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Zed

Page 23

by Jason McIntyre


  BLED (Dovetail Cove, 1972) LEARN MORE >

  Tina McLeod is on the cusp of a new life. Extraordinary change is rare in her world but this newsflash means she can finally leave her small island town for good. No more pouring coffee for townsfolk in Main Street's greasy spoon, no more living under the weight of her born-again mother. That is, until Frank Moort comes in for his usual lunch and dessert on an ordinary Friday in May.

  FLED (Dovetail Cove, 1973) LEARN MORE >

  In this noir chapter of the Dovetail Cove saga, it’s May Day, 1973, and Charles Scobie finds himself hitched to Chrissy Banatyne, the daughter of the wealthiest and most talked-about power couple on the island. And, of all the rotten luck, Chrissy’s honeymoon destination of choice brings her home, while bringing Charlie back to an icy batch of memories he’s trying to leave behind. Desperate to finally outrun a violent childhood, a disastrous start to his career, and his estranged family, Charlie believed he could finally set everything right after one last backroom deal, executed on a snowy night—right here in this very island town. Now, Charlie’s gotten used to the high life. Newlywed and wealthy, he has everything going for him. Still, it seems, no matter how fast Charlie runs, he finds himself right back where he started.

  REDHEAD (Dovetail Cove, 1974) LEARN MORE >

  “My name is Frances Margaret Banks and I’ve killed two men.” So begins the account of Dovetail Cove’s most notorious Lady of The Red Light in her rented room above Lowballs Pub on Beacon Street. When she meets Sean, a seemingly noble client who takes her services despite his beautiful young family waiting at home, she knows the relationship needs to end. And yet, drawn into his world of security, mystique and, yes, even love, Fanny is compelled to maintain ties with Sean, even if they turn out to be fatal.

  ZED (Dovetail Cove, 1975) LEARN MORE >

  It’s the waning dog days of August, 1975 and Tom Mason’s in Dovetail Cove for the last few weeks of his summer job at the group home. His boss and the home’s owner is Karen Banatyne, one of the wealthiest folks in town. It seems like she’s got it in for Tom; she's the only one standing in his way as he scrimps for a new camera. But Karen has her own problems. A regulatory agency might cut off her funding, plus her hubby hasn’t been seen in a few weeks, and she’s not saying why. Most ominous of all, it seems as though something’s hiding in the hot spring north of the main beach and one of Karen’s ‘houseguests’ is about to come face to face with evil. Tom is too.

  UNWED (Dovetail Cove, 1976) LEARN MORE >

  It’s January, 1976 and Bexy McLeod gets roped in to helping Dovetail Cove’s retired doc as he deals with St. Dominic’s latest problem. Having tangled with the town’s church-going community for years, Bexy knows she shouldn’t get involved. Wheelchair-bound after an accident left her a paraplegic, she might be the least-sensible choice. Trouble tends to follow the widow and the last thing Bexy needs is confrontation. But now she’s finding herself enamoured with the young woman she’s helping. Bexy may just have to go toe-to-toe with one of the most prominent members of Dovetail Cove’s upper crust…and its head priest.

  SHED (Dovetail Cove, 1977) LEARN MORE >

  Simon and Rupert spend their days playing in the fields out near the old power station but at night, a visitor comes for them. Older brother Simon shoulders the burden of their stepfather Everett and his greedy dominion over their Mama. But the brothers must now stand together to heal the wounds of their real father’s departure and brace themselves for a harrowing showdown with Everett.

  DREAD (Dovetail Cove, 1978) LEARN MORE >

  Mac and Dave McLeod are thirty-something bachelor brothers, back in the tiny island town of Dovetail Cove after more than a decade away. They're here for a funeral, despite Mac's looming feeling that things aren't quite right in their childhood home, nor anywhere else across town. It doesn't take long for a mysterious visitor at the wake to embroil the McLeod boys and the island doc in a game of whodunit involving one of Police Chief Birkhead's unsolved files. Things get macabre when the boys discover a link to their parents in the mess. And the visitor who starts it all might just be a walking cadaver gone missing out from under the coroner's nose.

  INSTEAD (Dovetail Cove, 1979) LEARN MORE >

  It’s New Years, 1979 and a freak snowfall marks the return to Dovetail Cove of one of its lost residents. North of town, at Grandpa Danny Hellegarde’s house, his granddaughter and daughter reunite with him, bringing family secrets, buried trauma and a new turmoil. Danny’s beloved golden retriever has made the wrong kind of friends — and when they arrive at the Hellegarde house in the woods, they bring with them a secret…and a terrible, dark figure.

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  If you’ve enjoyed this story, why not spend a minute to leave a short review where you bought it? It helps the independent author who wrote it to be able to keep writing and delivering the stories you love. And, hey, it’s good karma!

  Special Offer

  Right now, for a limited time, if you leave a short review at the retailer where you downloaded this story, and send a link for the review to me at jason@thefarthestreaches.com, I’ll send you a free copy of any other of my paid stories you like.

  Reviews don’t need to be long! A sentence or two is all it takes to explain why you liked the story and whether you’d read more.

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  About the Author

  Jason McIntyre has lived and worked in varied places across the globe. His writing also meanders from the pastoral to the garish, from the fantastical to the morbid. Vibrant characters and vivid surroundings stay with him and coalesce into novels and stories. Before his time as an editor, writer and communications professional, he spent several years as a graphic designer and commercial artist.

  McIntyre's writing has been called noir and sophisticated, styled after the likes of Chuck Palahniuk but with the pacing and mass appeal of Stephen King. The books tackle the family life subject matter of Jonathan Franzen but also eerie discoveries one might find in a Ray Bradbury story or those of Rod Serling.

  Jason McIntyre’s books include the #1 Kindle Suspense, The Night Walk Men, bestsellers On The Gathering Storm and Shed, plus the multi-layered coming-of-age literary suspense Thalo Blue.

  Learn more about the author and his work at:

  www.theFarthestReaches.com

  Acknowledgements

  No work of fiction, whether long or short, is written in utter isolation. I have never completed anything of creative value without the protection, support and comfort provided by numerous individuals. In no particular order, I wish to thank each of them for the help they gave me in writing and publishing this book.

  The nuclear and extended McIntyre families; without the lot of you, I’d simply be alone, in the dark and typing into a void. I might be anyway, but at least you’re with me.

  Fine writers and friends including: Kimberly S. McMichael, Jason Alexander Greenwood, Helen Yee, Darcia Helle, Maria Savva, Mark Bordner, Lisa Gott, Rachel Thompson, Allie Burke and J.J. Abrams.

  Thanks to everyone who has come this far and read this much. The island won’t forget you. And neither will I. My thanks to you all.

 

 

 


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