The Adventures of Jimmy Crikey: The Emerald Lake by Wallace Briggs

This is a stand-alone, fourth in series, The Adventures of Jimmy Crikey, the alien orphan who, despite cruel bullying, decided to make his home on Earth. He numbers among his friends the four witch guardians of Earth’s realms and the ancient Lord Oron, aka The Weatherman.
The underground Emerald Lake, the home of the Aquamites, is invaded by a flesh-eating, fire-breathing serpent, which is impervious to the magic of the four guardian witches. Matilda, the chief witch, asks for Jimmy Crikey’s assistance.
Jimmy accompanies Elwinn, witch guardian of everything associated with water, to visit the Emerald Lake. They arrive at a plausible plan to capture the serpents in a spider’s web net.
Their strategy is complicated because Jimmy cannot breathe underwater unless he is included in Elwinn’s bubble. Several of the strongest young Aquamites agree to act as live bait to entice the serpents into a lake inside an extinct volcano’s caldera.
Once the serpents are lured into the volcano’s lake Jimmy, with the help of his starship SR3 and XRU, the intelligent computer/navigator, will trap the reptiles in a spider’s web net, ready to drag the creatures into the cold depths of deep space.
Jimmy’s heart is captured at first sight of Annison, a young, golden-headed Aquamite who is also the daughter of Milton, the leader of the tribe.
During the operation to rid the Aquamite’s world of serpents, Annison is seriously injured when one serpent takes a bite out of her lower tail. She is dying from the loss of blood. The witches do not have the power to help. There is no time to get her to Jimmy’s home plane of Attalia for advanced surgery.
All appears lost until Lord Oron reveals his real identity. Lord Oron is one of the twelve Lords who serve the all-powerful Master. The Master could save Annison, but he refuses to bring a subject back to life from the dead. Can Lord Oron persuade the Master to intervene and save the life of Jimmy’s first love, Annison?

Targeted Age Group:: MG six/seven up to thirteen/fourteen year olds
Heat/Violence Level: Heat Level 1 – G Rated Clean Read

What Inspired You to Write Your Book?
The inspiration for the first adventure was created out of a requirement to entertain my five-year-old son and his newfound friends as they gathered in our beach tent during a showery afternoon. I needed a story which would keep five boisterouys boys interested (ie quiet), for a little while.
Over the course of several afternoon showers the boys returned to shelter and to hear the next "episode" of Jimmy Crikey's adventures.

How Did You Come up With Your Characters?
Among the boys was one, the smallest, bright ginger headed child who was being picked upon by constant demands to bring fetch and carry various objects. It was a mild form of bullying but bullying nevertheless. And so, JimmyCrikey was born; a boy who was subject to bullying because of the way he looked. He had to have bright red hair and Jimmy escaped the bullies and grew into a hero who faced every challenge that came his way.

