12 Quotes from Cornell Dyer and the "Mistical" Being

 When we were getting ready to release Bryony back in 2011, my daughter Sarah (who did a lot of the marketing for me) suggested I pull thirty teaser quotes from the book that she could post on Facebook, one each day.

We did the same for the second book, Visage, which is also part of the BryonySeries.

But for some reason, I never did the same for another book.

So now I am catching up.

Here is the synopsis and twelve quotes for Cornell Dyer and the 'Mistical' Being, one from each chapter.

What's unusual about this book in The Adventures of Cornell Dyer (a BryonySeries chapter book series) is that Rebekah is the story collaborator instead of Timothy.

She had written the draft many, many years ago (2008, I believe), making this the first book in the series ever written, even though we never published it until 2021 (she'd had a computer crash and thought it lost).

Enjoy!

When asked to banish ghosts in a backyard lake, supernatural super sleuth Cornell Dyer encounters one mystery after another: a ghostly mist with eyes, a ghost town, and a town that keeps changing its name. Delving into each one will change Cornell's life. Is he ready?

Prologue: 

The carriages stopped. This was it.

“Everybody out!” someone roared.

“Let’s go Kristoph.” Dagobert poked his friend. “Wake up! It is time!”

They opened door, and they stepped out.

Chapter 1: Lost at the Lake

Ty scowled and plodded across the field. So that’s why Cornell could not take the motor home. The field had no road. So Cornell had no place to drive the motor home.

Well, Cornell thought. One mystery solved.

Chapter 2: What Cornell Saw in the Fog

Something is controlling them, Cornell thought. Something was controlling them and not letting them go home. That was the only reason why a ghost banisher would not work, especially this ghost banisher. Cornell was using the latest model of a DuppyGone 367, the most powerful of ghost banishers.

Chapter 3: Stay Away from the Graves

Cornell trudged down the embankment, and then Cornell trudged over to the town. It was full of deserted buildings, a great place for ghosts to haunt, he thought.

He looked through several buildings, ready to vanquish them with a flick of his wand. But Cornell saw no trace of any ghosts, not even furniture covered in old bed sheets.

Chapter 4: Blank Slate

Cornell was not afraid of an itsy bitsy curse. And he wasn’t afraid of big curses either. Cornell was as curse-proof as anyone could be.

Chapter 5: Nightmare?

The shapes became a band of ghosts in blue coats, black boots, and tricorne hats gently swayed in the crackling light. They moaned; they sobbed; and they looked very, very lost.

Help us! Help us! Help us!

Chapter 6: Not So Empty After All

He’d packed the magical kind of peanut butter and jelly, the kind that spread itself on the bread and hopped into sandwich bags and then into the backpack so Cornell Dyer could concentrate on solving supernatural mysteries.

Chapter 7: A Grave Invitation

When Cornell woke up the next morning, he was leaning against a tree with a rolled-up note in his hand. Cornell unrolled the note and read: 

Dear Mr. Dyer,

I have a business proposition that I want to discuss with you.

Meet me by the graves this Friday at 11:30 p.m.

Chapter 8: Redhead – and Dead

The diner only had one other person inside right now. And he was dressed in black from head to toe. He was sitting in a booth in the way back, drinking a cup of coffee.

And this customer had coal black eyes, just like the eyes Cornell kept seeing in the mist.

Cornell felt like screaming.

But Cornell also felt like eating. So Cornell reminded himself that supernatural super sleuths don’t scream. They eat and solve supernatural mysteries. 

Chapter 9: He Doesn’t Act Like a Vampire

And Cornell reasoned: if this thing is a vampire, and if this thing wanted to kill me, it would have killed me already.

So Cornell decided the vampire must want something else. But what?

Chapter 10: I Have a Job for You

“You don’t need to understand. You just need to sign this.”

Epilogue

“What’s with all the medieval gold coins?” Cornell asked, somewhat irritably. “Everybody wants to pay me in medieval gold coins all of a sudden.”

“Got something against gold coins?” Ty retorted.

About The BryonySeries: Turkey Delight

Timothy, who devises the story concepts for The Adventures of Cornell Dyer (a BryonySeries subseries) is a huge fan of C.S. Lewis and his Narnia series.

