Distant Early Warning: The Year of the Fugue Devil

If you know about the Fugue Devil, it knows about you. If you see the Fugue Devil, it will come for you.

My novelette, "The Fugue Devil," is the cornerstone story of my fiction collection Fugue Devil: Resurgence, published in 2022 by Black Raven Books. The novelette (and its sequel, "The Devil's Eye") are built on the premise that many decades ago, summoned by the power of music, the Fugue Devil—a dreadful, malevolent entity from another place—entered our world.

Every seventeen years, in Sylvan County, Virginia, on the Autumn Equinox, the Fugue Devil appears to satiate its hunger for unsuspecting souls. The events of the original tale occur in 1974, those in "The Devil's Eye" in 1991, and in various other of my works, there are suggestions that something terrible happened in the designated area in 2008. Well, guess what. It's 2025, so this is the year the Fugue Devil is set to appear again on the Autumn Equinox, which falls on September 22.

Fugue Devil: Resurgence features the two "Fugue Devil" novelettes, along with seventeen other stories, many of which are set in the same continuity. What a great year to visit (or perhaps even revisit) the Fugue Devil! Not only that, my novels, The Lebo Coven (2004) and The House at Black Tooth Pond (recently released from Macabre Ink/Crossroad Press), as well as numerous other tales of mine, share common themes, settings, and characters with the world of the Fugue Devil, so allow me to invite you to visit legend-haunted Sylvan County and the towns of Aiken Mill ("The Cold Case Capital of the World"), Beckham, and Barren Creek.

It's a dark and chilling place, but I think you will enjoy your visit. You may also read about the genesis of "The Fugue Devil" in an older blog entry, "The Equinox Devil," here.

Click on the book covers to order from Amazon.com.

 

The Lebo Coven Is in the House

Indeed, the brand-new paperback edition of The Lebo Coven has arrived. Author copies from Crossroad Press are well on their way, but whenever I have a new book come out, I always order my first copy as soon as it's available.

This release is a little different because I produced the back cover and interior pages myself. With my long experience working as a graphics guy in the educational publishing field, it seems only fitting, now that I'm retired, that I shift my graphics capabilities to something more personally meaningful. I also did the production work on The Gods of Moab paperback, which is my first fully self-published title (though rest assured that self-publishing is not a thing I intend to do habitually), and I'll be creating the cover designs and interior pages of my upcoming novel from Crossroad Press, The House at Black Tooth Pond, scheduled for release early next year.

The long and short of this is that there will be no passing of the buck if these books turn out ugly! But I don't think The Lebo Coven came out ugly at all. The front cover is the same one that Crossroad Press produced for the book's original release in 2010, and I've always quite liked it. For the interior, I fancied up the text and graphics on each initial chapter page, similar to Fugue Devil: Resurgence and Deathrealm: Spirits.

My author copies of The Lebo Coven should be here in a matter of days, at which time I'll offer autographed copies for sale on my webpage. C'mon, it'll be fun!

“Stephen Mark Rainey gives his horrors an original cosmic twist...with a well-executed climax.”

—Publishers Weekly

---

Order The Lebo Coven in paperback
from Amazon.com

---

The Lebo Coven Now Available in Paperback

The Lebo Coven, my second novel, was originally published in hardcover by Thomson Gale/Five Star Books in 2004, and as an ebook and audiobook by Crossroad Press in 2010. Crossroad Press will be publishing my newest novel, The House at Black Tooth Pond in the near future and, to gear up for that event, is re-releasing The Lebo Coven as a paperback. The House at Black Tooth Pond is not a direct sequel to Lebo, but it is set in the same continuity, featuring common characters, references, and setting (Sylvan County, a fictional location in southwestern Virginia, which has been the setting for many of my works, including "Fugue Devil" and its sequel, "The Devil's Eye").

About The Lebo Coven:
After a ten-year absence, Barry Riggs returns to his hometown of Aiken Mill, Virginia, in search of his brother, Matt, who has mysteriously disappeared. Not only is the younger Riggs missing, but his house has been ransacked and branded with a strange word—LEBO—painted in blood on the living room wall. Barry meets a number of locals he had known in his youth, including a young woman named Jennifer Brand. Their friendship rekindled, they join forces to solve the mystery of Matt’s disappearance. They soon encounter an enigmatic character who goes by the name of Ren—a reputed Satan worshiper. As Barry and Jennifer unravel a series of arcane clues, they learn that nothing and no one are quite what they appear—and that deadly, inhuman forces are at work in this world.

 “Stephen Mark Rainey gives his horrors an original cosmic twist...with a well-executed climax.”

