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Night Call #3
Rock Paper Sorcery
This is an alternate cover for ISBN 978-0-9925026-9-0
PLEAE NOTE: This book is not an MM story.
Sorcery, an arcane mystical power wielded by white-bearded old men with fancy sticks? Or just another pain in Matt Hawkins� neck? Matt knows which he would prefer, which is more likely, and that they’re not the same thing�
Life’s looking up for Brisbane’s only badarse, supernatural-battling warrior. There’s been a distinct lack of marauding Old World baddies and no noticeable interference from demons. Just a nice steady stream of ‘small� jobs to keep Matt and the tame vampire, Mercy, in home, food and clothes. And when PI Erin McRea contracts them for a sting, Matt’s happy to oblige. It is, after all, easy money.
Naturally, nothing goes according to plan. Erin’s mark dies in highly suspicious circumstances and Matt earns the ire of an ex-NRL player with a grudge and fists of stone. Then there’s Randy Devantier—Texan, sorcerer and all round badarse� er, badass. Dev’s looking for a rogue sorcerer, a stolen spell and a local guide. Between dodging rampaging footballers, a vampire with mood swings and a lonely PI making demands of his time, Matt also has to chauffer Dev around a town that might not be big enough for two badasses on a mission.
And in the middle of it all, Matt has one, burning question. How do you stop a monkey from stealing grapes out of your cereal bowl?
PLEAE NOTE: This book is not an MM story.
Sorcery, an arcane mystical power wielded by white-bearded old men with fancy sticks? Or just another pain in Matt Hawkins� neck? Matt knows which he would prefer, which is more likely, and that they’re not the same thing�
Life’s looking up for Brisbane’s only badarse, supernatural-battling warrior. There’s been a distinct lack of marauding Old World baddies and no noticeable interference from demons. Just a nice steady stream of ‘small� jobs to keep Matt and the tame vampire, Mercy, in home, food and clothes. And when PI Erin McRea contracts them for a sting, Matt’s happy to oblige. It is, after all, easy money.
Naturally, nothing goes according to plan. Erin’s mark dies in highly suspicious circumstances and Matt earns the ire of an ex-NRL player with a grudge and fists of stone. Then there’s Randy Devantier—Texan, sorcerer and all round badarse� er, badass. Dev’s looking for a rogue sorcerer, a stolen spell and a local guide. Between dodging rampaging footballers, a vampire with mood swings and a lonely PI making demands of his time, Matt also has to chauffer Dev around a town that might not be big enough for two badasses on a mission.
And in the middle of it all, Matt has one, burning question. How do you stop a monkey from stealing grapes out of your cereal bowl?
Unknown Binding
First published October 5, 2015
4 people are currently reading
79 people want to read
About the author
L.J. Hayward
21Ìýbooks605ÌýfollowersL.J. Hayward has been telling stories for most of her life, a good deal of them of the tall variety. She loves reading but doesn’t seem to have enough time between wanting to be a more disciplined writer, being the actual erratic writer she is, and working for dollars in a dungeon laboratory. She also lives on the Gold Coast in Queensland, but rarely sees a beach and can’t surf, though she thinks living on a houseboat might be fun. At least then she’d have an excuse to get a cat.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
March 6, 2018
Another brilliant instalment in L.J. Hayward's Night Call series.
Bad ass, monster head kicker, and psychic warrior, Matt Hawkins normally works with his sole partner - Mercy the vampire. But lately his been getting a few jobs with P.I. Erin McRae and the latest is a stakeout on a suspect in a monkey heist.
Well the stakeout goes sideways - massively. Who knew there could be so much trouble to find a few missing monkeys.
Matt gets a new partner. A Texan sorcerer with oodles of charm covering a dreadful wound. Randy Devantier has an agenda of his own and a rogue sorcerer in Matt's home town is his personal target.
With sorcerous battles occurring left and right, a cranky under-fed vampire giving him the cold shoulder, and a rogue sorcerer dabbling in the most dangerous magic Matt's ever seen. It's enough to drive a man berserk - permanently.
Matt faces his toughest challenges yet in this precisely plotted delight of a novel.
L.J. Hayward writes with a deceptively easy to read prose that laces humour over drama, and reveals a deeply felt and beautifully nuanced presentation of friendship and love triumphing over darkness (both internal and external).
I'm quite blown away - please L.J. give me more of this.
Absolutely recommend this for anyone who loves a good story (just read the first and second books first).
P.S. Love the new covers in this series.
Bad ass, monster head kicker, and psychic warrior, Matt Hawkins normally works with his sole partner - Mercy the vampire. But lately his been getting a few jobs with P.I. Erin McRae and the latest is a stakeout on a suspect in a monkey heist.
Well the stakeout goes sideways - massively. Who knew there could be so much trouble to find a few missing monkeys.
Matt gets a new partner. A Texan sorcerer with oodles of charm covering a dreadful wound. Randy Devantier has an agenda of his own and a rogue sorcerer in Matt's home town is his personal target.
With sorcerous battles occurring left and right, a cranky under-fed vampire giving him the cold shoulder, and a rogue sorcerer dabbling in the most dangerous magic Matt's ever seen. It's enough to drive a man berserk - permanently.
