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Hard-Won Epiphanies
Secret Seeds follows a young girl and her mother who are trapped in an abusive home as they break free and wind up in an uncertain world of strangers in a cult-like community. Were you able to achieve everything you wanted with the characters in the novel?
My five novels center on redemption through courage and perseverance, which bring hard-won epiphanies. In Secret Seeds, I was satisfied with the character development, which also brought me personal insights on the plight of the undocumented.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
When I began the novel, the headlines were filled with stories of aliens – both human and otherwise. Illegal immigration is an emotional topic, and I wanted to craft a heartfelt portrayal to cast the issue in human terms. We also took a trip to Alaska, and the lifecycle of sockeye salmon and how they fight to make the journey home to spawn resonated with me. Only a small percentage make it home, but none get lost due to their perseverance, and I incorporated this theme in the story.
What is the next book that you are working on, and when can your fans expect it to be out?
I am currently working on a medical thriller and hope to have it scheduled for release in the next year or so.
Author Links: GoodReads | Amazon
Gabrielle Ruiz, an undocumented migrant farm worker, follows the harvest until she and Luis leave the fields to give their unborn child a better life. But after tragedy strikes, Gabrielle finds herself alone and renounced by her father. Adrift, she meets Dale, a beacon of hope who offers her and her infant daughter, Olivia, a chance at a new beginning. After following him to Maine, they welcome a son. But over the years, Dale’s abuse traps Gabrielle and Olivia. Salvation appears in the enigmatic Rezi, who proposes a daring escape — a plan shrouded in secrecy, promising sanctuary for Olivia within a hidden community. As Gabrielle places her trust in Rezi, she ignites a tempest with Dale and has Olivia questioning whether her protectors are from a twisted cult or messengers from another realm.
In a world where freedom is fragile, Gabrielle’s tenacity and her children’s coming-of-age journeys lead them to question what truly defines “home.”
Hope of Survival
Blood on the Mountain centers on a young man navigating the expectations of his family and the pain of bullying while coming to terms with his own identity and sexuality. What was the idea, or spark, that first set off the need to write this book?
Having been raised in a religious family, unlike the main character’s experience in my book, I’ve faced my own share of bullies and name-calling. This led me to reach out to others who may be going through or have gone through a similar situation while growing up. Even though the story is fictional, I drew on research about other LGBTQ+ lives and their own battles. This was my inspiration for this.
What was one scene in the novel that you felt captured the morals and message you were trying to deliver to readers?
I would say it was the picnic scene. This scene took me a while to write. The message that I wanted to deliver was one of love, strength, and hope. Love between the two characters in the scene, the emotion and the strength of one character, experiencing the horror that was happening in front of him, the strength to fight and call for help, and the support and hope of survival.
What character did you enjoy writing for? Was there one that was more challenging to write for?
I enjoyed writing about Noah. I enjoyed writing about his challenges in his life, his survival, and finally seeing him embrace happiness with Joshua. The challenging character was Paul, his bully and tormentor. I spent hours researching the effects of someone abusing drugs and the consequences to his health.
What is the next book you are working on, and when will it be available?
I am working on a story that will continue over three books. Here is a synopsis of the story:
For most of his thirty-six years, Adam Keller has lived life like a shadow—quiet, invisible, and careful not to take up too much space. A gentle, gay bookstore clerk in a city that doesn’t always love people like him, Adam has spent his life surviving: his father’s rejection, a school history laced with cruelty, and a society that punished softness in boys. He doesn’t fight back. He just endures. Until the day he almost dies.
One morning walk in the park turns savage when a group of homophobic men ambush Adam and beat him within inches of his life. Left broken and bleeding, something inside him—something long buried and ancient—wakes up.
He survives. More than that…he changes.
The first book I am aiming for in Jan 2026.
Author Links: GoodReads | Facebook | Website | Amazon
Noah Bailey is suffocating in silence.
Trapped in an oppressive home ruled by religious dogma, he’s learned to hide who he is—and what he truly wants. But everything changes when he meets Joshua Taylor, a kind, fearless stranger who sees him for who he really is. For the first time, Noah dares to dream of freedom, love… and a future that’s finally his own.
