Fresh Ink: Spotlight on Debut Books of All Kinds: A Very New Kind of War

The “war with no name” has begun, with human extinction as its goal. The instigator of this war is the Colony, a race of intelligent ants who, for thousands of years, have been silently building an army that would forever eradicate the destructive, oppressive humans. Under the Colony's watchful eye, this utopia will be free of the humans' penchant for violence, exploitation and religious superstition. The final step in the Colony's war effort is transforming the surface animals into high-functioning two-legged beings who rise up to kill their masters.

Former housecat turned war hero, Mort(e) is famous for taking on the most dangerous missions and fighting the dreaded human bio-weapon EMSAH. But the true motivation behind his recklessness is his ongoing search for a pre-transformation friend—a dog named Sheba. When he receives a mysterious message from the dwindling human resistance claiming Sheba is alive, he begins a journey that will take him from the remaining human strongholds to the heart of the Colony, where he will discover the source of EMSAH and the ultimate fate of all of earth's creatures.

Read an excerpt HERE.

Cats and Guns: The Sublime Strangeness of MORT(E)

First Fiction Spring 2015: Robert Repino: A Cross-Species Conflict in a Cross-Genre Debut

The Pop Quiz at the End of the Universe: Robert Repino
  
Praise for the book:
“After a fantastical leap into an apocalypse of sentient animals, Mort(e) never looks back. Read this novel and you will never look at your pet the same way again.” ~Daniel H. Wilson, author of Robopocalypse
“Absolutely incredible . . .The apocalypse has never, ever been this entertaining.”
  ~BookRiot

“With sly references to Orwell’s Animal Farm, debut novelist Repino puts a nicely modern post-apocalyptic overlay on the fable of animals taking over the world . . . an engrossing morality tale with unexpected depths.” ~Publishers Weekly

“Devilishly entertaining . . . awfully good . . . a wild riff on interspecies warfare sure to make pet owners think twice the next time their tabby cat darts by. Imagine W. Bruce Cameron’s silly and maudlin A Dog’s Purpose recast as a violent and frightening post-apocalyptic global battle for the souls of Earth’s survivors, layered with a messiah prophecy that makes The Matrix look simplistic by comparison.”  ~Kirkus Reviews

“Animal Farm set in a postapocalyptic world based on interspecies rivalry rather than communism, with a little religion on the side, this imaginative story can be taken as a somewhat satirical examination of the role of the individual in society. Highly recommended.” ~Library Journal

“A beast of a novel that exposes just how beastly we humans really are. Robert Repino’s Mort(e) is smart, engaging, and kick-ass.” ~Ismet Prcic, author of Shards

“That a novel about the war between ants and humans with house pets as warriors would be so stunningly believable and, above all, affecting, is a testament to what a wonderful book Robert Repino has written. Mort(e) is one of the craziest, most inventive novels I’ve read in a long time.” ~James Scott, author of The Kept

“In our age of first person diary-like-entry novels, Mort(e) is both stunningly original and wonderfully heartfelt. It’s a wild ride of a book from a skilled writer I will now be following.” ~Shane Jones, author of Light Boxes

“Mort(e) is wonderful and weird, never saccharine and always startling.” ~Cat Rambo, author of Near + Far

“Combining elements of Orwellian parable and sci-fi/action thriller, Mort(e) is a tautly constructed indictment of much that is wrong with society, and a celebration of much that is right.” ~Matthew Gallaway, author of The Metropolis Case

Fresh Ink: Spotlight on Debut Books of All Kinds

As a technology pioneer at MIT and as the leader of three successful start-ups, Kevin Ashton experienced firsthand the all-consuming challenge of creating something new. Now, in a tour-de-force narrative twenty years in the making, Ashton leads us on a journey through humanity’s greatest creations to uncover the surprising truth behind who creates and how they do it. From the crystallographer’s laboratory where the secrets of DNA were first revealed by a long forgotten woman, to the electromagnetic chamber where the stealth bomber was born on a twenty-five-cent bet, to the Ohio bicycle shop where the Wright brothers set out to “fly a horse,” Ashton showcases the seemingly unremarkable individuals, gradual steps, multiple failures, and countless ordinary and usually uncredited acts that lead to our most astounding breakthroughs.

Creators, he shows, apply in particular ways the everyday, ordinary thinking of which we are all capable, taking thousands of small steps and working in an endless loop of problem and solution. He examines why innovators meet resistance and how they overcome it, why most organizations stifle creative people, and how the most creative organizations work. Drawing on examples from art, science, business, and invention, from Mozart to the Muppets, Archimedes to Apple, Kandinsky to a can of Coke, How to Fly a Horse is a passionate and immensely rewarding exploration of how “new” comes to be.

 

Read an excerpt HERE.

How to Fly a Horse

Kevin Ashton Describes "the Internet of Things"

The Creativity Myth:Creativity is not what we think it is

How to Commit to a Creative Life

Praise for the book:
"[An] entertaining and inspiring meditation on the nature of creative innovation ... Fans of Malcolm Gladwell and Stephen Levitt will enjoy Ashton’s hybrid nonfiction style, which builds a compelling cultural treatise from a coalescence of engaging anecdotes." ~Booklist

"Ashton wastes no time debunking the creativity myth ... Taken collectively, the creations documented in this thought-provoking book prove that creative power resides in us all." ~Publishers Weekly

"Ashton makes compelling arguments about creativity and genius." ~Kirkus Reviews

“If you have ever wondered what it takes to create something, read this inspiring and insightful book. Using examples ranging from Mozart to the Muppets, Kevin Ashton shows how to tap the creative abilities that lurk in us all. There are no secrets, no shortcuts; just ordinary steps we can all take to bring something new into the world. Ashton’s message is direct and hopeful: creativity isn’t just for geniuses—it’s for everybody.”  ~Joseph T. Hallinan, author of Why We Make Mistakes

“A detailed and persuasive argument for how creativity actually works—not through magical bursts of inspiration but with careful thought, dogged problem-solving, and hard-won insight. Ashton draws on a wealth of illuminating and entertaining stories from the annals of business, science, and the arts to show how any of us can apply this process to our own work.”~Mason Currey, author of Daily Rituals: How Artists Work
“How to Fly a Horse solves the mysteries of invention. Kevin Ashton, the innovator who coined the ‘internet of things,’ shows that creativity is more often the result of ordinary steps than extraordinary leaps. With engrossing stories, provocative studies, and lucid writing, this book is not to be missed.”~Adam Grant, author of Give and Take

“How to Fly a Horse gallops past dozens of fascinating stories and experiments on the way to presenting a radical new answer to the question of where creative ideas begin. If you’ve ever struggled to produce new ideas while imagining that to some lucky people they come easily, you must read this book.” ~Adam Alter, author of Drunk Tank Pink: And Other Unexpected Forces That Shape How We Think, Feel, and Behave

“Kevin Ashton's new book How to Fly a Horse is all about the creative sorcery and motivational magic necessary to make impossible things happen in teams or as individuals. Through numerous examples of creative genius ranging from Einstein to the creators of South Park to the invention of jet planes and concertos, Ashton reveals the secrets of the great scientists, artists, and industrialists of the last few centuries.”~John Maeda, author of The Laws of Simplicity

Fresh Ink: Spotlight on Debut Books of All Kinds: John Vaillant's First Novel

From the best-selling author of The Tiger and The Golden Spruce, this debut novel is a gripping survival story of a young man trapped, perhaps fatally, during a border crossing.

