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Young Adult Fantasy – Silent Lee and the Oxford Adventure

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Young Adult Fantasy

Date Published: August 2020

Publisher: Webster Press

As either a stand-alone magical mystery adventure or a follow-up to The Adventure of the Side Door Key, this story will keep teens and all fantasy fans on the edge of their seat as Silent and Raahi dodge lightning bolts and unravel layers of deceit in their quest to save the world and be home in time for tea with Silent’s Great Aunt Generous! The Lee Family Key–safely hidden on a string around Sie’s neck–turns out to be universal: It can open other doors to parallel worlds too. They’ll need that ability and much more as they face off against old enemies and new in this fast-paced ad venture that takes them all the way to a magical version of Oxford and back to Boston again.

Other Books in the Silent Lee YA Fantasy Series:

Silent Lee and the Adventure of the Side Door Key

Published: April 2019

As if life isn’t already complicated when you have to sneak out a magical side door and enter a different century just to get to school each morning.

And now Silent has to figure out what happened to her beloved Aunt Generous, the woman who raised her—which would be complicated enough even if CIA agents in black SUVs weren’t chasing her—but they definitely are!

Amazon

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About the Author

Alex Hiam grew up exploring his great grandparents’ mysterious mansion in Boston’s Back Bay, where Silent’s magical academy is located (if you know how to find it…). He returned to the Boston area to study anthropology at Harvard, and has written numerous books including Silent Lee and the Adventure of the Side Door Key. He now resides in an antique farmhouse in the little village of Putney, Vermont with his family of tween and teen readers and his wife Deirdre.

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Humor, Apocalyptic – Surviving Crazy

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Humor, Apocalyptic

Published: August 2020

A bizarre and hilarious look at surviving societal collapse…

When Armageddon hits you can’t always pick your post-apocalyptic companions, That’s the dilemma facing major-league scout Riley Knight, who finds himself stranded with a collection of borderline crazies at a remote diner when a gigantic solar storm plunges the world into the dark ages.

Cut off from the rest of the electricity-deprived world, the group, whose grip on sanity is tenuous, and whose coping skills leave much to be desired, are forced to rely on each other with laughingly absurd results. As their situation rapidly deteriorates, the distant town of Jericho becomes their only hope for survival. Only the road to Jericho is fraught with peril that only the bravest of them may survive. Worse, Jericho may not be the safe haven they desperately seek. How will they survive this new bizarre and frightening world where everyone’s a nut in a place that’s getting nuttier by the day is anyone’s guess.

Praise for Surviving Crazy:

“A downright hilarious look at ‘the end of civilization as we know it’… A funny book in the ‘slap him in the head style of comedy’ but this goes deeper.” — Readers Favorite 5 Stars!

“An exceptional and original novel that holds the reader’s fully entertained attention from beginning to end. An impressive and deftly crafted novel populated with memorable characters and unexpected plot twists and turns” — Midwest Book Review

“With a long, character-building fuse and a whip-smart pen behind the imagery-rich writing, this novel hums with tension and possibility from the start… Surviving Crazy is a head-scratching read that will make you laugh out loud and stay up late to see how it all plays out.”— Self-Publishing Review

“I thoroughly enjoyed this goofy, comic novel, and laughed out loud through much of it. The characters are wildly drawn, and the satire is sharp and pointed…The ending is surprising, ironic, and perfect.” — Readers’ Favorite

“A colorful burst of comedy and satire.” — RedCity Review

“An ingenious, humorous novel…a thoroughly engrossing,rib-tickling-funny read that lovers of both SF and literary fiction won’t wantto miss.”…The Prairies Book Review

“Anentirely new perspective on end-time scenarios. Readers should hold onto theirhats in this fast-paced story. It is bursting with troublesome yet loveablecharacters who fill this tale with hyperbole, danger, and amazing camaraderie” — US Review of Books

Excerpt

It was at that point in his near-death experience when Shephard said he saw the light appear in front of him, a bright embraceable warm radiance accompanied by a soothing voice calling him into it.

Shephard however wasn’t ready to comply just yet and began to resist. “I was yelling at the voice that I wasn’t going anywhere until it did something about that jackass Floyd Monroe. I mean I was livid. I wanted some action.”

The voice tried coaxing Shephard into the light by promising him that it only wanted to talk for a brief moment before it sent him back into his body. Then Shephard could take care of Floyd anyway he wanted. It sounded like a reasonable compromise and so Shephard headed off into the light.

What happened next according to Shephard was his face-to-face meeting with God, or who he presumed to be God. “He kind of looked like Mr. Feathers.”

Mr. Feathers was Plucky Rooster’s national mascot, a giant red rooster famous for his straw hat and bib overalls.

Riley’s look of disbelief was shared by Shephard. “I know. I was expecting God to look different too. Something along the lines of a bearded, silvery-haired guy in a white robe. Naturally, I began to think I was getting conned.”

About The Author

Frank Crimi is a writer and the author of Surviving Crazy. His other books include Raining Frogs & Heart Attacks. Frank is married with two sons and two grandchildren.

