The Peace Tree Mystery is a novel written collaboratively by the authors of the Marion County Writers Workshop.
Paperback
132 pages
Marion County, Iowa is usually a quiet place where people get along and enjoy the scenic activities of Lake Red Rock. But when Jacob Wildcrow a local Native American begins having visions of a quest that may involve a possible treasure, it attracts fortune hunters throughout the county. Local teacher Dustin, “Digger” Clay wants to help Wildcrow for historical purposes and because he is attracted to Wildcrow’s beautiful daughter, Grace. However, he struggles with his current girlfriend’s attempt to destroy the lake area with a new casino. Grace is convinced that her grandfather’s visions are fantasies, since she has rejected her Native American heritage long ago. A convicted felon, on the run, could use the treasure to finance a new criminal organization. And a pair of bumbling low-life brothers wreak havoc throughout the countryside in their misguided attempts to find the treasure for themselves. While the Sheriff tries to keep order in the county, he also must contend with mysterious fires, sinkholes, and a missing person.
Who will be first to complete the quest? Will the mysterious events in the county be resolved? Could the quest lead to murder?
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A collection of twenty-one stories from emerging writers that have been peer-reviewed. Each story has its own theme and style. The Back Roads Literary Review’s stated mission is to support new writers as they negotiate the increasingly difficult terrain of becoming authors.
Fall edition of scary story anthology. Fifteen short stories by various authors. 174 pages.
Within these pages, you will find a next generation of emerging writers who embrace themes of the ongoing evolution of horror. In these tales, you will encounter the restless spirits of the past, the lurking horrors of the present, and the ominous shadows of the future. Stories that explore the darkness that resides within us all. Fear of the unknown and the shuddering echoes of our deepest nightmares.
Of course, there are stories of witches, monsters, and devils but also hauntings and resident ghosts. Stories of psychological aberrations; relationships off the rails; misguided hope; strangers and outsiders; cliques and covens and captivity; stormy weather – snow, water, air; the lashing out at so-called authority; revenge.
The authors of these stories each evoke a distinctive style, a unique tone. The ethereal darkness evoked by Paula Bryner’s A Traveler Comes By, and the weather disasters brought to life in Paul Benkendorfer’s A Wendigo of Huron, and in the breathlessness of Anthony Samuels’ Mayhem on the Mercedes. Dracovich Manor follows in that same vein. Others paint a normal, if perhaps ho-hum life, such as Stephen Brayton’s The Ritual, and Michael Roby’s The Decay Diary — it’s anything but. In Joann Schissel’s Night Dance, isn’t there a hint of that eroticism found within the pages of vampire stories?
A tale of family secrets, mother-daughter estrangement, and a touch of magic.
210 pages. Released May 17, 2024.
2024 Scary Story Anthology
The Autumn issue of Back Roads Literary Review offers themed scary stories to tickle anyone's macabre fancies. This collection of work by emerging writers tell tales of the paranormal, apparitions. mysterious circumstances, extra-sensory perception, spiritual entrapments and black magic. Read them late at night, or around a campfire bundled against the Halloween chill, but be sure you have an escape plan. Reality is only what can be perceived... or imagined. Suitable for teenage and older readers.
Spring 2025 Anthology -- Enjoy thirteen captivating stories that explore love in all its forms–great love, love gone bad, and accidental love with themes as diverse as the many nuances of the subject itself. This entertaining collection ranges from lighthearted and witty to thought-provoking, pulling on your heartstrings with tenderness. Written in a variety of historical, contemporary, fictional memoir, and sci-fi, you’ll find your favorite genre and perhaps one that may expand your horizons. Appropriate for adults of all ages.