Chanticleer Book Reviews

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The 2024 Chatelaine Hall of Fame for Romance Fiction
Need some Love in your life?

The Chatelaine Awards are here to bring you the best in Romance Fiction.

**Send us your Story Today**

It is a truth Universally acknowledged that a Reader in search of a book, must be in want of a good Romance.

Other Divisions may have categories for Romantic themes, but if you want purely Romance, look no further! Historical to Modern, Steamy (Not Spicy) to Clean, even throw in some adventure, We’ve got it all!

Join us in celebrating These recent Grand Prize Winners of the Chatelaine Award!

A Sea of Glass

By Gail Avery Halverson

In this rich, absorbing tale, Gail Avery Halverson continues the remarkable saga of Lady Catherine Abbott and Simon McKensie that began with the multiple award-winning novels, The Boundary Stone and The Skeptical Physick. Sweeping us from a quaint village in England to Colonial Boston and to the beautiful evils of 17th century Barbados, Gail Avery Halverson has once again written a truly compelling and unforgettable novel.

After a heartbreaking tragedy, Catherine yearns for the safety and familiarity England, but when a free, black woman attempts to accomplish the unthinkable, Catherine is forced to decide where her future lies.

When a daring investment in the lucrative 17th century Barbados sugar trade takes a horrifying turn, Simon must at last set his dedication for medicine and scientific discovery aside and face the true ugliness of slavery.

Joining the multitude of courageous souls in the first waves of the Great Migration from England to America, Simon and Catherine McKensie lay witness to the forging of a new country, the first seeds of violent rebellion against the Crown, and the bitter tentacles of a slave trade just beginning to take root.

Read it here!

You can read the review for the first book in the series here!

Operation Mom: My Plan to Get My Mom a Life and a Man

By Reenita Malhotra Hora

Master storyteller Reenita Malhotra Hora’s YA romance Operation Mom: My Plan to Get My Mom a Life and a Man takes us on a charming journey through the life of one teen, Ila Isham.

Hora introduces Ila and her best friend Deepali, two boy-crazy teens on a summer quest. Readers will fall in love with the smart, sassy, angst-filled, rebellious Ila. A typical teenage girl, Ila lives in Mumbai with her mom and Sakkubai, their house manager. Ila’s mother calls her obsessed, but that seems unfair. Is she obsessed just because her every waking minute is spent thinking of Ali Zafar, famous pop icon, singer, and heartthrob? Or is she obsessed with fellow classmate Dev?

No, Ila couldn’t be taken with Dev because he’s one of three young men that her best friend Deepali is juggling in her summer experiment of exploring her “feminine mystique.” This turn of phrase becomes just one of many opportunities for Hora’s humor to shine as Ila remarks, “That’s a book by Gloria Steinem . . . no Betty Friedan.” Deepali’s response? “Yaar. Don’t be so literal.” The delightful balance between Ila’s book smarts versus Deepali’s street smarts carries us through Hora’s expertly crafted story.

Read More Here

The Long Desert Road

By Alex Sirotkin

Alex Sirotkin’s debut novel, The Long Desert Road, navigates the emotional arcs of life in contrast with the greater expanse of the cosmos. Here a young woman must face her addictions while the people around her try to move beyond her backlash.

We meet Henry Spinoza, a 44-year-old quirky science writer. He ponders his life as half over, looks for the right woman, and wonders if there isn’t more to existence.

For twenty years, Henry, a science writer, has been researching a non-fiction book on the universe that he intends to write. Henry’s feeling “bored, boring, and budget-conscious…the trifecta of gloom,” as he puts it. But in the middle of this ennui, his sister-in-law invites him to dinner, along with her divorced friend, Isabel Dalton, an attorney, and “the setup is afoot.”

Read More Here

When The Wind Chimes

By Mary Ting

In When the Wind Chimes by international best-selling author Mary Ting, Kate Summers wants to make this Christmas extra-special for her older sister, Abby, and four-year-old nephew.

A year ago, she’d given up Christmas with her family to spend the holiday with her boyfriend, Jayden, whom she had caught cheating on her the next day. Not only is she hoping to erase that memory, but she also has another even more important reason to make this Christmas special. A few months after her disastrous break-up with Jayden, her brother-in-law, Steve, passed away from cancer, so Abby and Tyler will be spending their first Christmas alone.

After taking a leave from her job as a graphic designer in LA, Kate flies to Poipu, Kauai, determined to make this an amazing holiday, but on her way to her sister’s house, she meets a mysterious man, who gives up his cab for her. Kate can’t get the handsome stranger out of her head, and when she sees him again in her sister’s art gallery–and destroys his expensive shirt with paint–she is both mortified and excited.

Read More Here

The Skeptical Physick

By Gail Avery Halverson

In the second in a series by author Halverson, an aristocratic, intellectually curious young woman has fallen in love with a young physician, a commoner whose radical experimentations have jeopardized his reputation. The couple is just recovering from the professional and personal rigors of dealing with London’s plague victims when the city is overwhelmed by fire. Their services are needed now more than ever.

Supported by mentor hospital administrator Father Hardwicke in his medical endeavors, Simon McKensie is finally on the verge of marrying the woman he adores, Catherine Abbott. Even the wealthy, protective Aunt Viola has come to terms with the fact that, though she might not approve the match on social grounds, she sees that Catherine will be happy with Simon.

Read more here!

Remember to add your next reads to your StoryGraph or Goodreads account! Now that you’re set on your next five reads, what are you waiting for? The only way to join this amazing list of Chatelaine Winners is to submit today!

Those who submit and advance will have the chance to win the Overall Grand Prize of the CIBAs and $1000!

Are you a Chanticleer Author who has some good news to share? Let us know! We’re always looking for a reason to crow about Chanticleerians! Here are some recent achievements from our authors:
Reach out with your news to info@ChantiReviews.com
August 22, 2024
The Shorts Roundup for the 2023 First Place Winners!

The Short Story Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Short Stories, Collections and Novellas. The Grand Prize Winners, Mack Little’s book, Shelter in A Hostile World and Catherine Brown’s story The Heart of Kublai Khan’s Menagerie Keeper will be promoted for years to come in our annual Hall of Fame article, as well as be featured on the Shorts contest page year ’round!

The best part about being a Chanticleer Int’l Book Award Winner is the love and attention you get all year ‘round!

The 2023 Shorts Winners were announced at the 2024 Chanticleer Authors Conference in April, and you can see the official winners post here for Novellas and Collections! And here for Short Stories and Essays!

Join us in celebrating the 2023 First Place Shorts Winners!

Paper Lantern Writers – Unlocked

Who knows what treasures will be found when this ancient trunk is finally Unlocked?

In much the same manner as Pandora, each Paper Lantern Writer takes a turn opening an old wooden chest, digging out stories spanning seven centuries. The individuals in these tales—heroes, villains, and in between—are more than people from the past. Whether they are making mayhem, waging war, or quietly holding their families together, their strength and fortitude shines on the page. From the Swinging Seventies to the Middle Ages, these characters gather, keep, and spill the secrets of their souls.

