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Showing posts with label Coming of Age. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Coming of Age. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 9, 2026

Book Tour: A Boy Becoming by Eddy Yang @RABTBookTours



A Renewed Vision for a Kinder, Gentler World


Coming of Age Memoir

Date Published: May 14, 2026

Publisher: MindStir Media



What if the most important lessons in life came from the ordinary moments we often overlook?


A Boy Becoming: A Renewed Vision for a Kinder, Gentler World is an inspiring coming-of-age memoir that invites readers into the private journals, drawings, reflections, and life experiences of young author Eddy Yang. Compiled from diary entries written between the ages of ten and sixteen, this powerful memoir chronicles the journey of a young boy learning how to navigate family, faith, friendship, sports, responsibility, and personal growth.


Through honest reflections and meaningful life lessons, Eddy explores what it means to build character in a world that often values achievement over integrity. Along the way, he learns that becoming a better person is not about perfection—it is about practice.


As an ice hockey goalie, Eddy discovers courage, resilience, humility, discipline, and the ability to recover from failure. Through conversations with his parents, guidance from teachers and coaches, experiences with service, and moments of self-reflection, he learns that true strength comes from within and that growth happens one choice at a time.


Filled with wisdom beyond his years, A Boy Becoming explores timeless themes including:


✔ Character Development and Personal Growth

✔ Kindness, Compassion, and Empathy

✔ Family Values and Faith

✔ Self-Reflection and Emotional Growth

✔ Discipline, Responsibility, and Resilience

✔ Youth Leadership and Positive Decision-Making

✔ Sportsmanship and Life Lessons from Hockey

✔ Gratitude, Forgiveness, and Humility

✔ Identity, Purpose, and Self-Discovery


At the heart of this reflective memoir is a simple but powerful truth: character is built slowly through ordinary moments. Every mistake, every challenge, every act of kindness, every lesson learned, and every effort to improve becomes part of the process of becoming.


Perfect for teens, young adults, parents, educators, coaches, mentors, and anyone interested in personal development, A Boy Becoming offers encouragement, insight, and hope for readers navigating their own journey of growth.


Inside You'll Discover:

●      Honest diary reflections from childhood through adolescence
●      Life lessons from family, faith, sports, and service
●      Thought-provoking insights about character and self-improvement
●      Inspirational messages for young people facing challenges and uncertainty
●      Practical wisdom about becoming someone you respect


Memorable Quotes from the Book

"Kind is more important than smart. Logic has no moral. We must be nice no matter what."

"Forgiveness frees you more than it frees the other person."


"Possessions should not possess you."


"A distracted driver misses exits. A distracted life misses destiny."


"Remember: you are not your trophies. You are not your mistakes. You are the daily effort that nobody sees."


If you enjoy inspirational memoirs, coming-of-age stories, personal growth books, youth leadership, family-centered nonfiction, or books that encourage reflection and character development, A Boy Becoming will resonate long after the final page.


Because becoming a better person isn't a destination—it's a lifelong journey.
 
 


About the Author

 

 Eddy Yang is a student, writer, ice hockey goalie, and young author whose work focuses on self-reflection, personal growth, family values, faith, discipline, and character development.

His passion for writing began long before he imagined becoming an author. Throughout childhood, Eddy kept journals, diary entries, drawings, comics, and reflections that documented his experiences, thoughts, challenges, and questions about life.


Over time, these personal writings evolved into something larger—a record of growth from childhood into adolescence.


The Beginning of a Writer

Eddy never started writing with the intention of publishing a book.

He wrote to understand himself.


Sometimes he wrote after difficult experiences. Other times he wrote after learning valuable lessons from parents, teachers, coaches, teammates, or faith. Writing became a way to process emotions, reflect on mistakes, and preserve important moments.


As he revisited years of journals and drawings, he recognized a story unfolding: the story of becoming.


Hockey and Character

As an ice hockey goalie, Eddy has learned lessons that extend far beyond the rink.


Goaltending taught him courage, resilience, humility, patience, and discipline. It taught him how to handle pressure, recover from failure, and continue improving after setbacks.


These experiences became a powerful influence on his understanding of personal growth and are woven throughout his writing.


Why He Wrote A Boy Becoming

Eddy wrote A Boy Becoming because he believes growth happens through ordinary moments.

