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Showing posts with label mainline. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mainline. Show all posts

Wednesday, November 14, 2018

GUEST POST: Inside the Chinese Wine Industry: The Past, Present, and Future of Wine in China by Loren Mayshark


Inside the Chinese Wine Industry: The Past, Present, and Future of Wine in China By Loren Mayshark
Genre: Nonfiction

The wine business is one of the world’s most fascinating industries and China is considered the rising star. A hidden secret, the Chinese wine industry continues to grow at an amazing pace and is projected to soon enter the top five producing nations, supplanting long established countries such as Australia. Inside the Chinese Wine Industry: The Past, Present, and Future of Wine in China takes you through the growing Chinese wine scene.

Wine has had a meteoric rise in China over the past two decades. The nation is projected to become the second most valuable market for wine in the world by 2020. One recent study concluded that 96% of young Chinese adults consider wine their alcoholic drink of choice. Not only does Inside the Chinese Wine Industry explore current expansion and business models, it journeys back to the past to see where it all began.

There are more than seven hundred wineries in China today. Although it’s bit of an oversimplification, the vast majority of the wineries fit into one of two categories: the larger established producers who churn out mostly plonk to meet the growing demand for inexpensive wine and the newer wineries that try to cater to the tastes of the wealthy Chinese with money to spend on luxury goods like fine wine. In the words of wine guru Karen MacNeil, author of The Wine Bible, “The cheap wines from the very large producers have mostly verged on dismal.” However, this should not be considered a blanket statement regarding every wine from large producers. Also, she has positive reflections regarding the level of wine produced by “cutting-edge wineries” which she finds “far better.” How good are they? MacNeil asserts: “Some of these wines are so good they could easily pass for a California or Bordeaux wine in a blind tasting.”


How my Freelance Assignment led me to write Inside The Chinese Wine Industry

Freelance writing has many challenges and frustrations but there are also rewards. The necessity of finding work as a freelancer can force you to delve into topics that you have little familiarity with or did not know existed.

This was the case for me when I first was introduced to the topic of wine in China. I have long admired wine and have spent years familiarizing myself with the noble grape as a vineyard worker, bartender, and wine enthusiast. As a result, I have done some writing about the drinks business, however, it worked out that I have more about beer and cocktailing than wine. 

Through this work and pursuing projects I had a vague understanding of the ascent of the Chinese wine industry but getting more work was at the forefront of my mind. Although it piqued my interest because it seemed to be a strange and exotic topic, it quickly receded to the back of my mind as more pressing issues like paying the rent occupied my thoughts.

Then I landed a weekly gig writing for Sublime China. I had been interested in China since my youth and studied Chinese history, culture, religion, and literature as part of my undergraduate history degree. I enjoyed writing for them because they gave me a great deal of latitude. They liked my idea of writing about the burgeoning Chinese wine scene. Soon I was getting paid to research and write about wine in China. It was an exhilarating journey of discovery.

After a few well-received pieces I was getting hooked and this new addiction encouraged me to dig deeper. What I found was that the books about the Chinese wine industry in English were rare and most of what was written in books about it was part of broader books about wine. In other words, the writing about it was extremely thin. This got me thinking that, someone should write a book that explores the past, present, and future of the industry.

Before I knew it, I was reading everything I could get my hands on and spending an inordinate amount of free time thinking about and writing about the Chinese wine industry. This was the birth of Inside the Chinese Wine Industry.

The book has taken nearly three years to complete and it has been an amazing journey deep into a topic that I knew almost nothing about half a decade ago. This is proof that freelance writing can not only be a good source of income but also an important catalyst.


About the Author

Loren Mayshark studied Chinese art, religion, philosophy, and history while earning a B.A. in history from Manhattanville College in New York.  After graduation, he attended The Gotham Writers Workshop and the prestigious New York Writers Workshop. He has written about the Chinese wine industry for The Jovial Journey and Sublime China.  

After college, he supported his itinerant lifestyle by working dozens of jobs, including golf caddy, travel writer, construction worker, fireworks salesman, substitute teacher, and vineyard laborer. Predominantly his jobs have been in the restaurant industry. He cut his teeth as a server, maĆ®tre d’, and bartender at San Francisco’s historic Fisherman’s Grotto #9, the original restaurant on the Fisherman’s Wharf. While working with a colorful crew of primarily Mexican and Chinese co-workers.
He spent much of his young adult life exploring the wine industry from Sonoma Valley to the North Fork of Long Island, immersing himself in vineyards and learning valuable lessons. He has traveled extensively in South America, Europe, and Asia.  He presently splits his time between Western New York and Sweden.

