Showing results by narrator "Gary Bennett" in All Categories

The smoke was thick, the music was loud, and the beer was flowing. In the fast-and-loose 1980s, Jackson Station Rhythm and Blues Club in Hodges, South Carolina, was a festive late-night roadhouse filled with people from all walks of life who gathered to listen to the live music of high-energy performers. The good times ground to a terrifying halt in the early morning hours of April 7, 1990. A brutal attack - an apparent hate crime - on the owner Gerald Jackson forever altered the lives of all involved.

In On the Evolution of Intimacy, psychiatrist and futurist Charles Johnston addresses how our times are making possible a critical "growing up" in how we think about intimacy and gender. With intimacy, the changes he describes are as significant as those which brought us Romeo and Juliet-style romantic love. With gender, they take us beyond both the polarizing assumptions of traditional gender roles and the simplistic conclusions of a postmodern unisex ideal.

The SS Portland was a solid and luxurious ship, and its loss in 1898 in a violent storm with some 200 people aboard was later remembered as “New England’s Titanic.” The Portland was one of New England's largest and most luxurious paddle steamers, and after nine years' solid performance, she had earned a reputation as a safe and dependable vessel. In November 1898, a perfect storm formed off the New England coast. Conditions would produce a blizzard with 100 miles per hour winds and 60-foot waves that pummeled the coast.

"Crescendo is a riveting, yet horrifying tale of one man's descent into insanity, and author Wood straps the reader into his or her seat and refuses to let go until the very last gasp, shiver and groan is delivered in vividly rendered detail." (Denise M. Clark, author of Cross the Line and A Man’s War)

In Bravo's Freedom, 15-year-old Gabriel is chosen by his village to travel to Old Guinea, where he must face the rulers to stop them from destroying the planet. With the impacts of global warming in full effect, Gabriel leaves his village with evidence that there is still time to reverse the damage and repair the planet. Will the rulers of Old Guinea listen to what Gabriel has to say, or will Gabriel and his new friend Bravo get locked away forever? Bravo's Freedom makes a wonderful classroom addition for environmental and humane education studies, and is perfect for ages eight and up.

How Coyote Became Clever is an adaptation of a traditional Native American folktale told by the Karok People. In the story, Coyote seeks the gift of being smart from the maker of all animals and he tries to outwit the other animals by staying awake to get the first gift. But will that strategy work? And if not, what happens if he is the last to get anything?

How Coyote Brought Winter into the World is an adaptation of a Native American folktale told by the Zuni. In the story, Coyote brings winter by letting the sun escape from a box he steals from an Indian village during a dance celebration. Can he get it back with Eagle’s help, and what will happen if he doesn’t get it?

Flannsday is the first novelette in the Erinesque series by Mark Will and G.J. Villa. Here we meet Martin Wells and J.G. Vara on day one of their quixotic "literary wank" across Ireland. June 14, 2013. Wells and Vara have arrived in Dublin from opposite sides of the globe to celebrate James Joyce, their “original literary superhero”, during the annual Bloomsday festivities. But Bloomsday is still two days away, and in the meantime Wells has insisted that Irish satirist Flann O’Brien, one of the founders of Bloomsday, be honored with a day of his own.

In this strange new world in 1971, his Indian family in Montana is nowhere to be found. Before the war, he was engaged, but his betrothed has moved on and married someone else. He faces a long psychological and physical rehabilitation. His odds for survival look bleak. While Kelly struggles coming to terms with his newfound freedom, a young songstress struggles with explosive fame, fortune, and a loveless existence that is sowing the seeds of her destruction. They come together for the first time in an unexpected meeting that leaves them both with a memory they cannot shake.

Cain finally relents to getting his head and seizures fixed, but his recovery time is cut short from eight weeks to one week when he learns his fellow agent, and friend, Eric Raines has gone missing. Will the rushed recovery period have dire consequences for the super assassin? Despite the concerns of those closest to him, Cain ignores the personal dangers to his health in his quest to find his friend and the last remaining remnants of the previous Specter regime, who are still on the run.

With President Lewis desperate to save his biggest donor's assets and protect his deepest secret, he orders Director of National Intelligence Camille Banks to deploy her secret team to recover the asset. Garrett Knox, along with his hand-picked team members of elite operatives, must attempt the impossible: infiltrate the treacherous Yemeni mountains and bring the asset home alive. Battling hostile terrain and relentless attacks, Knox and company close in on their target only to have the tables flipped on them as a far deadlier plot emerges.

In a gambling town, desperation gets drowned out by the ringing of slot machines, but not even a tough city like Reno is prepared for two simultaneous misfortunes: a serial killer prowling the streets, and a surge of mysterious drug overdoses.

The Plea of Innocence offers a fundamental reform of the adversarial system: plausibly innocent people may now plead innocent and require the government to search for exonerating facts; in return, they will be required to waive their right to remain silent, speak to government agents, and participate in a search for truth. While almost all the participants within the system hope that only guilty people will be convicted, the unfortunate reality is that innocent people are convicted and imprisoned at an alarming rate.

When vigilante assassin Silence Jones hears of an old friend’s death in his long-forgotten hometown, he expects to pay his respects and leave. But a dark truth lurks beneath the surface: his friend didn’t just die—he was murdered. Returning to streets he barely remembers, Silence is thrust into a shadowy world festering within a seemingly tranquil small city. His friend, it seems, had unearthed a secret too dangerous to know—a widespread network of corruption with far-reaching implications for both U.S. and international security.

A bounty hunting survivor. A Galactic dark elf. A woman who has given up her humanity to become something more. These stories and more are available in the first short story anthology for the System Apocalypse, covering year one on Earth. When the world ends, humanity steps up, finding new ways to survive in a world with Classes, magic and monsters. The anthology features exciting, new stories by five new writers and a new, never publicly released short story by Tao Wong.

In this follow-up to The Cain Conspiracy, Matthew Cain finds himself on the wrong side of a hit man. After he is sent on an assassination mission in Russia, The Specter Project learns of a man seeking revenge for Cain’s actions. After Cain hears of the man’s intentions, he sets out on a frenetic search to find the killer before he makes good on his plans to kill both Cain and his girlfriend. Along the way, Cain finds more questions than answers about the mysterious assassin, who seems to be a ghost.

The world of vigilante assassin Silence Jones is rocked to its core when his clandestine organization faces an unprecedented threat—a breach from within. As their most guarded secrets teeter on the edge of exposure, the very existence of his justice-driven group hangs in the balance. In the midst of this chaos, a scar-faced man emerges, leading an enigmatic self-help group that's rumored to be a façade for darker motives. As Silence delves into this mystery, he uncovers unsettling ties between the security breach and the charismatic leader's true intentions.

The next standalone action thriller in the pulse-pounding series. Enter the world of Silence Jones. Hold on tight....

The next stand-alone action thriller in the pulse-pounding series. Enter the world of Silence Jones. Hold on tight....