Synopsis

Many people live lives riddled with outright anxiety and fear. Instead of happiness and ease being the normal state of existence, most experience happiness as only brief moments of joy, when some desire has been temporarily fulfilled. But it does not have to be this way; happiness can be recognized as our natural state of being.

According to author Kevin Krenitsky, a medical doctor and modern-day philosopher, we are in the midst of the biggest wave of awakening or self-realization this planet has ever seen. Our unconscious living has not only created stress, anxiety, wars, and famine; our choices have brought us to the edge of mass destruction. The earth has suffered greatly from our collective human unconsciousness.

In The Still Point, Krenitsky shows us a better way. He shows us how to discover and live our lives in alignment with our true self. More than just a mental concept, the Still Point is a felt experience of recognizing our own self-aware being. When the Still Point becomes obscured by giving exclusive focus to the noise of the outside world, we lose our feelings of peace and happiness.

Engaging and thought provoking, The Still Point takes readers on a journey of self-discovery, ultimately leading to the recognition that our self-aware nature is happiness and peace itself.

Amazon * B&N * IndieBound * Bookshop

Excerpt

THE PATHOLOGIC MOVEMENT OF MIND

An excerpt from The Still Point: The Simplicity of Spiritual Enlightenment by Kevin Krenitsky

It’s clear to most people that they have a limited span of attention. When concentrating our attention on a particular subject, it’s not usually long before the mind wanders off into the past or the future for something more “interesting” to ponder. Every student who has ever prepared for a school exam is likely familiar with this waning lack of ability to focus attention. What is not as obvious to humans is that our span of “inattention” is even less. Novice meditators often find this out very quickly as they first sit to meditate. Their minds simply refuse to cooperate as thoughts assail them almost continually. These thoughts arise in such rapid succession, and are often accompanied by correlating images, that it seems nearly impossible to recognize the pure field of stillness from which they arise. The reason for this is not the thoughts themselves, but the fact that we have been relentlessly conditioned to give attention to these thoughts. We believe, in essence, that we are our thinking minds and thus thoughts must be “followed” regardless of how rational or irrational they are. In fact, most people believe that their thoughts are a major part of their identity. They believe, and more importantly feel, that their thoughts are not only produced by them, but that they are essential to them. They believe if their brain became still and thought ceased, they would not be fully themselves. This could not be further from the truth. In fact, true peace can never be experienced until we recognize the vast, silent Still Point from which all thoughts arise. The Still Point is that which knows the thoughts that arise. When you say, “I know my thoughts,” you are correct because you are this vast self-aware Still Point. No thought has any ability to know itself, yet most people believe thoughts to be aware of themselves. Because of this, thoughts are closely followed while the awareness that is your true self, from which they arise and are known, is completely ignored. When thought arises from the timeless Still Point, a sense of passing time accompanies them. There can be no felt sense of time without thinking. In deep sleep, where thought is absent, time is not experienced. This is why it is completely essential to recognize the vast, peaceful field from which thought arises as being ever present and aware. This is meant to say that only the Still Point is aware. Any sensation, thought, or image you have ever experienced was known exclusively by this vast, silent presence. When you come to see this and recognize it is what you have called “I” your entire life, you recognize you are not your thoughts, and they are certainly not essential to you. You “are” before, during, and after thoughts have come and gone. This is the very seed of freedom from the false chains of the thinking mind. Thoughts do not need to be controlled or censored in any way, but simply allowed to rise and fall inside your vast aware-being.

Reprinted with permission from Waterside Productions Inc. 2022

About the Author

Kevin Krenitsky is a medical doctor and author of The Still Point. Despite leading a life deemed outwardly “successful”, he lived with a deep background of anxiety, fear, and stress that waxed and waned since early childhood. At the age of forty, in the midst of decades of suppressing tremendous inner and outer conflict, he reasoned there must be another way. This ‘willingness’ led to a decade of studying non-duality by way of A Course in Miracles. In 2015, at the height of a successful business career as Chief Commercial Officer at Foundation Medicine (FMI), Kevin turned away into relative isolation, and found the direct path to recognizing ones true nature. He wrote The Still Point to help others find their eternal nature, which is happiness itself.

Website * LinkedIn

Body and Soul Food (A Books & Biscuits Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Setting – Timber Lake, Washington (Near Seattle)
Berkley (November 9, 2021)
Mass Market Paperback ‏ : ‎ 336 pages

Synopsis

In this page-turning new mystery series, fraternal twins Keaton and Koby will pull double duty when they take down a killer while preparing to open their new bookstore and soul-food café, Books & Biscuits.

 

When Koby Hill and Keaton Rutledge were orphaned at age two, they were separated, but their unbreakable connection lingered. Years later, they reunite and decide to make up for lost time and capitalize on their shared interests by opening up a well-stocked bookstore and cozy soul-food café in the quaint Pacific Northwest town of Timber Lake. But this new chapter of their lives could end on a cliffhanger after Koby’s foster brother is found murdered.

The murder, which occurred in public between light-rail stops, seems impossible for the police to solve. But as Keaton and Koby know, two heads are always better than one, especially when it comes to mysteries. With just a week to go before the grand opening of their new café, the twins will use their revitalized connection with each other to make sure this is the killer’s final page.

Amazon * B&N * Kobo * Google Play

IndieBound *  Alibris * Penguin Random House

About the Author

Wall Street Journal bestselling author Abby Collette loves a good mystery. She was born and raised in Cleveland, and it’s a mystery even to her why she hasn’t yet moved to a warmer place. As Abby Collette, she is the author of the Ice Cream Parlor mystery series, about a millennial MBA-holding granddaughter running a family-owned ice cream shop in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, and the  Books & Biscuits mystery series, starring a set of fraternal twins who reunite and open a bookstore and soul food café. Writing as Abby L. Vandiver, she is the author of the Logan Dickerson Mysteries, featuring a second-generation archaeologist and a nonagenarian, as well as the Romaine Wilder Mysteries, pairing an East Texas medical examiner and her feisty, funeral-home-owning auntie as sleuths. Abby spends her time writing, facilitating writing workshops at local libraries, and hanging out with her grandchildren, each of whom is her favorite.

