Synopsis:Joseph Hashimoto is happy with his ordinary life. A man who believes in fairness and just action, Joe’s greatest love is his family. But as he moves about his days, he is completely unaware that his actions are carefully observed. With one momentous decision, Joe’s ordinary life is about to transform into an extraordinary existence.
While attempting to save a little girl from danger, Joe is killed in a violent explosion. Instead of dying, however, his soul is brought before the elemental Architects of the Universe, who tell him he has been chosen for a sacred duty. Reborn as Lightrider, the earthly representative of Light, Joe is given leadership of the Elemental Knights, a group of half-man, half-animal beings. Charged with maintaining a delicate balance between good and evil, Joe must police both sides and destroy anyone who threatens to ruin it. As Joe struggles with his conflicting emotions and longing for home, he must face his greatest threat—the ancient Chaos Demons.
In this fantasy tale, a man inadvertently thrust into a world of cosmic forces must come to terms with change and accept what needs to be done for the good of all
Buy Links:
Available in ebook, paperback and hardcover from
each site.
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/The-Lightrider-Journals-ebook/dp/B00A65FU7W/ref=tmm_kin_title_0/192-4093272-1258846?ie=UTF8&qid=1352657481&sr=8-1
Barnes & Noble:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-lightrider-journals-eric-nierstedt/1113769298?ean=9781475956108
IUniverse: http://bookstore.iuniverse.com/Products/SKU-000518653/The-Lightrider-Journals.aspx
What people are saying:
“More than just the usual good
versus evil theme, it focuses on good not always being right, and evil not
always being bad, but there needs to be a balance between the two.” – DB ~
Amazon Reviewer
“I really felt like I was on the sidelines
watching it all unfold.” – Ren @ A Little Bit of R&R
“From the first page, I found myself not wanting
to stop reading. The story and characters had me completely engrossed, and I
think it is a book I'd find myself reading over in years to come.” – Kristen
Bapst ~ Amazon Reviewer
“The book
was not only believable but spiritual as well as suspenseful. The writing is
amazingly descriptive which bring the pages to life in your mind. The imagery
is so clear, I could see it on the big screen as I flew through the pages.”
Anonymous Barnes & Noble Reviewer
Eric Nierstedt grew up in Garwood NJ Kean
University
"When I started the Lightrider Journals, the big
fantasy novels of the day were Twilight and Harry Potter. I wanted to avoid being another copy of those
at all costs. So I combined all my major
influences- Terry Brooks, Avatar: The Last Airbender, and Stephen King's The
Dark Tower. As I wrote, I wanted to
explore a concept that wasn't discussed much in any popular fantasy- the idea
of showing good and evil as forces both responsible for and essential to life
as we know it. I also wanted to show a more natural form of magic, and show
fantasy existing in the real world, which would turn out much bigger then
people think. And finally, I wanted to
tell a story about what I was feeling stepping out in the world for the first
time- how a man can adapt to a sudden and tremendous responsibility- not just
his successes, but his losses as well, and how he learns to live with
them. And of course, throw in liberal
amounts of magic, characters that would resonate with people, and a sprinkling
of humor. I think anyone who reads it
will be able to have a good time with all the characters and action, but also
see a different version of the neverending battle of good and evil. And most of all, I hope they leave the book
with a better idea of how they can face that which seems insurmountable."
Links:
Website: http://www.thelightriderjournals.com/
Blog: http://lightriderjournals.wordpress.com/
Facebook Page:
http://www.facebook.com/#!/TheLightriderJournals
Email: comicfan67@yahoo.com
The
man once known as Joseph Hashimoto, now called Lightrider, looked over
at
the cosmic beings that had called him here and made him one of their vessels.
One by
one,
he met their eyes, until he came to the being that had given him his name and
power.
As
Ralin watched, the man put down his staff, and then, moving his hands to his
face, his
fingers
came to the wrappings that covered his lower face. But as he touched them, the
wrappings
glowed with golden light and then vanished, leaving his face bare.
The
Lightrider licked his lips and spoke the first words of his new life. “Well …
that
was … goddamn!”
“True,
if not eloquent,” Ralin said. “How do you feel, my knight?”
“All
right, I think,” Joe said, glancing down at himself. Looking at his golden
clothing,
he asked, “If I’m a knight, shouldn’t I have armor or something?”
“A
knight is made not by the clothing he wears, Lightrider, but by the virtue he
keeps
in his heart.”
“Wow.
That’s uh … Can I say it sounds cheesy, or should I just nod?”
