Historical Fiction

by Bdjamison

The princess is curious about easter and her and bj go all over the land of make [believe.to](http://believe.to) find out about the resurrection of Jesus christ and has a very special surprise.visit from her grand parents a cousin and a very special guess.jesus christ himself!

by Winter

**Algorithmic Shift** **Two centuries. Two crushing realities. One unbreakable loop.** When a catastrophic mine cave-in traps engineer Clara Mercer deep inside a flooded subterranean shaft in 2026, her world goes completely black. Instead of death, the suffocating atmospheric pressure fractures reality itself, thrusting her consciousness backward into a rigid 1800s logging camp while her physical body remains pinned beneath a thousand tons of stone. Bound to the pre-programmed autopilot of a historical ledger clerk, Clara discovers a terrifying system rule: her actions in the past directly control the structural layout and dwindling oxygen supply of her modern tomb \[INDEX\]. Under the cold, clinical gaze of the mysterious Timber Boss—who carries the exact face of her real-world husband, Gideon—Clara must meticulously log the camp’s anomalies to maintain her fifteen percent survival margin \[INDEX\]. From the future, Gideon's rescue team desperately tears through the bedrock with pneumatic saws, completely unaware that every inch they gain fractures the historical foundations keeping Clara alive \[INDEX\]. When Clara finally rebels and forces the matrix to overload, she doesn't break the trap—she permanently deletes the future, rewriting both herself and Gideon directly into a permanent historical blueprint with no escape.

by Hollis Wilkinson

In 1807 Charleston, history is full of secrets. Some were lost to time. Others were meant to disappear. For generations, there have been people who believe the truth should survive—not only wars and famous names, but ordinary lives history forgets. Letters. Journals. Ship records. Names in margins. Proof that someone lived and mattered. They are known simply as Keepers. And there have always been others who believe some truths are better hidden, altered, or destroyed. Obscura. Neither is simple. A preserved truth can change history, but it can also destroy a family or endanger someone still living. For sixty-five years, Henri Ravenel has lived with that burden. Then an old clock in Ravenel House begins ticking after years of silence. A hidden message points to a missing page. Records stop matching. A trusted clockmaker disappears. Then Henri vanishes. His granddaughter Vivienne intends to find him. Charleston knows Vivienne as a beautiful young woman who asks too many questions. It does not know she is Sea Kestrel, captain of her own vessel. Following Henri’s trail takes Vivienne from drawing rooms to dangerous waters, through altered records, false identities, buried names, and lives deliberately removed from history. Lieutenant Alaric Ashford is searching too. He is intelligent, controlled, dangerously observant—and getting far too close to Vivienne and the truth. At sea, he is Blue Falcon. Vivienne knows. Alaric has no idea she is Sea Kestrel. Yet. As rivalry becomes trust and attraction grows harder to ignore, Vivienne realizes finding Henri is only the beginning. Because the mystery of the Lantern did not begin with her. Book One is where she begins to discover how far it reaches. *The Lantern Chronicles: Book One* begins a historical mystery of forgotten lives, altered truths, family secrets, dangerous waters, and two people hiding identities that could change everything. **Who decides what history remembers—and what it is allowed to forget?**

by Hollis Wilkinson

by Lola Blackwell

After being robbed by the caravan meant to guide him across the vast desert, an affluent man is left to die beneath an indifferent sun. As starvation, dehydration, and isolation erode his body, his mind begins to fracture alongside it. To survive the unbearable agony, he recounts the life he left behind: a refined home, a kind wife, and a brilliant but cruel son whose arrogance he believes he cultivated through years of emotional distance. The desert strips him apart piece by piece. Hallucinations blur the boundaries between memory and imagination. He agonizes over the man he should have been and for the son he believes he destroyed. Part survival story, part psychological horror, and part tragedy, this story follows a dying man whose journey across the unforgiving desert becomes a devastating confrontation with memory, guilt, and identity. Exploring the way shame reshapes memory, the stories we tell ourselves to survive our own failures, and whether redemption remains possible once every illusion has been stripped away.

by Joshua Ciminello

The Order Of Judas follows Tobias, the newest member of The Order. Gunsmith, ladies man and a bit over 400 years old. He was the sole survivor of the attack of Roanoke island attack. He is on a normal job to kill a necromancer when he stumbles on a plot to kick start the end of days. His antics piss off the elders of The Order, but he has a great track record! There are a few vows that he's has refused to take and he lives too much in the normal world for their liking. He's always prompt and professional when on the job, but he tends to jump in head first and be the leading bleeding edge. His personal life is much the same. At least until he meets Angiola, the apprentice to one of the elders of his order. What is The Order of Judas? Who is The Dark Pope? Dive in to find out.

by Raghav Singh

**What if John Wilkes Booth’s path to assassination began years before Lincoln—with Stonewall Jackson?** As the Civil War tears America apart, actor and Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth becomes convinced that conventional warfare cannot save the South. Charismatic, theatrical, and increasingly consumed by his own vision of history, Booth assembles a clandestine group to wage a different kind of war—one fought through sabotage, deception, and assassination. But Confederate General Stonewall Jackson discovers what Booth is doing. A devout soldier who believes victory without honor is no victory at all, Jackson condemns Booth and his methods. Their confrontation sets two very different visions of the Confederate cause against each other: Jackson’s faith and military honor versus Booth’s belief that a single spectacular act of violence can change history. When Jackson is mortally wounded at Chancellorsville and dies at Guinea Station, the truth about Booth’s activities threatens to disappear with him. But Jackson has left behind a letter warning Robert E. Lee about Booth’s secret network and its possible connection to Jefferson Davis. Thirteen years later, the forgotten letter resurfaces. Now President Ulysses S. Grant must decide whether exposing the truth will finally deliver justice—or reopen the wounds of a nation still struggling to heal. Blending historical figures with an imagined conspiracy hidden in the gaps of the historical record, *Guinea Station* asks a provocative question: **What if the assassination of Abraham Lincoln was not the beginning of John Wilkes Booth’s secret war, but its final act?**

