"An empathetic examination of friendship and how it can change one's life." – Kirkus Reviews

A chance encounter in a Chicago park between inquisitive 4-year-old Mary and the eccentric Mildred begins a lifelong, unconventional friendship. Despite her mother’s admonishment not to engage with Mildred, Mary finds herself drawn to the kind “Bird Lady.”

Impressed by Mary’s independence and creativity, Mildred shares the lessons of her gilded life and becomes a mentor for Mary. In their moments together, Mildred teaches Mary about courtship, manners, ethics, art, culture, and life’s little luxuries. Through the twists and turns of Mary’s life, Mildred’s influence is felt time and again, like a gentle beacon guiding Mary toward her true passion.

Bang has a knack for adopting the most improbable causes...

Blanche “Bang” Murninghan was perfectly content sitting on the dock of the Peel ‘n Eat Pier on Santa Maria Island, sipping an excellent draft and wiggling her fishing pole after an elusive sheepshead. Perfectly content, that is until Jean McMahon appears at her side and forever disrupts Blanche’s peaceful idyll with ghosts of the past.

Blanche's amateur sleuthing skills have become local legend, and Jean needs her help. It’s not a simple favor Jean asks: Will Blanche go to Vietnam with her and look for Jean’s mother?

Blanche feels an old wound ripped open in her heart. Her father was killed in Vietnam, and she’s never gotten much history from her beloved grandmother and mother on the subject. She realizes she and Jean share a powerful bond: they both want the truth.

Blanche and Jean don’t stop once they land in Saigon, now Ho Chi Minh City. Ex-pat “Stick” Dahlkamp makes sure of that. They pick up the search together. The three cross the rice paddies on Stick’s Honda Dream to Ben Tre and My Tho, old stomping grounds for Stick, a former Ninth Infantry Division Riverine and now the owner of the popular bar The Follies. He’s got friends in jungle towns who might help, and indeed they do. And don’t. Blanche begins to wonder if he’s running them off the road.

As they trace Jean’s mother’s steps, they meet more than one shady character who thinks it better to let things lie. Against her better judgment, Blanche beats down the doors of the past. She is looking for Jean’s mother and following her father’s trail. He left without a trace. Or did he? Does anyone?

Mission Improbable: Vietnam is the third book in the Blanche Murninghan cozy mystery series. Each of the books can be read as a stand-alone. Foreword Reviews is in love with the "spunky heroine" and Kirkus Reviews says, "There’s a reason Blanche Murninghan’s cousin Jack calls her 'Bang.' When she gets mad, it’s an event to rival a Santa Maria Island sunset—and it happens about as often."

Fans of Jana Deleon's Miss Fortune Mystery series and Tonya Kappes A Camper and Criminals Cozy series will fall hard for the colorful characters and exciting misadventures in the Blanche Murningnan Mysteries.

"Carol Finizza provides a fast-paced plot, great sense of place, and wicked sense of humor in this amusing mystery." —Nancy Boyarsky, bestselling author of The Nicole Graves Mysteries

"Finizza takes you on a rollercoaster ride with a likable, fully developed heroine who we root for and will all want to spend more time with in the future. Great debut novel!” —Amanda Lamb, author of the Maddie Arnette Mysteries

"The heroine, Amanda Beckwith, is a brilliantly crafted character sprinkled with flaws that will instantly make her a favorite of mystery readers." —Christopher Flory, author of the Paul Dodge series

Amanda Beckwith is a classic underachiever who finally hits the jackpot when she marries Santa Barbara wellness guru Geoff Martin. She is fast becoming the envy of her hip, 30-something girlfriends when Geoff dumps her for Bree, his massage therapist. With nothing to show for her short marriage but a couple of minor brushes with the law and a tiny drinking problem, Amanda escapes to Hollywood Beach, 20 miles south of Santa Barbara, to focus on her career as professional organizer and “Messy Girl” blogger for a small local newspaper.

When Bree is found murdered on the beach behind Amanda’s house, her life spirals into chaos. Detectives single her out as a person of interest. With few people listening to her side of the story, Amanda resorts to her own devices to clear her name.

As Amanda edges closer to the truth, her status shifts from person of interest to next victim.

New World Secrets on Ancient Asian Maps explores historical settings and distinctive styles of various old Asian maps and relates interesting curiosities found on them—including ancient love notes, state secrets, and internationally volatile data.

