Scribbler Tales: The Thriller Collection by Mary Ann Bernal – Cinematic Trailer - When Survival Is the Only Rule

 

Deadly Secrets • Desperate Measures • Endgame • Escape from Berlin Hidden Lies • Illusion • Pandemic • Revenge

Where Every Second Counts — And No One Is Safe

In a world driven by power, deception, and the thin line between truth and annihilation, Scribbler Tales: The Thriller Collection delivers eight pulse‑pounding stories where danger is relentless and survival is never guaranteed.

A fugitive races the clock as a deadly pathogen spreads. A government agent uncovers a secret no one was meant to know. A desperate escape across a hostile border becomes a fight for life. A web of lies tightens until the truth explodes.

Each story begins with a single spark — a betrayal, a discovery, a threat — and ignites into a high‑stakes battle where every choice has consequences. When enemies close in and time runs out, characters must confront the moment that defines them: fight, flee, or fall.

A Note from the Author

I wrote Scribbler Tales: The Thriller Collection to explore the tension that rises when ordinary people are thrust into extraordinary danger. Thrillers are about pressure — the kind that cracks foundations, exposes secrets, and forces characters to make impossible decisions.

These stories dive into espionage, bio‑threats, political intrigue, and the razor‑thin margin between disaster and survival. Each character faces a truth they can’t outrun and a threat that demands everything they have left.

This collection is a journey through fear, courage, and the relentless pursuit of escape, justice, or redemption.

About the Book

Deadly Secrets • Desperate Measures • Endgame • Escape from Berlin Hidden Lies • Illusion • Pandemic • Revenge

Danger closes in from every direction in this gripping anthology of eight high‑stakes thriller stories.

Classified experiments unravel. Enemies strike from the shadows. Borders become battlegrounds. And the truth — once uncovered — becomes the most dangerous weapon of all.

From espionage and bio‑terror to covert operations and desperate escapes, each tale delivers the full spectrum of thriller fiction: conspiracies, betrayals, ticking clocks, and the relentless pressure of being hunted.

Perfect for readers who crave fast‑paced suspense, shadowy intrigue, and stories where the stakes are life and death.

Note: This collection contains previously published stories from the Scribbler Tales series.

Ready to Enter the Crossfire?

Open Scribbler Tales: The Thriller Collection and step into a world where danger never blinks.

Buy the Book

Amazon Link: https://mybook.to/ScribblerTalesThriller

Universal Link: https://books2read.com/u/4X79e9

Learn more at: https://maryannbernal.com

 

 

If you enjoy discovering new stories, you may also like The AnaRose Chronicles—a trilogy of award‑winning adventure novellas. https://books2read.com/u/4jzKAY

Book Spotlight: The Fern Flower by Kathleen Shoop

 

St. Petersburg 1908-1917

Born into privilege as the daughter of the Tsar’s favored vodka maker, Mila appears to have everything: wealth, status, and a household devoted to her happiness. But behind the gilded doors of her family estate, she is trapped by the cruelty of a stepmother whose greatest wish is to give birth to her own child.

Each summer on Ivan Kupala Eve, Russia turns its gaze to river bends and forest floors in search of the legendary Fern Flower—a mythical bloom said to grant fortune, power, and the deepest desires of the heart. Only one person had ever found it.

Until Mila.

Years later, in the fading grandeur of Petrograd, Mila and her friends slip into the fabled Stray Dog Café, once the sanctuary of Russia’s most daring artists and dreamers. Inspired by its ghosts, murals, and memories, Mila's group resurrects the work she'd first imagined as a child. The Fern Flower is a breathtaking ballet drawn from folklore, magic, and the secrets of Mila’s past.

But in the fiercely competitive ranks of the Imperial Ballet School, talent is never enough. Though Mila wrote the ballet and her gifted musician friend composed its score, rivals question whether Mila is worthy of claiming the coveted lead role.

As World War I intensifies and revolution ignites, the Russia Mila knows begins to collapse. Family secrets surface, loyalties are tested, and the people she loves begin to disappear. When her parents flee and her young brother’s life hangs in the balance, Mila is faced with an impossible choice: remain with the found family who helped her chase her dreams or risk everything to save the person who needs her most.

With Russian folklore, imperial grandeur, and the fierce beauty of ballet, The Fern Flower is a sweeping tale of ambition, friendship, sacrifice, and the magic that survives even when the world is falling apart.