Book Sample
Chapter 1
The windows rattled in their frames, and the front door shook on its hinges, but Mr McDonald did not stir a centimetre despite the constant barrage of noise. Jimmy and Amanda reached for the door latch together, still clad in dressing gowns. The morning air was cool and brought up pimples on their arms, but no one was in sight when they opened the door. “Well, we didn’t both imagine it,” Amanda said, drawing her nightgown tighter around her waist. Jimmy stepped outside and looked all around. “There’s no one anywhere near, Amanda.”
“Well, someone was making a lot of noise rattling the door knocker. If there’s no one there, either Roombelow’s children are getting naughtier, or it is one of the witches trying to attract your attention.”
“If it were one of the witches, there would be a message of some sorts,” Jimmy said. “I have never known the children play such pranks, especially this early and before breakfast.”
“Well, it’s a bit too chilly around the ankles to stand here debating the matter,” Amanda said, and she closed the door behind them. “Put a log on the fire, Jimmy, and I’ll make a start on breakfast.” While Amanda busied herself in the kitchen, Jimmy stirred some life into the hot embers with the poker and then laid a log onto the glowing embers. He lifted one end of the log with the poker and balanced it until the air carried the virgin flames around the new fuel supply. As the flames reached higher, the door began jumping on its hinges again. Without a moment’s thought, Jimmy flung himself at the door, determined to catch whoever was playing such silly games. Once again, the town square was devoid of life. No one else was around. He returned to the fireside as Amanda leaned into the sitting room to learn who was at the door. “No one there again?”
“Your thought that it could be a witch trying to attract attention must be right, but it is so unusual for there not to be a message. I’ll have to run up the hill to see what’s happening at Matilda’s house. The chances are that it’s another spell gone wrong for Jade.”
“You’re going nowhere, young man. Not until you’ve had some breakfast. At the very least, have a bowl of cereals with hot milk. It will only take a minute.”
Jimmy knew better than to argue. “Thanks, Amanda. The kettle’s almost boiling. I’ll lay the table. Shall I put some cutlery out for Mr McDonald?”
“I don’t think he’ll surface any time soon, Jimmy. Council business always takes it out of him these days. He forgets that he’s not a young man anymore.”
Jimmy washed and dressed in record time. There was no point in brushing or combing his red locks. Jimmy’s red hair had a mind of its own. He never let it grow too long because he didn’t want it to cover his pointed ears. When Jimmy twitched his ears, he could hear a pin drop even from a hundred metres away. He was sat at the table ready for breakfast just as Amanda poured out a mug of tea for him. “Don’t bolt your breakfast, Jimmy. You’ll be in much better shape to face the world when you have some food in your stomach but not if it is still churning around.”
Amanda joined Jimmy but only had her cup of tea in her hand. “I’ll have my breakfast when Mr McDonald joins us in the land of the living.” She smiled and told Jimmy, “Take care of yourself. Hope all goes well.”
“Thanks, Amanda. See you and Mr McDonald a bit later.”
He pulled on his Attalian boots and was ready for action. The door swung closed behind him, and in the blink of an eye, Jimmy’s red Attalian boots carried him up the hill to Matilda’s front door.
Jimmy was growing up fast. He was now in his first teenage year. His big feet had been the butt of the bullies’ jokes from being a small boy. Very few people knew that his feet stayed the same size as Jimmy grew in height. All children from Attalia were born with oversized feet. And all boys had their own somewhat unique, red boots, which would last a lifetime. These boots allowed Jimmy to outrun anyone or anything on Earth. Jimmy had a few more unusual abilities because he was an alien from Attalia. But Jimmy was not a superman. He was just a lot stronger than the average human.
Witch Matilda greeted her friend. “How nice to see you, Jimmy. Up and about early this morning. Jade isn’t up yet, but I don’t think she’ll be long when she knows you’re here.
“Jade,” she called up the stairs. “Jimmy’s arrived. Are you up yet?”
There was no reply. “Make yourself at home, Jimmy,” she said. “Say hello to Beatrix while I check on Jade,”
Jimmy always felt at home at Matilda’s house on the hill and her cat, Beatrix, was always pleased to see Jimmy. He had the knack of scratching behind her ears at just the exact position to ease the itch. Her heavy purring was deafening. Matilda’s footsteps returned down the stairs, and she stood in front of Jimmy. Her green-coloured skin had disappeared as it always did whenever there was no magic about “She’s not there, Jimmy, and it doesn’t look as though she’s slept in her bed. Jade never leaves the house without telling me where she’s going.”
It was a mystery that defeated Matilda’s skills at divination. Unusually her senses picked up no trace of her mini apprentice. Jade was the niece of Gemma, the little lady Diamite. The Diamites were small people who lived in the cave world of Lithnia, and Jade was blessed with a smidgeon of witchcraft in her veins. Chief of the witches, Matilda, detected her hidden ability and offered to train her in the ancient arts.
Jade’s education in the mysterious world of witchcraft was proceeding quickly, and Matilda was pleased with her progress. A few minor problems arose, teaching such a young pupil the intricacies of magic. Jade was prone to making slight errors, and it was not unusual to find strange beasts and tropical animals running around Matilda’s home. The animals came from wherever Jade happened to be when the magic mistakes crept in.
Jimmy offered his opinion, “This smells of a Jade spell gone wrong. I am now certain that it was Jade who was beating on Mr McDonald’s door early this morning.”
“Something’s not quite right here,” Matilda said. “Yesterday, she was practising using the cloak of invisibility, but usually, being invisible leaves you with power to communicate, especially with one of her sisters.
“There were no sounds from her this morning and no words floating in my head. But if she was banging on Mr McDonald’s front door, why is she not trying to knock on my door to let us know she’s here?”
At that point, it dawned on Matilda. “She’s not just invisible. Somehow, she has managed to dematerialise
“So, she can’t move objects when she is in the same place as when she cast the spell. If she cast the spell here, inside this house, she can’t communicate or move anything while she’s here?”
“That’s what it looks like. Let’s walk down the hill a little way and hope that Jade will be able to let us know that she’s with us. If I know exactly where she is, I may be able to reverse the spell.”
Jimmy and Matilda walked halfway down the hill, and Matilda spoke into the empty air and asked, “If you are close by, can you move something to let us know you’re here?”
The long branches of a nearby shrub began violently shaking. ”I suppose that means you’re with us?” Matilda asked. And the shrub shook again. “Right!” Matilda said. “Stay in touch with that bush, Jade. It may take me a moment or two to recall the exact structure of this spell. You appear to have called up a spell I haven’t used in many a year. And somehow, you’ve mixed up invisibility with dematerialisation. Even I may not get it right the first time.”
Matilda closed her eyes and lifted her head high. The spell she uttered was in a language that Jimmy had never heard before. It was more like a continuous wailing, the pitch of which rose and fell in waves like the swell of the sea. Her wand appeared in her hand, and she moved it like a conductor’s baton, up and down as the tuneless notes circled the bush, with musical notes visibly falling from its tip. Matilda’s voice was an octave above the notes from the wand's tip. The result was not harmonical. Discordance filled the air, and out of the disturbed air appeared a faint trace of a little girl.
Jade was wide-eyed and tearful but not quite all there. Only her upper body was visible. The rest of her was invisible. Her cries were silent. She still could not be heard. Her eyes were tightly focussed on Matilda, filled with pleading for the magic to succeed.
Matilda crumbled to the ground in a heap and Jade disappeared. “Matilda!” Jimmy attempted to pick up the witch. But there was nothing there. His hands passed right on through what appeared to be Matilda’s crumpled form.
“Don’t worry, Jimmy. I’m still here. It’s just a glitch in the spell. I haven’t used it for many years, and I’m not as strong as I used to be. Give a glass of my nectar, and I’ll try again.”
Jimmy ran back into Matilda’s home and reached up into the ever-present smokey fog that hung above the kitchen table and brought down a clean glass beaker. The next item he grasped was a carafe of a golden liquid. Jimmy poured half a glass full into the tumbler and hurried back down the hill. He passed the glass to Matilda, who had managed to move into a sitting position. The nectar disappeared, almost in a single gulp.
Within seconds Matilda had pulled herself to her feet using Jimmy’s leg as a crutch and recovered to standing unaided. “This is no good, Jade. We need to get back into the house. I need to recover my strength and check the spell before trying again. Come, let me lean on your arm, Jimmy. I’ll be fine in a few moments, and then we’ll try again. Don’t worry, Jade. We’ll soon have you back. Let’s get back inside, out of the morning’s cold air.”
And all three walked back up the hill to the witch’s house. It looked as if there were only two people, but Jade was with them every step, wondering what she had done wrong, this time.