 Facebook * Twitter * Instagram * Website

Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Murder Faux Paws: A Nick and Nora Mystery
Cozy Mystery
5th in Series
Setting – California
Beyond the Page (February 22, 2022)
Print length ‏ : ‎ 273 pages

Synopsis

Dead men tell no tales, but in the riveting new Nick and Nora Mystery, they sure leave a lot of clues . . .

 

When a local PI’s untimely death is ruled a suicide by the police, budding sleuth Nora Charles has no intention of letting sleeping dogs lie—or sleeping cats, for that matter. Certain it was a case of foul play, Nora rouses her trusty sidekick Nick and launches an investigation of her own. Then a second PI is murdered, and Nora knows the two men were on to something—and that she’s on to something too.

Following the enigmatic clues left by her late predecessors, Nora soon uncovers a plot that involves a local politician, missing campaign funds, and what could be a bogus real estate deal. But when hints of treason surface, what started as small-time thievery soon balloons into a matter of national security. With the uncanny Nick sniffing out—and spelling out—leads, Nora follows a trail that will take her to the heart of a shadowy conspiracy, and into a trap set by a conniving culprit that will have her wishing she had Nick’s nine lives . . .

Amazon * B&N  * Google Play * Apple iBooks *  Kobo * Smashwords

Guest Post

Picking Character Names

by T. C. LoTempio

Two questions I get asked most often are:  How do you get your plots?  And How do you decide on character names?

My answer to the first question is always the same:  I have no idea.  They just come to me.  Anything could inspire it – a name, an event, something I ate (no really).  For example, I got the idea for my Nick and Nora series from my cat jumping on my stomach while I was watching The Thin Man.   I got an idea for a YA book from the name on the side of a garbage truck (true story).  And I got the idea for one of my gothic thrillers that I wrote way, way, back in the day when my friend Vi moved to Arizona and she told me the name of her street.

Picking character names can be more difficult.  The name, I feel, should suit that particular character and his or her particular personality.  Picking out the names, of course, for my main characters in the Nick and Nora series was easy.  My main female character is, of course, Nora Charles named after the fictional detective’s wife.  Nick, the tubby tuxedo cat and the star of the show is naturally named after Dashiel Hammett’s famed detective.  The supporting characters followed.  I wanted Nora’s human sidekick to be a bit quirky – she’d have psychic powers (or think she had) a French accent (just because she liked it) and adore Nick.  So, I looked up French names on the internet and decided on Gillard for the last name.  I picked Chantal because we had an intern at work with that name, and she rather reminded me of the character I was creating.  Nora’s beau was named Daniel Corleone, and that too was easy….he’s named after Danny Corleone, a real-life person, the husband of one of my best friends in NJ.

There are some points I try to remember when constructing a character name: I try to make them memorable, unique, and not distracting.  As to how I name them, well, I’ve used all of the below methods:

1. Consult the phone book.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve shut my eyes, flipped to a page, plopped my finger down, and Wolla!  Sydney McCall was born (of course the name was Sidney, a guy, so I just made the adjustment)
2. Consult a baby name book. You would be surprised at how many unique and beautiful names there are in a baby name book!  You can also find nicknames there too!  That’s how I got the nickname for a character named Charlotte: Charley.  (that’s in an as yet unsold manuscript, so I can’t say any more about it!)
3. Use a random name generator. Another fabulous tool, from which I managed to cobble together the name of Nora’s other beau, Leroy Samms.
4. Pay homage to characters from movies and tv shows: I”ve modeled characters after famous people – for example, Lola Grainger in the first Nick and Nora mystery is my tribute to the late, great Natalie Wood.  I thought about calling her Natalie Grainger but I thought it might be too obvious, considering the character dies in a boating accident on page 4.  I’ve also named characters after ones I liked on tv shows – one, also in an as yet unsold manuscript, is called Victoria Chase – my homage to Wendie Malick’s character in Hot in Cleveland.

The best advice I can give on this topic is:  don’t get hung up on the name.  If necessary, call them “X” and get back to it.  Believe me, the perfect name will come.

Just ask Nick and Nora.

About the Author

T.C. LoTempio is the national bestselling author of the Nick and Nora mystery series, as well as the Pet Shop Mystery Series and the Cat Rescue mysteries. She lives in sunny Phoenix Arizona along with her two cats, Maxx and ROCCO, who is a talented blogger himself.

ROCCO’s blog * Website * Facebook * Twitter

Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

GHOST AGENTS

by

NITA DEBORDE

Categories: Science Fiction / Cozy Mystery / Paranormal / Texas History

Series: The Ghost Agents Trilogy

Publisher: Mabelonia Press

Date of Publication: July 31, 2021

Number of Pages: 309 pages

Scroll down for Giveaway!

An organization that has operated in secret for centuries… a mystery that threatens to burn it all to the ground… and she’s the only agent who can stop it…

To the residents and tourists of Galveston Island, Claire Abelard is the friendly young woman who works at the local candy store by day and leads ghost tours of the island’s haunted locations by night. They don’t realize this persona is a cover for Claire’s real job as an agent of the Bureau for Historical Preservation, a clandestine organization that monitors and assists energy projections, or the entities more commonly known as “ghosts.”

When projections begin disappearing from around the island, Claire worries that history may be repeating itself. She launches a dangerous investigation and uncovers a sinister, arcane organization whose agenda threatens not only Galveston’s ghosts, but everything she has worked her whole life to protect.

The truth behind the disappearances rocks Claire’s world to its core and shows her that ghosts aren’t the only things that can come back to haunt you.

Amazon

Read for free via Kindle Unlimited

Nita DeBorde is a published author and teacher from Houston, TX. Writing and teaching are her two major passions, though traveling and being dog-mom to a crazy Staffordshire-Boxer mix named Mabel are high on the list as well.

