Finalist for the Dayton Literary Peace Prize A Washington Post Best Book of the Year Winner of the 2009 Borders Original Voices Award In early-twentieth-century Korea, Najin Han, the privileged daughter of a calligrapher, longs to choose her own destiny. But her country is in tumult under Japan's harsh occupation, and her family's traditions, entitlements, and wealth crumble. Narrowly escaping an arranged marriage, Najin becomes a companion...

Throughout "the LoneDogs of Scrabble" a human and dog narrative interweaves seamlessly in two distinct voices where the dogs are sentient beings and protagonists. An excerpt of the dog voice is below: The cement floors of the cage were cold, but he, the young stray pup, was tired of the hunger and continuous fights to protect his territory. He had earned his own name by being the best scavenger of scraps… The fact that he would have...

A song of the suburbs: a story of family, friends, first love, tragedy, hope and rock and rollIt's 1976 and with dreams of a career in rock, a crush on the prettiest girl in town, and a mother in remission from cancer, Mike's future looks bright.Music brings excitement and a chance to shine, but life off-stage is complicated. Together with family, friends and band-mates, Mike finds joy, sadness and loss. Troubling secrets surface while a new friend...

Bryan Grayhill is making his life difficult. A hot temper like his father and a propensity for making bad decisions are leading him down a road to nowhere. When he runs into Sara during the Fall of 1989, an unexpected love quickly grows between them. With her encouragement, Bryan begins taking small steps toward being a better man, as well as trying to repair the tattered relationship with his Dad. Eventually, Bryan learns Sara has a damaging secret...

Destruction.In a family of healers who save, all I do is destroy. My enforced solitude is for my own safety as well as that of the world, or so my mother tells me.When the boy next door beckons, I can't help but sneak out to forge a friendship with him. Loneliness leads me to defy my family, but desperation prevails when I discover that the grounds of his private academy hold a secret that could help me learn why my ability is so disastrous...or push...

The ten slice of life stories in this short story collection are about a young boy growing up and coming of age during the decade of the Sixties. Some of the stories are funny, some are sad and some may just make you think. The Ricky Huening Stories are semi-autobiographical stories all based on some event in the author's life as a boy growing up in a southern Indiana farm.

A clash of empires that will echo for eternity… AD 1071. Emperor Romanus Diogenes has rekindled the guttering flame of Byzantium, and a reinvigorated empire rises to meet the Seljuk threat. In the eastern borderlands, two vital strongholds hang in the balance: Manzikert and Chliat. The Byzantines and Seljuks race to secure the twin fortress-towns. Apion rides by the emperor's side as they march east, marshalling Byzantium's armies for the conflict...

Even in the darkness of war, there is always a flicker of hope. AD 1068. The Seljuk Sultanate tears at Byzantium's borders. Alp Arslan's armies grow stronger with every victory, while the Byzantines forces dwindle, the hope in their hearts guttering its last. All cry out for a new warrior emperor to lead them to salvation. This war has been Apion's mistress for many years now. As Strategos – high general – of the Chaldian border army, he is...

1969. Nineteen-year old Cal Vallance leaves his hometown of Churchill, British Columbia, Canada for New York City.Once there, it's not long before he finds fame and fortune as a comic book writer.After recieving word of his father's murder, in 1975, Cal returnes to Churchill and quickly realizes that the peaceful townhe was born in has become a cesspool where prostitution and drug abuse are rampant.Cal is determined to find the killer of his father.And...

At the age of four, you witness your mother's collapse as the washing machine overflows and sends clumps of soapsuds scudding past her across the kitchen floor. When your father goes to work, he leaves you next door at the Blue Belle Diner, under the watchful eye of Charlie, an ex-boxer turned short-order cook. The Diner becomes your day-care center as your mother waits for remission. Deprived of a mother's physical affection, you become increasingly...