End of Days | Book 5 | Beyond Alpha
Page 26
“Bring it in, everyone.” He pushed up the armrest and spun sideways. Connie, Garth, Lydia, and Big Mac all threw their arms and paws around him in a family group hug. “We’ve got a new home to be thankful for. We’ve got lots of new friends and neighbors. We survived day two in this new world, but we aren’t all together, so I plan to start a bonfire in Colorado Springs tonight. Something so large, Phil can use it as a guidepost to get home to us.”
“Amen,” Connie added as she squeezed him.
“He got out of there, wife,” he assured her. “He knows exactly where we’re going, so I have faith his US Army skills will bring him back to you. You know I wouldn’t pay that compliment unless I meant it.”
“Thank you.” She sniffled and laughed at the same time.
Buck brightened. “But I promise you all, the instant we have him home safe, we’re never separating again, even for a second.”
The humans chuckled.
They knew he was lying.
And it was okay.
The End
If you liked this book, please leave a review. End Days has become a true fan-driven series and every bit of positive feedback brings us that much closer to writing the next chapter of the saga. Your opinion matters to me. Continue or not? I have only so much time to craft new stories. Help me invest that time wisely. Plus, reviews buoy my spirits and stoke the fires of creativity.
Don’t stop now! Keep turning the pages as there’s a little more insight from the authors.
Author Notes – E.E. Isherwood
Written September 26, 2021
Is End Days over?
This is a question I asked in the author notes at the end of book 4. As you probably figured out after reading this book, the answer was no. In fact, when Craig approached me about fitting book 5 into his schedule, I had the outline prepared before his email could cool off in my inbox. I think he and I had it solid by the next day, and I started chapter 1 as soon as it was finalized.
The truth is I was always going to write book 5. I love writing in a world with good men like Buck and Garth, and good women like Connie and Faith. I love the freedom of storytelling in a world totally messed up by scientists dabbling with powers they clearly don’t understand. And finally, I love hearing from readers how much they enjoy being in that world, too. The last point was a key ingredient in getting this latest novel written, since Craig and I both knew there was demand for it.
So, I thank you sincerely for believing in this project and making this book happen.
I think you can see where this is going.
Will Phil make it those “easy” 30 miles to Buck’s refuge?
Does Dez have any hope of crossing half the planet to make it to her sister?
What the heck is Faith going to do in a bunker full of crafty VIPs, controlled by a ruthless leader, and with an experiment that simply won’t stop running?
There is more than enough material for a sixth book, and I assure you I didn’t leave all these threads hanging open just to be mean to you. The answer, like last time, is that I absolutely want to write book 6. And, like last time, a lot of it depends on how life interrupts writing schedules, marketing plans, and other book series. I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but Craig is probably the busiest person I’ve ever met. Getting on his schedule is like winning the golden ticket in Wonka land.
If you would like to see the next book sooner, and break through Craig’s logjam with a turbo cutter, please leave reviews on book 5 and the whole End Days boxed set. Let others know about it. Talk to that movie producer aunt of yours about a great idea you have for a new movie. Ask for it at bookstores and libraries. Suggest it at your next book club meeting.
Every little bit helps, and I thank you in advance for every effort you make to help the series, including buying this book in the first place.
Before I let you go, I’d love to hear your ideas about what you think is waiting for Buck’s family as they leave the familiar setting of the SNAKE complex. Will they find dinosaurs? Missing civilizations? A cruise ship once thought lost in the Bermuda Triangle?
Look me up on Facebook, my website, or my newsletter and shoot over your ideas. Heck, send me a fictional name and profession of a character you’d like to see show up. I’d love to sprinkle fan names in the next one. Then we’ll all be part of the story.
Thank you, Craig, for asking me to join you on this adventure.
Thank you, reader, for sticking with us.
EE
E.E. Isherwood’s other books
Minus America – What would happen if everyone in the US vanished in a flash? Every trucker. Every housewife. Every police officer. How would you survive in an empty land? Who would come to take it? Five books.
Neighborhood Watch – It was supposed to be the first day of his retirement, but an EMP event ruins his big day. Now his new job is organizing his neighborhood for survival before the world falls apart. His odds do not look good. One book, more are coming.
Impact – A post-apocalyptic thriller about an asteroid slamming across the heartland of America. Six books.
Sirens of the Zombie Apocalypse – What if the only people immune to the infection caused by zombie bites are those over 100? A teen boy must keep his great-grandma alive to find the cure for the zombie plague. Seven books, more planned.
End Days (co-written with Craig Martelle) – The book(s) you just read. A time-breaking post-apocalyptic adventure. Five books. Maybe a sixth? Post on Facebook if you’d like more!
Amazon – amazon.com/author/eeisherwood
Facebook – www.facebook.com/sincethesirens
My web page – http://www.eeisherwood.com
Once you’ve signed up for Craig’s newsletter, I would be thrilled to have you also join mine, by clicking the Newsletter link on the right side of my website.
That’s all the time I have. The next book calls to me!
