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Thursday, September 24, 2015

BOOK BLITZ: Developing Minds: An American Ghost Story by Jonathan LaPoma

Developing Minds: An American Ghost Story
By Jonathan LaPoma
Genre: Literary Fiction


DEVELOPING MINDS: AN AMERICAN GHOST STORY follows a group of recent college graduates who struggle with feelings of alienation and their addictions as they try to survive a year of teaching at two dysfunctional Miami public schools.

A poetic and insightful coming-of-age novel, DEVELOPING MINDS is centered on 24-year-old Luke Entelechy, an aspiring writer who sees his creative output suffer when he begins teaching at one of Miami's most challenging middle schools. As the year progresses, however, Luke begins to relate to the neglect and abuse his students suffer, and is faced with a haunting decision: continue to let his dark past destroy him, or rise above the struggle to realize his potential as an artist and a real human being.

Equal parts disturbing and humorous, DEVELOPING MINDS offers a brutally honest look at the American public school system and the extreme measures many teachers take to cope with working in it.




Author Bio

Jonathan LaPoma is an award-winning novelist, screenwriter, songwriter, and poet from Buffalo, NY. In 2005, he received a BA in history and a secondary education credential from the State University of New York at Geneseo, and he traveled extensively throughout the United States and Mexico after graduating. These experiences have become the inspiration for much of his writing, which often explores themes of alienation and misery as human constructions that can be overcome through self-understanding and the acceptance of suffering. His five feature-length screenplays have won over 40 awards/honors at various international screenwriting competitions, and his novel DEVELOPING MINDS: AN AMERICAN GHOST STORY is a finalist in the 2015 Stargazer Literary Prizes for best Visionary and Metaphysical Fiction. He lives in San Diego and teaches at a public secondary school.



Links



Monday, September 21, 2015

BOOK SPOTLIGHT: With New Eyes: The Power of Perspective By Heidi Siefkas

With New Eyes
The Power of Perspective
By Heidi Siefkas
Genre: Biography & Autobiography / Self-Help

Publication Date: September 2015


Heidi Siefkas lost her health, her career, and her marriage after she was struck by a one thousand-pound tree branch. While she made great strides in her physical and emotional recovery in the months that followed—an arduous process that she chronicled in When All Balls Drop—Heidi wasn’t content to merely survive her setbacks. The time was right to build a new life. One she could live on her own terms.
But what would a redesigned life look like? In her quest for answers, Heidi returned to her childhood home in Wisconsin, dove into the South Florida dating scene, revisited old flames in New England, sold her first home, jumped out of a plane, and traveled alone to South America. Every leg of her journey provided a healthy dose of perspective.
With New Eyes is full of mishaps and bold decisions, all seasoned with sassy humor. Through her signature down-to-earth vignettes, Heidi inspires you to conquer your fears, head for adventure, and be the captain of your own ship. 




Author Bio

Heidi Siefkas is an author and adventurer. Originally from small-town Wisconsin, she lives in Kauai and also calls the Midwest and South Florida home. Heidi is currently writing her third book, Cubicle to Cuba, which features a humorous collection of stories about her travels to Cuba, Peru, New Zealand, Italy, and other far-flung places.
Heidi invites you to share photos on social media that show where you are enjoying With New Eyes (#withneweyes). You can connect with Heidi at www.heidisiefkas.com, Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/HeidiNSiefkas), and Twitter (https://twitter.com/HeidiSiefkas).




Find With New Eyes:




BOOK SPOTLIGHT: All the Wrong Ways By M.M. Charles

All the Wrong Ways
By M.M. Charles
Genre: Mystery/Thriller & Woman's Fiction


Book Description:

THEN
Two years ago, amateur prosecutor Abra Fawley suffered a life-changing experience after handling a scandalous rape case. Unable to prevent startling circumstances beyond her control, Abra abandoned her prosecutorial duties and currently works as a dispirited private investigator. The guilt still remains…

NOW
Two years later, law student Anton Costa is accused of rape by a fellow classmate. While alleging innocence, his notorious past rears its ugly head. Despite a tainted reputation, Anton is sticking to his word: it was consensual.

