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Lost Love
Out of the Darkness centers around a biochemist who meets a mysterious stranger with a rare genetic condition seeking both survival and redemption. Where did the idea for this book come from?
The original idea for this story came from an old Jean-Claude Van Damme movie, Universal Soldier, which gave me the idea of vampire soldiers, Dean Koontz’s Moonlight Bay Trilogy, which gave me the idea of incorporating a real medical condition, and a tangent I went on while researching XP that gave me the idea of making vampirism a virus.
What draws you to the paranormal genre?
The idea of the impossible being possible.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
Redemption, survivor’s guilt, lost love, forgiveness, power and corruption, and the healing power of love.
Can we look forward to more work from you soon?
Absolutely.
What are you currently working on?
I’m currently working on edits for Embrace the Darkness, the second book in the Darkness Series, and completing the third book, Edge of Darkness.
Author Links: GoodReads | X (Twitter) | Facebook | Website | Amazon
Her research could cure his dark hunger if a covert government agent doesn’t get to her first.
Vincent Maxwell is a vampire with a conscience seeking a cure for his dark hunger. But when a scientist looking to create vampire soldiers captures and kills a fellow vampire, Vincent seeks out Dr. Megan Harper, a research scientist who discovered a link between a genetic light sensitivity disorder and vampirism. Dr. Harper could hold a key to a cure and the answers to Gerard’s death. But getting close to the beautiful scientist could endanger both their lives.
When Megan meets Vincent she believes he suffers from xeroderma pigmentosum, the genetic disease that killed her sister. Sensing a deep loneliness within the handsome man, she offers friendship and access to her research files. But she and Vincent soon become more than friends and Megan learns the horrifying truth. She’s entered the dark and unseen world of vampires and Vincent is her only hope of survival.
Vital Historical Knowledge
Jigsaw: Shadow Ball follows a group of Temporal Guardians trying to preserve and repair the timeline from a ruthless organization set on altering history and erasing the racial integration of Major League Baseball. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
Excellent question. I love baseball, and I have always wanted to do a story on that. However, in the vein of my formerly titled History’s Forgotten series, I wanted to focus this book on Larry Doby, the second man to break the color barrier in baseball after Jackie Robinson. Most know the story about Robinson, but not as many know about Doby, and I wanted to delve into his importance in baseball and integration in American society in general.
When discussing the civil rights movement, most people automatically think of figures like Dr. King and other politically recognized activists; the involvement of athletes is not as well known, and I appreciate that you brought this aspect into the series. Was it important for you to deliver a moral to readers, or was it circumstantial to deliver an effective novel?
Yes. I want my stories to be both entertaining and educational where readers enjoy the tale but also take away vital historical knowledge, character education lessons, and moral parables.
I find that authors sometimes ask themselves questions and let their characters answer them. Do you think this is true for your characters?
Sometimes, especially with my two major protagonists, Francesca and Noah.
I hope the series continues in other books. If so, where, and when, will the story take readers next?
The next installment in the Jigsaw Series, titled Temporal Apocalypse will be released in the spring of 2026. It will center on the post-World War I era and take place in Jerome, Arizona, the Russian-Polish war front, and Fiume off the Adriatic Coast.
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A rip in reality is spreading, and the fate of history hangs by a thread.
The ruthless organization Global Harmony has launched Project Shadow Ball, a devastating mission to erase the racial integration of Major League Baseball—rewriting the past to build their own twisted future.
Temporal Guardians Francesca and Noah are the only ones standing in their way. As they hurtle through time, they must protect baseball greats Rube Foster and Larry Doby, whose very existence is at risk.
With every pitch, every stolen base, and every moment altered, the fate of history—and the fight for truth—hangs in the balance.
Time is slipping away. The stakes have never been higher.
Can Francesca and Noah outwit their enemies before baseball’s greatest revolution is erased forever?
Or will history be rewritten in the shadows?
If they fail, history shatters. If they fall, the future is lost.
