Editorial Content for The Caretaker
Book
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
Marcus Kliewer, whose debut, WE USED TO LIVE HERE, announced him as a startling new voice in horror fiction, returns with THE CARETAKER. In this eerie, atmospheric work, a desperate young woman accepts a job as a caretaker to a house with strict, rigid protocols known as the Rites. “Follow the Rites,” her directions begin, “Nothing less than the survival of humanity is at stake.” Read More
Teaser
EXCITING OPPORTUNITY: Caretaker urgently needed. Three days of work. Competitive pay. Serious applicants ONLY. Macy Mullins can’t say why the job posting grabbed her attention. It had the pull of a fisherman’s lure, barbed hook and all --- vaguely ominous. But after an endless string of failed job interviews, she's not exactly in the position to be picky. She has rent to pay, groceries to buy, and a younger sister to provide for. Besides, it’s only three days’ work. Three days, cooped up in a stranger’s house, surrounded by Oregon Coast wilderness. What starts as a peculiar side gig soon becomes a waking nightmare. An incomprehensible evil may dwell on this property --- and Macy Mullins just might be the only thing standing between it and the rest of humanity.
Promo
EXCITING OPPORTUNITY: Caretaker urgently needed. Three days of work. Competitive pay. Serious applicants ONLY. Macy Mullins can’t say why the job posting grabbed her attention. It had the pull of a fisherman’s lure, barbed hook and all --- vaguely ominous. But after an endless string of failed job interviews, she's not exactly in the position to be picky. She has rent to pay, groceries to buy, and a younger sister to provide for. Besides, it’s only three days’ work. Three days, cooped up in a stranger’s house, surrounded by Oregon Coast wilderness. What starts as a peculiar side gig soon becomes a waking nightmare. An incomprehensible evil may dwell on this property --- and Macy Mullins just might be the only thing standing between it and the rest of humanity.
About the Book
Follow the Rites...
Nothing less than the survival of humanity is at stake.
From Marcus Kliewer, a new “titan of the macabre and unsettling” (Erin A. Craig, #1 New York Times bestselling author), comes a supernatural horror about a young woman who accepts a caretaking job from Craigslist, only to discover the position has consequences far greater --- and more dangerous --- than she ever could have imagined.
EXCITING OPPORTUNITY:
Caretaker urgently needed. Three days of work. Competitive pay. Serious applicants ONLY.
Macy Mullins can’t say why the job posting grabbed her attention. It had the pull of a fisherman’s lure, barbed hook and all --- vaguely ominous. But after an endless string of failed job interviews, she's not exactly in the position to be picky. She has rent to pay, groceries to buy, and a younger sister to provide for.
Besides, it’s only three days’ work.
Three days, cooped up in a stranger’s house, surrounded by Oregon Coast wilderness.
What starts as a peculiar side gig soon becomes a waking nightmare. An incomprehensible evil may dwell on this property --- and Macy Mullins just might be the only thing standing between it and the rest of humanity.
Follow the Rites...
Follow the Rites...
Follow the Rites...
..--- / ..... / ---..
Audiobook available, read by Jeremy Carlisle Parker and Corey Brill
Editorial Content for Last Branch Standing: A Potentially Surprising, Occasionally Witty Journey Inside Today's Supreme Court
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
For the greater part of its 236 years of existence, the United States Supreme Court has been the least discussed of the three branches of government. While significant decisions were covered by some journalists, the justices toiled in relative obscurity. Few Americans could even name them. Read More
Teaser
Most people get the Supreme Court all wrong. A smattering of high-profile decisions have popularized a simplistic idea of the Court and its justices. Yes, six of them were appointed by Republicans and only three by Democrats. So how does that 6-3 conservative majority explain why in the 2024-25 term, conservative Brett Kavanaugh was more likely to agree with liberal Elena Kagan than conservative Neil Gorsuch? Or why the court threw shade at Florida’s attempt to ban drag shows? To truly understand the Court, argues Sarah Isgur, you have to look beyond partisan politics --- the “X-Axis.” The wisest court watchers apply another measuring stick, the “Y-Axis," where the nine justices span from order-loving institutionalists to true chaos agents.