Hector is trapped. The water truck, sealed to hide its human cargo, has broken down. The coyotes have taken all the passengers' money for a mechanic and have not returned. Those left behind have no choice but to wait.


Hector finds a name in his friend Cesar's phone. AnniMac. A name with an American number. He must reach her, both for rescue and to pass along the message Cesar has come so far to deliver. But are his messages going through?

Over four days, as water and food run low, Hector tells how he came to this desperate place. His story takes us from Oaxaca -- its rich culture, its rapid change -- to the dangers of the border. It exposes the tangled ties between Mexico and El Norte -- land of promise and opportunity, homewrecker and unreliable friend. And it reminds us of the power of storytelling and the power of hope, as Hector fights to ensure his message makes it out of the truck and into the world.

Both an outstanding suspense novel and an arresting window into the relationship between two great cultures, The Jaguar's Children shows how deeply interconnected all of us, always, are.

  


"It's very strange to be told what to do by people who don't exist": John Vaillant on writing fiction 

John Vaillant's The Jaguar's Children gives voice to human trafficking victims 

A novel debut for John Vaillant 

  

The Jaguar's Children: John Vaillant steps into fiction

The Jaguar's Children: Non-fiction heavyweight John Vaillant on first novel 

Praise for the book: 

“A terrifying border tale…though the geography of the story is that of Cormac McCarthy, the plot shares more territory with Edgar Allan Poe…an end that is improbable, dripping with irony, and entirely satisfying. Border fiction has a new top-shelf title.” ~Outside

"Vaillant writes with power and emotion, affection and respect for the Zapotec people and lands...An eloquent literary dissection of the divide between the United States and Mexico." ~Kirkus

"Vaillant, whose international best sellers include The Golden Spruce (a Governor General’s Award winner) and The Tiger, a memorably burning-bright book, turns to fiction with results that are 'riveting.'" ~Library Journal

"Vaillant's timely first novel captures both the straitened circumstances of hardworking campesinos and the humanity and raw desperation of a man slowly giving in to hopelessness." ~Booklist

"A dramatic, tense novel...the importance of its themes, which closely mirror life, cannot be doubted." ~Publishers Weekly

Trinity, One of Our Teen Book Reviewers, Has A Few Books She Wants To Share With You

"Jonas’s society has been perfected. Their government has rid the city of pain, fear and choices. Everyone is assigned a job, family and life. Jonas receives his job, the receiver of memory. He is being trained by the Giver, who will share with him memories of the pain and joy in the past. There is no giving up or turning back. 

This is a short but wonderful read about a futuristic utopia with faults in itself. I recommend this to anyone interested in utopian society or problems of the future."

"Sam is one of the most popular girls in her school, has the most chased-after boyfriend, and anything else anyone could want. She can do whatever she wants and everyone else follows. 

On Valentine’s Day, she couldn’t be happier, until she dies. But she gets another chance to relive the day... and another. To live to February 13, she has to right all the wrongs with whatever it takes. 

This is a melancholy, realistic novel filled with popularity and forgiveness. I would recommend this to anyone who can give a character a second chance."

"During a blackout of New York City, Owen and Lucy are stuck together in an elevator between the tenth and eleventh floor. After they escape, they wander the dark city, and see for once the stars that shine above them. After the power comes back on, everything goes back to normal. Both Owen and Lucy move away from the big city, and are carried throughout the world. Their relationship is played out through postcards and emails as they move further and further away from each other. This is a beautiful and realistic story about love versus fate. I recommend this for anyone wanting a beautiful depiction of a long-distance relationship."

"In the final book of Shatter Me series, Juliet has discovered that Omega Point was destroyed, and has no idea if anyone has survived. She must rely on Warner to help take down the Reestablishment once and for all. 

This is a poetic and romantic novel filled with action. I would recommend this to anyone wanting a new type of dystopian book, and who has already read Shatter Me and Unravel Me."

"When Jae moves from L.A. to Korea, she believes her biggest problem will be fitting in at school. After all, she can shoot a bullseye from fifty feet away with a bow, not to mention she also has a black belt.
Then she discovers that a Korean demi-god is trying to steal her away to a mythical land, only because she is next in line for the prophecy containing all of the eldest girls in her family. Now Jae has to try to survive a land of fable while trying to break the curse.  

Gilded is a magnificently written fantasy book, beautifully entwined with Korean mythology. The description is beautiful and brings the story to life. I recommend this to anyone willing to have an open mind about a new and exciting type of fantasy book."

New Novels For Your Reading Enjoyment

From the acclaimed author of How to Be Lost and Close Your Eyes comes a beautiful and heartrending novel about motherhood, resilience, and faith—a ripped-from-the-headlines story of two families on both sides of the American border.

Alice and her husband, Jake, own a barbecue restaurant in Austin, Texas. Hardworking and popular in their community, they have a loving marriage and thriving business, but Alice still feels that something is missing, lying just beyond reach.

Carla is a strong-willed young girl who’s had to grow up fast, acting as caretaker to her six-year-old brother Junior. Years ago, her mother left the family behind in Honduras to make the arduous, illegal journey to Texas. But when Carla’s grandmother dies and violence in the city escalates, Carla takes fate into her own hands—and with Junior, she joins the thousands of children making their way across Mexico to America, facing great peril for the chance at a better life.

In this elegant novel, the lives of Alice and Carla will intersect in a profound and surprising way. Poignant and arresting, The Same Sky is about finding courage through struggle, hope amid heartache, and summoning the strength—no matter what dangers await—to find the place where you belong.