Find it on Amazon

Elizabeth Rau – The Good Slope

Moving, bold, and funny, this collection of essays by Elizabeth Rau captures the poignancy of ordinary life through the voices of everyday people–children, friends, neighbors, and even the mail carrier. In vivid and lyrical prose, she chronicles her childhood in the Midwest, her many years as a newspaper reporter, and, above all, her plunge into motherhood in middle age. At a time when some writers tend to grouse about raising children, Rau revels in her good fortune and the day-to-day: teaching her younger son how to read using “Garfield” comic books; encouraging her older son to design his grandmother’s gravestone; observing the motley crew of boys who patronize “the yellow house” for years, bringing their wit, charm, and stuff, from yo-yos to baseball gloves. Along the way we meet characters in her neighborhood, like Ed the mailman whose true passion is growing and selling daylilies because they are “beautiful and resilient and won’t die on you.” Engaging, yet never indulgent, the collection elevates moments we take for granted into luminous stories about the experience of home.

Find it Locally and on Amazon

Sean Thomas Dwyer – Tiptoeing Past The Dragon

This work is a manuscript. Sean also won a 2018 First Place in the Journey Award for his Book A Quest For Tears (Find that Locally and our review for it here). He has also recently been awarded with Village Books Literary Citizenship Award. Congratulations Sean!

Mary Ann Bernal – AnaRose and The Templar’s Quest

A dangerous expedition. A precious artifact. A race against time.

Museum curator and expert in antiquities AnaRose Preston accepts the challenge to find one of Christianity’s holy relics concealed in the hilt of a legendary dagger. Traveling throughout contemporary France, she rushes to solve a historical mystery. But members of a secret society stand in her way. AnaRose risks her life to locate the weapon before it falls into the wrong hands.

Find it on Amazon

JuJu – The Costly Wish

Be careful what you wish for, they say…

We’re so caught up in wishful thinking that we fail to acknowledge the drawbacks associated with them. It’s the way of the universe; you need to give up something dear to you in order to achieve something dearer. With that being said, there is a balance that needs to be met for everything to work in perfect harmony. But what happens when you’ve bitten off more than you can chew? What happens when your granted wish has consequences you did not ask for?

Presenting a narrative that begins with a grave warning, condensing into a plot that will send shivers down your spine. A narrative that will toy with you, allowing you to find comfort only to take it away when you least expect it.

Find it Locally or on Amazon

Gary Baysinger – A Kind of Homecoming

1914 England

Rose is swept off her feet by young German Sebastian, who shares many of her passions and dreams. The world is their oyster—until it is not, with the rising drums of war reinforcing their differences and proving an obstacle to any relationship dreams each may have harbored.

As Rose throws herself into the rigors of being an Army nurse, cleaning up after the infantry’s battles, she can’t help but wonder how the pain and suffering she witnesses fits into the beliefs and ideals she once held.

From issues of patriotism and opportunity to confrontations with the “lottery of fate” that transforms dreams and dreamers alike, A Kind of Homecoming represents a vivid story of war and transformation that will appeal to libraries and readers seeking succinct yet powerful explorations of World War I’s impact on individual ambitions.

Find it on Amazon

Brian Feutz – Pity the Peasants

Read the Award Winning story on his website here!

From fiction to humor, short-story narrative to poetry —
Brian Feutz has an affinity for the music of words. A wide range of life experiences and interests converge in a lively perspective that challenges conventions and stimulates thought.

A.J. McCarthy – The Strike

The author of mystery suspense novels, A.J. McCarthy is always on the lookout for new ideas. Her friends and family are cautious, concerned they may become a victim in her next novel. Those who are more adventurous offer up ideas and are willing to sacrifice certain family members for the cause. A.J. bides her time, waiting for the right moment and the perfect victim. She hides behind a quiet façade, and few know what she’s really thinking.

A.J. grew up reading Agatha Christie, Sidney Sheldon, and many other masters of mystery and suspense. A lifelong love of the genre evolved. She’s a member of Crime Writers of Canada, Sisters in Crime, and International Thriller Writers. When she isn’t writing, chances are she is reading.

Find her books on Amazon

Logan D. Irons – Bridge of Kings

Two Warriors. Two Kings. One bridge.

Some men hold secrets that are far darker than war. An old oath obligates Ulf Bodvarsson to join King Harald Hardrada’s army of Norsemen, seeking to assert his claim to the English crown. Yet near Stamford Bridge, enemies await, seeking to fulfill their own oaths of blood. The struggle that awaits them all will decide who rules and who dies.

This gritty historical fantasy novella gives new readers an excellent introduction to the dynamic grimdark world created by Logan D. Irons. Start the series that is perfect for fans of George R.R. Martin, Bernard Cornwell, Joe Abercrombie, John Gwynne, and Mark Lawrence.

Find it on Amazon

Marie Sutro- Son Down

Marie Sutro is was born in the San Francisco Bay Area, which served as the setting for her debut novel, Dark Associations. As soon as she learned to read, she developed an insatiable appetite for books. With each new story, Marie became more fascinated with the transformative power of words. The magic she discovered in those printed pages sparked an ardent desire to write, which continues to this day.

Marie remains committed to sharing the knowledge that has brought so much joy to her life. She volunteers with California Library Literacy Services, helping adults improve their reading and writing skills. Marie is also a member of Sisters in Crime, where she has served on the board of her local chapter. She currently serves on the board of Bouchercon World Mystery Convention.

Robert S Phillips – The Great River

You can read his story can be found on HamLit here for their issue Life Expectancy. His Novel, Elodia’s Knife is available Locally and on Amazon, and our Review of that book is here.

Writing didn’t become a priority for Robert until recently. In 2023, he published his first novel, “Elodia’s Knife,” a historical epic set in the late 4th century CE, when the Western Roman Empire was on the brink of collapse. The book tells the story of a young Gothic girl who flees her abusive husband and finds refuge in Roman territory. She uses her wits and strength to survive and rise to power in a world that seeks to crush her.

The novel’s ordinary characters are made extraordinary by the world-shaking events of their time. Its unconventional story is bursting with confusion and danger, all precisely framed by the known historical record. “Elodia’s Knife” is a testament to Robert’s love of history, adventure, and suspense.

S.M. Stevens – The Wallace House of Pain

Troubled family relations, modern social justice issues, deeply personal choices.

Activist Xander Wallace and his straitlaced father do not have an easy relationship. Jim’s views on race, immigration, gender, sexuality and even Millennials alienate his son no matter how hard Xander tries to find common ground. Toss in Jim’s second marriage ten months after Xander’s mother died and it’s a volatile cocktail. How, against this backdrop, will Xander ever dare to bare his soul and reveal his greatest secret?

Find it on Amazon

Remembering Robert Phillips

Robert Phillips passed on August 8, 2024. He is deeply missed. Here is a note from Robert’s family:

Robert retired from his life-long career as a software engineer at the beginning of the COVID lockdown, and immediately focused his time and energy on caring for Mom and writing his first historical fiction novel. Elodia’s Knife was published in 2023, and received numerous local awards and accolades. Not one to let time go to waste, he immediately started writing the sequels.

Dad never stopped missing Mom after her death, and spoke about her with love and reverence regularly. But he also continued to grow his own community here in Bellingham, working out at ProFitness Northwest under the expert care and compassion of our trainer Christy, connecting with writers in Whatcom County through the Village Books writers group, and volunteering his time and energy with the lively set-building crew at the Bellingham Theatre Guild. He travelled to visit friends and family in British Columbia, Alberta, Israel, Pennsylvania, Washington DC, Texas, New Mexico, and North Carolina.

