Blog Archives
The Ghost’s Gambit
The Ghost’s Gambit, the third installment in Stephanie Cotta’s Iron Kingdom series, sweeps readers back into the dark, perilous world of the Iron Kingdom, where rebellion burns quietly under the thumb of a brutal empire. The story picks up in the midst of chaos, rebels fleeing through snow, soldiers in pursuit, loyalties torn to pieces. Author Stephanie Cotta crafts a world that is both cruel and tender, filled with haunted warriors, hidden magic, and fragile hope. The narrative follows a cast of complex characters, Wraiths, Conjurers, and outlaws, each wrestling with their own ghosts as they defy a king who seeks to crush them. It’s a tale of defiance, sacrifice, and the flickering light that refuses to die in the shadow of tyranny.
Cotta’s writing moves with fierce rhythm, sometimes sharp as steel, other times soft as snowfall. Her descriptions pull you straight into the fight, the clang of metal, the sting of regret, the ache of loss. What struck me most wasn’t just the action, though it’s thrilling, but the intimacy of the quiet moments in between. When Rowan bleeds for his brother, or Tahira whispers spells through tears, or Akaran faces the cost of vengeance, it hits hard. The book isn’t afraid to show how grief shapes courage, or how love can bloom even when surrounded by blood and ruin. I found myself caring deeply for these characters, even when they stumbled, even when they broke.
The pace shifts swiftly, cutting one moment and lingering the next. There are scenes where the prose leans into drama, yet I couldn’t fault it because it felt honest to the pain the story carries. The dialogue has a rawness that fits the world’s brutality, and while the lore is dense, it rewards you for paying attention. What really lingered with me was the emotional weight beneath the battles. This isn’t just a fantasy about swords and sorcery; it’s about forgiveness, loyalty, and the ghosts we carry when the fight is done.
The Ghost’s Gambit is a story that grips you and doesn’t let go, yet somehow leaves a quiet warmth behind. I’d recommend it to readers who crave epic fantasy with heart, especially those who love stories like Throne of Glass or Mistborn but want something cleaner in tone and more focused on the ties between family and faith. It’s dark, yes, but not hopeless. If you like your fantasy with both grit and grace, this book is worth every page.
Pages: 430 | ISBN : 978-1957656946
Redemption
14 Hours of Saturn follows a 24-year-old woman who has just moved into her new apartment and spends a rainy Saturday revisiting her memories of growing up, her regrets, and her hopes for the future. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
When I wrote Afternoon Rebecca, it was on a dare that I couldn’t write a whole book about a couple out to dinner with each other. Once I succeeded at that, I was challenged once again, this time to write a book about a lady who is stuck at home all day in her apartment. While I took liberties with both challenges, they were both successful in meeting the said challenges.
Saturn’s memories are wonderful slices of life that readers can often see themselves in. Are there any emotions or memories from your own life that you put into your character’s life?
Of course. The Venus character, at least through high school, was highly influenced by my own sister. The parts about schools closing down and having to move because of trains being built were also part of my real-life experiences. I also still work with craft sticks, which is something I started when I was about six years old. Oh, and I also have broken an egg yolk while cooking them, just like Saturn did. (You were the second reviewer to mention that happening, and when I wrote that part, I figured it to be just a simple detail that would get tucked away with Teddy Behr’s superhero t-shirts and that Thanksgiving meal side dishes.)
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
Redemption. You could make mistakes, know they are mistakes while doing them, and you could also redeem yourself and be forgiven in God’s eyes.
Will there be a follow-up novel to this story?
If so, what aspects of the story will the next book cover? Yes, 5 Weeks of Saturn is already completed and is being edited right now. It picks up a week after 14 Hours of Saturn ended. We follow Saturn as she navigates her new job, learns more about her new town, and has entered into a budding relationship with furniture restoration man Janus Rings. This takes you through July 4th. More may follow, as much could be written about this character.
Author Links: GoodReads | Facebook | Amazon
Spend the day with Saturn as she reminisces about growing up in Northwest Indiana with loving, supportive, and sometimes too lenient parents, along with an overbearing big sister named Venus. Her youth was filled with craft sticks, magazine ads, a creative mind, and enough bad decisions to last her a lifetime. She reflects on this while discovering new and wonderful things about the city she now calls home. Will it be the dream she kept having, or another dead-end road for her?
