“Remember the Sun” is a collection of poems on nature and inspiration by Melanie Simms

SUNBURY, Pa. — Sunbury Press has released “Remember the Sun” a collection of poems about nature and inspiration by Melanie Simms featuring the Sunbury, PA community.

About the Book:
This collection of poems by Melanie Simms (all previously published in magazines, newspapers and poetry journals) covers such themes as Pennsylvania place poetry, inspirational poetry, and reflections on nature and love. Remember the Sun: Poems on Nature and Inspiration offers a wide variety of poems to suit the diverse tastes of the poetic pallette.

Excerpt:
Love needs no language,
Not here
Along the Susquehanna, watching as she twists and bends
Returning to mouths
Where sunlight and lovers meet,
Not here,
Where the silver maple and black cherry sway patiently,
Amidst the romantic odes of the meadowlark,
Or the ecstasy of the osprey
As they dive and reemerge,
Fed by the river.
Not here,
Where the haunting tales of lush mountains
Record through the ages
Those first seedlings of love.
Here, along the river she reveals us to one another
As we confess our love, baptized between her gentle waves.
How has she found us?
Here along the Susquehanna, reflecting in our gaze
The memories of our ancient love’s return.

About the author:
Melanie served as the Perry County Poet Laureate from 2005-2006 and has published in over 180 newspapers, magazines, and poetry journals; her poems have been featured on state and local television shows and over fifty poetry radio programs. She has been a featured artist at various Pennsylvania colleges, high schools, and landmarks including but not limited to; The Harrisburg Capitol (aired by PCN Television in which First Lady Susan Corbett presented), and was an opening poet for Camille Erice’s political campaign for City Council. She has also read for the Pennsylvania State Museum, National Poetry Month at the Degenstein Community Library with presentations by State Rep. Lynda Schlegel-Culver and Sunbury mayor David Persing.

Her awards include a Sophie Award, Finalist in the Richard Savage Poetry Award (Bloomsburg University), Perry County Poet Laureate (2005-2006), a Vermont Writers Studio Award, a Pushcart Prize Nomination, Marquis Who’s Who of The World, Cambridge Who’s Who of Women in Publication, Poet of the Week (Poetry Superhighway), and an Evvy Award nomination for Waking the Muse (best self-published book in the poetry category).

She is a President and Founder of the Association of Pennsylvania Poet’s Laureate (founded 2006) and a member of the World Poetry Society and The Daughters of the American Revolution. Of note her family history includes such noted individuals as her Uncle, a two-time Pulitzer prize- winning war journalist, Patrick Sloyan (Newsday), Frederick Watts (The Father of Penn State University), former Chilean Diplomat, Fred Purdy (Santiago, Chile) and by way of family oral tradition her father, George Melvin (a landscape artist of Scottish and Chiricahua Apache background) who claimed a descendancy to the Chiricahua Apache leader, Geronimo.

Ms. Simms can be reached for readings and poetry workshops via her website atwww.poetmelaniesimms.wordpress.com or via her email at sirenbliss@gmail.com

Remember the Sun: Poets on Nature and Inspiration
Authored by Melanie Simms
Photographs by Lawrence Knorr
Hard Cover 6″ x 9″ (15.24 x 22.86 cm)
Black & White on White paper
42 pages w/photos
Sunbury Press, Inc.
ISBN-13: 978-1620064245
BISAC: Poetry / Pennsylvania

For more information, please see:
http://www.sunburypressstore.com/Remember-the-Sun-9781620…

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An immigrant girl is separated from her mother in this YA historical novel by Anne Marie Drew

ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Sunbury Press has released Anne Marie Drew’s first novel “The Piano Bed,” a historical young adult novel about an immigrant girl separated from her mother.

About the Book:
Caeli survives an earthquake, her father’s death, and an abrupt voyage from Italy to the United States. Now, she faces steely-eyed Nona Rosie who forces her to sleep in a piano and classmates who make her feel like an outcast. Worst of all, everyone believes her mother is dead. 10-year-old Caeli Farina refuses to give up hope. She knows her beloved Mama is alive and sets out to find her.

Excerpt:
With a cloth, Nona Rosie briskly dusted off the piano. Caeli coughed and waved the dust from her face. She had no idea what Nona was doing. If Caeli was supposed to sleep in this room, Nona better make a bed appear real quick, or at least get more pillows so the floor wouldn’t be so hard.

