In-Sight by Jerry Webster

Ward McNulty had it all…his own syndicated column, the love of the beautiful co-anchor for Channel Five News, and powerful friends—including congressional hopeful, Chet Garner. But in his pursuit of wealth and fame, Ward had distanced himself from his traditional Catholic family—especially his father—a common man with very uncommon insight.

State Senator Garner convinces Ward to support the conversion of the sleepy island town of Timuqua into an exclusive resort to be named “North Beach.” However, this pits Ward against his own father—a resident of the island—in a bitter eminent domain battle. Too late Ward learns that North Beach’s financial backers are not who or what they appear. And when Ward balks at being asked to slander his father’s attorney, he suddenly finds himself blind, broken, and charged with DUI manslaughter. Overnight, the whole structure of Ward’s “successful” life comes crashing down around him. He loses his job, his girlfriend, his eyesight, and is about to lose his freedom. When all his former “friends” abandon him, Ward turns to the only man who’ll stand by his side—his father.

In the meantime, North Beach’s financial backers will stop at nothing—including murder—to get what they want. In the ensuing struggle, Ward learns the secret of his father’s uncanny insight and the true meaning of sacrificial love.

In-Sight is the story of fall, forgiveness, and redemption…of deeply instilled family values triumphing over a culture gone awry…and of a lost son coming home. It’s for anyone who believes that God has a hand in destiny and is not completely surprised when He draws back the curtain for a brief instant and allows a glimpse at another reality.

Purchase http://outskirtspress.com/insight.

Interview with Jerry Webster:

Q. Why did you write this book?
R. About three years ago I was on a silent retreat. One of the meditations was on the gospel of the talents and we were challenged to think about what talents we had that we’d never used for the Lord. My BA was in English Lit., but I’d never done much with it. By the time the retreat ended, I decided to try to write fiction—but fiction that would serve the Master. However, I had no idea of where to begin. So I turned to prayer and meditation for inspiration. All I got in return were intrusive thoughts about a movie one of my kids had rented called Shallow Hal. It was about a very superficial young man who judged everyone by their looks—their beauty or lack thereof…until he was hypnotized to see their inner character rather than their outward appearance.

Every time I tried to think of something to write about, the memory of Shallow Hal kept pounding at my mind’s door. Finally I discussed it with a spiritual mentor, and he suggested that—instead of purging the intrusive thought—I should go with it and see where it leads.
That night I got home, grabbed a pad of paper, and starting writing down “What if” questions. What if a man really could see inside others—their character instead of only their looks. What if a worldly, selfish, sinful man could see the condition of his own soul…whether he was alive with divine grace, dead in mortal sin, or “wounded” by past sins? How would that affect him? How would it affect his relationship with others?

From that thin thread of an idea, the plot for In-Sight was born.

Q. What was the hardest part?
R. Initially, the hardest part was in trying to come up with a scenario in which the protagonist, Ward McNulty, could develop in-sight into his own and others’ souls. It had to be placed in a context that made it believable. Before even beginning, I did some research into other men who had actually possessed this gift—Don Boscoe, Padre Pio, and the Cure d’ Ars—to name just a few. Then I coincidentally happened to read about a woman who was temporarily blinded after being thrown from a horse. So I did some research on temporary blindness caused by trauma. When I put these two together, I was able to come up with a plausible scenario in which a formerly healthy young man might be temporarily blinded—and in which his “sight” would be altered when he emerged from his physical blindness.

Q. What was the easiest or most fun?
R. I really had a lot of fun with a minor character, Emma Lee Wheeler, who plays a significant role at the end of the novel. She was an elderly black woman who worked nights on a hospital janitorial staff so she could help her daughter and two grandchildren. She was also a spiritual delight—a very kind woman who reflected God’s love on everyone she met. She and Ward developed a bantering relationship while he was hospitalized after his DUI accident. The give and take of their exchanges was a lot of fun to write. I was smiling almost the whole time—and I watched my wife smile, too, when she proof-read the novel and got to that part in the book. I think it was the most fun I had while pounding out the story.