Buy Links:

Universal Buy Link: https://books2read.com/u/m0jpWJ (Kindle & Apple)

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-fern-flower-kathleen-shoop/1150136033?ean=2940183381290

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-fern-flower

Bestselling author, Kathleen Shoop, PhD’s novels have won awards in the Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPY), Eric Hoffer Book Awards, the Next Generation Indie Book Awards, Readers’ Favorite, and more.

Kathleen has more than 20 years of experience in the classroom and has been featured in USA Today and the Writer’s Guide. She co-coordinates Mindful Writers Retreats and co-coordinated the 2023 Pennwriters Conference.

She frequently teaches and is a regular presenter at conferences for writers.

Author Links:

Website: http://kshoop.com

Twitter / X: https://x.com/kathieshoop

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100057696591811

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kathleenshoop/?hl=en

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/kathleenshoop.bsky.social

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/kathieshoop/

Book Bub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/kathleen-shoop

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kathleenshoopauthor

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Kathleen-Shoop/author/B0051FCVQU

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/4787101.Kathleen_Shoop

 

If you enjoy powerful historical fiction, you’ll love Forgiving Nero. An award‑winning novel of betrayal, survival, and redemption set in ancient Rome. https://books2read.com/u/3GOMvQ

Book Spotlight: The Duty of Daughters by Wendy J. Dunn

 

Castile, 1490.

 

Doña Beatriz Galindo is an uneasy witness to the Holy War of Queen Isabel of Castile and her husband, Ferdinand, King of Aragon. A holy war pushing the Moors out of territories ruled by them for centuries.

 

Beatriz does not want a life like other women. She desires power over her own destiny. Even if this means walking a far harder road.

 

A passionate and respected scholar, Beatriz serves her friend Queen Isabel of Castile as her advisor. She also tutors the queen’s youngest child, Catalina of Aragon.

 

Dedicated to Queen Isabel and her children, Beatriz guides the young Catalina of Aragon to walk her own hard life road.

 

But can she prepare Catalina to be England’s queen?

 

Buy Links:

 Universal Buy Link – The Duty of Daughters: https://mybook.to/FPS

Universal Buy Link – El Deber de las Hijas: books2read.com/u/mVoKBA

  

 

Award-winning Australian author of Tudor historical fiction, specialising in Anne Boleyn and Katherine of Aragon novels.

 

Wendy J. Dunn is an award-winning Australian author, playwright and poet fascinated by Tudor history – so much so she was not surprised to discover a family connection to the Tudors, not long after the publication of her first Anne Boleyn novel narrating the Anne Boleyn story through the eyes of Sir Thomas Wyatt, the elder. Her family tree reveals the intriguing fact that one of her ancestral families – possibly over three generations – had purchased land from both the Boleyn and Wyatt families to build up their own holdings. It seems likely Wendy’s ancestors knew the Wyatts and Boleyns personally.

 

Her second novel, The Light in the Labyrinth, set during final days of Anne Boleyn's life, revisits the Anne Boleyn story through the eyes of her niece Catherine Carey. The Duty of Daughters and All Manner of Things tell the story of Katherine of Aragon. Shades of Yellow tells the story of a woman writing a novel about Amy Robsart.

 

All Dunn's award-winning works weave together the lyricism of poetry with the pulse of history, creating stories of love, loss, and the endurance of the human spirit.

 Author Links:

 Website: http://www.wendyjdunn.com/  

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorwendyjdunn/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wendyjdunnauthor/

Threads: https://www.threads.com/@wendyjdunnauthor

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/wendyjdunn.bsky.social

Book Bub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/wendy-j-dunn

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wendyjdunn

Amazon Author Page: https://amazon.com/author/wendyjdunn

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/197156.Wendy_J_Dunn

LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-wendy-dunn-6358181a/

Newsletter: https://wendyjdunn.substack.com/

 

 If you enjoy discovering new stories, you may also like The AnaRose Chronicles—a trilogy of award‑winning adventure novellas. https://books2read.com/u/4jzKAY

Book Spotlight: Renaissance Rivals by Karen Essex

 

Renaissance Rivals, the long-awaited sequel to the global bestseller Leonardo’s Swans, tells the story of the brutal rivalry between two of history’s most fascinating power women: Isabella d’Este, Marchesa of Mantua, celebrated in her own lifetime as “The First Lady of the World,” and Lucrezia Borgia, Duchess of Ferrara, daughter of the infamous Pope Alexander VI and one of the most maligned women in history.

