Ghostwalking: A Solomon Stone Prequel

Solomon Stone #00.5

by E.G. Ellory

The story beginning the Solomon Stone series of espionage-thrillers.

Meet Solomon Stone. Loner turned shadow agent.When Tom Brook offers a lift to a man walking absently along a darkening country road, he has no idea who he's let into his car. What he does know is that he's made a mistake, evident in the immediate fear he feels in the man's presence. Before long, Tom is offered a dark bargain by the a simple audition to wipe out his debts and begin a new life under a new identity. The Solomon Stone. The to track down individuals of interest and dismantle their lives.

Genres: Fiction

43 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 16, 2019

About the author

E.G. Ellory is the author of the Short Thrills series and the Solomon Stone series.

E.G. Ellory is the pseudonym of R.A. Lindo, creator of the Kaira Renn fantasy series.

You can get in touch at egellory@gmail.com / ralindoauthor@gmail.com

Grab your FREE STARTER library at https://ralindoauthor.com

Reviews

[Ronald Keeler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ghostwalking is a prequel short story (42 pages) to a Solomon Stone thriller by E. G. Ellory. My interest in this story resulted from an email by the author to join his Advance Reader Team. I wanted to investigate the writing style before replying. Advance reading team commitments could overtake the monster known as the TBR shelf. Caution is in order. Published in April 2019, the story is available on Amazon for sale at USD 0.99 or as a free read with a Kindle Unlimited subscription. I find KU is a useful tool for investigating writing styles.

In Ghostwalking, the reader will not know the actual name of the narrator. “Odd Tom” is as close as the reader will come to a character name. Tom is a dull creature living a boring life. The only thing he has accomplished is wracking up debt. Returning home one evening, Tom sees a mysterious stranger clad in black walking alongside a road. For some reason not explained fully in the story, Tom offers the stranger a ride. The stranger knows all about Tom.

The stranger, name unknown until almost the end of the story, offers Tom a way out of debt. All Tom must do is show up for an audition and follow instructions to accomplish a task. No reason or purpose for the assignment is given. Questions are not allowed. Failure to show up for the audition will incur sanctions. It seems that there are people more odd than “Odd Tom.”

The writing style kept my attention but not for only good reasons. There are plot holes in more than one place. The first in this story is when Tom has knowledge previously not introduced. The stranger has given Tom a business card. The reader assumes a business card comes with standard information. Later we learn that Tom has gotten much more information from the card, such as the address of his “target,” the location of and map to the target, and a time when he should show up at a café near the goal.

The story’s presentation has enough mystery for a short story. It will be fun to see if this sense of a puzzle can be sustained at the level of a full novel. Due to plot holes, I gave this story three Amazon stars.

[Brenda Moser · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short,fast paced book with strong characters and an interesting story line. The author packs a punch in this introduction to Soloman Series and had me glued to the pages. I'm looking forward to reading more.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book. All opinions in this review are my own and freely given.

[KathiTheBookNerd · Rating 3 out of 5]

Doubting between 3 and 4 stars. I don't know what to think of this book. I liked it, but it was a little weird to me too. Maybe I should just read the next one in the series as well to see where the story goes

[Mariel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ghostwalking : A Solomon Stone Prequel by E.G.Ellory
I received a copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Whilst driving home one day, Tom can't help noticing an older man walking along the darkening road ahead of him. As the stranger nears a dangerous sector of the road and against his better judgement, Tom picks up the suspect “ hitchhiker” who finally after some resistance requests to be dropped off at the Preaching Cross in the centre of the next town – Tom's town...

When the stranger reappears uninvited in his kitchen a week later, Tom begins to realise their previous encounter was not by chance. He passes the most stressful and scariest evening of his life in the presence of an anonymous individual and is left with a proposal, one that would eradicate the total sum of his considerable debt. His suspicions at an all-time high, his once humdrum daily schedule is about to change as he makes the conscious decision to follow the man in black “down the rabbit hole”.

My thoughts on this book : This is an exciting introduction in the series, the next book being  “First Storm: A Solomon Stone Thriller (Solomon Stone Thrillers Book 1)” .
It's fast-paced action is written clearly and powerfully, the story flows well from start to finish giving the reader the appetite to continue.

I give Ghostwalking : A Solomon Stone Prequel 5 out of 5 stars.

[Charles Reis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This short read is haunting and mysterious. It got my attention right away. The main protagonist, Tom AKA Solomon Stone, is a flawed yet relatable and likeable character. By using first person narrative, you feel just as confused and bewildered as Tom. So why the 3 out 5 stars?

The story drags the further I got into the story, which isn't good for something that is so short. The grammar and writing is done well, but there's a lot of run-on sentences that's a little distracting. Tom does some question stuff that seems to go against his character, like despite being filled with anxiety and quite timid, he picks up a hitchhiker. Granted, I know there's the whole idea of overcoming fear and personal flaws, but the way it was done seemed too quickly and unrealistic. Although I said it dragged later on, a little more descriptions of the surroundings could have beefed up the creep factor.

I hope the review doesn't sound too harsh. I did enjoy it and it did get me interested in reading the other Solomon Stone books. But sometimes prequels are just not needed.

[Madeline Paige Fornes · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book through a promotional listing that had it offered as a freebie if I signed up for the authors newsletter. It sounded up my alley, so I said why not?

I just devoured this prequel in I think less than half an hour. I am hooked. Captivated. This is mysterious and alluring.

