Promotions and Freebies

Posted on December 12, 2015 by flwq1578

Lots of timely news.

Regina Shen Resilience

First, we’re holding a Kindle Countdown for Regina Shen: Resilience, the first book in the Regina Shen series, only 99 cents until December 17, 2015. Visit Amazon to check it out.

Second, we’re delighted to offer free novelettes in the Rebel and Regina Shen worlds for those who sign up for our newsletter.

Unintended Rebel ebook (SM)

By signing up, you’ll receive occasional notices about new releases, special offers, other free materials, and news related to my stories. To get your free downloads, just tell me where to send them here.

Lastly, we’re in the process of changing the covers on the Rebel series. You can still see the old covers on the print books:

The Kindle covers have already been changed:

We would love to hear your thoughts and comments on this change.

To create a little excitement over the new covers, we will be offering the Kindle version of the first book in the Rebels series (The Rebel Within) for only 99 cents from December 18-23, 2015 on Amazon.

Help us celebrate the cover change and promotions.

Thanks,

Lance

http://www.amazon.com/Lance-Erlick/e/B00C1PKYSA

Another Regina Shen Vigilance Review

Posted on December 11, 2015 by flwq1578

By D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review

This second novel in the Regina Shen series continues the engrossing post-apocalyptic saga begun in the first book. The setting is a world where the ice caps have melted and created two levels of society, and Regina is one of the outcasts here until authorities discover her unique DNA makeup, which holds possibilities for the continued existence of an increasingly threatened humanity.

Book One set the stage and should really be enjoyed before Vigilence; but even newcomers to this series will be able to quickly absorb its setting and characters, which open with Regina’s concerns about her new family and threats to its existence. She’s on a mission, hunting for a kidnapped sister – and to do so, she must jump the wall and enter a forbidden world filled with uncertainty and threats.

Part of what drives the action in the Regina Shen series is psychological depth: Regina doesn’t just react to events; she strives to understand the people behind them: “Alice was cute in a big-girl way. But she had hunger in her eyes to get what she wanted. In the swamps, I avoided bartering with her type. They tried to steal what you brought, and then steal what little they bartered in exchange. Afterwards, they gloated at your misfortune.”

In any fictional account, it’s this level of emotional depth and attention to motivations behind actions that elevate the superior read from the mundane nonstop staccato action thriller – and Regina Shen: Vigilance features this in abundance.

From the psyche of the Federation and its different lifestyles (““You want to race?” I asked. “That’s Marginal,” she whispered. “The Federation promotes Harmony, not competition.”“) to nefarious plans to exploit Regina’s DNA for less than altruistic or survival purposes, the story line is fast-paced but loses none of its tension by exploring different protagonists’ motivations and concerns.

The result is a gripping sequel in the series, highly recommended for both prior fans and newcomers to Regina Shen.

Regina Shen: Vigilance Review

Posted on December 4, 2015 by flwq1578

By Dawn

Vigilance is a good read but there’s not near as much as action in it as there was in Resilience. Instead, it has a lot of suspense, and the action is at the end.

It is 2 years after book #1. Regina and Wendy have learned enough that their teacher, Mo-Mere, thinks they’re ready to go to University on the other side of the wall. Regina makes new friends and new enemies in the Federation. She also finds out that life in the Federation isn’t any better than life in the swamp, at least not for those who are Working Stiffs. She feels all alone at first but eventually finds allies.

The characters continue to grow. Regina is driven to find her sister, Colleen, but in the back of her mind she begins to wonder what her destiny is. Mo-Mere always told her she is special. Maybe she is…

Chief Inspector DeMarco, whose primary objective is supposed to be to find Regina and hand her over to the governor, continues to be full of surprises.

I liked Vigilance and anyone who likes science fiction and/or young adult books will enjoy it. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series.

Regina Shen: Vigilance Review

Posted on November 27, 2015 by flwq1578

By Majanka

I previously read and reviewed the first book in the series, Regina Shen: Resilience, and after reading it, I looked forward to starting the second book in the series. Regina Shen: Vigilance takes place two years after the events of the first book.

