Urban Fantasy Author Gail Z. Martin talks Vampires, Werewolves, and Casinos

Vampires, Werewolves, and Casinos

By Gail Z. Martin

Our newest Spells, Salt and Steel book House of Cards takes mechanic/monster hunter Mark Wojcik into new territory, busting an illicit casino and cryptid fight club run by supernatural bosses. Of course there’s more to the problem than underground betting, and that puts Mark and his friends up to their asses in alligators as they sort out the web of dangerous dealings.

This is the eighth Mark Wojcik book (co-written with Larry N. Martin), and along the way we’ve gotten to see Mark and his companions grow and change as individuals even as they also gain new fighting skills, paranormal abilities, and supernatural allies. We’ve also explored plenty of Pennsylvania urban legends, ghost stories and lore from the part of the state where Larry and I grew up. We never run out of weird, spooky stuff to stoke the next story!

We’ve signed a contract with Falstaff Books for Season 3–four more novellas of action-packed paranormal adventure with plenty of snarky humor, so stay tuned!

House of Cards (Spells, Salt, Steel Book 8)

by Gail Z. Martin, Larry N. Martin 

July 17, 2022

115 pages

Genre: paranormal, urban fantasy, comedy/horror

Gotta know when to fake ‘em, know when to stake them, know when to burn it down—and know when to let all hell break loose.

Some days, mechanic and monster hunter Mark Wojcik thinks that if it weren’t for bad luck, he’d have no luck at all.

His corner of rural Pennsylvania used to be relatively quiet—except for the ghosts, trolls, gnomes, and snallygasters. But when people start disappearing and bodies pile up, Mark and his friends realize that big city problems have come to town, with deadly consequences.

Necromancer narcos, a monster trafficking ring, and mafia witches would give anyone heartburn. It’s just Mark’s luck they all converge in his territory, along with an underground cryptid fight club and a secret casino catering to witches, werewolves, and the unwary.

The fight gets personal when Mark’s friends go missing, and all bets are off when he and Father Leo bring in a ringer to even the odds.

They say the house always wins. Mark’s betting the farm that he and his friends can save the day. He’s got a couple of cards up his sleeve—but unless luck and magic go his way, they might turn out to be aces and eights.

The eighth book in the Spells, Salt, & Steel series brings Season Two to a close in explosive fashion!

Amazon

Check out book 1

About the Authors:

website-@GailZMartin-@LNMartinauthor

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Gail Z. Martin writes urban fantasy, epic fantasy, steampunk and more for Solaris Books, Orbit Books, Falstaff Books, SOL Publishing and Darkwind Press. Urban fantasy series include Deadly Curiosities and the Night Vigil (Sons of Darkness). Epic fantasy series include Darkhurst, the Chronicles Of The Necromancer, the Fallen Kings Cycle, the Ascendant Kingdoms Saga, and the Assassins of Landria.

Together with Larry N. Martin, she is the co-author of Iron & Blood, Storm & Fury (both Steampunk/alternate history), the Spells Salt and Steel comedic horror series, the Joe Mack Shadow Council series, and the Wasteland Marshals near-future post-apocalyptic series. As Morgan Brice, she writes urban fantasy MM paranormal romance, with the Witchbane, Badlands, Treasure Trail, Kings of the Mountain and Fox Hollow series. Gail is also a con-runner for ConTinual, the online, ongoing multi-genre convention that never ends.

Join our Facebook group, the Shadow Alliance https://www.facebook.com/groups/435812789942761/

Gail’s Supernatural Group is Supernatural TFW-NC: https://www.facebook.com/groups/169524930423807/

And get a free complete short story, Catspaw, here: https://claims.prolificworks.com/free/UAjd6

Decking the Haunted Halls with Gail Z. Martin

Decking the Haunted Halls

with Gail Z. Martin 

I love Halloween. Always have, since I was a kid. Even without the candy, I loved the costumes and all the spooky decorations. Once, I rigged up my bedroom with my old Halloween costumes like a haunted house and then was afraid to sleep in it! (My mother was not amused.)

Still, our decorations are more fun than terrifying, because I remember how scared my kids used to get when they were little and some of our neighbors went all-out with sound effects, fog and people jumping out from the bushes. We once had a neighbor who dressed as a witch and rose out of a coffin. My kids took one look, screamed and ran all the way home. So we keep it tame.

Well, as tame as a life-size inflatable hearse driven by the headless horseman with a vampire rising out of his coffin in the back can be. Or an eight-foot dragon that flaps its wings. Yeah, we’re those neighbors.

And just when I think we’re a little over the top, I look through the decoration catalogues and walk into places like Spirit and wonder—who actually decorates with the life-size animated mummies and witches and bodies hanging in cocoons? And how do I get invited to their parties? Seriously, some of these catalogues have stuff that look way better than theme park attractions I’ve been through!

