Daily Archives: August 21, 2020

The Iron Dragon’s Daughterby Michael Swanwick

A New York Times Notable Book: “Combining cyberpunk’s grit with dystopic fantasy, this iconoclastic hybrid is a standout piece of storytelling” (Library Journal).

Jane is trapped as a changeling in an industrialized Faerie ruled by aristocratic high elves and populated by ogres, dwarves, night-gaunts, and hags. She is the only human in a factory where underage forced labor builds cybernetic, magical dragons that are weaponized and sent off to war. When the damaged dragon Melanchthon tempts Jane with promises of freedom, the stage is set for a daring escape that will shake the foundations of existence.

Combining alchemy and technology, a coming-of-age story like no other, The Iron Dragon’s Daughter takes place against a dystopic mindscape of dark challenges and class struggles that force Jane to make costly decisions at every turn.

A finalist for the Arthur C. Clarke Award, the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel, and the 1994 Locus Award, The Iron Dragon’s Daughter a is one-of-a-kind melding of grimdark fantasy and cyberpunk grit from the Nebula Award–winning author of Stations of the Tide. It engages the reader in a nihilistic world in which nothing is as it seems and everything comes at a steep and often horrific price.

Million Dollar Service Secrets: Systems to Do Less & Grow Fastby Mike Campion

You want more for your service business. As a matter of fact, you KNOW you were meant for more.

Wherever you are on your entrepreneurial journey–you want more.

You’re ready to get off the “do everything myself while the employees get paid first and I get left over scraps” merry-go-round.

You’re ready to own a REAL business with real systems and with REAL employees that give you freedom instead of sucking the life from you.

A business that doesn’t require you to “do the work.” That pays you exactly the same whether you’re in the office, spending time with your family, or on vacation.

A business that will make your in-laws, friends, and maybe even a couple enemies jealous.

You want CONTROL over your life, your time, who you spend it with, where you spend it and of course, the money to make it all work!

The problem is, owning a service business hasn’t given you that time with your kids or your spouse.

You’re working harder than ever but you’re not getting ahead financially. Maybe not even staying afloat.

The craziest part of this whole thing is… You wouldn’t give it up for the world.

Enlightened Friendship: Befriending Yourself and Others Through Difficultyby Karen Hermanson

In these difficult times, we are all facing adversity, both individually and collectively. Enlightened Friendship: Befriending Yourself and Others Through Difficulty, provides guidance for not only going through difficulty but growing through it in a way that strengthens us, builds our self-confidence and improves our resilience to overcome future hardships.

Enlightened Friendship: Befriending Yourself and Others Through Difficulty, is uniquely organized to guide both those who are suffering as well as those who wish to help them.

Adults rarely get training in how to support other adults. While we may have empathy for another’s suffering, we may be so intimidated by our fear of not knowing what to do or say that we turn away when they need us most. This book resolves that problem and lays out the roles, boundaries, skills and techniques that help us support our friends with confidence. While growth is an ‘inside job’, support from compassionate friends helps us to fearlessly embrace our emotions while we learn from our experiences. Friendship can keep us on track and enable us to discover new (and sometimes surprising) solutions. This is a practical guide to show you how friendship can be extended in ways that are supportive and compassionate while honoring another’s process of grief and self-discovery. The guidance of this book will help you be better prepared and more confident to support your friends through their rough patches. We can all benefit from compassionate friends who are prepared to help when needed.

For those who are facing a change, ending, loss, or distress, this book provides constructive guidelines, techniques, checkpoints, and practices to help you participate fully and move more smoothly through your healing process. You will face your fears and learn from them. You will be enlightened by your setbacks rather than a victim of them. You will be empowered by making thoughtful decisions using emotional intelligence. You will learn to select the support you need. And ultimately, you will move through your difficulties with less suffering, more confidence, enriched, and at peace. Throughout our lives we face challenges; let us welcome the opportunity to navigate them with confidence.

Hannah’s Hankyby Kirsten Osbourne

After the loss of her father two years before, Hannah Moseby has endured resentment from her step-father in order to help her mother get through her new marriage. When her step-father tells her he’s arranged a marriage for her with a preacher going west, and she can either marry the preacher or she can find somewhere else to live, she agrees to meet the man. She’s not a natural fit as a preacher’s wife, and she’s not sure the Oregon Trail is something she can survive.

Jedediah Scott is surprised when a stranger he meets at the general store in Independence offers him his daughter–more than offers, in fact. The man agrees to give Jed the amount of money it would cost to take her west, if he would consent to marry her. Jed agrees to meet the girl, because as a minister, he strongly believes in providence. Upon seeing Hannah, he feels drawn to her and wants her as his wife. God must surely have a hand in their meeting.

Will the two of them be able to see past the circumstances in which their marriage began? Or will life on the Oregon Trail break the fragile connection Jed is sure could blossom into love?

Slavery and Beyond: The Complete Series Collectionby A. Robert Allen

Experience the NYC Draft Riots of 1863, the building of the Brooklyn Bridge (1883), the General Slocum Steamship Disaster (1904), and the Tulsa Race Riots of 1921 through the eyes of passionate heroes.
400+ reviews on Amazon and Goodreads with an average rating of 4.4.

Failed Moments, Volume #1
Patrick Walsh relives his Failed Moments in two past lives in order to salvage his modern day existence. He travels back to the French Caribbean in 1790 (before the slave revolution that created Haiti) and NYC in 1863 during the Draft Riots. Will he succeed the second time around?