Links to Purchase Print Book version – Click links for book samples, reviews and to purchase
Buy Print Edition at Amazon

Links to Purchase eBook version – Click links for book samples, reviews and to purchase
Buy this eBook On Amazon

About the Author
Learn more about the author on their website
Follow the author on Amazon

Follow the author on Social Media:
Facebook

All information was provided by the author and not edited by us. This is so you get to know the author better.

Dreams by Rebecca Forster

A famed actress goes to the ends of the earth to find a tortured Irish novelist who wrote a book she wants to bring to the big screen. Nothing could prepare her for the man, the desire he stirs in her, or the hatred of those who would do anything to destroy their dreams.

Targeted Age Group:: all audiences
Heat/Violence Level: Heat Level 2 – PG

What Inspired You to Write Your Book?
Hollywood has always been a part of my life, including a family member who represents actors. It is a fascinating, glamorous, and dangerous world. I am also a novelist and I understand how personal writing a novel is. I thought it would be interesting to find where the two worlds might meet – that of a woman who lives publicly on a screen and a man who lives with his characters in his heart and soul. I wanted to write a story to see if two dreams can become one.

How Did You Come up With Your Characters?
I love these characters because each of them long for a deep love. Sass poured out her heart on the screen; Shay has torn his heart apart in the pages of a book. I think one of the most difficult things is to be a public person who is searching for the joy and peace of a deep personal connection.

