Tag: The Enigma Series

Interview with Authors Breakfield and Burkey

On By authoranthonyavinablogIn InterviewsLeave a comment

1) Tell us a little bit about yourself. How did you get into writing?

Breakfield and Burkey, as a team, bring a unique blend of expertise and personal interests to their writing. As the Enigma Series’ CTO, Breakfield leverages his decades of technology expertise to bring innovative technothriller elements into storytelling. His deep knowledge of World War II history, extensive world travel, and cultural exchanges provide multidimensionality to the people, places, and journeys readers discover in the stories. Beyond writing, Charles enjoys wine tasting, winemaking, Harley riding, cooking new recipes and extravaganzas, and woodworking, which adds a personal touch to his work. 

Burkey, Enigma Series’ COO, uses her extensive professional knowledge to optimize technology and business investments, influencing character experiences and situations within the stories. Readers can discover the distinctive characteristics of people she has met woven into contemporary situations between the covers. Rox treasures her family, puppies, and friends. She loves reading and reviewing books, plus traveling whenever possible. One of her most cherished activities is meeting readers at various events, especially book clubs. Reader interactions are gratifying.

Rox Burkey is the catalyst for the series. She got us into writing nonfiction for Auerbach back in 2010. When we found that technical writing was outdated before it hit the shelves, she postulated doing techno-thrillers. We then branched off into cozy mysteries and continued exploring other genres. Since 2012, we have co-authored twelve novels in the Enigma Series, three in the Enigma Heirs trilogy, three in the Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicle series, and gobs of short stories.

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2) What inspired you to write your book?

We want to understand the current events impacting our world today, so we research. Then we introduce new or existing characters to tell the tale. Our characters often tell us how or where the storyline needs to go. We oblige them. Enigma Tracer, book 1 of the Enigma Heirs Trilogy, began the journey with our ecological gangster, Phillip. He required an infrastructure of support for his dastardly deeds. Who better to trust than family, especially two step brothers trained at a young age by their corrupt father? Each son born of a different mother grew up in various locales to fulfill their father’s dream of a worldwide family consortium. Using this as the foundation, adding the problems in stopping drugs, human trafficking, and cryptocurrency, the rest came together.

3) What theme or message do you hope readers will take away from your book?

Our world sadly contains digital pirates and bad actors from the Darknet. We have cyber good guys who step up to defeat them. Cyber-attacks we write about are real. Our cyber heroes are positioned to take down the bad guys. Realize cyber heroes also need your help, so we recommend you exercise caution when answering odd-sounding emails. Don’t rush to click on a link to fix a problem with your bank or overreact to a demand to pay the back taxes to the IRS by calling the all-too-convenient phone number provided in a text on your cell phone. It only takes one win by a con to keep them interested in the game. Ruining your day is a rush for a cybercriminal.

4) What drew you into this particular genre?

The rule touted is write what you know. For Breakfield and Burkey, long-time techno-geeks, we are using our professional careers of working for technology manufacturers, doing technical consulting, and performing security roles. After several technical articles and two non-fiction books, Burkey showed up one day using the four most terrifying words in her vocabulary: I have an idea. She postulated we might have a winning combination if we wrote fictional thrillers with real technology baked inside. Breakfield ultimately agreed when she added, “Just think, we can kill annoying characters and not go to jail.” We enjoy writing thrillers, suspense, and cozy mysteries because we leverage today’s technology. We have an unending supply of cybercrimes to use as realistic and relevant story plots.

5) If you could sit down with any character in your book, what would you ask them and why?

This is a tricky question. Wow. The one enduring character that is in all our tech thrillers is ICABOD, our AI-enhanced supercomputer. He helped our cyber good guys of the R-Group bring to justice bad guys throughout the series. ICABOD has evolved, gaining additional capabilities from text responses to speech to even wanting to understand humor. ICABOD has allowed us to reflect on the evolution of technology and how current AI could enhance or impact our world.

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6) What social media site has been the most helpful in developing your readership?