She says it was rape.

A night off campus with Anton turns into a roller coaster ride to hell for Jentra Mendoza. It all happened in her room. She has the bruises to prove rape. All she needs is the support from her best friend.

A close acquaintance of Anton and Jentra, Lark Ridley is an intriguing girl with questionable intentions. She witnessed the incident. There is one problem: she is missing.

As a favor for a friend, Abra must work with a defense attorney and prove Anton is innocent.

While discovering the ugly facts about her new client, Abra's doubts about the alleged rape makes her question the parties involved as well as herself.


Who is to blame? Or better yet, who is honest?




Author Bio: 

M.M. Charles studied Criminal Justice and Sociology at Mount St. Mary’s University and received her bachelor’s degree in 2011. She studied Criminology at Oklahoma City University and received her master’s degree in 2012. She is currently a law student. During her spare time, she enjoys reading and traveling around Europe. She is currently working on her next novel.



Links: 

Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/13527610.M_M_Charles)
Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/AuthorMMCharles?ref=hl)
Twitter (https://twitter.com/WriterMMCharles)
Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/M.M.-Charles/e/B00VTVN5RE/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1439437383&sr=8-1)





The author is giving away one signed paperback & one digital copy of All the Wrong Ways:



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Friday, September 18, 2015

BOOK SPOTLIGHT & REVIEW: How to Prepare for Old Age (without taking the fun out of life) By Bernard S. Otis

How to Prepare for Old Age
(without taking the fun out of life)
By Bernard S. Otis
Genre: Nonfiction



In this touching, often humorous and very personal account, Bernie shares his 86 years of life, love, less and laughter as an inspirational guide to what it means to age without growing old. His advice on love after 60, how to talk  with family members about illness what you should be prepared for when confronting tragedy and loss, what it means to be a caregiver to a loved one and many other of life’s challenges are a must for family members young and old. 

Mr. Otis’s book is a treasure trove of personal and professional life experiences that will help you prepare for old age and take control of the nature of aging. Be prepared to laugh out loud and quietly shed a tear as Bernie takes you through the voyage of life.






My Review

The first thing I’m going to say is don’t let the title of this book dissuade you from reading it! Bernard ‘Bernie’ Otis’ magnum opus How to Prepare for Old Age (without taking the fun out of life) is a book full of sharp wit, brilliant anecdotes, deep and lasting tragedy, hope, and solid life lessons appropriate for all ages. Told by a man who has spent 85 spectacular years experiencing life and now freely and selflessly sharing his thoughts (and most private moments) with anyone willing to set down and read. I’m 52 years old and feel that I know a few things at this late hour, but Bernie has helped me to further embrace this human experience I’m living, and taught me some new things about what to appreciate and love, and what to let go of. I give this book my very highest recommendation, and encourage young people to read it! And I promise it won’t be a dusty or dull read. At all. Five stars.





Author Bio

Bernard S. (Bernie) Otis is a delightful and well known speaker, writer and community leader who has made his 65-year career in the food service facility planning, marketing, management, sales and consulting industries. His life’s work has included service to many hotels and restaurants in Southern California, Santa Clarita, San Diego, Las Vegas and New York City among others. He has been instrumental in serving several top companies such as Hewlett Packard and Disneyland as well as major hospitals, universities and restaurants around the country. His community involvement includes work with the National Indian Gaming Association and the Rotary Club (where he has been a member since 1954 and a Paul Harris Fellow.) After his wife’s death in 2012, Bernie, a trained Hospice care giver, began working with families of terminally-ill patients.




The author is giving one lucky reader a $20 Amazon Gift Card!




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Thursday, September 17, 2015

COVER REVEAL: Splintered Souls by Erica Lucke Dean

Splintered Souls
By Erica Lucke Dean
Genre: Urban Fantasy

When Ava Flynn walks away from a scholarship to Georgetown and moves into her grandmother’s abandoned summer home in coastal Maine, she steps into the center of a centuries-old curse. On her first night, she notices a mysterious leather-clad stranger looking up at her third-story window. For weeks, everywhere she goes, Ava catches more 
glimpses of him, but she can never get close enough to find out who he is.  

