T.L. STRIDE- STORIES
So Much at Stake
Shaman Tales- The Chronicles of Little Hawk-
So Much at Stake
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy (and upper Middle Grade + Adult)
Word Count: 61,000
While recovering from a vicious roadside attack, he believes
left his parents dead, David “Little Hawk” Lightfoot discovers they have been turned into vampires and vows to hunt down the one who took them. When he learns his parents and the monster have fled to New Orleans, he is determined to follow them. Unable to deter him from this course, two members of the Tribal Council volunteer to assist him. In preparation of their trip, David's grandfather, a very powerful shaman, conducts a ritual of protection over them and reveals David is destined to replace him as shaman of their tribe. Armed with only the protection of the ritual, a bag of stakes and holy water, and slowly emerging shaman abilities, can David and his companions find and destroy the monster who claimed his parents; and if necessary, can he find the strength to save them from the terrible fate that has befallen them?
Original photo created by author and is copyright protected.
Spirit Path
Shaman Tales- The Chronicles of Little Hawk-
Spirit Path
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy (and upper Middle Grade + Adult)
Word Count: 66,000
After vanquishing master vampire Henri Devereaux, Little Hawk returns home to discover his grandfather has disappeared. When Chief Rising Moon also vanishes, a stranger named Lakota Joe, who claims to be a friend of the chief, offers an explanation... they were taken by an ancient creature that had been imprisoned on a different plane of reality by one of Little Hawk's shaman ancestors. To save them, David must undertake a vision quest, alone in the desert, in hopes of contacting his Spirit Guide.
With Lakota Joe's assistance, can Little Hawk learn to walk the Spirit Path and save Grandfather and the chief from an ancient, mythological monster?
Image: Leucistic Red-tailed Hawk in Flight. Downloaded from: https://www.flikr.com/photos/pazzani/6370842535 (Original URL: www.new-jersey-birds.com/Search/label /Leucistic Red-tailed Hawk (posted by Chris & Mike, no last name given (I assume it is Pazzani)).
Original image edited to expand size, and add title/author info; as authorized by the creator assigning the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike 2.0 license. License Code URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/legalcode Reuse of above image is authorized under same. If reusing, please comply with license requirements.
Shadow of the Windwalker
Shaman Tales- The Chronicles of Little Hawk-
Shadow of the Windwalker
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy (and upper Middle Grade + Adult)
Word Count: 82,000
Two years after walking the Spirit Path, David is offered a scholarship to the MacFarland School for Gifted Children. During a visit to the school, he encounters a mystical creature who gives him a cryptic warning. Over a shortened summer break, he discovers the mysterious specter was a banshee, the supposedly mythical herald of dreadful tidings.
Returning to MacFarland at the start of the school year, David and two new friends, Jenny and Seamus, learn a series of mysterious deaths has been plaguing the area. When they discover the perpetrator of the attacks is an evil witch, they desperately search for a way to discern the identity of the villain, and the means to stop her, before she can take another innocent life.
With the help of the school’s headmistress, Melinda de Havilland, a white witch of the highest order; Seamus’s grandfather, Laird Angus; and a feisty little pixie named Drizzle, can Little Hawk find and destroy the most wicked witch of all?
Image: "Country House - Decimus Burton" by Blayne Jackson Original URL: https://sketchfab.com/3d-models/ 1d1f47503f40425c8a65f4f63eec873d (Downloaded via CreativeCommons.org)
Original image was modified by cropping to remove front lawn, walkway, bushes, and wall; and to maintain only main portion of the building. Also edited to: remove pick-up truck from driveway, add sign next to steps and driveway, add roof with round windows to tower, add clouds and ghost/banshee, add book/title information and author name. as authorized by the creator assigning the
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0). See:
“https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode” for details. Reuse of above image is authorized under same. If you copy/reuse the image or cover, please comply with requirements of this license.
Shaman's Demise
Shaman Tales- The Chronicles of Little Hawk-
Shaman's Demise
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy (and upper Middle Grade + Adult) Word Count: 94,200
During his junior year at MacFarland, David receives some devastating news: his grandfather has fallen ill with an extremely rare form of brain cancer called Layette’s Syndrome. The tumor first develops in the brain stem and, as it grows, its tendrils bury deep into the neural pathways, altering the entire personality of the afflicted, before finally killing them.
