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William Massa
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Cursed City (Shadow Detective Book 1) Kindle Edition

by William Massa (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.1 out of 5 stars 1,338
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My name is Mike Raven. I hunt nightmares.

Demons murdered my parents when I was eight. Turns out my folks were paranormal investigators and Hell always settles its scores. Naturally I decided to join the family business.

For two decades I've studied the occult and traveled the world fighting monsters. Vampires. Shifters. Demons. Ghosts. I've faced them all. But my biggest challenge lay ahead...

From the moment Celeste stepped into my office, I knew she was in trouble. Black magic trouble. Her father had promised her soul to a powerful demon on the day she was born. Now, twenty-one years later, the forces of darkness were gathering to collect their long-awaited prize. Guess who's about to pick a fight with the Devil himself...
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  1. Book 1 of 11
    Shadow Detective
  2. Print length
    200 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publication date
    December 10, 2016
  6. File size
    4763 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
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  9. Enhanced typesetting
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  10. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From the Author

BOOKS IN THE SHADOW DETECTIVE SERIES: Book 1: Cursed CityBook 2: Soul CatcherBook 3: Blood Rain Book 4: Demon Dawn Book 5: Skull Master (coming soon)

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B01MTZP3O8
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Critical Mass Publishing; 1st edition (December 10, 2016)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ December 10, 2016
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 4763 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 200 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 out of 5 stars 1,338

About the author

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William Massa

William Massa

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William Massa is a produced screenwriter and bestselling Amazon author. His film credits include Return to House on Haunted Hill and he has sold pitches and scripts to Warner, USA TV, Silver Pictures, Dark Castle, Maverick and Sony.

William has lived in New York, Florida, Europe and now resides in Venice Beach surrounded by skaters and surfers. He writes Dark Urban Fantasy and Action-Adventure Horror (he likes to call it Heroic Horror). Current series include The Hexecutioner, The Paranormalist, Shadow Detective, Night Slayer and Occult Assassin. New series are currently in the works.

Visit www.facebook.com/WilliamMassaBooks for news, updates and announcements.

Or sign up directly to his mailing list at http://eepurl.com/Ki8QH.

Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
4.1 out of 5
1,338 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

MonasZoo
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic start to a series! Already hooked
Reviewed in the United States on April 2, 2018
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Cursed City is a very well written book by Willilam Massa. This is the first book I have read by this author and it most definitely will not be my last. The author developed a captivating story with a great plot that made it difficult to put this book down! There were a couple twists hidden that I didn't see coming which were placed beautifully in the story. The pace was spot on and I never felt like the author was rushing me through the story nor did I ever feel like the story was dragging out. This book ave me a little bit of a feel of "John Sinclair" a series I grew up reading back in Austria.

Mike Raven is your typical strong male character and sure does not seem to have it easy in this one. He does have a great friend and support with Skulick, who together are a great team, even with the handicap his partner has.

I really enjoyed the writing style of this author and the concept of this series. I will most definitely read more of them and also check out his other series that he has. This author will probably be added to the list of my favorite authors quickly if the others are as entertaining as this one is.
3 people found this helpful
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Patrick Dorn
4.0 out of 5 stars This occult detective is armed and dangerous.
Reviewed in the United States on December 27, 2016
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Occult detective meets action hero in this new supernatural horror fiction series by critically acclaimed urban fantasy, horror and sci fi author William Massa. This first novella sets the ground rules, but despite all the "explaining," there's plenty of action and loads of logical but completely surprising twists and turns. Mike Raven and his wheelchair-bound partner investigate supernatural crimes in the unnamed "cursed city," which recently became a nexus for bad things coming into this realm. In this first installment, Raven is hired by a young woman who was dedicated to a demon at birth to stop him before he collects her soul. As with femme fatales in most detective stories, supernatural or otherwise, she's not giving Raven the whole story, and it's no coincidence that the demon in question is the same one who killed his parents, marked Raven for life, and started him on his quest for vengeance against evil. The action and horror scenes crackle with energy and excitement, and Raven has an interesting arsenal of "magical" weapons, both for defense and offense. He's not a magic practitioner, however, as that power always corrupts in this world, turning humans into monsters. Plus he has vowed not to take human life. Within those parameters, there's plenty of room for thrilling adventure and character development. Unlike his mentor, Raven is skilled, but by no means a master occult crime fighter. Hellhounds and hellspawn are distinct and interesting bad guys. Raven also has a complicated relationship with a female police officer who sooner or later will need to be taken into his confidence. I'm looking forward to the next installment. It's fun to read about a highly motivated, resourceful hero taking on evil in all its guises.
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Gerald Browning
3.0 out of 5 stars Good Story, Bad Writing
Reviewed in the United States on October 18, 2017
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William Massa's Cursed City introduces us to "The Shadow Detective", Mike Raven. Mike is the traditional hard-boiled hero in this mashup up noir and horror. Being a fan of both genres, and a teacher of writing at a college to boot, I must say that I began the series with a critical (and skeptical) eye.

