Blood Skies [Paperback]

Steven Montano (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 10, 2011

***BOOK ONE OF THE BLOOD SKIES SERIES***

In a world where nightmares stalk the earth and the few survivors must battle the vampire legions of the Ebon Cities, a team of soldiers races to save mankind when a traitor threatens to destroy the future of humanity.

Southern Claw warlock Eric Cross is a member of Viper Squad, and his mission is to pursue the witch called Red across the wastelands.  His hunt takes him through haunted forests and blighted tundra, into war-torn cities and to the edge of a twisted necropolis.  And before the journey is done Cross will uncover the dark origins of magic, and learn the true meaning of sacrifice...

*****Check out the entire Blood Skies series: 

BLOOD SKIES 

BLACK SCARS

SOULRAZOR
CROWN OF ASH

THE WITCH'S EYE

Each just $3.99! 

Book 6, CHAIN OF SHADOWS, coming Fall/Winter 2013!*****

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This book was epic! THIS is dark fantasy done right! The writing was evocative and disturbing and beautifully descriptive, down to the creepiest detail. I read this book cover to cover in the course of 2 nights and am anxious to start the next asap!" (5 stars). 

-- Jhonni Parker; Goodreads

"I started this book with the Hollywood idea about vampires. This story captured me straight from the off, the way the characters and story line progress builds this book up into an amazing tale of a brothers love for his sister and the ultimate sacrifice. I will definitely be reading the rest of the series!!"

-- James Gronenstein; Goodreads

About the Author

Steven Montano can't believe he's written five full-length novels in this series.  Writing five more will likely be the death of him.  But hey...it was fun while it lasted.

He lives in Washington State with his wife, two children, a dog of below-average intelligence, and a ridiculous number of books and bottles of wine.

Visit Steven's official website at bloodskies.com

Product Details

• Paperback: 264 pages
• Publisher: Darker Sunset Press (June 10, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0615488617
• ISBN-13: 978-0615488615
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (74 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,659,159 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Steven Montano fell out of the sky one day and landed behind an accountant's desk. Rather than write novels about his experiences in an alternate post-apocalyptic world besieged by vampires, he decided to reconcile accounts and calculate journal entries. He still writes in his spare time.

Visit Steven's official website, bloodskies.com

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 31 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Vampires As They Should Be July 12, 2011

By Alan Edwards

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Blood Skies is a grim and gritty tale set in a bleak and hopeless world. Combining elements of apocalyptic horror, urban fantasy, and military fantasy in the vein of Glen Cook and the like, it tells the story of one of the human soldiers fighting a losing war against the vampires and undead bent on ruling the shattered remnants of our world.

The action is fast and deadly. The vampires of Blood Skies aren't high schoolers who sparkle in the sunlight or who try to blend in among human society. They are ferocious animalistic killers who feel no more empathy to Man than Man does to a Big Mac. Against them are the elite forces the humans have put together to stem the tide, using the newly discovered magicks that awoke after the world changed. The protagonist is a human warlock who uses the power of the spirit he is bonded with to defend himself and his fellow soldiers against their enemies as they track one of their own, whose betrayal to the enemy threatens the precarious stalemate they've managed.

The treatment of magic in the story is a unique take on the often cliched wizards and witches in other stories. Every warlock is bonded to an otherwordly spirit and can channel their power for various uses, but the toll it takes on their bodies ensures a shortened and painful life. Steven Montano does an excellent job bringing together all of the disparate elements in a cohesive storyline that moves forward relentlessly, and at times tragically. The writing style is staccato and terse, helping to emphasize the oftentimes brutal events.

All in all, it's a train ride through a hellish landscape filled with nasty, unpleasant things. Right up my alley.

