The special price of $.99 on the Falling From the Ground e-book ends tomorrow, June 2, at midnight. Take advantage of this savings of $2.00 by clicking on the link below:
http://ereadernewstoday.com/more-bargain-and-free-books-for-5-28-17/
From now through June 2, you can purchase a copy of Falling From the Ground for just $.99 (a savings of $2.00). To take advantage of this great savings click on the link below:
http://ereadernewstoday.com/more-bargain-and-free-books-for-5-28-17/
Kirkus, the prestigious book service, recently reviewed Falling From the Ground. Here is what they had to say...
A family encounters strange people and even stranger creatures during a nightmarish summer vacation in this debut novel.
The Nunios family getaway may not be relaxing for 16-year-old Alison. It means close quarters with her shiftless older brother and fresh high school graduate, Michael, and her constantly feuding parents. Luckily, best friend Olivia’s along for the trip, though her company’s a persistent reminder that, with Olivia’s family moving, the two will be separated for the upcoming school year. Cape November is nostalgic for Alison’s parents, who recall visiting the place in their youth and hearing the local legend of Cappy the sea monster. But bizarre occurrences start before they’ve reached Cape November; the minivan apparently hits something, and stopping to check an object lying in the road leads to an attack from a giant bird and biting insects. Their hotel in the Cape, meanwhile, is the spooky Maggie’s Mansion, where they’re awakened by a scream in the dark. None of this, however, prepares them for a town of hooded figures and creepy kids with sharp sticks. There are stories of missing residents, which may soon include Alison’s mysteriously absent parents or the teen herself. Favetta saves most of the horrors for later, wisely spending the first half of the eerie tale developing characters. Alison, for one, who’s smart but sometimes condescending (derisively dubbing Michael a “genius”), is fittingly counterbalanced by astute and empathetic Olivia. Romance, too, is understated: Olivia’s openly gay, while Alison’s clearly attracted to her but seems conflicted. The author drops hints of what’s coming: pictures of a tentacled beast and Olivia seeing hooded men menacingly approach the minivan. The potent final act is best left unspoiled, but entails otherworldly creatures, visceral death, and shades of H.P. Lovecraft. Formidable Alison and Olivia bolster a feminist theme, prevalent in keen, self-deprecating dialogue: when Alison fears that fleeing makes them look like scared girls, Olivia remarks, “We are a couple of scared girls.”
An intense bag of horror goodies, fortified by strong female protagonists.
Tonio Favetta, author of Falling From the Ground, will be taking part in a panel discussion about the issues of social justice in fiction. He will all also be conducting a workshop titled "Teacher as Writer" aimed at teachers and covering creative writing. There will be a Meet and Greet for all the authors participating in the event from 12:30 until 2:00.
Where: Chatham High School, 255 Lafayette Avenue, Chatham, NJ 07928
For more information; http://nerdcampnj.weebly.com
UnWined Boutique will be hosting a meet & greet with author Tonio Favetta, writer of his new book Falling From the Ground, a Fiction Mystery/Sci-fi book for young adults. Tonio will sign books and speak about the story. There will also be a wine tasting for adults who attend and bring their children to meet Tonio Favetta.
When: Saturday, May 20th from 3:00 to 5:00 P.M.
Where: UnWined Boutique, 345 Millburn Avenue, Millburn, NJ 07041
Phone: 973-467-4100 unwined-boutique.com
THE ANCIENT EVIL AT CAPE NOVEMBER DOESN’T CARE THAT THIS IS THE LAST TIME ALISON WILL GET TO BE WITH HER BEST FRIEND OLIVIA BEFORE SHE MOVES AWAY. ALISON’S MOM DESCRIBED IT AS A FAMILY VACATION OF SUN, SAND AND SURF, BUT THE OLD TOURIST TOWN IS NOT THE PARADISE MOM AND DAD REMEMBER FROM THEIR TEENAGE YEARS. THE TOWN IS PRACTICALLY DESERTED—EXCEPT FOR THE STRANGERS IN A WHITE VAN WHO KEEP FOLLOWING THEM. THE MANSION THEY’RE STAYING IN MIGHT BE HAUNTED. A MYSTERIOUS GIRL LIVES UPSTAIRS AND THERE ARE RUMORS OF A SEA MONSTER. WHEN MOM AND DAD JOIN THE LONG LIST OF MISSING PEOPLE, IT’S UP TO ALISON AND OLIVIA, ALONG WITH ALISON’S BIG BROTHER MICHAEL, TO SOLVE THE MYSTERY OF CAPE NOVEMBER TO SAVE THEM, AND MAYBE THE WORLD.