by John Simon

In the searing Texas heat of Camp Swift, farm boy Tommy Jensen and a ragtag collection of draftees—including sharp-tongued Roberto Morales—are stripped of their civilian identities under the relentless gaze of Sergeant Frank “Mac” McGregor. Through endless marches, live-fire drills, and soul-crushing monotony, the 377th Infantry is forged into a single machine: the Iron Men. From the hungry mud of Louisiana swamps to the thin, hostile air of the Colorado Rockies, the squad learns that survival depends not on individual heroism but on the man beside them. Bonds form in silence and shared exhaustion as they shed the last remnants of home. When the troopship *USAT General Brooke* carries them across a churning Atlantic, seasickness and quiet dread replace the certainties of training. Upon landing in France near Norroy-le-Sec, the first scream of incoming artillery shatters every illusion. In the mud and smoke of the Moselle front, Tommy, Morales, Mac, and their brothers discover what it truly means to become iron—and what it costs to hold the line.

by Crystal Bachleda

“***<u>Little girls, this seems to say,\ Never stop upon your way.\ Never trust a stranger-friend;\ No-one knows how it will end.\ As you’re pretty, so be wise;\ Wolves may lurk in every guise.\ Handsome they may be, and kind,\ Gay, or charming-never mind!\ Now as then, ‘tis simple truth-\ Sweetest tongue has sharpest tooth!</u>***”\ *CHARLES PERRAULT* - ***Little Red Riding Hood*** ALL WHO LOVE stories come and gather round, and I shall tell you a tale; you hold in your hands a door to an alternate world. Do you dare open and walk through the door? Come; the story is about to begin!

by Mary Ellen Humphrey

Leah Rigley disguised herself as a cabin boy in order to accompany her father, the captain of three trading ships, to the New World. She did not anticipate the turn of events that would happen during the voyage from Falmouth England to the coast of Mayne, and after the ships arrival at their destination.  Travel with this extraordinary girl across the Atlantic Ocean in a 16th century sailing vessel and experience her adventures in the strange new world as she tried to find her way home.

by JD Berryhill

At the center of *Stoic* stands Theresa—a matriarch whose life redefines what it truly means to be stoic. Far from cold detachment or suppression, her endurance is an active, grace-filled love that acts as the anchor for her family through relentless trials. ​Spanning decades, the memoir captures the subtle rhythms of family life, the unspoken sacrifices that build home and security, and the tragic loss that ultimately tests their seams. Through raw honesty and poetic grace, J. D. Berryhill reflects on the emotional inheritance passed down from mother to son: the strength to stand steady when everything else falls apart.

by Gemma Therese

Sixteen-year-old Melanie Howard's world is fractured on her birthday when she discovers her magical angelic bloodline and processing her brother, Eli, gets dragged into the shadows of danger. Thrust into Bloodbound Academy, a pre-Civil War institution for the descendants of the Angelic Realm, Melanie discovers that she possesses the rare talent of psychometry, a gift that allows her to catch glimpses of her kidnapped brother. Desperate and struggling against time, Melanie has only one priority: to bring her brother home safely.

by Stephen Sulkey

In the summer of 1863, a single bullet kills Colonel Joshua Chamberlain at Gettysburg—and changes the course of history. The Confederacy wins the Civil War, the United States is absorbed into a new Southern nation, and slavery survives into the modern age. By 2001, the Confederate States of America has become a powerful global empire of fifty-two states, governing through tradition, racial division, and an increasingly ruthless central authority. Thomas Mann is a hard-drinking New York Times reporter and a Southerner by birth, accustomed to living with the contradictions of his country. But after returning from a bloody revolt in Puerto Rico, he is approached by a frightened abolitionist carrying a mysterious message. Before Mann can learn more, the man is dead. Drawn to Washington by the promise of a story that could shake the nation, Mann meets the intelligent and captivating Laura Dane and is pulled into a secret struggle against forces willing to kill anyone who threatens the established order. Pursued by a relentless assassin and agents of the government, Mann must uncover the truth before it disappears forever. What begins as an investigation soon becomes a fight for survival—and a journey that forces Mann to decide whether he will merely report history or risk everything to change it.

