Grit & Grace

The Transformation of a Ship & a Soul

Memoir

Date Published: February 27th, 2025

Publisher: Acorn Publishing

Deborah Rudell’s world unravels when the leaders of her spiritual commune are exposed, arrested, and imprisoned for bioterrorism and attempted murder. Crushed and adrift, she moves her family off the commune to create a sense of normalcy. But when her husband seeks an opportunity to dismantle and rebuild a derelict fifty-foot schooner, Deborah uproots their children once again and joins him in Kauai. For the next five years, she dedicates her life to restoring a boat.

Pouring herself into the work at hand can only distract her so much as disillusionment about the cult’s lies and manipulation slowly rises to the surface. While she grapples with emotional turmoil and contemplates a new life path, Deborah sets out to accomplish something she never thought possible: sailing across the Pacific to the Olympic Peninsula. Will the dangers that come with navigating the ocean be too much to bear, or will she find resolution and fortitude in the turbulent adventure?

Grit & Grace: The Transformation of a Ship & a Soul is one woman’s account of conquering overwhelming challenges with tenacity and ingenuity and ultimately discovering her inner strength.

Pre-Order the Book!

Amazon

A college professor in San Diego, California, Deborah Rudell participates in her city’s vibrant writing community. She is a graduate of Hay House Writer’s Workshop and the Certificate in Memoir Writing program at San Diego Writers, Ink. Her work has been published in the International Memoir Writers Association’s anthology, Shaking the Tree: I Didn't See That One Coming.

Deborah lives with her black cat in a tiny house built in 1906 by a retired sea captain, who carved a sailing ship into the front door. This is her first book.

Connect with the Author

Website

Facebook

Instagram

While I have shifted away from the genre a little over the past few years, I do love a good coming-of-age story! Today, I have a young adult book in our book review spotlight that should appeal to both teens and adults! Check out The Bad Luck Nickel, learn about author Matthew Leslie, and read my thoughts on the book!

 

 

Meet the Author

 

 

 

This morning, I have a coming of age / historical thriller in our book blitz spotlight! Check out Memories of MK-Ultra and learn about author Bill Yarborough!

Coming of Age / Psychological /Historical Thriller / Metaphysical

Memories of MK-ULTRA traces the development of three siblings from their early childhood—marred by harrowing mind control experiences in the CIA’s MK-ULTRA program—through their coming of age during the turbulent 60s and into their early adulthood in the 1980s. As the story develops, an incredible chain of events uncover the dark forces shaping their lives . . . until an unexpected source of light appears.

Buy the Book

Amazon

Bill Yarborough has enjoyed writing for many years. Manhattan Book Group will publish his debut novel, Memories of MK-ULTRA, in September 2024. The story is inspired by repressed memories from his young childhood where he, his brother, and his sister recall undergoing experiments of the CIA’s MK-ULTRA mind control program. Bill is also working on a sequel to his first novel, and his short story “Night Mother” was published by Prolific Press in an anthology of short stories, Jitter Issue # 8. Bill also co-authored emotional health articles in The Diablo Gazette Magazine, and he and his wife, Inge, are working on a book entitled EFT on Steroids.

Website

Facebook

X "Twitter"

Today, we have a fun Thanksgiving themed children's book to share! Check out Maggie the Cat Loves Pip's Thanksgiving Surprise & learn about author Julia Russo!

Maggie the Cat Book 2

Children's Book

Date Published: October 15th

Publisher: Jan-Carol Publishing, Inc.

Wonderful illustrations bring us back up to Grandpa's mountain farmhouse for a Thanksgiving homecoming. Pip will soon have a Thanksgiving surprise, but what exactly will it be? Will it have to do with the treats in the oven? Pecan pie with oatmeal? Cornbread? Dutch apple pie? Mmmmm, they all smell so good!

Will it have to do with a new park for all of the children to play in, being built at a neighbor's farm? Wow! A brand new park where everyone, and I mean everyone, is working very hard. Will it have to do with little Barney who is the littlest goat ever and who is really working hard and chomp chomp chomping away to make the park soft and free of brush?

Or finally, will it have to do with Pip's best friend ever, Maggie? Read along, and let's find out together. We don't have that long. Thanksgiving is coming very soon!

About the Author

Julia Russo spent many winters in the mountains along with her little dog, Chloe, and her sweet husband, Kent. She continues to live in Atlanta but her heart is really in those woods. 

One of her favorite things ever was hearing her first graders read aloud. She sometimes wrote for the government and companies, and later wrote descriptions of homes. She even spent time as what is called a roustabout!

After her debut book, Maggie the Cat Who Came Home for Christmas, released in 2023, Julia is excited to continue the series. She visits her mountainside cabin often. One of these days, she’s hoping to get a little goat.

 Goodreads

Buy the Book

Purchase Today

This morning, I have a young adult fiction book to share! Check out Dear Hero, learn about authors Hope Bolinger & Alyssa Roat, and be sure to enter for a chance to win a prize in the book tour giveaway at the end of this post.  

Meet the Authors

Alyssa Roat lives in the cornfields of Indiana, but she hopes to soon discover a portal to a fantasy world where she will run a bookshop for magical creatures. For now, she is an award-winning multi-published author and has worked in a wide variety of roles within the publishing industry as an editor, agent, writer, and publicist. She and her partner have four black cats who allegedly have never been fed in their lives and occasionally help her write by walking across the keyboard. Her name is a pun, which means you can learn more about her at www.alyssawrote.com or on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook as @alyssawrote.

connect with the author: website ~ X/Twitter ~ instagram ~ facebook ~ goodreads

Hope Bolinger is the author of more than 25 books, including the award-winning Blaze trilogy, and has contributed to many more. She has worked for various publishing companies, magazines, newspapers, and literary agencies and has edited the work of 300+ authors. She has won awards for her essays, poetry, children’s books, novels, and plays. She’s a theater nerd and spends too much time hiking and petting her fat cats, Freya and Odin. She can be found online @hopebolinger and @hopekbolinger.

​connect with the author: website ~ X/Twitter ~ instagram ~ facebook ~ goodreads

 

Enter the Giveaway