Nona pulled the bench out from under the piano.

“How I detest this thing. Sheer nonsense.”

Nona could even be mad at a piano?

“Utter foolery,” Nona snapped. “Angelina wanted this thing.”

She watched as Nona unfolded the piano. She pulled down the entire front of the piano, easing it onto the floor, like one of those beds that unfolds from a wall. Metallic sounds came from the strings.

Nona pulled a thin mattress from a closet and flung it on top of the open platform. Even more dust. More metallic sounds. She put white sheets on the now-bed, slipped the pillow into its case, and then covered everything with a white quilt.

“There,” Nona said. “This will be your bed.

About the author:
Anne Marie Drew is an English Professor at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD, where she teaches writing and Shakespeare. She’s served as Department Chair, Faculty Senate President, and Director of Masqueraders, the theatre troupe. She writes about everything from Shakespeare to spaghetti sauce. Mother to three children and nona to three granddaughters, she lives in Annapolis. And she has a puppy named Zucca.

The Piano Bed

Authored by Anne Marie Drew

List Price: $14.95
5″ x 8″ (12.7 x 20.32 cm)
Black & White on Cream paper
132 pages
Sunbury Press, Inc.
ISBN-13: 978-1620064573
ISBN-10: 162006457X
BISAC: Juvenile Fiction / Historical / Europe

Also available on Kindle and Nook

For more information, please see:

http://www.sunburypressstore.com/The-Piano-Bed-9781620064…

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Fallen angel is “Among the People” in Rommel supernatural novel

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — Sunbury Press has released Keith Rommel’s latest novel “Among the People,” a supernatural thriller about a fallen angel in search of redemption.

About the Book:

After breaking one of Belial’s laws, Sardurvial, a fallen angel, discovers the terrible truth behind one of hell’s many secrets. He flees the false paradise and murderous companions, finding himself at the mercy of the people he once sought to destroy.

Kathy, injured and grieving, is approached separately by two mysterious people and is presented with a warning and a choice: save the injured man or let him die. Her decision to aid or ignore a stranger determines the course of her own fate.

Rommel weaves the supernatural struggles seamlessly with the human, internal struggles of loss and remorse, beautifully crafting the thrilling story of a demon, fallen from hell, who seeks shelter and redemption Among the People.

Excerpt:

“Hello? Are you hurt?” she said, and her teeth chattered.

A grunt followed by the sound of something being dragged across the floor held her attention.

As of late, the stairwell had become a hangout for the local kids. But this night, the chill in the air was too bitter and the desperate tone of the voice made her believe whoever was down there was in trouble and in need of her help.

“I can hear you down there,” she said, her voice growing louder. “I’m going to call the police.”

Curiosity kept her still, but a sudden and intense sensation of danger told her to flee while she still had the chance. It was a similar feeling she had when the doctor started saying things about her husband he should never have known.

She resisted the urge and kept her focus on the stairwell below. Walking down a few steps, she remained cautious but determined to see what had conflicted her so, but it was no use. The darkness was too thick for her eyes to penetrate and it was too frightening and dangerous for her to get any closer.

“I’m leaving now,” she said, and waited a few moments. No further sounds could be heard. The tremors in her jaw seized and a sudden, powerful chill shook her body as if it were an encouraging shove to move on. She rubbed her hands together and folded her arms across her chest.

“Just debris being blown around by the wind,” she convinced herself, and started up the stairs again. When she reached the top step, she unlocked the lobby door and pulled it open.

“Please, I need your help,” a man said, but this time his voice was loud and near and somewhere close behind her.

Kathy gasped and turned to see a big man standing at the bottom of the stairs. He too was tall and slender. Tattered clothes hung off of his bruised and blood-smeared body. He swayed and his eyes were wide and desperate. She rushed to his side and struggled against her back pain to hold him upright.

