New Release Spotlight: D.G. Driver's YA Novel “Ghost on the Water”

One girl’s daring adventure turns into a 

long frightful night lost on the water.

Forced to leave the California beach behind to spend the summer with her grandma in rural Tennessee, Dannie is certain this will be the most boring summer of her life. Things start looking up when a group of local kids, mistaking her short hair and boyish figure, invite her on their ‘no girls allowed’ overnight kayaking trip. Obviously, her grandma refuses to let her go. But Dannie suspects the real reason is that the woman is afraid of the lake, only she won't tell Dannie why.

Longing for freedom and adventure, Dannie finds an old rowboat hidden behind the shed and sneaks off on her own to catch up to her new friends. It seems like a simple solution … until everything goes wrong.

Dannie soon discovers this lake is more than just vast. It’s full of danger, family secrets, and ghosts.

Who is Dannie?

Dannie is an almost 15-year-old girl who likes to keep her hair super short so it doesn't get in her face when she goes skate-boarding. Most of her friends are boys back in California, and that's just fine with her. She hasn't grown much of a figure, and she's okay with that, too. She prefers to wear over-sized T-shirts and boys' jeans. They're more comfortable and better for moving around. She thinks staying in a cabin by a lake would be fun if it were with her dad or her friends, where she could go jet-skiing or fishing. However, she's stuck on this lake with her grandma, and she predicts it's going to be a long, boring ten days of doing nothing. She's wrong about that.

Read this excerpt from Lost on the Water, A Ghost Story

New Release Spotlight: "The Nameless Soldier," a Young Adult Fantasy by Annie Douglass Lima

The Nameless Soldier is book 4 in the Annals of Alasia young adult fantasy series. Haven't read all (or any) of the others? That's okay! The books can be read in any order, and each one can stand on its own.

Blurb:

What do you do when you’re the only survivor?

Nineteen-year-old Tarvic bears the name of a mighty hero from Alasia’s past. However, the young soldier feels anything but heroic when he regains consciousness to find himself the lone survivor of a brutal attack by invaders from the neighboring kingdom.

Forced to leave his identity behind, Tarvic is thrust into civilian life in the role of protector to three war orphans. When the four of them encounter a mysterious stranger, he must choose between keeping the young girls safe and taking on a mission that could help free his kingdom. Can Tarvic live up to his noble name and find a way to balance his duty and his dreams?

New Release Spotlight: Halcyon, YA Sci-Fi and Fantasy Fiction by Caroline Akervic and Ruth Rankin

It’s hard enough to always be the new girl at school for Hailey Schick. She’s managed to irritate the ruling clique and Trevor, the boy she sort of likes, is a total social outcast. 

Nothing is as it seems at University. Preston and Chelsea rule the school with an iron fist and are obsessed with stomping out all nonconformity. There is more going on here than the usual cutthroat high school games.

Eternally young sentinels from the parallel universe of Halcyon have infiltrated their school and plan to use it as a launching pad for a planned takeover of Earth. Hailey and Trevor may be all that stands between Earth and a takeover by the militaristic Juventus.

New Release Spotlight: "Chasing Love," YA Fiction by Kayla Tirrell

Professional wallflower Nicole Andrews can’t wait to get out of Marlowe Junction. With only one year to go, she is eager to become the best college applicant at Rosemark High.

There’s only one problem: she still hasn’t found a niche to make her appear more well-rounded.

When a chance encounter with hottie-extraordinaire Chase Saunders pushes her in the direction of cross country, Nicole thinks she’s finally found her answer. If only she could focus on her race times, and stop getting distracted by Chase.

Will joining the team be enough to make Nicole stand out from the crowd? Or will she lose her heart in the process?

New Release Spotlight: "Because...Anonymous", Contemporary YA Mystery by Diana L. Sharples

On the run from an abusive father, Noah Dickerson is supposed to be laying low and staying out of trouble.

