Showing results by narrator "Joe Hempel" in All Categories

When a missing person case lands in the lap of Black Knight Investigations, Jimmy Black and his partner, Greg Knightwood, jump back into action - until their missing person rises as an uncontrollable vampire and all signs point to a supernatural coup orchestrated by an unknown vampire of immense power. With the case going sideways, more missing girls, and a new cop in town way too curious about Jimmy's perennial youth, life in Charlotte is about to get interesting again.

For over 100 years, the Temple of Ran has been sacrificing young wizards in order to steal their power. When Lorit discovers that he holds the rare ability to use magic, he becomes their next target. At first, he runs, working to master his abilities on the move so that one day he might be able to resist them. But that was before the Temple targets his beloved sister, Chihon. In order to save her life, he infuses her with his own power. Now, they're both targets.

Demon lights, granted wishes, strange things, and brutal love at the Lucky Lounge Motel. A haunted sister, desperate parents, a little human touch, and the end of the world. These are the stories whispered among dead leaves, the script etched bare for all to see. Welcome to Glenn Rolfe’s Land of Bones, 14 tales of the strange and macabre.

Since Night of the Living Dead, zombies have been a frightening fixture on the pop-culture landscape, lumbering after hapless humans, slurping up brains and veins and whatever warm, fleshy matter they can clench in their rotting limbs. But what if they were real? What would happen if, tomorrow, corpses across the nation began springing up out of their graves and terrorizing the living? Employing hard science and solid police work - not to mention jaw-dropping (literally!) humor - Zombie CSU is the only guide available to staying alive and avoiding the undead.

Thirty years ago, a progressive rock band called The Yellow Kings began recording what would become their first and final album. Titled The Final Reconciliation, the album was expected to usher in a new renaissance of heavy metal, but it was shelved following a tragic concert that left all but one dead.

Garrote House has seen its share of blood. Since Christopher's ancestor Oliver Hedgewood built the house in the 1800s, many spirits have taken up residence in "the Moving House", including horror author Rex Garrote, who'd burned to death in his private library. Christopher Hedgewood and Sara Jane Amblin, inventor of the Recurrence Field, return to Garrote House one final time before it's relocated to Ghostland.

Daniel Hill will never forget the day he heard these words: "Daniel, you may be white, but don't let that lull you into thinking you have no culture. White culture is very real. In fact, when white culture comes in contact with other cultures, it almost always wins. So it would be a really good idea for you to learn about your culture." Confused and unsettled by this encounter, Hill began a journey of understanding his own white identity. Today he is an active participant in addressing and confronting racial and systemic injustices.

Conryu returns home after an eventful first year at school, eager for a quiet summer vacation with his best friends. Unfortunately, it is not to be. Just days after he arrives home, the Le Fay Society broadcasts its demands and his life is at the top of the list. Conryu soon finds himself on the run from the police, and the only way to save himself is to hunt down those threatening the city himself.

Harper Gale has gotten half of her revenge. She’s also gotten herself mixed up in a serious mess. The Acolytes of Darkness now have an army of wraiths at their command. Numbering in the hundreds, virtually invulnerable to non-magical weapons, and able to kill with a touch, the wraiths are a threat to all of Montage.

The night uncovers all we wish not to see. A troubled man enters a dusky park before sunset. A young woman follows, hidden in shadow. Both have returned to the park to take back something the past has stolen from them, to make right six long years of suffering, and to find justice or perhaps redemption - or maybe they'll settle for some old-fashioned revenge. But something evil is alive and awake in those woods, creatures that care nothing for human motivations. They’re driven by their own insatiable need: a ravenous, bottomless hunger.

In 2043, Capes Online is the biggest, most popular VRMMORPG in the world. With over one billion active players and counting, gamers can become brave Heroes or cunning Villains, their every choice determining their alignment. Everyone wants to play this game and almost everyone does. Except for 25-year-old police officer Nyle Maxwell, who can't log out. Killed in a car accident on his first day on the job, Nyle gets his mind uploaded to Capes Online to save his life.

Meet Lawson: A cynical, wise-cracking vampire charged with protecting the Balance - the secret existence of a race of living vampires who have evolved alongside humanity for thousands of years. A fixer. Part-spy, and part-commando-James Bond with fangs, Lawson mixes shrewd cunning with unmatched lethality to get his job done. He tries his best to dismantle conspiracies, dispatch bad guys, and live long enough to get home. Arvella: A power-hungry member of the vampire governing body, the Council. She wants power and will stop at nothing to get it. Even if it means kidnapping a child.

Christian Windsor's odd genius brought him and his FBI unit fame when he stopped the sadistic murderer called The Surgeon. Christian's genius couldn't reveal the sociopath working right next to him, though: the world-renowned psychiatrist, Luke Titan. Dead bodies begin showing up again, but this time, Christian knows them. The killer doesn't want other people: He wants Christian. A delusional psychopath thinks Christian can bring God's return, which gives Luke Titan the perfect opportunity to continue his own sick purpose.

After receiving a large insurance settlement, young couple Gwen and George fulfill a dream by buying their own little island, a secluded, private paradise surrounded by a lush green landscape of plants. What the real estate man didn't tell them was that a tragedy took place years earlier in the cool, clear pool near the house. And the waters still hold a terrifying centuries-old secret. Soon George begins to notice strange changes in his wife.

Book 3 in a post-apocalyptic road trip amongst monsters and the supernatural, perfect for fans of stories like A Quiet Place, The Demon Cycle, and Attack on Titan.

After the death of her mother, Bobbie Jean finds herself living with her aunt and uncle at their rural farm. Without many options, she begins to sell her body to anyone to turn a quick buck. But when she discovers Uncle Levi's dirty secret in the barn, Bobby Jean must decide whether to join the family business.

On Memorial Day, 1992, three decorated navy officers disappeared in the sleepy beach town of Hansville, Washington. Thirty years later, their medals were found in the marshlands of Foulweather Bluff. So were their bones. For private investigator Thomas Austin, this case hits close to home. The son of a JAG lawyer, Austin grew up around the navy. To solve the case, he must piece together clues buried in the marshlands and dark secrets hidden in navy history.

Your future is unwritten. Your potential is yet to be discovered. You are on the cusp of accomplishing feats that may seem unthinkable at this moment. Let go of your self-doubt and THINK BIG. Give yourself permission to unlock the life you want to lead.

A deserted R&D facility tempts the hungry new Guild, Leviathan, into sending a team to plunder its valuable research. The base was abandoned after a neighboring planet was devastated by an outbreak of Xenos-alien zombies—but that was a whole planet away. When the Guild ship is attacked by a quarantine patrol, both ships crash onto the deserted world. Only it isn't as deserted as they hope: a murderous new Xeno threat awakens, desperate to escape the planet. Can the crews cooperate to destroy this new foe? Will they be forced to sacrifice their ships and lives to protect the galaxy?

Maccus Fury, a fallen angel, is trying hard to keep his sanity. Seems being an assassin might be catching up with him. Now, heaven, or hell, has sent a beautiful assassin to kill him. Lovely. She’s pretending to seduce him, and he’s okay with that. She’s smart and snarky - but she has no idea what she’s walked into. And he’s more than peeved that they only sent one person. They’re going to need an army if they want him dead.