Human Trafficking Exposed rips the mask off human trafficking and throws
it at your feet without sugarcoating the truth. The book drags you straight
into the underground world where children disappear, women are broken, and men
are reduced to disposable labour—all while society pretends not to see.
Drawing from more than 25 years on the frontlines, award‑winning human
trafficking buster Maxwell Matewere delivers an unfiltered,
boots‑on‑the‑ground investigation into one of the world’s
fastest‑growing criminal enterprises worse than slavery.
This is not second‑hand reporting. It is not theory. It is truth wrestled
directly from survivors, traffickers, migration routes, brothels, recruitment
networks, fake job agencies, and the silent corridors where victims are bought
and sold like livestock.
Inside this book, you will encounter:
• Real cases of children trafficked across borders under the guise of
“education.”
• Young girls promised opportunity but delivered into prostitution and
violent sexual captivity.
• Men trapped in forced labour, stripped of pay, papers, and hope.
• Criminal networks operating like corporations—efficient,
ruthless, and invisible.
• Powerful insights into how traffickers weaponize poverty, trust,
promises, and psychological manipulation.
• The myths Americans believe about trafficking—and the
uncomfortable truths no one talks about.
• How victims become “assets,” broken down and exploited
until nothing remains.
This book exposes the global machinery of exploitation—recruiters,
transporters, corrupt officials, fake pastors, greedy relatives, organised
syndicates, migration scammers, and sexual predators—all working
together to turn human suffering into profit.
About the Author
Maxwell Matewere is an internationally recognized legal and crime
prevention expert with 27 years of vast experiences in the areas of human
trafficking and child protection. He is the founder of Eye of the Child, a
child rights organisation in Malawi, and Malawi Network Against Trafficking
(MNAT). In 2020, the US Department of State recognised him as a Global Hero
for championing national responses against human trafficking and successful
rescue and rehabilitation of victims. His expertise specializes in law reform,
advocacy, training, research and designing responses against transnational
organized crimes including supporting victims of human trafficking in Malawi
and their families. Maxwell has committed his professional life to challenge
those who benefit from the exploitation of victims around the world and is
dedicated to ensuring survivors live in freedom.
What if your pain wasn’t holding you back… but pushing you
forward?
From abuse and neglect to crime, addiction, prison, and crushing
debt—Patrick Simiglai’s story is not just about survival.
It’s about transformation.
In Fueled By Pain, ultra-endurance athlete and mental performance coach
Patrick Simiglai shares how he rebuilt his life from the ground up using
discipline, resilience, and 23 powerful mental techniques designed to help you
do the same.
This is not a motivational quick fix.
This is a blueprint for real, lasting change.
Inspired by elite forces like the Danish Frogman Corps, Patrick pushed himself
through extreme physical challenges—ultramarathons, rope climbs, and
marathon swims—discovering that the real battle isn’t in the
body… it’s in the mind.
Inside this powerful book, you’ll discover how to:
• Master your inner dialogue and stop self-sabotage
• Build discipline that lasts beyond motivation
• Develop unshakable mental resilience under pressure
• Break free from addiction, fear, and limiting beliefs
• Turn pain, discomfort, and resistance into your greatest advantage
• Create long-term success through integrity and self-trust
Patrick’s journey—from chaos to clarity—proves that no
matter where you start, you can rebuild your life. Today, he is a successful
entrepreneur, endurance athlete, and mentor helping others unlock their
potential and take control of their lives.
His message is simple—but powerful:
You don’t need a new life. You need a new relationship with yourself.
Pain, resistance, and discomfort are not signs that you’re on the wrong
path. Often, they are proof that you’re walking in the direction of
growth. You don’t have to feel ready. You just have to show up honestly
and keep your word to yourself—especially on the days when no one is
watching.
About the Author
Patrick Simiglai is a Danish ultra-endurance athlete, mental performance
coach, and speaker dedicated to helping individuals transform their lives
through discipline, resilience, and powerful inner dialogue. As the author of
Fueled By Pain, Patrick shares a raw and deeply personal journey of overcoming
adversity and building mental strength from the inside out.
Competing in some of the world’s most grueling ultra-endurance
races—including 200- and 300-mile events across deserts, mountains, and
extreme terrain—Patrick has developed a unique approach to mental
toughness rooted in real-world experience. His work bridges the gap between
extreme physical performance and everyday personal growth, offering practical
tools for leaders, athletes, and teams to perform under pressure with
integrity and consistency.
