If you haven’t yet met the Thomas family, you are in for a real delight! “Every era has its own refiner's fire, and World War II put general Church membership and Utah to a test,” Dean Hughes explains. In Children of the Promise, his first historical fiction series for adults, Dean shows through the eyes of the Thomas family how LDS families were tested to the limit. Volume 1: Rumors of War - The first volume, Rumors of War opens in 1938 with Elder Alex Thomas and his companion serving in Germany. It soon becomes obvious that he will never complete his mission. War is coming, and that will affect not only Elder Thomas but also his family back home in Salt Lake City.Volume 2: Since You Went Away - Picking up where the bestseller Rumors of War left off, Since You Went Away continues with Wally Thomas's struggle to survive as a prisoner of war on the Bataan Peninsula while his family begin to disperse due to the war. Bobbi and Alex Thomas are leaving for military duty at the infant stages of World War II — Bobbi as a naval nurse at Pearl Harbor and Alex in army basic training. A gripping novel filled with memorable characters, Since You Went Away will draw you into a past charged with danger, action, romance, and the importance of family and faith.Volume 3: Far From Home - In Far From Home, Alex Thomas is still battling the Nazi forces. He’s also worried about whether or not he can preserve the lives of the men in his company, especially Howie, a particularly young and inexperienced soldier. But his biggest concern is staying alive for his wife, Anna, in England. Far From Home is a moving, powerful novel about the effects of adversity, and about the love of family members for each other.Volume 4: When We Meet Again - Following the Battle of the Bulge, Alex Thomas is reassigned — not without reluctance — to an intelligence unit in Germany. The new assignment challenges Alex's deepest moral values and is more life threatening than combat. As a POW in Japan, Wally suffers torture that may only find relief in death, while Bobbi sorts out her true feelings when she runs into Professor David Stinson thousands of miles away from home.As Long As I Have You - The war is over, and the Thomas family is slowly coming back together at home in Salt Lake City. But that doesn't mean all is well in Zion. In As Long As I Have You, the final volume of the Children of the Promise series, author Dean Hughes presents a moving picture of what life was like for an ordinary LDS family at the end of World War II.

    Strib takes a good look at who the Buddha was, meditation, karma, and more. With good humor and without sentimentalism (plus a sprinkling of hilarious cartoons), he explains these down-to-earth insights in everyday language. Showing how Buddhism boldly approaches life’s problems head on, unflinching and alert—like a soldier in a forward listening post in the dark of night—Strib emphasizes the Buddhist call to moral action for the good of oneself and others.

    Hank is his long-time student. The aging Jake hopes that Hank will take over teaching for him. But the commitment-phobic Hank doesn’t feel up to the job, and Jake is beginning to exhibit behavior that looks suspiciously like Alzheimer’s disease. Is a guy with as many “issues” as Hank even capable of being a Zen teacher? And are those paradoxical things Jake keeps doing some kind of koan-like wisdom . . . or just dementia? These and other hard questions confront Hank, Jake, and the colorful cast of characters they meet during a week-long trip to the funky neighborhood of Central Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts. As they trek back and forth from bar to restaurant to YMCA to Zen Center to doughnut shop, answers arise—in the usual unexpected ways.

    The impossible task of knowing God's mind...

    If a person loved you they would hurt you. She believed that and after experiencing that kind of love in a abusive home Sa'dai knew she had to get out unlike the girls around her she didn't use her body to escape the pain she used her brains.  When her dreams of becoming a nurse and securing a better future are coming true. She finds after a chance encounter that there is love in Hip-Hop and falls for a local rapper who promised her love in exchange for lies and deceit. With a heart full of hurt will she be able to feel her heart with love again? Savage Johnson was living up to the name his daddy gave him. He carried himself in the streets and in the sheets with many different women like a Savage should. Being proud of it until he ran into Sa’dai. Those eyes instantly drew him in. No woman had ever captured his heart just from a glance. Sa'dai was everything he wanted his future to look like. He hadn't spoken a word to her but he knew he had to make her his. Seeing she wasn't being treated right he was determined to turn from being a savage to her savior. He was going to love the hurt from her heart. ​In this urban tale of love and redemption we will uncover the story of two lovers battling the world as well as mending broken hearts.