Also by Keith Rommel:

The Cursed Man

The Lurking Man

The Sinful Man

You Killed my Brother

Among the People

Authored by Keith Rommel

List Price: $16.95
5″ x 8″ (12.7 x 20.32 cm)
Black & White on White paper
218 pages
Sunbury Press, Inc.
ISBN-13: 978-1620064160
ISBN-10: 1620064162
BISAC: Fiction / Occult & Supernatural

Also available on Kindle and Nook

For more information, please see:

http://www.sunburypressstore.com/Among-the-People-9781620…

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“Shadows in the Shining City” is John Cressler’s prequel to “Emeralds of the Alhambra”

ATLANTA — Sunbury Press has released John D. Cressler’s latest novel “Shadows in the Shining City,” the 2nd book in the Anthems of El-Andalus Series.

About the Book:

The Golden Age of Moorish Spain was during the 10th century, a time when the benevolent Syrian Arab Caliphs ruled Iberia from Córdoba, the site of the iconic Great Mosque and home to the Royal Library, one of the largest collections of ancient books ever assembled. 10th century Córdoba was the richest, most populous, and most cultured city in the western world. Under the tolerant Muslim Caliphs, the pinnacle of convivencia was attained, that unique period of Spanish history when Muslims, Jews and Christians lived together in relative harmony and peace. Multicultural Córdoba was an enlightened city that treasured its books, celebrated art and literature, advanced science and medicine, and its myriad accomplishments were envied by both the west and the east alike.

Shadows in the Shining City is a prequel to Emeralds of the Alhambra, and the second book in the Anthems of al-Andalus Series. Shadowstells the story of the forbidden love between Rayhana Abi Amir, a Muslim princess of the Royal Court, and Zafir Saffar, a freed slave. Young love blossoms in 10th century Madinat al-Zahra, the Shining City, the Caliph’s magnificent Royal Palace located just outside of Córdoba. Their love story is set against the backdrop of the epic rise to power of Rayhana’s ruthless father, a man history will come to both celebrate and revile for the role he plays in dooming the bright future of Moorish Spain.

Praise for John D. Cressler’s

Shadows of the Shining City

“An inspiring and deeply moving novel on both the nature of love and the many beautiful possibilities brought to life when religions learn to coexist.”

—Shirin Ebadi, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

 

“A mesmerizing love story … filled with vivid historical descriptions of treachery and strategies in politics, religion, power, and love during the Golden Age of Moorish Spain.”

—Valerie Jackson, In Conversation (Between the Lines),

National Public Radio

 

“This is the second novel in Cressler’s Anthems of al-Andalus Series, where the legacy of the Arab/Islamic civilization in medieval Spain, with its refinements, its enduring tolerance, and its esthetic dynamism is celebrated. A novel about love, political strife, and cultural conflicts, it is written in a rich and shimmering style carrying an implicit message on the value of recognizing the achievements of the “other,” and asserting the fact that there is no fixed center for human creativity and progress.”

—Salma Khadra Jayyusi, poet, writer, and literary historian.

Founder and Director of EAST-WEST NEXUS/PROTA for the

Dissemination in English of Arabic cultural achievements

“An enthralling narrative to a shocking history. In this novel of 10th century Spain during the critical transition in the Muslim world from a progressive leader to a cruel megalomaniac, the author brings the reader straight into the landscape, the majesty and the struggles for power which cast the shadows upon al-Zahra, the Shining City. Cressler brilliantly weaves together fact and fiction, passion and intrigue, the throes of love, and the violence of war. With great attention to detail, he artfully unfolds the drama of a young and forbidden love, exquisitely keeping us rapt in the story, wondering in each moment, what will happen next?”

—Rabbi Rachael M. Bregman, Temple Beth Tefilloh

 

“Another tour de force! Cressler submerges us in a luxurious narrative evoking the loves, lives, intrigue, and history of 10th century Córdoba, a time of religious and political amity among Muslims, Jews, and Christians. Our master storyteller provides a cautionary tale of how human desire can corrupt the power of love through the love of power. We cheer for Rayhana and Zafir while we witness the horror of books burning on the pyre of one man’s insane desire to stem the love of knowledge. We rejoice in the many triumphs of al-Andalus, yet despair at lessons not yet learned about how human beings may live and love together. Shadows in the Shining City is a lovely, moving, and inspiring story of how it might have been. We believe!”