But happiness doesn’t last.
A shocking betrayal from the past resurfaces just as Joshua is left fighting for his life. As Noah clings to hope, the ghosts of his school years begin to stir—bringing threats, secrets, and a trail of lies that refuse to stay buried.
With every revelation, Noah’s world fractures.
And the deeper he digs for the truth, the more he realizes someone is watching. Someone who wants the past to stay hidden—and who will do anything to keep it that way.
Love. Betrayal. Justice.
In this gripping story of survival and self-discovery, Noah must face his darkest fears and risk everything for the one person who gave him hope.
But when trust becomes a deadly gamble…
Can he confront the truth before it destroys them both?
Betrayal of a Sudden Death
Last of the Autumn Rain follows a woman who witnesses the death of her best friend in a tragic nightclub accident, causing her to spiral into a psychological journey that touches on abuse, betrayal, obsession, and revenge. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
My best friend committed suicide, and my ex-boyfriend tried to murder me. I wanted to take those external events to explore the raw aftermath of sudden trauma.
What are some things that you find interesting about the human condition that you think make for great psychological fiction?
The fact that humans are often their own worst enemies and have a skewed perception of reality is a goldmine for psychological fiction. A character’s memories can be distorted by trauma, guilt, or self-deception, which creates suspense and forces the reader to question everything they’re being told.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
(1) Betrayal: It’s not just the betrayal of a sudden death, but the suspicion of deeper betrayals that drive the plot. (2) The Unreliable Self: The protagonist isn’t just an unreliable narrator for the audience; she’s unreliable to herself. Her memories are suspect, her perceptions are skewed by trauma, and she struggles to differentiate between paranoia and genuine threats, and a search for justice. (3) Search for Justice: Can earthly justice truly be served when the motive is fueled by obsession and a distorted sense of reality?
Will there be a follow-up novel to this story? If so, what aspects of the story will the next book cover?
Last of the Autumn Rain: The Storm Within is Book 1 of a trilogy called the Broken Reflections Series. Book 2 of the series is titled A Twisted Crucible: The Riddle of the Ruined Soul, and Book 3 is titled Game of Souls: The Reckoning. A Twisted Crucible is a chilling tale of what turns out to be a serial killer’s descent into darkness and a father’s agonizing choice. Game of Souls is a poignant exploration of grief, guilt, and the human capacity for redemption through the eyes of a father. It probes the depths of the human psyche, examining the power of ancient rituals and the transformative potential of psychedelic experiences to seek healing and enlightenment.
Author Links: GoodReads | Facebook | Diane Webb | Diane Louise Webb | Amazon
Her life ignobly snuffed out at the young age of 32, Candice exemplified a fun-loving lifestyle and a warm kindred spirit—possessing all the requisite traits for a promising future. She never entertained a trace of ill will toward anyone. How could something so grisly happen to such a compassionate, enchanting human being?
Julie struggles to make sense of it all, reminiscing as she travels back to her hometown of Trenton, New Jersey. The two had met in Milwaukee and worked as underwriters for The Walden Company. But something went horribly wrong. Julie’s journey is one filled with elation and fear, jealousy and regret, happiness and indignation, and a horrifying act of disloyalty.
An unforgettable, tumultuous ride, Last of the Autumn Rain delivers an introspective and jaw-clenching tale, which not only rocks one’s moral compass, but invites a chilling question: in a world where the ground can literally fall out from under you, what else might be lurking beneath the surface?
Last of the Autumn Rain
Diana Louise Webb’s Last of the Autumn Rain is an emotionally charged novel that weaves together trauma, tragedy, and mental health through the voice of a haunted narrator named Julie. The story opens with a deadly accident at a nightclub that kills Julie’s best friend and spirals into a psychological journey touching on abuse, betrayal, obsession, and revenge. As Julie revisits past experiences from her childhood in New Jersey to a near-fatal spring break trip to Mexico, she reflects on the forces that shape identity, morality, and the thin line between sanity and madness. With fictionalized events that feel brutally real, Webb holds nothing back in her mission to spotlight the stigma and neglect surrounding mental health.