That's why Timothy wanted to create a fun Narnia parody for the "Cornell Dyer" series, which we did .

The book is called "Cornell Dyer and the Whispering Wardrobe" and this is the synopsis:

While investigating a home with mysterious whispers, supernatural super sleuth Cornell Dyer stumbles upon its source: an antique wardrobe in a room all by itself. But when Cornell steps inside, he discovers the wardrobe is more than a wardrobe and a whisper is more than a whisper. Even if Cornell solves the mystery, will he ever go home?

"Cornell Dyer and the Whispering Wardobe" pays all kinds of homage to the original book, including Turkish Delight, a sweet treat made with a base of sugar and starch.

One of the Narnia children loves Turkish delight, so much that he betrays his siblings for the treat.

Modern children reading the Narnia series for the first time might not be familiar with Turkish Delight or crave it the way Edmond did in the Narnia series. 

And in "Cornell Dyer and the Whispering Wardrobe," Cornell (who loves to eat) was actually scornful of Turkish Delight.

Cornell scampered back to the wardrobe, as fast as his frozen feet could take him. He wasn’t running away from the whispers. Supernatural super sleuths never run from supernatural mysteries.

            No, Cornell was running back to the guest room and back to his motor home. Because he kept all his magical supplies in that motor home. He kept warm, dry clothes there, too. And he would bring those items back with him.

            “OW!”

             Cornell stubbed his toe on something hard and tripped. He fell flat on his face in the very cold, very wet snow.

            He quickly jumped up and wrang the snow out of his nightshirt. What did he trip on? He picked it up.

            It was a can studded with colorful sparkling jewels. The can had a label with just two words: Turkish Delight.

            Cornell had heard of this chewy, sweet, gel-like candy with pistachios inside it. But he didn’t care about Turkish Delight. Cornell liked giant chocolate bars. The bigger the bar, the better Cornell liked it.

            “Turkish Delight?” Cornell grumbled out loud. His toe throbbed from the stubbing. His cold, wet face burned from falling in the cold, wet snow. “Who eats Turkish Delight anymore? Why, the last time I saw anyone buy Turkish Delight, I was in…”

            Then Cornell stopped himself. “Who cares about Turkish Delight? I should care about getting out of the cold and into dry clothes!”

            Cornell tossed the can aside and dove into the fur coats.

But to keep with the Narnia spirit and Cornell's obsession with good food, we created "this" instead:

When Cornell finally woke up, Mrs. Beaver was bringing his dinner tray. On his plate was a heaping mound of sandwiches.

“These are yummy,” Cornell said, talking with his mouth open as he chewed, which is very rude. He was also eating his fifth sandwich. “These are the best sandwiches I have ever eaten.”

Mrs. Beaver blushed.

“Thank you,” she said. “It’s my own recipe. I call it ‘Turkey Delight.’

So to wrap this up (could be a turkey wrap), here's a question only you can answer.

What ingredient, ingredients, or manner of preparation might turn an ordinary turkey sandwich into Turkey Delight for you?

12 Quotes from Cornell Dyer and the Flu

When we were getting ready to release Bryony back in 2011, my daughter Sarah (who did a lot of the marketing for me) suggested I pull thirty teaser quotes from the book that she could post on Facebook, one each day.

We did the same for the second book, Visage, which is also part of the BryonySeries.

But for some reason, I never did the same for another book.

So now I am catching up.

Here is the synopsis and chapter headings for Cornell Dyer and the Flu, followed by twelve quotes, one from each chapter.

As an aside, "Cornell Dyer and the Flu" is a parody of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol."

Enjoy!

It’s Christmas Eve and a very sick Cornell Dyer is stuck in the hospital, frustrated because he can’t find the vending machine and because he’s too sick to solve his latest supernatural mystery. Another patient tries to help Cornell, not with food and medicine, but with a journey into realms Cornell doesn’t want to go.

Prologue: 

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!

 “I need help here!”

Chapter 1: Snacking to Death

“I said look at me. What do you see?”

“I see an old, white-haired man in a bathrobe sitting at a desk who won’t let me ask him for a quarter for the vending machine.”

“No, no! You’re focusing on the outside. What do you see?”