Andersen Light: A Meta-Normal Novel
Tanya D. Dawson’s Andersen Light is a coming-of-age novel that weaves fantasy, trauma, healing, and self-discovery into the life of Georgie Jones, a brave teenager escaping abuse and finding her place in a world bigger and stranger than she imagined. After surviving an unsettling family situation, Georgie relocates to the coastal town of Mystic Creek to live with her father. What begins as a grounded emotional journey slowly opens into a metaphysical one, involving dreams, psychic mentors, a mysterious lighthouse, and a destiny Georgie could never have foreseen.
What hit me first and hardest was the honesty in the way Georgie’s trauma is portrayed. Dawson doesn’t sugarcoat it. She takes you inside the mind of a kid trying to hold it all together, and it’s messy and brave and human. It made me uncomfortable in places, but in the right way. Georgie isn’t a perfect heroine. She’s scrappy, smart, overwhelmed, and trying to find light in all the dark. The writing in these parts feels raw, coming straight from the heart. Dawson nails the voices of kids and teens without slipping into awkward attempts to sound “young.” There’s also something comforting in how safe the adult characters, like her father and the lightworker Luther become. There’s hope alongside the pain, and that balance matters.
I was surprised by the book’s mysticism. At first, it reads like contemporary fiction with serious emotional weight. Then suddenly, you’re in dream realms, lighthouses channel energy, and the story folds into something more like magical realism or soft sci-fi. That shift felt a bit jarring. I wasn’t always sure if the magical side added clarity or distraction. Some of the metaphysical explanations slowed the pace a bit. There were moments where the surreal worked beautifully, especially when it paralleled Georgie’s emotional healing.
Andersen Light is heartfelt and different. It’s for readers who like emotional depth in their YA, especially those who appreciate a blend of real-life grit with cosmic wonder. If you’re someone who’s survived something or loves stories about kids finding their strength, this will resonate with you. I’d recommend it to teens and adults alike, especially those who believe that healing can be both practical and mystical.
Pages: 405 | ASIN : B09HY7W6QK
Strength of Character
Jigsaw: The Face of the Joker follows a team of Temporal Guardians racing through time to save a single 1927 film whose failure could unravel a century of history, culture, and humanity itself. What inspired you to center the plot around The Man Who Laughs?
I have always, since the time my father introduced me to Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, been a fan of Universal Horror Movies. What made me center on The Man Who Laughs is that the movie both set the cinematic scope for Universal classics like Dracula, Frankenstein, and The Mummy, but also provided, through Jack Pierce’s makeup for the Conrad Veidt character, the inspiration for Batman’s The Joker. When coming up with the story, I thought The Man Who Laughs would be a wonderful fork in the temporal roads to center on. I also wanted to pay homage to Paul Leni, an acclaimed director who died before his time and who may have directed Dracula with Veidt in the lead role had he not died prematurely from an infection.
The dynamic between Noah and Francesca feels particularly alive. Were any of their interactions drawn from real-life experiences or relationships?
Yes. I based it on some of the interactions between my wife, Gwyn, and myself.
Did you have a favorite scene to write, maybe one that brought together your love of film, history, and sci-fi in a satisfying way?
I like the scene where Francesca and later she and Noah dealt with Norman Kerry, the actor who tried to harass the women on set. It showed their strength of character and why they are indeed the heroes of the story. I also like the interplay between Paul Kohner and Noah and Josh, as well as the interactions between Mary Philbin and Francesca and Tori. It brought history alive.
The book has a sharp, cinematic style. Did you imagine it visually as you wrote, and has there been any interest in adapting it for the screen?
Yes, I did because I always thought back to scenes in Universal Horror classics for some of the chapters. There is also a subtle homage to Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein in the chapter with the custodians. There is also an interest in having it adapted for the screen.
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Franesca and Noah are excited to start their new lives as newlyweds, but the fight for reality never ends! Catapulted back into yet another adventure, life is put back on pause.
