Murder in the Haunted House: A Murder Mystery and Party Play
Winner
2013 Halloween Book Festival

Author: Carolee Russell A wealthy emotionally challenged widow in a dysfunctional family holds a seance to contact her dead husband hoping to put her life in order. In addition, instructions are provided to perform the murder mystery as a home play with a character for every guest . . . where every performance is unique.

Two is for You
Honorable Mention
2015 San Francisco Book Festival

Author: Bobby Williams Two is for You will probably knock your socks right off your feet. You’ll laugh so hard at certain darkly comedic scenes you may feel guilty about it, but you won’t care–you’ll be too busy enjoying yourself. Plus, it’s all made up stuff anyway. Have fun.

Making It Home
Honorable Mention
2015 San Francisco Book Festival

Author: Suzanne Roche Can 21st-century molecular biology answer age-old questions about the human experience? It all begins when nine-year old, Max, finds a relic in an antique store that magically transports him, along with his brother and stepsister into the past.

H.A.L.F.: The Deep Beneath
Runner-up
2015 Beach Book Festival

Author: Natalie Wright H.A.L.F. 9 has taken his first breath of desert air and his first steps in the human world. Created to be a weapon, he proved too powerful for his makers, hidden from humans and sedated. But H.A.L.F. 9 has escaped the underground lab he called home, and the sedation has worn off….

Sheppard of the Argonne
Runner-up
2015 Beach Book Festival

Author: G. William Weatherly Sheppard of the Argonne follows Captain Sheppard McCloud, wounded hero of Pearl Harbor, in command of the battle cruiser Argonne during the fictitious opening phases of World War II as he battles submarines, aircraft, surface ships and the demons of post-traumatic stress. The novel provides rare insight into wartime leadership.

Sunny Kincaid
Honorable mention
2015 San Francisco Book Festival

Penelope Kahler Swan Sunny Kincaid, a country cop with a dog named Big for a partner, has a long dead husband who just won’t leave her alone.

Libellus de Numeros
Honorable mention
2015 San Francisco Book Festival

Jim West Alex gets transported to a strange world where Latin and Math combine with magical effects. To get back home, she will need the help of the greatest mathematician of all time, Archimedes. In a world where math is magic, Alex wished she paid more attention in math class.

Banana Chronicles: Fishing for Bananas
Runner-up
2015 Amsterdam Book Festival

Author: Timothy Brower Banana Chronicles: Fishing for Bananas by Timothy Brower is a delightful and creative children’s pictorial and early reader book, introducing its young reading audience to the concepts of fairness and accountability. Within the story, the main character – Monkey – trades the fish he catches each day for items he needs to…

For a Fee of 2 Shillings
Honorable mention
2015 Amsterdam Book Festival

Author: Faye Whittaker Fate weaves its tricky threadsamongst the garment of intrigue and mysteryshrouding Miri, a beautiful young Maori woman. Her attempt to materialize her childhood obsession andfantasy to be other than she is, only serves tocreate a mantle of despair to hover over her life.

The New Indians
Honorable mention
2015 San Francisco Book Festival

Joe Jessup There is a new war being waged in the New West. In this gripping contemporary Western tale, a small town clashes with environmentalists over a changing landscape as an aging cowboy attempts to find the place his Lakota grandfather once called the middle ground.