Chapter 2: Walkers and Wheelchairs

“This is not a regular hospital, Charlie.”

 “Sure it is.” Charlie gestured around him. “It has doctors, nurses, patients, loved ones. Some people get well and go home. And some people get well in other ways and go to their eternal home.”

“What about the golden cords? I’ve never seen cords like this in a hospital.”

“The golden cords have nothing to do with the hospital, Professor. Here, look.”

Chapter 3: On a Thin Line

The cats continued playing and prancing as if they were frolicking in a spring meadow instead of a subterranean laboratory.

Chapter 4: Opposites Attract

“We heard you saved him,” one nurse said. “How’d you know he wasn’t faking? 

“We didn’t. That’s why we ordered pizza first. He wasn’t going to fool us again.”

Chapter 5: Darkness is Dangerous

And he heard a friendly voice, the friendliest voice he had ever heard, a voice he had never expected to hear ever again.

It’s the fever, Cornell told himself. The last time he heard that voice, Cornell had a fever.

Chapter 6: A Trip to the Beach 

"I didn’t think I’d see you for a long, long time yet,” Jack continued. “Are you sure you’re supposed to be here?”

Cornell sighed happily. “Who cares? It’s perfect here. Wait. What’s that noise?”

Chapter 7: Sudden Shocks 

The sun had nearly set, and twilight had nearly arrived by the time Charlie exited the long highway and pulled into a gas station.

Finally! Snacks!

Chapter 8: Grandpa Mo  

“I know you’ve helped a lot of people, Cornell,” Grandpa Mo said. “But you’ve missed out on the most important part of life.

“It’s true,” a thick syrupy voice piped up.

Oh, no, Cornell thought. It couldn’t be.

He whirled around.

Chapter 9: Larry the Llama 

"I am the Llama of Cornell Present, and I am here to help you with your attachment issues.”

“I don’t have attachment issues!”

“Oh, no? Then why didn’t you go to prom?”

“You were there! I was making a potion!”

 “You were too afraid to spend an entire evening with the very pretty Amy Whitefield!”

“Who?”

“See? Attachment issues.”

Chapter 10: Picture Perfect

After taking two slices, he positioned himself in the middle of the room, to best answer their questions and quote his prices.

Epilogue:

No potato chips. No orange drink.

Not even a candy cane or a chocolate Santa.

 What kind of food was this?

"I Can See Their Memories!"

One of my favorite Mother's Day (perhaps THE favorite) was in 2019, when everyone was out of the house except Timothy and me.

I spent most of the entire day listening to Timothy tell me the story of "Cornell Dyer and the Never Robbers."

And I was just enthralled and eagerly waited for the next word, all the while taking notes, so I could draft the story later.

Although I am the official author for all the books in the BryonySeries subseries "The Adventures of Cornell Dyer," Timothy is the creator for most of the story concepts (except for the last book in the series, which he is writing).

In each book of the Cornell Dyer series, Cornell Dyer has a supernatural mystery to solve.

But this simple mystery story for kids (and the young at heart), "Never Robbers" addresses some very existential topics, including the role memory plays in the existance of people, places, and things.

First, the story summary. And then some thought-provking quotes about "memory" from story.

After a band of robbers steal the motor home of supernatural super sleuth Cornell Dyer, time becomes strange and unpredictable. Events replay themselves with variations. Watches and light sources can’t be trusted. People disappear, and a man who claims to know everything suddenly appears. Cornell is certain soot, a tire swing, and his first unsolved case are somehow connected. But will he solve the mystery before he fades from memory?

The quotes:

"We've all experienced something that is, but not anymore, with people remembering it in various ways. But we're stuck with the original memories, all of the original memories in all their different forms."

Danny Tyler placed a gnarled hand on Cornell's shoulder. "Imagination and memories are a potent combination. In my day people said I was wise. So I've formulated this theory. I think Bishop, Mike, and I are in this situation together because we share a similar memory. And I think we're aging fast today because we're disappearing from memory."

"But even for the people who remember Madeline, she lives only on the tip of their memory, jut out of reach. These people have collectively lost their memories. A memory that, as group, they cannot remember."

