Author Spotlight: Angelia Sparrow

Today's author in the spotlight is Angelia Sparrow and her release, Nikolai, with Dark Roast Press.

Angelia is a middle-aged trucker who lives in the Midsouth with her husband, four kids and two hyper cats. When not writing, she knits and crochets.

Contact info:
Website: http://www.angelsparrow.com
email: asparrow@angelsparrow.com

Buy link: http://www.darkroastpress.com/nikolai.php

Blurb:

Nikolai is a kinky gay Pygmalion set in a Dark Future America. James Ligatos is a man with an unusual hobby. He turns promising young criminals into world leaders. His latest project is Nicholas Boyd, formerly Nikolai of the Revenant street gang. But the little killer-turned-file-clerk is much more than Ligatos and his staff bargained for.

As Kentucky attempts to secede from the Confederated States of America and rejoin the United States, Nick's skills and the group's training are put to the ultimate test, and the price of failure is death.

Excerpt:

They took the elevator to the basement. Nick did his best not to gawk at the limousine waiting
for them. Val held the door open and he slid in quickly. Ligatos sat across from him but Nick didn’t say anything or meet his eyes. He watched out one of the windows as they pulled up in front of a private shop downtown. Looking at the clothes in the window, he felt very underdressed as Ligatos led him in and made him stand on a small block.

The seven shop employees listened as Ligatos gave orders. “He needs two suits, one black tie,
one blackout uniform, one battle dress. He needs three or four track suits and at least five casuals. Also a topcoat, black, matching hat and gloves and a muffler. Gentlemen, I leave him in your capable hands.”

Nick listened to the list. He’d never owned so many clothes. Even with the Revenants, he’d kept
to the rule of one to wear, one to wash for summer and winter. Thirteen or fourteen different outfits left his head swimming. He cooperated fully, letting the tailors measure, drape and adjust.

Ligatos watched it all from behind his handheld. He appeared to be more pretending to work
than actually accomplishing anything. Nick stared at the computer. Ligatos noticed and gave him a small smile. For most people it was contraband, or at best a useless expense. Only corporations had computers now, and the few internet services in the Confederation were heavily filtered and screened at every level.

Nick politely answered what few questions the tailors asked him. He watched as Ligatos left to
take a phone call. At the end, Ligatos handed a credit card over the counter. Only the very wealthiest had them, credit companies being reluctant after having been nearly sunk in defaults during the mid-century collapse. Nick tried not to stare.

Before the final total, Nick found his voice. “Please, sir. How about socks and underwear? I take
a size small.”

A small smile crossed Ligatos’ face. “They have taken care of all of it. Three pair of sleep pants
as well.”

“Shoes too, sir?” Nick knew his cheap workaday shoes would look like trash with the fine
clothes he’d tried on.

“Size eight, correct?” Ligatos pointed at the counter, and the five boxes stacked there.

“Yes, sir.” Nick didn’t quite slump at how stupid he’d been made to feel. “Just covering the
necessities, sir.”

“You don’t trust me to look after you?” The small smile looked more amused now.

“You did say I had to ask, sir, so I was asking.”

“True enough.”

“Thank you, sir.” Nick couldn’t even look at the final total. The words from last night, “an
expense, little else” kept coming back to him. He needed to act as if he was going to make these next three years worth Ligatos’ while. He gathered the clothes and boxes.

"Boy, they will see it all to the car. You don’t need to do that.”

Nick set the things back down. “Sorry, sir.”

“It’s all right.” He turned to one of the clerks. “Put him in the gray suit. I have a dinner
appointment he can accompany me on.”

The clerk took Nick to the changing booth. He didn’t assist, just handed over each piece as Nick
changed from the skin out. Finally, Nick was all together except for the tie. He tied it as he always did.

The clerk shook his head. “Four-in-hands look sloppy.” He retied it in a symmetrical Pratt knot,
slightly narrower than Ligatos’ full Windsor, and put a tiepin into Nick’s collar. “Now you look proper.”

Nick looked himself over in the mirror. A good haircut and he would no longer be a document
clerk or street-ganger. He might even be suited for the company he was keeping. He stood up a little straighter and walked a little more confidently when he left the changing booth. It was not the cocky gang-leader strut, but a man’s walk, smooth and confident.

Ligatos smiled again. “So there is a man under that silence and the bad attitude. I would like to
see more of him, I think.”

Nick stopped at those words. He smiled, careful not to make it a smirk or a half-grin. Ligatos
wanted him to be a man, above all else. He could do that. “Yes, sir. I'm ready.” Even his voice sounded more confident.

Ligatos nodded and headed back to the limo. Nick followed him, head up for the first time that
day. As they got in, Ligatos said, “Tonight you learn why you need an education.”