IndiePicks Dec 2017 by IndiePicks Magazine

2017 Dec

1.2

JOHN URBANCIK photographer writer creator

MEET THE DEAD SOUTH

8681010004

AUTHORS ON THE MOVE: WENDY WEBB

CONTENTS

issue 18 Featured Author: John Urbancik

21 Authors on the Move:

Wendy Webb

24 Meet:

The Dead South

26 New & Noteworthy:

Pev Rayz

Review Columns 04 05 06 08 10 On the Cover 12 14 Photo Credit: Patrick 22 Fore

Romance Horror General Fiction Book Club Picks Science Fiction/Fantasy Mystery/Thrillers Nonfiction YA & Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Books

Features 11 16

Indie Author Day Publisher Spotlight

What if you could wish for anything—and get it? “Heartbreaking, other times hilarious, but always

THOUGHT-PROVOKING .” —Booklist

—Kirkus Reviews

“A

THOROUGHLY ENGAGING

choice for readers of realistic fiction and magical realism.” —School Library Journal

9781492636083 I HC

Also from Chelsea Sedoti

“A solid coming-of-age novel .” —Kirkus Reviews

9781492642312 I HC I $17.99

“POIGNANT…will inspire readers.”

EDITOR’S NOTE Editor in Chief: Rebecca Vnuk Graphic Designer: Courtney Pugh REVIEW TEAM Robin Bradford Craig Clark Erin Downey Howerton Alan Keep Megan McArdle

Andie Paloutzian Becky Spratford Kaite Mediatore Stover Magan Szwarek Henrietta Verma

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Justin Hoenke SUBSCRIBER INFORMATION Contact Naomi Blackburn, 361-356-1819 x402 or naomi.blackburn@patomimediagroup.com for subscription assistance. Please include name, address, and phone number on inquiries. Individual and bulk subscriptions are available. For information, see indiepicksmag.com/subscribe. Postmaster: Send address changes to: Patomi Media Group, PO Box 533 Sugar Grove, IL 60554 ADVERTISING Advertising Sales Naomi Blackburn Advertising in IndiePicks is an opportunity to showcase your book to a national audience of readers and librarians who support independent publishers and authors. For information on advertising rates, please contact Naomi Blackburn, naomi.blackburn@patomimediagroup.com PATOMI MEDIA GROUP President & Publisher: Naomi Blackburn Vice President of Operations: Erin Matty Vice President, Distribution: Patrick Blackburn IndiePicks Magazine is a book review publication (available in e- and print monthly subscriptions) dedicated to independent publishers and authors. Part of the Patomi Media Group, IndiePicks was founded in 2017 by publisher Naomi Blackburn.

WELCOME TO INDIEPICKS Welcome, new readers! I’m delighted to introduce you to the second issue of IndiePicks Magazine. Our goal is to celebrate the uniqueness and diversity of independent publishing houses and those who have chosen the nontraditional publishing route to bring their books to market. Our magazine and website focus on reviews, as well as interviews, articles, and other entertaining columns related to topics in the indie media world. I’d like to encourage you to check out our website, indiepicksmag.com, which offers bonus review content, sneak peeks of print features, and regular blog posts. And if you’d like to know more about us, please check out the FAQ section of the site. There, you’ll find everything you need to know, including subscription information, details on our social media accounts, and instructions regarding how to submit for review. One question you might be asking is, “Why IndiePicks?” Well, we like to think that we stand out in the world of book reviews in a few very specific ways. First, we will never charge authors or publishers for reviews. Not in print, not on our website. Second, our monthly subscription model is a hybrid—our print and digital subscriptions are available for individual subscriptions, but we also offer a bulk package to libraries and bookstores at a competitive price, allowing them to offer IndiePicks as a print giveaway item to their customers. Finally, we’ve deliberately kept our review team small and wholly made up of professional librarians. We’re so glad you want to take this journey into the world of independent publishing with us. If you have questions, comments, or ideas about what you’d like to see featured in the magazine, please contact me at indiepicks@patomimediagroup.com. Rebecca Vnuk Editor in Chief, IndiePicks Magazine

Our review team consists of readers’-advisorylibrarians who review with an eye towards making suggestions to collection development librarians as well as to general readers.

ROMANCE POST-APOCALYPTIC ROMANCE

by Robin Bradford

In Deacon, the second book in Rocha’s Gideon’s Riders series, Deacon leads the elite warriors in charge of post-apocalyptic Sector One. Deacon runs the Riders in a way that is fierce, yet fair, but no one knows that his past includes a stint as a member of the group of assassins called the Suicide Kings—and that he was assigned to assassinate Sector One’s leader, Gideon. Ana’s father had been a Rider, and she has spent her life training to be first female member of the group. She finds that being the only woman is its own kind of problem, however, especially when a relationship with the boss will do nothing but cast suspicion on your legitimacy. When the Suicide Kings appear, looking for revenge on the killer that got away, the assassins put all of Sector One in their crosshairs. Deacon and Ana’s chemistry is as undeniable as the notion of Ana being deserving of her spot in the Riders. As with all of Rocha’s books, the worldbuilding is great and it’s hard to call any of the characters “secondary,” because they’re so nicely defined. Readers looking for romantic suspense, high-caliber action, and well-realized characters (not to mention great covers!) need to get started on this series. LOVE LOST, LOVE FOUND

Deacon by Kit Rocha. (CreateSpace, 14.99 9781975628734) The Lost Letter by Mimi Matthews. (Perfectly Proper Press, $8.99, 9780999036419) Sanctuary by Rebekah Weatherspoon. (CreateSpace, $14.99, 9781976353475) The Truth of Things by Tasha L. Harrison. (Dirtyscribbler Press, $3.99, e-only ASIN B0757TG746)

Matthew’s Victorian romance The Lost Letter finds Sebastian Conrad’s sister showing up on Sylvia Stafford’s doorstep pleading for help for her brother. Sylvia tries to turn her down, for the life she had when she and Sebastian knew each other is long gone. Her father had committed suicide rather than face his seemingly insurmountable debt, and her place in society evaporated seemingly overnight. Now, as a governess to a merchant family, she has put her previous life behind her. Especially since Sebastian, whom she thought she was going to marry,

never responded to any of the letters she sent to him while he was at war. Sebastian has been in hiding since an injury left his face permanently scarred, so he’s unaware of Sylvia’s circumstances. He only knows that once he left for India, he never heard from her again. Matthews weaves a tale of deep feeling and tragic circumstances, without draping it in maudlin mourning cloth. The story moves along quickly, with sympathetic and charming secondary characters to help push the leads in the proper direction. Highly romantic, with no explicit sexual situations, this is a delightful read for all tastes.

need. Silas and Liz have a rocky start, even as she pretends to be his girlfriend for the sake of explaining her presence to the small, nosy town. Weatherspoon peels away the many layers of her characters until Liz and Silas have charmed each other—and the readers. No part of this relationship comes easy, but that only makes it more treasured. In the end, readers will feel like they’ve earned every bit of this happily ever after, as have the characters. RESISTANCE ROMANCE

The Truth of Things, Harrison’s latest entry in her Lust Diaries universe, features Yves Santiago’s ROMANTIC SUSPENSE best friend, Ava Marie Greene. Ava is a wedding photographer who can Sanctuary, the second book in focus on love through her camera Weatherspoon’s Beards and lens, but doesn’t see it happening for Bondage romantic suspense series herself. When she runs into police (after Haven) sees lawyer Liz Lewis officer Levi Raymond, she’s attracted in need of a place to hide when she but knows that is not a direction loses a case and the client sends an she wants to go in. But Levi gets assassin to let her know he’s taken beyond the walls Ava’s put up for the loss badly. A fellow lawyer takes men (and cops) with a patience and her to upstate New York, where she perseverance that deserves to be learns about his other life when he rewarded. Ava and Levi’s romance dumps her on his unsuspecting twin is tested when a violent action brother, Silas McInroy is estranged sweeps them all up in its path, but from his brother, Scott, and wants to love always wins in the end. As turn away this plea for help, but he in all of Harrison’s books, these can’t turn down a person in genuine characters make an impression that is not easily forgotten. Even characters that appear for only one or two scenes have a lasting impact. Characters from previous books dip in and out, continuing their stories as well as leaving plenty of space for Ava and Levi to shine. This book would be great for discussion groups, as there are many sides and issues to contend with. Tragedy occurs, but joy and love win in the end, making this a story about hope as much as about true love. ONLINE EXCLUSIVE: The Rogue’s Conquest by Lily Maxton

