Lou Paduano | Urban Fantasy Novels | Sci-Fi Crime Series

Spectral Advocate Author Commentary 2

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The author commentary for Spectral Advocate continues! This installment takes a closer look at the newest addition to the DSA’s world: Cal Cooper. SPOILER WARNING is in effect!

Who is Cal Cooper?

I love guest stars. Watching television dramas growing up, it was always a treat when the main character(s) were able to play off someone new–some guest to their world who brought with them a unique problem to be solved.

Cal Cooper was my attempt to really sell the wider world to the reader. With all the focus on scientific anomalies and government conspiracies, Spectral Advocate allowed me to open the doors to new ideas and more bizarre threats.

Cal is the Spectral Advocate, a lawyer with the uncanny ability to look through the veil to see the ghostly plane. That dichotomy really sold the character for me. Here was a guy working firmly in the natural world. He’s rational, believing firmly in the law, yet there’s this other side of things. He can see ghosts and interact with them.

The first potential spin-off

When I originally put together my plan for the DSA, I did so with the intention of creating a broader universe of stories. DSA was the spine for this shared universe. Each season I hoped to introduce some element that might spin out from the DSA into something new.

Cal Cooper, Spectral Advocate, was the first. His story may start here (what will eventually – hopefully – be considered Book 0 of his tale) but there is so much more to tell.

What other spin-off’s are in the works? Look no further than Season Two, Book Three. (Hint, hint)

One of my favorite characters

I tell people all the time about my love for Cal Cooper. His story has been locked in my brain for almost a decade now. One of these days I’m going to get the chance to write it all down.

Why haven’t I?

Not enough people have reached out. I swore I would not write the first Spectral Advocate novel until a certain number of people demanded more.

Six books of his series are scripted, if you can believe that. They have been since 2016. Every once in a while, I get the itch and read through them. They still hold up, even after all these years.

Maybe someday I’ll be able to bring his world back and finish his story. You tell me if that’s something you would enjoy.

Spectral Advocate Author Commentary 1

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Welcome to the author commentary for Spectral Advocate, the fourth book in the DSA series. I love giving background info on my books, so if there is ever anything you want covered, please don’t hesitate to reach out. SPOILER WARNING is in effect, as I will be discussing what happens in the book.

Let the author commentary begin!

The opening sequence

I’m going to be honest right now. Looking back through Spectral Advocate over the last few days, I did not remember the opening chapter. AT ALL. It actually surprised me that it was there. I always thought the story opened with the scream from Abigail Winslow’s apartment. There’s a reason for that:

That was how the book started in the original draft.

Ben’s childhood, his fear of ghosts, did not exist in that original rendition of the story. Even most of the second chapter didn’t, as the scream was the initial line in the book, and everything ran from there.

So where did the flashback scene come from and why keep it?

If you’ve read the book, you are no doubt aware of the role Ben’s father plays in the background. The big reveal at the end, where Cal Cooper has been seeing Ben’s father this whole time repeating the same phrase of “I’m sorry” over and over again doesn’t get the impact it deserves without the opening sequence.

Symmetry gets thrown around a lot when putting together a novel. Circling back to the beginning definitely strengthens a narrative on a thematic level. That was the reason behind the childhood flashback. Not only would it introduce Ben’s fear of ghosts, something he would have to face in the climax of the novel, but it also played on the dynamic between Ben and his father.

Kenneth Riley has been a figure mentioned briefly previously. This was a chance to build on that, and also foreshadow the revelations to come in Dark Impulses. Even Ben’s conversation with Cal in Chapter Sixteen doesn’t play the same without the flashback at the start of the novel, so that was why it came about and why it stayed.

“I’m sorry.”

I love this moment. It’s nice and ambiguous, leaving the reader to draw their own conclusions about what Kenneth is apologizing for. What has he done to his son that he now haunts him with nothing but regret?

The answers might be in Dark Impulses, or is there something more to it? I’m not saying anything on that front. You’ll have to wait and see.

The better opening

This is something I’ve been thinking about since revisiting the book for this commentary. Overall, I think the original opening focusing strictly on the scream and the situation was probably stronger. Could the flashback have been included somewhere else? Maybe while Ben is waiting for his coffee across from his apartment?

