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Finding Amanda
Robin Patchen - 2015
Her estranged husband, contractor and veteran soldier Mark Johnson, tries to talk her out of it, fearing the psychiatrist who seduced her when she was a teen might return to silence her. But Amanda doesn’t need advice, certainly not from her judgmental soon-to-be ex-husband. Her overconfidence makes her vulnerable when she travels out of town and runs into the abuser from her past. A kind stranger comes to her rescue and offers her protection. Now Mark must safeguard his wife both from the fiend who threatens her life and from the stranger who threatens their marriage.
Apotheosis Now: Rabbit Hole to the Beyond
Yanhao Huang - 2021
Because externally, we are always trying to control what is “not me,” and internally, we always get perplexed trying to figure out whether our actions came from our “higher” or “lower” self. As Albert Einstein said: “We can not solve our problems with the same level of thinking that created them.”This book will help you to understand:Why we have internal conflictsHow does our ego trap us in undesirable circumstancesHow do our beliefs limit usWhy thought-based teachings (Law of Attraction), or self-improvement advice don’t workHow do we really get what we wantWhy is happiness so rare for usWho we are reallyWhat is the nature of existenceWhat is the meaning of lifeHow do we know if there is a GodWhat is the process of spiritual enlightenmentMany of us are starting to become tired of this game of life. We have been comparing and striving all our life. But no matter how much success we have achieved—we are still hollow and still have found nothing fulfilling. We don’t even know if happiness exists because it is no longer a living thing in our experience—it has become dead, as we only know it as a concept or memory.We have sought self-help advice, philosophies, and religious teachings to transform ourselves but have not gotten anywhere. We have made some superficial improvements—like adopting a new mindset—but our core remains the same. We are still competitive, still fearful, and we get disturbed all the time.The problem with all attempts at self-improvement is that we do not address the fundamental problem, which is: who is the “you” who needs to be improved? We do not see that the one who is making the improvement is the same one who needs to be improved. The more we try to improve, the more conflict we introduce, within and without. The more knowledge we stuff in our heads, the more we become trapped in a conceptual prison of reality. Inevitably, the more confused we get in life.The book guides the reader out of their distorted beliefs to experience reality beyond the mind. When the deeper intelligence is allowed to flourish without our mind's interference, then the game of life becomes effortless.
Fever
Deon Meyer - 2016
They are among the few in South Africa--and the world, as far as they know--to have survived a devastating virus which has swept through the country. Their world turned upside down, Nico realizes that his superb marksmanship and cool head mean he is destined to be his father's protector, even though he is still only a boy.But Willem Storm, though not a fighter, is both a thinker and a leader, a wise and compassionate man with a vision for a new community that survivors will rebuild from the ruins. And so Amanzi is founded, drawing Storm's -homeless and tempest-tost---starting with Melinda Swanevelder, whom they rescued from brutal thugs; Hennie Flaai, with his vital Cessna plane; Beryl Fortuin, with her ragtag group of orphans; and Domingo, the man with the tattooed hand, whom Nico knows immediately is someone you want on your side. And then there is Sofia Bergman, the most beautiful girl that Nico has ever seen, who changes everything.So the community grows--and with each step forward, as resources increase, so do the challenges they must face--not just from the attacks of biker brigands, but also from within. As Nico undergoes an extraordinary rite of passage in this new world, he experiences hardship and heartbreak and has his loyalty tested to its limits. Looking back later in life, he recounts the events that led to the greatest rupture of all--the hunt for the murderer of the person he loves most.An exhilarating new standalone from the author of the internationally bestselling Benny Griessel thriller series, Fever is a gripping epic like nothing else Meyer has written before.
