Part One: Bears in Underwear Olivia - I never intended to drive through this part of Colorado to begin with. It was a total fluke. But when a stop for gas in the tiny town of Rocky Top leads me to a male butt more perfect than I have ever seen before, I decide its fate. After all, I’m in Colorado to shoot an ad campaign for Tight Buns Underwear. If anyone needs the perfect butt, it’s me. Del - I have never bothered to look at an underwear ad and I definitely never considered the possibility of being in one. But that was before Olivia Talpin came stomping into my life. She ramrods my family’s outfitting company and soon enough we are all dancing to her tune and setting up photo shoots all over the mountain. That girl is lucky she’s so dang cute or I might be tempted to show her just how grouchy a bear can be. Part Two: Bearing All Trip - There is nothing more useless than a magazine article. Can’t say I’ve ever looked at one myself. Even worse is the fact that I have been elected—as the most personable member of the Olsen family—to be interviewed by a female writer staying in one of the cabins down by the river. Who ever heard of a woman writing articles and ads for a fishing magazine anyway? But Kiesha isn’t like anyone I’ve has ever met. The woman loves to fish, enjoys the outdoors, and doesn’t seem interested in much else. Not even me. Kiesha - There is no doubt in my mind that Trip Olsen is the most full of it man that I have ever met. But the guy knows fishing. For now, I figure it’s in my best interest to put up with Trip until he shows me the secret behind choosing just the right bait for mountain trout. After that the guy is history. The funny thing is that the longer I spend with Trip, the more I get the feeling he is the most intriguing person Iwill ever meet. Part Three: Grin and Bear It Lilly - I am sick and tired of bears. I’m tired of Rocky Top and conspiracy theories about rival bear clans and all of the other nonsense that goes along with being part of a family that seems to have gotten stuck back in the days of rival blood family feuds. I want something more. Painting is my passion and I don't care if I have to sneak onto Olsen property to get the one view that I have been dying to paint for years. Jared - Catching Lilly Mandeville trespassing on Olsen land might just be the best thing that ever happened to me. I have about as much interest in being a fishing guide as Lilly does in being a hunting guide. It doesn’t seem to matter to either one of us that our families might be horrified by this strange new friendship. Then me and Lilly happen upon something else. Something that will explain all of the strange animosity between our families and show everyone that it’s not the bears you have to worry about. It’s the wolves.

    His job is simple; look after the house for nine weeks before it is due to be knocked down and replaced with a new building by the new owners, Mr and Mrs Warren. While things seem pleasant enough to begin with, Sam soon realises that something isn’t right. There are noises in the walls, voices creeping in the darkness and a spectral force that seems increasingly hostile towards Sam’s presence. When Sam meets Cassandra Layton, the elusive heiress of the Layton fortune, she is baffled to discover that Sam knows nothing about the grisly history of the manor, and the curse that seems to have fallen upon every generation of the Layton family. As Sam becomes more and more obsessed with uncovering the mystery of Layton Manor, he begins to realise that it’s not just himself who is in danger, but Cassandra as well – and Sam soon finds himself in a race against time to solve the mystery and save the both of them before it’s too late. The Haunting of Layton Manor is a chilling story of ghosts and the supernatural, set against the backdrop of an old, haunted house, leading up to a terrifying twist of a finale.

    Her only solution is to find a rich farmer in the West to marry her. But she also hopes to fall in love with her husband. Richard Bland has recently been widowed and his heart is broken when he finds out a deep secret about his dead wife. Can he let go of the past and find love again? Can these two find the love they so yearn for? A Time For Love is a beautiful series of stories that follow the journeys of five noble women and the honest man they finally find on the frontiers. Each book is also a delightful standalone with satisfying happy-ever-after.