I don’t care who Tom was. I want to know who Solomon Stone becomes. I want to know about his training and what he will do. I have so many questions and I have so many things that seem to just be pinging in my brain!

This gave off the vibes of something that would be an incredible 70s of 80s thriller/spy movie. I grew up watching those with my Dad and it was so easy to picture this playing out in my head. This was truly such a great prequel and a great read. If the rest of the books are written anything like this, this is going to be a fantastic series.

I did sign up to be an ARC reader for the author, and I have received some of the other books as well so I will be reading and reviewing those here soon. I can’t wait to read them! I love doing ARC reads & I gain nothing from doing them.

[Dana Norberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story has a good deal of mystery, suspense, and intrigue. The main character's rather mundane life is upended when he picks up a lone roadside walker. Tom knows immediately that something is off. From there, his paranoia ramps up until he finds the stranger in his kitchen, offering an "audition" for a new life. And Solomon Stone is born! I thoroughly enjoyed this prequel and look forward to reading the other books in the series. I am delighted to have received this ARC copy from an author promotion.

[Annemarie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great introduction to the Solomon Stone series and comes with it's own little warning of being mindful of who you give a lift to.
A creepy short story that will hold your attention from start to the cliff hanging ending (or should I say beginning?).
I received a free copy of this book from the Author and have chosen to leave a review. Happy reading. Annemarie

[Bettyboop · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very Short, Most Intriguing

This introduction to Solomon Stone’s creation is suspenseful and evasive making him a truly intriguing character. I will definitely check out this series!

[Liza · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't really know why but I couldn't accept the premise of the book. A spy-type agency that seems to go out of its way to recruit people that owe a lot of money. It's not really a logical idea - after all, if the agency can "buy" you, maybe the baddies can, too.

[Tom Casey · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very intriguing, exciting book, Tom wonders what the odd man he has given a lift too is going to do, he is very suspicious, I feel this is definitely a must read, great characters and a story line that has you wanting to keep reading.
Love it.

[Marietta · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book as it was so different to what I normally read. But it was worth reading and I look forward to the next book in the series. The character Solomon Stone is very interesting and so open to new things which is very unusal for most characters.

[Rick Farlee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intriguing mystery about a loner becoming a ghost agent… This prequel is just the introduction to a new series, but this one happens to be very good. Recommendation: Move onto the next Solomon Stone novel… it looks promising.

[Helga Sutton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, wow, wow! Hooked from the first page! I couldn’t put this book down. I keep seeing the dark figure all around, at the ending, I was left feeling “what the heck, what happens now? I need to know”

[karin whitehead · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quick, interesting concept! Well written, and the author entices you to read the series. I will!

[Jackie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fabulous but too short story. Intriguing, makes you want to find out what happened.

[Kathy Cvetnich · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short story of Tom, who picks up a walking stranger, who then makes a proposition to him. Does he or doesn’t he.? There is no reason told for the proposal.

[David Rhodes · Rating 4 out of 5]

An uninteresting man with no friends meets a stranger who offers a new life. Could be the start of something good?

[Inferna Fire · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great intro book for a new series. Look forward to the next book.

[Margarita Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book gave me goosebumps. A thrilling short novella. Begins to introduce you to the characters and makes curious to want more.

[Laurie Robertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

An intriguing start to the series. A quick read which details Stone's recruitment but answers little else.
I'm keen to read the next in the series.

[Jayne Southern · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh dear - I should have posted this some time ago. Apologies to the author ...
An interesting taster - imagine being watched and chosen for something you know nothing about? Intensive surveillance is disturbing enough to contemplate, but to pass a test to have your debts wiped out? That is a step to terrify - and Tom Brooks, a loner, takes the risk. Despite, no doubt, being told by his mother never to offer lifts to strangers. And how creepy a stranger he was.
Now, of course, it will be necessary to read the next volume to see what else Tom is coerced into by unnamed conspirators ... dark deeds? Espionage? More than a hint of danger is on the cards.
I would have liked some more flesh in this intro - but that's what prequels are, short!

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the background account as to how Solomon Stone came into existence. A test; a sort of induction into the world he would inhabit and mean the end of his former identity ‘Odd Tom’.
I am indebted to the author for sending me this free
copy, although no promise was sought from me, I am happy to write a review.
It starts like a theme from a Western. “Stranger rides into town”. In this case Tom is driving home from work when he encounters a strange man walking in the middle of the road. With no road sense and a complete disregard to any traffic as dusk approaches. Miles from nowhere, against his better judgement, Tom offers him a lift.
The man’s presence in the car, his lack of conversation and almost overpowering manner troubles Tom. He establishes he going to the next village on business, but nothing else and he has a sense of foreboding as he is going to the place Tom lives.
What follows is a game of cat and mouse where Tom feels less and less in control of his life. He is a loner and his peculiar ways have cost him his relationships, a mountain of debt and a job where he teeters on a final warning. The stranger offers him a chance to begin afresh but at what cost.
A great introduction to this series where ghosts exist to manipulate and control others. Tom feels like putty in their hands but what has he got to loose and he is strangely drawn to this alternative world of spooks as it mirrors his own existence.
If it is a deal with the Devil we will need to start the series proper. For this is an exciting prequel and bodes well from a new author to me.

[Anne · Rating 2 out of 5]

This wasn't my favourite read but I think because it was totally different than I was expecting. The writing was good and the characters were interesting and I think I will take a chance by reading the next one in the series.