Last autumn, my friends at eSpec Books asked me to submit a novella for their NeoParadoxa imprint, which features books about cryptids. Many of these titles will be featured in Box Mountain’s monthly Cryptid Crate subscription boxes which include cryptid themed art and decor for your home in addition to the books.
What are cryptids? They are creatures lurking in our world. Obscure creatures long relegated to myth and legend. They have been sighted by a lucky-or unlucky-few, some have even been photographed, but their existence remains unproven and unrecognized by the scientific community.
These creatures, long thought gone, have somehow survived; creatures from our nightmares haunting the dark places. They swim in our lakes and bays, they soar the night skies, they hunt in the woods. Some are from our past, and some from other worlds, and others that have always been with us—watching us, fearing us, hunting us.
These are the cryptids, and the Systema Paradoxa books tell their tales.
Because the book will be featured in the Cryptid Crates, the folks at eSpec Books have asked me not to give away too much of the surprise of what’s inside. So I’m limiting myself to sharing the cover and a short book book description.
1942. Gallup, New Mexico. Marine recruiters have come to town looking to fill their ranks with a secret weapon against the Axis powers-what would become Navajo Code Talkers—but not everyone supports the prospect of young native men going off to war.
When one new recruit is found dead, and a rancher’s cattle are mutilated, whispers of witchcraft and skinwalker filter through the town, and interest in enlisting wanes. Is there evil afoot, or is that just what opponents to the cause want everyone to think?
Whether guided by magic, mischief, or malevolence, without a doubt, nothing is as it seems…
If you’re excited for the release of the novella, the very best way to get a copy is by subscribing to Cryptid Crate at: https://www.cryptidcrate.com. Not only will you get my novella and the goodies that come with it, you’ll get the other novellas in the series as they’re released.
If you would rather just get the book by itself, it is available for pre-order at fine bookstores including:
David Lee Summers' Web Journal 
That’s one thing we don’t have here in Texas is cryptids. Oh, sure, we have jackalopes, but everybody knows those are real.
Actually, there is one Texas Cryptid I know — the Terratorn, a giant buzzard, or some say a pteranodon that’s still around. He’s associated with Las Cruces, New Mexico, but there have been sightings as far away as San Antonio, Texas. And of course, Jackalopes are real. I thought about using them in a story pitch, but there is a little nod to them in the book!