We have several social media sites. No platform can do everything for everyone because of the fickle nature of people we want as fans. However, our YouTube SM has been getting great traction and viewer feedback for the videos we create. Charles has found interesting ways to tap into the great reviews we receive and comparisons to other books people enjoy in the marketplace. We invite your readers to follow us and comment. https://www.youtube.com/@TheEnigmaSeries/

7) What advice would you give to aspiring or just starting authors out there?

Keep practicing and get someone other than family or friends to review your work. Hooking up with a critique group or partner is also a good way to get honest feedback to continually improve your writing, whether fiction or non-fiction. We also recommend networking with other authors as a great way to get ideas on marketing your creations.

8) What does the future hold in store for you? Any new books/projects on the horizon?

Our efforts at building AI-generated videos are instrumental in getting us to rethink how to use AI in our marketing efforts. But in full disclosure mode here, we do not use AI to write stories for us. Breakfield and Burkey want the satisfaction of honestly saying we wrote this. We are building new cozy mysteries, new thrillers, and even some Sci-Fi stories that we will launch later this year and into the following year. To keep an eye on our horizon, please go to our website https://EnigmaSeries.com/ and sign up for our newsletter to stay in the know.

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About the Authors

Breakfield & Burkey, professional technology experts, have series and standalone stories available, with more planned. Find sample chapters, author interviews, scheduled events, reviews, Q&A, and book trailers at https://www.EnigmaSeries.com. Using their knowledge of technology, they weave compelling, relevant contemporary stories filled with TechnoThriller suspense, romance, humor, travel, and intrigue. They also ventured into writing cozy mysteries with the Underground Authors in the Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles. Reach out directly to

Authors@EnigmaSeries.com.

Interview with Authors Breakfield and Burkey

On By authoranthonyavinablogIn InterviewsLeave a comment

1) Tell us a little bit about yourself. How did you get into writing?


Breakfield and Burkey have careers in technology. At one point, Burkey ended up hiring Breakfield. They
worked well together with complementary skills. Several professional moves later, they ended up at a
large manufacturing company. There, they began teaching workshops to internal and external audiences
and writing technical papers. After one large project, they decided documentation in the field could
hardly keep up with the changes.


They decided to take threats the bad guys used to extort companies and individuals to create Techno
Thrillers. The initial fiction, Enigma Series, began with each story using a different problem, like Identity
Theft, Ransomware, or Artificial intelligence, as examples to send the heroes of the R-Group to find the
cyber thugs. They’ve added short stories, historical fiction (a prequel to the Enigma Series), cozy
mysteries with the Underground Authors, and the current trilogy Enigma Heirs.

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2) What inspired you to write your book?


Great question. We wanted to have fun writing. Good guys versus bad guys are often the foundation of
children’s play, so we felt this theme was relatable to any age. We took that premise to a tech level to
help people look at technology from multiple perspectives while ensuring their security against the real
threats of cyber thugs. Our Enigma Series is more attuned to adults, but the other books are suitable for
younger people.


3) What theme or message do you hope readers will take away from your book?


Each story we tell has a theme or message. In our thrillers, we want to emphasize the importance of
taking care when using technology, albeit phones, computers, or the millions of apps call to you because
there is always some creep who will try to take advantage of any weak, unsuspecting, naive person.


4) What drew you into this particular genre?


For Breakfield and Burkey the initial themes of technology were born of our professional careers. That,
coupled with our question of what would happen if it makes for some interesting storytelling, we hope
people will enjoy each book.

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5) If you could sit down with any character in your book, what would you ask them and why?


We would have to sit down, virtually anyway, with ICABOD our supercomputer. ICABOD grows and
evolves throughout the series with data-gathering abilities, enhanced analytics, text responses to full-on
large language speech enablement, and evolving artificial intelligence. I would love his response to
which was a more difficult human capability to understand humor or the justification to use the term ‘I’
when referring to himself. We think we know but readers would have to read the series to determine
their best question for him.


6) What social media site has been the most helpful in developing your readership?