     For ten long years young Dirk Blackthorn has followed his drunken father from one city to another, always having to cheat and steal for his next meal, and never knowing what the future might hold. A magician turned con artist, Dirk’s father Thad has taught him everything he knows. After being driven out of just about every southern city in Agora, they have come to Kell-Torey in search of a new beginning. With winter on its way, and all but a rusty coin spent on his father’s drinking, Dirk must make full use of his skills if they are to survive the harsh northern cold. As Thad descends deeper into his drunken delirium, Dirk becomes determined to make a name for himself in the city’s criminal underworld. Featuring two of Legends of Agora’s most beloved characters, Blackthorn Rising is a fast-paced coming of age tale wrought with sword and sorcery, it is a story of failure and triumph, and a testament to the unrelenting spirit of defiance and adventure within us all. FROM THE EDITOR Blackthorn Rising is a book that sticks with you. Michael Ploof’s stimulating prose and evocative cast of characters are incapable of boring you on any single page. The plot is sharp, charged with dark wit, adventure, intrigue, and emotion. Enjoy Dirk Blackthorn’s bumbling journey to manhood as he rises to become a great thief, and an even greater man. I loved every minute of editing this tale, and I know you’ll love every minute of reading it. --Holly M. Kothe, espressoeditor.com

    Or End It. Dexter Parker just got out of prison and has $3.3 billion a few weeks later. He most certainly is guilty of something. A double-homicide and theft, for starters. Dexter Parker,35, is a former investment banker and a killer. He gets 106 investors to believe in a new computer invention. After stealing more than 3.3 billion dollars, he exercises his right to an attorney. In fact, he believes he has a right to a lawyer named Janet and another named Dana. Sex with either of them would leave no room for error in the client-attorney relationship. The FBI wants to bring in the mastermind of the investment scam, but their investigation is complicated when the IRS informs them that the main suspect is a victim of identity theft. A stakeout and video recording reveal that Dexter flirts and sleeps with his brother's wife. The Feds see no reason to keep this a secret. When one of the lawyers gets kidnapped by an angry investor, Dexter has to decide whether he should give up all the stolen money—and even his life—for her safe return. She is, after all, pregnant with his only child. First, though, he will have to go to trial for his crimes, and this means facing his brother on the witness stand. Not even a judge can predict what happens next in the courtroom. ˃˃˃ If you like legal thrillers or psychological thrillers that defy your predictions, Right to an Attorney could make you look at other thrillers differently.

     When Dana, the police detective brings tragic news the next morning, Sadie Zook, the mother of Rebecca’s best friend, becomes drawn into the investigation to find the murderer. Sadie finds that Rebecca lived in a secret world of Englisch friends and possibly Englisch boyfriends. She also knows that Eli, Rebecca’s father, is very controlling and would not understand why Rebecca would be interested in the world outside the Amish community. Then there is the matter of Mark, a young jealous Amish boy, who wanted nothing more than to court Rebecca. As Sadie investigates further she finds herself drawn deeper into a pool of potential suspects and personal danger.

    The battle of wits begins and only the most devious mind will survive.  HITCHHIKER, a suspense novelette  ------------------AN EVIL MIND, a suspense novel  How do you stop a serial killer who can escape from any prison?On December 11, fifteen-year-old Helen Hinton is brutally murdered in an abandoned house.Her killer, Edward Phillips, is caught and sentenced to death. Helen's blood was on Edward's clothes and shoes, the murder weapon has his fingerprints on it.Edward claims he's innocent. He's telling the truth.Two months after Edward Phillips is transferred to death row, a murder similar to Helen's occurs in another city. The victim is eighteen-year-old Laura Sumner.On an October morning, Mark Hinton, Helen's father, visits Edward in prison to talk about Laura Sumner's case. Edward tells him that he knows who really killed Helen.What he doesn't tell Mark is that the real killer is the most dangerous criminal on the planet.------------------MANIA, a suspense novelRichard Brower has killed a dozen people. Now someone is trying to frame him for the murders committed by another serial killer.Serial killer Richard Brower buried his cheating wife, Mary, in the woods on Saturday.On Monday, Mary calls her brother's girlfriend.A few days later, she calls her mom.Then Mary bumps into her friend at a mall.Are all these people lying or has Mary actually come back from the dead?Richard has no idea, but he will get to the bottom of this. Or at least he'll try.

