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A CLOSER LOOK AT SEPTEMBER’S SIX BOOK CLUB-WORTHY TITLES

AGE OF CONSENT

By Amanda Brainerd

A daringly honest, sexy debut novel! Named One of the Best Books of the Summer by Good Morning America, Cosmopolitan, Harper’s Bazaar, and PopSugar.

It’s 1983. David Bowie reigns supreme, and downtown Manhattan has never been cooler. But Justine and Eve are stuck at Griswold Academy, a Connecticut boarding school. Justine longs for Eve’s privilege, and Eve for Justine’s sexual confidence. Despite their differences, they form a deep friendship, together grappling with drugs, alcohol, ill-fated crushes, and predatory male teachers.

After a tumultuous school year, Eve and Justine spend the summer in New York City where they join Eve’s childhood friend India. Justine moves into India’s Hell’s Kitchen apartment and is pulled further into her friends’ glamorous lives. Eve, under her parents’ ever-watchful eye, interns at a SoHo art gallery and navigates the unpredictable whims of her boss. India struggles to resist the advances of a famous artist represented by the gallery. All three are affected by their sexual relationships with older men and the power adults hold over them, even as the young women begin to assert their independence.

A captivating, timeless novel about friendship, sex, and parental damage, Amanda Brainerd’s Age of Consent intimately evokes the heady freedom of our teenage years.

THE AUTHOR

Amanda Brainerd is a New York City real estate broker, wife and mother of three. She graduated from Harvard College and earned a Master of Architecture from Columbia University after being expelled from Choate Rosemary Hall boarding school in the 10th grade. Age of Consent is her first novel.

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Follow Amanda Brainerd on Facebook and Instagram.

Invite Amanda to your book club.

To learn more about Amanda, visit her website.

SHENANIGANS: A MEMOIR

By Abby Kenigsberg

Hijinks and hilarity along the road of life.

Shenanigans is the memoir of a woman who became a successful media watchdog as well as a more sympathetic wife, mother and daughter. Always surrounded by witty and strong-minded people, especially her supportive, force-of-nature husband, Kenigsberg more than held her own. She pursued a serious career as a media critic and professor and became a respected figure in New York media. Kenigsberg delivers irreverent descriptions of college professors, corporate bigwigs, and never-before-revealed encounters with Dan Rather, Leslie Stahl, Mike Wallace and Alan King.

THE AUTHOR

Born in 1939, Abby Kenigsberg (nee Bogin) was the Founder and Executive Director of the Long Island Coalition for Fair Broadcasting, Inc. from 1979 to 2001. She worked as an Adjunct Professor of Media Arts at Long Island University from 2002 to 2014, is listed in Who’s Who in the East (1986-87) and holds an Honorary Degree from St. Joseph’s College on Long Island. She lives in Austin, TX, where she teaches “Critical Reading of the NYTimes.”

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Read BookTrib’s review of Shenanigans.

Visit Abby’s website.

CLEAR! LIVING THE LIFE YOU DIDN’T DREAM OF

By Herman J. Williams

Herman J. Williams was on the verge of living his ultimate dream of becoming an orthopedic surgeon to elite athletes … then his life took a shocking detour. A near-death experience killed the dream that he had worked so hard to achieve, but Herman refused to give up. So, he reinvented himself.

Herman created a deeply fulfilling life and career that helps more people than he ever could have imagined. Now he’s sharing his inspiring success formula to help you endure life’s crushing blows, so that you find purpose and cultivate peace and joy every day.

“My message is that you have to embrace your current reality and decide that you’ll make a positive difference for others,” says Herman. “I want my story to inspire you to create your best life possible.”

THE AUTHOR

Herman Williams helped launch and serves as the leader of the healthcare advisory practice in BDO’s Nashville office. His experience includes 10 years of previous healthcare consulting and 18 years of hospital operations as a senior physician executive. Dr. Williams’ operational roles include oversight of rural, urban, small and complex facilities; academic, community, for-profit, and non-profit healthcare organizations.

He brings a special expertise in medical staff consulting and strategy. He has worked with numerous physicians to improve their efficiency in meeting compliance and regulatory standards. He is a certified coach with the International Coach Federation and has successfully coached numerous physicians and hospital leaders.

