P.D. Workman's Blog, page 133

Excerpt from Stone of Fire

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, read the rules at A Daily Rhythm. Anyone can play along!

If you’re an indie writer, you’ve probably heard of Joanna Penn! I recently picked up Stone of Fire, a republication of Pentacost. I’m not far into this thriller yet, but there is plenty of action! It’s a dense read, but keeps things moving forward.

“It doesn’t matter who we are or why we want it,” the voice replied. “But if we have to come in to get it, then I can’t guarantee your safety.”

J.F. Penn, Stone of Fire

India. When a nun is burned alive on the sacred ghats of Varanasi, and the stone she carried is stolen, an international hunt is triggered for the relics of the early church.

Forged in the fire and blood of martyrs, the Pentecost stones have been handed down through generations of Keepers who kept their power and locations secret.

Until now.

The Keepers are being murdered, the stones stolen by those who would use them for evil in a world transformed by religious fundamentalism.

Oxford University psychologist Morgan Sierra is forced into the search when her sister and niece are held hostage. She is helped by Jake Timber from the mysterious ARKANE, a British government agency specializing in paranormal and religious experience. Morgan must risk her own life to save her family, but will she ultimately be betrayed?

From ancient Christian sites in Spain, Italy and Israel to the far reaches of Iran and Tunisia, Morgan and Jake must track down the stones through the myths of the early church in a race against time before a new Pentecost is summoned, this time powered by the fires of evil.

Reading list: Young Adult Fiction about Psychosis

I had the brilliant idea recently that I should write up some lists of books that are similar in genre and subject matter as my own. As you know from my tagline, I mainly write suspense and young adult fiction about mental illness, addiction, and abuse.

There are a lot of different forms of mental illness, so I decided to start with a list of books with a main character (and/or caregiver) with some form of psychosis—basically, someone who loses touch with reality.

I’m interested in hearing your comments! What books would you add to the list? What do you like? What did you not like?

My books that include main characters who may have psychosis are:

Looking Over Your Shoulder

Just because you’re paranoid, that doesn’t mean someone isn’t out to get you.

Things were going well for Abe.  Despite all of his past struggles with mental illness, he was happily married, had three wonderful children, a nice home, and a fantastic consulting business that satisfied his creativity and brought in a good income.

But you can never get too comfortable.  When Abe becomes a prime suspect in a jewel heist – one of the largest successful jewel heists in history – his schizophrenia becomes unmanageable and everything begins to spiral out of control.  Abe’s own investigation into the heist has the jewel thieves hot on his tail… but are they really, or is he just losing the battle against his inner demons?

Deviation

“You’re a good kid, Henry.”

Everyone knew that he was a good guy; geeky, responsible, hard-working.  Henry has had a lot to deal with in the past.  Now, as he should be focusing on his schooling and preparing himself for the future, he is hindered by abuse, the challenge of raising his baby brother while dealing with his mother’s deep depressions, and the return of a ghost from the past Henry has tried his best to forget.

But it seems that Henry can’t avoid the nastiness of life.  As hard as he tries, it’s one more disaster after another as his life spirals out of control.

Can Henry escape the darkness, or is he doomed to be consumed by it?

Stand Alone (also available in Spanish)

Is Justine crazy?

Everyone thinks so…

Her mother. The kids at school, and the teachers and administrators too. Even the police who pick her up from her night rambles. Maybe them most of all.

Justine’s therapist says she is ‘troubled’, but it means the same thing. He thinks that her vivid, reoccurring nightmares and atrocious behavior point to some trauma in her past; but Em, Justine’s mother, can’t explain it.

Justine used to have Christian, her best friend and skateboard partner. He was the only one who accepted her. Maybe because skating is the only time that Justine is really free to be herself. Now that Christian is gone… Justine keeps thinking things can’t get any worse.

Even as she sees her life spinning further and further out of control, Justine can’t give up her sense of who she is—someone far different than the loving daughter Em expects her to be—to just fit in and be happy. She is sure that Em secretly holds the key to who Justine really is. But if she does, Em isn’t talking.

By-Pass

It’s better when she’s happy.

Bobby is a geeky teen who is convinced that his new foster home is everything he has ever hoped for.

His foster mom Katya is so different than any he has ever had; but as her behavior becomes more and more unpredictable and disturbing, he comes to realize that both he and Katya’s daughter Zane are in trouble.