Q. What do you hope people get from your book?
R. I hope that they’re entertained. Otherwise I would have written pure apologetics. But by weaving a moral into an entertaining tale, I hope that the moral will make more of an impact.

Most of all, I hope that the readers will recognize the spiritual realities of their own souls—that it might cause them to look inside and wonder what they would see if they had in-sight. I remember a saintly friend of mine once told me the story of how he had asked God to allow him to “see” his sin. How God granted him that grace—and how he wept bitterly for hours afterwards and was finally consoled beyond anything he’d ever experienced by the sense of overwhelming love and forgiveness.

The other thing I hope readers get out of In-Sight is some sense of God’s love for us—no matter what we’ve done—the knowledge that He can and does forgive all…if we just ask.

Q. How do you want to be remembered as an author?
R. I’d like to be remembered as a man who could spin a good yarn with a good message. If all I had wanted to do was to entertain, writing In-Sight would have been a lot easier. I love the old classics that weaved a moral seamlessly into the thread of the story so that the reader absorbed it almost without being aware that it was happening. That’s a goal of mine. Hopefully, as I write more and become better at the craft, I’ll be better able to emulate those masters of yore.

Higher Honor by S.M. Kirkland

When Cadet Cassidy Sanders is brutally assaulted, she struggles to carry on as she turns further from the God of her youth. Her attacker is an acquaintance who has his own struggles to face. God uses their mutual friends to show both cadets the depth
of his grace and mercy.

Higher Honor is set within the sub-culture of America’s military colleges. The novel focuses on the elements of honor, brotherhood, duty, and the spirit of the characters to face and overcome challenges that grow them into the military’s
next generation of strong, capable leaders. The realism of Higher Honor’s setting and plot is a result of experience, observation, and much research.



Review:

Higher Honor is the story about a rape and how it affects not only the victim, but the perpetrator and their friends. Kirkland handles the situation--including the actual rape itself--with realism yet delicacy, so that you get the horror of the situation without the morbidity. Even more, she successfully portrays the emotional and psychological trauma Cassidy goes through--and does a convincing job of making Chris, the rapist, a believable and very human character instead of a cardboard human.

One of the themes is learning to depend on God, and finding strength in God's love. I think Cassidy explained it best when she told a support group that she had to remember that God defines who she is--not those few horrible minutes in the shower. For that line alone, this book will remain with me forever.
There is also an important theme of forgiveness, though I was not so pleased at her willingness to defend her rapist when he went to turn himself in. I was glad leveler heads prevailed.

I thought a few parts of it--like her recovery after she rediscovered Christ in her life--a little too easy, but not unbelievably so. Overall, a very good book, and I think many that Christians, especially any who have been in Cassidy's situation, will identify with her.





ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

S.M. Kirkland brings firsthand experience to her fiction.
While a student at North Georgia College and State
University (the senior military college of Georgia) she
enlisted in the Georgia Army National Guard. During a 10-
year military career, she served as a photo- and broadcast
journalist while serving in Italy and for the 1996 Summer
Olympic Games in Atlanta.

Kirkland currently works for the Calhoun Times as the
government reporter and her feature stories have appeared
in newspapers nationwide. Her first fiction publication was
a short story “Fair Balance” included in the anthology Light
at the Edge of Darkness (TWCP, 2007). This story received
several rave reviews.

Jumble Pie by Melanie Lynne Hauser

JUMBLE PIE is the story of the elusive nature of friendship, sometimes clinging, other times liberating; a story for any woman who has ever lied to her best friend just to make her feel better - and who has been brave enough to tell the truth, even when it hurts. And of course, it's a story about the remarkable healing power of pie.

