Today, Summer of Indie met with Solomon Strange, author of eBook The Ebethusa, "a dark psychological chiller with a ghostly twist."
"The premise of the
story involves a psychologist’s investigation into a spate of grisly murders
and a tome, The Ebethusa. This
ancient artefact is believed to be of extra-terrestrial origin. His
investigation will quite literally unleash hell as invincible entities,
creatures driven by rage, seek him out."
Fittingly, author Solomon
Strange is as shrouded in mystery and intrigue as his book The Ebethusa.
“Solomon Strange” is shrouded in
mystery and intrigue. Thought to have been born in 1545, there are very few
verified facts.Some people claim that he has been around since the inception of The Knights Templar. He has reputedly appeared throughout history but has always remained an elusive figure, even to this day. Always appearing to be around 50 years of age, Solomon Strange has been allegedly linked to various occult figures including John Dee, Edward Kelley, Sir Francis Dashwood, Countess Elizabeth Bathory and Aleister Crowley to name but a few.
A very clever and influential man, it has been said that during his life he has been an instrumental member of several Kings' Courts throughout Europe and in the Middle East. His involvement with the notorious Hellfire Club is legendary.
He also provided us with
this video link, a tour of the house of Solomon Strange.
Summer of Indie asked
Solomon Strange to give us a more in-depth look at The Ebethusa.
When
Ruth Simmons, a world renowned psychologist, is found horrifically mutilated,
Mike Patterson returns for the funeral and continues with his former mentor’s
research into an ancient tome containing sophisticated mathematical equations
that some believe to be of extraterrestrial origin.Patterson joins forces with Becky Simmons, the professor’s daughter, who believes that her mother has been murdered at the behest of Hugo de Chauncey, an antiquities dealer who is ruthless and highly intelligent. A battle of wills ensues, drawing them both into an unholy fight.
As dark secrets are exposed, the psychologist must decide whether the forces he is up against are genuinely malign or figments of imagination rooted in his own troubled past.
In a desperate, obsessive search for the truth, disturbing questions will confront him as he delves into the mysteries of The Ebethusa, a tome dating back to the Roman occupation of England, which contains Haemlach numerals that are reputed to have hidden terrifying powers, which de Chauncey claims to be able to control. But is Patterson victim of a Machiavellian game?
While time ticks away Mike will struggle with his own sanity as invincible entities, creatures driven by uncontrollable rage, seek him out. Or is it all a delusion?
In a race against time believer and skeptic will clash. Only one will survive.
The Ebethusa is already in the
highest rated and most downloaded category on Smashwords. It is also being
actively promoted on various horror websites by people who appreciate an
unusual yet dynamic writing style.
This panoramic style has already caught the eye of some
indie filmmakers such as White Tiger Films who have stated "it is an
opportunity for our screenwriter/filmmaker friends for a feature adaption of
this horror thriller."
Solomon Strange also provided us with a short excerpt from The Ebethusa, which we included at the
end of this interview.
Amazon.co.uk http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Ebethusa-ebook/dp/B007B21900/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1330351275&sr=8-1
ebook store Sony http://ebookstore.sony.com/ebook/solomon-strange/the-ebethusa/_/R-400000000000000464325
At present The Ebethusa is achieving an average of 5 star reviews at
Smashwords http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/76155#longdescr
Q: What inspired you to
start publishing?
A: My motivation for
publishing now is that the time for me is right. I have wanted to publish a
novel for a very long time but unfortunately work always got in the way. I have
put lecturing in Further Education on hold for now and am concentrating on
doing what I really love to do, write fiction with a special interest in the
supernatural.
Q: In your book, who is
your favorite character?
A: My favorite character
is Mike Patterson, a skeptical psychologist who on the surface is completely
rational and dismissive of everything paranormal, but his past tells a
different story. He suffered psychological trauma because of the death of his
friends in what can only be called unusual circumstances. This tragic event
changed his outlook forever. He’s a troubled individual who is very smart but
incredibly closed minded. His whole life has been dedicated to debunking the
psychic community and rationalizing so called psychic phenomena. Up until this
point he’s been extremely successful but things take an unexpected turn and now
he must confront demons from his past and a life threatening danger in the
present. A series of bizarre deaths and a spate of supernatural occurrence make
him question not only his own beliefs but his sanity as well.
Q: What is your favorite indie book?
A: My favorite indie book
that I have read recently is called Demon Vampire by Virgil Allen Moore.
Q: What is your favorite book of all time?
