Authors Read Podcast

She gave me her blood, and my life changed forever. Anastasia. My sire. The only influential figure in my already-fragile life. She did this to me. She caused all the pain and suffering. There was a time I believed I owed her everything. After all, she gave me immortality and the never-ending thirst for the energy contained in the blood of my victims. But now vampires hunt me and the humans want to use me as their personal weapon. They believe I'm some kind of apotropaic figurine that can damn all Deamhan and force us back into hell where we belong. Me? I just want to live. I just want to be Maris. That way, the only one I can damn is myself. Link to the book on Amazon book podcast, author reading, books, author audio

Discover Your Purpose and Design a Life That Is Fully Yours In Exceptional Every Day, Jason M. Valadão, M.D. will help you transform your life. Using a method called The Process, this book enables you to create and achieve personal goals by helping you understand how to prioritize what is meaningful to you, allocate your time appropriately, and maximize productivity. By gaining control of your life and mastering your time, you’ll be empowered to explore your passions and interests, and create an exceptional and fulfilling life for yourself and your loved ones. It all starts with you. In this book, you’ll learn how to manage your life and value the journey along the way instead of focusing only on the end results. This “why,” the core desire that motivates you to succeed, will help you discover the steps that you can take each day to grow, and will inspire you to share your energy with others so that you can live out your purpose. Filled with exclusive tools and insightful stories, Jason will guide you to discover and create an individualized roadmap that will lead you to the life that you desire. Exceptional Every Day not only promises to transform lives, it delivers. Link to the book on Amazonbook podcast, books, audiobooks, author reading, author, motivational books

AMAZON BESTSELLER IN CHILDREN'S DYSTOPIAN, CHILDREN'S SCIENCE FICTION, AND INTERMEDIATE READERS Zert Cage accepts a dare. The 13-year-old sneaks out of his house to engage in a Trash War with his friends. Nothing out of the ordinary about that. Except that it’s 2083, and the world is falling apart. The Nuclear Mistake has left the oceans dead and brown, and grime and pollution are the way of life for anyone not wealthy enough to live in the Up Cities, which float high above the surface of the earth. Those left behind in the Low Cities wear gas masks when they go outside to avoid the Superpox, a highly infectious and deadly disease with a vaccine that few can afford. When the Trash War goes all wrong—Zert encounters Superpox and also has a brush with the law—he must do something drastic to secure a vaccine and avoid a long stint in Teen Jail. Zert and his father get wind of a top secret project to save people from both the disease and the wasteland that the earth has become and agree to allow themselves to be shrunk to the size of their thumbs and transported to an as-yet-undisturbed national park. With signs of infection appearing on Zert’s arm, they act quickly, and overnight, they become outsiders in a community of minimized people who are trying to thrive in the wild using insects as food. Roach stew? Cricket farming? Predators bigger than he is? Zert must find a way to fit in with this new world if he’s going to survive. Surviving Minimized is a thrill-ride of a young adult novel that will make you both laugh and think. This is the story of a flawed, but good-hearted kid who wants to do the right thing when everything around him has gone wrong. Link to the book on Amazonbook podcast, books, author reading, audiobooks

"Our work should be a manifestation of who we are and what we believe." Do you want more from work than just a paycheck or a title? Are you ready to manifest a work life rooted in joy, purpose, and contentment? Career expert Kourtney Whitehead will guide you on a self-discovery journey to bridge the gap between your spiritual life and your work, and help you bring intention and satisfaction to your professional life. In Working Whole, she shares eight principles that will free you to be inspired and joyful in your life and work callings. She advises that when we commit to living our beliefs in these eight core areas (humility, surrender, discipline, gratitude, connection, love, power and patience), we can work authentically and live fulfilled. Drawn from her long career as a recruiter, counselor and coach and her work with everyone from new hires to seasoned executives in transition to high-achievers preparing for retirement, Kourtney shares tips and tools for handling the expectations, choices, conflicts, challenges and opportunities we face in our work life. She leads you through a transformative experience to become more creative, energized, observant, accepting of change and open-hearted. In this book, you'll learn: * How to assess the particular conflicts that work life exerts on your spiritual values * How well you're integrating your spiritual beliefs into your life * What actions will move you from feeling disconnected and uninspired in your work, to realizing a deep level of satisfaction * How to negotiate real-world obstacles, like an untrustworthy boss or a job that makes you feel trapped With a warm tone and featuring informative content, exploratory exercises and actionable suggestions throughout, Working Whole provides a clear framework for making life and career decisions, both big and small, allowing you to reach your highest potential and live your most fulfilled life. About the expert: Kourtney Whitehead has focused her career on helping people reach their work goals, from executive searches to counseling to career transitions, through her positions at top executive recruiting firms and consulting companies. Her site, SimplyService.org, is an online community focused on supporting the creation of spiritually centered work lives. She is a sought-after speaker and podcast guest. Her new book, Working Whole, shares how to unite spiritual and work life. Learn more at SimplyService.org. Link to the book on Amazon book podcast, author reading, audiobooks, motivational books

**A slow burn Reverse Harem-style series.** After learning her family plans to kill her, Aeyli escapes the prison she’s been kept in ‘for the greater good’. She manages to stay one step ahead of her pursuers until a stroke of bad luck leaves her alone, defenseless, and out of options. Faced with certain death, Aeyli flees into the night and lands in the middle of a battlefield. Is she brave enough to ally herself with the monster she finds there, or will she die, never learning the true nature of the power burning inside her? Agent Fourteen has no thought beyond the current mission—his mind, his life, and his will are bound tightly under the yoke of The Company. A momentary break in his conditioning is all it takes for him to yearn for freedom. Can Fourteen fight his programming long enough to attain true freedom, or is he doomed to be a mindless puppet for the rest of his life? Following a tragic event, Guardian Marshall has spent the past five years trying to patch up the crumbling walls of his soul. The hauntingly familiar details of a new case draw his attention like nothing has since that terrible day. Will he be able to separate fact from fiction? Or will Marshall lose what is left of his soul? Link to the book on Amazonbooks, audiobooks, author reading, book podcast

Conventional wisdom about Chiefs and power is all wrong. It says Chiefs are special. Chiefs are chosen. Chiefs have titles. And only those at the top have the power to be Chief.