"IN THE BEGINNING, there was the pie. The pie was without form and texture (and any manner of identifiable filling), and darkness was upon the face of the Home Ec Teacher…"

So begins the story of two women, a friendship, and a pie. JUMBLE PIE, to be exact. A Home Ec project gone very wrong, except for the fact that it brings together two very different young girls and helps them form a friendship that lasts through bad haircuts, unrequited love, endless incarnations of Madonna, and their own evolving dreams... Until New Year's Eve, 1999, when another pie comes along, resulting in a pre-party blow-up that sets Juliet and Emily, women now, to remembering how it all got started.



More about Melanie Lynne Hauser

Review:

Get ready to laugh, cry and find yourself totally involved in the lives of Emily and Juliet as they share a friendship that begins, ends and begins anew with pie.

"Girlfriend lit" isn't usually my thing, but I get drawn into the quirky yet very real characters right off. Hauser has a knack for creating unique characters that are nonetheless very familiar. Emily reminded me a little of myself (brainy and thinking that guaranteed success) and my best friend, who can be clueless and impulsive. I thought her passion for big words was a little overdone in the chapters of their childhood, but not enough to make me put down the book--and believe me, I have low tolerance. Juliet really captured my heart. Not incredibly gifted, coming from a broken family, she blossoms in college and learns how to capitalize on her strengths.

I really enjoyed that aspect of the book--that you make the most of what God gives you. Emily, while brilliant, didn't understand that smarts are not enough--you need to work on your skills. Life does not guarantee you success. This is a theme I am constantly hammering home to my own children; I'll be giving Amber a copy of this book when she's older.

I definitely recommend this book!

Jesse’s Girl by Gary Morgenstein

How much should a parent sacrifice for a troubled child? In Gary Morgenstein’s taut new thriller, Jesse’s Girl, the answer is – anything. Anchored around a floundering father-son relationship, finding roots and re-uniting vanished bonds, the timely novel about teen addiction and adoption follows a desperate father’s search for his son, who has run away from a wilderness program to find his biological sister in Kentucky.

Jesse’s Girl opens as a jarring phone wakes lifelong Brooklynite Teddy Mentor well after midnight. It’s the Montana wilderness program saying that his 16-year-old adopted son has vanished – and they haven’t a clue where he’s gone. Only two weeks ago, Jesse had been taken to the program by escorts to deal with substance abuse problems.

Jeopardizing his flagging PR job in New York, Mentor rushes across the country to find Jesse, who is off on his own quest: to find Theresa, the sister he’s never known. When Teddy finally discovers Jesse at a bus stop in Illinois, he is torn between sending him back or joining his son on a journey to find this girl in Kentucky. He decides to go. They become embroiled in a grisly crime when Theresa’s abusive husband Beau attacks her – Jesse stabs the big beast of a man, leaving him for dead.

Given Jesse’s misdemeanor criminal record, Teddy can’t go to the authorities without risking his son’s arrest. However, Beau is not dead, merely wounded, and he hunts them down, thirsty for revenge. Teddy, Jesse and Theresa flee across the Bluegrass State with Beau in hot pursuit. Seeking safety but finding trouble, their story leads them to an ultimately shattering question: is Theresa really Jesse’s sister or has he been scammed?

Gary Morgenstein’s previous novels are Take Me Out to the Ballgame and The Man Who Wanted to Play Center Field for the New York Yankees. His latest novel Loving Rabbi Thalia Kleinman, a romantic triangle about a divorced middle-aged man who falls in love with a beautiful rabbi, was just published on Amazon.com. His play Ponzi Man played to sell-out crowds at a recent New York Fringe Festival.



Interview with Gary Morgenstein:

1. Why did you write this book?

Along with “Loving Rabbi Thalia Kleinman,” this comprises both sides of my Baby Boomer head and soul and heart: Love and parenthood. In "Jesse's Girl," I wrote from the perspective of a father of a teenager, which is fairly rare. Since we’ve lived in the caves, generation after generation it has been the duty of teenagers to torture their parents. As an adoptive Dad, I wanted to find a story that would weave in a father and son’s floundering relationship besieged by troubling issues on both sides -- a teen struggling with addiction and a father who feels he has failed as a parent. Then let all hell break loose over them and send them into a cauldron of a thriller, pursued both by the police and a deranged killer.