    The stakes are high and Sierra knows that if she wants to have that perfect family she’s always dreamed about, she would need to seek help. Ace Newman is a former Navy SEAL and a member of the elite security outfit, Silver Shields. Ace is good at two things: protecting his charges at all cost and keeping himself emotionally distant. When he meets Sierra, his walls slowly begin to crumble. Suddenly, nothing is more important to Ace than keeping Sierra safe and to do that, they hit the road. BOOK 2 Janey Moore led a simple and unpredictable life running her flower shop in a small town in Oklahoma. But when her sister mysteriously went missing she risked everything and went to Chicago in an effort to find her. When several strange things begin to happen, Janey realizes that her life might be in danger. The one person who can keep her safe is Silver Shields special operator, Drew Campbell but he is the last person she will ask for help. Drew Campbell is a man who is crushed by the weight of guilt. He can never open himself up to love again. Then he meets Janey Moore and his world tilts on its axis. When he hears that her life might be in danger, he decides that it’s up to him to save her. The only problem is that Janey does not want to be saved, not by Drew. BOOK 3 Nico Ortega is a man with a mission and that does not involve falling for the lovely and fiery woman who stole from him. Determined to get back what is his, he abducts her at gunpoint from a party and takes her to his private island. Now that he has her in his custody, he can get what she stole from him and send her on her way. However, things don’t turn out the way he plans. Tamika White lost everyone she’s ever cared about as well as her ability to laugh. A woman of few words, she retreated into a place deep down where no emotional connection can touch her. Then she meets Nico Ortega, the superhot, super rich hotelier. Sure that it's simply a case of mistaken identity, Tamika White decides to help Nico trace the woman he is after, a woman who looks remarkably like she does. BOOK 4 Hope Conran is the co-founder of one of the most popular dating sites. With an almost cult-like following among hackers, she is also one of the nicest people. But Hope hides a deep, dark secret from her childhood, one that is determined to creep out and consume her. She has had a series of life-threatening events that were too close for comfort and is afraid that someone might be after her life. Then to top it all, someone is systematically hacking into her servers and the damage is enough to wipe out years of hard work. She is at her wit’s end when a chance encounter leads her to Silver Shields operator and resident tech guru, Rusty Rosabelle. A former army engineer who served in the middle east, Rusty is very familiar with danger. As a techie and an ethical hacker, he is the perfect protector for Hope, but his arrogance rubs her the wrong way. Rusty puts his life on the line to protect Hope and in the process gets to see the beautiful, but broken soul that lives in her, making him question everything he has ever believed about love. BOOK 5 Emily Silver is the founder of Silver Shields, a security outfit that has earned a reputation as one of the best in the country. Several years ago, her life was shattered when she lost her seven-year-old daughter to kidnappers. Now there are two things that drive Emily: searching for her daughter and hating her ex-husband, tech billionaire, Wayne Carter.

    Jaden is the new boy in town, as quiet and stoic as a teenager can be. From the moment they meet, their lives entwine. They’re meant to be together, simply fated since they laid eyes on each other. Together, they outlast the odds for years, through high school and college, loving and learning as they go. Headed in different directions, as Hazel develops a talent for writing and speech, while Jaden has harbored a romantic athlete inside him all his life, somehow they stay as united as two souls in love should be. But there are warnings, small signs which hint at an impending disaster. What will happen when that tragedy strikes, and upends everything they made together?

    But when they finally track down who was behind a brutal beating of a priest, not everything turns out to be as it seems.

    Over his 20 - year career, Antonio Guardini has investigated some very disturbing, grisly crimes. But the latest string of murders that have New Yorkers in a paralyzing state of fear have struck a personal chord within Antonio. A devout Catholic and prolife activist, the hardened cop is tasked with tracking down the wily serial killer who is stalking and butchering the city's abortion physicians. As his personal beliefs begin conflict with his job, a struggle ensues as Antonio delves deeper the twisted myriad of clues left by the murderer and his victims. Will Antonio identify and apprehend the 'Abortion Avenger' before he kills again?

