Jolibro Publishing

29/08/2024

What have you read lately?

22/08/2024

Now we know how to use our old dining room chairs!

22/07/2024

🛸 You probably expect us to share the 5-star reviews PERCEPTION is receiving on NetGalley, Goodreads, and Amazon. (Please do go read them!) But we love🥰 this review from *The Book Raven* blog because it so clearly explains what some readers will love most about the book, which is unique among speculative sci fi suspense novels:

"Downey's world-building is intriguing. She blends elements of conspiracy theory with a touch of mysticism, creating a captivating scenario where psychic abilities hold a key role in national security. The exploration of this concept is sure to spark the imaginations of readers interested in the unexplained."

Read the full review here, which even lists which elements might turn you on, or off, depending on your interests:

https://the-book-raven.blogspot.com/2024/07/a-mind-bending-look-at-alien-encounters.html

11/07/2024

06/07/2024

“5 Stars: This book is an exhilarating thrill ride that seamlessly blends science fiction, suspense, and a touch of the supernatural. The protagonist, Minda Blake, is a compelling character whose psychic abilities and moral courage drive the narrative forward in unexpected ways. As she goes from being a key player in a black-ops operation to a fugitive, the stakes quickly escalate, making for an intense and captivating read.”—Aislinn Brophy, educator

“…There are enough twists, cliffhanger chapter endings, and rich details about the Dutch Reformed community to set this gripping book apart from similar SF novels.”—Kirkus Reviews

“A fascinating science fiction story about Minda Blake who struggles to reveal the government’s UAP secrets with collaborators and confronts unexpected obstacles. Time will tell whether this fantastic work of fiction is real and should be integrated into the future of science.”—Avi Loeb, bestselling author of Extraterrestrial and Interstellar; director of Harvard’s Institute for Theory and Computation and the Galileo Project

“5 Stars: I really became enthralled with the story and the characters, and the ending was quite a surprise in many ways! The characters are so richly drawn that I felt I knew them. The plot is intricate, and the details are vivid, weaving sci-fi fantasy together with real events.”—M.L. Benrubi, photographer

“5 Stars: I enjoyed this spiritual sci-fi adventure novel which had good characterization. I look forward to book two.”—Graisi O’Hara, media/journalist/book reviewer

05/07/2024

Quintessential San Diego in the summertime: Tesla? Check. Surfboard? Check. Turn off to Ocean Beach? Coming right up.

02/07/2024

Am I celebrating World UFO Day? You bet! Just read my book, *PERCEPTION,* now available for pre-orders and officially released on July 6. It has already received 5-and 4-star reviews on NetGalley. (It's a free site for people willing to review books.)

In honor of the day, here's a sneak peek into Chapter 1, accompanied by some wonderful AI art courtesy of Joseph Downey.

Chapter 1
"All her training said she must protect this lie.

"All her patriotic oaths and vows, spoken and written and sworn, told Minda Blake that she must keep this secret, that it would save lives, including her own.

"But that was not true. The lie was already killing her. So said Blackthorn’s company doctor.

"He had no idea what she did for the government contractor. That was classified. But he said she had the symptoms of a new disease he called “moral injury.”

“Kind of like PTSD but with a less tangible cause. It’s what happens when, day after day, you violate your inner sense of what’s right.”
When he rattled off the symptoms, she had them all: sleepless nights, headaches, nausea. Suicidal reveries.

“Military drone pilots. They’re the first ones who brought it to our attention.”

She stared at him blankly.

“See, they watch a guy halfway across the planet, maybe for weeks. Watch him eat, pray, play with his kids. The technology is so refined now they can see a fly land on his nose. Once our pilot confirms that this is the guy they’re after, bam.”

He fluttered his hands to mimic oblivion.

“But our pilot, safe and sound in his little cubicle somewhere in North America—he’s the one who gave the confirmation. And he’s the guy—or gal, sorry.”

He focused on her for a moment before he returned to the scene in his mind, clearly clocking that she was a woman with enough curves to prove it. The scrutiny made her blush.

“Our pilot,” he amended, “is the one who’s still watching the screen when the guy gets blown to bits. Literally. Everyone screaming, wife and kids running to where he’d been standing moments before.”

He looped the stethoscope back over his neck, shaking his gray head in disgust. “Drone assassination,” he spat as he pulled off his gloves. “It violates centuries of the warrior’s code, that of mutual risk.”

"He ran a hand through the spiky Marine cut that probably reminded him of back in the day—before he retired to work for her mercenary bosses.

“Moral injury. Slow-motion spiritual suicide—self-imposed. It blows them apart just like the bodies they obliterate on command. Karma’s a bitch, so some try to get it over with. The quick way.”

