Sunday Inspiration: Be That One
Be that one. That one who forgives when deep offense has been committed. That one who loves when no one else does. That one who gives kindness to those who are mean. Be that one who looks past the insult, instead seeing the pain that motivated it. That one who shines light upon those who sit in utter darkness. Because the impact of being that one runs far and wide. It brings healing to the wounded, joy to the sad, and hope to those in despair. Be that one.
—Sheri Eckert
Sunday Inspiration: The Measure of Love
The measure of love is to love without measuring.
—Saint Augustine
Yes, You Have Plenty of Books…
But you don’t have this book! I was privileged to be a critique partner of Steve, and I found this to be a delightful, wholesome story. Maybe it’s something you’d like either for yourself or for a younger reader in your life. Order Piercing the Veil in the format of your choice.
Fell Beasts and Fair
Fell Beasts and Fair is an anthology of noblebright fantasy short stories from Spring Song Press. Here’s the blurb:
In this exciting collection of noblebright fantasy, fresh new fantasy voices and award-winning authors explore grief and hope, sacrifice and heroism. Rediscover the best aspect of classic fantasy – the noblebright ideals that made heroes heroic, even when the world grew dark around them.
Thieves, dragons, nightmares, fairy warriors, pookas, enchanted bear-men, and other magical creatures will delight you in these unique tales of possibility, courage, and hope.
This anthology features stories from:
Leslie J. Anderson, C.A. Barrett, Terri Bruce, Aaron DaMommio, M.C. Dwyer, Anthony Eichenlaub, Francesca Forrest, Chloe Garner, W.R. Gingell, Lora Gray, Kelly A. Harmon, Tom Howard, Rollin Jewett, Tom Jolly, Samuel Marzioli, Amanda Nargi, Aimee Ogden, Beth Powers, Darrell J. Pursiful, Charles D. Shell, April Steenburgh, Alena Sullivan, and Troy Tang.
Edited by Robert McCowen and C. J. Brightley.
I’m honored to have been chosen as a contributor. My story, “The Pooka’s Day,” describes how Danny and Claudia from my Into the Wonder series first met. You don’t need to know anything about Into the Wonder to follow the plot, though.
Honestly, every story is a winner. You probably know that isn’t always the case with an anthology! Thanks to C. J. Brightley (gotta love that name!) for seeing fit to include my little contribution.
Oathbreaker
Book 5: Oathbreaker
Words have power. Just ask Taylor Smart.
Her people can shape reality to their whim with a word. But this power comes at a price: a broken oath can tear the Wonder apart. And the Wonder tends to fight back.
Two and a half years ago, Taylor promised a favor to spare her friend Jill from the wrath of Mara Hellebore, the Chief Matron of the Winter Court. But now the brooding noblewoman of the daoine sídhe has returned to call in her debt, and the price she asks is more than Taylor is willing to pay.
In this heart-pounding conclusion to the Into The Wonder series, Taylor becomes an unwilling accomplice in Mara’s twisted plan. Accompanied by a band of supernatural mercenaries, Taylor has no choice but to obey…for now. Still, she’s keeping her eyes open for the chance to put her own plans in play and be rid of the House of Hellebore once and for all.
The River of Night
When hostile ogres, goblins, and other faery beings start turning up at school, Taylor Smart is compelled to investigate. Why has somebody painted a target on her back this time? And why are they trying to drive a wedge between her and her friends in the Wonder?
Answers aren’t always easy to come by, especially when Taylor is thrown through a portal to a part of the Wonder that’s infested with monsters, the worst of which walk on two feet.
The River of Night has a way of testing the heroes who travel it. This is doubly true when someone behind the scenes is pulling strings for their own hidden purposes. One thing is sure: Taylor and her friends have once more been drawn into a deadly game of supernatural politics and intrigue.
And the Fair Folk don’t play fair.
Oak, Ash, and Thorn
Book 3: Oak, Ash, and Thorn
Who is Taylor Smart?
A smart-alecky eighth-grader at Bulloch Middle School? Check. A girl with barely-tapped supernatural powers inherited from parents she barely knew? Check. But truly answering that question—Who is Taylor Smart?—had only become more complicated once Taylor learned the secret of her own magical identity.
Now that the faery realm has heard Taylor’s story, people are taking notice—and not all of them are pleased. Will she be a symbol of resistance to rally around? A dangerous variable that must be controlled? A threat to be eliminated?
When competing factions of the Wonder come to the brink of war, Taylor finds herself in the middle, and everyone has the same questions, including Taylor herself: Who is Taylor Smart? What will she do? Will she even survive?
The Devil’s Due
Taylor Smart knew that living with one foot in the everyday world and the other in the faery realm wouldn’t be easy, but nobody told her it was a death sentence! When you’re only thirteen years old and a powerful sídhe overlord puts you on his black list, bad things are bound to happen. And as if that weren’t enough, somebody has also set their sights on her best friend, Jill.
In the unearthly world its inhabitants call the Wonder, people pay their debts…or live to regret it. And so, Taylor and Jill find themselves running away from home, forging new alliances, and facing unexpected dangers in hopes that maybe—just maybe—they’ll be able to soothe the wounded pride of the powers that are out to get them.
Children of Pride
Taylor Smart has a pretty good life despite her mean teachers and snooty classmates. Of course, that is before she is kidnapped by the Fair Folk and whisked into a world she never dreamed could be real.
Apparently, the cuddly versions of those old faery tales don’t tell the whole story, and middle school never prepared Taylor for a world filled with bogeymen, trolls, dwarves, and spriggans. But that’s what she finds in the faery realm its inhabitants call the Wonder.
Taylor is thrown into a quest to discover her true identity guided by Danny Underhill, her erstwhile kidnapper. But will the shapeshifting trickster’s dark secrets spell her doom? And how will Taylor decide which world, fae or human, is truly her own?
Sunday Inspiration: Forgiveness
To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.
—Lewis Smedes
Darrell J. Pursiful 