Character is not built overnight.


It develops through repeated choices, honest reflection, mistakes, perseverance, gratitude, forgiveness, and love.


His hope is that readers—especially young people—will recognize that they are not alone in their struggles and that becoming a better person is a lifelong journey worth embracing.


Mission

Through his writing, Eddy hopes to inspire readers to:


● Practice kindness
● Develop discipline
● Embrace humility
● Learn from mistakes
● Strengthen character
● Value family and faith
● Continue growing every day


"Kind is more important than smart. Logic has no moral. We must be nice no matter what."
 

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Purchase Links

RABT Book Tours & PR

Monday, July 13, 2026

Book Blitz: A Boy Becoming by Eddy Yang @RABTBookTours


A Renewed Vision for a Kinder, Gentler World


Coming of Age Memoir

Date Published: May 14, 2026

Publisher: MindStir Media



What if the most important lessons in life came from the ordinary moments we often overlook?


A Boy Becoming: A Renewed Vision for a Kinder, Gentler World is an inspiring coming-of-age memoir that invites readers into the private journals, drawings, reflections, and life experiences of young author Eddy Yang. Compiled from diary entries written between the ages of ten and sixteen, this powerful memoir chronicles the journey of a young boy learning how to navigate family, faith, friendship, sports, responsibility, and personal growth.


Through honest reflections and meaningful life lessons, Eddy explores what it means to build character in a world that often values achievement over integrity. Along the way, he learns that becoming a better person is not about perfection—it is about practice.


As an ice hockey goalie, Eddy discovers courage, resilience, humility, discipline, and the ability to recover from failure. Through conversations with his parents, guidance from teachers and coaches, experiences with service, and moments of self-reflection, he learns that true strength comes from within and that growth happens one choice at a time.


Filled with wisdom beyond his years, A Boy Becoming explores timeless themes including:


✔ Character Development and Personal Growth

✔ Kindness, Compassion, and Empathy

✔ Family Values and Faith

✔ Self-Reflection and Emotional Growth

✔ Discipline, Responsibility, and Resilience

✔ Youth Leadership and Positive Decision-Making

✔ Sportsmanship and Life Lessons from Hockey

✔ Gratitude, Forgiveness, and Humility

✔ Identity, Purpose, and Self-Discovery


At the heart of this reflective memoir is a simple but powerful truth: character is built slowly through ordinary moments. Every mistake, every challenge, every act of kindness, every lesson learned, and every effort to improve becomes part of the process of becoming.


Perfect for teens, young adults, parents, educators, coaches, mentors, and anyone interested in personal development, A Boy Becoming offers encouragement, insight, and hope for readers navigating their own journey of growth.


Inside You'll Discover:

●      Honest diary reflections from childhood through adolescence
●      Life lessons from family, faith, sports, and service
●      Thought-provoking insights about character and self-improvement
●      Inspirational messages for young people facing challenges and uncertainty
●      Practical wisdom about becoming someone you respect


Memorable Quotes from the Book

"Kind is more important than smart. Logic has no moral. We must be nice no matter what."

"Forgiveness frees you more than it frees the other person."


"Possessions should not possess you."


"A distracted driver misses exits. A distracted life misses destiny."


"Remember: you are not your trophies. You are not your mistakes. You are the daily effort that nobody sees."


If you enjoy inspirational memoirs, coming-of-age stories, personal growth books, youth leadership, family-centered nonfiction, or books that encourage reflection and character development, A Boy Becoming will resonate long after the final page.


Because becoming a better person isn't a destination—it's a lifelong journey.
 
 


About the Author

 

Eddy Yang is a student, writer, ice hockey goalie, and young author whose work focuses on self-reflection, personal growth, family values, faith, discipline, and character development.

His passion for writing began long before he imagined becoming an author. Throughout childhood, Eddy kept journals, diary entries, drawings, comics, and reflections that documented his experiences, thoughts, challenges, and questions about life.


Over time, these personal writings evolved into something larger—a record of growth from childhood into adolescence.


The Beginning of a Writer

Eddy never started writing with the intention of publishing a book.

He wrote to understand himself.


Sometimes he wrote after difficult experiences. Other times he wrote after learning valuable lessons from parents, teachers, coaches, teammates, or faith. Writing became a way to process emotions, reflect on mistakes, and preserve important moments.