"Here's the strange part, Professor," Mike Olsen continued. "It felt as if we'd always been together. Not long after that, we started changing people's minds and memories. And we've been doing that for a really, really long time."

Each person, as they walked, left behind soot, which slowly vanished as they walked.

Cornell gasped. "I can see their memories!"

"If you go back, all the good you've done, and all the bad you've done will become undone," Cornell said. "You will return to the places you belong, and you will have no memory of each other, and you will lose the ability to alter memories."

Cornell shook his head. "That's not how the Madeline effect works. I think you're aging because people aren't remembering you. When memories of people fade.."

"...the people stop existing," Danny Tyler murmured.

Mike frowned. "I know we've changed a lot of memories, but how do you have my watch? And why does it look so old?"

            "Your watch?" Cornell said. "This is not your watch. This was my Grandpa Mo's watch!"

            Danny Tyler stroked his beard. "Mo? As in M.O.? As in, maybe, Mike Olsen?"

            Mike Olsen's eyes grew very wide. "Professor, I'm your grandfather?"

            Cornell ignored the question. "Bishop Cafferty had a watch, too. Where did he get it."

            "Don't know," Danny Tyler said, still looking at his own watch. "We never thought to ask."

I have to tell you, I have never looked at footprints - or even photographs - the same way again.

Look at this photo of these footprints.

Every piece of this is a memory.

This photo from 5:32 p.m. September 22, 2018, preserves all these footprints in the sand, the memory of all the people who left their marks, marks that no longer exist, shoes that likely no longer exist, and (maybe) some of people who no longer exist - or, at the very least - no longer exist in the same way.

The moment I took this photo is just a memory - and less than that, because I don't remember taking this photo.

Furthermore, even I have changed since I snapped this phot.

And yet, something of that moment and all those people who contributed to it, still exists in this way somehow, simply because they left something of themselves behind and a random photo captured that.

Are your eyes roaming this photo, too - wondering?

BryonySeries: The Adventures of Cornell Dyer

The BryonySeries world of phantasmic books has several subseries, one of them being The Adventures of Cornell Dyer.

These are short chapter books for ages eight and up about a supernatural super sleuth Cornell Dyer, who travels around the country in his motor home solving supernatural mysteries. He also really likes food (especially junk food), is good at "persuading" clients to clean his motor home and wash his backed-up laundry, and insists people call him "Professor."

The series has two taglines, invented by Timothy. 

"Join the incredible, impossible, and marvelous Cornell Dyer as he unravels mysteries, untangles myths, and decides what to have for lunch."

Or "the greater the mystery, the bigger the lunch."

But how did Cornell Dyer come to be?

Cornell first appeared as a man in his fifties in the latter part of of his sleuthing career in "Visage," the second book in the BryonySeries youing adult vampire trilogy.

The reader's first impression of Cornell comes from his wife Katie's description of him in a conversation with her former high school friend Melissa, who has just graduated from college.

“Believe it or not, my parents are letting us keep the motor home in the back yard.”

“You’re kidding!”

“Nope. They seemed pretty upset about it at first, but they changed their minds when they saw how happy I am.”

“Are you happy?”

“Of course, silly. I can’t wait for you guys to meet my husband. I’m sure he will have lots in common with John. Cornell’s a professor, too.”

“He is?” Melissa wondered if Julie had not given her prejudiced information about Katie’s situation. “What kind of professor?”

“He’s a professor of the esoteric.”

“The what!”

“The esoteric. You know, the occult.”

“I know what esoteric means,” Melissa said, losing patience with her old friend. “Katie, you can’t be serious.”

Katie giggled. “I sure am. Not only is he smart, he’s very compassionate, which is why we travel around the country. That’s all Cornell does is help people, kind of like an old-fashioned medicine man. He goes from place to place teaching people about the mystical world they can’t see and fixing their problems.”

This last statement did it for Melissa. “He solves their problems? For free?”

“Big problems, little problems; it doesn’t matter to Cornell. He just likes doing good for people. Sometimes all a person needs is a charm to get that job promotion, but other times the problem is more serious, like when an evil spirit haunts a house. Cornell will go in there and get rid of it.”

