BOOK JUNKIEZ

by Jennifer Reed/ bookjunkiez | March 5, 2025 · 5:00 am

Life Lessons From Mom Virtual Book Tour

For The Man You’ll Become

Inspirational Self-Help / Parenting

Date Published: 01-31-2025

Publisher: Books to Hook Publishing, LLC.

A Mother’s Enduring Wisdom for Her Son.

Inspiration, Guidance, and Lessons for a Meaningful Life.

This heartfelt collection offers powerful truths, invaluable insights, and
practical lessons through anecdotes, personal reflections, and uplifting
stories. It’s a must-read for anyone seeking clarity, purpose, and
direction in life.

Discover how to:

– Grow Personally and Spiritually: Build self-awareness, make ethical
choices, and draw strength from faith.

– Strengthen Relationships: Foster lasting connections rooted in trust,
respect, and heartfelt communication.

– Overcome Challenges with Resilience: Turn adversity into opportunities
for growth.

– Navigate Life’s Transitions with Confidence: Thrive in every stage,
from career changes and leadership roles to family and
entrepreneurship.

– Live a Meaningful Life: Pursue passions, prioritize well-being, and
create a lasting legacy.

-Achieve Balance: Embrace the 4-Quadrants of Personal
Growth—spiritual, social, intellectual, and financial.

Whether you’re a son seeking guidance or a parent sharing wisdom,
this book is a powerful companion for navigating life’s uncertainties
and achieving greatness.

The perfect gift for sons, partners, friends, or anyone searching for
inspiration and guidance to live a meaningful life.

While no book has all the answers, this one provides a wellspring of hope,
support, and actionable inspiration.

From mother to son, these are life lessons every man needs.

A loving reminder: You are never alone, and you are capable of
extraordinary things.

EXCERPT

“What if the only thing standing between you and a life of purpose is the person you see in the mirror? Before you can make your mark on the world, you must first understand what drives you, fuels your passion, and defines who you are. Without this deep self-awareness, you risk building someone else’s dream instead of your own.”

life lessons from Mom excerpt

About the Author

Amy Tan is an accomplished business executive and award-winning author with
over twenty years of experience in corporate leadership and market expansion
across Southeast Asia. She holds a Business Administration degree from the
Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology and a Postgraduate Certificate from
the University of Nottingham.

Beyond her corporate role, Amy is a passionate storyteller, weaving her
diverse experiences into narratives that explore personal growth,
resilience, and transformation. Her recent book, Revisiting the Depths –
Overcoming Fear and Finding Peace, which won the Literary Titan Gold Book
Award, recounts her emotional and spiritual journey as she overcomes a
long-held fear of the ocean through diving.

Amy’s latest book, Life Lessons from Mom: For the Man You’ll
Become, is a thoughtfully crafted guide that offers practical wisdom on
navigating life’s challenges, cultivating meaningful relationships,
and building a legacy of love. She is also the author of Doing Business in
ASEAN and China: An Ultimate Guide to Doing Business, which showcases her
expertise in regional economic integration.

Having lived in Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Indonesia, Amy
brings a rich, cross-cultural perspective to her writing, inspiring readers
to overcome challenges and make positive changes. Her work highlights the
powerful impact of storytelling on personal and professional
development.

Contact Links

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by Jennifer Reed/ bookjunkiez | · 5:00 am

The Marker Blitz

A 20th Century Murder Mystery

Romantic Suspense

Date Published: March 7, 2025

Publisher: Changeling Press

1974: Peace, love, sex, drugs, and murder — at a commune in the mountains
of West Virginia.

Hope knew she should have killed Jesse the night he used her as his marker
in a poker game with Spike. When Spike won that marker, he stole
Hope’s heart. But Spike wanted more than a weekend with Hope. He
wanted forever. That was more than Hope could promise. A man like Spike, a
good man, would never understand the evil a bastard like Jesse was capable
of.

1989: Now he’s First Sergeant Sam Callaghan, and he’s
back.

