Book picks similar to
Goldfish Secrets by Kellyn Roth


historical-fiction
short-stories
indie-authors
children

The Methuselah Project


Rick Barry - 2015
    One never ended. Roger Greene is a war hero. Raised in an orphanage, the only birthright he knows is the feeling that he was born to fly. Flying against the Axis Powers in World War II is everything he always dreamed--until the day he's shot down and lands in the hands of the enemy. When Allied bombs destroy both his prison and the mad genius experimenting on POWs, Roger survives. Within hours, his wounds miraculously heal, thanks to those experiments. The Methuselah Project is a success--but this ace is still not free. Seventy years later, Roger hasn't aged a day, but he has nearly gone insane. This isn't Captain America--just a lousy existence only made passable by a newfound faith. The Bible provides the only reliable anchor for Roger's sanity and his soul. When he finally escapes, there's no angelic promise or personal prophecy of deliverance, just confusion. It's 2015--and the world has become an unrecognizable place. Katherine Mueller--crack shot, genius, and real Southern Belle--offers to help him find his way home. Can he convince her of the truth of his crazy story? Can he continue to trust her when he finds out she works for the very organization he's trying to flee? Thrown right into pulse-pounding action from the first page, readers will find themselves transported back in time to a believable, full-colored past, and then catapulted into the present once more. The historical back-and-forth adds a constantly moving element of suspense to keep readers on the edge of their seats.

The Nature of a Lady


Roseanna M. White - 2021
    She flees to the beautiful Isles of Scilly for the summer and stumbles into the dangerous secrets left behind by her holiday cottage's former occupant, also named Elizabeth, who mysteriously vanished. Oliver Tremayne--gentleman and clergyman--is determined to discover what happened to his sister, and he's happy to accept the help of the girl now living in what should have been Beth's summer cottage . . . especially when he realizes it's the curious young lady he met briefly two years ago, who shares his love of botany and biology. But the hunt for his sister involves far more than nature walks, and he can't quite believe all the secrets Beth had been keeping from him.As Libby and Oliver work together, they find ancient legends, pirate wrecks, betrayal, and the most mysterious phenomenon of all: love.

Summer of Suspense


C.R. Hedgcock - 2012
    But when Millie disappears, life quickly becomes anything but dreary. What starts out as a summer of chores and horse-riding on the farm turns into a cross-country adventure, as the Bakers find themselves matching wits with a notorious jewelry thief who pulls them into her web. Aided by a seasoned detective, the Bakers confront numerous dangers in their search for Millie, all while attempting to foil the plot of a major crime ring -- making it a summer they will never forget.Filled with mystery and intrigue, ''Summer of Suspense'' contains important lessons of Christian courage, humility, submission to authority, and repentance before God and man.

The Christmas Mystery


Jostein Gaarder - 1992
    Accompanied by angels, shepherds, kings and even a Roman governor, she is rushing back through time and space to Bethlehem, to be present at the birth of Christ. Fifty years later a boy called Joachim pieces together her story from a magic advent calendar and brings it to a conclusion.

The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists


Gideon Defoe - 2004
    No, not since Treasure Island... Actually, not since Jonah and the Whale has there been a sea saga to rival The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists, featuring the greatest sea-faring hero of all time, the immortal Pirate Captain, who, although he lives for months at a time at sea, somehow manages to keep his beard silky and in good condition. Worried that his pirates are growing bored with a life of winking at pretty native ladies and trying to stick enough jellyfish together to make a bouncy castle, the Pirate Captain decides it's high time to spearhead an adventure. While searching for some major pirate booty, he mistakenly attacks the young Charles Darwin's Beagle and then leads his ragtag crew from the exotic Galapagos Islands to the fog-filled streets of Victorian London. There they encounter grisly murder, vanishing ladies, radioactive elephants, and the Holy Ghost himself. And that's not even the half of it.

Invitation to the Ball


Autumn Macarthur - 2018
    But will she win her prince? When store manager David Warwick, her secret crush, unexpectedly invites florist Ellie Ashton to represent the store at a glittering London ball, she needs help to look the part. The ball is a dream come true. But will she win the love of her prince, or will shyness and self-doubt send her running away at midnight? Love in Store Book #4.5. The series is set around a stately old London department store, and many of the same settings and characters appear in each book. But there is no need to read them in order. Every story is a complete romance, following a different couple through the trials and joys of a developing love, to their happy-ever-after. All involve a strong faith element. Uses British spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Complete with British English Glossary. Shorter novella length - 22,000 words, approximately 85 print pages.

