A Boomer's Tale
Jack Darrow, trial lawyer, husband, and father has lost his way. Longing for the passion and excitement of youth, he is stuck in the mundane realities of his “normal life.” To “find himself” Jack embarks on a camping trip that quickly turns deadly. Accosted by vagrants bent on murder, Jack escapes through a mysterious cave and is hurled across time to a medieval world of Dark Riders, Trogs, sadistic rulers, and the arms of the gypsy beauty, Kara. Having no understanding of the mysterious forces that brought him to this dangerously exciting new life, Jack is torn between his devotion to the family he left behind and the newfound passions of youth as he struggles for survival, love, and his life’s truth.
“A Boomer’s Tale” is a stunningly unique twist on the two-worlds adventure/romance of Diana Gabaldon’s “Outlander” series.
"A time-travel treat with a captivating hero....Characterization is strong in this enjoyable spin on Outlander...smooth-flowing narrative...which take on the flavor of an Edgar Rice Burroughs pulp novel as man-out-of-his-time Jack rallies the rebels" - Kirkus Reviews
"Filled with gripping encounters and clashes with self and the world...It will keep readers engrossed and thinking long after the tale's epic conclusion, which links not only disparate worlds, but newly healed hearts." - Midwest Book Reviews
The First Gospel
Edessa, Turkey 943 A.D.: Eighty thousand Byzantine knights lay siege to a Muslim citadel. Prepared to raze the city, the Byzantine commander offers to spare it if the Muslim emir will hand over a fourteen-foot piece of linen. The stunned emir readily delivers the cloth that holds the greatest mystery the world has ever known.
Arizona 1100 years later: Mathew Carter, a young former lawyer who waits tables and hangs out at the beach, attends his university’s homecoming game. While wandering his old campus after the game, he discovers the brutally murdered remains of his old professor, Samuel Rosen. When Matt returns home, shocked by his favorite professor’s death, he finds a letter from Rosen posted the night of his murder. In it Rosen begs Matt to protect a Carter family heirloom (an eleven-hundred-year-old parchment) that Rosen carbon-dated twelve years earlier. Unbeknownst to Matt, the parchment holds the key to the two-thousand- year-old mystery of the Cloth of Edessa, a mystery Rosen was prepared to put to rest until powerful forces ended his life. Now Matt becomes the unwitting prey of those same forces that will stop at nothing to keep his parchment’s truth hidden.
From the magnificent opulence of St. Peter’s Cathedral in Rome to the breathtaking beauty of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and beaches of Southern California, readers will become part of Matt’s frantic search for a truth that will forever change political, religious, and industrial fortunes around the world … even as Matt fights for his own survival.
"I finished the book yesterday...Any time I put it down, I couldn't wait to be able to continue. Most Shroud fiction novels are very predictable, (but) your novel was a welcomed change from that." - Shroud of Turin scholar Joe Marino
"One of the most impressive scenes in Darryl Nyznyk’s latest novel, The First Gospel, takes place during a televised debate between wealthy Paul Christian, a financial wizard who believes uncontrolled capitalism “will lead to happiness,” and Father Arron Roberts, who believes capitalism without control “will lead to our destruction, that “Without restraints...the pursuit of achievement of material goals will cause people to use any means necessary to achieve them.” A set piece filled with tension, written mostly in dialogue, it illustrates one aspect of Darryl’s masterful storytelling." - Roger Zotti, The Resident
“Darryl Nyznyk is a master storyteller and I couldn’t help but be seduced by the exquisite style of writing, the polished and crisp prose, and the exceptional narrative tone. From the very start of the story, I knew I would be in for a wonderful treat, and there was no disappointment, none at all. Readers who enjoy a good blend of mystery and thrillers, stories laced with red herrings, will be utterly engrossed by the fast-paced and intense tale. The plot is expertly imagined and masterfully executed. I loved everything about The First Gospel.” - Readers’ Favorite
The Condor Song
Sean Donovan lost everything: his wife, kids, job, and license to practice law. Abandoned by his wife, betrayed by a friend, and fired by his firm, it has taken thirteen years for Sean to come back, now barely eking out a living on minor cases while his former firm thrives. When Buck Anderson, renowned environmentalist from Sean’s hometown is murdered, Sean reunites with Buck’s niece at the old man’s funeral. She begs Sean to join the Sierra Club’s case to stop a major ski development by a Disney-type company, the very case on which Buck was working when he was killed. Sean agrees, but learns too late that his former firm represents the opposition with motives more sinister than their client’s ski development.
THE CONDOR SONG is an environmental legal thriller set against California’s rugged Sierra Nevada Mountains in which a man lost to the world he thought he knew tries to find redemption in the face of impossible odds.
" This is truly a story of conviction and desire, of betrayal and perseverance. The characters are carefully constructed and interesting...Each character, no matter how big or small a role they played in the plot of the story, elicited some kind of emotion from me as I read...The mystery surrounding the Condors, the building site, the property buying, and the murders and attempted murders make for a page turner." - The Wormhole
"No matter what your literary love is, suspense or conservation, The Condor Song will be the perfect addition to your summer reading list." - Elizabeth, Literary Hoarders
Mary’s Son, A Tale of Christmas
Eleven-year-old Sarah Stone is lonely in a mansion amidst butlers, nannies, housekeepers, and a father who is too busy for her. She is angry at the world. On the other side of town, in a slum called the Sink, Jared Roberts and his gang barely survive broken families and a hardscrabble existence. Jared, too, is angry, and intends to do something about it. He eyes Sarah's mansion for a pre-Christmas burglary that will show the world who he really is. Into this mix comes a mysterious little man named Nicholas, who intrigues, yet scares, Sarah and Jared. Against incredible doubt and cynicism, Nicholas tries to guide the two youths away from their anger and the suffering that will follow, only to realize he can not move them. Finally, he whisks them to another time and place where a Christmas long ago teaches them the true meaning of life in a way they never imagined.
