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Sex Drugs and Spiritual EnlightenmentSex, Drugs, and Spiritual Enlightenment (but mostly the first two) by Karuna Das

Publisher:  DX Varos Publishing (March 28, 2023)
Category: General Fiction, Fictionalized Memoir
Tour Dates: April 4-21, 2023
ISBN: 978-1955065764
Available in Print and ebook, 280 pages

Sex Drugs and Spiritual Enlightenment

Description Sex, Drugs, and Spiritual Enlightenment by Karuna Das


On the cusp of turning eighteen, it’s time for Drew Lovell to become a man.

But deep within, Drew has questions—ones he doesn’t know how to phrase—about what that means and how to go about it.

During three intense stretches between 1985 and 1993, taking him into his mid-twenties, Drew undergoes a series of profound experiences—often wild, sometimes painful, and always revealing—that force him to rethink his current assumptions. Only after nearly dying from trying to conform to conventional models of masculinity does he begin to become the man he wants to be and not the one he thought the world required him to be. Still, he’s unable to live with full integrity until interaction with a pair of awakened humans inspires new awareness that helps him at long last embrace the truth of who he is.

My Thoughts Sex, Drugs, and Spiritual Enlightenment by Karuna Das


Teenager, Drew hangs out with his friend snorting coke.  His friend then pays a girl to take Drew’s virginity but Drew wonders if that is all there is to it.  A quick 1, 2, 3 and it’s done.  He struggles to understand the real meaning of life.  It can’t just be sitting around doing drugs, having sex, and writing.  He aims to become a professional writer.

Drew later meets his favorite author and it is through that relationship as well as after he experiences a seizure, he has a kind of spiritual awakening and is able to explore what life is really about. It is also after having sex with many women, that he realizes that he is bisexual.

Karuna Dos calls ‘Sex, Drugs, and Spiritual Enlightenment’ a “fictionalized memoir”.  He uses his experiences as a young man as a starting point and embellishes them.  Mixing the two together make a heartbreaking yet, laugh out loud novel.  His poetic prose is hypnotic and make the book near impossible to put down.  I read it into the wee hours, only forcing myself to put it down at 3 am,  However, I kept going over the book in my mind ad got very little sleep.  The next night, I finished it, thinking I would get a better nights sleep.  LOL! That didn’t happen. Drew is a very memorable character and will stay with me a long time to come.  The book left me wondering how he is as a now middle aged man.

This book is a whirlwind and one that I highly recommend.  I do think it only fair to warn you, that “Sex Drugs, and Spiritual Enlightenment is not appropriate for those who offend easily.  As the title suggests, it is full of sex and profanity.  However, I found it heartfelt, honest, and true to the human condition. It’s bound to become a cult classic!

I give it 5/5 stars!

About Karuna DasKaruna Das


Karuna Das is the pen and spirit name of Kyle Bostian. Born in Wisconsin, he grew up in Massachusetts and now resides in Pennsylvania, but he lives wherever he happens to be at that moment and feels at home everywhere in the universe. He holds a BA in English and an MFA in Playwriting. In addition to his dramatic writing, he’s published the sci-fi novel Kat’s Cradle as well as short fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. He and life partner Ti share their house with five wonderfully wacky cats.

Website: https://www.karunadaswriter.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KarunaDasWriter
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/karunadaswriter
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/karunadaswriter/

Pre-order Sex, Drugs, and Spiritual Enlightenment by Karuna Das


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Barnes&Noble
DX Varos Publishing
Bookshop.org
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Teddy Rose Book Reviews Plus April 4 Kickoff & Interview

Suzie My Tangled Skeins Book Reviews April 6 Review & Guest Post

Gracie Goodreads April 7 Review

Sal Bound 4 Escape April 11 Guest Review

BookGirl Amazon & Goodreads April 12 Review

Nora S. Storeybook Reviews April 13 Guest Review & Excerpt

GudReader Goodreads April 14 Review

Laura Lee Celticlady’s Reviews April 18 Guest Review & Excerpt

Teddy Rose Book Reviews Plus April 19 Review

Linda Lu  Goodreads April 20 Review

Bee Book Pleasures April 21 Review

Sex Drugs and Spiritual Enlightenment by Karuna Das

Sex Drugs and Spiritual EnlightenmentSex, Drugs, and Spiritual Enlightenment (but mostly the first two) by Karuna Das

Publisher:  DX Varos Publishing (March 28, 2023)
Category: General Fiction, Fictionalized Memoir, Coming of Age
Tour Dates: April 4-21, 2023
ISBN: 978-1955065764
Available in Print and ebook, 280 pages

Sex Drugs and Spiritual Enlightenment

Description Sex, Drugs, and Spiritual Enlightenment by Karuna Das


On the cusp of turning eighteen, it’s time for Drew Lovell to become a man.

But deep within, Drew has questions—ones he doesn’t know how to phrase—about what that means and how to go about it.