HORROR DARK DREAD

his latest terrifying supernatural mystery, The Handyman. Real There is no question that the dread estate agent Daniel recounts the and fear are ratcheted up in The story of his family’s encounters with Corpse and The Girl from Miami, Frank, the handyman who built Urbancik’s latest dark fantasy—the their Arizona vacation home back unease grabs the reader from the in the 1980s. Frank, at best is a con very first scene and never really artist but at worst, a man with a lets go. A man returns from the connection to an otherworldly evil. dead, resurrected in a cemetery in Daniel thought his family was the the driving rain in a seedy section only one destroyed by Frank and of Boston. He has no memory, but the homes he built, but after hearing luckily, has an ID. With no other a client mention the problems with options, he heads to the address on his family’s “Frank” home, Daniel the ID and meets Ofelia and Mr. goes on a cross-country search to Maker, who have been waiting try to understand the truth. What for him. Ofelia is a femme fatale Daniel uncovers, however, is much who wants revenge; Mr. Maker, more sinister and dangerous than a being with connections to a he could have ever imagined, and mythological world sitting just now his life and the people he loves outside of our own. Our former may be in peril. The tale is told in corpse, Lucas, is just trying to figure three distinct parts—each with a out who he is and how he fits into unique storytelling style—and the the story. The storylines of the terror intensified as the plot unfolds. three protagonists are laid out in Part One reads like a traditional alternating chapters, with the point supernatural investigation, while of view quickly bouncing back and Part Two is a series of impressions forth. Readers will be engrossed of Frank from the point of view in following the leads, seeing the of others over the years. Finally, stories converge, and finding out Part Three brings Daniel and his that the characters are all after friends back for the horrific and the same thing—a diamond with disorienting conclusion. Little has more power than any of them can also infused the story with Asian imagine. The mythological details horror influences, some overt and about the magic inherent in a place others subtler. The result is a trippy are captivating, the old-fashioned and terrifying story of an insidious pulp heist story is fantastic, and horror hidden just behind the the resurrected corpses add just walls. Pair this with other surreal the right amount of supernatural tales of deadly haunted homes horror. Come for the awesome action like The House of Leaves by Mark and world building, but stay for the Z. Danielewski or Slade House characters—especially Lucas, as he by David Mitchell. Fair warning, searches for answers about his past though, don’t hire anyone to do and struggles to figure out whom he work on your house for a few weeks is supposed to be now. This original before or after you read this one. dark fantasy tale is a must-read for fans of Richard Kadrey’s Sandman SPOOKY SUSPENSE Slim series with touches reminiscent of Seanan McGuire and of Neil Davis follows up her National Book Gaiman’s American Gods. Critics Circle Award-nominated Cooking for Ghosts with her second TRADITIONAL TERROR entry in the Secret Spice Cafe series, Spells and Oregano. Once again, Sometimes, readers just want a the action takes place on the Queen traditional tale of terror by a master Mary, and its well-known status as of the form. Enter Bentley Little and one of the most haunted American

places sets the uneasy atmosphere before readers even open the book. Davis hits the ground running with an excellent dual-plotline supernatural thriller. Sarita is the manager of The Secret Spice Cafe, the upscale restaurant aboard the vessel. She is a troubled young

by Becky Spratford

woman with psychic abilities and a strong connection to the ship’s spirits. Luca is a young man who has suffered much personal loss, but a family connection draws him to the Queen Mary. Luca and Sarita meet and fall in love, but their pasts are literally coming back to haunt them. As Sarita and Luca’s stories unfold, their plot lines converge and the danger increases. Along the way, Davis throws in welldeveloped secondary characters and many engaging details about food, magicians, psychics, and the stately ship herself, all without sacrificing the compelling pace; in fact, these details are as engrossing as the heart-racing suspense. By the end the stakes are high, and readers will be held breathless awaiting the shocking conclusion. They won’t need to worry if they missed the first book in the series, as this The Corpse and The one can stand alone. It is perfect Girl from Miami by John both for readers who enjoy the Urbancik. (DarkFluidity, $15, 9780998388243) supernatural psychological suspense of Jennifer McMahon and those The Handyman by Bentley Little. who love Nora Roberts’ storytelling (Cemetery Dance, $25, prowess across many genres. This is 9781587676161) spooky suspense with just enough Spells and Oregano by frights to make readers take a hard Patricia V. Davis. second look at any movement in the (HD Media Press, $15.95, shadows. 9780989905688)

GENERAL FICTION: FOUND IN TRANSLATION ITALIAN ART

by Craig Clark

The Animal Gazer by Edgardo Franzosini. (New Vessel Press, $16.95, 9781939931528) The Happiness Bureau by Andreas Izquierdo (Owl Canyon Press, $18.95, 9780998507330) The Stone Building and Other Places by Asli Erdoğan (City Lights Publishers, $14.95, 9780872867505)

imprisonment and captivity. There is no shortage of irony in these Rembrandt Bugatti, an Italian three short stories and a novella by sculptor and brother of car celebrated Turkish author Erdogan, manufacturer Etorre Bugatti, took who in 2016 was arrested and held his own life in 1916 at the age of 31. in an Istanbul prison. Whether In The Animal Gazer, Franzosini describing a spectacular wilderness reimagines Bugatti’s adult years in or a sparse room, the stories ring Antwerp and Paris before the artist’s with vibrancy and emotion. While unfortunate demise. Known for his the “Morning Visitor” and “The animal sculptures, Bugatti spent Prisoner” are concise meditations much of his time in the Antwerp on pain and loss, “Wooden Birds” Zoo and the Jardin des Plantes in is a strangely uplifting story of a Paris. More comfortable among group of tubercular women leaving animals than humans, Bugatti took their asylum and traveling to an pride in his ability to understand his undisclosed location in the Black observations and transfer them into Forest beautiful works of art. Rembrandt’s region of friends and fellow artists try to Germany. engage him The Happy is content as a clerk in the and take centerpiece Agency for Administrative Affairs. him out to of the He spends his days distributing socialize, collection, forms and processing requests in a but he is “The Stone massive bureaucracy, and he revels only truly Building,” is in the simplicity and uniformity happy a powerful of his duties. Albert is an expert when he is narrative at navigating the governmental sculpting. of despair system; he knows all of the agencies, In 1914, and suffering. The narrator flits departments, and their associated when the from inside and around the prison forms. When an unfamiliar form Germans repeatedly lands on his desk—despite that is a stone building, detailing ravaged the torment of the prisoners his efforts to dispose of it—Albert Belgium in the early days of WWI, resolves to discover the source of the and their attempts to free their Bugatti was enlisted as a stretcherminds from their tortured reality. mystery. Upon meeting the author bearer, and this led him into a Erdogan’s prose flows from poetic of the request, an eccentric artist depression from which he could named Anna, Albert’s concrete and to experimental, and the result not recover. Illustrations of Bugatti presents a powerful look into the orderly existence dissolves into an sculptures preface each chapter, hearts of tortured souls. unpredictable and colorful world and they offer proof of the tangible that tests his boundaries both link the artist had with his models. physically and emotionally. There This poignant and emotional story, is a cinematic quality in Izquierdo’s translated by Michael F. Moore, is writing, and his renderings of the told with expressive and elegant machinations of office life are lively prose, and it will appeal to readers and humorous. This touching and of historical and literary fiction, intimate literary drama will appeal as well as those interested in early to readers who enjoyed Graeme twentieth-century artists. Simsion’s The Rosie Project or Helen Phillips’ The Beautiful Bureaucrat. GERMAN PRECISION The Happiness Bureau, Izquierdo’s 2015 German novel, translated here by Rachel Hildebrandt, is an entertaining and heartfelt story of self-discovery amid a sea of paperwork. Middle-aged Albert

TURKISH PRISONS Originally published in Turkish in 2009 and now translated to English by Sevinç Türkkan, The Stone Building and Other Places portrays the mental and physical hardship of

GENERAL FICTION IT ISN’T EVEN PAST In McCluskey’s second novel, The Long Deception, a phone call carrying tragic news pulls advertising executive Alison Eastlake out of her sunny life in Los Angeles and back to the misty English countryside of her youth. The news that her childhood friend Sophie has died of a drug overdose is heartbreaking, though not entirely unexpected. For Alison, the homecoming is both sad due to the loss of her friend and also confusing, because her late friend’s brother, Matt, was Alison’s first crush. In the wake of Sophie’s death, many questions are unanswered. While sleuthing out those answers and coming to terms with her loss, Alison is pulled dangerously close to Matt, despite the fact that both of them are married. The return to home reveals how much Alison has compromised: she doesn’t have the life she’s once hoped for, she isn’t an artist with spiky purple hair, she isn’t living in the UK, she isn’t with Matt. And worst of all, the group of friends she’d thought she would have her whole life is now minus one. This is ultimately a story about the past, how much power it can hold, and how living in it for too long can be catastrophic for anyone.

profiles, emails, and texts. Readers will identify with Alison’s missteps as she navigates early career moves, cohabitating, and seeking her “plus one.” Over the course of 12 months, she meets a serial online dater, a relationship phobic who breaksup before they officially start up, and a possible international man of mystery. It’s escapist fiction for the urban admirer, with New York playing a character more than a setting. This is an ideal story for fans of New Adult fiction and contemporary romance (author Stephanie Perkins would be a great readalike), but it’s got a fun unexpected arc. Not your momma’s rom-com. HISTORICAL FRIENDSHIP

Told from alternating points of view, The Mustard Seed is the continuing story of an enduring friendship set in a just-post Civil War America, moving from Ohio back to the crumbled Confederacy lingering in Virginia. With this follow-up to her first novel, Yellow Crocus, author Ibrahim carries on the weathered bond of Jordan MODERN LOVE and Lisbeth. Jordan was born a Online dating and reality dating slave on Lisbeth’s shows have altered the modern family’s Fair Oaks romance landscape. For late-twenty- plantation. The something Alison, the prospect of two girls developed starting over is daunting after two a deep bond of back-to-back serious relationships. real friendship in that place of A friend convinces her to try a subjugation, a place they departed dating app, and for the bargain price together, leaving family behind for a of $150, Alison is launched on a better future. Lisbeth was shunned year-long adventure. Three dozen for this choice, as well as for her candidates and over 60 dates later, choice to marry an abolitionist. she has stories to tell. Stauffer’s Both women establish a life on their debut, Match Made in Manhattan, own terms in Ohio, and Jordan is packed with incredibly funny becomes a teacher and suffragette. dialogue and believable encounters. Any stability or calm the two are It’s a new take on epistolary able to claim for themselves is lost storytelling, told through dating when news arrives that Lisbeth’s

father is dying. The return to Fair Oaks presents both a chance at reconciliation. For Jordan, it presents a chance for liberation for her mother. This is a story marked by terrible injustice, but at its core are themes of friendship, family, and healing. A DELICIOUS READ

by Andie Paloutzian

Birthdays offer opportunities: to consider lessons learned, to ponder possibilities never before imagined. On her 40th birthday, Julia Bentley tries very, very hard to learn from previous mistakes and dismiss her feelings for village newcomer, 29-year-old Tristan Hannigan. A love story with vanilla, baking soda, and never-too-late puppy-love charm, Borum’s sweet tale Savoring the Seasons follows the stumbling, flour-covered adventures of Julia, from her bakery-counter doldrums to something unexpected and challenging—and maybe even worth it. It’s not until this younger man, full of fresh perspective and flirtation, pops into her bakery that Julia realizes how drab her days have become. She has a business to run and her father to care for—and never enough hours in the day to manage it all. Life seems The Long Deception by renewed following Mary McCluskey. (Little Tristan’s arrival in A Publishing, $14.95, Chilton’s Crosse. This 9781542046312) is story in which following the heart Match Made in means following the path of most Manhattan by Amanda resistance, eschewing the whispers Stauffer. (Skyhorse of small-town gossips and all the Publishing, $15.99, 9781510728097) nay-saying notions we hold about ourselves. Charmingly set in the The Mustard Seed by Laila Ibrahim. (Lake Cotswolds, Savoring the Seasons is a Union Publishing, highly sensory story that will have $14.95, 9781542045568) readers craving pastoral landscapes Savoring the Seasons and blueberry scones in equal by Traci Borum. (Red proportions. Adept Publishing, $14.99, 9781940215914)

