New Release: THE BUTTERFLY BUSH - by Josephine Defalco

 

Find it on Amazon Here

A gripping exploration of the enduring conflict between the past that defines us and the future that beckons us…

Growing up, and figuring out who you are, has never been easy. When Leandra’s mama yanks her off the family farm in Appalachia to fulfill her own big city dreams, Leandra learns that survival is best accomplished by pushing aside her country identity to fit into city life. Yet her Appalachian ways call to her heart, pulling her back to Mamaw, Papaw, the butterfly bush, and home.

While her rich, city boyfriend makes plans to start college, she struggles to find work while juggling family issues. As Mama turns to alcohol to ease her disappointment with her new husband, Leandra is left to look after her little brother burdened with trouble of his own. Soon she discovers she doesn’t belong in the city or the country and must see her journey to the end. But where that journey will lead remains both a mystery and a surprise, especially to Leandra.

“Josephine DeFalco gives us an unflinching, honest look at the struggles of the Appalachian people.”
Fannie Flagg, Actress, comedian, and author of the book and Academy Award nominated screenplay
Fried Green Tomatoes.

“Prepare to get caught up in the twisting heart of a young girl on her journey from farm country life in Appalachia to the urban streets of New Jersey. A southern girl at heart, Leandra Barker must change to survive and thrive in her new environment. Ill-prepared for the difficulties that lie in store as she navigates a tumultuous home life, she finds the courage and resolve to create a life of meaning and ultimately realizes that following your dreams can get in the way of what is important in life.”
Susan Pohlman, Founder and Director of the Phoenix Writer’s network and author of Halfway to Each Other: How a Year in Italy Brought our Family Home.

Jo Lee Kennedy—writing as Josephine DeFalco—was born and raised in Arizona. Her work as a registered dietitian and registered nurse in maternal health, pediatrics, geriatrics, and hospice confirmed her belief that fresh food is the best medicine, and preventative healthcare is the path to a long, productive life. Her volunteer work as an EMT taught her that life can change in a heartbeat, and taking safety measures now can literally mean the difference between life and death. She divides her time between the Southwest desert and farm-living in south Wisconsin. More at www.josephinedefalco.com 

Why we write and read popular fiction - by Vijaya Schartz

 

New Release: ANGEL REVENGE, Blue Phantom Book 3 (standalone) - by Vijaya Schartz

Find this and more of my books at amazon - B&N - Smashwords - Kobo 

amazon - B&N - Smashwords - Kobo 

An unruly Valkyrie on a flying tiger, a stern angel in love with the rules, and evil pounding at the gate… What could go wrong?

Riddled with survivor’s guilt after Ragnarök, Valka wanders the universe as a bounty hunter. But when hired by angels to recruit warriors for the final battle against evil, she welcomes a chance at redemption.

General Konrad Lagarde, First Mate of the angel ship Blue Phantom, strongly rejects Valka’s methods. A stickler for discipline, he also considers this fascinating woman hazardous to his sanity, as she could make him forget all the rules.

Evil from another universe has infiltrated a secret society of former dictators hungry for power. Having massacred all the angels in his former world, the evil one wants to do the same here. The angels of this universe face their greatest challenge yet… destroy the evil one and avenge their fallen brethren… or the bringer of darkness will enslave us all.

WHY DO I WRITE AND READ POPULAR FICTION?

I always resented the authors who killed the protagonists at the end, after you invest your emotions in liking them. I usually never read another book from such authors, and I stay away from tragic endings. To this day, I cannot watch Titanic to the end although it is a true story, or suffer through the last episode of Castle. And I’m glad Shogun found a happier alternate ending in the most recent series.

If I want to wallow in sadness, I only have to watch the news. Life is difficult enough, complicated enough, hard enough, sad enough.

I read popular fiction to get uplifted, to forget about my problems, be transported to another world, another time, a place where it is safe to be scared and challenged, where justice will prevail… because I trust the author that the heroes will triumph and all will be well at the end.

