# THE SUMMONING FIRE by David Michael (A Novel of Hell on Earth)



## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

_The Summoning Fire_ by David Michael​
*The Summoning Fire*

Genre: *Horror/Urban Fantasy*

Price: *$4.99*

*Welcome to Hell on Earth!*

All Reese Howard has left is pain. Pain and a pump-action shotgun.

Sam is dead. The Old Man killed her right in front of Reese. A blood sacrifice to fuel his latest powerplay in Hell on Earth. Reese hopes the Old Man made a mistake, leaving her alive and armed. But she doubts it. He knows she's coming. The half-goat bastard _has_ to know.

Whatever the Old Man knows or doesn't know, Reese plans to make him pay.

And she plans to die trying.

*Click here to read a FREE Preview of The Summoning Fire!*

*Reviews of The Summoning Fire*

"...Prepare to be spooked in the most unusual way. ...When you are in Hell on Earth almost anything can happen and usually does. Devils and demons roam at will, and death is as common as coffee..." --Leslie Wright, Blogcritics

"Scary as Hell" --Simon Royle

"...From the moment the summoning happens until the end, I would say it's a read to be read during the day, way before the night. And even then you could have some nightmares." --Murphy's Library

About the Author: Most days, David Michael is a software developer and a writer. Some days, he's a writer and a software developer. Still other days, he's an amateur photographer. Because, really, who is the same person _every day_?

About the Cover: Cover painting, _End of Days_, and layout by Don Michael, Jr.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

*Excerpt from "Chapter 14. The Protector"*

Ernie imagined himself as a soldier, that the length of heavy metal pipe he held was a powerful gun, and with a simple squeeze of the trigger he could release a stream of hot lead death--ka-_pow!_-ka-ka-ka-_pow!_ He stood guard over Dottie and Fisk as the two smaller children raided the trashcans.

Or a sword. With a sword he could cut off the hands--_hack!_--of anyone that tried to reach for any of them.

"Mmmf," said Fisk behind him, his voice given a metallic echo by the big dumpster. "Hey, look at this."

"Eww!" Dottie said. "That's disgusting. Throw it away."

Ernie almost turned to see, but stopped himself. Because he was on guard. So instead, he watched the other people moving through the alley with renewed intensity.

Fisk laughed. "Poke poke poke," he said.

Dottie squealed. "Stop it! Stop it!"

And then the sounds of a friendly scuffle.

Ernie took a grim satisfaction from their playfulness. That they _could_ be playful. If only for a few seconds. Because he was on watch, protecting them. He hefted the pipe and let it drop back onto his left palm with a solid _smack!_

One of the men standing guard at a nearby door heard the sound and looked up, making Ernie's muscles tense. The man's eyes gleamed under his bushy eyebrows. A hint of a smile played along the line of his lips and he seemed to give Ernie a fraction of a nod.

Ernie tried to relax again, but then the man's eyes shifted to something past Ernie.

Ernie stepped back against the dumpster, tapping the quick "be silent" code on the cold metal. Dottie and Fisk stopped instantly, and Ernie wished he could hide inside as well.

The two women walked past him. The woman with the shotgun met his eye, looking at him down the barrel of her shotgun, then looking past him, at the dumpster itself. The other woman moved through the litter and detritus of the alley without making a sound. As Ernie watched, her right arm extended with a hiss of metal on leather and he saw the shadow of a long, curved blade extend from her hand.

The air in the alley became colder and Ernie's skin became clammy. Something was about to go down here. Something more bloody and lethal than normal.

Ernie tapped the "let's go" code, resisting the urge to say it out loud.

Dottie scrambled out first, clutching a nearly full plastic bag. Fisk followed her, with another plastic bag, his less than half filled. Ernie glared at Fisk, but there wasn't time to yell at him right now.

As a small wedge, Ernie on point, they moved down the alley away from whatever those two women were about to do. And away from whoever the women were about to piss off and/or start killing. Before the bullets could start banging out and ricocheting and killing indiscriminately.

A man stepped in front of Ernie, blocking their path. He loomed above them, leering down, lips pulled back from the black stumps of his teeth. He reached a scabby hand for Dottie's bag. "Whachya find, girl--"

Ernie swung the pipe two handed and brought it hard against the side of the man's knee. Metal hit bone with a hard _thunk!_ and the jolt strained Ernie's shoulder.

