Nonfiction

Only Wrong Once: A Suspense Thrillerby Jenifer Ruff

“Stunning, terrifying, and unforgettable.” – D. Carrigan, Author of Memphis 1873

A sinister experiment outside Aleppo.

Two mysterious deaths: one in LA, one in Boston, each with the same horrific symptoms.

In Los Angeles, FBI counterterrorism agent Quinn Traynor receives an urgent call from CDC agent, Madeline Hamilton. She’s discovered the first victim of a lethal, unfamiliar virus. Their joint investigation uncovers an imminent bio-terror attack and their only hope is to identify the terrorists carrying the disease. With just two days remaining before it’s too late, the FBI and the CDC race to prevent a pandemic. The ensuing nightmare will hit closer to home than they ever anticipated and one of them will pay an unimaginable price for protecting the country.

“Jenifer Ruff does an outstanding job of weaving personal stories in the lives of the characters amidst the action. This book will keep you glued to the pages from beginning to end, wondering what will happen next.” – Susan Mills Wilson, author of Hunt for Redemption

“The story is riveting, the characters are well-drawn, and the plot moves at break-neck speed. Be prepared to be mesmerized. You won’t put the book down until you get to the end.” – Reita Pendry, author of Discovering Grace.

Love, Loss, and What We Ate: A Memoirby Padma Lakshmi

A vivid memoir of food and family, survival and triumph, Love, Loss, and What We Ate traces the arc of Padma Lakshmi’s unlikely path from an immigrant childhood to a complicated life in front of the camera—a tantalizing blend of Ruth Reichl’s Tender at the Bone and Nora Ephron’s Heartburn

Long before Padma Lakshmi ever stepped onto a television set, she learned that how we eat is an extension of how we love, how we comfort, how we forge a sense of home—and how we taste the world as we navigate our way through it. Shuttling between continents as a child, she lived a life of dislocation that would become habit as an adult, never quite at home in the world. And yet, through all her travels, her favorite food remained the simple rice she first ate sitting on the cool floor of her grandmother’s kitchen in South India.

Poignant and surprising, Love, Loss, and What We Ate is Lakshmi’s extraordinary account of her journey from that humble kitchen, ruled by ferocious and unforgettable women, to the judges’ table of Top Chef and beyond. It chronicles the fierce devotion of the remarkable people who shaped her along the way, from her headstrong mother who flouted conservative Indian convention to make a life in New York, to her Brahmin grandfather—a brilliant engineer with an irrepressible sweet tooth—to the man seemingly wrong for her in every way who proved to be her truest ally. A memoir rich with sensual prose and punctuated with evocative recipes, it is alive with the scents, tastes, and textures of a life that spans complex geographies both internal and external.

Love, Loss, and What We Ate is an intimate and unexpected story of food and family—both the ones we are born to and the ones we create—and their enduring legacies.

Good to Great to Gone: The 60 Year Rise and Fall of Circuit Cityby Alan Wurtzel

How did Circuit City go from a Mom and Pop store with a mere $13,000 investment, to the best performing Fortune 500 Company for any 15-year period between 1965 and 1995, to bankruptcy and liquidation in 2009? What must leaders do not only to take a business from good to great, but to avoid plummeting from great to gone in a constantly evolving marketplace?

Alan Wurtzel, son of Circuit City founder Sam Wurtzel, took over as CEO in 1972 and implemented a successful long term strategy that simplified the company by unloading unsuccessful acquisitions, expanded the few winning divisions, and preserved the distinct employee culture his father created, positioning the company for unprecedented success. For almost 50 years, Circuit City was able to successfully navigate the constant changes in the consumer electronics marketplace and meet consumer demand and taste preferences. But with the subsequent decline and ultimate demise of Circuit City in 2009, Wurtzel had the rare perspective of a former company insider in the role of an outsider looking in.

Believing that there is no singular formula for strategy, Wurtzel emphasizes the “Habits of Mind” that influence critical management decisions. With key takeaways at the end of each chapter, Wurtzel offers advice and guidance to ensure any business stays on track, even in the wake of disruption, a changing consumer landscape, and new competitors.

Part social history, part cautionary tale, and part business strategy guide, Good to Great to Gone: The 60 Year Rise and Fall of Circuit City features a memorable story with critical leadership lessons.

“Alan Wurtzel led Circuit City to extraordinary success, one of a small handful of Fortune 500 companies to make a leap from good to great. Years later, Circuit City ceased to exist. Any understanding of what makes great companies tick must also consider the question of how they can fall. Alan Wurtzel’s own analysis of the company he built to greatness, and its subsequent demise, adds to our understanding.”

