Containing a collection of poems by the author that, not only investigates the lighter side of love, but also dares to delve deeper, taking the reader on a journey into the darker aspects of love, such as indecision, rejection, fear, betrayal, loss and finally death. Inspired by his own love story, and subsequent bereavement, the author writes emotionally, and from the heart, often resulting in poems that bring a tear to the eye. For information on more chapbooks in Dark Love Poetry series, please visit the authors website located at www.darrenheart.com

    It also inspired us to come out with a delightful article, the ‘Indian Masketeers’, exploring Indian culture through its various masks. We also have ‘Dotty and the Albino Dragon’, the First Prize winning story in the Tinkle Original Story Competition. Moving on, we have three popular characters this issue, Shikari Shambu, Kalia the Crow and the Defective Detectives. Shambu goes on a rollicking ‘Jumbo Adventure in Assam’ while the Defective Detectives have a spine-chilling experience in ‘The Horror’. As for Kalia, can you imagine him, Chamataka and Doob Doob playing together? If you can’t, you should check out ‘Let’s Play a Game’. Next, enjoy a fun story by a reader, ‘Show Business’ in our Fan Fiction segment along with ‘Pranav’s Dadi and the Karate Kid’, where Dadi tries her hand at karate! And to wrap it up we have two diverse stories about two brave men who refused to give up. So check out ‘A Mighty Will’ and ‘No Crazy Ideas’. Enjoy!

    

    Her father, determined to improve the family’s lot, relocates to Georgia.Ezekiel Salter scrimps to buy a ticket in Georgia’s 1807 Land Lottery, wins, and he and his impoverished family head west to newly-created Murcheson County.Prominent since colonial times, the Underwoods foresee the growing demand for cotton and acquire extensive acreage in newly-opened lands in central Georgia. Dispatched by his father, Jacob Underwood begins construction of Poplar Grove plantation.And, the slave known as Gant, his wife and daughter, Lucey, have no say as to their destination…the highest bidder will decide for them…and if the family remains intact.Spanning over fifty years, Murcheson County chronicles the four families’ fortunes against the backdrop of the most turbulent time in American history.An epic saga of slavery, emancipation, war and hardship, Murcheson County will remain in your heart long after the winds of war have stopped blowing.

    He's at work and will have to trek through rough neighborhoods and rural areas, and do things he never dreamed of. Walking through Southern California will stretch his skills, knowledge, and preparation to the limits. Will he survive this catastrophe of biblical proportions? Will he make it home to his family? Will his family survive until he arrives home? What will he find if he does make it? This is the story about the worst type of natural disaster and a man who will do whatever it takes to make it home to the ones he loves. A story of despair and resilience, failure and triumph. If you like the book, and even if you don't, PLEASE take a moment to rate it and leave a review. I welcome all constructive feedback as I intend to write more books and the feedback will only help me become a better writer. Thank you for taking the time to consider, and hopefully read, my book.

    They captivate us with their forbidden mystery and promises of excitement. Yet once inside us, they become toxic; compelling us to infect others, who in turn want nothing more than to be bitten. It's a vicious cycle that ensures nothing remains secret forever. The only way to protect yourself from their destructive energies is to simply turn the other way when offered one. To resist the lure of the forbidden fruit. But sometimes, something just happens to you - or you just happen to witness something - that forces one upon you; like an uninvited guest that arrives without warning, and leaves only under great duress. Unfortunately, I have been burdened by such a secret for over twenty years. You see, my childhood was stolen from me in broad daylight, right under my nose, by a cunning thief who dazzled me with his charms, only to run away with my innocence forever. It was the perfect crime, and at the time I was the perfect victim. But thankfully, I was able to pick up the pieces of my life and gradually go on to live quite normally. In fact, I even forgot all about my childhood trauma. Or so I thought. Because it was during a recent chance encounter with my old teenage diary that I realized my demons had never truly left me. They had only been lurking in the shadows all along as I busied myself with other things. I suppose I learned the hard way that a secret kept in darkness only grows in potency.  But there is one way to diffuse a secret. To take away all of its power. And that is to make it public. For no vampire can survive in the cold light of day. So it is at the behest of my wonderfully supportive husband that I have decided to lay bare the ghosts of my childhood in this book, in the hope that in doing so, I'll finally be able to lay them to rest forever. It's been a long, hard journey for me to get to this point. And I thank you, dear reader, for playing your part in my recovery. Emily WARNING: This book is based upon a true story of child abuse, and as such contains passages that some readers may find disturbing.