The man gave a wordless yelp of pain and stumbled.

Ernie struck again, still aiming for the man's knee, but didn't hit as hard this time. Still, the man cried out and fell.

"Run!" Ernie shouted, keeping his eye on the man. "Both of you."

Dottie hesitated--she always did--but Fisk must have grabbed her and pulled her, because they both ran past Ernie.

Counting in his head--one one thousand, two one thousand--Ernie swung the pipe at the man one more time, but missed. The man pulled back from him, scuttling along the ground like a dog.

"I'll getchya, you little bastard," the man said.

"_Five_ one thousand," Ernie said in response. Five seconds should have given them enough head start. If he was captured or killed, at least they would get away. But five seconds was all he gave them. Now it was the protector's turn to run. And he ran after Dottie and Fisk. He thought he heard the man coming after him, but the sound of footsteps might have been his own heart pounding in his chest...


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

*THE SUMMONING FIRE Given 4 Stars at MotherLode!*

GraceKrispy at MotherLode gives The Summoning Fire *4-Stars*:

_We've all heard the phrase "Hell on Earth," but did you know it's an actual place, and it's located in Missouri? David Michael has created a fantastical world in which Hell has recently exploded upwards to create Hell on Earth, a place where Hellish creatures mix with a very human population. It also does a booming tourist trade as the residents of the Suburbs flock over to experience this exotic location. They can meet with demons, the undead, and even the Old Man himself, but they can only hope to make it back home to tell their friends..._

_... Some of the scenes were grotesque and made me cringe, and others were just horrible and made me very uncomfortable..._

_...I really got into the story once the Summoned was introduced. It was quite intriguing, to "feel" the thoughts of this "being" and get to experience the story from this different perspective..._

Read the whole review here...

-David


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

*THE SUMMONING FIRE Given 4 Stars at Blogcritics*

Leslie Wright at Blogcritics gives The Summoning Fire 4 stars!

_Prepare to be spooked in the most unusual way. The Summoning Fire by David Michael has such an effect. When you are in Hell on Earth almost anything can happen and usually does. Devils and demons roam at will, and death is as common as coffee...

This is a fast paced and extremely creative story, full of violence and horror. I would recommend reading this book in the full daylight unless you are sharing it with friends. Cover the windows and turn on the lights, be prepared to be scared._

Read the whole review here...

-David


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## monkeyluis (Oct 17, 2010)

Sounds great, bought with one click.


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

monkeyluis said:


> Sounds great, bought with one click.


Thanks!

I'm a big fan of one-click ebook purchasing. Even when it almost seems _too_ easy... 

Happy reading!

-David


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## CandyTX (Apr 13, 2009)

Reading this one now... having a hard time with the first 5%, not sure what's going on... sticking with it because I really want to know what is going on *laughing*. I assume this was your evil plan all along...


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

CandyTX said:


> Reading this one now... having a hard time with the first 5%, not sure what's going on... sticking with it because I really want to know what is going on *laughing*. I assume this was your evil plan all along...


Thanks for hanging tough! 

I structured the story after an explosion. It starts with the fire, and then radiates out along 4 storylines, 2 continuing into the future, and 2 receding into the past.

Happy reading!

-David


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

*Win a FREE The Summoning Fire Trade Paperback!*

Click here to signup for the giveaway (on GoodReads)!

NOTE: Signup deadline is 11:59pm 4 November (tonight!).

-David


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## CandyTX (Apr 13, 2009)

Your link is broken, David... try this one:
http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/6523-the-summoning-fire

Back to reading your book after taking a break to read another one (nothing bad, just one of my fave series that I HAD to know what happened next)


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## monkeyluis (Oct 17, 2010)

Did I win?


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

Oops! Link fixed now.

Thanks, Candy.

-David


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## Karen Fenech (Jul 1, 2010)

Congratulations on your new release, David!

Regards,
Karen


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

Karen Fenech said:


> Congratulations on your new release, David!
> 
> Regards,
> Karen


Thanks!

-David


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

THE SUMMONING FIRE Gets 4 Stars at Murphy's Library!

Murphy's Library gives _The Summoning Fire_ 4 stars!

