Bad God's Tower

By Erica Summers and Rusty Ogre Publishing

Vicious criminals, Eugene Dempsey and Chester Craven, escape Wyoming Territorial Prison armed with nothing but striped prisoner pajamas and a Lakota's hand-drawn map that, according to legend, will lead them to the unfathomable riches in a secret tunnel burrowed into the base of Devil's Tower. Seeking their golden fortune, the fugitives head north, leaving their dusty trail stained in the blood of innocents.

With two determined buffalo soldiers nipping their heels, the sadistic escapees will soon realize all the gold in the land isn't worth what lies in wait for them in the claustrophobic underground beneath.

--- Includes a FREE Sneak Peek chapter from Summers' upcoming novel Vanity Kills, releasing 9/1/23---

***Praise for Bad God's Tower***

"A nod to No Country for Old Men or Stephen King's The Gunslinger, Immersive setting, terrifyingly relatable characters, and unflinching horror coalesce in this fast-paced read." - Mia Faller, Author

"This story is a horror fan's dream. It's Funny Games meets The Descent in the old west." -Chisto Healy, Author of Two of a Kind and the Bucket List

"Engrossing from start to finish. [...] The western elements are superb and the horror is blended so fluidly to the plot it left me wanting to read everything this author has written." - Jay Costigan, Indie Horror Reviews

"Bad Gods Tower is a powerhouse of story-telling, packing in story and character, in a genre piece that pulls no punches in the western, or the horror. Building to a shocking conclusion, the story wends across the open landscape with a cast of characters, made only more colourful by blood. I loved it! I can't wait to see more from Erica Summers." - Ash Ericmore, Author of The Red Room and Our Skin of Deadwood

"What starts off as a straightforward shoot-em-up western, morphs into a chaotic, cosmic, beasty rampage! This one will have you wiping the dust from your eyes and reloading your six-shooter when all is said and done!" - Steve Stred, 2-time Splatterpunk Nominated author of Mastodon, Father of Lies: The Complete Series, and Churn the Soil

"Bad God's Tower is Erica Summers at her most ferocious in terms of deft storytelling. It features oppressive claustrophobia and is loaded with action-packed chaos and grisly horror. Summers is a writer to keep an eye on!" -Otis Bateman, author of Maggot Girl and co-author of Ensuring Your Place In Hell.

"That was a wagon on fire!! This nasty little gem is what happens when two things I love are smashed together to make an epic union that will forever be cherished throughout the ages! The story is as fast as a runaway train and just gets better and better. Scary villains, worse monsters in a desolate landscape - It was exactly what I didn't know I needed!!"
-Patrick McNulty, Author of A Dark Breed and Follow the Devil

• Language: English
• Publisher: Rusty Ogre Publishing
• Release date: Jul 1, 2023
• ISBN: 9781962854184

Book preview

Bad God's Tower

Erica Summers

Praise for Bad God’s Tower:

"A nod to No Country for Old Men or Stephen King’s The Gunslinger, Immersive setting, terrifyingly relatable characters, and unflinching horror coalesce in this fast-paced read." - Mia Faller, Author of Buried Women Speak

***

"This story is a horror fan's dream. It's Funny Games meets The Descent in the old west. What more could you ask for?" -Chisto Healy, Author of Two of a Kind and the Bucket List

***

"Bad God’s Tower is a powerhouse of story-telling, packing in story and character, in a genre piece that pulls no punches in the western, or the horror. Building to a shocking conclusion, the story wends across the open landscape with a cast of characters, made only more colourful by blood. I loved it! I can't wait to see more from Erica Summers." - Ash Ericmore, Author of The Red Room and Our Skin of Deadwood

***

"What starts off as a straightforward shoot-em-up western, morphs into a chaotic, cosmic, beasty rampage! This one will have you wiping the dust from your eyes and reloading your six-shooter when all is said and done!" - Steve Stred, 2-time Splatterpunk Nominated author of Mastodon, Father of Lies: The Complete Series, and Churn the Soil

***

"Bad God’s Tower is Erica Summers at her most ferocious in terms of deft storytelling. It features oppressive claustrophobia and is loaded with action-packed chaos and grisly horror. Summers is a writer to keep an eye on!" - Otis Bateman, author of Maggot Girl and co-author of Ensuring Your Place In Hell.

***

…I’m looking forward to reading a lot more from Summers in the future. I wouldn’t be surprised if I see this as a movie on Netflix someday. 5 big, shiny, sheriff stars! - Leeanne Wright, Reviewer

***

BAD GOD’S TOWER

Copyright © 2023 by Erica Summers

All Rights Reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner, or

transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without express written permission by the author(s) and or publisher, except for the use of a brief quotation in a book review.

www.EricaSummers.com

West Haven, Connecticut, United States

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events, organizations and incidents are either part of the author’s

imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

Edited by Amanda Jean Ruzsa

Proofread by Mark Anthony

Cover by Christy Aldridge of Grim Poppy Designs

Full-Wrap Design by Erica Summers

Stay Tuned

Stay tuned at the end of the book for a full chapter sneak peek of the upcoming novel Vanity Kills, out September 1, 2023 in ebook, paperback, and hardcover editions.

Trigger Warnings

Gore & Violence

Profanity

Abuse

Death

Death of an Animal

Contents

More by Erica Summers

Dedications

. Chapter

1.CHAPTER ONE

2.CHAPTER TWO

3.CHAPTER THREE

4.CHAPTER FOUR

5.CHAPTER FIVE

6.CHAPTER SIX

7.CHAPTER SEVEN

8.CHAPTER EIGHT

9.CHAPTER NINE

10.CHAPTER TEN

11.ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

12.About the Author

13.First Chapter Sneak Peek of Vanity Kills

14.ONE

15.More Horrors from Erica Summers

More by Erica Summers

Novellas:

Bad God’s Tower

Novels:

Mantis

Vanity Kills

Published Short Stories:

Take a Breath (HellBound Books' Anthology of Splatterpunk)

"Tines" (Eerie River’s It Calls From Below)

"The Mother" (Dark Lake’s Their Ghoulish Reputation)

Painted in Vermilion (Eerie River’s Air: Elemental Series)

All the Same Color on the Inside (BHP Year Five Anthology)

Dedications

For Heather:

My muse. My spit-balling idea-woman. My peer. My problem-solver. My ARC reader. My sister. My soulmate. My she-ro.

For Dave, the absolute love of my life.

Thank you for believing in me.

Special thanks to my ARC team: Ash Ericmore, Otis Bateman, Steve Stred, Chisto Healy, Mia Faller, Mark Anthony, John Ryland, Amanda Jean Ruzsa, & Leeanne Wright

"Traveling together on this ol’ filly,

Sharing the stars, souls tied as one,

Ride any trail, the night