Matt faces his toughest challenges yet in this precisely plotted delight of a novel.
L.J. Hayward writes with a deceptively easy to read prose that laces humour over drama, and reveals a deeply felt and beautifully nuanced presentation of friendship and love triumphing over darkness (both internal and external).
I'm quite blown away - please L.J. give me more of this.
Absolutely recommend this for anyone who loves a good story (just read the first and second books first).
P.S. Love the new covers in this series.
October 22, 2018
This Australian urban fantasy series is shaping up to be very good indeed. Matt Hawkins (aka Night Call) is not a wizard. He's more of a psychic warrior with paranormal powers. His business partner Mercy, is a moody teenage vampire. Living in Brisbane, their business is mostly removing small, pesky supernatural creatures but occasionally he gets dragged into dealing with some heavy duty paranormal creatures like demons and powerful old world vampires.
Currently Matt and Mercy are helping a friend, PI Erin McRea hunt down some spider monkeys stolen from the zoo, but unfortunately their main suspect dies in unusual circumstances. Matt is also asked by an old friend to help out a visiting Texan sorcerer called Dev, who is searching for a rogue sorcerer. Of course, as soon as Matt and Dev try to work out what the rogue sorcerer is up to they land in a heap of trouble and leave a trail of devastation across town. Lots of action and excellent fun! I love the way the main characters (Matt, Mercy and Erin) are developing, especially in their interactions with each other. Looking forward to the next instalment!
Currently Matt and Mercy are helping a friend, PI Erin McRea hunt down some spider monkeys stolen from the zoo, but unfortunately their main suspect dies in unusual circumstances. Matt is also asked by an old friend to help out a visiting Texan sorcerer called Dev, who is searching for a rogue sorcerer. Of course, as soon as Matt and Dev try to work out what the rogue sorcerer is up to they land in a heap of trouble and leave a trail of devastation across town. Lots of action and excellent fun! I love the way the main characters (Matt, Mercy and Erin) are developing, especially in their interactions with each other. Looking forward to the next instalment!
May 27, 2017
Mat and Mercy are back in business working for Erin's PI firm on a case of stolen zoo monkeys when it turns into a murder investigation. Who would kill for monkeys?
As an added complication a new preternatural Alpha male has landed in Brisbane and raises Matts hackles. Randy Devantier is a Texan sorcerer on a mission of familial revenge and spell retrieval. Aurum, the meddlesome Gold Primal, saddles them together for reasons of his own. Randy and Matt are not yin and yang, more like yang and more yang. They fight each other and back to back, they ditch and avoid each other then race to find and rescue one another, they laugh uproariously together then comfort each other quietly. It's a bit of delicious queer baiting since there is nothing going on with Erin and Matt. He couldn't even brush himself against the chocolaty goodness of her aura this time.
Speaking of auras, Matt and Mercy have been a little short these days and that is playing hell on their already volatile tempers. Matt is having to face the fact that vampires can't live, as oppose to simply existing, off of bagged blood. It will be interesting to see how these upstanding moral characters deal with this truth without becoming anemic!
This book has plenty of action, suspense, drama, and a continuing Old World story arch that I want to continue reading about. Book Four can't come soon enough.
As an added complication a new preternatural Alpha male has landed in Brisbane and raises Matts hackles. Randy Devantier is a Texan sorcerer on a mission of familial revenge and spell retrieval. Aurum, the meddlesome Gold Primal, saddles them together for reasons of his own. Randy and Matt are not yin and yang, more like yang and more yang. They fight each other and back to back, they ditch and avoid each other then race to find and rescue one another, they laugh uproariously together then comfort each other quietly. It's a bit of delicious queer baiting since there is nothing going on with Erin and Matt. He couldn't even brush himself against the chocolaty goodness of her aura this time.
Speaking of auras, Matt and Mercy have been a little short these days and that is playing hell on their already volatile tempers. Matt is having to face the fact that vampires can't live, as oppose to simply existing, off of bagged blood. It will be interesting to see how these upstanding moral characters deal with this truth without becoming anemic!
This book has plenty of action, suspense, drama, and a continuing Old World story arch that I want to continue reading about. Book Four can't come soon enough.
October 13, 2015
5 Stars for a really good book and especially for a self published one.
Had everything a good book needs to have, a decent plot, good caracters with depth and logical interactions between them. I personally prefere a bit more emotional reasoning and development between the caracters and inside of them in a book, there was already a lot in here but i stil want more. But that is entirely taste.
The writing was done really good, too. I may no bea good touchstone for this things but i did not notice any editing errors so i hope that the grammar and spelling nazis aout there would mid either.
All in all a refreshing and enjoyable ride through the fantasy wold of Night Call.
*Hoping for a quick release of the 4th part of the series*
Had everything a good book needs to have, a decent plot, good caracters with depth and logical interactions between them. I personally prefere a bit more emotional reasoning and development between the caracters and inside of them in a book, there was already a lot in here but i stil want more. But that is entirely taste.
The writing was done really good, too. I may no bea good touchstone for this things but i did not notice any editing errors so i hope that the grammar and spelling nazis aout there would mid either.
