BLOG TOUR: The Bond by Xavier Axelson (Excerpt & Giveaway + Q&A with author)

BLOG TOUR

Book Title: The Bond (Elemental Book 1)

Author: Xavier Axelson

Publisher: JMS Books

Release Date: October 1, 2022

Genres: Contemporary M/M Horror/Dark Fantasy/Bisexual/Paranormal

Tropes: Vampire/stranger comes to town/strange things start to happen/good versus evil/transformations/magic/suspense/creepy beings/witches/goblins

Themes: Loyalty, forgiveness, obligation, acceptance commitment

Heat Rating: 3 flames

Length: 155 459 words/392 pages

It is Book 1 in the series and ends with a HFN. There are unresolved plot points but it’s not necessarily a cliffhanger.

Goodreads

Buy Links

JMS Books | Amazon US | Amazon UK

In a small New England town, three men, each facing unthinkable horrors, must rely on their friendship to destroy an evil beyond imagination.

Blurb

Four men are about to discover things are definitely not what they seem…including themselves. Declan Makavoy, small town farmer and single father, finds out it’s not just his thumb that’s green. Ivan Soresceau, a local reporter, who always plays with fire in life and love, is about to discover what it means to be burned. Chester Silberglocke, the ailing but sage chiropractor, finds his death only the beginning of an atmospheric afterlife. Vinny Pirelli, the local swimming champ may make waves inside and outside the pool but has no idea he is the last piece in a dangerous and life-changing puzzle. Seduction and unearthly occurrences are only the beginning in what proves to be a race against time as Declan, Ivan, Chester, and Vinny are pitted against a dark force beyond imagination, in the ultimate battle of good versus evil.

Excerpt

The wind carried the unpleasant smell of decay. In the heat of summer, the odor is nectar sweet, but in autumn, decay is unexpected. In the summer, it could be tomatoes left too long on the vine, fresh roadkill or sewage wafting up from the dank sidewalk grates. Autumn chilled the stench, offered it bite and acid. The hair on my neck stood on end. I dug my hands deeper into my pockets.

Coming out of the tree-lined path leading to the fields reminded me of emerging from a dream. Overwrought and graphic, like an illustration in a bad comic, the scene unfolded block-by-block, piece-by-piece. The fields were barren, except where remains of gourds and pumpkins jutted from the earth like fevered skulls, things emerging to the cold dreary light. The distant pine trees lined the border of my property like sentries sent from a general to contain the scene. Beyond the trees, the forest appeared a black mass; empty and full at the same time. Perhaps Adam’s body—or Adam himself—waited, hidden in the woods.

They hadn’t found a body.

Hadn’t found…

A new but not unfamiliar wave of pain welled within my chest so I thought I’d burst. Adam was dead. Dead…How could he be…?

Chester turned toward me, his eyes wide. He pointed.

Antonia sat, facing him. She’d been playing house or school with her gourd-squash students. Her singsong contrasted with the fouled air, unnerving me.

Behind her, centered in the field, something either unaware or unconcerned with our presence was consuming the remaining pumpkins.

Some thing.

“Declan,” Chester breathed, “stay still.”

The stench coming from the field hit like a ton of putrid bricks.

“Get her.” I heaved, trying to breathe through the stink. “I have to get her.”

Chester restrained me with more strength than I thought he possessed. “She must stay still.”

“What is it?” I asked.

“I don’t know.”

Just then a huge crow dove and we watched as the creature reached with a massive clawed paw, grabbed the bird and crushed it. It then stuffed the bird into its mouth and made horrific bone-sucking sounds of pleasure.

Antonia smiled and called, “Daddy, have you seen the goblin?”

Q&A with Xavier Axelson

Plot or Pants?

Do you pre-plot your books, use an outline, fly by the seat of your pants or some combination of things? How do you keep track of characters in a series? Do you keep a journal of your characters statistics, such as hair and eye color, relatives, hometown, etc.

Pants, for sure. I have no idea what’s going on. Sometimes a character shows up out of the blue and I’m like, “oh, hi, I wasn’t expecting you.” My job as a writer is to listen to what’s coming through and interpret it the best I can.

Tell us about your first published gay fiction/romance…

Oh boy. It was a Christmas story called “Christmas Eve at The Powers That Be Cafe.” I wish I’d figured out a shorter title. It was inspired by a story I’d heard about a man who ran a train station café and sold donuts to soldiers heading out to WWII.

and then your most recent one…

The Bond book 1 of my Elemental series. This is a big story, years in the making. The writing of the book and all the people involved in editing, beat reading, and the learning process of this book is as epic as the story. I learned a lot about myself as a writer and those in this business.

Do you write full-time or part-time?

Part-time

Which character still pops into your mind to visit from time to time?

My favorite character is Evrain from my scandalous Valentine story called “A valentine for Evrain” part of the Never Say Never Anthology via Silver publishing (remember them?) Anyway, people hated him and I love him, so he’s always in the back of my head.

Where do you write? Do you have a routine?

I write in my bedroom, usually in the morning. I need solitude and silence when I write and a window.

What are your writing goals for the next year?

To write the 2^nd book in the series. The future? To keep following the bliss of the written word.

How can we connect with you?

[email protected]

Where do you find inspiration?

Nature.

What do you do if you hit a wall while writing? How do you combat writer’s block?

I don’t suffer from writer’s block…these voices and characters are always banging around in my head to be heard and acknowledged, but I think taking a break, getting up and doing something else creative is a big help when I’m not feeling the writing, as long as I’m creating it’s all gravy.

Thank you

About the Author

Xavier Axelson is a writer and columnist living in Los Angeles. Axelson’s work has been featured in various erotic and horror anthologies including Best Gay Erotica 2016 Volume 2, Best Gay Erotica 2015.

Longer written works include “The Incident”, “Dutch’s Boy”, “The Birches”, “Earthly Concerns”, “Velvet,” and “Lily”.