Social media is a fickle mode of communication with readers. LinkedIn, Podcasts, X-Twitter, and
Facebook are the high runners. Cultivating and maintaining social media connections takes an enormous
amount of time. By far, our favorite ways to connect with readers are at fairs or with book clubs. These
allow us to speak to readers. If we resonate with some, then we hope they tell their friends.


7) What advice would you give to aspiring or just starting authors out there?


We appreciate your question. It’s important to continue writing and not lose hope. Practice and set
aside time to hone your skills to find your voice. Consider joining communities of fellow authors to
receive constructive feedback to enhance your work (as your family may be hesitant to be completely
honest to spare your feelings). It’s beneficial to find a writing partner and regularly engage in discussions
about your stories to exchange ideas or feedback. Ensuring you have a reliable editor is crucial. Despite
this, a few errors may still slip through, but it’s preferable to keep them to a minimum.

8) What does the future hold in store for you? Any new books/projects on the horizon?


We have several story ideas. We are committed to delivering two projects. First is the third book in the
Enigma Heirs Trilogy-Enigma Jewels-at the beginning of 2025. Second is our next book in the Magnolia
Bluff Crime Chronicles in 2025, though The Ransom Enigma is currently on pre-order for its August 2024
release.

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About the Authors

Charles Breakfield – As the CTO of the Enigma Series, Charles uses his experience from working at high-tech manufacturers as a solution architect in hybrid data/telecom environments. He considers himself a long-time technology geek, who also enjoys writing, studying World War II history, travel, and cultural exchanges. Charles’ love of wine tastings, cooking, and Harley riding has found its way into the stories. As a child, he moved often because of his father’s military career, which even helps him with the various character perspectives he brings to life in the series. He continues to try to teach Burkey humor.


Rox Burkey – Works as a business architect who builds solutions for customers on a good technology foundation. She has written many technical and white papers but finds the freedom of writing fiction a lot more fun. As a child, she helped to lead the kids with exciting new adventures built on make-believe characters, was a Girl Scout until high school, and contributed to the community as a young member of a Head Start program. Rox enjoys family, learning, listening to people, travel, outdoor activities, sewing, cooking, and thinking about diversifying the series.


Breakfield and Burkey – started writing non-fiction papers and books, but it wasn’t nearly as fun as writing fictional stories. They found it interesting to use the aspects of technology people are incorporating into their daily lives more and more as a perfect way to create a good guy/bad guy story. Elements of travel to the various places they have personally visited are always baked into the stories. Look for humor, romance, intrigue, suspense, and a spirited way to remember people who have crossed paths with them in their books. They love to talk about their stories with private and public book readings. Burkey also conducts regular interviews with Texas authors, which she finds very interesting. Her first interview was, wait for it, Breakfield. You can often find them at local book fairs or other family-oriented events.


The primary series is based on a family organization called R-Group. Recently they have spawned a subgroup that contains some of the original characters as the Cyber Assassins Technology Services (CATS) team. The authors have ideas for continuing the series in both of these tracks. They track their many characters on a spreadsheet, with a hidden avenue for the future coined The Enigma Chronicles tagged in some portions of the stories. Fan reviews seem to frequently suggest that these stories would make good television or movie stories, so the possibilities appear endless, just like their ideas for new stories.


They have book video trailers on their YouTube Channel and website, www.EnigmaSeries.com.
We invite you to visit the website for FREE stuff along with samples of the books and options to
purchase signed copies directly. You may also find it fascinating to check out the fun acronyms
they create for their stories. Reach out to them at Authors@EnigmaSeries.com,
Twitter@EnigmaSeries, or Facebook@TheEnigmaSeries.

Trusted Friends and Lovers by Burkey & Breakfield Review

On By authoranthonyavinablogIn reviewsLeave a comment

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own. 

Authors Burkey and Breakfield take readers into a series of short stories to explore love and romance in the collection “Trusted Friends and Lovers”.

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The Synopsis

What makes a person a trusted friend or lover?

How does it feel when you have that status? It takes years to earn and seconds to destroy.

Dive into these selected short stories, exploring romance, friendship, and the rocky roads. Trust is a key element in any successful relationship.