When a chance meeting drops Fiona Donovan into the arms of Sam Callaghan,
West Virginia State Police, their past twists in on both of them,
threatening to tear apart their worlds, for better or worse. Hope — Fiona
— was the love of his life, the woman who can still rock his world with a
single kiss. When he’s around her, Sam forgets to think. But first and
foremost Sam’s always been a cop. If Sam discovers Fiona really did
murder Jesse, will he be able to arrest her? There are a few things in
love’s way — like her dead husband’s missing body, over a
million dollars in cash, and the IRA…

Excerpt

The asphalt felt slightly sticky with heat under his black oxfords. The air
in the administration building was already stuffy, though summer wasn’t
officially here yet. Sam stood waiting at the front desk while the
receptionist called for a junior officer who would escort him back to the
operations building.

Brenda, his dispatcher, had asked him out a few weeks ago. A man couldn’t
help noticing how well Brenda filled out that uniform. She wasn’t Hope, but
she’d been there, been part of his life, every day for the last fifteen
years. If she hadn’t given up on him yet, Sam decided, he’d accept. Hell.
Maybe he’d ask her. He wasn’t getting any younger. Besides, there was that
betting pool the squad had going. He wasn’t supposed to know about it, but
there was little in his barracks that escaped his notice.

“Can I help you, Officer?”

Sam pushed his smoke-colored sunglasses to the top of his head long enough
to let his eyes adjust to the relatively dim interior florescent lighting.
He looked down — and down again.

The woman who stood behind the reception desk now had to be less than five
feet tall. She stood admiring him with pale blue eyes that were just a
little too friendly.

Where had she come from? How had she managed to simply appear right in
front of him? He really was losing his edge. “I’m already signed in and
stamped,” Sam explained. He held out his fist so she could see the ink
that looked like a temporary tattoo across the back of his hand.

Her warm appraisal made him uncomfortable, like a piece of meat in a
butcher’s display case. He always got a sick, guilty feeling in the pit of
his stomach when women looked at him that way. He slipped his hand into his
pocket, fingering a worn silver chain.

Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with thee…

He shifted his gaze away from direct contact with the woman at the front
desk, studying the pictures on the wall behind her. Anything but meeting the
woman’s watercolor eyes. Anything not to encourage her.

The pictures held the usual faces. The Governor. The Commissioner of
Corrections. The names changed from one institution to another, but the
faces stayed pretty much the same. “Sam Callaghan, West Virginia State
Police. I’m waiting for –“

Except that one. Sam stopped mid-sentence as his eyes scanned the picture
again. Employee of the Month. “Fiona J. Donovan.”

The woman blinked twice. “Excuse me?”

He was hardly aware he’d read the name aloud. Sam rallied himself, forcing
his breathing back under control, willing his pulse rate back to normal. He
turned his most charming smile on the little woman. Her badge said she was a
unit manager. Doris White. “I’m waiting for an escort back to
Interview, Ms. White, but I’d really like to see Fiona Donovan while I’m
here if you could arrange that for me.”

Doris studied him for a moment longer, her smile fading. “Fiona’s in
records, pulling some case files for me. I’ll take you back.”

Sam nodded curtly, dismissing the woman as if she didn’t exist. Because,
for him, she didn’t exist. His mouth went dry. His chest felt tight, as if
there were some great weight pressing on it. He slid his hand back into his
pocket. Hail Mary, full of grace…

The hall seemed like the longest walk he’d ever taken. You’re just
imagining the resemblance. You’ve been wrong before.

The Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women…

Why would she be here? He’d thought to find her in a restaurant, or a shop
somewhere or — or anywhere else. Anything but actually working in law
enforcement.

Hope? A caseworker named Fiona Donovan? That can’t be Hope. Not here.

Doris waved at a doorway where a sign on the wall said Records. “I’ll
be around the corner in the copy room if you need me,” she
offered.

Hope…

His heart was beating so fast it was bound to explode.

Pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.

He stood staring, drinking in the sight of her, waiting for her to feel his
eyes watching, waiting for her to look up, recognize him, call his
name.

Control. Get yourself under control. Slow, deep breaths. Can’t let her see
you falling apart like this.

Her name was different, her hair was shorter, just past shoulder length,
but she couldn’t change her face — the face that had haunted his dreams.
She looked a little older, naturally, but not so much older. Not as much
older as he’d been feeling lately. She’d gained some weight, but only enough
to give her curves a fuller, softer line. He’d have recognized her anywhere.
His arms ached to hold her. He had to try three times before he could find
the voice to speak her name.