As he revisited years of journals and drawings, he recognized a story unfolding: the story of becoming.


Hockey and Character

As an ice hockey goalie, Eddy has learned lessons that extend far beyond the rink.


Goaltending taught him courage, resilience, humility, patience, and discipline. It taught him how to handle pressure, recover from failure, and continue improving after setbacks.


These experiences became a powerful influence on his understanding of personal growth and are woven throughout his writing.


Why He Wrote A Boy Becoming

Eddy wrote A Boy Becoming because he believes growth happens through ordinary moments.

Character is not built overnight.


It develops through repeated choices, honest reflection, mistakes, perseverance, gratitude, forgiveness, and love.


His hope is that readers—especially young people—will recognize that they are not alone in their struggles and that becoming a better person is a lifelong journey worth embracing.


Mission

Through his writing, Eddy hopes to inspire readers to:


● Practice kindness
● Develop discipline
● Embrace humility
● Learn from mistakes
● Strengthen character
● Value family and faith
● Continue growing every day


"Kind is more important than smart. Logic has no moral. We must be nice no matter what."
 

Contact Links

Purchase Links

RABT Book Tours & PR

Friday, June 19, 2026

Book Tour: No Matter What by Stephen Suffron @RABTBookTours




Young Adult / Coming of Age / Christian

Date Published: April 14, 2026

Publisher: Clay Bridges Press



Most people don’t know quite what to make of Jay McGee. His teammates call him “Mac Daddy” ('90s slang for a smooth-talking ladies' man). But Jay is nothing like that. In fact, he just doesn’t fit neatly into any box—honors student, basketball player, church kid—and he’s okay with that, as long as two people notice: Coach Mays, the fiery perfectionist standing between Jay and his basketball dreams, and Nicole Ellis, the cheerleader he’s secretly liked since sixth grade.

When Jay finally seizes a moment of boldness with Nicole, he steps into new territory—only to discover her life is far more complicated than he ever imagined. Maybe he should just focus on basketball. Except Coach Mays seems blind to Jay’s potential, harping only on his flaws.

Caught between pressure, failure, and secrets no one talks about at Sunday school, Jay is forced to wrestle with deeper questions—about who he is, what he believes, and what it really means to be seen, to love, and to become someone worth noticing . . . no matter what.

 

What makes it unique:

This book provides a practical way for teens to engage with difficult questions and feel seen in the struggles they’re facing, while also being educational and presenting hard truths everyone will have to wrestle with. It helps the reader ask tough questions about who they are, who they want to be, where they want to go in life, and who they want to bring along on the journey.

The engaging characters and witty conversation pull in the reader and command attention and focus. This is not a story that will be read and quickly forgotten. Unlike generic "coming of age" books, No Matter What tackles the struggles of adolescence with taste and decency, allowing the reader to think and feel throughout the story without becoming unnecessarily uncomfortable or awkward.

 


Interview with Stephen Suffron

Author of No Matter What 


Could you tell us about any research trips you took for this story? Which places did you visit, and what made them essential to your writing?

This book draws from my own high school memories, so I didn't travel anywhere except into my own past. The work was recalling my feelings and beliefs from those years and expressing them through Jay — drawing from real events in my life while adapting the facts to the story I wanted to tell. My dad still lives in that same town, though, and it was fun to go see some of the sites from the book, like the old Dairy Queen, and how some have remained unchanged while the town has changed drastically around them.

What's the strangest thing you've ever had to research online for your book?

One that stands out: I originally had a character use a Cold Stone Creamery coupon, until a proofreader pointed out that Cold Stone didn't reach Texas until the 2000s. It was actually Marble Slab Creamery in that area at that time — frustrating to have missed, since I had already been pretty careful about that kind of detail. I looked up what movies were playing in November 1993, verified the actual box score from that specific Astros game, and researched music, stores, and other period details to make sure everything matched not just the decade but the exact year and month.

What research (history, mythology, science) goes into your world-building?

My world-building was really about making 1993-94 feel authentic. I didn't rely on memory alone — I researched stores at the mall, songs that were popular at the time for the dance and player introduction scenes, and anything else that wasn't central to my own teenage world but that I still wanted to get right. Some details I was confident enough to leave to memory — the 59-cent Taco Bell menu, for example — but I wanted readers who lived through that era to smile at those “memory unlocked” moments and to immerse present-day teens in their parents’ world.