He looked at her significantly and Min knew what he meant. She’d found herself studying her mother’s bathtub one day, wondering how long it would take to bleed out.

This doctor was a real bouquet of lollipops.

She had never killed anyone—directly. But over the years she worked for Blackthorn, she’d come to believe that her job was taking life from people merely by keeping the truth a secret. If they knew what she knew, the world might gather in its wrongs and release all its delayed goodness into society.

The doctor didn’t ask her what she did every day; he knew she’d have to lie. Instead he offered her drugs, which she refused. Remote viewers can’t take psychotropic substances. They would impair her psychic clarity, never mind the potential for ugly side effects, including addiction. He gave her a business card for the company shrink, which she promptly threw away.

She never went back to him. Couldn’t risk Blackthorn finding out.

The black ops government contractor she worked for wasn’t one to coddle the infirm. But Blackthorn’s doctor had answered her most pressing question.

Thanks to him, she knew what she had to do. She just didn’t know how yet." -- Excerpt from Perception by Lianne Downey, Chapter 1

Available now from all your favorite booksellers! Just ask.

01/07/2024

Fun at the American Library Association Conference in San Diego with Lonesome for Wilderness by Linda Jo Hunter, a proud Jolibro book!

20/06/2024

We didn't do it on purpose! But it turns out "coincidentally" that this long-awaited book's release coincides exactly with the 77th anniversary of the "Roswell incident" in New Mexico, in 1947. And it's likely to be just as controversial. Maybe more.

Even more exciting, it bears an endorsement from Dr. Avi Loeb, head of the Harvard's far-reaching "Galileo Project for the Systematic Scientific Search for Evidence of Extraterrestrial Technological Artifacts." He wrote:

“A fascinating science fiction story about Minda Blake who struggles to reveal the government's UAP secrets with collaborators and confronts unexpected obstacles. Time will tell whether this fantastic work of fiction is real and should be integrated into the future of science.”—Avi Loeb, bestselling author of "Extraterrestrial" and "Interstellar,” and director of Harvard University's Institute for Theory and Computation

Praise from others:

“An engaging tale with plenty of genre intrigue to satisfy SF fans. This mind-bending SF novel combines mysticism with thrills. … there are enough twists, cliffhanger chapter endings, and rich details about the Dutch Reformed community to set this gripping book apart from similar SF novels.”—Kirkus Reviews

"The characters are so richly drawn that I felt I knew them. The plot is intricate, and the details are vivid, weaving sci-fi fantasy together with real events. Fans of space travel and UFOs will appreciate how the story explores new vistas and hopeful possibilities for the future. I highly recommend this book for anyone who loves a good sci-fi mystery or anyone into space travel and UFOs.”—M. L. Benrubi

"If you’re feeling a compulsion to read this book, trust it. Words are powerful when they are woven with story and energy.” – Linda Jo Hunter, Author of Lonesome for Wilderness

*Perception,* Book One of the Psychics & Aliens Series, is now available for pre-order wherever you buy books (hardcover, paperback or ebook).

19/06/2024

And that’s how you plead for a humane world:

IBBY urges 'all global leaders to work together on behalf of the children of Gaza,' in a careful, thoughtful, non-accusatory statement…

09/06/2024

Linda Jo Hunter talking about her newest book, Lonesome for Wilderness: Tracking and Trailing in Forest, Desert, or Your Own Back Yard, at North Bank Books in Stevenson, WA. By the time she finished this crowd had doubled! Our favorite part was her demonstration of bear body language but the whole talk was fascinating. Lucky us: she took us out to the woods next day.!

29/05/2024

Too true.

28/05/2024

Congratulations to author Linda Jo Hunter for her STARRED* review in Library Journal's June edition!! That's a huge accomplishment for any author, and it is richly deserved in this case!

The reviewer concluded her 100% positive review with:

"VERDICT: A lovely book for nature lovers and for readers interested in wilderness exploration and tracking, filled with both reflection and timeless information."

Lonesome for Wilderness is available now for pre-orders from your favorite booksellers.

* What's a starred review? Library Journal describes it as:

"Books to treasure. Books that create new pathways for thought. Books to shape collections. Books to hand to readers with assured purpose. A starred title has an official meaning at LJ—an exceptional book that is essential for most libraries—but at heart they are books that our reviewers, an insightful and thoughtful cohort, were deeply pleased to read.”

You can read the entire review at this link:

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23/05/2024

Unboxing Linda Jo Hunter’s new book, Lonesome for Wlderness! Jolibro Publishing has the great honor of making this book available everywhere you buy books.

28/04/2024

Day 1: 6 stores, 2.3 miles walked, 1 coffee each, 9 books, one tiny 🦕, an sdbookcrawl sticker, and we won a pin!