A:What is my favorite book
of all time? That is a very difficult question to answer. I am a huge Stephen
King fan, for me it has to be Salems Lot, it’s an oldie but a goodie.
Q: Who are some of your
favorite authors?
A: Here are some of my favorite authors: H.P. Lovecraft, Dean Koontz,
Clive Barker, Robert Bloch, Edgar Allan Poe, Stephen King and James
Herbert.
Q: Do you have any advice for new writers?
A: My advice for new
writers is be enthused by your favorite authors but do not try to imitate them,
be yourself and let your writing reflect your own creativity. Encourage your
fans to purchase and review your work but don’t take sensible criticism
personally. Write thoughtful reviews for other authors and engage with the
literary community by participating in online forums.
Q: What's next for you?
A: I will be making a
guest appearance in a couple of months on Lancashire One, a UK based Television
Company. I am also working on a commercial trailer for The Ebethusa with professional actors, it should be great fun.
At present, I’m editing my
next novel The Haunting of Gospall.
It’s a ghost story about an eighteenth century warship with a contemporary
twist.
Q: Can you tell us three
questions about yourself that reader's couldn't guess about you?
A:
I’m a fan of martial arts
and Bruce Lee.
My favorite singer is
Elvis Presley.
And I adore Star Trek.
You can find Solomon Strange online at
Finally, here is an excerpt from The Ebethusa:
His gaze shifted to the French doors. Outside,
high in the night sky, huge velvet clouds were dragged away from the full moon
by unseen forces. Moonlight flooded into the darkened room so much so that it
appeared silvery, almost surreal. Around him shadows were uncompromisingly dark
and as unyielding as the grave. Shrouded in darkness he looked into that glary
luminescence and saw something that caused him to tremble. Through the windows
of his French doors, he noticed movement outside. Like dry ice it began
bubbling up from the ground, a grey mist, smoke like in appearance, moving
restlessly as it poured across the patio flag stones. Then it started to rise,
growing incredibly quickly.
His gaze became intense. All he could see now
was a shapeless greyish mass. He looked deeper into it and discerned a dark
shape within it, nebulous, shadowy in appearance.
De Chauncey wanted to look away from this
evolving monstrosity but could not, he was held there by a perverse allure, he
felt his body weaken as though he were being used as a psychic catalyst for its
growth, its maturation.
Outside the weather had changed just as
reality had, it came from nowhere, a climatic change that had little to do with
rationality or reason. The howling wind was without pity, it cut like a knife
and the sudden crack of thunder was so loud, so fierce, it could wake the dead.
“Impossible” the word burst into his mind.
This couldn’t happen, he had The Ebethusa
and fully understood the implications of breaching its seal; he hadn’t, so why
was this happening? It was a question without answer.
The stench of corruption came to him; it
wafted around the room becoming more odious as the immaterial conformation
before him solidified.
Lightning blazed so intense, so severe, it
momentarily bleached the room with its dazzling light, he sat and watched wide
eyed and mouth open, his face like an albescent volto mask. Thunder boomed its
rage uncontrollable in the starless heavens above, it seemed to him that the
whole house shuddered. As lightening flared once more, he saw in that sudden
coruscation something that terrified him to the core.
This is your dread, an inner voice seemed to
say. What you have feared for so long is upon you...
The wind quickly dropped and the weird
celestial display came to an end as though it were a support act for the main
event. The mist was swirling now and disappearing fast. A body began to emerge,
its chest thin with tan leathery skin, stretched taut over bone. The figure was
at least six foot six, maybe seven feet tall, it was hard to tell from where de
Chauncey was sitting but as the emaciated stomach came into view he realised it
was male, if this evolving thing had an identifiable sex in human terms, but
this presence wasn’t human. It couldn’t be, for as its legs appeared he saw
that they were covered with coarse dark hair, so much so that they bristled and
the feet were no more than cloven hooves. More mist fell away from the
ambiguous figure revealing the shoulders and arms. They too were thin, barely
muscled, but the hands were clawed, with huge talon like fingernails. Finally
the head came into view through the blurry mist.
‘No!’ he cried out.
It was hideous, like a mutated ram’s head with
enormous coiled horns; it stood rasping out breath through cavernous nostrils,
the thin stream of mist clearly visible in the moonlit night suggesting to the
Frenchman that the air had almost certainly iced.
As the dregs of mist dispersed into the night
he noticed its eyes, saw its glower as dark and unforgiving as hell, there was
no human thought or feelings in those crimson eyes, just rage. This creature
and its brethren had existed for thousands of years and if these eyes were the
windows of its soul then these windows revealed unrefined evil.
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