Author and poet Marilyn Joy’s first collection of poetry, The Geography of Longing, is divided into three sections: The Map of Me , The Map of My World , and The Map to Nowhere . The collection is a travelogue of sorts, where the poet invites you into her life of movement—across the earth, inside her mind, and at home in her heart. Also included are occasional pen and ink sketches taken from her journals where the poems first found their voice.

The Top End of Australia is a strange place to choose to end one's life, but that is what Dinah Pelerin's wealthy American uncle has done. He has summoned his entire family to a remote, comfortless lodge where he intends to rewrite his will and commit suicide with the aid of a rogue Australian physician. Dinah sees this time with her uncle as a last chance to learn the truth about her father, who died while running drugs when she was a child. But when she arrives, she discovers that the truth has darker ramifications. When a man none of them claims to know is murdered on a nearby island, Dinah must sort out her family's complicated history while struggling to understand Aboriginal song lines and solve not one, but two bizarre murders.

Hewn out of a frozen mountain in the Norwegian Arctic, the Doomsday Seed Vault was designed to safeguard the earth's agricultural heritage from every conceivable disaster. But no fortress, however remote, can protect against human corruption and those scheming to gain control of the world's food supply. Dinah had no idea when she left sunny Hawaii with a donation of banana seeds that she would become embroiled in the politics of genetic engineering - let alone murder. In December, polar temperatures rarely climb above zero and bodies don't decompose in the permafrost. The dead have to be shipped south for burial and soon there are two murder victims headed south. If Dinah doesn't stop the murderer, she may be next.

Dinah Pelerin has finally put her life in order. Living in Berlin with her Norwegian boyfriend Thor, she has landed a job teaching Native American cultures at the university. She's never felt happier. And then her Seminole mother Swan shows up with a crazy scheme to blackmail a German tax dodger and dredges up a secret Dinah has kept hidden from the IRS and from straight-arrow Thor, an ex-cop who's been promoted to hush-hush international duties. Germans harbor a century-long fascination with the American Wild West and American Indians. Some enthusiasts dress up as Indians and adopt Indian names. Der Indianer Club has invited Swan to a powwow where she plans to meet her blackmail victim. Dinah tries to head her off, but arrives too late. A man has been killed and scalped and Swan quickly becomes the prime suspect. Torn between love for her mother and dismay at her constant lies, Dinah sets out to find the killer, hoping the killer doesn't share her DNA. But Swan isn't the only liar. Everyone is lying about something - including Thor and especially Dinah. Ghosts of Germany's terrible history haunt Berlin and Dinah must exorcise a hateful ghost from her own past.

A wedding beside a volcano sounds risky to Dinah Pelerin, the reluctant maid of honor. The bride has bet her heart on Mr. Right. The groom has bet his fortune on a real estate deal. But the sacred bones of a Hawaiian king are buried on the property he plans to develop and Pele, the local fire goddess, is angry. When a member of the wedding is shoved onto a molten lava flow, all bets are off.

In 1973, on the beautiful Greek island of Samos, movie star Marietta Stephan murdered her boyfriend, his mother, and a powerful colonel in the military junta, a crime for which she was executed. Forty years later, Dinah Pelerin expects only sunshine and romance when she arrives to spend the summer with her Norwegian boyfriend, Thor, before joining a nearby archaeological dig. But does the mystery surrounding Marilita's death interest Thor a little too much? When an Iraqi immigrant to Samos is killed in front of the village taverna, Dinah suspects Thor hasn't told her the truth about being on sabbatical from his policeman's job. Norwegian intelligence has traced former CIA weaponry to the island and Thor has been assigned to investigate. Before he can reveal what he's discovered, his car plunges off a cliff and he disappears. Dinah fears he's been betrayed by the local police and either kidnapped or killed. Unable to trust anyone but her unruly and unpredictable niece who shows up out of the blue, Dinah sets out to find Thor and prevent another Greek tragedy.

Detectives Garnick & Paschal take on big trouble when the most celebrated author in the world hires them to recover his stolen diary. Charles Dickens' 1867 American reading tour is about to begin. Dickens mania has gripped the country, but the author is filled with dread. Fearing blackmail or worse - the loss of his readers' love and admiration - if his secrets are revealed, he sneaks away to Chicago where he believes the thief has absconded with his diary. Detective Quinn Paschal agrees to investigate, but the agency already has its hands full. While pursuing a gang of grave robbers, the detectives discover the body of a young woman who was murdered and buried in a man's grave. Quinn vows to track down the victim's identity and expose the murderer, only to encounter another VIP who, like Dickens, has secrets best left hidden. To solve their two cases, the detectives must delve into the darkest corners of their clients' private lives. But too much knowledge can be a dangerous thing. As Quinn soon learns, three can keep a secret only if two are dead.

