Book picks similar to
The Blue Jay by Michelle Schlicher


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Galaxy of Heroes


Gus Flory - 2009
    A breathtakingly beautiful cyborg. A battle like no other. An adventure you won't forget!The lives of four space drifters intersect on a planet of hope as the most powerful war machine in the galaxy approaches, threatening to consume them all in a storm of metal and fire.Capt. Jace Spade is a fighter pilot from the Roga System. He is determined to find his maker—the enigmatic Dr. Zander—even if his search means risking all in the conflagrations of the Inner Galaxy.Capt. Mina Casey is also a fighter pilot, but from an advanced human civilization that arose in the Heliac System. Capt. Casey has drifted through the void for eons as visions of a warm planet where she can sink her feet in the sand and watch the sunset filled her dreams.Sgt. Joe Grimes—a Heliac Ranger who once lived for the thrill of the fight—is now disillusioned after the total defeat and destruction of his home world. He would leave all humanity behind if he could only get away.Genie is a beautiful and indestructible cyborg constructed by a technologically advanced civilization for the purpose of interacting with humans. Genie is programmed to love Joe Grimes, but she longs to be free.

The God Thought


Dave Cravens - 2015
    levels a small town in Kansas and rips apart the commercial airliner flying overhead. The wife and child of Oliver Wells are among the thousands reported dead. Authorities blame the tragedy on an accident at a fertilizer plant not up to code. A year later, still grappling with his depression, Oliver is accosted by a mysterious stranger who offers another answer: A FARMER CAUSED THE EXPLOSION. AN EXPLOSION BORN OF THOUGHT. A THOUGHT SO PERFECT AND DIVINE IT'S SAID TO MIRROR WHAT GOD THOUGHT TO CONCEIVE THE UNIVERSE. Thrust into a hidden world of conspirators and luminaries who would do anything to attain the farmer's knowledge, Oliver finds himself in a race to confront the man who killed his family. To do so, he must test the limits of his sanity... AND UNLOCK THE POWER OF THE GOD THOUGHT FOR HIMSELF."

Henry and Tom: Book 1: Rescue (Ocean Adventure Series)


Michael Atkins - 2014
    Henry and Tom is an extraordinary tale of love and cooperation between a man and whale. It deals with enduring themes including marriage and family, life crises, finding one's self and personal development. It is a deep and very moving story for readers of all ages. Beautifully written and well produced. Henry and Tom won 1st prize in the 2015 Reader's Choice Fiction-Animals Genre and was a Semi-Finalist in the 2015 Kindle Book Awards.

The PureLights of Ohm Totem


Brandon Ellis - 2013
    A strange wolf with a beautiful, violet crystal embedded in his forehead visits her. "Please help us," the wolf implores with sad eyes. "Remember, Zoey, who you truly are." Zoey wakes up, dismissing it as a silly dream. However, she soon realizes that it was far more real than she could've ever imagined. Coda is Zoey's older brother. Like many boys his age, he has a craving for adventure and a loathing for his younger sister. He can't stand it that she constantly gets in his way, joining in on all his fun, and ruining it in the process. The worst, according to Coda, is that Zoey gets all the attention from their parents. A big drag in his mind.Then destiny arrives, one that Zoey and Coda must face together - if they want to survive.Together, they journey to a place deep in the Cornell Forest, beyond the Snow Tree, through a patch of blackberry bushes concealing a secret portal that leads them to an ancient world called Ohm Totem - to the place of the PureLights, the race beckoning for their help. There, Zoey and Coda discover something so unique, so magical, and so sacred within themselves, that even those who called for them could not have known how powerful these two children really are. Caught between an age old war and finding their way back home, Zoey and Coda go on an amazing adventure, taking them beyond the veils of everything they once knew, and into the terrifying grasp of the unknown.With the storytelling creativity of authors like C.S. Lewis of the Chronicles of Narnia and the writing acumen of Erin Hunter of the Warriors and Seekers series, Omon Hart offers a captivating novel showcasing his skill and ingenuity as a storyteller. He's an author to watch.The PureLights of Ohm Totem is Book I of an ongoing series. Book II, The PureLights & the PureLight Order, is soon to arrive on Amazon.

Early Daze


Jennifer Gilby Roberts - 2014
    And now her baby has "fallen out" before she's even started ante-natal classes.Suddenly, she's sucked into the bubble of the Neonatal Unit, where tensions run high and the real world feels very far away. She has a new home, new routines, new friends and even a new crush, just when she feels most distant from her old life and fiancé. Add in sleep deprivation, hormones, worry and the fact that she has more contact with her breast pump than her baby, and her neat little world is in grave danger of falling apart.The third trimester is never easy, but it's a whole lot harder when your baby's no longer inside you...

