Hideous creatures and nightmarish situations abound in Malafarina’s “Malaformed Realities”

WERNERSVILLE, Pa. — Sunbury Press has released thriller writer Thomas Malafarina’s latest short story compilationMalaformed Realities Volume One.

About the Book:
History tells us that on October 3, 1849 the great master of the macabre, Edgar Allen Poe, was found wandering the streets of Baltimore, Maryland delirious and in grave distress. He was taken immediately to the Washington College Hospital, where he died at 5 a.m. on Sunday, October 7. Poe never became coherent enough to explain how he wound up in such an abysmal condition. There are a lot of theories about his death but no concrete evidence. Maybe he simply lost his way back from those incredibly dark places his writing took him.

Thomas Malafarina can only hope that his own numerous journeys into that land of darkness will not someday take its toll on him. “I would hate to think of myself thirty years from now in some home for the aged and infirm, cowering in bed with the covers tucked tightly to my chin. Would I be too afraid to leave the safety of my covers because the demons, which once only lived inside my mind, had since become as real to me as flesh and bone in my addled condition? I suppose we will have to wait and see,” mused Thomas.

In the meantime, please enjoy yet another journey into the darkest corners of Thomas Malafarina’s mind. This collection is calledMalaformed Realities, not just as a clever play on his last name, but because distorting and twisting reality into something it was never intended to be is what he enjoys doing best. “And if in the process, I manage to disturb and frighten you along the way then all the better.”

Stories included in this volume:

• When They Come For You
• A Love Best Served Cold
• MegaSynth RP-1
• Brass
• Inspector 17
• Hear No Evil
• Big Frankie
• Dinner With Andy And Meg
• Cold, Cold Women
• If Thine Eye Offend Thee
• Homecoming
• Passageways To Perniciousness
• Storage
• Cutaneous Horns
• Icehouse
• Single Panel
• The Brands
• Breathe
• Tools Of The Trade
• Zombie Party
• And The Scales Fell From My Eyes (A Novella)

Excerpt:
Cold, Cold Women
She had been the love of his life, the reason for his very existence. In fact, Dylan had considered her the warmest and most affectionate woman he had ever met. In his past, so many cold, cold women had hurt him so many times before taking all the love he had to give and then tossing him aside like so much garbage.

After years of dealing with this rejection Dylan had become wise to such deceitful women. He had experienced enough pain. He found he was never able give fully of himself in any relationship. He knew to watch for the signs. When he saw a woman turning cold, he would end it before he could be hurt again. After a while, he had begun to wonder if he would never find a truly caring woman.

Then he met Celia. She was everything he wanted in a woman and more. She was warm, compassionate and loving. She was the one woman who could break down the protective walls Dylan had built around himself. She taught him to give fully of himself once again without fear or concern and she had made his life complete—at least for a time.

But then he sensed that she too was beginning to grow distant and cold, just like the rest of them. These damned cold, cold women. She didn’t think he noticed, but he did. He knew the signs. After a time he realized she was no different than the others and soon she too would leave him. He was furious that he had allowed her to get so close to him, to break through his defenses, to get him to open up to her. Why had he been such a fool?

Now she lay quietly next to him in bed, her cold dead corpse growing stiff with rigor mortis. Her neck bore the blackened bruises from strangulation—her eyes bloodshot with petechial hemorrhaging. He was certain he could smell the stench of decay already forming about her and only after a few hours.

Life had made Dylan wise. He had ended it before she could hurt him any more than she already had. Why had she grown so cold? He didn’t know, but it really didn’t matter. Now she too would be buried in his back yard along with the many others who had tried to hurt Dylan. She had once been special but now she would become just another of the dozens of the cold, cold women now resting in the cold, cold ground.

About the Author:
Thomas M. Malafarina is a horror fiction author from the South Heidelberg Twp area of Berks County, Pennsylvania. He was born July 23, 1955 in Ashland, Schuylkill County, PA where he lived until moving to Berks County in 1979.

Many of Thomas’s stories take place in his native Schuylkill County and also in Berks County settings. Thomas’s books are published by Sunbury Press of Camp Hill, PA.

Thomas’s novels include “99 Souls”, “Burn Phone” and “Eye Contact”, “Fallen Stones”, and the “Dead Kill” series. His short story collection are “13 Nasty Endings”, “Gallery of Horror”, “Malafarina Maleficarum Volume 1″, “Malafarina Maleficarum Volume 2″,  “Ghost Shadows”, and “Malaformed Realities”. He also has a collection of single-panel cartoons called “Yes I Smelled It Too”. In addition, Thomas’s stories appear in many anthologies currently on sale on Amazon.

Thomas has had a life-long love of the horror and monster genre in all its form of books, movies and art. Annually, Thomas creates works of horror art, props and scenery, which he donates to a local non-profit Halloween Barn Of Terror.

Thomas lives just outside of Wernersville, PA with his wife JoAnne. They have three grown children and three grandchildren.

