The idea for award-winning author Libby Fischer Hellmann’s latest novel was somewhat of an accident. During a conversation with a friend, Libby mentioned she was drawn to stories of women whose choices have been taken away from them, and had wondered: Do they simply surrender and become victims, or do some survive and even triumph? It was then that she recalled a personal story told to her years before– about young lovers who become trapped by history, family, and the inherent conflict of a political and cultural revolution. Thus the idea was born for her latest book, A Bitter Veil (Allium Press of Chicago).

Grounded in extensive research, the story’s backdrop is the Iranian Revolution – one of the most documented periods of world history. After poring through dozens of documents, articles and films, and interviewing at least five Iranian-Americans who lived in Iran during the revolution, their experiences made it possible for Libby to tell ‘Anna’s story.’ The result is a compelling and convincing tale, seasoned with powerful characters, that grabs the reader from the first page and thrusts them into one woman’s worst nightmare – making for a read not easy to put down.

It all began with a line of Persian poetry…Anna and Nouri, both studying in Chicago, fall in love despite their very different backgrounds. Never really close to her parents, Anna is happy to return with Nouri to his native Iran, to be embraced by his wealthy family. Beginning their married life together in 1978, their world is abruptly turned upside down by the overthrow of the Shah, and the rise of the Islamic Republic.

Even if you step on a few toes in the process, sometimes you just have to take a stand. Our country first learned this through the American Revolution, and a stubborn insistence on liberty is the hallmark of patriots to the present day. Telling that story in all its many forms is bound to be exciting and inspirational.

A gifted writer, David Thomas Roberts bursts into the political thriller genre with style and passion in Patriots of Treason ( AKA-Publishing). Highly original, the fictitious scenario it presents seems painfully possible, sparking lively conversations about freedom of speech and partisan politics. In fact, the current controversy over international poll-watchers is an important plot point, as Texas has threatened to arrest UN poll watchers.

The discussion “provides the type of scenario and motivation that spurred me to write the novel,” says Roberts. “The Federal government, this Administration, and now the international community continue to try to assert un-Constitutional edicts upon a sovereign state. The people of Texas don’t need observers at our elections, period. Congratulations to Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott for taking this stand, and my hope is he follows through if necessary.”

“An incredible memoir . . . an important part of the still unhealed wounds of war. Christal has given as much of her heart to this story as her father gave to his country.”
—Nikki Giovanni, world-renowned poet, writer, activist, and educator

“A harrowing portrait of the past’s ability to haunt the present…Presley has found stability in her father’s story, and her willingness to share it—as well as her own revelations—will be appreciated by readers who deal with any form of wartime PTSD.”
—Publisher’s Weekly

“Whether you are a professional who treats veterans and their loved ones, or a person at risk for military PTSD, or anyone who cares, you will be profoundly moved by this eloquent memoir.”
—Frank Ochberg, MD, award-winning mental health expert who helped define the term “post-traumatic stress disorder”

“Thirty Days with My Father” is an important addition to the literature of trauma psychology, shining a beacon of hope for transformation and healing.”
—From the Foreword by Edward Tick, PhD, author, War and the Soul and founding co-director, Soldier’s Heart

For anyone who loves Hollywood memorabilia, is an entertainment junkie, and loves to eat and cook – they will treasure Frank DeCaro’s The Dead Celebrity Cookbook: A Resurrection of Recipes from More Than 145 Stars of Stage and Screen (HCI Books). Frank compiled favorite recipes from some of Hollywood’s biggest names; including Lucille Ball, Elizabeth Taylor, Sonny Bono, Liberace, Michael Jackson, John Denver, Frank Sinatra, Rock Hudson, Humphrey Bogart, and Peter Falk, just to name a few.

“While Halloween might come only once a year, there’s never a bad time for The Dead Celebrity Cookbook.” – bonappetit.com

“Flip on a movie channel and get cooking! Required reading.” – Billy Heller, New York Post.

“We hear Rock Hudson’s Cannoli is delicious!” – Entertainment Weekly.

“In The Dead Celebrity Cookbook, author Frank DeCaro has collected and presented an array of recipes by beloved (and dead) stars….” – people.com

“Celebrities like Elizabeth Taylor and Andy Warhol may be gone, but their favorite dishes will never be forgotten. Try one tonight!” – oprah.com

“A veritable who’s who of Hollywood’s Golden Age.” – Sara Bonisteel, epicurious.com.

New Book Links Hadron Collider To Two Cataclysmic Mayan Doomsday Events

West Palm Beach, FL, October 24, 2012 – Back in July, physicists in Geneva announced the existence of the Higgs Boson, or ‘God particle,’ a subatomic particle thought to be the key to understanding the makeup of the universe. What these physicists forgot to mention is that smashing protons together at near-light speed using the Large Hadron Collider also produces a potentially planet-ending byproduct — miniature black holes.

While CERN physicists contend that these black holes are too small to threaten the Earth, a new book just released by NY Times best-selling author Steve Alten links the Large Hadron Collider with two very real cataclysmic threats prophesied by the Mayan Calendar, with the doomsday event predicted for December 21st of this year.

Author Steve Alten consulted with physicists while researching his book, PHOBOS: Mayan Fear, which graphically details these two ticking time-bombs of Mother Nature. The first is a 3,000-foot-high mega-Tsunami originating from La Palma, one of the Canary Islands off the coast of Africa. Scientists concur the threat detailed in the book is real and that the described mega-Tsunami would strike the east coast of the United States, leveling New York, Boston, and Miami.

The author might not be Jewish, but City of Slaughter (Daniel and Daniel Publishers, Inc.) by Cynthia Drew is beautifully written from a Jewish perspective, with meticulous research that provides a powerful picture of the plight of women at the beginning of the 20th Century, and the obstacles they were forced to overcome. Already on Amazon’s list of Best Selling Jewish American Literature and Fiction, City of Slaughter is an exceptional work of historical fiction that is both exciting and inspiring and takes readers back in time to see the world through the eyes of another culture.

When fourteen-year-old Carsie Akselrod’s parents are murdered by Cossacks during a raid on the shtetl, Carsie flees with her younger sister, Lilia, touching off a turbulent journey that ends eight months later on New York’s Lower East Side. Plunged into the immigrant chaos of the most crowded square mile on earth, the two girls take sweatshop jobs – Carsie as a milliner’s apprentice and Lilia at the ill-fated Triangle Waist Company. It never occurs to Carsie that in her haste to live the life she strives for in America she hasn’t stopped to lament her parents’ deaths.

The world lost Pulitzer Prize winning social journalist, Lauren Terrazzano, to lung cancer. But not without her first chronicling in her Newsday column what it was like during her last eight months. And, wanting to honor her legacy, her father collected reminiscences by her family, friends and colleagues. Frank Terrazzano had learned the importance of writing things down from his daughter and with co-writer, Paul Lonardo, it came together in Life, with Cancer: The Lauren Terrazzano Story: An Award-Winning Social Journalist Chronicled Her Illness to Bring Hope & Comfort to Others.