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In the wake of a world ruined by warring gods and fallen kings, a new darkness rises. Phoenix Rising plunges readers into an epic fantasy tale of war and redemption, vividly rendered in a fast-paced narrative.

Leading a rebellion of outcasts against the very institutions that orchestrated the world's destruction, the Last Warlord cuts a ruthless path toward vengeance. But the cost of his monstrous allies and brutal methods weighs heavy. A lone Knight stands in the way of the Last Warlord, determined to reignite the Warlord’s humanity and redeem the rebellion. Soon, deadly politics and moral conflicts lead the Knight to question whether she is destined to defeat the Last Warlord...or join him.

Phoenix Rising is the immersive introduction to the dystopian Ruin World full of political drama, unique world-building, and complex characters pushed to the brink of their moral limits.

In this new collection, Patrick Barb explores themes of family found and lost, media consumption and the dangers of runaway nostalgia, the supernatural in our lives, and the impact of violence in both the long- and short-term.

• A young couple's reunited with their lost son whose favorite fuzzy bear suit connects him to the ghost of a vengeful mama bear while he's alone in the forest.
• A jaded screenwriter can’t escape the haunted screenplay that’s ruined his career.
• A man returns to his small hometown, where the people are gone and the trees have taken over.
• A Slasher and Final Girl brother-sister duo match wits and blades against a sentient, dimension-hopping apocalypse at a never-ending summer camp.

From rural backwoods to Park Slope brownstones, Barb's characters face impossible, awful situations, testing their inner strength and understanding of reality. Covering quiet horror, weird fiction, supernatural horror, slasher horror, topical dark fiction, and more, these stories spotlight supposedly familiar terrors and fears in new and unexpected ways.

In this new collection, Patrick Barb explores themes of family found and lost, media consumption and the dangers of runaway nostalgia, the supernatural in our lives, and the impact of violence in both the long- and short-term.

• A young couple is reunited with their lost son whose favorite fuzzy bear suit connects him to the ghost of a vengeful mama bear while he's alone in the forest.
• A jaded screenwriter can’t escape the haunted screenplay that’s ruined his career.
• A man returns to his small hometown, where the people are gone and the trees have taken over.
• A Slasher and Final Girl brother-sister duo match wits and blades against a sentient, dimension-hopping apocalypse at a never-ending summer camp.

From rural backwoods to Park Slope brownstones, Barb's characters face impossible, awful situations, testing their inner strength and understanding of reality. Covering quiet horror, weird fiction, supernatural horror, slasher horror, topical dark fiction, and more, these stories spotlight supposedly familiar terrors and fears in new and unexpected ways.

FROM THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE EZEKIEL CRANE NOVELS AND THE GRIM DAYS MYSTERIES!

A Holy Land...A Holy War...A Holy Terror Against Evil

In the final years of the first Kingdom of Jerusalem in a vault hidden deep beneath the Temple Mount Baron Gregory De L'Ombre has made an astonishing discovery. Imprisoned within the vault are twelve monstrous abominations created by one of King Solomon's wives as an ultimate act of revenge. The secrets of the vault will ensure Gregory's absolute power and forever enslave the Outremer-the Holy Land. No man dares stand against him.

But the Djinn is no mere man.

A creature of smoke and shadow...a living legend...only the Djinn grasps the full scope of the baron's plans. Only he-along with his army of Knightshades-can save the Holy Land from a fate more terrible than anyone imagines.

From the author of Glass Bottle Season comes a gritty new coming-of-age novel that examines what happens when one man’s desperate journey to become a New York Writer leaves him more “tortured” than “artist.”  

Sidewalk Dance is a portrait of the artist as a deluded self-saboteur. Haunted by his brother’s tragic death in the War in Afghanistan and unable to process this trauma, Fisher shuns his elitist pedigree by abruptly quitting Yale Law School, changing his name to Fish, and moving to New York City. Once there, he sets about reinventing himself as a doomed playwright. Unfortunately for Fish, he is more of an idealist than a talent; a dreamer more than a doer. His delusions of grandeur quickly lead him into an abyss of self-doubt, addiction, identity crisis, and isolation.

The pregnancy of his would-be muse, Madame Meticulous, the debaucherous tendencies of his alter ego, Partiboy, and the impending destruction of the Hell’s Kitchen art gallery where he works combine to complicate Fish’s pursuit of literary legacy. His central delusion is that by cloaking himself in the trappings and lifestyle of the tortured artist (hurling his iPhone off the Brooklyn Bridge, smoking hand-rolled cigarettes, growing out his hair, drunkenly clobbering a typewriter late at night), he will somehow become one. As paternity, unemployment, creative sterility, and romantic abandonment loom, Fish clings to a misguided hope that the staging of his play will make all well again.

From the author of Glass Bottle Season comes a gritty new coming-of-age novel that examines what happens when one man’s desperate journey to become a New York Writer leaves him more “tortured” than “artist.”  

Sidewalk Dance is a portrait of the artist as a deluded self-saboteur. Haunted by his brother’s tragic death in the War in Afghanistan and unable to process this trauma, Fisher shuns his elitist pedigree by abruptly quitting Yale Law School, changing his name to Fish, and moving to New York City. Once there, he sets about reinventing himself as a doomed playwright. Unfortunately for Fish, he is more of an idealist than a talent; a dreamer more than a doer. His delusions of grandeur quickly lead him into an abyss of self-doubt, addiction, identity crisis, and isolation.

The pregnancy of his would-be muse, Madame Meticulous, the debaucherous tendencies of his alter ego, Partiboy, and the impending destruction of the Hell’s Kitchen art gallery where he works combine to complicate Fish’s pursuit of literary legacy. His central delusion is that by cloaking himself in the trappings and lifestyle of the tortured artist (hurling his iPhone off the Brooklyn Bridge, smoking hand-rolled cigarettes, growing out his hair, drunkenly clobbering a typewriter late at night), he will somehow become one. As paternity, unemployment, creative sterility, and romantic abandonment loom, Fish clings to a misguided hope that the staging of his play will make all well again.

Sinder weaves together the parallel stories of Ceit, grown to adulthood and having taken her rightful place as Matrarc of the Society, and her great-grandmother, Ainsley Robertson in 1924 Ireland, and the inception of the community that would come to inhabit Sinder Avenue.

In 1996, Venice Beach, Ceit struggles with the confines of superstition and tradition that have defined the Society since its start. As her younger brother, Alan, turns eighteen, Ceit enacts a plan to end the Society for good. And in doing so, releasing Alan from what she sees increasingly as a toxic and antiquated way of life as well as freeing herself from her mortal ties to the human realm.

In 1924, Ainsley Robertson lives in a secluded community outside of Cork, led by her father, an abusive and cruel ceannaire. Ainsley’s story opens with her expecting a baby in a world where being an unwed mother is a criminal act. Ainsley grows to realize her own gifts and connection to the world of the fae as she navigates a world dominated by dogma and oppression. As the sparks of what will become the Society grow to a flame, Ainsley becomes the Matrarc of her people, leading them to a new world, and a new tradition.

Sinder weaves together the parallel stories of Ceit, grown to adulthood and having taken her rightful place as Matrarc of the Society, and her great-grandmother, Ainsley Robertson in 1924 Ireland, and the inception of the community that would come to inhabit Sinder Avenue.

In 1996, Venice Beach, Ceit struggles with the confines of superstition and tradition that have defined the Society since its start. As her younger brother, Alan, turns eighteen, Ceit enacts a plan to end the Society for good. And in doing so, releasing Alan from what she sees increasingly as a toxic and antiquated way of life as well as freeing herself from her mortal ties to the human realm.

