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We will be discussing Jacob’s first book, Furlough. This book caught my eye about a year ago, and I’ve kept it on my radar for the book club. Plus, you know I have a soft spot for authors who have worked in the criminal justice system. Jacob published a second book, Dead Reckoning, in March of 2022. This book has creepy supernatural underpinnings in a town with dark secrets. Please see below for Jacob’s bio, link for purchase and cover art. Jacob Moon is an independent author born and raised in Minnesota, and currently lives in Clearwater, FL. A three-year army veteran, he has worked as a Correctional Officer at a large county jail for the past twenty-six years. He has two grown children. A lover of literature, he enjoys mysteries/suspense thrillers, horror/supernatural, historical fiction/non-fiction, and classics. Writing creatively since his early teens, Jacob has written over one hundred short stories, some of which appear in The Saturday Evening Post, The Chamber, and Morpheus Tales. His writing preferences carry across many genres--literary, horror/supernatural, comedy, suspense/thriller, and historical fiction, to name a few. His two published novels are Furlough, a crime thriller, and Dead Reckoning, a supernatural suspense thriller. In his spare time, Jacob enjoys sports, traveling, and great food. His passion for visiting different sports stadiums and exploring the cities they reside in has him happily combining all of those. Learn more at writerjake.com  Click here to head to Amazon!
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During the months of July and August, I met with book club members without an author. In July, we featured One by One by Ruth Ware. The group loved the book, but only a few of us were able to meet because of hectic summer schedules.
In August, we watched the movie Book Club and met again to discuss everyone’s summer travels. If you haven’t seen the movie, I highly recommend it! It is hilarious and was a much needed break from our dark reads! The KC Reads book club has been in existence since April, 2020. During those 2.5 years, we have me 21 authors (and several have returned for a second discussion for new releases), and we have read over 10,000 pages!! We are a small, but mighty, group of readers and friends! We dish about books and life, but we leave the world behind when we enter our Zoom sessions. I created this book club in 2020 because I wanted to provide a bookish environment that allowed us to escape the stress we were all experiencing. I primarily feature indie authors, but we have had some international bestselling authors too! They have all been so gracious, and inevitably, we end up laughing (or crying) and having a great time! We have learned about writing process, choosing names, character and story inspiration, and personal notes about books from the authors! HUGE THANK YOU TO ALL THE AUTHORS WHO HAVE JOINED US!!! I started with two simple rules, but I have an unwritten expectation: please leave a FABULOUS review for these authors who have taken the time to meet us and discuss their brilliant works!! Rules of the Game: 1. Absolutely NO harsh words or arguments. Zero cruelty toward others. Period. I will remove you from the group for breaking this rule. 2. Please be kind to authors. Find the positive in each book. It is such an honor that these authors are willing to participate in a book club. Show them some virtual love! Come up with questions and comments (if you're comfortable doing so). Cheers to 2.5 years for the KC Reads book club!! You are welcome to join us! Click on the small envelope at the end of my page, or contact me through Facebook or Instagram. On July 7th we met with Rayna York to discuss her latest release, The Right Kind of Unexpected.9/1/2022 Rayna lives in Canada, and she has written two other books: Everything I Knew to be True and When Life Gives You Lemons Instead of Lattes. She writes books about young and new adults. The Right Kind of Unexpected was the right kind of book! Please see below for Rayna’s bio, link for purchase and cover art. Rayna York grew up with hippie parents that moved a lot. Where change was the norm, books were her constant—a way to escape. As an adult, many careers came and went, but writing has always been her passion. Her books tend to be based on dreams, and since that’s the way inspiration strikes, she wakes up every morning and writes them in her notebook with barely an eye open. When she’s not tucked away in her writing shack, she’s pursuing other passions, like chocolate, reading, or movies/TV series.  Click here to head to Amazon!