Sweet on You


Chautona Havig - 2016
     Rockland circa 1900- As the mayor's daughter, Madeline Brown enjoys a rich social life that many might envy. But a sharp mind and a growing talent for observation leaves Madeline torn between avoiding social censure and exploring the world around her. With an aunt who considers higher education and employment equally unsuitable for the mayor's daughter, there is little to amuse her save endless committee meetings, evening socials, and her favorite pastime: curling up with an exciting detective novel. The temperance and suffrage movements hold little interest for a young woman who has just endured the rigors of her father's mayoral campaign. So when a young man shows interest in her friend, Madeline's interest piques--until his actions hint that he might not be the upstanding gentleman everyone presumes him to be. Unable to ignore her concerns, Madeline finds herself in the middle of an investigation into his character and discovers a side of Rockland she's never encountered. Will her new hobby reduce the tedium of her life, or will her "meddling" create tension for herself and her father? Will she be forced to squelch this budding skill of hers or has Madeline finally found her calling in life. Meddlin' Madeline: Welcome to Rockland's infancy.

Radialloy


J. Grace Pennington - 2012
    Andi Lloyd is content with her life as the assistant to her adoptive father, a starship doctor, but her secure world turns upside down when she begins uncovering secrets from her past. When her father mysteriously starts losing his mind, she finds that she can no longer count on him to guide or help her. With mutiny breaking out on the ship, and two factions desperate for a valuable secret she holds, she must race to save her father and herself before time runs out.

Ah, Sweet Mystery of Life


Roald Dahl - 1989
    Whether it is taking a troublesome cow to be mated with a prime bull; dealing with a rat-infested hayrick; learning the ways and means of maggot farming; or describing the fine art of poaching pheasants using nothing but raisins and sleeping pills, Roald Dahl brings his stories of everyday country folk and their strange passions wonderfully to life. Lacing each tale with dollops of humor and adding a sprinkling of the sinister, Dahl ensures that this short story collection celebrates the sweet mysteries of life."All the stories sparkle with vibrant characters, humorous dialogue, and sly rustic lore and cunning." -- Sunday Express"A sophisticated account of village life. The rural characters are molded by Dahl's dark, inquisitive imagination. Compelling and very funny." -- Time Out

Puck of Pook's Hill


Rudyard Kipling - 1906
    Puck of Pook's Hill is a fantasy book by Rudyard Kipling, published in 1906, containing a series of short stories set in different periods of English history.

Viking Quest Series


Lois Walfrid Johnson - 2006
    After the young Viking prince Mikkel sets Devin free on the Irish coast far from home, Bree and Devin embark on separate journeys to courage. Readers will be captivated by the unfolding drama as Bree sails to Norway on the Viking ship and Devin travels the dangerous road home. They both must trust their all-powerful God in the midst of difficult situations. In "Mystery of the Silver Coins," Bree finds herself in a physical and spiritual battle for survival. With another young slave, she makes a daring escape from the ship as soon as it reaches harbor. They hide in the woods as Mikkel and his Viking sailors begin a relentless search, certain that Bree is responsible for a missing bag of silver coins. Bree must face her unwillingless to forgive the Vikings, and Mikkel begins to wonder: Is the God of these Irish Christians really more powerful than our own Viking gods' In "The Invisible Friend," Bree arrives in Norway and is sent to work as a slave for the family of Mikkel, her Viking captor. She struggles to adjust, feeling worthless and disrespected, and wondering why God wants her in Norway. Her prayers are answered when she is given the opportunity to teach Mikkel's grandparents to read using an illuminated Bible stolen from an Irish monastery. In the "Heart of Courage," Bree learns that her brother, Devin, her sister, Keely, and her friend, Lil, will set out for Ireland. She longs to go with them. Instead, Mikkel asks her to be a cook for voyage to Greenland. Somehow her excellent food becomes inedible and the Vikings think she's trying to sabotage their voyage. Join Bree and Devin for more adventures in this fourth installment of the "Viking Quest" series.In "The Raider's Promise," Bree, Devin, and Mikkel enter a new world with the explorer Leif Erikson. Their first task: build a shelter to survive the winter. But danger lurks from within the shadows on the horizon of a life where everyone needs the courage to win. Can Mikkel conquer his enemies and find new purpose for his life' Will he keep his promise to Bree and Devin to take them home to Ireland' Will he keep his pledge of honor, even if it means death'