BOOK CLUB PICKS

by Megan McArdle

GINGERPHOBIA

The Dog Walker’s Diary by Kathryn Donahue. (North Star Editions, $14.99, 9781635839029) Everything You Came to See by Elizabeth Schulte Martin. (Skyhorse, $24.99, 9781510724044) Photo Credit: Matt Nelson Dogs in New York City

From the moment he opened his front door and saw the beautiful red-haired Annie Doherty, literary agent Daniel Ashe’s life took on a new trajectory. As Donahue’s debut, The Dog Walker’s Diary opens, Daniel has hired Annie to walk his two dogs, despite his lifelong fear of redheads. Every evening, he is bemused to come home to Annie’s dog walking diary where, instead of a staid accounting of any issues that arose during their walks, he finds elaborate adventures she has penned with his dogs taking starring roles. Daniel discovers that these stories, and the woman who wrote them, are taking up more and more of his attention, even though he is in the middle of the biggest deal of his career as a literary agent. He is also supposedly in a relationship already, with a cool blonde who offers him everything he always said he wanted: companionship without love. While the reader might assume they know where this story is going

at this point, there is a surprising turn coming. On top of this cozy base of quirky romance, author Donahue adds a layer of tension as Daniel becomes embroiled in an unexpected mystery. This winning mix of whimsy and suspense succeeds because of its fresh execution and the clever way the author keeps the character of Annie an appealing cipher. Book Group Bonus: Book clubs that are unafraid to try something fresh and new will be rewarded with a unique read. The whimsy factor is high, but so is the humor, and Daniel is a character readers can root for even as he makes mistakes. SEND IN THE CLOWN When he shows up for an audition at Feely and Feinstein’s International Circus in

Everything You Came to See by Elizabeth Schulte Martin, Henry Bell is hungry, homeless, and lying about his age. Still, circus manager Caleb Baratucci can see he is also extremely talented and hires him as the troupe’s new clown. Feely and Feinstein’s has seen better days, but as they start rehearsing for their tour of the midwest (and a stop in Toronto to justify the “International” part of their name), Henry finds a form of comfort in company of performers. His past—from the loss of his mother to the violent father who had to be placated at any cost and the brothers he abandoned—is never far behind him. He finds himself drawn to Caleb’s wife Adrienne, a former giantess with the circus whose health is failing. Even he is not sure if he craves romantic or a maternal affection from her, but Henry’s obsession with the woman who is the first in a

long time to show him any kindness is bound to cause problems. Henry also chafes at not being allowed to fully express the grand ideas he has for new and daring routines. His ambition to be a great clown is nothing to laugh at, and Caleb can see that Henry is a talent that could be the saving of the failing circus. Book Club Bonus: The circus setting will be a great draw for fans of books like Sara Gruen’s Water For Elephants and Katherine Dunn’s Geek Love, but they will stay for the lovely writing and fascinating characters.

of Jacksonville that houses the factory to the remote town in the Scottish Highlands where Corran has retreated in an attempt to ward off his cravings for heroin. Book Group Bonus: With multiple storylines all gathering tension throughout the novel, groups can discuss which they found most compelling: the father-son conflict, Johnny’s medical drama, the mystery of the ammonia tank explosion, or any of the other small narrative eddies the author brilliantly navigates.

melancholy as well—while Adam’s work was important, he was never the physics giant he wished to be, and the work he spent so much of his career on waxes and wanes in the eye of public opinion. Book Group Bonus: While the novel covers historical periods, it feels more like character study, with less emphasis on the history of the atomic program than one might expect. Groups who would enjoy

FATHERS AND SONS When readers meet Scotsman Johnny Mackinnon in Smith’s second novel, The Ice House, he has spent the last 30 years in Jacksonville, Florida, helping run the ice factory his wife, Pauline, inherited. Now the factory is in danger unless they can successfully appeal the hefty OSHA fine levied on the business after an explosion in an ammonia tank. This would wipe them out, as their retirement nest egg was spent trying to cure Corran, Johnny’s son from his first marriage, of his heroin addiction. The last relapse left the father and son estranged, and even the birth of Corran’s baby daughter has not softened Johnny’s stance of nocontact. When he discovers he has a growth in his brain that could be cancer, he decides to travel to Scotland to see Corran, bringing along his neighbor’s slightly odd teenage son as a driver. Meanwhile, Pauline has to find a way to save the factory, which has its share of workplace drama. While this is a beautiful character-driven novel, the settings are also vividly realized, from the run-down neighborhood

A NUCLEAR FAMILY A family revolves around the powerful magnet of patriarch Adam Brooks in Knight’s debut novel, Lost, Almost. A physicist involved in nuclear weapons research in Los Alamos, New Mexico, Adam is a chilly and impatient mentor to his science-minded son and granddaughter, expecting them to live up to his near-impossible standards. In one early scene that illuminates his character, Adam visits his granddaughter Katie’s math club and both awes the teens and makes one girl cry. The novel jumps forward and backward in time, with vignettes showing readers how Adam both inspires and alienates. There’s an added

an examination of how a patriarch can inspire and damage his family will find much to discuss here, in the vein of Pat Conroy’s The Great Santini or David Auburn’s play Proof.

The Ice House by Laura Lee Smith. (Grove, $25, 9780802127082). Lost, Almost by Amy P. Knight.(Engine Books, $14.95, 9781938126833) Photo Credit: Paul Morris Skye, United Kingdom

SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY TIME TRAVEL

by Alan Keep

Nikel’s debut novel, The Continuum, follows Elise Morley as she performs her work as a Retriever, someone tasked with finding and bringing back clients of the Place in Time Travel Agency who have broken the Agency’s rules while enjoying personal trips to the past. After performing a somewhat rough retrieval of a client from 1912, Elise is whisked away by a mysterious organization with its own interest in time-travel technology and that forces her to jump to a time and place she previously thought impossible: the future. As Elise attempts to puzzle out this new and unfamiliar time, she must also wrestle with the consequences of her own trips to the past. Nikel’s time-travel narrative is brisk and energetic, with a relatively straightforward and action-oriented plot for the genre. Readers interested in time-travel novels for their historical detail or for narratives based around complex and intertwining timelines may want to look elsewhere, but those interested in a light and enjoyable SF read in the style of popular time-travel tropes such as Doctor Who should give it a look. HIGHWAY ROBBERY

Miller’s debut fantasy novel, Mask of Shadows, follows genderfluid highway robber Sal as she enters the audition process to assume the vacant title of Opal, one of the Queen’s elite assassin group, the Left Hand. As Sal deals with her fellow The Continuum by competitors, she also wrestles with Wendy Nikel. her desire for vengeance against (World Weaver members of the Queen’s court as Publishing, $9.99, 9780998702223) well as her developing feelings for the young court scribe, Elise. Mask of Shadows by Linsey Miller. Miller crafts an engaging and fast(Sourcebooks, $17.99, paced narrative while also deftly 9781492647492) presenting a well-realized fantasy Winterglass by world with a rich and long history. Benjanun Sriduangkaew. The author’s combination of epic (Apex Publications, high fantasy with characters whose $10.95, 9781937009625)

gender and sexuality fall outside of the mainstream norms for the genre will appeal to fans of writers who have explored the genre in similar ways, such as Tamora Pierce, Ellen Kushner, and Tanya Huff. Mask of Shadows is recommended for readers who seek a more diverse representation of gender and sexuality in their fantasy sagas, and for anyone interested in starting an exciting new fantasy series in general.

THE SNOW QUEEN Winterglass, the latest novella from acclaimed SF and fantasy author Sriduangkaew, is a queer fantasy that draws upon Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Snow Queen,” transforming it into a form suitable for its deliberately post-colonial, Southeast Asian— influenced setting. The story follows Nuawa, a gladiator in Sirapirat, one of the most recent nations conquered by the immortal and alien Winter Queen. Determined since childhood to find some way to get vengeance against absolute winter, Nuawa instead finds herself increasingly attracted to the Queen’s most trusted soldier, General Lussadh.

In the midst of all of these competing desires are the Queen’s lost mirror shards, which are embedded deep in Nuawa and Lussadh’s hearts. Sriduangkaew’s prose is among some of the most beautiful in the field today, making every moment of this relatively brief story worth revisiting many times over. The world created through Sriduangkaew’s incredible artistry is one that, despite the icy domination of winter, is much freer than most fantasy stories in its exploration of racial, sexual, and gender identities. Highly recommended for anyone looking to experience some of the most exciting and breathtaking fantasy writing out there.