In 1924, Ainsley Robertson lives in a secluded community outside of Cork, led by her father, an abusive and cruel ceannaire. Ainsley’s story opens with her expecting a baby in a world where being an unwed mother is a criminal act. Ainsley grows to realize her own gifts and connection to the world of the fae as she navigates a world dominated by dogma and oppression. As the sparks of what will become the Society grow to a flame, Ainsley becomes the Matrarc of her people, leading them to a new world, and a new tradition.

For fans of Midnight Mass comes a haunting new horromance. Something dreadful is festering in the old Thomas Bog. For years, it’s done what it has been taught to do—it swallows. But it’s done following orders.

It’s been three years since Mila Thomas’ brother Jed went missing and his case went cold. Since then, Mila has fled town, running from the voices of the dead that reach her from the depths of the old family bog, afraid she would hear her brother’s among them.

But when her younger sister, Agatha, calls her back home to celebrate her graduation, Mila can’t help but return to her old haunts. When she arrives, Mila comes face to face with the town reverend, who informs her that Agatha is now also missing. Finding her mother and the local police utterly useless, Mila opens herself up to the voices of the bog in the hopes that they can tell her where her sister is. But something else lurks beneath the bog's waters, something that would sooner hunt her than help her. As more bodies turn up on the sandy shores, Mila must overcome her complicated history with the reverend’s estranged son—the boy she never quite got over—to unearth the fate of the town’s missing members and the family secrets that may be behind everything.

For fans of Midnight Mass comes a haunting new horromance. Something dreadful is festering in the old Thomas Bog. For years, it’s done what it has been taught to do—it swallows. But it’s done following orders.

It’s been three years since Mila Thomas’ brother Jed went missing and his case went cold. Since then, Mila has fled town, running from the voices of the dead that reach her from the depths of the old family bog, afraid she would hear her brother’s among them.

But when her younger sister, Agatha, calls her back home to celebrate her graduation, Mila can’t help but return to her old haunts. When she arrives, Mila comes face to face with the town reverend, who informs her that Agatha is now also missing. Finding her mother and the local police utterly useless, Mila opens herself up to the voices of the bog in the hopes that they can tell her where her sister is. But something else lurks beneath the bog's waters, something that would sooner hunt her than help her. As more bodies turn up on the sandy shores, Mila must overcome her complicated history with the reverend’s estranged son—the boy she never quite got over—to unearth the fate of the town’s missing members and the family secrets that may be behind everything.

"In range alone, Richard Thomas is boundless. He is Lovecraft. He is Bradbury. He is VanderMeer." —Chuck Palahniuk

With a Foreword by Brian Evenson

In this new collection, Richard Thomas has crafted fourteen stories that push the boundaries of dark fiction in an intoxicating, piercing blend of fantasy, science fiction, and horror. Equally provocative and profound, each story is masterfully woven with transgressive themes that burrow beneath the skin.

• A poker game yields a strange prize that haunts one man, his game of chance now turned into a life-or-death coin flip.
• A set of twins find they have mysterious new powers when an asteroid crashes in a field near their house, and the decisions they make create an uneasy balance.
• A fantasy world is filled with one man’s desire to feel whole again, finally finding love, only to have the shocking truth of his life exposed in an appalling twist.
• A father and son work slave labor in a brave new world run by aliens and mount a rebellion that may end up freeing them all.
• A clown takes off his make-up in a gloomy basement to reveal something more horrifying under the white, tacky skin.

Powerful and haunting, Thomas’ transportive collection dares you to examine what lies in the darkest, most twisted corners of human existence and not be transformed by what you find.

"In range alone, Richard Thomas is boundless. He is Lovecraft. He is Bradbury. He is VanderMeer." —Chuck Palahniuk

With a Foreword by Brian Evenson

In this new collection, Richard Thomas has crafted fourteen stories that push the boundaries of dark fiction in an intoxicating, piercing blend of fantasy, science fiction, and horror. Equally provocative and profound, each story is masterfully woven with transgressive themes that burrow beneath the skin.

• A poker game yields a strange prize that haunts one man, his game of chance now turned into a life-or-death coin flip.
• A set of twins find they have mysterious new powers when an asteroid crashes in a field near their house, and the decisions they make create an uneasy balance.
• A fantasy world is filled with one man’s desire to feel whole again, finally finding love, only to have the shocking truth of his life exposed in an appalling twist.
• A father and son work slave labor in a brave new world run by aliens and mount a rebellion that may end up freeing them all.
• A clown takes off his make-up in a gloomy basement to reveal something more horrifying under the white, tacky skin.

Powerful and haunting, Thomas’ transportive collection dares you to examine what lies in the darkest, most twisted corners of human existence and not be transformed by what you find.

From the acclaimed author of Washing the Dead and Bertrand Court comes a satirical and chilling, yet deeply-sensitive, tale that captures the ethos and ruin of children’s competitive swimming, where parents must face the haunting spirits of their own tumultuous upbringings or risk losing their way and—in turn—themselves.

It’s June 2012. The magical and slightly cultish River Run swim club is alive with the spirit of fun competition when a perfect storm brews between team moms and best friends, Gillian Cloud and Kristy Weinstein. The ghost of family addiction has turned up, looming over their carefully planned pasta parties, tie-dye nights, and pep rallies, forcing them to face their unresolved childhood trauma.

Gillian responds by trying to control everyone around her, while Kristy relapses into her dangerous addiction to love. Real sparks fly on the night of the derecho—a freak land hurricane—which sweeps through Northern Virginia, knocking out power for days. The storm ignites a tinder box of secrets, leaving Gillian and Kristy alone in the hot dark—their shame their only company.

At times humorous and devastating, Swimming with Ghosts is a hauntingly dark, yet uniquely tender story of the various entrapments of addiction and lingering trauma, and what it takes to overcome our hidden legacies of disgrace and discover a once unimaginable freedom made possible by confronting life’s greatest storms with the people closest to us.

From the acclaimed author of Washing the Dead and Bertrand Court comes a satirical and chilling, yet deeply-sensitive, tale that captures the ethos and ruin of children’s competitive swimming, where parents must face the haunting spirits of their own tumultuous upbringings or risk losing their way and—in turn—themselves.

It’s June 2012. The magical and slightly cultish River Run swim club is alive with the spirit of fun competition when a perfect storm brews between team moms and best friends, Gillian Cloud and Kristy Weinstein. The ghost of family addiction has turned up, looming over their carefully planned pasta parties, tie-dye nights, and pep rallies, forcing them to face their unresolved childhood trauma.

Gillian responds by trying to control everyone around her, while Kristy relapses into her dangerous addiction to love. Real sparks fly on the night of the derecho—a freak land hurricane—which sweeps through Northern Virginia, knocking out power for days. The storm ignites a tinder box of secrets, leaving Gillian and Kristy alone in the hot dark—their shame their only company.

At times humorous and devastating, Swimming with Ghosts is a hauntingly dark, yet uniquely tender story of the various entrapments of addiction and lingering trauma, and what it takes to overcome our hidden legacies of disgrace and discover a once unimaginable freedom made possible by confronting life’s greatest storms with the people closest to us.

In the 1860s, on Virginia’s Appalachian frontier, the fates of five people are forever linked as they navigate love, loss, and the cost of buried secrets amid the strife and turmoil of an unimaginable civil war.