by Sean Runyon

**Synopsis: *The Last Witness*** *"This war did not begin with a nuclear flash swallowing billions into the footnotes of history. History rarely grants us that kind of honesty. It began with secrets stamped NATIONAL SECURITY, with lies folded into origami excuses, and with men who had already sold your future branding the transaction as stability. It began with a population drowning in noise until it mistook confusion for intelligence. And the greatest lesson Liam Roberts would learn was this: people do not fear tyranny for what it is. They fear uncertainty. Tyranny simply learns to disguise itself as relief."* These are the opening words of investigative journalist Liam Roberts' final broadcast As the last witness to civilization's collapse, Roberts explains that the world did not end in a blinding nuclear exchange or a single catastrophic event. Civilizations rarely collapse in fire first. They collapse in ink, paperwork, euphemisms, and administrative language polished clean enough to disguise the smell of decay. Before revealing how the world unraveled, Roberts takes his audience back to where it all began with a phone call from a man named Thomas Riker, a soldier whose existence has been systematically erased from history. Roberts has built his career exposing corruption and uncovering stories others wanted buried, but nothing prepares him for what lies beneath the surface of the modern world. What begins as an investigation into one impossible man quickly becomes a fight for humanity's survival. Riker reveals that behind every major conflict since the Second World War stands the Doctor, the hidden architect of the Syndicate, a clandestine organization that has transformed wars, governments, and human suffering into decades of experimentation in pursuit of a single objective: Project Helix. Following Riker through classified military operations, abandoned facilities, and forgotten programs, Roberts begins to see a pattern stretching across generations. Every trail leads back to Facility 47, where the Doctor's work has evolved beyond biology into something far more dangerous: understanding, predicting, and ultimately directing human behavior itself. With every discovery, Roberts realizes the Syndicate's greatest weapon was never military power. It was its ability to shape what people believed to be true. As the evidence grows, Roberts confronts the Doctor's most devastating discovery: people rarely surrender to force; they surrender to fear, convenience, and the promise of safety. By manipulating information instead of relying on violence, the Syndicate has quietly conditioned entire generations to mistake certainty for truth and security for freedom. By the time Roberts understands that humanity itself has become the experiment, the conditioning is already complete. Unable to remain an observer, Roberts joins a small band of resistance fighters determined to expose the Syndicate before its plan reaches its final stage. As they dismantle hidden facilities and uncover decades of deception, they make a devastating realization. They are no longer trying to stop the Doctor's plan; they are witnessing its completion. Their search ultimately leads them to Bastion Zero, where Roberts learns the Syndicate has already succeeded in ways the world has failed to recognize. The Doctor never intended to rule through armies alone. He intended to build a civilization that would willingly participate in its own conditioning, believing every decision was freely made while every outcome had already been engineered. Riker finally confronts the man who transformed his life into an experiment, while Roberts makes the only choice left to him. Rather than allowing the truth to die with him, he broadcasts it across every remaining frequency, preserving a final record of how humanity surrendered its future one compromise at a time. The novel ends where it began. Alone inside Bastion Zero, Liam Roberts delivers his final message  not in the hope of saving the world, but to ensure that someone, somewhere, might one day understand how it was lost. Whether anyone survives to hear his testimony remains uncertain. The truth, however, endures.

by Peju Perezña

En la tradición del real maravilloso de Carpentier y del realismo mágico de García Márquez, pero con la culpa trágica de Graham Greene, P. J. Pérez-Peña construye una novela barroca y circular en la que la santidad y el deseo se tocan. Santo Domingo, 1961. En los últimos meses de la Era de Trujillo, un país entero respira miedo. En ese infierno vigilado, Andrés Connery Lora —hijo de un marino escocés y de una criolla cibaeña— ve a Sor Carla Inés Bracamonte, novicia andaluza, en la iglesia de Las Mercedes. Lo que nace como devoción se vuelve incendio. De los atabales sincréticos de Duvergé a la casa-refugio de Montecristi, del delirio a la transfiguración, el amor prohibido no los destruye: los muda de naturaleza. Su consumación no deja ceniza, deja un clavel que respira, reliquia viva custodiada durante cincuenta años por Marcial, un niño de cuartería que será el último testigo. Una novela sobre lo que ocurre cuando un amor imposible, en lugar de pedir perdón, pide la eternidad.

by Scott Zimmerman

Reviewers are raving about KOSTYA... \--A well-written, emotionally intense novel that I couldn’t put down. \--From the very first pages, the writing pulls you into Kostya’s world with vivid, unflinching detail. \--Relentless sense of movement. \--The vivid imagery captured the setting and mood with cinematic precision. \--The ending is extremely beautiful. \--The difference in speaking voices between characters was quite fun to read. \--KOSTYA is a must-read. \--You will instantly form a connection with the characters in this book. The tensions they feel pours off the pages and directly into your heart.  \--The story combines historical depth with the momentum of an adventure novel. Readers become invested not merely in what happens next, but in who Kostya becomes along the way.

by Ernest Hemingway

*A Farewell to Arms* is Ernest Hemingway's tragic 1929 novel about Frederic Henry, an American ambulance driver in Italy during WWI. He falls in love with nurse Catherine Barkley. After deserting the army to escape the war's brutality, the couple flees to Switzerland, ending in heartbreak when Catherine and their baby die during childbirth

by Haüden

## **Isilme is dying.**  \ Once a prosperous nation whose exports sustained the continent, Isilme has sealed its borders, displaced its people, and vanished from the world stage. Trade collapses. Refugees flood neighboring lands. Entire economies begin to fail. No one knows the truth. Hidden beyond the mountains, the Belserion Empire— a nation so secret most believe it nothing more than a myth— is slowly destroying Isilme from within. As the consequences ripple across the continent, every nation mistakes the symptoms for isolated disasters. Ancient rivalries erupt into rebellion. Immortal rulers tighten their grip on power. A medical catastrophe threatens countless lives. Noble houses abandon centuries-old alliances in pursuit of influence, reshaping the political landscape with every move. From the royal courts of Anaria to the hospitals of Ossira, from the immortal throne of Oplines to the fractured Great Houses of New Vufriycia, people from every corner of the world— nobles, scholars, soldiers, rebels, rulers, and outcasts— are swept into conflicts they never chose. Each nation believes it faces a different enemy. None realize their struggles all begin with the same forgotten empire. As kingdoms edge toward war, governments fracture, and civilizations fight to survive, the truth behind Isilme's fall remains buried beneath centuries of secrecy. But secrets cannot stay hidden forever. And by the time the world learns the Belserion Empire is real, it may already belong to it.