Malaformed Realities Volume 1
Authored by Thomas M. Malafarina
List Price: $16.95
5.5″ x 8.5″ (13.97 x 21.59 cm)
Black & White on White paper
246 pages
Sunbury Press, Inc.
ISBN-13: 978-1620065327
ISBN-10: 1620065320
BISAC: Fiction / Thrillers / Supernatural

For more information, please see:
http://www.sunburypressstore.com/Malaformed-Realities-Vol…

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What’s life like in a house full of beloved beagles? The “Beagle Bard” tells all!

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Sunbury Press has released Bob Ford’s fifth volume in the Beagle Tales series, Beagle Tales 5.

About the Book:
This fifth installment of Ford’s short stories mixes a love for the hunt and a thorough appreciation of the beagle as a cherished pet. Whether he is navigating the wild lands looking for rabbits or the wilder terrain of human relationships, the author is always looking for the important things in life, and casting them in a humorous light. Beagles and rabbit hunting are featured prominently in these collected assays, although the tales of the hunt are often a medium to tell a more profound story.  Laugh along with his nostalgic remembrances of childhood, unique perspectives on life today, and the joys of living with hunting house beagles.

“Beagle Tales” is a registered trademark of Sunbury Press, Inc.

Excerpt:
Behold, the Rabbit
Well, small game hunting is still in season, and we can get out there and bust some bunnies. To be honest, I’m glad that the fevered rush of deer season is over. Many of the “hunters” that I know actually just go out to chase deer for the two weeks that we are allowed to hunt them with a rifle. Don’t get me wrong, I feel affinity with all hunters, but the crazed dash for antlers sometimes just makes me feel like not hunting. I try to get my deer meat in archery season, before rabbit season opens, in order to avoid the entire two weeks of rifled mayhem altogether. There is something about the sound of a half-dozen high-powered rifles rapid firing on a running deer a few hundred yards away that just makes me cringe.

Actually, I spend much of deer season walking around looking for rabbit tracks in the snow. I came home one day this year in cold weather just grinning. “Did you get a deer?” my wife asked.

“Nope,” I said, giving her a hug.

“Why are you so happy then?” She pushed her palms against my chest, ending the hug.

“I found a ton of rabbit tracks!” I said.

“Any deer?”

“Sure, there are always some deer tracks, but there were lots of bunny tracks in there.”

“Did you see any deer?” she yelled. “It isn’t rabbit season.”

“Sure. I saw deer. But man did I see rabbits. I can’t wait for bunny season to come back in!”

Ah, but rabbit season is now in full swing again, and I am enjoying the fields and woods. I prefer running in the open and the wild areas. I haven’t been to a beagle club to run dogs since the end of October, and I belong to two of them! There is something about the abandoned strip mines and the farmer’s hedgerows and the national forest that make my hounds look better than they are. The rabbits do not double back on their own trail so much, and there are no mowed feed strips for the rabbits to run. In Pennsylvania many of the clubs were formerly operated by traditional brace enthusiasts. The result is that there can be parts of the club that have more mowed paths than brush. I understand that, too, as a couple rabbits running down a mowed feed strip may be enough to run first series for the brace guys. Repeat the same path runners after lunch, and the winner can be declared. There are no mowed feed strips in hunting season.

I also like hunting season for the fact that there is no fence. Don’t get me wrong, I like having a fence at the beagle club when I am conditioning dogs, but it is sometimes a false sense of security. Fences get holes, and sometimes they get knocked down. It is roads, not fences, which I worry about in gunning season. The one thing I do miss about the club running grounds as the season rolls on to the end is the abundance of rabbits. In fact, it is for this reason that I simply do not shoot near as many rabbits as I once did. I still get over fifty in any given year, but I no longer feel a need to try and eat every rabbit the dogs chase. In fact, I have gotten to the point where I am not shooting rabbits. The old timers warned me about this. They said killing critters would get problematic for anyone that loved the hunt (continued)

About the Author:
Bob Ford has lived all but three years of his life in the hills of Pennsylvania. The three exilic years were spent attending seminary at The Methodist Theological School in Ohio where he lamented the lack of topography that characterizes the central portion of the Buckeye state.  He purchased his first beagle for $75 in 1985 with money earned delivering the Erie Sunday Times. This first beagle committed Ford to the company of hounds, and has resulted in a life that has gone to the dogs.  Ford has served United Methodist Churches in Warrensburg, OH; Elkland, PA and Houtzdale PA.  He is a PhD candidate in systematic theology at Duquesne University, and teaches philosophy and religious studies part-time at Penn State Altoona.

Bob has hunted rabbits and hare throughout the country, ranging from Northern Alabama to the Quebec border, and he is always looking for new places to hunt and new species of rabbits and hare for his hounds to pursue. He is an ordained pastor in the Susquehanna Conference of The United Methodist Church and currently resides in State College, PA.  Ford believes that American-made, double barrel,16 gauge shotguns from the previous century are the best firearms available to the small game hunter, and that few things compare to the sound of a pack of beagles chasing rabbits on morning dew in a foggy valley. He writes a monthly column for the American Beagler magazine and Hounds and Hunting magazine.  He has had more than 100 articles in Better Beagling, and currently writes an article each month for The American Beagler and Hounds & Hunting.

