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About The Book Series

Ready For The World: Driver’s Education

Ready For The World: Driver’s Education follows the story of Brandon Delacruz, a fifteen-year-old Filipino American teenager trying to make his way through life during the late 1980s. What Brandon wants out of life is simple: a cool car, a chance to be one of the cool kids at school, and most of all, a cool girlfriend. But instead, all he has are his loving family and his lifelong friends, Josh and Ally, to help him get through the minefield of high school life. 

As he looks for ways to get the car and status, Brandon fails to realize that the girl he’s been searching for has been there all along. But before he and Ally can explore a new relationship, a tragedy occurs that changes their lives. And now Brandon will have to find a way to balance his deep friendship with the excitement, trepidation, and complexity that young love brings...all while trying to keep his grades up.

Check out the Book on Amazon

Ready For The World: Superstar

Things couldn’t be better for Brandon Delacruz. After a long and winding road, he finally has the girl of his dreams. To top it all off, he’s discovered his destiny. He’s going to write the next great novel. Not bad for someone who a few months shy of his sixteenth birthday.

But after a tumultuous start to the year, he finds himself stuck between two girls. On one side is Ally, his best friend since kindergarten who’s suddenly become more of a mystery. And on the other side is Rachel, a brilliant and strong-willed girl that isn’t afraid to speak her mind. As he sorts his feelings out, he’ll find that the world isn’t like the one he’s writing about in his book. Real-life is messy and perplexing, especially in high school. 

And Brandon will learn that life can offer true beauty and grace...and heartbreak.

AND THERE IT WAS. THE BRASS RING THAT HELD THE KEY TO MY FREEDOM, INCHES FROM MY GRASP. I grabbed Dad‘s keychain out of his fingers and turned the key in the ignition. The engine rumbled to life underneath my sweaty grip. 

It was the summer of 1986 and I was the proud owner of a driver‘s permit from the great state of California. Back then, once you passed a driver‘s education class, you could get behind the wheel. But in my life, there was a more powerful governing body that controlled my ability to drive: my parents. 

“Make sure that you keep both hands in the ten and two positions at all times, “Dad said. 

“But how am I supposed to hold my beer if both of my hands are on the wheel? “ I asked with a smile. 

Dad seared a hole into my head with his stare. “Don‘t even joke about that. Do you understand me? “

“I was kidding! “

 “I don’t care. “ 

I caught Mom’s reflection in the rearview mirror. She stopped going over the grocery store receipt to give me one of her looks. Eyebrows arched. Head tilted down. Chin to the left. It was a look I knew all too well. It was the “don’t dig yourself any further into this hole“look. 

My parents were pretty easy going and fair, as parents go anyway. Mom and Dad were always cool with my friends, let me go out at night within reason, and even let me have a telephone in my room. They moved to the United States in 1964 and luckily for me, weren‘t like the “typical“Filipino parents. They didn‘t make me practice the piano eight hours a day, seven days a week. They didn‘t frown at an A-minus on my report card and ask, “Why isn‘t it an A-plus?“ And they didn‘t demand that I only study medicine or law in college. They merely suggested all those things. It was a slight twist on the Asian parenting handbook. 

When I pushed to get more time behind the wheel, I knew what to expect. There would be lectures about how to be super-duper safe on the road. I‘d hear how to be wary of the other drivers. But more than anything else, they stressed that I was not to be an idiot in any way, shape, or form. 

“Watch your speed! “ Dad said. “You‘re only supposed to go twenty-five around here!

“Around here were the suburbs of San Diego. I grew up in a home like a lot of other homes with a yard like many other yards. My neighborhood was like a lot of other neighborhoods. I graduated from Pence Junior High School this past June. I would attend Howard McMillan High School in a few days. It was a little more than a mile from our house. 

“Dad, you know I‘m allowed to drive to school by myself with a permit,“ I said. I kept my hands at ten and two in hopes he‘d notice. I don’t know if he did. But I did hear him grunt. 

