Review of Mystery Novel, “Two Peas In A Pod” (2025)

two peas

© James Pyles

Seven years ago, at his request, I reviewed author Rick Sulik’s supernatural murder mystery novel Death Unmasked. Seven years is a long time, and I ultimately forgot all about it.

Then I got an email from Sulik asking if I’d be willing to review the book’s sequel Two Peas In A Pod. My memory was jogged and of course, I’ll generally review a book for a free copy. I said “yes.”

I didn’t revisit the first novel or my review so I could approach “Peas” fresh (as opposed to “frozen” – okay, bad joke). Here are my impressions.

First, the stuff I liked.

The novel’s strength is the accuracy of police procedure. That’s no surprise given Sulik’s extensive background in law enforcement. He worked three-and-a-half years with the Houston Police Department, twenty-two years with the Pasadena (suburb of Houston) Police Department, and ten years as a courthouse bailiff with the Gonzales County Sheriff’s Department. That also helps in that the setting of both books is in and around Houston.

I’ve never been near Houston, but I’ll take it on faith that Sulik’s description of the area is accurate and that residents of Houston and Pasadena would be impressed with his rendition. I’ve watched movies and TV shows set in places where I’ve lived and just shook my head at how inaccurately the locations were portrayed. Anyway.

Where the book could have been better.

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Book Review of “Ghost Story” (2011), Book 13 in “The Dresden Files” Series

ghost story

© James Pyles

I’ve been systematically going through The Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher and late last night, I finished Ghost Story (2011) the thirteenth in the series.

Oh man.

Spoiler Alert!

Stop here if you haven’t read the novel and want to be surprised (and there are a lot of surprises to be had). You have been warned.

This story begins six months after the end of the preceding novel Changes. In that book, everything Harry ever possessed was taken away from him including a daughter he didn’t know he had.

In order to save her from the Red Court vampires, Harry literally sells his soul and ultimately has to murder the love of his life and his daughter’s mother to save his child and really, the whole world.

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“Short Fantasy Stories” Coming Soon!

fantasy

Cover art for “Short Fantasy Stories” from Shacklebound Books.

Short Fantasy Stories: Fantasy in 100 Words from Shacklebound Books is now available for pre-order from Amazon. It will be delivered to your kindle device when it’s published on July 4, 2025 (very patriotic). It contains a number of my fantasy drabbles for your reading pleasure.

The Amazon blurb says:

Short Fantasy Stories is an anthology of fantasy drabbles, stories of exactly 100 words. Within its pages are knights, witches, spirits, dragons, and magical tales for any fantasy microfiction fan.

Some of my stories are:

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Haunting Jack

fireworks

PHOTO PROMPT © Ted Strutz

If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi.

The loud rock music and fireworks were perfect to cover up her last screams. All Jack had to do was dump her corpse into one of the cheap seats and walk away. Anyone noticing her would think she’s stoned. He’d be on a plane to his next job before her death was discovered.

He hated the weird ones, but that’s what he got paid for. Jenny called herself a witch or a medium or something. Who cares why someone wanted her dead.

Jack’s fingers were on the door handle of his rental car when he saw her bloody ghost inside.

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Secret Sequel to “Shoot the Devil” Coming Soon


If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi.

You may recall that I have a short story in the anthology Shoot the Devil called “Wolf in the Wind”, which by the way, seems to be doing pretty well. It’s got 91% four and five star ratings on Amazon.

There is a sequel coming out soon which I can’t really talk about yet, but it’s the same basic theme set against a completely different background. My story was a lot of fun to write.

However where a number of other stories in the first book were more strictly in the realm of spirituality and the supernatural, mine also included elements of steampunk, if you imagine that, and set in the 1880s in Idaho City, Idaho (which is a real place that exists today).

I’m writing this because ahead of the sequel’s publication, the publisher and we ten authors, are asking for more reviews of the first book.

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Book Review of “The Titanic Paradox” by R.L. Corn

titanic

If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi.

I finished the short book The Titanic Paradox last night. It was written by R.L.Corn and published just last month. I happened upon it by chance when it was being discussed on Facebook (see, social media is good for marketing books).

Admittedly, I’m a sucker for time travel stories, especially involving the Titanic and I come about this preference from what some might call a silly source.

In 1966 yet another Irwin Allen production The Time Tunnel was launched. In the pilot episode Rendezvous with Yesterday, two scientists, Tony Newman (James Darren) and Doug Phillips (Robert Colbert) used an experimental time displacement device to go back in time. More specifically, they ended up on the Titanic less than a day before it was destined to sink.

