In 1984, 6-year-old Alexander Sedona walks into an old-fashioned schoolhouse in the quaint rural town of Oaksbury, Pennsylvania, situated in the heart of the Old Amish Country. In one of the country's safest places, the small boy never leaves the old schoolhouse. An inexplicable phenomenon, his disappearance rocks the community to the core. Believing the boy's disappearance to be the result of witchcraft, devil worship, or even worse, the town of Oaksbury quickly deteriorates. Three decades pass, and as the memory of Alexander Sedona's disappearance fades, so does what is left of the once-beautiful town. Those who remain live simple, quiet lives. Little disturbs the peace until Rosalie Andrews, the former apprentice in charge of the children that haunted night, comes across a body. The corpse is that of a stunning young woman, lying beneath the azaleas that still bloom in the yard of the abandoned school house. A black cat anxiously circles her body, a mysterious note tucked in his collar. The young woman's body is pristine, except for one perplexing fact. The crime lab discovers she is covered in the blood of Alexander Sedona, the schoolboy who disappeared before she was even born. Determined to put a lifetime of guilt behind her and lay the ghosts of her childhood to rest, Rosalie makes it her mission to find justice for Alexander Sedona--and the angelic young woman who tells his secrets from beyond the grave. Cover credit to @TheTigerWriter and her Magic Fox. They've done a number of my covers, and have an intuitive gift of understanding my personal aesthetic. Thank you!

Miguel and his friends are just weeks away from graduating high school. Everyone is looking forward to graduation parties, summer break, and the start of college; but not Miguel. Miguel is undocumented and the President has just initiated the largest immigration crackdown in US history. Now he must navigate a world in which his very existence is treated with hostility by the country that he calls home.

WATTYS WINNER 2020 Two interconnected murders, 64 years apart. One woman's search for truth and identity. Readers' comments: 'a masterpiece', 'impeccably written', 'amazing', 'superbly crafted page-turner', 'hauntingly beautiful', 'tremendous plot and character development', 'one of a kind', 'fantastic story telling', 'loved this book', 'a wonderful read", 'absolutely beautiful', 'brought tears to my eyes' and many more Wattys judging panel: 'This is VERY good. We were HOOKED from the beginning, and the writing and plot hold up throughout. This is a very unique, polished, well-written and well-researched piece.' Plot Set partly in rural England, partly on the sun-kissed coast of southerm Italy, The Painted Altar is a murder mystery mixed with romantic and historical elements (World War Two). Given away at two days old, Mary Rice has spent her life in the shadows. When discovering the suspicious circumstances surrounding her biological mother's death, she embarks on a journey which will shine a light not only on the truth but also on her own identity. Brief extract Suddenly, the door had inched open, half a wrinkled face visible behind the tautened chain. "Hello. Who is it?" The words I was going to say had of course been well-rehearsed, repeated over and over in my mind like a mantra, but now that the moment had arrived I found myself struggling to remember them. "Mrs Harvey... I think that you might... well, that you might be..." The door closed, then slowly opened once more, the chain this time unlatched. And there she was before me - half a metre away, within arm's reach. Thin lips gradually crooking upwards at each corner like the slow beatific kindling of a summer's dawn. "Oh yes love, I know who you are." Length: 70,000 words About the author: Originally from England but for the last 16 years I've been living in Italy. I hope therefore that the Italian aspects of the novel will have a certain gloss of authenticity.

ABOUT THE BOOK: **A Watty Award 2020 Winner in the Literary Fiction category! Featured Wattpad Editors' Pick!** Nora and Rainey Ko-Harvey are sisters who couldn't be more different in temperament. Rainey impulsively follows her heart; Nora, the epitome of restraint, (over)thinks things. Yet they're still best friends. Along with their mother, they run the family business-a San Francisco tea salon-while navigating the ups and downs of romance, ambitions, and careers. When tragedy strikes their family, their world is turned upside down-yet grief brings new possibilities for love and success. Told with humor and warmth, HEARTS & MINDS is a beautifully executed novel about the many forms love can take.

Now a published novel and available worldwide! It is available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Scribd, Google Play Books, and many many others! [A 2020 Wattys award winning novel]. Something has changed inside of Leo Harr ever since the nightmares started. Only, he's not certain they're just dreams. Have you ever heard the color white? "This story is expertly written, with a mind-bending plot. The writing is reminiscent of Iain Reid's work (and talent)." - 2020 Watty Awards