It’s a secret pact between the author and the reader. No matter how bad it gets for the protagonist, even if a few secondary characters don’t make it, the hero or heroine will find a happy conclusion.

So, if I challenge my characters, if I make them suffer, be assured that it will all be worth it at the end. They will have matured, widened their understanding of life, and overcome their barriers to experience the rewards they deserve.

You can safely read my book, knowing that even if you cry a little, all will be okay at the end. 

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amazon - B&N - Smashwords - Kobo 

amazon - B&N - Smashwords - Kobo 

Happy Reading

Vijaya Schartz, award-winning author
Strong Heroines, Brave Heroes, cats
http://www.vijayaschartz.com
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New Audiobook Release: Dervla Alarms the Nanas - by By: D.R. Ransdell Narrated by: Carol Wrobleski

 

Find it on Audible HERE

A morning jog, an unlocked door, and an angry lover add up to murder!

After Dervla’s boyfriend abruptly breaks up with her, she’s ready to kill him! His own grandmother and great-aunt are furious and applaud Dervla for throwing his stuff out the window. The next morning, however, Emil is wrongly accused of murder. The police are sure he’s guilty, so they can’t take time to investigate. The nanas call Dervla. She doesn’t want to investigate either, but once the elderly women accidentally trigger Dervla's other-worldly powers, she chases after the real murderer.

D.R. Ransdell lives in sunny Tucson but grew up in Springfield, Illinois, under the shadow of the third largest carillon in the U.S. This led to her travel novel, Carillon Chase. Her moonlighting in a mariachi group led to a series about violinist Andy Veracruz. In Brotherly Love he confronts his biggest challenge so far: teaching high school students! D.R.’s newest mystery, Party Wine, takes place in her cousins’ small village in Northern Italy. The villagers make their own wine, but why do they store it instead of drinking it?

http://www.dr-ransdell.com

Two New Releases by Lewis Kirts: PRICKLY PEAR and A TUESDAY SISTER

 

Find it on Amazon HERE

After decades of ranching, her father had made at least one vengeful enemy, and incarceration had only aided in festering that need for vengeance.

Then in 1886, Just before the age of twenty-one, Rebecca Morris' father passed, leaving her the Blanca Vista ranch.

Her husband of less than a year, wants the money they could make by selling the ranch.

But when Rebecca Morris refuses to sell, how will he react?

What will Rebecca endure to keep her ranch, acquire a new herd, and fend off enemies she never knew she had?

In this sequel to Texas in the Rear View, all is well… until it isn’t.

One phone call from FBI Special Agent Manny Waters disrupts the calm Arena Autry has found among friends.

It’s a familiar danger she has learned to escape… by running. But all those times in the past, she was running to save herself. Now, there are others to protect. Friends… and one man who could possibly be more.

To divert harm from those she loves, Arena runs toward the danger, confronting it, and putting her own life at risk.

What is it that Arena knows, and is more than willing to use, to try to bring her nemeses to their knees? But, will employing empathy to this task, bring about her own demise?

Take this perilous journey with Arena, as she goes off-grid to shield many from harm, while trying to save one person's soul.

Lewis Kirts was born in Maryland, where spring smelled like mud and winter was too cold for her comfort. With dairies on the matriarch side of the family, and orchards on the patriarch side, she claims to have been raised on peaches and cream.

She credits her love of western movies to her father, and her love of reading, to the English teachers of Poolesville High.

Years of working outside in Maryland had her longing for the warmer climate of Arizona.
She now resides in southeastern Arizona, with her husband, three donkeys, one mule, two ravens and a multitude of quail.