“Why don‘t you ride your bike to school? “ Mom asked. “It‘s about the same distance from home.

“To a guy without his own car, a mile was the distance between San Diego and the moon. It was 5,280 feet of rugged terrain with steep hills and deep valleys. But to my parents, it was a short bike ride.

 “I read the DMV manual and it says I’m allowed to drive, “I said. 

“We know the laws, “Dad said. “But you‘re not driving until we think you‘re ready.“

 “But I‘ll be the only one in my class not driving to school.“

“Then that makes you unique, “he said. “Be ready to make a right at the light. “

I couldn‘t believe it. My parents were oblivious to how ridiculous I’d look pulling up to school on a ten-speed bike. Or worse, they knew and didn‘t care. I slumped in my seat and jerked the wheel as I made the turn at the light.

Mom’s piercing scream rang in my ears. “BRANDON JACOB DELACRUZ! HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND? “ 

I shook my head a bit and looked around. Had I hit someone? I looked down at the dashboard and checked my speed. Was I going too fast? “What happened? “ I asked.

Charmeljun Gallardo is a former Radiologist and author. His first book is  Ready For The World young adult book series. He graduated from San Francisco State University with a Creative Writing degree in 1996. He is a writer, photography enthusiast, sports fan, movie geek, stroke survivor, and an adventurous foodie. He lives in San Diego, California with his wife and son. 

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Vasimraja on the Web:
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“I’m sorry. There’s no heartbeat.”
Rhea’s smile faded slowly. Confused, she looked up at the doctor but couldn’t read anything in her perpetually grumpy face.
The hard probe between her legs was withdrawn abruptly leaving a cold vacuum behind. Icy gel smeared the insides of her thighs leaving her feeling dirty and exposed even though a sheet covered the naked, lower half of her body.
The doctor hadn’t spoken since and was busy scribbling something in Rhea’s file. Rhea cleared her throat. The lady didn’t bother looking up from the file. She finished writing and handed the file to the nurse.
“We’ll scan again in two weeks for a viable pregnancy. You can go see the doctor now with the report.”
“What do you mean by that? Scan for a viable pregnancy? Am I not pregnant now? My pregnancy tests were positive.”
All she got was a pointed glare. “The doctor will answer all your questions.”
“If I have so many scans, will it affect the baby in any way?” Rhea had to ask. She couldn’t help herself. Anxiety and panic had her pulse thrumming.
“It’s not a baby until there is a heartbeat.”
Rhea’s head spun, the room doing a slow revolve. The nurse handed her a bunch of tissues, oblivious or uncaring of her turmoil. Rhea pulled herself into a sitting position and took them. Wiping herself, she pulled on her clothes slowly and made her way out of the scanning room, the file clutched to her heart.
Aman looked up the minute she stepped out of the room. A big smile split his face as he reached for the file.
“How was it? All okay?” His excitement caused her hands to shake, the file fluttering from her grasp to the floor.
Startled, Aman ignored the mess of papers at his feet and instead, hauled her into a tight embrace.
“What’s wrong, hon?”
The endearment had her tightening her hold on him. Aman was the love of her life, her rock, the stable foundation to her forever tumultuous world. Even as she held him, she felt his strength, his calm seep into her and steady her.
She said, “I’m not sure. I don’t know. The doctor inside wasn’t very clear.”
“What did she say?” Aman led her to an empty seat in the crowded waiting area.
“She said there’s no heartbeat.” Ignoring the tremor in her own voice, Rhea forced herself to keep talking. “We have to come back in two weeks to check for a viable pregnancy, whatever that means.”
Aman’s grip tightened on her hand. “Let’s go see what Dr. Vashisht has to say alright? Don’t jump to any conclusions before that.”
Rhea nodded. Yes. That was smart. She watched as he walked over to the nurse in charge and handed over her file. She heard him murmur Rhea Chakraborty, wife of Capt. Aman Gill, to the harassed looking lady.
She turned slightly away so that he couldn’t see what she was doing. Pulling out her phone, she quickly went to her one stop for everything search engine. Fingers flying, she typed, ‘six weeks pregnant no heartbeat’ and waited, heart pounding. In less than a second, the results flooded her screen.
She was still scanning them when Aman came back and sat down beside her. He took her hand and cradled it against his chest. Too caught up in what she was reading, Rhea pulled hers back immediately and pointed at the screen.
“Look at this,” she said, excitedly. “There are a ton of results about people who didn’t hear a heartbeat in the first scan but did in the second one two weeks later.”
Aman sighed. “I thought we were going to wait to hear what the doctor has to say.”
“Yes, of course,” she brushed his concern aside. “And Aman, I have none of the other worrying signs of…” She couldn’t say the word. She wasn’t even going to think it. “Of things not being okay. No bleeding, no pain, nothing. I feel great. This is good, right? There’s hope?” The last word held a wealth of uncertainty as she looked at him. “Right?”
Aman’s face softened. “Yes, there’s hope. There’s always hope.”
“That grumpy, old woman inside just frightened me for nothing. I bet we will hear our baby’s heartbeat in the next scan. Loud and strong.” Rhea was bouncing in her seat now, her earlier excitement resurfacing.
“Rhea,” Aman started to say something and then stopped at the unspoken plea on his wife’s face. “Of course,” he said, finally. “I can’t wait to hear it.”
“Loud and strong.”
“Loud and strong,” he affirmed, a silent prayer winging its way from his heart to the heavens above.
But when they came back two weeks later, there was only silence.

