Soul Smuggler by Milo James Fowler
Soul Smuggler
by Milo James Fowler
Publisher's Blurb
Who is Mercer? Coyote. Soul Smuggler.
A body-hopping, phantasmal anti-hero. A disenfranchised spirit doomed to inherit the earth, cursed by both Heaven and Hell.
An enemy of God, but no friend of the devil.
Soul Smuggler collects 9 Mercer tales:
"The Coyote" - In the future, Mercer's services are requested by a powerful man seeking to keep his stepdaughter quiet about certain indiscretions.
"Soul Smuggler" - An orphan boy seeks Mercer's help in reuniting with his dead mother.
"The Second Option" - Father Thomas, assassin from the clandestine Terra Sacra order, sets out to destroy Mercer once and for all.
"Abomination of Desolation" - A boy with horrifying powers is at the top of the Church's extermination list, replacing Mercer for the time being. Father Thomas makes Mercer a deal he can't refuse if he helps rid the earth of the young abomination.
"The Coyote's Word" - When Mercer says he'll take a soul across the border, he's true to his word. But navigating the afterlife is no easy feat, even for the Soul Smuggler.
"Back for Blood" - A ravenous monster is on the loose in the city, and a young nun seeks out Mercer's help. It may take a monster to get rid of a monster, but Mercer has never dealt with anything like this before.
"A Coyote's Revenge" - Armageddon is coming, and the devil wants his due: those suicidal souls Mercer has been escorting to the Pearly Gates.
"Mercer's Ghost" - In this weird western, a young man on the frontier in search of fame and fortune instead finds himself swindled and left destitute. But help arrives in the form of a phantasmal, body-hopping gunslinger who seems to have ulterior motives.
"Coyote for Breakfast" - In this post-apocalyptic tale, a young girl grieving after a recent loss seeks out Mercer's help, but both she and the soul smuggler get more than they bargained for.
Review
Mercer is a coyote, a supernatural being able to transport souls through the ethereal plane and deposit them at the gates to heaven.....for a price
This is a collection of short stories starring the anti-hero and his quest to locate tortured humans wanting to die but not wanting to go to hell.
Each of the stories is well written and the characters are nicely defined. Even though you feel that Mercer isn't someone you'd want to be rooting for his story is strangely compelling.
The fact that this is a collection of short tales, each of which was written to be a stand-alone story published in various magazines, means that there is some repetition of scene setting information regarding Mercer and his situation but this doesn't distract from the fluent narration.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I'm likely to seek out further titles from Mr Fowler in the future.
Who is Mercer? Coyote. Soul Smuggler.
A body-hopping, phantasmal anti-hero. A disenfranchised spirit doomed to inherit the earth, cursed by both Heaven and Hell.
An enemy of God, but no friend of the devil.
Soul Smuggler collects 9 Mercer tales:
"The Coyote" - In the future, Mercer's services are requested by a powerful man seeking to keep his stepdaughter quiet about certain indiscretions.
"Soul Smuggler" - An orphan boy seeks Mercer's help in reuniting with his dead mother.
"The Second Option" - Father Thomas, assassin from the clandestine Terra Sacra order, sets out to destroy Mercer once and for all.
"Abomination of Desolation" - A boy with horrifying powers is at the top of the Church's extermination list, replacing Mercer for the time being. Father Thomas makes Mercer a deal he can't refuse if he helps rid the earth of the young abomination.
"The Coyote's Word" - When Mercer says he'll take a soul across the border, he's true to his word. But navigating the afterlife is no easy feat, even for the Soul Smuggler.
"Back for Blood" - A ravenous monster is on the loose in the city, and a young nun seeks out Mercer's help. It may take a monster to get rid of a monster, but Mercer has never dealt with anything like this before.
"A Coyote's Revenge" - Armageddon is coming, and the devil wants his due: those suicidal souls Mercer has been escorting to the Pearly Gates.
"Mercer's Ghost" - In this weird western, a young man on the frontier in search of fame and fortune instead finds himself swindled and left destitute. But help arrives in the form of a phantasmal, body-hopping gunslinger who seems to have ulterior motives.
"Coyote for Breakfast" - In this post-apocalyptic tale, a young girl grieving after a recent loss seeks out Mercer's help, but both she and the soul smuggler get more than they bargained for.
Review
Mercer is a coyote, a supernatural being able to transport souls through the ethereal plane and deposit them at the gates to heaven.....for a price
This is a collection of short stories starring the anti-hero and his quest to locate tortured humans wanting to die but not wanting to go to hell.
Each of the stories is well written and the characters are nicely defined. Even though you feel that Mercer isn't someone you'd want to be rooting for his story is strangely compelling.
The fact that this is a collection of short tales, each of which was written to be a stand-alone story published in various magazines, means that there is some repetition of scene setting information regarding Mercer and his situation but this doesn't distract from the fluent narration.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I'm likely to seek out further titles from Mr Fowler in the future.
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