 

Before Maggie O’Farrell’s doomed duchess in The Marriage Portrait, there were the women who built the courts, forged alliances, and commanded works of artistic genius. In both Renaissance Rivals and Leonardo’s Swans, Essex invites readers to step back one generation into the glittering courts of Renaissance Italy, where beauty, intellect, marriage, and ambition could determine the fate of nations.

 

Buy Links:

Universal Buy Link: https://books2read.com/u/mdpO2E

For paperback orders: https://shop.karenessex.com  

This book is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.

 

 

Karen Essex is the national and international bestselling author of RUN, DARLING, KLEOPATRA, PHARAOH, LEONARDO'S SWANS, STEALING ATHENA, DRACULA IN LOVE, AND BETTIE PAGE: LIFE OF A PINUP LEGEND. All feature iconic women—powerful women that seduced the world and ruled it.

Essex is also an active screenwriter and speaker, and an award-winning journalist. She divides her time between Los Angeles, New Orleans, and Europe. Her novels are published in twenty-nine languages.

Leonardo’s Swans, the prequel to Renaissance Rivals, was a runaway bestseller in Italy and won the prestigious Premio Roma for Foreign Fiction.

Author Links:

Website: https://www.karenessex.com

Twitter / X: https://x.com/KarenEssex

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KarenEssexAuthor/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/karenessex/

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/karenessex/

Book Bub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/karen-essex

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@karenessexwrites

Amazon Author Page: https://amzn.to/44OrSh5

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/22528.Karen_Essex

Follow Karen’s Substack newsletter, History. Sex. Power: https://substack.com/@karenessex

If you enjoy powerful historical fiction, you’ll love Forgiving Nero. An award‑winning novel of betrayal, survival, and redemption set in ancient Rome. https://books2read.com/u/3GOMvQ

 

 

Book Spotlight: Marie Conner, A Leading Lady by Elle Mott

 

Marie was born a girl. That was only her first mistake, according to her father.

 

In an era when daughters and wives are not supposed to be concerned with matters outside the home, Marie is determined to prove him wrong. To do this, she must break down barriers placed on women in society, overcome difficulties that befall her, surpass hardships from the Great Depression, and then face an inevitable relocation.

 

Marie steps into her community and into the hearts of many people to give her time and help with their needs. She wants nothing in return other than her father's acceptance as a worthy woman and yet, she gains much in return, even if it is not her father's praise. This is Marie’s story—of a rise from her girlhood angsts to become a leading lady—and much more.

 

This definitive biography is the empowering true story of one trailblazing woman who, in the mid-1900s in small-town America, changed her community and beyond for the better and forevermore.

 

Universal Buy Links:  

Amazon universal paperback link: https://mybook.to/AmazonMott

Author’s Website for all links: https://ellemottauthor.com/product/marie-conner  

 

Elle Mott is a creative nonfiction author who weaves advocacy and strength into her writing, empowering readers to find their purpose.

“Marie Conner, A Leading Lady" is her third book. She is also the author of “Out of Chaos: A Memoir” and “People Helping People.” Her next book, releasing this fall, will be as a contributing co-author to “When Women Talk, Notes From the Future: What I Would Tell My Younger Self.” Her other publications have been featured in literary journals, news magazines, and anthologies.

She has a background working in libraries, both at the college level and, for more than ten years, at the public library in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio. While library work is her livelihood, writing is her passion.

Elle grew up in Oregon and now makes her home in the suburbs of northern Kentucky with two cats and several pet birds.  

Author Links: 

Website: https://ellemottauthor.com

Twitter / X: https://twitter.com/novellemott

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ellemott.author

Book Bub: https://www.bookbub.com/books/marie-conner-a-leading-lady-her-life-and-civic-leadership-in-a-bygone-era-by-elle-mott

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Elle-Mott/author/B07G4FXMSJ

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/elle_mott  

 AllAuthor: https://allauthor.com/author/ellemott

Kofi: https://ko-fi.com/ellemott

 

If you enjoy powerful historical fiction, you’ll love Forgiving Nero. An award‑winning novel of betrayal, survival, and redemption set in ancient Rome. https://books2read.com/u/3GOMvQ

Book Spotlight: Dragonslayer’s Valkyrie: The Legend of Sigurd and Brynhildr by Jennifer Ivy Walker

 

Last of the Völsung line of kings descended from Odin, Sigurd is one of the elite Sjórúlfar—the fearsome Sea Wolves of southern Norway. Endowed with the divine blood of the wolf, he seeks glory at the Sólhjarta Summer Solstice Tournament to avenge his father’s death.

