For now, see if anyone else has reviews up yet:

Noah Arsenault
Amy Bissell
Red Bissell
Justin Boyer
Keanan Brand
Grace Bridges
Beckie Burnham
Jeff Chapman
Christian Fiction Book Reviews
Carol Bruce Collett
Valerie Comer
CSFF Blog Tour
D. G. D. Davidson
April Erwin
Andrea Graham
Nikole Hahn
Katie Hart
Ryan Heart
Bruce Hennigan
Becky Jesse
Cris Jesse
Becca Johnson
Jason Joyner
Julie
Carol Keen
Dawn King
Shannon McDermott
Matt Mikalatos
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Joan Nienhuis
Nissa
John W. Otte
Chawna Schroeder
Tammy Shelnut
Kathleen Smith
James Somers
Rachel Starr Thomson
Robert Treskillard
Fred Warren
Phyllis Wheeler

One thing I’ve learned in life is external structure–rigid scheduling and daily routines are sanity savers for me, which neither the book reviews nor an advice column have been accommodating towards. So, I will still do those as I get opportunity, but need to introduce a daily column (M-F) if I’m going to change one fail that has been nagging me.

With a little prayer and thought, I’ll be sharing devotional thoughts with you, mostly from my daily reading,  or simply sitting down and praying, “Okay, God, I’m here. What do you want me to blog about today?”

Please hold me accountable to it.

By Adam Graham

10) You’re between the ages of 25-45

If you’re in this overly wide demographic, and enjoyed watching Saturday morning cartoons as a child, Tales of the Dim Knight will bring back great memories of shows like Superfriends, Batman: The Animated Series, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Batman (the 1960s series version), Underdog, and Darkwing Duck.

We even had one hopeful marketing conversation with a Mr. Terrance Mann, who said, “People will come, Adam. They’ll most definitely come. They’ll come to you to ask about the book, as innocent as children, longing for the past. ‘We don’t mind if you buy a copy,’ you’ll say, ‘it’s just $10.95 forpaperback, $4.25 on Kindle, and $5.95 for all other e-book readers.’ They’ll hand over the money without a second thought. Because it’s money they have and wholesome laughter they lack.”Or something like that.

9) We Have a Cool Cover

Payno attention to the old saying, “You can’t judge a book by its cover.” Instead, think:

“Cool cover equals really cool book.” And then take a look at this cover by Holly Heisey:

Need I say more? No, but a top ten list that stops with the second item on the list and lists it as 9) is too weird even for me.

The Superhero Team Up

If you’re a warm-blooded superhero fan, nothing warms your heart like superheroes joining forces to take on really bad dudes. Whether it’s Batman and Superman, Spider-man and Daredevil, or even Darkwing Duck and Gizmoduck, a team up makes the story more exciting. So in Tales of the Dim Knight, Powerhouse joins forces with three other heroes in a battle in which the stakes are (of course), the future of all mankind.

7) Real Christian Characters
The media portrayal of Christians is usually pretty annoying. At one extreme, you have the hypocrites and crazy psychopaths spouting Bible verses that inhabit much of the media. At the other extreme, you have the all-too-perfect characters who act like they memorized Evidence that Demands a Verdict and a dozen other pop Christian books.

With our Christian characters, we seek to introduce you to real, decent-hearted folks who try to do the best they can, but don’t always know the right thing to say and don’t always come off well. Sound like anyone you know?

6) Great Superhero Gadgets

Consider just a few of the devices featured in Tales of the Dim Knight: a rocket pack, an airship that shrinks down to pocket-sized, a shape-shifting key, force fields, a 50-foot giant robot, shock collars, and a cloaking device that hides all the furniture in the room. To paraphrase one of our characters, we have more hardware than True Value.
5) It’s Serialized Fiction

As my work at Laser and Sword will attest, I’m a huge fan of serial fiction. Reading Tales of the Dim Knight is like watching a season of your favorite superhero show, as he battles for honesty and fair play in his continuous skirmish against evil. While underlying threads weave through out each story, Dave has a wide variety of adventures to please your palette.

4) Multiple Secret Identities

Unlike some poor superheroes who have only one alter ego, Mild-Mannered Janitor Dave Johnson actually has three alter egos in the course of the book: Powerhouse, the Red Flame, and the Emerald Avenger. It’s three heroes for the price of one.

3) Great Villains

Great Superhero stories require great villains, and in Tales of the Dim Knight, Powerhouse battles a veritable rogue’s gallery of classic villains. Marco Silvano is the father of a mob family who has a soft spot for his kids, Night Lord is a drug lord who refuses to do any hit jobs before evening. The old-fashioned Diablo believes in the tried and true villain methods of tying victims above pools of acid and contends there’s no such thing as too much high explosives. Ahmed is an Islamic terrorist threatening to blow up Megalopolis. Leona Campbell is an ice queen divorce attorney and self-help guru who teaches there’s way too much loyalty in the world.

2) A Family Story

Tales of the Dim Knight has a serious side. Dave becoming a superhero puts a strain on his family when he doesn’t tell his wife his secret and she suspects he’s cheating on her. At the same time, she finds herself attracted to Powerhouse. Can the Johnson family survive Dave’s superpowers?

1) It’s Lots of Laughs

All seriousness aside, Tales of the Dim Knight parodies countless superhero tropes, supervillain tropes, and even some non-comics stuff, such as a speed-dating scene that features a tactless detective. You’ll laugh until you stop laughing. It’s guaranteed to be the funniest novel you’ll read this year.*
*Legal Disclaimers: This guarantee is not valid, and hence a reason for a cause of action, in foreign countries, Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. Territories, commonwealths, or protectorates, or the Continental United States. In addition, the guarantee is valid only for novels which feature both superheroes and speed dating and were published in November 2010. Void where prohibited.