The crazy thing is, Bobby doesn’t want to leave her, and new revelations from Bobby’s own forgotten past throw his quest for a real family into further turmoil.

Those Who Believe

These signs shall follow those who believe…

On the run from Social Services and others who do not understand their beliefs, Nathan and his mom, faith-healer Billie Ashbury move into yet another a new town.

Nathan again faces the challenges of making new friends and of keeping his family’s secrets. But what he really struggles with is his wavering faith and reconciling his actions with what his devoted mother has taught him from the cradle. Could disobeying her ever be right? His life could depend on the answer.

The other books that I have picked out are:

I Never Promised You a Rose Garden by Joanne Greenberg

Enveloped in the dark inner kingdom of her schizophrenia, sixteen-year-old Deborah is haunted by private tormentors that isolate her from the outside world. With the reluctant and fearful consent of her parents, she enters a mental hospital where she will spend the next three years battling to regain her sanity with the help of a gifted psychiatrist. As Deborah struggles toward the possibility of the “normal” life she and her family hope for, the reader is inexorably drawn into her private suffering and deep determination to confront her demons.

 

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

The Bell Jar chronicles the crack-up of Esther Greenwood: brilliant, beautiful, enormously talented, and successful, but slowly going under — maybe for the last time. Sylvia Plath masterfully draws the reader into Esther’s breakdown with such intensity that Esther’s insanity becomes completely real and even rational, as probable and accessible an experience as going to the movies. Such deep penetration into the dark and harrowing corners of the psyche is an extraordinary accomplishment and has made The Bell Jar a haunting American classic.

 

Straight Jacket by Meredith Towbin

Eighteen-year-old Anna has lived her whole life in shame, losing herself in books to cope with crippling panic attacks triggered by her abusive parents. Forced into a psychiatric hospital, she can’t imagine a future that’s anything but bleak—until she meets Caleb, a gifted, 19-year-old artist who insists he’s an angel.

He swears his mission is to help Anna break free from her parents’ control and fulfill a destiny she can only dream of. The doctors, however, are convinced that Caleb is delusional.

Anna doesn’t want to be that girl who’s in love with the guy “with issues,” but when she sees his stunning portraits of her and the way he risks everything to keep her safe, she can’t help but imagine a new future for the two of them, filled with hope. Then just as it seems they’ve created heaven on earth, Caleb’s past emerges full force, threatening to destroy their tiny, blissful world. And Anna has to decide if she should follow her heart, or if Caleb’s really as troubled as his doctors say…

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

Perks follows observant “wallflower” Charlie as he charts a course through the strange world between adolescence and adulthood. First dates, family drama, and new friends. Sex, drugs, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Devastating loss, young love, and life on the fringes. Caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it, Charlie must learn to navigate those wild and poignant roller-coaster days known as growing up.

 

Fig by Sarah Elizabeth Schantz

Fig’s world lies somewhere between reality and fantasy.

But as she watches Mama slowly come undone, it becomes hard to tell what is real and what is not, what is fun and what is frightening. To save Mama, Fig begins a fierce battle to bring her back. She knows that her daily sacrifices, like not touching metal one day or avoiding water the next, are the only way to cure Mama.

The problem is that in the process of a daily sacrifice, Fig begins to lose herself as well, increasingly isolating herself from her classmates and engaging in self-destructive behavior that only further sets her apart.

Spanning the course of Fig’s childhood from age six to nineteen, this deeply provocative novel is more than a portrait of a mother, a daughter, and the struggle that comes with all-consuming love. It is an acutely honest and often painful portrayal of life with mental illness and the lengths to which a young woman must go to handle the ordeals—real or imaginary—thrown her way.

The Only Alien on the Planet by Kristen D. Randle (I am a huge fan of Randle!)

New town, new school, new friends. It was difficult for Ginny at first, but her senior year is finally starting to feel kind of normal. That is, until she sees him—the beautiful mystery in her English class. He has never spoken a word to anyone. He moves through each day at school without making eye contact. His name is Smitty Tibbs, but everyone calls him the Alien.

Ginny is convinced there’s more to the Alien than his muted exterior. But as she attempts to break into his safe and emotionless world, she realizes her efforts might be causing more harm than good. Has she gone too far, or not far enough?

Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman

Caden Bosch is on a ship that’s headed for the deepest point on Earth: Challenger Deep, the southern part of the Marianas Trench.

Caden Bosch is a brilliant high school student whose friends are starting to notice his odd behavior.