2. What was your favorite part of writing this?

My old and very dear friend who is my brother, John Balchunas, inspired the character of Klaus Weber. I had such fun writing Klaus and seeing what was sort of like him, but wasn’t entirely. Some things I wrote about Klaus, I said to John, that is how it really happened isn’t it, and he said no, and I said, well, I like my version better, more dramatic, feel free to use that for your life story. That is a very slippery mental slope to start on....Anyway, John, who lives in Madisonville, Kentucky (where several climactic scenes in the novel are based), was my unofficial “Bluegrass State” advisor. I’d worked in Kentucky for the now defunct Kentucky Post. Over the years I’d visit John, who’d lived in various parts of the state pretty much since we graduated college. But that’s not quite the same as living there. I’d be writing a passage and I’d email him, okay, if the characters are heading west from here, what road would they take…?

3. Where did you get the idea for this book?

I’ve never written about being a father. Maybe because it’s the hardest thing to write about since parenting is such a bewildering and painful confluence of emotions. In the novel (yes it is arrogant to quote yourself but bear with me), the protagonist, Teddy Mentor, talks about how when we marry we recite the vow “‘til death do us part.” Which is nonsense, as someone who is no longer married can attest. Or as the divorce rate can attest for that matter. But that vow really applies to being a parent. Take all the intense life-changing love and loyalty and feelings you have for your child, the way it changes when they become teens and aren’t your little doting boy anymore. Then blend in the anger and resentment and bristling rage that the parent of a teen battling the illness of addiction feels. Like could you please become an astronaut and blast off into space and leave me alone? Any parent who says they haven’t felt that -- or even said it -- are simply lying. This novel is my way of talking to all those parents and saying, you are not crazy. Hang in there. It will get better.

4. Are you a father? Were parts of it hard to write, emotionally, because of that?

Oh, there were times when I brought myself to tears. There’s nothing so nakedly raw as writing a difficult scene depicting the relationship with your child, because it is always layered with the emotional footprints of reality. Sometimes I’d have to break off because it was so agonizing. Then again, you can write scenes where your child actually listens to you and shows you respect, so how is that for the miracle of writing?

5. What's next for you?

My novel "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" will be published by Amazon in June. It's a political baseball novel, taking the economic turmoil and fear of contemporary America and combining it with the fanaticism of a baseball town. In my novel, Buffalo, New York goes mad over their Cinderella team, the National League Buffalo Matadors, driven by a ruthless owner, devious spinmeister, fading journalist – and one fan who really believes the rival team is the enemy.

Havah: The Story of Eve by Tosca Lee

Lee’s superior storytelling will have readers weeping for all that Havah forfeited by a single damning choice.
--Publishers Weekly starred review

“Havah is brilliant and breathtaking, inspired and inspiring.”
--author Sharon K, Souza, author of Lying on Sunday

“The most creative, mind-twisting novel of the summer.”
--Infuzemag.com, on Demon: A Memoir

Learn more:
www.havahstoryofeve.com

Learn more about Tosca at: www.toscalee.com

Letters to Eric by An Wallace

Letters to Erik, a continuation of Gaston Leroux’s original Phantom of
the Opera story, has been released in paperback.

The author, An Wallace, is respectful and faithful to Leroux's original
story, while coming up with a very original plot. She gives “poor,
unhappy Erik” a second chance with the only woman he has ever loved, and
offers the reader a beautiful, romantic story with sweetness and depth.

It begins shortly after the Opera Ghost sends Christine away to marry
his rival, the handsome young Vicomte Raoul de Chagny. The Ghost, Erik,
makes her promise that she will return to bury him when he dies. Unable
to keep her word and tormented by grief and regret, she starts writing
letters to the man she believes to be dead—only to discover that some
Ghosts can never be laid to rest.

