Books published by publisher Black Rose Writing

"Wasted Pretty is a beautiful, touching novel that I wish I had when I was all of the things Alice Burton was: a fierce, strong teenager learning how to navigate her changing body, developing heart, and powerful mind." –Mayim Bialik, Big Bang Theory, Blossom, and founder of Grok NationDuring junior year of high school, star student and stellar lacrosse player Alice Burton grew four inches, and, thanks to her mom’s experimental health food products, shed twenty pounds. Alice has mixed feelings about her surprising transformation.On the plus side: Chris Thompson, the hot college guy she has a crush on, talks to her.On the minus side: Her dad's creepy friend, professional athlete Karl Bell, lets his eyes, and his hugs, linger too long.After a disturbing encounter in a dark hallway, Alice realizes the response some men have to her new body isn’t just disgusting, it’s dangerous. Her life is further complicated by her parents’ crumbling finances and the family’s entanglement with Karl.Set in Pittsburgh in 1992, Wasted Pretty is about a girl determined to protect her body, her future, and her heart.

Mom's Choice Award WinnerIs your child afraid of the dark? Are you having trouble with bedtime? You are not alone! Even those least likely to have a fear of the dark may have a story to share. In this book, you will meet Brady, a bat who oddly has a terrible fear of the dark. This poses quite a dilemma for a creature that sleeps in a dark cave and comes out to play at night. Learn how Brady discovers a creative way to solve this problem...with a little help from some friends.

Trained to be an assassin to the King of Fallen Angels, Lucian has had enough. With all of hell looking the other way, he weaves a plan to take heaven for himself. His search for a map to the Tree of Life ran cold until 17-year-old Anthony’s mother was abducted, flushing his family out of hiding.Unaware of his lineage, Anthony is thrust into a world he never knew existed. Under the guise of safety, Anthony and his brothers are locked away by a secret society. Not knowing who to trust, Anthony seeks the help of two sisters to escape The Order and take matters into his own hands.As Anthony discovers the truth surrounding this age-old battle, he learns the role he was born to play. With the fate of the world in his hands, Anthony must decide what he is willing to sacrifice in order to win.

Three girls…Three dead bodies…The quiet town of Craven Falls is depleting in population. One by one…Scarlet Fitzgerald thought it would be fun to play a game on Laura Stevenson, a nobody at Craven Falls High. But what happens when the game unleashes buried secrets Scarlet doesn’t want anyone to know? Secrets that could get someone killed, including herself.Three can play a game, but one of them ends up dead…

"An engaging read, particularly for cat lovers, and a promising debut." –Kirkus ReviewsTwelve-year-old Vivie and her family flee for their lives during the 1956 Soviet invasion of Hungary. Despite the trials and travails of life on the run—starvation, trauma, fear—Vivie remains haunted by the fate of her beloved feline, Norsk, whom she was forced to leave behind. She develops a lifelong affinity for the strays and ferals she encounters during their escape, seeing both her current situation and Norsk’s reflected in their existence on the street—skinny, scared, and without a real home. During this arduous journey, Vivie is cautioned to safeguard her true identity because of those who wish to do her harm. Bound for the United States, Poppa entrusts her with a butcher-paper-wrapped packet containing this family secret. It is a secret that must be protected at all costs. A secret Vivie guards for the remainder of her life.

Secret Seekers Society and the Beast of Bladenboro follows the young protagonists Hunter Glenn and Elly Ann through an adventure ripe with adversity, paranormal monsters, secret societies, and most haunting of all, a life without their parents. Both siblings suffer emotional struggle from the sudden loss of their parents, as well as their physical journey into a new and strange “home”; an ancient and creepy mansion known only as the Belmonte Estate. The children slowly unravel the secrets of their parents’ true identities, the origin of the strange mansion and their inheritance into an ancient secret society of monster hunters.

