Author: Kevin Moore
Narrator: Luke Welland
Length: 9 hours and 36 minutes
Series: Souls, Book 1
Publisher: NineStar Press
Released: Feb. 22, 2022
Genre: Paranormal Suspense
The dead don’t come back, but some never leave…
Jack Kelly remembers everything about his wife and children. The wonderful smell of his wife’s hair, the way she whispers to him at night. His three children running through the house, the sound of their laughter.
That was his life before the accident. His near-death experience left him in the in-between space, somewhere between this world and whatever comes next. But he recovered and woke up as his 13-year-old self.
The doctors tell him it is a false memory, a result of his fall and the insult to his brain from his injuries.
“How can a 13-year-old boy have a wife and three children”? They ask.
But how can he see and hear dead people, demons, ghosts, and shadowy creatures? And if they exist, then is it so inconceivable to believe that Jack’s life as a 47-year-old man with a wife and children existed, too?
Jack begins his journey to find out why and how. And, in the end, he resolves to find his way back to his true existence, back to his family.
The Book of Souls is the first book in the series. The Book of Demons is coming…
Kevin Moore is the author of “Christmas Stories 7 Original Short Stories”. He also had his first Children’s picture book released in May 2021. His play “Conversations From The Sports Arena” was performed at the HBO Theater in Hollywood. “The Book of Souls” is his first novel. Based on a true event, Moore considers this a “self help book, which just happens to be a paranormal thriller. The sequel “The Book of Demons” will be released October 11, 2022. Moore practices Lucid Dreaming and Bardo Dreaming which has helped him with his writing. He is a Yogi and an Advanced Reiki Practitioner — most importantly, he is Matthew and Madison’s father.
Luke Welland is a Canadian film and TV Actor based in Vancouver, BC. He has appeared in TV shows such as Supernatural, Caprica and Travelers; Movies such as Footsteps Into Gangland and Eat It Raw, and in commercials for Virgin Mobile, Mini-Cooper, Bud Light and several others. He used to tour as the singer and guitarist in punk band No Other Way, and still writes and records his own folk/acoustic music. He also is a working voiceover artist completing several audiobooks including The Vista, Soul Meets Body, Riding the Edge, and best-seller: The Imperial Alchemist, and Book of Souls.
Q&A with Author Kevin Moore
- Tell us about the process of turning your book into an audiobook.
- My wife is in a book club and the majority of members listen to books, so I knew we had to do an audiobook. When we started listening to narrators it was a bit overwhelming because there were so many talented people. In the end we had an actor with a big booming voice and an actor that’s voice captured Jack at 13. We went with him. You know someone is going to be listening for 10 hours, so the voice must be easy to listen to – while still capturing the vibration of the book.
- How did you select your narrator?
- We had chosen an actor who could do the “haunted” part of the book very well and we were suppose to stop listening and make an offer. Luke’s audition came in a day later with several others and I thought – I’ll just listen to these three just for fun before we make the offer. When I heard Luke I thought – wow – that is Jack as a teenager and we went with him at the eleventh hour.
- Were there any real life inspirations behind your writing?
- Yes! The story is based on these recurring dreams I was having about these shadow people who kept trying to get my son. It put me on guard. My son ended up in the hospital a month later in intensive care and I felt it was a “God call,” because Matthew and I were ready to fight. I slept with him in the hospital every night for three weeks. We had a ghost experience while we were there with one of the nurses which is also in the book.
- If you had the power to time travel, would you use it? If yes, when and where would you go?
- I would definitely use it! My mother died when I was a teenager and she was with us for such a short time, but had a gigantic impact on my life. She introduced me to my spiritual life. I would go back to New York City, 1973 the year before she got sick – just to experience the wonder of her again.
- What do you say to those who view listening to audiobooks as “cheating” or as inferior to “real reading”?
- I’m a firm believer in meeting people where they are – if someone drives a lot for work or has a long commute and that is how they are able to listen/read through audiobooks, how can that possibly be cheating? Remember oral story telling started long before books were in hand. I think just do you. If you like sitting with a book – great. If you can’t sit still and need to listen to a book on a walk – great. It really is all about the story. I happen to love them both. I love the feel and smell of books, but as I have gotten older I love the company of a good audiobook.
- Have any of your characters ever appeared in your dreams?
- Oh yes! I am a lucid dreamer so several of my characters came to me. I met Kasper at a party in New York – he was unaware that I created him and had a full life of his own – we hung out an entire weekend – in my dream. Jack Kelly came to me with a another story right before the release of The Book of Souls” in a dream that was super fun and maybe the start of another book. The Book of Demons comes out on 10/11/22 which is the sequel.
- What’s your favorite:
- Food – Mustard Salmon
- Song “Mercy Mercy Me” by Marvin Gaye
- Book “The Cat in The Hat” Dr Suess
- Television show
- Movie “To Kill a Mockingbird”
- Band “Pink Martini”
- Sports team “Dodgers”
- City “NYC” my home town.
- Are any of those things referenced in appearance in your work?
- Yes. It’s set in Manhattan – which is where I grew up and also “To Kill a Mockingbird.” Mr Cairo had a stroke and lost his ability to communicate verbally and can’t use his writing hand. Jack realizes he can see symbols over Mr Cairo’s head which don’t always make sense. Jack is asking him if he knows the movie To Kill A Mockingbird? Mr Cairo keeps pulling up Woodie Wood pecker to represent the mockingbird and a whale to represent Gregory Peck, because Gregory Peck was in the movie Moby Dick. I hope it’s a cute little segment and its away for the reader or listener to see the building of their relationship.
- What bits of advice would you give to aspiring authors?
- Listen to your inner voice, your intuition and write. And fall in love with your characters – enjoy the process – that is where I had the most fun. Some people will like your book and some will not; it’s all about the journey.
- What’s next for you?
- I like to surprise myself – so I’m opening myself to the possibilities. However Jack did show up in a dream last week, so I don’t think he is done with me yet.
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