Allen Appel's Books and Other Writing.
The Pastmaster is a series of, currently, five time travel, historical adventures featuring professional historian Alex Balfour, who has inherited the ability to dream himself back in time. Unfortunately, he can't control this gift--or curse--and finds himself cast back into the midst of some of history's great dangers and dilemmas. Each entry in the series has a Foreword and Afterword explaining the circumstances of the original idea and the publishing history of the book. Those of you who have already read the series can take the opportunity to show a new generation of readers some of history's stories seen through the eyes and action of The Pastmaster. They can be read in any order, but the way they they were written appears below. It's probably best to read them in this order. If you've already read them, try them again and recommend them to those who have not experienced The Pastmaster.
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Time after Time. Volume One in the Pastmaster Series. Revolutionary Russia is the setting -- after dealing with Rasputin, Lenin, and other villains and fighting his way across Russia, Alex Balfour finds himself outside the house where the Romanovs are about to be executed. And why does present DNA research show that not all of the family was killed that night?
Reviews:
Voted "Best Novel of the Year" by the American Library Association.
"Much fun is to be had in this novel." Best Sellers
"High adventure, a plot to save the Tsar's family and plenty of bloodshed." LeMars Daily Sentinel
"...a keep-you-up-all-night book... it doesn't end, it pauses to let you catch your breath." The Washington Post
"... a ferociously paced adventure whose chief object is to keep us reading." New York Times Book Review
Reviews:
Voted "Best Novel of the Year" by the American Library Association.
"Much fun is to be had in this novel." Best Sellers
"High adventure, a plot to save the Tsar's family and plenty of bloodshed." LeMars Daily Sentinel
"...a keep-you-up-all-night book... it doesn't end, it pauses to let you catch your breath." The Washington Post
"... a ferociously paced adventure whose chief object is to keep us reading." New York Times Book Review
Click on the book cover to go to Amazon's Kindle store and order this book.
Twice Upon a Time. Volume Two in the Pastmaster Series. Ten years after the Civil War the great American Centennial Exhibition opened to the astonishment of the entire world. This tale takes Alex Balfour from his mysterious awakening at the Exhibition through his friendship with Mark Twain and ends at the killing fields of the Little Big Horn with General George Custer.
Reviews:
"Best books of the year." American Library Association.
"Riveting... Highly recommended." Library Journal
"A compelling adventure." The Coast Book Review
"Pure entertainment." St. Louis Post Dispatch
Reviews:
"Best books of the year." American Library Association.
"Riveting... Highly recommended." Library Journal
"A compelling adventure." The Coast Book Review
"Pure entertainment." St. Louis Post Dispatch
Click on the book cover to go to Amazon's Kindle store and order this book.
Till the End of Time. Volume Three in the Pastmaster Series. From Pearl Harbor to Hiroshima, Alex Balfour is trapped in some of the bloodiest battles of the Second World War. Back in the present, girlfriend Molly deals with a terrorist threat. This time, Alex is not sure if he'll ever make it back. And he doesn't.
Reviews:
"Best books of the year." American Library Association
"I urge you all to read Till the End of Time." Sue Feder, Mystery Bookshop
"As rousing as ever." Kirkus
"Keeps readers glued to the page." Publishers Weekly
Reviews:
"Best books of the year." American Library Association
"I urge you all to read Till the End of Time." Sue Feder, Mystery Bookshop
"As rousing as ever." Kirkus
"Keeps readers glued to the page." Publishers Weekly
Click on the book cover to go to Amazon's Kindle store ands order this book.
The Sea of Time. Volume Four in the Pastmaster Series. This is the "lost" Alex Balfour novel. Read the introduction to learn why the book was never published. In it, Alex arrives in England in 1913 and is trying to establish a life when he finds himself walking up the gangplank of HMS Titanic. There's only one reason he would board the doomed ship, and that is to save his love, Molly. If he can, he will also save himself.
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In Time of War. Volume Five in the Pastmaster Series. Alex finds himself caught up in the American Civil War. Through a mysterious turn of events, Molly is also drawn back to the same time period. Why? Alex's father, last seen in the first book of the series, comes back into his life. This is the last novel in the series. At least for now.
