A Federal Agent finds herself assigned to a new unit only to become the entree on a stalkers menu. The gas station attendant whose job in the afterlife is to give directions to passersby on their way to eternity. When fans are the only real friends that an X-rated Film Starlet can count on. A frustrated novelist confronted by a character he created and now he can only quit writing over her dead body! Ken Knight is no ordinary writer. He is able to blend powerful themes, from macabre ones to those with mysterious dimensions that will challenge the depths of your imagination. After you have read these stories you will wonder why others dont rise to his level of creativity." -Michael Shockey, Author and College Professor Enter the rough-and-tumble world of Ken Knight, where stories like 'Division 5' compellingly careen like a pinball from violent deceit to lustful anticipation, all the while with ominous surprise lurking just around a corner, or sometimes on the power side of a desk." -T.D. Johnston, winner of the International Book Award for Friday Afternoon and Other Stories
Today, he’s a high school dropout with no future. Tomorrow, he’s a soldier in World War II. Kale Jackson has spent years trying to control his time-traveling ability but hasn't had much luck. One day he lives in 1945, fighting in the war as a sharpshooter and helplessly watching soldiers—friends—die. Then the next day, he’s back in the present, where WWII has bled into his modern life in the form of PTSD, straining his relationship with his father and the few friends he has left. Every day it becomes harder to hide his battle wounds, both physical and mental, from the past. When the ex-girl-next-door, Harper, moves back to town, thoughts of what could be if only he had a normal life begin to haunt him. Harper reminds him of the person he was before the PTSD, which helps anchor him to the present. With practice, maybe Kale could remain in the present permanently and never step foot on a battlefield again. Maybe he can have the normal life he craves. But then Harper finds Kale’s name in a historical article—and he’s listed as a casualty of the war. Is Kale’s death inevitable? Does this mean that, one of these days, when Kale travels to the past, he may not come back? Kale knows now that he must learn to control his time-traveling ability to save himself and his chance at a life with Harper. Otherwise, he’ll be killed in a time where he doesn’t belong by a bullet that was never meant for him.
Sometimes we just daydream about wishing what we want out of life. Other times it comes in an episode as our heads sleep on a pillow. Maybe one of those realistic dreams is a sight into a future event. Let us see what happens in these short stories where the variety and outcomes will have you amazed. Take your time, for it is now your turn Per Chance To Dream... This book is dedicated to all of the readers and fans of my novels. It is those people who fuel my desire to continue.
This book contains my impressions and perspectives of the Philippines, the United States, and the world for that matter, of my life struggles and dream of opportunity. It's intended as a guidebook for regular and ordinary life both in the Philippines and in the United States depending on your inclinations, abilities, income and economic status. Consider this as a report from my own listening post. It contains actual interviews with people and excerpts from newspapers, magazines, books and the Internet. My intention was to depict my own personal life and my family s, and write about my own story based upon personal experiences, but also to describe certain mores, attitudes, customs and cultures of various people in Philippine and American society as I see or interpret them, trying not to offend or annoy. My observations may not jibe with some people's cultural make-up, political conviction, religious beliefs, personal experience, sensitivity and interpretation of certain issues and things, but such is life. I know that no matter where I stand and wherever I go, it's always my opinion against any others, and I have lots of opinions that can cause obvious negative reactions in the simplest of minds. The world is full of cuckoos and we even admire some of them depending on who you ask. When it comes to some very burning questions, the first casualty is truth since there's a big difference between knowing the real story and the story we're told. The historical events and lore that I have used as backdrop are based upon factual records and are of common knowledge in the Philippines and in the United States, but people inject their own spin, opinion, hypocrisy, dogma, self-righteousness, politics, pandering, feeling, insight and experience into certain circumstances, as I did. I have tried to be as truthful and transparent as possible in my own light. You can scoff at me but I have no political agenda and I'm not a conspiracy theorist. I am just that I am. I'm not rewriting history but trying to give history its true light and history is fickle. In my defense I quote the philosopher Voltaire "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it". I also have to show my credentials as Filipino so as to be able to tell Filipino jokes and not get in trouble, in consideration that this is my swan song. I have lived in these United States since 1968, been drafted to the conflict in Vietnam, worked long and hard in my profession, have family, traveled far, now retired, and have seen so much of the American society that I almost think of myself as a native. On this note I beg for tolerance.
My name is Autumn Spring Winters. Right? What sane person names their kid after not only one season of the year, but three? Well, the last name was inherited, but still. Nobody ever said my mom was in her right mind, though. I often wonder what life would be like if she wasn’t a tweaker. But, you know, that’s just a daydream. Reality is she’s a meth addict. She’s been an addict for as long as I can remember. Sometimes I like to believe her when she says she’s clean. Sometimes, when she’s high, we get along great. Sometimes we even talk. When she’s coming down, though, it’s best to just hide. My name is Autumn Spring Winters and Dream Smashers is my story. It’s a love story, but most of all, it’s about letting go. Readers of Ellen Hopkins, Laurie Halse Anderson, Jay Asher and Leslie Connor will enjoy reading Dream Smashers.
