Hell is freezing over and demons are looking to earth for escape. Only one woman stands between them, and Earth's annihilation.
Dr Eva Ross, a prison psychologist, works in Worcester, Massachusetts at an aging facility. Her boss, the brilliant and often unorthodox Gideon Homes begins to make decisions that Eva is forced to question. Between the trials at work, and her loveless marriage, Eva is forced out of the life she knows.
She encounters Madden Scott, a drifter with irascible charm and very quickly it becomes apparent all is not what it seems. Her life descends into chaos as everything around her crumbles into a new reality, and the secrets that were barely hidden under the surface all become revealed in a series of chilling incidents.
Join Eva and Madden as they undertake an adventure that takes them through nightmares and across continents as they are thrust without choice into the shadowy world of Anges de la Resurrection des Chevaliers, the last barrier between earth, and what lies beneath.
Excerpt
Eyes of the deepest blue regarded her from beneath a mop of brown locks, dishevelled and pushed back from his tanned face. Eva had no reason to, but she found herself memorizing every detail. His slim body, with wide shoulders, was dressed in suit trousers and a pressed shirt, his collar unbuttoned. He was tall, but sitting down, she was not sure just how tall he was. His smile was calm, confident. Eva stared a moment longer, then became painfully aware that he was doing the same, since she had not yet responded.
“Hoodoo? Don’t you mean Voodoo?”
His smile broadened. Eva watched his lips, sensuous and inviting. “No, there is a difference. Voodoo is the religion. Hoodoo is the magic. It’s like comparing a belief in God to spoon bending, for lack of a better term.”
“You seem to be an expert on the subject.”
He shrugged, his shirt pulling taut as he did so. “I have lived in the West Indies on and off. It’s hard not to immerse yourself in the culture when you are around it every day.” He held her gaze, smiling, as he signalled to the barman. “Whiskey please, and whatever the lady is having.”
The barman left the blonde to the mercy of the hawk-faced man, who stared at Eva, unblinking, even as Eva watched him speak to the blonde. Eva leaned back. She noted her stranger’s eyes drop to her chest as she did so, and it warmed her. The hawk down the bar had not taken his eyes off the newcomer. He was not watching Eva any more, but his rival. The barman frowned, and reluctantly came to serve them. “Another Passion Plunge?”
“Please.”
In moments, the barman had made the drinks, and served the glasses. Eva barely noticed. “So what are you doing here?”
“I am just passing through; staying at a hotel nearby and thought I’d visit the oldest bar in Worcester. What’s your story?”
Eva was tempted to tell the man her entire recent history. “Just an after work drink,” she said, instead.
“A Passion Plunge, eh? Why would such a beautiful woman be drinking such a drink? Oh, where are my manners? You don’t even know who I am. My name is Madden Scott.”
Madden Scott. The name sent a shiver of pleasure down her spine.
“Madden Scott.” Eva repeated the name, savoring how the syllables rolled off her tongue. For some reason the bar had just gotten warmer.
“And you, mysterious woman, do you have a name?”
Eva blushed. She didn’t know whether it was the unusual heat of the bar or the whispered, husky tone of his voice.”Eva. My name is Eva.”
“Just Eva?”
“Tonight, it is just Eva; let’s leave it at that.”
“A beautiful name it is. It is taken from a Hebrew word meaning ‘mother of life’.”
The knowledge, the insight this man had, ignited a stirring within her. It was a feeling Eva had never felt with Brian more than once. Without conscious thought, she found herself removing her jacket. Madden stood up from his bar stool, took the coat from her, and turned to place it on the back of her barstool. There was an air of mystery about him that held Eva within its grasp.
As he returned to his seat, Eva glanced around the bar. Couples were sitting closer than she remembered seeing when she had come in. Strangers were touching, unabashed, and intimate. Eva shook her head. These were people that, until mere moments ago, had been playing Keno on the television.
“Thank you,” he said before she could question her sanity any further.
He smiled, causing her to shiver with excitement.
“What were we talking about, before I took your coat?”
“You were telling me your name. I am sorry; I could have sworn you told me.”