Visit her author page on Amazon HERE

New Release: INSIDE - a Howard Hamilton ride-along - by J.C. De Ladurantey

 

Find it on Amazon HERE

Policing the streets is less precarious than the intrigue and drama behind the balusters and bulletproof glass of a police station. The interaction with the public can be the escape our men and women in blue need to avoid the administrative bureaucracy that controls their actions and often dictates what they can and cannot do. Orchard Hill PD is not immune to the intrigue and changes that drive today's police departments. There are two things police officers hate. First is the way things are. The second is changing the way things are. Some try to hide on the graveyard or night shift to get away from the inside workings of a PD, but sooner or later, it catches up to everyone, even Detective Howard Hamilton. What occurs outside does not necessarily translate to what goes on INSIDE. Ride along with Detective Howard Hamilton as he unravels a series of mysteries INSIDE. • Was Detective Hamilton responsible for his Chief losing his job? • Why are his coworkers and family pushing him into a relationship he may not be ready for? • Are vice crimes victimless? • Are Hamilton's computer analytical skills up to the challenge of complex investigations? • Detective Hamilton and his team are propelled from a simple investigation into an international drug and human smuggling cartel that takes cooperation at the Regional, State, and Federal levels. • See how this intrigue unravels with a front-row seat in another Howard Hamilton Ride-Along.

With over 40 years of law enforcement experience at all levels, J. C. De Ladurantey combines street savvy and police department intrigue based upon true stories from a varied career. He served 27 years with the Los Angeles Police Department, attaining the rank of Captain. He was the Chief of Police of Torrance, Ca. for 5 ½ years. He was the Law Enforcement Liaison for the Los Angeles District Attorney's Office for four years and completed his career as the Chief of Police in Irwindale, CA.

He holds a Bachelor's in Criminology from Cal State Long Beach, a Master's in Public Administration from the University of Southern California, and a doctorate in Public Administration and Public Policy from the University of La Verne.

Following the success of Cowards, Crooks, and Warriors, Twenty-Three Minutes, and Available Time, J. C. De Ladurantey has recently released the fourth book in the Howard Hamilton Ride-along series, INSIDE. His non-fiction books include Making Your Memories with Rock & Roll and Doo Wop, The Music and Artists of the Late 50s and Early 60s, and his doctoral dissertation, Creating Public Value Through Collaborative Networks.

Visit his website at: http://www.jcdeladurantey.com

They tried to kill us. We survived. Let’s eat. - by Penny Orloff

 

Antibiotics were born about the same time I was. Suddenly, bubonic plague and spinal meningitis and syphilis and other fatal bacterial infections were history. Wiped off the face of the earth. All these decades later the resistant little progeny of that tiny percentage of the bugs that antibiotics couldn’t kill are still here, refined through the determination of their exterminators to an unfathomable degree of resilience and bad-assery. Survivors. And armed to the teeth.

On the anniversary of last year’s October 7 slaughter of more than 1400 people, with the resulting conflict still upon us, I find myself musing on survival. In December, as every year, my family will assemble for the first night of Hanukkah— a thousands of years later, annual remembrance of the Maccabees, a resistant little family of Yids (their name means “hammer”) who, by a miracle, survived a lengthy siege designed to wipe the Jews off the face of the earth. An ancient iteration of Hitler’s Final Solution.

Most Jewish holidays are exactly the same: They tried to kill us. We survived. Let’s eat.

Babylon, Egypt, the Romans, the Spanish Inquisition, the Cossacks, Vilna, and worse... And all these centuries later the resistant little progeny of that tiny percentage of Jews that even Hitler couldn’t kill are still here, refined through the determination of their exterminators to an unfathomable level of resilience and bad-assery. Survivors. And armed to the teeth. If you’ve got mischief on your mind, you don’t wanna cross paths with an Israeli. 

Left unmolested we’ll dink around and amuse ourselves with literature and astrophysics and medicine and music and – oh – comedy. But after thousands of years of unintentional genetic engineering, threaten us at your peril. 

What is that indomitable thing? What is that resilient stuff my family is apparently made of that has survived to remember the Maccabee brothers, and light the Menorah, and recite the Kaddish for our dead, and then sit for hours scarfing latkes and chopped liver? With so many of our ancestors cut down by so many enemies—or by the diabetes and heart disease and cancer that plague such an inbred little tribe—how did we survive? 

My mother was an only child. Her mother got off the boat at Ellis Island with her little tribe of parents and siblings and grandparents, the battered and scarred sole survivors, the last remnant of a final pogrom that took out the rest of the shtetl. For all our PTSD and hypervigilance and mishegas, what is it with my family? How are we the ones still standing? Why us?

