Virtual Book Tour + #Giveaway: Serpents and Doves by G. Lloyd Helm @GoddessFish

Serpents and Doves

by G. Lloyd Helm

GENRE:  Literary Fiction

BLURB:

Stephen Mitchell did not know what he was getting into at a small church college in Tennessee. Sex, protest, friendship, and Civil rights. The title “Serpents and Doves” comes from the warning Jesus gave to his disciples as he sent them out to preach the gospel, knowing the dangers they were going into. He said “I send you out as sheep among wolves, therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves.” Stephen Mitchell learns first-hand what that warning means when he goes to a Tennessee church college in the midst of the turbulent 60’s. He learns about friendship, war, protest, the sexual revolution, and civil rights.

Pre-order Link:

Amazon

EXCERPT:

Ethan’s suicide rocked the school, but not nearly as much as Stephen expected. The New Jersey and New York folks mostly didn’t know anything about Ethan or the BSU so they noted the suicide as a bit of news, but it didn’t effect them much.  There was some anti-homosexual noise and the inevitable nasty jokes, but Ethan Patrick’s passing caused no more than a ripple for the most part.

There was some noise and protest from the Mason First Baptist Church when Billie Jo asked them to hold the funeral service, but finally they said they would bury him, but not in the church cemetery. They ignored the fact of his suicide and the reasons for it and held a small service. Stephen debated with himself whether he should go.   He had about decided not to when Cathy Powell cornered him and asked if he would go with her.  “I really don’t have the strength Steve,” she said. “I’m just a wreck. Can’t you please come with me?” 

Stephen seriously thought about saying, Why don’t you go ask David Hall? But didn’t say it.  “All right. I’ll meet you at the church.”

She smiled sadly, but Stephen thought he saw just the smallest glimmer of triumph in it.

The coffin was set across the aisle in front of the altar. Closed. It was silvery gray and looked more like a large tin can than a coffin. The congregation was small, mostly people from the BSU but a few from Beacon’s faculty including Dr. Conners and Dr. Marchant. Having the Pope there was no surprise. Probably here to make sure the sumbitch is really dead, Stephen thought, and then felt bad about thinking it.

Guest Post:

10 favorite places to visit:

I have a lot of favorite places that I would like to go back to. There are many I want to go to eventually but haven't been fortunate enough to make yet.

Favorite places I have visited would include Madrid, Barcelona, Sevilla and Jerez de la Frontera in Spain. I especially loved the Prado in Madrid and Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. There were just a thousand great places all over the Iberian peninsula. I spent three years in Spain back in the late Seventies and I fell in love with it. I grew up stumbling through Spanish in the San Fernando Valley in California. I had many friends named Garcia and Martinez, but you never really learn a language until you are dumped out in the middle of a place where you are the only one who doesn't really speak it. My Spanish is pretty good now. 

Another favorite place is Venice, Italy. This is another place I was privileged to live for three years. I really have decided to adopt La Serrenisima as my home town. I loved it and the people in it. If you ever get a chance to read the book "The City of Falling Angels"  you can know the Venice I knew while I was there. Many of the people in that book were friends of mine. I traveled all over Italy while I was there and loved every inch of it. Met nice people, ate terrific food.

A little less exotic place I love is San Francisco. I go up there as often as I can. There is just something about that "city by the bay" that intrigues me. Maybe the association with Mark Twain and Jack London, hoping some of that will rub off on me, or maybe the Tamales Bay oysters. I could eat them by the hundred.

This is a harder question than one might think because I am a traveler. The Arkansas traveler if you'll excuse me for saying so. I was born in Little Rock and started traveling up and down Route 66 when I was three years old, which brings me to another favorite place. I couldn't have been more than four or five the first time I saw the Grand Canyon, and I have been back there many times since. I can't believe that John C. Fremont saw the canyon and said that he didn't think anyone would go out of their way to see it. It is breath taking, and to see it by moonlight is even more so. Connected with the Canyon are all the old pueblo cultures which stir the archeologist  in me. Have visited many of the pueblos in Oak creek canyon and on to Mesa Verde.

Along the east coast, there are many places. Last summer my wife Michele and I drove across country then up the east coast and into Canada, then back across the Trans-Canadian highway. I Can't tell you the number of places I loved on that trip, starting with Georgia. Of course with that I am a little prejudiced since my grandson lives there, but I am fascinated by the history, especially the civil war history of Georgia, and I have friends, and relatives that know about that history who live there.

I guess I better shut up here, now. Hope I didn't bore you with my adventures.

AUTHOR BIO:

G. Lloyd Helm has been writing for 40 years, having published poetry in a wide variety of magazines and newspapers including “The New York Poetry Anthology,” “Stars and Stripes News,” “The Los Angeles Times,” “The Antelope Valley Press,” and “The Antelope Valley Anthologies,” among others. 

… Has published short stories and memoirs both in the US and in England in such journals as “Pligrimage” which published the memoir “Football” in spring 2005, and a second memoir “4 April, 1968” in the winter of 2008.  He has published short stories in “Citadel” the literary magazine of Los Angeles City College,” “Delivered Magazine,” which is based in London, “Short Story Library,” The University of S. Illinois’ “Eureka Literary Magazine,” “Tales as like as not,” and London’s “Black Gate Magazine.”  Recently published “Even Up” a Civil War Ghost story at www.ruthlesspeoples.com, an English on line magazine, and the short story “A Lovely Elephant” in “Delivered Magazine” an English fiction journal. “The Other Fellows Shoes,” Pulp Empire III, Metahuman Press, Cedar Rapids, IA Nov. 2010. Is being published in an on line experiment from Alfie Dog Publishing in England. May 2012.

…Has published three novels in the F&SF field, 1) OTHER DOORS, From MousePrints Publishing, and 2) DESIGN from American Star. 3) WORLD WITHOUT END from Rogue Phoenix Press, www.roguephoenixpress.com  OTHER DOORS, originally published in 1997, was published electronically by Rogue Phoenix Press in July 2010. Also Published a literary Romance novel called SOMETIMES IN DREAMS, from Siren’s call. Most recently a volume of short stories called TRAIN WHEELS, FLYING SAUCERS, AND THE GHOST OF TIBURCIO VASQUEZ. Many of these stories appear on the Alfie Dog site.

…Is in process of publishing an adult literary novel called SERPENTS AND DOVES with Rogue Phoenix Press, which will be out in May 2016.

LINKS:

Goodreads ~ Amazon

Giveaway:

10 paperback copies of Serpents and Doves

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