Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Precipice by M.Pax, moving the Gay Head Lighthouse, & the real ghost of Aquinnah

I never intended to drop out of the blogosphere after May's IWSG meeting but, as seems to be the norm for me lately, I got distracted by some unexpected issues and next thing I knew May was almost at an end. The good news is the issues are behind me and were nothing serious, but the bad news is I am very late to the launch party for the latest book in M. Pax's amazing Backworlds series, Precipice.

Still, I am thrilled to be able to share another great installment in this series and help spread the word about all of M. Pax's brilliant books. If you are reading this and haven't checked her work out yet, do so right away! You won't regret it. :)

Before I get to Precipice though I just wanted to share a few things that relate to my book The Ghosts of Aquinnah and the island on which it is set, Martha's Vineyard.



I wrote this post in the summer of 2013 about the need to move the Gay Head lighthouse, which is featured on the book cover, due to erosion of the Aquinnah cliffs. After two years of planning and fundraising, the move is underway now.

Source: http://www.mvtimes.com/
While I can't begin to understand the engineering behind the move, the lighthouse will somehow be transferred to the track shown in the above photo and moved 130 feet back from its current location.

The lighthouse has been on the cliffs since 1856 and it is still a guiding light for those navigating the waters of Vineyard Sound. It will be strange to see it in a different place when I return to the island, but I'm so glad that it has been saved.

In another interesting tidbit related to my Aquinnah book, I learned that there is actually a real legend of a female ghost haunting the beach that is eerily close to my own story.

In the book Martha's Vineyard: Quiet Pleasures, author Phyllis Meras writes about a local legend which states that a young woman wearing a long cape can be found prowling the Aquinnah shoreline on the night of the full moon. While my ghost Stella didn't only appear during a full moon, she did wear a cape, she was very young, and the Aquinnah cliffs were her haunting grounds. It was bizarre and kind of surreal to come upon this story in Ms. Meras' book. Now I can't help but hope I get to see this ghost sometime! :D

Now on to Precipice!


Blurb:

In the far future, humanity settles the stars, bioengineering its descendants to survive in a harsh universe. This is the sixth book in the science fiction series, The Backworlds. A space opera adventure.
The Backworlds hang by a Quantum string, a thread about to snap. Annihilation is coming if Craze can’t stop it.
The genocidal alien he had trapped breaks free, destroying a ship belonging to the Backworlds’ oldest enemy, the Fo’wo’s. The murderous alien wants to overtake the galaxy. The Fo’wo’s want another war.
The Backworlds’ best chance to survive is to overcome a century of hate and forge an alliance with the Fo’wo’s. Because of his history with the alien, Craze is recruited to represent his people. Now he’s the most hated man in the galaxy.
The looming war will be a holocaust unless Craze can stop it, knowing salvation comes at a price.

Excerpt: 

Commander Hunninger tapped an icon on her tab and jabbed it in Craze’s face. “You really want to say no to this?”
The screen was too close. He grabbed the device from her manly fingers and brought the image into focus. A brand new, state-of-the-art, mini city docking facility. Pardeep Station had never seen finer and probably never would. Better protection from the dust storms was a necessity, and folks had to get out of the cold. Craze tired of the stench of the sick. “How much is it goin’ to cost? Everyone on this moon barely has three chips to jangle in their holey pockets.”
“No chips.” She smiled. Her wide mouth contained a lot of very white teeth.
Three good sucks on his air hose and Craze knew he wasn’t dreaming. He narrowed his eyes. “There’s still a price.”

Buy links: Amazon / B&N / iBook / Googleplay / Smashwords / Kobo / Other



About M. Pax:

Fantasy, science fiction, and the weird beckons to her, and she blames Oregon, a source of endless inspiration. She docents at Pine Mountain Observatory in the summers, and one of her cats has a crush on Mr. Spock. You can find out more by visiting her website: mpaxauthor.com


33 comments:

  1. I have some lovely pictures of that lighthouse from a summer I lived on the Vineyard. It's strange to think of it as being relocated, but many of them are these days, Block Island, and Truro, I think. Thank goodness they are saving it!

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  2. I'm totally impressed they're going to move a lighthouse. Engineering is really cool, isn't it? Too bad the land is eroding, though. Thanks for sharing this.

    Don't knock yourself for vanishing from the blogosphere. I've done the same thing over the past few months - totally unintended, too. I dropped the ball for Mary as well. Hoping to release her post soon and even a little interview. She's great! Congrats to her again.

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  3. Amazing they are going to move it. Would be cool to watch them do it.
    Congratulations to Mary.
    And glad your issues are behind you now. We've missed you.

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  4. Yeh, Julie's back! :)

    It always amazes me how they can move buildings and structures like that. And, as cool as knowing about that other ghost is, I still don't think I'd want to bump into her and chat. :)

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  5. It would be something to see them move that lighthouse.

    I'd love to meet to real ghost of Aquinnah, too.

    Yay to Mary! :D

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  6. Welcome back, Julie!! I have no idea how the engineering for moving a lighthouse works, either. Pretty amazing what they can do, though!

    Congratulations, Mary!

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  7. Moving buildings is no easy feat. I've seen them move a huge church here in Salt Lake City. I've also seen them move a really tall building.

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  8. @Liza, oh, I would love to live on MV for a whole summer. Maybe someday!

    @SA, thanks and I hope you are able to get back to blogging soon as well.