Will has never been outside, at least not since he can remember. And he has certainly never gotten to know anyone other than his mother, a fiercely loving yet wildly eccentric agoraphobe who drowns in panic at the thought of opening the front door. Their world is rich and loving, full of art, experiments, and music—but confined to their small house.

But Will’s thirst for adventure can’t be contained. Clad in a protective helmet and unsure of how to talk to other kids, he finally ventures outside. With the help of an artistic loner who introduces Will to the high-flying freedom of skateboarding, Will is pulled far from the confines of his closed-off world and thrust headfirst into the throes of early adulthood and the dangers that everyday life offers.

In buoyant, kinetic prose, Michael Christie has written an emotionally resonant and keenly observed novel about mothers and sons, fears and risks, and the lengths we’ll go for those we love.

Michael Tang and his sister, Emily, have both struggled to forge a sense of identity in their parents’ adopted homeland. Emily, an immigration lawyer in New York City, baffles their mother, Ling, by refusing to have children. At twenty-six, Michael is unable to commit to a relationship or a career—or come out to his family. And now their father, after a lifetime of sacrifice, has passed away.

When Michael finds a letter to his father from a long-ago friend, he impulsively travels to China in the hopes of learning more about a man he never really knew. In this rapidly modernizing country he begins to understand his father’s decisions, including one that reverberates into the present day. Meanwhile, on the other side of the world, Ling and Emily question their own choices, trying to forge a path that bends toward new loves and fresh beginnings.

Wendy Lee’s powerfully honest novel captures the complexity of the immigrant experience, exploring one family’s hidden history, unspoken hurts, and search for a place to call home.

Read an excerpt HERE.

Bestselling author Alex Kava’s thrilling new series introducing Ryder Creed, ex-marine turned K9 search-and-rescue dog trainer as he teams up with fan-favorite FBI profiler Maggie O’Dell.
 

Ryder Creed and his dogs have been making national headlines. They’ve intercepted several major drug stashes being smuggled through Atlanta’s airport. But their newfound celebrity has also garnered some unwanted attention.

When Creed and one of his dogs are called in to search a commercial fishing vessel, they discover a secret compartment. But the Colombian cartels’ latest shipment isn’t drugs. This time, its cargo is human. To make matters worse, Creed helps one of the cartel’s drug mules escape—a fourteen-year-old girl who reminds him of his younger sister who disappeared fifteen years ago.

Meanwhile, FBI agent Maggie O’Dell is investigating a series of murders—the victims tortured, killed, and dumped in the Potomac River. She suspects it’s the work of a cunning and brutal assassin, but her politically motivated boss has been putting up roadblocks.
 

By the time she uncovers a hit list with Creed’s name on it, it might be too late. The cartel has already sent someone to destroy Creed and everyone close to him.

But Creed and his dogs have a few surprises in store on their compound in Florida. Will it be enough to stop a ruthless cartel determined to remove the thorn in its side once and for all?

 

 

The cohost of ESPN's "Mike and Mike" follows up his New York Times bestseller All You Could Ask For with this poignant story of one man's search for the secret to understanding his father, his marriage, and himself

Jonathan Sweetwater has been blessed with money, a fulfilling career, great kids, and Claire, his smart, gorgeous, sophisticated wife. But there is one thing Jonathan never had: a relationship with his father.

Percival Sweetwater III has been absent from his son's life since Jonathan was nine years old. A five-term U.S. senator, Percy was beloved by presidents, his constituents, and women alike, especially the five women who married him after he and Jonathan's mother divorced.

Jonathan hasn't thought about Percy or the hole he left in his life for years. But then he discovers evidence that everything in his marriage may not be as perfect as he thought.

On a quest for understanding--about himself, about manhood, about marriage--Jonathan decides to track down his father's five ex-wives. His journey will take him from cosmopolitan cities to the mile-high mountains to a tropical island . . . and ultimately back to confront the one thing Jonathan has that his father never did: home.

 

 

"Happy are the loved ones and the lovers and those who can do without love. Happy are the happy."  ~Jorge Luis Borges

This citation of Borges resonates with every character in Yasmina Reza's novel, except that they are never so lucky. In fact, what happens to them is the exact opposite of what they crave. The twenty short chapters that make up this unusual book deal with both marital and extramarital vicissitudes, the elusiveness of intimacy, the fear of loneliness, and the desire to be loved or at least understood just once in our lives. The mixing of tones--cruelty and despair competing with humor and fantasy--and the quality of the monologues--taut and highly original--adds to the novel's virtuosity. This is without a doubt Reza's most accomplished work.

 

 

The scarcely populated town of Sweetland rests on the shore of a remote Canadian island. Its slow decline finally reaches a head when the mainland government offers each islander a generous resettlement package the sole stipulation being that everyone must leave. 

 

Fierce and enigmatic Moses Sweetland, whose ancestors founded the village, is the only one to refuse. As he watches his neighbors abandon the island, he recalls the town's rugged history and its eccentric cast of characters. 

 

Evoking The Shipping News, Michael Crummey one of Canada s finest novelists conjures up the mythical, sublime world of Sweetland's past amid a stormbattered landscape haunted by local lore. As in his critically acclaimed novel Galore, Crummey masterfully weaves together past and present, creating in Sweetland a spectacular portrait of one man s battle to survive as his environment vanishes around him.

 

“She was there, encouraging and helping us throughout our lives. To the world, she is Rosa Parks, but to us, she was simply and wonderfully ‘Auntie Rosa.’” —From "Our Auntie Rosa"

“Rosa Parks inspired millions of Americans in 1955, including a nine-year-old boy in Arkansas learning about her story. Through the pages of Our Auntie Rosa, her family captures the quiet dignity—and commanding conviction—of one of the civil rights movement’s bravest champions.”
~President Bill Clinton

 A warrior in the fight for freedom, justice, and equality, Rosa Parks had the vision for a better world.  She demonstrated that one person’s actions can indeed make a difference.  What many don’t know is the person behind the persona. “Auntie Rosa,” as she was called by the many nieces and nephews she helped raise, extended her love and encouragement to her closest kin. She was a guiding force and inspiration in their lives, and in this remarkable book they share with readers the great wisdom Auntie Rosa imparted to them.

In Our Auntie Rosa the family of Rosa Parks presents a collection of personal remembrances, reflections, and never-before-seen photos and letters that pay tribute to Rosa Parks’s incredible strength and determination. Parks’s brave act on a bus in Alabama on December 1, 1955, was just one moment in a life lived with great humility and decency. Our Auntie Rosa is a life’s instruction manual from one of the most famous figures in American history that will inspire generations to come.