Patrick’s path to success was anything but conventional. Growing up in a
childhood marked by abuse and later struggling with drug and alcohol
addiction, he understands firsthand the challenges of feeling trapped by your
own thoughts. His transformation—from chaos and self-destruction to
purpose-driven achievement—forms the foundation of his coaching,
speaking, and writing.
Through his work, Patrick emphasizes that true growth begins with mastering
your inner dialogue. His philosophy is simple yet powerful: you don’t
need a new life—you need a new relationship with yourself. By embracing
discomfort, taking responsibility, and committing to disciplined action, he
teaches others how to unlock their full potential and create lasting change.
Originally written in Danish and later rewritten in English as a personal
challenge, Fueled By Pain reflects Patrick’s belief that growth comes
from stepping outside your comfort zone and committing to the process, even
when it’s difficult. Drawing from years of journaling, coaching, and
extreme endurance experiences, the book delivers 23 mental techniques designed
to help readers build resilience, overcome self-doubt, and achieve long-term
success.
Today, Patrick Simiglai works with individuals and organizations worldwide,
inspiring others to confront their limits, strengthen their mindset, and turn
pain into purpose.
Jaded city planner Townsend Meadows looks out across Evermore Valley
with the ghost of his dead friend by his side. “Do you ever
wonder,” Fen asks, “what this city will look like five hundred
years from now?”
Their city is teetering on the brink of collapse, and the mayor’s answer
is a gleaming new auto mall at the valley’s edge. For Townsend,
it’s the death of everything a city should be. Struggling to regain his
passion and forced to choose between compliance and conviction, he must risk
his career to fight for a more hopeful and verdant future.
From an
architect’s vision at the dawn of the twentieth century, to a
rancher’s dynasty scarred by violence and greed, to a city
founder’s hidden message of hope, this story about the rise, fall, and
reawakening of an American city reaches far beyond the present. A timely,
sweeping novel of memory, corruption, and resilience, Death and Life in the
City of Dreams asks, “What legacy will we choose to leave for our
children?”
Interview
What is
the hardest part of writing your books?
I love to
write. But it isn’t a merely mechanical act. I need to be in the right place
mentally, with some quiet space. I work full time in a different profession,
also a creative realm, so it’s sometimes challenging to muster additional
creative drive for my writing.
My solution,
for the last fifteen years, has been to wake at 4 am. The house is quiet and I
can be alone with thoughts and my process.
What are
your most played songs?
I tend to
lock onto a song or a set of songs, and listen to them over and over. I listen
for songs that carry a certain emotional energy, and which illicit mental
images that could fuel the story. But there’s a catch: I cannot listen to music
while I’m writing.
Do you
have critique partners or beta readers?
I have been a
part of two writer’s groups over the past decade or more. Trusted friends and
highly capable writers who share a passion for storytelling excellence.
Something happens in my head, when I read my story out loud to others. I hear
the words and rhythms differently, more acutely. And I have complete trust in
the shared intentions of my writing cohort, that we want to help each other be
the best writers we can be.
What book
are you reading now?
I often
circle back to books I have read and enjoyed, of certain authors whose voices
resonate with me. I will sometimes begin my writing by first reading a bit of
one of these stories. This seems to help me shift away from my analytical brain
to my emotional brain, which is where my best writing resides.
How did
you start your writing career?
I have always
loved to write. But I mostly wrote commentary and exposition, of architecture
and cities, and life. In one of my pieces, I used a vignette of a fictional
situation. It was powerful, and fun to write, and one of my readers asked me if
I’d considered writing a novel. Thus began my adventure, to write Death and
Life in the City of Dreams. Eighteen years later, the novel is complete. And it
was quite an adventure.
Tell
us about your next release.
I have a
collection of short stories that will be released soon. The Boatman in the
Shadows is a collection of stories about the last day of something; a threshold
of someone’s life. These stories are varied, sometimes surreal, psychological,
and very human. There is darkness, but always ending in the light.
About the Author
Nicholas Deitch is a writer, architect, and advocate for social justice whose
fiction explores the intersection of cities, history, and human resilience.
His passion for storytelling began when a colleague recognized the emotional
depth of his nonfiction work. Since then, he has honed his craft, publishing
short stories in Litro Magazine, Club Plum, and Santa Barbara Literary
Journal. His short story “Grace Eternal” won Best Fiction at the
Santa Barbara Writers Conference (2019).