His first book, Death: An Exploration, won the 2016 Beverly Hills Book Award in the category of Death and Dying and was a finalist for book of the year in the 2016 Foreword INDIES Awards in the category of Grief/Grieving (Adult Nonfiction). Inside the Chinese Wine Industry is his third book.

For more information visit his website: lorenmayshark.com.
Keep up with him on Twitter: @LorenMayshark

Author Website Book page: http://bit.ly/LmaysharkWB

Purchase on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2PlLUuF


Tuesday, September 4, 2018

BOOK SPOTLIGHT: The Book of Eadie Vol. 1 of the SEVENTEEN Trilogy By Mark D. Diehl

The Book of Eadie
Vol. 1 of the SEVENTEEN Trilogy
By Mark D. Diehl
Genre: Science Fiction, Dystopia, Post-Objectivist, Evolutionary Anthropology – fiction

Corporations control all of Earth’s diminishing resources and all of its governments, dividing the world into two types of people: those who unquestioningly obey, and those who die.

Most of the seventeen billion humans on the planet are unconscious, perpetually serving their employers as part of massive brain trusts. The ecosystem has collapsed, naturally growing plants have been declared illegal, and everything from food to housing to medicines must be synthesized from secretions of genetically modified bacteria. Only corporate ambulatory workers can afford patented synthetic food, and non-corporates fight for survival in the city’s sprawling, grotesquely violent ghetto known only as the Zone.


Nineteen year-old waitress Eadie challenges the hierarchy when she assists a bedraggled alcoholic known as the Prophet, drawing massive social-control machinery into play against her. The Prophet predicts she’s the general who will lead a revolution, and a few desperate souls start listening. How can she and her followers possibly prevail when she’s being hunted by a giant corporation and the Federal Angels it directs?











About the Author


Mark D. Diehl writes novels about power dynamics and the way people and organizations influence each other. He believes that obedience and conformity are becoming humanity’s most important survival skills, and that we are thus evolving into a corporate species.

Diehl has: been homeless in Japan, practiced law with a major multinational firm in Chicago, studied in Singapore, fled South Korea as a fugitive, and been stranded in Hong Kong.
After spending most of his youth running around with hoods and thugs, he eventually earned his doctorate in law at the University of Iowa and did graduate work in creative writing at the University of Chicago. He currently lives and writes in Cape Elizabeth, Maine.


Links:


Monday, August 20, 2018

BOOK BLITZ: This Time S.W. Andersen


This Time
S.W. Andersen
Genre: Lesbian Romance



About the Book

Some people believe love transcends time and space. 

Neuropsychologist Dr. Contessa "Tess" Kenner isn't one of them. She can explain in detail how lust and desire cause the limbic system to battle the prefrontal cortex over ethical decision making, but ask her about her aversion to relationships and she's completely at a loss. It's not due to lack of trying. She's just never felt the need or the connection to put in the effort.

Free spirited artist Elena Jake, on the other hand, wants to fall in love with the woman of her dreams—quite literally. Ever since her youth, her nights have been consumed by a beautiful stranger, so much so, that no flesh and blood woman has ever been able to measure up. When the lines between fantasy and reality begin to blur, she seeks guidance from her Native American roots.

Driven by strong astrological influences, the "powers that be" attempt an intervention between the two women. Their pasts and presents merge, sending Tess and Elena on an unimaginable journey, causing them both to question their sanities. 

Will these two souls rediscover an epic love? 
Or are they destined to forever be star-crossed lovers?

This paranormal romance by best selling lesbian romance author S.W. Andersen is a must read for every true romantic who believes true love knows no bounds.

About the Author

From old west gunslingers to modern day romance, S.W. Andersen offers a variety of romantic adventures, including the Amazon best selling lesbian romances, Love By Design, and Switchback.

Having been raised by her mother, a strong female character in her own right, she has always been attracted to stories that depicted independent, determined, capable women. A romantic at heart, her characters are rooted in hope and perseverance. She has spent a large part of her life around horses and rodeos and has always had an affinity for the cowgirl lifestyle. Her love of the mountains, westerns and stories involving strong female characters were the driving forces behind the Sarah Sawyer series.