Mo-Mere believes Regina is ready to jump the Barrier Wall, and start looking for her sister. After two years of training, studying and honing her survival skills, now is the time for Regina and Colleen to be reunited and to find some answers. Except, well, what did you expect, things don’t go as planned. For Regina, she’ll have to remain vigilant and find out who she can trust and who she can’t – but the same counts for the other characters too. DeMarco is still after her, and will do whatever it takes to capture her. Regina’s quest to find her sister brings her to university, close to where they’re holding her sister – but will she able to find her and save her?

I thought this book was more thrilling even than the first, and I already enjoyed that one a lot. The ending was very surprising, and I actually had to re-read it; I hadn’t expected some of the plot twists.

I loved Regina in the first book, but I liked her even more in this one. She’s grown as a person, she’s more determined than ever, and she knows how to keep her head cool in dangerous situations.

The new characters were an excellent addition too, especially Ester. A solid sequel to the first book, and a great addition to the series. Can’t wait to read the final part.

Regina Shen Interview B

Posted on November 20, 2015 by flwq1578

By Lance Erlick

What is your favorite hobby?

My favorite hobby is to read illegal print books from before the Federation, which is part of my motivation to stay in school. My teacher knows where to find more books. I’ve helped her salvage thousands of banned books from the depths. These stories tell of a time of plenty, back before abrupt climate change and rising seas destroyed most of that world, and point to lies told by the Federation. I also like to salvage the depths, though over the past three centuries, most of the great treasures have been looted, and the Federation sets traps to make it harder to find anything of value.

What is the challenge you’re trying to overcome during the story?

A hurricane blows through our area, destroying my home and school. During the storm, my mom leaves. Then I get separated from my younger sister. During all this, Federation agents take my blood and determined that me, a Federation outcast, has the DNA they needed to avoid extinction. During the first book in the series (Resilience), my struggle is to stay alive and try to find my family while avoiding agents trying to capture me. Two years later, in the second book (Vigilance), I make it over the wall to look for my sister, but the Federation is a strange caste society where everyone spies on their neighbors. I don’t know if I can avoid the many traps laid out for me. In the third book (Defiance), I have to set out across a barren landscape from Virginia through deserts to Alaska to hunt a treasure big enough to barter for freedom for my sister and me with roadblocks everywhere.

Regina Shen Interview A

Posted on November 13, 2015 by flwq1578

By Lance Erlick

Can you tell us a little about yourself?

I, Regina Shen, am an outcast, condemned by the World Federation to live on the seaward side of barrier walls they built to hold back rising seas and to create a place to throw those who disobey their rules. My mother won’t talk about it, but she was cast out before my younger sister and I were born for something I presume is too horrible to put into words. On the other hand, I don’t believe a word the Federation tells us, so perhaps I would have done the same.

Six days a week Mom sends my sister and me to the only remaining school in the swamps that the Federation hasn’t closed. She barters dearly for this privilege. It’s treacherous paddling to and from school in a hollowed-out canoe with genetically-enhanced gators, bounty hunters looking to kidnap girls to sell as slaves over the wall, and a host of desperate people trying to live on our shrinking lands. Life in our world is all about survival, but it helps when neighbors look out for each other.

What is your role in the story?

The Regina Shen series is my story. As Resilience begins, I’m just trying to live my ordinary life in the swamps over the flooded city of Richmond, Virginia. Ordinary for me is school, doing underwater salvage for things to barter for food, and avoiding Federation agents who forbid us from doing salvage. They also traffic in slaves shipped over the wall to work in factories, in mines, or on farms. I didn’t count on being anyone special though my teacher has high hopes for me. I just want to survive, take care of my mom and sister, and avoid trouble. Unfortunately, as an outcast, every day brings trouble.