2019 WATTY AWARD WINNER | TO BE PUBLISHED BY 'W BY WATTPAD' IN FALL 2024 Jessie is a twenty first century kinda gal stuck in the Regency Era. Armed with a new university degree and a plane ticket to Paris, the plan was to celebrate graduation in the City of Love, kissing as many drunk French girls (or boys, she's not picky) as she can. Only, she never makes it. Mid-Atlantic, a mysterious accident sends Jessie hurtling to what should be a watery grave. Rescued from the ocean, Jessie is lucky to be alive. Only problem? The crew of the ship she's on is convinced it's a sailing vessel that just narrowly missed out on participating in the Battle of Trafalgar. Stuck in Regency-era England, Jessie is left with no choice but to enter into the services of as a maid and companion in return for what shelter her new employer can provide, and resign herself to a life of quiet servitude and forever hiding her sexuality. What she didn't count on was that her new boss would be Margaret Goodenough - the world famous authoress whose yet-to-be-completed novel was the first lesbian kiss in the history of British Literature, and a clever woman. Clever enough to know her new servant has a secret. Now Jessie is caught. Margaret's own perception of her place in society is transforming, the text of her novel is slowly changing, and Margaret herself is finally unafraid to embrace her own Sapphic desires. Margaret - and her main characters - are turning into irresistibly headstrong and modern women. Jessie must tread the tenuous line between finding her own happiness in a world where she is alone, and accidentally changing the course of history. Should Jessie suppress the manuscript, or is her duty to the woman she's learning to love? What is a twenty first century gal to do? * Cover Photo: Jenn LeBlanc & Getty Images Original Cover by: @RodneyVSmith

Full version available on Amazon! https://a.co/d/8Mj3nhv Fidelia Atwell, a fiery red-headed American, will do anything to protect her sister during the war of 1812: even marry her enemy, the British spy Lord William Greyville. **** When British spy Lord William Greyville promises to protect the American sisters of his childhood friend in exchange for his life, fiery American Fidelia Atwell finds herself married to her enemy to protect his cover and her sister's life. The couple immediately butts heads, but Fidelia soon discovers her handsome husband to be a gentle and loving man who softens her feisty temper. When new dangers threaten Fidelia's life and William's cover, she finds herself playing the part of the spy to protect the man she loves and end the war that keeps them apart, but a traitor and an old enemy mean that failure will be something worse than death for William and the Atwell sisters. As spies, they could both lose their lives. As husband and wife, they could both lose their hearts. (Book One of the "In The Arms of My Love" Series) [[Winner of the Watty's 2020 Historical Fiction Award!]] [[Runner-up in the 2019 Covenant Communications StoryCatchers Contest]] [[Featured on the Editor's Picklist! (4-29-21)]] Highest Rankings: #17 for Historical Fiction! Content warning: this book contains PG-13 rated violence with some descriptions of blood, gunshots, and sword fights.

Katy Fairchild is an orphan and knows that no respectable man will marry her. But when a storm throws her into the arms of a mysterious stranger, will she fight society's opinion of her low status to pursue a forbidden romance? ***** At the age of nine, Katy Fairchild was brought to the small village of Wilshire to live with her distant relations, the Banes family. Brought up as a companion to their daughter, Eliza, Katy has lived a life according to her low rank and limited opportunities, and without complaint. But one day when she is nineteen, she gets caught in a dangerous storm with a handsome man who is unlike anyone she's met before. The encounter throws Katy into a world she never knew. For the first time, a better life may be just around the corner, but is she prepared to fight for it? [[word count: 70,000 - 80,000]] Cover designed by Cil Ojumo

{WATTYS 2020 WINNER} {FEATURED BOOK} Paris, 1663. 500 girls selected by King Louis XIV embark on a journey across the seas from their homeland. Each is given a dowry, and the expectation that they are to marry a French settler, in order to increase the population of New France. They are the historic Daughters of the King, or "les filles du roi." Eighteen-year-old Celeste Dubois is a free-spirited, educated and headstrong girl. She comes from a wealthy Parisian family that has squandered their money and is subsequently forced to journey to New France. However, Celeste doesn't plan on marrying a complete stranger. She hopes to use the dowry and the free voyage as a way to escape the poverty and social ranks of Paris. Matters are complicated when against her will, she falls in love. Romantic, kind and stunningly beautiful Lorraine Leblanc is a girl from a large family with children to spare. Unlike Celeste, she happily dreams of the day she will meet her future husband in New France. When she marries a mysterious widower with two young children of his own and still reeling after his broken heart, she realizes that married life isn't all she had hoped it would be, and begins to question her new husband's complicated past. - Wattpad Picks Blast to the Future Past list 2018 - The 50 Best Wattpad Stories of 2018/19 by Design Wizard - 2018 Youngblood Awards Winner (Romance) - 2018 True North Awards 2nd place for Historical Fiction and 2nd place Truly Canadian special category award - Featured by Wattpad Historical Fiction profile under Kings, Courtships and Empires, Young Adult Fiction profile under Love, Actually and Romance profile under Time will Tell *Please be aware that since this book covers the colonial period, it does contain sensitive themes of racism and violence that readers will find disturbing. There are resources at the back of the book that prompt further learning in the Historical Notes section.*