These secrets could change your understanding of world history. Initially a skeptic of the theory of early arrival of Chinese to the Americas, the author’s initial research was to find the meaning of the maps in the prized Dr.Hendon M. Harris, Jr. Collection. Her research took her beyond that to various related maps and what they reveal about Chinese knowledge of the New World at early dates.

This book presents additional text, clearer maps, and more illustrations than it did under its previous title: Chinese Sailed to America Before Columbus

After a near brush with death, Maddie Arnette heads to the charming coastal town of Cape Mayson, North Carolina to heal. She temporarily trades in her microphone for a paddleboard. But when she finds a dead man floating in the water, her sabbatical turns into a quest for the truth.

When the police call the death an accidental drowning, Maddie is not convinced. Everyone in the small town seems to know something about what happened, and they all seem scared. Maddie is determined to unravel the complicated web of secrets.

Around the globe, small bands of eco-activists are working to save one reef, one rain forest, one river at a time. Of Green Stuff Woven depicts a group of native gardeners who are restoring tall grass prairie on land connected to their historic Episcopal cathedral in the middle of the financial district in Des Moines, Iowa. They are approached by hotel developers and are caught between their passion for the prairie and their need for money to repair their crumbling cathedral. Of course, the parish’s largest donor stands to profit from the deal! The creation? Or the cash? As flood waters rise, so do the stakes of their choice.

Of Green Stuff Woven springs from the experience of two devastating floods and of the burgeoning prairie restoration movement. Told by Brigid Brenchley – kind and quirky cathedral dean – it is Brigid’s tale but also the story of a faith community: hardworking plant enthusiasts, parishioners of varied persuasions; the bishop; the mayor; and most importantly a beloved cathedral member who loses his home and life to the flood. All converge like spokes in the spinning wheel of this decision. The book articulates the depths of Anglican spirituality that undergird creation care ministry, while compassion highlights the plight of threatened plant species and people vulnerable to climate events, and challenges us all to examine the decisions we make in the stewardship of our land.

It does all this while taking readers on a good ecclesiastical romp and retaining realistic hope.

Forced into bitter and boring retirement solely because of advancing age, world-renowned architect Victor Harding retreats to his bucolic lakefront estate, a majestic house once owned by notorious Chicago gangster Bugsy Moran.

He soon learns that his idyllic dream home is a house with astonishing secrets.

After a series of family catastrophes and devastating financial setbacks, and now struggling to support his fractured family and hold on to his beloved house, Victor finds himself sucked into a life of crime. Trapped in a dangerous alliance with the treacherous leader of a local crime gang, he desperately seeks a way out.

Then Bugsy Moran’s legacy reveals startling surprises which thrust Victor Harding’s life into increasingly bizarre and ever more dangerous directions.

A gold standard in more ways than one...

In this smart and stylish psychological thriller, the first in the Victor Harding Adventure Series by award-winning novelist Douglas Richardson, readers are pulled into the Harding family's life of high crimes and misdemeanors, well as the colorful characters' efforts to stay one step ahead of their pursuers...and stay alive.

A rare sighting of a Waffle boy sends young Pancake Jake on a quest in Breakfast Land: he wants to make friends with the Waffles who have long been the enemies of the Pancakes. With courage and kindness, Jake discovers a long-lost recipe that proves Pancakes and Waffles are actually made of the same ingredients.

The charming illustrations and playful text make for a fun read that will encourage important conversations about diversity, equity, and inclusion.

The author is donating a portion of her royalties to The Conscious Kid, an education, research, and policy organization dedicated to equity and promoting healthy racial identity development in youth. The Conscious Kid supports  organizations, families, and educators in taking action to disrupt racism in young  children.

"Strong and complex crime thriller[s] speckled with sharp action, salty dialog, and deep character development.” – Dave Edlund, USA Today best-selling author of the Peter Savage novels

Read the first three books of the Paul Dodge crime series from award-winning and best-selling author Christopher Flory, now available in one convenient three-in-one boxed set.

There’s nothing better than a sweet, juicy peach cobbler at the end of a summer day.

Thoughts of her mother’s cobbler fill Olivia’s head as she strolls into the family orchard to fill her basket with perfect peaches. Instead of peaches on the trees, she finds a mess of half-eaten, bruised peaches scattered on the ground.