Mariah S., High School Guest Review Says "This book is amazing!"

FROM THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF GONE GIRL

Libby Day was seven when her mother and two sisters were murdered in “The Satan Sacrifice of Kinnakee, Kansas.” She survived—and famously testified that her fifteen-year-old brother, Ben, was the killer. Twenty-five years later, the Kill Club—a secret society obsessed with notorious crimes—locates Libby and pumps her for details. They hope to discover proof that may free Ben. Libby hopes to turn a profit off her tragic history: She’ll reconnect with the players from that night and report her findings to the club—for a fee. As Libby’s search takes her from shabby Missouri strip clubs to abandoned Oklahoma tourist towns, the unimaginable truth emerges, and Libby finds herself right back where she started—on the run from a killer.

Mariah S. says:
"I give this book 10 out of 10.

Its about a girl named Libby trying to find out if her brother Ben killed their mom and two other sisters. 35 years later Ben sits in prison, as Libby goes and finds Ben's past friends and goes to a kill club to find out everything she can to be at peace.

I gave this book 10 out of 10 because it kept me on my toes and always wondering what was going to happen next. It has incredible twist and turns that you will never see coming. This book is amazing! I would recommend reading this book if you like dark mystery stories."

Wendy Is Recommending:

The all-new thriller from #1 internationally bestselling author Matthew Reilly

It is a secret the Chinese government has been keeping for forty years. They have found a species of animal no one believed even existed. It will amaze the world. Now the Chinese are ready to unveil their astonishing discovery within the greatest zoo ever constructed. A small group of VIPs and journalists has been brought to the zoo deep within China to see its fabulous creatures for the first time. Among them is Dr. Cassandra Jane "CJ" Cameron, a writer for National Geographic and an expert on reptiles. The visitors are assured by their Chinese hosts that they will be struck with wonder at these beasts, that they are perfectly safe, and that nothing can go wrong. Of course it can't...

GET READY FOR ACTION ON A GIGANTIC SCALE.

From the award-winning novelist David Whitehouse, hailed by The New York Times as "a writer to watch," a tragicomic adventure about a troubled adolescent boy who escapes his small town in a stolen library-on-wheels.

"An archivist of his mother," Bobby Nusku spends his nights meticulously cataloging her hair, clothing, and other traces of the life she left behind. By day, Bobby and his best friend Sunny hatch a plan to transform Sunny, limb-by-limb, into a cyborg who could keep Bobby safe from schoolyard torment and from Bobby's abusive father and his bleach-blonde girlfriend. When Sunny is injured in a freak accident, Bobby is forced to face the world alone.

Out in the neighborhood, Bobby encounters Rosa, a peculiar girl whose disability invites the scorn of bullies. When Bobby takes Rosa home, he meets her mother, Val, a lonely divorcee, whose job is cleaning a mobile library. Bobby and Val come to fill the emotional void in each other's lives, but their bond also draws unwanted attention. After Val loses her job and Bobby is beaten by his father, they abscond in the sixteen-wheel bookmobile. On the road they are joined by Joe, a mysterious but kindhearted ex-soldier. This "puzzle of people" will travel across England, a picaresque adventure that comes to rival those in the classic books that fill their library-on-wheels.

At once tender, provocative and darkly funny, Mobile Library is a fable about the intrinsic human desire to be loved and understood--and about one boy's realization that the kinds of adventures found in books can happen in real life. It is the ingenious second novel by a writer whose prose has been hailed as "outlandishly clever" (The New York Times) and "deceptively effortless" (The Boston Globe). 

A Wyoming fishing guide must return to his investigative roots to find his best friend's girlfriend in the second book in this thrilling series that "fans of C.J. Box and Nevada Barr will relish" (Library Journal).

High season is coming to an end, and fishing guide Jake Trent suddenly has some time on his hands. As the ex-lawyer ponders rekindling his romance with park ranger Noelle Kimpton, a surprise call from a long-lost love lights up his phone.

It's been years since law school graduation, when Jake's last seen Divya Navaysam. Now a DC lobbyist, Divya wants Jake to come to Washington for a consulting job--immediately.
Meanwhile, back in Jackson, Jake's best friend and occasional employee, JP, is dealing with his own romantic woes. After years of bad luck in love, JP has fallen for Esma.

But after a perfect summer, JP's new girlfriend is now back in her native Mexico--and before long, she seems to have gone off the grid completely. When local police offer little help, a distraught JP turns to Jake. To find Esma, Jake must navigate a heated relationship with his ex-flame in Washington. Jake's renegade investigation leads him to a remote cabin in Idaho--and a series of discoveries that point to a conspiracy bigger than anything anyone could have imagined.

David Riley Bertch's second installment in the Jake Trent series is a rollicking, juicy thriller--with a twisting plotline involving immigration, overpopulation, dirty politicians, and international intrigue. Now, "Jake Trent will be the next in line for suspense/thriller readers to adore" (Suspense Magazine). 

LOOKING FOR ALASKA SPECIAL 10th ANNIVERSARY EDITION

To commemorate 10 years in print, John Green’s Printz Award-winning debut novel is being reissued in hardcover with a stunning new jacket by Rodrigo Corral and 50 pages of all-new content, including:

- An introduction by John Green
- Updated backmatter and extensive Q&A with John Green
- Deleted scenes from the original manuscript

Winner of the 2006 Michael L. Printz Award
Los Angeles Times Book Prize Finalist, 2005
Top Ten, NPR’s 100 Best-Ever Teen Novels

Miles Halter is fascinated by famous last words—and tired of his safe life at home. He leaves for boarding school to seek what the dying poet Francois Rabelais called “The Great Perhaps.” Much awaits Miles at Culver Creek, including Alaska Young, who will pull Miles inter her labyrinth and catapult him into the Great Perhaps.

Looking for Alaska brilliantly chronicles the indelible impact one life can have on another. Winner of multiple awards including the Printz Medal, this stunning debut marked #1 bestselling author John Green’s arrival as a groundbreaking new voice in contemporary fiction.

"Perfect for mid-graders who feel a bit overwhelmed with life.----- For those who need to see the other side of the coin, a bit of empathy is a very good thing." ~Jocelyn

A light-hearted tale of a boy who gains self-confidence with the help of some timely mentoring.

Albert is short — very short — and he hates it. His older brothers are tall like his father, but he takes after his petite mother. He wears too-large hand-me-down clothes from his bigger brothers. And worst of all, his very best friend moved away to Brooklyn during the school break. It was all so unfair.

