Young Americans take to the road in droves during the volatile 1960's. Some flee a military draft that demands they kill or be killed in a war halfway around the world. Others search for excitement, a temporary reprieve from the prison of work, school, marriage or family. And one, the Drifter, has a particularly compelling reason to hitchhike the country's highways. He carries a dark secret that, if revealed, could cost his freedom. Or his life. Now, it's late 1965. The Drifter, camped in central Idaho, stumbles across a woman's body. Though his first instinct is self-preservation, he decides to give the corpse a decent burial. Bad idea. Discovered by a search party and wounded by a bullet, the Drifter is chased through Idaho's rugged wilderness. He runs for his life, headlong into a baffling mystery involving UFOs and murder. It will take all the Drifter's cunning - and lots of luck - to survive, as Kissing Asphalt pits him in a harrowing life or death struggle against Nature, against his fellow man, and against himself. The first in an exciting new series.
Resilience isn’t inherited. It’s a hard-fought skill forged by our ability to pick up the broken pieces of our past and remake them into something new. Meet four-year-old Delicia, a poor but carefree child who is about to have her world shattered. Along with her seven-year-old brother Nile, she is kidnapped from her Los Angeles home by her estranged father and taken to Iraq, a foreign world she has never known. This is just the beginning of a string of traumas, hardships, and assaults Delicia will endure throughout her tumultuous childhood. Now an adult living back in California, Delicia Niami bravely recounts how she survived the unimaginable in her debut memoir. Kissing Asphalt, the first in her memoir trilogy, ResilientAF, grapples with the power of resilience, acceptance, and self-love. She revisits her terrifying past with vulnerability, compassion, and the honesty of a true survivor. Hold hands with Delicia as she faces her childhood scars and learns how to confront her fears, accept her true value and identity, and embrace her unique gifts. It’s a multi-decade roller coaster ride that is the beginning of her liberation, propelling her to live an inspired life and embrace her full human potential—a human potential she knows lives inside everyone, no matter what life has thrown at us. For anyone who has struggled with childhood trauma, Delicia’s unflinching journey through darkness and back to light will resonate. She has decided to share her story publicly in hopes that it will serve as a guide to the many who have suffered in silence and continue to struggle against the daunting weight imposed by childhood trauma.
Is dying for the truth really better than living with a lie? Find out in this gripping psychological thriller from New York Times bestselling author Ted Dekker and Erin Healy. Let me tell you all I know for sure. My name: Shauna. I woke up in a hospital bed missing six months of my memory. In the room was my loving boyfriend—how could I have forgotten him?—my uncle and my abusive stepmother. Everyone blames me for the tragic car accident that left me near death and my dear brother brain damaged. But what they say can't be true—can it? I believe the medicine is doing strange things to my memory. I'm unsure who I can trust and who I should run from. And I'm starting to remember things I've never known. Things not about me. I think I'm going crazy. And even worse, I think they want to kill me. But who? And for what? Is dying for the truth really better than living with a lie? Praise for Kiss: “Dekker and Healy prove a winning team in this intriguing, imaginative thriller.” —James Scott Bell, international bestselling author “Kiss by Erin Healy and Ted Dekker is a superb thriller that hooked me from the first sentence. The original plot kept me guessing, and I may never look at a kiss the same way again. I’ll be watching for the next book!” —Colleen Coble, USA TODAY bestselling author “A perfect 10 packed with romance, politics, scandals, and non-stop suspense.” —Laura Wilkinson, Olympic gold medalist and world champion diver “Dekker and Healy form a powerful team in crafting redemptive suspense. Kiss is emotionally absorbing and mentally intriguing—don’t miss it.” —Lisa T. Bergren, bestselling and award-winning author Psychological thriller with supernatural elements Stand-alone novel Full-length book: 80,000 words
The Catholic Catechism (Pope John Paul II edition) claims to be true and foundational to Catholicism. Catholic Catechism Critique examines the Catechism's fallibilities and advises Catholics to write a version of the Catholic Catechism that addresses and corrects logical fallacies within it. Catholic Catechism Critique closely examines all 2, 865 paragraphs of the Catholic Catechism, beginning with Marian Doctrine and the idea that St. Mary cannot be co-Mediator (Mediatrix) on a par with God unless she is God. The analysis moves through truth-testing/truth-seeking, to sacred transmission (of truth), to NEWTOWN (a Catholic CANOPOLIS), and a "GODBOT" that could be programmed by the Catholic Magisterium. The examination ends with future humans and their potential relationship with the Roman Catholic Church. In addition, as part of the process, empirical truth testing calls into question rituals of faith healing and exorcism, and testing by logic/reasoning invalidates other assertions. If it hopes to survive, this book argues, the Roman Catholic Church must rectify its Catechism's failings, and may evolve to become a "future Catholicism under a Jewish protectorate."