Drachen


Brendan Le Grange - 2015
    A psychopath with mother issues. A hitman who hates failure. A soldier with a point to prove. And a treasure that tests every allegiance.Brett Rivera has spent three years searching for the Drachen. The day she finds it is the day her life changes: there is no sign of its legendary treasure and now a cold-blooded killer is hunting her. What does he know that she doesn’t?Brett is chased in Finland, double-crossed in Tallinn, abducted in Lübeck, and shot at in Bremen as this action-packed thriller dashes across northern Europe, barely pausing for breath.A shipwreck. A lost treasure. A hell of a race from one to the other.Readers' Favorite give it 5 stars, calling it an "enthralling adventure tale filled with secret passageways, puzzles, codes and clues."

Rise of the Seer


Brandon Barr - 2016
    Two worlds. One epic destiny. A god-gifted young woman is chosen for a grim task – one that will take her beyond the boundaries of her own world. Winter’s chilling visions of the future make clear that her choices will not only affect the success of her mission… but whether those she loves will live or die.On the distant world of Hearth, Meluscia is the daughter of a dying king. As he wages a bitter war in the north, a growing evil devours the villages of the east. She would turn her kingdom’s forces to face the emerging threat– but first, she must gain the throne… and confront the secret desire that torments her soul.Though worlds apart, Meluscia and Winter’s destinies are bound together by portals and an ancient prophecy that promises to pull friend and foe together in a devastating collision.An excellent choice for fans of Anne McCaffrey and Terry Brooks. RISE OF THE SEER is Book One in the Song of the Worlds series. Discover a dazzling epic fantasy series by USA Today Bestselling Author Brandon Barr. #BrandonsBuddies

The French Orphan


Michael Stolle - 2012
    However, as far as you’re concerned, this is all pretty meaningless. After all, as a teenage orphan living in a monastery school in Reims, all you have to worry about is dodging the unpleasant advances of a few unsavoury monks and looking forward to a life of penniless and celibate servitude in a religious order.After a childhood and adolescence plagued by a constant longing to know who he really is, orphan Pierre has not the slightest idea that his questions are about to be answered. But you know what they say – be careful what you wish for… Suddenly finding out who you are can bring with it not only happiness and fortune, but danger, friendship and the sort of swift education that the monastery could never have provided! The discovery of who Pierre really is affects not only Pierre and his friends, but has ramifications for the French nobility, the English crown, and most dangerous of all, the machinations of Cardinal Richelieu and his fierce ambition for the Church and for himself.

The Captured Girl: A Novel of Survival during the Great Sioux War


Tom Reppert - 2016
    More than four years later in 1875, when the cavalry attacks her Indian village, she is rescued by Lieutenant Raines. Now eighteen, she returns to white society with her Cheyenne son at her side. Her struggle for survival has just begun.Filled with fascinating characters: outlaws, soldiers and warriors, English Dukes, Robber Barons, and the upstairs downstairs of back east society, this epic story of love and survival transports us from the Indian camps of Montana Territory to the mean streets of Gilded Age New York, and back again, right into the heart of the Great Sioux War. Reviews:“Realistic dialog; interpersonal entanglements and characterizations that come alive. It all adds authenticity to a historical work that makes for a delicious read.” Foster W. Cline, M.D, author of Parenting with Love and Logic.“The Captured Girl is a captivating story of survival and strength. Morgan’s is a tale of courage wouldn’t let go of my imagination even after I sadly turned the last page.” Mary Haley author of Ghost Writer, The Great Potato Murder.“An excellently written and fascinating story of the Sioux War of the 1800s. It is obvious that the author Tom Reppert has spent many hours researching that period of history, and he has made it come alive as few authors can. You can feel and identify with the inner struggle that his hero, a young soldier, goes through during his first battle.” Ana Parker Goodwin, author of Justice Forbidden

Regret the Day I Said Yes: Too Late For Sorry


Regina Swanson - 2016
     That thing called LOVE can turn your entire world upside down and knock you on your ass in the blink of an eye. Alan has done the unthinkable and just might have burned any chance of reconciliation with his wife after leaving her stranded and flown home with his mistress. Regret the Day I Said Yes: Too Late For Sorry is a story about a group of couples who think they have found the answer to having a happy lifelong marriage. Bailee & York and Tiffany & Damon have been secretly swinging for years. As they see their friends' marriages on the brink of disaster they encourage them to give it a try to spice things up. While it all seems logical at first, time later reveals that every choice has a consequence; Good or bad, their actions can come back to haunt them. Can these marriages be saved? Can these friendships be rebuilt? Have you ever regretted the day you said yes? Sometimes it's too late for sorry.