02/04/2024

Beware, some will find this fragrance irresistible

13/03/2024

So important!

This is awesome! 📚

23/02/2024

💯 Agree

(source Pinterest)

27/12/2023

Christmas Eve is always a spiritual time for me but this year something inexplicable happened.

Before bed on December 23, after company left and after the fire had subsided to embers, Joseph turned off all the lights, including three sets of battery powered twinklers like the one in the picture. Before I went to bed, I did my usual tour to make sure everything was off, and it was. We slept, got up and went about our Christmas Eve morning.

An hour or so later, I noticed that this little tree that was off all morning had suddenly lit up—all on its own.

Of course I asked but Joseph swore he didn’t touch it (he would never play gaslighting games, he said, no matter how much he likes to tease). We both thought it strange—but kind of laughed about the idea that maybe someone came to visit? After all, Christmas Eve is a day I feel the veil between dimensions thin for me, and that day was no exception. It’s always a quiet, reverent time for me, when I listen deeply.

Still, how could a spirit visitor accomplish that?

We switched it off and went on to other thoughts and tasks until, a couple hours later, we noticed that a different string of battery powered lights across the room had come on, again in broad daylight. All by themselves. Or ??

At that point we just had to say Hello and thank you and we love you too!

It was much later that I remembered the solar powered light affixed to a post on our deck. It was here when we moved in 4 years ago and we switched it off to protect our light sensitive plants. It’s been off for those four years! But this past week, it suddenly turned on. When I checked, there were so many spider webs I couldn’t reach the switch. I wrote it off as just a fluke of weather (or spiders).

But now I think our visitor got busy early, and when that didn’t convey the message, started to play with the indoor lights. Which, btw, I’d felt very strongly about displaying for the first time this year.

Lights, phones, electronics, floral displays—I’ve heard stories that some on the other side can manipulate them. Have you ever experienced this? Or heard such a story? If so, please share. This felt very special.

I’m sure now it was a loved one—but which one? And why now? It’s a Christmas mystery.

12/12/2023

Happy Poinsettia Day!

06/09/2023

Our favorite from the new words added to Dictionary.com in 2023. Let's make it a tradition here, too! I especially like the idea of the quiet evening, reading books in candlelight by a flickering fire, under a cozy blanket with a hot drink and a good companion ...

(I am assured that it will indeed be cold enough ... one day ... soon?) Anyway -- the word means "Yule flood of books" and here's the Dictionary post:

jolabokaflod

noun. an Icelandic tradition in which books are given as Christmas presents and opened on December 24, after which the evening is spent reading the books: from a practice begun in 1944, when paper goods were among the most available items in postwar Iceland.

📝 The name of this charming tradition, pronounced [ yoh-luh–boh-kuh-flawd ], comes from the Icelandic word Jólabókaflóðið that literally translates to “(the) Christmas book flood.” (The first part of the word, Jól, is equivalent to the word Yule.)

01/07/2023

Truth!

20/06/2023

Good advice!

10/06/2023

If you’re out at be sure to stop by the COVR booth to learn more about how we can help support your Mind/Body/Spirit business!

You can also check out all of the finalists in the before we announce the winners tomorrow evening at the Visionary Awards banquet!

11/05/2023

Seriously.

02/05/2023

7 bookstores, 9 books, 2 feasts from Georgia’s Greek, 2 mochas & 1 lemon muffin 2 …and 1 tango lesson from to get us rolling. What a day!

Special thanks to the staff at .books and for going beyond the call on a busy day to get us that tote bag while supplies evaporated as fast as we could walk!

We also visited Wish we had time for more. San Diego has terrific independent bookstores.

23/04/2023

This special, full-color, illustrated Collector's Edition has been nominated for a 2023 COVR* Visionary Award in the Iconic Books Category!! Woo hoo! Want to help it win? Please vote!
Here's the link.
Voting ends April 24, though!
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!!!

01/04/2023

We had fun scoping out Coronado for this article. We’ll be at in May; will we see you there?

PubU is just half the fun—there’s also Coronado Island! Whether you’re looking for the best pastry spot in town or local indie bookstores to support, IBPA member and San Diego publisher Lianne Downey of Jolibro Publishing shares her insider's tips for free or low-cost fun things to do while in San Diego for !

https://www.ibpa-online.org/news/635355/IBPA-Member-Shares-Insiders-Tips-for-Fun-Activities-on-Coronado-Island.htm

21/02/2023

Where we’d like to be …

699 Likes, 16 Comments - One Thousand Libraries 📖 () on Instagram: "📚Amazing sci-fi inspired reading nook! 😍😍😍 Artist: -⁠ -⁠ -⁠ -⁠ # booklover #...