Jake thought he knew what he was getting into when he moved to Japan. But destiny has other ideas and as the Swell draws near, no one is safe. Beware teacups, and adapt or die, because it is a brave new world out there and it will just as soon eat you as save you. Myths and Legends, new and old, are back to play, so keep your friends close and your Tanuki closer because you're going to need all the help you can get if you plan to survive. Targeted Age Group:: 16~ What Inspired You to … [Read more...] about Swell by J.G Johnson
The Moving Blade by Michael Pronko
When the top American diplomat in Tokyo, Bernard Mattson, is killed, he leaves more than a lifetime of successful Japan-American negotiations. He leaves a missing manuscript, a lost keynote speech and a tangled web of relations. When his alluring daughter, Jamie, returns from America wanting answers, Detective Hiroshi Shimizu is dragged from the safe confines of his office into the street-level realities of Pacific Rim politics. Hiroshi searches for the killer from Tokyo’s back alley bars to … [Read more...] about The Moving Blade by Michael Pronko
English to Go: inside Japan’s teaching sweatshops by Craig Currie-Robson
The English business in Japan is in trouble. Large chains such as NOVA cut salaries and benefits even as they profit and expand; Teachers go on strike at Berlitz and ECC. Gaba punishes staff for the tiniest transgressions and turns a blind eye to complaints against customers. Interac hires foreign workers who arrive to find their contracts have changed or do not exist at all. From one end of the country to the other, Japanese language schools exploit their foreign teachers and local staff … [Read more...] about English to Go: inside Japan’s teaching sweatshops by Craig Currie-Robson
Interview with Author – Craig Currie-Robson
About Craig Currie-Robson: I write fiction and nonfiction. Nonfiction interests include travel, politics, war stories and human interest. I'm also interested in wildlife and conservation writing. Future nonfiction projects will be similar. What inspires you to write? The world and my own experiences. I saw an interview with Bill Maher and Matt Taibi once and Maher pointed out that to write NF you have to be angry about something. Nothing gets people going like a good scandal or a story of … [Read more...] about Interview with Author – Craig Currie-Robson
The Seventh Voyage of Temperance by Ichabod Temperance
“Leapin’ lizards, Miss Plumtartt, we’ve got big trouble, really big trouble!” “Indeed, Mr. Temperance, for unethical experiments carried out in this remote locale, somewhere south of Nippon, have left this Monstrous Isle aswarm with uncanny creatures of titanic dimensions, eh hem?” “Yes, Ma’am, Miss Plumtartt, Ma’am, and if we ain’t careful, one extra jumbo-sized mega-reptile is going to run rampant all over our unsuspecting planet!” “Then let us gather what comrades we may, however unlikely … [Read more...] about The Seventh Voyage of Temperance by Ichabod Temperance
Motions and Moments: More Essays on Tokyo by Michael Pronko
Motions and Moments is the third book by Michael Pronko on the fluid feel and vibrant confusions of Tokyo life. These 42 new essays burrow into the unique intensities that suffuse the city and ponder what they mean to its millions of inhabitants. Based on Pronko’s 18 years living, teaching and writing in Tokyo, these essays on how Tokyoites work, dress, commute, eat and sleep are steeped in insights into the city’s odd structures, intricate pleasures and engaging undertow. Included are … [Read more...] about Motions and Moments: More Essays on Tokyo by Michael Pronko
Buyer’s Guide: The Butterfly Crest by Eva Vanrell
Targeted Age Group: 15 and up Category: Fantasy Print book price range: $14.99 eBook price range: $3.99 About The Butterfly Crest: An ancient war. A long-told prophecy. A cursed inheritance. If you were destined to die, how would you choose to live? Between the shadows of the human world, a war as old as time is being fought. Ageless pantheons scheme to obtain or keep control, provoked by the weight of human belief which has altered the realm of the divine. An ancient prophecy … [Read more...] about Buyer’s Guide: The Butterfly Crest by Eva Vanrell
Aisuru by Anma Natsu
"It was madness to be more than her companion and caretaker..." For the last eight years, Sakura Takeshi has been counting down the time till her life ended. Though she survived the attack that left her an orphan, it's always been borrowed time as her damaged body continued to break down. She told herself she was ready, that she had come to terms with dying before she reached 19. Then she found Kazuki lying wounded in her garden. His arrival opens the door for her whole world to change, … [Read more...] about Aisuru by Anma Natsu
Buyer’s Guide: Reprobate – A Katla Novel (Amsterdam Assassin Series 1) by Martyn V. Halm
Targeted Age Group:: 16+ Category: Mystery/Suspense eBook price range: 0.99 About Reprobate - A Katla Novel (Amsterdam Assassin Series 1): Assassin Katla breaks her own rules when confronted with an unusual witness... Blessed with an almost non-existent conscience, freelance assassin and corporate troubleshooter Katla Sieltjes, expert in disguising homicide, regards murder for profit as an intricate and rewarding occupation. Her solitary existence seems more than satisfactory until a … [Read more...] about Buyer’s Guide: Reprobate – A Katla Novel (Amsterdam Assassin Series 1) by Martyn V. Halm
Interview with Author – Eva Vanrell
About Eva Vanrell: Author. Attorney. New Orleanian. Lover of Cherry Ring Pops. Confirmed Japanophile. Dreamer. Sometimes Obsessive. Blunt to a Fault. Wishful-Thinker. Tea and Anime Compulsive. Diehard. In the beginning of 2011, Eva took a blind leap of faith to pursue what she loved most. The result of that journey is her debut novel, The Butterfly Crest. She is currently working on Book Two of the series, so please stay tuned. Eva lives in New Orleans with her husband, two cats and a … [Read more...] about Interview with Author – Eva Vanrell
