Follow the Storm From dreams of the end. To surviving the reality. Life and death decisions. Choices made only by fate. Follow four generations and the families they find through nightmares and heartbreak, love and magic. Includes Dreaming the Storm, Joining the Storm, Into the Storm, and Fighting the Storm. Dreaming the Storm The Storm Begins Seeing the future: blessing or curse? For Anne Fincastle, only the number of survivors changes. Few or none. Anne knows the truth. In her heart, her mind, her bones. Only Evan Griffith believes. Can they make a difference for humanity, together? Joining the Storm The Storm Builds Etan Griffith loves his life in Chicago, far from his native Blue Ridge Mountains. Alex Collins escaped Wisconsin to a career he loves, in a city that welcomes him more than his own family. Both seek the missing piece to their puzzle. Dreams and patterns. Restless and searching. Then one snowy night sets their shared destiny in motion. Into the Storm The Storm Strikes Iris Rutherford’s paintings scare most people. Especially the strange ones. Even in her hometown of Maple Ridge, Virginia, her own peculiar magic makes her an outsider in a town full of them. Then Iris meets Gena Wallace, the first to understand. To see the visions, joyful and nightmarish, even before Iris sees. Will they survive as Iris’s nightmares come true? Fighting the Storm The Storm Breaks Alex Collins and Etan Griffith thought love, hard work, and magic protected them from the end of the world. Until heartbreak struck much closer to home. Picking up the pieces brings new friends and new challenges. Threats unseen and unexpected. Will the power of family bring them all through, together?

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year! Thom’s dream job: working at Janson Park, especially when it transforms from HalloweenLand into KrampusLand. Thom’s dream girlfriend: Julie, Queen of the Night for Halloween, and all year long in Thom’s mind and heart. Thom’s worst nightmare: telling Julie how he feels. Find out what happens when Love finds a way. An excerpt from Happily Ever After in KrampusLand: A rising surge of crowd noise let Thom and everyone else know the parade was coming to an end. The Queen of the Night in her horseless carriage could only be next. Otherwise known as Julie Howard, Thom’s best friend since she’d moved here when they were both in first grade. The carriage slowed to a halt, and Thom stepped up to the front without a whole lot of hassle. Several of the other guys and a few of the girls who worked the Halloween season would have been happy to help the Queen of the Night step back down into reality. Thom couldn’t help but feel a flush of pride that they respected his years of friendship with Julie enough to back off. He tried to ignore the flutter of hope that she might want him for more than friendship someday. That flutter had been with him more and more over the last couple of months.

A Sweet Escape to the Beginning Keith and Josh, new in town and to each other. Dirk and Barbara, striving for new beginnings. April and Michele, digging through lost treasures. Trisha and Bill, adjusting to strange new realities. Craig and Sohpie, in a time of healing and change. Diana and Katie, stranded in snowstorm limbo. Thom and Julie, on the edge of finding their own way. Amy and Tony, enjoying the rewards of hard work. Eight couples finding their way to that first thrilling spark, the joy of discovering a kindred spirit. A heart that beats in time with their own. Join husband and wife team Jason A. Adams and Kari Kilgore on a journey to the promise and joy of discovery. And the beginning of happily ever after. Includes The Sweetest Trouble, Dirk Knight and The Case of the Rustled Ranch, The Real Treasure in Cairo, For the Love of Snarla Jane, The Heart Is the Strongest, Canine Cupid, Happily Ever in KrampusLand, and First Kiss Ah, romance! We all love falling in love. We all enjoy watching those two friends who everyone knows belong together finally get it over with and start dating. Partners in Romance features tales of new friends-with-potential, people thrown together by circumstance, neighbors with spark, and much, much more. Just like in real life, dogs fan romantic sparks into a flame. Mature lovebirds want happiness for the younger generation. Humor plays a vital role, especially when it comes to love’s secret recipe. With people starting out in life or making long-desired changes, hearts recognize each other. Of course, all romance features dream chasing, and a good Happily Ever After. Come along for the adventure as eight couples discover each other, and the promise of the beginning!

That Treasure Most Rare April inherits the sad business of sorting out the ghosts of a loved one’s life. Digging into family chaos in the middle of a miserable Midwestern summer. Michele hopes to discover gems tucked into all the clutter. To rescue artifacts of past glory from a grand city in decline. Will they recognize the treasure they find in each other? An excerpt from The Real Treasure in Cairo: April pulled her spectacular waves of hair back with both hands, but when she let go it popped right back out into the humidified halo. “I found a couple of chest-of-drawers full of socks and underwear. I think whoever cleaned out the house just brought them over here without even looking inside. So now it’s my...my freaking problem.” Michele laughed and touched April’s shoulder. “Our problem. Like I said over the phone, I’m certain we’ll find some wonderful things no matter how it looks right now. And the last thing you need to worry about with me is swearing. If we spend any amount of time together, you’ll be surprised when you don’t hear me let it fly.” April grinned and laughed for real this time. “That’s a relief. Because I think this is going to be an all-day-swearing kind of job.”

