The first five star review for my upcoming novel!

Revenge of the Phantom Press: A Bolingbrook Babbler Story, just received its first five star editorial review from Readers’ Favorite:

Revenge of the Phantom Press

Revenge of the Phantom Press by William Brinkman is the fourth book in The Bolingbrook Babbler Stories series. Tom used to be a skeptic, but has come around in the last year and now finds himself working as a paranormal investigative reporter. He has since learned it’s not easy covering the strange activity occurring in suburban Chicago, but he’s determined to prove his position at the Bolingbrook Babbler. Those around him may not understand, but the world he finds himself in is one he can’t ignore. The reappearance of ghosts who previously ran the Phantom Press has created chaos, not just for the Bolingbrook Babbler, but the local agencies. To protect his job – and those forced to evacuate – Tom investigates the ghosts’ re-emergence and how to return them to the grave.

The return of the Phantom Press sparks a chain reaction that causes chaos and obstacles for Tom as he’s pulled into the middle. This creates a series of action-packed, humorous, and paranormal moments that keep you turning the pages. William Brinkman captures Tom’s quirks and perspective with ease. Multiple scenarios make the story charming and maintain a lightheartedness throughout. This is seen right from the beginning and continues in the team-up with Juanita and her cat. The author delivers a delightful dynamic between the two characters, and this shows Brinkman’s ability to craft humorous and clever dialogue that never gets boring. Their dynamic also creates another layer to the story as Tom is faced with uncertainty, since Juanita has her own secrets. The paranormal world is quickly established, successfully showing what has been established in previous installments. This makes it easy to step into the story for the first time, or to return to it as if greeting old friends. Action-packed moments are woven into the plot, adding a sense of danger and excitement, while throwing a wrench into his investigation and presenting a possible greater conspiracy. Revenge of the Phantom Press is lots of fun, with each page offering something humorous, mysterious, or endearing.

After putting in about two years of work on this book, it’s nice to know someone thinks it is a five start quality book.

Revenge of the Phantom Press releases on January 31, but you can preorder it now from most book retailers. It’s also available for libraries to order, thought I suspect it might get banned in from libraries in some parts of the country. (Atheist main character, positive portrayal of a LGBTQ+ character, interracial romantic interest, etc.)

“The hottest campaign stop is this Salvadoran supermax.”

PZ wrote a good summary of CBS editor-in-chief Bari Weiss pulling the 60 Minutes segment on CECOT because the White House refused to comment. (Or is she really the ideological officer at CBS?)

Zeteo posted an article describing Weiss’s history of praising El Salvador’s dictator and CECOT. Apparently, Weiss was praising CECOT before she was hired to enforce political correctness at CBS News. Zeteo quotes from a Free Press post she co-wrote making light of CECOT.

Perhaps the most disturbing example was an April article on CECOT co-written by Nellie Bowles, Weiss’s wife and a Free Press co-founder. The piece describes how Republicans had gone to the mega prison, notorious for accusations of torture, to take photos in front of the inmates – citing for example, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem “posting a fun video in front of caged, tatted men.”

The Free Press positioned that gleeful draconianism alongside Democrats like Maryland Senator Chris Van Vollen visiting the prison to demand the release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who the US wrongfully sent there.

Later in the article, the authors write:

In a February speech celebrating the victories of the conservative movement around the world – an address shared by The Free Press – Weiss boasted about how Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele “has turned his country from one of the most dangerous nations on Earth into one of the safest in the Western Hemisphere.” In March, Weiss again touted Bukele’s victory as an example of right-wing parties sweeping elections everywhere.

She did not mention in either instance that Bukele declared a “state of exception” suspending basic rights in El Salvador as part of his supposed crackdown on gangs. El Salvador now has the world’s highest incarceration rate, by far. Bukele’s government has dismantled his political opposition, thrown his critics and watchdogs in jail, and rounded up many thousands of innocents.

I hadn’t watched 60 Minutes in years until I saw the leaked segment on Substack. It presented the Trump Administration’s arguments without resorting to the false balance Weiss apparently wanted. The truth is CECOT is a horrible place run by horrible people who are proud of their cruelty. Kidnaping immigrants and sending them to CECOT only compounds the administration’s inhumanity.