Reviews:
"The most exciting of his critically acclaimed adventures." Goodreads
"Those in search of exuberant Civil War-flavored entertainment will find much to enjoy here." Publishers Weekly
"Another compelling adventure that stretches back and forth in time at a breathless pace." Booklist
"Continues the timeless series beloved by legions of fans." Fiction db
"Entertaining." Civil War News
Reviews:
"The most exciting of his critically acclaimed adventures." Goodreads
"Those in search of exuberant Civil War-flavored entertainment will find much to enjoy here." Publishers Weekly
"Another compelling adventure that stretches back and forth in time at a breathless pace." Booklist
"Continues the timeless series beloved by legions of fans." Fiction db
"Entertaining." Civil War News
Click on Lincoln's signature to go to Amazon's Kindle store and order this book.
Abraham Lincoln: Detective. Little known fact: Abraham Lincoln participated in 37 murder trials, usually as the lawyer for the defendant. This novel, The Trailor Murder Case, is based on a trial in Springfield that Lincoln described in a letter to his friend Joshua Speed: "We have had the highest state of excitement here for a week past that our community has ever witnessed; and although the public feeling is somewhat allayed, the curious affair which aroused it is very far from being over..." The story is narrated by Lincoln's trusted law partner, William Herndon. Spielberg’s depiction of Lincoln is pretty good, but if you want to see the man as he really was, try this novel.
The Chicken Stories: Three Novellas
A fascinating fact, stumbled upon by accident, triggered the first of these three novellas. Fact: In Victorian England poor children were used by chimney sweeps to crawl up chimneys, brushing away the soot as they went. This is the origin of the phrase, "Light a fire under him," which was the master sweep's way of convincing his apprentices to move a little faster. The more interesting fact was that after many sweeps were convicted on charges of killing their apprentices, they began using chickens, tied at the feet and lowered down the chimneys. The frantic beating of their wings did a pretty good job of knocking off the soot. Thus was born The Christmas Chicken.
After the warmth and humor of a Christmas story, a solid dose of horror was in order. So came The Flock. Read it to yourself, under the covers with a flashlight and be afraid. Very afraid.
The last of the chicken stories, The Maltese Chicken, is a modern mystery, tough and filled with action. The question is, does the chicken get out of this one alive?
After the warmth and humor of a Christmas story, a solid dose of horror was in order. So came The Flock. Read it to yourself, under the covers with a flashlight and be afraid. Very afraid.
The last of the chicken stories, The Maltese Chicken, is a modern mystery, tough and filled with action. The question is, does the chicken get out of this one alive?
Click on the picture to go to Amazon's Kindle store and order this novella.
The Christmas Chicken
Victorian England. Christmas Eve. Young Jack, a blind boy of ten years, sits alone by the hearth, making a Christmas wish: Jack would like a dog to love and to keep him company. Suddenly Jack hears a frantic scrambling in the chimney and something plops into the room. Jack is overjoyed! Santa has brought him a dog! Except it's actually a chicken, but don't tell poor Jack. He's never seen a dog or a chicken because he's never seen anything. Jack names his pet King and over the next several days the two of them have some wonderful adventures. This is a story to warm even the stoniest of hearts. Kids love it and adults find it very funny. Read it aloud to someone you love.
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The Flock
Here's a scary little story you wouldn't want to read to a child. Written in the style of H. P. Lovecraft, it concerns a man who has no name other than The Hunter, a man who is hired to hunt creatures that no other man can subdue. In this tale, the Hunter is summoned to a small village in the deep woods to find, and kill, whatever beast has been picking off the villagers one by one, leaving behind remains barely recognizable as human. This time, though, the Hunter comes up against something that even he might not be able to best.
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The Maltese Chicken
Another adults-only novella, this time a chicken shows up on a man's porch and soon the bird and man both are swept up in a mystery that turns very dangerous, very quickly. The writing style this time is strictly contemporary and the hero is not exactly a hero, but he is pals with one of the toughest ex-SEALs to show up in contemporary fiction. This guy does everything all the other military guys do, except our man does it without legs. This is mystery and action adventure and it's got a chicken in there as well.