After years of stalls, dead presses, and wanting to be turned into a full novel… Southern Devils is here.

When I first wrote the story, it was a short piece retelling how one of the Confederacy’s greatest generals returned to get his revenge on those who he thought had killed him. Instead, he was used by Robert E. Lee as a weapon to eradicate Sherman’s army as he rampaged through the southern countryside. The story ended quickly and left the whole Civil War an open book.

The openness I left in the story gnawed at me for months. The first press to accept it folded before it was released as part of an anthology about zombies in the Civil War. In fact, the second press that took it canceled the anthology it had been selected for. Luckily, another press took over the project, but then never went anywhere with it. Three presses and three failed attempts to get the original short story out.

I got seriously bummed out. The story held a special place in my heart because it was my first accepted story. On the bright side, by this time I’d had other stories make it to print. The fact I had stuff out there dulled the sting and gave me the time to do what I know I needed to do… what the story dictated I needed to do.

I needed to tell the full tale. My wife told me I needed to do it and she was right. The story deserved to be something more than a short story. (Thanks babe!)

The time has finally arrived. Now, the full story of the Sword and how they kept the Union safe from the unholy  Confederate reanimate hordes can be told. The book is also book one of a trilogy. Book two has been started and my goal is to have the first draft completed by the end of the year. I hope you pick up this little piece of alternate history and think again about what the history books told you.

The book is on Amazon now and ready for you to read on those beach vacations. You can pick it up in print and for your Kindle thingy.

I am also on the Summer of Zombie Tour 2016 with some of the top zombie scribes in the genre. Go to the event page on Facebook and have a bloody June!

Everybody have a great summer and goodnight,

Brent