Like all of Allen’s production, action was promoted over historical or scientific accuracy, but it was great entertainment for kids.

Corn, in his “Titanic” book, did a great deal more research to produce his time travel thriller.

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Conquistador

Ships on the Paraguay River at Asunción, Paraguay © Ilkov Filimonov/Dreamstime.com

Juan’s flight from his native Briviesca to Asunción in Paraguay was grueling, especially after two layovers. He was grateful to find a cab to take him the sixteen miles into the city.

“Senor wants to be taken to the river? No particular place?” What passed for Spanish in this country seemed almost barbaric to Juan.

“Yes, it doesn’t matter.”

The cab driver thought it odd that the Spaniard had no luggage, but Juan wasn’t planning a lengthy stay, or not one the cabbie would understand. As his mind and existence was cast backward, the cab, the buildings, the city itself became increasingly alien.

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Psyche Poised Against Infinity

woman at night

Found at the High Style Life website – no photo credit available

Psyche stood on the edge of the rooftop contemplating the city’s nightlife far below. If anyone saw her swaying twenty stories above the street, they might vitiate her plans and try to persuade her to go indoors, or perhaps to a hospital, but suicide wasn’t on her mind.

Privately celebrating the occurrence of her twentieth birthday, she took a single rose pedal from inside her diaphanous gown, where it had been nestled between her breasts, and released it to the wind, letting the obsidian sky receive its tribute.

She knew the monstrosity was out there somewhere between the wind and the darkness and the sky, and she, her young, lithe body wrapped only in barely tangible moonlight, poised like a pigeon at the edge of eternity, chose no longer to have feet of clay, but the talons of an eagle.

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Death Unmasked: A Book Review

death unmasked

Cover image of the novel “Death Unmasked” by Rick Sulik

Disclosure: Almost three months ago, author Rick Sulik asked me to review his 2015 novel Death Unmasked. We had an email discussion and I agreed with the understanding that I would provide an honest review, no holds barred. I subsequently received a kindle edition of the book and finished reading it yesterday.

You should probably know two things about Rick before we get started. He’s a retired police officer, having served on both the Houston and Pasadena (Texas) police forces. He believes in reincarnation. Both of these figure prominently in this novel.

Imagine that you’re a homicide detective in Houston and nearing retirement. You’re a loner, both on the force and in your personal life, and yet there is this longing in you for connection.

Then, little by little, you begin to recall experiences from a past life, your previous name, your wife, how you died, and how she was raped and murdered.

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595 Hitori Kakurenbo

595 old house

© C.E. Ayr

The Occultist had been a small child when he was last here. He remembered playing in the yard, ringing the now rusted bell next to the forlorn gate, playing behind the trees out back, and eating pizza with his Grandpa on the shaded patio. All of his memories of this home were happy and joyful except for the one that was horrifying.

The house and grounds had been neglected for the past twenty years. When his Dad inherited it after Grandpa’s tragic death, he didn’t have the heart to sell it or have the structure demolished. Raymund stood at the gate, closed his eyes, and said a silent prayer of gratitude. If the house at 595 Hitori Kakurenbo had been destroyed, he would have no hope of discovering the identity of the inhuman being who had slaughtered his Grandfather two decades ago. Raymund had only been seven years old when it happened, and was the only witness to the murder.

His Grandfather’s long career as a paranormal investigator had finally caught up with him. Raymund spent the past decade training for this moment. Tonight, he would discover the identity of Grandpa’s inhuman killer and bring it to fearful justice.

I wrote this for the Sunday Photo Fiction Challenge of July 1, 2017 hosted by Susan. The idea is to use the image above as the prompt for creating a piece of flash fiction no more than 200 words long. My word count is 198.

Yesterday, I again discovered the hazards of allowing children unmonitored access to the internet. My nine-year-old grandson showed me a video on YouTube called 10 Paranormal Games You Should Never Play. He wanted to incorporate some of them into a game we’ve been playing (role playing game, so it all exists in the imagination), but after viewing them, I said absolutely not.

Chances are, all of these are hoaxes, but if you have faith in God, you have to accept that there is a supernatural realm, and the danger of falling into evil.

I borrowed the villain and the street name from the original appellation of one of those games to act as the murderer and the address of the crime scene. Yes, today’s wee tale takes a turn into the darkness, however, I rarely can let evil win, so I’m also planning for redemption.

To read other stories based on the prompt, visit InLinkz.com.