Spin-off of the Father of Contention series
Paranormal Thriller, Science Fiction, Horror
Date Published: 11-14-2023
Freedom is a state of mind.
Brigita Nowak has only ever wanted one thing—her freedom. Labelled psychotic and committed to a mental institution at seventeen, she missed the chance of a “normal” life. She never held a job, owned her own place, or experienced love. Until now.
After awakening sprawled on the common room floor—the hospital in ruins, the staff and patients missing—she realizes it’s her chance to escape. Seeking sanctuary with her sister, she meets “the boyfriend” Renner Scholz, a vile yet brilliant geneticist. He has developed a bioweapon, the Code of Reanimation, destined to destroy the world. Or so Brigita believes. She’s been seeing zombie hallucinations as of late, a sure premonition of the highly contagious bioweapon getting out of hand. Why the connection? Because the bioweapon reanimates dead organisms into bloodthirsty killing machines.
Brigita has typically experienced death-based hallucinations, blamed on her mental illness. She, however, always felt they were psychic premonitions. Convinced that Renner intends to release the bioweapon at a public fundraising event, she teams up with a handsome love interest to thwart the catastrophe. But, as Brigita’s visions kick into hyperdrive and timelines blur, she must determine which events are based on reality or delusional constructs of her subconscious mind...
before it’s too late.
Interview with Lanie Mores
Have you read anything that made you think differently about fiction?
I love reading books that are original and make you think outside the box. One example is Sophie’s World: A Novel About the History of Philosophy by Jostein Gaardner. This book took a unique angle in exploring the different philosophical concepts of Western thought in an unexpectedly fun, imaginative, and informative way. The author took what could be a dry, loaded topic, and beautifully brought it to life. That book really stuck with me.
How do you select the names of your characters?
I use a few different methods. Google is one method. I look up baby names or common international names for characters of different ethnicities. Sometimes I’ll scour movie credits for names that call out to me. For example, Renner Scholz, my main character in the Father of Contention series, was inspired by the actor, Jeremy Renner.
Do you hide any secrets in your books that only a few people will find?
I do… there is so much personal information hidden in my books that only friends and family would recognize. Some are from my own experiences, and some are from my loved ones (used with permission, of course). I also tucked in a lot of biblical messages and references that people might miss unless they are familiar with the Christian Bible.
What was your hardest scene to write?
Writing love scenes is outside my comfort zone. I’m not into super spicy books in general, and my books are Christian based, so I try not to go into too much detail with my romantic scenes. Code of Reanimation, however, called for a spicier scene and so I wrote it… but with much difficulty. It’s still quite mild according to today’s standards, but more detailed than I’m used to.
Do you want each book to stand on its own, or are you trying to build a body of work with connections between each book?
My goal with the Father of Contention series was to have books that could stand alone, but that were also connected into a larger world with an overall storyline. Basically, you can start at any point in the series because there’s enough background information to catch you up on the story. But I always recommend starting at the beginning if you want to have the best experience. Code of Reanimation is a spin-off to the series, so it does stand more apart from the other books. It has a different feel… it’s more science fiction and thriller/horror as compared to the series, which is predominantly fantasy.
What were your goals and intentions in this book, and how well do you feel you achieved them?
I’m always my worst critic, so I can only hope I achieved what I set out to do, which was write something twisty, mind-bending, fun, and provocative at the same time. This book was intended to tie up the loose ends of my book series, while introducing some new characters and concepts that will be carried forward in a new series I’m working on, Mutants Ever After.
What inspired you to write Code of Reanimation?
Three things inspired this book. First, my dreams, which literally inspired several scenes in this story. Mostly the ones that are zombie-ish in nature. Second, many years ago in my Abnormal Psychology course, we learned about a case study of a woman with catatonic schizophrenia who had a particularly rare and terrifying symptom, which I gave to my main character, Brigita Nowak. And third, my science background, which led me to the discovery of the zombie ant parasite, which indeed does exist in real life. I couldn’t help but question what would happen if the parasite was suddenly able to infect humans.
Can you tell us a little bit about the next books in Code of Reanimation or what you have planned for the future?
The next step in the Code of Reanimation storyline is a new series I’m writing, Mutants Ever After. It’s based around McKinnon Juris, one of the characters introduced in Code of Reanimation. In the new series, a grown-up McKinnon is a paranormal investigator working for her greatest enemy, Dr. Barrett. I’m also currently working on a dark fairytale, called Goldenhair, which is a standalone book in the fantasy genre that I’m super excited to share with the world.
Can you tell us a little bit about the characters in Code of Reanimation
Here’s a quick rundown of the main characters:
Brigita Nowak—has catatonic schizophrenia, psychic abilities, is constantly misunderstood, often ignored. She’s strong-willed despite being mistreated throughout her life.
Amir Habib—Brigita’s love interest, Amir is a hero, always putting other people first. He’s a sweet, cinnamon-roll-boyfriend type that always sticks up for his loved ones.
Renner Scholz—diabolical, ruthless scientist. A darkness resides within him that dictates his deadly actions. Harsh, condescending, typical narcissist.
Milena Nowak—Brigita’s sister. Stunningly gorgeous, psychic. Takes care of her sister, but often treats her differently because of her mental health diagnosis. Making Renner, her boyfriend, happy is her primary concern.
McKinnon Juris—ten-year-old with paranormal abilities. Favours ruthless bio-kills, but only targets bad people. Extremely powerful.
Dr. Barrett—psychiatrist and head of the SCRUB program at McMillan Psychiatric Hospital. He’s a brain-washed government pawn, determined to find and destroy all phenomena and people that are paranormal.
What did you enjoy most about writing this book?
The horror genre is one of my favourites, and I always wanted to write a story that was scary and gory and had monsters in it that made you quake in your boots. Zombies have always been a fascination of mine, and they regularly haunt my dreams, so they took center stage in this book. I was able to unleash my darkest thoughts and the blackest part of my imagination. Although there are monsters and gore, I would say that this is primarily a psychological horror. Time and time again, humans have proven that they can become the scariest monsters of all.
About the Author
Lanie Mores is the award-winning author of the science fiction and fantasy book series, Father of Contention. She has an Honours Bachelor of Science Degree, a Masters Degree in Clinical Psychology, and she is an active member of the Canadian Authors Association. When she isn't writing, you'll find her reading, binge-watching Netflix, baking, and slaughtering zombies and other monsters on her Xbox. She lives in Ontario with her family and forever barking fur babies, Batman and Petri.
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3 comments:
Thank you so much for hosting today, and for the wonderful interview. Much appreciated! ❤
looks like a fun one
I'm looking forward to reading this. Thanks for sharing.
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