In this sweeping and powerful epic the journey begins in the 'terrible beauty' of Northern Ireland during a time when conflict reigns and no one is spared from tragedy and sorrow, the time known as The Troubles. It is the spring of 1968 in Belfast and James Kirkpatrick has just lost his father under suspicious circumstances, Casey Riordan is released from prison after five years and Pamela O'Flaherty has crossed an ocean and a lifetime of memories to find the man she fell in love with as a little girl. All three lives are on a collision course with each other against the backdrop of the burgeoning civil rights movement and a nation on the brink of revolution. They come from disparate backgrounds-Jamie a wealthy aristocrat whose life is like an imperfect but multi-faceted jewel-brilliant, flawed and with a glitter that is designed to distract the observer. Casey, a card-carrying member of the Irish Republican Army, who must face the fact that five years away has left him a stranger, a misfit in his own neighborhood where not everyone is sympathetic to a convicted rebel. Pamela, who has come to Ireland in search of a memory and a man who may not have existed in the first place. Through it all runs the ribbon of a love story: love of country, the beginnning love of two people unable to resist the pull of each other regardless of the cost to themselves and those around them, and the selfless love of one man who no longer believes himself capable of such emotion. It is an electrifying tale of a people divided by religion and politics, a tale of love and danger, of triumph and tragedy. Ultimately it is the story of that 'terrible beauty' herself-Ireland-and how nation is bound to one's identity, woven into the weft of all we become.

The long awaited sequel to 'Exit Unicorns' opens in the autumn of 1969. Casey and Pamela Riordan have fled the erupting violence of Belfast, Northern Ireland, only to find themselves tangled in the web of political corruption that permeates South Boston. Here, a man's life can hang upon the whim of another, and neighborhood politics and organized crime are one and the same. While Pamela appears to flourish in the arena of Boston Irish society, Casey struggles to survive in a sphere where his presence has become increasingly inconvenient. Betrayed and blackmailed by friend and foe, the Riordans are forced to make desperate choices that bear heavy consequences. In the wake of tragedy, they return to Ireland and an alliance with James Kirkpatrick. It is here the bonds of love are tested - by the bloody price of rebellion, a past that is fraught with dangers of its own, friendships that carry a steep price, and a secret that threatens to tear their lives apart. Set against the backdrop of the gritty streets of Southie and the heartbreaking beauty of Ireland, 'Mermaid in a Bowl of Tears' is a tale of the invincibility of the human spirit, imbued with the passion, humor and magic inherent to the Emerald Isle.

From the dark fairy tale forests of Russia... To the steamy intrigues of a Hong Kong opium den... From ancestral secrets long hidden in a Paris mansion... To the rolling, bloody hills of Ireland during the Troubles... Meticulously researched and brilliantly written, this, the third book in Cindy Brandner's magnificent Exit Unicorns series continues the story of Casey and Pamela Riordan, Pat Riordan and Jamie Kirkpatrick. Trapped by circumstance and the events of his past in the USSR, Jamie Kirpatrick struggles to survive in a hostile environment where not all is as it seems, and blood bonds are forged with enemies in order to survive. In Ireland, Pamela and Casey Riordan attempt to live a normal life amidst deceit, betrayal and an unofficial war that claims more than just blood. Bequeathed a legacy by Jamie Kirkpatrick, they struggle to keep an empire intact but cannot know the surprises that await them. Flights of Angels is not only historical fiction, but equal parts political thriller, love story and fairy tale. Richly embroidered with lush imagery, spanning continents and vastly different cultures, this is an epic tale of country and the turnings of the human heart.