Blog Archives
A Life-Changing Injury
Only One Foot to the East follows a vibrant young woman who, after a motorcycle crash, is left severely injured, ultimately losing a leg and living with a colostomy, and her refusal to let this disability define her. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
As outlined in the introduction, there were three elements I wanted to explore:
Firstly, the physical and psychological impact of a life-changing injury on a young and otherwise healthy and attractive woman and her subsequent journey of healing, acceptance, and growing as a person through the challenges this imposed;
Secondly, the phenomenon of fascination with and attraction to amputees, particularly by men towards amputee women, encompassing both positive and negative aspects of this – for both the amputees who are the recipients of this attraction and for those who, for whatever reasons, have this fascination or attraction (often unbidden, and frequently unfulfilled except through fantasy); and
Thirdly an exploration of the hippy era, which, although it had earlier roots, kicked off with the “Summer of Love” in Haight Ashbury in San Francisco in 1967 and emerged as a counter-culture by many in the baby boom generation, rejecting the values and attitudes of older generations, embracing psychedelic drugs (especially cannabis and LSD, but also including mescalin, magic mushrooms, and – to a lesser extent – “harder” drugs such as heroin, cocaine, etc., leading on in later times to ecstasy, and the plethora of drugs now available, the fashions of the time – flairs, kaftans, beads, Afghan goatskin coats, long hair for both sexes, an era of pop music – principally rock and roll – and of an interest in Hindu and Buddhist religion and philosophy. All of this, of course, resulted in the “Hippy Trail” in which many young people travelled overland from Britain and Western Europe to India, Nepal, and – in some cases – subsequently to East Asia and even Australia.
My interest in these three aspects derives from (a) the fact that I am married to an amputee, (b) I have known other people who have gone through life-changing illnesses and injuries resulting in disabilities, and (c) in my younger days I knew and was friends with several hippies, and although not participating myself in any drugs scene I was aware of it, knew several people who were part of it, heard many stories including those of people who had gone to India and took an active interest in the philosophies and practices of those it inspired.
By the way, please note that, in the book, Lucy’s colostomy is only temporary. I know there are many people who live with permanent colostomies or ileostomies, but these are usually the result of disease of the intestinal tract (colon cancer, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, or very severe IBS), much less frequently from trauma.
I found Lucy to be a very well-written and in-depth character. What was your inspiration for her and her emotional turmoil through the story?
Lucy is based on aspects of many people, no one of whom encompasses all of her. Influences have included my wife, other people I have known, the online blogs, YouTube videos, Instagram and Facebook accounts of many, characters in other books, and a lot of research!
What is the next book that you are writing, and when will that be published?
I have written a few short stories, and plan on writing more – and maybe at some point another novel. However, as yet I don’t have any plans for publishing anything.
Author Links: GoodReads | Facebook | Amazon
After a devastating motorcycle accident leaves her with one leg, Lucy is determined not to be defined by her disability. She joins her free-spirited boyfriend on the iconic “Hippy Trail” to India, seeking freedom, healing, and meaning. Along the way, she encounters a whirlwind of experiences—from ancient mysticism and spiritual awakenings to the harsh realities of addiction, grief, and betrayal.
As Lucy navigates continents and cultures—from Europe through the Middle East to India and on to Australia—she also journeys inward, confronting hidden fears, a haunting secret, and a world that doesn’t always understand her. Alongside her travels, she meets Brian Patterson, a quiet, kind-hearted doctor wrestling with his own deeply personal truth. Their bond grows as each of them searches for belonging, self-acceptance, and love.
Spanning Ireland, England, India, and Australia, One Foot to the East is a powerful and deeply human story of transformation, resilience, and the enduring spirit of a woman determined to live life on her own terms.