_...From the moment the summoning happens until the end, I would say it's a read to be read during the day, way before the night. And even then you could have some nightmares. The story is so well written that you feel the need to look behind you while reading the tensest moments, and I got my fill of shivers...

...Overall, yes, I'd totally recommend this book. But let me warn you, it is the type of horror that scares you, not the type of horror that makes you laugh. Don't expect a trash horror novel, but [a] very well written scary book._

Read the whole review here...

-David


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## CandyTX (Apr 13, 2009)

Finally finished the review on this one... was very good... great read for horror fans who are sick of the same old, same old. I did get lost in the story a few times, but I was able to re-orient myself


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

CandyTX said:


> Finally finished the review on this one... was very good... great read for horror fans who are sick of the same old, same old. I did get lost in the story a few times, but I was able to re-orient myself


Thank you for the review!

-David


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

*How I Built The Summoning Fire*

_An author's confession of an odd approach..._ 

This is the structure I used to outline and write the first draft of _The Summoning Fire_:








In short, the story was built and written as a spiral, expanding outwards.

Why a spiral?

Why not? 

The idea for a "spiral structured story" occurred to me in August 2006, appealed to me immediately, and I refused to let it go. My original idea was to spiral *in*, instead of *out*, but the storyline I came up with seemed to work better exploding out from the center.

It took me a couple days to decide on the shape of the spiral, including the positioning of the little "spurs" that come off the main arms (which represent the stories of secondary characters related or tangential to the particular main storyline). And for some reason I insisted on having the shape visually balanced.

The vertical axis is time, with the past at the top and the future at the bottom. The horizontal axis is less well defined. I started out with the idea that the horizontal axis indicated "relevance" to the central event. But that's not quite it. And, frankly, the time aspect of the vertical axis got abused quite a bit.

Ultimately, though, it doesn't matter what either axis represents. I wasn't trying to create a 100% accurate representation of the story in 2D space. And I'm not even sure what that means. ;-)

So, once you get down to the essentials, this picture is just a graphic aid, a pretty diagram for a story with 4 main storylines that either converge toward or diverge from a particular event.

I liked the experimental, non-linear nature of the spiral.

I wrote the first draft of The Summoning Fire exactly as shown, with the exception of cutting the planned chapters #14 and #22. As I reached those chapters, they seemed redundant. I had already covered what those chapters had been outlined for.

The final draft, though, the story as it is now in paperback and ebook, was shifted a bit to make it less confusing (your mileage may vary  ). Also, and perhaps more importantly/usefully, I added the simple phrases "Before the Fire" and "After the Fire" to each chapter heading. The "Before the Fire" chapters move backwards from the first chapter, while the "After the Fire" chapters move forward from the fire.

-David


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

*A Story of Reese & Sam*

_Note: This is the first story I wrote about Reese & Sam, while I was still exploring them as characters for The Summoning Fire. This story is non-canonical with The Summoning Fire. That is, if it did happen, it might not have gone down exactly this way. And you'll notice the Old Man, and their relationship with him, is still evolving. Enjoy! _

*Reese Makes a Deal*
by David Michael

There was only one way to kill a vampire quickly: grind it into hamburger. Reese did the next best thing. She emptied the magazine of her 12 gauge pump-action shotgun into the thing's chest and head.

She paused only long enough to take two deep, gasping breaths. Then she stepped back to reload, pushing shells into the tube magazine and looking over at Sam to see how the other woman was doing.

Sam sat, leaning against the wall where the vampire had thrown her, looking dazed.

"You still with me?" Reese asked.

Sam shook her head, blinked a few times. "Maybe," she said.

Reese pumped a shell into the chamber, pushed another shell into the magazine to keep it full. Then she let the shotgun dangle from its shoulder strap as she picked up her nine millimeter semi-auto from the floor where she had dropped it.

She popped out the clip, counted only six rounds. She pushed the clip into her pocket and pulled out a full one to replace it. Then she unscrewed the silencer from the barrel, put it away as well. After nine shots, it was spent. And after five blasts from the shotgun, there wasn't anyone within a quarter mile who didn't know she and Sam were around...

