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Shattered Promises Box Set: Books 1-3


Jessica Sorensen - 2014
    She knows nothing about her past and has been haunted by the same monsters in her nightmares for the last few months. Unemotional and numb to life, she feels disconnected from everyone. Until the very first day she cries. After that, nothing in her life is the same.Her life only gets more complicated when she meets Alex. Sexy, arrogant, and secretive, Alex can get under Gemma’s skin like no one can. Yet she’s drawn to him by an invisible connection she has no control over. She’s also seen him before. In her nightmares.Every part of Gemma’s mind is screaming at her to stay away from Alex, but every other part of her is begging to get close to him. But the closer she gets, the more she realizes Alex knows more about her than he originally let on.As secrets about her past unravel, Gemma’s life becomes threatened. She needs to figure out what’s going on, before she winds up dead. But the only person she can turn to for answers is the one person she isn’t sure she can trust.Fractured Souls (Shattered Promises, #2):(A re-imagining of my young adult book, The Underworld (Fallen Star Series, Book 2) told as a New Adult Paranormal).Gemma thought she had said her good-byes and had felt every possible emotion she could before her soul was detached again. Deep down inside, she hoped she’d never wake up from it because, in her eyes, life without emotion and memories isn’t worth living.But she does wake up and discovers she can still feel and remember everything she experienced over the last few months. Alex is also telling her that everything’s okay, that he didn’t betray her, and that what she thought happened really didn’t.Gemma isn’t sure if she can trust Alex, so she tries to keep her distance from him, even though the electric connection and her desire make it nearly impossible. The only person she can trust is Laylen, but even that becomes complicated when the lines of their friendship begin to blur.While Gemma struggles with her emotions and relationships, she searches for her mother, entering a dangerous world of secrets, seduction, and evil. The further she digs into her mother’s secrets and past, the more she wonders what waits for her at the end of her search and if maybe some things are better left in the dark.Unbroken (Shattered Promises, #2.5):Alex thought things were already complicated, but then Gemma shows up possessed by Stephan and she wants to kill him. Normally, he would eliminate someone in Gemma’s position to protect himself, but his feelings for Gemma won’t allow him to do that. She’s too important to him and he knows he has to save her without hurting her.But can he find a way to save her before someone gets hurt?Broken Visions (Shattered Promises, #3):(This is a re-imagining of my Young Adult Paranormal book, The Vision (Book 3 in the Fallen Star Series) told as a New Adult Paranormal)Gemma thought Alex was dead, that she’d made an irreversible mistake and would never see him again. But then her father resets time and she’s given another chance to be with Alex, if she can save the world and get rid of the star.Gemma decides to follow in her father’s footsteps and attempt to change the vision of the end of the world. If she can pull it off, then maybe she can have the normal life she’s always wanted and Alex and her can have a chance for a real future.But changing visions is dangerous, and sometimes one small mistake can lead to disastrous results.All books have a **Mature Content Warning** 17+ for language and sexual content.

Anything for Jane


Cheryl Mendelson - 2007
    Talented, troubled, and self-centered, Jane Braithwaite makes her well-meaning upper-middle-class family miserable, enmeshing them in the complicated lives of a homeless family, a poor teenager with no family, and a would-be family foundering on childlessness. When catastrophe finally threatens, all their dilemmas are resolved by the same stunning and unexpected means.All the while, the Braithwaites involve old and new friends in their struggles–a lovesick clergyman, a lonely doctor and his baby-obsessed wife, a libertarian billionaire, a money-loving philosopher, and a hard-bitten but sexy poverty activist. Their social and political clashes provide entertainment both comic and serious.

Godwalker


Greg Stolze - 2005
    Ignorance is no excuse for the cops and creeps and exterminators whose desires shaped the world. Knowledge is a little power, a dangerous thing, to the cross-dressers and risk-takers who understand enough to damage the world more to their liking. They all collude and collide on a driverless ride, each trying to be the one to break the secret heart of the world. But only one can claim the prize of being the cosmos' corrupt ward boss. Only one can be the Godwalker.

