Oculus
Michael Offutt
Genre: Sci-fi
Book Description:
Autumn has arrived in
New York, and Jordan Pendragon attends his first classes as a freshman at
Cornell. Born with a brilliant mathematical mind, he balances life as a
research assistant with that of a student athlete.
But Jordan also has a
quest. He must find the Black Tower, a monolithic edifice housing a thing that
defines the very structure of the universe. Jordan believes it is buried
somewhere in Antarctica under miles of prehistoric ice.
October finds Jordan
earning a starting position with the Cornell hockey team. But a dark cloud
gathers over his rookie season. Unexplained deaths, whispers of a cannibal
cult, a prophecy, and a stone known only as the Oculus, cast a shadow over his
athletic ambitions. It is the start of a terrifying journey down a path of
mystery, murder, and to a confrontation with an Evil more ancient than the
stars.
Free short story that's
a lead-in to this book series: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/236636
Talking Assassins in A Crisis of Two Worlds
In both Slipstream and
Oculus we are introduced to Kolin
Lightfoot, an Avalonian assassin with a vague-ish background as a professional
killer. However, the time that he spent in training when he was much younger is
something that I do intend to explore (most likely in the next book entitled Caledfwlch). The only hint that I give
you of this is the tattoo on Kolin’s neck. It’s a purple rose and more than
just something nice to look at. Rather, it signifies his position within a
super secret organization of assassins that trained with tattoo warrior monks
in the Himalayan Mountains of Nepal. I refer to this organization as the Slayer
Tsincaat.
There are several men that bear these skin tattoos. Each is
a different color and grants a different “power” so to speak. Kolin’s is purple, and bestows upon the
assassin the ability to go without sleep for a long time if needed, heightened
reflexes, and incredibly sensitive touch. Kolin can literally feel the
vibration of the air around him and can tell when someone else is in a room
simply by the presence of their body heat. This incredible touch has messed
with Kolin’s head a little, as he enjoys having sex more than most people because
of the tremendous pleasure he experiences during this activity. Kolin has had
to employ the use of very elaborate armor to keep his touch sensitivity
manageable in combat situations. The killsuit he wears allows him to utilize
all the positives of his abilities and experience none of the negatives. It deadens the melee blows transferred to his
body from the outside, yet has enough porous openings to allow him to still
feel heat differences in the air around him. And there is no one in the world
that is a better safe picker than Kolin. He can literally feel the tumblers
slide about with only his fingertips.
Other assassins of Kolin’s order have different powers. A
red rose bestows upon the wearer the ability to transfer tremendous pain
through mere touch, literally lighting neurons on fire. It also bestows upon
the person thus inscribed, an immunity to pain and tougher bones, rendering
them formidable opponents for their ability to shrug aside blows that would
knock a normal man to his knees. The only person in the Slayer Tsincaat to have
this color rose as a tattoo is codenamed Genesis. He is considered to be the
first of Kolin’s order and is the most dangerous man alive.
To know more or to review purchasing options for my book,
please visit the website below:
![[Me+Bellagio.jpg]](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisBdxnrjUrhi6uuU_xcGgXt0zW7xaX26dgN6vPrplLkpJwrHIn0XjAr3sGUd7kDNvt6X6Cw1rqvj2lZTYE0zAwMbNPHtrve-IZ2QmW5Osnrad81XWr1_zSt8Z21dZdIfOzqOKZMfdHmtU/s220/Me+Bellagio.jpg)
Michael Offutt writes
speculative fiction books that have science fiction, LGBT, and paranormal
elements. His first book, "Slipstream" has received some critical
acclaim and was published by Double Dragon in the spring. The sequel,
"Oculus" came out in November 2012. He has one brother, no pets, and
a few roots that keep his tree of life sufficiently watered. By day, he works
for the State of Utah as a Technical Specialist. By night, he watches lots of
t.v., writes, draws, and sometimes dreams of chocolate.
Michael Offutt graduated
from the University of Idaho in 1994 with a Bachelor's degree in English.
He keeps a blog and
would appreciate a visit or two even if all you want to do is say hi.
Twitter: @MichaelOffutt
You never mentioned the dreaming of chocolate thing before, did you? Hmm...
ReplyDeleteI don't think I have. Thanks for visiting, Andrew.
ReplyDeleteGood guest post! I'm very curious about Kolin's powers and background.
ReplyDelete