Centaur Books

Centaur Books Specializing in fiction, Centaur Books is dedicated to helping first-time and seasoned authors.

Based in Chicago, Centaur Books is an independent imprint of Joshua Tree Publishing. Specializing in fiction, Centaur Books is dedicated to helping first-time and seasoned authors in their writing careers.

“Whether you are a first-time author or an established one, we have the expertise to make your book a success by using cutting-edge technology and a network of experts. With 27 years of experie

nce, we know how to publish books,” John Paul Owles, President of Joshua Tree Publishing remarked.companies that are really vanity presses in disguise. While choosing that route may very well be a means to getting published, a writer's reputation is tarnished by association with companies whose main goal is to charge your credit card rather than read your book. That is why Joshua Tree Publishing started a new imprint called Centaur Books.

It All Happened Living MiraclesAuthor: Jenn Daniels 13-Digit ISBN: 978-0-9886577-9-3 (Centaur Books)Specs: 6" x 9" Perfe...
02/05/2014

It All Happened Living Miracles

Author: Jenn Daniels
13-Digit ISBN: 978-0-9886577-9-3 (Centaur Books)
Specs: 6" x 9" Perfect Bound; 120 Pages
Publication Date: October 23, 2013
Retail Price: $14.95

It All Happened Living Miracles

Joan’s childhood wasn’t an easy one. Somehow, she could never quite accept life as a normal person. Her fears, coldness, and rather shallow feelings toward love, perhaps, were attributed to the environment she was forced to grow up in.

The difficulties in her life began when she was only six years old. Her parents were separated a few years prior, and Joan had been living with her mother in Cincinnati, Ohio. Now, with the costs of living expenses mounting, Joan’s mother had to make a grueling judgment—she decided to send Joan to some friends of the family who lived in a small town in Indiana. Although her mother was saddened, this was the only option available at the time—and it could give Joan some much needed stability.

On a Saturday afternoon, twelve-year old Joan decided to walk in to town. She almost passed the Roxy Theatre before the marquee caught her eye proclaiming, The B. A. Mansfield Show-Live in Person. A school friend, who worked as an usher, noticed her and let her in the side door. Joan sat spellbound throughout the entire show. Everything gave her an air of excitement, from the dancing girls to the lights.

That afternoon changed Joan’s life as she was given a part in the play after winning a talent contest. Her good looks and innocence brought her attention from the theater people. Keeping her real age a secret, she went on the road with that play, and others. Eventually she would find herself on stage in New York City.

Still underage, Joan embarked on a life young girls dream about in the big city. She searched for romance, was pursued by wealthy suitors, and discovered who Joan really was.

THE SCAR LETTERSAuthor: Richard Alther13-Digit ISBN: 978-0-9886577-2-4 (Centaur Books)Specs: 6" x 9" Perfect Bound 236 P...
06/11/2013

THE SCAR LETTERS
Author: Richard Alther
13-Digit ISBN: 978-0-9886577-2-4 (Centaur Books)
Specs: 6" x 9" Perfect Bound 236 Pages
Publication Date: September 5, 2013
Retail Price: $16.95

The victim of a brutal hate crime, never resolved, confronts his
assailants eighteen years later, courting both violence and romance...

“Beautifully written…a valuable player in the social battles today.”
-Elise Wallace, The Editorial Freelancers Association

“There is certainly no question that Richard Alther's new novel, The Scar Letters, transcends the genre of gay fiction, but to label it ‘literary fiction’ could too easily dissuade a sensible reader from picking it up, reading a few pages, and then sitting back with a sigh of satisfaction, knowing that here is a really good book.

"The Scar Letters is narrated by Rudy Dallmann, a gay man in his forties, who was brutally attacked and r***d some twenty years earlier, and has lived in semi-isolation ever since. Forced by his longtime and closest friend, Tex, to confront the issue, Rudy sets about in his own quietly determined fashion to reconcile his past with his present and hopes for the future. Rudy is not the sort to ‘assert himself into everything dead-center,’ but he is an honest man, with himself and others—not a small accomplishment in a gay or any other world.

