Pride and Persistence

Singlets & Secrets
Pride and Persistence

Editions:ebook, Paperback

What are we fighting for if not each other?

After a roller coaster of ups and downs last year, Aiden Rothe starts sophomore year on a high. After all, he's dating the boy of his dreams. What else matters? But Aiden's hopes for a drama-free school year are thrown aside when a new student captures everyone's attention: Michelle, an incredibly athletic, transgender black belt.

Fearing a repeat of last year's bullying, Aiden's karate club reaches out to Michelle, hoping to recruit her. To their surprise, she already has a team. Michelle is training with local police Captain Decker at his MMA studio, the epicenter of LGBTQ+ hatred in and around Washington High. Soon after, Decker and his notorious partner, Washington High Wrestling Coach Krake, announce a new tournament with a $25k college scholarship as the grand prize. For some, like Mateo, it's a crucial opportunity-he lost his scholarship chances when he came out and quit the wrestling team the year before.

Can the true meaning of martial arts heal the divisions in this town, or will fighting only make things worse? A rousing story of love versus hate, where hidden truths and life-altering decisions lay behind every corner, Pride and Persistence celebrates the indomitable spirit within us all-the fighter that refuses to stay down, no matter how many times one falls.

Published: August 27, 2024
Publisher: Mad Cat
Genres:

Romance, YA

Tags:

LGBTQ fiction, sports

About the Author

Joe Chianakas

Joe Chianakas has been an educator for 21 years, the first half as a high school English teacher, the last half as a professor of communication at Illinois Central College. He's published several novels, including his horror series Rabbit in Red, and is working on a new adult horror series, Darkness Calls, with Oghma Creative Media. Under his pen name, NC Nest, he's published a series of LGBTQ YA contemporary books, including Looking for Derek. His next YA LGBTQ series is titled Singlets and Secrets, which will be published by Young Dragons Press.

When he's not teaching or writing, he enjoys spending time with his mini Australian Shepherd, Bailey. Joe loves the outdoors, fitness, reading (of course!), martial arts, travel, and binge-watching TV. He lives in Peoria, IL, with his husband, Brian.

Other Books By Joe Chianakas

Stand-Alone Books

Darkness Calls

Series: Unveiling Aiden

Singlets & Secrets

Pride and Persistence

Darkness Calls

The line between light and dark is thinner than you think.

In the woods surrounding a quiet Midwestern town, an ancient malevolence awakens. Unseen by most, the Darkness hungers for the radiant energy of children—a feast it craves with an insatiable thirst. A decade after a nightmarish onslaught shattered the community, this evil thought to be vanquished returns, more ferocious than ever.

Christina finds herself once again at the heart of the storm. The Darkness destroyed her family and twisted her childhood friend Fiara into something neither fully human nor wholly monster. But this time, Christina refuses to be a victim. Determined to fight back, she rallies an extraordinary group of gifted individuals, each with unique talents and untapped energy. Together, they form an unlikely alliance, bound by a shared goal: to rescue their abducted friends and unravel the sinister enigma that threatens their world.

As they venture deep into nightmarish realms, monstrous creatures and inner demons rise to confront them. Secrets become their weapons, trust their shield. The line between light and dark blurs, and the fate of their world hangs by a thread. In this battle against ancient malevolence, only the bravest hearts will endure.

Darkness Calls beckons you into a world where the line between light and dark blurs, where friendships forged in adversity become the armor against ancient malevolence. Will their combined strengths be enough to stem the tide of darkness? The battle for survival is about to ignite once more, and only the bravest hearts will endure.

Victorian Recipes with a Side of Scandal

Victorian Recipes with a Side of Scandal by award-winning author Sherry Monahan invites you to savor a taste of history while uncovering the extraordinary life of Ethel Barry, a Victorian socialite whose journey was anything but conventional.

Born into the rigid expectations of a proper Victorian household, Ethel was groomed to marry well, manage a household, and uphold the era’s stringent social norms. But life had other plans. When a transatlantic move brought her to America-and into a marriage that fell far short of her gilded expectations-Ethel sought solace and empowerment in the unlikeliest of places: the kitchen.

Despite a privileged upbringing that left her untrained in the culinary arts, Ethel embraced cooking with passion and determination. Through over seventy-five authentic Victorian-era recipes, Monahan recreates the flavors of Ethel’s time, weaving them into a compelling narrative of creativity, adaptation, and quiet defiance.

Yet, this isn’t just a cookbook-it’s a tale steeped in scandal and rebellion. From clandestine skinny-dipping escapades to a sensational divorce that made national headlines with its shocking accusations, Ethel’s life defied the conventions of her day at every turn.

Victorian Recipes with a Side of Scandal masterfully blends mouthwatering recipes with the captivating story of a woman who challenged societal norms and forged a path all her own. Step into Ethel’s world, where every dish tells a story, and every chapter serves up a taste of tenacity, rebellion, and rich history.

All That Glitters

When a daring heist in San Francisco nets sixty thousand dollars in diamonds and precious stones, the stakes soar higher than ever for Colonel David J. Crook’s Great Western Detective League. With Comprehensive Insurance Company footing the bill, veteran investigators Briscoe Cane and Beau Longstreet take the lead, determined to hunt down the elusive Cajun safecracker known as Duval.

But Duval isn’t the only threat. Partnered with the ultra-secret criminal syndicate El Anillo, the heist is merely the first move in a sinister scheme to defraud investors with promises of riches from a mythical diamond mine. At the center of the con is the enigmatic Don Victor Carnicero, a ruthless mastermind spinning a web of deception with the dazzling prize of a Jeweled Garden.

As the Pinkerton Agency dispatches Reginald Kingsley and the beguiling Samantha Maples to track the jewels, rival investigations collide in a whirlwind of bribery, jailbreaks, abductions, and murder.

Prepare for a relentless ride with the Great Western Detective League as they navigate treacherous territory, outsmart cunning criminals, and face down ruthless outlaws. The chase barrels toward a thrilling conclusion, where honor, grit, and gunslinging skills are all that stand between justice and chaos in the unforgiving West.

Roan & Weatherford