Explore the bonds of trust and love. The journey determines the destination for these friends and lovers.

Enjoy the stories.

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The Review

This was a remarkable and heartfelt story. The author’s incorporation of characters from other books in the Enigma Series into their stories was fantastic, as readers got to return to these beloved characters and witness a whole other aspect of their journey. The raw, emotional beats the authors explore in this book and the relatability of the experiences these characters share will instantly draw the reader in.

The character development is the true heart of this collection, as each story packs a powerful punch thanks to how each character develops. From finding balance within a relationship to the threat of loss putting things into perspective, the authors explored romance, mysteries, and thrillers in this fantastic collection.

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The Verdict

Burkey & Breakfield’s “Trusted Friends and Lovers” is a must-read story collection of Heartfelt, emotional, and compelling authors. The connection to the greater Enigma universe and the core theme of love and romance that permeates each story made this one collection readers won’t be able to put down. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!

Rating: 10/10

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About the Author

Rox Burkey is a Customer Experience Specialist who works with businesses around the world. As a gifted speaker and accomplished listener, she bridges the chasm between business problems and technical solutions to optimize business productivity. She has written technology papers, white papers, but launches into high gear when plotting our next technothriller or short story. 

As a child, she led the other kids with her highly charged imagination generating new adventures with make believe characters. She is proud of being a Girl Scout until high school, and contributed to the community as a member of a Head Start program. Rox enjoys her family, learning, listening to people, travel, outdoor activities, sewing, cooking, and thinking about how to diversify the series. 

BREAKFIED AND BURKEY

We have traveled to many places around the world. These travels are pulled into stories that requires real knowledge of specific locals. We deliver well-rounded thrillers that include levels of humor, romance, intrigue, suspense, and mystery. 

We love to talk about their stories at private and public book readings or events. Burkey conducts podcast style interviews with a couple of author groups, and enjoys extracting the tidbits from authors, especially new ones. Her first interview was, wait for it, Breakfield. You can learn where they will be from the calendar on their website. 

EnigmaSeries.com has information on the Enigma Series, 12 books, 10 short stories, audio books, book trailers, and the newest series Enigma Heirs releasing in 2023. We have proudly earned multiple awards for our fictional creations. 

We are also part of the Underground Authors group writing cozy mysteries/murders in the Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles. We are committed to providing an installment for Season 2 and Season 3 to accompany The Flower Enigma, released in Season 1.

Please enjoy snippets of our stories, book trailers, audible sections, CONTEST and get FREE stuff at www.EnigmaSeries.com. 

BREAKFIELD-Charles works as a data/telecom solution architect and supports digital security, blockchain solutions, and unified communications. He enjoys writing, studying World War II history, travel, and cultural exchanges. Charles’ love of wine tastings, cooking, and Harley riding often provides writing topics.

Much of his personality comes from his father who served in the military for 30 years and three wars. Charles grew up on multiple bases and different countries. The multi-cultural exposure helps him with the various character perspectives they bring to the series. His personal ambition is to continue to teach his co-author Burkey, humor.

BREAKFIELD AND BURKEY together build stories as fictional story writers. Storytelling is the best method to share excitement, thrills, and insights to today’s technology risks.

EnigmaSeries.com has information on their 12 books, 10 short stories, audio books, book trailers, and the upcoming Enigma Heirs. 

Look for our cozy mysteries/murders in the Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles. 

Enigma Tracer by Charles V. Breakfield and Rox Burkey Review

On By authoranthonyavinablogIn reviews1 Comment

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

A small group goes undercover on a cruise to uncover the nefarious plot of a predatory CEO and thief in authors Charles V. Breakfield and Rox Burkey’s technothriller, “Enigma Tracer”.

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The Synopsis

The clock is ticking … can Gracie uncover the truth?

Phillip Pliant is the wealthy opportunist plastics dealer, and CEO of Pliant Industries. He’s also a master thief—creating a pervasive threat to the manufacturing infrastructure in the Caribbean islands markets. With the cartel as his stealth client, the naïve city leaders have been seduced, enabling the production of more than 3-dimentional building materials.