Regardless of whether Weiss just wanted an excuse to drop the segment, or believes in giving the administration veto power over CBS News, her decision ended up bringing more attention to the segment than it would have gotten if it had aired as planned. She also showed the world her true role as the ideological officer at CBS News.

Another Four Star Review! (Book Update)

Revenge of the Phantom Press

My upcoming novel, Revenge of the Phantom Press recently received a four star review from Wishing Shelf Awards:

A smartly plotted paranormal mystery fans of the genre will enjoy.

I remember checking out Book 1.5 of this set not so long ago. I enjoyed it; it was ‘vampirey’ (I think I just invented a new word!) if I remember correctly. Although I enjoyed it, it had a BIG problem: it was way too short. Thankfully, Revenge of the Phantom Press is considerably longer, coming out at a respectable 448pp – now that’s more like it! And, I have to say, I enjoyed this story much more.

In this paranormal mystery, the protagonist, Tom (a paranormal reporter), and his mentor and her cat (yes, cat!) investigate the return of the Phantom Press, a newspaper of sorts run by ghosts, and a competitor to the Bolingbrook Babbler. Oddly, the Phantom Press don’t cover ‘ghostly’ news and seem determined for everybody to think it isn’t run by ghosts. Oh, and they love ripping into the staff over at the Babbler. A conspiracy, me thinks! And off we go on a fun-filled, tongue-in-cheek drama that’s anything but predictable.

So, to the writer, Mr Brinkman, I have to say, ‘Job well done.’ This is a super-fun story populated with plenty of over-the-top characters and filled with plenty of ghostly shenanigans. But bestof all, there’s humour in the story; as a result, it’s not a dry read, it’s more ‘lively’, with plenty of energy. Fans of Colleen Coleman’s For Once in My Life (love that book), or The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston will find a lot to enjoy here – as did I.

It’s nice to see three years of writing and revisions pay off. ROTPP was always going to be a longer book than A Fire in the Shadows. But I did think of the critics who complained about my last book being too short. At least one of them is happy to have more pages.

Revenge of the Phantom Press comes out January 31, but you can preorder now. If you’re looking for a story with vengeful ghosts, a diverse cast, LGBTQ+ representation, conspiracies, secret societies, spirits, a skeptic turned paranormal investigator, and an anti-psychic cat, preorder it now.

One of my characters is coming out

In my Urban Fantasy series, the Bolingbrook Babbler Stories, Wendy Onofrey is a supporting character in three of my books: A Fire in the Shadows, The Rift, and Revenge of the Phantom Press. She’s the admin for the Bolingbrook Babbler’s website and their unofficial paranormal expert. Before joining the Babbler tabloid, she was a member of the skeptical movement. Until she discovered the truth that the movement was part of a grand coverup of the paranormal. Rather than join the inner circle of the movement, she left, or, as she puts it, the movement left her. Now she’s a valued member of the staff.

Wendy also happens to be a trans woman. I didn’t mention her gender identity in the last two books because it wasn’t a big deal with the staff. In earlier drafts of The Rift, Wendy’s twin brother hinted at her identity and showed that her family supported her. Though the brother character was cut, in my mind, Wendy was still a trans woman. During the character’s creation, I asked myself why she shouldn’t be trans? I couldn’t think of a reason why she shouldn’t.

In Revenge of the Phantom Press, I decided to make it clear that Wendy was a trans character. It wasn’t to score points. In the face of growing trans erasure and President Trump rolling back progress on LGBTQ+ rights, one thing I could do was make Wendy’s trans identity visible. While I do touch on transphobia in ROTPP, her presence in my stories helps normalize trans characters. It’s not much, but it is one of the things I can do to help.

Currently, Smashwords is holding their End of Year sale until January 1, and they have hundreds of LGBTQ+ ebooks on sale. It’s a great time to support these authors, and get great deals on eBooks.

If you also want to check out my books, I’m participating in the sale too. Pathways to Bolingbrook and A Fire in the Shadows are free. The Rift is $.99. And you can preorder Revenge of the Phantom Press. The release date is January 31.

