Teenage Runaways

Prequel to The Gas Station Girl. My teacher wanted us to write about something that impacted our lives. Boy is she in for a surprise. Don't worry, I toned down the rough language to stay within my high school's writing guidelines. John Jensen’s aunt called me the gas station girl because that’s where John found me after my escape. But before I became the gas station girl, I was a DollarFly girl. All of us came from backgrounds we were running away from. But we weren’t a therapy group, we were teenage prostitutes, lured by the promise of a better life than the ones we left behind. Some...

At age 14, Wendy Gossard was drawn by the tranquil blue eyes and personal magnetism of a man known as Yahowah, leader of a spiritual group called the Source Family. Fleeing her own family and becoming a fugitive from justice in the state of California, Wendy followed the 1970s cult group across settlements in California and Hawaii on a quest for spiritual direction, communal harmony, and basic survival. Growing up, the teenager, called Mushroom by Yahowah, had questions about her pregnancy, relationships, and place in the universe.

Life at 15 isn't easy for a girl if she's shy and hates the way she looks. Each day is heaven or hell, depending on who talks to her, or who doesn't. So when she's finally accepted by a group, she doesn't refuse their party games, even if it means taking LSD. Soon she's taking little pills to wake up and others to go to sleep, and the days begin to blur. Based on a 15-year-old's diary, Go Ask Alice is the intimate account of one girl's fatal journey into the world of drug addiction.

It is the Summer of 1970. A decade of hope and optimism is quickly giving way to one of doubt and cynicism. Yet it is still a time when two young vagabonds have a decent chance of throwing themselves on the mercy of strangers and living to tell about it. One is a romantic sort. He knows books and concerns himself with ethereal things like meaning and the purpose of life. The other is more practical. He knows how to get out of a jam and concerns himself with things that look fishy and might spell trouble. Together they set out.

Sometimes following your dreams isn’t all it’s cracked up to be…. When I decided I’d stop at nothing to become a Vampire Hunter, even though my older sister and her teammates knew I wasn’t ready, I got myself into trouble—a whole lot of trouble. Now, I’ll never be exactly what I wanted to be—and I’ll never be the same as I was before either. There’s a dangerous Vampire on the loose, and I know I’m the only one who can stop him from continuing to prey on the innocent. But since I’ve already broken my sister’s trust, how can I prove to her that I’m more than just ...

Tennessee, 1955. Conley Ford learned quickly the world's full of hard knocks. Seeking the wrong kind of excitement, the restless 13-year-old falls in with a group of older boys joyriding in stolen Mercury cars...until he is arrested and put on probation. With a harsh father waiting and too embarrassed to face his classmates as a jailbird, the impetuous youth leaves town, making it all the way to New Orleans.

Jolie Gentil has sworn off butting into other people’s business. To those who know her, it sounds as far-fetched as finding used bubble gum on Mars. Her life revolves around her husband Scoobie, her twins, appraising the occasional house, and helping run the Cozy Corner B&B. Nothing could drag Jolie into solving crimes. Really. Except maybe a request from the most unlikely source. Sergeant Morehouse is convinced his nephew is not a runaway. Something had terrified the teenager, but before Morehouse could figure it out, Kevin was gone. Jolie has a soft spot for Kevin, who helped ...