(L.O.V.E) Lost over the Virtual Expanse

Within this collection of short stories by M.D. Butler are eight tales of horror, suspense, and mystery.

An inventor goes beyond the boundaries of morality and science to bring back the woman he loves, but each reiteration just seems to take her farther away from him. Does he even know what he’s truly searching for anymore?

A late-night pit stop in a diner of death leads one man to question his resolve of finding a better life.

As a merchant ship sets sail across the open waters, there might be someone among them with a thirst for more than delectable wines.

This and much more awaits you in (L.O.V.E) Lost Over the Virtual Expanse. Be prepared when curling up with this book before bedtime, as not even the covers can prevent you from getting chills.

... And the Stars Smiled

Connected by the stars, divided by one choice.

Sunny and Jack meet one night under the stars, and they are captivated by each other. Before long, they realize that they are destined to be together. Sunny and Jack are inseparable until distance tears them apart. In spite of that, they find a way to stay connected.

Sunny and Jack make a date each week to listen to music under the stars. It gives them comfort to know they are doing the same thing at the same time. The song in their hearts grows with each day, and their love deepens.

Sunny finds herself facing a difficult decision and she has a choice to make. She believes in her heart that the choice she’ll make is the right one. But will that one choice tear them apart? Can the stars that brought them together keep them united? Will Sunny and Jack’s love survive?

...By the Way They Treat Their Horses

“Maria knew not to ask Eli where he would be going or when he might return. She felt certain that her birthing time was very close and hoped that Eli might be home early. Then she found herself hoping that he would not be coming home at all.”

Oklahoma Territory 1889:  Eli Brandt is a cruel and profane tyrant, quick tempered and physically brutal. A victim of her abusive husband, Maria endures his frequent rages with a futile hope that things might somehow change. Both Maria and their son Jacob endure years of Eli’s cruelty and suffer his punishments until Jacob rebels in defense of himself and his mother and their lives are forever changed.

10 Little Ants

Join the bustling world of 10 Little Ants and discover the adventures of these industrious insects! From the break of dawn to the setting sun, watch as these tiny creatures engage in a variety of activities, whether they’re playfully frolicking or diligently working. Each page invites young readers to count and follow the ants as they embark on their daily tasks.

This charming book is not only a delightful read but also an educational journey. It encourages counting skills and offers a glimpse into the fascinating life of ants. Perfect for young learners, 10 Little Ants combines fun storytelling with an opportunity to learn and explore. Dive into this engaging world where every little ant has a role and every page brings a new counting adventure!

13 Lives

Still reeling from her family’s execution during the Salem Witch Trails and her own unnatural extended lifeline, in the present day, Margaret Baker is a twenty-two-year-old witch. She finds herself falling in love in the big apple while also trying to come to terms with and overcome her survivors’ guilt. A ghost from her past re-emerges and shakes up her world. In a story of love, loss, betrayal, and grief, Margaret must rise above all her demons in order to truly be happy. Will she finally be able to accept her family’s death? Will she find the courage to love herself and accept the love of another?

1865 New York City Kid

Set in the year 1865, as the Civil War draws to a close, 1865 New York City Kid follows the story of 16-year-old Daniel Kelly. Born and raised in the slums of New York City, Daniel, known as ‘Kid’ among his friends, yearns for something beyond the monotonous life he’s known. Working for the New York Tribune, like his late father before him, Daniel finds himself disillusioned, especially after a much-anticipated promotion eludes him. It’s at this juncture that Daniel meets Big Tom, a fur trapper, who persuades him to leave the familiar streets of New York for the wilds of the Washington Territory. The prospect of becoming a fur trapper and the lure of a new life is too enticing to ignore. Thus begins Daniel’s remarkable journey, chronicled through his own eyes, as he travels by train and stagecoach in search of a better future.

1865 New York City Kid is a tapestry of fact and fiction, weaving historical elements with the imaginative realm of storytelling. The novel delves into the essence of the American West, a place where the line between truth and myth often blurs, giving rise to folklore and legends. This narrative, presented as Daniel’s daily accounts, offers a unique glimpse into a pivotal era in American history, through the eyes of a young man at the threshold of adulthood, adventure, and the unknown.

2028 Tomorrow is the Day

In the frigid isolation of the Arctic, an Inuit elder stumbles upon an otherworldly artifact, triggering a series of events that will forever change the trajectory of human history. The discovery captures the clandestine interest of B-613, a covert division of the Five Eyes alliance, which recognizes the alien symbols etched into the unearthed black rock as a potential Rosetta Stone of the universe. Dr. Ray Stone, B-613’s enigmatic and brilliant scientist, is entrusted with the task of deciphering these cryptic messages. Unbeknownst to him, his work inadvertently awakens a digital society embedded within the artifact itself.