Have any of the people you've known, past or present, left a lasting impression on your writing journey? If so, we'd love to hear about a memorable experience that stands out to you.

My writing style is really my own, though I've been shaped and encouraged by many teachers and professors over the years. The push to share this story with a broader audience came from reading it aloud as I went along to the ladies in my office, Trudy and Debi. They wanted to know what happened next, so I had to keep writing! And once it was finished, they pushed me to explore getting it published. I probably never would have finished without them, and I certainly wouldn't have published without them.

Do you write in the same genre all the time?

No Matter What is actually a departure for me. I haven't written a lot of fiction, and when I have, it's mostly been short stories or monologues that get inside the heads of biblical figures. For this book, I decided to revisit a short story I wrote back in college — when the 1990s was contemporary — and build it into something that speaks to both teens and their parents.

If so, have you ever consider writing in another one?

I've actually started work on two other books. One tells the story of Paul's shipwreck from the end of Acts through the eyes of Julius, the centurion in charge of him. The other follows Jay McGee into his junior year of college, where he faces new questions about identity and purpose. So I'm keeping a foot in each genre.

Which character, supernatural or human, do you enjoy writing the most and why?

I love writing human characters wrestling with the bigger questions in ordinary circumstances. Jay was a joy to write for exactly that reason — he's not a kid who has it all figured out, but he's trying to do the right thing. His story isn't a prodigal or conversion story where he comes to faith and everything falls into place. Instead, he learns who he is and what love is, even through failure and disappointment.


About the Author


Stephen Suffron is a dad and longtime pastor, currently serving at First Baptist Church in Denison, Texas. He loves telling stories that connect people across generations through humor and biblical truth. No Matter What began as a short story for a college class and was later expanded into a novel to help guide his own teenagers through high school. Steve and his wife have been married for more than twenty years and are raising four children together.


Contact Links

Website

Facebook

Instagram

 

Purchase Links

Amazon

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RABT Book Tours & PR

Saturday, April 25, 2026

Release Blitz: Influence God's Way With Us by Lola Salvador Akinwunmi @RABTBookTours


A Faith-Filled Coming of Age Story About Influence, Identity, and Purpose


Coming of Age, Christian

Date Published: April 25, 2026



Jade didn’t set out to become famous.

She just wanted to be seen.

 

When eighteen-year-old Jade Zachary begins experimenting with social media, what starts as curiosity quickly turns into something bigger. Her posts gain attention. Her following grows. But the spotlight comes with a cost. Harsh comments begin piling up, accusations spread online, and strange anonymous messages start appearing in her inbox. Someone is watching her more closely than she realizes.

As the pressure of influence grows, Jade must confront questions far deeper than likes or followers.

Who is she trying to impress?

What does real influence actually look like?

Guided by her faith, her family, and trusted friends, Jade begins to discover that influence is not about popularity or clout. It is about purpose, integrity, and the responsibility that comes with having a voice.

Blending Christian fantasy, suspense, and inspirational storytelling, Influence God’s Way With Us explores the unseen spiritual principles behind identity, discernment, and influence in today’s attention-driven culture. Through Jade’s journey, readers discover powerful lessons about authenticity, humility, leadership, and staying grounded in faith in a world obsessed with approval.

The internet gave Jade a platform.

Faith will decide how she uses it.

This is not just a story about going viral.

It is a story about identity, boundaries, faith, and the courage to influence the world God’s way.

 

If you’ve ever questioned the pressure of social media, identity, or purpose, this story will challenge and inspire you. Get your copy today and join Jade’s journey.

 

 

 About the Author

Lola Salvador Akinwunmi is a writer, songwriter, and leadership architect with a passion for shaping people who shape the world. Drawing from years of creative and leadership work, Lola brings a rare voice to every room she enters, one that is equally at home crafting a lyric, building a leader, and telling a story that stirs the soul.

Her debut novella, Influence God's Way With Us, is the culmination of that journey. It explores what it truly means to lead with divine influence, not ego, strategy, or title, but surrender and purpose. Lola writes for the leader who knows there is something deeper available and is ready to reach for it.