Thrust into the battle to stop the vampire Lilith from helping Novus Ordo change history by stopping the production of the Universal silent movie The Man Who Laughs, Francesca, Noah, Tori, and Josh face off against the supernatural forces of evil in 1920s Hollywood — both in this universe and a parallel Neo-Fascist one.
Untamed, Magical Abilities
Coven of Andromeda follows a young woman whose grandmother has passed away, leaving her with more than just memories, but her family’s magical legacy, propelling her on a journey of self-discovery that leads her to another world entirely. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
A cross between the stories Practical Magic & Harry Potter. The original title for the novel was The Witch Hats and was much simpler than the story I finally wrote. It evolved around a central family and their place within a coven. The hat that a witch wore in life accumulated their knowledge, and after death, the hat was then passed onto an heir. When the heir to the hat finally placed it onto their head, the knowledge of all previous wearers would be transferred to the new witch. Although there is much similarity to the first outline that I plotted out, the new version, which I kept and used, involved a more detailed account of the history of the coven and its roots on the distant planet Eldoria and the people there.
The reader notices right away that the story starts on Eldoria in the first chapter, followed by chapter two being on earth with a mother and her two daughters returning to the town of Ballad after years away due to a death in the family. The book bounces from past to future until about halfway through the book, as aspects of Eldoria are revealed to the reader and who the main characters actually are.
Two strong-willed young people, both grappling with their own journeys of self-discovery, find their lives unexpectedly intertwined in your story. What inspired the connection between Bree and Sameril?
I’m not sure if it is inspiration, but I felt that telling the reader of the ancient past and bringing everything into the present day was a must to make the story understandable. Sameril was in love with Briella on planet Eldoria. The planet was under siege, forcing young witches and necromancers to escape. Without giving the story away, Sam was tasked with protecting the coven of witches for hundreds of years (without aging or aging slowly), sometimes nearby and sometimes from a distance. Bree is the reincarnation of Briella on Earth in the present day, but has no idea who Briella was or of her reincarnation. My intention was to show that love spans time, space, and location.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
Definitely coming-of-age and destiny or fate of the character(s). Breaking out of who you think you are and becoming what you need to be. This, along with fate, causes you to be thrust into a situation where you don’t want to be, but must be in order to resolve the current situation. This is the untamed, magical abilities of Bree Tanner coming to terms with her heritage and her future.
Is this the first book in the series? If so, when is the next book coming out, and what can your fans expect in the next story?
Oh, great question! To be honest, this was going to be a novel that stood on its own. I never had any intention of writing a second book. That said, everyone I know personally and others who have contacted me or in their reviews of the book at various locations have asked if there will be a follow-up book with possibly more story involving some of the side characters.
OK. Without sticking my head through a noose, I will say that I have already been brainstorming, pre-plotting, and fleshing out some ideas. Things are always subject to change, and I would hate to say too much about what I think will happen, but if things stay the way I have them started right now, it would certainly involve more story with characters within Sam’s library, along with the Fae. I wouldn’t want to say much more than that right now and be accused later for not following through. Also, I have three other stories I want to write as well. Will I write the follow-up soon? I have a tendency to write two books at once, writing one novel’s first two or three chapters and then working on the plot of another book, and then going back to where I left off. This bouncing back-and-forth gives my brain time to decompress from too much focus on one by fiddling with another. I am always thinking of the next two or three books that I want to write and extremely fidgety over which one will be first. As of this writing, I will probably start on book 5 in my Rangers of the Realm sci-fi series as well as this one.
People are free to leave me messages on my website as to their own thoughts on my books or ideas of what they would like to read. All are welcome.
Author Links: GoodReads | X (Twitter) | Facebook | Website | Amazon
This is a book that demands to be read in a single sitting, a page-turner that balances heart-pounding action with moments of genuine emotional depth.