Albert is beginning Middle School on Little Scrub, the small Caribbean Island where he lives. As he steps on the bus, and sees the older kids, he feels smaller than ever. They take one look at him and howl with laughter, chanting "Little Man, Little Man, you so small, didn't hardly see you at all."

Things go downhill from there, and would've stayed down if it wasn't for an encounter with Peachy, the leader of a troupe of stiltwalkers. The stiltwalkers do a lot more than walk: they dance and leap across the sand on spindly eight-foot high wooden stilts, their brilliantly colored costumes shimmering in the moonlight.

Peachy invites Albert to join the high school students he teaches to stiltwalk. It's not an easy decision for Albert. Would they laugh at him even harder than the Middle School kids? And he is queasy about heights. The thought of wobbling around on those skinny wooden sticks makes him woozy with fear.

But Albert is won over by the thought that one day he might actually be up there, tall as a palm tree, dancing around without fear or hesitation. Besides, desperate times call for desperate measures and nobody was more desperate than Albert.

Slowly, as his stiltwalking improves, Albert finds his self-confidence grows. He becomes less of a target for teasing at school and he makes some new friends.

 

 

Jocelyn says:

"Why is life so hard all of a sudden?

New middle-schooler Albert's best friend moved to New York City- so far away from the Caribbean Islands where they grew up together!!!!!

Albert skipped a level of math, since it was so easy for him, and now he has NO idea what's going on in his new math class. Does this mean he isn't good at math anymore? He's ALWAYS been good at math!

Everyone in Albert's grade is taller than he is- will he ALWAYS be the shortest kid always?

Will his dad ask him to go way up and clean the gutters again when it was so scary to do so last year?

Life is pretty hard for Albert right now- with his new school, hard math and his best friend thousands of miles away. But- ohhhhh- there is one great thing. There are the Mocko Jumbies- the stilt walkers.So thrilling- so scary-so attractive-so....tall.

Would he dare join them if he could?

Maybe the biggest problem of all, though- will he always be lonesome and friendless?

Don't worry- things get figured out, understood and resolved in such satisfying ways. His loving parents, and other sympathetic adults in his life, help in more ways than one.

Perfect for mid-graders who feel a bit overwhelmed with life.----- For those who need to see the other side of the coin, a bit of empathy is a very good thing.

This book is just brilliantly written.So good for so many reasons! I loved loved loved this book!"

Indies Introduce: Dan Gemeinhart, Author of The Honest Truth

In all the ways that matter, Mark is a normal kid. He’s got a dog named Beau and a best friend, Jessie. He likes to take photos and write haiku poems in his notebook. He dreams of climbing a mountain one day.

But in one important way, Mark is not like other kids at all. Mark is sick. The kind of sick that means hospitals. And treatments. The kind of sick some people never get better from.

So Mark runs away. He leaves home with his camera, his notebook, his dog, and a plan. A plan to reach the top of Mount Rainier. Even if it’s the last thing he ever does.

The Honest Truth is a rare and extraordinary novel about big questions, small moments, and one incredible journey.

Howdy! Heck Yeah, I Write Middle Grade. Here's Why...

Introducing Dan Gemeinhart (and his cover!)

A New YA Series of Global Proportions -- From Master of Intrigue, "New York Times" bestselling author Ally Carter: Embassy Row

Grace Blakely is absolutely certain of three things:

1. She is not crazy.
2. Her mother was murdered.
3. Someday she is going to find the killer and make him pay.

As certain as Grace is about these facts, nobody else believes her -- so there's no one she can completely trust. Not her grandfather, a powerful ambassador. Not her new friends, who all live on Embassy Row. Not Alexei, the Russian boy next door, who is keeping his eye on Grace for reasons she neither likes nor understands.

Everybody wants Grace to put on a pretty dress and a pretty smile, blocking out all her un-pretty thoughts. But they can't control Grace -- no more than Grace can control what she knows or what she needs to do. Her past has come back to hunt her . . . and if she doesn't stop it, Grace isn't the only one who will get hurt. Because on Embassy Row, the countries of the world stand like dominoes, and one wrong move can make them all fall down.

Read a scene that isn't in the finished book HERE.

Now read an excerpt from the book HERE.

Eric B. Speaks About Grossman's "The Magician's Land"

#1 New York Times Bestseller
The stunning conclusion to the bestselling Magicians trilogy

Quentin Coldwater has been cast out of Fillory, the secret magical land of his childhood dreams. With nothing left to lose he returns to where his story began, the Brakebills Preparatory College of Magic. But he can’t hide from his past, and it’s not long before it comes looking for him.

Along with Plum, a brilliant young undergraduate with a dark secret of her own, Quentin sets out on a crooked path through a magical demimonde of gray magic and desperate characters. But all roads lead back to Fillory, and his new life takes him to old haunts, like Antarctica, and to buried secrets and old friends he thought were lost forever. He uncovers the key to a sorcery masterwork, a spell that could create magical utopia, a new Fillory—but casting it will set in motion a chain of events that will bring Earth and Fillory crashing together. To save them he will have to risk sacrificing everything.

The Magician’s Land is an intricate thriller, a fantastical epic, and an epic of love and redemption that brings the Magicians trilogy to a magnificent conclusion, confirming it as one of the great achievements in modern fantasy. It’s the story of a boy becoming a man, an apprentice becoming a master, and a broken land finally becoming whole.

Eric B. says:
"The author has presented us with a near-perfect completion of this trilogy. As is often the case I began reading it with some reservations about whether or not it would measure up to the quality of writing and imagination of the previous two books. I needn’t have bothered worrying. The voice of Quentin Coldwater, the protagonist and narrator of this series retains integrity and the cast of supporting characters have even more to offer than before.

With a fine eye to balancing the modern vernacular and vulgarly popular forms of speech ( a feature I enjoy) with the rather archaic conventions of traditional fantasy tales, Grossman has furnished us with an amusement park full of adventures, miscommunications, jealousy, revenge, remorse, death & dismemberment, and some genuine romance, although of a peculiar variety that adds spice to the whole. In other words, it works at and above the level we expect.