Nita has taught high school French for more than 20 years and absolutely loves her “day job” job (about 95% of the time). She loves to travel, and not surprisingly, France is her favorite destination, though her home state of Texas runs a close second.

She is also a huge history buff, which comes through in her fiction writing, and particularly in her latest novel, Ghost Agents, a genre-defying, cozy paranormal mystery with a little sci-fi and romance thrown into the mix. Ghost Agents: Revelations, the second book in the Ghost Agents Trilogy, is slated for release in March 2022.

Nita’s first novel, Project Lachesis, is currently available in both Kindle and hardcopy format from Amazon.com.

Her first published work, a Christian allegory titled Lessons from the Meadow, was published in December of 2013 under the pen name A.M. Ward. Stay tuned for more titles by A.M. Ward in the Christian fiction genre.

◆  Website  ◆ Facebook  ◆  Twitter ◆

◆  Amazon  ◆  Goodreads  ◆

—————————————

GIVEAWAY!  GIVEAWAY!  GIVEAWAY!

 THREE WINNERS

Receive Signed Copies of Ghost Agents

(US only; ends midnight, CT, 3/10/22)

Visit the Lone Star Literary Life Tour Page

For direct links to each blog participating in this book blitz

blog tour services provided by

A café owner who is haughty and entitled. An event planner who is earnest and acquiescent. A curse that was cast an eternity ago…

Shruthakeerthi Urs aka. Shruti is the client from hell. Jaideep Rai is the hot new event planner who bring out the shrew in Shruti. Tempers fly and egos clash even as they attempt to work together on an event.

Fate brings them face to face again when they both sign up for the same Jungle Challenge adventure, traversing the mountains and forests of the Western Ghats of India. Forced to work together they snarl and spar at every given chance, refusing to admit that they may be hankering for something amorous with the other…a simmering undercurrent of passion!

And what happens when one of them is cursed? Can they put aside their differences and come together to break a curse that has sounded the death knell for generations of one of their families? Amidst surprise revelations, mystic mendicants, and repressed memories, can the two work out the pieces of the puzzle that can break the curse?

Will Shruti and Jaideep survive this epic adventure and find love, or will they remain ships passing in the night…

Rudrabaan is an adventure filled story peppered with magical realism and hued with some regular hate to love drama.

Amazon.in * Amazon.com

Excerpt

Jaideep was now definitely staring at the two of them. How does Bobby do this? How does he just win people over? Jaideep was feeling confused and irritated. If it wasn’t for the fact that Bobby was his best friend and that he was gay, Jaideep might have just ripped his limbs apart for hugging Shruti. He wanted to be in Bobby’s place right now, smelling her hair and gently kissing her forehead as she leaned in. He pictured himself pushing his fingers into her curly knots and bringing her head closer to his chest.

Thwack! Prashant’s broad hand landed on Jaideep’s back. ‘Let’s go, buddy. Did you not hear your name?’

Participants were now divided into two groups and given logs of wood and thick ropes. They had to make rafts that would take them across the stream. Lunch was being served on the other side of the stream. Eager to have lunch, the teams put their backs into making the rafts.

Shruti and Jaideep sat on opposite sides of the raft as they were part of the same group. About a meter from the bank, the ropes of their raft began to come undone, and the logs of wood separated, toppling the team into water. The other team who had reached the bank began laughing as they stepped into the water to pull people out.

‘It’s all your fault. If you didn’t know how to tie ropes you should have left it to the experts,’ Shruti shouted at Jaideep.

‘Like you are an expert on everything?’, he retorted as he looked at her wet cotton shirt. It was clinging to her skin and the water had made it see-through. Jaideep was looking at the clear outline of a yellow bra as he spoke.

‘I wasn’t talking about myself. But if you took the time to pull your head out of your ass, you would know that!’ she said and stomped away, water dripping from her clothes as she walked onto the bank of the stream.

The rest of the group had already gone ahead to where lunch was being served and didn’t notice the exchange of words between them.

Jaideep grabbed Shruti’s arm and pulled her close. They looked at each other with daggers in their eyes but kindred embers in their souls. He wanted to bite her lower lip as he glared at her, his eyes lingering a second longer than intended on her luscious lips and moving furtively down her neck.

He tore his eyes away from her and forced himself to look away as he said, ‘What is your problem? Why do you hate me? I am just trying to have a decent, hard-earned holiday. Please!’

Shruti wrestled her arm out of his grasp. She tried hard not to focus on why her body was melting in response to his touch,  like a smitten kitten and she said, ‘Don’t you dare touch me again. I don’t know you enough to hate you. You are not that important to me. Please enjoy your holiday and stay the hell away from me!’

Shruti walked away huffing, but her body seemed to be yearning for that fervour she felt a few seconds ago when Jaideep had clutched her wrist. She had been so afraid that he would feel her pulse quicken and hear how loudly her heart thumped inside her chest when he touched her.

Neither of them saw that a flaming arrow had landed right next to the riverbank that they had stepped onto. The flames flickered and the arrow disappeared once again.

About the Author

Nitya Neelakantan is a writer and yoga teacher from Bangalore. She has three paperback novels that are awaiting publication with Rupa Publications and Readomania.

Nitya graduated with a degree in Hotel Management before moving into the learning space as a technical trainer and then a soft skills trainer. Her writing and yoga journey began simultaneously as she hung up her corporate boots in exchange for more time with her two and four-legged family.

When not teaching or reading, Nitya enjoys traveling with her husband, son, and two fluffy dog-babies.  She is an amateur blogger who is also passionate about composting, slow fashion, and conscious living.

Blog * Blog * Facebook * Instagram * Instagram * Twitter

#FollowMe for Murder: A Trending Topic Mystery
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Setting – In the fictional, seaside town of Central Shores, Delaware.
Level Best Books (February 15, 2022)
Print length ‏ : ‎ 300 pages

Synopsis

Meet 28-year-old influencer and celebrity blogger Coco Cline, who has started her own social media consulting firm in her hometown of Central Shores, Delaware. Her new clients, Sean and Olivia Chen, are ten days away from the grand opening of their specialty consignment shop when Coco stumbles across their store clerk Stacy dead behind the register.