And set the stage for massive chaos and destruction.

Pliant has locked up contracts, assets, and control of any future expansion. His contacts and clients salivate over their probable financial reward—the expected profits are monstrous.

Is the R-Group, now led by Gracie and the family heirs, strong enough to win against this predator? Can JJ’s CATS (Cyber Assassin Technology Services) act on the root-cause analysis in time?

  • Will the R-Group and CATS sabotage Pliant’s plan before it’s too late?
  • Can Jeff and Keith use their covert skills to put the bad guys away for good?
  • Will Gracie be able to squash Pliant and the cartels?

Can the chain of islands survive the underhanded tactics and threats?

Gracie never considered their lives would hang in the balance between winning and losing. Will the devious plot be uncovered in time? The clock is ticking. Five … four … three …

Bookbaby.com helps independent authors bring their creative vision to the marketplace. Sell eBooks online in the biggest retail stores.

The Review

This was a fast-paced and enthralling technothriller. The authors managed to build an almost YA setting and tone to the writing, adding a new level of the genre to their growing series. While this book serves as the first in a brand new series, the story falls into the overall Enigma universe and while enough backstory is laid out for the reader to enjoy this book, an understanding of the first books in this world will allow the reader to really appreciate the stakes and history behind the protagonists’ role and backstory. 

The authors did a wonderful job of capturing the thrills of the genre while also balancing it out with rich character growth and the emotional roller coaster that the protagonists find themselves in while trying to maintain their own balance between their personal lives and their professional lives. The ruthlessness and cold nature of the villain made him someone readers will enjoy rooting against, while the heroic journey and evolution that Gracie especially goes on will serve as a great counterbalance to the villain’s journey. The drama and passion that develops for the characters romantically serve as a great foundation for the evolution of these characters in an International technothriller setting.

The Verdict

Astonishing, heart-pounding, and entertaining as ever, authors Charles Breakfield and Rox Burkey’s “Enigma Tracer” is a must-read technothriller that meets YA international mystery that readers are not going to want to put down. The blend of the previous novel’s mythos with the modern-day characters and the rich themes and character arcs will keep fans wanting more as this epic struggle and battle unfolds. If you haven’t yet, be sure to preorder your copy today or grab your own copy on March 31st, 2023!

Rating: 10/10

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About the Authors

 BREAKFIELD-Charles works as a data/telecom solution architect and supports digital security, blockchain solutions, and unified communications. He enjoys writing, studying World War II history, travel, and cultural exchanges. Charles’ love of wine tastings, cooking, and Harley riding often provides writing topics.

Much of his personality comes from his father who served in the military for 30 years and three wars. Charles grew up on multiple bases and different countries. The multi-cultural exposure helps him with the various character perspectives they bring to the series. His personal ambition is to continue to teach his co-author Burkey, humor.

BREAKFIELD AND BURKEY together build stories as fictional story writers. Storytelling is the best method to share excitement, thrills, and insights to today’s technology risks.

EnigmaSeries.com has information on their 12 books, 10 short stories, audio books, book trailers, and the upcoming Enigma Heirs. 

Look for our cozy mysteries/murders in the Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles. 

Rox Burkey is a Customer Experience Specialist who works with businesses around the world. As a gifted speaker and accomplished listener, she bridges the chasm between business problems and technical solutions to optimize business productivity. She has written technology papers, white papers, but launches into high gear when plotting our next technothriller or short story. 

As a child, she led the other kids with her highly charged imagination generating new adventures with make believe characters. She is proud of being a Girl Scout until high school, and contributed to the community as a member of a Head Start program. Rox enjoys her family, learning, listening to people, travel, outdoor activities, sewing, cooking, and thinking about how to diversify the series. 

BREAKFIED AND BURKEY

We have traveled to many places around the world. These travels are pulled into stories that requires real knowledge of specific locals. We deliver well-rounded thrillers that include levels of humor, romance, intrigue, suspense, and mystery. 