Quentin, who has been kicked out of Fillory, the mythical land (not universe, as we shall see) and shorn of his position of High King is comforted to find that he is accepted as a junior professor at Brakebills, the adult-rated version of Hogwarts that is the home base of the series. As an adjunct professor of Minor Mendings, a career seemingly devoid of heroic potential, he is in place to become part of the end of the world,or at least of Fillory. A precocious student, Plum, attempts a prank which propels them both on a spiraling descent into danger and despair. With the help of some old friends, some old enemies and one monumentally-pissed-off former lover,

Quentin and Plum manage to find a way to make things right.Not wishing to spoil the tale or the surprise, I will say that the ending is not of the “this is how they all lived happily ever after” variety, but it is satisfying and proper. The tension and suspense are maintained right up to the brink. I’d recommend it to any reader of fantasy, but perhaps not many beyond that select group. Transformations of humans into whales and magically-restored severed limbs are perhaps a bit much for those not used to such notions. Also to be mentioned is the medium-to-well-done level of violence and bloodshed, which while they are not joyously celebrated are notably present. Altogether, I say, 'read it: it’s good'."

Indie's Introduce Debut Authors: Wolf Winter by Cecilia Ekback

"Wolf winter," she said, her voice small. "I wanted to ask about it. You know, what it is."  He was silent for a long time. "It's the kind of winter that will remind us we are mortal," he said. "Mortal and alone."

Swedish Lapland, 1717. Maija, her husband Paavo and her daughters Frederika and Dorotea arrive from their native Finland, hoping to forget the traumas of their past and put down new roots in this harsh but beautiful land. Above them looms Blackasen, a mountain whose foreboding presence looms over the valley and whose dark history seems to haunt the lives of those who live in its shadow.

While herding the family's goats on the mountain, Frederika happens upon the mutilated body of one of their neighbors, Eriksson. The death is dismissed as a wolf attack, but Maija feels certain that the wounds could only have been inflicted by another man. Compelled to investigate despite her neighbors' strange disinterest in the death and the fate of Eriksson's widow, Maija is drawn into the dark history of tragedies and betrayals that have taken place on Blackasen. Young Frederika finds herself pulled towards the mountain as well, feeling something none of the adults around her seem to notice.

As the seasons change, and the "wolf winter," the harshest winter in memory, descends upon the settlers, Paavo travels to find work, and Maija finds herself struggling for her family's survival in this land of winter-long darkness. As the snow gathers, the settlers' secrets are increasingly laid bare. Scarce resources and the never-ending darkness force them to come together, but Maija, not knowing who to trust and who may betray her, is determined to find the answers for herself. Soon, Maija discovers the true cost of survival under the mountain, and what it will take to make it to spring.

Read an interview with the author HERE.

And another one HERE.

The Impact of Place 


Praise for the book:
“The time and place seem so remote as to be unearthly, and the style has a stealthy quality, like a silent fall of snow; suddenly, the reader is enveloped. The story creeps up and possesses the imagination; there’s something eerie in the way half-understood and only half-seen events leave their mark. It’s a powerful feat of suggestion, visually acute, skillfully written; it won’t easily erase its tracks in the reader’s mind.” ~Hilary Mantel, author of Wolf Hall

"Exquisitely suspenseful, beautifully written, and highly recommended."
— Lee Child, author of the Jack Reacher thrillers

“This snapshot of life in a place where winter can be unspeakably cruel, where simply staying alive is a victory, proves irresistible.” ~Kirkus Review

"Swedish-born debut author Ekbäck writes with deliberate pacing and immerses the reader in the endless snowfall of winter with her hypnotic prose. The novel will appeal to readers who like their historical fiction dark and atmospheric, or mystery fans who are open to mysticism and unconventional sleuths. Readers who enjoyed the winter landscape and magical realism of Eowyn Ivey’s The Snow Child may also want to try this." ~Library Journal

“The most brilliantly, dark, eery, intriguing, out-of-this-world tale I’ve ever read. Think "The Killing" and then square it.” ~Ruby Wax, author of Sane New World

“Wolf Winter is a beautiful novel, full of wisdom and poetry. Cecilia Ekbäck writes dark, compelling prose steeped in a powerful sense of place. Spellbinding.”  ~Saskia Sarginson, author of The Twins

Two New Books In Two Hot YA Series Hit Our Shelves Today!

Mirror, mirror on the wall,
Who is the fairest of them all?

Fans of the Lunar Chronicles know Queen Levana as a ruler who uses her “glamour” to gain power. But long before she crossed paths with Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress, Levana lived a very different story – a story that has never been told . . . until now.

Marissa Meyer spins yet another unforgettable tale about love and war, deceit and death. This extraordinary book includes full-color art and an excerpt from Winter (coming out in Nov 2015), the next book in the Lunar Chronicles series.

Serafina, Neela, Ling, Ava, Becca, and Astrid, six mermaids from realms scattered throughout the seas and freshwaters, were summoned by the leader of the river witches to learn an incredible truth: the mermaids are direct descendants of the Six Who Ruled-powerful mages who once governed the lost empire of Atlantis. The ancient evil that destroyed Atlantis is stirring again, and only the mermaids can defeat it. To do so, they need to find magical talismans that belonged to the Six.

Serafina believes her talisman was buried with an old shipwreck. While researching its location, she is almost discovered by a death rider patrol led by someone familiar. . . . The pain of seeing him turned traitor is devastating.

Neela travels to Matali to warn her parents of the grave threat facing their world. But they find her story outlandish; a sign that she needs to be confined to her chamber for rest and recovery. She escapes and travels to Kandina, where her talisman is in the possession of fearsome razormouth dragons.

As they hunt for their talismans, both Serafina and Neela find reserves of courage and cunning they didn't know they possessed. They face down danger and death, only to endure a game-changing betrayal, as shocking as a rogue wave.

"I really can only say that this book is amazing and unforgettable and should be read immediately." ~Jackie

Click here to learn more about the book.

Jackie says:
"This is an unusual book, and an incredible debut. The story bounces around in time and place over 65 or more years, from one era to another. It's a story of being who you want to be, what you want to experience, and how we love each other. There is a element of magic to the story, especially for James, that makes this seem like a fairy tale of quiet beauty and truths. I really can only say that this book is amazing and unforgettable and should be read immediately."

Jeff Is Recommending:

Sarah Addison Allen, beloved author of Garden Spells, returns with a luminous story of the trouble with hanging on too long, and the magic that happens when you finally let go.

Autumn has finally arrived in the small town of Bascom, North Carolina, heralded by a strange old man appearing with a beat-up suitcase. He has stories to tell, stories that could change the lives of the Waverley women forever. But the Waverleys have enough trouble on their hands.