Inside, some of my favorite decorations are hand-painted. Back when I had free time, I enjoyed painting ceramics (although I’m better with words than with paint). Still, I’m fond of the pieces I painted and enjoy seeing them each year. Many of the other decorations have been collected here and there over the years. One of my daughters has a birthday near Halloween, so all the time she was growing up, we did Halloween-themed birthday parties with spooky cakes!

I’ve also got all of Midnight Syndicate’s terrifyingly wonderful spooky music CDs, which are fun to play either when I’m writing a scary scene or to scare the liver out of trick-or-treaters!

Of course, Halloween wouldn’t be the same without ‘It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown’, ‘Hocus Pocus’ and ‘Halloweentown’. You’re never too old to enjoy those with a big bowl of popcorn!

But really, if you want to see over the top, talk to me about Christmas decorations!

The New Templars novella series is a new series of short novels, similar to BookShots. Spells, Salt, & Steel is the first in the series by popular steampunk, epic, and urban fantasy duo Gail Z. Martin and Larry N. Martin.

They are the first line of defense against the things that go bump in the night. 
They are the keepers of a centuries-old legacy of The Church defending the world against the forces of darkness. 
They are a bunch of highly armed rednecks, internet video celebrities, soccer moms, and assorted broken nutjobs.
They are the new Templars, and things are about to get weird.

Spells, Salt, & Steel: A New Templars Novella

by Gail Z. Martin,‎ Larry N. Martin

October 3, 2017

116 pages

When all else fails, the ass end of a carp makes a damn fine weapon.

No, that didn't come from the lips of Bubba the Monster Hunter, but it sure could have! That sentence right there kinda encapsulates the life of Mark Wojcik, Monster Hunter. A blue-collar mechanic from the wilds of PA, Mark likes his beer cold, his poker games private, and his monsters…well, he doesn’t like them at all. So when he finds himself dueling a Japanese mythical monster in the Linesville Spillway in the wee hours of the night, he has to use every available weapon to survive and vanquish the ningen. 

Even if it means beating the damn thing to death with a carp. 

If interloping Japanese fish-monsters weren’t bad enough, there’s a Nazi ghost terrorizing the community. Somebody needs to gank the ghostie, and Mark is the man for the job. 

He hopes. 

An excerpt from Spells, Salt, and Steel: A New Templars Novel here 

Let me give a shout-out for #HoldOnToTheLight 2017, back for more with new authors and fantastic new posts! 130+ Sci-Fi/Fantasy authors blogging about their personal struggles with depression, PTSD, anxiety, suicide and self-harm, candid posts by some of your favorite authors on how mental health issues have impacted their lives and books. Read the stories, share the stories, change a life. Find out more at www.HoldOnToTheLight.com

And an excerpt from my friend Jean Marie Ward’s Lord Bai and the Magic Pirate here

About the Author:

website-@GailZMartin-@LNMartinauthor

Facebook-DisquietingVisions blog

GhostInTheMachinePodcast-Goodreads

Wattpad 
Gail Z. Martin writes epic fantasy, urban fantasy and steampunk for Solaris Books and Orbit Books. Vengeance: A Darkhurst novel, is the second in a new epic fantasy series for Solaris (coming April, 2018). Her Deadly Curiosities urban fantasy series set in Charleston, SC has a new novel, Vendetta, and a new collection, Trifles and Folly. Spells, Salt, and Steel is the first in another new urban fantasy series set in upstate Pennsylvania. 

Other work includes the Chronicles Of The Necromancer series, the Fallen Kings Cycle, the Ascendant Kingdoms series, the Deadly Curiosities urban fantasy series, and Iron & Blood (co-authored with Larry N. Martin)

SALT... Ms. Jolie? Can I be your Pepper? Please!

First I have to confess to a total crush on Angie. I know people hate her because she stole Brad (whatev) or because she has big lips (seriously?) but in reality everyone is just jealous. lol.

In almost all of her movies she plays this total badass who is a total babe with a smoldering look that should be patented. And this time was no different. I would tell you the plot like Katie does, but I have a habit of throwing out deets that ruin it for some people so just go see the movie! lol. I will tell you that Jolie works for the CIA and is chosen to interrogate a Russian man claiming to know who is going to assassinate the Russian president. The man claims that it's Salt who is the Russian operative who will kill him. The movie is about her running from the CIA trying to prove her innocence and find out who is framing her. See? No details that would ruin the show for you :)
I'm not nearly as critical as KD so she might have a differing opinion, which is cool, but I thought this movie rocked! It kept me spellbound the entire time. There was action, a plot that is quite brilliant and it followed a storyline that is actually plausible! The story sucked me in from the start and throughout the whole movie I was just wishing I could be the sidekick** so I could get in on the action!There were some stunts that a normal person couldn't do, but I feel like I can give the movie some latitude since they picked such kickass stars to play in it. At the end of the movie you find yourself suspicious of the government and thinking to yourself that the movie is probably based on truth!

I'm obviously a biased person but I honestly think any action movie buff would enjoy this movie and if you're an Angie fan even better!

**Disclaimer: There is no actual sidekick. This is not a Marvel film. This is just wihsful thinking on my part :)