Tonio Favetta, author of Falling From the Ground, spoke at Liberty Middle School and Roosevelt Middle School this week. At each school, he shared his background, love for writing and of course his new book, Falling From the Ground. He then conducted a hands-on writing workshop guiding the students as they wrote their own stories. Check out other upcoming events where Tonio will be speaking at fallingfromtheground.com.
UnWined Boutique will be hosting a meet & greet with author Tonio Favetta, writer of his new book Falling From the Ground, a Fiction Mystery/Sci-fi book for young adults. Tonio will sign books and speak about the story. There will also be a wine tasting for adults who attend and bring their children to meet Tonio Favetta.
When: Saturday, May 20th from 3:00 to 5:00 P.M.
Where: UnWined Boutique, 345 Millburn Avenue, Millburn, NJ 07041
Phone: 973-467-4100 unwined-boutique.com
THE ANCIENT EVIL AT CAPE NOVEMBER DOESN’T CARE THAT THIS IS THE LAST TIME ALISON WILL GET TO BE WITH HER BEST FRIEND OLIVIA BEFORE SHE MOVES AWAY. ALISON’S MOM DESCRIBED IT AS A FAMILY VACATION OF SUN, SAND AND SURF, BUT THE OLD TOURIST TOWN IS NOT THE PARADISE MOM AND DAD REMEMBER FROM THEIR TEENAGE YEARS. THE TOWN IS PRACTICALLY DESERTED—EXCEPT FOR THE STRANGERS IN A WHITE VAN WHO KEEP FOLLOWING THEM. THE MANSION THEY’RE STAYING IN MIGHT BE HAUNTED. A MYSTERIOUS GIRL LIVES UPSTAIRS AND THERE ARE RUMORS OF A SEA MONSTER. WHEN MOM AND DAD JOIN THE LONG LIST OF MISSING PEOPLE, IT’S UP TO ALISON AND OLIVIA, ALONG WITH ALISON’S BIG BROTHER MICHAEL, TO SOLVE THE MYSTERY OF CAPE NOVEMBER TO SAVE THEM, AND MAYBE THE WORLD.
An old woman watched them from her perch on a stool behind the front counter. She was round and flabby. Parts of her oozed over the side of the stool. Her face was red and rough. Above her scowl, her hair stuck up like wires.
Alison remembered what it felt like to be overweight, not that she’d ever been as big as the old woman. She wondered for a moment if that’s what she would have eventually looked like if she hadn’t started eating better and exercising more. If Olivia hadn’t helped her. Alison felt kind of sorry for the old woman who had no Olivia in her life. Maybe she didn’t have anyone in her life. Alison smiled at her, but the old woman just kept scowling. This annoyed Alison. This is why I never bother to be nice to people.
Even this far up the highway, there were Cape November postcards and magnets, picture frames and ashtrays. Some showed the beach or the ocean, but they could have been of any beach as far as Alison could tell. There were a few old-fashioned sepia pictures of old cars and men in suits with derby hats and women in long hoop skirts. A few faded postcards showed a lighthouse that looked like it was made of blue stone blocks.
But the place was more like an antiques store than a gift shop. There were sets of old dishes, racks of men’s neckties, a whole row of used coffeemakers, all shoved next to each other with no order, just chaos.
As Alison moved farther in, the shelves became more cluttered and dusty. A black mug caught her eye. Examining it, she saw a dark sky over a stormy ocean. Huge octopus tentacles reached up out of the waves. Blue, dripping letters spelled, Beware of Cappy. Alison shivered slightly and set down the mug. The whole place was giving her the creeps, and she was sorry she’d come in. Alison glanced back at the old woman. Still scowling.
Alison found Olivia, moving from shelf to shelf, picking up a ratty old pocketbook and then a huge desktop lighter. She was fascinated by stuff like that. Olivia was curious about everything, like a little kid in some ways. Each new thing she would pick up and show Alison. They laughed together. It felt good.