Promo
Most people get the Supreme Court all wrong. A smattering of high-profile decisions have popularized a simplistic idea of the Court and its justices. Yes, six of them were appointed by Republicans and only three by Democrats. So how does that 6-3 conservative majority explain why in the 2024-25 term, conservative Brett Kavanaugh was more likely to agree with liberal Elena Kagan than conservative Neil Gorsuch? Or why the court threw shade at Florida’s attempt to ban drag shows? To truly understand the Court, argues Sarah Isgur, you have to look beyond partisan politics --- the “X-Axis.” The wisest court watchers apply another measuring stick, the “Y-Axis," where the nine justices span from order-loving institutionalists to true chaos agents.
About the Book
A myth-busting glimpse into the inner workings of the Supreme Court, revealing what we get wrong about the Roberts Court, what the justices' clerks gossip about, and how to fix a court in crisis --- from the popular ABC News pundit and top legal podcaster.
Most people get the Supreme Court all wrong. A smattering of high-profile decisions have popularized a simplistic idea of the Court and its justices. Yes, six of them were appointed by Republicans and only three by Democrats. So how does that 6-3 conservative majority explain why in the 2024-25 term, conservative Brett Kavanaugh was more likely to agree with liberal Elena Kagan than conservative Neil Gorsuch? Or why the court threw shade at Florida’s attempt to ban drag shows?
To truly understand the Court, argues Sarah Isgur, you have to look beyond partisan politics --- the “X-Axis.” The wisest court watchers apply another measuring stick, the “Y-Axis," where the nine justices span from order-loving institutionalists to true chaos agents. Once you appreciate these overlapping and even competing impulses, the Court begins to look a lot more like a 3-3-3 split than 6-3.
The ultimate insider, Isgur takes readers on a deep dive inside the Supreme Court: how cases land at the Court’s doorstep, which justices attend clerk happy hours (and which ones even bother showing up to the office), why conservatives already have buyer’s remorse about Amy Coney Barrett, and how the whole judicial system is kind of a constitutional anomaly. She’ll even help you decide if you should throw your hat in the ring and go to law school!
Blending irreverent humor and incisive commentary, Isgur goes underneath the robes --- and shows us what we need to do to preserve the rule of law amid dicey times in this little self-governing experiment we’ve been running for the last 250 years.
Audiobook available, read by Sarah Isgur
Editorial Content for We Burned So Bright
Book
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
TJ Klune, the bestselling author of THE HOUSE ON THE CERULEAN SEA and UNDER THE WHISPERING DOOR, returns with WE BURNED SO BRIGHT, a stand-alone novella set at the end of the world. No, really. Read More
Teaser
A rogue black hole is coming for Earth, and in a month everything and everyone they’ve ever known will be gone. Suddenly, after 40 years together, husbands Don and Rodney are out of time. They’re in a race against the clock to make it from Maine to Washington State to take care of some unfinished business before it’s all over. On the road they meet those who refuse to believe death is coming and those who rush to meet it. But there are also people living their final days as best they know how --- impromptu weddings, bright burning bonfires, shared meals and new friends. And as the black hole draws near, among ball lightning and under a cracked moon in a kaleidoscope sky, Don and Rodney will look back on their lives and ask if their best was good enough.
Promo
A rogue black hole is coming for Earth, and in a month everything and everyone they’ve ever known will be gone. Suddenly, after 40 years together, husbands Don and Rodney are out of time. They’re in a race against the clock to make it from Maine to Washington State to take care of some unfinished business before it’s all over. On the road they meet those who refuse to believe death is coming and those who rush to meet it. But there are also people living their final days as best they know how --- impromptu weddings, bright burning bonfires, shared meals and new friends. And as the black hole draws near, among ball lightning and under a cracked moon in a kaleidoscope sky, Don and Rodney will look back on their lives and ask if their best was good enough.
