Gay middle-aged hit men, a pathological interior designer, an idiot savant child and a gun-toting donut shop manager are some of the disparate characters that populate Stan Rogal's first novel. Beginning at vastly different points, geographically and emotionally, these seemingly unconnected people are woven together in the taut fabric of a story that follows the sweet sadness of the search for lost youth. The characters' paths move together gradually until they ultimately converge in an explosive showdown in a sleazy, road-side motel parking lot in Magog, Quebec. Peppered with beauty, absurdity and Rogal's typical rapid-fire dialogue, The Long Drive Home makes for a wonderfully disturbing read.

In this riveting novel, a happily married man makes a mistake that results in a teenager's death and sends his own life into a devastating tailspin.

When Andy, a fresh-faced, naïve young man escapes his small town in Texas to embark on a career to become a big city cop, his life is changed forever. When he joins the Houston Police Department, his experiences, sometimes exciting, sometimes shocking force him to confront evils that most of us could never imagine, all while keeping his own demons at bay. After ten years of service as a beat cop, and fighting crime in the dangerous world of narcotics in the nation’s fourth-largest city, Andy accepts the ultimate challenge, joining the Houston SWAT Team. His limits are tested like never before and he finds himself living on the edge where he must face his greatest fears, and finally confront the adversaries who have taunted him along the way.

Crying into an iced coffee in front of a stranger isn't high on anyone's priority list but ... Gracen Briggs has history in this valley—deep roots, dead dreams, and an ex whose smiling face she sees plastered all over town, every single day. Wonderful, right? Malachi Anders left things unfinished here, too. All his trouble and traumas … God knows he already spent too much time trying to leave it behind. He never wanted to come back. She can't find a way out. Welcome to the valley. It's a long road home. * Somewhere along the foggy Acadian Peninsula of northern New Brunswick sits a small valley town with more than one secret being whispered up and down its sleepy streets. These Valley Days features standalone couples, and every book brings someone—new or old—back home where they belong. With a HEA, of course. Visit bethanykris.com/thesevalleydays to learn more.

Based upon a true story, The Long Road Home tells the tale of a young man who yearns to join the military and fight the enemy during World War II. Sixteen-year-old Bill knows that he wanted to join the army, but he discovers that he must be eighteen to enlist. Caught up in the emotions of the world at war, he decides to hitchhike to Canada to join the Royal Canadian Air Force, where the minimum age is just sixteen. He sets out from Gainesville, Florida, to hitchhike to Canada. Along the way, he experiences exciting adventures when he seeks employment to pay for his travels. He finds jobs as an orange picker and a lumberjack. He works on a fishing boat, in a circus, and on a farm as he learns to be a man and to take responsible for himself. But when a terrible accident befalls him, it threatens to end his journey and his dream of joining the RCAF. In order to survive, he must find a new maturity within to continue his journey to manhood.

NOW A NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MINISERIES EVENT ABC News’ Chief Global Affairs Correspondent Martha Raddatz shares remarkable tales of heroism, hope, and heartbreak in her account of “Black Sunday”—a battle during one of the deadliest periods of the Iraq war. The First Cavalry Division came under surprise attack in Sadr City on Sunday, April 4, 2004. More than seven thousand miles away, their families awaited the news for forty-eight hellish hours—expecting the worst. In this powerful, unflinching account, Martha Raddatz takes readers from the streets of Baghdad to the home front and tells the story of that horrific day through the eyes of the courageous American men and women who lived it. “A masterpiece of literary nonfiction that rivals any war-related classic that has preceded it.”—The Washington Post

This narrative unfolds the life of Ernst, a young German soldier during World War II, caught at the crossroads of duty and family loyalty, stretched between Germany and England. At nineteen, Ernst navigates the tumult of his own moral dilemmas against the backdrop of a war-torn landscape, accompanied by an officer who has vowed to see him safely home. As we journey through the pages, we’re drawn into the visceral experiences of war-torn Germany. Nightly, as Ernst and his comrades traverse the roads under the cover of darkness, the ominous hum of bombers overhead is palpable, each man acutely aware that their loved ones are in the crosshairs. In the daybreak’s light, the crimson hue of their burning cities stains the horizon, a constant reminder of the devastation being wrought upon their homeland. The story doesn’t shy away from the shared fear and terror that grips both German and American soldiers, delving into the harrowing plight of US troops captured and held as prisoners of war. Despite the hospital’s eerie quiet, indicating few casualties are being brought in, the war’s end in 1945 doesn’t immediately herald peace for Ernst and his comrades. It’s not until four years later that they can finally part ways. Returning to a country he can call home, Ernst confronts the suspicion and distrust from those around him. It is during this turbulent time that he meets a young woman who helps to heal the bitterness of war. Together, they embark on a life filled with hope, leaving the shadows of the past behind as they step into a shared future.