The Sky Calls

When terminal cancer strikes in mid-life, David Geraki has to make tough choices. He chooses an experimental therapy that saves his life but removes his humanity as he is slowly transformed into an eagle. With the help of his lifelong friend, he must hold on to what’s left of himself, accept what he’s become, and ultimately fight for his freedom.

Doctor Dunnmeier shouted, “Wait! Sam!”
But it was too late. The curtain swished back on its track and there was David, or what used to be David. A humanoid form lay on its back on sterile, white sheets under a blue gown. The smell of alcohol and iodine was pricked by something else unusual—organic but, not fetid. His eyes were closed in sleep by wrinkled, pale lids, and he had IV lines and monitor probes on both arms, and a slim, transparent tube delivering oxygen to his nostrils—or what could have passed for nostrils. Monitors quietly displayed their readings and IV pumps whirred. He was shorter and his legs and arms bonier. His hair had fallen out and his skin was hued yellowish-pink and wrinkled. His eyes were enormous against their sunken sockets… or was it that his nose and jaw were longer? Angry red lines divided his face like tectonic plates, delineating areas around his nose, mouth, eyes, and up the center of his scalp. The space between his nose and mouth bulged outward, and his nostrils stretched apart from each other. Sam’s eyes drifted down in horror to David’s left hand, and he saw that the fingers were bony and pale. His pinky was shriveled with thick sheets of skin sloughing off. And David’s feet were yellow with thick sheets of loose, flaky skin. His toes were hideously long with blackened, thick, sharp nails. He slept peacefully, but he looked more like a Holocaust victim than a thriving cancer patient.
Sam’s hand tightened on the edge of the curtain and his mouth dropped open. “Whhaaaattt in the hoooolllyyy fuck?!” He slowly hugged his arms to himself as his eyes surveyed and resurveyed his dear friend, searching for something familiar. Tears misted his vision and he turned to the doctor, fire in his stare, “Improvement? What the hell have you done to him?”

From The Sky Calls, 2019

Follow along with David and his doctors as he adapts to a new body and a new life, all while dealing with the legal and moral questions of losing his humanity. I drew heavily upon my experience as an avian veterinarian to give you a realistic, detailed ride into being a bird. If you’ve ever dreamed of turning into a bird, here’s your chance!

2 thoughts on “The Sky Calls

  1. The Sky Calls is riveting and emotionally heart wrenching and I was not ready for the story to end. I would love to share more of David and Sam’s adventure. It’s an interesting read from an imaginative viewpoint and from a technical stance. I found it fascinating to learn so much about bird anatomy, especially the way their respiratory system works. Here’s hoping Hal might consider another novel featuring these wonderful characters.

  2. Just wanted to thank you for this awesome read! Already put this review on Amazon.
    I finished this book a few days ago. Couldn’t put it down!
    Imagine you have cancer, and you have been offered a new gene therapy. Of course, what do you have to lose? You die anyway!
    But then the genes are accidentally switched with golden eagle DNA…. You have to choose. Reverse the transformation and possibly die? Or live a new life as a bird? Do you still have human rights? Or will you get treated like any ordinary animal?
    Will you be able to fly free?
    Follow David on his journey as he fights for his new life, together with his friend.
    This novel was amazing! All the details of the transformation, characters and the great pace of the story makes it a great read!
    Highly recommended!
    Even if I’m afraid of doctors, I enjoyed this book so much!

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