A Peek into Hell - These Hellish Happenings by Jennifer Rainey

I had scheduled an interview with author Jennifer Rainey but she had to cancel at the last minute. The bearded lady needed more shaving cream so off she went to assist. In her stead we have Jack Bentley from the book These Hellish Happenings. Good thing a copy fell from Jennifer’s purse as she ran out the door!

With much ado I give you Jack.

So Jack, it seems like you have lived a charmed life for a while. When did it all go wrong?

There’s not really one moment where it all went wrong. I mean, there are at least fifty. Thousand. Fifty-thousand is probably a little closer. Making a deal with the Devil tends to mess up one’s existence. Any charmed aspects of my life come in waves, I’ve found. I’ve had my fair share of time on the top of the world, but I’ve also spent a lot of time in the mire, to put it politely.

Being a Vampire sounds cool. What are some of the pros and cons?

It’s rubbish! I can’t actually think of any pros. Living forever is not all it’s cracked up to be, the blood-sucking process is time-consuming and after a few centuries, you get bored with it.  Not only that, living without a pulse makes certain sexual acts incredibly difficult. It’s really not that great. I don’t have any special powers, either. I’m just a guy… who happens to need human blood to live.

Do you ever regret your pact with the devil?

I used to. That was before I actually settled down in Hell. It’s really not that bad, and I can’t believe I’m saying that. Think about your worst day on Earth. Multiply it by no more than three and a half. That’s living on The Administrative Level of Hell. It could certainly be worse. I could be on one of the lower levels cleaning up after Cerberus.

I’ve read about your plight in hell. Sounds a lot like my last job but more colorful. Tell us about your day.

I wake up, go to The Registration Office here in Hell, register the incoming dead and send them to wherever in Hell they’re going to spend eternity. Think St. Peter but with fangs (and, I imagine, better looking).  And I work nine to five, Monday through Friday. The weekend is when I tend to get in trouble, usually with Alex. He tends to gravitate towards trouble.

So Alexander huh? I see you blushing, do tell!

He’s a demon who stalked me for fifty years. Perfect way to start a relationship, wouldn’t you say? Alex, despite the fact that he has terrible taste in music (The Doors? Really?), makes Hell very unhellish for me. And don’t tell him I said that. He’s got an ego through the bloody roof already. I’d never hear the end of it.

Well thanks for stopping in today if you see Jennifer tell her she should be very proud.

No, thank you for getting me out of twenty minutes of my shift!

LINKS:

These Hellish Happenings on Amazon (Kindle): http://www.amazon.com/These-Hellish-Happenings-ebook/dp/B004K1F8KM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1295619680&sr=8-2

These Hellish Happenings on B&N (Nook): http://search.barnesandnoble.com/These-Hellish-Happenings/Jennifer-Rainey/e/2940012372154?r=1&itm=1&usri=these+hellish+happenings&if=N&cm_mmc=VigLink-_-k244266-_-j12871747k244266-_-Primary

Website: http://www.jenniferrainey.com

Twitter: http://twitter.com/THH_series

Blog: http://independentparanormal.blogspot.com

Author G.W. Jefferies: Apolo Drakuvich

Author G.W. Jefferies Sharing his new book 

Apolo Drakuvich (Psst! We love the Final Cover!)

The Book

The Blurb

The Man

Amazon link to book: http://www.amazon.com/Apolo-Drakuvich-ebook/dp/B004OEIT7E/

Author blog/website: www.gwjefferies.com

Facebook page: www.facebook.com/gwjefferies

 

The Book:

----- (Review from Free Book Reviews)

Jefferies grabs you with this book and refuses to let go until you see it his way or no way. They say Texas is raw and gritty and this writer shows this truth in his writing. The story is mesmerizing and refuses to let go until it is finished with you.

Point of View: Jefferies is direct with the point of view and really grabs the attention of the reader.

Voice: The voice again is direct in an entertaining way but the story itself is what draws you in.

Character Development: You can not help but feel for Apolo and empathize with him throughout the book.

Plot: We all know that a corrupt system exists and we all know this HAS happened in some form or another.

Dialogue: Gritty, fast paced and delivered flawlessly.

Pacing: Imagine the open expanse of the Texas Country Side fit inside of Rhode Island and that is how the plot moves. Meaning it feels wide open but the author finds a way to fit it all in between the pages he allowed. WOW!