     The real danger though lurks unseen in the shadows - a serial killer who will stop at nothing to make their twisted plan a reality. As Dr Sinclair battles to save her hospital and her patients she realises that all is not as it seems and the truth is even more terrifying than anyone could ever have imagined. “S.J. Gardiner’s debut thriller makes the pulse race…” “Thrilling to the very last page.” “Move over Kay Scarpetta, there’s a new Doctor in town.”

    Local friendships and bonds of loyalty that she and her family formed during their gradual renovation of their once derelict farmhouse have now deepened. The children, both hers and her neighbours', are now adults and the close-knit community celebrates and prepares for the new generation. The wedding festivities and banquets are beautifully described in mouth-watering detail and the tastes and smells of Lot-et-Garonne seem to float from the page. An unforgettable and enriching story of Ruth and her family, and their continuing love for their home in the sunflowers.

    Amelia plans to stay only as long as it takes for her friend to marry. She has no interest in a life in Montana. That is, until she meets handsome lawman, Wilder Armstrong. And then everything changes. Wilder is on the trail of a criminal and travels to Montana Falls to see that justice is done. He doesn't bank on meeting the one woman who will persuade him that Montana just might be a place to settle down forever. Nor can Wilder let the best friend of the woman he has fallen for marry the very man he is investigating. Can two people united by destiny find true happiness? Can an instant attraction become an eternal love? Each story in the series is a full length complete standalone novel with a happy ending and no cliffhangers.

    But the inhabitants are a lively and varied community – and none more so than Nelly Luke, the cheerful Cockney widow who for many years has made the ramshackle cottage on the village outskirts her cosy, if unconventional, home.Although her eccentric lifestyle is the despair of her social-climbing daughter Evie, Nelly’s warmth and wisdom win her many friends. There’s Fay, the young newly-wed whose marriage is haunted by the all-too-substantial ghost of her first love, lost in the war; Amy, the glamorous shopkeeper whose private life is colourful indeed; and her dignified sister Prue, whose family cupboard contains more than a few skeletons.Against the mounting excitement of the Coronation summer, Nelly steers her friends and family through storm and sunshine alike…Painting a lively yet realistic picture of village life in post-war Wales, this is a heartwarming story of ordinary people and their far-from-ordinary lives. A Welcome in the Valley is the first book in Grace Thompson’s Valley sagas, and is sure to engross readers of Maureen Reynolds and Rosie Clarke. The Valley Sagas  A Welcome in the Valley Valley Affairs The Changing Valley Valley in Bloom

     Follow Sean Ryder in this apocalyptic survivor series. Set Contains: Patient Zero Abandoned Hope Descended in Blood

    Races operating within their own planetary systems are to be left alone until they begin to develop the ability to travel at FTL (faster than light speeds). When the ability to travel at FTL becomes apparent, one of the members of the Federation is nominated to help ease the newcomer through the Galactic citizenship process. Unfortunately, not all the galaxies systems belong to the Federation, and some of those systems are much less than friendly. The last several decades have seen the development of war like societies that systematically loot developing planets. They take the water, and other precious resources, including slaves, leaving the remaining native inhabitants a barren planet. Without resources the population simply dies a slow death. The Egolari are here because we, meaning the people of Earth, happen to possess a skill set and an aptitude that is critical to the needs of the Federation. The major problem within the Federation is that virtually all the members have, for centuries been living in peace. They have developed a society that is not well suited to counter the growing violence presented by the nonaligned races. In short, they have no way to protect themselves, let alone protect the fledgling races just arriving on the galactic scene. Enter Earth. Of all the emerging races to become future galactic members, one has a superior potential to face the violence threatened by the nonaligned races. You guessed it, Humanity. The Federation realized that to continue to function as an organized galactic society, they would have to develop a military arm that could provide the Federation and emerging systems the protection of a fleet of space vessels and marines. Humanity was the race most capable of leading the development of that military organization because we had not progressed so far that our war like tendencies had begun to erode. Although we were not yet ready for galactic membership, we were a necessity that could fill the need, thus we were getting a crash course in how to travel the galaxy, protecting ourselves and the Federation with the full expectation that we would go where no human has gone before, and kick some alien ass.

    

    The Sopwith Camels are holding their own against the German war machine and then they meet the Fokker Triplane and the pilots of the RFC began to fall. As the war drifts into 1918 the Germans have one last throw of the dice and come within a whisker of the sea. It is up to Bill, Gordy and Ted to lead their young pilots in a last desperate attempt to halt the grey wall of steel. With a dramatic climax during bloody September in 1918 the final book set in the Great War shows how the squadron emerges from four bloody years of war.