Caden Bosch is designated the ship’s artist in residence to document the journey with images.

Caden Bosch pretends to join the school track team but spends his days walking for miles, absorbed by the thoughts in his head.

Caden Bosch is split between his allegiance to the captain and the allure of mutiny.

Caden Bosch is torn.

 

 

 

Pick up “Looking Over Your Shoulder” for $0.99!

Are you looking for something new for your To Be Read pile? How about a mystery/suspense book with a twist?

The protagonist is mentally ill.

Looking Over Your Shoulder is on for $0.99 for a limited time! Pick up your copy now! Scroll down for a synopsis.

 

Just because you’re paranoid, that doesn’t mean someone isn’t out to get you.

Things were going well for Abe.  Despite all of his past struggles with mental illness, he was happily married, had three wonderful children, a nice home, and a fantastic consulting business that satisfied his creativity and brought in a good income.

But you can never get too comfortable.  When Abe becomes a prime suspect in a jewel heist – one of the largest successful jewel heists in history – his schizophrenia becomes unmanageable and everything begins to spiral out of control.  Abe’s own investigation into the heist has the jewel thieves hot on his tail… but are they really, or is he just losing the battle against his inner demons?

“I was drawn in from the first page and couldn’t put Looking Over Your Shoulder down . . . [it] kept me guessing and on my toes.”

“An exciting ride that keeps you guessing right to the end.”

“. . . a sensitive and uplifting look at one family’s efforts to triumph over the adversity of mental illness.”

Excerpt from Mister God, This is Anna

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, read the rules at A Daily Rhythm. Anyone can play along!

I picked up an old favourite this week, to share some quotes with a class I was teaching. Mister God, This is Anna by Flynn. It’s a beautiful inspirational book; I’ve never read anything like it.

‘Why did Mister God rest on the seventh day?’ she began.

‘I suppose he was a bit flaked out after six days’ hard work,’ I answered.

‘He didn’t rest because he was tired though.’

Flynn, Mister God, This is Anna

Anna was four years old when Fynn, then only 16 himself, found her wandering round London’s Docklands one foggy night in the 1930s. Badly neglected and abandoned by her parents, he took her home to be cared for by his own family.

The impact of this extraordinary child on Fynn, his friends and the people in their neighbourhood was to be immense. Nobody who met Anna could remain the same: this intelligent, lively, precocious chatterbox had an outlook on life which completely undercut adult pretensions and illusions.

Anna’s influence continues today. Anyone dipping into her thought-processes falls under the spell of her luminous innocence, wisdom and intimate relationship with ‘Mister God’.

Excerpt from Andy McBean and the War of the Worlds

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, read the rules at A Daily Rhythm. Anyone can play along!

Back to fiction this week. I picked up an interesting looking middle-grade book, Andy McBean and the War of the Worlds by Dale Kutzera. It is, you guessed it, a retelling of H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds.

Andy wanted to say that the Pine Mountain Army Base didn’t have an airfield, but another glowing object roared overhead, shaking the street under their feet. Every puddle rippled. The Garcia’s mailbox flew open, releasing a cascade of bills and magazines. The noise and lights receded to the west, casting a green haze over the ridge of the valley, then vanished completely. Suddenly all was still and quiet save for the steady drip of rain.

Dale Kutzera, Andy McBean and the War of the Worlds

Andy McBean is struggling to survive middle school in the soggy hills of the Pacific Northwest. He’s messy, fearful of bullies, and spent much of the last year in the hospital battling leukemia.

Then one night a meteor storm devastates the county, cutting off power and communications. One giant meteor crashes into his neighborhood, skidding up the street to stop right on Andy’s front lawn. The glowing boulder draws the attention of neighbors, the media, the army, and even the new girl from Andy’s art class. He is thrilled at the notoriety, but everything changes when the meteor opens and a towering machine steps out.

Separated from his family, Andy must fend for himself and rescue his friends. Join the adventure as Andy meets an alien, learns what they want on planet earth, and devises a bold plan to stop them.

Canada’s Third World Nation Infographic

It’s really amazing how blind we can be to what is going on around us. I had some awareness of the living conditions of our Aboriginal People as far back as 1988/89, pre-internet, when I wrote a short story about them on my XT computer. In the intervening time, almost three decades, I kind of assumed that things had changed. The media tends to portray aboriginals as whining over historical treatment which cannot be changed, or turning down million or billion dollar petrochemical deals. Very little is said about current conditions, and then it is buried by news of natural disasters or elections.