All in all a refreshing and enjoyable ride through the fantasy wold of Night Call.
*Hoping for a quick release of the 4th part of the series*
January 7, 2016
After barely escaping being exsanguinated in a vampire turf war and managing to avoid becoming collateral damage in a conflict between two demons, things have settled down a little for Queenland’s number one (by default) supernatural gun-for-hire Matt Hawkins. He’s got a steady trickle of work to keep him � and his semi-tame vampire sidekick Mercy � occupied, and the Old World heavy hitters seem to be keeping their distance for the moment. Of course, with Matt’s luck being the way it is, this can only be the calm before another storm.
Firstly a routine sting operation with local P.I. Erin McRea goes awry when the mark is killed in bizarre � and messy � circumstances, and then Mercy starts pushing against Matt’s authority leading to a frustrated Hawkins getting into an altercation with an ex-NRL player built like the side of a house. The last thing Matt needs is any more headaches, so he’s unimpressed to find himself playing tour guide for a Texan sorcerer, one Randy Devantier, who’s in town searching for a dangerous rogue magic-user and a stolen spell.
Devantier is nursing injuries both physical and psychological, and his mistrust of Hawkins is reciprocated� with interest. They’ll have to find a way to work together, though, as the rogue sorcerer Devantier is hunting isn’t the type to come quietly and has plans for them both. Somehow they need to unravel a case involving magical murder, angry rugby players and flying monkeys, and without killing each other in the process. It’s going to be a long week�
This is the third book in L.J. Hayward’s “Night Call� series and does a fine job of expanding the mythology of Hawkins� world. We’ve been aware that there are organisations operating in the supernatural world that Matt is outside � and largely unaware � of, but they are certainly aware of him and there’s only so long they can put up with a loose cannon on deck. The introduction of Devantier gives us an insight into what’s going on outside Hawkins� stamping ground and also how the Aussie vigilante is viewed by the “powers that be�. The friction between the two men allows for some fun dialogue and there’s a definite “this town ain’t big enough for the both of us� vibe which is exacerbated by them being forced to work together.
Hayward’s magic system is well thought-out and it’s good to see the use of such power having real consequences for the user � no throwing the pyrotechnics around with reckless abandon for these guys. Every spell is a risk, and sorcerers aren’t known for living long, fulfilling lives.
There’s not much to nit-pick here except for a few typos, and that’s nothing a quick spit and polish wouldn’t fix. Well worth a read and I look forward to finding out what fiendish creatures will find their way to Matt Hawkins� door next�
Firstly a routine sting operation with local P.I. Erin McRea goes awry when the mark is killed in bizarre � and messy � circumstances, and then Mercy starts pushing against Matt’s authority leading to a frustrated Hawkins getting into an altercation with an ex-NRL player built like the side of a house. The last thing Matt needs is any more headaches, so he’s unimpressed to find himself playing tour guide for a Texan sorcerer, one Randy Devantier, who’s in town searching for a dangerous rogue magic-user and a stolen spell.
Devantier is nursing injuries both physical and psychological, and his mistrust of Hawkins is reciprocated� with interest. They’ll have to find a way to work together, though, as the rogue sorcerer Devantier is hunting isn’t the type to come quietly and has plans for them both. Somehow they need to unravel a case involving magical murder, angry rugby players and flying monkeys, and without killing each other in the process. It’s going to be a long week�
This is the third book in L.J. Hayward’s “Night Call� series and does a fine job of expanding the mythology of Hawkins� world. We’ve been aware that there are organisations operating in the supernatural world that Matt is outside � and largely unaware � of, but they are certainly aware of him and there’s only so long they can put up with a loose cannon on deck. The introduction of Devantier gives us an insight into what’s going on outside Hawkins� stamping ground and also how the Aussie vigilante is viewed by the “powers that be�. The friction between the two men allows for some fun dialogue and there’s a definite “this town ain’t big enough for the both of us� vibe which is exacerbated by them being forced to work together.
Hayward’s magic system is well thought-out and it’s good to see the use of such power having real consequences for the user � no throwing the pyrotechnics around with reckless abandon for these guys. Every spell is a risk, and sorcerers aren’t known for living long, fulfilling lives.
There’s not much to nit-pick here except for a few typos, and that’s nothing a quick spit and polish wouldn’t fix. Well worth a read and I look forward to finding out what fiendish creatures will find their way to Matt Hawkins� door next�
February 28, 2018
LJ, based on this series, you are now one of my auto-buys! Please tell me there is at least a #4 and #5 for Matt and Mercy??!!!
December 8, 2021
I was, for awhile there, not sure this one was going to land well for me. But Hayward managed it. It's the kind of story in the kind of world that sticks with me, revealing underpinnings of connections and themes and so on for awhile after I've finished, and three books in, I'm anticipating that. I can't read these quickly, and I can't read them one after the other, either. This time, the first set of themes that want attention include self-control, choices, madness, loyalty, and family.
Something about Matt's world is denser than typical fantasy, requiring more time. I've made peace with that.
Something about Matt's world is denser than typical fantasy, requiring more time. I've made peace with that.
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