Young Adult Fiction
running lean
(2013, Zondervan/BlinkYA Books)
She's holding on with everything she has... in hopes he'll never let her go.
Equilibrium. That’s what Stacey and Calvin found in each other. He is as solid as his beloved vintage motorcycle and helps quiet the constant clamor in Stacey’s mind. She is a passionate, creative spirit—and a lifeline after Calvin’s soldier brother dies.
But lately the balance is off. Calvin’s grief is taking new forms. Voices of self-loathing are dominating Stacey’s life. When struggles with body image threaten her health, Calvin can’t bear to lose another person that he loves. Taking action may destroy their relationship, but the alternative could be much more costly.
running strong
Races are won in the turns. Can the same be said of love?
Flannery Moore rides motocross bikes and can't remember the last time she wore a dress. At age fifteen, she fell in love with one of her riding friends. Since then, her love for Tyler has simmered, languished, and sometimes festered. Although nothing else could maker her do so, Flannery decides to change her tomboy self into the kind of girl Tyler might fall for.
Fresh out of one bad relationship, Tyler Dorset isn't eager to risk ruining his friendship with Flannery. Besides, his dreams of a future in the spotlight could take him far away from their sleepy, safe town of Bentley, North Carolina. Will Flannery understand how a well-played guitar solo can move his soul?
When Flannery's mother is diagnosed with cancer, and Tyler's parents push him toward a more respectable career path, both teens feel their futures are being taken out of their hands. Can becoming more than friends save them both? Or will the looming life turns pull them apart? To stay true to themselves, they must decide between running away... or running strong
Finding Hero
(COMING SOON!)
Two Appalachian teens find common ground in a cold case murder.
Daniella Cooper is a popular girl ripped out of her world of ballet classes and drama club in trendy Asheville and thrust into a small Appalachian high school where she is in every way an outsider.
Devon Jones is a Cherokee boy with deep questions about his heritage, but who would be happy to play a little baseball and graduate high school.
What could these two have in common? A lot.
A violent storm brings calamity to both their houses. Human remains are found in a shallow grave, and an old woman claims there's blood on her hands. And soon Daniella and Devon's lives converge as they uncover details of a cold case mystery that could send loved ones to prison.
Originally published by Clean Reads Publishing in 2018, Finding Hero will soon be available again on Amazon and other retailers.
Because...Broken (A Because Mysteries Prequel)
Two households, a pair of star-crossed lovers, and one ticked-off cousin on a mission to tear them apart.
Olivia Henderson dreams of becoming a professional singer, but her first public performance is nearly blown by a random panic attack. Enter Noah Dickerson, one of the cutest boys at school—if you like that artsy, troubled soul kind of guy. He pops up out of nowhere and somehow has all the right words to help Olivia get on that stage.
Noah believes Olivia might be the one girl he could truly love. Their friends think differently, and Olivia’s cousin, Kenny, is determined to ruin them. Convinced that Noah’s family was somehow involved in his sister’s death, Kenny will do anything to keep Noah from hurting Olivia… including spreading rumors about what Noah did at a party last spring. Since Kenny wasn’t actually at the party, the rush is on to find out who is feeding him distorted information. As the rivalry intensifies, Olivia has to juggle loyalties between her family and her boyfriend, and Noah has to face some hard truths about himself.
In this contemporary Romeo and Juliet-inspired story, with a dose of mystery, can love survive when darkness and light collide?
Because...Anonymous (Because Mysteries Book One)
Because...
...He's supposed to be laying low in another state.
...The girl of his dreams thinks he's a stalker.
...Trying to prove his innocence only lands him into more trouble.
...His newest friends can't be trusted.
He could walk away from the whole mess. Because his father always said he was a loser.
Noah is not a loser.
Book #1 of the Because Mysteries introduces amateur and reluctant sleuth, Noah Dickerson, who is on the run from his abusive father and finds himself faced with interesting and sometimes dangerous questions. Each book in the series is a stand-alone mystery filled with high school drama, friendships found, rumors spread, and an arch nemesis waiting to watch Noah fall. All set against the backdrop of the domestic dysfunction of Noah's life
Because...Vengeance (Because Mysteries Book Two)
Getting involved with other people's secrets didn't end well for 17-year-old Noah Dickerson. But there's a girl... and someone is targeting her in a way that sure looks like vengeance. And the prime suspect is practically daring Noah to figure out his game. So Noah's all in. Because playing Sherlock is easier than fixing the domestic dysfunction of his own life.
Because...Paranoid (Because Mysteries Book Three)
Because... they hurt his best friend. They were after him.
However... the police say there's no evidence of a crime. No bullet wounds. No shell casings. No witnesses to a drive-by shooting.
So why is Noah's friend so scared? Why does someone want him to keep his mouth shut? Why is he begging Noah to let it go?
Noah can't. Because... it gets real serious when it gets this personal.
WIPs (Works in Progress)
Out at Home (Quincy High School Book Two)
The Hardwick family seems to rule the county, but not all in negative ways. When one of its more colorful members, Chaz Hardwick, stages his own alien abduction so he can disappear, his cousin Amanda is not fooled. Her boyfriend Randy, who has been in love with her since they were kids, would do anything to help her and protect her...even if it means getting involved in Chaz's self-made conspiracy.
Because...Betrayed (Because Mysteries Book Four)
Noah is looking forward to the end of a troublesome era, moving on with his life after graduation. But Noah's own "Moriarty" isn't finished with him, and this time he'll use Noah's friends against him.
Those Who Keep Secrets (Because Mysteries Companion Book)
Four years ago Kenny's sister was killed in a tragic car accident, but Kenny has never accepted that it was just an accident and is convinced that Noah's older brother was involved. Unable to let the past go, Kenny digs for the truth... and finds answers he didn't bargain for.