Returning home, just before Thanksgiving break, Little Hawk learns Grandfather was told of his condition several months before David and his friends had returned to track down El Chupacabra the previous summer. In fact, the elder shaman had been studying a mystical device that would allow him to cross into the hidden realm of Chronos, to travel through time in hope of finding a cure, when he had the vision of the kids and Drizzle coming to New Mexico. But his attempts to access other powers of the apparatus had failed.
When Grandfather’s condition takes a sudden turn for the worse, David decides there is no other option but to travel to Chronos himself to find the cure. Can Little Hawk learn to use the powers of an ancient artifact his grandfather, a much more experienced and powerful shaman, could not? And if he does, will he be able to find the cure and return in time to save Grandfather’s life? For that matter, will he be able to return at all?
Cover Image was created by combining two images:
First Image Original Title: A Dilemna Creator: Parameter_bond (actual name unknown)
Original URL: https://www.flickr.com/photos/65720474@N03/10330585316/ (Obtained through CreativeCommons.org link to creator’s Flikr page (Parameter_bond.))
This image was licensed under the Creative Commons Public Domain 1.0 license. The license information can be found at: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/.
The original image was modified to: add title and author, increase size to meet cover requirements, and to insert image of the flaming tablet from the second image. Reuse and modification of original image was accomplished in compliance with licensing restrictions. Please comply with all license requirements if reusing the image.
Second Image Original Title: Kinchil Mayan god sun. Creator: Peta de Aztlan
Original URL: https://www.flickr.com/photos/18751765@N00/5024304250 (Obtained through CreativeCommons.org via link to creator’s Flikr page (@Peta_de_Aztlan)).
This image was licensed under the Creative Commons License Attribution 2.0 Generic. The license information can be found at: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode.en. It was modified to remove the black background, then resized to fit within the circular termination space at the end of the multi-colored spiral in the first image. Reuse and modification of the image was accomplished in compliance with licensing restrictions. Please comply with all license requirements, above, if reusing the image or any part thereof.
Note:
Word counts are approximate (rounding down to the nearest hundred) .
Bad Moon Rising
Shaman Tales- The Chronicles of Little Hawk-
Bad Moon Rising
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy (and upper Middle Grade + Adult)
Word Count: 85,000
As the summer of his sophomore year approaches, Little Hawk worries about returning to New Mexico to face a bully who has taunted him for the past several years. His anxiety soon turns to anticipation when he discovers the mythological animal known as El Chupacabra, rumored to have hunted livestock on ranches near the reservation, in years past, has returned and is once again killing cattle. His excitement is increased when Seamus’s grandfather, and Jenny’s parents allow them to accompany him home for summer break, and the kids make plans to prove the creature’s existence.
Upon arriving in New Mexico, the trio’s enthusiasm is short-lived, for a reporter covering the story of the livestock deaths is killed in a similar fashion… and her death is blamed on the creature. When the kids set out to track down El Chupacabra, they soon discover not all is as it appears.
Can David and his friends find the reporter’s true killer, and clear El Chupacabra of the crime before the once mythical creature is hunted to extinction?
Cover created by T.L. Stride combing two Images:
First Image Original Title: Lonely Wolf Creator: Ghetzu Daniel
Original URL: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29855139@N05/3535994578 (Obtained via the Creative commons website.) Original image modified to replace B&W moon with Blood Moon from second image, remove plants between front legs and in front of wolf.
Image was licensed and reused under Creative Commons License Attribution 2.0 Generic: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode
Second Image Original Title: IMG_0733 Creator: jackoscage
Original URL: https://www.flickr.com/photos/7587711@N05/39302687644 (Obtained via the Creative commons website.) Original image modified to copy Blood Moon, enlarge it and paste into the first image.
Image was licensed and reused under Creative Commons License Attribution 2.0 Generic: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode
Combined images modified to add title and author info, and to increase size.
Please comply with all requirements of the above licenses, If you reuse the cover image or any part thereof.
FINAL SHAMAN TALES- THE CHRONICLES OF LITTLE HAWK Book Working Titles:
#6- A Return to the Light