Safety Advisory: Be advised that reading this book while drinking may cause you to laugh so hard your drink spews out your nose. Should not be read or thought about while operating heavy machinery.

Feel Free to Share: If you like this post, feel free to repost it on your own website with credit.

“A truly original premise, Tales of a Dim Knight is a light-hearted escape into the world of superheroes and villains with a thoughtful twist as to what matters most in life,” says Jill Williamson, Christy-award winning author of By Darkness Hid
In Tales of the Dim Knight, Mild-mannered janitor and superhero fanboy Dave Johnson gets all his wishes at once when a symbiotic alien gives him supernatural powers. But what’s he to do with them? Follow his zany adventures as he fights crime and corruption while trying to keep his family together and avoid being sued for copyright infringement.

Adam Graham is a regular political columnist for Pajamas Media. His short stories appear in the anthology Light at the Edge of Darkness and in the Laser & Sword e-zine. He hosts the Truth and Hope Report podcast,  Old Time Dragnet, and Old Time Superman. Mr. Graham holds an  Associate of Arts degree from Flathead  Valley Community College with a concentration in Journalism.

Andrea Graham co-authored Adam’s first novel, Tales of the Dim Knight and edits all of his work. Her short story “Frozen Generation” also appeared in Light at the Edge of Darkness. She studied creative writing and religion at Ashland University.

Adam and Andrea live with their cat, Joybell, in Boise, Idaho. They are members of several writers groups, including Lost Genre Guild and American Christian Fiction Writers. Adam is president of their local ACFW chapter, Idahope.

Tales of the Dim Knight releases in print on November 22, 2010 and is out on Kindle and available for other e-book readers. Reviewers may request a print review copy from the publisher, or obtain the e-book version from the authors now by contacting: adam@adamsweb.us

Note print books are expected to ship a week after the release date. You can sample the first chapter of Tales of the Dim Knight at the authors’ website.

Like Tales of the Dim Knight on facebook.

Wanted to let those of you following CSFF’s tour of the Lost Genre Guild last week know that our girl (hey, I was raised in the hood) Grace Bridges and The Writer Cafe Press’ lovely Cynthia have full coverage over at the LGG news blog, with plenty of links to Laser and Sword, the serial fiction magazine I edit.

Next, let me give a congrats to hubby, for launching new web serials on Laser & Sword‘s blog-now the stories from the zine are available for free, in weekly spoonfuls you can absorb in five minutes (the impatient sorts can still buy the e-issues or the print edition). You can check out the first issue free, or become a fan on Facebook.

Also, Grace posted my explanation of the distinction between stage magic, magic as the bible defines it, and spiritual gifts.   She also links an aw-you’re-making-me-blush write-up on my husband and I’s work on Laser & Sword by the esteemed Frank Creed. Thanks, guys!

Anyway, check ‘im out.

In Christ’s Link-Love,

Andrea Graham

P.S. Want fewer posts like this one? Send me a public letter for our name-sake free Christian advice column!

In this season, when we often forget the birthday boy in rushing to buy each other presents to celebrate Christ’s nativity, I wanted to share with you an announcement posted today fairly close by at one of my husband Adam’s pet projects, which suggests the Perfect Gift for Sci Fi Lovers is Laser & Sword Annual 2008:

Looking for a last minute Christmas present for a lover of super heroes or science fiction? Trying to find something wholesome that will get the teenage boy (or grown man) in your life more interested in reading? Look no further!  Laser & Sword Annual 2008 contains Issues 1-4, each of this year’s quarterly serials. This year, stuff your stockings with a year’s worth of serial fiction at it’s finest in a beautiful 160 page paperback volume.

Meet our three maiden storylines:

* The Sword, Sword Comics owner Jesse Miller seeks to defeat terrorism by uniting the world’s greatest superheros. Will he learn bad guys masquerade as good guys before the traitor in their midst sends the heroes to their doom?

* Snyder, a juvenile delinquent living in the 78th Year of the Empire, loathes Earth’s dictator while hailing the regime’s American governor as a hero. Getting caught meting out vigilante justice gets him inducted into the Imperial Army under threat of a noose. Can a double agent get Snyder back on the right track? Will Snyder survive to discover his destiny?

*Lastly, Mild Mannered Janitor Dave Johnson discovers an symbiotic alien and this superfan’s dreams of being a superhero come true with hilarious results. One question haunts: can there be such a thing as a good Symbiot, even if he is a silver cylinder rather than black tar?

What would you pay to buy all four issues individually? $29.75* Order Laser & Sword Annual 2008 now, and you’ll get all four issues for just $19.50*. 

Tight budget? The e-edition of Laser & Sword can be downloaded for just $1.25 an issue–a great deal for the frugal tech geek that loves reading PDFs. Download e-issue 4 here or check out our back issues.

*plus shipping

Confession: I’ve donned the copy writer hat at Laser & Sword as well my usual assistant editor cap. Please forgive me for the cross-post. Now back to our regularly scheduled program (or should I say our feature presentation?)

Love in  Christ,
Andrea Graham

A couple things I wanted to note. First, my husband’s site, Adam’s Blog, has won the Thinking Blogger Award. Congratulations, Honey!

Second, Karina Fabian and her husband Robert have a Catholic Science Fiction anthology, Infinite Space, Infinite God, touring with the Christian Fiction Review Blog.

Update: This is my 100th post here at Ask Andrea

In Christ’s Joy,

Andrea Graham