In the first story, The Golden Sax, on the opening night of his new jazz club, The Lion's Claw Lounge, Mike Battan finds himself involved with Michele Diamond the lead singer of his opening night band Jilted Lover. Michele is strapped with a problem. Knowing Battan was previously an investigative reporter with The Daily Metropolitan, she seeks his help in recovering a saxophone which had been stolen from her. Mike's gut tells him that with the burden of running a saloon, he can't get invol...

Writers hang around with shady characters. These stories reflect the irony and variety of situations that exist in this bizarre world. It seems that weekly, the bar is raised on the outrage society accepts. Anything goes. Shock disappears faster than an ice cube in the heat. Irony is woven in the fabric of every day conversation as much as wise ass remarks. Being irked by people, and politics comes as regularly as the sun rising and setting. Irony runs rampant.

The world needs humor; every situation, country, industry. They hunger that injection to curb the stress and put a new perspective on a bad situation made worse by the insane political correct mania. - Tom KuntzmannLaugh and world laughs with you --- Snore and you sleep alone – Anthony BurgessThese stories are similar to caricatures sketched by artist at a carnival. They are on the spot reactions to situations that happened at bars, barbecues and other locales in the New Yor...

For investigative reporter Mike Battan, his last assignment for The Daily Metropolitan turned personal when his editor, Hammer Clancy, is shot dead minutes after Battan left the office. Battan now finds himself strapped with a deadline of seven days to find and interview Walter Weiss. A cold trail heats up as leads supplied by questionable street sources and crooked ex-cops lure Battan into the underground gambling dens of Manhattan, a secret corporate world and the undesirable New York ra...

"Excellent" poetry and prose about physicians and their patients, by Raymond Carver, Kay Redfield Jamison, Rachel Naomi Remen, and more ( Library Journal).A Life in Medicine collects stories, poems, and essays by and for those in the healing profession, who are struggling to keep up with the science while staying true to the humanitarian goals at the heart of their work. Organized around the central themes of altruism, knowledge, skill, and duty, ...

This acclaimed biography "provides the most comprehensive assessment yet of [the Founding Father's] controversial reputation" (Joseph J. Ellis, The New York Times Book Review).After leaving London for Philadelphia in 1774, Thomas Paine became one of the most influential political writers of the modern world and the greatest radical of a radical age. Through writings like Common Sense, he not only turned America's colonial rebellion into a revolutio...

A secret crush turns to passion in this romantic suspense when a woman is rescued by her brother's best friend, an elite, military trained agent.AEGIS: an elite team of ex-military men who will do anything for their country...and their womenFighting to clear her brother of murder, freelance reporter Sassy Smith is suddenly kidnapped and thrown into a truck with other women who are about to be sold...or worse. When she sees an opportunity for escape S...

A special forces veteran must save the woman he never forgot from an enemy bent on revenge in this sexy military romantic thriller.A former SEAL and Black Ops specialist who left the CIA, Nick Donovan gave up a life on the edge to work in the private sector. But that didn't stop his enemies from coming after him—or his family. In a case of mistaken identity, a drug cartel kidnaps his sister-in-law's best friend . . . a woman from Nick's past.One minute Jenn...

Nominated for the 2017 Anthony Award for Best Anthology/CollectionBestselling novelists David Morrell, Alison Gaylin and Elaine Viets headline a new anthology of 22 tales exploring the unique aura of mystery of New Orleans and the surrounding bayou country.BLOOD ON THE BAYOU is published in conjunction with Bouchercon, the World Mystery Convention, which is being held in New Orleans in 2016. As with the convention itself, the anthology spreads a broad canop...

Landing the lead role in Knotting Hill should’ve been Iris Walker’s big break—a romantic comedy with an all-star cast and crew, and the chance to prove just how good of an actress she really is beyond the roles she’s been pigeonholed into.Except her heat suppressants just wore off… and the director, cinematographer, writer, and leading man?Yeah. They’re all her scent matches.She came to make movie magic, but now she’s just trying not to com...

This edited volume explores the democratic dangers posed by a political press that emphasizes electoral competition, strategy, entertainment, and what Jay Rosen calls “savviness”—praising candidates for being politically smart rather than being honest—in its coverage of a political landscape dominated by a looming authoritarian threat. Contributors document how the American and global political press have failed to fulfill their role in elections and demonstrate how authoritarians have use...

The first installment in the Elite Ops series, featuring sexy ex-military men ... and the women who rescue their hearts.Former DEA agent Leland Hollis wasn't planning on being a hero. Recovering from an injury sustained during a drug bust gone wrong and with more personal demons than he cares to admit, he wants nothing more than peace and a chance to rebuild his life. But when Anna Mercado's crazy ex shows up wielding a baseball bat, Leland can't ignore his instinct to hel...