Featured Titles
JUNE FEATURED TITLES
(in no particular order)
By J. A. Alexander
Naïve Princess Anna is thrust into a fight for the throne on her thirteenth birthday, but she won’t have to fight alone. A knight is given to every noble in the Kingdom of Rutig. Not of flesh and blood, the hollow suit of armor will stay by Anna’s side no matter what. With no will of his own, his emotions are erratic, his voice cutting, and he will never reveal why he is so loyal to her. With friends Bart and Shel, a jokester who is more than meets the eye and a sickly girl who is far scarier than her knight, Anna goes through her first year at the Nobles’ School of Thane. Time is of the essence as Anna’s siblings’ patience runs thin when bloodshed leaves the throne vacant again–soon one of them will make the first move. Whether Anna’s downfall comes from within or without, it will certainly be a fun ride down.
Searching for Cool, Praying for Heat
By Jon Michael Riley
Searching for Cool, Praying for Heat is a novel of love, desire, loyalty, and honor that affects the O’Rourkes, a relocated New England textile family who face entrenched white supremacy in a small North Carolina cotton mill town in 1960.
The narrative follows multiple points of view with the main character being high-school age Brian, whose near death experience leads to love’s exciting fulfillment.
By Kana Wu
Surviving on ramen or breaking her promise.
Weeks after no one acceptable has answered Aurorette “Rory” Arrington’s ads for a female roommate, a professional woman from London offers to pay six months’ rent up front. The term is shorter than Rory had hoped for, but better than nothing. And she seems like a nice person to live with.
On moving day, Peter Ryder shows up with a letter from his sister. The agreement has to be canceled because of a sudden illness. For Rory, that means staying on the top ramen diet for a while longer while again searching for a roommate! But then she is caught between a rock and a hard place when Peter offers to continue the agreement since he needs a place to live while stepping up to replace his sister in the family business. Against the promise Rory made to only have a female roommate, she accepts the offer.
Rory was born out of wedlock and then orphaned, growing up with her strict and old-fashioned aunt. Peter was born with a silver spoon in his mouth and little or no responsibility. She is a naïve, impulsive young woman. He is an unruly young man, suddenly having to shoulder big family responsibilities. While learning to coexist, Rory discovers one of his secrets, only to learn later that a different secret would be used to ruin her life.
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Reviews:
“Highly recommended for readers who are tired of the typical chick lit romance, and are ready for something light as air and just as refreshing.” — K.C. Finn for Readers’ Favorite, on No Romance Allowed.
“An agreeably warm story that bounces along effortlessly on the genuine chemistry of its lead characters. . . Wu takes the much-loved tropes of the genre and makes them her own.” — The BookViral Review, on No Romance Allowed.
“I finished it at 4am, I couldn’t put it down, it’s really good.” — Goodreads Reviewer, 5 stars, on No Romance Allowed.
“Readers who enjoy romance novels with a touch of suspense will appreciate this book.” — OnlineBookClub.org, 4 stars, on No Romance Allowed.
Prescription Humor: The Compassionate Application of Medicinal Humor
By Kathy Keaton
Behind her outrageous makeup, musical kazoo, and silly tricks, Piccolo the Clown does much more than tell a joke or cause a distraction. She dares to reach out and connect with people during their most vulnerable times – illness and death. Humor and music are the vehicles used to lighten the mood. It is unmistakable after reading her story, that it is the courage and compassion of Kathy, aka Piccolo, that makes the real difference.
Her collection of real-life stories demonstrate how humor and personal interactions delivered with sensitivity can change the environment in even the most difficult situations. It’s not about the clown, it’s always about changing the focus from suffering to relief and helping others step out of their stress by offering moments of laughter and joy.
Though it helps that Kathy is a naturally funny person, it is the skills and knowledge she has honed through forty years of experience that have made her a valued and respected member of the hospital health care team. Her pioneering efforts and poignant stories provide testament that the medical team is enhanced by diversity and that the effects of humor can be therapeutic and life altering.
This book is as relevant to a broader audience as it is to the profession of humor therapy. It teaches us all about the importance of a hand to hold, an ear to listen, and a heart to care.
By Lisa Rosen
What secrets are hiding behind the imposing gates of Indigo House?
Oregonian Julia Van Wyck lives in her famous father’s shadow and struggles with a stagnant career. When she loses her parents in a car crash, her father’s literary agent tells her that Charles Van Wyck may have left his last, greatest manuscript with an estranged family he never talked about in South Carolina. Realizing how little she knew about his life, Julia heads to Charleston, thinking the manuscript might help heal the hole in her heart.
Arriving in the beautiful coastal town of Charleston, South Carolina, Julia soon discovers her father left behind a lot more than a memoir about an old, crumbling family plantation. A whole host of aunts, uncles, and cousins she’s never heard of and an inheritance she never expected pull her deeper into the family’s ancient history of betrayal. When she finds the manuscript, and how much her father kept from her, she despairs about ever filling that hole in her heart, while chasing leads that keep leaving her with more questions than answers.
Will those questions unravel the family she’s only just found?
411 on Books, Authors & Publishing 