Worried that a cloud of suspicion will ruin their chances of a successful business launch, the Chens ask Coco to work alongside the inexperienced Central Shores police force to speed up the investigation. Using her celebrity status and social media savviness, Coco realizes Stacy’s seemingly ordinary life was all an act. Following a trail of cryptic online posts, confusing timelines, and muddied gossip, Coco and her friends discover Stacy’s questionable relationships just might be the reason for her untimely demise.

Murder is about to go viral in #FollowMe for Murder, a Trending Topic Mystery.

Amazon

Guest Post

More than just a sidekick

by Sarah E. Burr

As with many things in life, solving a mystery is more fun when it’s done together. Or at least, that’s how I envision it – I haven’t cracked a case in real life (yet). But my main character Coco Cline certainly has her sidekicks: Jasper, Charlotte, and Hudson. I hesitate to call them sidekicks because they are so much more to Coco. They support her, encourage her, make her laugh, and give her tough love and reality checks. They are her family.

When I began writing #FollowMe for Murder, I knew right away that while I wanted to have a strong female lead, she would be surrounded and assisted with her investigation by a group of close friends. Why? They say write what you know, and I know that if I were to ever stumble across a dead body and a mystery, I would want my besties at my side, puzzling out the crime. No one wants to go through something so grizzly alone. Not only do Jasper, Charlotte, and Hudson have Coco’s back when things get sticky, but they all provide invaluable information and perspective to the mystery. They aren’t just sitting on the sidelines, going along with Coco no matter what. They challenge Coco, call her out when needed, and point her to possible motives that she never even considered. Each is an invaluable member of the mystery-solving team, and as readers will see, they each have their own big personalities.

Why did I choose friendship as one of the main pillars of Coco’s world? Well, the most memorable books I’ve ever read all revolve around solid, steadfast friendships, and I wanted to give readers a group of friends they could root for, both as individuals and as a unit. I think about how greatly Nancy Drew relied on George Fayne and Bess Marvin. The ultimate trio, in my mind. George and Bess had Nancy’s back in the wildest situations, and as a kid, their friendship became my ideal. Soon, Nancy, Bess, and George would be joined by Harry, Ron, and Hermione from Harry Potter, the ladies from The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, the nine companions who make up The Fellowship of the Ring, Naruto and Team 7 from the Naruto manga, and so many more. I find myself most drawn to books and shows (a special shout out to Shawn and Gus from Psych) where friendship withstands even the most challenging of hurdles, so it felt only natural to embrace such a theme in my novel.

Coco would be lost without Jasper’s wit, Charlotte’s optimism, and Hudson’s loyalty, just as their lives would be less sparkly without her. I hope readers see themselves and their friends in #FollowMe for Murder and enjoy the thrilling ride that is friendship.

Who are some of your favorite literary duos, trios, or groups of friends?

About the Author

Sarah E. Burr lives near New York City. Hailing from the small town of Appleton, Maine, she has been dreaming of being Nancy Drew since she was a little girl. Since Sarah wasn’t stumbling across any crime scenes in corporate America, she left her career in healthcare technology to write mysteries of her own.

Her novel #FollowMe for Murder, first in the Trending Topic Mysteries, shines the spotlight on a social media PR expert after she discovers a dead body in her clients’ store, forcing her to untangle a web of secrets in her small, beach-side town.

Sarah is also the author of the Court of Mystery series and the Glenmyre Whim Mysteries. She is a member of Sisters in Crime, currently serving as the New York Tri-State Chapter’s social media guru. When she’s not spinning up new stories, Sarah is off seeing Broadway musicals, reading up a storm, video gaming, and enjoying walks with her dog, Eevee.

Website * Facebook * Instagram * Twitter

Goodreads * BookBub * Pinterest * YouTube * LinkedIn

Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Synopsis

From the bestselling author of When All is Said comes a delicious new novel about a young woman who can hear the dead – a talent which is both a gift and a curse.

Jeanie Masterson has a gift: she can hear the last words of the dead.

Passed down from generation to generation, this gift means she is able to make wrongs right, to give voice to unspoken love and dying regrets. She and her father have worked happily alongside each other for years, but now he’s unexpectedly announced that he wants to retire early and leave the business to her and her life is called into question.

Does she really want to be married to the embalmer, or does she want to be with her childhood sweetheart, off in London? Does she want to have children, and pass this gift on to them? And does she want to be stuck in this small town, or is there more of the world she wants to see – like the South of France, where she’s discovered a woman who shares her gift?

Tied to her home by this unusual talent, she begins to question: what if what she’s always thought of as a gift is a curse?

Amazon * B&N * Kobo * Bookshop * Google

Review

The premise of this book sounded fascinating, those that could talk to the dead even only for a short time before they moved on to the other world or wherever someone goes when they die. But this book is a bit more than that, it is how it impacts those that can hear the dead and their family. It is also about finding love and setting it free and then losing it when you least expect it to happen.

Jeanie has had the ability to hear the dead since she was a young girl and this is a blessing and a curse because she finds herself tied to her small town in Ireland despite wanting to see the world. Is it duty that holds her back or her own fears? Her mother encourages her to go off to the University and find a passion, and the love of her life moves to London and wants her to join him. Essentially, it is fear of the unknown that holds her back and turns her life in a direction that maybe isn’t the best choice for her. She does marry a childhood friend, but is it the same love she feels for the one she lost to London?

I was hoping to hear more stories from the dead, but the ones that are shared are intriguing and it explains so much when other facts are revealed down the road regarding her father and her aunt.

The road is bumpy for all of the characters as they endure life from childhood forward. Jeanie has to deal with bullying from classmates, a business thrust upon her without consulting her, and a rocky relationship with her husband, Niall. Jeanie’s brother, Mikey, is on the spectrum and has his quirks about him and he reminds me of some others that I know that are focused on a few things in life and are steadfast in their dislikes. I don’t feel like all of the characters were fully developed and felt somewhat shallow.