She was a lonely little girl in Toledo, Ohio, my mother, until the age of five when she met Eleanor on the first day of kindergarten. At last, little Ruetta Zimmerman had a sister. Eleanor and Ruetta were inseparable for three and a half years. 

When they were in 3rd grade, Eleanor’s family moved away. My mom was heartbroken. She carried the grief of that loss for years. 

Eight months after my mother married my father, in the summer of 1947, two months before my sister Tami was born, he took her to a boxing match. Dad greeted Bernie Lubin, another middle-aged Jew with a much younger, very pregnant wife. Eleanor Lubin took one look at my mom and screamed, “Ruetta!!” For the next 56 years the girls were inseparable. 

Eleanor had three boys—Bobby, Marty, and Stanley—and then a girl, Shelley. My mom had three girls—Tami, Penny, and Rikki—and then a boy, Mike. Eight kids in six years. Eleanor’s first born, Bobby, was the oldest; my brother, Mike, the youngest. Our families lived three blocks apart. Because our mothers were always together, the eight of us grew up almost as siblings.

It was L.A. in the 60s... drugs, sex, and rock and roll, Baby.  

Eleanor’s 2nd, Marty, was devastatingly handsome. All the girls had a crush on him. Marty committed suicide by drug overdose before the decade was out.

A year later, while we were all still reeling from that loss, Eleanor’s youngest, her daughter Shelley—my sister Rikki’s best friend—came home stoned one night, went to sleep, and stayed there in a coma for three months. When she woke up she had the mind of an infant. She couldn’t speak or be toilet trained. Eleanor took care of her in the family house for the rest of her life. 

Eleanor’s much older husband, Bernie, died of a heart attack at the age of 63, leaving Eleanor to cope with Shelley. She had help. Bobby—by now a millionaire clothing manufacturer—and Stanley were there every single day. Stanley never did find work, but his mother and brother supported him in style. Stanley had a heart of gold; he was cheerful and funny. Wherever he was, there was sunlight. 

Stanley died of a heart attack in his sleep at the age of 53. Now it was just Eleanor and Bobby. And Shelley in the next room. A few years later, in late December of 2002, Bobby was murdered in his palatial Hollywood Hills home. They never found the killers.

Eleanor hung on another year, her stage-4 cancer feasting away at her while she struggled to survive, unwilling to surrender because her death would mean Shelley would finally be “put away.” But, ultimately, the cancer won. 

We buried them one at a time. My mother and father and all four of us siblings and my parents’ seven grandchildren, our little tribe buried Eleanor next to Bernie and Marty and Stanley and Bobby. No children or grandchildren will ever recite the Kaddish for them. The end of that family. Just—gone. 

The famous Jewish guilt is survivor guilt. 

All eight of us kids came up in the same Los Angeles. We went to the same schools, we took the same drugs and crashed our cars and hitchhiked and courted the same dangers. Now well into our 70s, my siblings and I remain in robust health and vigor. My parents’ seven grandchildren are all healthy and successful. There are five great-grandchildren. Every July, the tribe gathers to recite the Kaddish for my parents on the anniversary of their deaths. 

Three thousand years ago there were perhaps three million Jews in the world. Today there are 14 million Jews in the whole world. That any of us, at all, have survived is a miracle. Jewish guilt is survivor guilt. And we who survive—we atone. Our penance is memory. We live on to tell the tales, to remember, all of it, everything, every year. 

They tried to kill us. We survived. Let’s eat. 

For those of my race who have forgotten, I remember the four Maccabee brothers. I remember the slaughtered in Babylon, in Egypt. Slaughtered by Greeks, by Romans. I remember my ancestors tortured in Spain. The pogroms, Vilna, the Camps. October 7, 2023. Last month’s murder of hostages. The stabbings last week, and yesterday. Mom, Dad, Eleanor and Bernie—I recite the Kaddish for you all.  