“Both,
Lightrider,” Demtia said with a chuckle. “Our brother lets his mouth run
away
with him quite often. I believe such terms are called ‘cliché’ in your world?”
“That’s
one way of putting it,” Joe said. Turning back to Ralin, he asked, “Okay,
so
no armor. But what happens now?”
“What
happens to all soldiers before battle,” Rastla answered. “You and your
siblings
must train, and learn to use the powers you have been given.”
“Siblings?”
“Siblings
in our service. Remember, Lightrider, I said you were the final
Elemental
Knight,” Ralin said. “My fellows have already made their selections of
Knights.
But we had decided that my choice would lead, and so we did not finish
building
the knighthood until a leader was chosen.”
“Okay,
that makes sense,” Joe said. “So who are these guys? Did you pick them
from
earth like me?”
“They
do come from your world,” Ralin answered. He gestured for Joe to turn.
“You
will find them somewhat … unique, I believe.”
Joe
raised an eyebrow at that, but he turned nonetheless. What he saw was each
of
the Architects holding his or her hand over a ball of energy that appeared on
his or
her
part of the platform. Each was colored for its specific Architect, and as Joe
watched,
the
balls grew smaller and smaller. As they did, Joe could see arms and legs poking
out
of
the energy. But as they emerged, he realized something was wrong. The
appendages
he
saw were slim compared to those of humans, and many ended in paws. Two of them
seemed
to be wings.
And
as the energy faded completely, Joe looked at the being closest to him and
said,
…“A lizard?
“You
expect me to lead a lizard?!” Joe exclaimed in disbelief. He stared at the
reddish-brown
creature that sat on Darya’s section.
“Of
course not, Lightrider. Don’t be ridiculous,” Darya answered.
“Oh,
thank God. I really thought that—”
“This
is a Gila monster, not a simple lizard.”
Joe
looked at the Fire Architect for a moment, and asked, “Uh, you realize that
it’s
kinda, well, non-advanced, right?”
“That
may be true now. But such things can be changed.”
“Right.
That totally makes sense,” Joe said. He glanced over at the other
Architects
and their selections. At the feet of each Architect sat a being encased in
strange,
multicolored energy, frozen in one position. But none of them was human. As
Joe
looked at each Architect down the line from Rastla, he saw they had chosen a
bat, an
orange
cat, a German shepherd, the Gila monster, a falcon, a squirrel, a ram, a
spider, and
a
wolf.
“Um,
I’m a little confused here,” Joe said, looking back at Ralin. “I thought I was
going
to be leading a knighthood, not Noah’s Ark!”
“You
thought that all our choices would be human?” Ralin asked. “Remember
Lightrider,
we Architects have created all manner of life—many more species than
humans
alone and on many other worlds.”
“Though
Earth and humanity were our first successes, there are few humans on
Earth
that are able to handle this power,” Rastla whispered. “It would be a tool for
them,
easily
abused for material gain or power. That is a large part of the reason my
brother
chose
you instead of another. But the rest of us chose animals that we saw as
symbolic of
our
elements.”
“But
what do you expect me to do with them?” Joe asked. “I can’t lead a bunch of
animals
into the fray and hope for the best.”
“Nor
would we ask you to,” Ralin said. “Your knighthood shall be one comprised
of
the best of man and beast—one providing the primal body and the strengths
therein
and
the other the developed soul and intellect. For yours is not the only human
soul taken
from
Death’s grip.”
“You
mean… you’ve taken other people away? Given them this choice?” Joe
asked
incredulously.
“Not
exactly,” Naru replied. “The souls we chose have been dead for quite
some
time. We offer them a chance for new life, new purpose. You would understand
that,
correct? We have seen you demonstrate belief in redemption. It was one of many
qualities
I enjoyed seeing in you.”
“Well
… I guess that’s different,” Joe mused. “But I still don’t understand what it
is
you plan to do.”
“You
have but to watch, Lightrider, and all shall be made clear,” Ralin answered.
He
pointed to Rastla.
Joe
shrugged but turned his eyes to the Architect of Shadow. She raised her
arms,
her long sleeves draping down. Something began to glow inside them. Joe’s eyes
narrowed
as Rastla began to speak under her breath, muttering strange words that were
too
low and foreign for Joe to understand. The glowing from her sleeves grew
brighter,
until
the black of her robe had been changed into a blinding white. Despite the
light,
Joe
didn’t blink; instead he gasped as nine glowing spheres of white energy flew
out of
Rastla’s
sleeves. They floated and twirled around the dark Architect, as she continued
her
strange
chant. Finally, she finished her words, and brought her arms down. The spheres
shot
off in nine different directions, coming to rest before the nine beings
selected to fill
the
ranks of Joe’s knighthood.