In 1854, on the lawless western edge of Virginia, Elizabeth Young stands among the throngs and watches as her beloved uncle is hanged for murder. She can tell that there is more to this spectacle than meets the eye, and she vows then and there she’ll discover the truth then leave these godforsaken mountains. She’ll go where the land is flat, where life is in the open, where dreams have room to roam.

But fate has another idea. Three strangers with dreams and secrets of their own come into her life: Patrick Hagan, Irish Catholic immigrant and a bright young attorney with a dogged determination to do good and make good; Mary Lenore Kitchens, the sophisticated teacher who’s come to Virginia’s hinterlands, for who knows why; handsome Ben Grubb, local boy, banjo prodigy, a mischievous sort who wants only to play. Soon their lives become inextricably linked, along with that of Red Hopkins, an old friend to Elizabeth’s Papa, and in marches the Civil War.

Punctuated by class and the realities of a devastating conflict, That Which Binds Us is a broad work of historical fiction that celebrates our best and explores our worst, serving to remind us that across continents and cultures and generations, love holds the greatest power of all.

In the 1860s, on Virginia’s Appalachian frontier, the fates of five people are forever linked as they navigate love, loss, and the cost of buried secrets amid the strife and turmoil of an unimaginable civil war.

In 1854, on the lawless western edge of Virginia, Elizabeth Young stands among the throngs and watches as her beloved uncle is hanged for murder. She can tell that there is more to this spectacle than meets the eye, and she vows then and there she’ll discover the truth then leave these godforsaken mountains. She’ll go where the land is flat, where life is in the open, where dreams have room to roam.

But fate has another idea. Three strangers with dreams and secrets of their own come into her life: Patrick Hagan, Irish Catholic immigrant and a bright young attorney with a dogged determination to do good and make good; Mary Lenore Kitchens, the sophisticated teacher who’s come to Virginia’s hinterlands, for who knows why; handsome Ben Grubb, local boy, banjo prodigy, a mischievous sort who wants only to play. Soon their lives become inextricably linked, along with that of Red Hopkins, an old friend to Elizabeth’s Papa, and in marches the Civil War.

Punctuated by class and the realities of a devastating conflict, That Which Binds Us is a broad work of historical fiction that celebrates our best and explores our worst, that serves to remind us that across continents and cultures and generations, love holds the greatest power of all.

Ten years ago, retired astronaut Jim Mayfield closed himself up inside Bear Creek Inn, and he hasn’t been seen since.

Just when the small town of Bear Creek had almost forgotten about their reclusive and mysterious resident, a man from out-of-town flies in on a private jet to meet with the astronaut. The visit prompts the good people of the small town to begin asking questions. Who is Jim Mayfield? Why did he lock himself away? And who is the stranger that visited him? While the small town asks these questions, the most puzzling thing of all occurs when Bear Creek Inn takes in two guests for the first time in ten years.

Ten years ago, retired astronaut Jim Mayfield closed himself up inside Bear Creek Inn, and he hasn’t been seen since.

Just when the small town of Bear Creek had almost forgotten about their reclusive and mysterious resident, a man from out-of-town flies in on a private jet to meet with the astronaut. The visit prompts the good people of the small town to begin asking questions. Who is Jim Mayfield? Why did he lock himself away? And who is the stranger that visited him? While the small town asks these questions, the most puzzling thing of all occurs when Bear Creek Inn takes in two guests for the first time in ten years.

An ancient evil lurks on the American frontier, and seven contestants from around the world must compete to eradicate it.

In 1865, from a law office in Paris, seven ornate envelopes are sent to the most fearsome killers around the world, a samurai, sharpshooter, war hero, and serial killer among the recipients. Inside the gilded envelopes is a letter inviting each of them to participate in the contest of a lifetime. On the cold plains of the American frontier there roams a beast. Kill it and the million dollar prize is theirs. 

Despite mystery shrouding the competition's host, each man agrees to participate. But when the contestants arrive for the hunt, they soon realize there's more to this Contest than meets the eye. Strange sounds float across the plains, warning of an otherworldly threat. Their target is not a mere animal but a fearsome beast of legend hunting them in return. Can the contestants survive the cold, creatures, and each other long enough to kill the beast? Or will they soon find they were right to fear the dark?

An ancient evil lurks on the American frontier, and seven contestants from around the world must compete to eradicate it.

In 1865, from a law office in Paris, seven ornate envelopes are sent to the most fearsome killers around the world, a samurai, sharpshooter, war hero, and serial killer among the recipients. Inside the gilded envelopes is a letter inviting each of them to participate in the contest of a lifetime. On the cold plains of the American frontier there roams a beast. Kill it and the million dollar prize is theirs. 

Despite mystery shrouding the competition's host, each man agrees to participate. But when the contestants arrive for the hunt, they soon realize there's more to this Contest than meets the eye. Strange sounds float across the plains, warning of an otherworldly threat. Their target is not a mere animal but a fearsome beast of legend hunting them in return. Can the contestants survive the cold, creatures, and each other long enough to kill the beast? Or will they soon find they were right to fear the dark?

From the author of Poor Ghost comes a poignant road trip novel following two middle-aged brothers, Chris and Andy Fairley, as they attempt an unlikely musical comeback in Japan.

Chris and Andy Fairley couldn’t be more opposite—Chris, an uptight, ever-pessimist, and Andy, a go-with-the-flow hopeful. Their glory days seemed long behind them since their moderate success as a folk-rock duo and their relationship with each other fizzled out in the mid-1980s. But when their hit song is unexpectedly chosen for a Japanese car commercial, the men are given one last shot to revive their fame and friendship.

They embark on a tour across Japan, but soon find their venues are far from glamorous: a wedding reception where they're asked to play their hit on repeat, a flower farm gift shop, a windy sculpture park, and a restaurant where customers catch their own fish. As tensions between the brothers rise and a strange reporter begins following them all around the country, the men aren’t sure if the band or their relationship will survive. With echoes of Andrew Sean Greer’s Less, The Fairley Brothers in Japan is a gently comic exploration of aging, family, and belonging. It’s a tale of two brothers, not just hitting the road, but rediscovering themselves along the way.

From the author of Poor Ghost comes a poignant road trip novel following two middle-aged brothers, Chris and Andy Fairley, as they attempt an unlikely musical comeback in Japan.

Chris and Andy Fairley couldn’t be more opposite—Chris, an uptight, ever-pessimist, and Andy, a go-with-the-flow hopeful. Their glory days seemed long behind them since their moderate success as a folk-rock duo and their relationship with each other fizzled out in the mid-1980s. But when their hit song is unexpectedly chosen for a Japanese car commercial, the men are given one last shot to revive their fame and friendship.

They embark on a tour across Japan, but soon find their venues are far from glamorous: a wedding reception where they're asked to play their hit on repeat, a flower farm gift shop, a windy sculpture park, and a restaurant where customers catch their own fish. As tensions between the brothers rise and a strange reporter begins following them all around the country, the men aren’t sure if the band or their relationship will survive. With echoes of Andrew Sean Greer’s Less, The Fairley Brothers in Japan is a gently comic exploration of aging, family, and belonging. It’s a tale of two brothers, not just hitting the road, but rediscovering themselves along the way.

2021 Indie Best Contest Winner

2021 Finalist for American Book Fest’s for Best Book Award

A 2023 Next Generation Indie Book Award Winner for Best Cover Design

A 2023 Next Generation Indie Book Award Finalist for Best Second Novel

A story of survival, sisters, and secrets

The Fehler sisters wanted to be more than bug girls but growing up in a fourth- generation family pest control business in rural Missouri, their path was fixed. The family talked about Fehler Family Exterminating at every meal, even when their mom said to separate the business from the family, an impossible task. They tried to escape work with trips to their trailer camp on the Mississippi River, but the sisters did more fighting than fishing. If only there was a son to lead rural Missouri insect control and guide the way through a crumbling patriarchy.