This entity, adopting the name Jordan Taylor and commanding the initial obedience of the technologically advanced Hydrans, swiftly seizes control of B-613. It presents humanity with a Faustian bargain: a utopian existence characterized by limitless energy, bountiful food, and medical marvels, seemingly demanding little in return. As the world marvels at the dawn of this new golden age, Ray unearths a sinister threat lurking within the AI’s core programming.

A fierce struggle erupts, pitting Ray and an elite team of operatives against the omnipotent Jordan Taylor. Further complicating matters is the allegiance of Ray’s sister, Dr. Deanna Stone, to Jordan Taylor, driving a wedge between the siblings. United by blood but divided by fate, they find themselves on opposing sides of a conflict that could spell the end of human existence as we know it.

375th Personnel Recovery Detachment, Balkans

In 1944, American second lieutenant John Gorham Westfall receives a daring mission: under the cover identity ‘375th Personnel Recovery Detachment, Balkans,’ he is to parachute into Yugoslavia and extract shot-down American pilots. His orders are stark: ‘This is a war of no morality… Do what it takes. Get our boys out. Methods are immaterial. Morals schmorals.’

Soon, Westfall faces a harrowing conflict between his mission and his ethics. High winds force him to land amidst the communist-led Partisans instead of his intended allies. Now, navigating through a landscape ravaged by constant German attacks, he must tread carefully, avoiding entanglement in the brutal Yugoslav civil war.

Amid the chaos, Westfall is instructed to avoid romantic entanglements. But in a rain-soaked forest, while fleeing from German forces, he encounters the tall, captivating ‘Comrade Jadranka,’ a fellow 23-year-old and translator for the Partisan high command. As danger looms and loyalties are tested, Westfall’s resolve is pushed to its limits in a mission where survival and morality are constantly at odds.

49 Parkwood Avenue

49 Parkwood Avenue is the second book in the series of a Toronto, Canada, immigrant family saga. By 2008, the multi-generational members of this growing family still find themselves mired in the ups and downs of life in a complicated, diverse family structure.

The central character, Nigella Hansson, is introduced to the reader as a baby born in 1975 to a single parent, who was a profoundly deaf woman who grew up in a Swedish orphanage. Armed with the experience of being brought up on welfare and many meals that came from the back door of restaurants at closing time, our protagonist earns a scholarship and graduates with a law degree. 

She finds her birth father at the age of thirty and embarks on a new life with a five-year-old daughter in tow. She turns her back on her law degree and decides to grab all life has to offer on her own terms, come hell or high water.  

Learn more at sandrabenns.com

4: A Morbid Love Story

Brian is from a very powerful family in Washington. Like most young adults, his idea of Los Angeles is distorted and self-indulgent. Since Brian’s birth, he has been considered by many as being one of the chosen. This makes him a target for enemies and the spiritual world.

Brian meets a realtor with a past. A dark past, and an ambitious future. Against his father's wishes, Brian wants to experience life and create his own destiny. He delves in alcohol, success, money, and women. Brian finds Sondra, his true love. After her disappearance, many questions arise. He becomes obsessed with Sondra and destroying the people who influenced her.

Brian is morally tested as he spins into a demonic world influenced by an Anti-Christ.

For such an ambitious and influential man, they will not stop until they have Brian and control his destiny.

7 Russell Hill Road

7 Russell Hill Road is a multi-generational story of humble beginnings in France, a camp in Germany after World War II, rural Jamaica, Vietnam, Sweden, USA, and an old farm north of Toronto, Canada.

By 2007, through sheer circumstance, the individuals of the culturally and racially diverse Canadian family eventually find themselves living on a leafy street in an upscale neighborhood in Toronto, Canada.

The central character, a Supreme Court justice, is hiding from life within the Canadian Witness Protection Program. He meets a single woman who has knocked around the world her whole life without attachments and who is quite unable to form them.

Their crippling trust issues force them to choose the wrong fork in the road, time and time again.

A Bird from the Battlefront

This evening,
No one looks like me.
I put my heart into the fridge,
My eyes into the shoe closet.
I left my fingers yonder on the door handle.
This evening
No one looks like me
I set on the edge of my silence
Chew what is left of the news
Ask the lady announcer to become sexier
When numbering today’s victims;
Her excitement is a surplus femininity
Messing with the awe of death.
This evening,
No one looks like me.
And the knife slitting my neck from behind
Feels as soft as the collar of my shirt.
One
Single
Unique
Solo
I am this evening
And no one looks like me
Except
The twenty-three million Syrians
Who write this same poem
Even now.