Revenge of the Phantom Press

My new novel, Revenge of the Phantom Press, releases on 1/31/26, and you can preview the first chapter now. It’s the direct sequel to The Rift, and Tom Larsen, the skeptic blogger turned paranormal investigative reporter, is the main character.

Over a year later, Tom is still dealing with fallout from the events in The Rift. But when ghosts attack the village board and the Babbler’s newsroom, Tom’s life is thrown into chaos. He’s ordered to evacuate Bolingbrook by the publisher and editor. Instead, he defies his orders and secretly investigates ghosts, who used to publish the rival tabloid, The Phantom Press. He’s joined by Juanita, his former mentor, and Anti-Psychic Kitty, the world’s most powerful generator of anti-psychic energy.

But ghosts aren’t Tom’s only problems. His parents want him to check into an inpatient psychiatric program. The head of the Department of Paranormal Affairs doesn’t like him. Occultists addicted to ghost possession try to hunt them down. Juanita may be hiding something from him. And the attacks may be part of a far reaching conspiracy with destructive consequences.

Wishing Shelf calls Revenge of the Phantom Press, “A smartly plotted paranormal mystery fans of the genre will enjoy.” Readers’ Favorite says, “Revenge of the Phantom Press is lots of fun, with each page offering something humorous, mysterious, or endearing.”

If you’re interested, download Chapter One and subscribe to my newsletter. I’ll also be posting updates throughout this month until the January 31 launch.

Touch a flame. Feel the Fire.

Revenge of the Phantom Press: A Bolingbrook Babbler Story, just received its first five star editorial review from Readers’ Favorite:

Revenge of the Phantom Press

Revenge of the Phantom Press by William Brinkman is the fourth book in The Bolingbrook Babbler Stories series. Tom used to be a skeptic, but has come around in the last year and now finds himself working as a paranormal investigative reporter. He has since learned it’s not easy covering the strange activity occurring in suburban Chicago, but he’s determined to prove his position at the Bolingbrook Babbler. Those around him may not understand, but the world he finds himself in is one he can’t ignore. The reappearance of ghosts who previously ran the Phantom Press has created chaos, not just for the Bolingbrook Babbler, but the local agencies. To protect his job – and those forced to evacuate – Tom investigates the ghosts’ re-emergence and how to return them to the grave.

The return of the Phantom Press sparks a chain reaction that causes chaos and obstacles for Tom as he’s pulled into the middle. This creates a series of action-packed, humorous, and paranormal moments that keep you turning the pages. William Brinkman captures Tom’s quirks and perspective with ease. Multiple scenarios make the story charming and maintain a lightheartedness throughout. This is seen right from the beginning and continues in the team-up with Juanita and her cat. The author delivers a delightful dynamic between the two characters, and this shows Brinkman’s ability to craft humorous and clever dialogue that never gets boring. Their dynamic also creates another layer to the story as Tom is faced with uncertainty, since Juanita has her own secrets. The paranormal world is quickly established, successfully showing what has been established in previous installments. This makes it easy to step into the story for the first time, or to return to it as if greeting old friends. Action-packed moments are woven into the plot, adding a sense of danger and excitement, while throwing a wrench into his investigation and presenting a possible greater conspiracy. Revenge of the Phantom Press is lots of fun, with each page offering something humorous, mysterious, or endearing.

After putting in about two years of work on this book, it’s nice to know someone thinks it is a five start quality book.

Revenge of the Phantom Press releases on January 31, but you can preorder it now from most book retailers. It’s also available for libraries to order, thought I suspect it might get banned in from libraries in some parts of the country. (Atheist main character, positive portrayal of a LGBTQ+ character, interracial romantic interest, etc.)

In my Urban Fantasy series, the Bolingbrook Babbler Stories, Wendy Onofrey is a supporting character in three of my books: A Fire in the Shadows, The Rift, and Revenge of the Phantom Press. She’s the admin for the Bolingbrook Babbler’s website and their unofficial paranormal expert. Before joining the Babbler tabloid, she was a member of the skeptical movement. Until she discovered the truth that the movement was part of a grand coverup of the paranormal. Rather than join the inner circle of the movement, she left, or, as she puts it, the movement left her. Now she’s a valued member of the staff.

Wendy also happens to be a trans woman. I didn’t mention her gender identity in the last two books because it wasn’t a big deal with the staff. In earlier drafts of The Rift, Wendy’s twin brother hinted at her identity and showed that her family supported her. Though the brother character was cut, in my mind, Wendy was still a trans woman. During the character’s creation, I asked myself why she shouldn’t be trans? I couldn’t think of a reason why she shouldn’t.

In Revenge of the Phantom Press, I decided to make it clear that Wendy was a trans character. It wasn’t to score points. In the face of growing trans erasure and President Trump rolling back progress on LGBTQ+ rights, one thing I could do was make Wendy’s trans identity visible. While I do touch on transphobia in ROTPP, her presence in my stories helps normalize trans characters. It’s not much, but it is one of the things I can do to help.

Currently, Smashwords is holding their End of Year sale until January 1, and they have hundreds of LGBTQ+ ebooks on sale. It’s a great time to support these authors, and get great deals on eBooks.

If you also want to check out my books, I’m participating in the sale too. Pathways to Bolingbrook and A Fire in the Shadows are free. The Rift is $.99. And you can preorder Revenge of the Phantom Press. The release date is January 31.

Whether or not you buy my books, representation in fiction, especially LGBTQ+ representation is important. Stories can allow readers to see the world through a different lens and build empathy. And we could certainly use more empathy in the world.