4/10/26
Driving from Pennsylvania to Massachusetts today, which means it will be anywhere from a six-hour to eleven-hour drive, depending on the whims and vagaries of that blasted, bubbling, chaotic stretch of interdimensional nonsense that is the traffic patterns in Connecticut. Hope to see some of you tomorrow (Saturday) at the Ashland Public Library 66 Front St, Ashland, MA 01721. We’ll be there all day, signing books.
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Women In Horror Year: Day 9
Shadow of the Vulture by Regina Garza-Mitchell
A bloody reckoning awaits in the Old West. As Americans move west, a storm of brutality clashes with witchcraft and the supernatural in the small Texas town of Soledad. Juana, an ex-soldier haunted by her dead friend, seeks another battle, determined to make the American invaders pay in blood. A powerful witch goes to the extreme to protect her land. And a young woman weaves protective spells, yearning to soar with the vultures. When these women come together, Texas will never be the same. Power clashes between witches, warriors, brutes, and innocents, as the shadow of the vulture looms over all. Perfect for fans of violent westerns, supernatural thrillers, and dark historical fiction.
While students and faculty know her as Doctor and fans and readers know her as Regina Garza-Mitchell, she will always be G to me. I’ve known her longer than just about anybody in this business at this point (indeed, in addition to the stories in 4X4, and a story with David Niall Wilson, she was one of the very first people I ever wrote a collaboration with — the short story “Under Her Black Wings”, the original art for which hangs on the wall in my office. Point being — Gina has been doing this as long as I have, and this, her first boob-lenth work after 25+ years of writing short stories, was cause for celebration.
Magical realism and an accurate, well-researched historical setting collide with an unflinching brutality not often seen outside of a Jack Ketchum novel. Gina’s prose is beautiful and moving, even when describing the very worst traits of humankind. Heartbreaking and moving, this novella can be read in one sitting, provided you have the emotional fortitude to absorb it all in one blow. Currently available in paperback. eBook, and audiobook from Dead Sky Publishing.