After Robbie Fehler’s sudden death, the surprising details of succession in his will are revealed. He’s left the company to a distant cousin, assuming the women of the family aren’t capable. As the mother’s long-term affair surfaces and her apocalypse prepper training intensifies, she wants to trade responsibility for romance.

Facing an economic recession amidst the backdrop of growing Midwestern fear and resentment, the Fehler sisters unite in their struggle to save the company’s finances and the family’s future. To survive, they must overcome a political chasm that threatens a new civil war as the values that once united them now divide the very foundation they’ve built. Through alternating point-of-views, grief and regret gracefully give way to the enduring strength of the hive.

2021 Indie Best Contest Winner

2021 Finalist for American Book Fest’s for Best Book Award

A 2023 Next Generation Indie Book Award Winner for Best Cover Design

A 2023 Next Generation Indie Book Award Finalist for Best Second Novel

Rural Missouri, a hot summer day on the Mississippi River during the Great Recession. The four Fehler sisters want to be more than “bug girls” in their family’s fourth-generation pest control business, but their path is fixed. When the patriarch suddenly dies, and his succession goes according to plan but not expectation, they each must plot a course for themselves in uncertain and changing times. Through it all, their mother, Grace, weighs her own choices, and whether her passion to save her family as a doomsday prepper also includes blowing up her world with a forbidden romance. 

A 2023 Next Generation Indie Book Award Finalist for Best First Novel

“Debut novelist Tector captures European life and her characters beautifully as she interweaves the perspectives of four women seeking fulfillment and success in this satisfying adventure. Keep an eye on this author.” —Booklist

Alice Ahmadi has never been certain of where she belongs. When she discovers a famed emerald necklace while interning at a struggling Parisian magazine, she is plunged into a glittering world of diamonds and emeralds, courtesans and spies, and the long-buried secrets surrounding the necklace and its glamorous former owners.

When Alice realizes the mysterious Honeybee Emeralds could be her chance to save the magazine, she recruits her friends Lily and Daphne to form the “Fellowship of the Necklace.” Together, they set out to uncover the romantic history of the gems. Through diaries, letters, and investigations through the winding streets and iconic historic landmarks of Paris, the trio begins to unravel more than just the secrets of the necklace’s obsolete past. Along the way, Lily and Daphne’s relationships are challenged, tempered, and changed. Lily faces her long-standing attraction to a friend, who has achieved the writing success that eluded her. Daphne confronts her failing relationship with her husband, while also facing simmering problems in her friendship with Lily. And, at last, Alice finds her place in the world―although one mystery still remains: how did the Honeybee Emeralds go from the neck of American singer Josephine Baker during the Roaring Twenties to the basement of a Parisian magazine?

A 2023 Next Generation Indie Book Award Finalist for Best First Novel

“Debut novelist Tector captures European life and her characters beautifully as she interweaves the perspectives of four women seeking fulfillment and success in this satisfying adventure. Keep an eye on this author.” —Booklist

Alice Ahmadi has never been certain of where she belongs. When she discovers a famed emerald necklace while interning at a struggling Parisian magazine, she is plunged into a glittering world of diamonds and emeralds, courtesans and spies, and the long-buried secrets surrounding the necklace and its glamorous former owners.

When Alice realizes the mysterious Honeybee Emeralds could be her chance to save the magazine, she recruits her friends Lily and Daphne to form the “Fellowship of the Necklace.” Together, they set out to uncover the romantic history of the gems. Through diaries, letters, and investigations through the winding streets and iconic historic landmarks of Paris, the trio begins to unravel more than just the secrets of the necklace’s obsolete past. Along the way, Lily and Daphne’s relationships are challenged, tempered, and changed. Lily faces her long-standing attraction to a friend, who has achieved the writing success that eluded her. Daphne confronts her failing relationship with her husband, while also facing simmering problems in her friendship with Lily. And, at last, Alice finds her place in the world―although one mystery still remains: how did the Honeybee Emeralds go from the neck of American singer Josephine Baker during the Roaring Twenties to the basement of a Parisian magazine?

International bestselling mystery author J. Kent Holloway spins a delightfully mischievous holiday mystery full of twists and turns sure to delight amateur sleuth fans of all ages!

Holiday emporium owner Thomas Nast isn't your typical guy. His Victorian-era home is sentient with a 13-foot guard alligator named Tinsel living in its walls. A mostly invisible-and mischievous-elf named Peppermint reluctantly serves his every whim. And he just happens to be the next in line to become the real-life Santa Claus. Until that happens, however, Tom spends his days helping the people-and frequent tourists-of Christmas, Florida, with all their Christmas and other holiday needs.

That is, of course, until he walks into his store one morning to find the body of a man dressed in full Santa costume—a man reviled by almost everyone in town—who's been stabbed multiple times with a pocketknife identical to six custom jobs Tom had given to his closest friends a few years earlier.

With Tom's young assistant, Trixie McNamara, in police crosshairs as the prime suspect, Tom is forced to dig up the dirt on his friends, a nasty town spinster, and a semi-retired mobster to prove Trixie's innocence. But as he investigates the murder, Tom will find himself in the crosshairs of an altogether different kind if he's not careful...and Santas-in-Training, he knows, can die just like anyone else.

International bestselling mystery author Kent Holloway spins a delightfully mischievous holiday mystery full of twists and turns sure to delight amateur sleuth fans of all ages!

Holiday emporium owner Thomas Nast isn't your typical guy. His Victorian-era home is sentient with a 13-foot guard alligator named Tinsel living in its walls. A mostly invisible—and mischievous—elf named Peppermint reluctantly serves his every whim. And he just happens to be the next in line to become the real-life Santa Claus. Until that happens, however, Tom spends his days helping the people—and frequent tourists—of Christmas, Florida, with all their Christmas and other holiday needs.

That is, of course, until he walks into his store one morning to find the body of a man dressed in full Santa costume—a man reviled by almost everyone in town—who's been stabbed multiple times with a pocketknife identical to six custom jobs Tom had given to his closest friends a few years earlier.

With Tom's young assistant, Trixie McNamara, in police crosshairs as the prime suspect, Tom is forced to dig up the dirt on his friends, a nasty town spinster, and a semi-retired mobster to prove Trixie's innocence. But as he investigates the murder, Tom will find himself in the crosshairs of an altogether different kind if he's not careful...and Santas-in-Training, he knows, can die just like anyone else.

“My name…is Sam Sailor. Like the others…I am trapped here. And will die here.”

In 1984, Iris Sailor’s brutal fall on the ice unravels everything—her memory, doping secret, and figure skating career. Dumped by her coach/boyfriend and banned from competing, Iris finds herself utterly alone, wishing there was some way she could reconnect with her estranged sister, Sam.

When she returns home after her fall from grace, she finds an old postcard tucked alongside the rest of her mail. Strangely, the card advertising Nova Bay is postmarked September 14, 1981—the same day Sam disappeared. As she’s about to chuck it in the trash, Iris realizes there’s only one word scribbled on the back: HELP.

Tracing clues to a briny Northern California cove, Iris discovers a series of cassette tapes left behind by Sam, who narrates the story of her disappearance three years before. To uncover Sam's fate—and reclaim her own—Iris must piece together fractured memories and let go of the past before her sister and future are lost forever. But will she sink or swim under waves of crippling fear and dark family secrets?