Black Cat Weekly #98 features 10 short stories and a novel. This time, we have five mysteries (including a terrific original by Adam Meyer, courtesy of Acquiring Editor Michael Bracken), modern tales by Dharma Kelleher (courtesy of Acquiring Editor Barb Goffman) and Jack Halliday, plus a classic by Frank Gruber, who was a prolific pulp writer and novelist. Gruber’s story of a dance-hall clip-joint provides a window into a long-gone era. And of course, no issue is complete without a solve-it-yourself mystery. On the more science fiction and fantasy side, we have a sword-and-sorcery tale by Phyllis Ann Karr (set in her Frosterflower and Thorn universe), a dark fantasy by horror master Joseph Payne Brennan, a time-travel tale by Robert Abernathy, and classic science fiction by Philip Jose Farmer (“Daughter” is a followup to his classic tale, “Mother”) and John W. Campbell (the tale of grim survival on the moon, The Moon Is Hell.) And for Western fans, we have a classic tale by Alan Le May. Great stuff! Here’s the complete lineup: Mysteries / Suspense / Adventure: “Stacy’s Mom,” by Adam Meyer [Michael Bracken Presents short story] “The Games Gang Rides Again,” Hal Charlies [Solve-It-Yourself Mystery] “Kissing Asphalt,” by Dharma Kelleher [Barb Goffman Presents short story] “Great Caesar’s Ghost!” by Jack Halliday [short story] “Clip-Joint Adventures,” by Frank Gruber [short story] “The Bells of San Juan,” by Alan Le May [short story] Science Fiction & Fantasy: “Sorcery and Sacrilege,” by Phyllis Ann Karr [short story] “The Midnight Bus,” by Joseph Payne Brennan [short story] “Daughter,” by Philip Jose Farmer [short story] “Stopwatch on the World,” by Robert Abernathy [novelet] The Moon Is Hell, by John W. Campbell [novel]
The Go-Go’s made music on their own terms and gave voice to a generation caught between the bra-burning irreverence of the seventies and the me-first decadence of the eighties. Anthems like “We Got the Beat,” “Our Lips Are Sealed,” and “Vacation” are an indelible part of our collective soundtrack, but more than that, they speak to the power and possibility of youth. Inspired by punk but not yoked to it, the Go-Go’s broke important musical ground by combining cheeky lyrics, clever hooks, and catchy melodies, perfectly capturing what it feels like to be young and female in the process. But beyond the Go-Go’s effervescent sound and cheerful pop stylings, a darkness underlies many of their lyrics and melodies, hinting at the heartache and frustration inherent in growing up. In other words, plenty to inspire murder and mayhem. Net proceeds from Murder-a-Go-Go’s benefit Planned Parenthood, a crucial provider of women’s affordable reproductive healthcare. With a foreword by Go-Go’s co-founder Jane Wiedlin and original stories by twenty-five kick-ass authors, editor Holly West has put together an all-star crime fiction anthology inspired by one of the most iconic bands of the eighties and beyond. Praise for MURDER-A-GO-GO’S: “I always suspected that twinkle in the Go-Gos’ eyes was a coded invitation to a darker world. In the hands of these 25 stellar crime fiction writers, ‘We Got the Beat’ and ‘Our Lips Are Sealed’ become evil little gems. A totally rad read.” —Alan Hunter, Original MTV VJ, SiriusXM Host “Shock and awe, that sums up my reaction to Murder-A-Go-Go’s. Shock to live in times when ‘The Whole World Lost Its Head’ and awe at the response of these gifted writers. Buckle up for a ride that will leave ‘Skidmarks on Your Heart.’” —Sara Paretsky, bestselling author of the V.I. Warshawski crime series “Who knew those happy songs by one of all-time favorite bands, the Go-Go’s could inspire such dark, noir, spine-tingling stories?!! It’s a collection of tales of distinctly female rage—the murderous kind and otherwise—to keep you up at night!” —Alison Arngrim, TV’s Nellie Oleson and author of Confessions of a Prairie Bitch “This is the music-driven anthology you didn’t know you needed, but after you read it, you’ll realize your bookshelf was lacking without it. This is a killer line-up of writers, and under Holly’s steady hand, they don’t play a single false note. Murder-A-Go-Go’s has got the beat.” —Rob Hart, author of The Warehouse “Like the songs these writers used for muses, each story contains the energy of a pop group and the rawness of a punk band, with some of the darkness and vulnerability that underscores the Go-Go’s themselves thrown in for good measure.” —Steph Post, author of Miraculum “The Go-Go’s spun some of the brightest, catchiest all-girl pop back in the day. But they always carried more weight than your average pop band: the burden of trailblazing and pioneering; the bad kids in the back of the class breaking all the rules and looking damn cool doing it. This collection commandingly captures that sweet subversion.” —Joe