INDIE

an inside look at

On Saturday, October 14, 2017, libraries around the country celebrated the second annual Indie Author Day. This free event is supported by independent author-services companies such as IngramSpark and library-related organizations such as the American Library Association. Attendees at Indie Author Day hear from authors and other speakers who have experience in independent publishing. The Central Branch of Queens Public Library, in Jamaica, NY, was a host library this year, and offered panels, video presentations (the same ones that were shown across all host sites), and an indie-author book fair.

An Editor Tells All One useful presentation was “Working with a Professional Editor,” by editor and author Tim Frederick, author of the short story collection We Regret to Inform You and editor of the Queens-based journal Newtown Literary. Frederick has lengthy experience working with authors of various kinds of books and his advice was straightforward, with his main point being that everyone needs an editor. (He didn’t push his own services.) It’s too hard to have the detached perspective needed to edit your own work, he pointed out. “Especially if you’re going to sell your work on platforms like Amazon, or have it reviewed on Goodreads, people will take off stars if they see typos,” said the editor. “A quality edit of your book that works on everything from content to comma placement can make a big difference in sales of your work and how you are perceived as an author,” he continued. Frederick described the three kinds of editing— developmental editing (also called content editing), line editing, and proofreading. These exist on a continuum, he said, with developmental editing examining the content on a big-picture level—how the plot flows, for example—and line editing and proofreading looking more at elements like spelling and grammar. The format of what is edited at each stage also differs, with beginning, developmental editing being done on material that is in Word or a similar draft format and later drafts being read by the editor in PDF, EPUB, or other more final form. Developmental editing costs the most and proofreading the least. Line editing is the most important, in Frederick’s opinion, and he explained that “It’s the type of editing that will make the difference between a self-published work looking professional and being a total mess.”

AUTHOR DAY

On rates, Frederick explained that editors charge in different ways: some by word, others by page, and still others by the hour. He explained that an informal survey of editors he knows showed that the lowest pay they would accept is two cents per word. Authors should bear in mind, he noted, that an editor charging less than that is probably not going to do quality work. There can be hidden costs to a cheap editor, he said: for example, authors who find mistakes in an e-book after it has been published you may have to pay if they choose to upload a new, corrected version.

by Henrietta Verma

Frederick did offer some “safer” ways to cut corners and dollars instead of hiring a cheap, inexperienced editor. It’s possible to replace developmental editing with a good beta reader, he mentioned, also noting that a nonprofessional reader can do a serviceable job at proofreading if there has already been a thorough line edit. Authors can save money by asking a developmental editor to just concentrate on a particular aspect of the work, he said. Still, the money an author invests in editing helps them to learn, explained Frederick, so that they can save money on the next book by not making as many mistakes. Finally, on fees, Frederick noted that sometimes authors can arrange payment plans with editors. Frederick emphasized that working with an editor is an important relationship. Communication is key, and authors must be up front about their goals and time line. It’s important to be clear about your working style as an author, said Frederick, revealing that he wouldn’t want to talk about his work over coffee with his editor, because he processes things better by reading than by listening. It’s also best for authors to plan intermediary workings steps and benchmarks with their editor than wait to see the edited work when it’s finished, in case it’s not as expected. Frederick’s routine is to do a little work for a client and show it to them before he proceeds with the rest. “Listen to your editor!” was Frederick’s parting advice. “You've done a lot of work with this person and paid them a lot of money. If they tell you something is not working, believe them . . . A comment that you should change something is ultimately a comment that they care about your work and they care about your success.”

MYSTERY/THRILLERS MAJOR CRIMES

that is scandalous in itself—in postWorld War I Melbourne, Australia. L’Etoile’s first book in this series She also flouts convention by having saw Sacramento PD Detective John a job rather than sitting genteelly Penley and his partner, Detective on her wealth while sipping tea; Paula Newberry, confronting a she is a private detective, one who serial killer, one whose gruesome takes jobs by word of mouth from work provided an illicit organ for her eccentric group of contacts. In Penley’s son. The reverberations of Murder on a Midsummer Night, that crime still loom large in Penley’s a re-release (likely given another by Henrietta marriage and are just the beginnings chance at life because of the success Verma of the mess facing the partners in of the show), Phryne investigates L’Etoile’s second series outing, two mysteries: the supposed suicide, Bury the Past. Newberry is the but perhaps murder, of the owner focus of the mystery this time, of an upscale antique shop, and the as a case she case of a family handled while whose inheritance working in is threatened by the the police possible existence department’s of their late father’s Internal Affairs love child. Flapperdivision is era Australia is coming back a setting that US to bite her in a readers will find career-ending intriguing; also way. Serious compelling are new crimes Phryne and her related to that adopted daughters, episode are Chinese lover, and piling up, and assorted wacky it looks like acquaintances. someone is Happily, trying to put Greenwood’s stories the detective are as clever as behind bars her characters. by framing her. You don’t find a This is one to try if you enjoy desperate but ethical police officer Sophie Hannah’s Agatha Christie character every day; adding to the mysteries—it’s the same era and book’s appeal is that it features instars similar kinds of characters, just the-news foes: white supremacists down under. who find it in their hearts to take a break from race war and engage ACADEMIC MYSTERY Bury the Past by James in a little drug dealing. L’Etoile’s L’Etoile. (Crooked authentic tone and snappy dialog Professor Theo Cray uses computer Lane Books, $26.99, 9781683314424). keep the pace sprinting along science to study biological systems. here. This is one for fans of Karin This specialty, which has trained Murder on a Midsummer Night Slaughter, especially those who Cray to see what others don’t, is by Kerry Greenwood. enjoy her Will Trent books. central to Mayne’s latest thriller, (Poisoned Pen Press, The Naturalist. Cray finds his $15.95, 9781464209772) EARLY MISS FISHER unorthodox way of looking at the The Naturalist by world both a curse and a blessing Andrew Mayne. Phryne Fisher may be familiar when one of his students is killed. (Thomas & Mercer, to some readers thanks to the The police are sticking fast to the $15.95, 9781477824245) Australian TV series Miss Fisher’s theory that she was mauled by Photo Credit: Maddy Murder Mysteries. The wayward a bear, but Cray, whose ideas are Baker Phryne is a single woman—a state too untested and egg-headed for Sun Road, West Glacier

the authorities, believes there’s something far more sinister in the Montana woods. Determined to find out the truth, Cray ignores the naysayers and takes to the road, disregarding his safety while pursuing scientific questions about his student’s death, the wilderness, and human character. The mystery quickly moves toward a conclusion that can be a little heavy on the MacGyver but that will leave readers with the right amount of new, quirky science and also, sadly, a new chill their bones when they go near a forest. This is a series debut, and readers will look forward to further head-butting between Cray and his smart nemesis, Detective Glenn. Those looking for more from the award-winning Mayne can try his The Chronological Man and Jessica Blackwood series. STRANGER THINGS In Desombre’s debut, The Sin Collector, “strange deaths in strange places” set an ambitious intern on a quest for truth. Masha is a law student at Moscow State University. She’s top of her class, which makes her fodder for disdain at her Central Directorate Headquarters internship, where she’s supposed to pass the time quietly while others do the real work. Masha’s too smart for that, though. Left to her own devices, she turns busywork into an investigation of killings that begin to show patterns—they’re in odd locations, and, beginning with numerology, they expose a preoccupation with medieval symbols. This debut, already a bestseller for Amazon’s imprint that offers translated books, is a promising start to a new series. Desombre’s intricate creation alternates viewpoints between

Masha and other main characters and portrays a tough city where gruesomeness isn’t as unusual its residents would like. The symbology aspect makes this perfect for readers who are looking for something after Dan Brown’s new work, while Masha’s starring role as a whipsmart young adult who won’t rest till she has answers will be a hit with fans of Joe Ide’s IQ books. THOUGHTFUL AND INTENSE A common criticism of crime fiction is its obsession with the deaths of pretty white girls. Don’t any other victims count? In Silvis’s latest work of suspense, Walking the Bones, they do. The victims in this case are five African American teens whose skeletons seem to point to the guilt of a mega-rich pastor of a mega-church. Chasing answers are Pennsylvania state troopers Ryan DeMarco and Jayme Matson, romantic as well as work partners who are visiting the Kentucky church’s town for a funeral. A new obsession is just what DeMarco needs; he’s on sick leave from work—meaning that his boss is counting on a mental health break to help the grieving, damaged DeMarco stick with the job. This is a stellar work. Silvis provides an intimate look at a relationship in jeopardy, one that readers will root for as they delve into DeMarco’s and Matson’s painful pasts. (This relationship will provide plenty of fodder for book club discussions; the book helpfully closes with a guide for such groups.) The author’s insightful portrayal of small town secrets and loyalties plunges readers The Sin Collector by Daria Desombre. deep into a Southern mystery that (Amazon Crossing, will keep them wondering right $14.95, 9781542047203) up to the end. Though the authors’ Walking the Bones themes are not the same, readers by Randall Silvis. who enjoy Anita Shreve’s thoughtful (Sourcebooks Landmark, writing should give Silvis a try. $15.99, 9781492646914)