Brynhildr, daughter of the Raven King, is the Sun Falcon shieldmaiden and gifted seeress who has glimpsed her fate as a Valkyrie in a seiðr vision. When her father decrees she must wed the tournament’s champion, she summons Freyja for guidance—only to learn her future is bound to Sigurd.

As the Norns tighten the intricate threads of fate, Brynhildr must guide Sigurd toward his destiny as a dragonslayer—by defying the web of wyrd and incurring the wrath of Odin.

Buy Links:

 Universal Buy Link (if you have it): https://books2read.com/u/3GBKMQ

 This book is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.

 Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oINFQczi3XY

 

 Jennifer Ivy Walker has an MA in French literature and is a former high school teacher and professor of French at a state college in Florida. Her novels encompass a love for French language, literature, history, and culture, incorporating her lifelong study, summers abroad, and many trips to France.

 Author Links:

 Website: https://jenniferivywalker.com/

Twitter / X: https://x.com/bohemienneivy

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JenniferIvyWalker

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jenniferivywalkerauthor/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-ivy-walker-685b58248/

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/jenniferivywalker.bsky.social

Pinterest: https://uk.pinterest.com/bohemienneivy/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@jenniferivywalker6412

Book Bub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jennifer-ivy-walker

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jenniferivywalker

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Jennifer-Ivy-Walker/author/B0B91R2MJZ

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/22671046.Jennifer_Ivy_Walker

 

 If you enjoy powerful historical fiction, you’ll love Forgiving Nero. An award‑winning novel of betrayal, survival, and redemption set in ancient Rome. https://books2read.com/u/3GOMvQ

 

 

NEW RELEASE: BOX SET: THE UNDERGROUND KNOWLEDGE SERIES VI-X (Bankrupting the Third World / Underground Bases / Vaccine Science Revisited / Unit 731 / Mysterious Greenland)

 

The Underground Knowledge Series VI–X plunges readers deeper into the shadows of global power, exposing the hidden forces shaping society in ways most people never imagine. In this controversial and explosive box set, bestselling authors James and Lance Morcan continue their relentless investigation into the world’s most secretive institutions, controversial subjects, and suppressed truths.

BANKRUPTING THE THIRD WORLD: How the Global Elite Drown Poor Nations in a Sea of Debt reveals how developing nations are systematically crippled by debt, corruption, and predatory global financial systems. The Morcans trace the mechanisms that keep billions in poverty, exposing the geopolitical strategies and economic traps that ensure the rich get richer while vulnerable nations remain perpetually exploited.

UNDERGROUND BASES: Subterranean Military Facilities and the Cities Beneath Our Feet uncovers the secretive world beneath our feet—vast subterranean complexes, classified military installations, and rumored deep‑earth facilities hidden from public view. This volume explores leaked documents, eyewitness accounts, and decades of speculation surrounding covert underground infrastructure and the powerful institutions that benefit from its secrecy.

VACCINE SCIENCE REVISITED: Are Childhood Immunizations As Safe As Claimed? tackles one of the most contentious subjects of the modern era. Without taking simplistic positions, the authors examine scientific studies, historical controversies, and conflicting expert opinions to illuminate the complex landscape of vaccine research. It’s a fearless, thought‑provoking investigation into a topic often clouded by emotion, politics, and misinformation.

UNIT 731: The Japanese Auschwitz confronts one of history’s darkest chapters. Morcan and Morcan detail the atrocities committed by Imperial Japan’s covert biological warfare division—an operation responsible for horrific human experimentation and mass suffering. Presented with sensitivity and historical rigor, this volume exposes how much of Unit 731’s legacy remains shrouded in secrecy even today.

MYSTERIOUS GREENLAND: Frontier of the Breakaway Civilization ventures into the icy unknown, exploring the world’s least understood landmass. From classified military activity to ancient legends and unexplained anomalies, the authors investigate why Greenland has long fascinated governments, explorers, and conspiracy theorists alike. This is a journey into a place where myth and geopolitics collide.