Things You’d Like To Ask Regina Shen 3

Posted on July 14, 2015 by flwq1578

By Lance Erlick

What do you do when you’re not in school? Because of “detention” it seems I’m always in school. Mom has chores for my sister and me around the house. We have a water purification system that takes contaminated channel water and makes it drinkable and so we can take quick showers. It needs constant maintenance and pumping. We have a garden, a goat to milk, and two fruit trees to tend. We also have to set and check traps to keep scavengers from taking what little we have while we’re away. When I can, I sneak off to dive salvage at sunken homes of what had been Richmond. Most times I find sites that have already been picked clean, but sometimes I uncover a real find, like finding enough stainless cooking pans to barter for a goat so we would have milk.

Who is your best friend? It’s been hard to keep friends. The girls in my class are two years older, since I’ve advanced to the highest level, grade eleven. They think I’m too smart for my own good and would rather hang around with the more mature girls. I’ve had salvage partners. We would watch each other’s backs while diving. But Antiquities agents seized them during prior storms. The ache of losing friends has been hard. Besides, I have to watch my younger sister, who is three years younger and five years behind in school. In some ways she has become my best friend, but I have to keep so many secrets, like the books I read. It makes it hard to keep friendships.

What do you want to do after you finish school? Mo-Mere has visions of giving me an Aristotelian education as Alexander the Great had so I could make something useful of my life. She has this dream that I will somehow lead people to change the world so Marginals weren’t forced to live on the sinking seaward side of the Great Barrier Wall. As for me, I imagine having more time to salvage the depths, as much in the hope of finding more print books as barter to trade for food. However, each year there is less to find and Antiquities patrols become more of a nuisance.

Buy Regina Shen: Resilience on Amazon.

To learn more about free stories, special promotions, and new releases, join my author Newsletter mailing list here. From time to time, I send out new release and special pricing updates, links to free short stories, and writing updates.

Things You’d Like To Ask Regina Shen 2

Posted on July 13, 2015 by flwq1578

By Lance Erlick

Why is your relationship with your mother so strained? Mom refuses to talk about her work or what she does when we’re away at school. Yet, she brings in enough barter to pay for our schooling. She is also only one of my parents, but she refuses to talk about my other parent. I suspect there is some dark secret. Six months ago, when I stood up to Mom and insisted she tell me, she clammed up. We haven’t spoken much since. There is a gaping hole inside me wanting to know about my past, and wanting my Mom back, but every day she grows more distant and fearful. I can’t imagine what she’s done.

How do you feel about school? School is a waste for me. Don’t get me wrong. I love learning. But in class Mo-Mere is limited to a few official electronic texts she can teach from. With a “photographic memory” that’s more a curse than a blessing, I could memorize all the Federation-approved texts in a day. There aren’t many. Mo-Mere stretches the information out over eleven years, carefully adding her own experiences. What keeps me motivated is detention, which I routinely get. That allows me private time with Mo-Mere. During detention, she shares illegal print books she’s salvaged from private collections beneath the sea in the sunken civilization of Richmond. The Federation could execute her for having these books, or even for salvaging. But I would risk everything for the opportunity to visit Victor Hugo, Isaac Asimov, and other ancient treasures.

Buy Regina Shen: Resilience on Amazon.

Things You’d Like To Ask Regina Shen 1

Posted on July 12, 2015 by flwq1578

By Lance Erlick

What was it like growing up in the Richmond Swamps? If not for the illegal print books Mo-Mere lets me read, I would describe my life as school, salvage from the depths, and chores at home. But her books make me see my world in the context of how other people live. The Federation calls us Marginals and we live a marginal life in many ways. We live with constant dangers from storms, not enough food, contaminated water, and the Federation’s genetically-enhanced alligators. Yet we are free in ways that those living in the Federation are not. There is no one telling us what to do or how to live. Mom sacrifices so my sister and I can go to school six days a week. I don’t know how she spends her days when we’re away, except we have enough to eat and our very own island with an orange and apple tree. At times I feel like Tom Sawyer, except we have to be vigilant to dangers and work hard to find food and keep our home safe.

