I’m on the final stretch of the first round of the SPFBO.  Below is my sixth (and final) round of books listed below in the order I’m going to check them out – five books a month for six months.  The aim is to choose one book out of each of the six batches and then from those 6 potentials choose one to submit for the final stage.

Without further ado here are my books this month (and I’ve already started these so my final thoughts should also follow fairly shortly):

A Gaze of Flint by Sandy Hyatt-James

Elizabeth Blake, a young woman with ‘The Sight’, given to her by people in a parallel universe, becomes entangled in a plot to kidnap a child.

She falls in love with an agent from the parallel universe, but unknown to her, he has fallen in love with a woman from his own land. As events unfold, Elizabeth finds herself and the child captured by a mentally deranged woman. Since the police and her family fail to find her, she has no choice but to use her wits and match her cruel adversary in cunning, in order to survive. Adding to this is her growing belief that the man with whom she placed her trust, has abandoned her.

A Gaze of Flint, has all the ingredients of a tense thriller, which also streams images of romance and a tint of the paranormal into its readers’ imaginations.

The Empire of the Dead by Phil Tucker

Acharsis has always loved long shots. But even with a perfect scheme and a handpicked squad of godsblooded grifters and fighters, breaking into the undead lord’s Akkodaisis’ ziggurat is suicidally impossible. Good thing Archarsis is a fallen demigod with more than one trick up his sleeve…

Unpredictable, fast paced, and packed with memorable characters, The Empire of the Dead is a gripping tale of revenge replete with demons, ancient magic and a high stakes heist.

Dark Moonlighting by Scott Haworth

Nick Whittier, having been alive for six centuries, has had plenty of time to master three professions. In a typical week he works as a police officer, lawyer and doctor and still finds time to murder someone and drink their blood. He used to feel guilty about the killings, but now he restricts himself to only eating the worst members of society. Few people in Starside, Illinois seem to care about the untimely deaths of spam e-mailers, pushy Jehovah Witnesses and politicians. However, the barriers between Nick’s three secret lives start to crumble when a mysterious man from his past arrives in town seeking revenge. Nick must move quickly to prevent the three women in his life, and the authorities who are hunting him, from discovering his terrible secret.

Dark Moonlighting is the first book in the humorous series. It explores four of the biggest clichés in popular culture, and it pokes fun at a number of popular television shows including Law & Order, Bones and House. It also takes a more realistic and amusing approach to the vampire cliché. For example, the average human has the equivalent of five Big Gulps worth of blood in their body. Nick takes twenty minutes to kill someone and, like the vampire bat, must immediately urinate afterwards.

Road to Shandara by Ken Lozito

When a mythical world threatens everything, an unlikely hero must join the battle…

College senior Aaron Jace is ready to start life in the real world. After the unexpected death of his grandfather, Aaron finds an unbelievable note that will change his world. The unknowing descendent of an ancient and powerful family, Aaron is thrust into a struggle that began long ago and will reach across worlds to pull him into the fight.

When he learns of the world of Safanar, it seems to be the stuff of legends: dragons, castles, and technologically-advanced cities. But it’s as much a dream as it is a nightmare. Danger lurks in the shadows, and a demon sentinel named Tarimus wants to steal Aaron’s power before he can learn his full potential.

With the help of an imprisoned Safanarion guardian, two mystical swords, and a puzzling family heirloom, Aaron must journey from Earth to find the fabled land of his ancestors. It may be a path that’s impossible to survive.

The Archbishop’s Amulet by Watson Davis

Caldane was once in training to be a shaman for his clan but now he’s a slave of the Nayen empire, trapped in a monastery, his magic being drained away by horrific human sacrifices. With the rest of his clan murdered by the giantess, General Silverhewer, and her army of orcs and humans, Caldane dreams of freedom and the return to the northern wastes of his childhood.

When a new batch of sacrifices are brought in, he seizes his chance for escape but during his recapture, he learns one of his clan still lives. His mother is a slave in Silverhewer’s fortress in Windhaven.

Nothing will stop him from saving her, not even if he has to release Hell and all its devils and demons.