"Sheaves of Zion" is Eric's first novel. The first sentence of his Preface had me hooked and the action continued until the very last page. Right from the beginning, his macabre detailed description of a gruesome murder floored me. I'm an avid reader and this is the first book I've ever read that I felt riveted to finish.

The first gruesome murder takes place in a church in DeKalb County Georgia. Two DeKalb County police detectives, one rather laid-back and the other quite abrasive, are called to the scene along with the medical examiner. The murder scene, for all three of them, is totally beyond their comprehension. An expert in religious symbolism specific to crime scenes, a Dr. Thelonius Zones, is called in to make heads or tails of this harrowing incident. Shortly thereafter, another macabre murder takes place. The action continues from there and never lets up.

The action is fast-paced and hard-hitting. "Sheaves of Zion"has all the ingredients of a blockbuster bestseller. I also see the potential for an amazing riveting flick. I enjoyed editing this book as much as I think you'll enjoy reading it. Eric, please continue to write one page turner after the other and I'll be more than happy to edit them for you.

@ Moneysaver Editing

The body of a young man is found in rural DeKalb County, Georgia, at Bethel Primitive Baptist Church. His body is painted, a gold crown is on his head, and the victim's sliced innards spill out while pigs feet are attached where his arms should be. His arms are attached like wings to his back with "Sieg" written on one hand, and "Lieh" on the other. Then another body is found at nearby First Iconium Baptist Church with symbolic, religious graffiti scrawled on the church's walls and floor. Hard drinking DeKalb County Police Detective Marmaduke and his partner Chennault are called in to investigate but the coroner warns them that the bodies are a man's head on a woman's body. The old pastor at First Iconium Baptist Church calls these killings evil and then two more dismembered bodies are found! African-American consultant Theolonious Zones is called in to help investigate these bizarre killings but Maramduke and his Captain are certain that they want Zones' help. He has been turned down for work with the FBI. However, Zones is determined and goes about asking questions in Atlanta's red light zone and even flies out to Salt Lake City, Utah, as he suspects the Gadiantons, affiliated with the Mormon Church of long ago. But can Zones find out who is behind these dreadful killings?

"Sheaves of Zion" by E.W. Sullivan is a delight of a murder mystery/thriller for it will keep readers engrossed in its every word until the end. Theolonious Zones is an investigator whose presence is welcome on the literary scene. He goes about questioning people and even enduring several days in jail to find out who is really responsible for these horrific, disgusting murders. Marmaduke and his worn-out police car with its empty liquor bottles rattling around and all the other characters in "Sheaves of Zion" plus an incredible plot-line make it a book that belongs on reading lists everywhere.

for Readers' Favorite

The cover of Sheaves of Zion is exceptional and will leap off bookstore shelves. As for the story itself, author E.W. Sullivan has given us a murder mystery with religious overtones that's propelled by characters more than plot points. Those characters come complete with intriguing pasts and the hero's unique expertise helps make Sheaves of Zion a well-crafted, solidly-concepted, readable thriller.

for Writer’s Digest 21st Annual Self-Published Book Awards

Swarm Theory by award winning author E.W. Sullivan is a crime fiction, a thriller that reads like a breeze and whose captivating language will immediately seduce readers. Thelonious Zones hasn’t come to terms yet with the murder of his mother, a crime for which his father has been arrested. Everyone but his father’s best friend, Sam Drake, believes he killed his wife, and now twenty-four years later, Zones investigates the murder of his mother. But how can he trace the truth in a society where bombs are dropped at any time and in unusual places? Caught between investigating the murder of an Arab college student and investigating his own mother’s death, Zones progresses in a world where every step he takes could land him in a dangerous trap, but the secrets he uncovers might be the very thing that will blow his mind. Is the criminal profiler ready to face what awaits him?