Death and Life in the City of Dreams, his debut novel, is deeply influenced by
his experiences in nonprofit leadership and the design of inclusive
communities and urban places.
Originally from Los Angeles, he now lives in Ventura, California, with his
wife and creative partner Diana.
Ivy Leigh’s a feisty eleven, almost twelve-year-old who could never imagine using a fist to solve a problem. But that was before. Before Momma died. Before her BFFs, Lizzie and Ruthie, started pressuring her to change. Before they told her that Michael, the cutest boy in school, has a crush on her. And, before two jealous bullies—Rachel and Winona teamed up to badger her on the bus and at school. Rachel calls her ‘Poison Ivy.’ Winona shoves her into a crowd at school. Hurt and humiliated, Ivy Leigh, on impulse, fights back. It’s a mistake she instantly regrets.
Ruthie and Lashonna know these bullies. They know their backstories and where they’ve come from. But they’re not the only ones. A cast of quirky characters like Mr. Winters, the wannabe cowboy next door who speaks his advice in the language of old-world slogans. There’s Miss Aurelia, an old hippy, whose eyes don’t work so well anymore, but who has a special kind of wisdom she shares with Ivy Leigh. And there’s Momma’s best friend, Miss Neola, who takes Ivy under her wing, and helps her understand that bullies have struggles too.
In the end, Ivy stands up for herself, not with a fist, but with a heart, walking in the shoes of Rachel and Winona, Lizzie and Ruthie, and even Grandma and her sister, Viv, who all struggle with loss and loneliness and sometimes misunderstanding too. Ivy soon learns that through all of this, she has never been alone, that Momma is still living in her midst, under that strawberry moon they both loved so much.
Excerpt
Chapter One: The Package
“She’s coming for you, Peachy.”
He leaped off the bed and scrambled toward me. Together, we stood at the window, watching. I’d heard the roar of that muffler. The sound of the crash. It all spelled trouble. Up until now, Peachy was unknown to her. But I knew it would never stay that way. Dad was at work. She always knew the perfect time to strike.
“That was Mom’s gnome!” Nat’s shriek pierced the air, and I knew this was going to be bad. I took the stairs two at a time, in boxers and a tank top, with Peachy trailing behind. It was early on a Saturday, Viv was still in bed, and I hadn’t even brushed my teeth. But that never mattered to Grandma. This was a surprise attack; we were in her sights, and she had a total takeover in mind. I tucked Peachy away in his crate and latched him in tight before heading out to the front porch to see what was going on.
And there she was. Bulb shaped and full of bluster, Grandma stood with Nat at her side, staring down at the smashed garden gnome. He was pink-faced with a green hat and a little red jacket. Mom named him ‘Happy.’ He made her laugh just to look at him in the midst of her treatments and trips to and from the hospital. But now Happy was here all smashed up in the garden, and Mom had been gone for almost a whole awful year.
“That is the tackiest thing! People will question the sort of people who live in a house with a thing like that out front!”
Things went quiet for a moment, I don’t think Nat even knew what to say to that.
But I knew this wasn’t going to be about the garden gnome. She’d come about Peachy who we’d hidden from her for a whole two weeks. But I’d had a funny feeling about that lately, Grandma had eyes and ears everywhere.
A minute later, I heard the squeak of metal behind me. And then, to my shock and surprise, the screen door flew open. Within seconds, Peachy bolted out, lunged at Grandma and nearly knocked her off her feet. How on earth did he get out of there, I thought.
“This! she bellowed. “This is exactly why I’m here!” Her face was wrinkled, powdered and puffed, with a coat of bright red lipstick smeared across her lips. Cruella had nothing on her. A true animal hater, she shrieked again at the sight of him.
I came running down the sidewalk then and scooped Peachy up in my arms. “It’s okay, boy,” I said, rubbing his peach-colored fur and holding him close.
“It is not okay! That dog has accosted the neighbors and now he’s attacked me! Always on the loose, with no training and no hope of it at all. Why was I not told about him?”
About the Author
Gael Lynch is a writer and storyteller, a teacher whose love of kids and furry
creatures has followed her throughout her life. She now lives in coastal
Carolina, a place of sunny beaches and warm breezes with her husband Tom and
her rambunctious golden retriever, Wrigley. However, Newtown, Connecticut,
with its pastoral beauty and kind-hearted people will always be a place she
calls home.
In his first collection of short stories Joe Cappello presents an array
of characters whom he describes as having “rocks in their heads.”