Dad and I talked in January of 2024. He was clear and definite in his intentions. He wanted to use whatever remaining time he had to finish the sequels to Elodia’s Knife, to spend time with friends and family, to live fully and pain-free for as long as possible.

If you knew Robert and would like to donate in his memory, his family asks that donations be sent to End of Life Washington, which is a powerful and critical advocacy group here in Washington, and was an incredible support to me as we prepared for his death: https://endoflifewa.org/ or The Bellingham Theatre Guild, which creates incredible local theater with an all-volunteer crew: https://bellinghamtheatreguild.com/.

Reviews for both of the sequels to Elodia’s Knife will be coming soon. We are honored to be able to continue to remember and celebrate Robert and his writing.

Thank you for joining us to celebrate the 2023 Shorts First Place Winners!

Your book can join the Tiers of Achievement, but only if you submit to the Shorts Awards!

Got a great Short Book? The 2024 Shorts Awards are open through the end of August!

Submit to the Shorts Awards Today!

August 22, 2024
10 Days Left! The 2024 Chatelaine, Shorts and Gertrude Warner Awards close at the end of August!
Three Divisions Close at the end of August

Three excellent divisions close at the end of August!

Don’t let your book miss out!
Only 10 days left to submit your books to these prestigious CIBA Divisions and embark on an extraordinary journey to success. With over $30,000 in prizes awarded annually, now is the time to make your mark!

The Chatelaine Awards for Romantic Fiction, The Shorts Awards, and the Gertrude Warner Awards for Middle Grade Fiction are still open!

Congratulations to the Winners of the 2023 Chatelaine Award for Romance!

Enter here!
- T.K. Conklin – Guarded Hearts
- Bonnie Rose Ward – Loving Beth
- S.G. Blaise – Proud Pada
- Morgan Sloan – Stableshoes
- Rose Prendeville – Mistress Mackintosh and the Shaw Wretch
And a huge round of applause for the 2023 Chatelaine Grand Prize Winner:

A Sea of Glass by Gail Avery Halverson

Congratulations to the Winners of the 2023 Shorts Awards!

Enter here!

Novellas, Collections and Essays:
- Paper Lantern Writers – Unlocked
- Elizabeth Rau – The Good Slope
- Seán Thomas Dwyer – Tiptoeing Past the Dragon
- Mary Ann Bernal – AnaRose and the Templar’s Quest
- JuJu – The Costly Wish
- Gary Baysinger – A Kind of Homecoming
And Short Stories:
- A.J. McCarthy – The Strike
- Brian Feutz – Pity the Peasants
- Logan D. Irons – Bridge of Kings
- Marie Sutro – Son Down
- Robert S Phillips – The Great River
- S.M. Stevens – The Wallace House of Pain
And a huge round of applause for the 2023 Shorts Awards Grand Prize Winners:

Shelter in A Hostile World by Mack Little

The Heart of Kublai Khans Menagerie Keeper
A manuscript by Catherine Brown

Congratulations to the 2023 Winners of the Gertrude Warner Awards!

Enter here!
- Alex Paul – The Amarrat Invasion
- Chris Norbury – Little Mountain, Big Trouble
- Liese Sherwood-Fabre – Wilhelmina Quigley: Magic School Dropout
- Kevin Dunn – Vicious is My Middle Name
- Alisse Lee Goldenberg & Joseph Goldenberg – Lucky At Bat
- Ben Gartner – One Giant Leap
- Sue C Dugan – SOS
And a huge round of applause for the 2023 Gertrude Warner Grand Prize Winner:

Exostar: The Lost Space Treasure Series Book 1 by Rae Knightly

The CIBAs offer more than just recognition — they provide a ladder to success with a range of achievement tiers and expert long tail marketing strategies. From the highly anticipated Long List to the prestigious Overall Grand Prize Winner, the CIBA lists energize both authors and readers, maximizing your digital footprint and expanding your fan base.

We are always eager to support the Best Books through the CIBAs. Join the ranks of celebrated authors who have already taken this critical step in their publishing.

Your book deserves to be discovered, celebrated, and shared with the world. Don’t miss the chance to showcase your talent and gain valuable exposure at the Chanticleer Authors Conference (April 3-6, 2025) where Winners from all 25 Book Award Divisions will be announced and honored.

In a world hungry for good books, your story deserves to be heard. Submit now and leave a lasting impression.

Let’s celebrate exceptional storytelling together!

Don’t Delay! Enter Today!

The Chatelaine Awards, The Shorts Awards, and The Gertrude Warner Awards

Your book deserves to be discovered
August 21, 2024
The 2023 Chatelaine Awards First Place Roundup for Romance Fiction!

The Chatelaine Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Romantic Fiction. The Grand Prize Winner, Gail Avery Halverson’s book, A Sea of Glass will be promoted for years to come in our annual Hall of Fame article, as well as be featured on the Chatelaine contest page year ’round!

The best part about being a Chanticleer Int’l Book Award Winner is the love and attention you get all year ‘round!

The 2023 Chatelaine Winners were announced at the 2024 Chanticleer Authors Conference in April, and you can see the official winners post here!

Join us in celebrating the 2023 First Place Chatelaine Winners!

T.K. Conklin – Guarded Hearts

When a simple touch can hurt or heal, do they dare take a chance on love?

LaRisa spent her life as the town outcast. Whispered to be a witch, she grew and sold healing herbs to the very people that shunned her. Because of the special ability she was cursed with at birth, she fears touching others. She knew she was destined to be a spinster, until she meets a man that isn’t afraid of her.

The beautiful auburn haired witch instantly enchanted Strykes, but he knew he shouldn’t fall in love with her. Haunted by his past and of what he could become, makes him leery of love. Though his hands ache to caress her, he is afraid he will hurt her. Or worse.

When his outlaw past catches up to him and sends them running for their lives, the love between them grows. As well as their fears.

From Chanticleer:

Guarded Hearts by T K Conklin is a sensual romance in the Wild West, with all the passion and excitement natural to the setting.

Sparks fly between a man with an outlaw past and a woman with a terrifying gift to heal or harm. Strykes is a man haunted both by a violent childhood and his time in an outlaw gang. But he has found a place in Rimrock, where he met LaRisa, an auburn-haired woman whom the townspeople have labeled a “witch” due to her healing herbs and rumors of her “powers”.

Read More Here

Find it Locally or on Amazon

Bonnie Rose Ward – Loving Beth

Beth McCullough struggles to keep her West Virginia farm and care for two abandoned children, but the bank is threatening foreclosure, someone is threatening her life, and the man she’s falling for has closed his heart to love. But God works in mysterious ways.

Times were hard after Beth McCullough’s father died in the Civil War, but she and her mother are getting by on their little farm outside Rosewood, West Virginia. The kindly banker holding the loan lets them pay what they can. Then Beth’s mother dies suddenly, and the banker’s arrogant son gives her only thirty days to pay her full debt. Beth is left alone and lonely and fears losing the only home she’s ever known. It would be nice to have someone in her life like Jacob, the handsome man who found her mother. Then to her horror, Beth discovers two small children who’ve been abandoned. It’s one more thing for her to worry about, but Beth has to keep faith in God’s ability to work miracles.

From Chanticleer:

In Loving Beth, a Christian historical romance by Bonnie Rose Ward, a young woman finds herself in dire straits when her widowed mother dies unexpectedly.