Jim Collins
Author of Good to Great and How the Mighty Fall

“Good to Great to Gone illustrates the vital importance of listening to your customers. Without them your company has nothing.”

Tony Hsieh
NY Times bestselling author of Delivering Happiness and CEO of Zappos, Inc.

“Alan Wurtzel’s Good to Great to Gone adds color and context to many of the compelling business strategy principles outlined in the Pursuit of Excellence.”

Robert Waterman
Co-author of In Search of Excellence

“Circuit City, founded when the South’s first TV station opened in Richmond in 1949, went on to become an iconic Virginia company. It was the premier TV and appliance retailer in America with more than 500 stores from coast to coast and sales exceeding $10 billion. Alan Wurtzel, the CEO who conceived the strategy that took his family business from Good to Great, focuses on the development of business strategies and the habits of mind that brought Circuit City to the top and then to the dust bin of Virginia business history. He tells the dramatic story in a compelling way.”

Mark R. Warner
U.S. Senator from the Commonwealth of Virginia

Coral and Brassby Percy Finch

Coral and Brass is the biography of General Holland McTyeire "Howlin' Mad" Smith, known as the "father" of modern U.S. amphibious warfare. His book is a riveting first-hand account of key battles fought in the Pacific between the U.S. Army and Canadian troops against the Japanese, including assaults on the Gilbert Islands, the Marshall Islands, the island of Saipan, Tinian in the Marianas and Iwo Jimo.

Minetta Laneby A. Robert Allen

Stay and fight or cut and run? Young Bodee Rivers can save so many from a terrible fate, but he must find the courage to act.

MINETTA LANE, the third volume in A. Robert Allen’s Slavery and Beyond series, is a stand-alone novel that continues the broad themes of the first two volumes, Failed Moments and A Wave From Mama.

˃˃˃ 1904 New York City

Bodee Rivers, who has always avoided major challenges in his life, moves to the most dangerous block in the city, MINETTA LANE. Police in pursuit of criminals often give up the chase as they approach the entrance to Minetta because even they know better than to test the hardened criminals who hide in the shadows.

Bodee’s circle of family and friends help him successfully manage some initial tests of his perseverance, but when he finds himself alone and confronted with an overwhelming challenge, he isn’t sure he’s up to the task. Many lives are at stake and Bodee must make a choice. Stand and fight or cut and run? Running is what he knows. Running is what will keep him safe. Will Bodee find the courage to fight?

Daddy 3.0: A Comedy of Errorsby Rob Armstrong

2017 Independent Author Network Winner – Best Comedy / Satire Novel

What a mess. This was not supposed to happen.

This isn’t where Nick Owen thought he would be by this point in life. He used to be a busy web programmer. Now he spends most of his energy trying to stop his three-year-old twins from playing in a dirty sand pit. Nick thinks of himself as Daddy 3.0, a stay-at-home-dad–but he just wasn’t programmed for this.

He must navigate a new world of jungle gyms and playdates while supporting his surgeon wife. He tries his best to be there for the twins, but he can’t stop making a mess of things. He’s just about nearing the end of his rope when the Swing Incident happens. The Swing Incident, spoken of in hushed tones around Nick’s New York City apartment building, has caused the resident queen bee, nicknamed “Supermom,” to declare him an enemy for life. No matter what Nick does to get back into Supermom’s good graces, he fails spectacularly.

Now Nick’s going to have to learn to fight fire with fire and become the best superparent on the block. This hilarious new book by Rob Armstrong chronicles one man’s journey into the world of modern fatherhood–one botched haircut, playground fight, and dirty diaper at a time.

Stay-at-home-dads have a new hero, of sorts.

A Kindle Unlimited Comedy

Amazon Reviews

“This book is great I could not put it down.”

“You have to love a dad who is just doing his best to keep home and kids under control AND keep his wife happy.”

“This was incredibly enjoyable and made me feel a bond with the author. This is a simple, quick read, that is thoroughly enjoyable and entertaining.”

“You will laugh out loud, as you can absolutely picture the scenes. Anyone who has kids, whether a dad or mom, will relate with these experiences and thoroughly enjoy the ride.”

“This novel, rich with detail and wit, brings the characters to life. I feel like I know Nick Owen and his chaotic children. Armstrong brilliantly chronicles the evolution of a man and his relationships. A must read!”