Instead of accepting the hand life has dealt them, they pursue more outlandish
solutions to its problems. The reader witnesses firsthand the zany antics
these characters employ to cope with the situations they encounter in each
story: Mortality…daring to know death’s secret and determined to
face it without fear and dread; Workplace… seeking an environment that
is based on teamwork and respect, rather than fear and intimidation;
Family…taking extraordinary steps to unite an estranged family and to
bring another closer together; Language…re-establishing the sacred role
of words in our lives as a unifier of people and a conveyor of truth. All told
with a healthy dose of humor and a belief that life can be joyful, hopeful and
a down-right hoot.
About the Author
Joe Cappello’s creative life began when he accepted a minor
speaking role in a play, walked on stage for the first time, and came to the
terrifying realization that, “Oh, no, they sold tickets!”
Fortunately, he overcame his initial stage fright and began accepting roles in
community theatre, the parts of Oscar Madison in “The Odd Couple”
and Ivan Lomov in “The Proposal” among his favorites. He studied
acting in New York City and performed in a couple of Off-Off Broadway
productions including Sam Shepherd’s “Buried Child,” where
he played the crotchety, whiney patriarch, Dodge (a part for which his wife
felt he was uniquely suited).
He wrote and produced plays for children, awarding roles to his sons and other
kids in his neighborhood (earning the gratitude of their parents who
considered rehearsals free babysitting). He started writing adult plays and
received a number of accolades including an honorable mention in the 2020
Bridge Award contest sponsored by Arts in the Armed Forces (AIAF) for his
full-length play, “The Stars of Orion” and selection as the winner
of the 2022 Susan Hansell Drama Award for his one act play,
“Monarch.”
But the logistics of staging plays proved too time consuming. In his early
30's he started writing short stories and flash fiction pieces and submitting
them for publication. Many of the stories presented in this collection have
been published in online magazines and anthologies, and some have achieved
recognition, most notably, “The Secret of the Smiling Rock Man,”
First Place, National Federation of Press Women’s Communications Contest
(2022); “They Only Showed Elvis from the Waist Up,” First Place,
Southwest Writers Writing Contest (2023); and “Running Errands,”
Finalist, Hemingway Shorts Competition, sponsored by the Ernest Hemingway
Foundation of Oak Park (2023).
Joe invites you to read more of his work and follow his
anything-but-straight-line career at joecappelloauthor.com.
An Unlikely Journey from Lifeguard Tower to Launchpad
Narrative Nonfiction/Inspirational
Date Published: August 4th, 2026
Publisher: Acorn Publishing
No Straight Lines to the Stars is the inspiring true story of a young
lifeguard who dared to believe his life could reach far beyond the horizon.
On the beaches of Southern California, Ken Kisco learned that preparation
saves lives. From rip-current rescues to split-second emergencies, he
discovered that courage is not the absence of fear, but the decision to act in
spite of it. Those early lessons in resilience and composure pushed Ken to
believe he could accomplish anything . . . including his lifelong dream of
reaching the stars.
Through relentless perseverance and unwavering faith, Ken rose into the heart
of America’s most advanced space and defense programs, contributing to
human spaceflight initiatives and supporting groundbreaking technologies. His
unusual start as a lifeguard helped advance his career, distinguishing him
from his Air Force and Navy peers. Yet, his toughest challenges were
personal—he faced deep disappointment when a space mission was canceled
and learned lessons about trust and integrity from a romance-turned-ruse.
Ken’s journey reveals that success is rarely linear. Setbacks became
launchpads, adversity became refinement, and purpose became a compass. Part
memoir, part inspiration, and part behind-the-scenes look at America’s
quest for the stars, this is the unforgettable story of a man who proves that
bold dreams, combined with grit and heart, can launch an ordinary life into an
extraordinary one.
About the Author
At ten years old, Ken Kisco dreamed of becoming a rocket scientist, a
goal that shaped his life. He earned multiple degrees, including master's
degrees from the University of Southern California in systems management and
from San Jose State University in industrial psychology.
As an aerospace systems engineer for NASA, Rockwell International, and Boeing,
he developed new technologies and earned recognition as an American Institute
of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Fellow.
Ken now shares his passion by mentoring USC engineering students, inspiring
them to dream boldly. When not traveling, he and his wife enjoy San Diego's
beaches, where they live.
When injuries put an end to the figure skating career of Angela
Fernandez Parnell, she joins the Peace Corps.
