George Weinstein — Hardscrabble Road

About Hardscrabble Road:

The entire MacLeod clan is haunted by secrets—and young Roger “Bud” MacLeod doesn’t realize he carries the biggest secret of all. Growing up poor in Depression-era South Georgia is hard enough, but Bud is also cursed with a stutter and a birthmark that disfigures his face. His hateful father and amoral mother make life worse still, despite his brothers’ efforts to shield him.

To survive in body and soul, Bud must discover his strengths and confront the sins of his parents. First, though, he’ll need to grasp his own truth: that he can’t embrace his future until he comes to terms with his past.

About the George Weinstein:

George Weinstein is the author of the historical novel and book club favorite Hardscrabble Road; the novel of forgotten U.S. history The Five Destinies of Carlos Moreno; the contemporary romance The Caretaker; and the mystery Aftermath, as well as the children's adventure novel Jake and the Tiger Flight. His work also has been published in the Atlanta press and in regional and national anthologies, including A Cup of Comfort for Writers. George is the former President of the Atlanta Writers Club and has helped over two thousand writers on their quest for publication through the twice yearly Atlanta Writers Conference, which he directs. On GeorgeWeinstein.com, you can read the first chapter George's books for free.

About SFK Press:

The path for an artist to reach a wider audience is no longer exclusively controlled by corporate gatekeepers measuring each choice purely by its economic return. This is the founding premise of SFK Press, an independent publisher based in Metro Atlanta.

In the Deep South, where the bespectacled Flannery O’Connor inhabits every literary tick, the contemporary narrative is dynamic. We’re marching far beyond the cynical stories of the 20th century. Authors have dumped the askew pastorals on their asses. We recognize that cultivating new voices requires broadening the definition of Southern writing. The hero isn’t always represented in a conventional fashion.

Steve Bassett Father Divines Bikes

About Father Divines Bikes

Offering an extensive look inside the history and urban problems — and how they began — in post-World War II Newark, New Jersey like never before, author Steve Bassett releases the first in the trilogy, Father Divine’s Bikes. In this noir crime thriller, Bassett melds character, time and place into a mosaic that uncovers the plight of a city on a downward spiral immediately after the war, a time when our nation was basking in the afterglow of victory.

A gangster war, three murders, a gun-toting paperboy, and the numbers racket lay bare a dark, compelling story in a world of poverty and hopelessness from which there is little hope of escape. In the autumn of 1945, a battle rages when the city’s competing mobs end their truce. When it gets bloody, other criminal forces are ready to move in. Citywide corruption is endemic. Bookies using Father Divine’s controversial International Peace Mission Movement as a front, recruit two Catholic altar boys, Joey Bancik and Richie Maxwell, to run numbers under the guise of newspaper routes. The boys quickly realize they are players in a dangerous game, but the easy money is too good to pass up. They are now petty criminals and being hauled into juvie court is a risk they’re willing to take. Two homicide detectives track Joey to a luxury apartment, but arrive too late to prevent the inevitable. Joey’s body lay in a pool of blood on the basement floor.

About Steve Bassett:

Born and raised in Newark\'s crime-ridden Third Ward, although far removed during a career as a multiple award-winning journalist, Steve Bassett has always been the proud sobriquet Jersey Guy. He has been legally blind for almost a decade, but this hasn\'t slowed him down.

Bassett has written two nonfiction books, The Battered Rich and Golden Ghetto: How the Americans and French Fell In and Out of Love During the Cold War. Continuing with his newest fiction release, Father Divine’s Bikes, readers share in his insights that earned him three Emmys for investigative documentaries, and the California Bar Association\'s Medallion Award for Distinguished Reporting on the Administration of Justice. He now resides in Placitas, New Mexico with his wife, Darlene.

Mark Wallace Maguire — Alexandria Rising

About Alexandria Rising:

Rand O\'Neal, an ambition-less newspaper reporter, is given a single task upon the death of his grandfather: Destroy a mysterious map. What should be a simple errand thrusts Rand into a journey across three countries chased by unknown pursuers where he discovers humanity\'s biggest secret.
The book is labelled an action adventure, but contains elements of conspiracy fiction, science fiction and suspense. It is also linked to a multi-media website which allows readers to engage with the experience in video, images and interactive appendices.

About the Author:

As a preacher’s son, Mark Wallace Maguire spent his childhood crisscrossing the South soaking in the lilting dialects, oral traditions and cultural idiosyncrasies. After a brief career in music, he settled behind the desk as a reporter at the Marietta Daily Journal and has spent the last 20 years as fixture in the metro Atlanta media scene as a columnist, editor and director. In 2017, he was nominated for Georgia Author of The Year for his first novel, “Alexandria Rising” which was published in October 2016. The sequel, “Alexandria Reborn” was published in August 2017. “Letters from Red Clay Country: Selected Columns” was published in 2015 and features the best of his award-winning newspaper and magazine columns. Maguire currently serves as director of Cobb Life magazine and Cobb Business Journal. His writing has been published in many regional and national publications including Snake Nation ReviewReach of SongCobb Life magazine, Neighbor Newspapers and The Blood and Fire Review. He has been honored for his writing by several organizations including The Associated Press, The Society of Professional Journalists and The Georgia Poetry Society. In 2005, he was named the Berry College Outstanding Young Alumni of The Year. When he’s not writing, Maguire produces musical projects inspired by his favorite authors and books as well as painting, gardening and making Star Wars puns with his sons.