After her parents' death, Judith Gladstone travels to San Francisco to find her last living relative. Her unrequited love, Caleb Coulter, helps her search, and when his connections lead Judith to a wealthy, influential family, she learns shocking truths about her heritage . . . and finds herself in danger from someone who wants to keep the past hidden. Views: 36
For fans of Andrew Smith and Frank Portman and the movies Election and Ferris Bueller's Day Off comes a hilarious and satirical novel about the highs and (very low) lows of the electoral process, proving that the popular vote is the one that matters most. Stacey Wynn was the clear front-runner for Lincoln High student council president. But then French-Canadian transfer student Julia Romero entered the race...and put the moves on Stacey's best friend/campaign adviser, Brian.Stacey also didn't count on Tony Guo, resident stoner, whose sole focus is on removing the school's ban of his favorite chocolate milk, becoming the voice of the little guy, thanks to a freshman political "mastermind" with a blue Mohawk.Three candidates, three platforms, and a whirlwind of social media, gaffes, high school drama, and protests make for a ridiculously hilarious political circus that just may hold some poignant truth somewhere in the mix. Views: 36
Dread Central: "A book that loves to play games with the reader's mind." HorrorTalk: "Bleeds a nightmarish dream-world into reality. Prepare for a unique coming of age tale." That's Not Current: "Will ensnare readers. Highly recommended."
Ayden finds himself held captive by his former friend, Phillip. Phillip believes Ayden holds the key to finding Ginger, his missing girlfriend. This shocking claim forces Ayden to revisit the adolescent world he shared with his older brother, Everett. It is a world where truth is uncertain and dreams and imagination blur with reality. Everett insists Ayden possesses powers of clairvoyance and has the ability to conjure entities from his mind. As Everett pushes Ayden into increasingly darker territories, events turn deadly. Digging into this murky past, Ayden and Phillip awaken old demons they must face as they race to find Ginger.
Where the Cats Will Not Follow is a strange journey into the mind of a troubled young man who may be delusional--or may in fact possess the extraordinary abilities he was believed to once hold. Horror/Dark Fantasy/Coming of Age
Featured in Suspense Magazine*
*Selected for publication by Kindle Press
**Review
"An utterly original work. A book that loves to play games with the reader's mind. Are the events we're reading really [happening], or is it all just in the main character's head? Does Ayden actually possess the ability to dream the future, or is his older brother, Everett, just a master of manipulation? Deciding for yourself what's really going down is one of the book's great joys." -Mike Sprague, Dread Central
"Where the Cats Will Not Follow is a beautiful example of a novel that refuses to live within the confines of one genre and is all the better for it. It's a quality fusion of fantasy, horror and surrealism with the continual bleeding of a nightmarish dream-world into reality. Prepare for a unique coming of age tale. Highly recommended." -Tony Jones, HorrorTalk.com
"Stromp forces himself to push these characters as far as they can go. Where the Cats Will Not Follow goes to some dark places and shouldn't be picked up lightly, but will ensnare readers with remarkable dreamscapes. Highly recommended." -Rachel Bellwoar, That's Not Current
From the Author
Beyond the surrealism and nightmarish qualities, I see Where the Cats Will Not Follow as an exploration of unhealthy relationships. At its core, it's an emotional coming-of-age story filled with manipulation (who is manipulating who?), angst, and gut-wrenching self-discovery. I wanted to capture the emotions of someone resisting the transition into adulthood so vehemently, so keen on staying in the past and attempting to relive it, that he is practically kicking and screaming against growing up. -Stephen Views: 36
In the tradition of Cheryl Strayed's Wild, the gritty, funny, achingly honest story of a young climber's struggle to become whole by testing herself on mountains and life.As a young teenager Jan Redford runs away from a cottage where her father has just put her down for the zillionth time and throws herself against a 100-foot cliff face. Somewhere in that shaky, outraged kid is a bedrock belief in her right to exist, which carries her to the top. In that brief flash of victory, she sets her sights on becoming a climber.Falling in love with climbing eventually leads to falling in love with the climbers in her tight-knit western Canadian climbing community. It also means that the people she loves regularly vanish in an instant, caught in an avalanche or by a split second of inattention. It almost crushes Jan when her boyfriend, the gifted climber Dan Guthrie, is killed. Instead of marrying Dan, she marries one of his best friends, a driven... Views: 36
I watch her delicate hands work over my torso, becoming intoxicated by her scent rising to meet me from her neck.
“I’m so sorry,” she insists, now scrubbing the fabric with concentration, taking breaks to dab her forehead with her arm.
She’s damaging my designer shirt. Instead of pointing that out to her, I observe her every movement. I surprise her a few times as she nibbles her thumb. A habit that reveals how nervous she actually is.
“I’ll pay for the dry cleaning, of course. And free coffee for a week.”
I don't reply.
I resist the temptation to run my hand through her long, silky hair.
I find her beautiful: her fragility, embarrassment, simplicity.
“A month?” she offers, obviously worried by my silence.
“It’s fine for the coffee. A week and we’re even,” I reassure her. "For the dry cleaning, I'll take care of it. Don’t worry about the clothes. It could happen to anyone.”
She stops and looks at me, smiling, relieved by my pacifist reaction.
“I think your shirt is ruined,” she announces, nibbling her lower lip.
“Yeah, I think you’re right about that!” I agree, laughing.
I’m speechless when she starts working on my pants, kneeling down between my legs.
Is this a joke? I thought this kind of thing only happened in movies!
Except there’s nothing funny about the position. On the contrary. The pressure she’s putting on my crotch awakens sensations in my entire body. My imagination becomes quickly uncontrollable. I want her.
Forbidden thoughts start to creep into my mind. To touch her. Caress her. Kiss her.
She suddenly stops, as if she had heard my inappropriate thoughts.
Time stands still for a second, and the noise of the café customers dies down. Here we are, the two of us, completely isolated from the rest of the world.
***
Enemies or lovers?
Liam, a successful young lawyer, is allergic to love. He’s always between business trips and, devastated by a dark secret, he has put a lock on his heart. That’s the way he likes it. But when he crosses paths with Zoe, all his principles fly out the window. Zoe is the opposite of his usual conquests: natural, funny, impetuous... and she has no plans to make room in her life for a man.
After the success of Challenge Me, Avril Rose is back with a funny and touching romance told by two distinct voices.
Love, Law, and Lattes: A brewing romance, Avril Rose, complete novel Views: 36
Contemporary Bad Boy Hollywood Romance Views: 36
