Dark / Drama / Thriller
Date Published: July 28, 2023
Publisher: Troubadour Books
“Love before Covid - A raw, philosophical dive into love’s messy reality—unflinching, dark, and unapologetically human. Unlike typical romance novels, LOVE BEFORE COVID is a dialogue-driven exploration of human flaws and ideologies, blending fiction with metaphysical inquiry. It’s not about comfort; it’s about confrontation and insight.”
Laced with dark humour, it is best described as traumatic (sur)realism. Love Before Covid takes the reader on a journey through the mind of Joe Pastorius - jazz fan, poet, and victim of horrendous sexual and emotional abuse at the hands of his mother.
The real-time dialogues between the characters that emerge from Joe’s unconscious come via arguably corrupted memories and dystopian dreams. They tell us more about Joe than he could ever know, and perhaps more about our world than you could ever imagine.
Dialogues entail an exploration of clashing perspectives and opinions, that cause reflection. Today though, our world has been infiltrated by online dialogues that tend to feel like wild unfiltered streams of human thought, raw, chaotic and often polarising and devoid of much reflection. Arguably that attitude, and lack of reflection is mirrored by the characters you will encounter. The reflection comes from the reader as the situations unfold. Your moral boundaries will without doubt be pushed to the limit.
You will meet an altruist who can’t stand up for himself, a charming but violent public intellectual, a beautiful dancer who hates fat people, a flirty and gregarious bartender who will do anything to get pregnant, a traumatised art historian who never wants to be a mother, a successful intellectual Mexican writer who is secretly disapproving of her childhood friend’s career as a pornstar, the teenage genius son of that pornstar who has sexual fantasises about his mother, a woman who is pressured into cutting off her penis and a successful therapist who has a habit of ruining people’s lives.
And yes, before you ask, some of the characters in this book eventually catch Covid 19. However, there is always hope. For Joe Pastorious, that comes in the form of the psychopath named Janet Waverley.
Blurb
He’s lost friends that were more like family, and he’s witnessed unspeakable things happen to innocent people.
With a broken spirit, he’s headed back to Indiana, where his best friend’s widow is alone.
He promised Kevin that if he made it back home, he’d see to it that she was taken care of, and that’s what he intends to do.
What he hadn’t planned on was falling in love…
Fallon Addington was mourning the greatest loss of her lifetime. While trying to help maintain the ranch her late husband loved so much.
Pregnant with their second child, she’s barely got the energy to keep it together most days—that is until Kevin's best friend, Beckett, shows up on her doorstep, insisting on giving her a hand.
A daily reminder of all Kevin was, Fallon is determined to avoid the soldier who’s taken up residence in the barn loft.
All too soon though, she begins to see past what’s on the surface and realizes that Beckett needs her more than he’s let on.
With a little help from her favorite horse, Ranger, the two are forced to work through their grief together.
YA Christian Fantasy
Date Published: April 1, 2025
The End Times have arrived…
Grace Fortune leads the rebellion against the United Earth, devastated by the belief that her husband, Jared Lorn, has joined the dark side as the son of the ruthless Supreme Lord Grigori Zazel.
But Jared, now known as the gladiator and demigod Baldyr, is locked in a desperate battle with his fallen angel father. His father's plan? To annihilate not just Israel but the entire world.
As the apocalypse looms, will Grace and Jared find a way to reunite before the world is destroyed? Can they survive the coming devastation? And what happens when a new, even more terrifying enemy emerges—one who will exploit their love and humanity to bring about their downfall?
All these questions and more will be answered in the thrilling conclusion of The Forlorn series.
Children's Book
Date Published: 06-13-2024
Publisher: Magnetic Lion Productions
The chipocalypse is the greatest mystery to hit the seaside town of Fry Cove. Join Steven F Seagull on the adventure of a lifetime in this Pencraft Best Book engaging read about courage, friendship and teamwork, which reviewers hail as ‘an unexpected delight.’
Who stole the chips? Was it the Deny the Fry colony, who want all seagulls to quit eating chips? Or was it the seagull mafia boss, Stefano Giacomo, who has concocted a dastardly plot to convert all seagulls to pizza and pasta? As part of the newly formed CIA (Chips Investigation Agency), our reluctant hero, along with Charlie, Steven Colton, the karate chopping Bart, and Steven Rhys pit their wits to solve the mystery.
Whether you’re a fan of whimsical tales or simply in need of a feel-good read, this Readers' Favourite 5 Star ‘war of the best carbohydrates’ book is sure to leave you smiling.
Pre-Apocalyptic Science Fiction
Date Published: January 15, 2025
Publisher: Manhattan Book Group
The year is 2360. A select group of a half million humans, the only survivors of global warming and the "Race Wars", are living a Spartan lifestyle and exhibiting loss of memory and emotions resulting from mind-altering drugs created by world leaders known as the Orchestrators. The drugs markedly slowed metabolism and aging, making them ideal for prolonging the lives of humans requiring long periods of travel in space. Henry Shannon is being groomed as the next Orchestrator who will lead a mission to Jupiter, hoping to find an inhabitable moon that can accommodate the humans remaining on Earth. After discovering that the moons of Jupiter are uninhabitable, Henry reluctantly agrees to return to Earth, ultimately bolstered by news that global warming somehow has given way to global cooling. During the return trip home, his wife is killed when an asteroid collides with their spaceship. Depressed and increasingly concerned about survival of the human race, Henry presses on and successfully lands his group back on Earth, which bears little resemblance to the planet they remembered. The returning passengers encounter strange new animal species and are stunned to find that Earth has been repopulated by a group of humans previously known as Tunnel People because of their subterranean lifestyle. Their Supreme Leader, Lillian Goodman, a long-time opponent of the Orchestrators, somehow alters the Tunnel People who now have advanced technologies, an above-ground life of opulence, and apparent immortality. As Henry unravels the nefarious means employed by the Supreme Leader to create this Utopian state, he discovers why these new humans remain desperately dependent on his passengers for maintaining their immortal status, and must decide whether to cooperate or resist and face his own mortality.
A Galveston Historical Mystery
Cozy Mystery
Sarah Anne Law, affectionately known to family and friends as Sam, was playing the stalking game with her cat when she inadvertently discovered a secret compartment in her haunted Victorian home. Not only did Sam find a hidden treasure, but she also realized that their playful game aroused a long-dormant spirit. Perhaps the newly awakened spirit and one of the more disturbing hauntings in her beautiful home were connected. Did a murder occur? As Sam followed clues to unravel the 125-year-old mysteries, she unveiled the true horrors of Galveston’s deadly and gruesome past.
How Far Is Too Far? Pushing Boundaries in Young Adult Fiction
Young adult (YA) literature has evolved significantly over the years, tackling increasingly complex and mature themes. From mental health and trauma to violence, sex, and social issues, authors strive to create authentic stories that reflect the real experiences of teens. But with this growing openness comes an important question: How far is too far?