Author Notes - Craig Martelle
Written September 27, 2021
You are still reading! It doesn’t get much better than that. Thank you very much for giving this book a shot.
I’m so happy that E.E. wanted to conquer the mountain that is writing a book and that he chose to spend some of his limited time on planet Earth with End Days 5 – Beyond Alpha. I am hugely grateful that he brought this one to fruition.
And maybe the next one, too. I’m not sure we can get enough of Buck and Garth.
I’ve been twisted in knots for all of September, 2021 as I embarked on a huge tour, not a book-signing tour, but a meet and greet with author fans, those folks who I’ve been working with for years to help them bring better books to the market. There is so much that goes into being an author that many become disenchanted with the business side. After writing the book, they’re spent and don’t have the energy it takes to market their good work. I’d like to think that I help them realize that it’s not that hard and doesn’t have to be a burden. It’s just something you do, like putting on pants to go outside.
Marketing isn’t something to be feared, only tolerated until its understood. We’re not trying to sell trees to druids, but entertainment to people who are looking to be entertained. If our stuff doesn’t deliver, readers can return it or move on. When readers become fans, then the marketing helped them to fill a void that they were looking to fill.
I ate in restaurants for more than three weeks and when I returned home, I was happy to note that I only gained three and a half pounds. I felt bloated and nasty because of so much fried food, but I avoided most of the breads, most of the sweets, and stuff like French fries and potato chips. It wasn’t a complete loss. Back on the healthy eating train and see if I can get back into the 180s, new target of 180 pounds. My tortured lungs and straining heart will thank me for it.
During the lead up to a month away, I had other books I needed to write, but I finished them before I left. During the trip, I was able to finish a complete rewrite of a book that I promised to do before that author passed away. It took
more than two years, but I finally finished the third of three books. But a storyteller’s work is never done. There’s always another story to tell and that means another book to write.
So I’m writing one now in my bestselling space lawyer series, the fourteenth Judge, Jury, & Executioner title will publish in December, 2021. Sometimes, series run long. We can hope that’s the case with End Days, too. Buck, Garth, Connie, and Faith hold a special place in our hearts.
That’s it, now. I’m off to keep writing.
Peace, fellow humans.
Thank You
If you liked this story, you might like some of my other books. You can join my mailing list by dropping by my website craigmartelle.com or if you have any comments, shoot me a note at craig@craigmartelle.com. I am always happy to hear from people who’ve read my work. I try to answer every email I receive.
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Thank you for joining me on this incredible journey.
Other Series by Craig Martelle
# - available in audio, too
Terry Henry Walton Chronicles (#) (co-written with Michael Anderle)—a post-apocalyptic paranormal adventure
Gateway to the Universe (#) (co-written with Justin Sloan & Michael Anderle)—this book transitions the characters from the Terry Henry Walton Chronicles to The Bad Company
The Bad Company (#) (co-written with Michael Anderle)—a military science fiction space opera
Judge, Jury, & Executioner (#)—a space opera adventure legal thriller
Shadow Vanguard—a Tom Dublin space adventure series
Superdreadnought (#)—an AI military space opera
Metal Legion (#)—a military space opera
The Free Trader (#)—a young adult science fiction action-adventure
Cygnus Space Opera (#)—a young adult space opera (set in the Free Trader universe)
Darklanding (#) (co-written with Scott Moon)—a space western
Mystically Engineered (co-written with Valerie Emerson)—mystics, dragons, & spaceships
Metamorphosis Alpha—stories from the world’s first science fiction RPG
The Expanding Universe—science fiction anthologies
Krimson Empire (co-written with Julia Huni)—a galactic race for justice
Zenophobia (#) (co-written with Brad Torgersen)—a space archaeological adventure
Battleship: Leviathan (#)– a military sci-fi spectacle
Old Glory (co-written with Ira Heinichen) – hard-hitting military sci-fi
Black Heart of the Dragon God (co-written with Jean Rabe) – a sword & sorcery novel
End Times Alaska (#)—a Permuted Press publication—a post-apocalyptic survivalist adventure
Nightwalker (a Frank Roderus series)—A post-apocalyptic western adventure
End Days (#) (co-written with E.E. Isherwood)—a post-apocalyptic adventure
Successful Indie Author (#)—a non-fiction series to help self-published authors
Monster Case Files (co-written with Kathryn Hearst)—A Warner twins mystery adventure
Rick Banik (#)—Spy & terrorism action adventure
Ian Bragg Thrillers (#)—a hitman with a conscience
Not Enough (co-written with Eden Wolfe) – A coming of age contemporary fantasy
Published exclusively by Craig Martelle, Inc
The Dragon’s Call by Angelique Anderson & Craig A. Price, Jr.—an epic fantasy quest
A Couples Travels—a non-fiction travel series
Love-Haight Case Files by Jean Rabe & Donald J. Bingle – the dead/undead have rights, too, a supernatural legal thriller
Mischief Maker by Bruce Nesmith – the creator of Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim brings you Loki in the modern day, staying true to Norse Mythology (not a superhero version)