“Ms. Donovan?”

About the Author

Shelby Morgen loves writing offbeat tales that defy as many rules as
possible.

She likes chocolate with her peanut butter, suspense with her romance, and
kink with her sex, and she’s always had a hard time keeping murder,
motorcycles, science fiction, fantasy and paranormal from mixing with her
kink.

Shelby shares her belief in electronic publishing with her longtime friend
and partner, Bill, her husband of more than four decades.

Publisher on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, & TikTok:
@changelingpress

Pre-Order Today

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by Jennifer Reed/ bookjunkiez | · 5:00 am

Grit & Grace Virtual Book Tour

The Transformation of a Ship & a Soul

Memoir

Date Published: February 27th, 2025

Publisher: Acorn Publishing

Deborah Rudell’s world unravels when the leaders of her spiritual
commune are exposed, arrested, and imprisoned for bioterrorism and attempted
murder. Crushed and adrift, she moves her family off the commune to create a
sense of normalcy. But when her husband seeks an opportunity to dismantle
and rebuild a derelict fifty-foot schooner, Deborah uproots their children
once again and joins him in Kauai. For the next five years, she dedicates
her life to restoring a boat.

Pouring herself into the work at hand can only distract her so much as
disillusionment about the cult’s lies and manipulation slowly rises to
the surface. While she grapples with emotional turmoil and contemplates a
new life path, Deborah sets out to accomplish something she never thought
possible: sailing across the Pacific to the Olympic Peninsula. Will the
dangers that come with navigating the ocean be too much to bear, or will she
find resolution and fortitude in the turbulent adventure?

Grit & Grace: The Transformation of a Ship & a Soul is one
woman’s account of conquering overwhelming challenges with tenacity
and ingenuity and ultimately discovering her inner strength.

EXCERPT

Pacific Ocean – June 1992
     Even if I screamed no one would hear me over the sound of the waves and the fierce wind; a wind so strong my slender body couldn’t stay upright unless I held onto the boat. It was pitch black, and I was alone on the helm for the predawn watch aboard a fifty-foot wooden schooner. My husband slept in the cockpit, and three more crew members were tied into their bunks below.
     The compass glowed dim red in the blackness, preserving my night vision. It was the only thing my eyes discerned except the occasional foamy wave tops that glowed briefly with limey phosphorescence before being swept under the dark water of the next wave. My fingers, slick with rain and spray, encircled the spokes of the wheel as I adjusted our heading according to the pale numbers of the compass. I struggled to keep the needle on 000, our northerly heading, but the violent pitching of the vessel made it almost impossible.
     The end of June was supposed to be the ideal time to cross the Pacific from Hawaii to Washington, a time when conditions were the most stable. Yet here I was in forty-five knot winds. Technically, a gale.
     Harnessed to the boat, I clung to the wheel with my hands, to the decks with my bare toes, and to the compass heading with my eyes, my mind rapidly spinning out of control. Fear. Panic. Terror. We’ll be swamped, capsize, and drown.
     The sea was immensely powerful. Elixir was puny, fragile like a single piece of straw in a whitewater river. The masts will break off like toothpicks; we’ll tip over and sink. I imagined myself sliding off the boat, the cold water seeping into my foul weather gear, the waves holding my head beneath the foaming sea, breathing in the salty water, gasping.