He reached over and circled the back of her hand with one finger. That simple touch caused an ache of longing within her. “My name is Madden Scott, Eva.”
“Madden Scott.” Eva savored the words rolling off her tongue, and, for some reason, had a sense of déjà vu. “You... you didn’t tell me your name before?”
“You never asked,” Madden purred.
“But I told you mine?”
“Indeed. Long day?”
Eva laughed. “Yes, you could say that. This bar, is it usually like this?”
It made her feel a little self-conscious. She toyed with the buttons on her blouse, suddenly wishing there weren’t quite so many. The hawk-eyed man was still watching Madden, but unconsciously played with the blonde as he did so, his hands moving around her, seemingly of their own volition. It was hard for Eva to concentrate, but she felt something was going on, something not normal.
“I hadn’t noticed.” Madden replied, drawing Eva’s attention back to him once more. The rich timbre of his voice made her want to melt into his arms. In response, she felt a slight throb between her legs. Blood was flowing, in a way Brian had never managed to make her feel, and she knew she wanted this man. It was hard to concentrate; there was a sensual air in the bar. She could hear clothes rustling as they fell to the floor. Somewhere nearby, a woman gasped in pleasure.
“Is it such a sin for people to enjoy themselves?” Madden asked, trailing his hand through her hair and down the side of her neck.
“It is one of the seven deadly sins,” Eva replied, each word faltering as her body began succumbing to the overwhelming atmosphere.
“And... each... sin... has a demon,” Madden said as he kissed her neck, “In the Bible, Asmodeus is Lust. He might be with us in spirit, now.”
Eva moaned. His kisses felt so good. She was scarcely aware of her surroundings and the others that shared the bar with her. She wanted to give in, to open herself to him right then and there. Eva ran her hands through Madden’s hair, pulled him to her, and kissed him deeply, relishing the feeling, as their tongues touched.
Then years of psychological conditioning took over. “Wait. This is wrong.” Her sudden change confused Madden. Before he could protest, she continued, “No, not here. This is wrong. We have to get out of here.”
Fighting the feelings of lust radiating through her body, Eva pulled herself together long enough to grab her jacket, drag Madden away from the bar, and out into the darkness. Still caught up in the moment, he followed.
#
The hawk-eyed man watched them cross the room while he toyed with the woman he had chosen in his dance of lust. He realized he had become caught up in the moment, and regretted his momentary lapse of concentration. From across the room, a woman alone smiled at him, oblivious to the carnal riot going on around her.
“You never could concentrate on the task at hand, Asmodeus,” she purred.
He smiled, and continued administering kisses to the blonde. In between kisses, his teeth grew to needle points, and, with a fierce bite, he ripped her throat out. She dropped to the floor, too overcome by lust to have even registered her peril. Nobody in the room noticed.
“All in good time, Belphegor. All in good time.”
Professional Reviews
wow- a scary ride
I ordered this book because it was highly recommended by another author I follow Mary Buckham. I am so glad i ordered it and read it. .
What a scary ride. This book caught me in the opening and never let up. I got about 1/2 way through and thought I was at the end because Eva and Madden - destroyed the evil doers in Birmingham or so i thought. But in true fashion of evil - it reared its ugly head again.
Eva and Madden are in a head long rush to stop something they don't really understand and take us for a ride with them.
Who do they trust, how do they get out of this mess. Will they survive. I don't want to put any more spoilers in here. If you like the end of the world type of books; you cant go wrong with this one. Several times reading this book, I reached for my bible - to read some of the passages in revelations.
I will definitely be reading more of Matthew W Harrill's books.
Reviewed by Desere Steenberg, South Africa
In this read we get to meet prison hospital psychologist Eva Ross, as psychologist she has dealt with more than her fare share of sinners and saints.
Well okay I lie no saints just sinners, but I got your attention didn't I? Now back to Eva, from the corrupt, the insane, the downright nuts you name it the list goes on and on, Eva has had the chance to step into their minds and try to unlock the demons.