About the Book
A heart-wrenching stand-alone novel by #1 New York Times bestselling author TJ Klune, WE BURNED SO BRIGHT follows an elder gay couple on an end-of-the-world road-trip.
The road stretched out before them. No other cars, just the headlights on the blacktop. Above, the cracked moon in a kaleidoscope sky...
Husbands Don and Rodney have lived a good long life. Together they’ve experienced the highest highs of love and family, and lows so low that they felt like the end of the world.
Now, the world is ending for real. A rogue black hole is coming for Earth, and in a month everything and everyone they’ve ever known will be gone.
Suddenly, after 40 years together, Don and Rodney are out of time. They’re in a race against the clock to make it from Maine to Washington State to take care of some unfinished business before it’s all over.
On the road they meet those who refuse to believe death is coming and those who rush to meet it. But there are also people living their final days as best they know how --- impromptu weddings, bright burning bonfires, shared meals and new friends.
And as the black hole draws near, among ball lightning and under a cracked moon in a kaleidoscope sky, Don and Rodney will look back on their lives and ask if their best was good enough.
Is it enough to burn bright if nothing comes from the ashes?
Audiobook available, read by Kirt Graves
Editorial Content for A Violent Masterpiece
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
A word to the wise: Before picking up Jordan Harper's latest thriller, you're going to want to clear some room on your calendar. It's a propulsive, driving read, despite the recurring theme of getting caught in traffic at the worst possible moments. Read More
Teaser
Los Angeles, right now. America with its back up against the wall. This Frankenstein's monster of crimes and lurid dreams sewn together into something like a city. A city ready to explode: A Hollywood pedophile is arrested, and he is ready to tear down the city to get his freedom. A young woman goes missing --- and men in black rubber gloves who look like cops clean out her apartment in the middle of the night. And the serial killer known as the LA Ripper is on the loose, leaving tragic/graphic/brutal crime scenes in his wake. Three people trying to keep their heads above the dirty water will find themselves coming together to unite these strands into one enormous, unspeakable crime.
Promo
Los Angeles, right now. America with its back up against the wall. This Frankenstein's monster of crimes and lurid dreams sewn together into something like a city. A city ready to explode: A Hollywood pedophile is arrested, and he is ready to tear down the city to get his freedom. A young woman goes missing --- and men in black rubber gloves who look like cops clean out her apartment in the middle of the night. And the serial killer known as the LA Ripper is on the loose, leaving tragic/graphic/brutal crime scenes in his wake. Three people trying to keep their heads above the dirty water will find themselves coming together to unite these strands into one enormous, unspeakable crime.
About the Book
The next epic crime novel from Jordan Harper, a story of Los Angeles power brokers and those at the edge, and a single shattering incident that threatens to bring it all crashing down.
Los Angeles, right now. America with its back up against the wall. This Frankenstein's monster of crimes and lurid dreams sewn together into something like a city.
A city ready to explode: A Hollywood pedophile is arrested, and he is ready to tear down the city to get his freedom. A young woman goes missing --- and men in black rubber gloves who look like cops clean out her apartment in the middle of the night. And the serial killer known as the LA Ripper is on the loose, leaving tragic/graphic/brutal crime scenes in his wake. Three people trying to keep their heads above the dirty water will find themselves coming together to unite these strands into one enormous, unspeakable crime.
Jake Deal is a gonzo live-streaming nightcrawler, beaming the city's chaos straight to his audience of blood-hungry subscribers, giving them the view from the top of the mushroom cloud --- until a job he can't refuse drags him back into his old life of Hollywood glamour, drugs, sex and sleaze. Armed with cameras and hidden mics, he'll infiltrate private clubs, gather high-class dirt --- and stumble onto a conspiracy woven into the center of LA's most powerful men, who call themselves "The Kids in the Candy Store."