Over three hundred years ago, Lady Catherine Fairchild risked everything to protect her unborn child, sending a ripple through time that would change Ava’s future. As the mystery unravels, the horrifying consequences of Lady Catherine’s choices drag Ava deeper into a world she never knew existed, trapping her in a conflict that’s been raging since before she was born. A winner-take-all battle for her soul.








Author Bio:

After walking away from her career as a business banker to pursue writing full-time, Erica Lucke Dean moved from the hustle and bustle of the big city to a small tourist town in the North Georgia Mountains, where she lives in a 90-year-old haunted farmhouse with her workaholic husband, her 180lb lap dog, and at least one ghost. When she’s not writing or tending to her collection of crazy chickens and diabolical ducks, she’s either reading bad fan fiction or singing karaoke in the local pub. Much like the main character in her newest book, To Katie With Love, Erica is a magnet for disaster, and has been known to trip on air while walking across flat surfaces. How she’s managed to survive this long is one of life’s great mysteries.

Links:

Friday, September 11, 2015

BOOK SPOTLIGHT: Broken Places, A Memoir by Rachel Thompson

Broken Places
By Rachel Thompson
Genre: Memoir

Book Description:

Award-winning author Rachel Thompson courageously confronts the topics of sexual abuse and suicide, love and healing, in her second nonfiction book of prose: Broken Places. The sequel to Rachel's first nonfiction book, Broken Pieces, Rachel bares her soul in essays, poems and prose, addressing life's most difficult topics with honesty. As you follow one woman's journey through the dark and into the light, you will find yourself forever changed. Rachel's first book in this series, Broken Pieces, has been a #1 best seller on Amazon (eBooks) on Women's Poetry and Abuse. Please note: this book discusses serious topics, and is intended for mature audiences only.










Author Bio

Rachel Thompson (aka RachelintheOC) is a bestselling author, now represented by Booktrope, and social media/author marketing consultant (BadRedhead Media and Author Social Media Boot Camp).

Three of her four books, A Walk In The Snark, The Mancode: Exposed and Broken Pieces are all #1 Kindle bestsellers! Midwest Book Review and two Amazon Top 10 Hall of Fame reviewers all gave Broken Pieces five stars! She just release Broken Places to stellar early reviews.

Her articles appear regularly in the Huffington Post, San Francisco Book Review (BadRedhead Says...), 12Most.com, bitrebels.com, and BookPromotion.com.

She hates walks in the rain, running out of coffee, and coconut.


Author Links:

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/RachelThompsonauthor
Twitter:      https://twitter.com/RachelintheOC
Site:            http://rachelintheoc.com
Amazon:     http://www.amazon.com/Rachel-Thompson
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/RachelintheOC



BOOK SPOTLIGHT: The Author’s Platform by Barb Drozdowich

The Author’s Platform 
By Barb Drozdowich
Genre: Nonfiction, Book Marketing



Creating buzz for your book and your career as an author just got easier.

'The Author’s Platform' will help you create, understand and use a powerful author platform to sell books!

Social Media and Wordpress Consultant Barb Drozdowich will steer you through the technology behind book marketing without all the techno-speak. She has helped many authors just like you build an author platform that engages readers and builds sales.

This book will help you decode the mystery behind building a powerful author brand and navigating the social media platforms essential to publishing success 'The Author’s Platform' teaches you why you need the various facets of the author platform to build visibility. Barb uses a simple analogy, Operation Book, to help you understand the steps to successful book marketing in the media age. She covers:

The Difference between a Website and a Blog
The Important Items Your Blog Should Contain
The Nine Essential Social Media Platforms
Newsletters
Amazon’s Author Central and many more

˃˃˃ With simple-to-follow steps, Barb will help you create, understand and use an Author Platform to support your career.

Author Bio

Social Media and Wordpress Consultant Barb Drozdowich has taught in colleges, universities and in the banking industry. More recently, she brings her 15+ years of teaching experience and a deep love of books to help authors develop the social media platform needed to succeed in today’s fast evolving publishing world. She owns Bakerview Consulting and manages the popular blog, Sugarbeat’s Books, where she talks about Romance – mostly Regency.