They laughed like that the night before when they were packing. Alison had spent an hour giving Olivia a killer pedicure, and then she hid her toes inside her stupid running shoes. She had probably destroyed the pedicure, but Alison had learned a long time ago that it wasn’t worth getting annoyed at Olivia for things like that. That was just Olivia. She was proud to be clueless about fashion.
Tonio Favetta will talk about his new book, Falling From the Ground, his love for reading, and the process that lead to his book being completed and published. He will also sign your book, answer any questions you may, and entertain you with his wit at this Milburn Chamber of Commerce Spring Event.
345 Millburn Ave. Millburn, NJ 07041
THE TOWN IS NOT THE PARADISE MOM AND DAD REMEMBERED FROM THEIR TEENAGE YEARS. IT IS PRACTICALLY DESERTED—EXCEPT FOR THE STRANGERS IN A WHITE VAN WHO KEEP FOLLOWING THEM. THE MANSION THEY’RE STAYING IN MIGHT BE HAUNTED. A MYSTERIOUS GIRL LIVES UPSTAIRS AND THERE ARE RUMORS OF A SEA MONSTER. WHEN MOM AND DAD JOIN THE LONG LIST OF MISSING PEOPLE, IT’S UP TO ALISON AND OLIVIA, ALONG WITH ALISON’S BIG BROTHER MICHAEL, TO SOLVE THE MYSTERY OF CAPE NOVEMBER TO SAVE THEM, AND MAYBE THE WORLD.
Olivia swallowed her last bite of awesome cheeseburger. Mr. Nunios was right; the food was great. The old wood paneling made everything dark, but antique stained glass lamps, each one different, hung over the tables. In the yellow light of the lamps, Olivia saw dozens of black and white photographs stuck on the mirror. Many were of parties from long ago with people dancing in suits and dresses. In some they wore paper party hats like it was New Year’s Eve or something. Some were close-ups, signed by people Olivia had never heard of, but who must have been famous once. She wondered if she signed a picture and hung it on the mirror, would some kid in fifty years think she had been a celebrity because she had a picture hanging on the wall.
The table was littered with their dirty plates. Everyone’s antique map placemat was stained with ketchup and barbecue sauce except Mrs. Nunios’s. Her map was still clean. Olivia could see the tentacles of a mythical sea monster just offshore near a finger of land labeled Cape November.
Feeling guilty for picking at her fries in front of Alison, Olivia covered her plate with her paper napkin like Alison had. That had been Alison’s nutritionist’s suggestion. If Alison finished all her fries, her mother would be all over her about it.
To distract herself from the fries, Olivia watched Michael tip back in his chair and pat his rock-hard abs. The terrifying boneyard in his plate used to be his Oink and Cluck Deluxe platter.
Mrs. Nunios called the pale, young waitress and politely asked her to wrap up her grilled chicken Caesar salad.
“You’re taking that?” Mr. Nunios asked, sounding doubtful.
“It’s a whole piece of chicken and a lot of salad.”
“Who’s gonna eat it?”
“I’ll eat the chicken.” Michael beamed.
“You’ll eat anything,” Alison pointed out.
“I gotta feed the pythons.” While the waitress cleared their places, Michael grinned broadly and, leaning farther back in his chair, flexed his huge biceps in his red sleeveless tee shirt. It said Bulls Wrestling. The waitress was pretty, Olivia decided, in a washed-out kind of way. Not her type, but she could see where Michael would try to flirt with her.
Olivia had spent a lot of time in one gym or another, and as a swimmer, she had seen plenty of great bodies, both male and female. There was no denying that Michael was in impressive shape. Big, but not bulky. Solid as a rock. A lot of girls thought Michael was totally hot and, while he definitely wasn’t her type, she understood the attraction. She considered for a moment what it would be like to be with Michael, but it was only a thought experiment. With his thick mop of curly black hair, he looked like a male version of Alison, except his eyes were blue like his dad and Alison’s were brown like Mrs. Nunios. It wasn’t like she never fantasized about being with Alison, but when the fantasy was over and reality returned, she felt dirty and guilty, so she rarely indulged in that daydream. There were plenty of other pretty girls to think about.
Olivia felt embarrassed and slightly violated when Michael’s chair made a loud cracking noise, startling her out of her naughty thoughts. He flapped his arms like a bird to keep from falling over backwards. Olivia laughed out loud.