NONFICTION AND THE BEAT GOES ON As many music movements and musicians move into their “golden years,” the publishing industry has seen a spate of cultural histories and personal memoirs about legendary times and the legendary figures who lived them. In Break Beats in the Bronx: Rediscovering Hipby Kaite Hop’s Early Years, Ewoodzie adds Mediatore his voice to the mix by zeroing in Stover on the “missing years” of hip-hop’s development, 1975-1979. This is the period between DJ Kool Herc’s legendary house party and the arrival of the Sugar Hill Gang. Ewoodzie’s goal is to move hip-hop’s history from the mythic exploits of the few to the contributions of the nameless hordes, thereby compiling a “people’s history” of hiphop. The book examines the history and creative process that brought hip-hop to the forefront of American culture and is a fascinating assessment of Break Beats in the a musical form that relied on myth Bronx: Rediscovering Hip-Hop’s Early Years and legend for an origin story by Joseph C. Ewoodzie, and now has a solid, Jr. (University of North respected, evidenceCarolina Press, $27, based foundation. 9781469632759) Ewoodzie uses new Holding Space: data, evidence, and On Loving, Dying, collected interviews and Letting Go by Amy Wright Glenn in combination with (Parallax Press, $16.95, a fresh pair of eyes 9781941529799) to distill and analyze. Renegade: Martin He then blends Luther, The Graphic those elements with Biography by Dacia Palmerino, illustrated by forthright prose, clear Andrea Grosso Ciponte. explanations, and (Plough Publishing, vivacious photographs $19.95, 9780874862072) to create a history that may present as academic, but doesn’t read that Shortfall: Family Secrets, Financial way. This slim volume packs a Collapse, and a Hidden rich history of a musical style that History of American became a lifestyle by drawing on Banking by Alice Echols. the diverse cultures crammed into (New Press, $26.95, a small section of one of New York’s 9781620973035). poorest areas. Readers will be swept Photo Credit: Joanna away by the hundreds of revealing Kosinska

anecdotes and the reproduced fliers advertising park jams, house parties, and performances. If there’s time to read only one chapter, make it Chapter Four, “Crews and Outside Influences,” which offers fascinating backstories of graffiti, fashion, b-boys, and the term “hip-hop.” Give to any teen or adult with a strong interest in music history, music journalism, or the creation of music. LETTING GO WITH GRACE As a hospital chaplain and doula, Glenn has seen more death than most people. In her second book, Holding Space: On Loving, Dying, and Letting Go, she writes compassionately and practically about the importance of putting death into a living context and how to “be there” for other people in times of great sorrow. Like other guides for calming the spirit in politically hectic, technology-driven times, this book emphasizes turning away from outer distractions and taking time for ourselves to look inward for peace and serenity. Glenn recognizes the power religious beliefs have on attitudes towards death. In a poignant and humorous, memory from childhood she recounts an experience at a funeral home for a recently deceased Mormon relative. As she and her wayward cousin stumbled upon another body in the funeral home, an elder relative discovers the curious children and uses that time to impart a wise message about death, dying, and the afterlife that Glenn will take with her through her own spiritual journey away from the Mormon

faith. Readers will appreciate the gentle directions Glenn provides for helping the bereaved in a time of loss. She reminds readers that death is not something to “get past or through,” and her suggestions for what to do and say to support grieving loved ones are kind, sensible, and clear, just like her writing style. This book serves as a bridge between Elisabeth Kübler-Ross’s classic, On Death and Dying and Caitlin Doughty’s Smoke Gets In Your Eyes: And Other Lessons from the Crematory. Suitable for all library collections and a thoughtful gift for someone experiencing emotional pain. PICTURES OF A RELIGIOUS REVOLUTION Perhaps high-school history classes should supplement standard text textbooks with graphic biographies of notable historic figures. It’s easier to understand an historical era when a reader can see the places and people that put the events of the time in context. In Renegade: Martin Luther, The Graphic Biography, illustrator

a booming Midwestern city and a mini-chronicle of the American banking industry. Sounds like something Jeffrey Archer would write, doesn’t it? It’s all true, though, and the heart of the story is a woman learning that the family lore handed down by her mother wasn’t true. They layered characters, energetic pace, and active voice will keep readers turning the pages of what is, essentially, a deep dive into a little-known facet of an American financial crisis. A surprising delight to promote to book clubs demanding nonfiction, this is sure to provoke plenty of comparisons to the savings and loan disasters of the 1980s and 1990s as well as more the more recent collapse of 2008. Pair it with the movie The Big Short and invite a local banker to the discussion.

Andrea Grosso Ciponte and writer Dacia Palmerino present a concise, accessible biography of religious rabblerouser Martin Luther, using the graphic format. The haunting artwork is as cold and brutal as the times in which Luther lived—a dark palette of somber tones depicts diseased rats and humans dying in the rough streets, the atrocious punishments meted on citizens, and the tortured expressions of peasants, monks, soldiers, and princes. This is a compact biography

and history of the preacher who founded the Protestant faith in dark times. The dialogue is simple in some exchanges; the authors rely on the digital paintings to

relate the dramatic story of Martin Luther. There’s no preaching or proselytizing here—this is a serious addition to graphic literature collections. It’s a work that both expands the imagination of graphic literature devotees and informs readers about a notable period of theological history. TOP PICK An unearthed cache of letters and documents forms the impetus for a family memoir that mirrors the building and loan crash of Colorado Springs in 1932 and the history of a prominent Midwestern city. History professor Echols’ discovery of several trunks of letters, newspaper clippings, and financial documents reveals that her grandparents were not who family history would deem—and explains some of her mother’s vague statements and the peculiar revisionist memories of her parents. Shortfall: Family Secrets, Financial Collapse, and a Hidden History of American Banking is a rags-to-riches family saga set against the backdrop of

PUBLISHER SPOTLIGHT:

by Andie Paloutizan

Woodneath Press THE STORY CENTER

In 1994, Ruth Henning completed a memoir she believed might never be published. The “life less ordinary” tale featuring herself and her husband, Paul, was a look at their life from the two of them from Kansas City to Hollywood and behind-the- scenes look at some celebrated television in the making. Twenty-three years after Ruth sent her manuscript to a friend, it found its place at a library. Like the best screen plots, this story has a twist. Libraries as Publishers “Looks like a printer on steroids,” remarked a library customer who was looking for the copy machine, and instead located its next-next-generation cousin, the Espresso Book Machine (EBM). The EBM is a four-leaf

clover find in public libraries—lucky and rare. A product of On Demand Books, LLC, the EBM is a combination printer and book binder that can create a paperback faster than you could brew a pot of coffee. There are 29 EBMs in the US—however, only 7 are found within public libraries. Four. Leaf. Clover. With a service area bigger than Rhode Island, Mid-Continent Public Library in Kansas City is breaking as much new ground in its programming as it physically covers on a map. Home to the largest genealogy center in the country, MCPL is also the Photo: Woodneath Press address of the National Storytelling Network, and a Offices burgeoning regional imprint—Woodneath Press.

That’s right. Public libraries are getting in the publishing business. In the case of Ruth Henning, MCPL is not just carrying and promoting her book, the library is also its publisher. The First Beverly Hillbilly: The Untold Story of the Creator of Rural TV Comedy was published in September 2017, and you won’t just find it in Kansas City. This indie darling is enjoying national attention. MCPL Library Director and C.E.O. Steve Potter knows that libraries exist for many as containers of great stories. He believes they can and should be more involved in helping authors to get their work on library shelves. “Libraries have long enjoyed a symbiotic relationship with publishers. Technology has created a new frontier, as authors started publishing their own work. Meanwhile, publishing houses consolidated. Access to independent publishing has been liberating, but has also resulted in many books that would not have been published a few years ago,” Potter said. “People are itching to tell their stories, but they aren’t always ready to tell it.” He continued, “What if a library could help throughout the creative process, including publishing? The final product would be something a library would want, something others would want to read, even buy.” It was this philosophy that gave rise to the library’s Story Center and Woodneath Press. Woodneath Press Manager Dave Burns says there are two main aspects to the service: print-on-demand production and a publishing imprint. The bulk of what is done on the EBM is print-on-demand: things like genealogy compilations or family cookbooks. The other piece, the imprint, is currently four titles in and building momentum. “The first two books published were by well-known local individuals and were successful, due in part to a partnership with our independent bookstore, Rainy Day Books,” Burns said. “Now, with The First Beverly Hillbilly, the appeal isn’t just local, but national, and the scope of this project helped us reevaluate what the Woodneath Press could be.” Burns

collaborated with Ingram Content Group for printing and distribution to get this book into bookstores and libraries across the US, instantly increasing their footprint and visibility.” Burns says more titles are slated for publication over the next year. As the press expands, so does the base of interested writers. Woodneath Press is part of a larger initiative known as The Story Center. Program Manager Melissa Stan believes that what The Story Center offers can connect storytellers with the resources and community they need to develop and share their work. For

Paul Henning might be the biggest TV name you’ve never heard of. The late Midwesterner made good in Hollywood as the talent behind TV shows including The Beverly Hillbillies, one of the highest-rated series of all time. He’s finally getting the spotlight in a new memoir, authored by his wife, Ruth Henning, that peeks behind the curtain at the Golden Age of television. Paul drew inspiration from Ruth’s stories of childhood life in the Ozarks and his own experiences in suburban Kansas City; from these, Paul would create not only the story and characters of The Beverly Hillbillies, but also Petticoat Junction and Green Acres. His work gave rise to the 1960s phenomenon of “rural comedy,” which became a television genre unto itself. The First Beverly Hillbilly: The Untold Story of the Creator of Rural TV Comedy is published by Woodneath Press, a program of Mid-Continent Public Library, which amplifies unheard voices in the storytelling community.

"We are taking participants from the first spark of inspiration all the way to having something tangible to share." example, Stan has been working with Maple Woods Community College to develop a certification program for teens and adults. “We are taking participants from the first spark of inspiration all the way to having something tangible to share,” says Stan. “As they hone their craft, we expect to see an increase in submissions for publication through the Woodneath Press. Publishing is an endorsement of quality. If a work isn't quite there yet, we are in a place get them there,” she explains. Circling back to Ruth’s particular story, Potter notes that, “Ruth Henning’s book finally found a publisher, but it took major changes in the publishing industry, and a library program with the goal to help people create and share better stories.” For more information about printing or publishing via Woodneath Press, visit mystorycenter.org.

