Category: Family Saga

“Daughters of Green Mountain Gap” by Teri M. Brown

May 18, 2024

The “Daughters of Green Mountain Gap” by Teri M. Brown is a poignant story that spans centuries. Maggie, Carrie Ann, and Josie Mae are the daughters of Green Mountain Gap. Maggie is a granny woman who has spent her life working to heal others from illness and disease. Her daughter Carrie Ann is a nurse who wants to heal others too but is using her formal education to do so. Josie Mae is Carrie’s daughter and stuck in the middle. … More “Daughters of Green Mountain Gap” by Teri M. Brown

“A China Farewell” by May Hsu

May 14, 2024

Have you ever wondered about your family? Or what they’ve been through that brought you to this point? It’s one thing to send off a DNA sample, but it’s another to live vicariously through their stories. In “A China Farewell,” author May Hsu pays homage to her ancestors by chronicling a fictionalized version of their experiences. Spanning the years between 1936 and 1976, the book tracks significant events that shaped the political and cultural landscape in China, and how these impacted the Tsai family on a personal level. It narrates how the family struggled to maintain some semblance of normalcy – raising their children during the years preceding and succeeding the Second World War, as well as the Chinese Civil War that occurred almost immediately afterward. Through the book, we witness the family’s struggles and how living through these times indelibly affected their psyche. … More “A China Farewell” by May Hsu

“1871: Rivers on Fire” by Paul Buchheit

February 14, 2024

“1871: Rivers on Fire” by Paul Buchheit is a dramatic historical romance grounded in true events–two fires: one in Chicago, the other in Peshtigo, Wisconsin. The main characters are Robert and Liz, a married couple sharing a passion for neuroscience research. They find themselves in the center of these raging events, including the social issues surrounding them.  … More “1871: Rivers on Fire” by Paul Buchheit

“Heaven Sequence” by Dorian McClenahan

February 13, 2024

“Heaven Sequence” by Dorian McClenahan, is an engrossing and entertaining science fiction adventure that will make you an instant fan of this author. We start with prestigious cognitive neuroscientist Dr. Christian Alexander, who works at a New York City research center specializing in neurology. His psychiatrist father, also a researcher, studied the near-death phenomena, but went missing before his son Christian was born, leaving behind a mystery. When young Christian finds some photos as a young boy, he begins a quest to find his father, whom Christian thinks left to live in a distant paradise that reaches past near-death experiences. Christian’s journey involves observing brain activity while the near-death experience is happening. His monitoring begins with the Great Ape and proposes the hypothesis that the brains of humans are active minutes following the moment of physical death. … More “Heaven Sequence” by Dorian McClenahan

“The Delany Bennets” by Desiree R. Kannel

February 8, 2024

Fresh and imaginative, with an incredibly realistic storyline, I found myself quickly immersed in Desiree R. Kannel’s contemporary Black adaptation of Jane Austen’s revered classic, Pride and Prejudice. The book—with its captivating beginning—is well-crafted and its ingenious plot is bound to delight fans of the genre. … More “The Delany Bennets” by Desiree R. Kannel

“Tell Me You Love Me” by Kathleen Stone

January 20, 2024

1965, April’s life was turned upside down when her mother married wealthy Clark Fairbanks. She is thrust into a new life, and her little family of two becomes four. Clark’s son, Auggie, seems intent on antagonizing April and claiming ownership of her mother. But when tragedy slices through the family, the siblings turn to each other for love and safety. … More “Tell Me You Love Me” by Kathleen Stone

“Death in the Tallgrass” by Donald Willerton

January 16, 2024

“Death in the Tallgrass: A Young Man’s Journey Through the Western Frontier” by Donald Willerton is about Harry Bonner’s endeavor to discover what truly happened to his uncle after being kidnapped by Comanche Indians in 1870.  After doing some research inspired by his law studies, Harry discovered that what his mother told him, that his Uncle Sam died of cholera along with her parents when she was 6 years old, is not the truth.  … More “Death in the Tallgrass” by Donald Willerton

“Hey Jude” by Kathleen Stone

January 13, 2024

When Jude’s deaf twin, Prudence, died suddenly of a brain aneurysm, Jude’s world went dark. The surviving twin grappled with soul-crushing grief, which she tried to bury with self-destruction—drinking, drugs, and promiscuity. But it only made things worse by antagonizing her parents and prompting their threat of sending her to rehab if she didn’t clean up her act. … More “Hey Jude” by Kathleen Stone