Strap in, this newsletter’s a doozy, but first, I would be remiss if I didn’t begin with the fact that today is my third wedding anniversary with my wonderful wife Angie (known and feared on the roller derby track as the Indominus Hex). Happy anniversary, love, none of this happens without you. Now let’s dive right in…
Book News:
Behold! The cover for Dweller in Darkness, the sequel to The Mystery of the Pale King and conclusion of the Deadlights Duology, coming September 22 from Timber Ghost Press. Check out the short reveal video I made, I’m pretty proud of it.
Cover art by Greg Chapman
Even better, e-book ARCs (advanced review copies) are now available. Fill out the GoogleForm linked below to request one.
In other book news, May 30th was the one-year anniversary of The Mystery of the Pale King audiobook. To celebrate, I’m holding a giveaway for my newsletter readers, which leads me to the other big announcement: I have a store!
Hosted on my website www.sam-flynn.com, I can now sell books and merch directly to readers, starting with the audiobook. Want to claim your complimentary copy? Use the coupon* wn9hq5ec at checkout to get yours for free. This will double as a nice test run to make sure there’s no kinks in the system. Any trouble, shoot me an email. And speaking of audiobooks, recording for the Dweller in Darkness audiobook has begun.
With so much going on, I haven’t had a ton of bandwidth for actual writing to my chagrin. I finished my sci-fi/mystery novella Apocalypse Auditor at the end of March and have it out to a couple publishers. I revised and tried querying my epic fantasy The Darkest Fate a second time to no avail. I have to admit, the latter depressed the shit out of me.
I toyed with several old ideas as follow-ups — space opera, folk horror, portal fantasy — before settling on a new novel idea, a science fantasy I’m pitching as The Departed (though I’m moreso drawing from the Infernal Affairs trilogy that inspired the Martin Scorsese film) crossed with The Battle of Algiers IN SPACE.
*Valid for one per user. Expires 9/1/2026.
Events:
After four months straight of events at the top of 2026, I took May and June off but will be back out for promotion at the Beasts and Books Festival in Carrollton, Ohio on July 11, hosted by the Clever Quill Bookstore. I’ll be cosplaying and otherwise being right at home among my fellow fantasy fans.
I’m currently putting together my fall schedule, including the release party for Dweller in Darkness. Full details to come in the next newsletter. Likewise, if you or someone you know would be interested in hosting me at your bookshop, library, book club, writer’s group, etc. please feel free to email me.
What I’m Reading:
The Worms Shall Feast by C.R. Langille feels like it was made in a lab for me. I’m not the first to point out this one feels like a mash-up of Lost, the most formative show of my youth, and The Cabin in the Woods, one of my favorite horror movies. Between the rip-roaring plot and its dwindling cast of characters, I had a great time with this cosmic-folk horror hybrid.
Up next, I’m very much looking forward to A Dance of Burning Blades by M.H. Ayinde, the epic fantasy sequel to A Song of Legends Lost and the middle volume of her Invoker trilogy, which U.K. readers are lucky enough to already have a chance to read while U.S. readers have to wait until August 11.
That’s all from me! Send your comments/questions/suggestions on the newsletter to [email protected] and sign up for more updates via Patreon.
With authorly affection,
Sam