When she isn’t working or writing, she enjoys outdoor activities and traveling with her wife, Dianna. They share their ten acres in rural Florida with a rambunctious crew of two dogs, four cats and two horses.

Links:

On Amazon: https://amzn.to/2N2dWXP
Website: swandersenwrites.com 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/swandersenwriter/ 
Twitter: @SW_Andersen

Monday, August 13, 2018

BOOK SPOTLIGHT: The Land of Grace By Mike Burrell

The Land of Grace
By Mike Burrell
Genre: Fiction, Thriller, Horror


Looking like Elvis and sounding like Elvis are not enough for tribute artist Doyle Brisendine. Deep in his heart, Doyle wants to be Elvis. After performing in front of a wildly enthusiastic group of seniors, he realizes the absurdity of his fantasy and sees a dead end looming. Then he thinks he’s died and gone to Elvis heaven when a beautiful young woman takes him to a replica of Elvis’s Graceland. He first thinks he’s landed in some kind of amusement park staffed with actors playing characters from Elvis’ life, including some of Elvis’s relatives, the Memphis Mafia, and an impersonator who looks like Elvis in his last days. But he quickly learns that he’s in the midst of a zealous cult built around the worship of the King, led by a ruthless high priestess called Mama. Soon he discovers how close his dreams lie to his nightmares.















About the Author

Mike Burrell is a native of DeKalb County, Alabama and a graduate of Jacksonville State University. He received an MFA from Queens University of Charlotte. His short fiction has appeared in: Still: The Journal; Southern Humanities Review; The MacGufn; and the Livingston Press anthology, Climbing Mt. Cheaha: Emerging Alabama Writers.






Links: 



The author is giving away 5 signed paperbacks of The Land of Grace! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Saturday, July 28, 2018

BOOK SPOTLIGHT: Lovesick Titans By Amanda Meuwissen

Lovesick Titans
By Amanda Meuwissen
Genre: Gay Romance, Urban Fantasy, Superhero



Not even a Titan can always stand up to a God.

Malcom Cho is in over his head, wrapped up in a love affair with his superhero nemesis Zeus, who most people in Olympus City only know as Detective Danny Grant.

Lovesick Titans begins where Lovesick Gods left off, after a heist gone wrong that ended with a museum guard dead and Mal and Danny beaten and exhausted from their fight with the new threat in town, Cassidy Ludgate—Hades.
Unaware that Ludgate’s true motivation is revenge for the death of his father at Zeus’s hands, Mal wants only to keep Danny close, while Danny races to solve the cases surrounding Ludgate to stop him from whatever he has planned for them next.

What Mal doesn’t know is that Danny didn’t pursue him with the purest of intentions but sought to break his heart in retaliation for not being there when he needed him in the fight against Thanatos. Even though Danny no longer seeks that end, the lies between them loom like a shadow about to descend upon them both.


And Hades has only begun to toy with them…



About the Author

Amanda Meuwissen has been writing and posting online for many years, including maintaining the website and blog for the software company Outsell. She is an avid writer and consumer of fiction through film, prose, and video games, and is the author of the paranormal romance trilogy The Incubus Saga and young adult novel Life as a Teenage Vampire. Amanda lives in Minneapolis, MN, with her husband, John, and their two cats.

Wednesday, July 18, 2018

BOOK BLITZ: Rain on Neptune By Lisa Jade

Rain on Neptune
By Lisa Jade
Genre: Sci Fi, Dystopian

In the city of Pyre, only those with excellent genetics can visit Earth’s colony planets, including the legendary Orithyia. Those without this advantage live in relative poverty, under the forceful control of the Council.
Quinn isn’t one of Pyre’s elite, though she’s desperate to see the stars. After an incident with the Council’s thugs, she stows away on the latest ship to launch, the Neptune.
But when a series of deadly ‘accidents’ occur on board, Quinn and her new friends must figure out who’s orchestrating the attacks – and why.






About the Author

Lisa Jade is a fiction writer based in the UK. She lives in Shropshire with her husband and mostly writes Science Fiction, Dystopian and Post-apocalyptic fiction. With two novels already available, she is currently working on a number of new projects.
Having joined her local writer’s group, Lisa has been involved with the creation of annual anthologies, as well as attending and hosting writing workshops. She also regularly takes part in flash fiction competitions and has had a number of pieces of short fiction published.