“My name…is Sam Sailor. Like the others…I am trapped here. And will die here.”

In 1984, Iris Sailor’s brutal fall on the ice unravels everything—her memory, doping secret, and figure skating career. Dumped by her coach/boyfriend and banned from competing, Iris finds herself utterly alone, wishing there was some way she could reconnect with her estranged sister, Sam.

When she returns home after her fall from grace, she finds an old postcard tucked alongside the rest of her mail. Strangely, the card advertising Nova Bay is postmarked September 14, 1981—the same day Sam disappeared. As she’s about to chuck it in the trash, Iris realizes there’s only one word scribbled on the back: HELP.

Tracing clues to a briny Northern California cove, Iris discovers a series of cassette tapes left behind by Sam, who narrates the story of her disappearance three years before. To uncover Sam's fate—and reclaim her own—Iris must piece together fractured memories and let go of the past before her sister and future are lost forever. But will she sink or swim under waves of crippling fear and dark family secrets?

They say never go into the woods at night…

School’s out for summer and that means one thing to Parker, Chloe, and their four friends: a well-deserved camping trip in the Pine Barrens, a million-acre forest deep in the heart of New Jersey. But when old grudges erupt, an argument escalates into the unthinkable, leaving one of them dead and the killer missing. As darkness descends and those left alive try to determine a course of action, the forest around them begins to change…

In the morning, more of the group has vanished and the path that led them into the woods is gone—as if consumed by the forest itself. Lost and hungry, the remaining friends set out to find help, only to realize that the forest seems to have other plans—a darker, ancient horror lies dead and dreaming in a lake in the center of the woods. And it’s calling to them.

Meanwhile, deep in the trees, the killer is still at large, and one of the group’s own has started to transform and warp into something other. Something inhuman. Something that wants to feast.

Banding together to survive, the friends soon begin to understand the true nature of the horror waiting for them in the Pine Barrens—and that not all of them will make it out alive.

They say never go into the woods at night…

School’s out for summer and that means one thing to Parker, Chloe, and their four friends: a well-deserved camping trip in the Pine Barrens, a million-acre forest deep in the heart of New Jersey. But when old grudges erupt, an argument escalates into the unthinkable, leaving one of them dead and the killer missing. As darkness descends and those left alive try to determine a course of action, the forest around them begins to change…

In the morning, more of the group has vanished and the path that led them into the woods is gone—as if consumed by the forest itself. Lost and hungry, the remaining friends set out to find help, only to realize that the forest seems to have other plans—a darker, ancient horror lies dead and dreaming in a lake in the center of the woods. And it’s calling to them.

Meanwhile, deep in the trees, the killer is still at large, and one of the group’s own has started to transform and warp into something other. Something inhuman. Something that wants to feast.

Banding together to survive, the friends soon begin to understand the true nature of the horror waiting for them in the Pine Barrens—and that not all of them will make it out alive.

*A 2022 FOREWORD REVIEWS BOOK AWARD FINALIST*

A new novel by the award-winning author of Under the Mercy Trees.

Famed puppeteer and master manipulator Walter Gray surprises his three daughters by announcing there is a fourth at his 80th birthday party. An incomplete paternity test—and a will that places a condition on each daughter’s inheritance—suggest that the missing daughter isn’t a figment of his dementia. 

Jane, the eldest, is tired of her father’s eccentricities. She remembers the scarcity of her childhood and doesn’t want another sister to share the birthright. 

Rosie, born out of wedlock, sees the missing sister as her key to acceptance as a full member of the puppeteer’s family.

Cora, the youngest, born after Walter achieved fame and fortune, is most concerned with extricating herself from running Walter’s company so that she can pursue her own life. 

The sisters each knew a different version of their enigmatic father, but all grew up in the presence of fairy tales acted out with marionettes and shadow puppets. If they are to find the fourth daughter and claim the legacy their father has left them, the three must confront their fractured relationships with their father and each other. Infused with fairy tales that sometimes spill magic into the sisters’ real lives, The Puppeteer’s Daughters is a stunningly-woven family saga about the cost and rewards of claiming a creative life.

*A 2022 FOREWORD REVIEWS BOOK AWARD FINALIST*

A new novel by the award-winning author of Under the Mercy Trees.

Famed puppeteer and master manipulator Walter Gray surprises his three daughters by announcing there is a fourth at his 80th birthday party. An incomplete paternity test—and a will that places a condition on each daughter’s inheritance—suggest that the missing daughter isn’t a figment of his dementia. 

Jane, the eldest, is tired of her father’s eccentricities. She remembers the scarcity of her childhood and doesn’t want another sister to share the birthright. 

Rosie, born out of wedlock, sees the missing sister as her key to acceptance as a full member of the puppeteer’s family.

Cora, the youngest, born after Walter achieved fame and fortune, is most concerned with extricating herself from running Walter’s company so that she can pursue her own life. 

The sisters each knew a different version of their enigmatic father, but all grew up in the presence of fairy tales acted out with marionettes and shadow puppets. If they are to find the fourth daughter and claim the legacy their father has left them, the three must confront their fractured relationships with their father and each other. Infused with fairy tales that sometimes spill magic into the sisters’ real lives, The Puppeteer’s Daughters is a stunningly-woven family saga about the cost and rewards of claiming a creative life.

Murder and skullduggery on the oldest course in golf. St. Andrews might never be the same again.

Private investigator John Royle takes on a routine missing person case in search of his client's brother. When the body turns up in a bunker on the Old Course at St. Andrews and John is framed for the murder the very future of St. Andrews itself is at stake.

John has to get himself out of the frame and ensure the town's place in history remains safe.

A 2023 Next Generation Indie Book Award Winner for Best Regional Fiction

Growing up in Erob, Alabama, Nina "Little Bit" Barnes Enloe lived in the shadow of her imposing and harsh grandmother, Nina "Biggie" Barnes Enloe. If she wasn't being bossed around by Biggie, then the task fell to her best friend Win...who did win. At everything. Bit never seemed to share Win's lifetime supply of “lucky dust.” Perhaps the only thing Bit has ever chosen for herself is her friendship with Avery, the out-of-towner who showed up on the saddest day of her life—unpretentious and decidedly un-Southern—with a funeral casserole in hand.

Bit believes she can escape her grandmother’s controlling grip once and for all by moving somewhere where she is the only Nina Enloe listed: New York. Yet her world is turned upside down when an unexpected loss forces her to leave her new life in the city and return to Erob, where she must face everything—and everyone—she left behind. In the process, Bit discovers her true identity, learns the hard lessons of acceptance and forgiveness, finds herself falling in love in unexpected places, and finds comfort in the secrets of rainy days.

Leslie Hooton, author of Before Anyone Else, brings her signature wit and Southern charm to the page again in this triumphant coming-of-age story.

Inspired by historical Florence, Italy, and based on legends of the Renaissance-era Medici family, The Seller of Secrets is a YA romantasy novel with a sensory and elemental–based magic system.

On the mystical island of Bardia, Bell Asbury’s sister is dying. A girl with an extraordinary but volatile gift for fusing magical elixirs, Bell was eleven when she accidentally struck her sister, Roza, with a magic that left her with an incurable illness. Six years later, she overhears her sister’s fiancé buying illicit ingredients for a brainwashing elixir. Alarmed and infuriated, Bell tries to end the engagement, but Roza's fiancé is from a noble house, the sisters’ father is in debt, and their mother is eager to have a connection to a powerful family.

