Showing results by narrator "Curtis Michael" in All Categories

In America's small business landscape, the fail-success rate leans entirely too far in favor of failure, and past experiences provided the author with invaluable insight into many of the reasons. Adam Starks' Vultured is part autobiography, part self-help book, highlighting the dark side of entrepreneurship by identifying pitfalls in the decision-making process as it relates to starting and running a small business. Serving as a cautionary tale, the book warns against all such mistakes one can make that may result in landing on the failing side of a small business venture.

Jacob Crestmore has given up on the idea of a brighter future, but when a mysterious woman reveals the wrongs of his past, he sets out on a journey to recover an artefact that can unlock a power he never knew existed. With an evil empire trying to stop him, and the threat of war looming, will he find the artefact in time?

The way we live, work, and consume will massively transform soon. Do you see it happening already? The COVID-19 pandemic was just the first of many disruptions to come. Before year 2030, ecological thresholds will be surpassed, humanity will be fully connected via the internet, social inequalities will reach critical mass, and exponential technologies will become truly “smart”. We have reached the inflection point in which all of humanity can pause to reexamine and to redefine our “normal” mode of operation in business, politics, community, and life!

Sex. Drugs. Lust. Courage. Loyalty. Betrayal. Drag divas. Hustlers. Porn. Gogo boys. Anything is possible at the gay club scene. Even love. Joey, fresh from the suburbs, gets involved in the gay club scene in Philadelphia during the late 1970s and early 1980s. He shares the stories of a diverse cast of characters, including his own special love story. Everyone at the club has a story, and every story deserves to be told.

Twelve-year-old Charlie is down on his luck: His dad just died, the share crops are dry, and Cap'n Buck - the most fearsome man in Possum Moan, South Carolina - has come to collect a debt. Fearing for his life, Charlie strikes a deal with Cap'n Buck and agrees to track down some thieves. It's not too bad of a bargain for Charlie...until he comes face to face with the fugitives and discovers that they escaped slavery years ago and have been living free in Detroit. Torn between his guilty conscience and his survival instinct, Charlie needs to figure out his next move - and soon.

Rio and Caden met under harsh circumstances when they were both teenagers trying to survive on their own. Together, they’ve made a family for themselves, and now they have a chance to add one more—a child of their own. When Caden’s sister offers to be their surrogate, they’re overjoyed. Now, if they can navigate nine months of pregnancy hormones, morning sickness, and mood swings, everything will be easy—until one little newborn arrives and keeps them busier than they ever imagined possible. Nine months seemed tough, but the first 12 will be even more challenging.

Crash-landed on an alien planet where everything seems to want to kill me, I've got no choice but to rely on the hunter, Grizz, to help me survive, steer clear of the awful male I crashed with, and find my family missing somewhere on the island. Huge, green-skinned, with a tail, tusks, and claws, Grizz seems so hot and cold. Could it be cultural differences? Why else would he be so reluctant to help me? Or… could it be that I've unlocked a fire-breathing monster within him that wants me, not just once, but to keep?

As a sergeant for the Apache Tribal police, Al Victor considers it his responsibility to protect traditional Apache culture while enforcing the law. But now those two duties are coming into direct conflict as he tracks a vagrant medicine man onto sacred ground.

Clubbed Two is historical fiction, set in Philadelphia from 1982 to 1992. Club Sanctuary can be seen as a metaphor for the greater LGBTQ community, but it is written as a real place, with characters who are fabulous, funny, and flawed. The author combines historical characters and events with fictional ones, creating a story that's entertaining, informative, and emotional. The love story between the two main characters, Joey and Henry, serves as a vehicle for connecting the stories of diverse Queer characters.

Sgt. Bren Allred has seen all manner of criminality in beautiful Graham County, Arizona. He has managed to keep the worst of it from his wife, Monica, who is having a troubled pregnancy. But it will be difficult to keep the devils at bay as a new kind of trouble erupts across the region . When deputies Sanchez and Haley go undercover to investigate a rash of copper theft, they unwittingly stumble across a shadowy spy network. Meanwhile, Apache Police Sgt. Al Victor is confronted by a murder case involving a diplomat as he grapples with the ever-present problem of alcohol on the reservation.