But today, reports indicate that 7 in 10 workers are not giving 100% on the job. Why? Mostly, they feel powerless. Researchers estimate the cost of this lost productivity at over $500B annually.

We need a new way to think about Chiefs and power, and we need new tools to create powerful organizations.

To Rick Miller, being Chief has nothing to do with position or title. And power has nothing to do with authority or control. Rather, Rick defines a Chief as anyone who fully and enthusiastically connects what they do to who they are, personally and professionally. Rick defines power in terms of the clarity, energy, and impact we can all choose to build.

Miller is a different kind of turnaround specialist who has led million- and billion-dollar organizations that have unlocked employee productivity, tripled growth rates, and delivered sustainable growth using a strategy to cultivate teams of powerful Chiefs. As a student-teacher and a player-coach Miller, shares strategies that work for Chiefs at all levels.

Link to the book on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2D090QA

60 Years of Existence — GONE

Unless one kid can outrun and outsmart the man who would destroy everything...

Winston Chase has nothing but an old photo to prove he ever had a whole family. One day, though, a gym class showdown exposes an inexplicable mystery and ignites a long-feared chain of events. Winston’s search for answers reveals clues and strange artifacts left by his old man — clues that lead deep into America’s wartime past and artifacts clearly not man-made. With only his friend Shade to aid him, Winston must discover the truth of his own beginnings and claim his father’s legacy before the world falls to a would-be tyrant.

If you love pulse-pounding adventure spiced with high stakes and wicked snark, dive into the Winston Chase universe!

Link to the book: https://amzn.to/2H3QzhP

Few of us know how to navigate the territory of traumatic loss successfully. Sweet Sorrow shows how we can respond and grow stronger from loss and suffering. Written by a psychologist and certified bereavement trauma specialist in the decade following the loss of her husband, father, mother, and only sibling, this carefully considered work provides perspective on grief and healing over time. This longer-term approach allows readers to have a more complete and accurate picture of the oscillations of grief over time. The book describes not only the immediate agony of the author’s losses, but also the process of starting over and making a successful new life as a single person full of hope and joy.

Sweet Sorrow combines the author’s psychological expertise and clinical experience with the compelling art of memoir to illuminate the surprising ways in which loss survivors can grow and even thrive to achieve wholeness after heartbreaking, traumatic losses. Using findings from post-traumatic growth, as well as evidence-based psychological approaches, Sweet Sorrow illustrates through story and example, ways for grief survivors to start over, to manage chaos and stress, to let go, and to heal with new strategies and re-storying. Sweet Sorrow also provides resources and recommendations for self-care, as well as tips and suggestions for all of us trying to respond creatively and helpfully to those around us suffering loss.

Ultimately, Sweet Sorrow is a book of inspiration intended to accompany readers through the processes of loss and grief much like a helpful Sherpa might guide a lost traveler.

Link to the book: https://amzn.to/2TwPLn4

Most of us don’t seek advice or reach out to others for help very easily. In part, it’s because we’re conditioned to see life as an individual endeavor rather than a team sport. Or because we believe that asking for help makes us look weak or incapable. We regard self-help as by-yourself-help. News flash: no one in the history of the world has ever achieved any level of happiness or success totally by themselves.

In his 1976 book The Long Run Solution, Joe Henderson suggested that becoming truly accomplished at running (or at anything) doesn’t typically require us to perform superhuman feats. In fact, success is frequently realized by those who simply do the things anyone can do that most of us never will.

In What Anyone Can Do, with the help of Leo Bottary’s Year of the Peer podcasts guests (and playful illustrations by Ryan Foland), you’ll discover that if you surround yourself with the right people, you’ll do the things anyone can do far more often. And when you do that, you and the people around you will realize more of what you want out of business and life. It’s that simple.

The Power of Peers (2016) made a strong case for how and why formal peer groups are so effective. This book steps outside the formal peer group arena to examine all the important relationships we have in our lives (parents, teachers, spouses, mentors, children, mentees, etc.) and provides a practical approach and specific framework for harnessing their power for your benefit (and theirs). It’s what anyone can do. You’re anyone, right?

Link to the book: https://amzn.to/2RBTxOv

No one goes into The Headmaster's Cave.

George Stewart is no hero, but when his friend disappears he must confront his deepest fears to rescue Dougie and finally uncover the mystery of The Headmaster's Cave.

The 100th anniversary of the disappearance of seven children and their Headmaster is approaching. The knowledge that the infamous Headmaster Henry Morris, George’s ancestor, may have been implicated in their disappearance has haunted his family for generations. When George and Dougie receive an unexpected email stating that the mystery has been finally solved, Dougie and Katie try to persuade George to journey with them. But not even the enticement of uncovering the mystery can tempt George to follow the word of a stranger to the dangerous and ‘haunted’ cave. Only when Dougie goes missing, will George and his friend Katie, accompanied with his dog Flanagan, journey to rescue their friend.

On their way, they must not only battle their fears, but overcome the local bullies, nature's deadly obstacles, and Old Maggie and her dog pack. But that’s nothing compared to the terror that awaits them in The Headmaster's Cave, when the mystery is finally revealed.

Link to the book: https://amzn.to/2QyoDlw