A rowdy group of possums are eating, playing soccer, and bowling with perfectly good fruit. Olivia knows that somehow she and the possums must reach a compromise to save the orchard and have enough peaches for everyone to enjoy.

“With a hero full of grit and determination, this action-packed, timely tale is required reading for any thriller aficionado.”
– Steve Berry, New York Times and #1 international bestselling author

The Peter Savage Series Books 1-4 by USA Today bestselling, award-winning author Dave Edlund have taken readers around the world on a deadly race to energy independence, dropped them in a battle to end a genocide, made them stare down a threat of bioterrorism, and unearthed an unthinkable act of treason threatening to redraw the map of the Middle East.

The Peter Savage novels have been lauded for their "crackling action" (Kirkus Reviews), and come "highly recommended to fans of thrillers" (Foreword Reviews). New York Times and #1 international bestselling author Steve Berry praises Peter Savage as "a hero full of grit and determination" and calls the series "required reading for any thriller aficionado."

Now, you can purchase the first four books of the Peter Savage Series for 92% off!

CROSSING SAVAGE

In this edge-of-your-seat thriller, author Dave Edlund brings readers face to face with the promise of energy independence... and its true cost.

RELENTLESS SAVAGE

In this fast-paced, action-driven adventure Peter Savage confronts a hidden genocide, genetic manipulation, and a tipping point in the balance of world power.

DEADLY SAVAGE

From the award-winning Peter Savage novels comes a tale of political intrigue, biological warfare, and the fragile balance of world power.

HUNTING SAVAGE

When an unthinkable act of treason and a clandestine pact threaten to redraw the map of the Middle East, Peter Savage becomes both hunter and prey.

Some of the best voices in thriller fiction today are fans of the Peter Savage novels. "I would follow Peter Savage into any firefight," says James Rollins, New York Times bestselling international thriller writer. "Edlund is right at home with his bestselling brethren, Brad Thor and Brad Taylor," lauds Jon Land, USA Today bestselling author of the Caitlin Strong series.

The Peter Savage series by USA TODAY bestselling, award-winning author Dave Edlund has taken readers around the world to unearth dangerous secrets in the East China Sea, stop a biological holocaust, and avert a deadly political coup. Now, read Books 5-7 in a convenient anthology before Unforgiving Savage debuts on October 26, 2021.

GUARDING SAVAGE

Summoned to Brunei, Peter unearths dangerous secrets that threaten the security of the US Navy.

"Guarding Savage is a near-perfect international thriller" –Foreword Reviews

LETHAL SAVAGE

As the minutes count down to a biological holocaust, Peter presents the only chance to save an unwitting civilian population.

"plenty of heart-racing action" –San Francisco Book Review

VALIANT SAVAGE

With his faithful canine companion, Peter crisscrosses the northwest in a race against time to avert a political coup the likes of which haven’t been witnessed since the Lincoln assassination plot.

"Action-packed doesn’t begin to describe this exciting entry in the Savage series." –Paul Kemprecos, New York Times best-selling author

Motherhood is not what it used to be, as more moms than ever before are having children later on in life.

This is the must-have book for all moms who had a child after the age of 35—a group the medical profession not-so-kindly calls—‘advanced maternal age.’

Sharon O’Donnell writes about the humorous and poignant stories of having a child at 38 and how she discovered that breastfeeding and AARP membership aren’t really all that far apart.

Sharon says being a mom of a certain age can be tough and rewarding—and rather alarming when you realize that all the TV programs you watch have commercials for incontinence or the Scooter Store.

"Finding sacredness in the other does not just create societal harmony, it may also be an essential milestone in the path to a more meaningful self-discovery…" —Radical Revolution of Values

In this thoroughly researched and hopeful examination inspired by Rev. Martin Luther King’s call for "a radical revolution of values," the author guides readers through a worldly and spiritual voyage, taking a deep dive into the holy scriptures of various religions and their guiding light to move toward justice, peace, and global harmony.

Grounded in the principle that our religions can be a source of solutions towards the world’s disputes, Azam delves into the emotionally charged and polarized identities that are too often used as tools of exploitation and control instead of empowerment and freedom.

This book inspires readers to ask intricate questions about the world around them by unraveling the complex web of geopolitics, politico-economic systems, and religion in international conflicts.