She has been featured in Addicted2Success, LinkedIn, Thrive Global, Brit +Co, CEOWorld Magazine, The Good Men Project, and writes for Entrepreneur Magazine.


Contact Links

Author Website

Instagram

TikTok

YouTube

BookBuzz


Purchase Link

Amazon


RABT Book Tours & PR

Tuesday, September 23, 2025

Book Blitz + #Giveaway: Barnabas Bartholomew and the Undead Freshmen by Matthew Lett @MatthewLett @XpressoTours

Barnabas Bartholomew and the Undead Freshmen
Matthew Lett
Publication date: September 16th 2025
Genres: Coming of Age, Fantasy

Death isn’t the end of education—at least not at UniverZity U., where fourteen-year-old Barnabas “Barney” Bartholomew is about to begin his freshman year.

As a recently raised zombie trying to make his undead mother proud, Barney must navigate the haunted halls of an underground mausoleum-turned-school, where strict Crypt Keepers enforce ancient rules and mysterious passages hide untold dangers. With fellow freshman facing expulsion for merely refusing to eat their grits, Barney knows he’ll need more than just good grades to survive. But when he discovers his beloved grandfather’s connection to this shadowy institution, Barney realizes there might be more to UniversZity U.—and himself—than meets his speckled blue eyes.

Goodreads / Amazon

—

EXCERPT:

           “What in the heck is a lich?” Barney asked.

“It’s a member of the Undead class, like us, except it was brought back to life by a sorcerer or a necromancer for evil purposes.”

“What sort of evil purposes?” Barney asked. There was a knot in his stomach; a bundle of nerves resting on the edge of a guillotine.

“Hard to tell,” Pudgy replied. “Depends on what the sorcerer wants the lich to do. He could use it as an assassin, I suppose, to knock off his enemies, or as a bodyguard. Or in this case, a guard dog over a graveyard.”

“But why a graveyard? What would a sorcerer want in a graveyard anyway? And what if it’s not even there? This lich thing. Suppose it’s gone?”

Pudgy shrugged. “Then it’s gone and we don’t have to worry about anything. But if it is real, and there is a lich wandering around, it’ll be looking for souls to eat. That’s why we need the crucifix, to repel it.”

“’Souls to eat?’” Barney repeated. “Are you serious?” He felt light-headed for a second; the world beyond his eyes in a lazy swoon.

“Quite serious,” Pudgy answered. “That’s what liches do. They eat the undead, and if they can, they’ll eat their souls too.”

Barney’s face paled at the thought. An undead cannibal running around the graveyard? That’s what it was! An undead cannibal! The dead eating the dead, for Christ’s sake!

     Pudgy caught the look on Barney’s face; pallid, the sickly color of cream cheese left out in the sun for too long. He snickered. “Hey, calm down. It’s a legend, remember? We’ll be fine. Trust me.”

Barney didn’t answer, his tongue frozen to the roof of his mouth, when Millicent cleared her throat. “Guys?” She tapped the face of her wristwatch. “We need to go if we plan on making curfew. You can discuss the ins-and-outs of liches later, but we need to move.”

“You’re right,” Pudgy said. “I’ll take the lead with the flashlight. Milly, you’ll be behind me. Barney next and then Marcy, and I don’t want you two kissing back there. Agreed?”

Barney blushed clear to his toes. Marcy smiled at him. Millicent laughed out loud and Pudgy winked at Barney, who was staring at the tops of his shoes with a sheepish grin. “Yeah, yeah, okay…” he mumbled. “Funny, real funny, now can we go?”

And so they entered the southwest tunnel, its passages by now near memorized. It was more of a home away from home for the children; its twists and turns nothing more than well-travelled streets and avenues in their hometowns.

Barney stepped through (minus his flashlight which he’d given to Pudgy), when a thought struck him like a phantom stone in the darkness: Pudgy never fully answered my question, he thought. Why the graveyard? Why would a sorcerer (or a necromancer, for that matter) want a lich guarding a graveyard for him? Hmmm…

###

The trip to the graveyard took less than forty-five minutes, and the four of them arrived to find the wrought iron gates unlocked, and the tombstones shrouded in a silky mist of pale fog. A raven, with one eye missing, was perched on a spire atop the gate. It looked down at the children, as if considering their plight, then cawed in its shrill voice a single word they heard all too well:

“BEWARE!”