The writing is sharp, vivid, and unsparing. Webb’s prose can be poetic in one moment and violently raw in the next. Her scenes of abuse and trauma are gut-wrenching without being gratuitous. I often found myself re-reading lines, not just for their emotional weight but because they caught me off guard in how directly they confronted the reader. There’s a beautiful messiness in the storytelling. Fractured timelines, flashbacks, inner monologues, and haunting hallucinations that all blend into Julie’s spiraling mental state. At times, the chaos felt overwhelming, but it always felt deliberate. It’s like the author doesn’t want you to read this passively, she wants you to feel every drop of blood, guilt, and silence.
I found myself torn over the narrator. Julie is not a reliable or particularly likable character. She is violent, self-serving, and damaged. But that’s kind of the point. I couldn’t shake the feeling that Webb was daring me to judge her. One moment, Julie is saving someone from abuse; the next, she’s casually describing a childhood act of horror with a twisted sense of pride. I didn’t always agree with the choices she made. The novel sometimes seemed to blur the line between victim and perpetrator, and I admired Webb’s courage in forcing us to sit with those contradictions. It’s rare to see a female protagonist written with this much moral ambiguity and rage. And it’s even rarer for a book to make me feel that conflicted and still want to keep reading.
Last of the Autumn Rain is not a light or easy read. It’s intense, messy, and emotionally exhausting, but in the best way. This book is for readers who crave raw truth over tidy resolution. It’s for those who have battled demons or known someone who has. I would especially recommend it to fans of Gillian Flynn or Alice Sebold, readers who don’t mind going into the darker corners of the human mind. Webb has something important to say about pain, silence, and survival, and she says it with brutal, unforgettable honesty.
Pages: 235 | ASIN : B0FGQMMC27
Revived
Barbara Avon’s Revived is a haunting and deeply emotional psychological horror novel that explores love, trauma, and the supernatural through the eyes of a tormented couple, Cassie and Steven. Set initially in a gloomy, century-old house with a chilling past, the story quickly spirals into something far darker when Steven dies in a tragic accident, only to be revived. What follows is a slow, dread-soaked descent into psychological chaos as Steven’s return blurs the lines between life and death, love and obsession, memory and madness. Through atmospheric prose and shifting perspectives, Avon crafts a tale where the scariest monsters might just be the ones we carry inside.
To be honest, this book shook me. The writing is sharp and poetic. Avon doesn’t flinch from digging deep into the murky waters of mental illness, trauma, and grief. Her characters feel painfully real, especially Cassie, who’s written with a rawness that made my chest tighten. At times, the prose borders on lyrical, and that contrast—beauty laid over horror—makes it all the more unsettling. I appreciated that this wasn’t a traditional horror story with jump scares. Instead, it’s a slow burn, a psychological unraveling that lingers in your head long after the last page. Avon’s portrayal of intimacy, both emotional and physical, walks a razor’s edge between sensuality and vulnerability, adding a deeply human layer to the supernatural tension.
But here’s the thing: this book isn’t easy. It’s uncomfortable. Disturbing. It’s full of trauma that’s never neatly resolved. The ambiguity can be frustrating—what’s real, what’s hallucination, what’s supernatural—but I think that’s the point. You’re meant to feel off-balance. Still, I had moments where I felt emotionally wrung out and had to step away. That said, I kept coming back. The pacing could be a little uneven at times, and there’s a surreal quality that might not work for every reader. But if you give it your trust, it pays off with a visceral, deeply affecting experience.
Revived is not for the faint of heart. It’s for readers who want more than a thrill—they want to be unsettled, to feel something. I’d recommend it to fans of psychological horror who aren’t afraid of stories that peel back skin to reveal the mess underneath. If you like Shirley Jackson, early Stephen King, or Gillian Flynn’s darker narratives, this book might just crawl under your skin in the best ways.