But during my research for Questing for a Dream, I was continually shocked by the statistics and stories I was reading. I had heard of international organizations such as the United Nations citing Canada for human rights violations for the third world conditions faced by our native peoples, but knowing the standard of living in the rest of Canada, I believed they were exaggerating.

Here are some of the shocking statistics that I recorded during my research. Please pin, tweet, post and share the infographic. We need to promote awareness of these conditions. Our generation needs to insist that they be addressed, rather than leaving it another thirty years.

References:

According to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, at least 4,000 Aboriginal children died in the overcrowded residential schools.

Canada’s last residential school, Gordon Residential School in Punnichy, SK, closed its doors in 1996.

(http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca...)





In Nunavut 27% of all deaths since 1999 have been suicides. This is one of the highest suicide rates in the world, and it continues to rise, especially among youth. – See more at: http://www.heretohelp.bc.ca/visions/a... (Aboriginal Mental Health: The statistical reality, Saman Khan Reprinted from “Aboriginal People” issue of Visions Journal, 2008, 5 (1), pp. 6-7)





In Manitoba, Aboriginal children made up nearly 80% of children living in out-of-home care (Pathways to the overrepresentation of Aboriginal children in care Canadian Child Welfare Research Portal http://cwrp.ca/node/424)





Half of First Nations children live in poverty, with rates reaching as high as 64 per cent of children in Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

A rising number of Native teenagers are in custody: in 1997, just 12 per cent of young offenders in custody were Aboriginal. Today, it’s one in three.

The number of children taken from their homes by child welfare authorities now exceeds the number taken at the height of the residential-school era

Aboriginal children are 10 times more likely to be placed in foster care than the Canadian average and make up half of the roughly 60,000 kids in care.

More than half of Canada’s Aboriginal population hasn’t finished high school and just six per cent have a university degree.

A third of the population is on social assistance, rising to more than 80 per cent in some communities.

(Why fixing First Nations education remains so far out of reach, Aboriginal youth face a fate that should horrify Canadians and there’s an obvious fix, Tamsin McMahon)





Four in ten Indigenous Canadian children live in poverty, which the report found was twice the national rate. The study cites a deficit in basic social services as the reason for the increase in poverty.

“Indigenous children trail the rest of Canada’s children on practically every measure of well-being: family income, educational attainment, poor water quality, infant mortality, health, suicide, crowding and homelessness,” the report explained.

(Federal government fails aboriginal children : The Canadian National Newspaper)





There are boil water advisories on more than 100 reserves, with about 35 communities incrisisover lack of access to clean drinking water.
(Living conditions for First Nations ‘unacceptable': Fontaine)





Lack of plumbing and electricity, poor insulation, toxic mold, substandard construction, lack of major repairs and overcrowding continue to devastate a large proportion of reserves and severely impact the quality of life of residents (Monette et al. 2009, Statistics Canada 2008, Adelson 2005)





Aboriginal women and girls represented approximately 10% of all female homicides in Canada. However, Aboriginal women make up only 3% of the female population. (Fact Sheet Missing and Murdered Aboriginal Women and Girls, Native Women’s Association of Canada)
Related articles across the web

Every day, a newborn in Manitoba taken by child services
Ontario reserve declares emergency as it loses ferry connecting it to the outside world
Canada’s Indigenous Group Rejects $837Mln Payment For Building Gas Terminal
Nurses in First Nations outposts lack required training: Audit

Stand Alone published in Spanish (Por Mí Misma)

My first foreign-language translation is now out! Thanks to translator María Florencia Lavorato, you can now read Stand Alone in Spanish!

Por Mí Misma is being rolled out to all of the top online stores. Click the cover to get buy links.

No puedes escaparte de quién eres en realidad.

¿Está loca, Justine?

Todos parecen pensarlo…

Su madre. Los chicos en la escuela, y los maestros y administradores también. Incluso la policía, que la recoge de sus paseos nocturnos. Quizás ellos más que nadie.

Su terapeuta alega que tiene ‘problemas’, pero todo es lo mismo. Él piensa que sus vívidas y recurrentes pesadillas, y su comportamiento atroz de algún modo apuntan a algún trauma de su pasado; pero Emma, su madre, no puede explicarlo.