Setting: Again we all know this could or did happen somewhere in some fashion.

Continuity: The bow is a little skewed but the author does a nice job of making it tied and in place.
-Albert Robbins III of Free Book Reviews
------

 

The Blurb:

G.W. Jefferies' Apolo Drakuvich captures the life of a petty criminal on a strange ride ranging from bizarre and senseless to utterly tragic. Revolving around parasitic journalism, media and government corruption, and a ruthless, conniving judge who milks the citizens out of millions of dollars, Apolo Drakuvich can be described as a compilation of untamed and sheer madness--captivating the readers' attention from beginning to end. With its raw descriptions, penetrating dialogue and crisp writing, this book is like no other.

Within all the madness that so epitomizes the life of Apolo, G.W. Jeffries presents a life of regret in epic proportions. Sitting in a jail cell, Apolo reflects, "One thing is for sure, I let it all slip away...so many opportunities lost." Apolo sadly examines the events and decisions of his life, and the paths he took and should have taken. Apolo seeks peace of mind and justice, but flashbacks of his past continuously haunt him; moreover, he seems to be victimized by a corrupt justice system everywhere he goes.

As an offender, Apolo discusses pertinent issues of today's society, where it is next to impossible for offenders to live normal lives, despite the desire to do so. Essentially, law enforcement and authorities seem to systematically destroy the offender by placing constraints on the offender such as restrictions on where to live, GPS monitoring, registering as offenders on websites, and more.

Apolo Drakuvich is a microcosm of numerous real-life issues encompassing the wild, the bizarre, and the tragic.

Amazon link to book: http://www.amazon.com/Apolo-Drakuvich-ebook/dp/B004OEIT7E/

Author blog/website: www.gwjefferies.com

Facebook page: www.facebook.com/gwjefferies

 

The Man:

1. Tell us about yourself and how you came to be a writer / poet.

I’m a native Texan and I write contemporary and dystopian fiction.  The themes of counter-culture and dystopian views are usually included in some form in my works.  Some of my literary influences include Hunter S. Thompson, Chuck Palahniuk, William S. Burroughs, George Orwell, and Kurt Vonnegut. 

2. What's currently on your Kindle / Nook / eReader?

I just bought my Kindle last week but I have some books by Vonnegut and Hunter S. Thompson.  I also have works by some indie authors: Melissa Smith, David Gaughran, Jack Wallen, etc….too many to mention.

3. What's next up in your Netflix queue?

I have about 200 hundred movies and tv shows in the que at the moment but I think I’m going to watch the Twin Peaks tv series.  I’m in the mood to freak myself out.

4.  From the description, Apolo Drakuvich seems to be a story about the cyclic nature of a criminal life—how increased scrutiny from law enforcement and the stigma of being a criminal create a spiral that prevents any kind of normal life and in fact perpetuates further criminal activity. Is this a fair assessment? What prompted you to write such a book?

I think that is a fair assessment but I would add to the mix a corrupt justice system and now we have real chaos.  How can people expect criminals to better themselves when the system in play is just as bad as the criminal activity?  Apolo Drakuvich was written to help bring awareness to all sides of the issue.  Let’s stop and really take a look at this system. 

5. You had a post on your blog last week about a badly written, poorly-rated book you found that has made fairly constant appearances on the Kindle bestsellers list. Your conclusion was, cheap sex sells. As an artist struggling for the attention of a wider audience, does it discourage you to see the bestseller lists filled with books that seem so shallow on the surface?

Cheap sex sells…this will never end.  Kudos for the authors making a few extra dollars.  It’s a little discouraging but if this is what the people want, let them have it.

6. Is it fair to say that you've noticed an overall theme in your work? Something that follows you from piece to piece? If so, what is it?

I only have a novella, a short story, and poetry currently published but I would say the themes are dark at the moment.  They are dystopian stories that deal with some form of corruption.  I wouldn’t say this is my overall theme for all of my works but just the theme that is available to the world…if that makes any sense.  I’m interested in character/human/individual growth and I always try to put those type of character traits into my works.

7. What message do you want the world to see in your writing?

Don’t always believe what you see or read.  Be a free thinker.

8. If you could change the world right now, what would those changes look like?

People would be free to make their own choices so the world would probably look more or less the same.  Well, I guess I would like to add…let’s play nice.

9. PC or Mac?

I use both but I write on a PC.