—Professor Susan Abraham, Loyola Marymount University

“Cressler is a master of meticulously researched detail. His intricately woven characters plumb the depths of love and fear, cunning treachery and wisdom, immersing the reader into the heart of 10th century al-Andalus as it balances on the edge of a cosmic shift, with repercussions that continue to reverberate today. What better way to learn history than through the eyes of lovers both young and seasoned: lovers of books and scientific discovery, of beauty and of harmony among diverse peoples, and ultimately, human love that defies all obstacles to proclaim,

‘I believe’!”

—Cathy Devlin Crosby,Cofounder of Neshama Interfaith Center

 

“Cressler is a master of rich description, pulling the reader into each scene. An incredible love story supported and sustained by the remarkable coexistence of religions that characterized that magical era. (We) are left yearning for a return to convivencia.”

—Father Bruce Maivelett, S.J., Jesuit Superior,

Ignatius House Retreat Center

 

“Cressler’s suspenseful novel, set at a decisive moment in Spain’s pre-modern history, challenges our all too comfortable prejudices about medieval culture as the eternal dark “other,” an allegedly primitive and less cultured period we have long left behind. Under the deceptive garment of an engaging love story, Cressler reveals the human continuities between the medieval past and the modern present, confronts twenty-first century religious intolerance with the decline of a relatively peaceful convivencia among tenth-century Spanish Muslims, Christians, and Jews, and celebrates the powerful role of learning and intellectual curiosity for interfaith dialogue.”

—Professor Richard Utz, Chair, School of Literature, Media and Communication, Georgia Tech, and President,

International Society for the Study of Medievalism

“Cressler has done it again! He has woven an intricate and fascinating web in 10th century Córdoba from the threads of court intrigue, war, lust for power, passion, and most of all, love. The author reminds us that the most powerful force available has always been, and will always be, love; and that people from different cultures and religions can not only live together in peace, but also thrive and flourish even more profoundly in diversity. Cressler helps us all to believe that these highest values are still attainable and worth fighting for. A great read with a heartfelt message for today’s world!” 

—Marian Monahan,Cofounder of Neshama Interfaith Center

“Cressler is a vivid writer who creates a breathtaking adventure that is both intensely entertaining and informative. The reader is immersed in the cultural, religious, and scientific currents of one of the most remarkable periods of Spanish history. I look forward to the next one!”

—Father Thomas Kenny, S.J., Chaplain and Teacher,

Atlanta Cristo Rey Jesuit High School

 

 

Reader Reviews

“Cressler has done it again! Against a tapestry of historical grandeur and religious conflict in 10th century Spain, he has woven a compelling tale of political intrigue, cultural turmoil, and forbidden love. Page turning was never so easy, or so unstoppable! Can’t wait for the third installment of this memorable trilogy!”

—Roger A. Meyer, M.D.

“A medieval masterpiece filled with love, intrigue, betrayal, and passion … (that) leaves the reader thirsting for more!”

—Dennis Day

“A superbly written novel (that allows readers) to glimpse the complex events that shaped Spain … (and) become living witnesses to a slice of the history of al-Andalus, which Cressler brings to life with such love and care.”

—Acar Nazli

“Takes you into the intrigue of a sophisticated civilization in medieval Córdoba. Full of ambitious plots, secrets, and true love. It kept me on the edge of my seat!”

—Trish Byers

“A love story inspiring to those lucky enough to have been loved unconditionally, and to those who hope for such a blessing someday. This riveting story kept me on edge throughout.”

—Preston Bennett

“A fast-paced, fun read that makes medieval Spain come alive. Characters of differing cultures and faiths come to life in a way that shows the goodness that is possible when we are tolerant.”

—Patty Smith

“A love story (that) will make you see that times change but mankind remains the same; capable of great love and awful treachery. Take a trip back to 10th century Spain and see people of faith—Muslim, Christian, and Jew—live with and love one another. There is hope for us all and it begins with love.”

—Bud Treanor

“I have undergone an education about a period of time of which I knew little, and best of all is that in becoming educated, I was thoroughly entertained!”

—Bob Wilhelm

 

“You will be awestruck (and) your breath will be taken away over and over again as you read the beautiful love story of two young people … whose unwavering love outshines the powerful, intriguing political forces set against their union.”

—Denise Black

“(Cressler is) a first-rate storyteller. Wonderful three-dimensional characters, dramatic situations, and fascinating historical and cultural details.”

—Tom Nadar, Ph.D.

“Exhilarating! A beautifully told story of love that finds a way to triumph. Historically compelling, with characters that make the time come alive.”

