Arson by Estevan Vega

Arson: Book One in The Arson Trilogy by Estevan Vega (published May, 2011, by StoneGate Ink) is the story of Arson Gable, the typical, normal teenage boy with a few notable exceptions: he can control fire with his mind and he has been told all of his life that he killed his own mother. Arson is "cared for" by a senile grandmother, who never misses an opportunity to cut him down, verbally and sometimes physically. Arson's only escape is the lake near his house, the cool water the only thing that seems to cool his fire-creating rage.

The story begins to take off when new neighbors--with problems of their own--move in to the house next door. The 17-year-old daughter, Emery, continually wears a blank mask to hide a hideously-scarred face, the result of a childhood accident. When Emery, trying to get away from bickering parents, walks to the lake only to see Arson lying face-down in the water in an attempt to escape his own demons, she jumps in in an effort to save his life. A fast friendship blossoms between the two self-proclaimed "freaks."

Despite Arson's numerous and vehement assertions to the contrary, Vega does an excellent job of painting our protagonist as the typical teenager struggling with normal teenage issues: the lack of love from a parental-figure, lust, physical desire, and the overwhelming desire to be normal. He struggles over loving someone who does not love--someone who may, in fact, hate--him back, and the deaths of those close to him.

Emery struggles with another aspect of teen life--parents who have emotionally abandoned, bur remain physically present. Her father, before the book's beginning, had, because of his alcoholism, lost his pastorate. Emery's mother, bitter over the alcoholism and the loss of "their" church finds solace in work. Both claim to be concerned about Emery and her emotional well being, both her mother and father desperately hate the mask she chooses to wear, but both also have a habit of abandoning Emery to her own devices while they fight themselves and each other. Vega does an excellent job of capturing the darker side of being a pastor's kid (or a pastor's wife)--the crushing, rarely-expressed, feeling that everyone and everything in the pastor's life is more important than his or her family.

Arson is a well-written, engaging story. The characters are extremely believable, and I even found myself wanting to encourage Arson to do the right (or noble or selfless) thing. It is a quick-enough read, and even without the cliff hanger-type ending leaves you wanting for a sequel. (The sequel, Ashes, was released in September, 2011.) Vega spins a good yarn and does it well. I highly recommend the book and cannot wait to read more from this engaging, youthful new author.

Published Again -or- Who Wants A Free Book?

One of the hardest things for a writer (okay, so maybe it's just me) is to let yourself be finished with a story. Perhaps it's just me, and my perfectionism, but being okay with "it's done enough" is very difficult. After having spent months (or years) getting to know your characters--like your children--you have to send them out into the cruel world to fend for themselves. This is difficult. You wonder if they're ready to fend for themselves. Can they walk on their own yet? Have you given them the tools they need to survive? The only thing you can hope is that you have prepared them enough to stand up for the things they believe in and help others that need it.

Every parents has to allow their children to leave the nest and fly on their own, and every writer has to do the same with their stories. But, unlike parents, authors are also supposed to promote their books after the book is sent off in order for their "children" to fulfill their life's purpose. Whether the book is published traditionally, independently, or by the author him/herself the book needs to be promoted and marketed.

When my first book was published, I--like many authors--thought I could just sit back and let the royalties just roll on in without any work at all. This, however, didn't happen. All that time and effort of writing my first book netted less than $30 in royalties in the last eight years. My second book--which, because of the birth of my son a few months after its release I was not able to adequately market--did even less in sales. I could make excuses about not having time (which I didn't), not having the resources (which I didn't), and not having all the same tools we have now (which we didn't), but frankly the main reason I didn't market the book is that I didn't know how. So, I learned about marketing, created all kinds of social media accounts, author pages, and everything else I needed to help promote this book as much as I am able to on my limited budget.

Part of that marketing is, of course, making the book available to people who will pass the word along. So, in honor of the publishing of "Karis," the first in the "My Life as a Superhero" series, I am giving out 25 free e-copies. Please just comment with your name, email, and format (Kindle, Nook, etc.).

If you like the book, feel free to leave a review on Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes & Noble, really anywhere. It makes all of our blood, sweat, and tears worth it to hear that someone liked our story.