Beth’s father had taken out loans to improve their property, but he was killed in the Civil War, leaving his wife and daughter to struggle to keep up with the payments. Now, Beth is alone without any means to keep her home—finding and taking in two young, abandoned children certainly doesn’t help. But even amidst her troubles, Beth’s thoughts keep going back to the mysterious and handsome stranger who found and brought home the body of her mother.

Life is not easy in her tiny settlement in West Virginia, and young, pretty Beth finds that it is not about to get any easier. The new banker holds a grudge toward her for having rejected his advances, and the man’s snobbish wife is determined to make Beth’s life even more miserable. The loans that Beth and her mother worked to pay each month are suddenly due in full— but the banker’s unwanted and ugly advances are foiled with the appearance of the mysterious stranger.

Read More Here

Find it on Amazon

S.G. Blaise – Proud Pada

Lilla is on her next mission as a Sybil, when she must travel to the Pada world following the trail of a ruthless murderer.

Navigating deadly politics turns increasingly difficult, when the Teryn emperor goes missing.

Now the Teryn empire is heading towards civil war, and Lilla must uncover who is behind the conspiracy before it’s too late.

Unfortunately her success depends on the Proud Pada.

Find it Locally and on Amazon

Jo Morgan Sloan- Stableshoes

This LGBT+ Retelling of Cinderella isn’t out yet, but has a release date of July 2025, and we are very excited to see this book come out!

Prince Darian has met all the requirements necessary to claim his father’s throne; at least, he thinks he has, until his sinister cousin Bertram reveals a law that states Darian must marry by his twenty-fifth birthday, or lose the crown.

With only four weeks to find a bride, Darian turns to his beautiful, irreverent, clever friend Ashley for help before a grand ball is to be thrown in his honor. But there is another who catches the prince’s eye: living in perpetual silence is Eric, the stronghold stableman, whose kindness disrupts Darian’s plans to hide his nature.

Each day that passes is another day closer to Bertram’s takeover, and he’s counting on Darian to fail. While Eric has the prince’s heart, the stableman also carries a secret mark that could jeopardize Darian’s claim to the throne. To protect the nation he loves from a tyrant, Prince Darian must choose between true love and living a lie.

For more Information, check out the authors website

Rose Prendeville – Mistress Mackintosh and the Shaw Wretch

In 1725, a secret convent has been established on the Aberdeenshire coast.Jory Mackintosh is more excited by healing herbs than husbands or holy prayers. She craves freedom—and a chance to sneak into medical school. Instead, on the eve of her escape, she becomes an unwilling pawn in her family’s schemes with a rival clan.

Finlay Shaw, the disgraced younger brother of the laird, has spent ten long years atoning for his past failures, but nothing can wash away the stain of fratricide. When the clans order him to escort Jory to her new life as a nun, thus securing an alliance with the freshly formed Black Watch, it’s his last chance for redemption. Too bad for Finn, Jory has no intention of following orders.

Trapped on the road together, often with only one bed between them, the two butt heads and match wits, forced to acknowledge the dark shadows that have haunted them both for years. Can they learn to trust each other, and themselves, to fly in the face of their families’ wishes, or will they choose the solitary futures they always believed they deserve in this unorthodox runaway bride story?

Find it Locally or on Amazon

Thank you for joining us to celebrate the 2023 Chatelaine First Place Winners!

You can see our Spotlight on the Chatelaine Grand Prize Winners, including Gail Avery Halverson’s incredible book A Sea of Glass here.

Your book can join the Tiers of Achievement, but only if you submit to the Chanticleer Int’l Book Awards!

Got a great Fiction Book? The 2024 Chatelaine Book Awards are open through the end of August!

Submit to the Chatelaine Awards Today!

August 20, 2024
Celebrating Excellence with the 2024 Shorts Hall of Fame!
Short Work? No problem

We’ve got winners!

**Got a Short to Share?**

Submissions for the 2024 Shorts Awards are open through August 31st!

The Shorts Awards is one of the newest divisions at Chanticleer, but it didn’t have the normal ramp up time to become one of the biggest powerhouses in our Book Awards! If you want to put your work to the test, submit it to the Shorts Awards today!

Shelter in A Hostile World
By Mack Little

Our review of the 2023 Shorts Grand Prize Winner for Collections will post any day now! In the meantime, this is the second Grand Prize Winner Mack Little has sent us, and you can see our review for Daughter of Hades here!

The Heart of Kublai Khans Menagerie Keeper
By Catherine Brown

A Manuscript

God, The Mafia, My Dad and Me
By Lori Lee Peters

God, the Mafia, My Dad, and Me by Lori Lee Peters begins in the voice of a child, compelling not just for its narrative honestly, but for the fact that it might not be reliable. As the book opens, we learn that this narrator firmly believes she will be killed.

Readers can easily see through the childlike hyperbole, but that doesn’t detract from the intrigue. How did a kid come to such an extreme conclusion? Is there any seed of truth to it? These questions will hook readers from the start.

Author Peters set out to write a book about her dad. God, the Mafia, My Dad, and Me tells the true story of her father, and his fascinating work helping the FBI tackle Mafia activity in Lodi, California. Yet in the end, this is a memoir in which the compelling lead character – young Lori – overshadows her father in many ways.

Read More Here

Old Man Baseball
By Mike Murphey

New York: Give Me Your Best or Your Worst
By Elizabeth Crowens

Prepare to be carried away to bustling, vivacious streets as you read Elizabeth Crowens’ New York: Give Me Your Best or Your Worst.

This captivating literary anthology is a love letter to the great city from a group of brilliant artists and authors, which delves into the multifaceted lives of New Yorkers.

Short fiction and a few poems describe the ins and outs of New York living. Murder mysteries, revenge, family struggles, family sagas, and, of course, the most important questions regarding real estate. Finding the perfect place to live in the city may be difficult, but this story brings into vivid relief the heart of what makes New York special: the people.

Read More Here

Homegoing
By Toni Ann Johnson

Homegoing by Toni Ann Johnson is an intimate portrait of a middle-aged African-American woman dragging herself hand over hand out of grief and despair.

This story begins with her aching, echoing pain after the one-two punch of a miscarriage and the dissolution of her marriage. Her journey takes her back to the upper-middle-class white suburb where she grew up, through childhood memories that refuse to be denied and to, of all times and places, a funeral.

Something and someone is supposed to be buried. Certainly the deceased. But quite possibly the woman who has held on to her losses and her grudges long enough to poison her own future.

Read More Here

Savonne, Not Vonny
By Robin Lee Lovelace

Robin Lee Lovelace evokes a world in which the mystical intertwines with the everyday in Savonne, Not Vonny, a coming-of-age story set in rural Louisiana.

Nine-year-old Savonne lives in a small room at the back of Mama Gwen’s whorehouse, in Indianapolis in the ’60s. Her mama is one of the working girls, and her father is Mama Gwen’s own son. Savonne’s daddy dotes on her, and Mama Gwen loves Savonne like the daughter she never had; the two of them together make a loving home for Savonne, in the midst of their raucous brothel.

By contrast, Savonne’s birth mother rarely pays her any mind. A “crazy-ass woman” with a temper “as hot as a Mississippi afternoon,” Coco is not at all opposed to beating the bejesus out of someone. In a fury one night, she does something that cannot be undone, and in her headlong flight out of town, she takes Savonne with her.

Read More Here

A Week at Surfside Beach
By Pierce Koslosky Jr.