Doug Gibson is a street lawyer, who fights for his clients against the army of cops, prosecutors and judges --- he is the knife they bring to the gunfight. But when he's hired by a Hollywood pedophile ready to sell out his friends for a chance for freedom, he'll take on a fight bigger than he could have imagined. And when his client "commits suicide" in prison, Gibson will have to stop being a weapon --- and become a warrior.
Kara Delgado works for an underground private concierge company --- a make-a-wish foundation for the terminally rich. She scores drugs, makes connections, and plans multi-million dollar sex parties. She has learned the secret truth of this world: there are no rules, only prices. Her best friend, Phoebe, has gone missing, and Kara is the only person who knows that Phoebe's place was wiped clean of evidence by men in black rubber gloves. But when she begins to unravel the mystery of what happened to Phoebe, and its connection to the killer known as the LA Ripper, it will drag her into the dark heart of the city.
As Jake, Doug and Kara all investigate these crimes, they'll encounter ketamine-addled sitcom stars, bloody riots, homeless gangsters, a killer cop on death row, secret vaults in Beverly Hills, tech-bro orgies, medical cannibals, true crime junkies, private security wet-work teams, reality shows, street takeovers, car chases, coyotes, a sadistic Tarzan, and a three-day, 50 million dollar wedding, before everything is revealed and they must each make their choice about how to fight back in this violent world before the bloody, blazing conclusion.
Audiobook available; read by Peter Giles, Christine Lakin and Rama Vallury
Editorial Content for Japanese Gothic
Book
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
Kylie Lee Baker’s latest novel, JAPANESE GOTHIC, blends horror, folklore and family drama into a creepy and tense tale of loss, fear, trauma and connection that will stick with readers long after the final page is turned. Read More
Teaser
October 2026: Lee Turner doesn’t remember how or why he killed his college roommate. All he knows is he has to flee New York and go to the one place that might offer refuge --- his father’s new home in Japan, which is hidden by sword ferns and wild ginger. October 1877: Sen is a young samurai in exile, hiding from the imperial soldiers in a house behind the sword ferns. A monster came home from war wearing her father’s face, but Sen would do anything to please him. She knows the soldiers will soon slaughter her whole family when she sees a terrible omen: a young foreign man who appears outside her window. One of these people is a ghost, and one of these stories is a lie. Something is hiding beneath the house of sword ferns, and Lee and Sen will soon wish they never unburied it.
Promo
October 2026: Lee Turner doesn’t remember how or why he killed his college roommate. All he knows is he has to flee New York and go to the one place that might offer refuge --- his father’s new home in Japan, which is hidden by sword ferns and wild ginger. October 1877: Sen is a young samurai in exile, hiding from the imperial soldiers in a house behind the sword ferns. A monster came home from war wearing her father’s face, but Sen would do anything to please him. She knows the soldiers will soon slaughter her whole family when she sees a terrible omen: a young foreign man who appears outside her window. One of these people is a ghost, and one of these stories is a lie. Something is hiding beneath the house of sword ferns, and Lee and Sen will soon wish they never unburied it.
About the Book
In this lyrical, wildly inventive horror novel interwoven with Japanese mythology, two people living centuries apart discover a door between their worlds.
October, 2026: Lee Turner doesn’t remember how or why he killed his college roommate. The details are blurred and bloody. All he knows is he has to flee New York and go to the one place that might offer refuge --- his father’s new home in Japan, a house hidden by sword ferns and wild ginger. But something is terribly wrong with the house: no animals will come near it, the bedroom window isn't always a window, and a woman with a sword appears in the yard when night falls.
October, 1877: Sen is a young samurai in exile, hiding from the imperial soldiers in a house behind the sword ferns. A monster came home from war wearing her father’s face, but Sen would do anything to please him, even turn her sword on her own mother. She knows the soldiers will soon slaughter her whole family when she sees a terrible omen: a young foreign man who appears outside her window.