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Literary Fiction – Someday Everything Will All Make Sense

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Literary Fiction

Published: February 2019

Publisher: Adelaide Books

Someday Everything Will All Make Sense follows Luther van der Loon, an eccentric professor of early music, as he navigates the stages of grief after his mother chokes on a wonton. Luther institutes a personal injury suit against the takeout whose “sloppy methods” he blames for his mother’s death. Slowly, and with the help of his girlfriend, Cecilia, he struggles toward resolution. Luther finds redemption in music as he plans the annual symposium for his early music colleagues.

Praise for Someday Everything Will All Make Sense:

“LaHines’ tale paints a robust picture of a suffering neuroticstuck in his sorrow, her protagonist recalling a Laurence Sterne character. . .. An admirable addition to that venerable category [of] novels to find humor in loss.”- Kirkus Reviews

“It’s rare to find a character like Luther van der Loon who makes such a rich and lasting impression–so vividly wounded, exuberant in characterization. Luther embodies the anxious, angst-ridden neurotic we are afraid we will become, or maybe who we aspire to be. In his grief over his mother’s accidental choking vis-à-vis death, his obsession with what is the point of life is simultaneously heartbreaking and hilarious. I could read this novel a hundred times and never tire of it.” – Amy E. Wallen, author of When We Were Ghouls

“An original and very funny novel about a man’s obsessive longing and guilt after his mother accidentally chokes on wonton soup. We follow the endearing protagonist through a period of morning, cleverly interwoven with musical theory and an attempt to sue the Chinese take-out restaurant, all brought to a hilarious finale with a last symposium on medieval music.” – Sheila Kohler, author of numerous award-winning novels

About the Author

Carol LaHines is the author of Someday Everything Will All Make Sense, a finalist for the Nilsen Prize for a First Novel and an American Fiction Award (Adelaide Books, New York City, 2019). Her fiction has appeared in many literary journals including Fence, Hayden’s Ferry Review, Denver Quarterly, Cimarron Review, The Literary Review, The Laurel Review, North Dakota Quarterly, South Dakota Review, The South Carolina Review, The Chattahoochee Review, Sycamore Review, Permafrost, redivider, Literary Orphans, and Literal Latte. She is the recipient of the Lamar York Prize for Fiction. Her short stories and novellas have also been finalists for the Mary McCarthy Prize in Short Fiction from Sarabande Books, the David Nathan Meyerson fiction prize, the New Letters short story award, and the Disquiet Literary Prize, among others. She is a graduate of New York University, Gallatin Division, and of St. John’s University School of Law.

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Historical Fiction – The Ninth Passage

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Historical Fiction

Publisher: Newman Springs Publishing

Controversy abounds when a WWII veteran turned choir teacher has romantic relationship with student.

Alec Driver, a WWII veteran with advanced degree in hand, secures the post of choir teacher at a small town high school on Florida’s west coast. He quickly falls in love with a bright, talented and attractive student. Community outrage demands his dismissal prompting influential citizens to affect his rescue. National recognition for his choirs unprecedented performance of Beethoven’s NinthSymphony vindicates his supporters, or so it seems.

About The Author

Dale O. Cloninger is Professor Emeritus and former Dean at the University of Houston-Clear Lake and now the author of two novels (Death on Demand his first). While fiction, The Ninth Passage is based on his experiences while growing up on Florida’s west coast during the 1950’s.

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Financial Crime Thriller – Death Count

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Financial Crime Thriller

Date Published: December 2020

Publisher: Paperback Writer’s Publishing

Can a conspiracy be uncovered before the Death Count rises?

Forensic accountant Kat Munro fights corporate fraud during the day and kickboxes her demons at night while trying to ignore the nightmares that have plagued her since a car accident changed her life forever.

DS Adam Jackson is haunted by the mysterious disappearance of a friend two years ago.

When the partner of a successful London Investment fund dies in suspicious circumstances, Kat joins forces with Adam to investigate the firm. As they gather evidence of a crime with implications beyond the City, they find that events in their pasts are on a collision course; one which will ultimately put them both in serious danger.

Fast-paced and entertaining, Death Count takes a deadly dip into the world of financial crime.

Excerpt

Kat Munro twisted in her seat and looked behind. A dark shape took form as it approached from the gloom at speed, its headlights bearing down on them. She sensed Gabe ease their car towards the edge of the bitumen to allow the other vehicle to pass. A frown creased the skin between his eyes for a moment, and his long slender hands gripped the wheel. The breeze tossed his hair as he turned his head to look at Kat, and a warm smile lit up his handsome face. But instead of passing, the engine of the car behind them roared, and it closed the distance like a lion tracking its prey. Kat felt fear clutch at her throat. Had she been seen? The drive into town for extra supplies in Gabe’s convertible now seemed fraught with danger.

“What the…” Gabe began, glancing in the rear vision mirror.

Kat looked across at him as she felt the car accelerate and gather speed.

From the back seat, Felicity hiccupped and giggled, twin dimples forming in her cheeks. She toed off her shoes and kicked her long legs up onto the seat.

