The Beast Within
  • Reads 7,359
  • Votes 1,684
  • Parts 63
  • Time 10h 28m
  • Reads 7,359
  • Votes 1,684
  • Parts 63
  • Time 10h 28m
Complete, First published May 13, 2023
A family lost and a son alone. A boy's life at its end and beginning. An adventure filled with fantastical terrors, where a child becomes a monster, and a monster becomes a legend.

***

These were the ominous words the ghost Marmy Jo spoke when foretelling Josiah's future: 

"Got a world of pain comin' your way, boy-and fast! But, if you make it, you'll come out a stronger beast than many."

When a wolf attack leaves Josiah mortally wounded, his sister Credence is forced to abandon him to find help. Where she went, he cannot say, for the last thing he remembers is hearing his heart stop. 

Josiah, the boy who died, wakes to find the world much changed. 
Deep within, a horror howls, threatening to tear from his bones at any moment. 
With his sister gone, Josiah is alone for the first time in his life, and must learn how to survive in the dark, dark woods. 

But how can an eight-year-old defend against devious spiders, cruel kings, and bloodthirsty titans? 

And how long can Josiah refuse the call of darkness before he's pulled down a path of chaos and blood? 

📚 Book Three of the "Bedtime Story" Series 📚

Content Warning: This story contains violence including death of children, mild language, alcohol and tobacco use.
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Exile: The Book of Ever

30 parts Complete

Centuries after the Fall, the United States has been wiped away. The crumbling remains of the great American empire are home now only to savage, lawless tribes and packs of ravening Damned-the twisted children of the apocalypse. Most of those few who survived humanity's destruction spend their short lives in a violent struggle for survival. But some light still flickers in the darkness: the Blessed of Bountiful live in seclusion, relying on walls both physical and spiritual to protect them from the Desolation that their world has become. Among them are the Saints, those few men and women born with superhuman abilities that the Blessed see as gifts from God. The violent apostate tribes of the Northeast Kingdom have always been a danger, but up until recently its small size and the vigilance of its people have made Bountiful an unappealing target. As attacks on the community grow harsher and more frequent, however, even the steadfast Blessed are forced to start preparing for the worst. With her home's very existence threatened, seventeen year old Ever Oaks, a Saint with the power to heal, is forced to make a difficult choice, one that may come to define her people's future... Exile was a semi-finalist in Mark Lawrence's Great Self-Published Fantasy Blog-Off (#SPFBO). Fantasy Faction said it was "extremely cool," and Bookish Lifestyle called it "more than just a story, a journey and an experience." When I'm asked about it, I often describe it as "X-Men meets The Walking Dead." In addition to reading it here for free, you can buy Exile in e-book or paperback on Amazon.com.