Stories

A novel in twelve chapters.

Summer 2020, and the inhabitants of the Italian mountain town of Ravello are making up for lost time after three months stuck at home. Families are celebrating being reunited at last, and the appetite for romance has never been higher.

However, two teenage boys are navigating this unusual summer alone. Cosmo, a lost soul, and Marco, a recently found soul, find their lives entwined by the fact that everybody seems to have a boyfriend except them. Both of them have experienced pain and neglect in the past; but can they both overcome it to find fulfilment in the present?

There's a special time as winter changes into spring. Here is a time to remember.

Owain returns to live in his home town, 20 years after leaving when he was disowned his parents for being gay. He needs to rebuild his life following illness and come to terms with his messy family history. There is much to learn and discover, along the way he meets Colin, a builder who has his own family issues. The two explore how to make a life the way that they want, irrespective of the weight of their family experiences.

The story takes place in Cheshire, UK. The main setting, Netherwich, is my invention based on elements of Crewe and Nantwich. The language uses some regional idiom.

Abraham (Abbie) Etheridge is a young Banker boy, who lives on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. He works as a baker at Chicamacomico Life Saving Station and sneaks onto a life-saving boat when a storm batters a ship off the coast. He saves a young man traveling to the United States while almost losing his life. Abbie's Aunt Pearl, sees the love in their eyes. Can they see it also?

Following the death of his mother, fifteen-year-old Robbie is forced to move from England to start a new life living with his uncle’s family in Canada. Homesick, confused, and missing his close friend, it soon becomes clear to his new family that Robbie is carrying more than a suitcase of baggage.

Murder or tragic accident? When his ex-lover is mauled by a supposedly tame wolf, Micco races to discover how such a thing happened at his animal refuge. Strength in the face of adversity is at the core of Micco’s Seminole upbringing. But is he strong enough to handle Special Agent Chase Becker, his best childhood friend and secret first love? Chase can still twist Micco’s emotions into a knot and draw out secrets he’s desperate to keep buried -- secrets that could get him arrested for murder.

About to return home after five years working in the Middle East, former soldier Brian has an unreliable ex-girlfriend, a teenage son and a dead-end job to look forward to. Can he take courage, leap into the unknown and accept that his mate Gordon is far more than a friend with benefits.

Colin McKenzie sells used cars and spoils his dog. In his life he's seen a lot of stupidity and he's become cranky and opinionated. The boy who first made his heart beat faster works in town now, divorced, but there's nothing there for either of them. Then a storm brings new life into a stale world for Colin and after so many years...he finally lives.

Rion's parents thought he'd be a girl, thus his name - meaning Queen in old Irish. Joke was on them, Rion is a queen in a different sense. Deeply in love with his straight best friend, Bryson, Rion is thrilled to get a chance at one last vacation with his bestie before college separates them. What follows is a summer of honesty, friendship and love from - well, you'll just have to read.

Four skyscraper poems in tribute to a great friend.