Can someone have both all the luck and none at all? For Ezra Acker the answer is yes. Life just is for him…until one Christmas when everything shifts and he finds out he has a silent knight who has been protecting him.
A world Ezra didn’t know existed is trying to kill both him and his knight. Can they survive the holidays and have a happily ever after or will Heaven and Hell see to it they don’t?
Silent Knight is a standalone dark paranormal novelette that was a part of the O Deadly Night Vol 2 Charity Anthology. No part of this story has been changed.
I originally read this King short in the O Deadly Night Vol 2 Charity Anthology last Xmas and loved it then and I think I might love it even more now. Ezra and Senon are so amazing together, despite some of the darkness of the story you can't help but cheer them on. I have no idea if Davidson King ever intends to expand and branch this universe or perhaps connect it to another of her series, if she does I'll be like the family cat poised to pounce on discarded wrapping paper on Christmas morning. If Silent Knight is all we get of Ezra and Senon's world than I will savor it for Xmases and Xmases in July for years to come.
Original O Deadly Night Vol 2 Charity Anthology Review November 2023:
(from the overall part of the anthology review): "these are dark stories would probably be an understatement. If you're looking for Hallmark-y, Disneyesque, cute meet, cliche HEA, then this is probably not for you. If you like creepy horror with your holiday fare then I can't recommend this anthology enough"
I said above that if you're looking for HEA this isn't the book for you but I think Davidson King's entry, Silent Knight(though more of a dark suspense than flat out horror) is probably as close to that HEA label as any horror collection can provide. Truth is, King's storytelling star shines bright in this perfect blend of dark, dreamy, and delicious. Destiny and holiday has rarely been darker.
EZRA ACKER: AGE TEN
The first time it happened, I was ten. I was living with the Kimbers, my fifth foster family. I got off the school bus and started walking the five blocks to their house. It wasn’t in a great part of town and, Natalie, my foster-for-now mom, always said to keep my head down and walk fast. So, I did and never had a problem… until today.
I’d made it three blocks when I crashed into something solid. I fell backwards, my school bag flattened on the ground under me.
“You should watch where you’re walking.” I didn’t recognize the voice but when I looked up, I did recognize the face. Morris Fieldman. He was sixteen and loved bullying younger kids. He’d never bothered me before but likely because I stayed off his radar. Until now.
“Sssorry, Morris. I was trying to get home; dinner will be ready soon and I have to be on time.”
Morris’s laughter was cruel and that was when I noticed two other people with him. Them I didn’t know but it likely didn’t matter.
“It’s not really your home though is it, Ezra? You don’t have one, or a real family for that matter. Mommy and daddy didn’t want you and left you on the doorstep of a church like an afterschool special. Only, there’s no happily ever after for you, is there?”
I swallowed down my sobs as Morris taunted me and his friends laughed. When I made to get up, Morris pushed me down with his foot.
“Stay down there, that’s where dogs belong.”
A sound in the alley behind Morris made us all jump and when the three of them turned to see what it was, I didn’t pass up the opportunity. I grabbed my bag and ran faster than I ever had before.
Davidson King, always had a hope that someday her daydreams would become real-life stories. As a child, you would often find her in her own world, thinking up the most insane situations. It may have taken her awhile, but she made her dream come true with her first published work, Snow Falling.
She managed to wrangle herself a husband who matched her crazy and they hatched three wonderful children.
If you were to ask her what gave her the courage to finally publish, she’d tell you it was her amazing family and friends. Support is vital in all things and when you’re afraid of your dreams, it will be your cheering section that will lift you up.
EMAIL: davidsonkingauthor@yahoo.com
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