—Publishers Weekly

---

Order The Lebo Coven in paperback
from Amazon.com

---

The Lebo Coven — Now an Audio Book

The good folks at Crossroad Press, who have previously released my novels Balak, The Nightmare Frontier, and The Monarchs as audio books, have now released my 2004 novel, The Lebo Coven, as an audio book as well. Read by Chris Andrew Ciulla, The Lebo Coven is the story of two brothers who have chosen very different paths in life but are drawn together — with traumatic results — in the shadow of dark supernatural force. There's murder, mayhem, romance, witchcraft, Satanic rituals, cattle mutilations, and beer.

"...Rainey gives his horrors an original cosmic twist...A few twists and a well-executed climax raise The Lebo Coven above more routine horror fare." —Publishers Weekly

Here's a little more detailed information:

"After a ten-year absence, Barry Riggs returns to his hometown of Aiken Mill, Virginia, in search of his brother, Matt, who has mysteriously disappeared. Not only is the younger Riggs missing, but his house has been ransacked and branded with the strange word Lebo — painted in blood on the master bedroom wall. Faced with a local sheriff whose efforts to solve the crime are anything but devoted, Barry sets out on his own to discover the truth. He meets a number of locals he had known in his youth, including a young woman named Jennifer Brand, whom he had once treated with contempt because she suffered from a repulsive, crippling affliction. After some awkward moments, the two become friends, and together they attempt to unravel the mystery of Matt’s disappearance. Certain locals suggest that the name Lebo holds ominous significance, but no one will so much as whisper its meaning. Barry eventually encounters a mysterious character who goes by the name of Ren — a reputed worshiper of Satan. As Barry and Jennifer unravel the clues, they learn that all is far from what it appears — and that dark, inhuman forces truly are at work."

Here is the Audible site link, from which you can download the audio file: The Lebo Coven by Stephen Mark Rainey at Audible.com

You can order the ebook from Crossroad Press at Amazon.com: The Lebo Coven by Stephen Mark Rainey

It Is NOT the "Lesbo" Coven

Author/retired college professor Anthony Servante gives The Lebo Coven the critical treatment in the latest installment of his blog, Servante of Darkness. Here's a little teaser:

"As I’ve eagerly awaited the paperback version of Blue Devil Island to arrive in the mail, I got to reading The Lebo Coven — 'a traditional, family-centered supernatural tale,' as Rainey calls it. So, even though I had (and still do) planned to review the historically based horror novel, Blue Devil Island, I jumped the gun a bit to review the latter work, and I'm glad I did...."

See why by heading over here: Servante on The Lebo Coven.

Also on the horror writing front, I'm planning to have a book signing in Martinsville (VA) at Binding Time cafe and bookstore, tentatively planned for Friday, March 22, from 3:00–5:00 PM. Binding Time is a fabulous little place — a cafe-slash-bookstore with excellent food and an intimate atmosphere. Check 'em out on Facebook too: www.facebook.com/BindingTime. If you're in the vicinity and can make it in, please do. I'll have copies of The Monarchs, Blue Devil Island, Other Gods, and The Gaki. I'll post an update when things are set in stone.

Read. The Lebo Coven at Amazon.com

THE LEBO COVEN and THE NIGHTMARE FRONTIER Now Available From Crossroad Press

The Lebo Coven, originally released by Thomson-Gale/Five Star Books in 2004, is now available as an e-book from Crossroad Press. Here's a little teaser for you....

After a ten-year absence, Barry Riggs returns to his hometown of Aiken Mill, Virginia, in search of his brother, Matt, who has mysteriously disappeared. Not only is the younger Riggs missing, but his house has been ransacked—and branded with the strange word “LEBO,” painted in blood on the bedroom wall. Faced with a local sheriff whose efforts to solve the crime are less than devoted, Barry sets out on his own to discover the truth. He meets a number of locals he had known in his youth, including a young woman named Jennifer Brand, whom he had once treated with contempt because she suffered from a repulsive, crippling affliction. After some awkward moments, the two become friends, and together they begin to unravel the mystery of Matt’s disappearance. Certain locals suggest that the name “LEBO” holds certain, ominous significance, but no one will so much as whisper its meaning. Barry eventually encounters a mysterious character who goes by the name of Ren—a reputed Satan worshipper. As Barry and Jennifer unravel the clues, they learn that all is far from what it appears—and that dark, inhuman forces are certainly at work.

"This former editor of the legendary horror magazine, Deathrealm, has written a novel of supernatural terror worthy of his esteemed literary reputation. The Lebo Coven seethes with darkness from the first page and surges forward in a pulse-pounding pace to the very end. This is a thrilling tale, custom-made for a dark and stormy night, that will keep you flipping pages until you've reached the slam-dunk, knock-your-socks-off climax."

—J. L. Comeau, Count Gore de Vol Presents Creature Features

Crossroad also recently released my fourth novel, The Nightmare Frontier. They're available in most all e-formats, at very reasonable prices ($2.99–$4.99). They're both pretty creepy—quite the ticket for going into the Halloween season! Check 'em out!