This book has some witty moments and others that you might relate to in your own life. I think the biggest turning point for Jeanie was with an event regarding the childhood sweetheart. This was the pivotal point for her and she did step up and make some big decisions.

The ending isn’t quite wrapped up but you can surmise what happens and it really isn’t a huge surprise as you read about the struggles of some of the characters.

Overall, we give this 3 1/2 paws.

About the Author

AI was born in Dublin in 1969. I received a BA in History from UCD. Over the following eight years, I worked for Waterstones in Dublin and London. I left the bookselling trade to undertake a Post Graduate Diploma in Community and Youth Work in Maynooth University. I have worked with various charities over the last twenty years including Women’s Aid, Youth Work Ireland, and the Dyslexia Association of Ireland.

I began writing in 2013, and in 2015 undertook an MA in Creative Writing in UCD studying under James Ryan, Éilis Ní Dhuibhne, Frank McGuinness, Lia Mills, Paul Perry and Anne Enright.

I have been shortlisted for the Hennessy New Irish Writing Award with my short story ‘Grace’, the Sunday Business Post Short Story Award for ‘Some Tiny Clue’, and the Benedict Kiely Competition with ‘Mr. Henry’. My short stories have also been published in The Stinging Fly, The Irish Times, Crannóg, The Lonely Crowd, Ogham Stone, The Incubator, The Weekend Read For Books’ Sake, and Bunker, a collection of short stories published by Cork County Libraries. In 2017, I received the John McGahern Award for Literature from Roscommon County Council in recognition of my short story work and in support of my endeavours to complete my first book.

My debut novel  ‘When All Is Said’ was published in 2019 and received the Newcomer of the Year Award at the Irish Book Awards. It is translated into twenty foreign languages. My second novel, Listening Still, was published in April 2021 and is available in the UK and Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand, and will be published in the US and Canada in March 2022.

I am grateful for the arts grants I have received from Westmeath County Council in 2017 and the bursary in literature from the Arts Council of Ireland in 2020.

Website * Twitter * Goodreads

Synopsis

A tribute to family history, We are the Kings (Bold Story Press, March 1, 2022) shows the difference in women’s struggles across two generations of women. While Marcella is sifting through her family’s conflicting and fading memories, she puts into words what no one else will say out loud, revealing not only what may or may not have happened, but what is truly at stake when a woman tells her story.

The strength and resilience of women shines in this author’s debut novel. With themes of feminism, domestic space, and women’s invisibility, this story delivers headstrong, driven characters that carry readers through the bonds between women. It shows how women rely on each other through trauma, grief, joy, and the journey to find themselves from childhood to adulthood.

Amazon * B&N * Kobo

Interview

There is an interesting cross between architecture and violence. Can you explain the relationship between the two?

I have always loved architecture and interior design, which is, in many ways, central to my understanding of the world around me and the people whose spaces I’m lucky enough to occupy. I’m fascinated by all of it–from the big stuff like furniture and color and fancy kitchens, to how people arrange their cleaning products or towels. The things we build and live with represent some of who we are, and much of it will remain after we’re gone.

Having studied architecture and design, and knowing just how much thought goes into even the tiniest design decisions, it’s pretty startling to wrap your head around the idea that the intention behind a lot of our built spaces is violent or punitive. Many sets of ideas go into building prisons, just as many sets of decisions were involved in the building of concentration camps (both of which feature in my book). Entire communities in our country at this moment have been designed to contain people and to deprive them of both certain luxuries, and some pretty basic human needs–clean air, access to food and unpolluted water, healthcare, and education. I think what I’m trying to get at in my book is that this sort of architecture and design is so normalized in our society that we don’t stop to question it. We aren’t fully present with things like the legacy of redlining, the creation of public housing, and the industries behind the development of solitary confinement units and restraining devices.

Right now we have a shocking number of elderly people in prisons–the population that poses the lowest risk to society and who are the most expensive to contain. Our prisons are designed to warehouse, not rehabilitate. They are not spaces in which one can grow old safely and they do not take into account the dignity of the humans they contain. Imagine trying to navigate a prison when you’re experiencing cognitive and physical age-related impairments. And that’s on top of the already monumental stress of being imprisoned.

I could go on and on! I guess as depressing as it is, it is also a part of our world. Maybe understanding it better will help us build things in the future that promote peace and love and ecological viability.

How has your own family history affected the writing of We are the Kings?

I was lucky enough to have 4 grandmothers–my mother’s mother, my father’s mother and stepmother, and my stepfather’s mother. And I had two amazing grandfathers. As a kid, I found all of their stories and quirks and spaces really thrilling. I just loved being around them, and I learned a ton from all of them. As I grew up, particularly with my grandmothers, I saw the limitations that were imposed on them by sexism and ridiculous social conventions. I had always seen them as larger than life, and in many ways they were, but they were also victims of their circumstances. That juxtaposition–between being incredibly powerful in some ways, and truly powerless in others–was a big part of how I came up with the storyline for my book.

What aspects of women’s lives do you feel are invisible to the world, and why is it important that we acknowledge it?

I think in abusive, patriarchal systems, populations that are deemed less valuable to society are pushed to the margins. We don’t consider their interior lives, and we don’t think to preserve their experiences in our stories or museums or histories. This is true for non-white, female/LGBTQ, immigrant, and poor populations (to name a few), and it’s certainly true for people who are imprisoned. I believe that it is morally wrong to silence these populations, but my main issue with that silencing is that it robs us all of some of the most beautiful and brilliant personalities and stories.

I have a lot of regrets about not seeking out the thoughts and opinions and stories of my grandmothers more than I did. Because my grandfathers loomed so much larger, and they took up so much room, it was kind of just the way it was that my grandmothers’ experiences during something like WWII just weren’t as much a part of the conversation. And it wasn’t that my grandfathers were unkind. They were absolutely wonderful. It’s just the way it was. I think that’s partly what compelled me to write. I want my grandmothers’ stories–and any story that gets pushed to the margins– to take up more room.

You mention you’ve always been interested in women’s stories. What do you find interesting about how women’s stories are formed, told, and what isn’t said?