It Started With a Drawing
D.O.L: Light Running, Part 1, which has recently been renamed Light Running in Parris Island, follows a fiery, sharp-tongued woman who becomes entangled in government secrets and paramilitary organizations while battling her own haunted past. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
The entire saga started from a drawing I did in art school in 2005 and a horrible experience I had during a short story class I took in 2009. When I turned in my final assignment for that class I will admit I was full of myself. I thought my final draft was God’s gift to man. My classmates were less than enthused and humbled me with their criticism:
‘I didn’t like it.’
‘Writing isn’t your thing.’
‘I thought the plot was too generic.’
This devastated me, and I didn’t touch the story for another three years. Between 2012 and 2020 I tried to rework the narrative but never got very far into the storyline. Then Covid struck and, like many, I found myself with an abundance of free time. In seven months I completed the first book. After a two-year editing process I submitted my book for review. I’m proud to say that, so far, I have not received less than a five star review.
There was a lot of time spent crafting the character traits in this novel. What was the most important factor for you to get right in your characters?
The short answer is ‘realism’. My characters are alive and real in my head. I can see them move about in the real world. Furthermore, I am able to hear the inflections in their voices and even accompany certain scenes with background music. It is my job – my purpose – to make sure that my characters live just as vibrantly in your mind.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
The primary theme of the book was Lilly’s first mission as an ARMOR agent. An unknown adversary has infiltrated Parris Island, forcing Lilly to rely on someone with less experience than herself. In the previous books most of the heavy lifting had been done by side characters like Joe or Andrew. This was Lilly’s maiden voyage and I wanted to keep the reader guessing as to whether she would sink or swim.
Supporting themes include: Sisterhood in the military; reunion and loss and unexpected betrayal.
Where does the story go in the next book, and where do you see it going in the future?
The next book is already out on Amazon, and it is called D.O.L: Light Running In Afghanistan. I’ll give you three guesses where Lilly is going, but you’ll only need one.
In this installment, Lilly must embark on her second mission with little-to-no recovery time from the first. Things escalate when her transport plane is shot down behind enemy lines. Light Running In Afghanistan gives an intriguing alternative story to the book/movie ‘Lone Survivor’. However, in this version, Lilly ends up being the lone survivor and she encounters a village that houses a centuries-old secret. The story will keep you guessing and your questions will be answered but, of course, more questions will arise.
I see this entire series seamlessly spanning a multitude of literary genres. The major themes for the entire saga are already completed in my head; it’s the fine points that need further development. With that in mind, I won’t reveal too much about where things are going. After all, the entire series is one gigantic mystery. And the title: D.O.L is classified. The name of the game is escalation and fun and I intend to deliver on both.
Heightened: Project Evolve
Kevin E. Morris’s Heightened is a fast-paced, emotionally layered YA science fiction novel centered around Kai, a teen orphan struggling with trauma, mysterious memories, and unexplainable auditory visions. When Kai starts hearing events from miles away, he’s pulled into a world of genetically enhanced people known as the Heightened. The narrative follows his journey from the confines of Hope Street orphanage to a secret underground society, revealing long-buried truths about his family, abilities, and the sinister government agency that wants him dead. What starts as a quiet mystery spirals into a full-blown adventure involving betrayal, secret powers, found family, and the growing pains of discovering who you really are.
I genuinely enjoyed the writing. Morris has a gift for voice—Kai’s inner thoughts are sharp, sarcastic, and often painfully vulnerable. The bursts of humor are well-placed and don’t undercut the gravity of what’s happening. His dialogue is natural, making even the exposition-heavy moments feel conversational. Structurally, the pacing is solid. Short chapters keep the action moving, and the moments of quiet—Kai lying on the roof, dreaming of a different life—are haunting in their stillness. The world-building doesn’t try to do too much at once. Instead, it layers slowly, revealing only what Kai learns, which makes the reader feel like they’re discovering things right alongside him.