Phantom Touch


Jessica Hawke - 2013
    As if high school wasn’t hard enough on its own, now she spends her days helping unhappy ghosts move on to the afterlife. Dealing with death on a daily basis is too much for one girl to handle, so when she finds a way to get rid of her supernatural sight, she jumps at the chance. But when a missing student turns up as a freshly murdered ghost with a taste for vengeance, Bridget realizes she's the only one who can find the killer. With innocent lives hanging in the balance, Bridget must decide if she’s willing to sacrifice her one chance at a normal life. Join Bridget and her rag-tag team of ghostly companions for a nail-biting mystery that will keep you up all night.

Green River Blend


Armand Rosamilia - 2015
    Augustine. Free from corporate businesses and a slew of tourists descending upon the quaint former fishing village, Hammond Beach is like a painting. Locals run the businesses on Main Street. Even when a new coffee shop opens, the owner hires only Hammond Beach locals, including manager Betty. She’s born and raised in Hammond Beach and knows everyone. But when the latest and greatest coffee is put out, Green River Blend, strange things begin to happen to the residents of Hammond Beach…

The Fire Escape Stories


Chuck Cascio - 2016
    Mike and his cousin, Salvatore “Sally-Boy” Boccanera are born one minute apart, in the same hospital, and it seems like they’ll never be more than a minute apart the rest of their lives. Their experiences knocking around the city are challenging, funny, touching, and at times disturbing—all of the ingredients that define growing up. Life lessons happen in the Italian bakery Sally-Boy’s father owns, where the boys loll and play, with ears and eyes wide open. But maybe the biggest lesson of all looms over Mike’s father, who’s determined to make drastic changes in pursuit of a better life. Hanging in the balance, at the center of the boys’ tumultuous lives, is the fire escape. It’s a place that is uniquely theirs, and Mike best describes its spell, recalling how it reeks in the rain, blisters in the sun, and ices over in the snow. It’s where he and Sally-Boy talk and think and philosophize and plot and try to understand all they can about themselves and the world.

Awakening


Catrina Burgess - 2013
    Seventeen-year-old Colina was born a healer. But after a horrific event forces her to leave her clan, she becomes desperate to learn the dark magic of the death dealers, mages who draw their power from the spirits of the dead. Colina was taught to fear and hate death dealers, but becoming one of them is the only way for her to get the revenge she seeks-and the only way for her to survive. Colina asks a young death dealer named Luke to help her, but he's reluctant to train her in the Death Arts. Little does she know convincing him to teach her will be the easiest part of her journey. To become a death dealer, Colina will need to undergo three dark rituals, each more terrifying than the last. At the same time, she'll have to deal with her growing feelings for her mentor. Too bad the first ritual involves him strangling her to death. As Colina undergoes the trials, she discovers an untapped darkness within herself. If she survives the horrific rituals and gains dark power, what will she become? Catrina Burgess' Dark Rituals series originally appeared on Wattpad with over three million reads. Awakening is the first book of four and was named Wattpad's Best Suspense Story of 2014.

Life Without Shoes: The First Father Ambrose Mystery


Emma Cyrus - 2017
    So why would anyone dump a body in their orchard? Can the visionary Father Ambrose hold onto his own peace of mind, help his fragile community survive, and assist the police to catch a murderer? Life Without Shoes is a gentle newcomer in the world of clerical mysteries--welcome!Donna Fletcher Crow, The Monastery Murders SeriesIn the tradition of Grantchester, the Rabbi Small mysteries, the Cadfael Chronicles, and The Monastery Murders Series, Life Without Shoes confronts a modern-day monastic with a horrifying crime.It's late summer and Father Ambrose is looking forward to an abundant and joyful harvest at New Life Ecumenical Retreat. That dream is shattered when someone dumps a body in one of their orchards.As Abbot, Ambrose is forced into the role of protector of New Life and, eventually, private investigator, working alongside Sheriff Charlie Cormley to identify and bring the perpetrator to justice. He has no fondness for the world beyond the gates, but now he must put all that aside and do what's best for his community.Through meditation and his commitment to compassionate service, Father Ambrose finds himself engaged with the outside world in ways he couldn't have predicted, and in the process, must prove the innocence of the New Life community or see it crumble around him.