by James A. Brandt

London, 1940, War has changed everything. For four-year-old Charlotte, it means sirens in the night, a father far away, and a world that is no longer safe.  When the bombs fall too close to home, Charlotte is sent to the countryside to live with strangers. Armed with only a worn rag doll, a small suitcase, and a brave heart, she must leave behind the only life she's ever known.  In a world filled with uncertainty, Charlotte discovers the meaning of courage, the comfort of unexpected kindness, and the strength that comes from love.  Charlotte's Journey Home is a touching tale of love, resilience, and the unbreakable bond between a child and the home she never stops believing in.

by Steven Shepard

March 1864. The American Civil War is reaching its agonizing twilight, but for the citizens of Shreveport, Louisiana, the horror is just beginning. Captain Douglas Ivey, CSA, starts his morning with a quiet cup of coffee on his mother's front porch, unaware that an unstoppable Union juggernaut—30,000 soldiers of the Army of the Gulf—is marching straight toward his home with devastating intent. Tasked with a high-stakes, borderline-suicidal reconnaissance mission, Douglas is ordered down the Red River Road to locate and count the invading enemy. What begins as a strategic military assignment quickly spirals into an intimate nightmare. The mission thrusts Douglas, his closest friends, and members of his own family directly into the path of an oncoming war machine, fracturing loyalties and putting everything he loves in mortal danger. Spanning the massive, 565-page canvas of a nation tearing itself apart, the narrative follows the explosive fallout of Douglas's discovery. As the Union army advances, the Ivey family is split across ideological and physical battle lines. From the gritty, tactical tension of deep-reconnaissance scouting to the grand, visceral chaos of major military campaigns, the story explores the brutal realities of 19th-century combat through the eyes of those forced to fight it. As General George S. Patton famously observed, "Compared to war, all other forms of human endeavor shrink to insignificance." For Douglas and his kin, this insignificance becomes a tragic reality. They are stripped of their peace, their security, and their innocence, forced to endure the absolute limits of human endurance. Ultimately, the story builds to a gripping climax where survival is just the first step. As the smoke finally clears over the blood-stained soil of Louisiana, the surviving members of the Ivey family face an even greater challenge: how to heal, how to forgive, and how to reconstruct their shattered lives from the ashes of a war that changed them forever.

by Jesse penman

### [**Obey, or Fade Away** **You were always meant for more**](https://open.substack.com/pub/obeyfadeaway/p/3-for-the-ones-who-stayed-and-the?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=73fanv) \ The Arc So Far\ #1 — You Were Never Meant to Disappear opens the series with a confrontation: the reader has spent years learning to shrink, stay quiet, and erase their own edges in the name of safety. It names that erasure for what it is — not peace, but a slow kind of dying — and insists the reader was built with weight and voice, not built to fade into the background of their own life. \ #2 — The Four Possibilities Beyond the Light pushes past the initial awakening into the terrain that opens once someone stops hiding. It maps out the different paths available once the light (the signal, the recognition) has been seen — suggesting that awareness alone isn't the end point, but a fork with several possible directions, each with its own cost and its own truth. \ #3 — For the Ones That Stayed and the Witness Never Blinks shifts focus to endurance. It's written for the people who didn't leave, didn't disappear, didn't fade — the ones who stayed present through the discomfort. It introduces "the witness," an inner presence that tracks everything without judgment, watching to see whether the person will keep showing up for their own life even when nothing dramatic is happening. \ #4 — When the Silence Answers deals with the strange phase where nothing external responds, yet something still communicates. Silence itself becomes the message. This piece explores the discipline of sitting with unanswered questions long enough that the absence of an answer becomes its own kind of confirmation — training the reader to stop needing loud signs and start trusting the quiet ones. \ #5 — The Assignment names the responsibility that follows all that listening. Once someone has stayed, once they've heard the witness, once the silence has answered — they're handed something specific to do. This piece frames spiritual growth not as a feeling to chase but a task to complete: an assignment that requires real-world action, not just internal shifts. \ #6 — The Shape of a Real Response (Time and Time Again) ties the whole arc together. It explicitly revisits the earlier stages — staying present, hearing the silence answer, acting on what's known — and argues that all of those were prelude. The real test is whether the change can survive ordinary life: everyday , errands, people who don't know your mythology. It introduces the phrase "obey or fade away" as the central law of the series — not obedience as submission, but obedience as full listening that produces movement. Coherence, this piece argues, isn't a comfortable alignment; it has teeth. It costs relationships, unmasks false loyalties, and forces the inside and outside of a person to finally tell the same story. The piece closes on the idea that the witness from piece #3 becomes an internal architect, and that the ultimate demand isn't belief — it's response. \ Together, pieces #1–6 trace a single throughline: recognition, endurance, silence, duty, and finally, the demand for coherent action. Each piece raises the stakes on the one before it, moving the reader from "you matter" to "prove it with your life." \ #7 #8 & #9 coming soon !!!!  Obey Your Reasons to Refuse !!!!

by H. de Vere Stacpoole

In the late Victorian era, a ship sailing to San Francisco catches fire, forcing two young cousins, Richard and Emmeline, to flee in a lifeboat alongside the ship's cook, Paddy Button. The trio drifts out to sea and washes ashore on a lush, uninhabited tropical island in the South Pacific.