Swarm Theory opens with action, a scene that alerts the reader to the sinister events that could happen in the story, and their curiosity and interest are immediately stimulated. The reader is drawn in right away by the powerful dialogue, the suspense, and the action that opens this brilliant story. The plot is fast-paced, with short chapters that are poignantly absorbing. The characters are well-grounded and it’s interesting to watch Zones with the compelling characters like Detective Marmaduke DuBoise, Inspector Siler and Agent Thomas. Sullivan has this uncanny gift of letting readers into the stream of consciousness of his characters, arousing all kinds of emotions in them through his careful use of dialogue and crisp writing. His fiction reads so realistically that you’ll feel as if you're participating in a crime scene. I loved the originality in this writing. A work of rare brilliance, a must-read!

for Readers' Favorite

Finding whoever’s responsible for bombings in Atlanta takes an FBI consultant into a conspiracy entailing terrorism, murder, and kidnapping in Sullivan’s (Sheaves of Zion, 2013) thriller.

Detective Marmaduke of the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department and Detective Rome of the Atlanta Police Department’s Major Crimes are each working a crime scene on the same night. He’s looking into a bombing at an animal shelter, while she’s investigating a rape. The cases are already linked by criminal psychologist Dr. Thelonious Zones, whose attempt to stop the rape was thwarted when the explosion threw him into the air. But a body found at the shelter leads Marmaduke to a suspect: Dr. Amal El-Arabi, the victim’s father and a specialist in nanoscience. Further bombings, however, only widen the suspect pool, so the FBI calls in Zones for a profile on the prospective bomber (or bombers). The doctor’s currently searching for answers regarding mom Cleopatra’s murder from 24 years earlier, for which his father, T.O., is currently serving 30 years to life. It gets even more complicated: a gun found at the second bombing, a language research center, somehow has Cleo’s prints on it. Zones, Marmaduke, and Rome spin various theories, from a Middle Eastern terrorist behind the bombings to a possible Department of Defense coverup. And something must have agitated the baddies, as someone’s mysteriously missing and Zones could become a target for a bomb—intentionally, this time. The author’s initially convoluted plot is staggeringly concise, despite nearly 500 pages. Such a length proves
necessary so that Zones can adequately map out the plethora of connections and potential bombers/killers. His meticulous examination of a sundry of evidence, along with the occasional recap, ensures that the story’s never confounding. There’s definitely a red herring or two but not as many as readers may expect. The sometimes-insolent but likable Marmaduke and shrewd Rome are noteworthy, but Zones is unparalleled. He’s generally pragmatic but with a tinge of bitterness giving him an edge. When a zealot, for instance, speaks of winning a speculative war (“By the will of Allah, we will”), the candid Zones responds, “By the U.S. military, you won’t.”

A poised, diligent protagonist guides readers through a dizzying array of dubious characters and hypotheticals.

Swarm Theory by E.W. Sullivan opens with a bang. Literally. Dr. Thelonius Zones, a psychiatrist at a South Georgia prison, finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time. Only through a life saving coincidence does he make it out of that bad encounter, only to stumble (very soon thereafter) into the next, and the next, and the next. Rapists, Islamic terrorists, FBI infiltrators, crazy college professors ... Swarm Theory has them all lethally in play almost before you can say, "Thelonius."

For those of you who got hooked into the Zones zone in Sullivan's first book, Sheaves of Zion (and, if you haven't already read that book, you will want to read it after reading this one!), in Swarm Theory, the Zones saga continues. They're all back: Detective Marmaduke (who drives a car named Shirley), the irascible Captain Franklin, and that fine lady detective, Olga Rome, also known as "Queen." In Swarm Theory, Dr. Zones continues his pursuit of childhood demons, continues to find himself in life-threatening situations no respectable desk-sitting psychiatrist would contemplate, and continues to be pissed off about the whole thing. Throw in a gun named Reverend Ike, an evil personage lurking in Congress, and the beginnings of a very steamy love affair, and Swarm Theory delivers a tasty read indeed.

Sullivan writes short, clear sentences, very much "in the moment." Crisp dialogue allows the reader to "see" the story. A well-crafted plot and rich detail create graphic, almost cinematic scenes that cruise along the page. For example, "He steadied him, like balancing a penny on end." Or "The unhealthy loitered there, like mold on bread." I don't usually read books of this genre. Moreover, I haven't picked up any fiction over 350 pages since my college encounter with War and Peace. But an introductory quote from the black intellectual Frederick Douglass drew me into Swarm Theory. And E.W. Sullivan's fine writing kept me there, page after page: a sleep deprived but very satisfied reader.

for Readers' Favorite