Passionate, free-spirited Deborah has finally found peace and a fulfilling relationship in her adopted city of Granada – but when she is seriously injured in the Madrid train bombings of 2004, it is her sister Alice who is forced to face the consequences of a deception they have maintained for ten years. At Deborah’s home in Granada, Alice waits, ever more fearful. Will her sister live or die? And how long should she stay when each day brings the risk of what she most dreads, a confrontation with Deborah’s Moroccan ex-lover, Hassan? At stake is all she holds dear… Secrets of the Pomegranate explores, with compassion, sensitivity and – despite the tragic events – humour, the complicated ties between sisters, between mothers and sons and between lovers, set against a background of cultural difference and prejudices rooted in Granada’s long history of Muslim-Christian struggles for power.
B.R.A.G. Medallion Honoree
South of Burnt Rocks – West of the Moon
Categories: Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, New Adult
Tags: Celt, Fighting Women, historical fiction, Roman
Author: G.J. Berger
Lavena, the last survivor of Rome's plundering destruction in ancient Spain, must survive to the next sunrise and then try to unite far-flung villages and oust the Roman menace. Based on real events and ancient She-Warriors who fought alongside their men. Mighty Rome plunders everything of value and destroys anything left standing in the beautiful and rich land south of Burnt Rocks. We know it as Spain. Lavena, the last child of the strongest tribal leader in the area, must grow up fast, must choose between marriage to her favorite young man and children, or the life of a She-Warrior fighting side-by-side with the male warriors of her tribe – or even fighting alone. The crush of an invading Roman army forces her choices. Guided by the spirits of the dead, by her father’s favorite dog, and the courage of those with nothing left to lose, she takes a last stand against the Roman menace. Roman scout, Marcus, is ordered to try to find answers to unseen but real threats pestering his Roman army – scouts who never return, dead soldiers, deadly traps in the ground, and slaughtered bullocks. More than any of his masters, Marcus begins to understand the havoc Lavena has wreaked, but deeper yearnings drive him to find her for other reasons, to be with her. Based on actual characters of that time and place, South of Burnt Rocks – West of The Moontells that mostly true story lost to the fog of history.
Assessed for Awesome Indies
Thane
Category: Young Adult
Tag: Travis Daniel Bow
Series: Everknot Duet
Publisher: Mask and Mallet Publishing
Author: Travis Daniel Bow
Timothy hates the Huctans that rule his country almost as much as he hates himself. But when he and his brother are kidnapped—and when a girl with a strange set of skills sets them free—Timothy gets a chance to fight back. Throwing himself into the rebel cause and training as an elite young Thane, Timothy ignites years of pent-up frustration into an obsessive drive to become the best. For months he practices combat and espionage, finding friendship with an equally fanatical young rebel and losing himself in the exhaustion of training and the danger of missions. Loving every minute of his new life, he wraps his new identity completely in service to the rebel Band. The rebel Band which, unbeknownst to him, was created to be betrayed.
Assessed for
Flank Street
Categories: Seal of Excellence Recipients, Thrillers and Suspense
Series: The Sydney Quartet
Publisher: Next Chapter Press
Author: A.J. Sendall
A man with a buried past. A woman with a compulsion for danger. Together, can they con the Sydney underworld and get away with cold-blooded murder? Flank Street is written from the distorted reality of Micky DeWitt, a shiftless career criminal and world sailor. Micky arrives in Sydney, Australia on his rundown boat, broke and on the lookout for opportunity. He takes a job as barman in Sydney’s red light district, where eventually he’s approached by a woman who needs something stolen from a lawyer’s safe. Nothing is what it seems, as Micky falls into a honey trap that spins his life out of control and pushes him to the edge of insanity.
Assessed for
1066: What Fates Impose
Historical fiction where history is the star. The novel is set mainly in pre-Conquest England and deals with the fascinating events and characters that led up to the Battle of Hastings. It is full of papal plots, court intrigues, family feuds, assassinations, battles and betrayals.
Assessed for Awesome Indies
Regarding Anna
After recovering from the shock of her parents perishing in a tragic accident, Grace Lindroth discovers clues in their attic that cause her to believe the people she called Mom and Dad her whole life may not have been her real parents. Certain clues to her real identity draw Grace to a boardinghouse once owned by Anna Vargas, and she becomes convinced that Anna was her real mother. But there’s more at stake than Grace’s identity, and a chance person in Grace’s life is determined to get a piece of it. The lies and secrets that Grace exposes in her quest for the truth are both shocking and life-changing—and not only for herself. Author's Website
Assessed
Click Date Repeat
Categories: Contemporary Fiction, Romance, Seal of Excellence Recipients, Women's Fiction
Author: K. J. Farnham
These days, finding love online is as commonplace as ordering that coveted sweater. But back in 2003, the whole concept of internet dating was still quite new, with a stigma attached to it that meant those who were willing to test the waters faced a fair amount of skepticism from friends and family. Such is the case for Chloe Thompson, a restless 20-something tired of the typical dating scene and curious about what she might find inside her parents’ computer. With two serious but failed relationships behind her, Chloe isn’t even entirely sure what she’s looking for. She just knows that whatever it is, she wants to find it. Based loosely on author K. J. Farnham’s real-life online dating experiences, Chloe’s foray into online dating involves a head-first dive into a world of matches, ice breakers and the occasional offer of dick pics, all while Chloe strives to shake herself of the ex who just refuses to disappear. Will she simultaneously find herself and “the one” online, or will the ever-growing pile of humorous and downright disastrous dates only prove her friends and family right? There’s only one way to find out… Click. Date. Repeat.
Assessed
The Hour of Parade
One violent act draws together three very different people in Alan Bray’s haunting debut The Hour of Parade. The year is 1806, and Russian cavalry officer Alexi Ruzhensky travels to Munich to kill the man responsible for murdering his brother in a duel, French officer Louis Valsin. Obsessed by the main character in Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s novel Julie, Alexi delays his search and becomes romantically entangled with a young Bavarian woman. When he finally meets Valsin and his mistress Anne-Marie, Alexi hides his true identity and befriends them. As the three grow closer, tensions mount as Alexi and Anne-Marie desperately try to resist their growing attraction. But in the novel’s explosive conclusion, Alexi will learn that revenge cannot be forgotten so easily.
Assessed
Destiny
Categories: Paranormal, YA Romance, Young Adult
Tags: Australia, fantasy, ghosts, love, paranormal, Supernatural, vampires, YA Romance
Series: Absent Shadows Trilogy
Author: S.M. Spencer
Set in Australia this YA paranormal romance is the story of Lili who, while looking for her destiny, finds herself in a world filled with vampires and ghosts. Destiny: ‘The predetermined or inevitable path a person must follow.’ When nineteen year-old Lili McIntyre decides to trade her California summer for a mid-winter visit to Australia, it’s in hope of finding inspiration and direction in the country where her father was born. But when she arrives in Melbourne, the first thing she finds is the last thing she’s looking for—a brooding man who makes her heart race every time she sees him. Against her better judgement, Lili finds herself drawn into a relationship that tests her very beliefs about life, reality and fantasy. But the real test is how to follow her destiny as she faces some of the hardest decisions of her life.