A Story of Great Courage
Winter Comes in June is a post-apocalyptic sci-fi novel that weaves survival, science, and sorrow through the fractured memories of a family navigating life after an asteroid shatters Earth. What inspired the choice to tell the story through diaries and multiple family perspectives?
I have always wanted to write a dynamic and interesting post-apocalyptic novel where family members share their experience through their memories recorded after an Extinction Level Event. The inspiration to tell the story this way came from another science fiction novel written by a writer, Sheri Tepper, titled The Visitor. It also dealt with a world shattered by an asteroid impact. I felt that by telling this story through several individual voices adds depth to each character and makes them more sympathetic.
How did you balance the technical accuracy of the science with the personal emotional arcs?
In preparation to make this novel a reality, I read several fiction and non-fiction books dealing with asteroid impacts and their awesome destructive power that affected our planet’s evolution in the distant past. The personal emotional arc for each character is unique. Their reaction to the imminent asteroid collision and the life after the impact is also deeply personal. I tried to project realistic human emotion into the story, to make it character-driven. This is a story of great courage in the face of apocalyptic horror and the triumph of the human spirit. In my novel, everyone is touched by a world-shattering tragedy that my characters are able to overcome by their strength, their will, and their humanity.
Did you base the lunar Armstrong base or the Amira Event on any real scientific models or speculative research?
The lunar base Armstrong in my story was partially based on several proposed NASA projects since the first landing on the Moon in 1969. The original NASA plans were to build a permanent manned science base on the Moon. There were several interesting proposals, which were scientifically well grounded but were ultimately canceled because of the lack of proper funds and the danger of long-term exposure to the low gravity of the Moon, which would have had many negative effects on the astronauts’ health. The Amira Event described in my novel is, of course, purely fictional, but is based on the solid scientific data on what an asteroid this size can do if it had struck Earth. The rock that supposedly had killed the dinosaurs was only five to six miles long. In my story, the Amira asteroid was twice as big and caused much more damage.
What do you hope readers take away from the emotional aftermath portrayed in the story, beyond the survival elements?
In my opinion, a good book, just like a painting in a museum or a good movie, must provoke an emotional response. Skipping the survival elements, where the reader can reasonably guess the characters’ motivation and personality, I hope that the readers can take away with them the strong emotional impact and try to place themselves in the fictional character’s position. I believe that my readers will find inspiration from the main characters through their words and actions that often speak louder than words. I also hope that they can learn that no matter what happens, one must never abandon hope. I would also advise them to remember the ancient Greek myth about Pandora’s Box. When she opened the box out of curiosity, all the terrible things came out into the world. But at the bottom of the box, the Hope remained. Our species has survived many great catastrophes and challenges in the distant past. I hope that we are better prepared to face any type of disaster and emerge from it deeply scarred but ultimately victorious.
Author Links: GoodReads | Amazon
Conflict Over the Centuries
Whispers Through Time follows a successful writer whose life is upended when a former lover reappears with a stack of photographs and a secret about her origins, leading her on a journey of cultural identity and into a decades-old mystery surrounding the American Indian Movement. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
The inspiration for Whispers Through Time came from a trip my husband, Kevin, and I made in 2000 to South Dakota, which is a truly magical state. While there, we visited, among other historical places, the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, the Wounded Knee Memorial, and the American Indian Movement (AIM) Museum, which commemorated AIM’s 1973 Occupation of Wounded Knee. As I stood beside the Wounded Knee Creek, near where the original massacre had occurred, I had a strange, empathic experience that changed my life…and gave me the most important kernel of truth to build on in Whispers Through Time: Heroine Sierra Masters learns that through her newly-discovered Lakota maternal bloodline, she can receive visions that help her ‘see’ historical mysteries and solve them.
The supporting characters in this novel were intriguing and well-developed. Who was your favorite character to write for?