Penny Orloff was a working actor and dancer in Los Angeles when a Juilliard scholarship took her to New York. She sang more than 20 Principal Soprano roles for New York City Opera, and she played featured roles on Broadway under directors Harold Prince and Joseph Papp. Theater, concert, and opera engagements took her all over the US, Europe, and the former Soviet Union. Her solo show, “JEWISH THIGHS ON BROADWAY" –based on her novel of the same name—toured the US for a decade, including a successful run off-Broadway in 2005. Her current show, “SONGS AND STORIES FROM A NOT-QUITE-KOSHER LIFE,” is on hold until the theaters open again.

She is the author of "Art as Lifework, Life as Artwork," a creativity seminar and workbook offered nation-wide since 1991; and is still procrastinating on her new book, "Who Would You Be If You Had Nothing to Bitch About?" A Tarot reader for over 50 years, Penny has used the cards in her counseling practice for decades.

She is a regular contributor of stories to the Chicken Soup for the Soul series and has worked for a dozen years as an arts journalist for various online and print media.

More at: Penny Orloff – An Artist's Life 

New Release: ANGEL REVENGE - Blue Phantom Book 3 - by Vijaya Schartz

 

Find this and other of my books
on my publisher's site here

An unruly Valkyrie on a possessive flying tiger, a stern angel in love with the rules, and evil pounding at the gate… What could go wrong?

Riddled with guilt at missing Ragnarök, Valka wanders the universe as a bounty hunter. But when hired by angels to recruit warriors for the final battle against evil, she welcomes a chance at redemption.

General Konrad Lagarde, First Mate of the Blue Phantom, strongly disagrees with Valka’s methods despite the results. A stickler for discipline, he considers this intriguing woman dangerous, especially as she could make him forget all the rules.

Evil from another universe has infiltrated a secret society of former dictators hungry for power. Having massacred all the angels in his universe, the evil one wants to do the same here. The angels of this universe face their greatest challenge yet. If they fail to avenge their brethren, they’ll condemn this entire universe to eternal darkness.

Order it today from Amazon in eBook or paperback. Available everywhere else on October 1st.

Brace for an epic adventure through space, alien planets and space stations, battles between angels and demons, Cyborgs, a ruthless crime lord, an evil sect worshipping a red devil from another universe, and a dictator bent on building an empire. Add to this a determined Valkyrie riding a flying tiger, stealing dying warriors from battlefields and illegal slave markets.

All my Azura novels stand alone, but this is Book 3 and last of the Blue Phantom series, featuring a powerful angel as hero. General Konrad Lagarde, First Mate of the angel ship Blue Phantom, is an Avenging Angel serving the Formless One. He is disciplined to a fault, vegetarian, ascetic, and only knows duty in the service of good… but will he be tempted?

Do not forget Sultan, the formidable genetically engineered flying tiger, telepathic and capable of mind-talk. Although he likes angels in general, he resents Angel Konrad and displays aggressive tendencies towards him.

Here are the two previous novels in this series, although, they all stand alone.

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Also in the same universe, the Byzantium space station series: 

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I hope you enjoy the read. And if you like this kind of story, don’t miss the other epic space novels set in the Azura universe, with human, alien, and angel characters… as well as telepathic cats.  

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Happy Reading!

Vijaya Schartz, award-winning author

Strong Heroines, Brave Heroes, cats

http://www.vijayaschartz.com

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New Release: Ember of War - by Daniel Dickinson

Find it on Amazon HERE

 

Three heroic tales from the Kingdom of Xonthian.

Ember of War

Life was complicated, but Korrith had the love of his life by his side. Together, they thought they would be safe from the growing hatred that Mages faced on a daily basis. When Korrith takes a supposedly easy job with his friend Edrin, it turns out to be far more insidious than they had imagined. Now, they are thrust into a fight for their lives as tensions between Clerics, Mages, and Kingdoms flare. Can love survive? Or will they become pawns in a much larger scheme?