Kat peered behind once more; her heart was thudding fast in her chest. The other car was keeping pace with them and was so close that she could make out the outlines of those in the front seat.

The light breeze, scented with the aroma of the wild honeysuckle growing at the side of the road, whipped her hair around her face.

“Gabe, slow down,” Kat said, pushing the strands aside.

A bend in the road was fast approaching. Gabe changed gears, slowing the car as they entered the corner, but then sped up as they exited the turn. Their pursuers fell back for a moment before catching up to them again. Kat gripped the edge of her seat, terrified. A second tighter bend loomed in front of them when the other vehicle made a sudden move to pass and clipped the back of their car. The convertible shuddered from the impact and hit the loose gravel at the side of the road. It began to spin, with Gabe fighting to control it.

“Hey,” Felicity shouted as she was tossed around on the back seat, too drunk to comprehend the danger they were facing.

The next images came into Kat’s mind in a series of flashes.

The slide into the low stone wall, the car sailing through the air before hitting the ground in a field and rolling twice… Felicity’s cries of pain… men approaching the vehicle and pulling a dazed Gabe away from the wreckage… thick and cloying smoke, blood, and flames.

Kat’s screams rang out as she looked at her arm, draped over the side door of the car, and saw her bloodied hand hanging on to her wrist by a flap of skin and tissue.

Kat bolted upright. The room was dark, the bedsheets twisted. Her breathing was coming in uneven gulps, and her heart was racing. She glanced at the bedside clock, 4:30 a.m.; there would be no more sleep for her tonight.

About the Author

SL Beaumont is the author of the award-winning novel Shadow of Doubt and the Amazon best-selling series, The Carlswick Mysteries.

She lives in beautiful New Zealand, which is only problematic when the travel-bug bites (which it does fairly often)! Her passion for travel has seen her take many long haul flights to various parts of the world. Her love of history helps determine the destination and the places she visits are a constant source of inspiration for her.

Prior to becoming an author, SL Beaumont worked in banking in London and New York.

Shadow of Doubt won the 2020 Indie Reader Mystery/Suspense/Thriller Award, was long-listed for the 2020 Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Novel, and was a semi-finalist for both the 2019 Publisher’s Weekly BookLife Prize and the 2020 Kindle Book Awards.

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Literary Fiction – Asteroidea

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Literary Fiction, Fiction

Published: November 2020

Publisher: Adelaide Books

ASTEROIDEA is about regeneration: personal, professional, cellular. Marine biologist Claire Holt is at a frustrating crossroads. Having spent her career experimenting on asteroidea, commonly called star-fish, and trying, without success, to transfer their regenerative capabilities to mammals, she’s grown frustrated and depressed. With her grants running dry, time running out, and her two grown daughters facing their own life changes, Claire feels defeated. To cope, she takes a journey back to her childhood home, only to discover several startling and destabilizing facts about her past. As she tries to handle the resulting intergenerational and emotional fall-out, a graduate student arrives at her lab with a newly discovered, promising species of asteroidea. Juggling emotional and familial upheaval, as well as this fresh direction for her research challenges Claire to re-engage in both her work and in life.

About the Author

After attending the Haystack Writing Workshop with Ursula K. Le Guin and Vonda N. McIntyre, Stephanie A. Smith took her PhD from UC Berkeley; she is the author of The Warpaint Trilogy (2012-14); Other Nature (1995-7); The-Boy-Who-Was-Thrown-Away and Snow-Eyes (1985/87); academic criticism Conceived By Liberty (Cornell 1995) and Household Words (Minnesota 2006); as well as numerous short stories, creative non-fiction and scholarly essays published in journals such as New Letters, differences, American Literature, and Genre. She has held fiction residencies at the Writer’s Colony, the VCCA, the Noepe Center, Hedgebrook, Norcroft, Provincetown and Dorland and was an NEH Scholar at UCLA.

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Middle Grade Mystery Cover Reveal – The Problem at Wisteria Gardens

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A Pekin Dewlap Mystery

Middle Grade Mystery

Date Published: 3/9/21

Publisher: Acorn Publishing

The ghost haunting Wisteria Gardens Antiques appears to be a charming and loving mother who can’t stand the thought of being separated from her son.

But appearances can be deceiving.

The Ghosties are moved by her expression of devotion, until they discover the truth. Her attachment to the real world has nothing to do with love.

As the teen ghost hunters struggle with the case, Althea’s determination to stay threatens their very lives. Will Pekin, Scout, and Amber convince the ghost to move on before it’s too late?

About the Author

Pam got a late start in writing, but has made up for it with several published novels and at least one more on the way. A serendipitous conversation with a writer friend launched her literary career, and the fact that she might never have had that particular conversation is enough to make her believe that fate played a hand in sending her down her best path. She’s lived in Southern California most of her life and is thankful to have a loving family and supportive friends. Spending time at home during the COVID pandemic has advanced both Pam’s writing and her relationship with her My Cat From Hell TV star, Allie, who manages to exude just enough affection to make her scary feral ways tolerable.

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