Justine solía contar con Christian, su mejor amigo y compañero de skate. Él era el único que la aceptaba tal cual era. Quizás porque en esos momentos, sobre su skate, Justine se sentía libre para ser ella misma. Pero ahora Christian se ha ido…Justine parece pensar que las cosas no podrían ponerse peor.

Aún cuando su vida gira más y más fuera de control, Justine no puede renunciar a sí misma -alguien completamente diferente a la amorosa hija que Emma espera que sea- a encajar y ser feliz.  Está segura de que Emma tiene la llave de su identidad. Pero si es así, no está hablando.

—Este libro es una maravillosa historia repleta de giros y vueltas…te mantendrá pasando las páginas hasta altas horas de la madrugada. Un final impactante. Una historia genial.

—A medida que PD Workman te sumerge dentro de la cabeza de Justine, comienzas a pensar ué es lo que hace que ella actúe de la manera en que lo hace. Buena suerte al tratar de dejar el libro hasta encontrar la razón…

Excerpt from Parents Who Kill Their Children

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, read the rules at A Daily Rhythm. Anyone can play along!

My teasers are usually fiction books, but I just started a non-fiction read, so you get a change today. I am reading Parents Who Kill Their Children, by R.J. Parker. Guess what it’s about?

Shortly after her husband left the house, Andrea wandered into the bathroom where she filled the tub with water about three inches from the top rim. Mary, then six months old, sat on the bathroom floor.

R.J. Parker, Parents Who Kill Their Children

What could drive parents to go against their fundamental protective instincts and murder their own children?

This collection of “Filicidal Killers” provides a gripping overview of how things can go horribly wrong in once-loving families. Parents Who Killed their Children depicts ten of the most notorious and horrific cases of homicidal parental units out of control. People like–Andrea Yates, Diane Downs, Susan Smith, and Jeffrey MacDonald–who received a great deal of media attention. The author explores the reasons; from addiction to postpartum psychosis, insanity to altruism, revenge and jealousy.

Each story is detailed with background information on the parents, the murder scenes, trials, sentencing and aftermath.

Build your bookshelf! More books!

Fill your shelves—or your Kindle—with books! A number of these are freebies, but always check the price when you navigate to it to be sure.

Here are books that grabbed my attention the last couple of weeks. These are not generally books that I have already read, though a few of them might be. They are books that I have seen and added to my TBR list, looked up on Amazon, loved the cover of, etc. Just a quick run-through of what caught my eye, so you can have a look too.

Click on a cover to jump to it on Amazon.

Added to my TBR List
Looked at on Amazon


Liked the Cover

Excerpt from The Book Stops Here

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, read the rules at A Daily Rhythm. Anyone can play along!

I recently started The Book Stops Here by Kate Carlisle. A mystery about a bookbinder/bibliophile. What reader doesn’t like to read about another book lover? I’m not very far in yet, but enjoying it so far!

The star of the show crossed the wide stage and headed straight for Angie and me, his face drained of color and his jaw taut. He looked as if he might have just witnessed his own death.

Kate Carlisle, The Book Stops Here

You never know what treasures can be found in someone’s attic. Unfortunately for bookbinder Brooklyn Wainwright, some of them are worth killing for.… Brooklyn Wainwright is thrilled to be appearing on the San Francisco edition of the hit TV show This Old Attic as a rare-book expert and appraiser. Her first subject is a very valuable first-edition copy of the classic children’s story The Secret Garden, which is owned by a flower vendor named Vera.

Once she hears what her book is worth, Vera is eager to have Brooklyn recondition it for resale. But after the episode airs, a furious man viciously accosts Brooklyn, claiming that Vera found the first edition at his garage sale, and he wants it back—or else. Brooklyn is relieved that she’s put The Secret Garden in a safe place, but Randolph Rayburn, the handsome host of This Old Attic, is terrified by the man’s threats. He confides in Brooklyn that he fears he is being stalked. He doesn’t know who might have targeted him, or why.

In the days that follow, several violent incidents occur on the set, and Brooklyn is almost killed, leaving both her and her security expert boyfriend, Derek, shaken. Is someone after Brooklyn and the book? Or has Randolph’s stalker become more desperate? And then Brooklyn visits Vera’s flower shop…and discovers her dead. Is the murderer one of the two obvious suspects, or is something more sinister—even bizarre—going on? Brooklyn had better find the clever killer soon or more than her chance at prime time may be canceled…permanently.