That’s a really hard question because I love them all, but I think – outside of Sierra Masters – my favorite character to write had to be Nathan Winterhawk. He was based on several Lakota elders I met while on our vacation, or have followed over the years. He came to life immediately. His humor and optimism were interspersed with his love of tradition, and his right-below-the-surface, always-simmering rage was almost eerie in its truth. His dialogue and unusual way of expressing his feelings wrote themselves, as did his compassion for Sierra’s situation. He was certainly the easiest character to write because I felt like I knew him intimately after 20 years of research.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
These are really great questions – thank you so much! More than anything else, I wanted to tell a really great story.
But I also wanted to show both sides of the White/Indian conflict over the centuries and to explore the vantage point of both ethnicities, from a historical view as well as from the White, without making the novel a political commentary of left vs. right. I think we’ve had enough of that. I also wanted to illuminate to people of all races across the US and the rest of the world the truth about the 1973 Occupation of Wounded Knee, and what AIM was trying to illustrate by taking it over. Finally, I wanted to create a real, honest-to-God love story between a man and a woman that was long-lasting with real heartache that had occurred many years earlier, but still affected them now.
When will Book Two be available? Can you give us an idea of where that book will take readers?
I’m nearly finished with the first draft of Journey of the Heart, Book Two of the Whispers Through Time series, so I don’t know at this time when it will be out. It will take readers into Comanche Indian territory on the Llano Estacado of Texas, a centuries-old treasure hidden in a canyon located on a Panhandle ranch belonging to Sierra’s best friend’s grandfather, and the final truth about a young girl with red-gold hair captured by Comanches during the 1860s.
Author Links: GoodReads | X (Twitter) | Facebook | Ronni Hoessli | Website | Amazon
Hunter Davenport realizes the evidence he’s shared with Sierra could indeed destroy her—but it could free her as well. The decision is yanked from her hands when the past and present collide through a historical portal on sacred Native American land. Will she take the gift that is offered? And will Hunter do what he didn’t do twelve years earlier—stand by her? Only time will give them their answers.
Under Her Spell (Book 3 of the Whispers of Destiny series)
Under Her Spell is book three in the Whispers of Destiny debut series by author Ava Rogue. Under Her Spell is a genre-blending tale that merges contemporary romance, fantasy, and emotional trauma into a rollercoaster of passion, power, and healing. At the heart of the story is Niamh O’Sullivan, a woman who discovers her magical heritage rooted in ancient Irish myth, just as her emotional world is torn apart by forbidden love and buried secrets. Parallel to her journey is Yasim Fletcher, her brother’s best friend and a man marked by a haunting past and complicated desires. Through their tangled connection and the people surrounding them, the story dives deep into themes of trauma, longing, grief, and self-discovery, all tied together with the force of magic, both literal and metaphorical.
I reveled in the emotional rawness in Rouge’s writing. It’s intense. The flashbacks to Yasim’s childhood are gut-wrenching, especially the scenes that tackle abuse and betrayal. I felt like I was grieving with him. Niamh’s awakening, both mystical and emotional, unfolds in a beautifully chaotic way. Rouge does an exceptional job of showing how complicated people are, and how love can be both liberating and destructive. The prose isn’t polished to perfection, but that rawness works in its favor. It feels like a story someone needed to tell, not just wanted to write.
Some of the dialogue can be dramatic, and certain scenes lean into melodrama. There were moments I wanted to shake the characters, particularly Niamh, for making reckless decisions. But maybe that’s part of what makes it real. People mess up. They lash out. They run away from what they want. And in the end, Rouge captures the messiness of being human in a way that’s strangely comforting, even when it hurts.
Under Her Spell is not for the faint-hearted. It’s a story soaked in passion, trauma, and supernatural intrigue. I’d recommend it to readers who enjoy angsty, character-driven romance with dark themes and a touch of magic. If you’re looking for a neat, tidy love story, this isn’t it. But if you crave emotional grit and vulnerability paired with the unknown, this book might just get under your skin in the best way.
Pages: 353 | ASIN : B0DN1TW889
LITERARY TITAN 