On June 16th, we met with Sandra Nikolai to discuss her latest release,The Missing Slipper!9/1/2022 This was Sandra’s second visit to the book club, and she was the very first author ever featured by KC Reads on April 30, 2020. The Missing Slipper is a departure from Sandra’s Megan Scott and Michael Elliot series. We had a great time with this wonderful author who is a personal hero for me! Find her bio, cover art, and link for purchase below. Mystery author Sandra Nikolai weaves ordinary characters into extraordinary, life-threatening situations, using the premise that evil often lurks in familiar places. Her popular, fast-paced mystery series featuring ghostwriter Megan Scott and investigative reporter Michael Elliott has earned international reviews from fans who love the challenge of solving heart-pounding whodunits with realistic and tightly knit plots. Her Amber McNeil Mystery series features a psychic consultant working with police investigators on cold case files. A graduate of McGill University in Montreal, Sandra grew up in this cosmopolitan city and later moved to Ottawa, capping off a career path in sales, finance, and high tech. Sandra has published a string of short crime stories, winning awards along the way, including an Honourable Mention in the Canadian Writers Journal short fiction competition. Sandra has been nominated for Favourite Author of the Year at the 2020, 2021, and 2022 Ottawa Awards presented by Faces Magazine.  Click here
We will be meeting Ellen J. Green to discuss her important new book, Murder in the Neighborhood. It’s about the first recorded mass shooting in the United States, and she is the first person to write about it. Ellen is an Amazon Charts bestselling author for her Ava Saunders fiction series, and standalone, The Book of James. Now she is making a big splash with her first true story, Murder in the Neighborhood. Thank you for joining us, Ellen! Bio, cover art, summary, and link for purchase are below.  Ellen J. Green is the Amazon Charts bestselling author of the Ava Saunders novels (Absolution and Twist of Faith) and The Book of James. She attended Temple University in Philadelphia, where she earned her degrees in psychology, and has worked in the psychiatric ward of a maximum-security correctional facility for fifteen years. She also holds an MFA degree in creative writing from Fairleigh Dickinson University. Born and raised in Upstate New York, Ms. Green now lives in southern New Jersey with her two children.  On 6 September 1949, twenty-eight-year-old Howard Barton Unruh shot thirteen people in less than twelve minutes on his block in East Camden, New Jersey. The shocking true story of the first recorded mass shooting in America has never been told, until now.
The sky was cloudless that morning when twelve-year-old Raymond Havens left his home on River Road. His grandmother had sent him to get a haircut at the barbershop across the street—where he was about to witness his neighbor and friend Howard open fire on the customers inside. Told through the eyes of young Raymond, who had visited Howard regularly to listen to his war stories, and the mother trying to piece together the disturbing inner workings of her son’s mind, Murder in the Neighborhood uncovers the chilling true story of Howard Unruh, the quiet loner who meticulously plotted his revenge on the neighbors who shunned him and became one of America’s first mass killers. With Ellen’s access to Howard’s diaries, newly released police reports and psychiatric records alongside interviews with surviving family members, Murder in the Neighborhood is a compulsive page-turner that will have you asking—how well do we ever really know those around us? Are we ever really safe? Click here to head to Amazon! We are flying to South Manchester to meet the fun and fabulous Chris McDonald! A Wash of Black, Whispers in the Dark, and Roses for the Dead were his first crime thrillers. They are his DI Erika Piper series. She is a tough investigator with some demons that are haunting her. His prose is stunning, and you will find yourself reading passages over and over until his words intoxicate you! We will be discussing The Stonebridge Mysteries Series with Chris. There are six novellas in this cozy mystery series, with his latest release, All At Sea, having just been set free into the world! This is a series about two amateur sleuths, Adam and Colin. These are lighthearted mysteries with humor and fun while digging into murder and mayhem. As Chris describes Adam and Colin: “Armed with an encyclopedic knowledge of detective shows, a misplaced sense of confidence and a keen desire to see justice done, these two are the closest thing the town has to saviors. Which isn’t that reassuring….” Find Chris’s bio, cover art and link to purchase the series below. Originally hailing from the north coast of Ireland and now residing in South Manchester, Chris McDonald has always been a reader. At primary school, The Hardy Boys inspired his love of adventure, before his reading world was opened up by Chuck Palahniuk and the gritty world of crime. He’s a fan of 5-a-side football, has an eclectic taste in music ranging from DamienRice to Slayer and loves dogs.  We are traveling to Scotland to meet the fabulous Sharon Bairden! We will be discussing her latest release, You Need Me. I stalked Sharon through one of her besties, Noelle Holten, who has also visited the KC Reads book club. I am beyond thrilled to feature You Need Me! But if you crave more after you read it, check out her fabulous debut novel, Sins of the Father. There could be a wee surprise for this book club, so don’t miss out! Find Sharon’s bio, cover art, and link for purchase below. By day Sharon Bairden manages in a small local independent advocacy service and has a passion for human rights; by night she has a passion for all things criminal. She blogs over at Chapterinmylife and is delighted to be crossing over to the other side of the fence to become a writer. Sharon's debut novel, Sins of the Father, was published in November 2020 and is published by Red Dog Press. You Need Me, will be released on October 12th 2021, also published by Red Dog Press. Sharon lives on the outskirts of Glasgow, has two grown up children, a grandson, a Golden Labrador and a cat. She spends most of her spare time doing all things bookish, from reading to attending as many book festivals and launches as she can. She has been known to step out of her comfort zone on the odd occasion and has walked over burning coals and broken glass – but not at the same time!  ‘Your secret didn’t die with me.’