    @Alex, that's so nice of you to say, thanks.

    @Madeline, I wouldn't either LOL. Thanks!

    @Chrys, wouldn't it? I would love to see it.

    @Liz, definitely. I can't begin to understand it.

    @Michael, that would be so cool to see.

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  9. Congrats on the book! Sounds like Craze has his hands full. I watched a show about moving a lighthouse. It was quite the feat of engineering and it was for the same reason. Is it just me or does the lighthouse look like it is leaning? The ghost sounds really cool and would love to be there on a full moon

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  10. I really enjoyed the Ghosts of Aquinnah and it's nice to hear the lighthouse will be saved. Maybe you really did sense that ghost's presence, it's an eerie coincidence!

    Congrats to Mary!

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  11. Very cool about "your" lighthouse being moved inland, and about the ghost being in the area. I hope you get to meet her next time you're there. :)

    Also very cool about Mary's newest book. Geez, I'm waaaaay behind on her series. I'd better get my butt in gear!

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  12. Thank you, Julie. I'm always happy with whenever. Glad things are all right.

    I'd like to watch them move the light house. That would be neat. I spent many summers on Cape Cod when I was a kid. It's a wonderful area of the country.

    Ooo, neat about the real ghost story.

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  13. How cool is that! I'd like to see how they move a lighthouse. I'm glad to hear things are better. And yay for Mary! :)

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  14. @Birgit, I didn't notice but you're right, it does look like it's leaning! I hope that's just something weird with the pic LOL.

    @Nick, oh, so glad you enjoyed it, thank you!

    @Susan, Mary is so prolific it's easy to get behind! Not the case with me LOL. If I really did see the ghost I'd probably have a heart attack but it would be cool!

    @Mary, congrats again on the release and I hope it's been a big success so far.

    @Christine, I know, I wish I was visiting this summer.

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  15. I'm glad that your issues were not serious and are in the past. Thanks for sharing about the light house. That is so wonderful that they are saving it. It would be amazing to see it moved. I hope it works flawlessly.

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  16. Missed you Julie, glad you are back. Congratulations To Mary on her book release. Like her book title and cover a lot.

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  17. Congratulations to M. Pax. I can't believe you want to see the real ghost. That would freak me out. But I do love reading about them though. It's great to have you back.

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  18. Glad you've sorted out things, Julie. If life were always smooth sailing we'd never have a chance to enjoy the lulls in our life.

    Great post for Mary. I always love pictures of her hugging her telescope. She's in love with the stars, isn't she?

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  19. Hi, Julie! There is always something happening. Right?

    Mary, your book sounds good . Bioengineering, however, makes me shudder.

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  20. How cool that your book and a real legend of a ghost is so closely related!! So glad they're able to save the lighthouse. Congrats to Mary!!

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  21. Congrats to Mary!

    I'm glad they are saving that lighthouse. And that's so cool there is a ghost story with similarities to the one you came up with.

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  22. It does seem like a perfect setting for a ghost, so I'm not surprised there's a local tale about one. You definitely need to stake out those cliffs sometime and catch her!

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  23. They've managed to move even bigger buildings, but it would be fun to watch. A real ghost, awesome - have you done a book signing there?

    Mary, congrats on your release, sounds so intriguing. Like the phrase 'her manly fingers' - leaves a very clear image.

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  24. How exciting they're moving the lighthouse! I'm sure that you and the stylishly dressed ghost had something to do with it! I'm also glad you resolved your issues, and it wasn't anything serious, Julie. Congrats to Mary!

    Julie

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  25. So cool that there is a ghost like yours sighted at the cliffs!

    And yay for M. Pax's release! :)

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  26. @Kat, I hope so too. Thanks!

    @Rachna, aww, thanks! Missed you all as well.

    @Murees, LOL, if I really saw the ghost I'm sure I'd freak out as well. Thank you!

    @Lee, good point. And I agree, that's a perfect picture for Mary.

    @Shelly, always!

    @Cathy, I still can't believe it, such a weird coincidence!

    @Cherie, I agree, thanks!

    @Annalisa, that's true, it is a great home for ghosts LOL.

    @Yolanda, I did do a signing there last year, it was such a thrill to be able to do it.

    @Julie, LOL, definitely the ghost and I were in cahoots. :D

    @Ava, agreed!

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  27. Congrats to Mary! And moving a lighthouse sounds kinda hard. And how cool about the "real" ghost!

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  28. Congrats to M.Pax! And wow, how uncanny that there's an actual haunting that matches the one in your book so well. Crazy how coincidences like that happen sometimes!

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  29. @TB, LOL, no doubt. I can't imagine how they did it.

    @Heather, isn't it? I still can't believe it.

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  30. Great update on the lighthouse and the ghost story! And congrats to M Pax! Backworlds rocks!

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  31. Too cool about the real Aquinnah ghost! Also I'm so glad they're saving the lighthouse. And to hear about Mary's new book. Congrats to her!

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  32. I somehow missed that M Pax's new book was coming out!

    Wow, the work that must go into moving a lighthouse. Crazy. I hope the move goes as planned. Maybe you'll see the ghost when you go out to visit the new lighthouse!

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  33. @Tyrean, I agree, Mary is so talented.

    @Carol, I know, I still can't believe the ghost legend, it's kind of eerie LOL.

    @Shannon, that would be the best! Although I would probably run away like a scared little kid LOL.

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