On Second Base

“On Second Base” asks the question, “Have you ever regretted the past choices you’ve made?” Rev. Paul Lombard has regrets in spades as he retreats to sit on second base at the ball field, thinking about the life he might be living had he chosen baseball over religion, over God.

Paul is used up. He feels his congregation needs too much of his attention and knows he’s not giving his family enough. Amid this midlife angst and mental chaos, he finds his mind wandering down a dangerous path until he stumbles upon actual trouble, the red-haired woman he thought lived only in his fantasies. Dissatisfaction and discontent lurk everywhere for Paul, and these feelings spill over into his job, his marriage and his relationship with his teen-age son. Close to losing everything, he truly cares about, it takes a near-catastrophic event for Paul to find his way forward, proving that even at one’s darkest hour, there’s still a path back toward the light.

“On Second Base” is a story of regret, suffering, introspection, and the path to redemption. Paul discovers that if he’s going to make a change, it’s going to have to come from within. As he searches for someone to confide in, he realizes that his wife and close friends have their own issues to deal with. It’s not that they don’t care, but no one can force him to take a first step. It becomes apparent to Paul and his support system that forgiveness is key, and as he thinks back on life and his regrets, he sees the importance of self-forgiveness. Join Paul on a journey that results in deep reflection, self-improvement, and the discovery of an equation for a better life.

What A Kiss Can Do

Rita Jensen has had enough of what she perceives as the games involved in finding true love, witness her last two poorly chosen boyfriends. So when her job as a reporter for a suburban newspaper requires her to attend a holiday party on a cold December night, she doesn’t want to go for two reasons. First, she might have to deal with men on the prowl, and second, she hates mistletoe and its idiotic kissing tradition. However, as the evening progresses, her casual friendship with a photographer colleague heats up when he catches her unaware under the mistletoe. And she meets a stranger, an attorney from London, who has his own element of intrigue. In the year that follows, she is seduced by one and pursued by the other and must choose with her heart and with her head between the possibilities that a kiss can create.

“What A Kiss Can Do takes you to the most unusual holiday party you’ll ever attend. Once it’s over, you can’t stop reading until you finish Rita Jensen’s romantic ride—starting with a kiss that launches an adventure no one could have predicted. A fun, romantic read.” — Deborah Benjamin, author of The Death of Perry Many Paws.

The Last Generation of Women Who Cook

A cookbook author and an Irish poet silently blame each other for cookbooks and poems destroyed in a fire. A beef barbeque dinner at a dude ranch offers a computer programmer new hope. A pasta dinner shows a recently remarried woman the true colors of her new husband. Women and men struggle with idiosyncrasies and pre-conceived notions in situations where food is key—offering either physical or spiritual nourishment or pleasure, or appearing as a metaphor for love or misguided passion.

“These stories are delicious, the result of all the right ingredients, the love and longing and loneliness that feed the human heart.” —Martin Naparsteck, author of A Hero’s Welcome, Walking Backward and Saying Things.

“These stories—all about food—delight the senses and satisfy our hunger for a good narrative. Cookbook writers seduce poets and men try to rekindle love through buying apple pies. The settings vary, the characters differ, but the stories all entice. Worth reading. Bon appétit!” —Gail Hosking, author of Snake’s Daughter: The Roads in and out of War.