Highwayman Ironside


Michael Arnold - 2013
    An island in the iron grip of Oliver Cromwell's Protectorate.The forces of King Charles have been utterly defeated. The sovereign is dead, his supporters beaten, humiliated and scattered.But it is not just former Cavaliers who find themselves hounded by the new regime. Many of those who fought for Parliament have fallen foul of the oppressive rule of the Major-Generals.One such man is Major Samson Lyle: Roundhead, outlaw, fugitive. Forced into exile after a dispute with the ruling elite, he has returned, intent on waging war against those now in command. Skilled with pistol and blade, Lyle takes the fight onto the busy roads south of the capital, forging a formidable reputation as a notorious highwayman.Along with his trusted young ward Bella, and Eustace Grumm, an irascible former smuggler, Lyle dodges the ever-present threat of capture to menace those against whom he has sworn revenge. But when the robbery of a powerful lawyer alerts Lyle to the imprisonment of a former comrade, the Major is plunged into a dangerous game of intrigue and deceit that may finally prove his undoing. And he must tread carefully, for Parliament have dispatched their own man to hunt the elusive outlaw. The villainous Colonel John Maddocks is tracking Lyle's every move, and soon he will come face to face with the Ironside Highwayman.

Clockwork


Philip Pullman - 1996
    But rather than helping matters, the story begins to come true.... The stories of Karl, the apprentice; Dr. Kalmenius, his nefarious “savior”; Gretl, the brave daughter of the town innkeeper; and a young prince whose clockwork heart is in danger of winding down come together in surprising and magical ways in a story that has the relentless urgency of a ticking clock.

Saints and Strangers


Angela Carter - 1985
    Angela Carter takes real people and literary legends - most often women - who have been mythologized or marginalized and recasts them in a new light. In a style that is sensual, cerebral, almost hypnotic, "The Fall River Axe-Murders" portrays the last hours before Lizzie Borden's infamous act: the sweltering heat, the weight of flannel and corsets, the clanging of the factory bells, the food reheated and reserved despite the lack of adequate refrigeration, the house "full of locked doors that open only into other rooms with other locked doors." In "Our Lady of the Massacre" the no-nonsense voice of an eighteenth-century prostitute/runaway slave questions who is civilized - the Indians or the white men? "Black Venus" gives voice to Charles Baudelaire's Creole mistress, Jeanne Duval: "you could say, not so much that Jeanne did not understand the lapidary, troubled serenity of her lover's poetry but, that it was a perpetual affront to her. He recited it to her by the hour and she ached, raged and chafed under it because his eloquence denied her language." "The Kiss" takes the traditional story of Tamburlaine's wife and gives it a new and refreshing ending. Sometimes disquieting, sometimes funny, always thought-provoking, Angela Carter's stories offer a feminist revision of images that lie deep in the public psyche.

The Bridge


Kay Bratt - 2011
    Not just any bridge—but a special one because it has always been known as The Lucky Bridge. In olden days it was said that to walk over it during a marriage ceremony, or at the beginning of the New Year would bring the traveler good luck. Because of its reputation, over the years it has also become a popular place for young mothers to abandon their children. What to some may seem cruel is in reality their final gift to their offspring—one last chance to send them off to their new destinies with luck on their side. Jing, an old woman, is the unofficial and often reluctant guardian of the bridge. When no one else will, Jing steps in to prevent the children from frostbite, abuse and hunger, and then she delivers them safely to the orphanage. This has been her routine for many years, but what does Jing do when the latest child, a blind boy, burrows deep into her heart? Read ‘The Bridge’ to see how Fei Fei’s life is changed by the love of a lonely old woman. The Bridge is a short story of 17,000 words, approximately 72 pages. Fei Fei’s character is based on a real orphaned boy that Kay Bratt met during her time in China. Don't miss these other great books by Kay Bratt! Full length books currently available on Kindle "Silent Tears; A Journey of Hope in a Chinese Orphanage” and “Chasing China; A Daughter’s Quest for Truth”.