~ Book Blitz ~
The Songbirds by Alif  

About the Book:
The Songbirds is a literary tale that goes to the heart of what’s ailing today’s world and tries to find the answers to our most pressing questions.

Amidst poetry and the innocence of youth, the love story of Kasim and Sumera sprouts in the romantic settings of Bada Ghar, the mystical house of a long-gone but not forgotten poet, Bulbul Baba, their mutual ancestor. To carve a better future for Sumera and himself, Kasim migrates West. But, once there, an increasingly westernised Kasim begins to see his for love for Sumera as taboo. So, instead, he tries to find fulfilment in London, forcefully burying his love.

However, with time, Kasim realises that the West doesn’t have the answers he is looking for and his yearning for Sumera returns, becoming stronger than ever, but a huge barrier now stands between them. Not only that, but time could also be running out because, back home, Sumera has gone on to become a fiery blogger over controversial issues, earning herself many enemies, possibly one too many.

“A meditation on love’s complicated intimacies... A stunning literary tale!”

To the free bird in all of us...

Book Links:
Goodreads * Amazon

Read some Snippets from The Songbirds

~ Snippet 1 ~

We walked back to the shore hand in hand. She was too delicate to lie down on the beach sand, so I did and she lied on top of me, the moon behind her.

I have been yearning for your poetry; it’s been a long time,” I said.

“That’s because I haven’t written one in a long time.”

“Say something tonight, even if you have to make one up.”

“Hmm,” she said, picking up a handful of beach sand, before reciting:

“The grains of sand slip through my fingers,
But I capture the memories, just as many,
And on them my mind lingers.”

~ Snippet 2 ~

With the memories, came also the regret. With a sigh, I walked towards the balcony, opened its doors and walked out. One lone red-whiskered bulbul, which had been feeding on the birdseed, took flight upon seeing me, but not before it had chirped its trademark call: “Pleased to meet you”.

“Come back, Sumera!” I called out on instinct, but she kept flying, eventually disappearing behind the temple’s tower.

I kept standing there and remembering our moments in the balcony; the time she had pressed her cheek to mine when attempting to show me her friend’s house where she had practised dance.

“Yes, I see it now,” I whispered as I felt the memory of her warmth on my cheek.


About the Author:
I write because silence is not an option. At the same time, my novels brim with hope in addition to having a riveting plot. My debut novel, which was published by a boutique publisher in Europe some years ago, was seen to be refreshing.