“This is a very compelling story—a universal story—difficult to believe anyone could have told it better. Alther handles narrative and characters like a truly gifted film director or cinematographer. We are in Rudy's head, but the camera sweeps, darts, settles, focusing on one aspect and then another of the well-developed supporting cast. Location and action merge effortlessly into memorable scenes, and the often troubling past is filtered through the emerging present leaving narrator and reader (as Rudy says after hearing Mahler) "hushed, drained, somehow elevated." There is never an awkward sentence or a sentiment that disappoints.

“Alther intersperses his story with accounts—often just a few sentences, a full chapter in one instance—of the horrifying treatment homosexuals have encountered throughout recorded history. There is nothing heavy handed about this; it is simply there to remind the reader that it has always been there and for a variety of reasons. At this particular time, as the country grapples with the issue of same-sex marriage, Alther's calm recitation of this horrendous heritage should certainly give pause to those of us who have never lived with this kind of fear.

“Bookreview.com considers The Scar Letters a must-read.”

Author Richard Alther

RICHARD ALTHER’S first two novels are THE DECADE OF BLIND DATES and SIEGFRIED FOLLIES.

He is also a Master’s Swimmer and exhibiting painter, living in Vermont and Southern California with his husband Ray Repp.

Looking for the Royal FlushAuthor: Chuck Smalls and J Gambino13-Digit ISBN: 978-0-9823703-3-9 (Centaur Books)Specs: 5" x...
06/11/2013

Looking for the Royal Flush
Author: Chuck Smalls and J Gambino
13-Digit ISBN: 978-0-9823703-3-9 (Centaur Books)
Specs: 5" x 8" Perfect Bound 120 Pages
Publication Date: January, 2010
Retail Price: $13.95

My name is Chuck Smalls, and I’ve been a plumber for most of my life. More important, I have been a willing (and unwilling) participant of the dreaded public restroom. So, it is my mission to go to popular vacation destinations, such as Las Vegas, and rate the restrooms for you, my good friends.

I will use an easy to understand 5 FLUSH RATING SYSTEM with descriptions of decor and comfort. That way, you can make the best of your situation and not have to fret over the uncleanliness of the toilet that you sit upon.

Fortunately, I have found a willing female participant in this experiment, although I’m assuming the women’s restroom is equal in comparison with the men’s (minus the urinals, of course). Anyway, I am bringing along my good friend J. Gambino.

J is a 5-foot giant of the industry. She has been a New York plumber, straight out of the Bronx (well, sort of), since she dropped out of the womb. Really, she lives and breathes this stuff! Her every waking hour is plumbing, whether it’s humorous conversation or tales of her on the job experiences. This plumber’s mind is in the right place for this book and will give a second hand account of the Las Vegas trip.

After Las Vegas, you can keep up with us as we owe it to our readers to navigate the country and check out the restrooms of New York, Orlando, Chicago, Hollywood, Nashville... We will keep you posted.

“Hey!
“Would you quiet down please!
You’re ruining the experience for me and others!”

06/11/2013

Centaur Books

Power and GreedAuthor: Niles Rader13-Digit ISBN: 978-0-9886577-3-1 (Centaur Books)Specs: 6" x 9" Perfect Bound 228 Pages...
06/11/2013

Power and Greed
Author: Niles Rader
13-Digit ISBN: 978-0-9886577-3-1 (Centaur Books)
Specs: 6" x 9" Perfect Bound 228 Pages
Publication Date: April 25, 2013
Retail Price: $16.95

Some politicians and dope dealers are all the same in many ways. Both want money and power—and don’t care who they hurt.

Maybe bend a few rules like changing a zoning law to meet what a few want or change laws for a club who wants to stay open on Sunday to sell what they want. A few gifts come your way, like a cruise or just money under the table. What a life!

