Success In the Press: Poinsettia Girl by Jennifer Wizbowski

Historical Fiction Company's Award of Excellence

★

Bronze Award from Yarde Book Reviews

★

Historical Fiction Company's Award of Excellence ★ Bronze Award from Yarde Book Reviews ★

Poinsettia Girl is based on the story of Agata de la Pieta, an orphan musician of the Ospedale de la Pieta. Ten-year-old Agata's world is shaken at the sudden death of her mother. Left only with her egregious father, a working musician in Venice, her ailing grandmother sends her to the well-known orphanage, hidden from everything she's ever known. Agata auditions for the conservatory style music school where music is both salvation and spectacle. Hidden behind ornate metal grates, adorned with poinsettias in their hair, the singers are veiled in mystery, their ethereal music drawing noble audiences, including gilded young men who see them as treasures-not only for their sound but as coveted marriage prizes. Just as she reaches the height of her musical journey, a marriage proposal from someone outside the audience tempts her with the promise of a new life-a return to the old neighborhood she's longed for and a home she barely remembers. Torn between the music that has defined her and the hope of belonging to a family, Agata must confront the most profound question of her life: is her purpose rooted in the music that shaped her, or in the love that might free her?

“It is a book that lingers. It is a book that, once opened, seems to breathe. And it is, without hesitation, a book one should read.”

— Historical Fiction Company

From BlueInk Review: “Through alternating character viewpoints and third-person narration, Wizbowski's novel thoughtfully explores the challenges of claiming autonomy as a woman in a traditional, male-dominated culture. Agata's steady transformation from a shy foundling to a 22-year-old musician illustrates how trauma can irrevocably shape personal identity. The writing shines when depicting Agata's growing artistry and how music serves as a source of inner strength. Overall, this is a quietly moving journey of rebuilding purpose after surviving personal tragedy. Readers who appreciate women's fiction will feel as protective of Agata as the fictional nuns charged with shepherding her into womanhood.”

From a Reader: “I found this story deeply moving and emotionally immersive. Agata’s inner conflict felt raw and authentic, especially her struggle between staying loyal to the music that saved her and the desire to belong to a family again. The author captures Venice with a soft, almost lyrical touch, and the atmosphere of the orphanage, the performances, and the social limitations placed on these girls felt vivid and heartbreaking. Knowing the story is rooted in real history added another layer of poignancy to every decision Agata faced.”

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Success In the Press: The Children of the Children by Robin McMillion

Literary Titan Book Award Winner

★

Literary Titan Book Award Winner ★

From the Author: Can children born into a cult escape the only world they've ever known?

Danny Calvert thinks part of American society is about to crash and burn. Capitalism, if he's lucky. But when a college friend dies in jail, he joins an apocalyptic religious cult and begins printing the increasingly dark writings of its charismatic leader. Father Joseph says "unless you become like children, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven."

But "become like children" means just that. Father Joseph moves his followers to Europe to avoid scrutiny, and controls them such that Danny isn't allowed to marry Deborah, the woman he loves, but is forced to marry someone else. He has children by both women, and they’re as determined to escape the world they grew up in as Danny was to escape his own world years ago.

Set during the last years of the Cold War, and inspired by real events, The Children of the Children explores the price that people pay for following a leader who demands unquestioning belief, and the price their children pay to break free.

What Reviewers Are Saying:

"Lays bare the long shadow of belief systems built on control, secrecy, and survival." - Literary Titan
"Haunting" - Feathered Quill Book Reviews

From a Reader:

“An incredible story! It was hard to put this book down knowing this sort of thing actually happens.”

Check out The Children of the Children on Amazon

Success In the Press: Mother-Eating by Jess Hagemann

“HAGEMANN MIGHT BE THE BEST HORROR WRITER IN AMERICA.” —Daniel Kraus, author of Whalefall and Angel Down

★

“HAGEMANN MIGHT BE THE BEST HORROR WRITER IN AMERICA.” —Daniel Kraus, author of Whalefall and Angel Down ★

From the Author: A modern retelling of Marie Antoinette's reign as the queen of France, set in Austin, Texas. Instead of marrying her daughter off to King Louis, Resa Habsburg sells Mary Toni to a pseudo-religious torture-happy sex cult in exchange for a TV contract.

