Cinda Gault holds a PhD in English, with a specialty in Canadian national identity issues in women’s writing of the 1960s and 1970s. She teaches and writes about Canadian literature, and lives in Toronto, Ontario. Her fiction includes This Godforsaken Place, an historical set in 1885 against a background of the Louis Riel rebellion with appearances by Riel’s general, Gabriel Dumont, and Wild Bill Cody’s Wild West Show star Annie Oakley. For a full list of her work, visit Cinda at www.cindagault.com.

Mah'koos is an acknowledged Canadian Métis Elder from Northern Alberta and a 4th generation Shaman and Spiritual Guide. The name Mah'koos, meaning bear cub (or Little Cub), was given to him to recognize his contribution. In addition, he is a seasoned keynote speaker and workshop presenter. His "Medicine Wheel Training" workshop has been presented at leading education centers across Canada.

In addition to his numerous workshops, Mah'koos contributes knowledge via sweat lodge, drum, rock, crystal, eagle feather, sweetgrass, canoe, Ojibway and star blanket teachings, and Finding Voices in a Sacred Circle, Talking Circle and Forgiveness Circle.

https://mahkoos.ca

Things were different growing up in Northern Alberta in the 1950s. There was wood to chop if you wanted to stay warm and cook, ducks to hunt if you wanted to eat, and kerosene to fetch if you wished to have light. No television or computers. No phones. But there was also fun and lots of love. So Moshom, Nokum and Doggie raised Little Cub to become Mah'koos to fulfill his calling.

Mah'koos has never forgotten. There was always lots of love.

This Alberta born author's first book was delayed by decades as life got in the way. He married his long, disenchanted wife of 43 years, raised five children who now believe anybody can write a book, and built a small but pathetically successful business restoring antique automobiles. A lover of history, politics and dark humour, he is the mortal enemy of political correctness and faux outrage. His future works will undoubtedly disappoint fans of fine literature, but he hopes they will at least entertain.

By the grace of God and the skills of wonderful strangers, Vance is a cancer survivor.

The German occupation of Poland in 1944 had yet to reach 15-year-old Canev and his parents on their farm, but the German bombs that killed his mother and destroyed their home changed everything. Father and son sought refuge with relatives in Warsaw, only to find themselves trapped in unlivable conditions in the bombed-out, walled section of the city, the living hell of “The Ghetto.” A place under constant patrol and attack from the Nazis with a mission to eventually exterminate all, predominately Jewish, Ghetto refugees.

But how much is too much? How long can fear survive in the face of cruelty and evil? Until all is lost, and there is nothing left to fear losing. Nothing left but anger that knows no limits, and retribution that knows no age. Canev was left lost in such anger, and it meant nothing to the German Nazi war machine - until it did. This is one of a thousand unknowable stories of a Warsaw Ghetto that saw and experienced the unimaginable.

“…and a little child shall lead them...Isaiah 11:6”

Marlene was so very talented in many areas. Her family was her priority, and being with her children and grandchildren gave her much joy. Her brilliant smile came so easily when she talked about them. She was a steadfast friend, a good listener, able to provide a different perspective and always ready for a fresh adventure and some laughs. Once she formed a friendship with you, you knew she had your back - through thick or thin.

Professionally, she was a teacher among teachers. She pushed her students but treated them with respect and kindness. In return, the students worked hard and respected her. She was ready for a little humour and fun in her classes, coming up with new and improved lesson plans to suit her students. Marlene was an avid runner - determined to improve, as she pushed herself to new levels, including marathons.

She was a very spiritual person, exploring new ways of understanding life. She enjoyed travelling after her children were grown and spending time in new places. Although it is difficult to describe all that made her such a beautiful person, those of us who were privileged to be part of her life remember her with respect, admiration and love.

This trilogy is evidence of Marlene’s inquisitive mind and enduring spirit; her positive, lasting tribute to hope.

In the world, there lurks something dark, something subversive yet utterly real and distressingly normal to most. Humans are desensitized to the plots and manipulations that clothe them in the guise of the right and good. Who can be trusted? Who cannot?

RCMP Sergeant Scott DuBois has visions that often shine a bright light on evil disguised as good. He hates them because:

• They render him helpless;
• They are graphic and brutal, and:
• They leave him exhausted.

This last one portrayed a murder so heinous even his experiences as a cop could not prepare him. Worse yet, the victim was to be the woman he loved.

Once again, Keara was in grave danger, and no one knew why. Two strangers arrive in town. One stranger is handsome, pleasing to the eye, yet almost invisible as he weaves in and out of sight like a shadow on a cloudy day. The ‘other’ who claims to be there to help Scott and Keara understand and to protect them, in possession of ancient journals and knowledge of a battle in which they are unknowing participants in; a strange woman with secrets, who Scott doesn’t trust.

New knowledge brings new fears. Who is the real enemy and who can be trusted? Can the depths of long forgotten love, from the unlikeliest of sources, bring hope to the town and the world?

J.J.Johnson is an intuitive healer. She lives on a farm in Central Alberta, Canada with her husband and family.

She has also written three other books:

The Angel Trilogy
Book One: Soul’s Journey
Book Two: Soul’s Awakening
Book Three: Soul’s Connection

Teenager Jackie Morgan’s life has been turned upside down and sideways when she meets the boy next door and embarks upon a terrifying journey.

Jackie’s life is forever changed when her mom and new husband move her and her brother to a new town in Alberta from Vancouver. Not very popular or socially skilled, Jackie is even more worried about fitting in at a new school when all she wants is to be happy. This worry is compounded when Jackie has an unfortunate accident the first day of classes; an accident that introduces her to the hottest hunk at her school, Tristan.

A renaissance man, he is kinder and wiser than the other teenage boys. He’s also Jackie’s next door neighbour. After an awkward first meeting, they are drawn to one another like magnets which sets Jackie up as a target for the school mean girl and her posse. Now it’s not a question of being popular or liked but one of surviving school on a daily basis.

Unknown to Jackie, Tristan has some pretty big secrets of his own which will lead to his terrifying transformation into something Jackie can no longer recognize. He is unable to be the kind and caring boy she had come to know. Jackie becomes even more terrified when she finds out that she is the only one who can save him. Will she succeed? If she does, will the mean girls find a way to make sure she pays such a high price that she will never find happiness?

In 1999, TJ Hunter did not care if she lived any longer. In terms of wealth she had been blessed beyond her wildest dreams but, in terms of happiness, she was sure she had been cursed. Overlooked as an irrelevant girl as a child, she had finally found her perfect life, only to have it wrenched from her grasp in wave after wave of grief. Now, still numb from loss, she is forced to face a life-threatening illness and she just doesn’t care if she survives.

As she is sitting in her doctor’s office, TJ has a chance encounter with a magazine article about hockey legend Wayne Gretzky retiring. The article sparks something deep inside her memory and strange things start to happen, catapulting TJ on a magical journey in an attempt to recover from the horrors of her past and face the uncertainty of her future.

Can TJ find the spirit within her to go on with living? Can the horrors of the past somehow be laid to rest as two stories of loss become entwined and reach a surprising conclusion? Are there any answers to questions that have been floating on the wind, like lost kites, for so many years?