Links: 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LisaJadeBooks/
Website: https://lisajade.net
Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/2meayNv
Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2N8RVWA
Goodreads: https://bit.ly/2mehn1x

Excerpt

I wait until the early hours before sneaking out. I creep down the stairs and past Dad’s room, reassured by his squeaky snoring, and pull my rucksack from the cupboard. I try to be even quieter than normal tonight – Alice decided to stay over for once, dozing in the box room that sits upstairs, next to mine. Perhaps she sensed some tension between the two of us and took it on herself to provide a barrier to keep us from clashing. I’ll never call her out on it, but secretly I’m immensely grateful.

Even so, I don’t want her to know where I’m going. If they wake in the night, they’ll know exactly where to find me; but they have no clue how often I’m out here. How often I slip away.

There’s an absolute silence over Level Four as I make my way towards the edge. Despite the warm day, the night is bitterly cold. I tug my jacket a little tighter around myself.

Eventually, I reach a rusted sign. DANGER – KEEP OUT is scrawled across it in what looks like spray paint. A half-hearted, last-ditch effort to keep people like me away from the Drop-off.

None of the Levels have external fences. The floor simply drops away into the darkness, meaning that a drunken stumble or accidental misstep can spell disaster. It’s not quite so bad on the upper Levels – they’re smaller, so falling just means you hit the next floor down. It’s still certain death of course, but here? When there’s nothing but miles of ocean below and no way of being found?

Only a lunatic would come out here.

I nudge past the sign and keep walking.


The Drop-off.

Here, the lights of Pyre fall away. The cobbles underfoot sink down into a smooth, white tile. This tile is always underfoot in Pyre, though it’s usually disguised by concrete or shrubbery. Sometimes, it’s bizarre to think about it. Pyre is just a massive airship floating over the Atlantic – and yet, somehow, it’s become a country in its own right.

But I don’t care about that – not right now.

Because as the lights fade, and the chaos of the day sinks back into the folds of my memory, I’m captivated by the stars.

The sky overhead is inky blackness decorated with a tapestry of stars. Swathes of deep blue and indigo swirl above me, highlighted every so often by a splash of pink. The lonely moon resembles a silver disc that sinks into the glittering canvas. And the stars themselves – a million tiny, indifferent specks, images created a billion years ago. Many are already dead, burnt out millions of years ago. In their place are millions of others, stars I’ll never see, patterns that will cascade through the sky like brushstrokes on a scorched, blackened wall.

I can’t help it. When I think about the beauty that must be out there, how long a simple thing might take, how impossible it all seems – I’m filled with strange emotions.


Excitement. Ambition. Hope. And a wonderful, indescribable, near-painful sense of joy.


Thursday, May 24, 2018

BOOK SPOTLIGHT: Nothing Is Predictable By Adalina Mae

Nothing Is Predictable
By Adalina Mae
Genre: Memoir

Zara is eight years old, her father, in a drunken rampage, accidentally shoots himself dead.  

Her childhood memories leave her struggling with romantic attachments and hinder her from developing healthy relationships.

Seeking answers, She meets a monk for wisdom, and a gypsy for insight.

The journeys Adalina Mae takes us on are interspersed with heartbreaking moments as well as hilarious escapades.

This is life and nothing is predictable. The story keeps you on your toes and offers mysteries to solve:

Why does Zara have recurrent nightmares of her last night with her father?

Why does she struggle with love?






About the Author

Adalina Mae is the author of Nothing Is Predictable.
After leaving the corporate world of management, she decided to pursue her lifelong passion to write.
She's also a lover of movies and hopes that her novels become a motion picture.
Adalina wrote Nothing Is Predictable to inspire optimism and positive thoughts, reminding us we are strong and can overcome life’s challenges. Particularly those who suffered childhood trauma like she has. She is determined to spread the message of forgiveness and love. Her life's incidents have taught her, that Nothing Is Predictable and Nothing Can Last Forever.
 

Excerpt

“Run sweetheart, hurry, run! We will hide in the neighbor’s storeroom, he can’t find us there,” Mom whispered as we ran for our lives away from home hoping Dad would not find us. We entered the storeroom beside our neighbor’s old cottage. It was dark and moldy and infested with rats. From a distance, we could hear him following us and approaching.

I cried silently with my eyes shut, fearful about what was going to happen. That dreadful monster is back, what damage is he going to cause tonight?

“Shhh, don’t cry, he won’t find us here, we’ll be okay darling, don’t worry,” Mom whispered as she held me tight to comfort me, yet I could see in her eyes she was not convinced.