Desperate to find a cure for Roza’s disease and an antidote to the brainwashing elixir, Bell uncovers a tangled web of secrets that leads to a man called the Seller of Secrets and his plot to use the brainwashing elixir to force the entire island to obey him. Bell alone can create an antidote, but her experiments risk the sanity of those she loves.

Rian, an infuriatingly handsome spy, offers to help her defeat the Seller of Secrets. Although she knows Rian is a master of deception, Bell can’t stop herself from falling for him. But with so many things changing in her life, Bell doesn’t know who she can trust and who is working to control her gift.

Inspired by historical Florence, Italy, and based on legends of the Renaissance-era Medici family, The Seller of Secrets is a YA romantasy novel with a sensory and elemental–based magic system.

On the mystical island of Bardia, Bell Asbury’s sister is dying. A girl with an extraordinary but volatile gift for fusing magical elixirs, Bell was eleven when she accidentally struck her sister, Roza, with a magic that left her with an incurable illness. Six years later, she overhears her sister’s fiancé buying illicit ingredients for a brainwashing elixir. Alarmed and infuriated, Bell tries to end the engagement, but Roza's fiancé is from a noble house, the sisters’ father is in debt, and their mother is eager to have a connection to a powerful family.

Desperate to find a cure for Roza’s disease and an antidote to the brainwashing elixir, Bell uncovers a tangled web of secrets that leads to a man called the Seller of Secrets and his plot to use the brainwashing elixir to force the entire island to obey him. Bell alone can create an antidote, but her experiments risk the sanity of those she loves.

Rian, an infuriatingly handsome spy, offers to help her defeat the Seller of Secrets. Although she knows Rian is a master of deception, Bell can’t stop herself from falling for him. But with so many things changing in her life, Bell doesn’t know who she can trust and who is working to control her gift.

Ten years after the city of Los Angeles is nearly destroyed by a violent domestic terrorist attack, Esther Robertson struggles to reconcile her father’s culpability as leader of the deadly Son of Abraham cult. She grants CBS’s top reporter, Cooper Carlson, a rare interview and insight into her father, Alan Robertson, who sits awaiting trial for his crimes in federal prison.

A report of a horrific and seemingly natural disaster interrupts the interview. Another will follow and another after that. Are these increasingly violent and bizarre phenoms truly natural, or is there another force behind them?

In the epic conclusion of the story of the Society at Sinder Avenue, the end times–put into motion by a demonic deal made generations ago–are finally unfolding. Destruction, famine, war, and pestilence reign. But is it God who comes to answer the prayers of the suffering and dying world, or is it Ceit Robertson, the ascended matriarch of the Society, Goddess of the Dead, and Ruler of the Night Forest? Will they offer salvation or Armageddon?

Ten years after the city of Los Angeles is nearly destroyed by a violent domestic terrorist attack, Esther Robertson struggles to reconcile her father’s culpability as leader of the deadly Son of Abraham cult. She grants CBS’s top reporter, Cooper Carlson, a rare interview and insight into her father, Alan Robertson, who sits awaiting trial for his crimes in federal prison.

A report of a horrific and seemingly natural disaster interrupts the interview. Another will follow and another after that. Are these increasingly violent and bizarre phenoms truly natural, or is there another force behind them?

In the epic conclusion of the story of the Society at Sinder Avenue, the end times–put into motion by a demonic deal made generations ago–are finally unfolding. Destruction, famine, war, and pestilence reign. But is it God who comes to answer the prayers of the suffering and dying world, or is it Ceit Robertson, the ascended matriarch of the Society, Goddess of the Dead, and Ruler of the Night Forest? Will they offer salvation or Armageddon?

They're underemployed. Underpaid. And trying to survive the end of the world while trapped inside an office complex. Who knew temp work could be this dangerous?

Jacob Elliot doesn’t want a temporary job in the mailroom at Delphi Enterprises, but after two post-college years of unpaid internships and living in his parents’ basement, he needs the work. Then, on his first day, the unthinkable happens: toxic gas descends on a meeting in Delphi’s outdoor amphitheater, killing all the regular employees and leaving Jacob stranded inside the vast office complex.

Wandering through Delphi headquarters, Jacob finds other survivors: Lauren, the disillusioned classics major who’s now writing online personality quizzes; Swati, the fitness instructor trying to escape a toxic relationship; and Dominic, the business school student who will do almost anything to get ahead. Stranded in the wreckage of the company that employed them, the temps band together to create a miniature world that’s part spring break, part office culture—until a shocking discovery disrupts the survivors’ self-made paradise and drives them to uncover the truth about the mysterious corporation that employed them and the apocalypse that brought their world to an end.

A surprising, profound tribute to the absurdities and paranoia of modern life, The Temps is an epic exploration of survival and human connection in the digital age.

They're underemployed. Underpaid. And trying to survive the end of the world while trapped inside an office complex. Who knew temp work could be this dangerous?

Jacob Elliot doesn’t want a temporary job in the mailroom at Delphi Enterprises, but after two post-college years of unpaid internships and living in his parents’ basement, he needs the work. Then, on his first day, the unthinkable happens: toxic gas descends on a meeting in Delphi’s outdoor amphitheater, killing all the regular employees and leaving Jacob stranded inside the vast office complex.

Wandering through Delphi headquarters, Jacob finds other survivors: Lauren, the disillusioned classics major who’s now writing online personality quizzes; Swati, the fitness instructor trying to escape a toxic relationship; and Dominic, the business school student who will do almost anything to get ahead. Stranded in the wreckage of the company that employed them, the temps band together to create a miniature world that’s part spring break, part office culture—until a shocking discovery disrupts the survivors’ self-made paradise and drives them to uncover the truth about the mysterious corporation that employed them and the apocalypse that brought their world to an end.

A surprising, profound tribute to the absurdities and paranoia of modern life, The Temps is an epic exploration of survival and human connection in the digital age.

For fans of Chloe Gong comes a slow-burn, enemies-to-lovers romantasy in which a young Shanghai woman must work with her ex, the London prince, to save their rival courts—if she doesn't kill him or fall back in love with him first.

It’s been nine years since the accords were established and centuries of war between the Midnight and Dawn Courts settled into a cold peace. But when poison created to eliminate the Dawn Court royal bloodline is stolen, all signs point to the Midnight Court and that tentative peace threatens to break. To prevent war, the Emperor tasks Anna Liang, daughter of the Midnight Court's deputy, with working with Paris, the youngest prince of the Dawn Court, to find out who was responsible and prove Shanghai’s innocence.

But underneath it, the real assignment: infiltrate the Dawn Court’s school for espionage, win Paris’s trust, gain intel, and then kill him—Paris, her first love and heartbreak.

Despite this complication, Anna is determined to complete her mission. But as her bond with Paris deepens and the true culprit is revealed, Anna must decide what she's willing to sacrifice to fulfill her duty, and if she even wants to. 

For fans of Chloe Gong comes a slow-burn, enemies-to-lovers romantasy in which a young Shanghai woman must work with her ex, the London prince, to save their rival courts—if she doesn't kill him or fall back in love with him first.

It’s been nine years since the accords were established and centuries of war between the Midnight and Dawn Courts settled into a cold peace. But when poison created to eliminate the Dawn Court royal bloodline is stolen, all signs point to the Midnight Court and that tentative peace threatens to break. To prevent war, the Emperor tasks Anna Liang, daughter of the Midnight Court's deputy, with working with Paris, the youngest prince of the Dawn Court, to find out who was responsible and prove Shanghai’s innocence.

But underneath it, the real assignment: infiltrate the Dawn Court’s school for espionage, win Paris’s trust, gain intel, and then kill him—Paris, her first love and heartbreak.