This was written by the same author who wrote the Afternoon Rebecca series. It is not a part of that series, but it is in the same universe.
Illuminating Human Connection
Navigate Family Technology explores the modern family’s dilemma of how to help children thrive without letting technology consume them, focusing on topics such as communication struggles, social media traps, empathy loss, anxiety, and sleep disruption. Did you find anything in your research of this story that surprised you?
I learned so much while researching the book, I’ll try to narrow the answer down to a few!
- That most Modern Tech executives strictly limit their family’s tech-use time and send the kids to low-tech schools
- The number of online predators actively working every day
- The amount of information we take in daily compared to 20 years ago
- The staggering number of hours of screen time displaces connection and well-being activities
What were some ideas that were important for you to share in this book?
My mission is about illuminating human connection in a disconnected modern world. Technology is one of the key drivers of this. We are often alone together on individual devices.
I also found it important to cover technology’s impact on empathy and distress tolerance.
What is one thing that you hope readers take away from Navigate Family Technology?
That overuse of technology is not our fault. Or our kids’ fault. But now that we understand the problem, it’s our responsibility to be intentional about it. And that we can do it – we have so much living to do and real-world connections to make.
Author Links: GoodReads | Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | Website | Amazon
Modern tech is an invaluable resource though its rapid development has created downsides. Nora provides accessible strategies to live our tech lives with intention rather than constant reaction mode. The content inspires hope for connection and comfort in knowing we do not face tech challenges alone.
Entertain a quest to level up your knowledge of modern tech’s influence and explore how to navigate its challenges
The Cathedral of Quiet Power
Evan Yoh’s The Cathedral of Quiet Power is a poetic manifesto about surviving modern life without losing your soul. It’s part memoir, part philosophy, part self-destruction manual. Yoh takes us through his journey from sleeping in a leaking car to becoming a successful consultant, then tearing it all down to find what freedom actually means. The book moves like a confession and a sermon at once. It’s written in sharp, metallic prose that cuts through the noise of self-help clichés. Instead of offering comfort, Yoh offers confrontation. He argues that the world isn’t broken but rigged, that systems of power feed on our noise and dependence, and that real strength lives in quiet rebellion.
Yoh doesn’t sugarcoat a thing, and I admired that. His stories about corruption, burnout, and the “golden handcuffs” of success hit hard because they’re not abstract ideas; they’re lived pain. The writing is raw and unfiltered, full of short sentences that land like punches. And yet, underneath all the anger, there’s an aching tenderness. He’s not trying to burn the world down; he’s trying to build a new one inside himself. Some parts veer close to nihilism, but his insistence that silence, integrity, and sovereignty can coexist feels strangely hopeful. It’s messy hope, the kind that comes after losing everything.
What struck me most was Yoh’s honesty about ego and self-delusion. He admits to weaponizing ambition, mistaking control for love, and building a life that looked perfect but felt hollow. Those chapters were hard to read. They felt like someone holding up a mirror. The prose switches between poetic intensity and quiet introspection. But that’s also the beauty of it. This isn’t a book you breeze through. It’s one you wrestle with. Yoh doesn’t want followers. He wants witnesses–people willing to see the architecture of their own cages. His “doctrines” at the end of each chapter make the ideas stick; they’re like little grenades of wisdom you carry long after closing the book.
The Cathedral of Quiet Power isn’t a guide. It’s a reckoning. I’d recommend it to readers who are disillusioned by hustle culture, who’ve burned out and need a new kind of strength, not louder, but steadier. It’s for anyone ready to stop performing and start rebuilding from the quiet ruins of who they really are.
Pages: 166 | ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0FX8MG5C3
Literary Titan Silver Book Award
Celebrating the brilliance of outstanding authors who have captivated us with their skillful prose, engaging narratives, and compelling real and imagined characters. We recognize books that stand out for their innovative storytelling and insightful exploration of truth and fiction. Join us in honoring the dedication and skill of these remarkable authors as we celebrate the diverse and rich worlds they’ve brought to life, whether through the realm of imagination or the lens of reality.
Award Recipients
Filaments by KZK Zuganelis Kasling
Visit the Literary Titan Book Awards page to see award information.
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