Some are the garden variety

Watch any action hero movie and you’ll see heroes ruthlessly pursuing villains, trashing cities as they go.

But once the bad guys are banged up in prison, and the heroes are off to the pub, there’s a more ordinary hero out on the streets. With a broom. Cleaning up the rubble.

We’ve just come through an extraordinary events, and Alexandria Blaelock’s new collection of short stories Common or Garden Variety Heroes (BlueMere Books, 2021), celebrates the ordinary heroes among us.

“A long time ago, my employer moved to productivity pay rises and my friend Linda and I went on strike,” Alexandria said. “She thought people who went to work and did the same job every day deserved the recognition of pay rises, and looking at what’s happened over Covid, she’s as right now as she was then. I wrote these stories for all of those who didn’t have the choice.”

In this genre-spanning collection of original stories, five women draw on resources they didn’t know they had:

Do you have what it takes to be a hero?

Whether that’s running into a burning building, standing up for what you know is right, or saving the Princess it’s going to take everything you’ve got and more besides.

In this genre-spanning collection of original stories, five women draw on resources they didn’t know they had:

• Cracking the Code – can Gemma Jones track down a missing woman?
• Never Going to be a Hero – Veronica, just wants a quiet life on Mephisto station, but Jade Dragon justice comes calling.
• All in – Rosa Velázquez, famous for rescuing a family, tries to rebuild her life, and Jude Webb is a complication she doesn’t need.
• Cancelled by the Cartel – Daisy Day has a chance to revenge her dead boyfriend, will she take it?
• The Second Son Squad – Abby Fisher, finds herself in the body of a teenage girl impersonating a boy in military school. How did she get there, and why?

Join them, if you dare.

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About the Author

Australian author Alexandria Blaelock writes mostly fantasy and mystery, appearing in Pulphouse Fiction Magazine and Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine. She’s also written five self-help books applying business techniques to personal matters like getting dressed, tidying up, and feeding friends.

When not exploring parallel universes, she’s taking to animals, indulging in K-dramas, and sipping Campari. She lives in the Dandenong Ranges, where she relishes the sound of birdsong, the scent of gum leaves and the sun on her face.

Discover more at https://alexandriablaelock.com/

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Review Copies and Media Interviews:

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