“Where are you? You think you can hide from me! I’ll show you who the man of the house is! You’re taking my daughter away from me, I’ll show you woman!” Dad shouted, his voice approaching closer and closer.

He was so drunk he didn’t realize Mom was only running to safety. He thought she was taking me away from him. How on earth do you come to that conclusion? His footsteps stomped louder, as he walked toward the storeroom where we were hiding.

“Where are you? How dare you run away!” his voice projected from outside the room.

And then, BANG! The wooden door was flung open and it bounced off the wall.

“Aaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!” I screamed so loudly I can still hear the echo of my voice.

I was eight years old.



Wednesday, May 16, 2018

BOOK SPOTLIGHT: Tribal Affairs By Matt Dallmann


Tribal Affairs
By Matt Dallmann
Genre: YA Fantasy


Brief Description

Dahlia, a centuries old genie, lies hopelessly trapped in a damaged golden locket charm attached to an ankle bracelet. Its owner, sixteen-year-old Liana, wears it for the first time during her father Jamison’s opening night illusion spectacular. Not only does its presence cause Jamison to folly his performance, but it also starts a chain of bizarre events that lead to a showdown with Dahlia’s mortal enemy, Stefan, and an unsuspecting romance between Liana and his son.














About the Author

Matt Dallmann has a background in acting and holds a BFA from Marymount Manhattan College in New York City. His films and screenplays have been featured at film festivals across the United States including Cinequest, Big Apple Film Festival, Seattle’s True Independent Film Festival, DragonCon and Zero Independent Film Festival. His piano compositions have been published for commercial use and he is a member of ASCAP. Matt is also the Co-Founder and Vice President of the boutique medical billing firm VGA Billing Services, Inc. in New York City. He lives in New Jersey with his wife and two daughters.



Links: 






The author is hosting a Goodreads Giveaway (50 kindle copies) 
from 5/3 to 5/31! 


Monday, April 16, 2018

BOOK REVIEW & SPOTLIGHT: Don't just travel to Cuba, experience Cuba like a local: The Ultimate Cuba Travel Guide By Talek Nantes


Don't just travel to Cuba, experience Cuba like a local: 
The Ultimate Cuba Travel Guide
By Talek Nantes
Genre: Nonfiction, Travel guide




Want to experience Cuba like a local? This is the guidebook for you. Talek Nantes, Cuban-American author and founder of the travel blog, TravelswithTalek.com, has traveled to Cuba numerous times. Her detailed explanations will guide you through all aspects of travel to Cuba and help you make the most of your time while in this unique and culturally fascinating country. 

Talek’s passion for Cuba is evident in every information-packed chapter from the classic Havana itineraries you cannot miss to the little-known gems pulsating under the radar in hidden Havana. Visit colonial military forts in Cuba’s eastern capital, Santiago de Cuba. Experience Cuba’s spectacular biospheres and animal preserves. Explore the French-influenced cities of central Cuba with their graceful architecture reminiscent of southern France. Sail the calm waters of underground rivers. Take salsa lessons, learn Spanish, cook a Cuban meal. It’s all here. 

Beyond a mere directory of attractions, this guidebook delves into the history of Cuba from the pre-colonial days through the present. Special focus is given to understanding Cuba’s fight for independence from Spain and the Cuban revolution of 1959 along with its key participants. 

This guidebook is packed with useful information, facts, and actionable tips:

  • Updated guidelines on travel to Cuba for U.S. citizens.
  • All you need to know about currency conversion.
  • How to locate and reserve the ideal accommodation in any city.
  • How to save money and travel comfortably anywhere within Cuba.
  • Where and what to eat in Cuba from street food to top cuisine. 
  • Highlights of the major Cuban cities from Havana to Santiago.
  • Walking maps of the key Havana neighborhoods. 
  • Directory of restaurants, galleries, attractions and music and dance venues in all key cities. 
  • Current scams and how to avoid them.
  • Budgeting for your Cuba trip
  • Over 60 full-color photographs 

In addition to key tips and advice, this guidebook provides cultural insight gleaned from conversations with local Cubans from the bici-taxi driver to the attendant at a cemetery gate. Explore places and topics tourists rarely see like religious Afro-Cuban dance performances, the hottest jazz clubs in Havana, remarkable art museums and stunning natural beauty. 

This extensive guidebook will save you time and money and help you truly experience Cuba like a local. 