Then suddenly those around her become those that she cannot trust and instead they start to exhibit the same characteristics she has seen over and over again. The only way out is for her to turn to a stranger , a man whose name she is incapable of even remembering yet, he is her only sanctuary in the hell her life has become.
I have always been a very big fan of the horror world and all the juicy psychological thrills and spills that goes with it, so much so that everyone who knows me will know I can watch the scariest of movies, get up, switch off all the lights and go get into bed, without once checking the closet or taking a peek under the bed!
Likewise when it comes to reading, I never get the I feel like am being watched feeling to the extent where I truly have to look over my shoulder, nor do I jump out of my chair when the phone so much as beeps with a text message, but with this read all of the above happened more than once!
From the start the read was entertaining as all heck! I was on the edge of my seat from the start go and I did not move from the suspense spot until the very end. This author knows how to get your attention, hold it right through till the end and man oh man does this author have talent with a capital T!
The book was as hot and emotional as it was downright spine chilling. More than once I wanted to stick it in the freezer and pretend the hell was frozen but I was simply incapable of doing so, because as I said this author hooks you and hooks you fast and hard, there is no way you can stop reading once you start.
I highly recommend this read for all fans of reading, and heck if you are not a fan of genre this is the book that will draw you in and keep you trapped for a long time, and feeling every single moment of fear, uncertainty, anger, rage and suspense.
The book also has a powerful message of no one is ever exactly as they seem and once the true person is revealed all hell will break loose but it comes down the survival of the fittest , just make sure that 's you!
A truly mystery filled, suspense packed, on the edge of your seat, toe curling , blood curling, screaming my head off read, and an absolute masterpiece of a book. Best of all this only part one, so there is a loads of more kick ass awesomeness to come. All I will say is Matthew Harrill get your ass back to writing as in NOW!
5/5 star review
" Hell on earth doesn't come close to what she's about to go through"
** Copy provided in exchange for a honest review
Reminiscent of early Dean Koontz...
Loved it! So often with new authors you never really know what you're going to get.... eBook publishing has opened this up so that for a few squids you can start to immerse yourself in new authors and their stories: I would urge you to try immersing yourself in this one. The plot races from one side of the globe to the other at breakneck speed, dragging everything, including the reader, in it's wake. Characters develop as they go, with really bad baddies, angelic goodies and an ensemble cast of potential nere-do-wells somewhere in the middle that keep you trying to get a handle on their motivations right to the end. If you like shaowy pseudo-governmental organisations pulling peoples' strings like puppetmasters, combined with a healthy dose of the arcane and the horrific, this will be the book for you. The style of the writing reminds me of Dean Koontz' early work from the 1980's - eerie, fantastic, macabre and at the same time with enough down-to-earth familiarity that the shocks when they come (and oh boy do they keep coming...) are all the more disturbing for it.
I'm waiting for the second installment. While I pop the kettle on and have a slice of cake, I strongly advise you to read the first.... :-)
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Reviews for "Hellbounce: The ARC Chronicles Part 1"
Reviewed by Rebecca Mills
1/14/2015
One powerful journey. This Author really sets a fast pace that weaves in and out of the edges of hell.Dr. Eva Ross works with the mentally twisted everyday. Little does she know the whole world is fast becoming that way until she arrives at home and her husband has gone mad and takes her prisoner in her home. She knows she must escape but how and when? .There is a knock on the door will it help her? Oh what a story. This is a rather long book but I stayed glued to it for 2 days. I had to know I just had to know where the Author was going to take me. My journey with him was wonderful we went to countries I have only dreamed of the scenes never stopping in there detail and action. And Madden Scott my new book boyfriend. He is one handsome man that has been to hell and back. He is captured and captured again and almost killed and totally controlled by the very demons they are trying to save the world from. Will he make it out? Can they save the world as hell is freezing over and the evil needs a new place to live. I shall stalk this Author in all the good ways just to see where we get to go next. Thanks for a wonderful read, a remarkable journey and thank you for Madden Scott. I tell you this book is worth every dime you pay for it. There are many pages to get lost in for hours. Thank you Matthew Harrill for a wonderful read
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