During three intense stretches between 1985 and 1993, taking him into his mid-twenties, Drew undergoes a series of profound experiences—often wild, sometimes painful, and always revealing—that force him to rethink his current assumptions. Only after nearly dying from trying to conform to conventional models of masculinity does he begin to become the man he wants to be and not the one he thought the world required him to be. Still, he’s unable to live with full integrity until interaction with a pair of awakened humans inspires new awareness that helps him at long last embrace the truth of who he is.

Praise for Karuna Das


Kat’s Cradle is … an inquiry into the nature of consciousness, evolution, and perspective that makes Kat just one of a series of strong characters whose lives intersect in … its paradigm-changing inspection of humanity, spirituality, and forces beyond human ken.”- D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review

“At once thriller and search for meaning, Karuna Das’s story of an extraordinary woman’s self-discovery imagines a world of conspiracy at the edge of science where the stakes couldn’t be higher. Kat’s Cradle probes the very nature of existence and digs for answers at the intersection of medicine and mystery.”- Tom Sweterlitsch, author of The Gone World

​”Kat’s Cradle is neuropunk at its mind-bending and truly optimistic finest.”- Heidi Ruby Miller, author of the Ambasadora series

“awe-inspiring science fiction. I look forward to the next installment.”-H. Miller, Amazon Review

“Great book, with really strong female characters. It’s scifi/ fantasy and an enjoyable read!”-AS, Amazon Review

Interview with Karuna Das

TR: Please tell us something about ‘Sex, Drugs, and Spiritual Enlightenment’ that is not in the summary.  (About the book, character you particularly enjoyed writing etc.)

KD: It’s inspired by my own journey to awakening and self-acceptance. I often use the term “fictionalized memoir” to describe it. I wrote it because I wanted to channel my often-painful early adulthood into a work of art that might benefit others as they find their way in the world.

TR: How much time and effort went into your research for the book?

KD: Literally decades, if you consider the ones, I spent living the essence of the story. Given the source, I didn’t have to do a lot of traditional research. Of course, in telling a fictionalized version of the story, I found myself needing to learn information about various elements that made their way into the narrative. I compressed the timeline, for example, and I’m a stickler for credibility, so I wanted to be sure that, when the protagonist did something in a specific place and time that paralleled something, I did in a later place and time, the fictional episode — say, attending a concert in Atlanta in 1992 instead of 1999 — could have really happened when and where it was set. That process led to a lot of serendipitous discoveries. In this case, Lilith Fair became a Cure show, creating an opportunity to quote a song lyric that suited the moment even better than what happened in the real-life situation.

TR: Where did you get the inspiration for your cover or did a graphic artist come up with it?  

KD: I made suggestions about the kinds of images and overall vibe I thought would best represent the material, and DX Varos go-to cover designer Ellie Augsberger came up with what you see. I love it!

TR: Is there any of your real life story buried in the pages of ‘Sex, Drugs, and Spiritual Enlightenment’ that you feel comfortable sharing with us?

KD: Adding to my answer above, the novel offers a fictionalized version of my struggle as a young man to overcome toxic models of masculinity and embrace my bisexuality, which in turn opened me up to true honesty and intimacy with my life partner. (I now identify as pansexual and polyamorous.)

TR: Which actor would you like to see playing Drew from ‘Sex, Drugs, and Spiritual Enlightenment’?

KD: If you asked a few years ago, I might have suggested Josh Hutcherson from the Hunger Games series. He’s probably too old for the role now, or at least he would be by the time it went from novel to screen adaptation to filming. But he’s the right type.

TR: What books are you currently reading?

KD: I’m not currently reading any fiction, but the anthology Coolest American Stories 2023 is at the top of my TBR pile. I’m paused partway through several nonfiction books: The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, Awake, and Jet Boss.   

TR: Is there another book to write in your future?

KD: I’m a few chapters into the second of three books in my Webolution sci-fi series, the first installment of which, Kat’s Cradle, was recently named an Independent Press Award 2023 Distinguished Favorite in Visionary Fiction. I’m excited to get back to work on the sequel, Solar Max, soon. I’ve also started outlining and drafting a follow-up to SD&SE called More Sex, Drugs & Spiritual Enlightenment (but still mostly the first two) that will draw on my experiences in middle age. And I have a nonfiction memoir in progress, Finding Our Way Home, about my relationship with my late mother and both our relationships with her parents. All that is on hold for a few more weeks, though, as I’m in rehearsal for the world premiere production of my play Pyramid Builders, which will perform here in Pittsburgh in the second half of April.

TR: Are there any questions that you would have liked me or another blogger to ask but didn’t? Please ask and answer.

KD: I have two.
Q: “Are you spiritually enlightened?” A: “No comment.”

Q: “How can readers learn more about you?” A: “Visit karunadaswriter.com.”