And Cornell advertises his business directly on the motor home:

Amateurish paintings of astrologic symbols, hexagrams, and magic wands covered the motor home’s white exterior. A sign painted across one side read: The Thaumaturgical World of Professor Cornell Dyer: Amulets, Fortune-Telling (with and without cards), Ghost-Hunting, Horoscopes, Numerology, Palm-Reading, Potions, Séances, Spells, and Vampire-Slaying.

Cornell Dyer was such a fun character that I partnered with Timothy and Sue Midlock to respectively create stories concepts and art (cover art, chapter heading art, and branding logo) for the BryonySeries subseries The Adventures of Cornell Dyer.

These short chapter books for ages eight and up share some of Cornell's adventures as he solves one mystery at a time (all before Cornell's time in "Visage").

Although Timothy is the storytelling consultant, Rebekah stepped into that role for one book ("Mistical" Being), which was actually the prototype for the rest of this subseries.

Here are the published titles (so far). Timothy presented me with a list of fifty or so a few years ago, so we won't run out of ideas anytime soon.

Cornell Dyer and the Missing Tombstone

A tombstone with a Viking helmet engraving vanishes. Mysterious brown-outs plague a seacoast village. Supernatural super sleuth Cornell Dyer is certain the historical society leader knows more than he is telling. 

Will Cornell learn the secrets and stop the curse?

Cornell Dyer and the Necklace of Forgetfulness

A heartbroken lover wants to forget. Supernatural super sleuth Cornell Dyer desperately tries to solve a mystery as his memory vanishes. Meanwhile, he keeps showing up at places he's certain are clues but can't recall how or why he arrived. 

In this "back to front" story, Cornell races his fading mind to save the day - but which will win?

Cornell Dyer and the Eerie Lake

A cry for help. A glowing green ball. An old tired town with a mysterious old dump. A tale of heartbreak. Before supernatural super sleuth Cornell Dyer can figure out the questions, one man disappears and another dies. 

To find the answers, Cornell must cross the lake - but all who tried never came back. Will Cornell survive and solve the mystery?

Cornell Dyer and the Never Robbers

 After a band of robbers steal the motor home of supernatural super sleuth Cornell Dyer, time becomes strange and unpredictable. Events replay themselves with variations. Watches and light sources can’t be trusted. People disappear, and a man who claims to know everything suddenly appears. 

Cornell is certain soot, a tire swing, and his first unsolved case are somehow connected. But will he solve the mystery before he fades from memory?

Cornell Dyer and the Flu

It’s Christmas Eve and a very sick Cornell Dyer is stuck in the hospital, frustrated because he can’t find the vending machine and because he’s too sick to solve his latest supernatural mystery. 

Another patient tries to help Cornell, not with food and medicine, but with a journey into realms Cornell doesn’t want to go.

Cornell Dyer and the Whispering Wardrobe

While investigating a home with mysterious whispers, supernatural super sleuth Cornell Dyer stumbles upon its source: an antique wardrobe in a room all by itself. But when Cornell steps inside, he discovers the wardrobe is more than a wardrobe and a whisper is more than a whisper. 

Even if Cornell solves the mystery, will he ever go home?

Cornell Dyer and the Old Folks Home

Cornell Dyer needs a break from solving supernatural mysteries. So he heads to Paradise Falls for a well-deserved vacation at a beach resort, where he meets another sleuth as skilled as he. But dark secrets can lurk even in a sunny paradise, secrets the tanned and energetic natives don’t want him to know. 

It takes two to solve the mystery – but will the sleuthing team live that long?

Cornell Dyer and the "Mistical" Being

When asked to banish ghosts in a backyard lake, supernatural super sleuth Cornell Dyer encounters one mystery after another: a ghostly mist with eyes, a ghost town, and a town that keeps changing its name. 

Delving into each one will change Cornell's life. Is he ready?

Cornell Dyer and the Calcium Deficient Bones

When supernatural super sleuth Cornell Dyer finds himself between sleuthing jobs, he fills the time by teaching science while the real teacher is ill. But in a school that’s supposedly getting remodeled, Cornell encounters one mystery after another: vanishing classroom skeletons, plants that come and go, and a piano for every student. 

Cornell is certain his classroom holds the answer – and that he is one of the clues.