Bob Ford is an Excellence in Craft winner in humor for the Outdoor Writers Association of America (2012).

Beagle Tales 5
Authored by Bob Ford
List Price: $14.95
5.5″ x 8.5″ (13.97 x 21.59 cm)
Black & White on Cream paper
180 pages
Sunbury Press, Inc.
ISBN-13: 978-1620065419
ISBN-10: 162006541X
BISAC: Pets / Dogs / Breeds

For more information, please see:
http://www.sunburypressstore.com/Beagle-Tales-5-978162006…

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Keith Rommel’s “The Cursed Man” named a finalist in the Mystery category Reader’s Choice Red Carpet Award for BTSeMag, LLC

MECHANICSBURG, PA — Sunbury Press author Keith Rommel has been named a finalist by BTSeMag, LLC for it’s Reader’s Choice Red Carpet Awards in the Mystery category. Click on the star for a list of all finalists:

The awards will honor the best in literary and genre fiction. BTS has partnered with the ARC Convention in New Orleans. The presentation of awards will be conducted at the ARC Convention in New Orleans, held July 30-Aug 1st, 2015.

We are pleased to announce that the talented Abbi Glines will be our Keynote Speaker for NOLA 2015!

Enjoy the tours and fun of the French Quarter with the authors. Many fun activities planned including speed dating with the authors, games, author sponsored events like carriage rides, author & reader workshops and more.

BTSeMag, LLC is the publisher of the popular BTS Book Reviews “Your Guide to Great Reading.”  The magazine is available at no cost.

 

 

ABOUT THE BOOK:

The Cursed Man, by Keith Rommel, tells the story of Alister Kunkle, a patient at Sunnyside Capable Care Mental Institution. Alister has been in seclusion for the last 25 years, having no contact with the staff or the outside world. The reason for this is that anyone who communicates with Alister dies within the day, for he is the Cursed Man and Death takes a professional interest in those unlucky enough to cross his path.

Believing him simply deranged, Dr Anna Lee, an up-and-coming young psychiatrist, has come to cure Alister. She is warned about Alister’s past and is shown evidence of previous encounters made by the skeptical or unbelieving, all of whom died, sometimes horribly. Regardless of the stories, Anna will not be dissuaded and is reluctantly allowed access to Alister. All assume her fate is sealed, but when she returns unharmed the next day, we also start to wonder about the stories.

So begins an enthralling narrative told in the past and the present as Anna attempts to learn why Alister believes he is cursed, while at the same time trying to convince him the events were not real and that in fact he is merely ill and so can be cured. Is Alister truly followed by death or is he simply mentally ill? The Cursed Man is an extremely well-written suspense horror story… I enjoyed it immensely; right up until the very end I was never sure of the outcome… Great story-telling in the tradition of Stephen King… — Booklore

The Cursed Man is being made into a Hollywood movie by producer James L. Perry of Intergalaxy Entertainment:

The Cursed Man movie at IMDB

See one of the early trailers:

Cursed Man Trailer #2

 

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Eastwood’s “American Sniper” reminds us all of the true cost of war

by Lawrence Knorr

CAMP HILL, PA — As the film ended, after nearly 2 1/2 hours, the credits ran and no one stood.  No one spoke.  No one reached for their phone.  As the last credit rolled, all quietly stood — a room of over 300 movie patrons who were total strangers to one another.  Quietly and politely, as if at a solemn funeral, each exited their row and walked to the door.  Some spoke only in hushed tones as we emptied out.  To say “American Sniper” had an impact on the audience would be an understatement.  It was the most powerful reaction to a film I have ever witnessed.

Why this reaction?  Since there were no exchanges with the patrons, I can only imagine they were thinking similarly to me.  Eastwood’s movie had struck an inner chord of human nature — a deep sense of loss coupled with the sincere respect for Chris Kyle, the Navy Seal played by Bradley Cooper.  But, that’s not the only thing.  In fact, the overriding realization is the cost of war — whether it is the mental anguish a soldier faces, or the horrors the populace in a war zone encounters, or the early deaths of so many on both sides, or the toll on the families back home — during and after the conflict.

This was not a film that glorified war — or the SEALs — or our country’s invasion of  Iraq.  It was not NRA propaganda or a recruiting tool for sniper training.  Those that are trying to make more out of it than an honest appraisal of the human price paid in such conflicts are completely off base.

If nothing else, regardless of our beliefs and all of the disagreements we have among us as Americans, we must rally behind our veterans — especially those that served in battle zones, and especially those that carry the scars, whether physical or mental.  These men and women served our country.  Whether or not you are proud of the results or agreed with the circumstances, I urge you to please support them.

If you haven’t seen the film and are unsure about how you feel about our veterans, the $9.50 per ticket to see “American Sniper” is worth every penny.

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Nude body found in Letort Spring near Carlisle, Cumberland County, PA

CARLISLE, Pa. — Sunbury Press has released J. M. West’s second installment of the Carlisle Crime Cases —Courting Doubt and Darkness – A Christopher Snow and Erin McCoy Mystery.