At the beginning of the first book, why were you afraid of Antiquities agents? Both Mom and Mo-Mere, my teacher, tell me to avoid agents at all cost. Contrary to the implication that Antiquities preserves the past, it is their job to destroy any evidence from before the Federation. Even our calendar begins three hundred years ago with the Federation as year zero. We fear the agents because during storms, their agents kidnap girls from the swamps to work on Federation farms and in factories and mines as slaves.

How do you imagine life on the other side of the Great Barrier Wall? We are told that life on the other side of the Wall is better than the swamps because they don’t have as much to worry about storms stealing their land. They have food, and they don’t have vicious gators. But I wonder since so much of what they tell us is lies, whether this also is a myth. They have a caste system. They take our girls as slaves. That doesn’t sound like a place where I would want to live.

Buy Regina Shen: Resilience on Amazon.

Yet Another 5* Regina Shen Review

Posted on July 11, 2015 by flwq1578

by Dawn (Goodreads Reviewer)

Although the future world that Lance Erlick has created is interesting, it’s a terrible world for the Marginals, or the people living in the swamp outside the wall surrounding the rest of the world. It’s survival of the fittest in the swamp.

Resilience starts with a hurricane and the action never stops. Regina Shen survives the hurricane, bounty hunters, salvagers, the Department of Antiquities, alligators, and more. She’s smart, resourceful, and lucky.

Other characters in the story are as complex as “real” people. It’s difficult to know who can be trusted. Regina feels like she can’t even trust her mother. And the Chief Inspector of Antiquities, DeMarco, has made it her mission to find Regina. But even she is full of surprises.

Lance Erlick’s writing flows well and his descriptions are great. I felt like I was there in that hurricane with Reina or hiding in a cellar with rats and bugs (it makes my skin crawl just thinking about it).

I definitely recommend Resilience.

Buy Regina Shen: Resilience on Amazon.

Regina Shen Review

Posted on July 11, 2015 by flwq1578

by Thomas Weaver

A dystopia that isn’t the result of some huge cataclysm or alien invasion… That alone would be enough to make this novel stand out from the crowd. Also, unlike the other novels by this author I’d read, this one is in past tense, which I prefer. (Present tense feels artificial to me. It’s just a matter of personal taste.)

After reading The Rebel Within, I said I wanted to know a lot more about the setting and backstory, not because the author failed to give enough information for that story but because was so interesting.

The Regina Shen novels take place in the same setting (?) as the Rebel stories, but two or three centuries later. Although it is not as prevalent, the author continues to explore the idea that, if a segment of the population is labeled “the oppressors” and removed, that doesn’t stop oppression, only who is doing it. The fact that Mr. Erlick manages to do that without ever getting preachy is impressive (and much appreciated by this reader).

Some of the themes of those other novels are in this one, too: the protagonist has a younger sister whom she tries to protect, she has a difficult relationship with her mother (and her mother keeps secrets from her)…

This is YA science fiction, but don’t let that give you the wrong impression. This is not a “It’s the end of the world, but at least the cutest kid at school thinks I’m cute” sort of story. Regina Shen and her family (and neighbors and friends) face a very realistic struggle to survive in a harsh environment and against dangerous antagonists, and Regina herself is trying to find out what her mother is hiding and why those government women are after her, and the plot is gritty without being “grimdark.”

If I had to come up with one thing from this first novel to complain about, it would be this: These characters know a lot about surviving in swamp country, so why don’t they know that cattails are edible? (That’s a very minor quibble, isn’t it? Certainly nothing that should interfere with anyone’s enjoyment of the story.)

Buy Regina Shen: Resilience on Amazon.

Another 5* Regina Shen Review

Posted on July 10, 2015 by flwq1578

By Tia (Goodreads Reviewer)

Intelligent and Interesting

This is a wonderful story about survival in the most dire circumstances. A huge storm wreaks havoc on an already outcast population. The authority who rejected them to begin with then captures the young as slaves. The authority discovers that their fertility is failing and one girl possesses the key to save them. However, she fights to stay free even with so little to survive on. She’s smart, savvy, has endurance and survival skills. This is a great well written and thought out book. It’s hard to put down.

Buy Regina Shen: Resilience on Amazon.