When Martha Beck met Raymond Fernandez it was a marriage made in Hell. Serial scammers who defrauded unsuspecting women of their life’s savings in the 1940s, they eventually graduated to murder and were reportedly responsible for 20 deaths during their carefree Bonnie & Clyde crime spree. Once arrested, their trial was one of the most sensational of the era, filling newspaper columns with lurid tales of sexual perversity and unnatural obsessions.
If Junior High School was, as it was for most, a nightmare of epic proportions, this book filled with tall tales and laugh out loud situations, will have readers recalling their own lives—and painful experiences—with a smile. As seen through the eyes of an undersized, red-haired, freckled boy of the era, the foibles of early teen life in the 1960s is given a fresh look with a full dose of humor.
A stunning true story based on real events that dominated headlines nationwide in 1938 and yet, in so many ways, deals with contemporary issues and challenging dilemmas of today. As a young man—wealthy and privileged beyond measure—stands for 11 hours on a ledge of a Manhattan hotel seventeen floors above famed 5th Avenue, the media, onlookers, and tour buses gawk at the lonely soul and are either screaming for him to jump or praying he won’t.
Tomorrow Never Knows is a musical play featuring 25 original songs that follows the lives of six best friends in Junior High during two momentous days of their lives: the night the Beatles appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show and then on the same date decades later for a small group reunion. They are now older, wiser and somewhat damaged after life has taken them along different paths. The play creates an upbeat, fast-paced atmosphere where audience members will recognize moments in their own lives.
When the undisputed star of rock ‘n’ roll in the 1950s suddenly decides that he can’t take another minute of the fame and adoration that is now suffocating him, he slips away under a disguise and disappears into a small southern town where he is anonymous and takes a job in a diner as “just one the guys.” There he finds a simple freedom to ask the big questions and develop real relationships that will ultimately redirect the course of his life.
Set in a high school reunion where everyone is nervously hoping to reestablish themselves while reliving the past, a guest at the hotel mistakenly meanders into the crowd and is mistaken for the former star athlete and big man on campus—The Golden Boy. A meek and lonely man in his real life, Arthur Dingle decides to assume the new persona thrust on him and lives his dream for an exhilarating but short time.
Revisit the wild and carefree era of surfing and beach parties in Southern California as reflected in the unrealistic but wildly popular movies of the early sixties. In a humorous novel, the cast reunites at Comic-Con 35 years later and all is not sunshine and love as times and personalities have changed over time. It’s a wild romp that covers two eras, a dozen actors, and produces laughter with every turn of the page in a fast and hilarious flashback.
In a pleasing and intriguing Christmas story, the unlikely path of a little family heirloom—a snow globe—unites families and generations through the glories and turbulence of American history in a way that draws the reader ever deeper into the lives of people who stumble into moments of significance. A heartwarming and tender tale, The Little Cottage in the Pines overflows with surprises and unexpected twists that offers a trip through time.
When a successful but aging Chicago advertising executive discovers some memorabilia from his high school years, he begins to relive the Summer of Love in a sleepy, seaside village in Southern California. His two worlds, however, begin to merge and soon become indistinguishable—creating unparalleled ecstasy and unimagined terror as he slips between the two, not always at will. A wild ride through two eras that proceeds from the opening chapter through a breathless pace.
A tender but haunting tale of star-crossed lovers who—after a brief, chance meeting—are destined to discover their own magic, comes to life along the rugged Monterrey coast of California. Set in the 1940s, the war provides a colorful background for the couple and their innkeeper as they live in one of the most celebrated, most obscure estate homes in America—carved out of solid rock in the cliffs that line the shore. It is a mystery, a love story, and a suspense thriller rolled into one.
Martin Milton Madellbaum was a feebish, mouse of a man who, throughout his life had been trampled by everyone in his life from his overbearing mother to his condescending and haughty boss who is unafraid to use—steal—his hard work and good ideas. But in his own way, and behind the scenes, Martin is planning his revenge and it will come in a way that now one could have predicted. A novel of heart-pounding suspense, peppered with touching and tender, moving moments that make the overlooked loser a beloved character.
In a fascinating piece of historical writing, Mourning Doves follows the trail of a young Irish lass from her early days in County Cork to the harrowing streets of New York’s immigrant ghettos at the turn of the century. The story covers multiple generations, cross country travels, and a series of unforeseen twists that will keep the reader guessing. It is the story of a conquering spirit of one woman’s life and, in part, is the story of America with all its heartbreaks and triumphs.
Story 14 in the “Tales of Suspense” Series
Victoria Halloran was the heir of the great Whitcomb legacy which came with an estate beyond value situated on a private island called Belle Isle outside of Detroit. With her kind and attentive husband Herbert at her side, from there she reigned as queen on her throne. Unfortunately her throne was her bed—she was a hypochondriac invalid that had not escaped her world of pillows and linens for more than a dozen years.
Imperious, entitled, and bitter, she only found happiness when the world revolved around her. Other than through her overworked telephone, she had no contact with the outside world. But when she eavesdrops on another party’s call and discovers a murder plot, she is desperate to convince others that something must be done to prevent it.
The entire story takes place over a few hours largely with her alone in her bed, but the action and tension are larger than life and, as the clock ticks down to the appointed time of the killing, the scene is almost unbearable.
Story 13 in the “Tales of Suspense” Series
When a couple of young, listless losers pull off a Vegas’ slots casino heist and go on a wild run through the Mojave Desert, they find refuge in the cabin of an old man who has weathered many a decade. He tells them of an even greater score—the legend of a Spanish Galleon marooned in the desert sands that is filled with gold and jewelry.
Enticed by the lure of untold wealth, Joey Matrone goes in search of the treasure but must battle both the severe elements and—what seems to be—supernatural forces that want to defeat him. Based on a shocking true story—or is it a legend—that has been researched and written about by nearly every generation since the Civil War era.
The “Tales of Suspense” Series is a collection of e-Books inspired by the radio plays of the 1940s and 1950s that produced heart-pounding, hair-raising dramas designed to both thrill and terrify listeners for generations. Each tale is unique and not connected to any other, so readers can jump in at any point. Short in length but powerful in impact, they all feature twists and turns that will keep readers guessing until the very end.
Story 12 in the “Tales of Suspense” Series
The world’s most famous murder mystery writer has come up with an idea for his latest masterpiece and it has his heart pounding. Creating a plot outline, he decides to live the story out himself to experience the pure emotions and unfiltered reactions he is craving…and to strike revenge on an old classmate for a perceived past hurt.
Holding the classmate’s family hostage while manipulating the father and husband for his own evil purposes, the writer—Arnold Whitacre—toys with his victims like a cat with a ball of yarn while he thrills to the sight of an innocent man taking the fall for his actions. But with the clock ticking toward an execution date, has the trap he’s set entrap himself instead?
Story 11 in the “Tales of Suspense” Series
When the rich and handsome Gregg and his fiance—the peppy, mysterious Emmie—decide to take a drive to “meet the parents,” they had expected a five-hour journey of sunshine and top-40 tunes on the radio in their convertible. But then came a summer storm.
It was indeed the storm of the century, but—far from simply a meteorological event—it also creates an inner turmoil of epic proportions as they try to solve and survive an impossible situation that was beyond their grasp.
Unprepared for what they would face and how they would react to each other, with each passing mile along a muddy country road—lightning crackling in the distance and thunder rocking their car—the fear grows and the terror is amplified.
