A MAN NAMED BASKERVILLE reviewed at Steve’s Book Stuff

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Today’s stop of the virtual book tour is at Steve’s Book Stuff, which offers a four-star review of A Man Named Baskerville:

It is not a straightforward journey, but an adventure of the wrongs done to young Roger and the criminal path they set him on. From Brazil the story continues on into Costa Rica, then to Yorkshire in England, and finally to Dartmoor and Baskerville Hall, where the events of Conan Doyle’s Hound unfold.

As the story progresses, Nelson makes sure to incorporate pieces from the Stapleton life story that Sherlock Holmes relays in the final chapter of The Hound of the Baskervilles. But Nelson also fills in many of the blanks. The result is some adventurous storytelling.

Thanks, Steve! The full review is here. Pick up your copy of A Man Named Baskerville at Amazon.


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A MAN NAMED BASKERVILLE book tour starts now

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The A Man Named Baskerville book tour is underway! As the above graphic shows, the tour is making stops at several spots around the book-reading web. I’m working with Escapist Tours, who have been an able hand in putting together all the finishing touches.

Throughout the week, several well-known book reviewers and bloggers will be discussing Baskerville. I’ll post here as the tour stops along the way, and what these great and generous readers have to say.

If you’re curious, learn more about A Man Named Baskerville here. It’s my take on the classic Sherlock Holmes novel retold from a brand-new perspective. As I like to say, I peered into the Arthur Conan Doyle book and realized there was another book within the book—another story waiting to be told.

And if you’d like to read A Man Named Baskerville, consider signing up for the giveaway: I’m raffling off one digital edition of the book at the conclusion of the tour. To sign up, just follow this link.


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Now available: A MAN NAMED BASKERVILLE

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Cover of "A Man Named Baskerville" by Jim Nelson

IT’S HERE!

He took on Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, and he lost. Now he wants revenge.

In 1888, Sherlock Holmes slayed the spectral hound haunting the Devonshire moor, thereby laying to rest the curse of the Baskervilles once and for all. The perpetrator escaped into the night and was presumed drowned, consumed by the murky bog…

In truth, the criminal mastermind survived the night to nurse his wounds and plot his revenge against Sherlock Holmes.

A MAN NAMED BASKERVILLE recounts the life and times of Rodger Baskerville, exiled heir to the esteemed family’s fortune. His journal records his adventures from the Amazon rainforests to the beaches of Costa Rica to Victorian England, where he attempts to take his rightful place at Baskerville Hall. Along the way, he peels back the layers of family secrets and scandals untold in Dr. Watson’s account of the demonic hound haunting the Baskervilles.

Most of all, he describes a Sherlock Holmes unlike the legendary detective you think you know.

A MAN NAMED BASKERVILLE retells the infamous Arthur Conan Doyle mystery in a way you’ve never read before. It’s a sizzling new take on a classic hailed as a masterpiece of the English language, named one of the most influential books ever by the BBC and Le Monde, and beloved by Sherlock Holmes fans worldwide for over a century.

It’s a rousing adventure, from start to finish! What’s more—it’s a Sherlock Holmes story unlike any you’ve read before.

A MAN NAMED BASKERVILLE is now available for Kindle download! Order it now for the new release price of 99¢! And the book is FREE for Kindle Unlimited subscribers.


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Interview at Queen’s Book Asylum

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In My Memory Locked by Jim Nelson

Over at Queen’s Book Asylum is a new interview discussing my cyber-noir thriller In My Memory Locked.

A sampling of the discussion:

What draws you to science fiction?
I’m drawn to the “what-if” element of science fiction. Storytelling is a kind of controlled experiment, a chance to live another life or in another time without the use of exotic technologies. Novels are rather like the Myst linking books transporting you to another age. J. Hillis Miller calls books “portable dreamweavers,” and speculative fiction is perhaps the purest distillation of that idea. That’s why I turn to science fiction time and again.

And:

While taking inspiration from those giants of the genre, how does your book both honor and freshen up cyber-noir?

In most mystery novels, the detective is not deeply involved in the mystery he’s solving. For In My Memory Locked, Naroy is absolutely at the center of the crime—and he’s not sure why. He’s even uncertain he’s not the perpetrator. I couldn’t tell the kind of detective story I wanted to tell without science fiction.

The discussion also touches on my Bridge Daughter series, the differences between San Francisco and Tokyo, and how we’re already living in a cyberpunk world, even if we don’t have quarter-inch stereo jacks in our heads.

Read the full interview here. Thanks to Arina at Queen’s Book Asylum for having me!


