MTW Guest Author-Graeme Rodaughan

I’ve been a life-long fan of vampires.  As previously mentioned in my blogs, Rick Springfield was my first crush.  He played  a homicide detective cursed to live as one of the undead in the 1989 movie Nick Knight.  In 1997, I fell in love with another vampire named Angel played by David Boreanaz on a television series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer.  His successful spin-off, Angel, was a little more dark and serious.  I started the addiction to my favorite show, Bones, and still tune in every week after twelve seasons simply because of his acting skills. I’ve even watched a few more serious movies about the preternatural beings, including Dark Prince:  The True Story of Dracula about Vlad Dracula the Impaler.  

As a teen and young adult, I became absorbed in horror novels such as Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot.  I haven’t had much time to read lately, but I’m taking a couple of months off from writing, starting next month.  I’m intrigued about today’s topic of a present-day book about vampires for Mystery Thriller Week.  In the spotlight is author Graeme Rodaughan and his thriller with paranormal/supernatural elements, A Subtle Agency.    In a universe where reality can be re-programmed, any wish can be satisfied or any nightmare realized.  Set in a near future Boston & New York; in a world that looks a lot like ours, vampires rule from the shadows, but they are not unopposed.  Standing against them are two ancient secret societies. The Order of Thoth and the Red Empire, united in their opposition to the vampires and bitterly divided by their different values.

A young Anton Smith, a Boston university student in his freshman year, and star Hockey player comes to the attention of the 2nd most powerful vampire in the world, General Chloe Armitage.  She has a visionary plan for the future in which she needs Anton to play a critical part.  Anton’s world and everything that he thought he knew is shattered. He is thrown onto the streets of Boston and must quickly adapt to survive.  Will he learn what he needs to know quickly enough to make a difference or become a knight in an ambitious vampire’s chess game where the future of humanity is at stake.

I hope you enjoy the excerpt:

Gang’s sword crashed against the praetorian’s blades.

The praetorians fought with skill and power, they pressed hard against Gang and he had to give ground, shifting backward toward the melee along the dock. A dozen yards away, Chloe Armitage waited with glistening eyes, her attention focused on him; the Red Dragon was unsheathed, its point carried in perfect stillness an inch off the concrete surface of the dock.

First these two, and then the Demon.

Gang reassessed the battle, as the two vampires circled around him, probing his defenses without success.

I can’t allow her to get to Li and Anton – they are not ready to face her – I must protect them.

Plunging his mind deeply into silence he became one with space, flow, and time. He felt power surge through his body as the White Dragon arced through the air, shearing through the red-headed praetorian’s sword in a shower of brilliant sparks. The vampire’s eyes widened in terror as Gang’s blade continued past his shattered defenses, driving deep into his chest. Gang drew the White Dragon back, cutting the vampire’s heart in two.

The second praetorian’s blade whispered through an overhead arc toward Gang’s head like the hammer of a dark god.

Blurring with blinding speed, Gang continued the motion of drawing the White Dragon from the dying vampire, sweeping it through a horizontal arc, striking the second praetorian beneath the armpit, the White Dragon continued easily through ruptured armor, flesh and bone before exiting in a spray of bright red blood.

The vampire, his mouth gaping with shock, slid off the lower part of his body, crumpling into a writhing heap.

Graeme shares information about himself:

I have a driving ambition to be the best writer of suspenseful, thrilling, action orientated vampire novels that I can be.

I’m a stand for human dignity and I enjoy empowering those around me because I prefer the company of those who are awake to their own power over those who are blind to it.

I value courage, intelligence, compassion, independence, ingenuity, liberty, empowerment, and human dignity.

I base my own moral perspective on the pillars of informed consent, and compassion through empowerment.

I’m a pessimist about how much humans can know, and I don’t believe in much at all. I’m both curious and comfortable with mystery.

I don’t assume that I’m right.

There are things in this world that are of great, sublime, awesome beauty and there are things in this world that are of great, sublime, awesome horror.

I hope to reflect both polarities within my stories, and leave it up to whatever audience I attract to judge the value of what I do for themselves.

Sample the Prologue and Chapter One.  LINK (Amazon US): myBook.to/ASubtleAgency