hand.

Kitty hissed. “Oh for God's sake, Billy, this isn't a classroom. Put your hand down.”

“Did you ever stop to think no one wants live music now because of the noise? I mean, it is noise that attracts the undead, right?” Billy challenged the group.

Kitty stepped in close to the guitarist. “What are you saying, Mr. Bat?”

Billy's eyes darted to the left and the right, his lip quivered slightly, and his forehead broke out into a sweat. “I'm saying...I don't really know what I'm saying, actually.”

Mike Machine stepped in to save the day. “He's saying we need to find some isolated club where our ear-splitting decibels won't attract the attention of the less-than living.”

“You mean the Mengelites?” Tom Flash interrupted.

The band booed.

“Oh come on, it's a catchy name.” Tom defended himself. “Seriously, it makes sense. The Mengele Virus is what did them in...hence Mengelites.”

“It's offensive,” Kitty spat. “It's almost as if you're glorifying one of the sickest Germans to ever exist.”

The idea that the virus which brought about the apocalypse was an extension of Josef Mengele's work didn't rest easy on the hearts of Germans. Most survivors on the planet were quick to forget that point. To many of German descent, it was a painful reminder of yet another very dark time of their people

“Come on,” Tom chimed in. “Let's pack up so we can try to locate this Nirvana that Mike mentioned.”

After a round of groans, the band began the slow process of packing up their gear and loading it into the Kitty Mobile. The van was a take on the Scooby Doo Van, only with a predominantly feline theme. Splashed on the side of the van was the band's logo and Kitty's coiffed and lipstick'd visage. The van had already been attacked by numerous zombies as well as a few groups of living humans who simply had enough of walking. Unfortunately, there was little extra room once the gear and the band were on board.

Before leaving the club, Kitty made one last walk-through in search of food and booze. As she stood in the exit, she turned back and purrred before hitting the lights and strutting out to the van.

Meow, sexy kitty, meow.

Eli Constant: DEAD TREES 2 Reveal

And now reveal number two.

The extremely talented Eli Constant, one of my very favourite authors of 2013, with possibly my most anticipated book of 2014! Seriously, I can not wait to read this damn book.

Dead Trees 2 is coming May 2nd and I can't wait to one-click this. After reading the snippet Eli sent us, I know that it's going to be a killer book.

So, have a read, stare in awe at the creepy as hell cover, add it to your Goodreads shelf and join her event to help celebrate her upcoming release. You won't be dissapointed.

* * * *

Eli Constant is a genre-jumping detail junkie, obsessed with the nature of humanity. She believes that there’s beauty at the core of most everything, but that truly unredeemable characters create the best stories. Eli is the author of “Dead Trees,” “Mastic,” “DRAG.N” and is a contributor to the upcoming charity anthology “Let’s Scare Cancer to Death,” benefiting the V Foundation.

Eli lives in Virginia with her husband and two daughters. She is surrounded by battlefield country, farmland and lakes. Currently, she spends her days being a devoted mother and, of course, writing. Eli feels fortunate that her marriage is one of real love and she thinks her children are the coolest people in the world. She also feels so lucky to have an extended family that is ever present with encouragement and kind words.

When it comes to her writing, Eli has one ultimate goal: to become better with each word written. She is obsessed with the nature of humanity- the innocent, the corrupted and the confused. She’s always been a great lover of Science Fiction, but has also grown to truly appreciate other genres, especially Horror and Fantasy. Looking back on her debut novel “Dead Trees,” Eli wouldn’t change a thing. She feels like she learned from the experience and has grown exponentially as an author since its publication. Her most recent work, “Mastic,” is best described as an urban paranormal thriller with a softer side- touches of romance, hidden feelings and bridled lust.

This month, Eli will be featured in a charity anthology organized by the fabulous TW Brown. She is thrilled to note that 100% of sale proceeds will go to benefit the V Foundation, a leader in cancer research for the past twenty years. Keep posted on this upcoming publication by following Eli on twitter or facebook. Eli’s works in progress include the much anticipated sequel to Dead Trees, a 3-author anthology exploring the psychosis of serial killers, a 6-author anthology exploring humanity in the face of hopelessness and a zombie origins novel (this last work in progress comes as a huge surprise to Eli; she honestly thought she’d never write about zombies, but somehow, she fell down the zombie hole and couldn’t crawl out, or rather, didn’t want to crawl out). (Mwuah ahahaha, sorry, Eli. I'm a bad influence!)

Eli's Social & Website Links

www.eliconstant.com | Twitter
Facebook | Books on Amazon
Goodreads | Wordpress

Eli Constant
Horror, Science Fiction & Fantasy Author
COVER REVEAL
Dead Trees 2

Two years of peace in a primitive setting can make anyone forget a past full of science, beasties, and blood. But when that past comes flooding back- with razor-sharp talons and speed- to pillage the present, who will survive?

**Read a full chapter of DEAD TREES 2** (Pssst, I read it earlier, and it is amazing!)
Haven’t read Dead Trees?

**Read the Teaser chapter of Dead Tress**

**Purchase Dead Trees here**

Join the DEAD TREES 2 release party on Facebook

Eli is also the author of:

Mastic | DRAG.N | & a contributor to the upcoming Let’s Scare Cancer to Death

Read Teasers:
Mastic
DRAG.N
Let’s Scare Cancer to Death (Eli’s story)

See, don't say I don't treat you well!

So you have a couple of new books to look foreward to, but don't worry, I'll be sure to remind you when the time comes, you can also look foreward to reading my reviews of these books when they come out.

As always, happy reading!

Claire ♥