The First Beverly Hillbilly: The Untold Story of the Creator of Rural TV Comedy by Ruth Henning. (Woodneath Press, $26.99, 9781942337034) Photo: Dan Burns & Melissa Stan

MEET

by Becky Spratford

JOHN URBANCIK

John Urbancik writes lyrical, dark, and creepy stories of fantasy and horror that are part Neil Gaiman, part China Mieville, with a dash of Salman Rushdie. Urbancik’s expertly crafted tales would be hugely popular with a wide range of readers, if only more people knew about him. Urbancik began writing at a young age, creating single-page comic strips in grade school, but his first published story came in 1999, “A Portrait in Graphite.” Since then, he has had so many stories, novels, and poems published that even he cannot keep track of them all. He spent his youth in New York City and Long Island, went upstate to study video and audio production in college, and eventually settled in Florida. He’s recently relocated to Virginia, and had the opportunity to live briefly on the other side of the world in Sydney, Australia. He happened to bring with him a very nice camera, practiced the craft while there, and got quite good at it. And so, Urbancik the writer added “photographer” to his professional and artistic titles.

At first glance, Urbancik notes that his life does not seem colorful. As he likes to say, “No time in jail or in the armed forces, and no game show victories. However, I feel lucky to have been able to see and do all I have.” Among his several mottos for life: “Go everywhere, do everything.” And, “It’s all fun and games until someone gets eaten alive by a tiger shark.” This world view is easily seen in Urbancik’s writing, as his work is hard to classify using our current genre constructs. When I asked him if he set out to blend genres, he talked about the amalgamation of genres as part of the natural progression of all literature. “It’s always been present. In the 70s

and 80s, we had a lot of horror that was meant to terrify, but you also started to get things like Aliens, which is science fiction-slash-horror, and The Princess Bride, which is as much romance as it is fantasy. I tend to blend genres because I don’t generally think of a specific genre when I write. I’ll include elements of crime noir, fantasy, horror, science fiction, romance, whatever’s appropriate for the story. My latest novel, The Corpse and the Girl from Miami, begins like crime noir, then swings into full-tilt horror before shifting to over the top magic and mythology. [Editor’s note: review found on page 5]. Most stories don’t belong to a specific genre until the marketers get their hands on them.” Urbancik writes like a reader. He sees a story and he does not let the limits of established tropes rein him in. He simply tells it how it needs to be told. I wondered if his work as a photographer shaped this unique vision at all. “I don’t know that the photography influences the writing so much as the writing and photography have their source, in me, in the same place. I see cinematically, so I tend to write that way. In my first novel, Sins of Blood and Stone, I have a scene where a demon crashes into a cathedral through a stained glass, rose window. Of course, even before I wrote the scene I was seeing it [in my mind] on a big screen in brilliant technicolor.” After years of holding down a “day job,” Urbancik has recently taken the leap to being a full time writer. “I’m older now than I’ve ever been, and I’m only ever going to get older. I reached a place where I needed to give up on the endless succession of no-future jobs I’ve been laid off more times than I can count as companies restructure and consolidate—and pursue the thing I’ve always wanted to do. My heart, my soul are in my stories, and the day jobs only barely paid me enough to survive. They never made me happy. If I’m going to make a living writing, I need to spend all of my energy and resources in pursuit of that.” But Urbancik notes that he didn’t make the shift to full-time writing until his partner finished her Ph.D, which now allows him to “focus on what I want—and love—to do.”

"If I'm going to make a living writing, I need to spend all of my energy and resources in pursuit of that."

One of those things that Urbancik loves to do is to take on large scale creative projects. His most recent one is InkStains, a project in which he challenges himself to write a story a day, every day (with only one day off a month) by hand, with a

nice pen and paper. Some days John writes for only 20-30 minutes and other days, much longer. As he explains, “In the past, I’ve done short-term challenges, like writing seven stories in seven days. And I’d done it with photography, too—my first year-long project was self-portraits. Then in 2012, I had a heart attack. I faced Death, and I came back, and realized I was letting myself down. I started the InkStains project after that as a means of making sure I was writing. The goal has never been quantity, but to continue to improve, to explore and experiment, and to get the creative wheels inside my head not just turning, but spinning like mad. And I believe I’ve done that. I’ve never been filled with more inspiration or more ideas. And I think I’ve improved immensely, as a writer and artist, from doing what are essentially practice stories. I freely admit that some of these stories don’t work, some are not interesting, some fail as stories even if they’re successful as explorations. But I also believe some of these stories are wonderful.” After the first year of InkStains stories, Urbancik knew he wanted to share what he wrote with others, both readers and fellow writers, but he wasn’t quite sure how. “I started typing them, and decided the best format was to self-publish monthly installments. That was a lot of work, but it gave me a chance to play with things like layout and design that I hadn’t had much experience with. I’m slowly getting the second set of InkStains published now, as I write the third set. I wrote in 2013, 2015, and 2017. The real question now is, will I do a fourth series in 2019?” But even though this multi-year project has resulted in hundreds of thousands of words—the first year alone was close to 250,000—it has not been enough satisfy his seemingly insatiable creative drive, so Urbancik recently found another outlet for both the stories he has created and the lessons he learned along the way— InkStains, the weekly podcast. “I have friends who do interview shows and such, and I didn’t feel I could contribute to that. But I talked with Project Entertainment Network and pitched a show of me giving readings from the InkStains stories and talking about writing, photography, art, and creativity. I want to be an encouraging voice for everyone who feels they have an artistic spark they’ve never been able to fully explore. I want to give people permission to experiment and make mistakes and learn from them. I want to help artists achieve success, however they’re defining their own successes, and this podcast seemed like the perfect tool to accomplish that.” You can listen to Urbancik’s weekly musings on writing and even hear him read some of his stories on

his InkStains podcast at projectentertainmentnetwork. com/shows/inkstains, and you can find all of his books, including the monthly InkStains installment volumes, on Amazon. For more information and to follow Urbancik’s artistic adventures visit his website, darkfluidity.com, and catch him on Facebook (facebook.com/Urbancik), Twitter, or Instagram (@JohnUrbancik).

Here are a few recent titles by Urbancik, with readalike suggestions to help readers pick a place to get started: The Corpse and the Girl from Miami begins when a man wakes atop a fresh grave during a thunderstorm without any memory. The only clue he’s got is an address on the license in his wallet. When he gets there, they’ve been waiting for him. For fans of Richard Kadrey’s Sandman Slim series who also like Seanan McGuire. Stale Reality is a love letter to Sydney, Australia. The premise is simple: what if all of reality shifted to accommodate somebody else, and you, who never existed in this version of reality, was left behind? Kevin finds himself in a world where he’s never met his wife and their infant son was never born, and he wants to reclaim his other existence. This is Urbancik’s darkest novel and is a perfect suggestion for fans of Dark Matter by Blake Crouch. Tales of the Fantastic and the Phantasmagoric is a collection of novellas and vignettes that serves as an excellent introduction to Urbacik’s work. The title is cribbed from Edgar Allan Poe’s Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque. The stories are a combination of fantasy, dark fantasy, and horror and will be enjoyed by fans of Neil Gaiman. City of Glass [forthcoming] began as an InkStains story. A man built a city of glass in the desert to declare his ardor, but his love interest is unimpressed. She says it’s fragile, it can’t last. And it won’t. The city will exist for only 100 days, but 100,000 people move in and make it their home. Those who enjoyed China Mieville’s The City & The City will love this work about identity and secrets.

New from

AUTHORS ON THE MOVE:

wendy webb Here at IndiePicks, we find it particularly interesting when authors make the move from the traditional publishing world into selfpublishing or working with the growing variety of new imprints. Wendy Webb recently took the time to speak with us regarding her experience. IndiePicks: Please tell us about your books. Wendy: I write gothic suspense mysteries featuring big, old houses with family skeletons hidden in every closet, a strong heroine who finds herself in a situation that is more than she bargained for, twists and turns, a bit of romance, and a spirit or two lurking in dark corners. They’re not ghost stories per se, but a hint of the paranormal is always part of my tales. Reviewers are calling me Queen of the Northern Gothic, which surprised me—how cool is that? I find it flattering and wonderful. Southern Gothics have been around for a long time, but not Northern. I didn’t know I was inventing a genre! I just write the type of books I want to read, and set them in a place that I was familiar with. IndiePicks: You say your books have a hint of the paranormal in them. Do you believe in ghosts? Wendy: I get asked this question all the time and I always say, if I didn’t believe in ghosts before, I sure do now. Everywhere I go, people tell me their ghost stories. Sometimes they’re “things that go bump in the night” tales, but more often, I hear stories about encounters that happen after a loved one passes. They’re meaningful and emotional stories for people (“here’s what happened after my mother passed away”), and I’m honored that they share them with me.

supportive. I have a great team of people around me at Lake Union. They love my books and my characters as much as I loved writing them. I feel very, very fortunate to have landed there. IndiePicks: Tell us a bit about your writing process. Wendy: I usually get inspired by a place. A house that I happen to notice, a town that seems deliciously creepy. The inspiration for The End of Temperance Dare was a real-life TB sanatorium. My grandfather was there for a time and recovered. My grandma’s sister was also a patient, and died there. In terms of my process, I just start with an idea and go from there. I don’t outline my stories. I feel that, if I know what’s around the next turn, my readers will, too. So I like to keep myself in the dark until things surprise me by popping up. Both The End of Temperance Dare and my next book are set in a fictional small town on Lake Superior that I call Wharton— which is my version of a real place, Bayfield, Wisconsin. It’s a magical, lovely place, a quaint little town with no chain stores or restaurants, no billboards, no buildings taller than about four stories. It's the jumping off point for the Apostle Islands, and you can hop on a ferry and putter from island to island—it’s extraordinarily beautiful. But, it’s on Lake Superior, so there’s an element of danger, too. Regarding my characters. I usually start with my heroine and go from there. Will there be a love interest? Who else belongs in the story? As I’m writing, the population of the story sort of evolves on its own based on what makes sense.

"Southern Gothics have been around for a long time, but not Northern. I didn’t know I was inventing a genre!"