Vacationers from all walks of life converge on Portofino II-317C, South Carolina, a quaint blue beach house, in Pierce Koslosky Jr.’s short story collection, A Week at Surfside Beach.

From May 30th-December 26th each group of people comes to stay one week at a time, to forget their cares of the big city, to work, to celebrate, or to simply get away. Surfside Beach has much to show them, including temperamental weather.

The small town itself offers a charming supermarket where fishing supplies, whoopie pies, and local southern favorites can be found. The Christmas vacationers, the final of the thirteen beach house renters, struggle to find a tree in time; a real tree simply wouldn’t allow enough space for the family to sleep, and the fake tree would cost too much. But they find arts and crafts supplies in town, to fashion a paper Christmas tree during a day of rainy weather.

Read More Here

Remember to add your next reads to your StoryGraph or Goodreads account! Now that you’re set on your next five reads, what are you waiting for? The only way to join this amazing list of Chatelaine Winners is to submit today!

Those who submit and advance will have the chance to win the Overall Grand Prize of the CIBAs and $1000!

Are you a Chanticleer Author who has some good news to share? Let us know! We’re always looking for a reason to crow about Chanticleerians! Here are some recent achievements from our authors:
Reach out with your news to info@ChantiReviews.com
August 20, 2024
The 2024 Short List JOURNEY Book Awards for Overcoming Adversity in Narrative Non-Fiction
The Journey Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Overcoming Adversity in Narrative Non-Fiction and Memoir. The Journey Book Awards is a genre division of Chanticleer International Book Awards and Novel Competitions (CIBAs).

Chanticleer International Book Awards is looking for the best books featuring true stories about adventures, life events, unique experiences, travel, personal journeys, global enlightenment, and more. We will put books about true and inspiring stories to the test and choose the best among them. See our full list of Non-Fiction Divisions here.

These titles have moved forward in the judging rounds from the 2024 Journey Non-Fiction LONG LIST. Entries below are now in competition for 2024 Journey Semifinals List. Finalists will be selected from the Semi-Finalists. All FINALISTS will be announced and recognized at the Chanticleer Authors Conference (CAC25).

The First Place Category Winners, along with the CIBA Division Grand Prize winners, will be selected from the 25 CIBA divisions’ Finalists.

We will announce the 1st Place Category winners and Grand Prize Division Winners at the CIBAs Banquet and Ceremony on Saturday, April 5th, 2025 in beautiful Bellingham, WA at the Four Points by Sheraton sponsored by the 2025 Chanticleer Authors Conference.

These titles are in the running for the SEMIFINALISTS of the 2024 Journey Book Awards novel competition for Overcoming Adversity in Non-Fiction!

Join us in celebrating the Long List authors and their works in the 2024 CIBAs.
- Michael Salsbury – Running From Tragedy
- Lynne Spriggs O’Connor – Elk Love: A Montana Memoir
- Jane Kim Yu – Journey of Awakening and Higher Consciousness
- Shannon Bohrer – Judicial Soup
- Judie Dziezak – Petals from Mars: A Memoir of Resilience and Triumph over Adversity
- M. Lorrie Miller – Invitation to Co-Creation: A Spiritual Path from Child Abuse and Religious Trauma to Love, Healing, and Oneness
- Tamra McAnally Bolton – His 100th Year
- Kirsten Throneberry – Guided: Lost Love, Hidden Realms, and the Open Road
- Irena Smith – The Golden Ticket: A Life in College Admissions Essays
- Aja Mia – The Heartbreak of Time Travel
- Jennifer Gasner – My Unexpected Life: Finding Balance Beyond My Diagnosis
- Kathryn Caraway – Unfollow Me
- Jill Vanneman – The Betterment Campaign
- C.J. Hudson – Destiny Lives on Fairhaven Street
- Linda M. Lockwood – Sky Ranch: Reared in the High Country
- Etsuko Diamond Miyagi – Diamond – The Memoir of a Lost Daughter of Japan
- Karen Elizabeth Lee – The Village That Betrayed its Children
- Liz Alterman – Sad Sacked
- Anne Gately – Sunburnt – A memoir of sun, surf and skin cancer
- Patrick Hogan – Coincidence, you say?
- Natalie Kohlhaas – Hello Anxiety My Old Friend: Harness Your Invisible Superpower
- Rachael Siddoway and Sonja Wasden – An Impossible Life: A True Story of Hope and Mental Illness
- Léonie Rosenstiel – Protecting Mama: Surviving the Legal Guardianship Swamp
- Ernestine Whitman – Countermelodies: A Memoir in Sonata Form
- Jacqueline Acho – Cancer Culture: Fixing the Landscape by Infusing Empathy
- Kathi N. Miner – The Committed Professor – My Fall from the Lectern to the Ward
- Jennifer Cramer-Miller – Incurable Optimist: Living with Illness and Chronic Hope
- Bridey Thelen-Heidel – Bright Eyes
- Ginelle Testa – Make a Home Out of You
- Deborah L. Staunton – Untethered
- E. Adrienne Wilson – I’d Rather Be Dead Than Deaf: A Young Woman’s Journey with Liver Cancer
- Lindsey Henke – When Skies Are Gray
- Heidi Beierle – Heidi Across America – One Woman’s Journey on a Bicycle through the Heartland
- Claudia Marseille – But You Look So Normal: Lost and Found in a Hearing World
- Mary Jumbelic, M.D. – Here, Where Death Delights
- Lisa Rhyne – Coming Out of the Metaphysical Closet
- Tracy Mayo – Childless Mother: A Search for Son and Self
- Marsha Jacobson – The Wrong Calamity
- Ana Manwaring – Saints and Skeletons A Memoir
- David Vass – Liar, Alleged
Good luck to all as your works move on to the next rounds of judging.

PROMOTING OUR AUTHORS!

This post has been posted on the Chanticleer Facebook Page. We try to tag all authors listed here in the Facebook post. However, it is easier for us to tag authors when they have Liked and Followed us on Facebook.

Please click here to visit our page to LIKE, COMMENT, and SHARE on Facebook.

We will also be promoting this list in our Newsletter, which you can sign up for here!

Good luck to all as your works move on to the next rounds of judging.

The Grand Prize Winner for the CIBA 2023 JOURNEY Awards is:

Barbed: A Memoir

By Julie Morrison

See the full list of 2023 First Place Journey Winners here!

We are now accepting submissions into the 2025 Journey Book Awards for Overcoming Adversity in Narrative Non-Fiction.

Please click here for more information.

Winners will be announced at the 2024 CIBA Awards Ceremony that is sponsored by the 2025 Chanticleer Authors Conference.

April 3 – 6, 2025! Save the Date for Registration!

Seating is Limited. The esteemed WRITER Magazine (founded in 1887) has repeatedly recognized the Chanticleer Authors Conference as one of the best conferences to attend and participate in for North America.

Join us for our annual conference as we enter our second decade and discover why!
August 18, 2024
The 2024 Ozma Long List for Fantasy Fiction!
The Ozma Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Magic, Steampunk and Fantasy Fiction. The Ozma Awards is a genre division of Chanticleer International Book Awards and Novel Competitions (The CIBAs).