Sometimes transitions reveal more than than we imagine. Marlene expects a bittersweet day, revisiting a house her mother no longer calls home. Along with the joy of creating a haven for the next generation. But her mother’s reaction exposes more than the passage of time. Find out what happens when family secrets and worries can’t hide any more. Originally appeared in Fiction River: Superstitious, 2019 An excerpt from The Worry Trap: Revisiting childhood, and so much more... “Hang on, Mom,” Marlene said, leaving her memories with her footprints and catching up. “That last step is tricky.” “I guess I know how to go into my own house, Marlene. Even if I don’t live here anymore.” Marlene smiled, nodding even though her mother was already inside. This was a happy occasion, and she was going to act accordingly. Even if her mom got fussy along the way. “How’s everything look in here for your granddaughter’s arrival?” Her mother stood in the middle of the wide porch, hands on her hips, turning from side to side. The sunlight caught her short, permed hair, glinting off the silver highlights. Marlene hoped her own chestnut hair would be exactly the same color when she finally stopped getting it touched up. Someday.

An enchanted bookstore in a town full of magic. A story of childhood and best friends revisited. A town forced to face the music. A modern myth from a land before time. A charming collision of numbers and magic. Unwelcome change in a land of dragons. In this second fantasy short story collection from Kari Kilgore, she visits lands familiar and strange, mythological and fantastic. From Allsentia to Appalachia to Atlanta, from modern mythology to dragons to joys of distant childhood. Join this talented storyteller on a journey through magical bookstores and haunted towns, lands lost in time and friendships forged across new dimensions. Includes Odds and Endings, Dawn Visitor, The Earworms, The Spider Who Ate the Elephant, Little Five, and The Last Dragonkeeper. Odds and Endings Visit an enchanted bookstore in a town full of magic. Chris Ramsey grew up visiting the Odds and Endings Bookstore in Lightning Gap, Virginia. Wandering the shelves. Finding endless adventures in the pages. Wishing he helped create the magic. Years later, Chris gets his chance. What would you do for the opportunity of a lifetime? Dawn Visitor A beloved dog brings a special gift, especially to a young girl’s life. One that lasts and endures no matter how many years pass. Toby welcomes Ellie home as only a first best friend can. A touching story of childhood and best friends revisited. The Earworms What if your whole town had to face the music? Estonoa, Virginia. A lovely little town tucked deep in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Hiking and ATV trails. Kayaking along the scenic Clinch River. A thriving community focused on the future. Erin Evans loves her hometown, except for one thing. The Earworms. Will Erin find the answer before the music drives her and everyone else crazy? The Spider Who Ate the Elephant A Modern Myth. An eerie natural phenomenon. In the distant past, in a distant land... Grandmother Spider faces a sad problem far too big and difficult for her to solve. The end of her family and all the creatures in her land. Find out how her triumph echoes from then to now, and into forever. A tale of compassion, survival, and love. Little Five Barry Evans: An oddball in the oddest land of all. A gray-suited accountant navigating colorful hair, crazy clothing, and questionable businesses. After three months in Little Five, nothing surprises Barry anymore. Until the day he meets a true stranger in town. What happens when numbers meet magic? The Last Dragonkeeper Wyja, Senior Dragonkeeper of the Upper Abramshire Academy, tends to young dragons and keepers alike. Each group challenging, and exhausting, in their own way. Unwelcome change sets in when dragon birthrates drop to dangerous levels. No one knows why. Can Wyja solve the problem before it’s too late?

