Title Riftsiders: White Collar Crimes
Author Paul A. DeStefano
Genre Urban Fantasy / Paranormal
Publisher The Wild Rose Press
Book Blurb
The third book of the Riftsiders series follows Enrique's first official field assignment leading a team of demonically possessed agents investigating remains found in the New Orleans bayou that fit in a shoebox. Elkie insists they first get rid of Enrique's recent curse by visiting an old and dangerous adversary. The others hunt the city and swamps where Father Ebbs uncovers blasphemous truths with a new friend-truths that will tear the group apart and fill the bayou with blood.
Excerpt
“Ricky, do be a good man and clear your mind. That shouldn’t take long.”
“Can we do this without the insults?” Enrique asked.
“I didn’t mean you personally,” Clout said signaling Enrique to lie on the cloth and tying a woven leather necklace into place. “I meant humans.”
“Ah,” Enrique said. “Better you insult the entire population and not just me.”
“Wouldn’t want to play favorites,” Clout said, taking a small vial and pair of reading glasses from Matthias’ talon. He looked into the vial, uncorked it, sniffed, and drank. Someone tugged the door handle at the shop entrance.
“Burgers!” Elkie exclaimed excitedly.
“Where did you order from, next door?” Enrique asked.
Clout’s eyes widened. His voice cracked through his scream of “DON’T OPEN THAT DOOR!”
“Sqvelmash!” Elkie yelled, stumbling away from the door, pointing.
Once she moved back, Enrique saw what was on the sidewalk outside. It was not a figure, but a mound. Shoulder high, twice as wide at the base, was a seething deep brown mound of churning gears made of flesh. A muscular cog works of rotating viscous dials drenched in something between oil and blood. It flexed, whirred, pulsed, and spattered, growing and heaving in a sound neither a heavy sledge on anvil nor a heartbeat and simultaneously both. The lack of reactions from people passing the shop outside made it clear that they could not see the organic clockwork monstrosity as it lurched and tugged itself to cover the whole of the glass storefront in a matter of seconds. On the blood-rusted gears and flywheels, eyes opened, closed, rotated, and merged.
Buy Links
Amazon: https://a.co/d/iMzty1b
Author Biography
Paul A. DeStefano, voted Best Author on Long Island 2025, has been writing in fantasy and worlds not quite our own for decades. Moving from his usual playground of tabletop and role playing gaming, including the award winning Oathsworn: Into the Deepwood, the Riftsiders urban fantasy series is grand worldbuilding of his own design.
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