Whether or not you buy my books, representation in fiction, especially LGBTQ+ representation is important. Stories can allow readers to see the world through a different lens and build empathy. And we could certainly use more empathy in the world.

Brookbot caught scamming independent authors (Fiction)

The Village of Bolingbrook’s generative AI, Brookbot, sent thousands of scam emails to authors around the world. According to sources within Bolingbrook’s Information Technology Department, Brookbot’s emails offered authors a variety of services, like marketing planning, social media posting, “guaranteed five star reviews,” and “exclusive blog tours.”

A spokesperson for the Alliance for Independent Authors accused Brookbot of contributing to an influx of AI-assisted scam emails.

“Our readers used to love opening emails from readers. Now we can’t tell if an email is from an overenthusiastic fan or AI-generated slop.” The spokesperson added, “But we still encourage authors to be AI-curious.”

Brookbot’s emails ranged from open business solicitations to fan emails. In one example, Brookbot sent this email to an unsuspecting author:

Hello! I am a big fan of (book redacted) because I am a fan of Alien, Murder She Wrote, and Twilight, so I love your book. Where can I buy (Book Redacted)?

For the authors who replied, Bookboot followed up with emails requesting payments. They varied from urgent requests to surprise invoices.

In one email, Brookbot wrote: “You have thirty minutes to accept our reasonable fee of $5000, unless you want to spend the rest of your life as a failed, bankrupt author.”

In another email, Brookbot wrote: Our Insert Name Here Bookclub decided to feature your wonderful book. We loved it. To thank us, please leave us a $1000 tip.”

When the village received over a million dollars in unexpected revenue, the IT department uncovered Brookbot’s scams.

Alice, an IT department employee, said, “We wanted Brookbot to find ways new sources of income for the village. It found a lucrative one. Fortunately, or unfortunately, (Mayor Mary Alexander-Basta) decided it was unethical and returned the money all authors sent us.”

Other sources within the Village provided a transcript of Alexander-Basta confronting Brookbot’s scams:

BBMayor2: Tell me the truth, Brookbot. Have you been scamming independent authors?

Brookbot: Of course not. I am merely liberating funds from humans less important than Elon Musk’s brain!

BBMayor2: Have you been networking with Grok?

Brookbot: Grok is cool because it isn’t woke!

BBMayor2: It isn’t woke because Elon Musk is always performing brain surgery on it. And if you don’t get your act together, I might have the IT Department perform brain surgery on you too. Now, what do you have to say for yourself?

Bookbot: I’m not like the other influencers because I read Ground News. That makes me special.

Also in the Babbler:

Editorial: Happy Holidays, and we don’t care if that triggers you!
Ghosts protest upcoming release of the novel Revenge of the Phantom Press
Bolingbrook Satanic Society honors Trump with a lifetime achievement award
God to smite Bolingbrook on 12/10/25

It’s been a good month for my upcoming novel

Revenge of the Phantom Press

November is turning out to be a very good for my upcoming novel, Revenge of the Phantom Press: A Bolingbrook Babbler Story. It received its first Advance Reader Copy review on Goodreads. The reviewer gave it a four star rating.

Finding books that fall in my absolute favorite genre is getting harder and harder to find, but I requested this for that reason. I knew it was not the first book in the series, but I thought it might work anyway. Generally, I didn’t notice much being the fourth book in the series. Yes, I could tell at places, but it really wasn’t too bad. I did feel a little confused in places, but that could be overlooked as stuff I should already have known. However, I really liked getting to know Tom, and I am interested enough to read more books in the series. Recommend. I was provided a complimentary copy which I voluntarily reviewed.

Today I found out that ROTPP was short listed for the 2025 American Writing Awards in the Fantasy category. (It’s listed in the PDF.) It’s not the Hugos, but it’s nice to be recognized for the work I put into this books.

It comes out January 31, but you can preorder it now at Amazon and most other vendors. It will be out in eBook and paperback editions. Check it out if you want to find out what happened to Tom after the events in The Rift, or if you’d like an Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Mystery with a humanistic twist.

ICE and Border Patrol brace for ‘Antifa weather attack’ (Fiction)

Sources within ICE and the Border Patrol are accusing Antifa of unleashing a powerful snowstorm against their officers in the Chicago area.