An introduction to the many ways in which Christians may communicate the truth and love of God in Christ to Chinese around the world. Drawing upon four decades of reading and experience, the author first lays a biblical foundation for cross-cultural witness, then briefly explores the various facets of ministry among Chinese:

• Preparation
• Presence
• Proclamation
• Points of Contact
• “Perfection” of Believers
• Participation in the Body of Christ
• Performance of Good Works
• Partnering with God

This nearly comprehensive survey contains both fundamental principles and practical suggestions useful for all those wanting to make a Christian impact on China.

"Highly recommended"
– Library Journal

Intimate and intensely personal, the forty-five first-person narratives contained in Real Birth: Women Share Their Stories offer readers a window into the complex and emotionally exciting experience of childbirth.

Women from a full range of socioeconomic backgrounds and circumstances recount the childbirth choices they’ve made and the ways those choices have played themselves out in the real life contexts of their everyday lives. Readers meet women from all over the country who speak to us directly––no interviewer intrudes, no judgments intrude, and no single method of childbirth is advocated. Instead, these women offer us their candid experiences, presented clearly and unflinchingly.

Medically reviewed by physicians Dr. Richard Randolph for the first edition and Dr. Deborah Morris for this second edition, Real Birth offers readers a plethora of correct information as well the kind of real scoop that other books and health care professionals are often reluctant to reveal. The result is a well-grounded book that reaches across the boundaries of childbirth literature. Real Birth is introduced by Ariel Gore, journalist, editor, writer, and founding editor/publisher of Hip Mama, an Alternative Press Award-winning publication about the culture of motherhood. Also included are an extensive glossary of medical terms, a thoroughly researched selective bibliography, and a list of resources of interest to pregnant women and new moms.

The second installment in the Peter Savage series launches the reader into a fast-paced, action-driven adventure confronting the greater questions of genocide, genetic manipulation, and the tipping point in the balance of world power.

When Peter Savage's son Ethan is kidnapped by rebel forces in Sudan while on a service trip, Peter will stop at nothing to get his son home.

Recruiting old friends and tapping into the expertise of Commander James Nicolau, Peter puts together an unlikely rescue mission that will pit him against deadly forces. What Peter and his team find in the Sudan is a force far more sinister and dangerous than they could ever imagine. They are drawn into a much larger top-secret government mission, one that leads them to a hidden research site with an army of genetically-perfect soldiers.

Blanche “Bang” Murninghan is a part-time journalist with writer’s block and a penchant for walking the beach on her beloved Santa Maria Island. When land-grabbing tycoons arrive from Chicago and threaten to buy up Tuna Street, including her beachfront cottage, her seemingly idyllic life begins to unravel. Blanche finds herself in a tailspin, flabbergasted that so many things can go so wrong, so fast.

When her dear friend is found murdered in the parking lot of the marina, Blanche begins digging into his death. With her friends Liza and Hassi by her side, she stumbles into a pit of greed, murder, drug running, and kidnapping. Blanche has survived her fair share of storms on Santa Maria Island, but this one might just be her last.

Saving Tuna Street is the first in the Blanche Murninghan Mystery series. Blanche has feet of sand and will be off to Mexico, Argentina, and Spain for further mayhem in the series. But she always returns to Santa Maria Island.

When Kate Tyler learns that her brother may need a kidney transplant, she has no choice but to unravel the mystery of her biological parent's health history. Using her travel blog as a cover, she inserts herself into the Wingate family's wine festival, hoping to quietly confirm her suspicions of her father's identity. But as the Wingates close ranks to protect their own, painful secrets come to light with devastating consequences. Only the truth can lead these broken families to forgiveness and healing. Desperate to help her brother, Kate must press on no matter the personal cost.

Move into Abundance and Freedom

You are not alone if you've struggled with not feeling like you will ever be "enough." This can happen when you realize you aren't living the life you want, something dramatically uproots the plan you had for your life, or even when comparison slips in and it seems everyone else's lives are perfect and alluring and yours feels empty.

There are many unseen forces that shape our lives—expectations from society, culture, and religion that impact how we feel about ourselves and our lives. This can lead us to feel like frauds or imposters in the life we're living day to day. Weeding through this slog can feel like walking with weights on our ankles as we go through the motions without really engaging in our lives.

Seen and Heard seeks to reveal the unseen forces holding you back and keeping you from the life you're desperate to live all the while providing a path forward of how it can be different and empowering you with the tools to live the life you dream of.

