THE REGRESSION STRAIN

By Kevin Hwang

Medical Thriller

Publisher: Normal Range Press

Publication Date: May 26, 2025

SYNOPSIS

Dr. Peter Palma joins the medical team of the Paradise to treat passengers for minor ailments as the cruise ship sails across the Atlantic. But he soon discovers that something foul is festering under the veneer of leisure. Deep in the bowels of the ship, a vile affliction pits loved ones against each other and shatters the bonds of civil society. The brig fills with felons, the morgue with bodies, and the vacation becomes a nightmare.

One by one, the chaos claims Peter’s allies. His mentor spirals into madness and the security chief fights a losing battle against anarchy. No help comes from the captain, who has an ego bigger than the ocean.

With the ship racing toward an unprepared New York, the fate of humanity hinges on Peter’s deteriorating judgment. But he’s hallucinating and delirious…and sometimes primal urges are impossible to resist.

The Regression Strain is a fast-paced medical thriller laced with psychological suspense, perfect for fans of Michael Crichton and Blake Crouch.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kevin O. Hwang, MD, is a professor of internal medicine in Houston where he sees patients and teaches residents. His academic work has appeared in leading medical journals. Nothing excites him more than chicken enchiladas, index cards, and appropriately sized packaging. The Regression Strain is his debut novel.

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PINTSIZED PIONEERS AT PLAY:

Homemade Frontier Fun and Danger

By Preston Lewis & Harriet Kocher Lewis

Young Adult / Nonfiction / History

Publisher: Bariso Press

Pages: 218

Publication Date: 4 November 2025

SYNOPSIS

Discover the Wild Side of Frontier Childhood!

Pintsized Pioneers at Play: Homemade Frontier Fun and Danger explores the forgotten world of how kids lived, laughed, and sometimes limped through their childhood years in the Old West.

While their parents settled the land, these pintsized pioneers explored it, creating their own adventures with homemade toys, daring games, wild animal encounters, and risky escapades. This engaging sequel to the award-winning Pintsized Pioneers: Taming the Frontier, One Chore at a Time shines a spotlight on the joys and perils of play in a land still being tamed.

From exploring the prairie and wrangling critters to celebrating frontier holidays and watching traveling circuses, this book reveals how children carved out fun and entertainment in a rough-and-tumble world. Learn how railroads and mail-order catalogs brought new toys, how schools and churches doubled as social hubs, and how a simple game could end in laughter or injury.

Written for young adults but fascinating for readers of all ages, Pintsized Pioneers at Play is packed with history, heart, and a hint of danger. Written at a tenth-grade reading level perfect for curious minds, Pintsized Pioneers at Play includes a glossary of related terms.

Perfect for fans of Western history, educators, homeschoolers, and lovers of untold American stories!

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ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Preston Lewis and Harriet Kocher Lewis co-authored three books in the “Magic Machine Series” published by Bariso Press:  Devotionals from a Soulless Machine, Jokes from a Humorless Machine, and Recipes from a Tasteless Machine. They reside in San Angelo, Texas.

Preston Lewis has published more than 50 fiction and nonfiction works.  The author and historian’s books include traditional Westerns, historical novels, comic Westerns, young adult books, and historical accounts.  In 2021 he was inducted into the Texas Institute of Letters for his literary accomplishments. 

His writing honors include two Spur Awards from Western Writers of America and three Elmer Kelton Awards from the West Texas Historical Association.  He has received ten Will Rogers Medallion Awards, and in 2024, he earned an inaugural Literary Global Independent Author Award in the Western Nonfiction category for Cat Tales of the Old West.   

He is a past president of Western Writers of America and the West Texas Historical Association, which named him a fellow in 2016.  

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Harriet Kocher Lewis is the award-winning editor and publisher of Bariso Press. Titles she has edited have been honored with Will Rogers Medallion Awards, Spur Finalist designations, and Independent Author Awards.  

Lewis concluded her 26-year physical therapy career as the inaugural clinical coordinator for the physical therapy program at Angelo State University, where she taught technical writing and wrote or edited numerous scientific papers as well as a chapter in a clinical education textbook.  