“Don’t encourage him,” Mrs. Nunios sighed.
“Did you just break the chair, Mikey?” Mr. Nunios snapped. “I swear if you busted that chair…”
Michael looked down and wiggled his weight around on it. “No. I saved it.”
Olivia cracked up at Michael and then really lost it when she saw that Alison had snarfed club soda out of her nose. Michael was laughing, too.
The waitress looked more annoyed than amused, probably because she was the one cleaning up. The waitress scurried back into the kitchen to wrap the food for Michael’s pythons. Watching her sway Olivia realized the waitress might have been more her type than she had first thought. Not that Olivia could do anything about it at the moment. She couldn’t even flirt badly like Michael. Not unless she was ready to answer a bunch of uncomfortable questions. And she wasn’t. Story of my life.
Tonio Favetta, the author, is inviting all artists to create illustrations of characters and scenes from his new book Falling From the Ground. Your art work can be submitted as an attachment to an email to tonio@fallingfromtheground.com in either JPEG or EPS format.
All credited submittals will be displayed on this web site as part of the GALLERY along with the artist's name and contact information. In addition, the artwork will be prominently displayed on social media and at live public events for the novel.
Tonio Favetta will talk about his new book, Falling From the Ground, his love for reading, and the process that lead to his book being completed and published. He will also sign your book, answer any questions you may, and entertain you with his wit at this Milburn Chamber of Commerce Spring Event.
345 Millburn Ave. Millburn, NJ 07041
“Yeah,” Alison called back. “Are you?”
“Besides my head, I think I broke my shin against the stupid bed. Other than that, I’m fine. Let me in.” His knocking sounded urgent.
Olivia hated the lonely feeling of Alison pulling away. She heard her move through the dark. There was a clunk and Alison grunted in pain.
“Now what?” Olivia asked. Her heart felt quick and shaky.
The flashlight came on blinding. “I dropped my stupid phone on my toe.” Alison shined the light down toward her feet. “Aww, man! I chipped my pedicure.”
Michael knocked again.
Stamping angrily toward the bathroom door, Alison’s bare footfalls sounded like someone was punching meat. She slid the bolt. “What do you want?”
Michael stepped in wearing black boxers covered with yellow, skull-shaped happy faces. In one hand he carried a flashlight. In the other hand, he held a fireplace poker like a sword.
Olivia gave a small squeak and ducked under the covers.
“Where did you get that flashlight?” Alison demanded. “Did Penny give you a flashlight?”
“No. I packed it.” His smiled beamed brighter than the light. “Semper paratis.”
“Did you join the Coast Guard or something?” Olivia wasn’t used to Michael quoting Latin sayings.
Michael looked confused. “Huh? It’s from Sharknado. It means always prepared.” Michael shined his light around their room like a detective. “What are you guys doing in here, anyway?”
“Nothing,” Alison sounded annoyed. “Our lamp burned out,” Alison explained. “It just scared us.”
Olivia called from under the covers, “But your underwear is scaring us more.” Olivia peeked out. Alison stood angrily with one hand on her hip, tapping her toes.
“The rule, Michael!” she snapped. “A shirt at all times!”
“Hey, I was just trying to help you,” Michael sounded dejected. “You were screaming.” He turned to leave. “And by the way, you’re in your underwear, too.”
“It’s our room. And we didn’t scream,” Alison said.
“So who did?” Michael stepped back in, bringing the little circle of pale light with him.
“How should I know?” Alison said testily. “Maybe it was a raccoon.”
Michael shook his head and looked at Alison like she was an idiot. “It was definitely a scream. A human scream. And it came from inside.”
Falling From the Ground started as a thought experiment way back in 2008. My wife and I took our first weekend away without our kids who were still little. We headed for Cape May, New Jersey for a three-day weekend. By the time we checked into the lovely bed and breakfast, my wife had a full-blown stomach flu. This does not really make a romantic getaway terribly romantic.
There I was in this cool old mansion (Cape May has a lot of cool, old mansions) reading HP Lovecraft (still one of my favorite authors) and I got this idea for a story set in a town like Cape May where kids find themselves fighting an evil monster. After years of writing, rewriting, and editing I am pleased to be able to share the story with everyone. Please read Falling From the Ground and send me your comments. Available from amazon.com.
