Cover reveal for J.L. Gribble's new book - STEEL MAGIC

A good friend of mine is set to release her latest book in July. But the new cover is out today! Here are the details:

Title: Steel Magic

Series: Steel Empires Book 2

Author: J.L. Gribble

Genre: Urban Fantasy/Alternate History

Release Date: July 6, 2016

Pre-order Link: Pre-order Steel magic

Synopsis:

Funerals are usually the end of the story, not the beginning.

Newly graduated warrior-mages Toria Connor and Kane Nalamas find themselves the last remaining mages in the city when a mage school teacher mysteriously falls ill and dies. But taking over the school themselves isn't in the cards. They're set to become professional mercenaries-if they make it through the next 18 months as journeymen first.

The debate over whether to hunt mutated monsters in the Wasteland or take posh bodyguard jobs is put on hold when a city elder hires them to solve the mystery of the disappearing mages. Toria and Kane's quest brings them to the British colonial city of New Angouleme, where their initial investigation reveals that the problem is even greater than they feared.

But when a friend is kidnapped, they'll have to travel to the other side of the globe to save her, save themselves, and save magic itself.

About the Cover Artist:

Bradley Sharp was born in 1977 in Oxfordshire, UK. From a young age he filled many sketch books, so it only made sense to study Graphic Communication at Nene University, where he received a BA Honors degree in 1997.

But the real world called Sharp away from academics, so he traveled around the globe a couple of times, working as a graphic designer. Now he makes a living by designing magazine spreads, but freelances with vector illustrations, allowing him to create something far-removed from what he does in his nine-to-five job.

Sharp finds vector to be an easy tool and believes anyone can use it. "I'd say my artwork is nothing more than glorified doodling. I like the logical inconsistencies of surrealism and find inspiration from many places such as music or the science fiction genre. Dog Star's novels lend themselves well to my style. I look forward to working with DSB in the future, and hope fans will like the imagery as much as they enjoy the words." Find Sharp's work online at http://www.bradsharp.co.uk.

About the Author:

By day, J. L. Gribble is a professional medical editor. By night, she does freelance fiction editing in all genres, along with reading, playing video games, and occasionally even writing. She is currently working on the Steel Empires series for Dog Star Books, the science-fiction/adventure imprint of Raw Dog Screaming Press. Previously, she was an editor for the Far Worlds anthology.

Gribble studied English at St. Mary’s College of Maryland. She received her Master’s degree in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, where her debut novel Steel Victory was her thesis for the program.

She lives in Ellicott City, Maryland, with her husband and three vocal Siamese cats. Find her online (www.jlgribble.com), on Facebook (www.facebook.com/jlgribblewriter), and on Twitter and Instagram (@hannaedits).

THE PHANTOM PRESIDENCY

        I've been thinking about this for awhile now. This isn't about partisan politics, it's satire about a personality, maybe even a Cult of Personality. The personality being housed in the body of one Hillary Rodham Clinton. Say what you want about the woman, but you can't say she isn't smart. I think she's way smarter than many of us gave her credit for.

        I have no evidence to back this up, but it's an interesting thought experiment for me.

        Hillary had an appetite for politics since her middle teens, active in young Republican groups. Her world was rocked by MLK and she changed to the Democratic party by the time she had graduated college. Picture a young, ambitious woman turning twenty-one in 1968, the most incredibly dynamic social and political year in modern history. The world was changing and she could feel it in her bones, but it wasn't yet time for a woman president. She wouldn't be thirty-five for fourteen more years. And yes, society was changing, however, it probably still wouldn't be ready in 1982 for a woman president. But what if ... what if she could find the right man to polish?

        Enter William Clinton. He's brash and full of energy and has political aspirations of his own. He's someone she could use to her advantage. He had great potential. He wasn't perfect, but she could fine-tune his lesser qualities, groom him for greatness. Law School and introductions with the right people put her into powerful circles of influence, and not by chance, but by subtle manipulation.

        Her machinations worked maybe better than expected, with Bill getting elected governor of Arkansas in 1978 at the young age of 32. And then I can only imagine what it must have been like in that household when he lost re-election in 1980, nearly derailing her plans. Bill redeemed himself, winning three more terms as governor. In the meantime, she had risen to be considered one of the most powerful attorneys in the country by 1991.

        When Bill Clinton ran for president in 1992 I had to admit to grudging admiration at his political savvy. He was the shrewdest politician of his generation without even a close second. On hindsight, I have to wonder how much of his strategy was Bill and how much was the grand manipulator, Hillary. Actually I'm giving her the credit. He was her mouthpiece, her surrogate.