—Tom Jablonski

“Weaves fiction and fact into a suspenseful, intriguing, passionate saga. A compelling story exploring themes of love, religion, and the thirst for power. A must read!”

—Barbara Nalbone

 

Shadows in the Shining City: Book Two of the Anthems of al-Andalus Series

Authored by John D. Cressler

List Price: $24.95
6″ x 9″ (15.24 x 22.86 cm)
Black & White on White paper
606 pages
Sunbury Press, Inc.
ISBN-13: 978-1620063453
ISBN-10: 162006345X
BISAC: Fiction / Historical

Coming soon on Kindle and Nook

For more information, please see:

http://www.sunburypressstore.com/Shadows-in-the-Shining-C…

 

 

 

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Paul Argentini’s “Spirits’ Cabin” is a WW2-era coming-of-age tale

KINGSTON, N.Y. — Sunbury Press has released Paul Argentini’s latest novel “The Spirits’ Cabin on Lake Eagle Talon,” a WW2-era coming-of-age tale set in the woods of upstate New York

About the Book:
The Spirit’s Cabin on Lake Eagle Talon is a story of Native American Lore, a teenage couple’s abiding love, and ordinary people who are called upon to do extraordinary deeds.

Excerpt:
1940
The cabin was first a put-up-in-a-hurry forest lean-to before it started to look like a refuge a desperate hiker would seek out on a rainy, lightning-filled night. Joe Caruso wondered if some long-ago design had him decide to build it unknowingly in front of the site of an ancient Indian ceremonial fire pit complete with mystery and portent. Maddy Malloy had no such doubts. She knew the first time she put foot on the cabin’s site alongside Lake Eagle Talon, which was hidden in the lush, rolling Bekshire Hills of western Massachusetts. According to her sensations, its beginnings and construction lay in a design and plan arranged eons before. When Joe asked her how she knew that, she told him by the same knowledge that told her they knew each other in another time. They had only to take care they did not let their attraction to one other displease too much the jealous ancients.

“Do you feel it?”

“What?”

“Shhhh! Shhhh! The sensations. Hold my hand. I’m getting goose bumps.”

Joe wrinkled his brow, looked around slowly. “Like we’re not alone … ?”

“Yes. Like I feel sometimes when I’m in church. I get lost and this sensation comes over me.”

“Like someone is standing right in front of me, nose to nose.”

“Like … another dimension … ?”

Joe felt the awe engulf him just as it did the first night he spent in the lean-to. He sat cross-legged Indian style in front of the fire. He stared off to the side. The sight made him blink rapidly and open his eyes widely. A rattlesnake was coiled, its rattle clicking. Shika-shika-shika-shika.

Joe surprised himself. He felt not an iota of fear.

He folded his hands in front of him, and felt compelled to welcome the visitor. He could not speak. He simply nodded his head. It was as if the snake was expected.

Joe had no idea how long the snake was there. He had nodded off, then awoke to find it gone. Joe smiled, stretched out, and went to sleep.

“Maddy, do you feel as if we have been transported to another dimension?”

“Whatever it is, it is so weird. Do you still feel it?”

“Yes! Like it’s a shroud covering us with magic spirits …”

“Like we were meant to discover it so we could be guided …”

“Yes, to acknowledge all its portents and blessings …”

“Yes!”

“And tells us to follow the word! It says we are to take off all our clothes …”

“Crazy shit!” she said to Joe and didn’t talk to him for the next three days.

About the Author:
PAUL ARGENTINI is a Random House bestselling author and prize-winning playwright. He and lives in Florida. He has two grown daughters, Lisa and Mona.