by Bryan R Barton

They are not ordinary soldiers. They are the shadows before the storm.\ Forged in secrecy, bound by discipline, and driven by an unbreakable code, The Black Watch stands apart from every regiment that came before it. Under the command of Michael Reeves, these handpicked warriors are stripped of old limits and remade through fire, loyalty, and relentless training into something far greater than men in uniform.\ Their creed is simple but absolute: the mission comes first, surrender is not an option, and no fallen comrade is ever abandoned. In a nation torn by war, The Black Watch becomes a silent weapon in the fight for liberty, moving where others cannot, striking when hope seems lost, and carrying the weight of freedom on their shoulders.\ But the Warrior Ethos is more than an oath recited before presidents and generals. It is the heartbeat of a brotherhood, the compass that guides them through fear, sacrifice, and the darkness of battle. For Reeves and his men, courage is not the absence of fear. It is the decision to rise anyway.\ To wear the Black Watch uniform is to become the storm.

by Leslee Kahler

Tristan has inherited a title and many debts left by his debauched father and brothers. To save his family from poverty he has to marry his late uncle's ward. Can he convince the independent young lady to marry him? And can they not only find love but discover who is trying to destroy his family?

by Jane Austen

*Sense and Sensibility* by Jane Austen follows the Dashwood sisters—practical Elinor ("sense") and romantic Marianne ("sensibility")—who are left destitute after their father's death. Forced to move to a modest cottage, they navigate love, heartbreak, and societal pressures before ultimately finding contentment in balanced, mature marriages.

by Eric Halstead

by Eric Halstead

by Sarah Bantu

Forget the green beer. Forget the plastic shamrocks. Forget the myths of little green creatures and fairy tales. Long before he became a legend, he was just Patricius an arrogant, wealthy sixteen year old Roman British boy who cared about nothing but his own comfort. But when brutal Irish raiders tear through his home, his world is violently shattered. Dragged across the sea in chains, Patricius is sold into slavery, stripped of his name, and left to survive the freezing winters of a wild, pagan land.\ Forced to herd sheep on a desolate mountain, the terrified boy must either break under the cruelty of his captors or forge himself into something unbreakable.\ *The Confessio* is the raw, cinematic, untold true story of Saint Patrick. From a daring, near-impossible two-hundred-mile escape to a powerful, miraculous return to the very land that enslaved him, this is an epic tale of survival, grit, and a faith that would forever transform a nation.

by Fred Koehler

To whoever finds this notebook… This is what really happened to Jim Hobbins, the boy lost out of Cedar Key. I’m drifting somewhere in the Gulf of Mexico. Out of food. Only a couple sips left of water. And, well… I don't write a lot of stories so I might get my order mixed up.  Still, don’t let nobody tell it different. I just hope that whoever finds this notebook also finds the *Montauk* and figures out how to get it back to my family.  It's a good boat.

by Joshua (J. E.) Dyer

Being sixteen can be Hell. For Sarah, every day is the same. Keep up with the grades. Stay on top of the cleaning and laundry around their cramped apartment. Friends? Boys? If her mom found out, her rage would follow. For as long as Sarah could remember, it’s always been her and her mom. Stories of her dad’s untimely death hold their own questions.\ \ So long as her chores get done and she stays close to home, everything’s sunny. Otherwise, she might feel the wrath of her mom’s love.\ \ That all changes when Sarah’s great aunt leaves her a mysterious journal in her will. Its pages tell tales of a missing brother’s adventures, riding the rails in the 1930s. The further Sarah delves into the events surrounding him, the closer she gets to uncovering her own past. As the truths of her great uncle’s disappearance come to light, she unearths the skeletons hidden in her mom’s closet.\ \ Then, there’s Collin. The boy she’s had a crush on for years picks now of all times to ask her out. Juggling a boyfriend and a relationship on top of everything else could push her and her mother to their breaking point.\ \ Sparks will fly on Sarah’s journey to independence and healing. One boy’s journey across Great Depression America could hold the key to setting her free. Sarah needs to find him in time to get to the truth before time takes another relative and his secrets to the grave.

by Sarah Bantu

**About the Story** What if the key to your survival was locked inside a secret, ancient bloodline?\ Spun from a fascinating true piece of Russian history and set against the brutal, breathtaking backdrop of the frozen north, *Daughter of the Falcon* blends gripping suspense with an unforgettable romance.\ For centuries, deep within the endless, snow covered forests, an elite and hidden clan of warriors lived by their own laws. They did not just survive the winter they ruled it, training lethal military falcons to hunt, fight, and protect secrets hidden from the world. Today, that fierce bloodline legacy is alive, but the isolation of the frozen north is cracking. A dangerous, unpredictable threat is closing in, forcing old secrets into the light and testing the loyalty of a clan that has never bowed to anyone.\ Filled with high stakes twists, deep betrayal, and a slow burn love story that burns hot against the bitter ice, this fiction novel proves that some family histories can never stay buried. Step into a harsh, beautiful world where danger hides in every shadow, trust is a luxury, and you never know what's going to happen next. Discover what happens when the frost bites deep, and the falcon finally takes flight.

by Sarah Bantu

Forget the green beer. Forget the plastic shamrocks. Forget the myths of little green creatures and fairy tales.\ Long before he became a legend, he was just Patricius an arrogant, wealthy sixteen year old Roman British boy who cared about nothing but his own comfort. But when brutal Irish raiders tear through his home, his world is violently shattered. Dragged across the sea in chains, Patricius is sold into slavery, stripped of his name, and left to survive the freezing winters of a wild, pagan land.\ Forced to herd sheep on a desolate mountain, the terrified boy must either break under the cruelty of his captors or forge himself into something unbreakable.\ *The Confessio* is the raw, cinematic, untold true story of Saint Patrick. From a daring, near-impossible two hundred mile escape to a powerful, miraculous return to the very land that enslaved him, this is an epic tale of survival, grit, and a faith that would forever transform a nation.