She is the author of 6 books and over 20 YouTube videos all focused on helping authors and bloggers. Barb lives in the mountains of British Columbia with her family.

Author Website: http://barbdrozdowich.com
Business Blog: http://bakerviewconsulting.com
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/BarbDrozdowichAuthor
Twitter: http://twitter.com/sugarbeatbc
Goodreads: http://bit.ly/1CTCDyJ
YouTube Channel: http://bit.ly/1HOX2Sm
Tech Hints Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/DfCRj
Amazon Author Page: http://amzn.to/1SA1aL9




The author is giving away a digital copy of The Author’s Platform! 

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Tuesday, September 8, 2015

BOOK BLITZ: All the Wrong Ways By M.M. Charles

All the Wrong Ways
By M.M. Charles
Genre: Mystery/Thriller & Woman's Fiction/Sleuth

Book Description:


THEN
Two years ago, amateur prosecutor Abra Fawley suffered a life-changing experience after handling a scandalous rape case. Unable to prevent startling circumstances beyond her control, Abra abandoned her prosecutorial duties and currently works as a dispirited private investigator. The guilt still remains…

NOW
Two years later, law student Anton Costa is accused of rape by a fellow classmate. While alleging innocence, his notorious past rears its ugly head. Despite a tainted reputation, Anton is sticking to his word: it was consensual.

She says it was rape.

A night off campus with Anton turns into a roller coaster ride to hell for Jentra Mendoza. It all happened in her room. She has the bruises to prove rape. All she needs is the support from her best friend.

A close acquaintance of Anton and Jentra, Lark Ridley is an intriguing girl with questionable intentions. She witnessed the incident. There is one problem: she is missing.

As a favor for a friend, Abra must work with a defense attorney and prove Anton is innocent.

While discovering the ugly facts about her new client, Abra's doubts about the alleged rape makes her question the parties involved as well as herself.

Who is to blame? Or better yet, who is honest?


Author Bio: 

M.M. Charles studied Criminal Justice and Sociology at Mount St. Mary’s University and received her bachelor’s degree in 2011. She studied Criminology at Oklahoma City University and received her master’s degree in 2012. She is currently a law student. During her spare time, she enjoys reading and traveling around Europe. She is currently working on her next novel.




Links: 

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/13527610.M_M_Charles
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorMMCharles?ref=hl
Twitter: https://twitter.com/WriterMMCharles
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/M.M.-Charles/e/B00VTVN5RE/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1439437383&sr=8-1


BOOK SPOTLIGHT: Spinner By Michael J. Bowler

Spinner
By Michael J. Bowler
Genre: YA horror/paranormal
Publisher: YoungDudes Publishing


Fifteen-year-old Alex is a “spinner.” His friends are “dummies.” Two clandestine groups of humans want his power. And an ancient evil is stalking him. If people weren’t being murdered, Alex might laugh at how his life turned into a horror movie overnight.

In a wheelchair since birth, his freakish ability has gotten him kicked out of ten foster homes since the age of four. Now saddled with a sadistic housemother who uses his spinning to heal the kids she physically abuses, Alex and his misfit group of learning disabled classmates are the only ones who can solve the mystery of his birth before more people meet a gruesome end.

They need to find out who murdered their beloved teacher, and why the hot young substitute acts like she’s flirting with them. Then there’s the mysterious medallion that seems to have unleashed something malevolent, and an ancient prophecy suggesting Alex has the power to destroy humanity.

The boys break into homes, dig up graves, elude kidnappers, fight for their lives against feral cats, and ultimately confront an evil as old as humankind. Friendships are tested, secrets uncovered, love spoken, and destiny revealed. 

The kid who’s always been a loner will finally learn the value of friends, family, and loyalty. 


If he survives…


Author Bio:

Michael J. Bowler is an award-winning author of eight novels––A Boy and His Dragon, A Matter of Time (Silver Medalist from Reader’s Favorite), and The Knight Cycle, comprised of five books: Children of the Knight (Gold Award Winner in the Wishing Shelf Book Awards), Running Through A Dark Place, There Is No Fear, And The Children Shall Lead, Once Upon A Time In America, and Spinner. 