Despite this complication, Anna is determined to complete her mission. But as her bond with Paris deepens and the true culprit is revealed, Anna must decide what she's willing to sacrifice to fulfill her duty, and if she even wants to. 

"Venturini doesn't write in words and sentences. Instead, he lines the page with barbwire, concertina wire and spike strips that deliver the story deep into the reader's skin." –#1 New York Times Bestselling Author Chuck Palahniuk

A town ruled by evil. A man ruled by darkness. Only one can survive.

Curtis Quinn is a Chicago mob legend with a particular set of skills and a price on his head. When the woman he loves disappears, Curtis follows her trail to the occult town of Harlow, where no one is allowed to leave, and an enigmatic, sinister overlord known only as “the Mayor” rules by an autocratic regime.

Beth Jarvis is a plucky teenager unwrapping the secrets of her hometown—Harlow—and the mysterious ceremony that awaits her on her eighteenth birthday. What Beth doesn’t know is the truth about her sister Kate, who escaped their strange town over a decade ago and has evaded the Mayor and his disciples ever since.

What Curtis doesn’t know is that Kate is the woman he’s fallen in love with, and she’s running from a threat far greater than the mobsters who want to kill him. His fate collides with Beth’s as she tries to escape Harlow and the disgusting fate that awaits her, and Curtis finds himself unraveling a mystery that leads to an impossible and terrifying conclusion―that the Mayor of Harlow is more than just a man, and the hardest target he’s ever tried to kill.

"Venturini doesn't write in words and sentences. Instead, he lines the page with barbwire, concertina wire and spike strips that deliver the story deep into the reader's skin." –#1 New York Times Bestselling Author Chuck Palahniuk

A town ruled by evil. A man ruled by darkness. Only one can survive.

Curtis Quinn is a Chicago mob legend with a particular set of skills and a price on his head. When the woman he loves disappears, Curtis follows her trail to the occult town of Harlow, where no one is allowed to leave, and an enigmatic, sinister overlord known only as “the Mayor” rules by an autocratic regime.

Beth Jarvis is a plucky teenager unwrapping the secrets of her hometown—Harlow—and the mysterious ceremony that awaits her on her eighteenth birthday. What Beth doesn’t know is the truth about her sister Kate, who escaped their strange town over a decade ago and has evaded the Mayor and his disciples ever since.

What Curtis doesn’t know is that Kate is the woman he’s fallen in love with, and she’s running from a threat far greater than the mobsters who want to kill him. His fate collides with Beth’s as she tries to escape Harlow and the disgusting fate that awaits her, and Curtis finds himself unraveling a mystery that leads to an impossible and terrifying conclusion―that the Mayor of Harlow is more than just a man, and the hardest target he’s ever tried to kill.

When a renowned scientist with a solution for global warming is kidnapped at sea, FBI Special Agent Tara Shores must unravel a high-tech trail of S.O.S. messages encoded into the DNA of living cells. As each decoded message brings Tara nearer to the missing genius, it also takes her farther from help than she ever thought possible.

When a renowned scientist with a solution for global warming is kidnapped at sea, FBI Special Agent Tara Shores must unravel a high-tech trail of S.O.S. messages encoded into the DNA of living cells. As each decoded message brings Tara nearer to the missing genius, it also takes her farther from help than she ever thought possible.

A 2023 Next Generation Indie Book Award Finalist for Best General Fiction

Dave is a Dad with Asperger's.

He sees the world differently than most, and he feels like he has no idea what he’s doing when it comes to raising his 15-year-old daughter, Cleo. She also feels like he has no idea what he’s doing, especially now that her mom is gone.

They were both better off when Jana was around—Dave's wife, Cleo's mother. But now she's not, and they are left to figure out life on their own. Dave dedicates his attention to his newfound hobby of doomsday prepping, researching the various ways the world could end. Cleo feels like her world already has.

Everything changes when neighbors move in, threatening their isolation in the hills of San Juan Capistrano. Cleo is intrigued by the new girl, Edie, and soon finds out the intrigue is mutual. Dave, not at all intrigued, is forced to come to terms with everything he cannot control.

As they struggle to live in the present, both Dave and Cleo must dare to revisit the tragic past they share. What happened to Jana? Who was she, really? Who are they without her?

Ways the World Could End is a story of grief, friendship, and love—the love between parents and children, between spouses, between teenagers, and between strangers. It is a story that requires us to consider the bounds of forgiveness, what we’re willing and not willing to forgive, and reminds us that often the hardest thing to forgive is ourselves.

A 2023 Next Generation Indie Book Award Finalist for Best General Fiction

Dave is a Dad with Asperger's.

He sees the world differently than most, and he feels like he has no idea what he’s doing when it comes to raising his 15-year-old daughter, Cleo. She also feels like he has no idea what he’s doing, especially now that her mom is gone.

They were both better off when Jana was around—Dave's wife, Cleo's mother. But now she's not, and they are left to figure out life on their own. Dave dedicates his attention to his newfound hobby of doomsday prepping, researching the various ways the world could end. Cleo feels like her world already has.

Everything changes when neighbors move in, threatening their isolation in the hills of San Juan Capistrano. Cleo is intrigued by the new girl, Edie, and soon finds out the intrigue is mutual. Dave, not at all intrigued, is forced to come to terms with everything he cannot control.

As they struggle to live in the present, both Dave and Cleo must dare to revisit the tragic past they share. What happened to Jana? Who was she, really? Who are they without her?

Ways the World Could End is a story of grief, friendship, and love—the love between parents and children, between spouses, between teenagers, and between strangers. It is a story that requires us to consider the bounds of forgiveness, what we’re willing and not willing to forgive, and reminds us that often the hardest thing to forgive is ourselves.

“What appears to be a humorous story set in Indiana farm country becomes a thriller with multiple shocking twists. Fans of TV's Dexter might want to try this disquieting book from Scott.” —Library Journal

In the early 1980s, a tight-knit Indiana community is struck by a series of violent murders.

Father Solomon Lancaster—the town’s dry-witted sheriff and priest at the community Catholic church—finds himself on the forefront of the investigation. Soon, he’s fighting to match wits with the serial killer terrorizing his town while trying to justify his law enforcement credentials to the FBI as their analysts and profilers take Crooked Creek, Indiana, by storm.

But Father Solomon is hiding secrets of his own. Ones that threaten to rise to the surface as the murders continue and the investigation draws nearer to the truth. As the killer begins to escalate, Father Solomon finds that even the innocent have dark sides, and trust might be the deadliest weapon of all.

“What appears to be a humorous story set in Indiana farm country becomes a thriller with multiple shocking twists. Fans of TV's Dexter might want to try this disquieting book from Scott.” —Library Journal

In the early 1980s, a tight-knit Indiana community is struck by a series of violent murders.

Father Solomon Lancaster—the town’s dry-witted sheriff and priest at the community Catholic church—finds himself on the forefront of the investigation. Soon, he’s fighting to match wits with the serial killer terrorizing his town while trying to justify his law enforcement credentials to the FBI as their analysts and profilers take Crooked Creek, Indiana, by storm.

But Father Solomon is hiding secrets of his own. Ones that threaten to rise to the surface as the murders continue and the investigation draws nearer to the truth. As the killer begins to escalate, Father Solomon finds that even the innocent have dark sides, and trust might be the deadliest weapon of all.