IndiePicks: Your first three novels were published with "Big 5" publishers, and your latest is under the Lake Union imprint of Amazon Publishing. Tell us what led you to publish your books outside of the "traditional" model? Wendy: To me, it’s not the publisher, it’s the team. So I didn’t intentionally seek out an indie publisher. Every time I’ve chosen a publisher to work with, it has been because the team has been passionate about my work. I had a choice of publishers for The End of Temperance Dare (as well as my next book), and I went with Lake Union because of their passion and commitment to my work. They’ve been wonderful to work with, very

IndiePicks: What can readers look forward to next from you? Wendy: My next book is coming out in the fall of 2018. I’d love to tell you the title and what it’s about, but I’m on strict orders to keep it under wraps for a while! All I can say is that it is also set in Wharton. I love the book and I hope my readers will too.

YOUNG ADULT WONDER TWINS

by Magan Szwarek

Alone by Cyn Balog. (Sourcebooks Fire, $17.99, 9781492655473) Plague Land by Alex Scarrow (Sourcebooks Fire, $10.99, 9781492652106) Stolen Secrets by L.B. Schulman (Boyds Mill Press, $17.95, 9781629797229)

conspiracy theory-obsessed father, Leon and his family flee London for Intense and creepy, Balog’s latest the country only to be stranded on novel, Alone, grabs the reader by a train with a collection of terrified the throat in the opening page and fellow passengers, unsure of how refuses to let go. Seda is haunted, she best to protect themselves from the thinks, by the spirit of Sawyer, the unidentified pandemic. Alternating twin brother she absorbed while chapters, with points of view in the womb and whose largely ranging from the first outbreak to sinister voice she hears in her head. other major cities to the virus itself, Marooned by her horror-film scholar slowly reveal the magnitude of mother in a remote, disintegrating the calamity and foreshadow the murder-mystery hotel referred to as horror to come. Leon’s experience as Bug House, Seda and her younger one of the few surviving humans siblings (two sets of boy-girl twins is compelling and legitimately ages four and six) find that what scary with an ending that teases they thought would be a quick jaunt the sequel perfectly. Put this in the to sell the inherited property has hands of fans of Jonathan Maberry, evolved into an open-ended stay in Ilsa J. Bick, and Justin Cronin. a house of fabricated horrors that may turn out to be incredibly real. FAMILY SECRETS In true horror-movie style, a group of teenagers arrive at Bug House In Schulman’s heart-wrenching during a blizzard—and despite Stolen Secrets, it’s the eve of Sawyer’s grim warnings to Seda, eleventh grade and Livvy become involved in an elaborate has been dragged across the costumed scavenger hunt in the country from Vermont to San house— a game devised by Seda’s Francisco by her recoveringmother that turns deadly. As the alcoholic pastry chef mother, pace accelerates, so do the twists, ostensibly for a career leaving the reader unsure of what opportunity. But it’s actually so is real, until they feel much like that her mother can take care the desperately conflicted Seda. of Livvy’s grandmother, who The shocking conclusion begs for a is suffering from Alzheimer’s sequel. (and whom Livvy thought was long dead), in hope of THRILL RIDE inheriting a sizable amount upon her death. Despite her Post-apocalyptic horror meets mother’s insistence that she is science lesson in Plague Land, better off staying as far away Scarrow’s adrenaline-packed rocket from her grandmother as ride of a novel. Leon and his younger possible, Livvy begins to get to sister, Grace, have recently relocated know her as best she can and from New Jersey to London with is intrigued by the mystery of their British mother after their her past in WWII-era Germany. The parents’ divorce. Leon, anxious and discovery of a few scattered pages socially awkward, is fascinated with of a journal written by an inmate of a brief report of a mysterious disease Bergen-Belsen concentration camp being reported from West Africa; a in early 1945 leads her to speculate disease that turns Earth into Plague wildly about her grandmother’s Land with breathtaking speed true identity and what actually and in gruesome fashion. Human happened to her during the war. beings dissolve into putrid pools of More than just Holocaust intrigue, gore within minutes of exposure, Stolen Secrets is packed with complex leaving behind only hair, teeth, and family dynamics, gently exploring clothes. Following the advice of his the effects of growing up with an

alcoholic, as well as the specific dark circumstances that may have led to that particular coping mechanism in the first place. Livvy is a dynamic protagonist, wise and competent as well as insecure and naive. This is a lovely coming-of-age story that explores love, trust, and forgiveness.

CHILDREN’S POEMAS FAMILIARES Accessible, bite-sized, and made for sharing, the dual-language poems in Family Poems for Every Day of the Week/Poemas Familiares para Cada Día de la Semana, by the late Alarcón, give young readers a window into not just their own lives, but the poetry that can be found in even ordinary days. Using language as the framework, Alarcón loosely themes the poems around the etymology of each day of the week in both English and Spanish. Charming anecdotes bring the connections home, as with a blushing child who compares their red cheeks to the day’s namesake, Mars, on Tuesday (Martes). Gonzalez’s art, inspired by Mexican traditions and motifs, adds another layer of meaning to the poetry. Wednesday’s spread features a tortoise and hare to literally illustrate “El Tiempo es Vacilón/Time is Very Tricky,” but hidden in the hare’s body is a pattern of playing children, running alongside a rolling classmate in a fast wheelchair, while the tortoise shell is studded with sedentary students stuck at their desks. The rich interplay of language and art will delight families and young readers, and teachers of Spanish as a second language may also find a use for this in their classrooms. The poems are enjoyable in English but truly shine in Spanish, with gentle slant and internal rhymes. Un libro juguetón y artístico—a playfully artistic book. [Ages 5-12] LOVE AND MEMORIES In If My Moon Was Your Sun, Max’s grandfather is changing. He has gone to live in a nursing home and he is more forgetful than he

used to be. Grandfather still loves music by his favorite composers, and he is glad to see Max when he comes for a visit. But Max knows best, and he stages a getaway by punching in the door’s secret code and letting Grandfather out with him—along with Miss Schneider, another resident! While Max is still young enough to thrill to the idea that perhaps the home will send a search party out for his little gang, he is beginning to grasp deeper concepts like the fleeting nature of time, as he realizes that Grandfather will not be with him forever. Steinhöfel’s Max teeters on the edge of adolescence with vulnerability and love; this portrayal

ensues. When Bartelby realizes that he’s the one causing chaos in the city, he feels bad. It’s a good thing this sausage dog lives in a bookstore, because that’s where his little friends go to look for answers to his predicament. Together, they come up with a novel solution that prevents Bartelby’s bottom from causing problems. The city scenes in Patton’s The Very Very Very Long Dog are dynamic yet spare, focusing on the mess that the dog and his erstwhile friends create, and describe both perspectives on a common problem for preschoolers— unintentional messes! The solution includes a way for both passersby

is complemented by Palmtag’s beautifully expressive colored pencil illustrations and songs on the accompanying CD that evoke timeless human emotion. Readers will feel as though they have stepped into an entire experience with Max and his grandfather. A meaningful and resonant book for those struggling to come to terms with a relative’s memory loss, and everything that goes with that process. [Ages 8-12]

and Bartelby to become more aware of where he is in space, and that is something that readers will pick up on, whether this is used in a lapsit session or in a group storytime presentation. A charming story that promotes problem-solving with friends. [Ages 3-5]

VERY LONG, VERY CUTE Bartelby is a very, very long dog. It makes him distinctive, but it also prevents him from having all the fun he wants to have. Whenever he goes on walks with friends, he loses track of his rear and pandemonium

by Erin Downey Howerton

Family Poems for Every Day of the Week/ Poemas Familiares para Cada Día de la Semana by Francisco X. Alarcón, illustrated by Maya Christina Gonzalez. (Lee & Low Books, $18.95, 9780892392759) If My Moon Was Your Sun by Andreas Steinhöfel, illustrated by Nele Palmtag. (Plough Publishing, $19, 9780874860795) The Very Very Very Long Dog by Julia Patton (Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, $17.95, 9781492654452)

MEET

THE DEAD SOUTH

by Justin Hoenke

Cue up any CD from The Dead South, hit play, and get ready for a wild ride. Mix a lot of bluegrass, a bit of classical, and an ethic that is most closely related to a punk band, and you’ll get this band from Saskatchewan, Canada that brings a welcome dose of energy and excitement to the independent music scene. During a phone conversation with vocalist and guitarist Nate Hilts, he reiterated the band’s core values time and time again, stressing that people out there who are seeking something new and exciting will find their favorite new band in The Dead South. “We try to blend everything we love about music and life together and bring it together live in a very energetic and exciting environment. We just want to help people have a good time,” declares Hilts. Looking at The Dead South, you’d think that this rag-tag group of musicians lives and breathes only

bluegrass music, but there’s a lot more to this band than what’s on the surface. “The idea at the start was to form a bluegrass band, but none of us are bluegrass players,” notes Hilts. “Over time we’ve brought our own elements and experience to the table and have twisted it into something that is uniquely The Dead South. Our original banjo player, Colton Crawford, is a metalhead, so he brought that to the table and that became part of who we are.” On their latest album, Illusion and Doubt, you’ll hear the culmination of the band’s five-year journey as an independent recording and touring act. “This album was a different experience for us, but overall it fits perfectly into our career,” says Hilts. “This was the first album we did where after we had recorded the backing tracks to the songs we went back and added overdubs, little touches here and there to help the songs grow and reach their full potential.” Made up of what Hilts calls “tragedy stories,” Illusion and Doubt is a masterful 12-song journey of songs that are immaculately performed and whose

in Europe. Being independent means pushing yourself, and that’s something that still sticks with the band to this day. We are always pushing ourselves to get to new places.” Success has come in a lot of unique ways for The Dead South. Music fans may know of the band through their video for the song “In Hell I’ll Be In Good Company,” which to date has racked up over 31 million views on YouTube. When asked if YouTube was originally part of the plan for helping the band find success, Hilts chuckles and responds, “Oh no, that was definitely not what we were thinking. But it did really change things for us and bring us a larger audience.” All of this hard work and exposure paid off; in 2016, SaskMusic (an indie music organization) named the The Dead South Best Saskatchewan Band and Illusion and Doubt won Best Saskatchewan Album. “Getting those two honors was a very big thing for the band. It is great to be recognized, especially in the place where you live, and definitely by the amazing Saskatchewan music scene. There are so many great bands up here and to be named one of the best is a great honor.”