Clifford, author of The One That Got Away “Beneath the pop stylings and sensibilities of the Go-Go’s pulsed the heart of a punk band. In this eye-opening anthology, some of the sharpest voices of contemporary short crime fiction tease out the aches and anxieties echoing through the groundbreaking group’s music: the dark sides of desire, the missed opportunities, the tangled regrets. These stories—they got the beat.” —Art Taylor, award-winning author of On the Road with Del & Louise: A Novel in Stories “Holly West (editor)’s Murder-A-Go-Go’s is murderous fun from the first story to the last. Each masterful tale is distinctive, but this collection is so much more than the sum of its parts, infused with all the talent and skill of some of the best short story writers working in crime fiction today.” —Jennifer Hillier, author of Creep and Jar of Hearts
It’s the year 2000, and twenty-four-year-old Kate moves into a new apartment to find a new state of independence in a new millennium. Almost immediately, she starts crushing on a hot guy who lives in her building. Deciding to take a break from her boyfriend Dexter, Kate believes the only thing now separating her from the fresh object of her sexual fantasies is the thin wall between their neighboring apartments. A former 1920s hotel, Camden Court has housed many lonely lives over the decades—and is where a number of them have come to die. They're not all resting in peace, however, including ninety-year-old Olive, who dropped dead in Kate’s apartment and continues to make her presence known. For Olive has a secret she’s dying to tell. One linking her to the sex, scandal, and sacrifice of a young dreamer named Lon. As the past haunts the present, Kate’s romantic notion that the thrill-of-the-chase beats the reality-after-the-catch unexpectedly entwines her modern-day love life with Lon’s Jazz Age tragedy. With a little supernatural and a lotta' razzle-dazzle, Seven for a Secret is where historical fiction meets contemporary rom-com—from the Roaring Twenties when the “New Woman” was born, to the modern Noughties when she really came of age.
A Bad Guy begins at 1972 with a street fight in the gritty north end of Regina. Half a lifetime later leads to the ball diamonds and hockey rinks of Calgary Alberta. Through it all, this story is about male influences – good and bad. “I prayed every night for ages. It’s no miracle I was after. I just wanted to get home-free once in a blue moon. God did a better job making me pay for my sins than answering my prayers. All I ever did was get in God’s way.”
Grab this reverse harem paranormal romance academy novel by USA Today Bestselling Author Cali Mann. Mated. When fate takes my choices away, I fight back the only way I know how. I rebel, choosing the guy not on the menu. But Thornbriar Academy isn't as safe as it once was, and my deadly secret falls into the wrong hands. I'm going to need all my men to stay alive. Bound is the second book in this why choose, paranormal romance series. Expect a tough-as-nails heroine, bullies, unusual shifters, and love in this steamy new adult reverse harem romance. READ THE WHOLE SERIES - also available as audiobooks! Thornbriar Academy - a shifter reverse harem romance Prequel short story: Lost Book 1: Found Book 2: Bound Book 3: Saved Keywords: paranormal romance, fantasy romance, reverse harem romance, shifter romance, dragon shifters, cat shifters, vampires, mermaids, alpha heroes, alpha shifters, damsel in distress, love story, rh romance, fated mates, fantasy, paranormal romance books for adults, shapeshifter, why choose romance, RH paranormal romance, escape from abuse, academy romance, magic academy for adults, female protagonist, deadly secrets.
When you're new to magic, one spell can be the difference between getting what you want...and ruining the lives of everyone you love. Sixteen-year-old Madison has just embraced her magical powers. The trick now is learning how to control them. She and her boyfriend -and fellow witch- can't even enjoy a simple kiss without getting shocked when their powers collide. Instead of mastering her new skills, though, Madison is stuck watching her kid brother and doing chores. But being a witch does have its benefits. With a simple spell, Madison instantly conjures the help she needs around the house. Or so she thinks. Her idea of "help" invites trouble of its own as a pair of dangerous yet enticing beings enter her life. When a classmate disappears soon afterwards, Madison discovers she's the next victim of a threat she's powerless to resist...and there's nothing it won't kill to make her surrender. Caught in the crossfire between two dashing but deadly creatures, Madison must figure out which one to trust and how to rid her world of the other-before one of them destroys her and everyone she cares about.