About the Book:
In the second Carlisle Crimes Case, Courting Doubt and Darkness, Homicide Detectives Christopher Snow and Erin McCoy tail a killer who stymies the police with multiple MO’s. While McCoy testifies at the trial of sisters who kidnapped her in Dying for Vengeance, Snow and Savage recover a  nude body from the Letort Spring. While tracking sparse clues, another killing surfaces  that rings alarms: the victims were connected. The chase leads to an active Marcellus oil rig. As police tangle with hostile suspects, they are courting doubt and darkness, leaving the comfort of Carlisle to the wilds of the Raccoon Mountain. When eight-month pregnant McCoy joins the case, she discovers her Native American relatives are involved. Then she stumbles into the killer’s path!  Join them on their journey!

Excerpt:
Carlisle Police Department’s Senior Detective Christopher Snow hammered the Wrangler’s brakes to avoid blowing through the red light on R 15 south of Lewisburg. “Shit!” Glancing in his rear view and side mirrors for any flashing lights and cocking his head to catch a siren’s whine, he huffed a sigh when none materialized. Oh, he could flash his shield, but that wasn’t setting much of an example.

The recorder on the seat beside him shifted. Snow picked it up, leaned over to open the glove box and tossed it in. His thumbs drummed the steering wheel, waiting impatiently for green while traffic piled up behind him. Unease gripped his gut, and experience had taught him to pay attention. “What spooked that woman during our interview?” he mumbled. “What had she gained from her husband’s death? Her inheritance seemed typical.” The query about her job caused her to break eye contact and cross her arms defensively across her chest. “Why? Because she knows more than she’s telling.” He talked to himself a lot since he’d ordered his wife and partner, Detective Erin McCoy, who usually accompanied him, to man the war room and feed him information when he needed it. “Damn it, woman, why can’t you follow orders?” He had also assigned his former partner Reese Savage to assist Mac, since the Chief relegated him to desk duty.

Neither answered the phone in Conference One when he called for a background check on Greer. CPD had consolidated the case files, data, listed info on white boards on their homicide and two other related ones—at the RV parked along the Susquehanna near Winfield and the Safety Coordinator’s body at the West Enterprises’ Williamsport well.

Worry forced him to accelerate. He dialed HQ again and left a terse message for both. “I need to know what I’m up against!” Part of the Marcellus Shale zone beneath Penn’s Woods, West Enterprises’active well was ‘fracking,’ or shattering the shale with millions of gallons of water, sand and over 500 chemicals miles underneath the surface to free the natural gas and oil, which then flowed to the surface through the horizontal pipes and up the vertical well, to be delivered to consumers.

He dialed Mac’s cell. It went to voicemail. “This is important; neither you nor Savage are at HQ working this case? Where the hell are you?” He snapped the clamshell shut. “You’re both insubordinate, so you’d better have a damn good explanation for your absence!” When his cell chirped, he checked the caller: HQ. “About damn time.”

Snow hit talk. “Hello? Where the hell have you two been?”

Savage explained that they’d gone to BWI to arrest Abigail Benedict for the murder of Mindy Murphy. Then he put Mac on speakerphone to summarize Sienna Greer’s arrest record, which included a DV incident, several DUIs and a road rage incident.

“Chris, where are you exactly?” Erin asked.

He dialed back his anger and gazed at the water. “About twelve miles south of Lewisburg.” The river, a beautiful silvery ribbon slipping downstream, the sun playing upon the waves. Silver and gold reflections darted back and forth, refracted into a thousand dancing crosses of light. What he wouldn’t give to spend a few hours…

While the Susquehanna distracted him, a blue semi barreled out of nowhere, bearing down on him, gaining ground quickly. Though there was room to pass, the trucker just mowed down the highway toward his Jeep. He checked the rear-view mirror as the cab loomed into view. Too late, he floored his accelerator as he veered into the outside lane, the truck following.

Suddenly, squealing breaks and metal smacking metal followed, crunching and what sounded like dragging. His last conscious thought was Mac yelling into the phone. “Describe your location!”

About the Author:
Courting Doubt and Darkness is the second in the Carlisle Crime Cases series of murder/mysteries featuring Homicide detectives Christopher Snow and Erin McCoy by Jody McGibney West, pseudonym for Joan M. West, Professor Emerita of English Studies at Harrisburg Area Community College, The Gettysburg Campus. She also taught at Messiah College and Shippensburg University as an adjunct and served as Assistant Director of the Learning Center (SU). She has previously published poetry andGlory in the Flower, her debut novel. It depicts four coeds who meet during the turbulent sixties.

She and her husband live near Carlisle, Pennsylvania. They have two sons and two grandsons. In her spare time, West volunteers at the Bookery—Bosler Memorial Library’s used bookstore, participates in the Litwits Book group, and reads voraciously.