Mistake #1, falling in with a group of anime fans who aren’t as harmless as they seem.

Mistake #2, crushing on a beautiful girl who isn’t fooled by Noah’s good looks and charm.

Mistake #3, being in the wrong place when she receives disturbing notes in her locker.

But the biggest mistake, Noah learns, is when his mother escapes North Carolina with him. Because, it turns out, transporting a minor over state lines in the middle of the night is a felony.

Purchase Because...Anonymous

New Release Spotlight: Primordium by Mario Loomis

My guest today is Dr. Mario Loomis, whom I had the privilege to work with during my years as a hospital nurse and case manager. Dr. Loomis has written two young adult sci-fi novels, and I'm pleased to feature his latest release on my blog. Welcome to my adventures in publishing, Mario! 

If you’ve had trouble finding “clean reads” that were thrilling enough to hold your attention or your teenager’s, try Primordium, one of Dr. Loomis’s debut novels.

New Release Spotlight: Meet Me There, YA Fiction by Judy Corry

A dark Chemistry lab. A fake British accent. It's all fun and games until somebody falls in love.

Ashlyn and Luke have been at war since last spring. What started as sabotaging each other's recipes in Foods class, has now turned into "boyfriend wanted" ads all over the school and Icy Hot in a jock strap. But could there be more to this war than meets the eye?

New Release Spotlight: Rafferty Lincoln Loves...Young Adult Fiction by Emily Williams

Rafferty Lincoln doesn't like horses. Not one bit. But when the popular high school girl of his dreams, Liberty Ashburn, pulls him into a world of lead ropes and horse brushes, who is he to say no?

Except this isn't any old horse. This is the missing racehorse, Profits Red Ridge. The horse Rafferty and three of his friends are hiding from the world. And Liberty Ashburn isn’t just any ordinary high school girl. How far will Rafferty go to win her over?

An intense, witty, and powerful coming of age story with startling consequences.

New Release Spotlight: "Good Luck Charm," Second in The Holiday High Series by Kellie McAllen

Connor is Kerri’s good luck charm, but is he lucky enough to win her heart?

Basketball star Kerri “Killer O’Connor” knows she’s bad luck, and she's tried everything to keep it from ruining her life -- a rabbit's foot, a horseshoe, her dad's lucky shirt -- she's never without one.

When her dad gets hurt in a freak accident on Friday the 13th, Kerri is sure she’s to blame, but then a boy shows up wearing her father’s old sweatshirt, and Kerri’s luck suddenly does a 180.

Convinced that Connor Murphy is the talisman she needs to change her fate, Kerri begs him to be there for her while her dad is recuperating. Connor doesn’t believe in luck, but he’d do anything to win the girl of his dreams, even if that means spending all his time with Kerri.

Connor never expected to fall for the kooky girl with the crazy superstitions, and Kerri’s convinced that Connor wants someone else. But when luck turns to love, can Connor convince Kerri that he’s more than just her lucky charm?

Purchase Good Luck Charm 

Honoring our Vets on Veterans Day

photo by Scukrov via Dreamstime.com

Today is Veterans Day, a day when we pay tribute to those heroes who have served in our nation's military. My father, Ted Kasica, aka Bunky, served in the US Army, 82nd Airborne Division in the 1950's. He was a paratrooper stationed in Europe, specifically Austria and Germany, countries he loved. Through his service I came to respect our servicemen and women, to listen to their stories, to learn from their experiences.

As a nurse, I was often involved in their medical care, and in helping to coordinate aftercare for illness and injuries. This led me to include war veterans in two of my stories: Blue Hydrangeas, an Alzheimer's love story, where Jack served as a medic in World War II; and Swim Season, where Aerin's mother is an Army Reserve nurse, a Wounded Warrior, ruggling with the impacts of war in Afghanistan - a persistent blast injury, PTSD, chronic pain, opioid addiction, and depression. My attempt in this book, small as it may be, was to explore her experience, which is the experience of so many of our vets, by telling her story.  Of all my characters, she is one of my favorites.