Who’s There?: A Collection of Stories
Dimas Rio - 2019
A man recalling his nightmarish encounter with the devil. Letters sent from beyond the grave. A call from loved ones who since have passed. Limbs that have a mind of their own.These ghostly tales of revenge, greed, and desperation writhe and squirm in the dark corners of modern day Indonesia. Rich in cultural undertones that are uniquely Asian, these stories are in equal part grotesque and poetic, irreverent and spiritual, unusual and universal.Drawing on local folk tales of vengeful banshees, dusk-dwelling monsters, and other forms of the undead, this collection of five short stories will transport readers to the deep, dark abyss where demon forever resides: the human mind.Acclaim for the book:"Dark stories that entrance and unnerve." - Kirkus Reviews"Unsettling, suspenseful stories (with) expressive and evocative writing." - BlueInk Review"Nail-biting, psychological and truly thrilling stories. Horror in its most tasteful sense." - Readers' Favorite (5-star review)“Puts a new spin on some timeless classics sure to keep you up at night.” - Horror Bound“You’ll want to huddle under the covers with this book and a flashlight and read until your eyes hurt. It’s great fun, all of it.” - The Future Fire“Deeply moving and disturbing. A must-have anthology.” - Kendall Reviews“The stories hum with life, unpredictable and keeping readers on their toes, as Rio never lets the persistent tension ease too far. An original and powerful collection." Self-Publishing Review, ★★★★
The Talented Miss Farwell
Emily Gray Tedrowe - 2020
Dressed in couture YSL, drinking the finest champagne at trendy Balthazar, Reba, as she’s known, is the picture of a wealthy art collector. To some, the elusive Miss Farwell is a shark with outstanding business acumen. To others, she’s a heartless capitalist whose only interest in art is how much she can make.But a thousand miles from the Big Apple, in the small town of Pierson, Illinois, Miss Farwell is someone else entirely—a quiet single woman known as Becky who still lives in her family’s farmhouse, wears sensible shoes, and works tirelessly as the town’s treasurer and controller. No one understands the ins and outs of Pierson’s accounts better than Becky; she’s the last one in the office every night, crunching the numbers. Somehow, her neighbors marvel, she always finds a way to get the struggling town just a little more money. What Pierson doesn’t see—and can never discover—is that much of that money is shifted into a separate account that she controls, “borrowed” funds used to finance her art habit. Though she quietly repays Pierson when she can, the business of art is cutthroat and unpredictable. But as Reba Farwell’s deals get bigger and bigger, Becky Farwell’s debt to Pierson spirals out of control. How long can the talented Miss Farwell continue to pull off her double life?
The Never-Open Desert Diner
James Anderson - 2015
For many of the desert's inhabitants, Ben's visits are their only contact with the outside world, and the only landmark worth noting is a once-famous roadside diner that hasn't opened in years. Ben's routine is turned upside down when he stumbles across a beautiful woman named Claire playing a cello in an abandoned housing development. He can tell that she's fleeing something in her past - a dark secret that pushed her to the end of the earth - but despite his better judgment he is inexorably drawn to her. As Ben and Claire fall in love, specters from her past begin to resurface, with serious and life-threatening consequences not only for them both, but for others who have made this desert their sanctuary. Dangerous men come looking for her, and as they turn Route 117 upside down in their search, the long-buried secrets of those who've laid claim to this desert come to light, bringing Ben and the other locals into deadly conflict with Claire's pursuers. Ultimately, the answers they all seek are connected to the desert's greatest mystery - what really happened all those years ago at the never-open desert diner? In this unforgettable story of love and loss, Ben learns the enduring truth that some violent crimes renew themselves across generations. At turns funny, heartbreaking and thrilling, The Never-Open Desert Diner powerfully evokes an unforgettable setting and introduces readers to a cast of characters who will linger long after the last page.
We Sang in the Dark
Joe Hart - 2020
Forty people committed suicide and the entire compound burned to the ground. At just thirteen, Clare was the sole survivor found wandering miles from the encampment, hands blistered, memories of the horrific event wiped from her mind. Now a sociology professor and liaison to the FBI specializing in cults, Clare has fought to put the past behind her. She has a successful career, a quiet home, and is deeply in love. But intrusive memories and fear of inheriting her cult-leader father’s mental illness threaten to strangle Clare’s budding life when she receives a call from the past. A call informing her a woman has been found claiming to be her sister Shanna—a sister she long thought dead. Wracked with guilt but determined to prove herself to the sister she thought was lost, Clare returns to her hometown only to be stalked by a threatening stranger and haunted by hallucinations which seem all too real—hallucinations that plagued her father as well. Before long Clare begins to question what is real as the past overshadows the present and memories return that should’ve stayed forgotten.
Living Proof
Peter J. Thompson - 2003
The subjects, like Ramon, are taken from homeless shelters and prisons, and serve their country as unwilling lab rats.Ramon didn’t commit the murder that put him on death row. But he’s guilty of something worse—surviving the virus and escaping his captors. Ramon escapes, and begins a life on the run, a dead man hunted by would-be executioners determined to silence him. There’s only one person he can turn to—Lena Dryer, the reporter who covered his case and watched him die. Together, they must uncover the dark truth about the facility and its deadly secret.A secret that could alter the course of human history.A secret they may be too late to stop.Government secrets. Biological weapons. Human subjects. Fans of the dark imaginings of Stephen King and the breakneck pacing of Robert Ludlum will fall in love with “Living Proof.”