A Dispatches from the Galaxy Collection A generation ship with an impossible problem. A food supply planet at risk of starvation. A faster-than-light space communication network in danger of collapse. Join Kari Kilgore on a trio of exciting Space Opera novella adventures! The Changes Cascade Sue Warrell, Systems and Security Chief aboard Expedition Mission Bellagos, fought long and hard for a one-way trip. Protecting the lives of over eight thousand people and the generation ship they call home. As a failed systems update tests Sue and her team to their limits, a crew member's disappearance pushes disaster into the impossible. Will Sue find the truth before Bellagos passes the breaking point? Restricted Species Earth Wars veteran Jim Turhan loves his quiet life on supply planet Mossera 4, teaching the art and science of xeno-farming. Then crops all over Mossera 4 begin to fail. Will Jim discover the cause before starvation, or worse, turns his dream life into a nightmare? The Becalmed Bitan, the most valuable substance in the human universe, only comes from one planet. And that planet has a problem. The TransGalactic Corporation sends Luis Ahmad on a desperate mission to help the human colony on Bitanthra. Can Luis save the colony and communications across the galaxy? Excerpts from Dispatches from the Galaxy: The Changes Cascade Evans took a deep breath. "Senior Tech McHugh is missing. I made sure to investigate before I brought this to you, ma'am." "You're forgetting the geo-sensor." Sue tapped the tiny bump hidden in the hair above her right ear. "Mr. McHugh would not simply disappear, even if he could." "The tracking screen was the first thing I checked. Pull it up if you could, please, and we'll make sure." "One missing," she whispered. "Even if he were dead..." She switched over to the report on McHugh, and a deeper chill ran through her. The yellow of Invalid flashed behind his name. Not one other person showed that impossible status. Restricted Species "The freighters won't bring any food with them," Jim said. "Even if we warn them, they can't detour to another supply planet." Rob's face was pale. "There aren't any close by." "Not that they could re-route to." Jim scrubbed his face. "We won't actually starve to death. At least I don't think so. But with a year or more before we get a good harvest, we'll have a planet full of miserable cadets and furious miners on our hands." He knew all too well how shortages and hardships they weren't prepared for could turn a difficult situation into a nasty one. The Becalmed "II don't think it's trauma," Luis said, "or disease. I don't believe this is contagious at all. What do you think is going on?" Tears stood in Willis's eyes. "Some of us are afraid it's some kind of poison we're passing along to our children." "I can't rule anything out yet," Luis said. "But your medical center here has tested for everything we know of, and off-world facilities have too. Nothing seems out of line with your bodies. Nothing seems to accumulate or get depleted over time." "Except our kids' feelings," Myrtle said. She didn't look sad. She looked furious. "That's depleting, more and more every year."

Five Journeys Away from Life as You Know It Mark gets to know himself and his family. And learns to take unusual warnings to heart. Ella chases a lifelong dream. Never imagining the reality around the next curve. Amy takes a bittersweet trip down memory lane. And discovers the past makes its own plans. Paul celebrates a treasured best friend. Never suspecting a life-changing secret awaits. Kay’s Café serves up all kinds of comfort. But Kay wants to bring the taste of love itself back to life. Life brings constant change. Transitions we all recognize in one way or another. But sometimes those changes take us a step out of the ordinary. And into the world only glimpsed out of the corner of your eye. Join storyteller Kari Kilgore on a fantastic journey through life’s changes, and beyond. Includes five new original stories: The Perfect Shade of Haint Blue, The Road to Paradise Mountain, Amy in Wonderland, The Lightning-Struck Wood, and A Taste Just Like a Hug.

On Certain Days, the Hurt Feels Brand New Most people love the music computer in Sara's brain. Earworm lyrics. Trivia and connections. Obscure cover versions. She knows it all. Only one person knows the obsession behind Sara's knowledge. And the heartache she hides. Can a break with the past show Sarah a new future? Originally appeared in Obsessions: An Anthology of Original Fiction, Stark Publishing, 2020 An excerpt from At the Heart of It All: The Day All Her Best Defenses Fail Sarah may have been born with the computer, but her father had at least installed the software and optimized it for music. The massive database she'd been filling as long as she could remember. Anything that changed after that hadn't been his fault. "Not now. Not while you're in this traffic." She took advantage of a dead stop on the highway and called up Jimi Hendrix and Crosstown Traffic to distract herself. Keeping the calendars out of her office helped some with this dreadful, painful month. Same with turning off the displays on her phone and her computers at work. Even if she'd followed her occasional impulse and spent all of October in some sort of technology and communication void, she'd know. Some part of Sara knew exactly what day it was. Every single year.

Curiouser and Curiouser Amy gets the chance to relive a cherished childhood memory. To revisit a beloved movie, and remember a night full of wonder. A solo trip into the past both sweet and melancholy. But sometimes the past makes other plans. What will Amy discover on her unexpected visit to Wonderland? Also available in the collection Stepping Out of Reality An excerpt from Amy in Wonderland: Right On Time for A Most Important Date Amy stepped through the door the White Rabbit held, and she found herself bobbing down into a passable imitation of a curtsey for some bizarre reason. Up close, she couldn’t see a trace of makeup on his white face, or how his constantly twitching whiskers could possibly be attached. “Do be sure and enjoy your refreshments,” he purred. “We made them especially for you.” Even though Amy’s stomach loudly demanded popcorn now that the scent was thick in the air, she headed toward the burgundy velvet curtain leading to the auditorium. She had no desire to get too close to any of the other actors. Unfortunately Tweedledum and Tweedledee had relocated themselves to either side of the entrance, and they each held a silvery tray.