Leisure published the mass market paperback edition of Brian Freeman's novel Black Fire in May 2004 under the pseudonym James Kidman. Cemetery Dance Publications published a signed hardcover Limited Edition of Black Fire in July 2004.

About Black Fire:
What color is the fire of your soul?

It's been seven years since the life shattering event that Eddie Farris thinks of as The Showdown, the night he killed his father in self-defense. Seven years since his world was almost completely destroyed. Seven years of trying to put his life back together and trying to put the past behind him. But sometimes the past doesn't want to stay dead. And sometimes the dead come back to haunt you...

In Eddie Farris's case, the dead are coming back with a vengeance. Who is the strange, mysterious figure who seems to be following Eddie, taunting him, threatening him? He can't be the person Eddie thinks he is. That man's been dead for seven years. Ever since the night of The Showdown, when Eddie killed him...

Nothing in Eddie's world is quite what it seems to be, and he will soon discover that you never really escape your destiny; it burns within the fire of your soul...

Advance Praise For Black Fire:
"Watch the skies! James Kidman is a bright new star on the horror horizon." — Al Sarrantonio, award winning author of Toybox, Skeletons, and Orangefield

"Black Fire is a lonely, nightmarish journey, a book that will really get under your skin. Kidman never lets you see quite where he's going... until it's too late!" —Christopher Golden, author of Strangewood, Straight On 'til Morning, and The Ferryman

"James Kidman is one of the best of the young horror writers working today, and Black Fire should cement his reputation for writing solid, compelling fiction that grabs and holds the reader with cold, ever-tightening hands. Read this book and see what direction horror fiction will be going in this new millennium." — Rick Hautala, New York Times bestselling author of The Mountain King and Bedbugs

"Dread is a word you don't hear much these days when it comes to dark fiction, but it's the one that springs most readily to mind while reading James Kidman's Black Fire. This is a sparking crackerjack of a novel, deftly paced and realized; it's quirky (in the best sense of the word), witty, suspenseful, and satisfying. But most of all, it's filled with genuine dread, and that's been far too rare a commodity in dark fiction recently. Prepare to be made intensely uncomfortable." — Gary A. Braunbeck, author of In Silent Graves and Graveyard People: The Collected Cedar Hill Stories, Vol.1

"Kidman manages to create a vivid inferno of terror in Black Fire, one that will sear itself into the soft tissues of your mind. This is a provocative, powerful, and startling portrait of a man on the edge of a nightmare, trapped by a bitter and furious past that refuses to let go." — Tom Piccirilli, author of The Night Class and A Lower Deep

"James Kidman's formidable storytelling skills weave a compelling spell of mystery and peril. He knows how to engage and keep his readers, and has a deft touch in displaying and dissecting characters to reveal their darkness. He will keep you reading, and looking over your shoulder." — Gerard Houarner, author of The Beast That Was Max, Road to Hell, and Visions Through A Shattered Lens

"A vivid, suspenseful story. Black Fire packs a hell of a punch. James Kidman's accomplished mastery of prose deals out suspense and shocks aplenty." — Simon Clark, bestselling author of Night of the Triffids and Nailed By The Heart

"Reading Kidman's narrative is like watching that little valve on the top of a pressure-cooker, and wondering when the lid's going to blow. You can sense all the energy and nastiness just barely being contained between the lines of his clean prose. Kidman writes with a sure hand and a grim vision. He has seen the essential pain of childhood and fully realized the horror into which it is transformed. Watch out for this guy..." — Tom Monteleone, winner of the Bram Stoker Award and The New York Times Notable Book of the Year Award

"James Kidman writes like a pro. His language is rich and descriptive, and its effect seems effortless: he snags you and draws you in. The story is vivid and alive from the very first page—that's not an easy trick to pull off—and the promise is kept as the story develops, grows and becomes something very special. He also plays very effectively with timelines—again, not easy!—and the result is an absolute pleasure to read." – Tim Lebbon, author of Until She Sleeps and The Nature of Balance

"Dreamlike, suspenseful... with some of the most interesting characters I've come across in quite a while." — Hugh B. Cave, author of The Dawning and Drums of Revolt

"Black Fire is tense, provocative, and burns with intensity!" — Brian Keene, author of The Rising, No Rest For The Wicked, and Fear of Gravity

"Visceral and ambitious, James Kidman's debut novel radiates with energy. Kidman is a writer to keep an eye on." — Del James, author of The Language of Fear

"James Kidman is among the most exciting young writers working in the horror field and his debut novel Black Fire demonstrates all the reasons why… Kidman's writing has a deep emotional core that profoundly affects his readers. He worms his way inside their defenses, then strikes terror into their vulnerable hearts. Even after readers finish his novel, it will be a long time before it’s finished with them." — Garrett Peck, co-editor of Personal Demons and Tooth and Claw

Black Fire Updates:
December 17, 2003 — Black Fire is #1 for the second week in a row on the Shocklines.com Advance Order Bestseller list!

December 8, 2003 — Black Fire has debuted at #1 on the Shocklines.com Advance Order Bestseller list!

December 6, 2003 — Shocklines.com, the best store on the web for your horror needs, has now listed the deluxe hardcover Limited Edition of Black Fire. They're taking preorders for the Limited Edition and the Lettered Edition. Check it out and don't forget that if you preorder the book from Shocklines.com or Cemetery Dance Publications you'll also get a free exclusive chapbook Brian will be writing just for this project.

December 4, 2003 — Cemetery Dance Publications has announced some details about the deluxe hardcover Limited Edition of Black Fire. There will only be 750 copies of the Limited Edition and just 26 copies of the traycased leatherbound Lettered Edition. Award-winning artist Alan M. Clark will be painting the cover artwork. You can read more on the official Cemetery Dance Black Fire page!