A Wave From Mama, Volume #2
1863 Weeksville, Brooklyn: A former slave gets his dream job working on the Bridge project, but becomes a pawn in a battle involving the gangs of Irishtown and the corrupt Metropolitan Police. Will his special physical abilities help him survive or will his awkward social deficits prove to be too much to overcome?

Minetta Lane, Volume #3
New York City, 1904- Bodee Rivers, who has always run from major challenges, moves to crime ridden MINETTA LANE, which is governed by an unusual race-based code. When confronted with an unimaginable challenge aboard the General Slocum Steamship, he isn’t sure he’s up to the task. Will he stand and fight or cut and run?

Living in the Middle, Volume #4
New York/Tulsa Early 1900s: Wealthy, White, and privileged Jimmy Montgomery discovers he’s been living a lie and travels to Tulsa to uncover his roots. When an angry White mob invades the Black community of Greenwood during the Tulsa Race Riots of 1921, Jimmy realizes he can no longer Live in the Middle.

To Ride a White Horseby Pamela Ford

“A sweeping historical love story that hits all the marks.” –Publisher’s Weekly starred review

Your feet will bring you to where your heart is.
Ireland 1846. With Ireland ravaged by famine and England unsympathetic to its plight, Kathleen Deacey faces a devastating choice – leave her country to find work or risk dying there. Despising the English for refusing to help Ireland, she crosses the ocean to support her family and search for her missing fiancé.

But when her voyage goes awry, she must accept help from an English whaling captain, Jack Montgomery, who represents everything she despises – and with whom she is reluctantly falling in love. As Kathleen fights to save her family back in Ireland, she finds herself facing yet another devastating choice – remain loyal to her country or follow her heart.

Award-winning author Pamela Ford captures the anguish of a devastating period in Irish history and delivers a historical saga of hope, loyalty, the strength of the human spirit, and the power of love. With more than a half million copies of her books sold worldwide, she is known for creating stories that are emotional and moving.

Gold Medal Winner, IPPY Awards • Finalist, National Readers’ Choice Awards • Finalist, Maggie Awards for Excellence • Finalist, Kindle Book Awards

Praise for To Ride a White Horse:

5 stars. “Expertly drawn characters that stole my heart. The writing is superb…a larger than life novel…captivating, breathtaking.” –A Night’s Dream of Books

“A superbly crafted romance/adventure novel…highly recommended.” –Midwest Book Review

Demanding All of Youby Ali Parker

She’s playing hard to get, and I love it.

I decided a long time ago to let my career as a high-powered New York Editor and my son be my only focuses.

But my family had hoped for a different fate.

As much as I miss them, I’ve lost touch with them, and with love in general.

Wealth calls to me after my grandfather dies and leaves me his billions.

But there’s one catch. There always is, right?

I have to live on the farm I grew up on for six months and take a break from my big city life.

It’s worth it and maybe my little boy will enjoy the time with me.

One thing I never expected was a beautiful woman to show up and steal our hearts.

She’s everything I want in my life and my bed.

But she’s a tough cookie. I’m up for the challenge.

There’s nothing I’ve wanted in life that I haven’t gotten.

Unfortunately for her, I don’t want just six months in Montana.

I’m demanding all of her.

This is book 1 in a 3 book series. You will have to read books 2 and 3 to complete the series.

The Best of Friendsby Lucinda Berry

An unthinkable tragedy forever changes a group of teens and turns family against family in this edge-of-your-seat thriller that begs to be read in one sitting.

Best friends Lindsey, Kendra, and Dani endure every parent’s nightmare when a tragic accident befalls their teenage boys, leaving one dead, another in a coma, and a third too traumatized to speak.

Reeling from the worst night of their lives, the three mothers plunge into a desperate investigation of the bizarre incident. How could something so horrible happen in their wealthy Southern California suburb?

They soon discover that the accident was just the beginning, and troubling discoveries lead to chilling questions: Do they really know their children? Do they even know each other? As more secrets surface, a fog of doubt and suspicion threatens to poison their families, their friendships, and the whole community.

With the illusion of happiness and safety long gone, these women must now confront the hazards of heartbreak, the consequences of jealousy, and the dangers of living double lives.

BRUGES BLOODby MIKE DONALD

A pulse pounding mystery thriller perfect for fans of Dan Brown, Michael Crichton and Stephen King. Bruges Blood will have you on the edge of your seat until the final page . . .

THEY SOUGHT A KILLER. AND FOUND THEMSELVES IN A NIGHTMARE

A team of Detectives investigate an ancient mystery with links to a modern-day killer.

At first it seems to be a cold case. But then the bodies come thick and fast.

They find themselves trapped beneath the streets of Bruges, facing cold-blooded killers.

And then things take a terrifying turn.

For sometimes the past can become a deadly future . . .

Marked Chaosby Niki Livingston

Three unlikely guardians have been chosen to breathe life back into Earth, but the prophecy is not welcomed by all the planet’s inhabitants.

Zoe Dawn’s headstrong tendencies has brought the wrath of the Doyen upon her. But another tribe has their eyes on her ignited fire and will stop at nothing to claim Zoe Dawn as their own.

Alex has traveled a long way to find a safe place to survive, but her first mistake was returning to her hometown. Thousands of years and an entirely different dimension will not stop her enemies from pursuing her newfound abilities.

Kia Lynn has been marked by the rune of protection, causing her elemental connection with the two other guardians to disintegrate. As her best friend is dragged away by a masked intruder, the rune activates and she is forced into a whirlwind of chaos and ghosts from her past.

Once these three are united, an unstoppable force could be invoked, but if they remain separated without completing their destinies, the portal for Earth’s destruction will open instead.

If you enjoyed The Hunger Games or The 100, then you will love Niki Livingston’s new mystical series.