The raven took flight after its portent of doom. It did a hop and a half-skip, spread its wings, and then soared over the face of the moon reflected in the wavering mist. The raven disappeared as Pudgy opened the gate in a scream of rust. It was loud in the tranquil of the graveyard; as good as any doorbell that rings after midnight.

“Smooth move,” Barney quipped.

“Sorry,” Pudgy said. “I didn’t expect that. Let’s go.”

They walked through the gates; their eyes blind, sinking in what they could not see. Silence–the full-time caretaker of the grounds–greeted them. Distant thunder rolled over the clouds in the east. Lightning followed and took a snapshot of the graveyard for posterity’s sake.

And had there been a black cat perched on the back of a tombstone, with its yellow lamp-lit eyes and its spine arched in a splay of fur, it would not have surprised Barney in the least. The graveyard was spooky, if not picturesque in the simmering light of the moon; a mural better suited on the backdrop of a Halloween landscape.

“What now?” Barney whispered. The air was dank, hollow

somehow. There was no need to whisper, but the graveyard almost

demanded—dared that it be so upon its consecrated ground.

Author Bio:

Matthew Lett was born in Kassel, Germany. Currently, he lives in Sapulpa, Oklahoma with his wife of 39 years, and their two daughters, who also reside in Oklahoma. He’s also a Veteran of the United States Navy, serving on both the U.S.S. Saratoga and U.S.S. America aircraft carriers from 1985-1989. Matthew has been a prolific writer for over 20 years and is a multi-published author with an array of Novels, Novellas, Novelettes, and assorted short stories in a variety of genres. Most of his work can be found in Horror/Suspense/Mystery categories.
During his leisure time, Matthew enjoys rock-n’-roll music, attends church on a regular basis, watches Mystery Science Theatre 3000, reading, and playing with his 3 grandchildren. And of course, Writing. His books include such titles as, “He Who Walks the Corridors,” (Wolf on Water pub.), “Trail of Love and Death,”, “Woodview Heights: Legacy of Decadence” Trilogy and “Barnabas Bartholomew and The Undead Freshmen.”
Matthew Lett can be reached via e-mail for comments, feedback, and suggestions at matthew74107@yahoo.com


GIVEAWAY!

Barnabas Bartholomew and the Undead Freshmen Blitz

—

Thursday, July 24, 2025

Book Tour + #Giveaway: A New Life by L.J. Ambrosio @authorlambrosio @RABTBookTours


 


Reflections of Michael Trilogy Book 4


Fiction

Date Published: ‎June 9, 2025



From America to the streets of Paris, A New Life follows two friends as they navigate grief, love, and self-discovery in a city filled with history and hope. A New Life is a story that lingers long after the last page.

 



Interview with L.J. Ambrosio

What is your favorite part of the book?

Have none, it's the whole novel


Does your book have a lesson? Moral?

A person right of passage ----taking them to their next level


Are your characters based off real people or did they all come entirely from your imagination?

They come from prople who i met on benches and myself


Of all the characters you have created, which is your favorite and why?

I cant isolate that –they are all my favorite


What character in your book are you least likely to get along with? Many in my first book Reservoir Man none in the other three

What would the main character in your book have to say about you?

Thanks for creating me


Do you want each book to stand on its own, or are you trying to build a body of work with connections between each book?

I built the body i might want to build a library  


About the Author


Louis J. Ambrosio ran one of the most nurturing bi-coastal talent agencies in Los Angeles and New York. He started his career as a theatrical producer, running two major regional theaters for eight seasons. Ambrosio taught at 7 Universities. Ambrosio also distinguished himself as an award-winning film producer and novelist over the course of his impressive career.


Contact Links

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Blog

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Instagram

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Purchase Link

Amazon



RABT Book Tours & PR

Thursday, July 17, 2025

Audiobook Tour + #Giveaway: The Irish Girl by Ashley E. Sweeney @RABTBookTours



Coming of Age/ Fiction/ Historical Fiction

Date Published: December 10, 2024 (Paperback) / March 11, 2025 (Audiobook)

Publisher: She Writes Press/Tantor Media

Narrator: Aoife McMahon

Run Time: 9 hours and 39 minutes



From multi-award-winning historical fiction author Ashley E. Sweeney comes a family saga about the Irish immigrant experience spanning New York, Chicago, and Colorado so compelling that, USA Today best-selling author Kelli Estes says, “I read this story in one sitting.”