According to the voice on the GPS, the address was coming up on the left, but all Olivia could see was a dense tangle of ancient trees and a thick overgrowth of wild underbrush.
“Wait. I think that’s a driveway.” Alison’s father pointed to their left.
Olivia could make out a break in the trees that formed a natural arch. The minivan lurched, splashing through puddles in the unpaved driveway. Low branches of the huge old trees, heavy with rainwater, hung down scraping the roof and sides of the minivan. There was a sudden, thwapping crack.
“Now what?” Mr. Nunios moaned.
Hitting the brakes, Mrs. Nunios tried to look through the rain on the shattered windshield. “Antenna I think. Must’ve gotten caught on a branch and snapped off.”
“Perfect.” Alison’s father leaned his head onto the headrest heavily. “Put it on the bill for this trip. Michael, don’t say one word.”
It was especially dark under the canopy of leaves. Olivia heard Alison’s mom clicking the high beams, the low beams, the fog lights, but it was almost impossible to see. The knot of woods stretched back at least a hundred yards from the road until it thinned out to a weedy, overgrown lawn that Olivia could only see in pale, ghostly bursts with every flash of lightning. In between the flashes, the world disappeared.
A few old trees sat here and there around the lawn like old ladies feeding pigeons in the park. Olivia thought these trees probably would have decorated the lawn and added character once, but it had been so long since anyone had taken care of them, that they had grown into huge, bony fingers against the flashing sky.
The driveway opened to a gravel plaza that wound around a large, circular stone fountain. The headlights lit up a tower of three fish that stood in the middle of the fountain. Each crumbling fish jumped out of the mouth of the larger fish below it. Or maybe each larger fish was swallowing the smaller prey.
Big fish eats little fish? Olivia wondered. Or little fish lives to swim another day? Hope or despair? She loves me. She loves me not. I would ask the artist about the theme, but he or she has probably been dead for fifty years. If not longer.
The fish at the top looked like it used to spit out the water that made the fountain. But the only water in it now came from the rain. Mosquitoes must love it. Zika virus, anyone? But then, she reasoned, if there are mosquitoes, there must also be birds, dragonflies and bats to eat them.
How many microorganisms live in that water? A tiny ocean full of all kinds of creatures. I should have brought my microscope. I don’t care how dorky Alison thinks it is. We could have seen dinoflagellates whipping around. Maybe some protozoa. Like a private zoo.
The minivan stopped. Wondering what the latest disaster was, Olivia leaned over to look out the window. Under the strobe lights of the storm Maggie’s Mansion suddenly sprawled into view. A long, wide flight of steps led up from the gravel plaza to the wooden porch that stretched across the entire front of the building. A square, flat-roofed tower stretched up four stories taller than the square, flat-roofed shoulders of the three-story base.
Alison wrinkled up her nose, “Great! A haunted house!”
Clucking her tongue against the roof of her mouth in disgust, Alison’s mother said sharply, “Stop being dramatic. It’s charming. They don’t build places like this anymore.”
“Because they’re creepy?” Alison asked. “Nice sign.” She pointed to a large sign lit up in the beam of the headlights. The words Maggie’s Mansion appeared in an elegant, but fading script. Painted above the name, a jagged, red proofreading caret indicated an insertion between the two words on the sign. Above that, in red, drippy letters, somebody had scrawled in the word Haunted.
“Great, Mom,” Michael moaned. “You actually booked us at a haunted house.”
Olivia laughed to herself. She didn’t want to add to the tension by making Mrs. Nunios think she was piling on, too, but she had to admit, Michael was pretty funny sometimes. And he had a point. She turned to Alison, who looked miserable.
Falling From the Ground is a story for both the young adult and the young at heart readers. It is the culmination of many years of diligent work and the realization of a dream I have carried in my heart since I was young. I sincerely hope you enjoy it. To purchase the book from Amazon, click here...
Falling From the Ground was partly inspired by the funky, slightly freaky vibe of beach towns like Cape May, NJ and Provincetown, MA. The Strange Xchange pop-up flea market today, hosted by Mark and Mark of Weird NJ Magazine manages to bottle up a little of that lightning. This will be a fun place to set up a table and meet some new readers next time the event comes to town. I wonder what new characters it will inspire...
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