These are the kinds of questions that keep me up at night. I could second guess myself to death over every detail included, or erased, or revised, from the books, but then nothing would ever get published.

The flashback served a purpose and set the tone of the novel. That held its own importance, and I’m glad to have it in the book.

Next up: Cal Cooper!

Spectral Advocate is on sale now!

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Book Four of The DSA Season One launches today! Spectral Advocate is a murder mystery wrapped in a ghost story. Ben Riley is forced to rely on outside help in the form of Cal Cooper–an attorney who can see the dead. Together they peer beyond the veil to make sense of a locked room murder with more implications than either of them realize.

Now available digitally and in paperback!

Abigail Winslow, the DSA’s latest recruit, is dead.

Unsure of who to trust anymore after learning the truth behind Agent Jacob Grissom’s death, Ben Riley attempts to track down Winslow’s killer without the use of the agency’s resources.  Facing a locked room murder, Ben turns to his only suspect for assistance—Cal Cooper, an attorney with a secret. 

He sees ghosts—everywhere.

Thrust into a world he refuses to believe in, Ben must evade the danger posed by those beyond the veil and put his faith in a stranger to discover the murderer in their midst.

Unfortunately, Ben’s line of inquiry may have made him the next target.

Nothing can prepare readers for the most riveting chapter of the DSA series yet, as the incredible first season continues.

Grab your copy of Spectral Advocate now.

Paperback fans can find the book at – Amazon US, CA, UK

Head over to the online store now for a signed paperback.

The store is open and ready to take your order. I’m very excited to offer this service for those who enjoy the feel of the book in their hands.

How are you enjoying the series?

I’d love to hear your thoughts on the series so far. Drop me a line at lou@loupaduano.com and let me know how you’re enjoying the adventures of Ben Riley, Morgan Dunleavy and the rest of the DSA cast.

Happy Reading!

Spectral Advocate Preview

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Spectral Advocate arrives next week at all digital retailers. Book Four of The DSA Season One opens up a new realm of possibilities for Ben Riley, who stumbles into a murder investigation with dangerous implications for both him and the DSA.

Be sure to pre-order your copy today!

Paperback lovers:

You can order a signed paperback here. Or head over to Amazon to order one right now.

Check out the exclusive preview of Spectral Advocate –

Thought escaped him. Seconds ticked by though it felt like an eternity. The world silenced around him. Ben was grateful for the reprieve, content to have something to do instead of mull over his options, despite the growing weariness in his bones.

The flight of stairs to the eighth floor of the Edgemont faded behind him. His bare feet slid along the stained carpet of the corridor. Dim lights ran along the center of the ceiling. Ben blinked rapidly, resisting the heaviness of his eyes. The cold metal of the Ruger sent a chill along his arm. He held the weapon tight to his side. Despite the emptiness of the hall, Ben took each step slower than the last. Each door remained closed and each shadow caught on his periphery was his own.

When a door opened to his left he nearly opened fire on instinct. An elderly woman with rollers in her hair and thick glasses staggered from her apartment. Her eyes thinned at the sight of him and his weapon. Never stopping, never backing away, the woman raised a frying pan at him, ready to swing.

Ben lowered the gun and tucked it in his waistband. He opened his badge for her, though her attention was elsewhere. Her gaze trailed down from his awkward smile to his bare chest.

“Great,” Ben muttered, attempting to close his shirt. He continued down the hall. As he passed her, a needy paw pinched his ass. “Hey!”

The woman chuckled, the pan holstered under her arm. She licked her lips slowly, hand to the frame of her apartment. Her words were rapid mumbles, the language foreign and incomprehensible to the exhausted agent.

Ben nodded politely as he backed away from her creeping hand. Before he could respond, a wrenching sound echoed down the corridor. Wood cracked, once then twice in quick succession, before shattering. When he turned back to the woman, her door was closed and the chain lock was sliding into place.

Swiping at his eyes, Ben rounded the corner for the far side of the building. The third door on the left was exposed. The heavy oak had been snapped at the lock. It hammered against the back wall, unable to make the return trip to the frame. Splinters were scattered inside the hall of the apartment and right outside. The intruder’s footprints were clearly marked through the debris.

