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Come September
Ryan Jackson is a shy, scrappy teenager from a poor Appalachian town. Kip Reynolds is a talented high school polo player from a wealthy family living in the suburbs of Detroit. Sharp and stunning, Claudia Kinzler wins the admiration of both young men before her world is shattered by her father’s death in the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks.
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What follows is a sprawling, deeply human journey through grief and rage, addiction and healing, and the struggle to attain retribution for unfathomable acts of cruelty. Over the course of seventeen years—from the stables in Bloomfield Hills to the Appalachian Mountains, from corruption on the docks of Hong Kong to the underworld of South American drug cartels—Come September is the story of three people’s journey to maturity, told through the lens of love, loss, and hardship, all tarnished by the long shadow of terror.
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With unforgettable characters and emotionally charged storytelling, this novel explores what binds us and what breaks us, the power of strength and perseverance, and how truth and forgiveness can be the key to reconciling the pain of our past and building a new life.
Haunted Victory
A small and effeminate boy—bullied for years while growing up in an alcoholic family in suburban Cleveland—Gil finds refuge in the equestrian world. A coach instills in him the dream of going to the Olympics and becomes his mentor, his guide—and his predator.
Gil survives rape, betrayals, setbacks, and the loss of family and friends—all while on a quest to fulfill his dream. This book is not only about surviving; it's about the resilience of the human spirit and the pursuit of dreams against all odds. Gil makes it to the Olympics, but not in the way he imagined. He discovers what happens when a dream ends, and all you have left are your addictions.
What does it take to finally realize that our lives can’t go on as they are? How do we put an end to our self-destructive ways? Is it even possible to grasp the complexities of untreated and unrealized trauma? How do we come to terms with the cost of the abuse we suffered?
Gil tells his story with a breadth of detail and thought-provoking insights rarely shared by male victims of sexual abuse. Readers will find a story of hope, determination, and the transformative power of confronting one's past.
About Gil
Gil Merrick served as Team Leader with the U.S. Equestrian Federation at the 2007 Pan American Games and the 2008 Olympic Games. He has spent a lifetime balancing his love for horses and equestrian sport with a career managing multinational organizations. After 25 years training corporate executives, entrepreneurs, and high-performance athletes, he is dedicated to sharing his insights about living life masterfully through his online training programs at MasteryCourses.com.​
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