My Review: 

The subtitle ‘The Ultimate Cuba Travel Guide’ is fitting for this travel guide. Inside, Cuban-American author, Talek Nantes, has blended her personal travel stories with some fascinating history, sensible information about traveling to Cuba, and how to heighten your adventure while in this beautiful country.


Don't just travel to Cuba, experience Cuba like a local is bursting with logical information as well as things you may not have considered. There are vivid images help you get excited about your trip and explain various signage and destination spots you may come across. You’ll want to pack this book with you since it contains material you’ll need to navigate Cuba … like a local!






About the Author


Talek Nantes is an author, travel consultant and founder of the travel blog, www.travelswithtalek.com. She is a passionate travel enthusiast and enjoys sharing her travel experiences with others. In her blog, Talek shares information on unique destinations and provides actionable travel tips and advice to help travelers make the most of their time away from home. Her focus is on cultural immersion and interaction with local people to help travelers create their own unique travel experiences. Her work has appeared in several publications. 

Talek’s personal and professional background have led her to travel to over 100 countries. She has lived and worked throughout the world and speaks several languages. Talek is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and lives with her husband in New York City and Miami.


Links: 


Friday, April 13, 2018

BOOK SPOTLIGHT & REVIEW: Freedom City By Philip Becnel

Freedom City
By Philip Becnel
Genre: Contemporary fiction


FREEDOM CITY is an anti-Trump satire that pays homage to The Monkey Wrench Gang.

After Donald Trump unceremoniously dies from natural causes, four misfits from Washington, D.C. who call themselves the Fearless Vampire Killers sever the heads of Confederate statues and wage a comedic guerrilla war on post-Trump America. When President Pence enlists droves of fascist volunteers to crush the “alt-left” uprising, the rebels must risk their lives to run the fascists out of D.C. 

What follows is not only a battle for survival—but a desperate search for remnants of what once made America great. 








My Review: 

I find myself writing this review after just removing myself permanently from the pages of facebook for the abject absurdity of their ‘policies and procedures’ so it is the perfect time for me to pen a critical analysis of this stunning novel. FREEDOM CITY is a bleak glance into a dystopian alter-america not far removed from this one, set in the very near future. Our HEROES, the Fearless Vampire Killers, are launched into a desperate last stand in a country lost in the mire of rampant nationalistic capitalism masking itself as ‘patriotism’, after the death of Trump and rise of the Pence presidency (shiver). The character development of each member of our dear Fearless Vampire Killers individually makes you love every hair on their revolutionary heads, and the melodic and hilarious flow of plot is entrancing! As a counter-point, the ‘bad guys’ fill the reader with animosity and dread, not unlike the cast of characters we find ourselves encountering on the daily now. Richly descriptive, blunt, poignant, funny, complex, beautifully textured, and brilliantly scripted. How many more adjectives can I throw at this fine novel? If you are a fan of suspense, crime noir, action-adventure, or highly literary fiction, then this is a book for you! On a personal note ~ As an active member of the ‘alt-left’ in this, OUR country, I am adding this novel to my small but powerful collection of books that I will keep until I perish. I will refer to it often, as a primer, or for inspiration. I sincerely hope our future does not parallel the scenario of this novel (well, maybe some of it, winking eye), but if it does, thank you so much, Mr. Becnel, for lighting the path. For action. As I write this, Woody Guthrie is on the radio singing ‘This land is your land’. Sometimes all is right with the universe. SIX STARS. 






About the Author

I was born in San Francisco and raised in Cotati, California, but I spent my formative years in New Orleans and then Northern Virginia. I now live in Washington, D.C., where I've been a private detective for almost twenty years. 
FREEDOM CITY, an anti-Trump satire about resistance to American fascism, is my debut novel, but some years ago I published two nonfiction books about investigating: Introduction to Conducting Private Investigations and Principles of Investigative Documentation. I've also published articles in a variety of legal and popular journals, including Time Magazine. 



Links:



Excerpt (First paragraph): 

Despite the odium and widespread condemnation of Donald J. Trump, 45th President of the United States of America, he passed with all the fanfare of a fart in a mesh sack. Medical examiners said it was a thrombotic stroke, likely exacerbated by obesity and high blood pressure. Some said cocaine and opioids had been found in his system, but these reports were never confirmed. Trump was dead, and now it was time to start glossing over his dismal legacy and perpetuating his vision, posthumously, for Making America Great Again…