Chanticleer International Book Awards discovers the best books in the Ozma Awards featuring magic, the supernatural, imaginary worlds, fantastical creatures, legendary beasts, mythical beings, or inventions of fancy that author imaginations dream up without a basis in science as we know it. Epic Fantasy, High Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery, Dragons, Unicorns, Steampunk, Dieselpunk, Gaslight Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, or other out-of-this-world fiction. Our judges from across North America and the U.K. will put them to the test and choose the best among them.

These titles have moved forward in the first look rounds from all 2024 OZMA Fantasy Fiction entries to the 2024 Ozma Book Awards LONG LIST. These entries are now in competition for the 2024 Ozma Short List. The Short Listers will compete for the Semi-Finalists positions. FINALISTS will be chosen from the Semi-Finalists and recognized at the Chanticleer Authors Conference, CAC25.

We will announce the 1st Place Category winners and Grand Prize Division Winners at the CIBAs Banquet and Ceremony on Saturday, April 5th, 2025 in beautiful Bellingham, WA at the Four Points by Sheraton sponsored by the 2025 Chanticleer Authors Conference.

These titles are in the running for the SHORT LIST of the 2024 Ozma Book Awards novel competition for Fantasy Fiction!
- K.N. Salustro – A Whisper from the Edge of the World
- J.V. Rutz – The Illusion Killer and the Phantom Magician
- Susannah Dawn – Search for the Armor of God
- Chloé A.H. Lewis – The Covenant Of Saints
- Helen Garraway – Sentinals Banished
- James McKenna – An October’s Journey: Poe’s Final Gift
- Roxana Arama – The Exiled Queen: A Roman Era Historical Fantasy
- Elana Gomel – Nine Levels
- Steve Stine – I, Enoch
- Anton Anderson – The Seekers: Kirin
- Jenn Lees – Of High Kings and Mages: Arlan’s Pledge Book Three
- Curt Locklear – Treasure and Murder In Ireland
- Shami Stovall – Time-Marked Warlock
- Marieke Lexmond – The Queen of Fairy, The Madigan Chronicles #6
- Jody Norman – New Trails
- Charles Allen – A Graveyard of Ships
- John Middleton – The Navel of the World
- Rhett C. Bruno and Jaime Castle – An Unexpected Hero
- Mary K. Savarese – The StarWriters Club
- Lynne Shaner – Journey to Everland Bay
- A.S. Norris – The Hunted Mage: The Adventures of Jack Wartnose
- Glen Dahlgren – The Realm of Gods
- David V Mammina – Death or Volentus: Macabre Masquerade (Book 2)
- David V Mammina – Death or Volentus
- Kolton Fitz-Gerald – Leon Sharp: The Scourge of Night
- Kolton Fitz-Gerald – Leon Sharp: The Tides of War
- Alan B. Gibson – Summer Storm (Magic at Myers Beach, Book 2)
- Zakary Bennett – Spirits of Leuun Shadows of the Chimera Vol 1
- J.A. Nielsen – The Winter Heir (Fractured Kingdoms, Book 2)
- Susan Wands – High Priestess an Empress, Book Two, Arcana Oracle Series
- R. M. Krogman – Liberation
- James Malone – The Song of Theodore-Return to Rainbow Gardens
- Omayra Velez – The General’s Gift
- J.M. Durham – Silla’s Awakening
- Ross Hightower – Spirit Light Volume 1
- Ross Hightower & Deb Heim – Desulti
- Mark Stanley – Elven Blood: Volume 1 of the Vellhor Saga
- Erin Lark Maples – A Circle of Stars
- Evette Davis – The Others
- M.D. House – Crossroads of Awakening Memory
- Ryan Schuette – A Seat for the Rabble
- Rae St. Clair Bridgman – Fish & Sphinx
- Rebecca Warner – Journey of Souls
- Luminescence Goh – Chronicles of the Enchanted Vanguard Seraphina and the Divine Mandate
- Rae St. Clair Bridgman – The Serpent’s Spell
- S.G. Blaise – Proud Pada
- Logan D. Irons – Oaths of Blood
- Joseph P Macolino – The Battle for Erathal
- Prue Batten – The Red Thread
- Joy Ross Davis – The Goddess of Weaver Street
- S.G. Blaise – Meddling Mages
- W.B.J. Williams – Johnny Talon and the Goddess of Love and War
- T.E. MacArthur – A Place of Fog and Murder
- Shami Stovall – Academy Arcanist
- J.A. Nielsen – The Claiming
- C.V. Vobh – The Yawning Gap
- David Scidmore – Aylun
Good luck to all as your works move on to the next rounds of judging.

PROMOTING OUR AUTHORS!

This post has been posted on the Chanticleer Facebook Page. We try to tag all authors listed here in the Facebook post. However, it is easier for us to tag authors when they have Liked and Followed us on Facebook.

Please click here to visit our page to LIKE, COMMENT, and SHARE on Facebook.

We will also be promoting this list in our Newsletter, which you can sign up for here!

Congratulations once more to the 2023 Ozma Grand Prize Winner and Overall Grand Prize Winner

A Vengeful Realm

By Tim Facciola

Click here to see the full list of 2023 OZMA Book Award Winners for Fantasy Fiction.

We are now accepting submissions into the 2025 OZMA Book Awards for Fantasy Fiction.

Please click here for more information.

Winners will be announced at the 2024 CIBA Awards Ceremony that is sponsored by the 2025 Chanticleer Authors Conference.

April 3 – 6, 2025! Save the Date for Registration!

Seating is Limited. The esteemed WRITER Magazine (founded in 1887) has repeatedly recognized the Chanticleer Authors Conference as one of the best conferences to attend and participate in for North America.

Join us for our annual conference as we enter our second decade and discover why!
August 14, 2024
The 2024 Chatelaine Spotlight for Romance Fiction!
End the Summer with a little Romance

The Chatelaine Award submissions close at the End of August!

Just like the many objects hanging from a Chatelaine, Romance Fiction can have many different types and we’re excited to see what 2024 brings us! Here’s the Categories-
- Contemporary Romance
- Historical Romance
- Adventure & Suspense
- Romantic Steamy/Sensual (Not Erotic)
- Inspirational/Restorative/Clean
Romance Fiction doesn’t have just one type. Modern Day to History, Adventurous or not, Steamy or Clean, we love it all!

You know what fits most of our Categories? The Mummy. Modern movie, Historical setting, Plenty of Action, yet the Romantic elements are on the clean side.

While other Divisions also have Romantic inclined categories (Paranormal, M&M, Rossetti, Laramie and Hemingway all have categories for Romance) you can never go wrong with a plain and simple Love story. Or maybe you like a little drama in your books.

Historical Romance seems to be a rather popular category now, in both the books we see and wider in the book market. This year’s Grand Prize for Chatelaine is a Historical Romance! Taking place in the 1600’s in England, Colonial America and the Caribbean, it fits firmly into the Historical genre.

The SKEPTICAL PHYSICK (The Stockbridge Series, Book 2)
By Gail Avery Halverson

In the second in a series by author Halverson, an aristocratic, intellectually curious young woman has fallen in love with a young physician, a commoner whose radical experimentations have jeopardized his reputation. The couple is just recovering from the professional and personal rigors of dealing with London’s plague victims when the city is overwhelmed by fire. Their services are needed now more than ever.

Supported by mentor hospital administrator Father Hardwicke in his medical endeavors, Simon McKensie is finally on the verge of marrying the woman he adores, Catherine Abbott. Even the wealthy, protective Aunt Viola has come to terms with the fact that, though she might not approve the match on social grounds, she sees that Catherine will be happy with Simon.

