Subway Magic

Subway tunnels are prime locations for magical activities requiring darkness -- and grit.

Subway tunnels are prime locations for magical activities requiring darkness — and grit.

NYC subways in the 1970s and early 1980s were a very different experience from what they are today.

NYC subways in the 1970s and early 1980s were a very different experience from what they are today.

Subways are a fact of life in New York. More than a fact of life, in fact. They are one of the defining characteristics of life in New York. They get us to work and they get us back home. They get us to the movies and to restaurants. They get us from the Bronx to the Battery and to Coney Island or Flushing. No one can say they’ve truly visited New York or had an authentic New York experience without riding the subway.

Subways feature in books about New York, of course. One great book about vampires on the NYC subways during the gritty days of the late 1970s or early 1980s is Light at the End. Another more recent vampire novel set on the subways is The Lesser Dead. (A wonderful guide to vampire literature of all sorts is The Monster with a Thousand Faces: Guises of the Vampire in Myth and Literature which I highly recommend as well.)

Subways tunnels are dark and dirty, prime sites ready for wicked magic and evil magic-doers: The Night Tourist opens doors to the world of the dead. Subways also take us to the East Village and other neighborhoods where occult supply shops like Enchantments can be found if you need a new Tarot deck, appropriate herbs and spices, or any other magical supplies.

Wouldn’t it be even more magical if everyone remembered a little etiquette while riding the subway?

Just as everyone-including men-should sit on the subway with their knees together, it is also true that everyone-including women-should keep both feet on the floor rather than crossing their knees and sticking one foot out into the aisle halfway across the space allotted for people to stand! ARGH!

Photos from the Brooklyn Book Festival

"Alexei" and I as the Brooklyn Book Fair is about to open (September 2016)

“Alexei” and I as the Brooklyn Book Fair is about to open (September 2016)

It was humid–but the rain held off! The Brooklyn Book Festival 2016 is now one for the history books! “Alexei” met me at Booth #242 and then proceeded to wander the festival grounds, bringing new readers to share his adventures in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Bohemia.

Missed the festival? You can still get your copy of Storm Wolf — AND read some great new readers’ reviews here!

"Alexei" and I taking a break during the Brooklyn Book Festival (September 2016)

“Alexei” and I taking a break during the Brooklyn Book Festival (September 2016)

Werewolf in the sky? Storm clouds, beware!

Storm Wolf thumbnail

NOW AVAILABLE!

It’s out! Storm Wolf is now available in both paperback and Kindle editions! Order your copy TODAY!

Reviews:
“Morris’ werewolf isn’t a fur-coated romantic, but a refreshingly murky protagonist who’s both flawed and sympathetic; he kills innocents, but never intentionally. There are quite a few werewolf onslaughts, which the author unflinchingly portrays as bloody and brutal…. A dark supernatural outing, featuring indelible characters as sharp as wolves’ teeth.” — Kirkus Reviews 

“…a unique weaving together and retelling of central and eastern European werewolf folk tales. Set in 1890, when such tales were still being told, Storm Wolf stands apart from contemporary myth and legend retellings… The magic–Alexei’s battles with storm creatures, the conjuring of a snake demon from pipesmoke, a witch’s talisman of skin stripped from a sailor–is extraordinarily well imagined and described here. Dollops of regional history and glimpses of customs and legends are fascinating.” — Blue Ink Review

I will also be at the Brooklyn Book Festival on Sunday, September 18. Look for me in Booth #242! Come get your AUTOGRAPHED copies then!

OR enter here for a chance to win a free paperback copy!