Pages in the Wind
Sally Saylor De Smet - 2015
After the murder of her father, Emily Quinn finds herself detained at the San Francisco County Jail charged with first-degree murder for a crime she cannot remember. Her mother, a beautiful socialite, shuns her daughter but hires a famous psychiatrist to protect the family name. Doctor Daniel Liebermann quickly becomes sympathetic toward Emily and is determined to find the reason for her need to embody the characters in her sketchbook. Doctor and patient develop an abiding partnership weaving through family secrets, violence, and abuse leading to a shocking
Onyx Webb: Book One: Episodes 1, 2, 3
Richard Fenton - 2015
Gripping. Fascinating. Onyx Webb is a multi-genre mash-up that combines supernatural suspense, crime, horror, romance, and more. So the story... Onyx Webb is a ghost. Billionaire playboy Koda Mulvaney becomes obsessed with a girl he sees inside a mirror. Juniper Cole is on her way to the prom and... well, we don't want to spoil anything - we've probably told you too much already. How all these events are related is part of the mystery that is, Onyx Webb.The Onyx Webb series follows the unusual life of Onyx Webb along with a central group of characters in various locations and times. The billionaire Mulvaney family, piano prodigy Juniper Cole and her brother Quinn, paranormal show hosts Cryer and Fudge, and a few others make up the core of the series. Written like a book version of a supernatural soap opera (think: American Horror Story) each character’s story moves forward with most every episode.It may appear that the characters are entirely unrelated and yet episode by episode, the connections will become clearer. Like being an inch away from a spider web, with each book, the web will move further and further away revealing the full story of every character and most importantly, the stunning conclusion for Onyx Webb herself.
Whiskey Devils
Brandon Zenner - 2016
However, Nick's complex past comes full circle, thrusting his new manager, Evan Powers, in a scramble to decipher the truth behind the chaotic lives of the people he holds dear. "A large marijuana growing operation, Russian mobsters, undercover drug agents, and a biker gang, wraps up with a series of unexpected and shocking plot reversals that brings the book to a violent, surprising, and powerful end." (BookLife Prize in Fiction, by Publishers Weekly) Winner in the 2016 Global Ebook Awards
The Almond Tree
Michelle Cohen Corasanti - 2012
Living under occupation, the inhabitants of the village harbour a constant fear of losing their homes, jobs, belongings – and each other. On Ahmed’s twelfth birthday, that fear becomes a reality. With his father now imprisoned, his family’s home and possessions confiscated and his siblings quickly succumbing to hatred in the face of conflict, Ahmed embarks on a journey to liberate his loved ones from their hardship, using his prodigious intellect. In so doing, he begins to reclaim a love for others that had been lost over the course of a childhood rife with violence, and discovers new hope for the future.
SEVEN-X
Mike Wech - 2012
With the opportunity to break this story, Eddie voluntarily commits himself into the asylum. His journals, video diary and recordings leave a trail of breadcrumbs into a series of radical experimental procedures conducted on patients without their consent. With proof that this vicious serial killer is alive, records of her forced exorcism and the impending birth of the child the world believes is dead, Eddie has the big story that will redeem his life and career.But as Eddie dives deeper into his investigation, he is forced to confront his own demons, becoming an unwilling participant in the asylum's paranormal rehabilitation experiment.__________________________________Please Note: A revised edition of SEVEN-X was released on February 4, 2016 edited by Rachel Kirsch. The previous edition was edited by Robert Scott.SEVEN-X is Amazon Kindle's INTERNATIONAL BEST SELLING NOVEL reaching #1 in Dark Horror and Religious Mystery; as well as a Best Seller in Psychic Suspense, YA Paranormal and Horror in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Germany and Australia. This is the first novel in the SEVEN-X Trilogy.For more information visit: www.seven-x.com
All Those Things Revealed
M. Maureen O'Callaghan - 2017
Constanza Delamar lives in a part of Ireland where ancient traditions are viewed with nostalgia, by people who are eager to move beyond them. A personal tragedy changes her life and she finds herself in a remote village where these traditions are still a way of life. When a parish priest suddenly arrives to challenge the village's traditional priest and condemn his Priest Woman; the village is turned against itself. Constanza suddenly finds herself confronting and then defending the most controversial of traditions. The mounting tensions in the village culminate in a devastating event with long-term consequences for all those involved.
Nothing Short of Dying
Erik Storey - 2016
That’s how long Clyde Barr has been away from Colorado’s thick forests, alpine deserts, and craggy peaks, running from a past filled with haunting memories. But now he’s back, having roamed across three continents as a hunter, adventurer, soldier of fortune, and most recently, unjustly imprisoned convict. And once again, his past is reaching out to claim him.By the light of a flickering campfire, Clyde received a frantic phone call for help from Jen, the youngest of his three older sisters. Then the line goes dead. Clyde doesn’t know how much time he has. He doesn’t know where Jen is located. He doesn’t even know who has her. All he knows is that nothing short of dying will stop him from saving her.Tagging along with Clyde on this strange, desperate, against-all-odds rescue mission is a young woman named Allie whose motivations for hurtling into harm’s way are fascinatingly complex. As the duo races against the clock, it is Allie who gets Clyde to see what he has become and what he can be.