Book Sample
With a grunt he pushed himself up and shook off the snow. Expertly he folded the silver survival blanket and hoisted his pack, sorry that he wasn't returning home with a rabbit or two for supper. Not that he was at all sure hunting had been on his mind when he left early that morning. He'd simply needed to get out of the place, away from that lingering scent of perfume that had no place in any home of his. Female things. Never again. Well, now his head was clear, of that he was sure. Home he would go to do the things he did every day: to ignore the typewriter and the words that flew through his head, to scorn the work that called to him with more strength each day. He would chop some wood and fix the pump. He would…
Funny, wasn't it? He was running out of things he would do. God save him from time and himself.
Adjusting his pack, Shay began to walk. He left behind his thoughts, or lost them along the way, as he pushed through the forest in the cold and snow. Either way, he didn't care where they went so long as they didn't go with him. Twenty minutes later he was home, throwing his pack in the house before heading to the woodpile. Damn the repairs. A roarin' fire was just what he needed. That and a cup of ale and—
"Jesus, Mary and Joseph."
There, behind the wood, curled tightly into herself, her copper-colored hair covering her face, her body half covered by snow, lay Sass Brandt. In the blink of an eye he had her in his arms. Her hair fell away from her face and he saw it was pale as the snow that fell upon it, except for her lips. Those were tinged the color of azure, the clear and precise tint on death's calling card. Shay Collier hesitated no longer than it would take a leprechaun to twinkle out of sight when stumbled upon. He was upon her, arms scooping her up roughly in his amazement and terror.
Clutching her to him he carried Sass to the porch, he kicked open the door, spinning through it into the cabin before it slammed shut behind. Without a thought he did what he had to. Sass was laid on the couch, a blanket tucked around her haphazardly while he worked. The fire was stoked and piled with dry wood until it flamed enough to warm the room. Out Shay went again into the snow to bring in more wood, not giving Sass a thought until the fire was blazing. When it was done he turned to her and pulled off the blanket. Sass moaned, half turned but he kept her still, putting his hands on her shoulders. The fire blazed, illuminating her chalk-white face so eerily it frightened him to gaze upon it.
Without care he stripped off her clothes: the wet coat, the sweater and jeans, her boots and socks until she was almost naked. Quickly Shay looked at her, seeing only what he needed to see. Her feet were bad but not beyond hope, her fingers had fared a bit better. Frostbite had not claimed her extremities, but she must be treated properly lest he do more harm than good.
Kneeling at her feet Shay lay the blanket back over her and took each foot in his hands, massaging and kneading them slowly so that her blood flow would come back naturally, gently to warm her. He was thankful she wasn't awake, for certainly this would be painful, and Shay knew he couldn't stand to see anguish in those eyes of hers.
He worked Sass's fingers in the same way. She cried out and tried to jerk her damaged hands away, unaware he was trying to help her, lost as she was in the deep sleep of hypothermia. Surprised, Shay pulled back gently, looking up from his work, his eyes lingering self-indulgently on her face. Mother Mary she was beautiful. Too beautiful. Even more so than she whom he had loved… once… so long ago….
Unable to help himself Shay abandoned his work. Her fingers were warming, the color coming back slowly as her blood began to flow once more. Tears in his eyes, memories overflowing the tight boundaries he had built for them, Shay tucked the blanket under her chin, unable to look at such beauty, unable to be reminded of death for fear he would seek it himself.

Links to Purchase eBook version – Click links for book samples, reviews and to purchase
Buy this eBook On Amazon

About the Author

Please join this author’s email list
Learn more about the author on their website
Follow the author on Amazon

Follow the author on Social Media:
Facebook
Twitter
Goodreads
Pinterest
Instagram
LinkedIn

All information was provided by the author and not edited by us. This is so you get to know the author better.

About Featured Book: A Journey of Souls by Michael Mckinney

This book will be free for two days beginning April 2nd, 2022.

After ten people reach the end of their earthly life they awaken to find themselves in strangely familiar surroundings. In a realm where the past, present and future flow freely in and out of each other without contradiction they encounter a mysterious woman named Brianna who greets them in their soul’s journey. From an innocent child to a vicious serial killer, from a lovingly faithful wife to an unrepentant sex addict, all are directed to a destination woven from the fabric of their own individual histories and personal life stories. Contained in these pages is a powerful glimpse of what lies beyond the boundary of temporal human experience.

This Metaphysical Fiction book is available in these Formats: eBook, Print

This book is in Kindle Unlimited!

Buy Book Here.

About Featured Book: A Journey of Souls by Michael Mckinney

This book will be free for two days beginning April 2nd, 2022.

After ten people reach the end of their earthly life they awaken to find themselves in strangely familiar surroundings. In a realm where the past, present and future flow freely in and out of each other without contradiction they encounter a mysterious woman named Brianna who greets them in their soul’s journey. From an innocent child to a vicious serial killer, from a lovingly faithful wife to an unrepentant sex addict, all are directed to a destination woven from the fabric of their own individual histories and personal life stories. Contained in these pages is a powerful glimpse of what lies beyond the boundary of temporal human experience.

This Metaphysical Fiction book is available in these Formats: eBook, Print

This book is in Kindle Unlimited!

Buy Book Here.

About Featured Book: Codename Poltergeist by William Joel

The CIA and presidential cabinet members covertly enter into an agreement with the Palestinians to remove certain key Israeli government figures in a plan to enable the United States to claim that they engineered peace in the Middle East and gain the favor of Arabic countries. Sentinel, a group of angelic-type beings who monitor the Earth, are very concerned that the United States could be igniting a major conflict if the Israelis learn of the plan and retaliate. The CIA tried to eliminate their most efficient and deadly agent, James Halyard, Codename Poltergeist, believing Halyard was a possible threat to their plans. They fail, but kill Halyard’s beloved wife, Karen, in the process. Sentinel rescues Halyard, heals him, and gives Halyard the option of becoming an agent for their purposes with highly augmented mental and physical abilities. He agrees and truly becomes Poltergeist. Sentinel sends Poltergeist to unravel and thwart the conspiracy.

This Thriller book is available in these Formats: eBook, Print

This book is in Kindle Unlimited!

Buy Book Here.