I just don’t think women have been given the space in our culture to be really free. I think that’s true for a lot of men as well, and for all sorts of people who don’t fit within specific gendered or societal conventions. But my book is really about women’s stories and what we feel safe talking about, not only to each other but to ourselves. Particularly recently, there’s been a really amazing rethinking of feminism throughout the world, and I’m so excited about it. But I think we still have a ways to go. There are things that are still really hard to disentangle–like women who uphold the patriarchy, for example, and womens’ misogyny.  I think it’s internalized abuse or the playing out of hierarchies of power, and it’s understandable in a lot of ways. It’s also ugly and mean and awkward, and maybe people who like to write are drawn to that sort of stuff.

What sort of research went into preparing for this novel?

Honestly, there was very little direct research. The work I did in graduate school just became a part of who I am, and I think that’s why it’s so present in my book. And many characters are loosely based on women in my family or women that I’ve known throughout my life. But a lot of it just sort of came to me. Reading a lot of biographies probably helped too. For a while that was my favorite genre, though I generally like reading everything.

About the Author

Torres attended Mount Holyoke College, majoring in Russian Studies and English Literature. Her graduate work at the Corcoran College of Art & Design and Columbia University focused on prison architecture and aging in prison, respectively. Torres has worked in interior design and prison advocacy. She lives with her family in Somerville, MA. This is her first novel.

Facebook * Instagram * Goodreads * Website

Time and the Tree by Róisín Sorahan

Publisher: Adelaide Books, NY (September 6, 2021)

Category: Literary Fiction, Fantasy, Modern Fable, and Self-actualization

ISBN: 978-1955196635

Available in Print and ebook, 282 pages

Synopsis

A modern fable about the nature of time and the quest for happiness.

It’s darkly funny, deceptively simple, and a necessary read for testing times.

In this gripping philosophical tale, a boy awakens beneath a tree in a forest in summer. He is soon joined by Time and his slave, a withered creature hooked on time and aching to disappear. The story evolves over the course of a year as a host of characters are drawn to the Tree for guidance. The unlikely cast grapple with choices and grope towards self-knowledge in a world where compassion is interwoven with menace. As the seasons bring great changes to the forest, we watch the child grow while the trials he faces mount.  Then the time for talk and innocence passes as the forces of darkness rally, threatening the lives of his friends.

Lyrical, honest, and heart-breaking, Time and the Tree confronts readers with a unique perspective on the challenges life presents. A wise and hopeful book, it is uplifting and unsettling by turns.

Amazon * Amazon-UK * Barnes&Noble

IndieBound * BookDepository

Praise

“Time and the Tree explores matters of spirit, intention, kindness, and how to live the time that is offered through a series of revelations that will often prompt readers to set aside the tale to consider their own relationships with time and life. Sorahan’s…ability to bring to life some basic tenets of existence and the existential questions many come to feel during the course of a lifetime creates an insightful read on the level of The Velveteen Rabbit classic.”- D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review

“A genre-busting masterpiece, full of pacy storytelling, wry dialogue, and philosophical challenge…”- Declan Kiberd, Author (incl. Inventing Ireland), Professor Emeritus at the University of Notre Dame, and international authority on modern Irish literature

“Time and the Tree is unlike anything I’ve read in contemporary literature – a beautiful fable fit for difficult and confusing days.”- Luke Gerwe – Associate Editor, PBS NewsHour, and formerly Managing Editor, Voice of Witness book series

“An uplifting and tranquil allegory filled with positivity and hope, ‘Time and the Tree’ by Róisín Sorahan is a magical tale of a young boy who lives in a forest, a wise and caring tree which offers shelter and guidance and numerous other characters that appear in order to challenge and change under the tree and the boy’s influence. This book is filled with lessons: to be mindful and present instead of constantly rushing towards a tomorrow that’s just out of reach; the importance of healing past trauma and self-love and acceptance, or showing empathy for others. Hope and positivity flow from the pages of this lyrical story as we navigate the ever-changing seasons in this magical forest. ‘Time and the Tree’ is well-written, its characters complement each other, with the naivety and curiosity of the young boy setting up many of the lessons. There is a level of spirituality in this book, it encourages meditation and gratitude while also promoting that it’s ok to be you, to embrace your unique qualities, and to follow your own path. Told with an emphasis on nature, ‘Time and the Tree’ is an uplifting read that will infuse any reader’s day with positivity. Its imagery and storyline are gentle and easy to follow with its underlying message about looking to the light in all things will leave readers with warm feelings of hope and positivity. I found this book entertaining and witty in places, but ultimately it left me with a sense of peace and calm.”– LoveReading

“This is a lovely story that, on the surface, appears like a simple fairy tale. But it is much more than that. It is full of symbolism and knowledge…this book has a beautiful message that is sure to stay with me. Time and the Tree is a beautiful debut from a talented author.”- Manhattan Book Review

Guest Review by Gud Reader

Despite being the most commonly used noun in the English language time still tends to be a hard-to-understand concept. For my part having read a great deal of books relating to the concept of time, I have to admit that ‘Time and the Tree’ is the best I have read so far.

This entertaining and lush debut by Roisin Sorahan revolves around the life of a young boy, a wise old tree, and Time which is an actual character in the book. The story plays out in different seasons where we witness the growth of the young boy as time also takes a toll. However, as the boy grows, he is mentored by the wise old tree which provides snippets of wisdom. Also, one cannot ignore the slaves who are always trailing time which represents the various people who find time as always being limited this acting as the ‘slaves’ of time.

On my part, Roisin does a marvelous job of creating an outstanding fable out there to help educate the masses on the concept of time. The author’s mastery of idiomatic creativity while also making her otherwise abstract characters look real is just out of this world. A well thought out novel that can be hailed as a guide for living life while living for the present.

Guest Post

THE CHANGING FACES OF HONG KONG

By Róisín Sorahan

I was 20 the first time I boarded a plane. A flight from Dublin to Boston, with a J1 visa in my pocket and a head full of adventure. The world expanded on that flight. I had found my element. My feet hardly hit terra firma since. Then, covid.