“The angels…regard our safety, undertake our defense, direct our ways, and exercise a constant solicitude that no evil befall us.”
— John Calvin, French Theologian 1509-1564

1945: Chenango County, New York Not many hard-working families living in the shadow of the Lyon Brook Railroad Bridge think about angels in their midst. However, Betsy Emig, a child on a nearby farm, is born with an unusual gift. She can see and communicate with her guardian angel. Her young parents assume their precocious daughter has an imaginary friend until the three-year-old repeatedly tells them what she sees during incidents of undeniable angelic intervention. Butch and Mary Emig evolve as parents raising five children, one with unique abilities.

"A historical fiction piece that will keep you turning the page!" —Christopher Flory, author of the award-winning Paul Dodge series

There's always the one case that got away, the one with loose ends and a lack of closure that plagues those who investigate it.

For James Butler, a partner in a prestigious boutique law firm in Orange County, that case is the 1985 murder of DEA Special Agent Enrique Camarena in Guadalajara, Mexico.

Though the murder occurred more than 35 years ago, James can't shake the nagging feeling that maybe the investigators missed something. The more James digs into this cold case, the more unwanted attention he gathers from powerful forces on both sides of the border who would prefer to keep the case closed.

Someone Had to Die follows a fictional lawyer as he digs into the true story of Special Agent Enrique "Kiki" Camarena's abduction and murder in 1985, drawing from and exposing interviews and facts never before published.

Excerpt from Someone Had to Die:

“Have you thought that if the CIA was so intent on keeping its actions quiet that they had a fellow federal agent killed what would they do to someone who starts digging too deep or gets too close?”

James shakes his head no and starts down the stairs. No, he reflects, I really hadn’t thought about it. But I am now.

Songs for the Forgotten: A Psychiatrist's Record offers a strong practical component also, providing information about trauma and healing. [...] You'll be inspired and renewed after reading this important work." –Steve Pemberton, acclaimed speaker, advocate, and bestselling author of A Chance in the World

Combines pivotal moments from Julia Burns’s Southern upbringing in the 1970s with case histories accumulated through three decades of treating psychiatric patients, particularly those drowning in the cultural epidemic of child abuse. This book is her journal of rupture and return.

The reader will follow the author’s hard-won reconciliation. In telling panoply of stories, including her own, Burns argues for the interconnectedness of humanity: when one child is hurt, our humanity is violated, and we are all responsible for undoing that damage. If no one steps up to save children, to show them they are worth saving, the cycle of abuse will continue.

Songs for the Forgotten offers a strong practical component, providing information about trauma and healing. Burns illustrates how hope and wholeness can come from remembrance and telling.

"A sincere tribute to professionals who do not always receive the recognition and support they deserve, Stewards of Humanity is a memoir about healing through—and from—humanitarian work." —Foreword Reviews

When the world turns away from the horrors of war, genocide, famine, and natural disasters, the stewards of humanity run toward the suffering. They stand as a thin line between life and death for thousands of people who will never know their stories. These stewards are neither heroes nor saints—they are ordinary people with ordinary struggles who rise to extraordinary challenges. They are beacons of light in the darkness of humanitarian crisis.

With an unflinching view into some of the worst humanitarian crises of our lifetime, author Robert Macpherson—US Marine combat veteran turned aid worker—tells the stories of the men and women who have courageously confronted evil and injustice from Somalia to Bosnia, Rwanda, Iraq and Afghanistan.

Throughout his narrative, Robert challenges us to consider our place in humanity and our own role as stewards.

One Woman's Journey of Advocacy, Faith, and Positivity

“You only have three to five years to live.”

On the day she was diagnosed with HIV and thrust from the confines of her suburban mom bubble into the scary and unpredictable world of AIDS, Julie promptly found herself fighting for her life and rights amidst a disease she never imagined would hijack her future.

With three young children, her family began making every effort to create lasting memories while simultaneously managing the debilitating side effects of early meds. They hid her illness for four years, fearing her children would suffer stigma and discrimination often experienced in the early days of the disease.

Her diagnosis began a path of advocacy, faith, and positivity despite her life’s detour. Now, Julie advocates for better healthcare outcomes for women through the personal stories and reflections from her life. Her health journey creates space for those walking through their own family or medical crises to be seen and supported.