Voyage of Tears

With the Mages now struggling to survive, the kingdom of Xonthian has taken a stand. Cain, a soldier in the Swords of Justice, is tasked with exiling them to the Fire Isles, a harsh, unforgiving chain of land. What should be a simple voyage turns into discovery, tolerance, and purpose. But will Cain and his crew make it back home? Or is something waiting for them in the waters?

Battle of Smoke and Fire

Driven by the thrill of life, Roaric teams up with a motley crew of rebels intent on saving Mages from being exiles to the Fire Isle. Their goal is simple, to cause as much terror against the Clerics of Gate'har and rescue as many mages as they can. Can they save themselves and the prisoners, or will they be caught and executed?

Daniel Dickinsons’ writing first appeared in an annual publication with his short story “Escape from Ogre Island.” He has self-published two other stories “Gathering Tide” and the newly released "Aggression Factor." He is a frequent contributor to the Arizona Author Association's quarterly newsletter.

At the age of ten, he began creating a realistic realm, Xonthian, in which his characters come to life, allowing the reader to become a part of that diverse world. Xonthian continues to evolve. The heroes Tiger and Bree, begin their sagas alone until circumstances bring them together. Future projects include a weird wild west tale, set in the world of Xonthian, and a novel featuring the titular heroes Tiger and Bree.

Daniel is a proud father with a beautiful wife. He enjoys traveling and photography, as well as food and art. One of his many hobbies is taking his daughter and grandkids camping at least twice a year.

New Release: The Sky People and Our Ancestors - by Dan Baldwin and George Sewell

 

Find it on Amazon HERE

In their paranormal research, Dan Baldwin and George Sewell often encountered reports of ancient people’s interactions with “Sky People” or sometimes “Star People.” That ancient history is a worldwide phenomenon and in investigations for Sky People and Our Ancestors, they engaged with spirits and highly-evolved entities who had contact with “people from the sky.”

During investigations for their book Paranormal Pendulum III - The Abduction of Lindsey Higgins, the UFO Phenomenon, the Spirit World and Beyond, Baldwin and Sewell became intrigued with Sky People encounters of the past. Through psychic means, they met a medicine man practicing in a village now known as Poverty Point (World Heritage site in Northeast Louisiana). Four thousand years ago, this holy man was a go-between for the villagers and the Sky People. That encounter was a call to action. Baldwin and Sewell sketched an approach to investigate the subject in-depth by conducting intensive pendulum dowsing sessions, which included mediums, to learn about ancient contact with the Sky People.

In-person research included sessions in various sites in Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Arizona and Utah. Their research reinforced the work of previous investigators published in the UFO field and also revealed startling and certainly soon-to-be controversial information – information presented to the reader as-is without content editing to fit current thinking and prejudices. The Sky People and Our Ancestors is an eye-opening, mind-expanding and thought-provoking work.

Enter the Azura Universe, with warrior women, brave heroes, and cats – by Vijaya Schartz

 

Coming October 1, 2024

The last novel of the nine I set in the science fiction fantasy universe of Azura, is ANGEL REVENGE, Book 3 of the Blue Phantom series, coming out this October. An unruly Valkyrie on a flying tiger, a strict angel in love with the rules, and evil knocking at the gate… what could go wrong?

BLUE PHANTOM SERIES 

 amazon - B&N - Smashwords - Kobo

This universe I created a few years ago includes three series of three novels each: AZURA CHRONICLES set on an angel planet (with Angel Mine, Angel Fierce, and Angel Brave), BYZANTIUM set on a space station, with Black Dragon, Akira’s Choice, and Malaika’s Secret – and BLUE PHANTOM set on an angel ship roaming the universe, with Angel Ship, Angel Guardian, and Angel Revenge coming in October.

All the novels of the Azura universe can be read as a standalone, but they are all set in the same galactic world, with a few recurring characters. In them, you will find strong heroines and brave heroes, angels and demons, despicable villains, and sometimes the devil in person. They will have to fight not only evil, but their own demons, overcome their weaknesses, trust in others, make friends and enemies… and sometimes they find love in the least expected places.