One of these people is a ghost, and one of these stories is a lie.
Something is hiding beneath the house of sword ferns, and Lee and Sen will soon wish they never unburied it.
Audiobook available, read by Natalie Naudus
Editorial Content for Redbelly Crossing
Book
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
Candice Fox is one of the finest creators of crime thrillers working today. I am happy to report that her latest effort, REDBELLY CROSSING, is no exception. Readers may know Fox best from her numerous collaborations with the great James Patterson. One takeaway from working with him is the power of the short chapter, which builds momentum and pacing while keeping the pages turning at a furious speed. Read More
Teaser
Since a violent confrontation tore apart a family five years ago, brothers and fellow cops Russell and Evan haven’t spoken a word to each other. When they’re both assigned to the murder of a young journalist in the tiny town of Redbelly Crossing, their paths are forced to cross again. This was supposed to be the week Russell could repair things with his teenage daughter. Instead, he has to drag her on a murderous ride into the middle of snake-infested nowhere. For Evan, this case is exactly what he needed: a high-profile investigation that will give him the chance to rebuild his career after a terrible mistake that nearly ended it. Then a dark discovery leaves Evan with only one way out: to bury the truth Russell is so determined to uncover.
Promo
Since a violent confrontation tore apart a family five years ago, brothers and fellow cops Russell and Evan haven’t spoken a word to each other. When they’re both assigned to the murder of a young journalist in the tiny town of Redbelly Crossing, their paths are forced to cross again. This was supposed to be the week Russell could repair things with his teenage daughter. Instead, he has to drag her on a murderous ride into the middle of snake-infested nowhere. For Evan, this case is exactly what he needed: a high-profile investigation that will give him the chance to rebuild his career after a terrible mistake that nearly ended it. Then a dark discovery leaves Evan with only one way out: to bury the truth Russell is so determined to uncover.
About the Book
A fractured family of police detectives must solve the murder of a young woman in a small Australian town, unearthing dark secrets thought long buried.
Since a violent confrontation tore apart a family five years ago, brothers and fellow cops Russell and Evan haven’t spoken a word to each other. When they’re both assigned to the murder of a young journalist in the tiny town of Redbelly Crossing, their paths are forced to cross again.
This was supposed to be the week Russell could repair things with his teenage daughter. Instead, he has to drag her on a murderous ride into the middle of snake-infested nowhere.
For Evan, this case is exactly what he needed: a high-profile investigation that will give him the chance to rebuild his career after a terrible mistake that nearly ended it.
Then a dark discovery leaves Evan with only one way out: to bury the truth Russell is so determined to uncover.
Audiobook available, read by Heath Miller
Editorial Content for Dark Is When the Devil Comes
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
Daisy Pearce rose to prominence with her previous book, SOMETHING IN THE WALLS, which was a fine cross-section of horror and suspense. Now, she returns with DARK IS WHEN THE DEVIL COMES, which begins as a straightforward thriller but then slowly injects some very dark horrific elements. Read More
Teaser
Hazel has been gone from her small hometown of Idless in the English countryside for years. Now returned in the wake of a traumatic divorce and crumbling personal life, her simple plans are to lay low at her parents’ vacated house, reconnect with her prickly sister, Cathy, and slowly get back on her feet. Cathy is surprised when Hazel doesn’t show. Their relationship strained from a fallout half a decade ago, she didn’t expect them to get back into a sisterly rhythm…though she hadn’t counted on Hazel bailing, either. But something isn’t adding up. Other people in town whisper of a threat that can’t be shaken. The woods are known for being restless. And Cathy knows the old saying: If you go looking for trouble, you just might find it.