During the course of the book, “the author introduces us to Erik's true
family, deepens his friendship with the mysterious Persian, and ends the
book with a wonderful twist that will make Phantom fans smile the world
over.” (Quote was taken from an online review by "Phantomesque" and provided by An Wallace.)

An's author page: www.outskirtspress.com/anwallace

Demon Alcohol and the Monstermen by Kenneth James Kirsch

Demon Alcohol and the Monstermen is the story of one little girl’s struggles to overcome generations of alcoholism.

Leysa Henko immigrates to America from Russia with her family in 1917, with all the optimism of a four-year-old. Leysa’s world begins to crumble when her abusive alcoholic father, Devak, opens a pub in Tallenook, Pennsylvania, during Prohibition. When her adoring mother Ionna dies of tuberculosis, Leysa and her older sister Maryska are left at the mercy of Devak and his abusive bar cronies—the Monstermen. Devak presses them into service to save his tavern by delivering vodka door-to-door—alone—to Tallenook’s horrific alcoholic “shut-ins.”

The spirits of family members passed on reach out to help Leysa. As Leysa grows older and more bitter, she loses touch and her life spirals out of control.

Will Leysa find the peace she so desperately needs before alcoholism claims another generation of Henkos?

FROM THE AUTHOR:

Leysa Henko’s struggles, and those of the characters in this book, are loosely based on people I’ve met throughout my life in the better – and worse – parts of this state. Demon Alcohol and the Monstermen is the story of just one Pennsylvania family’s struggles, but the scenes in this morality play may well play out in thousands of households in some of the more despair-ridden corners of the state, if not across the United States.

I wanted to turn the tables on alcoholism as a disease and focus on the other victims, the real victims. Groups such as Al-Anon and Alateen do such a tremendous job helping those victimized by alcoholism to live fulfilling lives and find peace that I decided to write a novel that focused on their struggles, on their daily triumphs and tragedies.

I hope this book helps those people who are impacted by this disease find a little peace in their lives.

Order at Amazon.

Bubba & Giganto: Odds Against Them By Lea Schizas

Bubba hates it when his dad gets a contract for a new project. That means uprooting the family from one city and moving to another. Attending a new school is a major pet peeve of his. His smart alecky nature attracts the bullies in every school heʼs attended.

On the first day of school, Bubba bumps into this rather large student. Fearing a confrontation, he wears his tough guy attitude and waits for the punches to begin. Remarkably, the new student apologizes, and Bubba and David (aka Giganto as Bubba eventually nicknames him) become best friends.

Bubba and Giganto try out for the high school soccer team, and thatʼs when trouble begins. Bubba knew eventually heʼd meet the bullies of the school, and he was right.

In the first initial weeks, Bubba learns about a death that occurred the previous year; faces the bullies on several occasions; helps Giganto practice soccer before tryouts; and challenges the bullies to a scrimmage.

Little does Bubba know Giganto holds a secret - one that will place Giganto in a deadly situation.

WHERE TO BUY:

Amazon.com

4RV Publishing

Barnes & Noble

Secret Lives of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

I've had to get tough on my guidelines, so I'm waiting on some authors to send me links and cover art for their books. (This is good news for you authors because I have several openings!) In the meantime, I bought Secret lives of Bees on a whim and adored it! Every sentence was beautifully written and the entire story was delightful to read. I highly recommend it!

Amazon Says: In Sue Monk Kidd's The Secret Life of Bees, 14-year-old Lily Owen, neglected by her father and isolated on their Georgia peach farm, spends hours imagining a blissful infancy when she was loved and nurtured by her mother, Deborah, whom she barely remembers. These consoling fantasies are her heart's answer to the family story that as a child, in unclear circumstances, Lily accidentally shot and killed her mother. All Lily has left of Deborah is a strange image of a Black Madonna, with the words "Tiburon, South Carolina" scrawled on the back. The search for a mother, and the need to mother oneself, are crucial elements in this well-written coming-of-age story set in the early 1960s against a background of racial violence and unrest. When Lily's beloved nanny, Rosaleen, manages to insult a group of angry white men on her way to register to vote and has to skip town, Lily takes the opportunity to go with her, fleeing to the only place she can think of--Tiburon, South Carolina--determined to find out more about her dead mother. Although the plot threads are too neatly trimmed, The Secret Life of Bees is a carefully crafted novel with an inspired depiction of character. The legend of the Black Madonna and the brave, kind, peculiar women who perpetuate Lily's story dominate the second half of the book, placing Kidd's debut novel squarely in the honored tradition of the Southern Gothic. --Regina Marler --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Buy it at Amazon.