Thirteen-year-old Mary Agnes Coyne, forced from her home in rural Ireland in 1886 after being accused of incest, endures a treacherous voyage across the Atlantic alone to an unknown life in America. From the tenements of New York to the rough alleys of Chicago, Mary Agnes suffers the bitter taste of prejudice for the crime of being poor and Irish.

After moving west to Colorado, Mary Agnes again faces hardships and grapples with heritage, religion, and matters of the heart. Will she ever find a home to call her own? Where?




Interview with Ashley E. Sweeney

The Irish Girl

What is your favorite part of the book?

The ending, of course! But don’t read the ending first, it would spoil the rest of the book.

I loved researching for The Irish Girl as it is based on the story of my great-grandmother Mary Agnes Coyne who came alone from Ireland to America in 1886. Standing on the ground where she grew up in rural Western Ireland was nothing short of a sacred experience, and a favorite part of researching the novel.

This is how I described the scene at the end of Dawros Beg, a small peninsula jutting into the Atlantic northwest of Galway where Mary Agnes spent her first thirteen years:

The sky, a brew of grey and slate and coal, shoulders heavy clouds that loom low over the landscape, obscuring the Twelve Bens beyond. Wind howls down the peninsula’s lane and carries with it the breath of the Atlantic. Rain beats against thatched-roof cottages and age-old stone walls. On rocky knolls, wild thyme, whitethorn, thrift, and stonecrop bloom early after winter, their delicate flowers clinging to life. The sea roars and churns, whitecaps as far as the horizon, out past the outer islands, even, thrusting salt spray in wild lacy bursts up jagged cliffs. Seabirds are no match for the wind today.


Does your book have a lesson? Moral?

The Irish Girl is at heart a love letter to my great-grandmother and her eldest daughter, Grace, my paternal grandmother. As with all my novels, I tell the story straight, underbelly and all, so you might say resilience is the key concept of my novels. I will explain that in detail later in the interview.


Are your characters based off real people or did they all come entirely from your imagination?

Each of my protagonists, with the exception of Mary Agnes Coyne of The Irish Girl, is completely fictional, although I do set all my novels in particular times and places of history so many characters portrayed in the novels are historical.

This is especially true in Answer Creek, which chronicles the Donner Party as they traverse the continent in 1846-47 in search of a better life. Every character in the Donner Party portrayed in the novel is historic. As you might imagine, being true to 88 different characters took a lot of time and effort. The research alone took two years before two more years of writing.

In my other novels, most of the characters are fictional, and I get to know them for months before committing their stories to the page. This includes doing character studies, character boards, and character questions, as if I’m interviewing them, to get to know them through and through. As you might imagine, all my characters are very real to me, and I hope that translates to readers as well.


Of all the characters you have created, which is your favorite and why?

I would have to say Eliza Waite, the protagonist of my first novel of the same name. Eliza reinvents herself, much as I was doing in my own life as I wrote her story. But I have a soft spot in my heart for all my protagonists. Just like I have four children, none of them is my “favorite,” although some qualities of each of them render them my favorite at different times.

The same is true with my protagonists. I love Ada Weeks of Answer Creek for her honesty and fortitude. After writing her story, I know I could not have survived what she experienced as a member of the Donner Party. In Hardland, I love Ruby Fortune for her drive to protect her sons at all costs. As for Mary Agnes, I love her optimism in the face of unthinkable hardship as a young teen. I mean, what were you doing at 13? I was wondering about boys and sports and grades and recitals, not forced from my home alone to face an uncertain future. I have such admiration for her.


What character in your book are you least likely to get along with?

Mr. French, another boarder at the Colorado Springs Inn, who takes advantage of Mary Agnes when she is vulnerable. I have known too many men, personally and professionally, who are classic narcissists. I have no bandwidth for narcissists and morphed several people I’ve known into Mr. French’s character (very satistfying!) Like Anne Lamott says, “You own everything that happened to you. Tell your stories. If people wanted you to write warmly about them, they should have behaved better.”


