Welcome Winter❄️
Some updates and a little preview of Haunting the Scavenger
Hello and Happy New Year from the Silver Backed Mirror!
Some News: For the next few news letters here I am going to be changing things up just a tad. My debut novel Haunting the Scavenger is about to hit shelves in just 3 month time! As a way to drum up the hype I’ll be sharing excerpts from the novel leading up to its publication on March 24th. We will be having a little break from erotica and diving (just a little tiny bit) into the world of horror for a moment. If you’re here only for the horny nonsense, fear not, for we will be back to our regularly scheduled programming in April.
Separate from the news letters — there may be a few bonus articles cropping up here and there as I work on some rather interesting essays. You may or may not be guinea pigs for some things in the following months — MWAHAHAH! *evil lighting cracks* — so I uh… hope you will bear with me.
Now! Please enjoy the rather short prologue of Haunting the Scavenger!
December 5th, 2002 - Upstate New York
Snowflakes collected in the pale eyelashes that ringed the woman’s empty amber eyes. Her expression was still blown wide with shock. Short blond hair slipped from her headband as her head lolled back, staring out into nothingness. Her body had been impaled upon the wing of a stone cherub that sat atop the gaudy fountain. Her organs had begun to slip out into the basin of the fountain, the water dyed an awful shade of rust from her blood. Flashes of crime scene photography illuminated her bluing flesh.
The muffled stillness of the night air was punctuated by the shrill sound of police sirens, their red and blue lights illuminating the banks of fresh white snow. Several cop cars were crowded around the fountain that sat in the center of the roundabout in front of the dilapidated Victorian mansion. The structure was a dark looming void in the night, a forgotten set piece amidst the action. Sitting on the crumbling porch was a tall shivering figure draped in a blanket. Their head was hung in their hands, face obscured by a curtain of frizzy strawberry blond curls. They were being consoled with little effect by one of the many disgruntled EMTs.
A gorgeous woman with long black tresses and wrapped tightly in a fur coat was speaking furiously with the police detective in charge. The investigator looked far more disgusted by the corpse behind her than she did.
“His mother, my sister, just jumped off the third-story balcony in front of him, and you want to take him in for questioning!?” The dark-haired woman spat at the officer. Her tone was sharp and accusatory.
“Ma’am, with all due respect, he is the only direct witness. The kid needs to give a witness report at the least. As you said, he was alone here with her before calling you to the scene,” the investigator tried to explain to her.
“You and I both know he’s in shock. What could you possibly expect him to tell you?” She snapped. Her expression grew mournful, her emotion changing in a flash. Tears welled up in her mesmerizing lavender eyes.
“My sister struggled with her morbid demeanor since childhood,” the woman began to cry. “She’s been quite unwell for some time, no matter how hard I tried to help. The cutting of her department’s funding must have been the last straw, oh, the poor girl!” The dark-haired woman pulled a handkerchief from her coat and dabbed at her running mascara. “Her work has been the only thing keeping her going in these past years!” She showered sorrowful tears at the investigator, who was growing increasingly uncomfortable. The detective hesitantly reached out to console her before retracting his gesture and standing up a bit straighter. The crying woman sighed and rummaged in the pocket of her fur coat. She produced a large snakeskin pocketbook and shuffled through it until she’d pulled out a thick white envelope.
“Perhaps this could convince you to expedite your inspection? So our family can properly morn?” She sniffed, offering the envelope to the police investigator. He swallowed hard as she brandished it in his direction.
“Ma’am, I couldn’t possibly… take this.” His eyes glazed over as the dark-haired woman walked closer to him, the very essence of night gathering around her. Her voice was now only audible between the two of them.
“You are going to take this bribe, and you are going to take all your little underlings and leave my property untouched. You won’t question my nephew. You won’t question me. You will take my sister’s body directly to the morgue where she can be transported to the funeral home without delay. Let us call this a donation from the Giovanni family, yes?” She said with a venomously cool tone. The man’s face went blank as he took the envelope.
“Yes, of course... we won’t be giving you any trouble, madam. I… apologies for my… rudeness. My condolences,” he said in a slow drawl, as if the words were being pulled from his mouth. She gave him a pat on the cheek with a gloved hand.
“That’s a good porcellino,” she said with a vicious grin that revealed her razor-sharp canines.
Next month’s expert will be a little longer than this one fyi. I am nervous and thrilled for this book to finally be out into the world. This project started back in the summer of 2022 and would have been out much much sooner if I were not so naive to try to query this thing to traditional agents. A younger Arlo was much more hopeful for the world of queer lit. Never the less, over the years my eyes have been open to the freeing world of indie. A little know-how, and a lot of help can get you pretty far. I hope to get even more out-there and experimental with my subsequent books, knowing what I do now. I am ecstatic to see the finish line for this novel (and frankly thrilled to move on to new works). Thank you for joining me on the journey of making this book tangible, whether you’ve been here from the begging, or are just tuning in now!
Haunting the Scavenger is now available for pre-order in paperback! Full release coming March 24th 2026 in paperback and eBook!
In this Gothic Horror Romance our lad Monty bites off more than he can chew in his pursuit to investigate the untimely death of his mentor, Dr. Giovanni, as he slowly becomes entranced by her only living heir, Cameron.
Learn more here!