We love to talk about their stories at private and public book readings or events. Burkey conducts podcast style interviews with a couple of author groups, and enjoys extracting the tidbits from authors, especially new ones. Her first interview was, wait for it, Breakfield. You can learn where they will be from the calendar on their website. 

EnigmaSeries.com has information on the Enigma Series, 12 books, 10 short stories, audio books, book trailers, and the newest series Enigma Heirs releasing in 2023. We have proudly earned multiple awards for our fictional creations. 

We are also part of the Underground Authors group writing cozy mysteries/murders in the Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles. We are committed to providing an installment for Season 2 and Season 3 to accompany The Flower Enigma, released in Season 1.

Please enjoy snippets of our stories, book trailers, audible sections, CONTEST and get FREE stuff at www.EnigmaSeries.com.

The Enigma Factor (The Enigma Series Book One) by Charles V. Breakfield and Roxanne E. Burkey Review

On By authoranthonyavinablogIn reviews2 Comments

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

A cyber security tester and genius looking to find solace in his work after the loss of his mother finds his world turned upside down when he is targeted by cybercriminals in authors Charles V. Breakfield and Roxanne E. Burkey’s “The Enigma Factor”, the first book in The Enigma Series. 

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The Synopsis

Jacob Michaels, computer network security-tester extraordinaire, tries to settle into a quiet life of work to polish his technology skills after the death of his mother.

Cyber-criminals are hunting for new victims when they target the brilliant programmer to try to seduce into joining their cause. More people are hunting him than just the Russian cyber kingpin.

As Jacob sets off to find those who target him, he discovers other technologists’ views which puts him in direct contact with previously unknown global experts.

Buzz, when looking for the easy way inadvertently crosses the line to the dark side then begs his best friend Jacob for help. Jacob, brilliant as he is may not have enough experience to win this on his own. Of course, having your identity erased makes helping anybody else secondary to your problems.

Jacob battles against global cyber masterminds using his knowledge of programming, identity theft, and hacking, but learns more about security and encryption when he connects with the distractingly beautiful encryptionist Petra.

Jacob’s challenge is how to keep ahead of the criminals and identify who to trust.

In their debut TechnoThriller, The Enigma Factor, award-winning authors Breakfield and Burkey weave a complex tale of danger, intrigue, and international cyber combat. They use a relevant technology foundation, then layer on travel, romance, humor and mystery

Like rust, the cat and mouse game of the new cyber warfare age never sleeps.

The Review

This was a tense and adrenaline-fueled cyber-thriller! The authors did an incredible job of making the narrative and characters feel alive and vibrant on the page. The amount of detail and experience the authors have in the world they have created feels truly authentic, due in large part to their own work in the world of cyber security and high tech. This authenticity helped elevate the narrative and keep readers invested with every twist and turn. 

I was immediately enthralled with the character development in this book. The shocking loss early on for the protagonist leads to so many different questions that keep the reader invested, from who his unknown family truly is to who the shadowy organization is that is hunting him down. The way the authors are able to infuse so much humanity and emotion into a tech-heavy narrative and keep the reader invested in the protagonist’s journey helped make the mystery of this book that much more engaging. 

The Verdict

Thought-provoking, entertaining, and action-packed, authors Breakfield and Burkey’s “The Enigma Factor” is a must-read cyber-thriller. The tension and atmosphere the authors create and the rich world-building the story takes on make this story truly one of a kind. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today! 

Rating: 10/10

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About the Authors

Breakfield is a 25+ year technology expert in security, networking, voice, and anything digital. He enjoys writing, studying World War II history, travel, and cultural exchanges. He’s also a fan of wine tastings, winemaking, Harley riding, cooking extravaganzas, and woodworking. 

Burkey is a 25+ year applied technology professional who excels at optimizing technology and business investments. She works with customers all over the world focusing on optimized customer experiences. Rox writes white papers and documentation, but found she has a marked preference for writing fiction. 

Together these Texas authors create award-winning stories that resonate with males and females, as well as young and experienced adults. They bring a fresh new view to technology possibilities today in exciting stories. Visit their website for more information and free stuff. 

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