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MADDIE ~ A LITTLE GHOST WITH A SECRET

By Cindy J. Vanous

Children’s Age 6-8

Pages: 28

Publication Date: September 25, 2025

SYNOPSIS

In the enchanting ghost town of Terlingua, Texas, Maddie isn’t your typical ghost. She’s a friendly spirit on a heartfelt quest to discover her own special superpower just like the ones her parents and the other resident spirits proudly possess. As Maddie experiments with their ghostly gifts, she learns that each superpower is unique and can’t be borrowed. Still, she holds close a passion that fills her days with whimsy and warmth, a secret hobby that brings back precious memories of time spent with her mom. Through her journey, Maddie uncovers not only her true talent but also reminds her ghostly family that the most magical gifts come from the heart.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Cindy J. Vanous is a Texas children’s author who writes heartfelt picture books filled with vintage charm, hope, and imagination. Her stories, from a lost puppy at the North Pole to a little ghost in Terlingua, Texas, celebrate courage, belonging, and the magic found in everyday moments.

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REVIEW

Maddie doesn’t let her quest get her down and stays positive and cheerful while she tells us about the amazing ghostly gifts that surround her. It’s a heartfelt tale about finding what gifts you have in the things you love to do. Her passion of baking comes from happy memories, hers and others. It was nice to see she still had her parents to liven her days and a robust community of other ghosts she could play with.

I thought the story and illustrations of the book were excellent. Maddie immediately introduces herself and take us through her ‘after’ life. She a friendly ghost (which brought me back to my own childhood of a similar ghost) but has a unique and color design and experience that grabs your attention. I think this is an excellent story for children and will be sure to entertain them.

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PARADE OF SECRETS

A Lane Hayes Mystery

by Kimberly Fish

Historical Mystery / Female Sleuth

Publisher: Fish Tales Publishing

Publication Date: October 31, 2025

Pages: 341

SYNOPSIS

Layers of history, suspense, and emotion.

March, 1948. Lane Mercer Hayes, and her husband, Zeke, have that post-war life that everyone envies. His winning record as a prosecutor and a scratch golfer, teamed with her finesse in a bookshop puts them on the list of up and coming leaders in Longview, Texas. That is, until Lane is exposed by Senate candidate, Lyndon B. Johnson, for the clandestine role she plays in a Black-owned security agency. Forced to face the cracks in her marriage and the boredom in her life, she can no longer be that “teacup of whiskey” that former Big Inch pipeline associates nicknamed her. Though newspaper headlines tout prosperity and development, Lane can’t get past the emptiness in her soul after the adrenaline rush of working for the Office of Strategic Services during the war.

Longview, Texas, is changing—from LeTourneau Incorporated bringing big manufacturing to the construction of Lake Cherokee and even the massively celebrated Gregg County Diamond Jubilee and the return of the popular Founder’s Day parade. So when an unexpected interview with R.G. LeTourneau appears to give Lane the opportunity to dust off her former OSS skills; she grabs it. To end the vandalism turmoil for LeTourneau, Lane steps out as a private investigator and encounters more than one death befalling families with secrets to hide.

With the clock ticking, Lane grows increasingly unconvinced she has the know-how to discover the truth or make peace with the sheriff who questions her every step. Time and pressure work against her in unraveling the mystery and restoring the good name of those who learned too late that they were innocent. Thankfully, in the course of the investigation, she discovers an unlikely ensemble of residents she can rely on, even when the future looks grim.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kimberly Fish has been in the writing industry for over 30 years. An amateur historian and fan of cozy mysteries, she weaves history and mystery into her stories of women finding their grit and sweet second chances.

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Pillars of Creation

A Quest for the Great Name in a Nietzschean World

By Carlos Nicolás Flores

Literary Fiction, Coming of Age

Publisher: Atmosphere Press

Publication Date: 22 July, 2025

SYNOPSIS

Where is God amidst the mass graves, poverty, drug trafficking, and corrupt officials on the Texas-Mexico border?

Yoltic Cortez, a college dropout and aspiring writer in his mid-twenties, grapples with this question while living in an impoverished colonia. His bedridden father warns him to prepare spiritually for the challenges ahead by returning to their religious traditions and confronting the “Devil in the desert.”

Encouraged by his mentor, the “Failed Poet,” to pursue a literary career, Yoltic struggles to write his first book. His situation is further complicated when a young Mexican woman, fleeing the violence in northern Mexico, seeks his help.

