WordServe News June 2022

As this month begins, so does the release of many books this month at WordServe Literary . . . our highlights below include new releases, contracts signed, notable reviews and PR events, new authors to the agency and other news of note by clients and agents.

New Releases

Waiting for a sign vol 2 Congratulations to Kevin Keating and Core Media Group on the June 7, 2022 release of Waiting for a Sign Volume 2: Highlights & Inside Stories from a Lifetime of Collecting Baseball Autographs.

If you were a baseball fan in the ’60s, ’70s, or ’80s-or if your passion for the game and its history is more recent-Waiting for a Sign will be a page-turner you can’t put down. Kevin Keating spent his youth collecting autographs from some of the biggest stars baseball has ever produced. Along the way he befriended many of the most familiar names in the history of sports. Through those friendships, Keating collected not just autographs, but behind-the-scenes stories that are must-reads for any baseball fan. In this collection of narratives, Keating builds on the success of his first volume as he introduces you to Roberto Clemente, Chuck Connors, Casey Stengel, Warren Spahn, George Brett, Bob Feller, Buck O’Neil, George Sisler, Paul Gleason, Mark McGwire, and many others. Here are the stories behind the autographs that reveal the person inside the player.

Congratulations to Elishaba Doerksen and Core Media Group on the January 2022 release of Out of the Wilderness,

Elishaba Doerksen was the oldest of fifteen children born to ex-hippies Robert and Kurina Hale—also known as Papa Pilgrim and Country Rose. Elishaba grew up in a dilapidated 342-square-foot log cabin in the Sangre de Cristo mountains of New Mexico, isolated from civilization by a fundamentalist father intent on keeping his large family cloistered from a godless world. When she was nineteen, Papa Pilgrim began taking liberties with Elishaba in unimaginable ways and beating her—and her siblings—when he judged them to be “rebellious.”

The horrific sexual and physical abuse continued after the family moved to a remote valley in the Alaska wilderness. After ten years of terrifying mistreatment, Elishaba gathered her courage to make a run for it on a snowmobile. What happens next is the basis for a powerful, dramatic story about perseverance, faith, and redemption, as well as forgiveness.

This is the first time that Elishaba has told her side of a story that garnered national attention with major articles in the Washington Post, NPR, and Outside magazine as well as a significant buzz on social media. She needed time to heal, but now she’s ready to tell the world what it was like living with Papa Pilgrim—and how she overcame some of the worst trauma a daughter can experience at the hands of a father.

Congratulations to Sarah Varland and Love Inspired Publications on the August 23, 2022 release of Tracking the Truth (Love Inspired Suspense: K-9 Unit). 2 Thrilling Stories

A dangerous search for justice. Alaskan Showdown by Sarah Varland

After finding the body of a missing hiker in her small Alaska town, search-and-rescue dog handler Adriana Steele becomes the target of a serial killer thought to have been inactive for decades. Now Adriana’s determined to help Officer Levi Wicks catch the murderer. But with the cold case heating up, the jaded officer is all that stands between her and death.

Cold Case Trail by Sharee Stover

Temporarily working in the cold case division was supposed to mean less danger for state trooper Trey Jackson and his injured K-9 partner, Magnum—until they thwart an abduction. Now he must protect profiler Justine Stark, even as she blames him for her friend’s death ten years ago. Can he right past wrongs by finally solving the murder…and making sure Justine lives to find closure?

Congratulations to Sarah Varland and Love Inspired Publications on the August 23, 2022 release of Secrets at the Summit (Love Inspired Suspense). 2 Thrilling Stories

Seeking the truth could be deadly. Alaska Secrets by Sarah Varland

When her first love, Seth Connors, is attacked in the Alaskan wilderness, former police officer Ellie Hardison knows the crime is linked to his sister’s unsolved murder. This time, she won’t stop until she finds the culprits—even if it means joining Seth undercover. With one last chance to find justice, success could bring Ellie and Seth back together…and failure could prove fatal.

Covert Cover-Up by Elizabeth Goddard

Private investigator Katelyn Bradley rushes to help when she suspects a burglary at her neighbor Beck Goodwin’s house—and arrives just in time to save him. The widowed dad is convinced the attack is linked to his wife’s mysterious death, and now Katelyn is a target, too. Trapped in someone’s crosshairs, can Beck and Katelyn uncover his late wife’s lethal secrets…and keep each other alive?

USA TODAY Bestselling Author Elizabeth Goddard

Contracts

Jennifer Strickland signed with Faith Happenings for the 2023 re-release of Girl Perfect.

New Clients

Rinnah Shaw, Arianna Molloy Yeh, Brady Crytzer, Craig Von Buseck, David Sunde, and Mike Acker recently signed with WordServe. Welcome!

What We’re Celebrating

Congratulations to Candace Camling. Pray and Think Imaginative Rosary Book won FIRST PLACE in the Association of Catholic Publishers’ Excellence in Publishing Awards in the Children’s Books: Picture Book category! Read the article at: https://www.catholicpublishers.org/2022-publishing-award-winners.

Congratulations to Sara Davison. The Carol Awards has announced that Sara is a finalist in two different categories, Romantic Suspense and Novella)