"Where Have You Gone Without Me? is a wildly entertaining romp across the gritty sidewalks of New York with a streetwise newspaperman. Bonventre is a compelling storyteller. Once I started reading, I couldn't stop. It's one hell of a yarn!" -Howard Blum, New York Times bestselling author of The Last Goodnight and Dark Invasion

"Let’s see: There’s a religious miracle (maybe) and a headline-grabbing murder (definitely), a psycho gangster with a bizarre dream and a long-lost love who suddenly makes the scene. And that’s not all. Where Have You Gone Without Me? is a Must Read—so what’re you waiting for?" -Maxine Paetro, co-author with James Patterson of No. 1 New York Times Best Sellers

In the heart of New York City, newspaper columnist Eddie Sabella stumbles into the biggest story of his life when a statue is stolen from a church. Not just any statue, but one that was reported to have miraculously wept real tears only the day before—an event that made headlines. As Eddie pursues the story behind the theft, he begins unravelling a mystery that leads him to cross paths with a cast of unusual suspects: a respected restauranteur with a secret past, a cantankerous priest with expensive tastes, a legendary hitman, and a still-volatile Mafia soldier hungry for revenge.

As Eddie rushes to track down the mastermind behind the statue’s theft, his investigation takes him deeper than he could have ever imagined into murders, mobsters, and head-spinning crimes. But nothing could have prepared him for Phyllis—Eddie’s first love who disappeared without a trace fifteen years before—an enigma in her own right who makes a startling return and upends his personal life. A mystery with non-stop twists and suspense, Where Have You Gone Without Me? is a story of lovers and losers, revenge, and second chances.

"Where Have You Gone Without Me? is a wildly entertaining romp across the gritty sidewalks of New York with a streetwise newspaperman. Bonventre is a compelling storyteller. Once I started reading, I couldn't stop. It's one hell of a yarn!" -Howard Blum, New York Times bestselling author of The Last Goodnight and Dark Invasion

"Let’s see: There’s a religious miracle (maybe) and a headline-grabbing murder (definitely), a psycho gangster with a bizarre dream and a long-lost love who suddenly makes the scene. And that’s not all. Where Have You Gone Without Me? is a Must Read—so what’re you waiting for?" -Maxine Paetro, co-author with James Patterson of No. 1 New York Times Best Sellers

In the heart of New York City, newspaper columnist Eddie Sabella stumbles into the biggest story of his life when a statue is stolen from a church. Not just any statue, but one that was reported to have miraculously wept real tears only the day before—an event that made headlines. As Eddie pursues the story behind the theft, he begins unravelling a mystery that leads him to cross paths with a cast of unusual suspects: a respected restauranteur with a secret past, a cantankerous priest with expensive tastes, a legendary hitman, and a still-volatile Mafia soldier hungry for revenge.

As Eddie rushes to track down the mastermind behind the statue’s theft, his investigation takes him deeper than he could have ever imagined into murders, mobsters, and head-spinning crimes. But nothing could have prepared him for Phyllis—Eddie’s first love who disappeared without a trace fifteen years before—an enigma in her own right who makes a startling return and upends his personal life. A mystery with non-stop twists and suspense, Where Have You Gone Without Me? is a story of lovers and losers, revenge, and second chances.

Essien of Alkebulan returns in this gripping sequel to Descendants of Fire & Water.

Rescued from the clutches of President Gabriel by Enyemaka, Essien flees into the wilderness of Alkebulan, finding herself amongst a group of rebels who seek to dismantle the very regime she used to serve. She quickly becomes a reluctant participant of the rebel cause, desperate to gain control over the flames that threaten to overwhelm her, only to discover she’s simply traded one captivity for another.

Determined not to be caged, she goes on the run from both the rebels and the President. But Gabriel cannot be so easily shaken, nor ignored. Using Enyemaka as leverage, Gabriel convinces Essien to return to him, this time bonded, to fulfill the Mothers’ prophecy of the pair ruling Alkebulan together. But first, Essien must convince all of Alkebulan to crown her Queen. As the pressures of the campaign and Gabriel’s desire threaten to break her, Essien must decide what pieces of herself she’s willing to sacrifice for the good of her people.

Seductive and disturbing, Wielders of Floods & Flames takes readers on a journey of captivity, resistance, and reclamation.

Essien of Alkebulan returns in this gripping sequel to Descendants of Fire & Water.

Rescued from the clutches of President Gabriel by Enyemaka, Essien flees into the wilderness of Alkebulan, finding herself amongst a group of rebels who seek to dismantle the very regime she used to serve. She quickly becomes a reluctant participant of the rebel cause, desperate to gain control over the flames that threaten to overwhelm her, only to discover she’s simply traded one captivity for another.

Determined not to be caged, she goes on the run from both the rebels and the President. But Gabriel cannot be so easily shaken, nor ignored. Using Enyemaka as leverage, Gabriel convinces Essien to return to him, this time bonded, to fulfill the Mothers’ prophecy of the pair ruling Alkebulan together. But first, Essien must convince all of Alkebulan to crown her Queen. As the pressures of the campaign and Gabriel’s desire threaten to break her, Essien must decide what pieces of herself she’s willing to sacrifice for the good of her people.

Seductive and disturbing, Wielders of Floods & Flames takes readers on a journey of captivity, resistance, and reclamation.

Grace Adair is your typical suburban mom, except for one little secret...

She's also a member of a 700-year-old order of assassins sacred to the Archangel Gabriel and sworn to remove evil men who elude man's justice. Think #MeToo with a poison solution. But when a death at the Library Book Fair turns out to be murder by a poison used only by her ancient sisterhood, Grace knows she's in trouble. 

In Wrong Poison, Grace will need all her skills as a PTA mom and former prosecutor to find the killer and protect her friends...and their secrets. Hopefully without using her other skills. With the unwitting help of her diverse and colorful parent pals, Scotchie the Giant Dog, and her clueless defense lawyer husband, Grace tracks the killer, unearthing all kinds of suburban secrets along the way. 

Can she protect her friends and her sisterhood? Or is it the end of the centuries-old sisterhood—and Grace herself? One thing's for sure: you've never met a mom quite like Grace. 

A comically unorthodox “biography”

Spanning from the birth of Ulysses S. Grant until his victory over the Confederacy, You, Me, and Ulysses S. Grant gives us an honest portrait of an American hero who struggled to balance love, soldiering, and the attainment of the American Dream.

Taking the accessible, pop history of Coe’s You Never Forget Your First and adding more of the nerdy, punk humor of Rainn Wilson or Judd Apatow, You, Me, and Ulysses S. Grant is for both history and humor readers alike. Examining the validity of biography by hilariously breaking all the form's rules, this book removes the pomp to deliver a hopeful message of human potential: that the heroes we now venerate were also flawed, flesh and blood individuals and that we, too, are never too small to achieve great things. 

In bringing Grant to life, Brad Neely may have created his greatest cult classic yet.

A comically unorthodox “biography”

Spanning from the birth of Ulysses S. Grant until his victory over the Confederacy, You, Me, and Ulysses S. Grant gives us an honest portrait of an American hero who struggled to balance love, soldiering, and the attainment of the American Dream.

Taking the accessible, pop history of Coe’s You Never Forget Your First and adding more of the nerdy, punk humor of Rainn Wilson or Judd Apatow, You, Me, and Ulysses S. Grant is for both history and humor readers alike. Examining the validity of biography by hilariously breaking all the form's rules, this book removes the pomp to deliver a hopeful message of human potential: that the heroes we now venerate were also flawed, flesh and blood individuals and that we, too, are never too small to achieve great things. 

In bringing Grant to life, Brad Neely may have created his greatest cult classic yet.