by Mikaela Love

Marian Michaels spends her nights singing in New Orleans jazz clubs and her days chasing the career she has always wanted. After witnessing a violent attack that appears to target Black residents, she finds herself frustrated by a lack of evidence and official inaction. Unwilling to let the incident go, Marian begins investigating on her own. As more attacks occur across the city, Marian adopts the masked identity of The Butterfly and follows a trail of intimidation, recruitment, and organized violence. What begins as a single assault soon points to a coordinated movement gaining influence in New Orleans. Balancing her growing music career, complicated relationships, and increasingly dangerous investigations, Marian must decide how far she is willing to go to stop it. Set in New Orleans, The Butterfly is a grounded crime drama that blends vigilante fiction, mystery, and noir with the city’s music scene and culture.

by D. K. Dowdy

The Awkward Formula follows Chris through the messy, tender years between childhood and adulthood. He stumbles through first crushes, shifting friendships, family tensions, and the quiet moments that end up mattering more than he ever expected. Set in early‑1990s Florida, the series captures adolescence in all its contradictions. This is growing up the way it really happens: slowly, awkwardly, and in pieces.

by Scott Zimmerman

This will surely be one of the greatest stories you will ever read. He endured years of genocide, brutal Nazi forced labor, Allied bombings, and Soviet enslavement. It's 1946. To escape the Soviet secret police, he must choose between the only thing he's ever wanted and a promise he cannot break. It will require incredible grit and wit.\ You've got to see what happens in the thrilling finish.\ **KOSTYA is an epic story about love, war, endurance, and integrity.** **5-STAR PRAISE for KOSTYA...**\ This powerful World War II novel delivers a deeply personal and harrowing account of survival, resilience, and the human spirit under unimaginable conditions. From the very first pages, the\ writing pulls you into Kostya’s world with vivid, unflinching detail. KOSTYA is a well-written, emotionally intense novel that I couldn’t put down. If you’re looking for a World War II\ survival story that is raw, realistic, and unforgettable, this book is absolutely worth your time.\ **Reviewed by Don Jung, Underrated Reads** \ If you are looking for a historical novel flavored with drama, thrills, gritty realism, and suspense, KOSTYA is a must-read. Here, Zimmerman weaves a compelling, visceral tale of survival, resilience, love, sheer luck, fate, and sacrifices. The raw, dynamic prose transported me back to the 1930s-40s Europe, giving me a glimpse of the harsh circumstances Ukrainians faced under Stalin’s rule and World War II.\ The vivid imagery captured the setting and mood with cinematic precision. As I followed the events from the famine to Mariupol’s invasion, and Kostya’s stints in the German and Russian labor camps, I got a clear image of the suffering that innocent casualties of the war were exposed to. I must applaud Zimmerman for delivering this heart-stopping and incredible\ story in such an intriguing way. It would make a great historical movie. I will definitely read this story again. I’m eagerly awaiting the next installment.\ **Reviewed by Keith Mbuya for Readers’ Favorite**   You will instantly form a connection with the characters in this book. The tensions they feel pours off the pages and directly into your heart. You will grieve with their losses, and feel their\ excitement when they evade the inquisitors.\ **5-Star Amazon Review**   The prose is strong. The descriptions in particular enchanted me. I felt like I was in each place Kostya visited. The author really did a good job presenting the world of the time periods. Dialogue is also quite good. Conversations flowed well, and the difference in speaking voices between characters was quite fun to read. … In summary, this is a fun and exciting read.\ **Reviewed by GrimDaniel Blog**   The final part of the book is the most gripping and exhibits a detailed knowledge and understanding of the way a regime driven by fear and corruption enables ruthless individuals to\ cover up the most heinous wrongdoing. Throughout the book Kostya's sense of integrity and his dedication to the values instilled in him by his parents and grandparents are foremost. Often tested to near destruction, his will to persevere in his quest to return to Mariupol and discover if his family have survived remains central to his every action. In the final stages it is strengthened, but not derailed, by the love of a young woman who assists his escape from the Russian authorities. She is just one of several well drawn characters who play key roles in Kostya's journey. Whether supportive or determined to out-manoeuvre him, they are all fully developed individuals. There are no obvious stereotypes.\ **Reviewed by Frank Parker, Rosie's Blog**   Kostya by Scott Zimmerman is a powerful historical fiction novel inspired by the true story of Konstantin “Kostya” Lysenko. The ending is extremely beautiful. It does not erase what has\ happened, but it gives the story a rare moment of balance, as if one tiny moral debt can still be corrected in a world that has stolen almost everything. Overall, Kostya is a gripping, humane, and emotionally resonant historical novel about endurance, moral courage, and the cost of\ surviving history’s most brutal machinery. It is painful, vivid, and often difficult to read, but also very worthwhile. Author Zimmerman honours Kostya by showing him as a boy and then a man who keeps choosing life, truth, and home even when every system around him tries to strip those things away.\ **Reviewed by The Reading Bud Blog**

by M.G. Stults

by Arthur Conan Doyle

This anthology chronicles twelve distinct cases investigated by the master detective Sherlock Holmes and narrated by his loyal friend Dr. John Watson. Together, they outwit a king's blackmailer alongside the brilliant Irene Adler, solve the riddle of a bizarre corporate scam in "The Red-Headed League," and rescue an innocent young man falsely accused of murder. Holmes repeatedly demonstrates his ability to solve seemingly impossible mysteries by focusing on minute details missed by traditional police forces. The stories highlight a wide range of social issues in Victorian London, from domestic abuse to greed and blackmail. Each case reinforces Holmes's status as a champion of cold, unwavering logic.