    With her family deeply molded into the cartels, she tries to live a more wholesome life as a kindergarten teacher. After the tragic loss of her only son, the blame game and a wicked deception drives the grieving parents in opposite directions. Years later, when he returns to her life, she can’t seem to filter through her conflicted feelings. Sir Vito is YiYa’s weakness. He’s also the one man who has the capability to break down every wall she attempts to hold up against him. With them both still grieving over the loss of their son, emotions are at an all-time high. When it seems like history has a chance to repeat itself, they have to learn to lean on their love for hope to survive. That’s if the two have the strength to fight for love. Omi Wright is an incisive business woman above all. Her high mindedness is the root of her flourishing cocaine transport empire on Norman Cay Island. YiYa is her only true friend that she allows in her life. When the women who raised Omi passes away, it forces the once homeless young girl from the Westbank turned drug trafficker to reunite with her past. Shassius Linares belies his thuggish exterior with his charming ways. He acquires the title as one of the most ruthless international drug lords known to law enforcement and governors. Being that he was raised by La Madrina, nothing stops him from returning to New Orleans to lay her to rest. Not even the fact that he is a wanted man on the run. His deep past with Omi resurfaces with the hard on feelings to match. With him back with his old squad who made him, problem arises. Yeti Wright is Omi’s twin brother whose involvement with cocaine trafficking has moved to high levels. With a wide range of workers under him, he doesn’t regret the relationship he begins with the girlfriend of one of his loyal workers. Nigeria Remington goes from being the girlfriend of a worker to sleeping with the head boss in charge. She captures Yeti’s attention immediately, and even when she seems undecided on who she wants, Yeti comes to her every beck and call when needed. Their relationship is filled with secrets, causing untruths to be revealed. When Nigeria tries to keep up with two men, will the one she chooses be all that she wished for? Will it be too late to go back to the man that she disregarded? Follow the lives of these couples as they try to deal with love lost and found. Will Omi allow Shassius back in after his true colors are shown? Is she even capable of receiving love and giving it back in return? Shassius is a wanted man, so the underlying question is when will his bad karma catch up to him? Will YiYa be able to forgive Sir Vito for not being there when she needed him most? The shell shocking truth of his absence cuts her deep but how will she handle it?

    

    

    Neglected by his parents his whole life, he’s finally found the family that he’s always wanted at the shop. He thinks he’s got everything that he needs...until Darcy walks into the shop.One look at the shy girl with the kind eyes and the curvy body of a goddess and Atlas is hooked. Now, he just needs to show Darcy that he’s here to stay.Mischa:Love, romance, dating. Mischa Jennings wants no part of any of it. He’s seen up close and personal how love can ruin your life and he’s vowed to stay far away from that emotion. Armed with a set of rules to keep him safe, he’s been going through life just fine. Then Indie Hearst comes bouncing into Eye Candy Ink and turns his whole world upside down.Suddenly, he’s breaking every one of his rules, but it’s okay. He’s not even close to falling for Indie.Right?Sam:Sam Kavan has grown up learning to be tough, at least on the outside. Like everyone else at Eye Candy Ink, she’s not interested in falling in love. In fact, after a string of failed dates, she's grown disillusioned with dating. She doesn't want to go out with boys who send her dick pics or who text at midnight looking to hook up. She wants someone that she can rely on—someone who loves and wants her for her. She wants a real man.Then she meets Maxwell Schulz, and she wonders if she’s finally met her match.Zeke:Zeke Miller is the owner of Eye Candy Ink and the father figure to everyone at the shop. He’s spent years building Eye Candy Ink into what it is today. While others dated and settled down, he worked, honing his skills until he’s one of the best and most sought after tattoo artists in the world. At thirty-six, he thinks his time to meet someone has passed and he’s resigned to being happy with the family that he’s found at his shop.Then Trixie Clemonte comes into Eye Candy Ink. She has all of his protective instincts kicking in. But none of them are fatherly.Nico:Nico Miller is the quiet, silent type. With ten years of experience, he’s probably the best artist at the shop. He's a giant at 6'8" and built like a linebacker with tattoos covering his neck and torso. Most people are a little afraid of him when they first meet him, but it doesn’t take long to see that while he might look scary, with his almost permanent frown, tattoos, and size, he was actually a giant teddy bear.Most of the time, he can’t wait for people to leave, but one encounter with Edie, and he doesn’t want to let her go. Will he be able to convince her that settling down with him doesn’t mean settling?