Then came the dope dealers who deal to anybody with money; children are no exception. So people deal, rob, or murder—not their problem, as long as the money comes in for their drugs.

In the seventh book of the Rice Brothers Mystery series, Otis Rice is asked to look into possible corruption involving lobbyists and politicians on the take. What he does not expect is how prevalent the practice is. Working with the FBI and DEA, he soon finds himself involved with warring drug cartels seeking revenge for the deaths of their leaders.

Death Does Not WaitAuthor: Niles Rader13-Digit ISBN: 978-0-9845904-2-1 (Centaur Books)Specs: 6" x 9" Perfect Bound 180 ...
06/11/2013

Death Does Not Wait
Author: Niles Rader
13-Digit ISBN: 978-0-9845904-2-1 (Centaur Books)
Specs: 6" x 9" Perfect Bound 180 Pages
Publication Date: January, 2012
Retail Price: $16.95

When the case Otis Rice is working on gets complicated, he calls Pete, his FBI buddy, to get him involved.

When the majority of players meet their just ends, he is no longer needed by Pete. With a couple of other cases not finished, Otis and Peg, his wife, take a much needed vacation before he gets back to work. Little does he know the pain he will suffer when they return from their vacation.

On the road of life, there are many twists and turns. No one knows what is in store for them. The only thing we can do is hold on and enjoy the ride—the bad along with the good.

By putting God first, the ending will always work itself out.

Author: Niles RaderImprint: Centaur Books13-Digit ISBN: 978-0-9845904-7-610-Digit: 0-9845904-7-1Specs: 6" x 9" Perfect B...
08/28/2011

Author: Niles Rader
Imprint: Centaur Books
13-Digit ISBN: 978-0-9845904-7-6
10-Digit: 0-9845904-7-1
Specs: 6" x 9" Perfect Bound
Publication Date: January 1, 2011
Retail Price: $16.95

Raymond Gulardi was a young man who, when discharged from the service, went to work doing what he was trained for. Cleaning up the scum that came into his country was his goal. While working on his latest assignment, he met a beautiful young girl and fell in love. With a life that now offered great promise, Ray abandoned his previous life.

Starting off this new life, newlyweds Raymond and Francine Gulardi combined their honeymoon with researching areas where they hoped to soon settle down. However, disaster once again plagued him. While leaving a motel, shots rang out from a vehicle driving by. Bullets hit his new bride, taking her life, along with the life Raymond had planned to share with her.

Afterwards, Ray extracted his own form of payback as he returned to his old job. There, he could try again to lose himself from the cruel hand that fate always seemed to deal him.

In this world there are many unsavory characters all out for the same things: money, power, or revenge.

This story tells how the gang war came to an end—and what happened when it did. Somehow the government ended up losing two men.

Death by DeceitAuthor: Niles Rader13-Digit ISBN: 978-0-9823703-4-6 (Centaur Books)Specs: 5" x 8" Perfect Bound 144 Pages...
08/28/2011

Death by Deceit
Author: Niles Rader
13-Digit ISBN: 978-0-9823703-4-6 (Centaur Books)
Specs: 5" x 8" Perfect Bound 144 Pages
Publication Date: September, 2009
Retail Price: $13.95

The first few years of marriage Linda and Paul were very happy; they had two little girls whom they both loved very much. Eventually their life together changed dramatically due to Paul spending too much of his time at his job. Although Paul was a good provider, Linda needed much more out of this marriage than Paul was willing to give.

As they drifted farther and farther apart, Linda started attending classes at a gym to ease her tension. Here she met a young man who showered her with a lot of attention and soon was more than a friend.

When Paul and Linda finally separated, she married this new friend Mike—and the trouble began. First an accident that was not all it seemed to be. Then their lives started in a downward spiral, and death followed.

Paul asked for advice from Jim Rice, his attorney, on what he should do. The Rice brothers got deeply involved with their client when the accident happened.

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