The Greatest Company In The World? The Story Of Tata


Peter Casey - 2014
    How did Tata transform itself from a family-owned business to one of the most professionally managed enterprises in the world? How did it become a world leader in an array of unrelated businesses—from steel and automobile manufacturing to hotels and IT consulting? What exactly is the ‘Tata Way’, which has earned it so much admiration and respect?This brief history of the Tatas charts the contribution of every Tata chairman—from Jamsetji Tata, who set up the company in 1868, to Ratan Tata and Cyrus Mistry—and explores the values at the heart of the Tata Group, as well as the role played in its development by the philanthropic trusts that own two-thirds of the company.For anyone curious about this Indian company that has become a leading global player, this book is the perfect introduction.

Los Heroes y Los Dioses: Relatos de La Iliada y La Guerra de Troya


Andres Montanes - 2009
    The simple and straightforward text is paired with illustrations that capture daily life in ancient Greece to make for a fast-paced read. A final section explores the characteristics of the epic narrative, and themes such as heroism, justice, and cultural identity.

The Book Thief: by Markus Zusak -- Review


Expert Book Reviews - 2013
    With the comprehension of a typical 9-year-old, Liesel Merminger struggles to survive with a foster family in Nazi Germany. Books and the words within become Liesel’s strongest tool as she learns to read and fight for her life. Young adults learning about the Holocaust can gain an insider’s perspective from this fictional portrayal. Readers are taken on an emotional journey narrated by Death. What makes this book stand out against other WWII fiction novels? Markus Zusak focuses on the children who barely understand the changes taking place in the world. A poetic tone enhances the flow of the story, and the characters will haunt your thoughts long after you finish reading. In addition to the positive and negative aspects, this review covers the author’s backstory to give you insight into his knowledge of the era. With a list of awards the book has received and quotes from expert reviewers, you will gain a better idea of how Markus Zusak's The Book Thief will resonate with you.

Boys' Night Out


Suza Kates - 2014
    Michael Black’s world has seen a lot of changes over the past year, and falling for a witch who chats with his animal patients has been the best one by far. He’s decided to make it official, so the men associated with the coven insist on helping him celebrate. Michael is popping the question to the woman he loves, the coven has only two trials to go before the prophecy is fulfilled, and the guys want to throw him a bachelor party. Sounds like a plan. And no demon is going to stand in his way.

This Thing Don't Lead to Heaven


Harry Crews - 1970
    

Baller Dreams


Tasha Macklin - 2012
    He is forced to make a number of decisions that will change his life. Choosing school over the mean Detroit's Eastside streets, the sudden reality of his poor circumstances make him painfully aware of the fortunes that can be made if he embarks on the career path of a hustler. Deciding that he wants to be a baller, Dre meets and forms an alliance with an older, very beautiful female named Destiny. Unbeknownst to him, she had a secret and motive that draws her to him, which causes her to assist him in making all of his plans reality. Dre and his closest friends will create a clique called the Eastside Syndicate and set a hustle in motion like Detroit has never seen. No one else in the city will be able to compete with the murder and muscle game that they release upon the streets. However, when he falls in love with another and finds himself at odds with Destiny, the beautiful temptress who helped to make his dreams come true will stop at nothing to bring Dre and the organization that he created to its knees. Dre has everything that a hustler could ever want. Only when the tide turns, he will quickly realize that the dream life he once lived was no more than a nightmare in disguise.

Waking


Ron Rash - 2011
    Ron Rash the poet is back and giving us poems that are both the river stones and the water making them shine. If allowed only two words for this wonderful poet, they would have to be clear and lithe.