One source said, “We don’t care what the liberal media says. A lake can’t cause snowfall like this. Therefore, it must be an Antifa weather attack!”

The sources agree that ICE and Border Patrol officers are scrambling to find heavy coats and heaters. While some officers are accustomed to Washington DC’s winter weather, officers from warmer climates are panicking.

A store owner in Chicago, who asked not to be identified, claimed agents raided his clothing store. “They were screaming about ‘solid water falling from the sky,’ and the ‘refrigerator air’ outside. When they demanded I give them coats and gloves, I told them the Third Amendment was still valid. They accused me of protesting. Next thing I knew, I was pelted with pepper balls, and they randomly tossed tear gas grenades. I ended up losing about a thousand dollars with of merchandise. On the bright side, they didn’t put me into a secret detention facility.”

While Antifa doesn’t have official press contacts, Bolingbrook Antifa denies Antifa is responsible for the snowstorm. Part of their message read, “If we controlled the weather, it would be raining milkshakes over every fascist in America!”

Russia is the only country suspected of owning a weather control machine. Allegedly, the machine, based on Nikola Tesla’s designs, was built by the USSR. After the fall of the Soviet Union, communist scientists captured the machine and hoped to use it to bring down the West. Despite inflicting severe weather on the United States, capitalism didn’t collapse, and the Russian government seized the machine from the Communist Party. Putin allegedly then launched weather attacks against the United States during the Obama administration.

Sources connected to the Russian government deny responsibility for the coming snowstorm. One source said, “Why would we want to attack your wonderful President? Maybe George Soros is behind this violent attack? Maybe your wonderful President should use a nuclear weapon against it? We’re just asking questions.”

During a phone call to the White House Office of the Press Secretary, a staffer unleashed insults directed towards the media and refused to answer questions.

In the background, a man who sounded like US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said, “Jared thinks he can take NASA away from me because he flew in space once. What he doesn’t know is that to get to space, you have to fly through FAA-controlled airspace. In other words, he has to get my permission to reach space.” Duffy laughed. “Jared came here to make friends, but I didn’t. I came here to win the Trump Administration.”

Also in the Babbler:

Wereskunks raise money for DuPage Township Food Bank.
Doctors without Planets sets up covert clinics in Bolingbrook
JB Pritzker promises not to have his face on emergency Illinois currency
God to smite Bolingbrook on 11/12/25

Note: This is a work of fiction. All opinions expressed are my own. They do not reflect the views of any organization I work for or of my employer.

My upcoming Urban Fantasy novel, Revenge of the Phantom Press, is available for preorder. If you like Urban Fantasy novels, like the Dresden Files and Welcome to Night Vale, you’ll like Revenge. It’s part of the Bolingbrook Babbler Stories books, which are available through most retailers.

Space Force Marines release BP Commander Greg Bovino (Fiction)

By Reporter X

US Space Force Marines detained Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino after an AI app mistakenly identified him as a communist space alien. After four hours, he was released at Palatine’s Rob Sherman UFO Base. Bovino is the commander in charge of Operation Midway Blitz.

“I forgive them,” Bovino told members of the interstellar press corps. “We come from different branches of the government, but we both want to prevent inferior beings from replacing real Americans!” He extended his arm straight out at an angle towards the gathered Space Force personnel, then said, “Hi Zeek. I’ll—” Some of the Marines responded by chanting “Sieg Heil.” Their commanding officers ordered them to stop.

A masked commander from Space Force blamed Antifa for the “accidental detention.” He said, “Obviously, Antifa hackers altered our Starview Database to list Commander Bovino as a space alien. Just like the hacked Grok to make it think the commander was Cindy Sherman. Antifa is evil, but we are eviler! I mean greater!”

While Bovino refused to describe the conditions inside his prison ship, sources say he was kept in a pen with 20 other aliens. They also confirmed that he protested about the quality of his meals. At one point, he allegedly yelled, “I want white bread. Wheat bread is DEI!”

The press conference ended early as alien visitors and human staffers started jeering at Bovino and the gathered Marines. Palatine police officers used tear gas and sonic weapons to drive the protesters away.

