The Eye of Sicily

The year is 1895, and poverty is sweeping through Sicily, bringing a wave of la miseria to its people. Letters from America summon two Sicilian families to the shores of a distant land, but they soon discover that everything comes at a cost.

Time is running out for Giuseppe LoPinto, a victim of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Out of options, his dire circumstances drive him to join the mass exodus of Sicilians from their beloved island. With a heavy heart, Giuseppe accepts an invitation to America. He embarks on an arduous journey, accompanied by his younger brother, Giacomo, to the bustling streets of Detroit.

A hundred miles away, on the eastern tip of Sicily, Vincenza Catalano blames a different letter from America for turning her life upside down. Forced to leave the scenic coastal city of Messina, she must put all her dreams for the future on hold. Aboard the steamship Giava, the Catalano family crosses paths with the LoPinto brothers from Termini Imerese. Vincenza, with her fiery spirit and determination, leaves a lasting impression on the younger brother, Giacomo. Defying her family’s wishes, she challenges the cultural limitations placed on women and confides her deepest secrets to him.

Arriving in Detroit during the dark era of the late nineteenth century, the Catalano and LoPinto families face ethnic prejudices, language barriers, and extortion threats from the notorious Black Hand. The bond between Giacomo and Vincenza grows stronger as they strive to find a sense of self in their new homeland, battling the perils of a dangerous time period. Inspired by true historical events, the young Sicilians soon realize that the luster of the American Dream is fading. Will they ultimately risk everything to achieve their dreams?

Descent of the Mighty Beast

In the heart of Kwetu, where tradition holds firm, Bratha Mine’s world shatters. His hopes for a better future crumble when he is framed for a murder he didn’t commit – until vengeance becomes his purpose. He turns his fury on the Security Council, a ruthless cabal pulling the strings of power. But an even deadlier enemy lurks: Thanatos, a tech-savvy assassin who never misses his mark.

As the stakes soar, Bratha is thrust into a battle where truth is treason and survival itself is rebellion. Navigating courtroom showdowns, political intrigue, and deadly pursuits, he must outwit an empire built on deception. Alongside fierce allies like Madam Mboya and Simba Wanje, he unearths secrets that could topple the entire regime.

But will his defiance spark a movement, or will the weight of ambition crush everything in its path?

Descent of the Mighty Beast is a pulse-pounding political thriller steeped in African mythology – an electrifying saga of resilience, rebellion, and the unbreakable spirit of a man who refuses to kneel. A masterful tale of courage and destiny – one that will keep you riveted to the last page.

Young Vincent

Young Vincent offers a sweeping and intimate exploration of the life and loves of poet Edna St. Vincent Millay, tracing her journey from a latchkey child to a defiant Vassar graduate and literary icon. In this compelling work, Hood masterfully blends fact with imagination to present a uniquely personal portrayal of Millay’s creative process, gritty personal struggles, extraordinary strokes of luck, and her complex bisexual romantic life. Drawing from first-hand interviews with her sister Norma, lover Catherine Filene Shouse, and other close friends, as well as the poet’s letters, journals, and poems, this book vividly captures the essence of Millay’s remarkable world.

Set against the backdrop of the early 20th century, Millay’s story resonates with the challenges of our own tenuous times. The forces that sought to stifle free expression, limit opportunities, and deny civil rights echo through history, allowing modern readers to better understand Millay’s transformative era of groundbreaking art and technology. Through her struggles to reconcile her bold nature with the rigid constraints of her society, Millay becomes a timeless companion, inspiring empathy and reflection in today’s rapidly changing world.

The Musician’s Brain

“As in his earlier novel, The Players Brain, Love and Soccer, Antonio exercises his natural gift of translating hermetic neuroscientific concepts into colloquial language without belittling them for the sake of simplicity. Readers will be taken to the edge where fiction meets reality, pointing to the infinite possibilities now within our reach to give life back to legions of people who have lost all hope and, worse, their dignity. The Musician’s Brain is an ode to music, faith, and creativity.”

– Dr. Ricardo de Oliveira.

Maestro João Carlos Martins demonstrates resilience and a deep love for music throughout his more than 70-year career as a successful musician, sharing his journey of overcoming Musician’s Dystonia.

A Journey of Finding the Light Through the Dark

Embark on a powerful journey of self-discovery with A Journey of Finding the Light Through the Dark. In this moving and introspective book, we follow a person’s path through the darkness as they struggle to find their way in a world filled with lies and deceit.

As they search for answers and meaning, they come to realize that the truth has always been there, hidden just beneath the surface. Along the way, they must confront their own fears and doubts and learn to let go of the past in order to embrace a brighter future.

Through this inspiring and heartfelt journey, readers will be uplifted and inspired to find their own light in the darkness. Whether you are searching for meaning in your own life or simply looking for a story of hope and redemption, A Journey of Finding the Light Through the Dark is a must-read.

Nature’s Lawyer

Nature’s Lawyer follows the journey of Rafael, a 21-year-old law student at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil. By morning, he studies law; by afternoon, he works as a cashier at a lottery agency. But his sharp mind is increasingly troubled by the dire warnings of rising global temperatures and the environmental destruction threatening the Amazon rainforest.

Instead of lush trees, Rafael discovers vast pastures carved out for the greedy expansion of cattle farming. As he grapples with doubt and fear, he uncovers unsettling truths that forever change his perspective on the world – and his own role in it.

In this thought-provoking and compelling novel, Ramiro Castilho Simon delivers a story that will make readers laugh, reflect, and hope. Can Rafael’s determination and creativity make a difference, or is the world already beyond saving?