Courting Doubt and Darkness: A Christopher Snow & Erin McCoy Mystery
Authored by J. M. West
List Price: $19.95
6″ x 9″ (15.24 x 22.86 cm)
Black & White on White paper
372 pages
Sunbury Press, Inc.
ISBN-13: 978-1620065488
ISBN-10: 1620065487
BISAC: Fiction / Mystery & Detective / Police Procedural

For more information, please see:
http://www.sunburypressstore.com/Courting-Doubt-and-Darkn…

BOOKSIGNING EVENT:

Joan West will be appearing at the Sunbury Press Store ar 50 West Main Street in Mechanicsburg, PA along with author Catherine Jordan (the Bookseller’s Secret) on Friday, February 6th from 6 pm to 9PM.  The authors will read from their books at 8 PM.

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Catherine Jordan’s devilish series continues with “The Bookseller’s Secret”

MECHANICSBURG, Pa. — Sunbury Press has released Catherine Jordan’s supernatural thriller The Bookseller’s Secret, the sequel to Seeking Samiel.

About the Book:
Some secrets are meant to be shared; this magic book is one of them, and it will haunt you for the rest of your life. Mason Barry is an American reporter who has risked his life writing and whistle-blowing. His last venture ended with his friend and photographer murdered, and a bounty on his head. Regardless, he dives into the deep web, searching for his next great story. He catches a blurb about the anti-Christ, a woman alive and well, living in South Africa. Supposedly, she has written a magic book. Readers claimed the author’s words not only opened doors to the supernatural, but also compelled them to murder and suicide. Mason heads to Llandudno, a wealthy suburb of Cape Town, to find the book, meet the author, and expose whatever truths he might find. He meets more than a few sketchy characters along the way, and becomes lost in a world he never knew existed.

Excerpt:
Surprisingly, the magic shop was in a nice section of Cape Town, situated among upscale stores. A tall, formidable bank was across the street. A family restaurant, The Albert, stood on the corner by the bank.

No sign hung over the sangoma’s awning-covered door, but the storefront window was filled with sexless voodoo dolls, male and female candle figures, incense sticks arranged in color-coordinated piles, prayer beads, and faceted candles hanging from strings.

Inside was like most of the other sangoma shops I’d wandered into: old and a little run down. It seemed tacky and clichéd; exactly what I expected. Strong patchouli and clove scented the air. An old man reclined on a yellow couch in the middle of the room. He was clothed in a full-length, white robe. His feet were bare, yet remarkably clean. The couch looked like something discarded and rescued. His long, gray, beaded hair hung in braids across his shoulders and past his chest. I assumed him to be the bookseller I was looking for, the sangoma. I felt his eyes on me while I quickly toured the room.

Glass display cases lined the walls. Price stickers asked enough money to be afforded by tourists and suckers. All kinds of thoughts bounced inside my head, and each bizarre thing reminded me of another. Tarot cards made me think of a magician’s pack I played with as a child, performing card tricks for friends, spreading them out to show a normal deck, then flipping through the deck to reveal all aces. Dried herbs reminded me of my pot-smoking, college days. Crystal necklaces brought to mind a necklace I had bought for a girlfriend. Muti—wet guck contained in various glass jars with handwritten “medicine” labels—looked like plasma from a science-fiction movie I once saw called The Blob.

The blogger warned the book would be authenticated by its odor when opened, and I would need the key to unlock it. “Excuse me,” I said to the old man on the couch. “I’m looking for a book.”

“I have books,” he said. “Over there.” He pointed toward a curtained-off room.

“Can I go in and look? It’s a magic book, written by a local woman. It’s banned, so I don’t know if you’ll have it.” The sangoma raised his brow. “The book is supposed to have weather spells and alchemy,” I said.

He stood, more quickly and agile than I thought he was capable of doing.

“Waza nami,” the sangoma said. “Follow me.”

His bare feet slapped across the floor, and I followed him. He swept his hand through a part in the curtain, revealing a room filled with shelves of books.

“Must be heavy,” I said as the sangoma struggled to pull the thick, leather volume off the shelf, his hands lost in his robe’s billowy sleeves. The beads in his hair clicked every time he moved.

“Not for me,” the sangoma said. “Books are heavy for the ignorant, for the strangers, never for their loving owners. And this is my book.”

I screwed my forehead into a frown. “I’m a book collector,” I said a little too defensive and loud for even my ears.

“Do you read all the books you acquire?” he asked.

“Some aren’t meant to be read,” I said. “They’re to be admired.”

“Do you ever wonder what secrets lay between those covers?” the sangoma asked, one eyebrow cocked as he gave a hint of a smile. “What omniscience is inside and what benefit will be conveyed upon you?”

“No,” I said. “They look nice on my shelf. I appreciate them for their value.”

He lowered his eyebrow and widened his smile. “Value is what you are after? Then this book is for you,” the sangoma said, making the next approach, asking for the open offer, the old, tricky, Mesopotamian way to trade, hiding the price, testing the customer’s desire. “If you really want it.”

I reached out.

The sangoma turned slightly to avoid my hand. He caressed the book in the most sensual way and seemed to be in love.

“It is signed,” said the sangoma. “Inside by the author, Eva van Hollinsworth.”

