A Light In The Dark

By Matthew C. Gill

A serial superhero bedtime story for kids! Follow along with the adventures of Jack as he fights his own fears of the dark(and possibly the worst teacher ever)to save his town using his amazing new powers. He will face sinister shadows, cruel creatures, and only he alone has a chance to stop them. But can he do it? Don't miss a single exciting episode!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Matthew C. Gill
• Release date: Apr 17, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301552832

Matthew C. Gill

The one thing just about anyone who has ever known me can readily admit is that I have always had a vivid imagination. At a young age I discovered that through writing I could share it with others and I have been doing just that ever since. After becoming disabled a lot changed in my life, but somethings never will. I am still a wonderfully lucky man married to a beautiful wife with 3 great kids and I still enjoy sharing my imagination. And it is something I will continue to do up until I can no longer lift a pencil.

Book preview

A Light In The Dark

Matthew C. Gill

Published By: Matthew C. Gill at Smashwords

Copyright 2013 Matthew C. Gill

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

Thank you for downloading this free ebook. You are welcome to share it with your friends. This book may be reproduced, copied and distributed for non-commercial purposes, provided the book remains in its complete original form. If you enjoyed this book, please return to Smashwords.com to discover other works by this author. Thank you for your support.

Cover Image Courtesy of middlewick / http://www.morguefile.com/

Table of Contents

Prelude

Episode 1

Episode 2

Episode 3

Episode 4

Episode 5

Episode 6

Episode 7

Episode 8

Episode 9

Episode 10

Episode 11

Episode 12

Episode 13

Episode 14

Episode 15

Episode 16

Episode 17

Episode 18

Episode 19

Episode 20

Episode 21

Episode 22

Episode 23

Episode 24

Episode 25

Episode 26

Episode 27

Episode 28

Episode 29

Episode 30

About the Author

- Prelude -

This is the story of a very special little boy. A boy named Jack, who it just so happens might be the bravest boy every born. Because even though he doesn't know it, Jack has within himself the ability to become a hero. And no matter how scary things get, or how hard the dark tries - Jack knows there is always light.

- Episode 1 -

Of all the days of the week there are just two that are always special days; Friday and Monday. Now, Friday is always a fun day because it means the start of the weekend. But it is Monday that is pure magic. Because every Monday is the start of a new week and that means you never know what the week will bring until Monday. And so it was on a Monday that our story begins.

Time for school, Jack's father said to him as he passed down the hall to get ready. Jack smiled as he hopped out of bed to get ready. It was going to be his first day of class this year and that meant a new teacher and everything. He couldn't wait to see his friends again, so he hurried to get his shoes on.

Ready dad Jack declared as he stood next to the front door. A head stuck out from his parent’s room and blinked back at him. Hey, why didn't you tell me we were racing this morning buddy his dad said with a grin. I guess you win this time, just give me a minute and we'll be off.

Jack couldn't help but giggle at his dad, he was just so silly. Sometimes he even wondered if his dad was even really a real grown up or just one of those really big kids who sometimes pretended to be a grown up. He could ask mom but she'd probably just think it was another one of dad's jokes. She liked to tell them that dad really wasn't funny but then would always giggle when he wasn't looking. Yeah, Jack was sure his parents had to be the silliest parents ever.

How about we walk this morning friend, his dad asked. It looks like a really nice morning. Jack loved it when they got to walk to school; it made him feel like the big kids. I guess so, he told his dad while trying not to grin. If you want to, I don't mind, Jack added. But as they opened the door Jack remembered the one thing he had forgotten - his backpack.

My backpack! he screamed as he ran back to his room. He couldn't believe he had almost left without it; it was brand new and everything. He had begged for a whole

Reviews for A Light In The Dark

[lynnb_64 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is the story of George Webb, failed police officer turned private detective. His life has been turned around by one case: the murder of Mr. Nash by his wife. Mrs. Nash hired George to follow her husband, who was cheating on her. George was drawn to her, and two years later, is still totally wrapped up in her life. Graham Swift has done an outstanding job of painting a picture of George: his personality, hopes, fears and longings. The book takes place over a single day, but with flashbacks to cover George's life. The writing is fast-paced, even though this is primarily a character study. It definitely made me want to read more by this author.

[samsheep_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I gave this four stars because....I was engaged, I liked it, I kept reading, some beautiful turns of phrase, some interesting characters. It had the quality feel to it. BUT sometimes it dragged - he really spun it out a bit too much, the pacing not quite what it could be. Also a silly small thing that really grated on me - the way that he used "sweetheart" a lot when speaking to her in prison. Somehow jarred with the rest of it.

[adrianburke_1 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

No. I cannot get on with this. Reading it is like listening to two radio stations at the same time. Two much cross interference. And really I feel the complication is all to do with the method of telling rather than anything else. One long fragmented flashback is intercut into a boring car trip. Did not finish. Life being too short.

[coyote99_1 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

What an awful book. Mesmerized by his own words, Swift manages to spin ever slower circles around events we already know happen with needless jumps forward and backward. Early on he decides that his tale has so little merit that his only chance is to make his narrative so confusing that the reader may mistake obfuscation for brilliance. A complete waste of time.

[booklistener · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I have mixed feelings on this book. Author painted a very convincing picture and the imagery sticks with me. On the other hand, it did seem the story moved excruciatingly slowly at times. He would dwell for a long time on the mood of a scene and then, almost in passing, mention key plot details.

[sanddancer_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Amazing! It plays with the conventions of the detective story and romance. We find out almost immediately who committed the crime, and the rest of the book is about piecing together the events that led up to it, all seen from the point of view of a detective, who has fallen in love with the murderer. That summary doesn't really do it justice. It is about relationships, secrets and love - all big themes, but it is beautifully written and griping.

[gocam_4 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Moderately more engaging than watching a slow paint dry, the book nonetheless explodes very occasionally with flashes of incendiary writing. 'Light of Day' indulges for most of its length in endless, insistent, circular, inevitable, here-again/there-again repetition surrounding a violent act that puzzles and initially intrigues and the back story detailing how our private detective protagonist ended up 'the man he is' - using a series of flash-back and -forward sequences we are led through a life that collides in a conclusion that should satisfy but rather stultifies . The form does tend to pull Webb's plight and life arc into tight focus, but honestly neither make for particularly engaging reading. As a treatment of a slow-burning drift into insular obsession the novel succeeds in generating a modicum of sympathy, but little more. Swift can write tremendously compelling almost poetic sequences (particularly when detailing the relationship with his daughter, and a cop whom he faces as nemesis then acquaintance), but they are buried deep in far too many words describing far too slight of a narrative where, frankly, there is little to care about. In reading this book I found myself at one point reminded of the power of selective repitition in Edwin Morgan's "In the Snack Bar" - a poem that achieves more in a few hundred words than this novel does in its entirety. Disappointing as I had high expectations after a punchy opening chapter, and having enjoyed "Last Orders".

[cliffagogo · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Ex-cop and private detective George Webb reflects on his past and revisits his old relationships, to find meaning in recent tragic events. The author’s knack for readable, believable dialogue makes for a compelling, addictive novel that pleases from start to finish. This, mixed with an incredible sense of structure and atmosphere, places Swift head and shoulders above the competition.

[piefuchs · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A good book that failed to live up to the high expectation I had developed for this author based upon Last Orders.