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  Sign up Remove Caveat All titles on this website feature GLBT characters and situations. If you will be offended, please read no further. By further exploring this site, you agree that you are of age in your part of the world, and are fully aware of the content of books and art displayed here. All images on this site are copyright. Site contents © DreamCraft, 2018 |
Tiger, Tiger
 Cass Vandermeer owns a primordial stretch of Tasmania, and in this wildernesses a handful of natural tigers run free, attended by specialists who live alongside them. But the discovery of gene smugglers in the park opens a can of worms with dire consequences. Sonny Moran is a ranger, Alec Finch a copter pilot and Sonny's life partner. They're up against a crew of filmmakers, whom almost everyone wants to strangle for one reason or another, and the smugglers -- how did they get into the Tarkine? Sonny and Alec must keep the precious genetic samples of real tigers out of the hands of entrepreneurs as vile as the drug lords of an bygone age. The result is sudden violence and action, in the Keegan tradition. Exotic near-future SF, with a twist of tech and a lick of gay romance, from long-time favorite Mel Keegan.  Read the first 10% of this novel right here, in PDF format
(Caveat: material in this free sample is not suitable for juniors. Consider yourself warned!) Length: 45,500 words Rated: M (sex, violence, language) Publication date: June 2005 Publisher: DreamCraft Price: $4.99 - ebook Cover: Jade
READER REVIEWS: TIGER, TIGER REVIEWED BY SAM Hi. I never reviewed a book before but I have to add my nickel's worth about this one I guess cuz I love tigers so much and Keegan seemed to hit the nail 'right on' with this story. I liked how the tiger that was a major character in the story was not 'anthropomorphed' (can't spell that,but you know what I mean) but was let to be a real tiger, so you could really believe it. I'd like to see more stories about how it works out for these guys ... yeh, I liked the guys too! Also great plot. Can I get a printout of the cover art??? [You can get it on a card or a mousepad ... click on the 'MK at Zazzle' link on the menu bar to your left, or visit our Giftstore to see it! - ED] REVIEWED BY BUCKEROO BONSAI With each masterstroke, Mel Keegan paints a rich portrait of a near-future world which is alarmingly familiar. Picture, if you will, the last wilderness in the world. Humans have covered the globe like a virus, species everywhere are but a memory, cities have sprawled across the continents. You travel to the end of the world, literally, to find the last tract of wilderness: a place called the Tarkine. And it's a real place, in the northwest of the island of Tasmania, just off the southern tip of Australia. In TIGER, TIGER, this part of the island is privately owed, which means it can't be logged, turned over to "pine plantations," mined, turned into a celebrity vacation resort, or another city. It's owned by a very old man who's still on a mission: preserve the last surviving fragment of the wilderness ... and preserve real, genuine live tigers. In this tiny patch of paradise live the park rangers who safeguard the Tarkine and the tigers. Without delay, you meet Sonny and Alec. Warning: be prepared to fall in lust, if not in love! And into this snipped of paradise come the villains ... the gene smugglers, whose industry will make your blood run cold (if it doesn't there's something wrong, all your spark plugs are not sparking). The text is quite brief (the book is 136pp, with gorgeous illustrations) but the story is amazingly complex, and so richly detailed, you might read it in an afternoon but you will be haunted by it for weeks. This reviewer could happily spend a whole novel's worth of reading time in this "Keegan future," and has read TIGER, TIGER several times. Heroes, villains, exotic locations, gay romance (and sex) ... and of course, tigers. What more could you wish for? As an artist, Mel Keegan has evolved in recent years. The "Master of Gay Thrillers" (Millivres) has become the Master Craftsman. Consider me subscribed. MEL KEEGAN COMMENTS ON TIGER, TIGER This story was actually inspired by the painting, "The Jungle Book." How could you look at that picture and not catch a glimpse of the story behind it? TIGER, TIGER is the result, and the artist, Jade, is smiling ... the cover's already painted. Job done! ... However, there's an old saying. What goes around comes around. And in this case, the painting inspired the book, which inspired a PORTFOLIO which leaves one blinking. DreamCraft are making the collection of entirely original, digital paintings available as screensavers and calendars, and meanwhile I'll put a feather in my hat for being the inspiration! The background research for TIGER, TIGER was both a pleasure and one heck of a job. The Tarkine is real place, and people are fighting every day to keep the loggers the hell out of there. Think about this: some element in the government wants to cut down the last pockets of primordial rainforest -- for WOODCHIPS. Now, I understand the 'timber dollar.' I understand planks and boards, the masts of ships, and hand-crafted furniture made of the finest timbers. But what I can't get my head around is turning virgin forest into woodchips. That one's too weird for me. Most of the research was done on the web; there are some good sites that are well worth a tour-around. In the weeks to come I'll list the best on the links page on-site here. The reality of Tasmania is a place like Middle Earth, regions with names like 'Styx' and 'Valhalla' and 'Cradle Mountain.' It's exotic even before you zip 70 years into the future and look at a world where global warming and overpopulation have changed the face of the planet. Then, when you add the new Tasman tigers to the picture, it gets interesting indeed. I enjoyed writing this one immensely, and I'm more than happy to acknowledge the source of the inspiration. |
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