“The Legend of a Blues Guitar” Now Available Everywhere

The latest work from J. Stephen Howard, “The Legend of a Blues Guitar,” is now available in all major ebook stores. The collection of six tales of horror, each ranging from a short story to a novella in length, follows the legend created from a haunted blues guitar being passed down to unwitting caretakers who come across its path. 

Howard said: “I thought it would be interesting to see how different characters in varying circumstances would be affected by the talismanic instrument. The guitar is more cursed than evil, as it contains the troubled spirit of a boy who died in a tragic accident and then as a ghost witnesses his father’s drowning in the wake of a hurricane. Before his father gets swept away, he says the words that seal the curse on the guitar, mistaking another boy for his son: ’Trevor, you have to take care of it. I doubt we’ll be going to the same place, and only your soul can play it.’”

Thus, the state of an individual’s soul, whether they’re genuine and can understand the blues determines the outcome of his or her interactions with the guitar. The first to come into contact with it, this story serving as the origin story, is a much older man looking back at his ten-year-old self who had to cope not only with the stress of an oncoming hurricane but also a drunk bluesman confusing him for his dead son. The second is Lily, the former madame of a Texas whorehouse who, along with her ex-Mexican Revolutionary soldier, gathers precious artifacts for sale at their pawn shop called Ye Old Treasure Chest. The third is Conroy, an ex-farmer who lacks the will to live after his wife left him for another man, but his ability to sing turns his luck, at least for the moment. The fourth is Randall Davidson, a stockbroker who lost everything when the Great Depression fell on him like a thunderous hammer. The fifth is Walter, the janitor at a Texas jail who, as a hoarder, is a collector of anything and everything. Finally, the sixth one is Jean Sharp, a retired museum curator and still-haunted paranormal investigator who must confront her own demons in a bid to protect the world from the dangerous power of this guitar.

“It was fun creating all the backstories for the characters,” Howard said. “I thought it important to make them human beings already facing challenges unique to them before the guitar interfered with their lives. Since the book spans the years 1900-1971, these people are a part of their time period. So, historical events are unfolding around them such as women getting the right to vote after the 19th Amendment is passed and the Great Depression.”

The ebook is available for $1.99 on all major ebook platforms such as Amazon, iBooks, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and Ciando.

Other J. Stephen Howard books include “Fear in Appleton,” “Frankenstein’s Confessional,” and “Fabled Circus,” all of which can be purchased from etailers, as well.

Contact Information

J. Stephen Howard

Writer

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