He grew up in San Rafael, California, and majored in English and Theatre at Santa Clara University. He went on to earn a master’s in film production from Loyola Marymount University, a teaching credential in English from LMU, and another master's in Special Education from Cal State University Dominguez Hills. 

He acted as producer, writer, and/or director on several ultra-low-budget horror films, including “Fatal Images,” “Club Dead,” and “Things II.” 

He taught high school in Hawthorne, California for twenty-five years, both in general education and to students with learning disabilities, in subjects ranging from English and Strength Training to Algebra, Biology, and Yearbook. 

He has also been a volunteer Big Brother to eight different boys with the Catholic Big Brothers Big Sisters program and a thirty-year volunteer within the juvenile justice system in Los Angeles. 

He has been honored as Probation Volunteer of the Year, YMCA Volunteer of the Year, California Big Brother of the Year, and 2000 National Big Brother of the Year. The “National” honor allowed him and three of his Little Brothers to visit the White House and meet the president in the Oval Office.

He is currently working on a sequel to Spinner.His goal as a YA author is for teens to experience empowerment and hope; to see themselves in his diverse characters; to read about kids who face real-life challenges; and to see how kids like them can remain decent people in an indecent world.

* Spinner won Honorable Mention in Young Adult Books of 2015 from the San Francisco Book Festival.

Social Media Links:

www.michaeljbowler.com

FB: michaeljbowlerauthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BradleyWallaceM
Blog: https://sirlancesays.wordpress.com/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6938109.Michael_J_Bowler

Buy link: http://amzn.to/1C32T9v

BOOK SPOTLIGHT: Waiting By Bonnie Dodge

Waiting
By Bonnie Dodge
Genre: Women’s Fiction


Synopsis

Three generations of Foster women– senior citizen Maxine, attention seeker Grace, and aspiring artist Abbie–think they are nothing alike. But they all share a secret. They wait. For love, for attention, for life, for death, for Idaho’s warm, but promising summer to return. In their journeys between despair and happiness, they learn there are worse things than being alone, like waiting for the wrong person’s love. With sensitivity and humor, Waiting carries readers into the hearts of three women who learn that happiness comes from within.










Author Bio

Bonnie Dodge is co-author of the anthologies Hauntings from the Snake River Plain and Voices from the Snake River Plain, and author of Miracles in the Desert, a book of essays about Twin Falls, Idaho. She is an award-winning writer and has won honors for her short stories and novels. Her column, "Life in this Magic Valley" ran in Ag Weekly, a supplement to The Times-News for six years.





Links

Monday, September 7, 2015

BOOK SPOTLIGHT: Monochrome By H.M. Jones

Monochrome
By H.M. Jones
Genre: Dark Fantasy, Postpartum Depression, Contemporary women




What would you do to save your most precious memories?

That’s the question that Abigail Bennet, a new mother, must answer in this dark fantasy.

The cries of her new baby throw Abigail into rage and desperation. Frightened by foreign anger and overwhelming depression, the first-time mother decides to end her life to spare the life of her only child. But before she acts on her dark intuition, she is overcome by a panic attack and 

When she awakes, everything is blue: the trees, the grass, the rocks and still, scentless sky above her. Everything except the face of the man who stands over her. He is Ishmael Dubois and claims to be her Guide through the dangerous world of Monochrome, a physical manifestation of the depressed mind. But in a place where good memories are currency, nightmares walk, and hopeless people are hired to bring down those who still have the will to live, Abigail starts to wonder if she’ll ever make it back to her family. Despite her growing feelings for her handsome, mysterious Guide, Abigail must fight for the life she once wished to take or fade into the blue.



Author Bio

H.M. Jones is the B.R.A.G. Medallion honoree of Monochrome, now published by Booktrope’s Gravity Imprint.

She has also written the Attempting to Define poetry collection, and is a contributing author to Masters of Time: A Sci-Fi and Fantasy Time Travel Anthology. A best seller only in her mind, Jones pay the electric bill by teaching English courses at Northwest Indian College. She moderates Elite Indie Reads, is the tired mother of two preschoolers, and in her “spare” time weaves, pulls with the Port Gamble S’Klallam Canoe Family, and attempts to deserve her handsome husband, whose lawyering helps pay the rest of the bills.