by Louisa May Alcott

Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy March navigate the transition from childhood to womanhood in New England while their father serves in the Civil War. Led by their loving mother, the sisters struggle with poverty, personal ambitions, and their distinct individual flaws. Jo pursues a career as a writer while rejecting a marriage proposal from their wealthy neighbor, Laurie, who eventually marries Amy. Tragedy strikes the tightly-knit family when the gentle, sickly Beth passes away after a long illness. Through grief and joy, the surviving sisters establish their own households, remaining deeply bound by love.

by L. M. Montgomery

Valancy Stirling is an unappreciated 29-year-old living a miserable life with her overbearing, hyper-critical family. When she receives a secret medical diagnosis giving her only one year to live, she decides to stop being afraid and finally speak her mind. She moves out to care for a dying friend and eventually proposes to Barney Snaith, a mysterious local outcast living in the woods. Together, they discover absolute bliss in their remote cabin, which Valancy considers her "Blue Castle." Her heart condition is later revealed to be a medical error, but by then, she has secured her freedom, a massive fortune, and a deep, mutual love.

by William Shakespeare

In Verona, the ancient feud between the Montague and Capulet families frequently erupts into violent street brawls. Romeo Montague sneaks into a Capulet party, where he instantly falls in love with Juliet Capulet, and they secretly marry the next day. The romance turns tragic when Romeo kills Juliet’s cousin in a duel and is banished from the city. To avoid an arranged marriage, Juliet fakes her death with a sleeping potion, but the messenger fails to notify Romeo of the ruse. Believing his bride is truly dead, Romeo drinks poison at her tomb, and Juliet awakens only to stab herself upon finding his corpse.

by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Nick Carraway moves to Long Island and is drawn into the orbit of his enigmatic neighbor, the fabulously wealthy Jay Gatsby. Gatsby confesses that his immense fortune and extravagant weekend parties are all part of a grand scheme to attract Daisy Buchanan, a past love who is now married to the brutal Tom Buchanan. Nick helps arrange a reunion, and Gatsby and Daisy quickly reignite their passionate, ill-fated love affair. The romance shatters when Daisy accidentally hits and kills Tom's mistress while driving Gatsby's car. Tom manipulates the grieving husband into murdering Gatsby, leaving Nick disillusioned with the corrupt and careless nature of the elite class.

by Jose M Peralta

In the unseen war between Heaven and Hell, some of the most dangerous warriors are neither angel nor demon—but something in between. **Jovias and the Exiled Seven** is a dark supernatural thriller series that explores the fate of a group of fallen angels exiled to Earth after the ancient rebellion in Heaven. Stripped of their wings and their place in the celestial order, these beings walk among humanity for centuries, hidden in plain sight. Each exile carries the burden of their fall, struggling with pride, guilt, and the lingering pull of darkness. Among them is **Jovias**, once a formidable warrior in Heaven’s ranks. Unlike the others, Jovias believes exile is not merely punishment—it is a test. A chance for redemption. But Hell has not forgotten them. As demonic forces begin manipulating human history from the shadows, the Exiled Seven discover they are pawns in a much larger plan. A hidden hierarchy within Hell is working to weaken the spiritual boundaries protecting Earth. Cults rise, false doctrines spread through influential churches, and ancient demonic entities move closer to breaking through the veil separating realms. To stop it, the exiles must confront both **their enemies and their pasts**. Each member of the Seven faces a personal crossroads: - remain trapped in bitterness and condemnation - or fight for humanity and reclaim their purpose. Along the way they form fragile alliances with humans—detectives, scholars, believers, and skeptics—who slowly uncover the terrifying truth about the spiritual war unfolding around them. The conflict builds toward an apocalyptic confrontation in **Jerusalem**, where the forces of Heaven, Hell, and the exiled must collide. There, the final choice will be made: redemption… or permanent damnation. Some will fall. Some will be restored. And the fate of humanity will hinge on whether the exiles can prove that even those who once rebelled against Heaven can still choose the light.

by Jose M Peralta

Jovias and the Exiled Seven were formed for a singular purpose: to protect humanity rather than to dominate it. Their commitment to mercy, even in the face of disaster, led them to choose compassion over destruction. As a consequence of this choice, they were stripped of their wings and cast into exile, condemned to walk the earth as guardians who must conceal their true identities from those they protect. Throughout the centuries, the Seven are confronted by judgment and loss, and challenged by evil that works not through direct confrontation, but in more subtle ways that erode faith from within. Each trial they face tests not only their strength, but also their obedience and their capacity for hope. Despite the hardships of exile, the Seven remain driven by a singular promise: to ensure that light endures, even when separated from their former glory. Their journey is marked by perseverance, where faith is hard-won, victory is never guaranteed, and redemption demands unwavering endurance.

by Cary Kimble

Julian Pappas, the son of Greek immigrants, knows loss.  His twin brother enlists in the U.S. Army and dies in the final months of World War II under ambiguous circumstances.  The politics of the Sixties leave him estranged from his oldest daughter.  His beloved wife Thea dies just as they are planning their retirement.  In his final years of life, in a Milwaukee nursing home, Julian is paired with a Polish widower who has experienced loss and suffering even more devastating than his own. Somehow, a friendship evolves – cruelly disrupted by the Covid pandemic.  In the end, approaching his 99th birthday, Julian comes to appreciate that, even now, life is still capable of delivering happy surprises.