*Read the rest of the story on my blog, Guns & Magic...*

-David


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

*The Summoning Fire Reviewed at Bookingly Yours*

_It is about a place called Hell on Earth where hell's creatures mix with humans. It's like a tourist destination, humans can meet with demons, undead, and other creatures BUT some aren't lucky to make it back home. That's the risk they have to take if they want to visit the place. I liked the plot, it was very original. A good horror book, and I think this would be good to be adapted on the big screen. I will definitely watch it._

Read the whole review here...

-David


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

*Win a FREE Signed Copy of The Summoning Fire!*

*Enter through Friday, December 24, to win a FREE copy of The Summoning Fire!*

1 FREE signed copy of The Summoning Fire in trade paperback will be given away.










Click Here to Enter​
All Reese Howard has left is pain--and a pump-action shotgun. Sam is dead. The Old Man killed her right in front of Reese, a blood sacrifice to fuel his latest powerplay in Hell on Earth. Reese hopes the Old Man made a mistake, leaving her alive and armed. But she doubts it. He knows she's coming. The bastard has to know. Whatever. Reese plans to make him pay. And she plans to die trying.

Click Here to Enter

-David


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

*Click here to read a FREE Preview of The Summoning Fire!*

Enjoy!

-David


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

*A Story of Reese & Sam*

_Note: This is another story I wrote about Reese & Sam while I was still exploring them as characters and Hell on Earth as a setting. This story is non-canonical with The Summoning Fire. That is, if it did happen, it might not have gone down exactly this way. But it might've happened..._

*Reese Goes Back to Work for the Old Man*
by David Michael

The Old Man caught up with Reese and Sam at their new favorite eating, drinking, and ill-reputing establishment, the Horny Toad.

The night had been a normal one for the Toad, noisy, boozy, and raunchy. Sam and Reese had been in the middle of it, two hot hired-killer women, playing pool earlier, now sitting at the bar, weapons visible in scabbards on their backs, making life miserable for the men who approached them.

Then the noise, the drinking, the debauchery all stopped at once, and, somehow, a path cleared from where they sat at the bar all the way to the front doors.

"I told you," Sam said, "we should've left town."

Reese memorized the spot on Sam's neck where she would bite the other woman later, leave a mark, for sure, and maybe even draw blood, then followed Sam's eyes to the bad news. "Yep," Reese agreed, feeling sick and numb at the same time. "You did."

Read the rest of the story on my blog, Guns & Magic...

-David


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

Dark Eva Reviews The Summoning Fire!

_The writing style is very engaging, to the point, and direct, which helps flesh out the characters...

I'd like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to the author for casting a demon who actually acts like one and doesn't spend the entire novel moping about his existence and how sorry he was to be born. And he uses a magic language system that isn't Latin or Anglo-Saxon derived, which is a nice change...

A word of caution: this novel contains highly graphic depictions of violence. I'm not talking about cartoon violence. I mean that if you squirm at some highly graphic, sadomasochistic sex scenes, you might want to skip this one, as Michael doesn't hold back at all..._

Click here to read the whole review.

-David


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

*Win a FREE Signed Copy of The Summoning Fire!*

*Enter through Monday, March 7, 2011, to win a FREE copy of The Summoning Fire!*

1 FREE signed copy of The Summoning Fire in trade paperback will be given away.



Click Here to Enter​
All Reese Howard has left is pain--and a pump-action shotgun. Sam is dead. The Old Man killed her right in front of Reese, a blood sacrifice to fuel his latest powerplay in Hell on Earth. Reese hopes the Old Man made a mistake, leaving her alive and armed. But she doubts it. He knows she's coming. The bastard has to know. Whatever. Reese plans to make him pay. And she plans to die trying.

Click Here to Enter

-David


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

Reminder: *Win a FREE Signed Copy of The Summoning Fire!*

*Enter through Monday, March 7, 2011, to win a FREE copy of The Summoning Fire!*

1 FREE signed copy of The Summoning Fire in trade paperback will be given away.



Click Here to Enter​
-David


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## KBoards Admin (Nov 27, 2007)

I'm pleased to welcome The Summoning Fire as our KB Book of the Day!


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## DavidRM (Sep 21, 2010)

Harvey said:


> I'm pleased to welcome The Summoning Fire as our KB Book of the Day!


Thanks, Harvey!

-David


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Thanks for being part of our Book of the Day program, David!

Betsy


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