What hit me most was the emotional undercurrent of the story. This is a book about abandonment, but also about resilience. Kai’s grief, anger, confusion, and hope are all tangible. Some scenes, like his first realization that his nightmares are real, or the moment he discovers his parents were murdered and not just absent, genuinely made my chest tighten. At times, I wanted to shake Flint (his mysterious protector) for being too vague, too secretive, too late. But that’s the point—Morris doesn’t write flawless saviors or heroes. He writes about damaged people doing their best in a broken world. And that makes the story feel real, even when the powers get borderline supernatural.
Heightened is ideal for readers who crave emotional connection in their sci-fi, who don’t need nonstop battles to be hooked, and who love underdog protagonists with grit and heart. If you liked The Maze Runner or Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, you’ll probably fall for this one too. Teens and adults alike will find something to hold on to here.
Pages: 214 | ASIN : B0F27J2Z5J
Ciao, Amore, Ciao
Sandro Martini’s Ciao, Amore, Ciao is a soul-wrenching blend of memoir and historical fiction that begins with the quiet unraveling of a family and ends with the thunderous echoes of a nation’s buried past. Told through the eyes of a grieving son, the story moves between present-day Italy and fragments of a family’s long-buried secrets, tracing the last days of the narrator’s parents while peeling back layers of memory, guilt, and unresolved trauma. It’s a story of death and love, fathers and sons, and the way history bleeds into the present, whether we ask for it or not.
This book left me aching. Martini’s voice is raw and self-deprecating, not overly polished, which makes it feel incredibly relatable. I loved how he didn’t try to wrap up his grief in a neat little bow. Instead, he let it run wild through the streets of Piovene, scream through the halls of a hospital, and settle into the quiet spaces of a father’s old car. And the prose is beautiful. Sharp and vivid, like a Polaroid that won’t stop developing. There were passages where I had to stop and breathe, not because they were hard to understand, but because they were so true.
The ideas in this book haunted me. Martini doesn’t just write about family loss; he goes after the rot that lies underneath nations and legacies. There’s bitterness here—about fascism, about immigration, about how Italy remembers and forgets its sons. But there’s also a weird kind of love buried in all that anger. The kind of love that’s too painful to talk about directly, so it comes out sideways, in jokes and cigarette smoke and rusting old cars.
I’d recommend Ciao, Amore, Ciao to anyone who’s lost a parent, anyone who’s tried to understand their family too late, or anyone who thinks history lives only in textbooks. This book is messy, emotional, and full of ghosts. But it’s also deeply honest and strangely comforting, like a long night drive with someone who knows when not to talk. I wouldn’t say it’s easy reading, but if you let it, it’ll stay with you long after the last page.
Pages: 426 | ASIN : B0DXLC2LJC
Unwind The Empire He Built
86 The Chef follows a celebrity chef cracking under the weight of ambition, exhaustion, and emotional disconnection, who seeks the help of his little brother to escape. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
I grew up during the heyday of Emeril Live and other seminal Food Network shows, and worked in some restaurants and catering kitchens. Ultimately, I pursued creative writing over culinary school, but cooking has always been an important part of my life. It just made sense that my first book would be rooted in that knowledge and passion.
The inspiration for this story came out of a single question- What would happen if one of the world’s most famous celebrity chefs needed to unwind the empire he built? I wanted to explore how one would go about that, and if those lengths would be funny or tragic, and if it could even be accomplished in the end. I can tell you that the book turned out completely differently than I thought when I first asked myself that question.
Your characters are wonderfully emotive and relatable. Were you able to use anything from your own life to inform their character development?
I am the middle of three boys, so there is certainly some experience written into the ways the Chapman brothers interact. My favorite scenes are when they are all together, like at the unnamed bar or the big family dinner at the end of the book. The characters themselves are, in a way, thought experiments on what my future could have been if I had chosen to pursue a career in food or cooking somehow. Not that I would have even sniffed the success or celebrity of Trey, but I could imagine a life where I was a food critic. And although I don’t have the constitution for crime, it’s fun to wonder what a life traveling the world and smuggling delicacies would be like.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
Family was a major theme because it’s one of the reasons that drives the drastic moves Trey makes. But I also wanted to put a spotlight on ambition. There aren’t any checks on his ascent. Trey doesn’t pump the brakes at all when he’s building his empire, which is why he must go to such extraordinary lengths to get out of it. Jackson and Joey also tackle ambition, or lack of it. What do you want to do? Why is that important? What happens if it doesn’t work out? What happens if it does? Those are the questions they all eventually get around to asking themselves and answering.