What would the main character in your book have to say about you?

Ordinarily, this question would take days to answer, but because the protagonist of The Irish Girl is my great-grandmother, I can say without a doubt that she’d be tickled that I took the time to tell her story. And I hope to think she’d be proud of me, not only for being a novelist, but also for being a mother, grandmother, friend, artist, and activist.


Do you want each book to stand on its own, or are you trying to build a body of work with connections between each book?

The connection between all my novels is threaded through resilience. All four protagonists, Eliza Waite (Eliza Waite), Ada Weeks (Answer Creek), Ruby Fortune (Hardland), and Mary Agnes Coyne (The Irish Girl) suffer hardship, poverty, misogyny, and heartache, and all four protagonists rise above their particular circumstances to succeed. That doesn’t guarantee a happy ending each time, but readers agree the endings are appropriate to each book (although there is rabid discussion on this topic over the ending of Answer Creek!)

All of the novels are stand-alone novels, and I don’t intend to write a sequel (or prequel) to any of them at this time. I have too many ideas swirling in my head for new novels!


About the Author

A native New Yorker, Ashley E. Sweeney is the multi-award-winning author of four novels, The Irish Girl, Hardland, Answer Creek: A Novel of The Donner Party, and Eliza Waite. She graduated from Wheaton College in Norton, Mass. with a degree in American Literature and American History and spent her career as a journalist and educator before turning to writing full-time. When she is not chained to her writing desk, Sweeney is an avid gardener, art quilter, and mosaic artist. She lives in the Pacific Northwest and Tucson.

 

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Purchase Links

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RABT Book Tours & PR



Thursday, June 12, 2025

Virtual Book Tour: CROWN OF BLOOMS by R.C. Dicken @pumpupyourbook

 

When a shy disillusioned pastor’s son becomes fast friends with a worldly, freckle-faced, painter, he is forced to grapple with intense new emotions that he can’t pray away…

 



Author: R.C. Dickens

Pages: 143

Format: Paperback, Kindle

Genre: Coming of Age/Literary Fiction

Kayden Moses has worked for 15 years to be a good pastor’s son. He’s volunteered at every Vacation Bible School, never missed a youth group meeting, and tries to follow the example of his spiritually gifted twin sister, Delilah. However, all his diligent efforts are disrupted when he meets the biggest stumbling block of his life: 

Alex. The new boy in youth group. Bubbly. Opinionated. Dizzyingly nice to look at. 

Suddenly, Kayden finds himself caught in a spiral of confusion and asking questions he’s never asked before. 

Who is Kayden Moses? Because he’s certainly not a good pastor’s son anymore.

Crown of Blooms can be purchased at Amazon and B&N.


Book Excerpt


 

The church gym smelled of fresh, hot body odor and even more profusely of cheap cologne. The youth game room had been abandoned by the boys in favor of a pickup basketball game before their parents arrived to take them home. Kayden sat on the bleachers that creaked with every twitch, imagining the girls upstairs having much more fun with the foosball table and the worn UNO deck, and waiting for someone to tire out and pull him into the bracket. He sucked the noxious smell in deep in an attempt to distract himself from how the late afternoon sun was interacting with the sweat on Manny’s skin; Manny was dark and when the light hit that smooth black skin it glowed, reflecting in stark patches on the ripples in his bare stomach and, most prominently, his chest. 

– Excerpted from Crown of Blooms by J.C. Dickens, Juniper Press, 2024. Reprinted with permission.


About the Author
 

R.C. Dickens is the pen name of Juniper Ray, a black, queer writer, choreographer, teacher’s assistant and disaster living in Appalachia with big dreams of escaping out to the West Coast. Along with their debut novel, Crown of Blooms, they have worked as a ghostwriter for several years and have published several short stories. In 2023, Juniper won the Webby Award for Best Single Episode of a Podcast for their appearance on Snap Judgement. When they aren’t writing (which is rarely) Juniper enjoys dancing, singing, anime, cosplay and generally being a menace to the general public. 

Website & Social Media:

Website ➜ https://rcdickens.wixsite.com/website 

Facebook ➜ https://www.facebook.com/AuthorRCDickens  

Instagram ➜ https://www.instagram.com/rcdickens_author 




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