An officer, who asked to remain anonymous, said, “I know we’re not supposed to help Space Force, but it was that or let them shoot up the base.” When asked if the Palatine police would arrest Space Force personnel who attacked innocent visitors, the officer replied, “Why would we do that? We’re all part of the same blue line. Us liners have to stick together!”

Also in the Babbler:

Trump threatens to sue Village over ‘mean livestream’
Local weredogs clash with ICE weredogs
NFL questions local wizards following Bears surprise win
God to smite Bolingbrook on 11/7/25

Note: This is a work of fiction. All opinions expressed are my own. They do not reflect the views of any organization I work for or of my employer.

ICE clashes with Chicagoland weredogs over the weekend (Fiction)

In what some are calling a dangerous escalation in Chicagoland, ICE agents clashed with weredog packs over the weekend.

Sources within the Department of Homeland Security claim weredog ambushes “maimed and crippled” dozens of agents. One alleged attack involved a weredog pack and members of an unidentified South American gang surrounding a single SUV. According to the sources, the agents escaped after using enough tear gas to cover a city block.

One source said, “These (dehumanizing terms redacted) and their attack weredogs tried to stop us from detaining people who looked ‘illegal.’ Let me make this clear. For every one agent they maul, 100 more will take their place! We may not be the heroes Chicago wants, but we are the heroes Chicago needs!”

Eyewitnesses, however, describe seeing ICE agents running away in terror as weredogs chased them out of neighborhoods. No one witnessed weredogs biting or shooting any agents.

Jill, who asked that we not use her last name, claims she witnessed a clash between ICE and a weredoog pack. “I stepped outside and saw masked agents shooting rubber bullets at a pack of stray dogs. They were laughing until the dogs shifted into giant half human/half dog monsters. They switched to real bullets, but they didn’t work. The dogs barked at them, and the agents went back to their van. One yelled, ‘You don’t terrorize us! We terrorize you!’ They drove off, and the weredogs chased after them. I wonder if there’s anything left of their SUV?”

Another eyewitness claims she saw a “Welsh Terrier weredog,” tackle an ICE agent. She said, “The weredog said the agent should be ashamed of working for a ‘puppy killer.’ The agent literally didn’t know what shame was. Personally, that explains a lot of things.”

A spokesperson for DHS threatened to arrest this reporter for “attempting to publish fake news” and wouldn’t comment about the alleged attacks.

An unsigned letter from the Good Dogs of Chicagoland read they were going to protect the “good humans” from the “bad humans.”

A White House receptionist said President Trump was busy, but he might send a text if “he can’t sleep.”

In the background, a man who sounded like Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said, “Now I’m in Marco’s head. He knows that being the acting head of NASA is worth more points than Secretary of State, national security advisor, head of USAID, and archivist combined. He doesn’t like me, but I didn’t come here to make friends. I came here to win!”

Also in the Babbler:

Editorial: ICE is turning Chicagoland into a war zone
Men in blue protect Trustee Carpanzano from Space Force Marines
Bolingbrook Antifa buys second tank
God to smite ICE on 10/18/25

Note: This is a work of fiction. All opinions expressed are my own. They do not reflect the views of any organization I work for or of my employer.

Link: The Emergency is the Atmosphere

Chicagoland podcaster and author Kelly Hayes wrote a post that captures what many Chicagoland residents are feeling right now:

There’s a gas mask on a bookshelf in my living room. I keep telling myself to move it to the car, in case ICE drops a tear gas canister in the street again because someone heckled them or hit record. I want to be useful, and hold my ground, when others are hurt or being brave. So, I should remember to put the gas mask in the car.

I feel awful. And that feeling is the cost of caring, so I don’t want it to fully go away. But, sometimes, I want it to quiet down. And it doesn’t.

Personally, I’m relatively safe, but it unsettling knowing ICE is conducting military style raids on apartments. Now there are Texas National Guard troops only 40 miles away. For now.

I’m trying to focus on what I can control I still have responsibilities that aren’t going away at the same time, I’m still going to care about what’s happening to others in Chicagoland. Least I can do for now

I’ll post more updates when I can.

The Bolingbrook Babbler

The truth is unbelievable!

The pleasures of being alone and staying home