There’s some news I’ve been sitting on for a few months now regarding a bit of writing I’m pretty proud of.

It’s more of an open secret than a truly classified project, but this week all t’s,i’s, p’s, and q’s settled into the right places, and you can now bask with me in the glory of

As Mt. Vesuvius rumbles ominously, Pompeiian Councilor Valerius needs assistance in performing rituals to protect the city from the wrath of the fire-god, Vulcan. But his agenda is far from benevolent, as he cares less about quieting the volcano than taming it and taking the power for himself.

Now it’s up to Horatius, a former legionnaire and gladiator, to prevent Valerius’s sinister rites from coming to fruition. But with Vesuvius looming over the city—and the dead rising to defend the corrupt councilor—the warrior might have fled a troubled past only to have entered a doomed future…

That’s right kids, I have a new book, a Foreworld Sidequest about the last day of Pompeii. In case you were wondering if you misread the above marketing text, let me break things down a bit for you.

GLADIATORS VS. ZOMBIES!!!

I first hit upon this idea soon after finishing Hearts of Iron. I made a formal pitch in April 2014, but the schedule for more Sidequests was somewhat murky at the time, and I was still an unproven commodity. But I write fast, and when Mark Teppo asked me how soon I could pull that pitch into a coherent story, I responded with my customary, editor-pleasing “when do you need it?”

Blood and Ashes is a bit longer than Hearts of Iron, but we needed the extra space to tell a really compelling story. I’ll be blogging about the process of bringing it to market in the next few months, and I hope you’ll share your own impressions of the book once it’s finally in your electronic hands. And for those of you who love listening to my work as well, there’s already an audiobook in the works (tentative release date in April 2014.)

So hey, have yourselves a Merry little Co-opted Winter Pantheistic Fusion Holiday, and

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