Other Reader Reviews

“Hilarious daddy 3.0..story about a computer geek turned stay at home dad..the best part someone asks towards the end, my husband is the oldest version 1.0, where can I upgrade him cheap..wish the author would have given a link for the upgrade” – Mathangi Sri, India

“It did not take me long to read this book simply because, once started, I didn’t want to stop reading. The only thing slowing me down were the tears in my eyes from laughing so much. The situational comedy was absolutely hilarious. I kept thinking, “I’d love to see this movie.” The quality of the writing added to the reading pleasure. If this is the first book, I look forward to his second, third and more.” – Chuck Hossack, PA

The Fireproof Girlby Loretta Lost

She can run, but she can never escape her past…

Sophie was abandoned at birth and grew up neglected and abused. Her only friends were computers, until she met Cole Hunter. He became her everything: brother, protector, and partner in crime.

She believed that nothing could ever tear them apart. Until it did.

Years later, when news of Cole's murder reaches Sophie, she completely snaps. She will tear down heaven and earth to find his killer, even enlisting the help of her ex-military ex-boyfriend.

But the more she gets involved with the investigation, the more she puts herself at risk…

—-

When Cole was nine years old, he watched his whole family burn to death in a house fire. He became obsessed with architecture and rebuilding his life.

Sophie became his secret weapon. Protecting her was his purpose. But Sophie was damaged right from the start, and Cole always feared he wouldn't be able to save her from her enemies or from herself…

Award winner in the 2017 Readers' Favorite Contest
Finalist in the 2017 Next Generation Indie Book Awards

Black Queen, Dark Knightby Amarie Avant

Regardless of his psychotic murderous tendencies, Jagger’s THE MAN that women salivate over…

Jagger Johansson
I was made for pulling the trigger of a stainless steel .357 Magnum. It’s cold and ruthless like me, so I’ve been told by women.
Chopping down trucks and rebuilding them was all I was built for, besides murder for hire.
Mikayla Bryant is my next target. She’s the princess of a nation, soon to be queen of a South African island that she knows nothing about.
But this time, I made a mistake, one that could prove fatal. Against my iron will, I became intrigued by my mark and instead of doing what I was hired for, I took her for myself. I did more than just abduct her. I needed to possess her. All it took was just one taste for me to become addicted. Screw the King who paid me a greatly. For once, money meant nothing. She’s mine!

Mikayla Bryant
Mama’s dead… was a phrase I mumbled over and over again in my native Xhosa tongue when I was found by Child Protective Services.
After that night, I became numb from a sordid, deadly past and embraced a promising future.
I graduated with honors and planned on attending med school when the psychotic, Jagger Johansson crosses my paths. He yanked me from my safe life and tossed me into a dangerous world of want and lust.
No sane woman would purposely choose him, but maybe I was never stable. Long hair, tattoos and cold blue pools for eyes somehow warmed my soul. I was taken by this beautiful devil, who was just deranged enough to believe me a princess. Truthfully, I’d play any part he wanted me to. I’m smart enough to believe he’s a Hitman but it does not stop my deceitful cravings. Once satiated, I will get away from him… I must. Or he will take my heart and ruin me.

Awakenedby J.S. Wiley

From her curvaceous hips to her whiskey colored eyes, plus-size beauty Abagail Cole should be at the top of her dating game. But after a recent breakup with her cheating fiancé, she's never felt more like the stereotypical lonely cat lady.

So, determined to move forward and have some fun, Abagail decides to take a spontaneous trip to a local sports bar and get her buzz on. There she attracts the attention of tattooed, bad-boy millionaire Caleb Delaney, a mysterious and passionate wolf shifter who is immediately bewitched by Abagail's charms–and would do anything to claim her as his future mate.

But when a gorgeous new neighbor also catches her eye, Abagail soon finds herself torn between the affections of two gorgeous, intense love interests. And to make matters even more confusing, she's been experiencing steamy encounters with a presence in her dreams, waking up breathless and longing for more.

As she vows to choose between the two irresistible men that stand before her, Abagail makes a surprising discovery about her family history that could change everything she thought she knew–entangling her in a supernatural world of werewolves and vampires.

Your Story Matters! : 3 Breakthrough Secrets to Stories That Transformby Linda A. Olson

In this simple, easy-to-read self-help book you will discover: CREATION of simple stories that can transform lives, CLARITY to create a story by overcoming the greatest challenge most people face, COURAGE as you follow the story pathway to develop powerful personal stories, CONFIDENCE that your story matters and that it can transform the lives of others and CONNECTION when you match what people really want with what you have to offer.

21 Tips for Highly Successful Fundraisersby Benjamin R. Case

Professional fundraising Consultant and Author, Benjamin R. Case shares from his 39 years of service in the nonprofit sector as an advancement professional, senior manager and leader. This book, Top 21 Tips for Highly Successful Fundraisers is a collection of ‘Tips’ written exclusively by Ben Case intended to encourage and help fundraisers, managers and leaders everywhere become highly successful.