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Impressed June 6, 2011

By Jennifer L. Williams

Format:Kindle Edition

I had the privilege of reading Blood Skies before it was released and was pretty impressed. Steven Montano has taken an old, tired vampire genre and tossed it on its head -- then handed it a machine gun and a bag of grenades. I am particularly impressed with Montano's ability to build worlds. His post-apocalyptic Earth is fresh, deep, and loaded with new ideas that don't bore. His battles are creative. His characters are hilariously sarcastic, especially when the chips are down. I had no idea how attached I had become to the main character, Cross, until the story began to take turns that were impossible to foresee. I was never bored while reading this book. Definitely recommend.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Lots of action and beautiful imagery July 15, 2011

By Wist

Format:Kindle Edition

If you ever wanted to hunt down some vampires, here is the squad to take along to do it. Bring your guns, bows, grenades and machetes, but don't leave your warlock behind. You're going to need Eric Cross to survive after The Black, the apocalyptic hell that our world has become.

When Cross' sister gets taken, his original mission of hunting down a traitor takes an unexpected turn. He will be up against some brutal vampires, but expect to find golems, unicorns, spirits, zombies, massive wolves and a world where being a normal human barely makes the cut anymore. In this war you will have to accept and become a part of the fantasy if you are to stand a chance of surviving, as there are arcane nightmares everywhere.

Beautiful imagery and writing in here that will help you accomplish just that, at a pace full of action. But don't dream too deep into it all, as you already have a short life expectancy by being a warlock, and the living are soon to become the fantasy.

I will be watching for future works from Steven Montano, as this debut novel, Blood Skies, will stay on my shelf for reading again in the future.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Machetes and Purple Prose April 5, 2013

By S. Samson

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I have been on a bit of a kick lately where I'm primarily interested in reading dystopian stories, and as this book has four stars and a reasonable price, I figured I would go ahead and give it a shot. I kinda wish I hadn't.

From the pro-prologue (if that's what you can call the three and a half page blurb before the actual prologue,) I couldn't stop myself from wincing and rolling my eyes. It OOZES purple prose, and reminds me strongly of poetry I wrote in the third grade. I suppose to be fair, said poetry did win (little kid) contests, so the book is at least as good as GOOD third grade poetry...but as you may assume that is not sufficient for a published novel you would expect people to pay for.

Like many of my fellow reviewers have stated, it feels as though you have to whip out a freshly-sharpened machete to hack through the jungle of purple prose and similes. It's a nightmare. I really really WANTED to feel the tension Knight must have been feeling when the vampires were coming through the door, but all I could think was "If I see another simile, or if this guy uses the word 'ancient' one more time, I'm breaking my Kindle over my knee."

At any rate, two stars for the premise, zero for the execution. If you liked the book, I'm happy for you, and not even in a sarcastic, snotty way. Loving a book is an awesome feeling. I personally didn't care for this one at all. Just my $0.02.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A review by Free Book Reviews October 17, 2011

By Albert Robbins III

Format:Kindle Edition

Overall Feedback: Amazing book. That about sums up my feelings but I will try to expound on that a little. Steven does well with a genre that has seen more than it's fair share of regurgitation but this one just throws the genre on it's head and says it does not have to all be the same. A great refreshing new addition to the genre and I was greatly pleased.

Point of View: You are Eric Cross or at least wish to be as the story unfolds and the ride begins.

Voice: Compelling and helps drive the story to its end.

Character Development: This is one of the areas that set this apart from the more than bountiful masses of books in this genre. Bravo to Steven for taking the time to develop great characters.

Plot: Another spot that helps break a tired genre in two and keep moving the reader to forget that a thousand thousand of these types of books have made their way into being published.

Dialogue: Although consistent with the characters and storyline I felt that some of the dialogue just did not correlate with the character it was meant for. Although I was never pulled out of the story and did not once stop and say to myself hmmm would he say that?

Pacing: Unbelievable pacing. You will not have time to look for mistakes and if you do you are just being nit picky and need to stop.

Setting: So unbelievable that you want/need to believe. Remember D&D, then you will revel in a book that brings this all together.

Continuity: Again flawless and I defy you to be so nit picky to find any problems. Let the flow of the material grab you and hold on tight, it's a wonderful ride.