Together, these five volumes form a powerful, unsettling, and endlessly fascinating exploration of hidden truths the Morcans are renowned for. The Underground Knowledge Series VI–X is essential reading for anyone who suspects the world is far stranger—and far less transparent—than we are led to believe.

 BUY LINKS

Kindle link:  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0HCJK2V7Q

Goodreads Link:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/256229191-the-underground-knowledge-series-vi-x

This book is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.

Also available as an audiobook.

James Morcan

New Zealand–born actor, writer, and producer James Morcan is the co‑author of numerous bestselling novels and nonfiction works, many written with his father, Lance Morcan. His books span historical adventure, international thrillers, and investigative nonfiction, and have been translated into eight languages. Morcan is also a screenwriter and lead actor in several international film productions, including the post‑apocalyptic feature After Armageddon. Through Morcan Motion Pictures, he is developing adaptations of Silent Fear and The Underground Knowledge Series. Beyond publishing and film, he hosts the Underground Knowledge podcast and founded one of Goodreads’ most active global discussion groups.

 

 Lance Morcan

New Zealand novelist, screenwriter, and former journalist Lance Morcan is the author of more than 35 fiction and nonfiction titles, many co‑written with his son, James Morcan, and published through Sterling Gate Books. Their collaborations span historical adventure, international thrillers, and investigative nonfiction, including the bestselling White Spirit, Into the Americas, and The Underground Knowledge Series. Lance’s solo work includes the sweeping historical epic New Zealand: A Novel, a project five decades in the making. Several Morcan titles have been long‑running Amazon bestsellers, and their production company, Morcan Motion Pictures, is developing film adaptations of Silent Fear, Into the Americas, and White Spirit.

  Connect with the Authors

For inquiries, media requests, or additional information about James and Lance Morcan’s work, please contact their publisher:

 Sterling Gate Books Ltd.

New Zealand Phone: +64 7 572 5526

Mobile: +64 27 576 5037

Email: sterlinggatebooks@gmail.com

Explore more of their books and film projects

https://morcanbooksandfilms.com/

 

 

Scribbler Tales: The Gothic Collection by Mary Ann Bernal– Cinematic Trailer - Where Shadows Remember What We Forget

 

Bloodlust • Cunning • Forbidden Lore • Nightmare

The Hourglass • The Portrait • The Ritual

Note: This collection contains previously published stories from the Scribbler Tales series.

In forgotten corridors and ancestral halls, shadows cling to the walls like memories that refuse to die. Scribbler Tales: The Gothic Collection gathers seven chilling stories where dread is patient, secrets breathe, and ancient forces stir beneath the surface of ordinary lives.

Watch the Trailer below and step into a world where the past hunts the Living.

A Note from the Author

I wrote  Scribbler Tales: The Gothic Collection to explore the quiet terror that lives between moments — the breath before the candle goes out, the creak in an empty hallway, the instinct that something unseen is watching. Gothic horror is not about spectacle; it is about atmosphere, inheritance, and the shadows we carry.

These stories examine the weight of legacy, the lure of forbidden knowledge, and the thin line between fear and fascination. Each character faces a truth they were never meant to uncover and the consequences that follow when the past refuses to stay buried.

This collection is a journey through dread, revelation, and the haunting realization that some secrets choose their keepers.

About the Book

Bloodlust • Cunning • Forbidden Lore • Nightmare

The Hourglass • The Portrait • The Ritual

Note: This collection contains previously published stories from the Scribbler Tales series.

Shadows rise, secrets awaken, and ancient forces stir in seven dark tales where the past refuses to stay buried.

Ancestral homes whisper. Portraits breathe. Witches gather. Demons bargain.
Each story pulls its characters toward a truth more terrifying than the fear they carry. When the veil finally tears, they must confront the darkness that has been waiting for them — patient, hungry, and bound by blood.

This atmospheric anthology blends gothic mystery, dark folklore, supernatural possession, and ritual-driven horror into a chilling collection perfect for readers who crave haunted cemeteries, occult secrets, and slow-burning dread steeped in classic Gothic tradition.

Ready to Descend?

Open Scribbler Tales: The Gothic Collection and step into a world where the shadows remember everything.