About Karuna DasKaruna Das


Karuna Das is the pen and spirit name of Kyle Bostian. Born in Wisconsin, he grew up in Massachusetts and now resides in Pennsylvania, but he lives wherever he happens to be at that moment and feels at home everywhere in the universe. He holds a BA in English and an MFA in Playwriting. In addition to his dramatic writing, he’s published the sci-fi novel Kat’s Cradle as well as short fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. He and life partner Ti share their house with five wonderfully wacky cats.

Website: https://www.karunadaswriter.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KarunaDasWriter
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/karunadaswriter
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/karunadaswriter/

Buy Sex, Drugs, and Spiritual Enlightenment by Karuna Das


Amazon
Barnes&Noble
DX Varos Publishing
Bookshop.org
IndieBound

Follow Sex, Drugs, and Spiritual Enlightenment by Karuna Das


Teddy Rose Book Reviews Plus April 4 Kickoff & Interview

Suzie My Tangled Skeins Book Reviews April 6 Review & Guest Post

Gracie Goodreads  April 7 Review

Sal Bound 4 Escape April 11 Guest Review

BookGirl Amazon & Goodreads April 12 Review

Nora S. Storeybook Reviews April 13 Guest Review & Excerpt

GudReader Goodreads April 14 Review

Laura Lee Celticlady’s Reviews April 18 Guest Review & Excerpt

Teddy Rose Book Reviews Plus April 19 Review

Linda Lu  Goodreads April 20 Review

Bee Book Pleasures April 21 Review

Sex Drugs and Spiritual Enlightenment by Karuna Das

Between Before and After by Jessica StillingBetween Before and After by Jessica Stilling

Publisher:  DX Varos Publishing (November 8, 2022)
Category: General Fiction, Literary Fiction, Family Secrets
Tour Dates November 1-23
ISBN: 978-1955065665
Available in Print and ebook, 479 (or less) pages

Between Before and After

Description Between Before and After by Jessica Stilling


Indie movie director Sebastian Foster has found his niche making movies based on the award-winning novels written by his estranged mother. However, his latest film, based loosely on the tragic death of his sister as a child, opens up old wounds best left under bandages.

Told in two concurrent timelines, now and when Sebastian was a teen, some twenty years ago in the mid-1990s, this story of learning unknown truths unwinds in the streets of Paris, where Sebastian lived as a teen and where he has returned to make his picture.

Review Between Before and After by Jessica Stilling


Guest Review by Mark

A phenomenal piece of writing from Jessica Stilling that asks questions about family history and mental health, ‘Between Before and After,’ is a must read for all lovers of literature. Using dual timelines, one in present day and one in 1994, Stilling tells a tale about a family who experiences a great loss and how they continue to recover even decades later.

As an up-and-coming indie film director, Sebastian Foster has seen his share of difficult directing jobs. But the film that he is putting together now may be the hardest he’s ever done. Sebastian is directing a film about the summer that his five-year-old sister died in a house fire.

The Foster’s had moved to Paris after the death of Sebastian’s step-father, Phillip. Sebastian’s mother, Regina had been considering divorcing Phillip when the man was diagnosed with lung cancer, at which point she decided to stay to take care of him. After Phillip’s death, Regina became more distant in ways that Sebastian didn’t fully understand and this distance only grows over the course of the novel and through the death of Lucy, Sebastian’s sister.

In many ways, this book felt like a treatise on a dysfunctional family and what keeps a son seeking his mother’s approval even when he no longer speaks to her. Sebastian was a very sympathetic character, and I loved the little details, both in present day and the flashbacks to 1994, that fleshed out his character in unexpected ways. His relationship with Maja, the girl that he had met in 1994 and later reconnected with, was very sweet, even in a book that was fraught with a lot of deep emotional turmoil.

I found this book incredibly touching and heartfelt. I can’t wait to see what this author puts out next, and I’m definitely going to be keeping an eye out for any future releases from her! I give ‘Between Before and After 4.5 stars.

About Jessica StillingBetween Before and After by Jessica Stilling


Jessica Stilling has written three works of literary fiction, Betwixt and Between, The Beekeeper’s Daughter, and The Weary God of Ancient Travelers. She also wrote poetry and short fiction for various literary journals.

Her articles have appeared in Ms. Magazine, Bust Magazine and she writes extensively for The Writer Magazine. She has taught Creative Writing in both high school and university. She also publishes young adult fantasy under the pen name JM Stephen.

Jessica loves Virginia Woolf, very long walks, and currently lives in southern Vermont where she writes for the very local newspaper, The Deerfield Valley News.

Website: https://www.jessicastilling.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JessicaStilling
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jessica.sticklor

Buy Between Before and After by Jessica Stilling


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Giveaway Between Before and After by Jessica Stilling


This giveaway is for 3 print or ebook copies. Print is open to the U.S. only and ebook is open worldwide. This giveaway ends on November 24, 2022 midnight, pacific time. Entries accepted via Rafflecopter only.

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Between Before and After by Jessica Stilling