    Her mother being sent to prison causes Rielle to start battling depression, but despite the dark hole that she tries to overcome daily, she begins her journey into adulthood with little obstacles. That is until a visit to her friend's apartment in the projects pushes Rielle into a darker place than she's ever been before. The support of a new person in her life is enough to keep her from going completely over the edge, but is it enough to keep her from completely self-destructing? Hussein Jacobs wants the finer things in life, and he's willing to work for them. He knows how it feels to have nothing, but he doesn't want to risk his freedom to get what he wants. Completely satisfied with living a modest life and having a simple relationship, he's prepared to work hard at staying out of the streets until a long lost family member starts to entice him with an opportunity that not many would turn down. Rielle's friend, Trisha, is the complete opposite of her. A wild child from the hood, like Rielle she came from foster care, and now that she's grown, she wants it all. The first thing on her list is the sexy, rich, Rico Carter. He is already spoken for, but that's not enough to deter Trisha. She wants her man and plans to get him at any cost, but once she finally does, she realizes that she bit off way more than she was prepared to chew. From a distance, the hustler lifestyle seems like a lavish one, but there is drama, lust, betrayal, and revenge at the center of it all.

    Captain Drew Matthews is sent on a mission behind enemy lines to secure vital information. He is ambushed but is able to escape. Joining a group of American soldiers, led by Corporal Dane Shaw, refugees from the recent battle, they make their way across the desert to the city of Sfax, where Drew is to meet with the mysterious ‘Monsieur Gascoigne’. They stumble across a small group of Arabs and Germans guarding a halftrack filled with treasure looted from murdered Jews and rescue their prisoner, the beautiful Frenchwoman Angelique DuBois. While driving to Sfax, Dane shares his Christian faith with his companions while trying to avoid a group of Arab raiders. Dane relies on God to direct his life while proving himself a wise and outstanding commander with ferocious fighting skills. While Dane and his men fight off the Arab bandits, Drew and Angelique enter Sfax for their meeting only to be met with a number of very unwelcome surprises. Escaping by a series of fortunate circumstances, which leads them to believe that there may be something to Dane’s God, they return to camp only to run into more trouble. Zabronski, one of the American soldiers, filled with lust for the treasure and for Angelique, subverts the other soldiers, kidnaps Drew and Angelique and wounds Dane. Forcing Drew to reveal where the treasure is hidden, they are met by the Germans and Arab bandits who have joined forces and tracked them down. Drew and Angelique are rescued by Dane, and in a wild night ride across the desert, pursued by vengeful Germans and Arabs, they attempt to reach the American lines before dawn. Will they make it, and will Angelique solve the dilemma of which man she loves and which god she will serve?

    Never had she imagined it would go by so quickly. Memories of friends that had long since come and gone. Laughter that still echoed through the corridors of her mind. Each thought of those people made her stomach turn on end. The betrayal she felt from them was more than she could comprehend. Xavier was dead. He had passed, and Dawnika knew it before they even got to the hospital. It came as a bit of a shock that he ended up like his father. He was healthy, never did anything that he shouldn’t have. For Christ’s sake he was captain of the soccer and football team. Xavier was as healthy as could be, yet he gave no sign of life. One moment, he was breathing, the next he was lying, sprawled out on the couch. They were watching cheesy horror flicks, and laughing at every flaw, when he started to appear uncomfortable. At first, she wasn’t really worried, of course that was the first mistake that she made. He was her boyfriend, and she should’ve always been concerned, however, she wasn’t. The reason why would remain unknown to her. Twenty minutes later, he was complaining of chest pains and asked her to call an ambulance. She did, but when they arrived, she knew they were too late. He wasn’t breathing. He wasn’t moving. That of course nearly gave her a heart attack. Moreover she passed out, and when she woke up she was at the hospital, lying in a bed.

     It is the dawn of the Second World War, but for the residents of Fielding life carries on in its simple way. Yet paranoia and suspicion cast a pall over Eva’s world when her dearest friend simply vanishes, and no one claims to have known her at all. Beginning to doubt her own sanity but desperate to find Annie, Eva makes the acquaintance of two mysterious strangers: the elderly and eccentric Lola, and tender but distant Gabe. Showing no surprise at Eva’s tale, the two open her eyes to a hidden world — one in which people can be lost and all memory of them forsaken. Gabe and Lola vow to assist Eva in her quest, but she soon begins to suspect they may be guarding secrets of their own.