Everything Passing By

Sebastiane Bassett’s life in the French Foreign Legion is exactly what he needs to be in order to cope with what he is. Things change when a mission in Africa goes horribly wrong, and he loses his mentor and the anchor to his present reality. Unable to cope with another loss in his life, he seeks clarity from his grandfather, Maurice Renault. Understanding what he is and why, and how the Demon within, which overshadows the Renault family with its tyrannical quid pro quo, the answer Maurice has may not be the answer Sebastiane wants.

Sebastiane then makes his way to the jungles of South America. His new mission: training, illegal mining and drug interdiction patrols, and guarding one of France’s most prized possessions: the Guiana Space Centre. This task becomes more difficult when hubris, greed, and corporate infighting at The Slater Group, Inc., spills over into his world. While trying to save the Spaceport, Sebastiane learns of a secret so powerful it could reshape the world.

Blamed by his Commanders for his efforts and the outcome at the Spaceport, Sebastiane and his team are arrested and put on trial. As he awaits his fate, Sebastiane’s past and present collide. Now, with two futures laid out before him, he must choose: choose between the life he has, and the one he thought he should have. However, Sebastiane’s greatest fear is that the Demon within will come looking for its price no matter what path he chooses...

The Image Maker

In 1860, just a year after Drake’s historic first oil well, photographer John Mather arrived in Titusville, Pennsylvania, determined to capture the burgeoning oilfields, one glass negative at a time. From his makeshift darkrooms – one on a creek barge, another strapped to his wagon – he risked life and limb to preserve the history of the nascent petroleum industry.

General Charles Miller, alongside his wife, Adelaide, tirelessly cultivated relationships with the titans of this new era, becoming a major player himself. Even Andrew Carnegie took notice, only to withdraw when Miller’s personal indiscretions threatened his reputation.

Former cavalryman Patrick Boyle, a natural storyteller, chronicled the region’s explosive growth as editor of the Oil City Derrick. His experience as a roustabout in the oil fields and later as a daring oil scout after the Civil War made him uniquely suited to report on this worldwide source of oil production statistics and news.

Through the eyes of John, Patrick, and Charles – their families and their stories – a vivid portrait emerges of the oil boom and life in late 19th-century America. This is the story of how a rough-and-tumble stretch of Oil Creek in rural Pennsylvania fueled the world’s oil lamps, machinery, trains, and, eventually, automobiles.

Un Crimen que solo el Cielo Puede Perdonar

Una rica empresaria de la industria farmacéutica aparece envenenada en el dormitorio
de su casa de Madrid, donde vive con sus cuatro hijos y su yerno. Todos ellos han
podido cometer el crimen. La investigación se cierra en torno a estos personajes con
un profundo retrato psicológico de la naturaleza de cada uno de ellos. La imagen
despiadada que transmiten de su madre los tres hijos pequeños, que va aflorando en
los sucesivos interrogatorios a los que son sometidos, contrasta con la estampa
afectuosa que presenta de ella la hija mayor, en un diario que escribe paralelamente al
desarrollo de la investigación. A la vez que se van desenterrando emociones familiares
ocultas, el policía encargado del caso va descubriendo hechos insólitos sobre cada
uno de los hijos, que hace pasar las sospechas de uno a otro. Una novela psicológica,
al más puro estilo de Agatha Christie, con una trama adictiva y un giro final
inesperado.

Never Been Kissed

What do you do when all you have is your work to keep you going?

Christina Bell is a professional therapist with no social life to speak of. Her only vice is drinking. Her bartender is her closest friend. Her mother is the only one who ever calls. Christina has never thought of herself as lonely – maybe a workaholic, but never lonely. Still, something feels missing, and she can’t quite figure out what it is.

When two men suddenly enter her life and express interest in her, she’s caught off guard. She doesn’t want to be alone, but she’s also afraid of losing the routine and identity she has built around her work.

This is a story of self-discovery, of learning to listen to the heart and finding strength where she least expects it. Christina must face her fears, test her limits, and decide what kind of love – if any – she is willing to fight for.

Is it true that love comes and goes? Or is it something that stays with us, even when the person doesn’t? Because no matter how deeply you love someone, it doesn’t always make them stay.

Life moves on, with or without a happily ever after. So, in the meantime, let’s just enjoy the ride. Who knows, maybe something good will come of it.

Swinging Grandma

A not so typical grandmother moves in with her daughter’s family and changes their lives. Her high demands, although funny at times, make for an entertaining story.Her daughter tries to change her mom day after day. Even the holidays are challenging. She eventually succumbs to her mother’s wishes. She comes to realize that some things are not as important as others.This fun filled story is based on reality and is entertaining for all ages. 

Sermons in Dust

At some point, I realized what most of us seek in life is false, including what a man makes a priority. The things that he pursues often lead to nothing more than emptiness in his heart. Constantly, his actions swing him back and forth between right and wrong. Happiness often flees from him, and peace is only a daydream. It all comes back again in a cycle that never ends. A man will often blame the world for his problems, but he refuses to look inside himself, though deep down he knows that he is the cause of much of his tragedy. The world may not be to blame. The world is only what it is.

I had God, but a church was something that I knew little of, often only driving past a vacant building on a day it was not in session. But I do respect it. My faith was found in the forests and streams that I spent most of my Sundays in, drawing inspiration from my experiences there. But where I truly realized the power of God’s wisdom was in the fire itself, where selfishness, lies, and the deceit that we all encounter pervade, almost to the point where it chokes the very breath out of us. Friends may really be enemies, as our trust is lost in those who once held all of it. I knew I had to find trust in something else: a power that was above man’s pettiness, something that could transcend our arrogance and pride.

My life is half over, but I may have finally figured out how to live it, as I tried to write these words.