Treasured & Tipsy Timeslip: Traveller Scott A. Lerner
Travel and make-believe go hand in hand. Whether we're in the present or the past, in a haunted castle, an enchanted forest or a broken down building, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and traveling the world can bring the imagination to life.Please welcome this week's guest, author and attorney Scott A. Lerner. #Travel #AuthorInterview #TreasuredTipsyTimeslip #RachaelStapleton
I would love to travel to Ancient Egypt. I find their culture fascinating enough to make it a part of the Fraternity of the Soul Eater. I would love to have been around in ancient times but would settle for being there during the late 1800s through the 1920s. I could be around during the great archeological discoveries. My book takes place in modern times, but the magic from Ancient Egypt is referenced throughout. After all, the deities are not dead, only buried beneath the sands of time waiting to be called upon.
It would also be fantastic to see the future, since I am not limited to a specific time period. Maybe I could see the world a few hundred years down the road. I would know if society’s doing fine like in Star Trek or not doing as well, as in Planet of the Apes. I would also know what stocks to invest in. Will Apple still be around? I would love to see if we have flying cars. I have been wanting one for years. Will our robot overlords be cruel or kind? The future would certainly be a great destination, no matter what the location.
I wouldn’t mind a trip to Woodstock, New York, in August of 1969. I hear they had a concert that would have been fun to attend. Although the rain and mud might have been a tad unpleasant. Yet the great music would more than make up for it. 
In truth I live in a great time and a great place. My books, which are part of a series, take place in Champaign, Illinois—a town less exciting than New York and less scenic than Malibu. Yet, thrills and paranormal creatures of the dark can haunt anywhere at any time. With books and movies available online, you can find adventure anywhere.
A
Samuel Roberts Thriller
Book
3
Scott
A. Lerner
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Thriller
Publisher: Camel Press
Date of Publication: June 15,
2015
ISBN: 978-1-60381-289-4
ASIN: Not yet available
Number of pages: 218
Word Count: 57k words
Cover Artist: Sabrina Sun
Book Description:
It’s been a while since Samuel
Roberts was called upon to save mankind, and he’s getting restless. His
girlfriend Susan thinks he’s a danger junkie, and he’s worried he has a hero
complex. He’s back to his usual small-town lawyerly duties in Champaign-Urbana,
handling divorces and helping people beat DUI raps. But then a young fraternity
pledge calls. During an initiation ceremony he witnessed the live sacrifice of
a young woman, but he had so much alcohol in his system that no one believes
him. Except Sam. Lately Egyptian lore has been creeping into his life, his
dreams, and his movie preferences, and he’s pretty sure he knows why. Evil is
knocking on his door again.
Is the call welcome? Why can’t
Sam be satisfied with his comfortable legal practice and gorgeous redheaded
girlfriend? Maybe it’s because he knows that, as inadequate as he may feel to
the task, he and his friend Bob may be humanity’s only hope against ancient
supernatural forces combined with modern genetic engineering. Come hell or high
water. Or in this case, the underworld or subterranean pyramids.
The Fraternity of the Soul Eater
is the third book in the Samuel Roberts Thriller series, which began with
Cocaine Zombies and continued with Ruler of Demons.
Available at Amazon
Excerpt:
She was wearing
tight black jeans and a low-cut cropped T-shirt that exposed ample cleavage. A
golden ankh dangled between her breasts. On one forearm was a tattoo of a bird
I assumed to be a lark, and on the other, a tattoo of a hawk. Her bright blue
eyes matched her hair. She was striking looking but by no means beautiful. A
slight muffin top was made more visible by her short shirt, and she had
apparently broken her nose at least once in her life. She smelled like
sandalwood and cinnamon.
I would never
cheat on Susan, but I had to admit there was something sexy about Lark. I tried
to put my prurient thoughts away and deal with the issue at hand. Also, the
ankh made me wonder if she was playing for the other side. I was not a big fan
of birds, which for me had always been a harbinger of bad luck.
“So what is it
that you couldn’t tell me at the courthouse?”
“I’m a graduate
student at the University of Illinois and heard from a friend about Chris’s
case. I went to the preliminary hearing to get more information.”
“That’s
fine—it’s an open courtroom—but I can’t tell you the specifics of his case.”
“I am here to
help you, not the other way around.”
“Cool!” I leaned
back in my chair, trying to look casual. “Tell me what you know.”
“My sister was
at a party at that fraternity three years ago. She has not been seen since. I
believe she was killed there. I can’t prove it, but I have been trying to ever
since.”
“Did you call
the police?”
“No, I called
Pizza Hut.” She sighed. “I’m … sorry. This whole thing …. it’s hard to talk
about. Yes, I called the police and the FBI. I even hired a private
investigator.”
“No luck?”
“None. In fact,
they all told me to let it go.”
“I take it from
the fact you are here that you didn’t ‘let it go.’ ”
“You take it
right. I was attending the University of Iowa. I was close to getting an MFA in
fine arts but I transferred to the University of Illinois a year and a half
ago. I’ve been investigating the fraternity ever since.” As she spoke Lark
moved her arms about in quick gestures, reminding me of the bird she was named
for.
“What have you
learned?”
“For starters, I
believe your client.”
“Why?”
She hesitated,
as if pained by what she was going to relate. “Last year I dated a guy named
George Hammond. He was a rich kid, kind of a geek, but he was okay. I
essentially stalked him until he agreed to go out with me. At first I was only
interested because he was pledging the fraternity. I know I was using him, but
he was using me too. When he got accepted into the fraternity he told me a few
of their secrets.”
“Any chance I
could chat with George directly?”
She shook her
head, a little violently. “Not unless we hold a séance. I’m sorry. I appreciate
you speaking with me, and I don’t mean to be sarcastic. George died in a car
accident. Actually, he was murdered, but I can’t prove it.”
“What did he
tell you?”
“Every fall the
fraternity sacrifices a girl. Their choice is based on her not having much in
the way of family or money. They want someone who won’t be missed. The organs
are removed as though she is to be mummified. Since there’s no pyramid to bury
them in, the bodies are not wrapped or mummified or even kept.”
It was difficult
to absorb what she was telling me. “That is nightmarish. What the hell do they
do with the bodies?”
She jerked her
shoulders up and down in a shaky shrug. “Who knows?”
“Why would they
do such a thing?”
She looked
mournful now. “George didn’t know. It may have been to test the pledges’
loyalty to the fraternity. He said they would commit the murder at a hidden
temple and that the members would have to chant ancient prayers as part of some
strange ritual. The leaders of the fraternity told him that the girls’ souls
were being fed to the ‘Soul Eater,’ but George didn’t think they were serious.”
“Do you believe
what George told you?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
She looked me
hard in the eye. “My sister is missing.
Author and attorney Scott A.
Lerner resides in Champaign, Illinois. He obtained his undergraduate degree in
psychology from the University of Wisconsin in Madison and went on to obtain his
Juris Doctor degree from the University of Illinois in Urbana Champaign. He is
currently a sole practitioner in Champaign, Illinois. The majority of his law
practice focuses on the fields of criminal law and family law. Lerner’s first
novel and the first Samuel Roberts Thriller, Cocaine Zombies, won a bronze
medal in the mystery/cozy/noir category of the 2013 Independent Publisher
(IPPY) Awards. The second book in the series is Ruler of Demons. The Fraternity
of the Soul Eater is book 3. Book 4, The Wiccan Witch of the Midwest, will be
released on Halloween, 2015.
You can find Scott online at: www.scottlerner.camelpress.com
Tour
giveaway
5 eBook copies of The Fraternity
of the Soul Eater
Link to giveaway
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