And then there were twelve. Twelve souls, one nasty demon, and an ambitious warlock hell bent on bringing about the apocalypse. Only an unlikely band of heroes can stop the threat of evil before its too late. But the clock is ticking and the body count is rising. Evil may have lost the battle long ago, but will it win the war?
As if the number 13 weren’t scary enough, Tom Kennedy unleashes a new tale of terror with his debut novel ‘The Twelve.’ The first book in a trilogy of supernatural suspense is a white knuckling page-turner that will keep readers up past midnight…if they dare.
A modern twist on Faustian lore, twelve seemingly lucky billionaires have sold their souls and those of their first born grandsons to the devil’s accomplice in exchange for $500 seed money during the Great Depression. Amassing wealth and prestige, each one is struck down on the eve of their eighty-sixth birthday by an unstoppable and gruesome demon channeled by the power hungry immortal, Lyle Blackwell.
It seems there is no way to stop the takeover of terror, until a psychic/astrologer starts to experience visions of the men in the throes of the demon’s slaughter-fest. With the aid of an overzealous young 
reporter, they begin to unravel the sinister significance behind the twelve souls and the plot that threatens the world order. Armed with only their convictions and the initial lackluster interest of an LAPD detective, the battle between good and evil may be too much for all of them to bear. The Vatican, the FBI and local law enforcement must take down the one thing that exists beyond the laws of nature, man and possibly God.
Much like Dan Brown’s ‘Angels and Demons’ and ‘The Da Vinci Code’ Kennedy fuses Judeo-Christian conspiracy theory and prophecy with a hard boiled mystery chockfull of hairpin twist and turns. Although at times Kennedy marvelously teeters close to good old fashioned Elmore Leonard’s hard-boiled style and Mickey Spillane’s gritty and occasionally cliché dialogue, this first novel doesn’t hold back any punches as the suspense builds towards the last stand. There are clever surprises throughout that will keep readers gripping their penlights or for those more easily frightened, magnum sized flashlights underneath their sheets.
Kirkus Reviews dubbed ‘The Twelve,’ “Eerily suspenseful and masterfully penned, Kennedy’s debut is reminiscent of Stephen King, with paranormal events that creatively form the elements of a memorable suspense-thriller.”
Considering ‘The Twelve’ is Kennedy’s inaugural novel, I think the jury is still out on his being compared to King status, (I think Koontz is more apropos). But this book does hold promise for his following works in this series. Fans of horror and mystery will thrill to find a new voice in a genre that has been cornered for the last decade by only a handful of notable names.
I had the opportunity to meet with Tom Kennedy and chat briefly at his decadent launch party and book signing at the glitzy Citizen Smith bar in Hollywood last month. In a recent interview I asked what his fans can look forward to in his sequel novel, ‘The Keepers’ and what inspired him to write in the horror genre.
MR Hunter: How long did it take to write your first novel?
Tom Kennedy: I write mostly at night here and there whenever I get the chance. Cumulative, about a year but I came up with the idea four years ago and started writing it.
MH: It seems you put quite a bit of research into this book.
Kennedy: I did. Everything in the book is based on fact, especially with the church. I spoke with a lot of priests by phone. Some were willing to talk to me, but others must’ve thought I was some kind of weirdo because they hung up on me.
MH: (laughs) It’s not everyday a priest is called to answer those kinds of questions.
Kennedy: No, not at all. But like the part in the book about the Swiss Army Guards and their training, that’s all true. It is very real.
MH: What surprised you while writing ‘The Twelve’?
Kennedy: The number twelve kept coming up in my life. It was very strange and it got me to thinking about the number 12. There are twelve months in a year, twelve apostles of Christ, and so on. And any great horror film like “Nightmare on Elm Street” has 12 murders.
MH: Really? I’ve never heard of that.
Kennedy: Yeah. It works out that a good horror film should have a killing every ten minutes. So in a typical film there are about 12 murders.
MH: I understand that you’ve worked with some great directors of horror. Any favorites?
Kennedy: Carpenter for sure. I worked with him on “The Thing” and “The Fog.” William Friedkin is another. I like all their work.
MH: Did their work influence your writing?
Kennedy: Because of my work as a film editor and now advertising, I would have to watch these films over and over, frame by frame. You couldn’t look away. They made an impression.
MH: Who has influenced you the most as a writer?
Kennedy: I really like Sydney Pollack. He’s terrific. Hal Ashby is another. But “The Twilight Zone” especially, and the writer you interviewed recently, Richard Matheson, who wrote ‘I Am Legend’ even he’s probably influenced me some. There are so many.
MH: Why did you start writing your novel now? Is this something you’ve always wanted to do, but never had the time?
Kennedy: Absolutely. I’ve always wanted to do it, but I kept getting pulled away to do other jobs.
MH: You worked at Kaleidoscope Films for a number of years.
Kennedy: Yes. And now I’ve had my own motion picture ad agency for so many years, I don’t even want to say. I was seduced by the money. I can admit that. I really was.
MH: But after reading your book I was impressed at how you handled the many locations throughout the story, most of them in the US. You’ve obviously traveled a lot.
Kennedy: I have and I’m glad you noticed that. My work has taken me all over. I’ve been to many different places.
MH: What’s your favorite city?
Kennedy: New York. I’d like to move back someday, but we’ll see.
MH: You went to school there, is that correct?
Kennedy: Yes. I started out at Columbia University, but dropped out and got a degree in directing from the School of Visual Arts. Then I came to LA and started working. I’m in the film editing union, DGA and SAG.
MH: SAG?
Kennedy: I do a lot of voice over work.
MH: ‘The Twelve’ is very visual. Have you thought about adapting it into a screenplay?
Kennedy: I have. I’ve been meeting with some people that are interested in turning it into a graphic novel.