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Sign up now for A MAN NAMED BASKERVILLE book tour

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If you’re a bookblogger, booktuber, or someone who loves and reviews books, I’m working with Escapist Book Tours for the release of my next novel, A Man Named Baskerville.

Read more about my latest book here, and if you’re interested, sign-up to join the tour! It runs April 18th to 24th. Slots are limited, so sign-up now.


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Coming soon: A MAN NAMED BASKERVILLE

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Cover of "A Man Named Baskerville" by Jim Nelson

I’d like to tell you about my upcoming novel, A Man Named Baskerville.

The germ for the book comes from a train trip across Japan where I had nothing to read save for a collection of Sherlock Holmes stories. From there I read The Hound of the Baskervilles and developed an idea I stored away inside my writing notebook:

What if I told Doyle’s original book from the point of view of the criminal rather than Dr. Watson?

I let this simple idea simmer for a few years before taking up the task. The result is my latest novel, due for publication this March.

To offer a taste, here’s my current back cover blurb:

He took on Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, and he lost.

Now he wants revenge.

In 1888, Sherlock Holmes slayed the spectral hound haunting the Devonshire moor, thereby laying to rest the curse of the Baskervilles once and for all. The perpetrator escaped into the night and was presumed drowned, consumed by the murky bog…

In truth, the criminal mastermind survived the night to nurse his wounds and plot his revenge against Sherlock Holmes.

A Man Named Baskerville recounts the life and times of Rodger Baskerville, heir to the esteemed family’s fortune. His journal records his adventures from the Amazon rainforests to the beaches of Costa Rica to Victorian England, where he attempts to rejoin his family and take his rightful place at Baskerville Hall. Along the way, he peels back the layers of family secrets and scandals untold in Watson’s account of the demonic hound haunting the Baskervilles.

Most of all, he describes a Sherlock Holmes unlike the detective you think you know.

A Man Named Baskerville retells the infamous Arthur Conan Doyle mystery in a way like you’ve never read before. It’s a sizzling new take on a classic hailed as a masterpiece of the English language, named one of the most influential books ever by the BBC and Le Monde, and beloved by Sherlock Holmes fans worldwide for over a century.

A Man Named Baskerville is a Victorian-era novel of crime and suspense about what may be the least-understood criminal in the Sherlock Holmes canon. As Holmes said of him, “We have never had a foeman more worthy of our steel … He is a creature of infinite patience and craft, with a smiling face and a murderous heart.”

He also has a story of his own to tell, and that’s what A Man Named Baskerville is about.

If you want to be notified when the book is ready, sign up for my newsletter. Not only will you get a message when it’s ready, you’ll have a chance to buy early copies at a reduced price.

Advance readers wanted

I’m currently seeking advance readers. If you’d like to read an ARC (Advance Review Copy):

  • Send me an email at jimbonator@gmail.com with the Subject: line “ARC for A Man Named Baskerville”
  • I’ll send you a link to download a digital copy (in either EPUB or MOBI format)
  • You read it (sooner rather than later)
  • You submit an honest and personal review on its Amazon page when the book is released

And that’s all there is to it.

Note that the advance copy you receive may still have typos, small errors, etc. It will be missing the cover and the usual front and back matter. I’m now using the BookFunnel service to distribute ARCs, which should make it easy to load the book into your e-reader (or read online).

The ARC is not ready at this moment. If you email me, you should expect to receive a copy in the middle of March, about 1 to 2 weeks before the book is published.

Thank you!


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Past Present, an interactive short story

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A Dreamers Travel Destination, L. Whittaker (CC BY-NC 2.0)

Some of you know my day job is computer programming, but you might not know the reason I first became drawn to the infernal machines: I wanted to write video games.

One youthful goal in particular was to write an interactive fiction—another term for a “text adventure,” a type of video game that was quite popular in the 1980s. Instead of relying on graphics, sounds, and animation, it’s a game where the player reads descriptions and enters commands. You’re interacting with the story more than reading the story.

It’s funny to look back to 1978 (or so) and recall my younger self as so eager to write the next Asteroids or Galaga. Forty-plus years later, after writing and debugging countless lines of code, I never once managed to cough together a program that could be construed a video game.

Until now. Recently I decided to check the box on this lifelong goal and see how far I can take it.

I’ve released my first interactive fiction, a game called Past Present. I describe it as akin to a Twilight Zone episode: The main character, an average man, is given a fantastic opportunity to change his past, and perhaps change his future as well. It’s a short game, one that can be played in a single sitting.

If you’re interested, head over to the game’s home page for more information, downloading instructions, and even a link for playing the game online.


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