Read more here!

Did you know? Gail Halverson’s book A Sea of Glass won the 2023 Chatelaine Grand Prize! The review is to come!

EDGED In PURPLE
By John W. Feist

Edged in Purple by John W. Feist welcomes readers to a place outside of time and space, a liminal space where characters of myth wait to return to their fated stories.

The Fold is a beautiful land, a near-utopia shepherded– literally– by Thetis and Peleus of Greek mythology. They raise the heroine of Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale, Perdita, after her father had accused her mother of betraying him with another, the whole sad story a product of his own paranoia.

Perdita’s story is proceeding as it was written. She has already met Florizel, the man who should be the hero of her romance– when her story is intersected by another. Just as The Winter’s Tale features royal courts, doomed relationships, mistaken identities, and family murder, so too does an ancient Greek drama: the Oresteia of Aeschylus, the story of Agamemnon after the Trojan War.

Read more here!

SUMMER STORM: Magic at Myers Beach Book 2
By Alan B. Gibson

In Summer Storm, the second book of Alan B. Gibson’s Magic at Myers Beach series, local business owner Greta the Witch has a chance at fame, fortune, and fairytale love—if she can keep it all from being stolen first.

Picking up cleanly after Summer Thunder (Book 1 in the series), this story opens with Greta worrying about her social life. Her best friend Lily has left on an extended honeymoon with her husband Theos the King. Fortunately, her acquaintance, Julie, moves back to town, and while they soon develop a close friendship, things get awkward when she learns that Julia received a massive financial gift from Lily and Theos, and she was left with nothing.

Greta can at least focus on her business, the Witch’s Cauldron, and being the star of a reality show that’s planning to film her daily life. And when Greta meets a mysterious and charming man—Zsombor, or “Dos” to his friends—she finds herself rocketed to a level of stardom she couldn’t have imagined. She attends an opening gala for the renovated Fairy Kingdom tea house, and after a mixture of disastrous and fabulous public appearances she becomes Myers Beach’s rising influencer star.

Read more here!

LOVING BETH
By Bonnie Rose Ward

In Loving Beth, a Christian historical romance by Bonnie Rose Ward, a young woman finds herself in dire straits when her widowed mother dies unexpectedly.

Beth’s father had taken out loans to improve their property, but he was killed in the Civil War, leaving his wife and daughter to struggle to keep up with the payments. Now, Beth is alone without any means to keep her home—finding and taking in two young, abandoned children certainly doesn’t help. But even amidst her troubles, Beth’s thoughts keep going back to the mysterious and handsome stranger who found and brought home the body of her mother.

Life is not easy in her tiny settlement in West Virginia, and young, pretty Beth finds that it is not about to get any easier. The new banker holds a grudge toward her for having rejected his advances, and the man’s snobbish wife is determined to make Beth’s life even more miserable. The loans that Beth and her mother worked to pay each month are suddenly due in full— but the banker’s unwanted and ugly advances are foiled with the appearance of the mysterious stranger.

Read more here!

Thank you for celebrating this great romance reads with us!

The Chatelaine Awards are open until the end of July!

Submit to the Chatelaine Awards today!
August 13, 2024
The 2024 Shorts Spotlight for Brief but Spectacular Writing
Short but Sweet

***Send us your short story today***

Shorts Awards submissions close at the End of August!

H.G. Wells once described the purpose of a short story to be “The jolly art, of making something very bright and moving; it may be horrible or pathetic or funny or profoundly illuminating, having only this essential, that it should take from fifteen to fifty minutes to read aloud.”

A Story doesn’t need a long winding plot to get it’s point made. Compelling characters and plot twists in 5 pages can have much the same effect as 100.

In 1846, Edgar Allan Poe wrote an essay called The Philosophy of Composition. In it he described his theories on writing Short Stories, using The Raven as the example. He had 3 theories for writing – Length, Method and ‘Unity of Effect.’

According to Poe, the limits on the length of a short story is what makes them so good.

In his words “For it is clear that the brevity must be in direct ratio of the intensity of the intended effect.” On length, Poe said for one of his stories: “[W]hat I conceived the proper length for my intended poem – a length of about one hundred lines. It is, in fact, a hundred and eight.”

In terms of method, He states that a writer should first think of how they want a story to end. Of course, that’s just how he wrote, you can start from the beginning, or the end, or maybe the middle. His last theory is everything together. Emotion, Length, Tone, and making them all work together.

The Shorts Awards launched just a few years ago and is already one of our most competitive divisions!

Your Short Fiction and Non-Fiction deserve to be discovered!

There are several options when submitting to the Shorts Awards to match your type of writing:
- Single Story or Essay – also great for Novellas and Novelettes!
- Short Story Collection
- Novelette Collection
- Novella Collection
- Essay Collection
You can also submit anthologies to any of the collection options! Just pick the one that best describes the type of work found in the anthology! This includes anthologies with a mix of fiction, non-fiction, and even poetry!

Let’s dive into some wonderful short work that we’ve reviewed recently!

THE GARDEN PLOT DIARIES
By Endy Wright
Shorts Finalist

Endy Wright’s The Garden Plot Diaries is a delightful collection of four short stories about life, relationships, and consequences.

Wright captures the gossip and rivalries between factious groups of town folk, all between sixty and ninety-something, who have known each other since childhood and carry the grudges to prove it. Our delightful narrator professes, “I am a rambling old man with a tale to tell and in no hurry to tell it.” So, settle in.

Read more here!

A WILD REGION: Tales and Stories from the Heartland
By Robin Lee Lovelace
“Savonne, not Vonny” won the Shorts Grand Prize!

A Wild Region: Tales and Stories from the Heartland by Robin Lee Lovelace is a wonderful collection of Weird fiction (emphasis on Weird), showcasing the oddities and fantastic adventures which hide among the everyday people of the midwestern United States.

Lovelace opens with ‘Virgie’s Headless Chicken’, setting the tone for the full collection as Virgie attempts to reproduce a circus sideshow act. Lovelace shares her familial inspiration for this story in a fascinating preface.

Read more here!

NEW YORK: Give Me Your Best or Your Worst
By Elizabeth Crowens
Shorts Grand Prize Winner

Prepare to be carried away to bustling, vivacious streets as you read Elizabeth Crowens’ New York: Give Me Your Best or Your Worst.

This captivating literary anthology is a love letter to the great city from a group of brilliant artists and authors, which delves into the multifaceted lives of New Yorkers.

Short fiction and a few poems describe the ins and outs of New York living. Murder mysteries, revenge, family struggles, family sagas, and, of course, the most important questions regarding real estate. Finding the perfect place to live in the city may be difficult, but this story brings into vivid relief the heart of what makes New York special: the people.

Read more here!

A WEEK at SURFSIDE BEACH
By Pierce Koslosky, Jr.
Shorts Grand Prize Winner

Vacationers from all walks of life converge on Portofino II-317C, South Carolina, a quaint blue beach house, in Pierce Koslosky Jr.’s short story collection, A Week at Surfside Beach.

From May 30th-December 26th each group of people comes to stay one week at a time, to forget their cares of the big city, to work, to celebrate, or to simply get away. Surfside Beach has much to show them, including temperamental weather.