by Marco Velos

Sportswriter Bish Weatherly writes the story of Harry "Cotton" Purcell, the most talented ball player who never made the majors, and Grace, the wife who followed him across Prohibition-era America. Spring 1922, Indianapolis. Bish has been in love with Grace since he before he introduced her to Harry years earlier. Now, with Harry at spring training and Grace pregnant and alone in a new city, Bish positions himself as the reliable friend—helping her find housing, buying gifts, being there when Harry isn't. Harry, son of ruined Alabama aristocracy, hits like Babe Ruth but can't control his "surly disposition." Each success fuels his conviction he deserves the major leagues; each setback confirms he's been cheated. As his career spirals through brilliant performances and self-destructive collapses, Bish documents it all on the pages of the newspaper while growing dangerously close to Grace. The crisis comes in Nashville, 1925. Harry is hitting .357 alongside Lou Gehrig. Gehrig goes to the Yankees. Harry doesn't. When Grace—exhausted and desperate—finally offers Bish the love he's claimed to want for years, he discovers things about himself that he didn't want to know. Decades later, Bish lives on, telling himself he did the right thing—until writing the story reveals he was never the man he pretended to be. *The Great Gatsby* meets *Remains of the Day*, set in 1920s minor league baseball.

by Sir Arthur Conon Doyle

Seeking a roommate to share expenses, Dr. Watson is introduced to the brilliant but enigmatic Sherlock Holmes at St. Bartholomew’s Hospital. The pair is soon summoned to a derelict house where a man is found dead with no visible wounds, save for the word **"RACHE"** scrawled in blood on the wall. As Holmes utilizes his unique powers of deduction to track the killer, the narrative reveals a tragic backstory of love, loss, and Mormon pioneers in the American West that fueled the murderer's quest for justice.

by Anie G. Ross

In a world of gaslit opulence and rigid etiquette, Blythe is a haunting anomaly—a brilliant spiritualist whose soul is trapped between life and death within an automaton body. Her only link to the living is Tarn “Madcap” Carrigan, a sorcerer-alchemist extraordinaire whose penchant for scandal is always one bad day away from another fatal mystery. With otherworldly secrets and new magic to discover, Blythe and Tarn are bound by an inseparable partnership.

by Jonathan Swift

Lemuel Gulliver encounters the tiny inhabitants of Lilliput, the giants of Brobdingnag, and the intellectual but detached residents of Laputa. Through these fantastical journeys, Swift delivers a biting satire on European politics and the flaws of the Enlightenment.

by Victor Hugo

First published in 1862, \\\*Les Misérables\\\* is Victor Hugo's masterpiece and one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. The story follows Jean Valjean, a man imprisoned for nineteen years for stealing a loaf of bread to feed his sister's starving children. Upon his release, Valjean is a hardened and bitter man, but a transformative encounter with a kind bishop inspires him to dedicate his life to doing good. Under a new identity, Valjean becomes a successful businessman and a beloved mayor, but his past continues to haunt him in the form of Inspector Javert, a man whose rigid devotion to the law makes him Valjean's relentless pursuer. As their lives intertwine with those of the beautiful Fantine, her daughter Cosette, and a group of idealistic young revolutionaries, the novel explores profound themes of justice, mercy, and the enduring power of the human spirit. A sprawling and deeply moving epic that captures the social and political upheavals of its time, \\\*Les Misérables\\\* remains a timeless classic and a powerful testament to the possibility of redemption.

by Herman Melville

Narrated by the sailor Ishmael, the story follows the Pequod and its captain, Ahab, on a perilous voyage. It is a profound meditation on obsession, fate, and the indomitable power of the natural world.

by Anie G. Ross

In a world of gaslit opulence and rigid etiquette, Blythe is a haunting anomaly—a brilliant spiritualist whose soul is trapped between life and death within an automaton body. Her only link to the living is Tarn “Madcap” Carrigan, a sorcerer-alchemist extraordinaire whose penchant for scandal turns deadly when he is framed for the attempted assassination of the Empress using his own repurposed formula. While Blythe struggles to reconcile her lost humanity with her new, doll-like form, the purposefully improper Tarn must rely on her spectral talents to navigate a web of political treachery and corrupted sorcery. Together, their perilous adventure across borders leads them to unmask the true culprit and confront the secrets of the dark magic that brought them together. *Author Note: Any feedback/reviews are genuinely appreciated! This story is truly open to "kill your darlings" edits.*

by Judah Ray

In 1955, a secret experiment at the Large Hadron Collider tore open a doorway to another realm.\ \ Extradimensional beings came through, possessed the top scientists and military officials in the room, and kept the portal open.\ \ One of the first crossed over and took a human infant as its host. That infant was Christina.\ \ The only issue is that Christina forgot what she was,  and the others could not enter or control her, but she could see them. So they declared her unstable and institutionalized her.\ \ Years later, world leaders, billionaires, media figures, and political dynasties are all possessed. The New World Order is not a conspiracy theory. It is literal possession.\ \ A decade later, Christina escapes and resurfaces in Berlin. The forces that have tracked her since childhood want her reclaimed or eliminated.\ \ With the help of Jory, who has been able to see the entities inside people since surviving a near-death experience as a child, Christina uncovers a power structure that has ruled humanity from within for generations.\ \ When she learns she is one of them, she must choose between her own kind or the man she loves and the humanity she chose to protect.\ \ They have ruled the world from inside us.\ Now one of their own stands against them.

by Robert Louis Stevenson

TO THE HESITATING PURCHASER\ \ If sailor tales to sailor tunes,\ Storm and adventure, heat and cold,\ If schooners, islands, and maroons,\ And buccaneers, and buried gold,\ And all the old romance, retold\ Exactly in the ancient way,\ Can please, as me they pleased of old,\ The wiser youngsters of today:\ \ --So be it, and fall on! If not,\ If studious youth no longer crave,\ His ancient appetites forgot,\ Kingston, or Ballantyne the brave,\ Or Cooper of the wood and wave:\ So be it, also! And may I\ And all my pirates share the grave\ Where these and their creations lie!