This
is some majorly weird shit, Joe thought to himself, watching as the spheres
hovered
in front of their respective chosen ones. The spheres moved closer to the
animals.
As each sphere touched the magic aura that covered its animal, the aura glowed
briefly,
fading as the spheres pushed through and entered the animals.
Joe’s
eyes went wide as he saw a new glow encase each of the creatures, each one
the
color of an Architect. He heard a creak, and then Joe gasped as the creatures
inside
the
glows begin to move. Wings twitched, heads swung, and legs kicked—the creatures
awoke
from whatever slumber they’d been placed into. But Joe realized that the creatures
weren’t
just waking up.
They
were changing.
It
was the lizard that grabbed his attention first. Joe heard the creaks and
cracks
as
the creature’s body began to shift and move, like its bones were changing under
its
skin.
It started to grow bigger, its limbs becoming thicker and longer. Its scales
started
to
become more pronounced and defined. It began to rise up, its shape stretching
and
shifting
underneath its frame. For a minute, Joe wondered what was going on, and then
he
understood as he saw how its lower legs had stretched and how it was attempting
to
push
off the ground with its now long front legs.
It
was trying to stand up.
Caught
between amazement and horror, Joe whirled around to see what was
happening
to the other chosen. He saw the spider, already five times its previous size,
holding
itself up with six arms that now possessed clawed hands and attempting to
balance
on its two back legs. He saw the bat, almost as large as the spider, its small
body
becoming
tall and lean. The cat next to it was the same, its head and face stretching
and
smoothing
out, becoming a strange mix of woman and feline.
Joe’s
eyes spun from creature to creature, as if each one wasn’t some horrible,
new
life-form evolving before his eyes, but a beautiful woman with a sign that
read,
“Come
get me, Joe.” As the creatures continued to change before him, Joe realized the
tremendous
mistake he’d made agreeing to this. Creators of the universe? Oh yeah, they
were
creators all right—the kind that belonged in a movie, digging up graves to form
their
monster. Whatever magic, whatever power they’d given him, it wasn’t worth it—
not
for beings that would do something like this.
Maybe
I can still get out, Joe thought. It might not be too late. Yeah I can tell
Ralin,
“Listen, this was cool, but the whole Dr. Moreau thing is freaking me out. I’ll
be
happy
to help you find another dead guy, but I think I’d rather see what’s in the great
beyond
and …”
“Hey.”
That
one simple word snapped Joe out of his mental hysterics. Slowly, Joe turned
his
head toward the sound of the voice and felt his jaw come unhinged and fall
toward
his
chest. The dog that Chirron had selected had finished its transformation. The
creature
stood
upright on two legs, and Joe saw that, despite the fur that still covered it,
its naked
body
had become very, very obviously human. Its front legs had become a pair of
arms,
ending
in hands with furry fingers. The rest of its body might’ve passed for a very
well
toned
human, had it not been for the fur and tail—oh and the German shepherd head
that
was
now staring at Joe.
Tour Schedule:
April 16- Kick off- A
Little Bit of R&R www.alittlebitofrnrreviews.com
The Lightrider Journals -
http://lightriderjournals.wordpress.com/
Paranormal Goddess & Friends -
www.paranormal-goddess.blogspot.com
April 17 Guest post - Booky Ramblings of a Neurotic Mom - http://beanieboo78.wordpress.com
April 18 - Interview - Curling Up With A Good
Book http://curling-up-with-a-good-book.blogspot.com
April 19 Excerpt- Books, Reviews, Wine and
Cheese http://booksreviewswineandcheese.blogspot.com
April 20 - spotlight - BookEnd 2 BookEnd
www.bookend2bookend.blogspot.com
April 21 - spotlight - Confessions of the
Paranormal - http://confessionsoftheparanormal.blogspot.com
April 22 - spotlight - Kristina's Books and More
ww.kristinasbooksandmore.blogspot.com
April 23 - excerpt - Contagious Reads -
www.contagiousreads.blogspot.com
April 24 - spotlight and excerpt - Bex 'n' Books
www.bexnbooks.blogspot.com
April 25 - Review - Pamela Foreman -
http://www.pamelaforeman.com
April 26 - spotlight - Girls Heart Books -
http://lissalynnsreviews.blogspot.com
April 27
guest post - Chelsea Starling - http://chelseastarling.com
April 29 - Guest Post - Library at the END of
the Universe - http://www.libraryendofuniverse.blogspot.com
April 30 Author Spotlight - Read Between the
Lines - http://www.rbtlreviews.com
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