She is assigned to Tunis where she falls in love with U.S. diplomat James
Whitcomb. At the conclusion of their tours of duty, they marry. Within weeks
of the wedding, he is taken captive in the Iranian Hostage Crisis of 1979-81.
James, held hostage in the U.S. Embassy in Teheran, endures the same demons
that afflicted the real life hostages during the actual crisis 45 years ago.
Angie, biting her nails at home, endures her own demons. How can she support
him? Should she join efforts to force the president into negotiating a
release? Or even a rescue?
When the ordeal finally ends fourteen months later, the couple faces a new set
of demons. Rebuilding their life together as they each recuperate from their
own PTSDs.
Interview
What is the hardest part of writing
your books?
Refusing
to let them take over my life. I write historical fiction of the late 20th
century. Crafting stories that bring the past to life for people is so much fun
that I have to force myself to put it aside when I come to the end of my
allotted time for it each day.
What are your most played songs?
Great
question. Since my novels are late 20th century historical fiction, the
songs must relate to the story line. They also must be standards for the time
rather than some esoteric thing nobody will recognize today.
GOODBYE
DEMONS, for example, is set in the Iranian Hostage Crisis of 1979-81, “Tie a
Yellow Ribbon Round the Old Oak Tree” played a role because the yellow ribbon
had been a theme of people showing support for the hostages. When the lead
character, Angie has a crisis in Chapter 1, Paul McCartney is singing “Let it
Be” in the background. And when her favorite ex-Beatle John Lennon is killed,
Angie plays “Imagine.”
GOODBYE
BOBBY, set in Bobby Kennedy’s 1968 presidential campaign, introduces the
character Angie who at the time is 9 years. The Beatle’s “Yesterday” plays
shortly after the death of Angie’s mother But her stepfather Charlie prevents
her from playing Peter Paul and Mary’s “Puff the Magic Dragon” because he
thinks it glorified marijuana.
GOODBYE
CUBA, set in the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, tells how Charlie came to be
Angie’s stepfather. The two main songs are Pete Seegar’s “Guantanamera” and the
Irish folk song “Kevin Barry.”
THE
JEEPTOWN SONG HOP, set in the 1950s, gives the backstory on Charlie as a
teen-ager. He starts a dance band and organizes a sock hop he hopes will unit
his Black and his White friends. Included are “Sunny Side of the Street,”
“Accentuate the Positive,” and “Melancholy Baby” which is sung by his Black
girlfriend Clarice.
Do you have critique partners or beta
readers?
I’m
a long term member of The Twin Cities Fiction Writers critique group, and they
have ripped apart every chapter of GOODBYE DEMONS, sometimes more than once.
But if it is a good novel today, a lot of that is due to the critiques I’ve
received from the group.
In
addition, I always use at least one beta reader. You need the input of someone
who sees the whole novel at one time, and critique group members never have
that experience. They respond to one chapter or scene at at time.
What book are you reading now?
At
the moment I’m writing Cold War fiction from the 1940s and 50s, so that’s what
I’m reading is from that era. It’s hard to beat Jane Heany’s “The Women of
Arlington Hall” about the incredible team of women analysts who cracked the
Russian code and uncovered a nest of Soviet spies in the U.S. government.
How
did you start your writing career?
Late
in my career as a college professor, I gave my class a term paper project in
which they read a piece of historical fiction. The papers they turned in were
so-so, but one young woman, read a novel set in Boston about 1950. It wasn’t
even a particularly good novel, but I will never forget her coming up to me to
tell me about it. I remember her name. I remember her face. I remember her
enthusiasm. And I remember what she said. “Professor, I wish I could have lived
in those times?”
Those
words got me to understand something. Historical fiction can touch people
viscerally in a way that social science scholarship and standard history
cannot. And down deep inside I knew that this is want I wanted to do.
Tell us about your next release.
In
the last year of WWII, P-38 fighter pilot Sonny Marino gets shot down and
injured over Nazi controlled Romania. He is rescued by a Resistance team. One
of the team member is a German woman, Lili Engler, who is tasked with escorting
him to a hidden landing site where he can be flown back to his base in Italy.
The two fall in love. He wants her to join him on the plane back to Italy, but
she refuses because she is dedicated to her work in the Resistance. They pledge
to meet up with each other in Berlin when the war ends. The story develops on
their efforts to keep that pledge.
About the Author
Historical thriller author JJ Harrigan is a former US Service Officer
and political science professor. He scribbles his tales of intrigue on the
banks of the St. Croix River in Minnesota, where he lives with his wife,
Sandy.
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