Voice of the City (Nightwatch)

Indianapolis, present day. Not the most burgeoning of American cities, not the place you think of when you call to mind crime, despair, and the hopelessness of urban existence. So why does Indianapolis, Naptown to some, have a superhero patrolling its streets, and why did that hero settle in Naptown after two years fighting the good fight in Chicago, just a few hours north? For the mysterious, rarely glimpsed Voice of the City made his debut in that metropolis by the lake, beating down criminals and dirty cops alike, protecting the common citizen.

Then he disappeared, re-surfacing in that glorified farm town to the south.

CIA agent Richard Short thinks he has a notion why. He thinks the Voice may have followed someone to Naptown. He may be allied with a young woman known and watched by the federal government: Sally Reiser, the so-called "seer of God," whose dark past paints a picture of violence, blood, and supernatural exploits beyond the realm of believability. She may be on the side of justice or she may be a free-ranging terrorist, but Sally is at the center of existential threats from both this world and another. Now, she’s running a halfway house for formerly imprisoned gang members. Are Sally Reiser and the Voice of the City somehow tied by the bonds of destiny?

Of this Short isn’t sure. Of other things, he has no clue. He doesn’t know that a new threat rises. An ancient enemy has come to town to wreak havoc upon the lives of men. He’s haunted us in our childhood fantasies, bringing to life that coat in the chair or that monster in the closet. Now he strives to bury the social structure of Man in a grave of blood and hate.

The Boogieman (yes, you read that right) uses all his powers of fomenting fear and doubt, all his knowledge of the dark nature of Man, to unleash overwhelming forces upon the city. Gang warfare. Vengeance. Rage. Murder. And an invasion from his nightmareverse that few humans could withstand.

But the city has defenders. Sally Reiser stands. So does the Voice of the City. Together with Short, Sally’s partner Gary, a skeptical police officer, and the very gangs the Boogieman strives to ignite, the seer of God and the city’s champion seek to extinguish the growing flames of hate.

But there’s a catch, a weakness so profound in the Voice of the City’s armor that not even the Voice knows of it. A weakness that can open up the ground beneath his feet and plummet him to immediate defeat. And it can happen at any time.

Voice of the City is a superhero/urban fantasy mash-up that takes both genres on a rollercoaster ride of action, adventure, and deep personal introspection. It tackles subjects most books avoid. Gangs. Gun culture. Mass shootings. It’s a big story about little people, and an even bigger story about gods and monsters. An epic happening down on the corner.

Can the city be saved from its own base instincts, or is it too far gone?

Hi! Stephan Michael Loy here. A bit about me:

First that name is pronounced 'Steven,' not 'Stefan' as so many people suppose. My mom was as imaginative as she was inventive and I suffer accordingly :-). I've published fantasy, science fiction, and satire since 2010. All those stories come from my highly imaginative and inventive mind, but they're also anchored in my wide and long experience.

--Of growing up dirt poor, in dicey neighborhoods, and with the unflaggable intention of escaping those situations.

--Of working as a journalist. A degree in Journalism from Indiana University and publication in three Midwestern newspapers, including the Louisville Courier-Journal and the Bloomington Herald-Telephone.

--Of serving as an officer in the US Army, a move that pretty much truncated that career in journalism. Served as an Armor officer, that is, led M60A3 tanks as part of the 4th Infantry Division/11th Armored Cavalry covering force on the East-West frontier of Cold War Germany in the 1980s. Executive officer of an M1 tank company in 3/63 Armor, Germany.

--After leaving the military, I took up my second love, art, the first being the aforesaid journalism. Art history student, commercial artist, and art teacher of almost thirty years. I designed and executed all my book covers.

--First and foremost, I'm a family man. Married over forty years to the coolest woman on Earth. Two wonderful boys, one of which is disabled with autism, cerebral palsy, and mild mental handicaps. I'm allowed to exist in the same house with my two cats, Buffy the Cat Toy Slayer, and the Great and Powerful Oz, First Kitty Deluxe. Still pining for my rescue Greyhound Petra, off in the Elysian Fields of Chasing Rabbits and Rolling in Grass.

I use all of this background in the stories I create to ensure the most authentic, immersive , and exciting experience for my readers.

WHAT I'VE MANAGED SO FAR

• Eleven novels published as I write this, another five on the way soon.

• Five novellas published

• Organization of the Mid-World Arts support co-op of like-minded self-published artists

• Leader of the Mid-World Arts Writers' Critique Group, formerly the Indianapolis Writers' Critique Group.