Pages: 141 | ASIN : B09WZDDPVM
The Haunting of Wellsley Manor
Len Handeland’s The Haunting of Wellsley Manor is a gothic horror novel that follows William Martens, a young man seeking to escape the dead-end monotony of his hometown by attending Cornell University. But his aspirations are soon entangled in a series of ghostly encounters at his grandfather’s decaying estate in Ithaca. As he settles into his new life, William is haunted—literally and emotionally—by family secrets, unresolved trauma, and spectral figures that begin to cross the veil between the living and the dead. The deeper he digs into the house’s eerie history, the more he realizes that some legacies come with strings attached and blood on their hands.
I was drawn in from the very beginning. The dialogue felt natural and raw—sometimes even painfully real, especially during the tense moments between William and his bitter, emotionally distant father. There’s something incredibly satisfying about a story that doesn’t rush. The buildup is slow and deliberate, and that pacing works here. It lets you soak in the atmosphere—the creaking floors, the dusty corridors, the strained silences. The house itself becomes a character, and not just a spooky backdrop. What Handeland nails is the eerie tension between generational pride and inherited guilt. His prose has this honest, almost nostalgic warmth when depicting William’s relationship with his grandfather, Isaiah. Those moments hit me hard.
Sometimes the writing dipped into the overly descriptive, and while the story’s emotional arcs were compelling, the scares occasionally felt more atmospheric than truly chilling. I didn’t mind that too much—this is more The Sixth Sense than The Conjuring—but readers expecting non-stop frights may be left wanting. Still, the dream sequences and ghostly children were deeply unsettling in a quiet and lingering way. The mirror scenes especially gave me the kind of slow-building dread I love in horror fiction.
I’d recommend The Haunting of Wellsley Manor to anyone who enjoys a slower burn and emotionally rich storytelling. It’s a ghost story wrapped in a coming-of-age tale, laced with regret and second chances. If you liked The Others or even older Stephen King novels like Bag of Bones, you’ll probably enjoy this. It’s not just about ghosts. It’s about how the past clings to us, follows us, and sometimes, if we’re not careful, swallows us whole.
Pages: 236 | ASIN : B0DTBZNRV9
A Lack of Closure
Born of Bombs and Bullets follows a prison psychologist who relocates to Belfast following a brutal murder only to find himself deep within unrest tied to the IRA. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
While visiting Belfast, Northern Ireland, a few years ago, I took a political history tour to learn about The Troubles. Although that 30-year conflict supposedly ended with the Good Friday peace agreement in 1998, signs of lingering tension between the Catholic and Protestant communities were everywhere, especially in West Belfast.
Massive peace walls separated the two communities. I saw dozens of murals commemorating attacks and the people who died on both sides—ever-present reminders of the horror and grief and trauma that lasted an entire generation. There were even IRA stickers on street signs warning people not to cooperate with the police. I wondered what it’s like to live with that sort of constant strain. Afterward, when I started reading daily news reports from Belfast, I sensed a lack of closure on both sides of the conflict that haunts people today.
Imaginary characters began to form in my mind, and soon I gave them life through words—with a bit of history mixed in for context. To maintain objectivity, though, I decided to write the story through the eyes of an American psychologist. But first I needed to get him to Belfast, so that murder in the first chapter served as a catalyst.
What kind of research went into putting this book together?
A lot! But first, let me say the characters and the story are entirely fictional. Still, I knew from the beginning I wanted readers—especially here in the States, where The Troubles are less understood—to walk away with an accurate understanding of historical events. So I read countless histories and old press accounts, studied period photographs, and watched a lot of documentaries about The Troubles.
They have different car models and candy brands, for example, in the UK, so I had to research those details, too, to make the descriptions as authentic as possible. I also subscribed to Belfast news media and read the current daily headlines for a couple of years—that really helped me grasp the lingering effects of The Troubles.
At the same time, I wanted to acknowledge the psychological impact of such a prolonged and pervasive conflict. So I researched Northern Ireland’s modern behavioral health trends and reflected those themes in the characters. The descriptions of combat equipment and tactics—then and now—are as accurate as I could make them, as well. I really wanted the story to feel genuine, even though it’s entirely made up.
The hardest part, though, as an American, was trying to master the Northern Irish idioms and accents in the dialogue! I watched a lot of Northern Irish movies and television to get a handle on that—and I apologize now for any times I got it wrong! I’m sure a few “Americanisms” slipped past me.