Also by Paul Argentini:

Fiction

A Matter of Love In Da Bronx

The Fourth Nail – An Historical Novel

Jim – A War-torn Love Story

Non-Fiction

A Treatise – The Art of Casting A Fly (Vera C. Argentini – Artist)

Elements of Style for Screenwriters

The Essential Manual for Writers of Screenplays (Random House Bestseller)

MUSICALS! Directing School and Community Theatre (Robert Boland and Paul Argentini)

Full-length plays

The Decisive Point

The Secret of The Sea Island Mansion

The Essence of Being

King’s Mate- Off –Off- Off Broadway Showcase  (Massachusetts Artists Foundation Playwriting Fellowship)

One Act Plays

No Gas For Nick – Berkshire Theatre Festival

Pearl Seed – Berkshire Theatre Festival

My Pen Name’s Mark Twain (written and performed in sixth grade)

Theatre Odyssey 2011 Ten-minute Play Festival
The Ordinance – First Prize Winner Sarasota, Florida

The Spirits’ Cabin on Lake Eagle Talon

Authored by Paul Argentini

List Price: $16.95
5.5″ x 8.5″ (13.97 x 21.59 cm)
Black & White on White paper
220 pages
Sunbury Press, Inc.
ISBN-13: 978-1620064351
ISBN-10: 1620064359
BISAC: Fiction / Coming of Age

Also available on Kindle and Nook

For more information, please see:

http://www.sunburypressstore.com/The-Spirits-Cabin-on-Lak…

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Great Lakes: The Saga of the Inland Seas is a Michener-like multi-generational tale

DULUTH, Minn. — Sunbury Press has released “Great Lakes: The Saga of the Inland Seas” by Lilly Kirckof and Daniel Allen Butler.

About the Book:

Great Lakes, the novel is a tale as wide and deep as the lakes themselves; a rare combination of history, romance and, “what just might of have been,” rolled into a read so fascinating it is literally impossible to put down.

From the earliest days of the old “wind wagons” to the steel behemoths of today, Great Lakes, sails into the drama, mystery and outright treachery of the dark side of navigating the lakes. Screaming “nor’easter’s” and back-stabbing corporate boardrooms all form part of the novel’s captivating saga of the sweetwater seas.

As an historian reading “historical novels” has always been like scraping fingernails down chalkboards for me. The plot may have been believable but the scope of the times was so misunderstood and characters mere poorly constructed carboard cutouts, the book invariably collapsed of it’s own ponderous ineptness.

By contrast Great Lakes, is everything a historical novel should be; rich in history with an overarching story line balancing nicely between fact and fiction, believable characters, a narrative rarely told; all set against a backdrop that while we think we understand it, surprises keep emerging from the shadows.

Great Lakes, the novel is certain to become a classic for the Inland Seas.

… Fred Stonehouse

Great Lakes: The Saga of the Inland Seas

Authored by Lilly Kirckof, Authored by Daniel Allen Butler

List Price: $19.95
6″ x 9″ (15.24 x 22.86 cm)
Black & White on White paper
476 pages
Sunbury Press, Inc.
ISBN-13: 978-1620064269
ISBN-10: 162006426X
BISAC: Fiction / Sea Stories

Also available on Kindle and Nook

For more information, please see:

http://www.sunburypressstore.com/Great-Lakes-978162006426…

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Cressler’s “Shadows” in the limelight! Sunbury Press bestsellers for June 2014

MECHANICSBURG, Pa. — Sunbury Press has released the bestsellers list for June, 2014. John Cressler’s novel “Shadows in the Shining City” led the way.

About Shadows in the Shining City

The Golden Age of Moorish Spain was during the 10th century, a time when the benevolent Syrian Arab Caliphs ruled Iberia from Córdoba, the site of the iconic Great Mosque and home to the Royal Library, one of the largest collections of ancient books ever assembled. 10th century Córdoba was the richest, most populous, and most cultured city in the western world. Under the tolerant Muslim Caliphs, the pinnacle of convivencia was attained, that unique period of Spanish history when Muslims, Jews and Christians lived together in relative harmony and peace. Multicultural Córdoba was an enlightened city that treasured its books, celebrated art and literature, advanced science and medicine, and its myriad accomplishments were envied by both the west and the east alike.

Shadows in the Shining City is a prequel to Emeralds of the Alhambra, and the second book in the Anthems of al-Andalus Series. Shadows tells the story of the forbidden love between Rayhana Abi Amir, a Muslim princess of the Royal Court, and Zafir Saffar, a freed slave. Young love blossoms in 10th century Madinat al-Zahra, the Shining City, the Caliph’s magnificent Royal Palace located just outside of Córdoba. Their love story is set against the backdrop of the epic rise to power of Rayhana’s ruthless father, a man history will come to both celebrate and revile for the role he plays in dooming the bright future of Moorish Spain.