From childhood, Sally Ride was a daring adventurer, and her parents encouraged her to pursue the things she loved. Those things included science and math, fast rides, and the stars in the sky. Eventually her passions and her hard work led her to NASA, where she became the country's first female astronaut, inspiring generations of young people to follow their own dreams of space exploration.

Phillip Richards puts little value on his life. He avoids close relationships and blames himself for the sexual abuse his sister suffered at the hands of their grandfather. To drown his sorrows and evade his guilt, Phillip drinks too much and engages in dangerous activities. When his father dies, two more life-changing events take place. Phillip meets Edith, a free-spirited poet, with whom he feels an instant connection. He also comes across a manuscript, a stolen narrative that chronicles the Civil War relationship between his ancestor, Russell, and Fever, the slave who became his wife.

The lands of southern Arizona hold many secrets, some of which are worth killing for. When an archeology student is found dead, it seems like a tragic case of senseless violence. But when a second victim is targeted, Apache Tribal Policeman Al Victor realizes something far more sinister is afoot.

Seventeen-year-old Mariana Villalobos's mystic gift creates a sensation in northern Mexico as hundreds of people undergo a personal religious epiphany. Even gangsters reject crime. Seeing revenues tumble in the drug trade, the Liones cartel issues a hit order on the girl.

Ziggy has ANXIETY. Partly this is because of the way his mind works, and how overwhelmed he can get when other people (especially his classmate Alice) are in the room. And partly it's because his mother disappeared when he was very young, making her one of many Native women who've gone mysteriously missing. Ziggy and his sister, Moon, want answers, but nobody around can give them.

Josh Moore lives with his family on the "wrong side" of Hamilton, a gritty industrial city in Southwestern Ontario. As a young boy, Josh plots an escape for a better life far from the steel mills that lined the bay. But fate has other plans and Josh discovers his adult life in Toronto is just as fraught with as many insecurities and missteps as his youth, and he soon learns that no matter how far away he might run, he will never be able to leave his hometown behind.

The potential impact of runaway climate-change has long been grossly underestimated. The world is rapidly approaching an existential crisis—the Anthropogenic Extinction—the sixth annihilation of Earth-bound species since life first appeared 3.5 billion years ago. Assisted by teammates Eric Evans and Bella Moreno, and Thay Tuan, the team’s consigliere, Luc Ponti, now an astrophysicist at MIT, succeeds in creating a stabilized micro-wormhole, which is launched by NASA into high-Earth orbit and used as a means to contact intelligent life on exoplanets well within the “Goldilocks” zone.

Since being thrown out of his home by his parents, Caden has been struggling to survive on the streets. He lives in constant fear, stresses over his next meal, and dreads trying to find a safe place to sleep at night. He eventually finds an unlocked car and settles in to sleep, but is soon interrupted when someone steals the car. With little choice but to ride along, Caden soon learns that first impressions aren’t always correct.

Jacks Williams is Ritchie Ford’s one great love. Their life as the rhythm section of the band Vertical Smile is perfect—only upstaged by the one they share as lovers. Until one night Jacks locks himself in the bathroom and slices his arms open, shattering everything Ritchie knows. Ten years earlier, Jackson Williams, III appeared to lead a charmed life. In reality, it was hell. Trapped in an abusive home, Jacks acted out small rebellions and dreamed of freedom. Until Ritchie Ford rescued him like a puppy, and everything changed. He would be perfect for Ritchie—it was the least he could do.

Years of political violence and protests against injustice have revived interest in teaching civics in schools. The problem? Civic education—as it currently exists—privileges systems, not students. It promotes incremental change within a broken democracy rather than responding to the youth-led movements that call for the abolition of inequitable social structures. What will it take to prepare young people for the just future they are fighting for?