What Critics Are Saying: “Mother-Eating gleefully penetrates and butchers all you thought was possible in fiction. It is a literary impalement. Perverted, shocking, and unprecedented. Jess Hagemann is one of the most singular and distinct voices I’ve encountered since first reading authors like William S. Burroughs and Georges Bataille. There is no literary equivalent to this raw, uncompromising masterpiece. It truly exists in its own superior class.”

—Eric LaRocca, author of Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke

From a Reader: “Mother-Eating is one of the most diabolical and unsettling retellings I have ever had the privilege to read. The documentary style the book is written in was utter perfection. I love me a good cult story. I was completely engrossed from start to finish.”

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Success In the Press: Babe In the Woods by Jude Hopkins

Five stars from Readers' Favorite and Reader Views

★

Five stars from Readers' Favorite and Reader Views ★

From the Author: It's September 1995, the first year of the rest of Hadley Todd's life. After living in Los Angeles, Hadley returns to her hometown in rural New York to write and be near her father. In addition to looking after him and teaching high school malcontents, Hadley hopes to channel her recent L.A. heartbreak into a play about the last moment of a woman's innocence. But she seeks inspiration.

Enter Trey Harding, a young, handsome reporter who covers sports at the high school. Trey reminds Hadley of her L.A. ex and is the perfect spark to fire up her imagination. The fact that Trey is an aspiring rock star and she has L.A. record biz connections makes the alliance perfect. She dangles promises of music biz glory while watching his moves. But the surprising twist that transpires when the two of them go to Hollywood is not something Hadley prepared for.

“gives food for thought to fans of romance, women’s fiction, and psychological drama [...] will also appeal to those who enjoy entertaining, character-driven morality tales.””

— Reader's Favorite

Our Take: With a dry wit and a sharply observant eye, Babe in the Woods captures the restless creative energy of a woman caught between reinvention and nostalgia. Hadley’s homecoming is anything but quiet—full of angsty teens, aging parents, and a maybe-muse who complicates everything. Hopkins balances literary introspection with page-turning momentum, letting the story surprise us as much as it surprises Hadley herself. This one’s for readers who love second acts, small towns with big feelings, and stories that ask what it means to come home changed.

From a Reader: “The writing is crisp, intelligent and keeps the reader captivated as we follow Hadley's life and the hurdles she faces”

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Success In the Press: AFTER THE BEFORE by Eric Gammage

"More than just another survival story." - Reader's Favorite

★

"More than just another survival story." - Reader's Favorite ★

From the Author: Three hundred years after the fall of civilization, scavengers Sophie and Markus uncover a sealed, translucent box buried deep in the ruins of The Before. What’s inside might hold answers to the apocalyptic origins of The After and a path to a safer future—if it can be opened.

Hoping for help, they set out for the faraway City where a reclusive historian may have the knowledge they need. The trek takes them across the cratered plain, bombed almost into oblivion, and infested with unstoppable humanoid machines hungry for human flesh.

When a religious fanatic derails their mission, Sophie and the box disappear. Markus enlists unexpected allies to help find her, pushing into the heart of his worst fears and opening bitter wounds and testing loyalties.

What’s in the box may lead to a better future—but it just might cost them each other.

““ [...] Gammage has a real sense of visceral tension, and he delivers more than just another survival story because of the heart and soul of the characters. It’s the emotional weight packed with issues of grief, trust, fear, and hope that gives the journey its power.””

— Reader's Favorite

Our Take: Bleak, tense, and beautifully strange, After the Before drops readers into a post-apocalyptic world where history has turned to myth and survival means confronting both literal monsters and personal demons. With a mystery at its core, this novel combines high-stakes adventure with emotional weight. Gammage captures the grit of a ravaged world and the fragile hope that something better might still be possible. A great pick for fans of speculative fiction that blends action, mystery, and humanity at the edge of ruin.

From a Reader: “A well written, fast paced allegorical tale of what our near distant future could be. The prose delivered well developed descriptions of landscapes and characters I was immediately taken with. Definitely a book I will recommend to all my reader friends.”

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