I hadn’t been able to find much information about the author. The book itself was so clouded in mystery, I began to wonder if she even existed. At best, I figured she was some sort of a scientist who attempted to transform the alchemist’s dreams into reality. But according to the missionary who tried to kill himself, she was more than that—a witch.

About the Author:
Catherine Jordan is a Pennsylvania author of paranormal thrillers. She is a wife and mother of five children.  Born in Indiana, she lived many years in the South, and was raised in Northeastern PA.  A native of Mountaintop, PA and a graduate of Penn State University with a BS in Finance and Statistics, she has been writing stories since she learned to hold a pencil.

Catherine is a member of the Thriller Writers Association and the Horror Writers Association. Her short story, The Green Eyed Monster, was published in the anthology, A Community of Writers. She writes in different genres and strives to write thought-provoking, consequential stories. Blurring the line between reality and fiction is a goal she hopes to indulge in the near future with readers through interactive fiction.

The Bookseller’s Secret
List Price: $16.95
5.5″ x 8.5″ (13.97 x 21.59 cm)
Black & White on White paper
262 pages
Sunbury Press, Inc.
ISBN-13: 978-1620065389
ISBN-10: 162006538X
BISAC: Fiction / Occult & Supernatural

For more information, please see:
http://www.sunburypressstore.com/The-Booksellers-Secret-9…

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Joe Fair’s Vietnam memoir “Call Sign Dracula” is the Sunbury Press Book of the Year for 2014. Other Sunnies announced.

Mechanicsburg, PA — Joe Fair’s heart-felt memoir of his time as a Black Scarf in the Big Red One in Vietnam, Call Sign Dracula, was the top-selling book for Sunbury Press in 2014, taking the Author of the Year Sunny as well as the top nonfiction book. Alan Mindell’s The Closer, about a baseball pitcher past his prime making a comeback, was the top fiction book for the year. Sherry Knowlton won the Sunny for Emerging Author of the Year thanks to her debut thriller novel Dead of Autumn. Following is a recap of Sunbury Press Sunny Awards over the years:

SUNBURY PRESS AUTHOR of the YEAR
2014	Joe Fair	Call Sign Dracula	History
2013	Mike Campbell	Amelia Earhart: The Truth at Last	History
2012	Joe Farrell & Joe Farley	Keystone Tombstones Volume 1	History
2011	Guy Graybill	Prohibition’s Prince	History
2010	Guy Graybill	Prohibition’s Prince	History
SUNBURY PRESS NONFICTION BOOK of the YEAR
2014	Joe Fair	Call Sign Dracula	History
2013	Mike Campbell	Amelia Earhart: The Truth at Last	History
2012	Joe Farrell & Joe Farley	Keystone Tombstones Volume 1	History
2011	Guy Graybill	Prohibition’s Prince	History
2010	Guy Graybill	Prohibition’s Prince	History
SUNBURY PRESS FICTION BOOK of the YEAR
2014	Alan Mindell	The Closer	Sports Fiction
2013	John Cressler	Emeralds of the Alhambra	Historical Fiction
2012	Preston Nuttall	The Amish Rebel	Historical Fiction
2011	Charles Godfrey	The Final Charge	Historical Fiction
2010	Chris Fenwick	the 100th human	Metaphysical Fiction
SUNBURY PRESS EMERGING AUTHOR of the YEAR
2014	Sherry Knowlton	Dead of Autumn	Thriller Fiction
2013	Anthony Julian	Pit Bulls	Pets
2012	Jess Steven Hughes	The Sign of the Eagle	Historical Fiction
2011	Joe Farrell & Joe Farley	Keystone Tombstones Volume 1	History
2010	Thomas Malafarina	13 Nasty Endings	Horror Fiction

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“Pit Bulls” top Christmas gift! — Sunbury Press bestsellers for December 2014

MECHANICSBURG, Pa. — Sunbury Press has released the bestsellers list for December, 2014. Tony Julian’s compilation of historic photos Pit Bulls was #1.

About Pit Bulls

Pit Bulls

Vintage Photographs of Pit Bulls and the People Who Loved Them.

Author Anthony Julian opens a time capsule for us concerning the history of the oft-maligned Pit Bull.  Through old photographs and personal anecdotes, Julian paints a history of the breed very different from the contemporary misconceptions flamed by the popular media fear machine. He focuses on the history of the Pit Bull in American society, including acting as sentry over dead Civil War soldiers and co-star on “The Little Rascals.”  This book is lavishly illustrated with vintage photographs.

This is the first in a series of books showcasing vintage photographs of people with their beloved pit bulls. $1 from the sale of each book goes to pit bull rescues !