Hand to the door to keep it in place, Ben entered the apartment. His gun led the way. No more screams guided him. The aid was no longer necessary to track its origin point.

The domicile matched his own, reversed because of its location in the building. Just inside the entrance was a small hallway. Green carpeting ran throughout. The bathroom was tucked on the right and the door was open a crack. Ben edged the door back. He caught his reflection in the mirror.

I look like crap.

He cleared the room quickly, then wheeled down the hall for the rest of the apartment. Opposite the bathroom was the kitchen, which bled into the main living space of the two-bedroom unit.

Dishes were stacked in the sink, one plate, a coffee cup, silverware, and a wine glass. The wrapper of the microwave meal peeked from the lidless trash in the corner. It looked like a lonely night in, matching most of his when not in the field for the DSA.

A single occupant clearly lived there. Female, from what he could tell from the decorations. Candles sat along the counter. A bright pink sweatshirt hung over the lounger in the corner of the living room.

The place looked newly furnished, the couches factory fresh. Someone new to the area? Their first apartment?

Speculation fell behind the sound of heavy breathing in the living room. Away from the couches dotting the space on the left-hand side lay a woman along the carpet. She stared up at the ceiling. Gaping lips of ruby red and deep, recessed green eyes welcomed him to their emptiness. Thin, black locks of hair were scattered underneath her, spreading like a fan along the ground.

No wounds were visible, and no blood spread beneath her along the recently installed carpet. At least not that Ben noticed. His focus was locked on the pair of hands pressing with all their might between her breasts.

A figure knelt close to her body. His wrinkled shirt and moppy brown hair obscured Ben’s view of the victim.

“Don’t move!” Ben shouted, awake to the situation at last. He raised his sidearm, maintaining a safe distance from the man looming over the deceased in the room. “Hands where I can see them!”

The man’s arms fell limply to his sides, the heavy breathing from the act of supplying CPR to the dead woman slowly fading. He turned to face Ben, hands spread to show their emptiness.

“This looks kinda bad, doesn’t it?”

Spectral Advocate launches February 11th!

Be sure to order your copy now. This installment not only propels the series toward the season finale, but also introduces you to Cal Cooper – a hero with his own story to tell.

Pre-order your digital copy now.

Spectral Advocate is available for pre-order

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Book Four of the DSA’s opening season is now available for pre-order. This is only for the digital copy at the moment, but paperback fans should keep an eye out as they should be available in the next few days!

Ready for the second half of season one?

The Bridge left things with an air of uncertainty. Lincoln’s troubles were only the beginning. Things really start to turn here, in Spectral Advocate.

From the back cover:

Abigail Winslow, the DSA’s latest recruit, is dead.

Unsure of who to trust anymore after learning the truth behind Agent Jacob Grissom’s death, Ben Riley attempts to track down Winslow’s killer without the use of the agency’s resources.  Facing a locked room murder, Ben turns to his only suspect for assistance—Cal Cooper, an attorney with a secret.

He sees ghosts—everywhere.

Thrust into a world he refuses to believe in, Ben must evade the danger posed by those beyond the veil and put his faith in a stranger to discover the murderer in their midst.

Unfortunately, Ben’s line of inquiry may have made him the next target.

Meet Cal Cooper

He might be my favorite character in the series. Cal has a pretty important role in this novel, but there is so much more to his story than what fit within the narrative. I hope readers connect with him and want to see where things go next for him.

This is the first book in the series with what I call spin-off potential. I know exactly what a Cal Cooper series would look like, down to the last detail. The only way I will write it, though, is if there is enough reader interest. Please be sure to reach out to me at lou@loupaduano.com if you want more Spectral Advocate down the line.

Answers to come…

The next three DSA novels are coming fast and furious. With them are some of the answers you’ve been seeking. Why was Ben recruited to the DSA? What is the Wellspring? And what is Sullivan’s ultimate plan?

These are only a few of the items addressed within these pages, while also setting up more mysteries in the second season.

I hope you enjoy the ride.

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