    Devastated that Juelz married his long lost fiance, Ciera has to make a hard decision for herself and her unborn child. Will she be able to get through her pregnancy drama free or will she be forced to return and face Juelz? Two of the people who Juelz considered closest to him have committed the ultimate act of betrayal. The excitement of Kenya's return is causing him to walk around blind to the truth. Will Juelz be able to see through the lies and realize who is really in his corner before it is too late, or will loyalty be his ultimate downfall. While rescuing Ari and his niece Kari, bullets hit Zelan and it may be the end of their perfect romance. Will Zelan be strong enough to pull through, and grow old with Ari? He is the key to Juelz finding out Kenya's hidden lies, but will he live to reveal them? In the end, everyone will have to make hard decisions that they never saw coming. Ari and Ciera will be forced to admit that a Billionaire Finessed their Hearts but is that a good or bad thing?

    They have done any and everything to make sure they had the best lives possible. Amina is all that and knows it! She doesn't take any mess from anyone and when she's not running her business you'll catch her playing momma to her three unruly younger sisters. She's not looking for love and doesn't want it either until she meets Jaquan. Jurnee has trust issues and a big heart hiding behind the pain of her childhood. Now she has it all, married to a successful business man and a career of her own. That is until her the foundation she's built her life on crumbs under her feet. Gucci was the 3rd oldest and the one with the I could care less attitude. She's seemed to have gotten herself into some trouble that's having a domino effect on the people she cares for the most. Zy'ala is the youngest and the wild child of the bunch. To know her is to love her and only her family truly knew who she is as a person. Feelings are difficult to express so she becomes violent often if things didn't go her way or she feel threatened. One of the Bennett sisters commits a crime that puts all their lives in danger, will they be able to stick together as a family and come out out on top, or will they all go their separate ways letting their sister take the fall alone.

    Despite his past infidelities, she pushes hard to make it work. A night of snooping brings out a few secrets that could destroy their love forever. But someone in her corner might be willing to take Bianca's pain away if she let's them. Damita Paxton had been dealt a bad hand. After losing her job and being forced to move in with her cousin, Bianca, she tries to start her life over and begin a new. But a secret that she left back in Atlanta not only threatens her happiness but her life as well. Sunset Richmond is in love with a man who may never love her the way she loves him. With two kids on her hip, all she desires is to be a real family. Is she doomed to being the side chick forever? Will anyone be able to find the happiness they so desperately seek or is this a setup for failure?

    When Stacks decides to merge his empire with Chad, money starts coming in by the boatload. With more money comes more problems when the men find themselves battling with their past infidelities in order to keep peace in their home. The past is a Finesser and is out for blood when secrets are revealed that threatens the lives and faith of some relationships. Snakes reappear out of the blue to cause hell, while new love is found. Follow these couples on a journey as the realize that Fallin' For A Boss was one thing, but getting married to one is completely a different story.

    She's smart, beautiful and takes pride in being a shoulder for everyone to cry on…but when no one is around and reality sets in, she's filled with hurt—a hurt that she can't seem to overcome. Everywhere she turns, she's reminded of the reasons that trust isn't too high on her priority list. But when her heart forms a bond with the one man that she's been trying to steer clear of, her entire mindset begins to change. For most of his life, Caleb has been that guy—the one that no woman should take seriously. He's a playboy, and he doesn't shy away from the title. Women know upfront what he's bringing to the table, and if they don't like it, then they can keep it moving. But what happens when the tables turn? Caleb isn’t used to being the one begging for more, but when it comes to Gabi…that’s exactly the case. He can't stay away, and he doesn't want to. Determined to get what he wants, Caleb goes the extra mile to win Gabi’s heart. But when lines are crossed, and trust is broken, everything takes a turn for the worst. Something so promising quickly turns into heartbreak. Will there be a future for Caleb and Gabi? Or will walking away from each other become their only option?

    She’s a rich daddy’s girl who is used to living a lavish life with the ability to get her way at the bat of her pretty blue eyes. Just months away from graduating with one of the highest GPAs at Coral Gables High and heading off to Harvard, Jaysee’s world is turned upside down when she needs a favor from her handsome neighbor. After being exiled to Miami for wreaking too much havoc on the streets of New York, Gunny is just counting down the days until he can get back on the block. Gunny’s strategy is simple; while laying low in the 305, he’s gonna keep his head down and stay out the way. But his plans are quickly derailed when he has an unexpected encounter with the girl next door.