Promo
Hazel has been gone from her small hometown of Idless in the English countryside for years. Now returned in the wake of a traumatic divorce and crumbling personal life, her simple plans are to lay low at her parents’ vacated house, reconnect with her prickly sister, Cathy, and slowly get back on her feet. Cathy is surprised when Hazel doesn’t show. Their relationship strained from a fallout half a decade ago, she didn’t expect them to get back into a sisterly rhythm…though she hadn’t counted on Hazel bailing, either. But something isn’t adding up. Other people in town whisper of a threat that can’t be shaken. The woods are known for being restless. And Cathy knows the old saying: If you go looking for trouble, you just might find it.
About the Book
Unrelentingly scary and thrilling, DARK IS WHEN THE DEVIL COMES is an ambitious and chilling novel from acclaimed horror author Daisy Pearce.
The woods are known as the place to avoid. What goes in, doesn’t come out.
Hazel has been gone from her small hometown of Idless in the English countryside for years. Now returned in the wake of a traumatic divorce and crumbling personal life, her simple plans are to lay low at her parents’ vacated house, reconnect with her prickly sister, Cathy, and slowly get back on her feet.
Cathy is surprised when Hazel doesn’t show. Their relationship strained from a fallout half a decade ago, she didn’t expect them to get back into a sisterly rhythm…though she hadn’t counted on Hazel bailing, either.
But something isn’t adding up. Other people in town whisper of a threat that can’t be shaken. The woods are known for being restless. And Cathy knows the old saying.
If you go looking for trouble, you just might find it.
Audiobook available, read by Catrin Walker-Booth
Editorial Content for Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
Cleo Dang and her husband, Ethan, have been preparing for the birth of their first daughter for a while. They have good, steady jobs (Cleo is an actuary; Ethan is an anesthesiologist), they have read all the advice manuals, they have purchased a home in one of Toronto’s best neighborhoods for raising a family, and they have furnished the nursery with everything they need once they bring their little bundle of joy home. Best of all? That wonderful new house is directly across the street from Cleo’s best friend, Paloma, who also is expecting her first baby. Read More
Teaser
All Cleo Dang has ever wanted is to be a mother. The day she discovers she’s pregnant is the happiest of her life, especially when she learns that her best friend, Paloma, is also expecting. It’s a wonderful surprise, and together, they enjoy their pregnancies. But when they both go to the hospital in labor, something goes very, very wrong. Paloma comes home with a baby. Cleo does not. Ravaged by grief, Cleo must now navigate life after losing her baby. She alienates herself from the world, particularly her best friend, who is living the life she so desperately wanted. Forced to take leave from her demanding job as an actuary, Cleo manages to find work at a funeral home, where she meets a revolving cast of bereaved locals and discovers the power of confronting grief.
Promo
All Cleo Dang has ever wanted is to be a mother. The day she discovers she’s pregnant is the happiest of her life, especially when she learns that her best friend, Paloma, is also expecting. It’s a wonderful surprise, and together, they enjoy their pregnancies. But when they both go to the hospital in labor, something goes very, very wrong. Paloma comes home with a baby. Cleo does not. Ravaged by grief, Cleo must now navigate life after losing her baby. She alienates herself from the world, particularly her best friend, who is living the life she so desperately wanted. Forced to take leave from her demanding job as an actuary, Cleo manages to find work at a funeral home, where she meets a revolving cast of bereaved locals and discovers the power of confronting grief.
About the Book
A darkly humorous yet uplifting novel about a grieving mother who starts working at a funeral home and discovers that the best way to honor the dead is to live --- from the author of the “insightful, moving” (Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author) SUNSHINE NAILS.
All Cleo Dang has ever wanted is to be a mother. The day she discovers she’s pregnant is the happiest of her life, especially when she learns that her best friend, Paloma, is also expecting. It’s a wonderful surprise, and together, they enjoy their pregnancies. But when they both go to the hospital in labor, something goes very, very wrong. Paloma comes home with a baby. Cleo does not.
