CHILL OF THE SHADOW
Zondadari never
ceased to be filled with dread anticipation before the transformation.
In the privacy of his secluded
Maltese villa he stood on the stone balcony, dressed in black leather, his
shoulders draped with a cloak of the same colour and material. Very theatrical,
but appropriate. As the pains filled his chest and raked across his back, he
hunched forward, his fingers grasping the stone hand-rail for support.
Mediterranean fir-pine trees cast their deep velvet shadows onto the balcony,
concealing most of the pale yellow moon. Shadows were his friend.
Slowly the organic material of his
clothing pressed against him, even into him, taking on the contours of his
large muscular body. A straying wild bird flew over and shrilled and then
darted away quickly, discouraged by the unholy smell that emanated from him
during his change.
One day, he feared, his heart
wouldn’t hold out against the battering it took.
Coherent thought shimmered. He
started seeing double; then multiples of everything. Disoriented, he lowered
himself down on one knee. It would be a few minutes more before he would be
able to control the numerous images.
Small gaping flesh-red mouths, with
razor-sharp teeth, appeared on the surface of his body. Disproportionately
large furry ears flicked out at all angles and black beady eyes glistened all
over him, like a constellation of the devil.
Five minutes of harrowing pain
passed and already he was separating, literally coming apart. With an
unpleasant sucking sound, dark shapes peeled off from the form that had been a
man. But he was a man no longer.
With a flick of thin yet deceptively
strong leathery wings, the freed bats broke away from each other and landed on
the balustrade.
The shape-shifting was complete. His
mind was the sum of these forty-six creatures. He could see through the eyes of
a single animal or perceive separate images through all of them. They did his
bidding – because they were him in every sense. Every sense.
The hunger was upon him again.
As
one, the bats flew up into the night sky
***
This cross-genre
thriller is set in present-day Malta and has echoes from pre-history and also
the eighteenth century Knights of Malta.
Malta may be an
island of sun and sand, but there’s a dark side to it too. It all started when
some fishermen pulled a corpse out of the sea... Or maybe it was five years
ago, in the cave of Ghar Dalam…
Spellman, an
American black magician, has designs on a handpicked bunch of Maltese politicians,
bending their will to his master’s. A few sacrifices, that’s all it takes. And
he’s helped by Zondadari, a rather nasty vampire.
Maltese-American
investigative journalist Maria Caruana’s in denial. She can’t believe Count
Zondadari is a vampire. She won’t admit it. Such creatures don’t exist, surely?
She won’t admit she’s in love with him, either...
Detective
Sergeant Attard doesn’t like caves or anything remotely supernatural. Now he
teams up with Maria to unravel the mysterious disappearance of young pregnant
women. They’re also helped by the priest, Father Joseph.
And there are
caves, supernatural deaths and a haunting exorcism. Just what every holiday
island needs, really.
Where there is light, there is shadow…
Some reviews extracts:
Kay Lesley Reeves (Spain)
I'll never look at bats in quite the
same way again. An original twist on vampire legend with a hint of
tongue-in-the-cheek humour.
I visited Malta many years ago and Morton’s
description is spot on. In fact his research is so exact that half-forgotten
memories soon came flooding back and I found myself walking those ancient
streets once again. A dark and classical tale with excellent twists that will
keep readers enthralled.
Angela M.
… has a strong structure and is full of
rich writing and action. The plot has page turning twists and the main
characters are likeable, especially the female lead. I hadn't read a vampire
book in a while and was reminded of how intensely gruesome they can be. While
this one has its squeamish moments it's not atypical for the genre, and I can't
help liking a well written book! The Malta setting was perfect, making this a
great escape read.
E. B. Sullivan (California, US)
Set in picturesque Malta (the book)
offers the reader a refreshing twist on the popular vampire genre. Mr. Morton
weaves a story with multiple surprises. From the beginning, his plausible and
complex characters lure the reader deeper into his yarn. In particular, Maria
and Michael are hypnotic, compelling, and seductive. The desire to learn more
about these romantic and dashing figures makes this book a true page-turner.
Available from Amazon worldwide - e-book and paperback
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