Cornell Dyer and the Howls of Basketville

Howls. Shadows. Disappearances.

Something is roaming the run-down town of Basketville, Michigan, and Detective Sherman Homes is struggling to connect the dots. So he asks supernatural super sleuth Cornell Dyer for help - but the mystery bites back. 

Brains or beast: which will win?

Cornell Dyer and the House of Horreur (Available late 2025 or early 2026.

For more information about other books in the BryonySeries, visit Books of the BryonySeries: A Quick Overview.

12 Quotes from Cornell Dyer and the Whispering Wardobe

When we were getting ready to release Bryony back in 2011, my daughter Sarah (who did a lot of the marketing for me) suggested I pull thirty teaser quotes from the book that she could post on Facebook, one each day.

We did the same for the second book, Visage, which is also part of the BryonySeries.

But for some reason, I never did the same for another book.

So now I am catching up.

Here is the synopsis and chapter headings for Cornell Dyer and the Whispering Wardrobe, followed by twelve quotes, one from each chapter.

Enjoy!

While investigating a home with mysterious whispers, supernatural super sleuth Cornell Dyer stumbles upon its source: an antique wardrobe in a room all by itself. But when Cornell steps inside, he discovers the wardrobe is more than a wardrobe and a whisper is more than a whisper. Even if Cornell solves the mystery, will he ever go home?

Prologue: 

Mrs. Peabody smiled as she set the last dollar down. She couldn’t wait to take the wardrobe home. She had just the place for it.

Chapter 1: A Very Thorough Investigation

“Good sir,” Cornell said. “The trickiest kind of whispers are the whispers that pretend to be doors or windows or cloth tapestries or handkerchiefs in pockets on suit coats.”

Chapter 2: Cornell Goes into the Wardrobe

Cornell stepped inside the wardrobe, but he didn’t close the door. He’d heard stories of foolish supernatural sleuths who shut themselves up in wardrobes and disappeared forever. It is absolutely not safe to walk into a wardrobe and shut the door. Cornell knew this well.

He left the door open.

Chapter 3: Forest of Everlasting Winter

“Am I in the wardrobe?” Cornell asked.

“You are – and you aren’t,” the robin said. “Let’s just call this the Land Not Quite Beyond the Wardrobe. Did the other humans come with you?”

Chapter 4: An Early Birthday Present

It was a sunny morning. Dew still sparkled on the grass. Birds cheerfully sang in the lush trees. The flowers along the paths bloomed with colorful blossoms. The snow melted off the knickknacks.

Chapter 5: The Cold, Cold Castle

Someone had painted them to look like real animals. But Cornell wasn’t afraid of them. Ceramic animals, no matter how savage-looking, cannot hurt anyone.

Chapter 6: In Like a Lion

The lion turned and smiled gently at Cornell.

“If you want to see real magic,” the lion said softly. “Come to the stone table tonight.”

Chapter 7: The Witch’s Folly

“Don’t you have ears?” Cornell said.

Upon closer inspection, Cornell noticed the fairy did not, in fact, have any ears. Still, since the fairy appeared to hear, Cornell decided to finish telling the fairy off.

Chapter 8: The Bric-A-Brac Battle Back

The lion was now shaking his paw at the Frost Fairy.

“It’s very rude to keep people awake with your whispering,” the lion said sternly. “I am grounding you to the castle to think about your actions.”

Chapter 9: Kings and Queens

The barnyard animals harmonized with the zoo animals and the wildlife. They filled the great golden hall with sounds no one ever heard before or after that night.

Chapter 10: After the Hunt

Cornell the Clever recalled another Cornell, but he couldn’t see the other Cornell. It was like trying to grasp a dream fragment after the alarm clock rings.

Epilogue

As he reached for the next sandwich, he felt something hard.

Right away Cornell deduced this was not a sandwich. Sandwiches, even stale ones, are soft and squishy. Mrs. Beaver did not serve stale sandwiches.

No, this could only be one thing.

Ed Calkins, Steward of Tara: Chapter Seven of "The Fifth"

The other night Ed Calkins, Steward of Tara sent a new chapter seven for his upcoming sequel to "Ruthless."