SUNBURY PRESS – Bestsellers for December, 2014 (by Revenue)
Rank	Last Month	Title	Author	Category
1	13	Pit Bulls	Anthony Julian	History
2	–	Geology of the Mahanoy, Mahantongo and Lykens Valleys	Steve Troutman	Earth History
3	9	Visions of Teaoga	Jim Remsen	YA Fiction
4	5	As the Paint Dries	Carrie Wissler-Thomas	Art History
5	–	A Pennsylvania Mennonite and the California Gold Rush	Lawrence Knorr	History
6	–	The Relations of Dwight D Eisenhower	Lawrence Knorr	Genealogy
7	NEW	Forts, Forests, and Flintlocks	John L. Moore	History
8	15	A Brother’s Cold Case	Dennis Herrick	Thriller Fiction
9	12	Call Sign Dracula	Joe Fair	War Memoir
10	8	Poor Will’s Almanack 2015	Bill Felker	Almanac
11	10	Amelia Earhart: The Truth at Last	Mike Campbell	History
12	–	The Relations of Isaac F Stiely: Minister of the Mahantongo Valley	Lawrence Knorr	Local History
13	11	Head Over Wheels	Ken Mercurio	Sports Memoir
14	–	The Complete Story of the Worldwide Invasion of the Orange Orbs	Terry Ray	Paranormal
15	–	The Hackman Story	Knorr & Grace	Family History
16	16	Keystone Tombstones Civil War	Farrell, Farley & Knorr	War Biography
17	–	General John Fulton Reynolds	Knorr, Riley & Watson	Biography
18	–	Winter of the Metal People	Dennis Herrick	Historical Fiction
19	–	Modern Realism According to Fritz	Lawrence Knorr	Art History
20	–	The Relations of Milton Snavely Hershey	Lawrence Knorr	Genealogy

Sunbury Press had its best fourth quarter ever, up nearly 50% from the 4th quarter of 2013. For the month, sales were up 45% as compared to the same month last year. Year-to-date, sales are up over 20% overall. Simply put, the company had its best year ever. Trade paperback sales soared 24% in 2014. Hardcover sales since June have rocketed past eBook sales, which were down over 15% for the year. There appears to have been no Christmas rebound for eBooks.

Tony Julian’s Pit Bulls, available in both trade paperback and hardcover, led the pack thanks to achieving consistently-high Amazon category rankings and due to the $1 per book donation pledge by the publisher. Steve Troutman’s Geology of the Mahanoy, Mahantongo and Lykens Valleys grabbed #2 thanks to author activities. Jim Remsen’s Visions of Teaga moved up to #3 as a result of ongoing author promotions. As the Paint Dries, Carrie Wissler-Thomas’s history of the Art Association of Harrisburg, co-authored by Michael Barton, notched up to #4 due to bookstore sales in Harrisburg and Christmas sales at the Association. Lawrence Knorr grabbed seven spots in the top 20 due to multiple television and radio appearances: #5 A Pennsylvania Mennonite and the California Gold Rush, #6The Relations of Dwight D. Eisenhower, #12 The Relations of Isaac F. Stiely: Minister of the Mahantongo Valley, #15 The Hackman Story, with the late Dorothy Grace, #16 with Joe Farrell and Joe Farley Keystone Tombstones Civil War, #17 General John Fulton Reynolds co-authored with Michael Riley and Diane Watson, #19 Modern Realism According to Fritz, and #20 The Relations of Milton Snavely Hershey. John L. Moore’s latest in the Frontier Pennsylvania Series, Forts, Forests, and Flintlocks debuted at #7 due to sales at regional retail outlets. A Brother’s Cold Case, by Dennis Herrick, moved up to #8 thanks to author activities. He also nabbed #18 with Winter of the Metal People. Joe Fair’s Vietnam memoir Call Sign Dracula climbed the rankings to #9 thanks to author appearances. Bill Felker’s Poor Will’s Almanack 2015 slipped a bit to #10 thanks to sales from the author’s annual buyers. Mike Campbell’s Amelia Earhart: The Truth at Last held at #11 due to national media attention for the search for the aviatrix’s plane. Head Over Wheels, Ken Mercurio’s cycling memoir slipped to #13, It continues to receive strong interest from cycling enthusiasts. Terry Ray’s The Complete Story of the Worldwide Invasion of the Orange Orbs returned to the rankings at #14 due to attention from MUFON.

The company released eight new titles during the month of December:

SUNBURY PRESS – New Releases for December, 2014
Pioneers, Prisoners, and Peace Pipes	John L. Moore	History
Forts, Forests, and Flintlocks	John L. Moore	History
Rivers, Raiders, and Renegades	John L. Moore	History
Cannons, Cattle, and Campfires	John L. Moore	History
Settlers, Soldiers, and Scalps	John L. Moore	History
Warriors, Wampum, and Wolves	John L. Moore	History
Pink Flamingos All Around (hardcover)	Matthew Anderson	Childrens Fiction
Flying Pants	Lola James	Childrens Fiction

For a list of Sunbury’s 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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New Year’s resolution: Achieve peace of mind!

MECHANICSBURG, Pa. — Sunbury Press has released the the self-help mindfulness book  How to Achieve Peace of Mind – A Practical Guide by Jerry Dorsman and Bob Davis.

About the Book:
Stressed out? Losing your temper or sedating yourself may offer short-term relief but will ultimately backfire. Instead, look within. You have the power to change your life.