LEARN MORE

Read BookTrib’s review of Clear!.

Follow Herman Williams on FacebookTwitter and Instagram.

Invite Herman to your book club.

Visit his website.

BLIND VISION

By Nina Blakeman

A 2021 Next Generation Indie Book Awards Finalist.

Young neurologist Dr. Callie Wallace returns to her hometown of Sperling, TX, with business partner and friend Dr. Richard Cortez to set up their neurology practice. The unexpected death of one of Callie’s patients throws the overachieving physician into a tailspin, and she begins to question her own sanity. Her mother wants to be there for her daughter, but a dark family secret keeps their relationship contentious and distant. A long-time boyfriend also wants to be there for Callie, but she keeps him at arm’s length and repeatedly turns to Richard, causing strain. It all comes down to who exactly Callie can trust.

Nina Blakeman’s Blind Vision is a cozy mystery with a fervent zing! There’s charm and Rockwellian atmosphere, but instead of cupcakes, tea parties and antiquing, there’s sexual undercurrent, drug deals, domestic abuse and a bit of profanity. Drawing on her training in biomedical science, Blakeman has written a medical suspense novel for the lover of mysteries fueled by family dynamics with just a hint of science for intrigue.

THE AUTHORS

Nina Blakeman, BSN, PhD, is a professional with diverse experiences as a writer, educator and administrative professional. She’s an avid golfer and fan of the Green Bay Packers. She lives in West Texas with her husband, Scot, and their three dogs, Lambeau, Goobie and Dingo.

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Follow Nina Blakeman on Facebook and Twitter.

To learn more about the authors, visit their website.

FIRST AMONG NATIONS

By Ira Mosen

This inspiring novel will open your eyes and warm your heart.

Zar was raised in an ultra-Orthodox neighborhood in Jerusalem. But he breaks away from this insular world to pursue his dream of playing soccer professionally. Egel, a kibbutznik, and Hajji, a Muslim, are young Israelis from very different backgrounds who share with Zar a passion for soccer. Their destinies intertwine as they become teammates on The Israel National Football Team, representing their tiny country in the World Cup.

From the ancient stone walls of Jerusalem’s Old City to a kibbutz set in an oasis of orange orchards, an Arab Israeli village in The Galilee and an Israeli army base in the Negev Desert, First Among Nations captures the sights, sounds, tumultuous history and modern realities of Israel.

THE AUTHOR

Ira Mosen, MD, is a physician and an avid reader. After working in a successful private medical practice for nearly 15 years, he fulfilled his lifelong dream and moved with his family to Israel in 2018. He currently works at a health clinic in central Israel, which provides high-quality medical care to Israelis of all backgrounds and religions at a low cost.

Through his interactions with a diverse population of Israelis, he has observed an Israel that is markedly different from the one often portrayed in the media, with much grassroots desire for peaceful coexistence. These experiences inspired him to write his debut novel, First Among Nations.

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Follow Ira Mosen on FacebookTwitter and Instagram.

Invite Ira to your book club.

Visit his website.

THE STONE CIRCLE

By Marvin Carlson

Readers call Carlson “one hell of a storyteller!”

The Stone Circle is a coming of age novel of a young man in World War I Sweden. Sent to work and manage a dairy farm at a young age, Otto is confronted with challenges most teenagers would shrink from. Otto manages to persevere and find his way to manhood despite the obstacles. With Norse legends inscribed in the Rune Stones that overlook the farm, Otto finds love and loss within their embrace.

In this novel, the author delivers a fictionalized account of his great uncle’s early life in Sweden, passing from child to man before setting out for America to fulfill his destiny.

THE AUTHOR

Marvin Carlson was born and raised in the suburbs of Detroit, spending his childhood summers at his emigre grandparents’ lake house listening to stories of their native Sweden. Ever since he has been interested in and keenly aware of his Norse heritage.

Marvin now splits his time between homes in Michigan and South Carolina while pursuing a newfound passion for competitive small sailboat racing.

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Follow Marvin Carlson on Facebook.

To learn more about Marvin, visit his website.

CONTACT: Jim Alkon, Editorial Director | BookTrib | jim@booktrib.com | 203-226-0199 | www.booktrib.com