Sweetgum Knit Lit Society by Beth Pattillo

Beth Pattillo (Heavens to Betsy and Earth to Betsy) knows how to follow a dream—even with a pile of publishing industry rejection slips to her name. She spent seven years on the path to her first publishing contract, and the characters in her new novel, The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society, embrace Pattillo’s persistence.

Eugenie, Ruth, Esther, Merry, and Camille are not perfect women. They each struggle with love in their own way—unrequited love, forbidden love, overwhelming love, even lost love. Yet they battle on, meeting every month in the Pairs and Spares Sunday school room to knit, discuss that month’s book selection, and puzzle out their lives.

When Eugenie throws neglected and abused teenager Hannah Simmons into their midst, however, walls decades in the making come crashing down. With secrets thrown on the table amid the tangle of yarn, needles and books, one thing becomes certain: The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society will soon discover what’s most important in the complicated lives they lead.

Read more here.

Order from Amazon.

Passport by Christopher Blunt: A REVIEW

Catholics consider the loving but platonic relationship between Joseph and Mary as something to admire; and indeed, some married saints even followed in their example. But in this modern age, where we believe we can have everything if we just work it right, do we consider the platonic marriage a romantic one? Christopher Blunt's Passport shouts unequivocally, "Yes!"

Stan Eigenbaur, is a thirty-something virgin looking for the perfect Catholic wife. Through a friend, Angie, he meets Trihn, who while not Catholic, is nonetheless cute, fun to talk to and at least accepting of his faith. However, when she confesses that she is legally divorced but has not had her Catholic marriage annulled and doesn't care to, they decide to break up--but end up sleeping together, instead.
He realizes his sin, goes to Confession, and endeavors to put the whole thing behind him. He begins to court Angie. Then, as he's decided to propose, Trihn shows up at his doorstep with news that she's pregnant.

Thrown into a tailspin, he nonetheless manages to convince her not to have the abortion she'd planned. Further, he decides to dedicate his life to being a good father. To him, this means breaking up with Angie, moving into the basement of his apartment complex and giving Trihn his old place, and sharing in the responsibilities of full-time parenthood in a platonic relationship with her. However, she insists on a legal marriage in order to protect their child's interests. So they begin their unusual life as husband and wife, living in separate apartments, but nonetheless dealing with all the issues of marriage--finances, chores, and caring for their son Joseph.

I have to admit, at one point I almost tossed the book away because I was mad at Stan. First, he makes a really stupid mistake, giving into temptation with a woman he barely knew--but knew enough to believe she was wrong for him. Then he throws away his chance at a wonderful marriage to a great girl because he didn't think a part-time father-son relationship was good enough for his kid. Was this guy just too proud, or did he have a martyr complex?

However, Christopher's excellent writing had me sucked in; I had to know how it turned out.

I'm so glad I did.

Christopher writes eloquently and realistically about the issues of parenting--from the typical first-time parent misunderstandings to the ordinary touching moments when love overwhelms you. As we watch Stan struggle to make the "just friends" marriage work, we nonetheless see the issues any marriage faces: the struggle for private time when a baby has 24-7 demands, making sacrifices in one's career to accommodate the needs of the family; even the issues of sex in a relationship and the mixing of cultures as he becomes part of Trihn's Vietnamese family. A cast of friends from varying lifestyles brings depth and new points of view: his friend Jim, who has the big Catholic family Jim had aspired to; Rory, who until near the end of the book was content to just live with his lover; and Xuan, who was struggling with the American Dream life--a doctor married to a doctor, he and his wife worked opposite shifts, which meant he and Stan often "Mr. Mommed" together.