Links:




BOOK BLITZ: War: A Crime Against Humanity By Roberto Vivo
















War: A Crime Against Humanity
By Roberto Vivo
Genre: Nonfiction

War: A Crime Against Humanity is a fascinating history of war and the search for enduring world peace. Roberto Vivo deftly guides the reader through the history of war and peace, from early civilizations to the major conflicts and peace efforts of today. The book zeros in on the historical moments that have shaped the practice of war in dozens of examples, from the ancient Greeks to Cambodia to Rwanda, and juxtaposes such examples with our best experiments in peace.
Vivo then draws on the history of movements to outlaw practices such as apartheid and slavery to build a case for criminalizing the use of war and holding world leaders accountable for initiating conflicts before the International Criminal Court.

His outspoken criticism of the politics and industry of war is tempered by a profound optimism about what people can learn from history and what we can achieve together. War: A Crime Against
Humanity is not another diatribe against the status quo; it is an inspiring and profoundly hopeful vision of the future we can dare to create.



Author Bio 

Roberto Vivo is a Uruguayan businessman and author. As CEO of Claxson Media, he is a frequent traveler to the USA, Latin America, Europe and Asia.
He currently resides in Buenos Aires. Vivo is also the author of Short History of World Religions (Amazon, 2012).


Links:

Available on Amazon: http://amzn.to/1QioNIw





Sunday, September 6, 2015

BOOK SPOTLIGHT & REVIEW: Walking Home By Arleen Williams

Walking Home
By Arleen Williams
Genre: Literary Fiction


Synopsis

Walking Home is a compelling glimpse into the lives of emigrés in modern day America–refugees from genocide and war. The book journeys from loss and grief to survival and joy. The story hits the ground running, literally, with Kidane’s escape from Africa that reaches far into his future into Seattle, Washington. Kidane battles with survivor guilt while he struggles to settle into Seattle, a new life, relationship, school and work. He wants the American dream but is haunted by the past where he survived horrific violence in Africa, and was forced to leave everything and everyone he loved, behind.
Beautifully written, this poignant and intimate portrait of survivors is a must read for anyone seeking to understand the lives of emigrants in our evolving communities.






My Review:

This is a story that is close to my heart, for a number of reasons. The story takes place around the lives of two immigrants to the pacific northwest from Eritrea / Ethiopia. One is Moslem, the other, Christian. They both find themselves at a crossroads in their new lives in Seattle separately and together. The richness of the descriptions of their homelands, their tragedies, and their lost families is complex, beautiful, and sad. Despite these losses, they look positively to the futures that they have created and are creating in this new, completely foreign frontier. I love the history in this book, as the African region that our key characters hail from is one of the oldest in the world. And how Gemi & Kidane look at and embrace the new worlds that they find themselves in just keeps you wanting to continually get back to their lives! This is a world class read, and I am anticipating many more fine books by Arleen Williams. Easily, five stars!




Author Bio

Arleen Williams is a Seattle novelist, memoirist, and co-author of a dozen short books in easy English for adults. She teaches English as a Second Language at South Seattle College and has worked with immigrants and refugees for close to three decades. Arleen lives, cycles, and writes in Seattle. 

Walking Home (Booktrope 2015) is the third book in The Alki Trilogy--all set in Seattle. The first book was Running Secrets (Booktrope 2013) and the second was Biking Uphill (2014).






Links




Friday, September 4, 2015

BOOK BLITZ: Girl in the River by Patricia Kullberg

















Girl in the River
By Patricia Kullberg

Genre: Historical Fiction With Feminist Leanings
Release:, August 20, 2015
Publisher: Bygone Era Books, Ltd.