The small town itself offers a charming supermarket where fishing supplies, whoopie pies, and local southern favorites can be found. The Christmas vacationers, the final of the thirteen beach house renters, struggle to find a tree in time; a real tree simply wouldn’t allow enough space for the family to sleep, and the fake tree would cost too much. But they find arts and crafts supplies in town, to fashion a paper Christmas tree during a day of rainy weather.

Read more here!

WISHES, SINS, and the WISSAHICKON CREEK
By PJ Devlin
Somerset First Place Winner

Wishes, Sins, and the Wissahickon Creek by PJ Devlin emulates the lives of fictional characters brimming with hope and promise yet living a truthful life of existence in the gorgeous setting of Pennsylvania’s Wissahickon Creek.

The book encompasses ten short stories making it a complete work of fiction. Devlin creates characters which are rich in both experience and struggle. Not only do they live in a real world created by Devlin, but her characters, a mix of children and adults, both struggle with daily, real-world issues most Americans deal with. The stories are all relatable in this sense, which makes the text come alive, page after page.

Read more here!

Thank you to everyone who submitted to the 2024 Shorts Awards! We can’t believe that the whole adventure starts again when the Shorts Chanticleer Int’l Book Awards close on August 31st, 2024.

This is the journey from beginning to end for the CIBAs Levels of Achievement is so worthwhile! Every list you make means more promotion for you and your work as each list is posted right here on our website, on our social media, and also out in our newsletter! Your book deserves to be discovered.

You know you want it…

Submit to the Shorts Awards today!
August 8, 2024
The 2024 Long List JOURNEY Book Awards for Overcoming Adversity in Narrative Non-Fiction
The Journey Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Overcoming Adversity in Narrative Non-Fiction and Memoir. The Journey Book Awards is a genre division of Chanticleer International Book Awards and Novel Competitions (CIBAs).

Chanticleer International Book Awards is looking for the best books featuring true stories about adventures, life events, unique experiences, travel, personal journeys, global enlightenment, and more. We will put books about true and inspiring stories to the test and choose the best among them. See our full list of Non-Fiction Divisions here.

These titles have moved forward in the judging rounds from all 2024 Journey Non-Fiction entries to the 2024 Journey Book Awards LONG LIST. Entries below are now in competition for 2024 Journey Short List. The Short Listers will compete for the Semi-Finalist positions. Finalists will be selected from the Semi-Finalists. All FINALISTS will be announced and recognized at the Chanticleer Authors Conference (CAC25).

The First Place Category Winners, along with the CIBA Division Grand Prize winners, will be selected from the 25 CIBA divisions’ Finalists.

We will announce the 1st Place Category winners and Grand Prize Division Winners at the CIBAs Banquet and Ceremony on Saturday, April 5th, 2025 in beautiful Bellingham, WA at the Four Points by Sheraton sponsored by the 2025 Chanticleer Authors Conference.

These titles are in the running for the SHORT LIST of the 2024 Journey Book Awards novel competition for Overcoming Adversity in Non-Fiction!

Join us in celebrating the Long List authors and their works in the 2024 CIBAs.
- Michael Salsbury – Running From Tragedy
- Lynne Spriggs O’Connor – Elk Love: A Montana Memoir
- Jane Kim Yu – Journey of Awakening and Higher Consciousness
- Shannon Bohrer – Judicial Soup
- Judie Dziezak – Petals from Mars: A Memoir of Resilience and Triumph over Adversity
- Carolyn Saletto – One Hazel Green Eye
- M. Lorrie Miller – Invitation to Co-Creation: A Spiritual Path from Child Abuse and Religious Trauma to Love, Healing, and Oneness
- Tamra McAnally Bolton – His 100th Year
- Kirsten Throneberry – Guided: Lost Love, Hidden Realms, and the Open Road
- Irena Smith – The Golden Ticket: A Life in College Admissions Essays
- Aja Mia – The Heartbreak of Time Travel
- Jennifer Gasner – My Unexpected Life: Finding Balance Beyond My Diagnosis
- Kathryn Caraway – Unfollow Me
- Jill Vanneman – The Betterment Campaign
- C.J. Hudson – Destiny Lives on Fairhaven Street
- Linda M. Lockwood – Sky Ranch: Reared in the High Country
- Etsuko Diamond Miyagi – Diamond – The Memoir of a Lost Daughter of Japan
- Karen Elizabeth Lee – The Village That Betrayed its Children
- Liz Alterman – Sad Sacked
- Anne Gately – Sunburnt – A memoir of sun, surf and skin cancer
- Patrick Hogan – Coincidence, you say?
- Natalie Kohlhaas – Hello Anxiety My Old Friend: Harness Your Invisible Superpower
- Rachael Siddoway and Sonja Wasden – An Impossible Life: A True Story of Hope and Mental Illness
- Léonie Rosenstiel – Protecting Mama: Surviving the Legal Guardianship Swamp
- Ernestine Whitman – Countermelodies: A Memoir in Sonata Form
- Jacqueline Acho – Cancer Culture: Fixing the Landscape by Infusing Empathy
- Kathi N. Miner – The Committed Professor – My Fall from the Lectern to the Ward
- Jennifer Cramer-Miller – Incurable Optimist: Living with Illness and Chronic Hope
- Bridey Thelen-Heidel – Bright Eyes
- Ginelle Testa – Make a Home Out of You
- Deborah L. Staunton – Untethered
- E. Adrienne Wilson – I’d Rather Be Dead Than Deaf: A Young Woman’s Journey with Liver Cancer
- Lindsey Henke – When Skies Are Gray
- Turtle – Turtle
- Heidi Beierle – Heidi Across America – One Woman’s Journey on a Bicycle through the Heartland
- Claudia Marseille – But You Look So Normal: Lost and Found in a Hearing World
- Mary Jumbelic, M.D. – Here, Where Death Delights
- Lisa Rhyne – Coming Out of the Metaphysical Closet
- David H. Hutton – Drums of a Distant Tribe
- Tracy Mayo – Childless Mother: A Search for Son and Self
- Marsha Jacobson – The Wrong Calamity
- Anna Casamento Arrigo – Weeds Beneath the Open Meadows
- Ana Manwaring – Saints and Skeletons A Memoir
- David Vass – Liar, Alleged
Good luck to all as your works move on to the next rounds of judging.

PROMOTING OUR AUTHORS!

This post has been posted on the Chanticleer Facebook Page. We try to tag all authors listed here in the Facebook post. However, it is easier for us to tag authors when they have Liked and Followed us on Facebook.

Please click here to visit our page to LIKE, COMMENT, and SHARE on Facebook.

We will also be promoting this list in our Newsletter, which you can sign up for here!

Good luck to all as your works move on to the next rounds of judging.

The Grand Prize Winner for the CIBA 2023 JOURNEY Awards is:

Barbed: A Memoir

By Julie Morrison

See the full list of 2023 First Place Journey Winners here!

We are now accepting submissions into the 2025 Journey Book Awards for Overcoming Adversity in Narrative Non-Fiction.

Please click here for more information.

Winners will be announced at the 2024 CIBA Awards Ceremony that is sponsored by the 2025 Chanticleer Authors Conference.

April 3 – 6, 2025! Save the Date for Registration!

Seating is Limited. The esteemed WRITER Magazine (founded in 1887) has repeatedly recognized the Chanticleer Authors Conference as one of the best conferences to attend and participate in for North America.

Join us for our annual conference as we enter our second decade and discover why!
August 1, 2024