The male point of view dominates the story, making it not only a great read for us ladies, but also for the guys who like well-done literature that doesn’t involve handguns, spaceships, or longswords. (It's got cars, though!) And although in the end, Trihn not only gets her annulment but converts and agrees to marry Stan, it's a fantastic, believable look at how two people can grow in love without physical romance.




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No Shadows Left Behind by Tina-Sue Ducross

There is no escape from the shadows of the past. At least, not for Melissa…

Terrorizing dreams, panic attacks and everyday interactions bring back the past she thought was dead and gone.

Eight-grade teacher Melissa Bates suspects that one of her students, Christy Kade, is coping with an all-too familiar struggle. Christy's father plays "secret, special games" with her. She lives in fear and isolation daily. When she gains a desperately needed friendship, she begins to search for the courage to reach out for help.

Throughout the school year, Christy and Melissa face challenges both mundane and monumental. Through it all, they live their lives, haunted by their shadows. Despite their fears, they make attempts at trust with unexpected results. As our heroines open themselves up, they grow in ways they never thought possible.

Ugly things do happen behind closed doors but help and hope do exist. Broken lives can be mended, joy can be found.

ISBN-10: 0-9816055-0-8
ISBN-13: 978-0-9816055-0-0
Published by Harris Innovations
To order please visit:
http://harrisinnovationspublishing.com/

Stand by Debbie Williamson

One courageous woman shatters the chains of abuse that bound her family for generations and dares to brave the crippling memories of sexual abuse; shatter the illusions of denial; reveal her family s bitter legacy of violence; reach for healing and wholeness, and take her place on a path to forgiveness and peace. Replacing shame with hope, fear with truth, and shadows with light, Debbie Williamson shares her arduous journey to wellness. She did not choose this journey. At nine years old, she was a victim of sexual abuse. The hidden trauma of childhood rape often maps a life filled with destructive patterns and shame. Such was almost the case for Ms. Williamson. As a young woman struggling to repair her family, she finds the courage to take a STAND. Grasping for health because her life truly depends upon it, she uncovers and shatters her family s tragic tradition of violence. With focus and conviction, Debbie Williamson overcomes a lifetime of denial to heal herself and protect the next generation.

Excerpt from the book:

Introduction

The details of my suicide were planned right down to the final moment. I envisioned it clearly. On the appointed evening, I would drive home from work as usual, pick up speed, aim for the large oak tree that was near the shoulder of the road by my house and crash head on.

Everyone would believe it was an accident. My children would never know that I did it intentionally. I would be free at last. No more would I have to live my life.

That was my glorified version of how to step out of this life; it did not happen.

Instead, I swallowed a bottle of sleeping pills and went to bed one afternoon. I woke up in the emergency room drinking charcoal. My daughter had found me and called her dad to tell him she couldn’t wake me up.

After that event, the ultimate shame hovered over me like a swarm of bees. The constant buzzing relentlessly reminded me of what I had just done to my children.
Two days after I got home from the hospital I called a friend who recommended a self-help program. Two weeks later, I was on my way to Boise, Idaho for what turned out to be a life-saving event. From that point forward, I began to live my life. Do you ever wonder how you got to where you are in life? And then wondered why you made the choices you did? I’ve asked myself these questions most of my adult life. I finally figured it out for myself, and my story has a happy ending.

My story includes three generations of abominable abuse of the darkest variety: sexual, emotional, and mental. My story sheds light on the shadow side of the adult human who uses children to relieve his sexual appetites and need for power and domination over the innocent and helpless. But my story ends in triumph instead of despair.

Being raped and sexually abused as a child imprisoned me in a lifetime of emotional and mental anguish. Not only did I survive and triumph, I found great happiness. I want to share the how and why with you.