In this Nietzschean world, a secular realm fraught with fear and loathing, where God has been declared dead, Yoltic’s quest for redemption and wisdom unfolds. Pillars of Creation: A Quest for the Great Name in a Nietzschean World by Carlos Nicolás Flores offers a powerful perspective on the crisis at the Mexican-American border through the eyes of a gifted young Tejano.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

A lifelong resident of the Texas-Mexico border, Carlos Nicolás Flores has much lived experience to draw from as a novelist. In Our House on Hueco, he portrays an impoverished family’s struggle to achieve the American dream. “This book feels like a classic to me,” states Naomi Shahib Nye. In Sex as a Political Condition, a satire of the cultural wars on the border, he reflects on the male condition at the end of the Cold War. In Pillars of Creation: A Quest for the Great Name in a Nietzschean (Atmosphere Press 2025), he portrays a young Chicano’s search for meaning in a world torn apart by violence on the Texas-Mexico border. According to Lily Andrews of Feather Quill Reviews, Flores “ably captures what it means to be stuck between cultures by showing how being Chicano isn’t just about language or heritage, but a constant tug-of-war between belonging and not.”

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DARE TO DREAM SCARY FAST: THE ROAD TO KONA

By Wade Wilson

Inspirational Memoir, Extreme Sports

Publisher: Dare to Dream Publishing

Publication Date: February 25, 2025

SYNOPSIS

Discover the power of perseverance and the extraordinary potential within yourself in Dare to Dream: The Road to Kona.

As an unlikely athlete born with pigeon-toes, Wade Wilson had a dream to become an elite athlete. With unwavering support from his wife and kids, he sets off to discover the world of triathlons at the age of 39. Over the next six years, Wade navigates the hurdles of any working father, parsing out his workouts in between job duties and family commitments. When faced with setbacks, he perseveres with a steadfast tenacity to succeed. He finally reached his goal to compete at the IRONMAN® Triathlon World Championship race in Kona, Hawaii when he was 46.

With candid insights and inspiring reflections, Wilson reveals that greatness doesn’t require extraordinary talent—just unwavering desire, a solid plan, and relentless willpower. From navigating setbacks to overcoming self-doubt, Wade shows how resilience and the support of a strong team can propel anyone toward success.

Dare to Dream is a testament to the triumphs that come from persistence and courage. Start small, think big, and let your dreams soar.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Wade Wilson has a passion for pursuing his dreams and interests, some of which he has talents for and some not so much. He loves to challenge himself, and the bigger the dream the better. His goal is when God calls him home that he will have nothing left on his bucket list that he is healthy enough to pursue.

Wade’s other interests include studying and teaching God’s word, playing and performing classical guitar music, and traveling with his wife. He has provided motivational and inspirational speeches on his experiences in the sport of triathlon and of having the opportunity to compete on a world stage at the age of forty-six.

Authoring this book was a huge challenge and required all the skills and lessons previously learned about setting and pursuing lofty goals.

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NARROW THE ROAD

By James Wade

Genre: Southern Fiction, Literary Fiction, Coming of Age

Publisher: Blackstone Publishing

Pages: 306

Publication Date: 26 August 2025

SYNOPSIS

In this gripping coming-of-age odyssey, a young man’s quest to reunite his family takes him on a life-altering journey through the wilds of 1930s East Texas, where both danger and opportunity grow as thick as the pines.

With his father missing and his mother gravely ill, William Carter is struggling to keep his family’s cotton farm afloat in the face of drought and foreclosure. As his options wane, William receives a mysterious letter that claims to know his father’s whereabouts.

Together with his best friend Ollie, a mortician in training, William sets out to find his father and bring him home to set things right. But before the boys can complete their quest, they must navigate the labyrinth of the Big Thicket, some of the country’s most uncharted, untamed land. Along the way they encounter eccentric backwoods characters of every order, running afoul of murderers, bootleggers, and even the legendary Bonnie and Clyde.

But the danger is doubled when the boys agree to take on a medicine show runaway named Lena, eliciting the ire of the show’s leader, the nefarious con man Doctor Downtain. As William, Ollie, and Lena race to uncover the clues and find William’s father, Downtain is closing in on them, readying to make good on his violent reputation. With the clock ticking, William must decide where his loyalties lie and how far he’s willing to go for the people he loves.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

James Wade is the award-winning author of Hollow Out the Dark, Beasts of the Earth, All Things Left Wild, and River, Sing Out. He is the youngest novelist to win two Spur Awards from the Western Writers of America, and a recipient of the MPIBA’s prestigious Reading the West Award. His work has appeared in Texas Highways, Writers’ Digest, and numerous additional publications. James lives and writes in the Texas Hill Country with his wife and children.

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