Her pimp wants her dead, a hooker wants her heart, and the DA just wants her …

On the eve of World War II, Portland, Oregon, battles corruption as the city falls into the hands of gangsters. Newly orphaned, Mae Rose wanders the rain-stained streets alone, on the lam from a knife-wielding pimp and mustering her own worst impulses to survive. As Mae rises to power in Portland’s gritty sex industry, she’s pursued by a district attorney who seeks to snare her for more personal reasons. In the city’s smoky nightspots, the glamorous Dr. Ruth Barnett turns heads, but by day she operates a wildly successful abortion service. At war’s end, both Mae and Ruth are caught in the crosshairs of Portland’s anti-vice crusade. The women’s survival, as well as any chance at lasting love, depends on their allegiance to each other and their abilities to outsmart the cops and politicians who no longer protect them. This novel, based in part on the true story of Dr. Ruth Barnett, takes an unflinching look at the power dynamics of sex and post-war assaults on reproductive rights.




About the Author 


A family physician, Patricia Kullberg, MD, MPH, devoted her career to serving persons living with physical, mental and addiction disorders at a clinic for the homeless. She has written many award-winning articles about health and medicine, but Girl in the River is her first novel. Kullberg and her husband live in Portland, Oregon, where she facilitates writing workshops for marginalized women and tends a large garden.



Thursday, September 3, 2015

BOOK BLITZ: Summer on the Cold War Planet by Paula Classon Buck
















Summer on the Cold War Planet
By Paula Classon Buck
Genre: Literary Fiction
Release: September 3, 2015
Publisher: Fomite

Synopsis

“Each story he told shed about as much light as a match and made all the dark around it worth wanting to know...”

In the late spring of 1989, Lyddie, a young American art historian, finds herself alone and pregnant when her husband, Phelps, disappears in Kurdish Iraq. Set adrift from the security of their marriage, she returns to the divided city of Berlin where they met four years before, seeking truths she believes Phelps may have kept from her.
Now the ferment at Germany’s borders is spilling into the private lives of their bohemian friends—particularly that of exiled East German painter Axel Herzog. Lyddie has always felt the gravitational pull of Axel’s art and of the stories of mystics he learned as a boy in Greece. And though Phelps once warned her away from Axel, the attraction grows stronger as she uncovers a vulnerability beneath the scorn he learned on the other side of the Wall.
When revelations about Axel’s past force her to retreat to an island in Greece, Lyddie finds she has run headlong into everything she has tried to avoid.
In this novel of conflicting allegiances played out between a richly realized late Cold War Berlin and the stark beauty of the Cycladic islands, travellers, natives, and refugees circle one another warily, their fates hanging on the question of which trusts if any, will remain unviolated.




Author Bio

Paula Closson Buck is the author of two books of poems. Her short stories have appeared or are forthcoming in Southern Review, Kenyon Review, and Ploughshares. She has lived briefly in both Berlin and the Greek islands, but her current home is in Lewisburg, PA, where she teaches creative writing at Bucknell University.


Tuesday, September 1, 2015

BOOK BLITZ: Framed and Burning: Dreamslippers, Book Two by Lisa Brunette

















Framed and Burning: Dreamslippers Series, Book Two
By Lisa Brunette
Genre: Mystery, Suspense

Book description

A family of private investigators who have the ability to "slip" into another person's dreams find it's a gift with limitations...and consequences. Someone sets fire to dreamslipper Mick Travers’ studio, killing his assistant. Eccentric Granny Grace and her level-headed granddaughter Cat hope to prove Mick’s innocence and hunt down the real killer. Would they discover that a jealous rival was out to destroy Mick’s art—and reputation? Or is something even darker behind the arson and murder? 









Author Bio

Lisa Brunette is author of the Dreamslippers mystery series, winner of an indieBRAG medallion and praised by Kirkus Reviews, Midwest Book Review, and others. Brunette is a career writer with a long list of newspaper and magazine bylines and story design credits in hundreds of bestselling video games. She holds an MFA from University of Miami, where she was a Michener Fellow. Her short stories and poetry have appeared in magazines and won her numerous awards.

Links:
www.catintheflock.com
https://www.facebook.com/LisaBrunetteAuthor
https://twitter.com/lisa_brunette

On Goodreads: http://bit.ly/1KWj3zv 
On Amazon: http://amzn.to/1Es7HX0 




Framed and Burning is currently in the Kindle Scout competition! Readers can vote for the book here: http://amzn.to/1N3yFY1