MH: That’s becoming a very popular medium.
Kennedy: I think it would do quite well. The book actually started as a screenplay. But it became so unwieldy that it eventually became a novel. I had so many people read it and tell me to keep going so I did. But it started out as a script.
MH: Do you draw on personal experiences when you’re writing?
Kennedy: In a sense yes. If I had a bad day, or a guy cuts me off the road, I’d think to myself, oh boy, he’s going to get it tonight. (Laughs) Bad things that happened in my life would help me get in the right frame of mind.
MH: Are you a character in this book?
Kennedy: Oh, no, not at all. I’m not a reporter or a detective. (Laughs) Maybe a psychotic, but no. There is always something of the writer in a book, but I’m not any of the characters.
MH: What was the process of publishing ‘The Twelve?’
Kennedy: I sent it to Random House first. They responded with a very nice letter that said they liked it, but could not find it a home. So then I had some friends tell me I should keep at it. The book is time sensitive, so that made me really look around. Kirkus Reviews was interested but they make a deal that they can write any review, good or bad, so I took the chance and lucky for me they loved it and the book got a great review.
MH: Your book is horror but also an old fashioned murder mystery. Was this intentional?
Kennedy: I wanted to appeal to a broader audience. I’ve always loved a good mystery novel.
MH: Any favorites?
Kennedy: Elmore Leonard without a doubt.
MH: I can see some similarities between you two.
Kennedy: Really? That’s good. I think it works to keep readers guessing. I wanted to write a page-turner.
MH: You also made some daring choices. I was surprised at one in particular.
[Spoiler Alert]
Kennedy: You mean Denny, the reporter?
MH: I did not see that coming.
Kennedy: I didn’t plan on it until the night I wrote it. I just couldn’t let him live after being so stupid. I mean he goes to this guy’s house, what do you expect? He had to die and frankly I was tired of him. But it is a risk to kill off your main character halfway through the book.
MH: It is. And not usually done.
Kennedy: It can work. There’s the film “To Live and Die in LA.” They did it and it worked out very well.
[End of Spoiler]MH: Have you always been fascinated by the occult?
Kennedy: I was raised Catholic. The devil was pounded into me.
MH: I saw many similarities to Faust. Was that a legend you drew on?
Kennedy: Yes, I love the story of Faust. I’ve always been fascinated by stories about making a deal with the devil. Of course, when it comes time to collect everyone regrets it.
MH: What are you reading now?
Kennedy: I just finished this brilliant work by early 20th century Russian author Mikhail Bulgakov called ‘The Master and Margarita.’ I started reading it after I finished ‘The Twelve.’
MH: Will you continue writing horror?
Kennedy: Yes, I plan to stay in horror. I have so many other projects. I have a script that I put aside for a few months to make time for my sequel novel ‘The Keepers’ and it just sits there taunting me.
MH: I read that you’re a sci-fi buff. Any chance you might write something in that vein?
Kennedy: I’d like to. But I want to get this trilogy done first, before I head off in a different direction.
MH: What can your fans expect with your sequel ‘The Keepers?’
Kennedy: Expect to be more shocked by what is discovered. Characters you’ll come to find cannot be trusted. The title refers to those who have kept The Book for thousands of years. They’ll do anything to protect it.
MH: I hate to ask, but when will it be finished?
Kennedy: If all goes well, hopefully in six months.
MH: I’m sure your fans will be thrilled to hear that. What is this I heard about a “Virtual Book Signing Around the World in Twelve Hours?”
Kennedy: I thought it’d be fun to do a book signing that went around the world. I looked into it and contacted some medical companies that use modern technology so that a doctor can perform surgery with a scalpel without being present at the operation. It’s surprisingly easy to do. So instead of a scalpel I’ll be hooked up to a robotic arm with a pen, and be able to talk onscreen to whoever wants my autograph. It’s going to be a huge event and I’ve been in touch with the USO to see if we can do it in Baghdad. I’ll be doing signings on six continents. It’s very exciting and has never been done before.
MH: I saw that famed writer Cyra McFadden edited your novel. Will she be doing the other two?
Kennedy: Yes. She and I met through a mutual friend. She really liked the book and wanted to see it do well. She cut about 200 pages. I gave her complete control. It’s been great working with her.
MH: What is your writing process?
Kennedy: Whenever I can. I’m mostly a light sleeper. If my dog snores I wake up. I use a voice recognition program called Via Voice, which is also used by coroners when they are performing autopsies and need to keep their hands free. But it really helps me. Instead, of sitting down and really waking up to write, I just speak out loud and then the next day read it over and edit.
MH: Did you ever scare yourself while writing ‘The Twelve?’
Kennedy: What got scary were the weird coincidences that kept coming up.
MH: Such as?
Kennedy: Dates and numbers. Certain numbers kept popping up, like twelve for instance. But other numbers too that added up in certain ways. It was very strange.
MH: Do you think you were more sensitive to it? Maybe looking for it?
Kennedy: Maybe. That’s probably true to a certain extent. And they were probably just weird coincidences. Just those unexplainable quirks of nature I guess.
MH: Did you take it as a sign to keep writing?
Kennedy: I did most definitely. I thought, something is telling me to do this. Not just my friends. So I did.
MH: What did you learn about yourself while writing ‘The Twelve’?
Kennedy: I’m really weird.
MH: (Laughs)
Kennedy: I must be, right? I mean to write about killings and such.
MH: Nah.
Be one of the first to discover the raw talent of a fright-teller that will keep your lights on until dawn.
‘The Twelve’ is published by BookSurge publishing and is available in paperback on Amazon.com, Borders.com and can be ordered in all major bookstores.
Please visit www.thetwelvenovel.com for more on the author and his works.
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