For now, I content myself with poking over past escapades and unraveling the changes in our world. I am hopeful, and eager to sally forth once again. I want to see new places. I also want to revisit some that continue to confound me. I miss being bewildered.

Hong Kong has been on my mind a lot these times, for all the wrong reasons. In 2020, Beijing imposed a national security law, with the aim of smashing the dissent that had taken to the streets. A statue marking the Tiananmen Square massacre was removed from the University of Hong Kong in the dead of night in late December.

This is not the Hong Kong I recall. The first time I visited, it was transitioning from British colonial rule to Beijing leadership, and it was still in the honeymoon phase. It was best described to me as a wealthy businessman’s playground. Under the terms of the 1997 handover agreement, a 50 year grace period was granted to the newly defined autonomous region to enjoy the freedoms and capitalist culture not found in other parts of China. It existed according to the mantra: “One country, two systems.” Officially part of China, the reality was very different.

I quickly discovered that Hong Kong was a short hop but a far cry from the mainland. For starters, it was filthy rich, it used the Honk Kong dollar, and was heaving with ex-pats. It spent its money on style, food, frivolity, booze, and was practiced in the art of having a good time.

While none of this has changed, the political backdrop is significantly different, and the city is destined to evolve. Places, like people, do what they must to survive. It’s unclear what the losses will be. What is apparent is that Hong Kong will have to adopt a new persona. And few cities are as skilled both at putting on a great face and altering its image as needed. When I last visited, I met the city equivalent of a geisha, skilled in pleasure and adept at satisfying every whim.

Honk Kong goes to great lengths to gratify the wealthy, as well as those traveling on a shoestring. It has a surprising array of tourist attractions that come for free, or thereabouts. Sophisticated, alluring, it’s a city bent on indulgence. But, as it was shaped by the British in the 19^th century according to Victorian contradictions, the painted face is concealed beneath a veneer of civilized gentility.

Intent on exploring both facets of the city in my early wanderings, I wangled an invitation to a ladies’ tennis club which was housed in a lovely old colonial building. A woman with perfectly painted nails gave me the tour of the gorgeous facilities. We pattered pleasantries until she asked about my game. Horrified she’d pour me onto a court rather than into an armchair, I mumbled apologies about a busy job and a tennis elbow. She pulled up short, then pulled herself together, “You work? How quaint.”

After 156 years of colonial rule, the British influence is still stamped everywhere. Cars drive on the left side of the road, club-house life interweaves the ex-pat social scene, and antiquated 1920s London trams travel the length of the city.

The region encompasses Hong Kong Island, which is surrounded on three sides by the South China Sea and separated from mainland China by the Shenzhen River; Kowloon Peninsula; the New Territories; and over 200 pocket-sized islands. Victoria Harbor serves as Hong Kong’s centerpiece, above which the skyline is stacked in tiers, as layer upon layer is built into the hills that shape the city. Ferries, pleasure cruisers, and Chinese tourist junks jaunt across the harbor connecting the city’s major landmasses.

The natural, deep harbor is also the city’s umbilical cord to the wealth that has nurtured its development into one of the world’s biggest and most lucrative trading centers.

Notwithstanding the fact that Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated cities in the world, it scores high on quality-of-life indexes. The public transportation network is the finest I have witnessed and getting around couldn’t be easier.

The demand for space has also resulted in the construction of whimsical skyscrapers that cut the sky into handkerchief squares. This is a city operating on many levels and the street is just the start of it. Cloud-high bars are piled upon designer wear stores; Michelin-starred restaurants; fortune-touting soothsayers; herbal tea sellers; scented massage parlors; financial trading floors; tropical fish tanks; ornamental birdcages; and Ming Dynasty vases.

Shopping in Hong Kong is a glutton’s all you can eat buffet. Gucci and Gabanna aside, it trades in the stuff of legend and, with the right sized wallet, trunks can be filled with authentic Chinese ceramics, crafts, and carvings from the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Though there are also great finds in the more modestly priced curio shops that specialize in wooing customers with exotica such as fans, calligraphy brushes, and feng shui compasses.

The weekend markets are spectacles in themselves. They are thronged with leisurely strollers drawn by the scent of plum blossom bonsai, the glow of neon tetra shoals, and the fun of watching fussy old men at the bird market feed crickets to their fussy odd birds.

The city’s a wonderful mix of the bizarre, the brash, and the bewildering. Between the ultra-modern high-rise buildings, traditional Taoist temples are filled to the brim with designer-labeled worshippers cajoling deities with offerings to raise their fortunes. Man Mo temple, located amongst the antique stores on Hollywood Street, is the oldest and best known. Built in 1847, it is dedicated to Man Tai, the god of literature; and to Mo Tai, the god of war. In the past, disputes were settled here that could not be resolved under British law. Today, tour buses line the street as the faithful crowd inside burns incense spirals which are suspended from the ceiling to draw the gods’ attention to the supplicants’ wishes.

Other worshipers bow down to Hong Kong’s sumptuous food offerings. My heavenly moment was in Tim Ho Wan – the world’s cheapest Michelin-starred restaurant, specializing in dim sum. It was a hole-in-the-wall back then, run by Chef Mak Pui Gor, who has subsequently built it into a franchise. I joined the snaking queue on a Monday morning as it wound down the street in an unassuming neighborhood in Kowloon. It was a long, chilly wait, but I still remember the taste of those sugar sprinkled, lightly deep-fried, savory pork buns. The steam rising off them would have tempted the gods themselves.

A city built on hills, everything rises upward in Hong Kong. Viewing Chinese street signs and towering sky-scrapers from the upper deck of a century-old tram is a cheap and fun way to get to grips with the disorienting contradictions of this city. The lines run East to West, sweeping Hong Kong Island’s commercial centre. However, for the best views in town, Honk Kong’s Peak Tram is the most popular tourist attraction on offer. It soars above the cityscape, dropping visitors at the summit of Victoria Peak, offering a great perspective of the street grids and harbor beneath.