It's 1867 and Chicago is a boomtown. Quinn Sinclair, the 22-year-old widow of a Union soldier, has been cheated out of her share of her husband's estate by her Irish-hating in-laws. She's had some training in the Female Bureau of the Pinkerton Detective Agency and wants to start her own detective agency. Gabe Garnick, an ex-Confederate POW with no family to return home to, joins Quinn to form the Garnick & Paschal Detective Agency. She uses the name Mrs. Paschal professionally because "nice women" don't work outside the home, let alone rub shoulders with criminals. If the landlady of her respectable boarding house were to find out she carries a derringer and investigates murders, Quinn would be evicted. The Garnick & Paschal agency gets two cases on the same day - one to help a man prove he didn't kill his wife, another to help an attorney establish reasonable doubt that his client killed her ex-lover's new bride. As the detectives dig deeper, they unearth facts that tie the cases together in disturbing ways. The investigation embroils them in the affairs of colorful bawdyhouse madams, corrupt politicians, yellow-press reporters, notorious gamblers, unscrupulous lawyers, and at least one vicious murderer. Despite all the danger, an unlikely romance begins to evolve between Quinn and Garnick. Devil by the Tail is a story about feminism before the word was invented; post-traumatic-stress syndrome before it had a name; and Chicago before it was safe to drink the water without choking on a fishbone or getting cholera.

A Collection of Poems by A Passionate Heart People often describe the poetry of Kristy Raines as unique and passionate. Hence came the name of her book, "The Passion Within Me". And that is exactly what you will find as you turn every page. Her poetry is bold, yet sensitive, with an unconventional tone. Every poem peels back a layer of deep emotions. It is her hope that you will feel her every line as deeply as she did while writing them. Kristy writes of romantic moments, lost love, happiness, and the yearning for endless love. Her poems are inspired by a thought, a picture, a vague memory or a song. Some are written as love letters. Each poem is filled with an unforgettable message of life and love, and ends with a line that leaves one wanting to read the next. Savor Kristy's unique poetry through every turn and twist that her heart takes you on, and enjoy the deep and emotional feelings along with the memorable lines of this gentle hearted poet, who has written this beautiful collection of 100 of her poems called, The Passion Within Me - Volume One- A Collection of Poems By a Passionate Heart .

From hardscrabble days as homesteaders and farmers in the 1880s to becoming successful entrepreneurs of the postwar boom generation, Italians settled and later thrived in Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. Italians labored in several industries, including railway tie hacking in Idaho, coal mining in Black Diamond, logging in Aberdeen, canning salmon in Astoria, terra-cotta and brick manufacturing in Taylor, and growing onions in Walla Walla. Those who ventured into business later grew notable local companies such as DeLaurenti Food & Wine, Pacific Food Imports, Oberto Sausage, Napoleon Oil, and La Panzanella Crackers. Further still, Italians in the area contributed to inventions from the collapsible crab pot and trawl nets to the atomic bomb, the vaudeville circuit, the Pellegrini bean, and one-of-a-kind accordions. Italian pioneers in the Pacific Northwest also have a connection to Hemingway, Elvis, President Kennedy, Mother Cabrini, and the Loprinzis, the "strongest family in America." Today, over 300,000 Italian Americans call this region home, and it is the author's hope that this book highlights the contributions of many Italians, known and unknown.

When an Italian bride witnesses an accidental death three days before her Christmas Eve wedding, can she ferret out if the victim fell by accident or by design before her Castle of Love wedding turns into happily-never-after? Padua, Italy 1897. Upon arriving at her fiancé's ancestral home, Renata Bombonatti witnesses a man falling from the castle's tower to his death. But suspicion is cast when the body vanishes. Add to that, her fiancé Placido has gone missing, her parents are in a bind, and a police officer takes a shine to her. However, Renata, a secret fan of Sherlock Holmes mysteries, pines for her first case, as unladylike as that is for the future Contessa Pelicani. On the cusp of her marriage and her first Christmas with her in-laws, the bride-wanna-be-sleuth teams up with the police to expose the villain-all while encountering threats, obstacles, and an unexpected love interest along the way. Time is running out for romance, suspects are piling up, and the castle is in an uproar. Will Renata succeed in her sleuthing before her wedding and Christmas go off the rails?

A cost for every action, and a price for every deed. The Historical Writers’ Forum proudly presents seven stories of Crime and Punishment, from across the ages. From an anchoress to a war hero; from Italy to Missouri; this anthology has a story for everyone. Included stories are: The Ignoble Defence by Virginia Crow Agatha’s Eyes by Rachel Aanstad A Pact Fulfilled by Eleanor Swift-Hook Carte de Viste by Ronan Beckman A Dish Served Cold by Brenda W. Clough Shadows of the Adriatic by Tessa Floreano A Dangerous Road by D. Apple