In sixteen-year-old Mike Hernandez’s life, only one thing is clear: Gay is NOT okay. His family’s life revolves around the church, a church run by the vocally intolerant Pastor Myers, so Mike has resolved to spend his life in the closet. His only escape—besides the occasional, anonymous gay make-out session—is his art. He pours his complicated emotions into risqué drawings he keeps in a secret sketchbook. A sketchbook he carries everywhere.  When his sketchbook goes missing in the middle of Sunday school, Mike is sure his life is over. He’s going to be outed, ostracized by their community, condemned by the pastor, maybe even homeless. What’s worse, the pastor’s son, Chris, suddenly seems hell-bent on adopting Mike and his friends and he has no idea why.When an awkward confrontation with Chris leads to an unexpected kiss instead of a much-expected punch, Mike’s world is turned upside down....

Recommended by –Publishers Weekly (“This is overall a strong collection . . . make it worth reading.”)Explore the depth and breadth of caring and of giving and delve into the complex world of caregivers—a segment of our population that is often taken for granted—in twenty-three original thought-provoking and moving stories. LONG DESCRIPTION:The world of caregivers and unsung heroes, the province of ghosts . . .WHO ARE THE SUM OF US?Children giving care. Dogs and cats giving care. Sidekicks, military, monks, ghosts, robots. Even aliens. Care given by lovers, family, professionals. Caregivers who can no longer give. Caregivers who make the decision not to give, and the costs and the consequences that follow. Bound to us by invisible bonds, but with lives, dreams, and passions of their own.If we believe that we are the protagonists of our lives, then caregivers—our...

Alexandra Jennings might be the hero of the Medoran Chronicles, but she would be lost without her three closest friends. They are her strength, they are her hope, they are the reason she keeps fighting. To Alex, her friends are the real heroes, and like all heroes, they each have their own story. Meet the real D.C. in Crowns and Curses and discover how she becomes the princess Alex once despised but now adores. Follow Jordan on his healing journey in Scars and Silence as he struggles in the wake of being rescued from his living nightmare. Walk beside Bear in Hearts and Headstones as he faces an unspeakable trauma while helping his world prepare for the coming war. D.C., Jordan and Bear are the heroes of their own stories. It is time for their stories to be told.

Athena Lee had returned home to her planet of birth. She is home to visit the family she has not seen for over 16 years. Her ship the James Cook is there to repair damage caused by the O'Malley pirates. She finds that her once peaceful agrarian world is overrun with corruption and graft. Her own family is wrapped up in a daily power play for control of the planet and its resources. What was a nice family visit has become a trial of wills. What about the marriage they arranged for her? Oh Hell No! This engineer now has to fight her own family to survive. A reckoning is approaching will she be ready for it? **

Dex Pratt's life has been turned upside down. His parents have divorced and his mother has remarried. When his father attempts suicide and fails, Dex returns to their small town to care for him. But he's not prepared for how much everything has changed. Gone are the nice house, new cars, fancy bikes and other toys. Now he and his wheelchair-bound dad live in a rotting rented house at the back of a cornfield. And, worse, his father has given up defending marijuana growers in his law practice and has become one himself. Unable to cope, Dex begins smoking himself into a state of surrealism. He begins to lose touch with what is real and what he is imagining. And then there are the aliens...and the girl-of-his-dreams...and the crop circle...