The mysterious note tucked inside the pages of a recently returned book leaves librarian, Morag McLaughlin, chilled to the bone. She knows it was meant for her. Someone out there knows her darkest secrets and they could destroy everything. Torn apart from her own family, she will stop at nothing to create a perfect new one. Why are they all so ungrateful? She’s only looking after them... Isn’t she? Click here to head to Amazon! We met award-winning and bestselling author David-Matthew Barnes at 4pm on Thursday, December 16th!1/14/2022 We had a great time discussing The Everlasting Gift and David-Matthew’s play, Dummy! He writes plays, short stories, novels, novellas, and poetry. He is an extremely gifted author who is making a splash in the writing and film industries! David-Matthew is also a gracious and fun person. Below, please find the cover art and link to purchase his latest release, The Everlasting Gift. This is a heart-warming Christmas story with a few life lessons for all of us. It’s beautifully written and unputdownable! Visit David-Matthew at: http://dmbarnes.blogspot.com Link for purchase here!  The KC Reads book club is thrilled to feature Annie Two Faces by Lewis Kirts! This book is a collection of ten western short stories. Lewis Kirts is an incredible graphic designer who turned her attention to writing. She has written two spectacular westerns (the other is Sendero Esperanza, a compilation of three books and the half of an epic journey spanning nearly 50 years). Kirts’ experience with horses and rural living come alive on the pages of her stories. Join us to meet her and talk about her fascinating life! Bio, cover art and link are below.  Lewis Kirts was born in Maryland, where spring smelled like mud and winter was too cold for her comfort. With dairies on the matriarch side of the family, and orchards on the patriarch side, she was raised on peaches and cream.
She credits her love of western movies to her father, and her love of reading, to the English teachers of Poolesville High. Years of working outside in Maryland had her longing for the warmer climate of Arizona. She now resides in southeastern Arizona, and after thirty years in the desert southwest, she’s finally thawing out. Click here to visit Amazon! Welcome back, Ivan! The KC Reads book club is thrilled to feature The Redhead and the Ghostwriter! We met Ivan in April 2020 right after I started the KC Reads book club. We had a fabulous discussion about his first book, Redhead in a Blue Convertible. Ivan’s writing is visceral, and he made us all laugh and cry. This was my prediction (back then) about his second book: “Ivan is working on his second book, which will be out soon! Just you wait - he’s going to drag you through all the emotions a second time.” Turns out I was right! Purchase The Redhead and the Ghostwriter and join us in conversation with the illustrious Ivan Scott: Hoarder of all office products; lover of his feisty redhead, Kim; father of two - three if you count his rat terrier; a man who handwrites his manuscripts; bourbon lover, and bowtie wearer! You won’t be disappointed. *Let’s make this a happy hour discussion! Bring your favorite beverage, and drink up the time with Ivan! Don’t forget to follow Ivan on social media: @author.ivan.scott on Instagram and Author Ivan Scott on Facebook. Cover art and summary are below:  Everyone in the beach town of Turtle Point comes to Ghostwriters, the
craziest Bookbar on the Atlantic coast, where the party doesn’t end until sunrise as people read their favorite books while sipping their favorite adult beverages. The owner, an effervescent Redhead named Sienna McCaslin, loves two things: her Bookbar and her best friend, Pulitzer Prize winning author, Jasper George, who lost his passion for writing after a personal tragedy. The only thing Jasper writes these days is his name on a bar tab since he lives life at the bottom of a bourbon bottle. Sienna is desperate to bring him back to the living, and her prayers are answered when a young woman comes to town looking for help with her manuscript. However, Sienna’s plan backfires when Jasper’s mentoring of the aspiring author takes him further away from her, and when the manuscript is finished, Jasper is offered a job at the top literary agency in New York. Sienna knows her love is in vain, so she is the one who leaves Turtle Point first by selling Ghostwriters and starting a new life in wine country. Unfortunately, Jasper realizes he loves her, but is it too late to bring her home before he loses his Redheaded girl and Ghostwriters forever? Click here to head to Amazon! |
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