Devon's story:

Devon was on duty in the ER at St. Vincent’s Hospital in New York City the day terrorists struck down the Twin Towers. This hospital, just outside Ground Zero, was the first stop for victims and recovery workers in need of medical care.  Deeply affected by the events of that day, Devon volunteered to work double shifts during the rescue and recovery effort. When the US went to war with Afghanistan, she enlisted in the Army Reserve, against her husband's wishes,  to provide care to the troops. 

Happy 1st Book Birthday Swim Season!

 

It's the first book birthday for my young adult novel Swim Season, which was born October 24th, 2016, and all of my readers get a present: a free download on Amazon October 24-26.

Have you ever celebrated a book's birthday? It's pretty cool! After working on this for FIVE years (that's right!) it was close to a miracle that I saw it in print. And Kindle. And not long after audiobook. Each part of this process took much longer than it should have because of my repetitive strain injuries. I literally wrecked my shoulder putting the final touches on it just days before it came out. But the pain was worth it because I wanted to finish it during my daughter's very last varsity swim season. Her 10-year career inspired the story, so it's very special to me. In spite of my RSI's I managed to pull it off, and I'm proud of that. Here's the blurb:

Swim Season is the fast-paced, drama driven story of Olympic hopeful Aerin Keane, starting senior year in her third high school and trying NOT to win. But can she hide her natural talent and competitive streak? Especially with a 50,000-dollar scholarship on the line?

 

There's drama in AND out of the pool!

Here's the book trailer:


And my readers seem to like it:

"This is a great story of growing up and overcoming obstacles. The characters are delightful and the swim meets engaging. You'll rally behind Aerin as she tackles her senior year and all that comes with it." - Jessica Elliott

"Excellent characters and story. Brings back lots of memories of swim teams, competition, friendships and rivalries." - Amazon customer

"This entire story was epic: competition, friendship, hiding your talents, finding yourself, facing bullies...it has it all." - ReaderGirl16

"I loved your book and I will definitely read it again, and, after that, again." Ava, age 10

So Happy 1st Book Birthday Swim Season! Don't delay! Claim your gift now!

Can we have cake?

 

9 Reasons Why YA Fiction Still Gets Me

photo by BillionPhotos.com via AdobeStock

There's something about YA fiction. Although I've been an adult for decades, I love it. I love to read it and I love to write it. 

Maybe it's because it pulls me back to my teenage years, when everything was all wrong, and gives me a chance to view life from a different lens, to a life where I wasn't gawky, awkward, and insecure, where money wasn't an issue and I had the right jeans and the right sneakers, where my father didn't pass away and leave me rudderless. 

Or maybe it's because I have my own young adult (now a perfect 22) and lived through her much happier teen years, seeing that she had everything I lacked. 

My love of books and reading solidified when I was a teen, providing a much needed escape. YA spans a variety of genres - historical, fantasy, paranormal, romance, social - and brought me places I could only dream of seeing or didn't know existed. 

It introduced me to cultures and worlds beyond my own. 

I met important and famous people, and time traveled throughout the ages.

I learned about dark things in life while never leaving my comfort zone. 

I fell in love with heroes and heroines. 

I read and reread many books that touched my soul.

I still need to escape sometimes and a YA novel is often the best transporter. Some favorites: John Green's The Fault in Our Stars, Suzanne Collins' Hunger Game series, the Harry Potters, Cynthia Toney's Bird Face series, Ruta Sepetys' Between Shades of Gray, and Alyssa Sheinmel's R.I.P. Eliza Hart. 

How about you? Are you a YA fan? What's moved you lately?

***

Here's a collection of 14 YA books currently free to download in the Discoveries promo sponsored by My Book Cave.  Multi authors, multi genres, rated all ages to moderate+ for language, sexuality, and violence. A sample of my novel Swim Season is included. Download now! Offer ends October 31st.