Death doesn’t stand a chance against love.
The Plot Against Heaven – a dark fantasy/retro science fiction novella.
Hell-bent on confronting God after the death of wife Kate, Paul gate-crashes heaven. With immigration problems and a wall, heaven turns out to be nowhere near as welcoming as expected. Both heaven and hell are modern, militarised, and the cold war that exists between them is about to heat up, with him in the middle of it. Caught on the wrong side of heaven, Paul faces an impossible choice if he’s to have any hope of seeing Kate again.
‘Mark Kirkbride delivers a mighty punch in The Plot Against Heaven. This novella is mysterious and heartbreaking, yet packed with so much story in its scant 79 pages…. There is a huge twist that I did not see coming. It caught me right in the feels.’ My Bookish Bliss
‘Kirkbride’s bizarre love story falls somewhere between Kurt Vonnegut and Edgar Allan Poe…. futuristic and timeless’ Indies Today
‘Kirkbride’s representation of the two sects of the afterlife tear through any preconceived notions… his version of God is absolutely incredible; it makes perfect sense… It was one of my favourites moments of this novella.’ Writing Werewolf
‘Kirkbride doesn’t appear to take sides – the Devil, as always, gets the better lines and the more attractive characters, but there is a redemptive moment at the end, reminiscent of the strange scene at the end of Kubrick’s 2001 Space Odyssey, where God gets a better look-in. It’s not a tract: the theological issues take second fiddle, in the end, to a touching love story – and a twist to die for.’ Isobel Blackthorn, The Toorak Times
‘Heaven is a corporate militarised bureaucracy shielding an oligarch who can never be seen, but whose influence is beyond measure…. We get the cosmology we deserve.’ Gary Budgen, Sein und Werden
‘I really enjoyed reading this crazy little book… and running through it all is a sweet love story that is so beautifully told that you really want the guy to get her back, or at least to get to see her one more time.’ The Dark Side from The Inside
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‘Equal parts horror, thriller, and dark fantasy’, Michael Laimo, author of Deep in the Darkness and Dead Souls
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Work in progress: a science fiction novella, The Vale of Virtual Tears.