     My teeth clamped tight around a paper tongue. No saliva left. I tried licking saltwater from my lips, but I couldn’t swallow. What had I been thinking over the last five years of building this boat and deciding to sail it across the Pacific? How could I have ever thought it would be fun or exciting? How did I ever dare to presume I could learn to be at sea when conditions were less than ideal? Let alone in a gale?
     Unable to find any relief from the deafening noise and violent motion of the storm, I tried to search inside myself for ways to navigate extreme distress and control my panic. All I found were images of me floating face down in the dark waves, alongside the corpses of my husband and son as we drifted among bits of a broken ship. And it was only our third night at sea; we’d only just begun our long ocean journey north.
     What’s that? My mind alerted me. There’s something on the rail. I strained to see through the black night. No, nothing. Yet I sensed something there on the rail, despite the thrashing seas and the wail-scream in the rigging. Whatever it was, the beings I intuited on the rail caught my attention, gradually pulling my focus away from my terror and thoughts of drowning. I had read books about people in life threatening situations, during which they experienced visions or heard voices that assisted them to survive untenable ordeals.
     Angels? Could that be possible? Is this what is happening to me? Has my mind snapped from the intensity of my circumstances?
There seemed to be several of them, round and smushing together. A perception rather than an actual vision, they appeared to be joking with each other, laughing so hard they nearly fell off the rail. I am definitely going off my rails.
     It was as if they were enjoying the ride, and at the same time assuring me that, despite the enormity of the sea and the ferocity of the wind, the elements were merely frolicking. This communication was through a mixture of pictures, words, and feelings conveyed in a flash. Frolicking? Really? Wind at this speed rips branches off trees and causes cars to veer off the road. The extremes of the Pacific Ocean proved larger, stronger, and louder than any thunder and lightning I had ever experienced on the lake where I grew up in British Columbia.

As a pink blush started to permeate the gray of early day, I could make out the rail, emerging from the dark in a rosy glow, materializing into something solid and real, absent angels or anything else. The boat parts were like apparitions emerging from a fog, once again becoming part of a whole wooden ship.

About the Author

A college professor in San Diego, California, Deborah Rudell participates
in her city’s vibrant writing community. She is a graduate of Hay
House Writer’s Workshop and the Certificate in Memoir Writing program
at San Diego Writers, Ink. Her work has been published in the International
Memoir Writers Association’s anthology, Shaking the Tree: I Didn’t See
That One Coming.

Deborah lives with her black cat in a tiny house built in 1906 by a retired
sea captain, who carved a sailing ship into the front door. This is her
first book.

Contact Links

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by Jennifer Reed/ bookjunkiez | · 5:00 am

Spoons Blitz

Children’s, Self-Help, Grief, Loss, Illustrated

Spoons is a sweet story about enduring loss and finding hope. At some
point, every family will face the loss of a loved one, and the Spoon family
is no different. Children and adults can find comfort from the lessons in
this book and apply them to their own family stories.

About the Author

Throughout her life, J. Corn has dealt with grief: first losing her mom at
a young age, then her husband leaving her a single mother of two, and most
recently her father. The grieving process has taught her the importance of
talking about your loved one after they’re gone. No one should suffer alone
or in silence. Corn hopes that SPOONS will encourage families to share
stories about their loved ones, even when it’s dificult. She and her
children are active members of their community grief counseling center.
SPOONS is Corn’s debut book.

About the book Spoons is a sweet story about enduring loss and finding
hope. At some point, every family will face the loss of a loved one, and the
Spoon family is no different. Children and adults can find comfort from the
lessons in this book and apply them to their own family stories.

Contact Links

Website

Instagram and Threads: @jcorn.books

Youtube

Purchase Link

Amazon

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by Jennifer Reed/ bookjunkiez | · 5:00 am

Insatiable Darkness Audiobook Tour

The Vigilant Series

YA, Urban Fantasy

Date Published: 12-31-2024

Publisher: Phenomenal One Press

EmVee didn’t know what to think about this new town her
father’s passion for boxing lured them. It was an unlikely location
for her to pursue her dream of going semi-pro. Just when she started getting
used to the school with gorgeous jocks and strange cheerleaders, the depth
of the danger her father’s choices dangled them in front of became
clear. EmVee hoped Silas and Kayson will be able to help her uncover the
mystery identity of the person who is threatening her family. The question
is, will she survive to expose the mystery.

Books in the Series

Insatiable Darkness (Book 0)

Caged Fire (Book 1)

Unbreakable Darkness (Book 1.5)

Scepter Of Fire (Book 2)

Break The Darkness (Book 2.5)

Rebel of Fire (Book 3)

Sword of Darkness (Book 3.5)

Blade Of Fire (Book 4)

About the Author

L.M. Preston, a native of Washington, DC. An avid reader, she loved to
create poetry and short-stories as a young girl. She is an author, an
engineer, a professor, a mother and a wife. Her passion for writing and
helping others to see their potential through her stories and encouragement
has been her life’s greatest adventures.She loves to write while on
the porch watching her kids play or when she is traveling, which is another
passion that encouraged her writing.

Contact Links

Purchase Links