Miriam Black Knows How You’re Going To Die
Miriam is trying. Really, she is.
But this whole “settling down thing” that Louis has going for her just isn’t working out. She lives on Long Beach Island all year around. Her home is a run-down double-wide trailer. She works at a grocery store as a check-out girl. And her relationship with Louis–who’s on the road half the time in his truck–is subject to the piss and vinegar Miriam brings to everything she does.
It just isn’t going well. Still, she’s keeping her psychic ability–to see when and how someone is going to die just by touching them–in check. But even that feels wrong somehow. Like she’s keeping a tornado stoppered up in a tiny bottle.
Then comes one bad day that turns it all on her ear.
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Praise For Blackbirds (Miriam Black #1)
“Blackbirds is a horror story, a traveling story, a story of loss and what it takes to make things right. It’s a story about fate and how sometimes, if we wrestle with it hard enough, maybe we can change it. Blackbirds is the kind of book that doesn’t let go even after you’ve put it down and nobody else could have made it shine like Chuck Wendig.”
– Stephen Blackmoore, author, City of the Lost and Dead Things
“Mean, moody and mysterious, Blackbirds is a noir joyride peppered with black humour, wry observation, and visceral action. Fans of Chuck Wendig will not be disappointed.”
– Adam Christopher, author of Empire State
“A gleefully dark, twisted road trip for everyone who thought Fight Club was too warm and fuzzy. If you enjoy this book, you’re probably deeply wrong in the head. I loved it, and will be seeking professional help as soon as Chuck lets me out of his basement.”
– James Moran, Severance, Doctor Who and Torchwood screenwriter
“A deliciously morbid road movie waiting to happen, Blackbirds takes an ingenious central concept and riffs on it like some souped-up mutant conglomeration of Angus Young, James Hetfield and Keith Richards. Chuck Wendig should be both delighted and thoroughly ashamed of himself>”
– Jason Arnopp, scriptwriter of Stormhouse and Doctor Who: The Gemini Contagion.
“Enchanting and drowned in blood, Blackbirds is a meaty piece of fiction, a non-stop mind-job where the first hit hurts and you keep going back for more. It’s the kind of gritty, unapologetic story that grips you long after the book’s done; dark, intense, utterly without mercy. Chuck Wendig spins one hell of a tale.”
– Karina Cooper, author of the Dark Mission series
“Truly the dark fantastic. Blackbirds is one of the most amazing, gritty, gruesome, witty, terrifying, wonderful books I’ve been lucky enough to read this year.”
– Kat Richardson, author of the Greywalker Chronicles
“Gritty and raw, Blackbirds sports a unique heroine in the form of Miriam. Both sympathetic and pitiable, she dances through Chuck’s brilliant turns of phrase and crisp writing to an illuminating ending which begs the question: Are we truly masters of our own fate?”
– Allison Pang, author of A Brush of Darkness
“Balls-to-the-wall, take-no-prisoners storytelling at its best.”
–Bill Cameron, author of County Line.
“Chuck Wendig unloads with both barrels and Blackbirds hits you like a shotgun blast to the torso at close range.”
– Matthew McBride, author of Frank Sinatra in a Blender
“Wendig’s lean, muscular prose powers through a twisty page turner without wasting a word. His take on the classic prophesy tale is clever, fun and drops a new surprise on you every few pages, making it very hard to put down. A deliciously entertaining read.”
– C. Robert Cargill (AKA Massawyrm of Ain’t It Cool News and co-writer of Sinister)
“The writing is absolutely outstanding, it’s 100% my kind of narrative, there’s just not a single ounce of fat, it’s all muscle, that’s the best way I can describe it. Not a single word is wasted, every one of them packs a punch.”
– Fantasy Nibbles
“Chuck Wendig has raised the bar of the urban fantasy genre and introduced a dynamic new character who, if left to her own devices, will most likely steal more than just your heart.”
– New York Journal of Books
“… the characterisation is without a doubt the real highlight of the novel, managing to create living breathing people with a few deft strokes of a pen.”
– Anthony Jones, SFBook.com
“[Blackbirds is] the kind of book that has the potential to put Wendig on the map as a ‘must-read’ author – I know he’s made my list. Highly recommended.”
– SQT, Fantasy & SciFi Lovin’ News & Reviews
“Everyone dies eventually and the way it happens isn’t fair; the way you check out is the way you check out. Wendig appeals to the slightly nasty part of us that we don’t want to admit to but know is there. Who amongst us doesn’t secretly want to know how it all ends for us? And who amongst us doesn’t want to know how others die so that we can hope for something a little easier for ourselves?”
– Graeme Flory, Graeme’s Fantasy Book Review
“Blackbirds is a high energy, whisky-fuelled ride, that will pull you along for the journey and have you questioning whether we can change destiny. A must-read book by an author that is worth watching.”
– Hannah Mariska, Fantasy Faction
“This is urban fantasy, but done in a fresh, bloody, broody, exciting and exhilarating new way.Blackbirds is one of the best books of the year so far, and a real must read.”
– I Wish I Was a Book
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