Ravaged by grief, Cleo must now navigate life after losing her baby. She alienates herself from the world, particularly her best friend, who is living the life she so desperately wanted. Forced to take leave from her demanding job as an actuary, Cleo manages to find work at a funeral home, where she meets a revolving cast of bereaved locals and discovers the power of confronting grief.
Darkly humorous yet uplifting, CLEO DANG WOULD RATHER BE DEAD follows a grieving mother who starts working at a funeral home and discovers that the best way to honor the dead is to live.
Audiobook available, read by Elyse Dinh
Editorial Content for 51%
Book
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
Matt Witten's new mystery novel is scary and suspenseful, and it points clearly to a problem that presents a major trap for America. No, it's not about the potential takeover of the country and the world by artificial intelligence. That subject already has been treated in numerous articles, essays, videos and some excellent novels. But an equally dangerous trap is at the heart of this complex work. Read More
Teaser
Twenty years from now, the United States is completely privatized. The Big Six syndicates own schools, roads, police departments...even human beings. When a young immigrant woman --- 51% owned by the syndicates --- is brutally murdered, NYPD, Inc. Detective Juke O'Keefe and his partner, Crime Marketing Consultant Haylee Navarro, catch the case. Pregnant and broke, Haylee knows they can't crowdfund enough from a dead immigrant to pay for basic forensics, let alone their paychecks. But Juke, with his old-school sense of justice, is determined to find the killer. Their search for the truth leads them to Juke's ex, Safiya Jones, a Resistance leader on the syndicates' most wanted list. As the three join forces, they stumble onto a conspiracy designed to destroy the last shreds of American freedom.
Promo
Twenty years from now, the United States is completely privatized. The Big Six syndicates own schools, roads, police departments...even human beings. When a young immigrant woman --- 51% owned by the syndicates --- is brutally murdered, NYPD, Inc. Detective Juke O'Keefe and his partner, Crime Marketing Consultant Haylee Navarro, catch the case. Pregnant and broke, Haylee knows they can't crowdfund enough from a dead immigrant to pay for basic forensics, let alone their paychecks. But Juke, with his old-school sense of justice, is determined to find the killer. Their search for the truth leads them to Juke's ex, Safiya Jones, a Resistance leader on the syndicates' most wanted list. As the three join forces, they stumble onto a conspiracy designed to destroy the last shreds of American freedom.
About the Book
In a future where corporations own everything --- including people --- one murder could ignite a revolution.
Twenty years from now, the United States is completely privatized. The Big Six syndicates own schools, roads, police departments...even human beings.
When a young immigrant woman --- 51% owned by the syndicates --- is brutally murdered, NYPD, Inc. Detective Juke O'Keefe and his partner, Crime Marketing Consultant Haylee Navarro, catch the case. Pregnant and broke, Haylee knows they can't crowdfund enough from a dead immigrant to pay for basic forensics, let alone their paychecks. But Juke, with his old-school sense of justice, is determined to find the killer.
Their search for the truth leads them to Juke's ex, Safiya Jones, a Resistance leader on the syndicates' most wanted list. As the three join forces, they stumble onto a conspiracy designed to destroy the last shreds of American freedom. To rescue 51 percenters --- and everyone else --- from syndicate control, they'll have to defeat the most ruthless, powerful AI in the world.
51% is a gritty, fast-paced thriller about power, justice, and what happens when everything --- even people --- can be owned.
May 1, 2026
I rarely go to the movies. But last night, I gathered a group of girlfriends (some of whom knew each other and others of whom did not), and we went to see The Devil Wears Prada 2, which was really terrific.
Besides the over-the-top fashion and the acting by the iconic Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway, as well as Stanley Tucci, the cinematography is stunning. The lighting is just beautiful on the shots in New York, Milan and Lake Como. Fun fact: George Clooney’s home, Villa Oleandra --- “an 18th-century, 25-room estate in Laglio on Lake Como” --- shows up in the background in one scene. When the credits ran, I saw how many well-known people were part of the film. I had missed many of them, so I will watch it again another time.