What is the next book that you’re working on, and when can your fans expect it out?
I am in the process of writing a sequel to 86 The Chef. While some of the storylines are resolved, there is still a lot more to explore with the Chapman brothers. The biggest question being “What happens to Trey after he…” (I don’t want to spoil the ending of the original.) It will probably be available late summer or early fall. Fans can join the mailing list by emailing rooster@woosterstreetpublishing.com to be among the first to know.
Author Links: GoodReads | X | Instagram | Website
Beyond the Limits of Tastefulness
Bloodbound: Alternate Tracks follows a once-human vampire and his maker as they face off with a rival faction and battle their own inner turmoil. Where did the idea for this novel come from?
I was toying with ways to extend the Bloodbound universe, to bend or even snap the genres of existing vampire fantasy and create something entirely mine. One day, I had a random thought: What if twins (or multiples for that matter) weren’t meant to be born in the same world – what if they were each allotted their own universe to exist in, and what if we could see what other paths those alternate versions might take? I decided to explore that concept in the Bloodbound saga.
Do you have a favorite character in this novel? One that was especially enjoyable to write?
Exploring a different version of your own main character is especially delicious if they don’t abide by the same constrictions or even morals. I didn’t want Hunter II to be a polar opposite – I didn’t want him to be the proverbial ‘evil twin’ … but instead I wanted him to be more morally ambiguous, at least starting off. This Hunter lives a rockstar lifestyle and can also be unapologetically violent. We’ll learn there’s a purpose for that as we go along.
What draws you to the horror genre?
A genre that encourages you – dares you – to push boundaries and go beyond the limits of tastefulness? What’s not to love? Add in a fantasy world where the laws of physics may not strictly apply, and you’ve got the makings for some really entertaining (read: gross) things to write about.
Can fans of the Bloodbound series look forward to another installment soon? What are you currently working on?
Bloodbound 4 (Extreme Temperatures – https://books2read.com/Bloodbound4/ ) is already out. Coincidentally, the very night I was given this interview, I had just finished the first draft of Bloodbound 5: Reverberations – which lets us see even more of Hunter II and reveals his true allegiances. I’ll be releasing ‘Reverberations’ later this year.
In the meantime, May 6 will see the release of my first collection of short stories – called “Body Parts.” It’s 13 body horror tales of varying tones – some are seriously disturbing, some take a more humorous tack, but in all of them I tried pushing some of those boundaries I spoke of earlier! https://books2read.com/BodyPartsBook
And July 1 will see the reboot of another old series of mine. The first volume of “Abel X,” Echoes of Demons, combines two original novellas I first wrote in the mid 2010s based off a role-playing game character I created. https://books2read.com/AbelXEchoes
Author Links: GoodReads | Amazon
When a demon with the ability to traverse dimensions and kill on contact breaks into our realm, Kai and The Order are tasked with finding and stopping the ever-growing threat, which involves asking the alternate-world Hunter and his bandmates for help. However, the other realm’s version of Hunter appears to have an agenda of his own and won’t think twice about opting for brutality to achieve his goals.
Praise for Alternate Tracks:
If you like queer romance, secret organizations, chaotic polycules, and lots of sarcastic flirting mixed with visceral horror, this is your book. It’s not a subtle book. But it’s a fun one. Bold, sexy, weird, and somehow heartfelt—Alternate Tracks doesn’t just bite, it leaves a mark. (Thomas Anderson, Literary Titan)
LITERARY TITAN 