AZURA CHRONICLES SERIES

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And always among the secondary characters, a telepathic cat. Sometimes, it’s a sweet purring furball like Marshmallow in Black Dragon, a predatory saber cat in the jungle, a wise lion protecting a temple, an engineered bulletproof beast with metal claws, or a magnificent flying tiger with a possessive streak, like in Angel Revenge.

The larger the universe, the more it tempts crazy leaders who want to control it. Many will make a pact with dark forces to rule. But the angels are watching. They traipse across the universe to fight the battles of the light against the encroachment of darkness, preserving the balance of good and evil.

BYZANTIUM SPACE STATION SERIES

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Sometimes they encounter unexpected technology, opponents from another universe, flocks of black furry demons, flying like a black cloud through space. They have leathery wings, white fangs, red eyes, short horns, long whipping tails, and grimacing faces, and their drool is a strong acid that can burn through metal.

But always, after trials and adventures, and sometimes ultimate sacrifices, good will triumph and the universe will keep running, as it’s supposed to do, with some evil, some good, and always an opportunity for the living to make their own choices.

You can read all the previous books before the last one comes out in October.

Happy reading. Hope you enjoy these series.

You can find more of my books below:

Vijaya Schartz, award-winning author

Strong Heroines, Brave Heroes, cats

http://www.vijayaschartz.com

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Penny’s Two Cents by Penny Orloff

 

When I was a child, my mother’s family was five generations deep, five generations alive at the same time. Some of those people lived well over a hundred years. They were living history. Their stories and the stories they told of their ancestors’ ancestors were part of a six-thousand-year-old oral tradition.

By the time I was seven, I was consciously collecting stories that had been in the family for generations. I became a reliquary. I would guard and preserve these treasures for the generations to come. And when I grew up, I would be one of those Old Storytellers. 

I soaked up random memories from my grandma’s childhood in Russia, my dad’s memories of his long years at the orphanage, my great-grandmother's tale of her youngest child, my grandma’s little brother Georgie, running off to be a gangster—which I later realized was how my mom and dad eventually met each other.

At the family table, it was understood that nobody under the minimum age of 40 had anything to say of any imaginable interest or importance. Shah, shtil! Shut up and listen—you’ll learn something. Those people had outlived the pogroms, the post-WWI influenza epidemic, the great depression, Hitler. They had survived to tell the tales. So would I.

Early on, I was aware of creating the Old Storyteller character I imagined I could be. I had lots of tribal elders as role models among my mother’s mishpochah: very old musicians who’d played forever (I still have the violin that belonged to my grandfather’s grandfather). Very old singers of songs from a hundred years past (I still have Russian and Yiddish songs that belonged to my grandmother’s Grandma Masha).

They had their way of doing Old Age. And some day, I would do that. I would be that.

Time has chipped away at the sharp corners, sanded down the jagged edges, smoothed out the rough and rocky terrain that was a younger Penny. I am “colorful” and “eccentric” now, instead of weird. I realize I haven’t been in a fistfight in over 20 years. PS: I always fought above my weight class. You don’t wanna mess with me…

Cinderella has become the Fairy Godmother. Sometimes, from here, I look back on a younger me, and I remind her who she’ll be when the scars are healed, when the back-against-the-wall fight to the death has ended in survival, when the foolish, forever life-altering choice has given the inevitable result.

More than any successes—and there have been great successes—I realize that, during every meaningful challenge, from time to time this Me I have become used to appear to the girl who was becoming, and said, “Hey, Pen, look who you get to be!”

I didn’t know all the strange details of the journey to that future Me, but I must say I’m about where I expected to be. This is Autumn. This is the Harvest. The wounds are healed. I like my scars. My heart has been broken. And broken again. And will break, again.

One of the great gifts of Age is permission to tell the truth. Another is independence from the good opinion of other people. At 75, although certainly mellower I still feel like the snarky little me I have been, all along. But, sometimes, when I catch an unexpected glimpse of myself in a mirror across the room, I’m astonished to see this old gal, this Old Storyteller I always imagined I would be.

If you’re going to tell people the truth, be funny or they’ll kill you.—Billy Wilder