songs weave together the best elements of storytelling in their lyrics. “The album sounds like a correspondence between two partners,” said Hilts. “There are a lot of characters and stories in these songs, and each one sounds like a letter from one partner to the other.” Nowhere is this more evident than on the track “The Good Lord,” an emotional folk song between two lovers torn apart by distance and war. When the narrator sings “Well I pray, every day/ That the good Lord keep me safe/ And I try to hide all this fear built in my spine/ Give a man a day so I can see your pretty face/ Until I arrive in your arms,”, indie listeners hear exactly what Hilts means when he says that the album is made up of “letters from one partner to the other.” The drive that the band has to bring their music to the masses comes from their experience as independent artists. “For the first two years it was really just our energy and everything that we could do ourselves,” says Hilts. “In the following two years we picked up a manager and a booking agent, and also got a record deal

The way that the band has found the most success is through life on the road. When talking about touring and playing in front of a live audience, Hilts’ voice practically lights up over the phone. “The band thrives the most on road. Our shows are full of excitement and are a celebration. We really feed off of the energy that the crowd gives back to us.” Their work on the road has paid off, as the band has been recognized by the Canadian Independent Music Association, receiving the Road Gold certification for ticket sales in excess of 25,000 over a 12-month period. “We take a grind mentality to the road,” says Hilts. “We get out there, we have amazing shows, and we just pack as much energy in as we can. We want the audience to have a great shared experience with us.” In December 2017, the band will return home from a month of European shows. “The European crowds are great. They have a big love for Canadian music and it shows; they pack their rooms full at the shows and the crowds are very expressive and magical.” No matter where you listen to them or see them perform, The Dead South are not a band that you will soon forget. Mixing their own vivacious and enthusiastic approach to music with the independent mindset of nonstop work and energy, The Dead South are a band that you’ll want to keep on your radar for many years to come.

NEW AND NOTEWORTHY: FILMMAKER

PEYV RAZ

When speaking to Peyv Raz, you learn a lot about him in just a brief amount of time. First up, you realize that Raz is a very careful person.

by Justin Hoenke

Having produced well over 40 shorts before working on his first full length film, Clarity, Raz clearly makes an effort to be concise and perspicuous. He pauses for a moment when asked what it’s like to produce an independent feature film. On the other side of the phone, I can almost hear him processing his thoughts about filmmaking as he takes a deep breath and responds, “A film is made three times: once in the writer’s head, then again when you are shooting it, and finally when you are editing the film. You really have to be okay with the changes that are going to happen along the way. It’s a long process, but it’s very rewarding.”

"Hollywood wants to put things in boxes... This film wasn't in a box."

The next thing that hits you is Raz’s intense personality. Making films was always something that Raz wanted to do, but like his response to the question about filmmaking, the answer he gives when asked about his personal journey reveals a lot about his character as well as giving an answer to the question. “I don’t want to do anything out of desperation, so being able to do this and do this well is my goal. I want to do this right. I did not want to be a broke starving artist, so I worked in the financial industry to give me the chance to live and do this right. I only started filmmaking at age 37.” The intensity in Raz’s personality is something that the filmmaker has been able to show in his film. Viewers may start gripping the edge of their seats from the moment they start watching Clarity. “The intention was for the film to be tense,” says Raz. The film features Tony Denison (Major Crimes), Nadine Velazquez (The League), and Dina Meyer (90210), and a lot of the tension in the story comes from just how well the actors

worked with Raz’s script. “Casting Director Scott David was the one who pulled together our amazing cast. He was already familiar with the actors and actresses in the film. I mesh with Scott very well, creatively. When making a film, you have to work closely with people to get it done. We all have to agree that this is the film we are making together.” The writing, casting, and filming were all relatively easy for Raz and his team to pull off. The hard part came when it was time to get other people interested in the film. “Hollywood wants to put things in boxes,” he notes. “This film wasn’t in a box. There’s a lot of dialogue in the film that is in Spanish. The topic of human trafficking wasn’t really something that people understood back when I was making this film. Now you hear about it everywhere, but back then it wasn’t a widely talked about topic.”

That’s when Raz realized that the independent route may be his best chance to get this film made. “Independent is really a great way to go these days. There are so many options out there to get your film out to the audience. I’ve found that video on demand is a great way to get the film out there. The amount of people who watch films through that channel is big and will just continue to grow.” Raz’s patience and intensity comes through once again when asked about what the filmmaking landscape looks like for those entering the industry. “You have to be careful when you make a film. There’s a lot of people out there who say they’ll help you, but in the long run they’re not legit. Put good people around you. With a script that people like, good actors and actresses on board, and enough money you will accomplish your goal.”

Raz also has big aspirations with this next step in his career. “This new film is very theatrical, so we are going to do our best to get it out on the big screen and reach a larger audience,” he says. To coincide with the film, Raz is also planning on releasing a graphic novel to help tell the full story. Just like Clarity and his next film, this graphic novel with be released independently. Clarity is available to stream or purchase on DVD on Amazon, and streaming through Vimeo Video on Demand.

If you’re already a fan of Clarity, you’ve got a lot to look forward to when it comes to Raz’s work. Before the end of this year, he plans on filming his second movie, what he is calling a “supernatural thriller that deals with the issue of hoarding. It’s the first film in a trilogy, and with it I am trying to do something new. I want to pull on the viewer's emotional strings and then in the next moment have them hiding under their chair.”

GIFT GUIDE: FOR THE READERS IN YOUR LIFE New books are the perfect gift for avid readers. Here are 10 new indie books that are perfect for the voracious readers on your shopping list.

contributed by Ashley Johnson, Content Editor, SparkPoint Studio

A Beautiful Work In Progress by Mirna Valerio (Grand Harbor, $14.95, 9781503943391) Valerio refuses to let stereotypes stop her from her dreams of being a runner. Taking readers with her on her journey from beginner to experienced ultramarathoner, she offers an honest read about bodypositivity and shattering the idea of stereotypes. Perfect for the runners in your life! Before I Knew by Jamie Beck (Montlake Romance, $12.95, 9781477824443) Beck’s latest tells the story of Colby Cabot-Baxter and her road to recovery after her husband’s suicide. Opening her own restaurant is exactly the kind of new beginning she needs, and her old friend Alec may be the new love she has been longing for. But, when secrets refuse to stay buried, Colby will soon realize that healing isn’t as easy as she had hoped. Beneath a Scarlet Sky by Mark Sullivan (Lake Union, $14.95, 9781503943377) This historical novel is full of adventure and surprises. Pino Lella enjoys his life as a normal Italian teenager but is suddenly thrust into a world of Jewish runaways, the German military and Adolf Hitler. Taking on his final mission as a spy for the Allies, he must fight in secret with the only one hope: his love for Anna, a beautiful widow six years his senior. I Wore My Blackest Hair by Carlina Duan (Little A, $14.95, 9781503941977) Duan’s debut poetry collection makes for a great stocking stuffer. Digging into her Chinese culture, I Wore My Blackest Hair tells the story of a girl finding her way to adulthood and all the struggles in between. This fearless collection celebrates ancestry, bold women, and what it really means to become an adult. London, Can You Wait? by Jacquelyn Middleton (Kirkwall Books, $14.95, 978 0995211759) Moving to London seemed like the perfect change for theatre writer Alex and her TV-star boyfriend, Mark— until things begin to fall apart. With his stardom on the rise, Alex struggles to keep afloat in her career and personal life. When all the odds seem to be working against her, will Alex still be able to live the picturesque life she had always imagined?

The Man of Legends by Kenneth Johnson (47North, $14.95, 9781477819685) This is the book sci-fi fans will be dying to get their hands on this winter. When the disastrous fallout of an international conspiracy rears its ugly head, three very different individuals must band together to ward off a centuries-old evil that threatens to end the lives of thousands. Ocean’s Fire by Stacey Tucker (SparkPress, $16.95, 9781943006281) The strength of women cannot be stopped in this new mythology-based fantasy as Skylar Southmartin comes to find out the truth about the magical powers flowing inside of her. Now that the ancient Book of Sophia has emerged and a great storm is coming, Skylar must find a way to finish her degree, mourn her mother’s death, and figure out her love life all while trying to reign in her budding powers. Our Grand Finale by Laraine Denny Burrell (SheWrites Press, $16.95, 9781631522383) In this touching memoir, Laraine Burrell learns that there isn’t always a “later.” Having left her father behind, she now must face the fact that she will not be able to tell him everything she always wanted to say. Telling unusual tales about both her and her father’s life, Burrell makes it her mission to tell the story her father never got to. While They’re Still Here by Patricia Williams (SheWrites Press, $16.95, 9781631522406) Williams never had the ideal relationship with her parents, but as they aged, she got a chance to form a new kind of bond. When family secrets and ghosts from their past arise, they must find a way to work their way through them together. This touching memoir is fit for anyone celebrating the importance of family this winter. Uncanny by Sarah Fine (Skyscape, $9.99, 9781542046466) The thrilling twists and turns in this indie YA novel will have all readers entranced from beginning to end. When Cora’s dark and mysterious past clouds the details around her sister’s death, she must dig deep to uncover the truth about the accident and those involved. Uncanny will keep teens who love a suspenseful read on the edge of their seats.

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