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NOTE: This short story was written for an anthology that encouraged profanity. You have been forewarned. : )

Ann Kinnear has dealt with plenty of unsettled spirits, but this may be her first gig with a ghost who demands a spotlight.

When a scrappy cover band hires Ann to make contact with their late drummer, she finds herself in a dive bar where the décor is questionable, the egos are outsized, and the supernatural stage effects are way too real. From levitating instruments to unsolicited fashion critiques, Lucian the drummer isn’t content to fade quietly into the afterlife—he’s ready to headline.

What begins as a séance with a backbeat spirals into a riot of insults and pyrotechnics. And as the tension builds, Ann has to wonder: is she keeping the peace between the living and the dead, or just managing the worst band breakup in history.

With its sharp mix of supernatural thrills and laugh-out-loud banter, \"Stage of Fools\" proves that sometimes death really is the ultimate gig.

An Ann Kinnear Suspense Short from Matty Dalrymple, author of the Ann Kinnear Suspense Novels and the Lizzy Ballard Thrillers.

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NOTE: This short story was written for an anthology that encouraged profanity. You have been forewarned. : )

Ann Kinnear has dealt with plenty of unsettled spirits, but this may be her first gig with a ghost who demands a spotlight.

With its sharp mix of supernatural thrills and laugh-out-loud banter, Stage of Fools proves that sometimes death really is the ultimate gig.

An Ann Kinnear Suspense Short from Matty Dalrymple, author of the Ann Kinnear Suspense Novels and the Lizzy Ballard Thrillers.

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Matty Dalrymple is the author of the Lizzy Ballard Thrillers, beginning with ROCK PAPER SCISSORS; the Ann Kinnear Suspense Novels, beginning with THE SENSE OF DEATH; and the Ann Kinnear Suspense Shorts, including CLOSE THESE EYES. She is a member of International Thriller Writers and Sisters in Crime.

'€‹Matty also podcasts, writes, speaks, and consults on the writing craft and the publishing voyage as The Indy Author. She has written books on the business of short fiction, podcasting for authors, and how to succeed as an author speaker, and her articles have appeared in Writer'€™s Digest magazine. She serves as the Campaigns Manager for the Alliance of Independent Authors.

She lives with her husband, Wade Walton, and their dogs in Chester County, Pennsylvania, and enjoys vacationing on Mount Desert Island, Maine, and in Sedona, Arizona, and these locations serve as the settings for her novels.

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Stage of Fools: An Ann Kinnear Suspense Short

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Stage of Fools: An Ann Kinnear Suspense Short

Matty Dalrymple

$1.99