He also sent the sequel's new title. It's no longer called "Tu Ruthless." It's now called "The Fifth" and it's a play on several "fifth" concepts (I'll task Ed with the explanation in another blog).

The readers gets a subtle introduction to one explanation in chapter seven, which is called "The Munsonville Five."

Munsonville is a fictional fishing village in Northern Michigan and a "hub" of the series.

In this chapter, Ed plays with the BryonySeries character supernatural super sleuth Cornell Dyer for the first time. Cornell meets with a vampire crime lord in a meeting reminiscent of Cornell's meeting with John Simons in "Visage" and Kellen Wechsler's meeting with Cornell in "The Phoenix."

The chapter shows some crossing, some double-crossing, and a really large pizza.

But I really love the first line. It really summarizes quite a lot why certain things happen the way they do in the books.

The first line is: "Munsonville just doesn't play by the rules."

Well done, Ed!

12 Quotes from Cornell Dyer and the Never Robbers

When we were getting ready to release Bryony back in 2011, my daughter Sarah (who did a lot of the marketing for me) suggested I pull thirty teaser quotes from the book that she could post on Facebook, one each day.

We did the same for the second book, Visage, which is also part of the BryonySeries.

But for some reason, I never did the same for another book.

So now I am catching up.

Here is the synopsis and chapter headings for Cornell Dyer and the Never Robbers, followed by twelve quotes, one from each chapter.

Enjoy!

After a band of robbers steal the motor home of #supernatural super sleuth Cornell Dyer, time becomes strange and unpredictable. But will Cornell he solve the mystery before he fades from memory?

Prologue: 

The boy turned a page.

A boom sounded in the distance.       

The boy glanced up. An approaching storm? A cannon?

No wind.

No more bell.

No calling of his name or trickling of the stream.

His neck prickled.

The bulb shone with brilliant light.

Chapter 1: Dyer Straights

How dare anyone, much less a group of anyones, steal the motor home belonging to the great Professor Cornell Dyer, supernatural super sleuth of supernatural mysteries?

Just wait until he caught up with them. Just wait.

Chapter 2: The Bank That Wasn't

Cornell hurried to the police officer, who irritably blew on his whistle.

"Where is the bank?" Cornell demanded.

"What bank?" the officer snarled.

"THAT bank! And the four bank robbers!"

 "Bank robbers! We're too far north for bank robbers! We leave that for central Indiana!"

Chapter 3: The Never Robbers

"Eureka!" Cornell cried. "You're talking about time travel!"

Mike Olsen shook his head. "We're not talking about time travel. We're talking about something that isn't anymore, something different people remember differently. But we've hit a little snag."

"What snag?" Cornell asked, pen poised.

"We've all experienced something that is, but not anymore, with people remembering it in various ways. But we're stuck with the original memories, all of the original memories in all their different forms."

Chapter 4: A Curious  Case of Molly Burton

Cornell held his pen over the notebook. "When did the aging begin?"

Mike Olson scratched his gray head. "Around the time we met you. I think."

Cornell wrote that down. "And when did you meet Molly Burton?"

"Today," Mike Olson said.

Danny Tyler held up an arthritic hand. "But it's been a really long day."

Chapter 5: On The Other Side of Time

"I thought we were going to the cemetery, Professor," Bishop Cafferty sneered. "You've been digging through these boxes for hours."

"I didn't mean an actual cemetery," Cornell said.

Chapter 6: It's More Than a Tree

Cornell kicked the tire, and a blinding light shot out, and a great suction pulled him forward, an endless fall into a downward spiral.

Chapter 7: That Ole Dirt Road

"Your device won't work your way here," the man said. "We are nearing our destination, and the sun shall soon set. I have many rooms and you may stay in them."

            

Mike Olsen chuckled. "You own a motel?"

            

"It's something like a motel."

Chapter 8: A Trip to 1879

The man spread out his arms. "Welcome to 1879. Come walk with me."

Mike Olsen hesitated. "It's been a long time."

"Almost a hundred years," the man said. "Mike, in all your travels and in all your time, why did you not come back?"

Chapter 9: Before The Thunder

“We’re not interfering with time travel,” the man said. "We're repairing time. The version you saw has ceased to exist."

