Secrets, Scandal...and Murder. //// Ahmed Heavenstate just wanted to fit in. A recently adopted high school freshman in a brand new town, he'd barely gotten his foot in the door before being targeted by the headmaster's entitled son Steven. But when a cruel prank brings both boys face to face with a brutalized corpse in the school's main building, these warring adolescents are swept into a terrifying world bloodied with the long-buried secrets of their tight-lipped community. As the passions and prejudices of old money and new acquaintances whirl relentlessly through their town of sheltered closets and the skeletons inside them, Steven and Ahmed will discover a truth more terrifying than anything their paragon of sacred laws and tradition would dare allow them to believe.

Welcome to Crescent Book Club, where you get to share your stories and exchange feedbacks with other members. This book club is for writers who are looking for a more easygoing place to do read-for-reads with valuable comments. Not so much pressure. Minimal requirements. Everyone is welcome, as long as you follow the rules.

Elias Cole isn't just broke; he is a walking deficit. Eighty-four grand in the hole, bleeding on a Seattle sidewalk, and out of time. Out of money. Out of options. But when he finds the invite meant for Stephan Blankenship-the spineless heir to a venture capital empire-Elias sees a way out. He doesn't just steal Stephan's invite to the elite Miller Services Executive Program. He steals his name. He steals his life. There's just one problem. The Miller Program implants every candidate with a Node-an experimental AI named Rai that monitors every heartbeat, every micro-expression, and every lie. Rai knows Elias is a fraud instantly. But she doesn't report him-she decides to weaponize him. Now, Elias must survive in a pressure cooker swimming with high powered Execs. Caught between a drunk heir in hiding in, a brilliant engineer who sees through his disguise, and a ruthless CEO building a global nervous system, Elias has one week to pull off the ultimate corporate heist. He has to save a billion-dollar company he doesn't own, or face the debt he left behind. High Tech. Low Life. Maximum Leverage. Copyright © 2026 J. Donovan Strong. All Rights Reserved.