MARY'S SON is a modern tale of the fears and passions of youth overcome by the wonder of the real Christmas story.
"This was an assigned book at my son's middle school so I read it to know what he was reading. The book is short and straightforward, but I liked the analysis of how we grow older and allow other things to take the place of wonder and joy in our lives. The book also has a message about growing up and making the right choices. I thought it was a great Christmas story in a similar vein to A Christmas Carol. This book is perfect for those parents looking for a Christmas read for their preteen or young teen with a positive message and a sense of wonder and magic." Sheila M - Amazon Review
"Mary's Son is a book I borrowed from a family member and read fairly quickly. I could not put it down! This book warms the heart, warms the soul, and you can instantly imagine this story being made into a movie! If you and your family are looking to be reminded of the true meaning of Christmas, to fall in love with the relatable characters, and be able to read this to your kids without worrying about it being appropriate...look no further! This will not only be on my daughter's shelf for years to come...but on mine as well! Well done, Mr. Nyznyk. I look forward to your encore." - Parent - Amazon Review
The THird Term
U.S. President, Aidan Sullivan, won a landslide victory to a second term. His popularity has reached heights never imagined as his term nears its end. The economy thrives; the U.S. is feared by friend and foe... perfect for his followers to push for repeal of the 22nd Amendment and open the door for a third term. But there is something wrong, so wrong it could loose an evil beyond any the world has ever known. Laura Miller, once a top reporter, has lost her position at a major newspaper because of a presidential expose gone wrong. As she struggles to learn what happened, she discovers an incredible truth about the president. Unfortunately, her enemy learns what she knows, and thus begins the harrowing pursuit that results in the deaths of those close to Laura.
The Third Term is a story of suspense, in which a woman against insurmountable odds must face her demons or die. It gives a spellbinding account of potential reality and hurtles the reader through the deepest emotions of fear to a shocking conclusion.
"...masterful plot of terror, faith, deception, and conviction. Readers will be drawn immediately into a carefully and splendidly crafted vortex of memorable characters and unpredictable events." - Midwest Book review
"Keep your eye on Darryl Nyznyk. ...He is on par with the best - already better than Grisham, Forsyth, and Harris." - John Anthony Miller, Phantom Bookshop
Coming Releases
The Rising tells the story of Seventeen-year-old Joey Rodriguez, who angrily walks his gang-leader uncle’s path to what he believes will be riches, until he runs into his school’s enigmatic new kid, Gabriel, who takes Joey on a harrowing journey in time through which he learns the true meaning of life and love.
It is a YA modern day story of real characters dealing with real teen angst and turmoil that will resonate with high school readers the way it’s prequel, Mary’s Son, has with the younger YA crowd. The Rising is about a young man of tremendous athletic talents, who struggles with questions of the soul and mind that haunt every teen, and his are compounded by the reality of his life in the slums. It is incumbent upon this young man to stand against impossible odds, and his only chance is through the twist of a journey where he witnesses the ultimate miracle of spiritual love.
A Note From the Author: The story is a sequel to my self-published Amazon bestseller and award winning novel, Mary’s Son, A Tale of Christmas.
My Beatles Summer is a novel of childhood in an idyllic Southern California suburb during the summer of 1964, a place and time of youthful innocence and wonder forever transformed by the Beatles’ invasion, the shocking realities of racial hatred, and a series of rape/murders that will rock readers to the core of their humanity.
Eleven-year-old Jimmy Nelson and his best friend Charlie Rickman are in love with Ellen Prescott, the new girl who has just moved onto their street. With only days remaining before the beginning of summer, Jimmy and Charlie must complete their year-end insect collection science project. While traipsing through the hills behind their house, Jimmy discovers the mutilated remains of a young girl buried amidst the forest’s decaying detritus.
With the entire community stunned and desperate to protect families from a murderer that has claimed at least three other young girls, the boys seek solace in their childhood, playing sports, war games in their “fort in the hills”, Dodger games on their transistors, neighborhood barbecues, evening hide-and-seek, fourth of July fireworks, and the music of the Beatles, a sound that carries them on flights of wild fancy and propels them into new sensations of puberty and their love of Ellen Prescott.
They cannot stop the real world from intruding. It drags the boys into the battles of racial injustice and the rape/murders that hang over their tranquil lives, until one day it takes them and the young girl they love.
A Note From the Author:
I grew up in a sleepy Southern California suburb in the 1960’s. Like most young people of that era, I describe the Beatles as one of my defining influences. I am particularly knowledgeable of the times, places and events which are fictitiously based upon my own neighborhood of the time, because I actually lived through them. As for the central criminal element of the story, the rape/murders of young women from neighboring communities, my father-in-law was a Los Angeles Sheriff during the time of a similar series of rapes that occurred between the 1950’s and the 1970’s, and I have researched them extensively.