How to Achieve Peace of Mind contains over 140 ways to help you find this power. With it you can learn to calm yourself, relax at will, improve your outlook and your relationships with others, and even add years to your life. If you want to acquire these skills, this book is for you.

The authors have studied and practiced hundreds of methods for attaining inner peace and have collected, in one volume, the most effective, practical, and easy-to-use methods. The techniques vary from bodywork to meditation, visualizing to breathing, humor to prayer, and many more in between. Regardless of the source of your stress, there is a technique here that will work for you.

Achieving peace of mind leads to a more abundant life. By incorporating these techniques into your day-to-day life, you too can attain a true sense of calm.

Contents:
PART ONE: PHYSICAL PEACE

Chapter 1: Our Bodies in Motion
Celebrating the Body
Moving to a Beat
Slow Motion Movement
Kneading the Body
Acupuncture for Inner Calm
Balancing and Movement Techniques
From Outer Motion to Inner Peace

Chapter 2: Our Bodies at Rest
The Music of the Breath
Letting Go
Creating a Peaceful Environment

Chapter 3: Nourishing Our Bodies
Eating Consciously
Foods that Promote Peace of Mind
Herbal Peace
Thankfulness for Your Food

PART TWO: MENTAL PEACE

Chapter 4: Freeing Yourself from Thought
You Are Not What You Think
Watching the Breath
Life as a Movie
Witnessing
Technology-Assisted Peace
Breaking Logic

Chapter 5: Involving Yourself in Thought
Affirming Personal Peace
Visualizing Serenity
Sensing Wholeness
Awakening the Memory
Claiming Your Presence
The Juggling Act of the Universe

Chapter 6: Using Your Senses to Deepen Serenity
Listening
From Soundfulness to Inner Peace
See the World Afresh
Gazing
Shifting Focus: From the Outside In

Chapter 7: Time
Boom Is the Shock of Each New Instant
When Time Doesn’t Matter
Becoming One with Change
Recalling a Pleasant Moment

PART THREE: EMOTIONAL PEACE

Chapter 8: Making Connections
Asserting Yourself
Sensing with the Heart
The Song of Yourself
The Ever-Living Presence of the Cosmos
Imagine Embracing Everyone You Meet
Emanate Peace with Others
The Creative Touch
Finding Peace through Work

Chapter 9: Breaking Connections
Starting to Stop
Detachment
Dropping Negative Desires
Dropping into Silence
Letting Yourself Go Crazy
Just Say No to the Media
Breaking Your Cultural Conditioning

Chapter 10: Humor
Are You Missing the Greatest Comedy in Life?
Smiling

Chapter 11: Love
Opening the Heart
Allowing Love to Enter
From Self to Others

PART FOUR: SPIRITUAL PEACE

Chapter 12: Connecting with God
Heaven Within
Finding Your Own Personal God
God with a Face
God Without a Face

Chapter 13: Sex
Your Lover as the Beloved
Become the Energy

Chapter 14: Acceptance
Accepting the World as It Is
Accepting Death in Life
Saying Yes to Life
Compassion

Chapter 15: Gratitude
Prayer
Praise
Thankfulness for Life

About the Authors:
Jerry Dorsman is a mental health and addictions counselor who works in Maryland. His first book, How to Quit Drinking Without AA, is a recovery bestseller, having sold more than 125,000 copies. He is also the author of How to Quit Drugs for Good and the contributing author of Live Longer while Feeling Younger: A Guide to Health and Happiness as We Age.

An expert on addiction treatment and stress-management techniques, Jerry has appeared on more than 130 radio shows in the U.S. and Canada and on seven TV shows. His numerous articles on stress management, addiction treatment, and mental health topics have appeared in local newspapers and various magazines with national circulations. Positive reviews of his books as well as articles about his addiction treatment program have appeared in USA Today, the Philadelphia Inquirer, Your Healthmagazine (cover story), and Natural Health magazine.

Bob Davis, M.A., has taught yoga in north Delaware since 1971. He has worked as a stress management therapist with chronically mentally ill adults and sexually abused teenagers.

Bob has been nominated for two Pushcart Prizes, and received three Delaware Division of the Arts grants for his writing. He was a fiction semifinalist in the William Faulkner Creative Writing Contest in 2002 and 2012, and a creative nonfiction winner in 2013. His writing has appeared in Yoga Journal, The Sun, Santa Monica Review, and elsewhere. Bob helps direct the Delaware Literary Connection, a nonprofit serving writers in Delaware and surrounding areas. He is a member of the Delaware Artist Roster, and has given writing workshops and readings in the Mid-Atlantic States. Bob was the editor of the first edition of How to Quit Drinking Without AA.

How to Achieve Peace of Mind: A Practical Guide
Authored by Jerry Dorsman and Bob Davis
List Price: $16.95
5.5″ x 8.5″ (13.97 x 21.59 cm)
Black & White on White paper
216 pages
Sunbury Press, Inc.
ISBN-13: 978-1620065297
ISBN-10: 1620065290
BISAC: Body, Mind & Spirit / Mindfulness & Meditation

For more information, please see:
http://www.sunburypressstore.com/How-to-Achieve-Peace-of-…

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