Chapter 10: She Was Always Like That

"What went wrong?" Cornell asked.

The man shrugged. "There are far less portals in the world today. And you don't always get to know the endings to other people's stories."

Epilogue

It was a busy morning, even for a Tuesday.

12 Quotes from Cornell Dyer and the Eerie Lake

When we were getting ready to release Bryony back in 2011, my daughter Sarah (who did a lot of the marketing for me) suggested I pull thirty teaser quotes from the book that she could post on Facebook, one each day.

We did the same for the second book, Visage, which is also part of the BryonySeries.

But for some reason, I never did the same for another book.

So now I am catching up.

Here is the synopsis and twelve quotes for Cornell Dyer and the Eerie Lake, one from each chapter.

Enjoy!

Before supernatural super sleuth Cornell Dyer can figure out the questions, one man disappears and another dies. To find the answers, Cornell must cross the lake - but all who tried never came back. Will Cornell survive and solve the mystery?

Prologue: 

"Will you leave me, too?" she sobbed.

"Hush," he squeezed her hand. "I will never leave you."

But she left him because of a man, a mean old man with important papers. He grabbed her arm and dragged her to his boat.

Chapter 1: A Stone's Throw Away

Mr. Hogley and Mr. Basset looked up from their game of checkers and sneered at Cornell, too.

But Cornell did not care. Supernatural super sleuths are too busy to pay attention to the scorn of others.

Chapter 2: Stumps, Dumps, and Car Trunks

Finally, they reached the dump. It was full of broken items on top of each other: sinks and lawn mowers and grills, along with rolled-up moldy carpet, yellow-stained mattresses, dry-rotted truck tires, broken lamps, sofas with scattered cushions, upside down desks and bureaus, and random trash bags and plastic wrappers.

Cornell tossed his empty can and bottle in the direction of the wrappers, not because he liked to litter, but because that seemed like the place they should go.

Chapter 3: Jack of all Trades

Cornell hadn't seen smoke that thick and dark since the heat wave of 1972 when he was in New York banishing a poltergeist from a shoe store.

But Jack turned to Cornell with a wide smile. "Don't worry, friend. I can fix that."

Chapter 4: Trouble Under the Hood

"Don't forget to collect your things," Jack said. "There's a boarding house at the end of the lane. Tell the owner I sent you, and she won't charge you a cent."

So Cornell pulled his magic carpetbag from under the sofa and began grabbing a few essentials: potions, cards, crystal balls, maps, an entire shelf of code-breaking books, and a llama.

Chapter 5: A Haunting Tale

"Inside this town lived a boy and girl, the strangest boy and girl you could ever meet."

"What made them strange?" Cornell asked.

"They were inseparable." Jack said as he set a small part on the floor. "They were born right next to each other. They learned to crawl together and walk together. As they grew up, they played together. They were like one person with two bodies."

Chapter 6: The Very Sad Funeral

Someone else in Marbleheart had also wanted to sail to the other side of the lake. Someone Cornell had met in the dump right before he met Jack.

That's when he realized someone very important had not attended Jack's funeral.

Chapter 7: A Splinter on Deck

"Sir, do not interfere with important work. I am the great Professor Cornell Dyer, supernatural super sleuth. I fear nothing and no one. And I most certainly do not fear this lake and what's on the other side."

The boatman pointed his finger rudely at Cornell's face. "Bad things happen to people who try. Look what happened to poor Jack. I'm warning you, don't go."

Chapter 8: Big Water and Deep Trouble

"It's a trick," Cornell thought. "My mind is tricking me because of the fever."

But a supernatural sleuth that cracks the hardest supernatural mysteries and breaks the most stubborn of curses won't be broken by a splinter and a fever.

Chapter 9: Sometimes He Comes Back

Jack wore a bright excited look, the type little boys wear on Christmas morning when they see the tree and know the gift they wanted most of all is lying beneath it.

Chapter 10: Two for the Price of One

Only water surrounded him on every side as the boat sailed at an even pace across the placid, sparkling lake under a pleasant sunny sky.

Epilogue

"I'll help you!" Cornell cried. "Just as soon as I have a snack!"

With that, he headed to the broken-down car and began rummaging for food.