Buy the Book

Amazon Link:

https://books2read.com/u/bz0vwZ

Universal Link:

https://books2read.com/u/bz0vwZ

Learn more at

https://maryannbernal.com

If you enjoy discovering new stories, you may also like The AnaRose Chronicles—a trilogy of award‑winning adventure novellas. https://books2read.com/u/4jzKAY

 

Book Spotlight: One More Hour of Daylight by C.M. Gray

From the Bestselling Author of Shadowland

On the first day of World War II, a young man makes a promise—one that will shape every choice he makes for the next four years.

 

Essex. September 1939.

 

A wounded German pilot drops from a clear autumn sky into a quiet English field. Seventeen-year-old Derrick finds him—broken and feverish. Not an enemy. Just a young man asking for one small mercy before everything ends.

 

One more hour of daylight. That is all I ask. A chance to breathe free air before whatever comes next.

 

Derrick gives him until morning.

 

When the stretcher comes, the pilot’s last words strike Derrick like a blow he will never stop feeling.

 

Scotland. France. Germany. 1941–1943.

 

In the mountains of Scotland, they teach him how to kill, how to lie, and how to endure things that break most men. Then they give him a new name, put him on a plane, and drop him into the dark.

 

As an SOE operative deep inside occupied Europe, Derrick Sedgley lives on false papers, borrowed names, and nerves worn to nothing by years in the shadows. He moves agents to safety, builds escape routes, and stays one breath ahead of the Gestapo.

 

Then a mission collapses—and everything changes.

 

Forced to run, Derrick finds himself moving through the most dangerous corners of occupied Europe alongside someone whose connection to his past he cannot yet see. As safe houses fall, loyalties fracture, and the frozen passes of the Pyrenees rise ahead like the edge of the world, Derrick begins to understand something.

 

The choice he made in an Essex field on the first day of the war has been leading him here all along.

 

Some debts cannot be paid.
Some can only be carried.
And some—if you are brave enough, and fortunate enough—can finally be laid to rest.

 

From the quiet fields of Essex to the mountains of Scotland, from the dangerous streets of Lyon to the shadows of wartime Hamburg and the high passes of the Pyrenees, One More Hour of Daylight is an unforgettable story of courage, guilt and redemption—of ordinary people forced to make impossible choices in extraordinary times.

 

Some promises can survive a war.
Some people can too.

For readers who believe that even in war, what matters most is who we choose to be.

Praise for One More Hour of Daylight:

"A beautifully written book with a perfect pace that kept me reading

from start to finish."
~ Bookcollector, Amazon 5* Review

"A confident, carefully crafted novel that handles its subject matter with restraint, earning the weight it carries."
~ Indie Library, Goodreads 5* Review

 Buy Link:

 Universal Buy Link: https://books2read.com/u/bz01nG

 This title is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.

 

C.M. Gray's first book, The Flight of the Griffin, was longlisted in the 2015 Times Chicken House Writing Competition. Shadowland, the first book in the Pendragon Saga, has so far received over 900 five-star reviews on Amazon. These things still genuinely astonish him, and he is deeply grateful for every one of them.

Most of his previous work has been fantasy: either pure fantasy or historical fantasy, the kind of writing where druids turn up uninvited and one of your main characters develops an unsettling affinity with wolves before you have quite decided what sort of book you are writing. Shadowland began with every intention of staying grounded in historical reality, the story of Uther Pendragon. It did not. It has turned out to be a popular book, so he does not complain.

His years travelling through Asia, India, Africa and the Middle East have a habit of finding their way onto the page. He has seen and done some fairly strange things along the way and met some extraordinary people, and writing fantasy has always felt, to him, only a short step from writing fact.

New for 2026

One More Hour of Daylight, marks C.M. Gray's return to writing. It will be fully published in June 2026, marking a departure: pure historical fiction, no druids, no wolves. It follows Derrick Sedgley, a seventeen-year-old from Essex who makes a single moral choice in a field one September morning in 1939 and spends the next four years living with the consequences. From the Essex countryside to occupied France, from the mountains of Burgundy to the Pyrenees, it is a story about promises, betrayal, courage and the cost of doing the right thing too late.

And for those who have been waiting patiently for the Pendragon Saga to continue: the third book, Shadow's Heir, the story of Arthur Pendragon, follows in September 2026. More on that very soon.

C.M. Gray was born in England and grew up in the Essex countryside near the Suffolk border, which is where Derrick Sedgley grows up, too. The flat fields, the big skies and the particular quality of Essex light found their way into the book, whether he intended them to or not.