Lonely Traveller


Sereno Sky - 2014
    Bernardo was 14 years old when Woodstock took place. Follow his spiritual development from an early age to becoming a full-fledged hippie. His travels will take you to former famous hippie-hangouts like Amsterdam, Ibiza, Formentera and La Gomera. Somewhere along his way he meets Anne, another hippie drop-out. From that point on the story takes you on a very intensive spiritual journey as they struggle to find their way in search of a better world. The story focuses on the idealism of many young people in those days and their quest to find inner peace and what to do with their lives in a world they don’t understand. This novel is not only of historical value, but also addresses a lot of problems that humanity is still facing today, such as the ongoing destruction of mother earth and its resources, the way people treat each other and animals, and the pursuit of inner peace. The message contained in this book promotes tolerance, understanding, love and peace in the world.

Spoiled Rotten


Brandi Johnson - 2008
    She thought she was better than everybody, or rather you thought it. But remember the day you found out that she lived in the projects/ghetto/hood just like everybody else? You were shocked, and now less envious of her, knowing she came from exactly where you did. Well, Trouble is that chick! Spoiled rotten by her brother, who has a complex occupation, and her boyfriend, the star B-ball player at their high school being sought after by colleges across the map who don't mind lacing him with SUVs and putting money in his pocket to sway him towards attending their university to play ball--Trouble seems to have it all. And what she doesn't have, she manages to get. But unlike some of the chicks in these other street lit tales; she doesn't have to use her body to get things. She uses the ghetto diva attitude that makes people believe she deserves the best and therefore they do back flips trying to provide. This urban novel has a completely different twist than any other written thus far. In Trouble's journey, she loses her brother, who she is closer to than bark on a tree, and feels as though it's the end of the world. But when she finds out that the person who murdered him had once tried to get with her, a huge scheme comes to mind in order for her to seek revenge. She pretends to like her brother's killer in order to get him right where she wants him, but her plan backfires when something happens that she never saw coming. She falls in love with her brother's killer.

We're Just Like You, Only Prettier: Confessions of a Tarnished Southern Belle


Celia Rivenbark - 2004
    You can't shoot a guy full of holes after eating chicken and pastry, spoon bread, okra, and tomatoes.What does a Southern woman consider grounds for divorce? When daddy takes the kids out in public dressed in their pajama tops and Tweety Bird swim socks. Again.What is the Southern woman's opinion of a new "fat virus" theory? Bring it on! We've got a lot of skinny friends we need to sneeze on.In this wickedly funny follow-up to her bestselling novel Bless Your Heart, Tramp, Celia Rivenbark welcomes you, once again, to the South she loves, the land of "Mama and them," "precious and dahlin'," and mommies who mow. Y'all come back now, you hear?

The Men Who Sleep With My Husband


Alicia Coston - 2008
    Conspire with a hitwoman to murder my husband’s lovers.2. Frame my husband for their murders.3. Tell no one and to hell with the church.This is just the beginning of a vengeful to-do list for beautiful pastor’s wife and successful salon owner Lavender Wallace. After all, it’s not every night she finds her husband of almost twenty years, Pastor Quincy Wallace, with a prominent deacon kneeling before him in the pulpit—if only it were in prayer. With God taking entirely too long, Lavender satisfies her growing contempt by teaching her husband a malicious lesson that his faith never could. But trying not to fall for the detective investigating the case of her husband’s disappearing lovers proves difficult for a lonely and scorned wife. Shielding a doting teenaged son from his father’s secrets is even harder. As old lies are exposed and a deadly plot backfires threatening to destroy those she loves most, Lavender is forced to make a life-altering decision—the bible or the bullet?

White Trash Cooking II: Recipes for Gatherins


Ernest Matthew Mickler - 1988
    Tooler Doolus’s Oven Spaghetti and Bobbie’s Lemon/Lime Jell-O Cake Supreme, Ernie Mickler has collected another whopping batch of the“most magnannygoshus” recipes of the Very Deepest South. Previously known as SINKIN SPELLS, HOT FLASHES, FITS AND CRAVINS, this collection has a new name and a new cover that calls to mind its best-selling brother, WHITE TRASH COOKING. Same good eatin’, though. With color photographs by the author.