We all have a story to tell and I am hoping mine will make a difference to someone out there. It is my hope that you won’t feel alone or think of yourself as another tragic statistic who dreams of leaving by the back door of suicide as I once did.
Yes, I wrote this story to give you hope because it is an inspirational and triumphant coming-of-age memoir. I also wrote it for my children, that they may recognize the miracles that have been bestowed upon us and stopped this sickening cycle of abuse.


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Apologies Forthcoming by Xujun Eberlein

A totally illuminating collection of stories centered around China's Cultural Revolution and its aftermath, which, as we learn, continues even today-with both sides still holding out, with "apologies forthcoming." Xujun Eberlein lived in China during that tumultuous period and now makes her home in America. This, her first story collection, is both disturbing and enthralling.

Buy it at Amazon.

Reflections from Shadow: A Novel by Malcolm Watts

ISBN 1-4120-1419-0

Reflections from Shadow is an edgy coming of age novel of the 60's with some paranomral aspects related to WW II. Jared, the protagonist, has grown up having dreams of Nazi's and prisoners and has a large birthmark on his face. While backpacking in Europe in 1969 he visits Dachau concentration camp museum outside Munich Germany. He is transported to 1943 and can see what is happening in the camp. He learns a secret about himself that explains his "mark" his dreams, and threatens his survival.

Ordering Information: www.authorsden.com/malcolmwatts or
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Circle of Friends, Book Four: Mike by L. Diane Wolfe

Past mistakes can never be forgiven...

Mike Taylor is the epitome of stability. His family is proud of his academic and athletic achievements at Georgia Tech, and despite the temptations of college life, he has maintained his moral standards. Yet beneath the peaceful surface, Mike is consumed with guilt, fearing condemnation and rejection. A former girlfriend’s abortion and the intense love he feels for his roommate’s wife constantly remind Mike of his failures. Unable to forget and full of shame, he refuses to forgive himself. When Danielle enters his life, he realizes he can no longer hide the past. Will she be able to reach him or is Mike past the point of redemption?

An Interview with Joyce Anthony, Author of Storm

Just what DO an abused child, a prostitute, a disillusioned minister, a Vietnam vet and a homosexual have in common?
First--all of these belong to what I call "the forgotten"--people we meet every day, yet barely noticed and almost never get to know. Even the minister represents all those alone and lost in society. Secondly, my MC comes into all of their lives, and in some way changes all of them internally, except in one case where he is changed.

What drove you to write this story?
Storm wouldn't let me rest--I thought of him at odd hours of the day, dreamt of him at night--he wanted his story told and was determined I was going to tell it. I figured if I was going to get any rest, I'd better write the book :-)

Did anything in the characters or plot surprise you as you wrote it?
This book was full of surprises for me--Maggie, the amethyst-eyed
dog, just appeared out of nowhere--I didn't know she was there until she appeared. A couple other characters were the same way--it was almost as though I watched them walk into the story all on their own. I didn't do any outlining on this book. I knew the beginning and the end--and the rest just fell into place as I wrote. I started to feel at times like the story literally did write itself.

Why StarPublish for the publisher?
I wanted the control I could have with POD, but also wanted quality. I wanted to go with a place that actually was picky about what books they accepted--and was willing to speak up if something was lousy. Kristy Maguire, head of Star Publish, is like that--she maintains very high standards and isn't afraid to speak up, make suggestions, etc.. I trust her to see that I have put my best out there. In a way, I got the best of both worlds, quality that is expected by the big name publishers, yet more control that comes from POD.

What do you want readers to get from this book?
I want my readers to think. I want them to examine their lives and see the people around them in a different light. I want them to feel so strongly they can't just go about their lives as they are now--but instead need to act to change something, whether within themselves or within the world around them.

What are your future writing plans?
I am currently working on my second book, a nonfiction piece entitled Spirit of the Stallion. I also have two books planned out after that, a YA historical/paranormal entitled The Trees Remember and a young reader's book, The Gospel According to Rex.