Quiet Claire Waverley has started a successful new venture, Waverley’s Candies, but it’s nothing like she thought it would be, and it’s slowly taking over her life. Claire’s wild sister Sydney, still trying to leave her past behind, is about to combust with her desire for another new beginning. And Sydney’s fifteen-year-old daughter Bay has given her heart away to the wrong boy and can’t get it back.

From the author of the New York Times bestselling sensation Garden Spells, First Frost is magical and atmospheric, taking readers back into the lives of the gifted Waverley women—back to their strange garden and temperamental apple tree, back to their house with a personality of its own, back to the men who love them fiercely—proving that a happily-ever-after is never the real ending to a story. It’s where the real story begins.

Almost anyone who has read or written science fiction or fantasy has been inspired by the work of Michael Moorcock. His literary flair and grand sense of adventure have been evident since his controversial first novel Behold the Man, through the stories and novels featuring his most famous character, Elric of Melniboné, to his fantasy masterpiece, Gloriana, winner of both the Campbell Memorial and World Fantasy, awards for best novel. Neil Gaiman, Alan Moore, and Michael Chabon all cite Moorcock as a major influence; as editor of New Worlds magazine, he helped launch the careers of many of his contemporaries, including Harlan Ellison, Philip K. Dick, and J. G. Ballard.

Tor Books now proudly presents Moorcock’s first independent novel in nine years, a tale both fantastical and autobiographical, a celebration of London and what it meant to be young there in the years after World War II. The Whispering Swarm is the first in a trilogy that will follow a young man named Michael as he simultaneously discovers himself and a secret realm hidden deep in the heart of London.

From Guy Saville, the explosive new thriller of a world that so nearly existed

Africa, 1952. More than a decade has passed since Britain’s humiliation at Dunkirk brought an end to the war and the beginning of an uneasy peace with Hitler.

The swastika flies from the Sahara to the Indian Ocean. Britain and a victorious Nazi Germany have divided the continent. The SS has crushed the native populations and forced them into labor. Gleaming autobahns bisect the jungle, jet fighters patrol the skies. For almost a decade an uneasy peace has ensued.

Now, however, the plans of Walter Hochburg, messianic racist and architect of Nazi Africa, threaten Britain’s ailing colonies.

Sent to curb his ambitions is Burton Cole: a one-time assassin torn between the woman he loves and settling an old score with Hochburg. If he fails unimaginable horrors will be unleashed on the continent. No one – black or white – will be spared.

But when his mission turns to disaster, Burton must flee for his life.

It is a flight that will take him from the unholy ground of Kongo to SS slave camps to war-torn Angola – and finally a conspiracy that leads to the dark heart of The Afrika Reich itself.

The body of 92-year-old Jossi Goldberg, Holocaust survivor and American citizen, is found shot to death execution style in his house near Frankfurt. A five-digit number is scrawled in blood at the murder scene. The autopsy reveals an old and unsuccessfully covered tattoo on the corpse's arm—a blood type marker once used by Hitler's SS. Pia Kirchhoff and Oliver Bodenstein are faced with a riddle. Was the old man not Jewish after all? Who was he, really? 

 

Two more, similar murders happen—one of a wheelchair-bound old lady in a nursing home, and one of a man with a cellar filled with Nazi paraphernalia—and slowly the connections between the victims becomes evident: All of them were lifelong friends with Vera von Kaltensee, baroness, well-respected philanthropist, and head of an old, rich family that she rules with an iron fist. 

 

Pia and Oliver follow the trail, which leads them all the way back to the end of World War II and the area of Poland that then belonged to East Prussia. No one is who they claim to be, and things only begin to make sense when the two investigators realize what the bloody number stands for, and uncover an old diary and an eyewitness who is finally willing to come forward.
 

Nele Neuhaus's The Ice Queen is a character- and plot-driven mystery about revenge, power, and long-forgotten and covered up secrets from a time in German history that still affects the present.

 

 

Barbara Mutch's stunning first novel tells a story of love and duty colliding on the arid plains of Apartheid-era South Africa

When Cathleen Harrington leaves her home in Ireland in 1919 to travel to South Africa, she knows that she does not love the man she is to marry there —her fiance Edward, whom she has not seen for five years. Isolated and estranged in a small town in the harsh Karoo desert, her only real companions are her diary and her housemaid, and later the housemaid's daughter, Ada. When Ada is born, Cathleen recognizes in her someone she can love and respond to in a way that she cannot with her own family.

Under Cathleen’s tutelage, Ada grows into an accomplished pianist and a reader who cannot resist turning the pages of the diary, discovering the secrets Cathleen sought to hide. As they grow closer, Ada sees new possibilities in front of her—a new horizon. But in one night, everything changes, and Cathleen comes home from a trip to find that Ada has disappeared, scorned by her own community. Cathleen must make a choice: should she conform to society, or search for the girl who has become closer to her than her own daughter?

Set against the backdrop of a beautiful, yet divided land, The Housemaid's Daughter is a startling and thought-provoking novel that intricately portrays the drama and heartbreak of two women who rise above cruelty to find love, hope, and redemption.

 

 

Yvonne Carmichael sits in the witness box. The charge is murder. Before all of this, she was happily married, a successful scientist, a mother of two. Now she is a suspect, squirming under florescent lights and the penetrating gaze of the alleged accomplice who is sitting across from her, watching: a man who is also her lover. As Yvonne faces hostile questioning, she must piece together the story of her affair with this unnamed figure who has charmed and haunted her. It is a tale of sexual intrigue and ruthless urges—and of danger, which has blindsided her from a seemingly innocuous angle. Here, in the courtroom, everything hinges on one night in a dark alley called Apple Tree Yard.

 

This Book Hits Our Shelves Tomorrow, and a Free Ticket To Meet Joyce Carol Oates at Our Colfax Avenue on Feb. 23, 2015 at 7pm is Availabe with the Book

New York Times bestselling author Joyce Carol Oates returns with an incendiary novel that illuminates the tragic impact of sexual violence, racism, brutality, and power on innocent lives and probes the persistence of stereotypes, the nature of revenge, the complexities of truth, and our insatiable hunger for sensationalism

When a fourteen-year-old girl is the alleged victim of a terrible act of racial violence, the incident shocks and galvanizes her community, exacerbating the racial tension that has been simmering in this New Jersey town for decades. In this magisterial work of fiction, Oates explores the uneasy fault lines in a racially troubled society. In such a tense, charged atmosphere, Oates reveals that there must always be a sacrifice--of innocence, truth, trust, and, ultimately, of lives. Unfolding in a succession of multiracial voices, in a community transfixed by this alleged crime and the spectacle unfolding around it, this profound novel exposes what--and who--the "sacrifice" actually is, and what consequences these kinds of events hold for us all.