My recent novel Guns and Saffron has received exceptionally good reviews on Amazon, NetGalley and Goodreads saying that it is addictive, fresh and enlightening. The Songbirds, a literary tale, is my latest novel.

~ Book Blitz ~
Karma's Dilemma
by Karma

About the Book:
Karma, a young man, knows very well who his soulmate is. Or so he thinks.

But, really, who is the one?

The posh Angela who he worships. Or is it Sana, the wild racer, who drives him crazy. Or is it Simi, the sensible psychologist, who puts him back together.

Or maybe there is no one for him because Karma’s deeds in his all-consuming quest as he scours the world have broken so many rules that, one day, karma, the immortal and unrelenting collector of soul-debt, comes calling for Karma, the mortal, himself.

The novel demonstrates the lengths one is willing to go to, the rules one is willing to break and the soul-debt one is willing to accumulate in the quest for a soulmate. Truly, everything is fair in love, even if not in war.

Will Karma the mortal outwit karma the immortal? Or will karma wipe Karma away...

Book Links:
Goodreads * Amazon

Read some Snippets from Karma's Dilemma

~ Snippet 1 ~

It was a new experience for her to live for a week in a small town in India. We were awakened from sleep each morning by the tunes of the Suprabhatam songs in Sanskrit, playing on the radio in the living room downstairs. We would take a pre-breakfast walk in the fresh morning air. Not many businesses accepted credit cards in my town, so I borrowed some cash from my brother, in case I needed to buy something during my walks with her. When we felt thirsty during our walk, we drank refreshing coconut water at a roadside stall. On one occasion, the vendor returned my currency note to me.

“It’s a fake one.”

“How can you tell?”

“It’s quite common nowadays, so all the vendors here know how to spot one. If you look closely at Mahatma Gandhi’s picture on the note, you can see that the frame of his spectacles is slightly crooked.”

~ Snippet 2 ~

“There’s something else I like about you,” Simi said, a minute into our walk.

“What?”

“There is an India in my dreams. While I had heard about it from my parents and read about it in books, I had never seen it for myself, even during the few times I had been to India. I had really missed that elusive India! I see that India in you. Touched by pain, but not ruled by it. India that hopes. India that wishes. India that dreams.”

~ Snippet 3 ~

Download a copy on 2nd May!

About the Author:
Dear Readers,

Before I tell you more about myself, I want to answer a question that might arise in your mind. Given there are already so many writers (some might think too many), the question is: Why should I write at all?

Simply, I write because I was not allowed to write. Or read, any book which had the word love in it. In my family, it was believed that reading about love lead to rebellion. I myself picked up the pen when my only child was six-months old. At that time, I was without a job. I wrote because there was a lot that I wanted to tell my child, even if one day in the future, to make sense of this world. Writing also helped me keep hope alive, one page at a time, as I went from one fruitless interview to another.

As my child took first steps, I reached a milestone of my own. I completed my first book; the story of a young man's quest to find answers to life's questions. A boutique publisher in Paris loved it and translated my work into French. I even found a job soon after.

I am choosing to write under a pen-name because I am at a stage in my life where I prefer and love anonymity. Once my child is older, I intend to write under my own name.

Many thanks for reading my post and I hope you enjoy reading my novels.

Happy Reading!
Karma

A Stolen Heart by Kayelle Allen

An abandoned half-human child.

An immortal warrior whose villainous past keeps him in hiding.

Two monsters in need of a family.

A Stolen Heart transports science fiction fans to the fantastic Tarthian Empire in the distant future; a wealthy but deliciously seedy corner of the galaxy. Here, powerful immortals comingle with genetically-enhanced humans and animals, aliens and androids, and secret societies are commonplace.

After rescuing a half-alien / half-human child who's running for his life on the planet Kelthia, a glorified space pirate turned entrepreneur named Luc Saint-Cyr stumbles onto a conspiracy at the highest levels of the powerful Thieves' Guild.

Complicating matters, the king--Luc's immortal ex--might be involved.

As if that's not enough, an unseen enemy is undoing every good thing Luc accomplishes.

