Diamond City
In 1955, small-town police chief Art Moran is thrown into a world of danger and mystery when he is tasked with solving a gruesome murder in an isolated mountain cult. Despite feeling out of his depth, he becomes the only person the cult members trust. But things take a turn for the worse when, in a single night, Art loses everything he holds dear, including his love, his son, and even his sanity. Forty years later, the ghosts of the past come back to haunt him as he is called upon to solve the murder once again. As he delves deeper into the mystery, he finds himself questioning everything he thought he knew about redemption, forgiveness, and love. Set in the backdrop of a small town in upstate New York, Diamond City also explores the complexities of small-town life, including its subtle racism and pettiness. But through it all, Art learns that it’s never too late to embrace the life he has been given and let go of his impossible dreams. Will he survive the challenges that come his way and find the redemption he so desperately seeks?
Full Circle: Lucia’s Story
Robert’s exciting new, and Award-Winning story is about faith, family and Lucia’s struggle from the depths of darkness and despair. Find out what happens as Lucia and her family try to find peace and pray for a better life for themselves. The author brings us into the personal life of Lucia, the excitement and drama that unfolds on her journey. Things happen in life; does fate and luck come into play? Come along for the ride as Lucia starts a new life with her family and meet the new friends she finds along the way.
Give Me Shelter
The dual challenges of the 1962 Cuban missile crisis that threatens the world and the unexplained loss of two parents that threatens a family are the driving forces behind the lives of two boys and their grandfather. Willie, Denny and their grandfather, Pop, have lived together for nine years, ever since the boys’ parents died in an accident that remains a mystery to the boys. Denny reluctantly leaves for college, while Willie enters sixth grade, fearful of the menacing missile crisis and curious about his parents’ fate. Willie’s best friends are Lucy and Preston. Lucy wonders about the ‘man in the suit’ who seems to be everywhere she goes. Her mom, Trish, grapples with unemployment. Preston is burdened by the trauma his father experiences from involvement in two wars. Denny meets his first ever girlfriend at college, Lucy, who has one leg that’s shorter than the other. Good neighbor, Robert is building a bomb shelter in the back year. Muriel, his mother is a shoot-from-the-hip older adult with dementia. Over time, the connections between them create the shelter they need for their common journey. This is a story of human vulnerability, humor, endurance, secrets, truth, loss, resilience, and love. This is a family life novel with a coming-of-age flavor.
Protective Instincts
Professor Dena Montgomery might be young, only nineteen, but she is a mathematical Olympiad with a genius-level IQ, earning a Ph.D. for her at sixteen. Yet, her large family calls her The Absentminded Professor, with good reason. Dena can recite the calculus for the Pythagorean theorem as if it is her home address, but can’t, for her life, remember what is on her grocery list or whether she eats three meals on any given day. Though she is shaped like a Barbie Doll, she’s no lightweight. Her family does not leave her defenseless, either. That skill serves her well one cold, blustery, snowy night when she leaves her office at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Walking home, she encounters the abduction of two tender-aged children. Although one man dies, Dena’s protective instincts kick in to save the little boy and girl.
Puppet’s Shadow
Madison and Piper were identical twins, mirror images – on the outside. Confident, head-strong Madison Sterling possessed it all – a devoted twin sister, hundreds of male admirers, invitations to swank social events and captivating beauty. Except Madison was never content. Boredom with her mundane life and rebellion to authority led her to make questionable choices steering her down a self-destructive path. Her life spiraled out of control. Brilliant but humble Piper Sterling always succeeded – except with rescuing her sister. Piper’s heart ached as she watched her sister burn bridge after bridge. While distracted with saving her twin, Piper lost sight of her own principles. As the angelic sister, Piper was faced with her own daunting decision. A tragic accident changes everything. Only one twin would survive, but which one? Does anyone really know?
Second Chance
The DeShazer’s of Atlanta are a hot mess! Their family comes with wealth and a bunch of hidden secrets which can stir up a lot of drama.
Chance DeShazer is a police officer who always plays by the rules, until he falls for sexy auditor Ayanna Patterson who makes her own rules. The two begin a fiery love story until Ayanna is thrust into witness protection after stumbling upon a murder.
Sunflowers Beneath the Snow
A Ukrainian rebel. Three generations of women bearing the consequences. A journey that changes everything. When Ivanna opens the door to uniformed officers, her tranquil life is torn to pieces – leaving behind a broken woman who must learn to endure the cold, starvation, and memories of a man who died in the quintessential act of betrayal. Using her thrift, ingenuity, and a bit of luck, she finds a way to survive in Soviet Ukraine, along with her daughter, Yevtsye. But the question remains, will she be strong enough to withstand her daughter’s deceit and the eventual downfall of the nation she has devoted her life to?
The Art of Always
Art history student Darcey Mendes needs a new topic for her thesis in order to graduate, but time is against her. Family debts are pressing. She fears she must give up all hopes of an academic career. Yet, without her degree, would she earn enough to provide for her secret daughter’s future?
The Landlord’s Inheritance
Siblings Mickey Ray and Darcy Jean are informed that the automobile disaster that caused the death of their Mother and their Father’s multiple injuries including brain damage was not an accident but an attempted murder. The local police seem ambivalent, and their Aunt comes in with a forgotten Power of Attorney signed by their Father, Daniel, and tries to take control of the Real Estate holdings. The brother and sister team begin a power struggle and are physically threatened by unknown thugs which results in Mickey’s girlfriend disappearance which is presumed dead and Darcy Jean in hiding. James, Mickey’s best friend, a disfigured Ex-Military Black Ops operative, assists in the hunt to put a stop to the “takeover”. Terry Joe’s novel includes Simple Detective Work, Internet Research, Adventure, Action and Suspense with a Sprinkle of Romance, and a Fast-Paced, Explosive ending.
Triskele
Triskele is a psychological story about a family torn apart by tragic and unexpected circumstances, portraying the events that will shape a young boy and his little sister being reared by an alcoholic single mother. Each member of the familial group will make choices that influence, or perhaps determine, where their futures will lead them. The story explores the irrational behaviors people embrace and the seemingly antithetical, yet underlying reasons, for their actions. Paul is nearing the final stages of his inner city deaconship. As he approaches ordination circumstances arise that place his assured lifelong road to the priesthood in sudden jeopardy. He is consumed with feelings of guilt, tormented by terrifying nightmares and loses his balance in the face of an abrupt lust for a woman, Lillian who seems unattainable. Beth, a promising art student, acts out in promiscuous and myriad self-destructive ways that threaten her success, not only at the university, but also on the greater art scene of Greenwich Village. Particular works of art illuminate Beth’s psychic demons and desires throughout the story.