C.M. Gray is now very happily settled just outside Barcelona with his wonderful wife and partner in life, Adriana.

Author Links:

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B0H23SV952/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5752854.C_M_Gray

 

If you enjoy discovering new stories, you may also like The AnaRose Chronicles—a trilogy of award‑winning adventure novellas. https://books2read.com/u/4jzKAY

Spotlight on Lois Burak: Legacy Unplugged

 

Image Credit: Doc Ivan

Daughter of Philadelphia radio personality Marvin Burak, Lois grew up surrounded by controversy, creativity, and the fight for free speech. Determined to find her own voice, she launched The LOLO SHOW, an internet program that gave her space to connect and belong. The show later aired on SiriusXM and terrestrial radio, featuring comedians such as Shane Gillis and Jim Florentine before their rise to wider fame.

Now, her documentary The LOLO SHOW examines how family legacies echo across generations, reminding us that the voices of the past continue to shape who we are today. Beneath the story of her own journey lies another: Lois is the daughter of Marvin Burak, a controversial radio personality who spent years in court defending his right to speak freely, and her mother, an exotic dancer from New Orleans. This layered history makes the documentary not only personal but also a broader exploration of inheritance and identity.

Lois Burak is a media creator and storyteller who launched The LOLO SHOW to explore themes of identity and belonging. After nearly 25 years running a salon and day spa in Philadelphia, she enrolled in broadcasting school in her 40s and built her show from nothing. Today, she continues to build her platform through documentary work, blending family history with modern voices to spark conversation and connection.

Connect with Lois:

Website: www.theloloshow.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/loisburak/?hl=en

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@theloloshowfilm

Image Credit: Doc Ivan

If you enjoy discovering new stories, you may like The AnaRose Chronicles—a trilogy of award‑winning adventure novellas. https://books2read.com/u/4jzKAY

Book Spotlight: Fearless Hearts Forbidden Love by Anthea Laurelton

 

To save her city, she must risk her life.

To fulfil his oath, he must harden his heart.

Together, they stand to lose everything.

Spartan warrior, Diokles, has waited years for the opportunity to right a failure that torments his heart and integrity. Sent to hunt down a threat to Sparta, this campaign may be his final chance to restore his honour and uncover the traitor whose actions blighted his life. Success is at his fingertips, but when duty forces him to take an unwilling accomplice, his plans are challenged in ways he never foresaw.

Leandra, high priestess of Apollysis, stands at the edge of revelation and ruin. Haunted by fragments of a forgotten past, she alone can uncover the truth that will save her city. To do so, she must wear the fabled Coronet of Apollo, a sacred act that could cost her life.

Bound together by necessity and desire, captor and captive race into danger the closer they draw to the shrine of Apollo. With a relentless enemy closing in, one who seeks Diokles dead and Leandra for himself, their growing passion becomes both their greatest strength and their most perilous weakness.

In a time where prophecy, honour, and blood rule, love was never part of the plan.

An epic historical adventure romance of bravery, betrayal, and forbidden desire.

Fully edited, revised version of 'SpartanQuest - Salvation' with extra scenes.

 

Buy Links:

Universal Buy Link: http://www.books2read.com/HeartsofSparta-1

Anthea Laurelton writes sweeping romances inspired by Ancient Sparta and Greek mythology. Her stories combine historical elements, forbidden love, dangerous quests and emotionally complex heroines for readers of mythological and historical fantasy.

A fan of sword and sandal movies, her plots blend slow-burn romance, dangerous quests, warrior culture and family intrigue for readers who crave epic adventures. Falling in love with Greek mythology at the age of thirteen, her love of the Spartans especially, came after reading Roger Lancelyn Green's THE TALE OF TROY where she cheered on Menelaus to take his queen back!

She left a career in IT to pursue her passion for storytelling and pander to an extremely spoilt German Shepherd whom she refers to as 'The Muse'.

A former equestrian, Anthea enjoys keeping active and has a bucket list of travel destinations waiting to be fulfilled.

Author Links:

Website: www.anthealaurelton.com

Twitter / X: https://x.com/AntheaLaurelton

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AntheaLaurelton/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anthealaureltonauthor/

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/anthealaurelton

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18937882.Anthea_Laurelton

 

 If you enjoy discovering new stories, you may also like The AnaRose Chronicles—a trilogy of award‑winning adventure novellas. https://books2read.com/u/4jzKAY