Massa brings us into this world with the story of a Raven helping a woman (archetype "femme fatale") try to lift a curse that has doomed her to link her soul to an ancient demon. It does not take long for the inevitable twist that she is not who she seems to be. With that, the reader is off into a world of monsters, demons, charmed, glowing guns, and lots of action.

For those who are looking for a masculine version of stories such as Sukie Stackhouse or Anita Blake, you will not be disappointed. The plot is thinly veiled and predictable, yet rather enjoyable. I can't argue that this is a rather addictive series. I am already in the fourth book and began the series towards the end of summer (it is October). However, I was pulled away from the story due to the massive amounts of typos and grammatical errors. The English professor in me chalked it up to one book; however, the second and third books are riddled with them, as well.

Each story is quite predictable. I was able to foresee the ending in each series. However, for those who are fans of shows such as Supernatural or True Blood, you will enjoy this. And much in the same vein (pun intended) as Supernatural and True Blood, on many occasions, Massa writes himself into a corner with the first person POV. Because it is limited, we are excluded from information. So in the following books, the story shifts POV from Raven to other characters, breaking the first person POV voice was we see in this text.

Obviously, it is addicting (since I am nearly done with the series); however, like many ebooks I have read this summer by authors I have taken a risk on, this one let me down a little bit. Yet, I am conflicted because I would recommend this series for those looking for something to "sink their teeth into" (again, pun intended).
2 people found this helpful
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D Boy
5.0 out of 5 stars An entertaining and fun read
Reviewed in the United States on March 18, 2018
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This is a good story. It's fun, fast-paced, full of action, and character introspection. At the end of the day, it was exactly what I wanted to read: something short, with a straightforward story. That is not to say that this story was predictable. There were some twists and turns along the way and they weren't in the story simply for their own sake, they actually added to the story. I also like the dark atmosphere of the story which was reminiscent of Hellboy, Buffy, or Supernatural. This story plays with tropes familiar to the genre, but its done different enough that it's not a clone of any of the works that inspired it. I liked the character and felt that I could sympathize with him.
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Top reviews from other countries

Hobbes Doo
5.0 out of 5 stars Can't put it down - awesome series!
Reviewed in Canada on April 18, 2018
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I read all 9 books already, and would be on the 10th if it was out already. I love these books because they read like an action movie. The characters are interesting, and the story is dynamic and action packed. I couldn't put them down, one after the other. And I want more! Really enjoyed William's style. And full disclosure, I'm not normally a fantasy/supernatural fan, but got hooked on this from the first page of book1 until the last of book 9. Can't wait for the next. I highly recommend this series to anyone who enjoys action, mystery and a very creative and rich supernatural universe.
One person found this helpful
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Prince G Abraham
5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting take on the supernatural, keeps you glued
Reviewed in India on August 22, 2018
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I took up reading this book as it promised a slightly different approach. I was new to both the author and the plot line and I was definitely not disappointed. It's not a long read so it keeps you busy and fully engaged for it's entire duration serving up enough mystery mayhem and machismo.

Love the story line, the character building and the interactions between them. Definitely looking forward to reading more from William Massa.
One person found this helpful
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David L. Brzeski
5.0 out of 5 stars A great read.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 25, 2018
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Mike Raven is the son of paranormal investigators. The first he was aware of this was when he saw both his parents killed by a demon. Taken in by his father’s partner, Joe Skulick, Raven continues his father’s work. This series has some obvious similarities to the TV show, Supernatural, although Raven doesn’t have a brother to help him in the field. I have to admit, I even found myself visualising Joe Skulick as if played by Jim Beaver, the actor who played Bobby Singer in that TV show.

We don’t by any means come in at the beginning of the story. Cursed City gets it’s name from the fact that the veil between it and the other realms are worn thin. It’s a bit like Buffy’s Sunnydale being built on a Hellmouth. We are told that Raven and Skulick were involved in this weakening of the veil, although things would be much worse if they hadn’t. Perhaps Massa will give us a prequel one day. References are also made to vampires, weres, and other popular paranormal beasties, giving the impression that there are more untold stories for Raven than Conan Doyle ever hinted at for Sherlock Holmes.

Cursed City actually opens with Raven investigating some nasty murders outside the city. His enjoyment of breathing fresh air is soon marred by the nastiness he encounters. At first, I was slightly put off by the somewhat clichéd hard-boiled private dick style of first person narration, but as the story progressed this soon felt a lot less contrived. Once back in the city, the story picked up pace and rocked on nicely to an exciting conclusion. Along the way there are twists that I did not see coming, and grim revelations about the deaths of Raven’s parents. We also establish Raven’s nemesis, the demon whose presence and influence is likely to continue as long as the series runs.
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mark L
3.0 out of 5 stars Fun Read
Reviewed in Australia on February 15, 2021
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Quite enjoyed this yarn, Light weight and unpretentious. Will read more of this series.
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CA
4.0 out of 5 stars Part one
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 1, 2020
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Good start of the story. Well written with interesting characters. I'm sure the series will be good. This first part is free.
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