What elements do you feel are essential for creating a successful thriller?
For me, it boils down to tension, plot twists, and pacing. Conflict between the characters—and of course, setbacks—generates the tension. An ever-present sense of danger fuels it, too.
And plot twists keep the reader guessing and therefore engaged. But above all, in my opinion, the pacing has to be right. The action needs to move forward consistently at a good clip to keep the reader’s attention. Personally, I’m a big fan of short chapters with fewer words per page to promote a feeling of urgency.
Can we look forward to seeing a follow-up to Born of Bombs and Bullets soon? Where will it take readers?
Absolutely! There will be several more books in the series, but I don’t anticipate the next one until late 2026. My niche is travel-inspired thrillers, so the setting will be another country with a fascinating history. I’m presently choosing among Spain, Argentina, and Chile. Maybe your readers can help me decide?!
Author Links: GoodReads | Facebook | Website | Amazon
Psychologist Aaron Thornton is riddled with self-doubt after failing to stop a tragic incident at the American prison where he works. So when his wife, Claire, receives a job offer in her native Belfast, Northern Ireland, he sees a chance to start over by treating hardened criminals in Northern Ireland’s judicial system.
But Thornton’s work soon entangles him in the aftermath of ‘The Troubles,’ a brutal conflict that rocked Belfast for over thirty years. Charged with overseeing the release of the Irish Republican Army’s deadliest bomb maker, Thornton reignites smoldering feuds that threaten to consume him and his family in the flames of political violence.
Alongside a broad cast of characters who reflect the many facets and shifting allegiances of The Troubles, Thornton fights to heal long-standing hatred and prevent another tragedy. But can he save himself?
In the spirit of John le Carré and Graham Greene, writer David A. Dummer has created an everyman hero for our time, and with Born of Bombs and Bullets, a political thriller for the ages.
All June Left Behind
All June Left Behind is a tightly written, emotionally raw story about grief, justice, and secrets that won’t stay buried. It follows Ray Meadows, a weathered farmer trying to keep it together two years after his wife, June, was murdered. The man convicted of the crime is suddenly granted a new trial, cracking open old wounds and unearthing something far more explosive than Ray could’ve imagined, June’s entire past life. What starts as a tale of one man’s pain slowly peels back into a mystery that ties together mob connections, witness protection, and the terrifying thought that maybe, just maybe, everything Ray believed about his wife was a lie.
Ray’s narration is no-nonsense, full of grit, sarcasm, and painful honesty. Right from page one, you feel the weight he carries. That scene where he deletes the detective’s message and talks to his daughter while scrounging for a Pop-Tart is so ordinary, and yet you feel his dread simmering underneath. The writing doesn’t try to be fancy, which I loved. It’s plainspoken, sharp, and emotional when it needs to be. Ray’s grief isn’t pretty or poetic; it’s sweaty, stubborn, and full of denial.
What absolutely floored me, though, was the twist. I had to set the book down and just breathe. The pacing right before and after that moment was pitch-perfect. Karen Grose doesn’t overplay it. She lets Ray react in exactly the way you’d expect, confused, furious, heartbroken. There’s this moment where he’s locked in a cell, soaked in water from a busted faucet, completely unraveling. I could feel the walls closing in. That moment hit hard. And I liked that the book didn’t shy away from showing Ray’s worst sides, his temper, his stubbornness, his pride. It made him believable.
But maybe my favorite part was how Grose writes family. The scenes with Ray and his kids, especially Ryla, are full of tiny emotional jabs. The way they talk around June’s death, the worry in their voices when they think he’s spiraling again is all so layered. The characters felt lived-in, like people you’d meet in a small town diner or at the edge of a cornfield, holding a coffee and a thousand unspoken words.
All June Left Behind is a slow burn with a lot to say about love, anger, and how the past can knock you off your feet when you least expect it. It’s a story about trying to move on when you’re stuck in a loop of what-ifs. If you’re someone who likes character-driven stories with mystery baked in, this one’s for you. It’s got heart, it’s got bite, and it doesn’t let go.
Pages: 324 | ASIN : B0DYL1RYW6
LITERARY TITAN 