Japanese Death Poems, edited by Yoel Hoffman, copyright © 1986 by Charles E. Tuttle Co., Inc. Used by permission of Tuttle Publishing, an imprint of Periplus Editions (HK) Ltd. Any third party use of this material, outside of this publication, is prohibited.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Author, freelance writer, award-winning screenwriter, poker player, biker, roustabout, and graduate of the Odyssey Writing Workshop, Travis Heermann is the author of numerous short stories appearing in such places as Fiction River’s hard SF anthology How to Save the World, Weird Tales, Cemetery Dance’s Shivers Vol. VII, and Historical Lovecraft, among others. He is the author of the The Ronin Trilogy, Rogues of the Black Fury, The Wild Boys, and Snakes. Aside from his fiction work, he has contributed to almost thirty roleplaying supplements from Alderac Entertainment, including Legend of the Five Rings and d20 System game lines, plus game content for White Wolf/CCP’s EVE Online.
He spent three years living in Japan, and now lives in a much larger world than before.
Find the author online!
Email: [email protected]
Web: http://www.travisheermann.com
Blog: http://www.travisheermann.com/blog
Twitter: @TravisHeermann
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/travis.heermann
OTHER BOOKS BY TRAVIS HEERMANN
Heart of the Ronin
From E-Reads
Thirteenth-century Japan is a dangerous place, even in a time of peace. Capricious gods, shape-changing animals, and bloodthirsty demons are as real and unpleasant as a gang of vicious bandits. From the wilderness emerges a young, idealistic warrior with his father's mysterious sword on his hip, a wise, sarcastic dog at his side, and a yearning in his heart to find a worthy master. He dreams only of being samurai.
Finding a master should be easy for a warrior as skilled as Ken'ishi, but the land has settled into an uneasy peace and cast multitudes of proud, powerful warriors to the four winds. These masterless warriors, ronin, often must stoop to crime and banditry to feed themselves. Ken'ishi finds himself plagued by the hatred and mistrust of peasants and samurai alike.
When he saves a noble maiden from a pack of bandits, he and his faithful dog become enmeshed in the intrigues of samurai lords, vengeful constables, Mongol spies, and a shadowy underworld crime boss known as Green Tiger. But Ken'ishi has a few secret weapons of his own, granted to him by his mysterious past and his magical upbringing. If only he knew more about his mysterious past, his parents' murder, and the sword that seems to want to talk to him. . . .
“Full of sword battles, intrigue, romance and fantastic elements blending well with historical ones, Heart of the Ronin is a very impressive opening in the Ronin Trilogy. It’s also a page turner that you can’t put down and will leave readers begging for more.” – Fantasy Book Critic
“A fusion of historical fiction and adventure fantasy, the first volume of Heermann’s Ronin Trilogy is a page-turning folkloric narrative of epic proportions.” – Publishers Weekly
“Heart of a Ronin is a solid, likeable adventure story, sure to please fans of Japanese culture and fantasy readers alike.” – Adventures in Sci-Fi Publishing
Snakes
From Damnation Books
The easiest path usually leads straight into a minefield.
Eddie, a young, pretty single mom, is trying to do the right thing by her three-year-old daughter. She really is. With no education, no job, and a string of loser boyfriends behind her, she faces hard decisions every day. Gas for the car, or food for Joy? She's already been forced to move back into her mother's decrepit old trailer in Shady Acres Trailer Court in rural Arkansas.
Should she get a normal job working long hours for minimum wage, or should she put on her stiletto heels, bikini bra and micro-skirt and go back to exotic dancing so she can bring home fistfuls of cash for a few hours' work? When she catches her daughter playing with handfuls of baby copperhead snakes behind the trailer, the choice gets a lot easier: get out of there by the quickest means possible.
But at what cost? And is that strange man the devil or her knight in shining armor?
“Snakes provokes a gut-wrenching emotional response, perhaps because by using snakes as a motif, it speaks to one of our most primitive fears. ... For a 30-page story to have such a deep, powerful and abiding effect shows that Travis Heermann is a master, ranking up there with Aesop and the Greek myth writers.” – Rose Cimarron, Goodreads Reviewer
The Wild Boys
From Damnation Books
Can a 16-year-old girl stem the tide of a lycanthro-pocalypse?
When three younger boys show up on the doorstep of Mia's everyday suburban existence, naked and on the run, she is drawn into a shadow world where a series of strange disappearances heralds a slowly spreading plague of lycanthropy. Mia must save the three orphaned boys from their brutal Alpha, a man-beast who believes humans are food.
A war is brewing for the top of the food chain.
Mia doesn’t know it yet, but she holds the key to the future of the human race.
"It's like a supernatural action movie. Think Supernatural plus some Teen Wolf. There are werewolves and secret agents and deadly viruses and cool fighting scenes. I loved it! ... The Wild Boys was definitely one of my top werewolf books of the year (maybe even ever)." – YA Book Season
"The Wild Boys was a fun read, which read easily and quickly, both due to the writing and Mia’s voice." – A Fantastical Librarian
"I'm glad I pushed past my 'no more werewolves' mindset and gave this book a chance! I really enjoyed it!" – The (YA) Bookcase
"A fast-paced novel about love, loss, and the unforgettable scent of once being human, The Wild Boys is impossible to put down." – Shelly Li, Scholastic Award-winning author of The Royal Hunter: Throne Under Siege
"I recommend The Wild Boys for people who like thrillers, people who like horror, and people who want to read wild chase scenes with plucky heroines (and a dog)." – Kater Cheek, author of the Kit Melbourne series
Rogues of the Black Fury
From E-Reads
When a band of shadowy fanatics abducts Javin Wollstone's little sister, Bella, from his care, his only hope to bring her home is turning to a hard-bitten band of special warriors, the Black Furies, led by Commander Rusk. Javin follows Rusk and his men through a maze of political intrigues, religious fanaticism, and centuries of distrust. Little do they know that little Bella Wollstone could be the spark that sets off a war of Armageddon.
The investigation unfolds into a frantic chase that leads Javin, Rusk, and the Black Furies across trackless, pirate-infested seas into the ancient heart of Fartha, the religion-steeped land of prophets and priest-kings. Using stealth, guile, and sheer audacity, the Furies fling themselves into the teeth of the serpent, trying to snatch Bella back before she is swallowed forever. Javin finds himself torn between his genteel, noble upbringing and the raw, brutal necessity of what he must do to save her life.
“Bold, colorful characters pull the reader into an unforgettable adventure with the perfect mix of suspense, intrigue, and action.” – Jeanne Cavelos, author of The Passing of the Techno-mages
“Rogues of the Black Fury mixes a berserk action thriller sharp as a mercenary’s sword with hard-bitten fantasy so gritty it might scour your bones clean by the time you’re done.” – Matt Forbeck, author of The Amortals and Carpathia
“Heermann’s Rogues is epic, exciting, and a hell of a lot of fun! From the very beginning, the world he crafts feels alive and real. By the last page, I didn’t want to leave. Adventure at its finest, honed to a gleaming bloody edge.” – Marcus Pelegrimas, author of the Skinners series
"A rollicking read choc-a-bloc with pace, action, and adventure." – Fantasy Book Critic
“A very entertaining read ... For fans of Glen Cook or Jeff Salyards, Rogues of the Black Fury could be a great read for a dark winter afternoon.” – A Fantastical Librarian
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Travis Heermann, Sword of the Ronin (The Ronin Trilogy)
Sword of the Ronin (The Ronin Trilogy) Page 39