This book is a Mom's Choice Award Recipient. Is your child afraid of the dark? Are you having trouble with bedtime? You are not alone! Even those least likely to have a fear of the dark may have a story to share. In this book you will meet Brady, a bat who oddly has a terrible fear of the dark. This poses quite a dilemma for a creature that sleeps in a dark cave and comes out to play at night. Learn how Brady discovers a creative way to solve this problem...with a little help from some special, glowing friends.

Lily Madison-Vaughn and Gemma Perry may not have wanted uber-unpopular Taylor French at their party—but they certainly didn’t want her dead. But when the unthinkable happens, Lily and Gemma fear for their futures and quickly shift into cover-up mode. Meanwhile, television producer Freddy Levin blows into town to film a new reality show based on the privileged and glamorous students of Bel Air High. The missing student angle is too juicy for Freddy to resist. Lily and Gemma concoct an elaborate ruse to keep Taylor’s death a secret while they jockey for air time and celeb status. With cameras constantly rolling and their clique acting stranger and stranger, the girls search frantically for a way out of the mess they’ve made. But where do you turn when your popularity is on the line and everyone has a secret?

"Readers of all ages will be challenged and enlightened by the author’s sensitive approach to confronting lies, death, and sorrow." –Authors ReadingTo a ten-year-old, death is far from kind: it is imprisonment! To help the living get to their next day, Peter is required to work in the “Conservatory,” a library where every person is represented by a “LifeBook.” Turning the pages of LifeBooks is excruciatingly dull, so Peter plots his escape! However, that would ruin Apius’ evil plan to obtain an Ancient Hourglass that controls time. With the hourglass in hand, all of the guarded souls in the LifeBooks could be his, making him unstoppable.

Crystal Rose, a 17-year-old high school junior, and her younger brother were abandoned by their drug-addicted mother fifteen years ago in an Alaskan Native village, an event which Crystal resented for years. However, when she learns that her mother was raped in high school, Crystal declares war against a society which reduces girls to their looks, forcing them to feel worthless without the approval of guys. While living in a small Alaskan town, she starts The War Blog website, along with her best friend and crush Kato--a brilliant Native boy--attacking everything promoting female objectification and offering ways to fight back, all supplemented by her original songs. Crystal rises from nothing in the wilds of Alaska to become a champion for change, risking her life against men who would force her to keep silent. She faces her parents' abusive past and fights for a better world.

In a time when hardship and famine rule the country, one boy finds an oasis of magic and the strength to fight for it.The Dust Bowl uprooted a lot of families and orphaned even more children. No one knows this better than Nat, a teenager who rides the rails from town to town looking for work. After helping a girl accused of witchcraft, Nat stumbles upon a home for wayward children run by a vibrant woman named Camille. She takes in children who have been thrown away and teaches them how to use their untapped potential to do extraordinary things...like magic.In this crazy new place, there are wonders he's never imagined possible. People who can paint portraits of ghosts, walk through walls, and hide windmills in thin air. But in a time of starvation and fear, Camille's magical home comes under attack from people who fear and discriminate against her. It is up to Nat and the other children to rally behind Camille to save their oasis in the dust from utter ruin.

El Buscador has long been legendary for revealing, to select visitors, New York’s secrets. Now he confronts his greatest challenge: the real estate mogul Timothy Terrance Tolland has been erecting skyscrapers at an alarming rate. Tolland’s mysterious construction at Canal Street threatens to tear the city’s fabric. Aided by a group of investigative reporters, El Buscador looks to bring Tolland down before his building forever transforms the skyline.But the battle also goes on below the street as Tolland has initiated a campaign of dyeing the city’s rats blue so that the vermin become as much of his brand as his buildings. Follow along on El Buscador’s adventures as he takes the reader to little-known places – from underground streams to forgotten tombs to rat pits – and unearths secrets long buried in the city. Ultimately, his battle with Tolland spectacularly exposes nefarious plans that will surprise even jaded New Yorkers.