At sea level, the seven-minute public ferry ride, which connects Hong Kong Island with the Kowloon Peninsula, is as much a mode of transport as a pleasure trip. It provides a brief view from the water of Hong Kong’s signature sight. The densely packed skyline is the city’s pièce-de-résistance and is best seen at night. As the light fades the buildings explode into neon life, culminating in the tacky, yet entertaining, Symphony of Light, which plays over the buildings in a cacophony of colour, while red sailed junks glide alongside Kowloon Peninsula’s promenade and the Avenue of Stars.

Hong Kong is the perfect city consort. It has an array of faces to suit the visitor’s mood and needs. Coy by day with joggers, business suits, and café lattes; by night the charade fades as the lights come on and ambiguity dissolves. It has spent the past 180 years adapting and transforming and putting on a show. It turns uncertainty into an art form. And, when necessary, it removes the mask and bares its teeth. It cannot be categorized and underestimated, and it is highly skilled in dissembling.

To this wanderer, it’s the masquerade and layered contradictions that make Hong Kong so alluring. I’m drawn back in the hope that I’ll get a glimpse of what’s hidden beneath the veils. The city spins, even as the music stutters. And the world changes, as it always does.

About the Author

Róisín Sorahan is an Irish author currently living in Vermont. She has published numerous stories about her adventures on the road, as well as life as an English teacher in China. Prior to becoming a nomad writer, she pursued a decade-long career in public relations. She holds a Master of Letters from Trinity College Dublin, specializing in Samuel Beckett. Time and the Tree is her debut novel.

Website * Twitter * Facebook * Instagram

Giveaway

This giveaway is for 3 print or ebook copies, One for each of 3 winners. Print is open to Canada and the U.S. only and ebook is open worldwide. This giveaway ends on March 12, 2022 midnight, pacific time.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

TRUST ME

by

Kelly Irvin

Genre: Romantic Suspense / Christian Fiction

Publisher: Thomas Nelson

Date of Publication: February 8, 2022

Number of Pages: 384 pages

Scroll down for Giveaway!

When her best friend is murdered the same way her brother was, who can she possibly trust?

A decade ago, Delaney Broward discovered her brother’s murdered body at the San Antonio art co-op he founded with friends. Her artist boyfriend, Hunter Nash, went to prison for the murder, despite his not-guilty plea.

This morning, Hunter walks out of prison a free man, having served his sentence.

This afternoon, Delaney finds her best friend dead, murdered in the same fashion as her brother.

Stay out of it or you’re next, the killer warns.

Hunter never stopped loving Delaney, though he can’t blame her for not forgiving her. He knows he’ll get his life back one day at a time, one step at a time. But he’s blindsided to realize he’s a murder suspect. Again.

When Hunter shows up on her doorstep, asking her to help him find the real killer, Delaney’s head says to run away, yet her heart tells her there’s more to his story than what came out in the trial. An uneasy truce leads to their probe into a dark past that shatters Delaney’s image of her brother. She can’t stop and neither can Hunter—which lands them both in the crosshairs of a murderer growing more desperate by the day (hour?).

In this gripping romantic suspense, Kelly Irvin plumbs the complexity of broken trust in the people we love—and in God—and whether either can be mended.

Amazon * Barnes and Noble * Apple Books

Bookshop.org * Google Play * IndieBound

PRAISE FOR TRUST ME

“Irvin follows the characters through twists and turns, writing through the lens of faith and broken faith, while illuminating a bridge across shattered relationships to second chances. This one’s an emotional roller-coaster.” — Julie Gwinn of the Seymour Agency in Publishers Weekly Review

“Trust Me is an apt title for Irvin’s new suspense novel. Kelly Irvin is a master at spinning a complex story web with surprising twists and relatable characters. Highly recommended!” —Colleen Coble, USA TODAY bestselling author of A Stranger’s Game and the Pelican Harbor series

“I found I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough in Kelly Irvin’s latest novel, Trust Me. I promised myself just one more page and I’d stop reading for the night…just one more…just one more. At times I could barely breathe. What a fabulous story! I loved it!” –Carrie Stuart Parks, award-winning author of the Gwen Marcey series

From Trust Me

By Kelly Irvin

As much as she didn’t want to believe Hunter stabbed Corey to death, the justice system said otherwise. She had no choice but to accept the verdict and move on with her life. Erasing Hunter from her life had been like amputating an arm and a leg. Like she needed a heart transplant. It had taken years to recover.

= = = =

“This isn’t some stand-by-your-man country song.” Delaney stilled the bag. Macho Man’s leer taunted her. She leaned her head against it and closed her eyes. “They had evidence—enough evidence to convict. The police arrested you in this house. I couldn’t let my heart stand in the way of the truth. I had to accept it. I had no choice, even if it meant losing everything. Everything.”

= = = =

The killer’s fingers wrapped around her bicep in a cruel, unwavering grip. He jerked her up. His dark face came within inches of hers. His other hand was empty. He pointed at her and then made a cut-throat gesture. “Stay out of it or you’re next.”

Bestseller Kelly Irvin is the author of almost 30 books and novellas, in romantic suspense and Amish romance genres. The two-time ACFW Carol Award finalist worked as a newspaper reporter for six years on the Texas-Mexico border. Those experiences fuel her romantic suspense novels set in Texas. A retired public relations professional, Kelly now writes fiction full-time. She lives with her husband professional photographer Tim Irvin in San Antonio. They have two children, three grandchildren, and two ornery cats.

Website  ◆ Facebook  ◆  Twitter ◆ Amazon

  Goodreads ◆  Instagram◆ BookBub  ◆ Pinterest

—————————————

GIVEAWAY!  GIVEAWAY!  GIVEAWAY!

 THREE WINNERS

Three winners each receive autographed paperback copies of Trust Me.

(US only; ends midnight CST 3/4/2022.)

Visit the Lone Star Literary Life Tour Page

For direct links to each post on this tour, updated daily,

or visit the blogs directly

blog tour services provided by