SUNBURY PRESS – Bestsellers for June, 2014 (by Revenue)
Rank	Last Month	Title	Author	Category
1	–	Shadows in the Shining City	John Cressler	Historical Fiction
2	1	Revolt!	Terry Ray	Political Fiction
3	3	The Cursed Man	Keith Rommel	Thriller Fiction
4	9	The Closer	Alan Mindell	Sports Fiction
5	–	Pit Bulls	Anthony Julian	History
6	–	Call Sign Dracula	Joe Fair	History
7	12	Amelia Earhart: The Truth at Last	Mike Campbell	History
8	18	The Lurking Man	Keith Rommel	Thriller Fiction
9	–	Pit Bulls II	Anthony Julian	History
10	15	Winter of the Metal People	Dennis Herrick	Historical Fiction
11	–	Twilight of the Drifter	Shelly Frome	Literary Fiction
12	–	At the End of the Day	Madelyn Killion	Literary Fiction
13	–	Emeralds of the Alhambra	John Cressler	Historical Fiction
14	–	The Death of Obsession	Ray Fashona	Thriller Fiction
15	–	The Sinful Man	Keith Rommel	Thriller Fiction
16	–	A Darker Shade of Freedom	C James Gilbert	Historical Fiction
17	–	Jesus the Phoenician	Karim El Koussa	History
18	–	The Machine	Horace J Taylor	African Am Fiction
19	17	Hour 30	Brandon Musgrave	Medical Memoir
20	–	Sanctuary Dishonored	Robin Lee	Art History

Sunbury Press enjoyed the best June ever. Sales were up 33% over last year. For the six months ended June 30, Sunbury Press had its best start to a year ever, its 10th year in business. Sales were up 11% over last year’s start. Trade paperbacks led the way with an 18% increase year over year. The company also reintroduced hard cover books with several titles this month. They outperformed the entire ebook category. Ebooks continued their decline from their peak in 2012, dropping 20% in June, as compared to last June.

John Cressler’s novels Shadows in the Shining City and Emeralds of the Alhambra were helped by advance sales in preparation for a July 22 release party. Terry Ray’s Revolt! continued to sell briskly in upstate Pennsylvania. Keith Rommel’s The Cursed Man, The Lurking Man & newly released The Sinful Man sold well thanks to promotional activities for a limited edition hardcover, strong sales at Rocky’s Hardware and interest in The Cursed Man movie. Alan Mindell’s The Closer climbed back up the chart thanks to sales to San Diego area bookstores. Anthony Julian’s Pit Bulls I & Pit Bulls II benefitted from the First Friday event at the Sunbury Press store and the release of hard cover editions. Joe Fair’s Call Sign Dracula was #6 thanks to author activity at military unit reunions. Mike Campbell’s Amelia Earhart: The Truth at Last climbed to #7 on the winds of interest in the anniversary of the loss of the aviatrix. Dennis Herrick’s Winter of the Metal People climbed to #10 thanks to sales in New Mexico. Shelly Frome’s Twilight of the Drifter and Madelyn Killion’s At the End of the Day were two older novels helped by author activities. Ray Fashona’s The Death of Obsession was spurred by sales at a book expo in upstate New York. Recently released A Darker Shade of Freedom by C James Gilbert was bolstered by author activities in the Gettysburg area. Karim El Koussa’s Jesus the Phoenician returned to the charts thanks to interest in Europe. The Machine, by Horace Taylor, charted thanks to author activities. Brandon Musgrave’s Hour 30 continues to be the top ebook, ranking #19 overall. Robin Lee’s Sanctuary Dishonored rounded out the list.

The company released five new titles during the month of June:

SUNBURY PRESS – New Releases for June, 2014
Electric Funeral	Mark Slade	Horror Fiction
When Heroes Were Giants, 2 ed	James Witherell	Sports History
Impresario of Terror	Jack Adler	Thriller Fiction
The Sinful Man	Keith Rommel	Thriller Fiction
My Mom Is an Alien	Joanne Risso	Childrens Fiction

For a list of Sunbury’s all-time best-sellers, please see the Sunbury Press web site:
http://www.sunburypressstore.com/BESTSELLERS_c3.htm
For a complete list of recent and upcoming releases, please see:
http://www.sunburypressstore.com/COMING-SOON_c47.htm

 

 

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