Working at the height of her powers, Oates offers a sympathetic portrait of the young girl and her mother, and challenges our expectations and beliefs about our society, our biases, and ourselves. As the chorus of its voices--from the police to the media to the victim and her family--reaches a crescendo, The Sacrifice offers a shocking new understanding of power and oppression, innocence and guilt, truth and sensationalism, justice and retribution.

A chilling exploration of complex social, political, and moral themes--the enduring trauma of the past, modern racial and class tensions, the power of secrets, and the primal decisions we all make to protect those we love--The Sacrifice is a major work of fiction from one of our most revered literary masters.

More about the February signing:

Free numbered tickets for the signing line will be available beginning Tuesday, January 27, at 9:00 am, with the purchase of The Sacrifice at any Tattered Cover location (excluding the airport stores). Seating at the event is "open seating" and will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. Signing restriction may apply. Please check our website closer to the event for complete information.

Fresh Ink: Spotlight on Debut Books of All Kinds

Despite their many differences, Detective Rachel Getty trusts her boss, Esa Khattak, implicitly. But she’s still uneasy at Khattak’s tight-lipped secrecy when he asks her to look into Christopher Drayton’s death. Drayton’s apparently accidental fall from a cliff doesn’t seem to warrant a police investigation, particularly not from Rachel and Khattak’s team, which handles minority-sensitive cases. But when she learns that Drayton may have been living under an assumed name, Rachel begins to understand why Khattak is tip-toeing around this case. It soon comes to light that Drayton may have been a war criminal with ties to the Srebrenica massacre of 1995.

If that’s true, any number of people might have had reason to help Drayton to his death, and a murder investigation could have far-reaching ripples throughout the community. But as Rachel and Khattak dig deeper into the life and death of Christopher Drayton, every question seems to lead only to more questions, with no easy answers. Had the specters of Srebrenica returned to haunt Drayton at the end, or had he been keeping secrets of an entirely different nature? Or, after all, did a man just fall to his death from the Bluffs?

In her spellbinding debut, Ausma Zehanat Khan has written a complex and provocative story of loss, redemption, and the cost of justice that will linger with readers long after turning the final page.

The author and her husband at TC!

 Read an excerpt HERE.

Read an interview with the author HERE.

Debut Author Spotlight 

Praise for the book:

"Beautiful and powerful." ~Publishers Weekly

"Khan’s stunning debut is a poignant, elegantly written mystery laced with complex characters." ~Kirkus Reviews

"Compelling and hauntingly powerful…anyone looking for an intensely memorable mystery should put this book at the top of their list." ~Library Journal

"A spectacular debut. Khan has written a heartbreaking book that stays with you long after you've put it down." ~Reza Aslan author of Zealot

"What a debut! Ausma Khan's The Unquiet Dead is a stirring mystery with unexpected, complex characters and a story that will keep you flipping pages until the wee hours." ~Jillane Hoffman, author of Pretty Little Things
 

"Evocative, surprising, and important. With its mesmerizingly personal voice, each lyrical sentence reveals another suspenseful layer of this complex and heartbreaking mystery. Harrowing and disturbing, its delicate strength creates tension on every page." ~Hank Phillippi Ryan, author of The Other Woman
"It would be enough that Ausma Zehanat Khan's The Unquiet Dead gives us an intriguing new detective team in Esa Khattak and Sgt. Rachel Getty. But it does far more than that. Khan creates an engrossing story that allows her to sift through the emotional rubble of real-world tragedy. In the end, it isn't just gripping. It's devastating." ~Steve Hockensmith , author of Holmes on the Range

Fresh Ink: Spotlight on Debut Books of All Kinds

For readers of Meg Wolitzer, Elizabeth Strout, and Anna Quindlen, A Small Indiscretion is a gripping and ultimately redemptive novel of love and its dangers, marriage and its secrets, youth and its treacherous mistakes.

Marking the arrival of a major new voice in literary suspense, A Small Indiscretion is the riveting story of a harrowing coming-of-age, a marriage under siege, and a mother who must excavate the truth. Fans of Everything I Never Told You and The Girl on the Train will devour this O. Henry Prize winner’s hypnotic debut about how one woman’s youthful obsession hijacks her family’s happiness.

At nineteen, Annie Black deserts her childhood home in L.A. for a London winter of drinking with abandon and looking for love in exactly the wrong places. Twenty years later, she has put her libertine past behind her and is a happily married mother of three settled in San Francisco. Then one June morning, a photograph arrives mysteriously in her mailbox, an old obsession is awakened, and Annie’s life begins its spectacular unraveling.

Past and present disastrously collide when Annie returns to London seeking answers. Her marriage falters, her lighting store floods, and her son, Robbie, climbs into a car for a night-time ride that nearly costs him his life. Now Annie must fight to save her family by untangling the mysteries of her past, and making amends—not only for the fateful mistakes of the summer, but for those of that distant winter in Europe that drew an invisible map of her family’s future.

Brilliantly paced, compulsively readable, and written in the lyrical, insightful prose that won Jan Ellison an O. Henry Prize for her first published story, A Small Indiscretion is the story of a woman’s reckoning with a past that won’t stay buried, and a profound commentary on denial, forgiveness, and love—the kind that damages, and the kind that redeems.

Read an excerpt HERE.

Check out the author's bio HERE.

Read a Q&A with the author HERE.

A Small Indiscretion: A Novel (a short audible excerpt)


Praise for the book:
“An emotional thriller . . . Connoisseurs of domestic suspense will finish this book in a few breathless sittings.”~Kirkus Reviews

“Are those wild college days ever really behind you? Happily married Annie finds out.” ~Cosmopolitan

“[A] cleverly constructed debut . . . a deftly crafted, absorbing novel that peels back the layers of Annie’s character as it reveals the secrets of her past and present.” ~Booklist

“An engrossing, believable, gracefully written family drama that reveals our past’s bare-knuckle grip on our present.” ~Emma Donoghue, author of Room

“A stunning debut by Jan Ellison . . . Like the photograph that arrives in the mail and sets in motion the plot of this gorgeous novel, A Small Indiscretion reminds us of the intensity of youthful desire and of the fragile nature of a marriage built on secrecy.” ~Ann Packer, author of The Dive from Clausen’s Pier

“A Small Indiscretion is that rare thing—a literary page turner written with great warmth and humanity, which pulls the reader in emotionally without a hint of sentimentality.”—Alice LaPlante, author of Turn of Mind