Once upon a time, deep into the ocean, a fable named Belly of the Whale was big enough for a thousand people to live in; half of them were men and the other half women. Everyone in the Belly of the Whale had to be in disguise and had to be married couples. There were conditions for their arrival as well. Each spouse had to arrive alone, wearing new clothes that the other had never seen before so that it was impossible for him or her to recognize their partner. With everyone on board the Belly of the Whale, the party began, and a journey of unlimited unconditional enjoyment started. Many years went by, and none of them ever felt tired or sick; they were all eager for freedom and love. No one was thrown into the sea since they all managed to do a good job disguising themselves. Soon enough, things suddenly changed; boredom started to leak into their souls. They resisted fatigue, disease, and drowsiness; but they longed for their previous lives on land. They did not know how to overcome boredom; how could they overcome it when some of them loved or hated one another and problems started to arise as if they had never gotten into the Belly of the Whale? When they were fed up with the illusion of eternity, they all decided to commit suicide, and off they jumped into the sea; some of those who miraculously survived met one another by accident on land. The Author: Sonia Saleh Amer, born in Lebanon in 1971, is a prolific novelist, poet, and artist. In addition to “Belly of the Whale”, Al Rihab Publishing House published a story collection titled “…And other stories” in Beirut, Lebanon in February 2012. Sphinx Agency for literature published her poetry collection titled “Bird of Paradise” in Cairo in February 2013. Dar Al Watan published another poetry collection titled “Vainglory” in Kuwait in March 2012. The writer also has several poetic and literary contributions to many local and Arab newspapers, magazines, and electronic media resources. She is an active member of a number of literary associations and forums.

A prisoner of his own mind, Richard de Burton’s family’s past haunts him. Having been unable to complete knights’ training and living up to his ancestor’s expectations and earning the title bestowed upon his ancestors since 1306, and losing the love of his life, Richard leaves his ancestral manor in Stafforshire, England in November of 1605 and sails to The New World in hopes for a new life, a life where he doesn’t feel the weight of his failures on his shoulder. After a harrowing journey across the sea, Jamestown isn’t quite what Richard expects, but it’s a new place to prove himself, find a new home, and hopefully someone to share his home with. But there’s only one woman who he wants to spend his life with, and she has been promised to someone else. Can anyone take his dear Elizabeth’s place? Finding friendship with the most unlikely people, Richard learns what it means to start fresh and show God’s love to everyone, even those deemed savages by everyone else. What awaits Richard in Jamestown? Will he find a new home with love and hope and prove that he’s more than a title? About the author Joyce Crawford, the award-winning author of The Warehouse, a Christian historical fiction novel, began her writing career with The Adventures of Thelma Thistle and Her Friends, a children's chapter book series. Soon, however, Ms. Crawford expanded her genre to include Christian historical fiction. A fifth-generation Floridian, Ms. Crawford relies on her family's oral history and her own childhood memories to develop her story lines. The shift from children’s books to Christian historical novels is a strategic move for author Joyce Crawford, showing her versatility, highlighting her ability to go deep and address a different audience. Still possessing the same playfulness and creative imagination, Crawford weaves a novel emphasizing a God who respects humanity and never dictates but has generously given free will. Crawford’s primary strength is her ability to turn something simple into a metamorphosis of its most extraordinary potential by revealing its cryptic meaning. Her writings are beset with excitement, discovery, and magical moments, and Crawford’s picturesque writing style can take readers deep into the story and to greater heights. With a passion for living and a love of life and God, Crawford is in her best element in this genre.

BOOK SYNOPSIS: Discover how a woman wheelchair user with cerebral palsy found purpose in librarianship and in ordained Christian ministry. Glean hints on how to live with purpose as a person with physical disability. Gain clues on practical everyday living with physical disability. Gather insights as friends and health professionals on how to relate with understanding to people with physical disability. Appreciate how Christian faith can inform and strengthen motivation in the experience of physical disability. ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Heather S. Coombes was born in 1954 in India with cerebral palsy. She was educated in Australia at Young Infants’ School, West Wollongong Primary and the Spastic Centre of NSW (now the Cerebral Palsy Alliance) She attended Macquarie University (Behavioural Sciences), University of NSW (Librarianship) and the United Theological College (Theology). Heather was employed with the Australian Council for Rehabilitation of Disabled (Librarian) in 1978 to 82 and ordained as a Uniting Church minister in 1986. Her working life continued with Uniting Church Ipswich Central Mission in Queensland as a chaplain and later as an associate librarian in a theological library Her pastoral ministry in aged care began in Mayflower Retirement Village chaplaincy (southern NSW and continued with UnitingCare Ageing Central Coast NSW. Retirement now leaves time to spend with family and hobbies. Heather likes reading biography and murder mystery. Swimming gives her pleasure. Heather volunteers in pastoral care and occasional preaching. She lives in Thornlands, Queensland Australia.

The Royal Order of the Last Coin is a work of fiction based on historical facts and the Burton family genealogy. In 14th century England, on the day that William Wallace of Scotland was executed, King Edward I knighted one of his faithful warriors, Walter de Burton. At the same time, Sir de Burton’s son, Milton, was a squire to the king and later realized his dream of riding with his Father in formation. Christian faith and scripture passages intersperse this story, along with a warning from Sir de Burton to his son that the Church frowned upon anyone other than clergy reading the Holy Scriptures. The Royal Order of the Last Coin is a work of fiction based on historical facts and the Burton family genealogy. In 14th century England, on the day that William Wallace of Scotland was executed, King Edward I knighted one of his faithful warriors, Walter de Burton. At the same time, Sir de Burton’s son, Milton, was a squire to the king and later realized his dream of riding with his Father in formation. Christian faith and scripture passages intersperse this story, along with a warning from Sir de Burton to his son that the Church frowned upon anyone other than clergy reading the Holy Scriptures. About the Author: Joyce Crawford is a fifth-generation Floridian who grew up in a small northcentral Florida town with an extended family nearby. Her childhood memories of church, hymns, Bible reading, songbirds, magnolia trees, the railroad tracks running through town, cows eating citrus, and thistles growing in the pasture, are all part of her biography. These memories became a big part of her books. Joyce Crawford started her writing career with the children's chapter book series, The Adventures of Thelma Thistle and Her Friends. The shift from children's books to Christian historical novels is a strategic move for author Joyce Crawford, showing her versatility, highlighting her ability to go deep and address a different audience. Still possessing the same playfulness and creative imagination, Crawford weaves a novel emphasizing a God who respects humanity and never dictates but has generously given free will. Crawford's primary strength is her ability to turn something simple into a metamorphosis of its most extraordinary potential by revealing its cryptic meaning. Her writings are beset with excitement, discovery, and magical moments, and Crawford's picturesque writing style can take readers deep into the story and to greater heights. With a passion for living and a love of life and God, Crawford is in her best element in this genre.