But, when it comes time to give up the child to a family who can care for him, how will Luc bear to part with the adorable little boy who has stolen his heart?

A Stolen Heart, sci fi from Kayelle Allen

Want to know when this book is available? Like to have a free read before it's out? Join one of Kayelle's reader groups. You'll also get free starter books right away. https://kayelleallen.com/reader-groups/





Kayelle Allen writes Sci Fi with misbehaving robots, mythic heroes, role playing immortal gamers, and warriors who purr. She is the author of multiple books, novellas, and short stories. She's also a US Navy veteran and has been married so long she's tenured.

~ Book Tour ~
Love, Marriage, and Other Disasters by Shilpa Suraj

10th to 30th April

About the Book:

She believes in love, family and…squiggles!

Alisha Rana is not your typical single desi girl. For one, she is on the wrong side of 30.  For another, she is divorced. And last but definitely not least, she is still, gasp, a virgin!

Alisha doesn’t want much. But what she does want is that elusive thing all women search for – A man who gets her…but a man who gets her hot! She calls it “feeling the squiggle.”

Enter Dr. Vivaan Kapoor, cute, hot, squiggle-worthy. The younger brother of her cousin's prospective groom, he’s got the squiggle factor in spades. The only catch? He's never been married and is years younger than Alisha. Basically, completely off-limits.

And then there is Arjun. Widowed, older than her by the right number of years and a genuinely nice guy. He's Vivaan’s cousin and a so-called perfect match for Alisha. The problem is, Alisha’s squiggle-o-meter refuses to budge for him.

What will Alisha choose? A lifetime together with the 'right' man or a chance at happiness with the 'wrong' one?

Book Links:
Goodreads * Amazon

Read an Excerpt from Love, Marriage, and Other Disasters by Shilpa Suraj

Alisha was dreaming about tiny babies crawling all over her when a tinny, buzzing noise filled the room. Struggling awake, she located her phone on the side table and squinted at the display. Vivaan. At this hour? It was close to two in the morning.
Heart pounding, she answered the phone. “Are you okay?”
Silence was her only reply. Checking the phone’s display to see if the call had been cut off, she frowned when she realized he was still on the line.
“Vivaan?”
“I get it now.”
The quiet words had her flopping back against her pillows in relief. He didn’t sound like he was hurt or in pain.
“Get what now?” she asked, staring into the darkness of her room. There was something frighteningly intimate about lying in bed, enveloped in darkness with only his voice on the other end of the phone anchoring her to the moment.
“Everything you said. About the way people think. About the way they behave.” He sounded sad. Alisha wanted to soothe and comfort but didn’t know exactly where this was going. Instead, she waited.
“I want you to know,” he stopped for a minute and then continued, “No, I need you to know that you’re incredible. That you can smile, you can laugh, God, the fact that you can love and live in the face of the incredible assholes who make up huge chunks of our society is beyond incredible.”
A single tear rolled down Alisha’s face as she let his words wash over her. They soothed her in places she hadn’t known were still hurting.
“Are you there, Alisha?” His voice reached out to her again bringing her back to the moment.
“Yes.” She could never let him know it but for him, she would always be there.
“I’m sorry,” he said.
“I don’t remember you doing anything that needs apologizing for,” she answered.
“For not taking what you said seriously. About people and society. For dismissing it the way I did.”
His words had pain knifing through her. If he finally understood, he also understood there was no future for them. A sense of loss swept through her at the thought of Vivaan no longer wanting her. It was what she’d wanted, what she’d pushed for and still….it was devastating.
“Alisha,” he whispered her name, recalling her to their conversation. “I’ve never wanted you more.”


About Shilpa Suraj:


Shilpa Suraj wears many hats - corporate drone, homemaker, mother to a fabulous toddler and author.
An avid reader with an overactive imagination, Shilpa has weaved stories in her head since she was a child. Her previous stints at Google, in an ad agency and as an entrepreneur provide colour to her present day stories, both fiction and non-fiction.




Shilpa on the Web:
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