Booksellers, publishers, and agents are encouraged to take a look at the 58 self-published books listed below. Some of these authors are waiting to be discovered; others have a track record and a following and are doing it on their own.

Fiction

Anna: A Doctor’s Quest into the Unknown

Michael Derechin. iUniverse. $12.95 paper (166p), ISBN 978-1-4917-2788-1; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-4917-2789-8

Amazon, BN.com, iUniverse

A disillusioned doctor struggles to regain his humanity as he attempts to save a girl from the ravages of cancer in 1973.

Kiddieland and Other Misfortunes

Tim Chapman. Thrilling Tales. $11.99 paper (232p), ISBN 978-0-9862862-0-9; $4.99 e-book, ISBN 978-0-9862862-1-6

Abebooks, Amazon, BN.com, Bookdepository.com, Kobo

In his first short story collection, which is about family, class, crime, and love, Chapman explores behaviors that are at once familiar and bizarre, while introducing an odd assemblage of characters.

A Kind of Solace

A.G. Ryan. Dorrance Publishing Co. $17 paper (222p), ISBN 978-1-4809-1045-4

Dorrancebookstore.com

This layered novel follows a successful writer as she explores an impending loss in her new work. How can she write a happy ending when her own world is crumbling?

Lover in the Nobody

Jonathan Harnisch. CreateSpace. $9.99 paper (160p), ISBN 978-1-5055-6246-0; $9.99 e-book, ASIN B00RN8IL80

Amazon

Ben Schreiber explores his alter ego, Georgie, who, like Ben, depends on wealthy parents, enabling Georgie to explore kinky sex with Claudia, succumbing to a love only his mind could produce.

The Music Makers

Shirley Russak Wachtel. CreateSpace. $16 paper (352p), ISBN 978-1-5007-8552-9

Amazon, BN.com

An exploration of the struggles of five individuals living in upstate New York, united by a mysterious young boy.

Spider Woman’s Loom

Lorie Adair. Foreverland Press. $5.99 e-book, ASIN B00OYFRWXU

Foreverlandpress.com, Amazon

When Shi’yazhi returns home pregnant and alone, Noni Lee relives her own traumas. Weaving a Navajo rug to reconstruct their history, she shares Spider Woman’s gifts of creation and resiliency.

Such a Good Boy

Josh Olsen. CreateSpace. $5.99 paper (98p), ISBN 978-1-4953-1164-2

Amazon, Apple iBooks, Audible

Olsen’s sophomore effort is a grab bag of candid flash fiction, self-deprecating personal essays, and subversive pop culture musings.

The Syrian Virgin: A Young Woman’s Journey from War in Syria to Love in New York

Zack Love. Zack Love. $2.99 e-book, ASIN B00PCTY5N2

Zacklove.com, Amazon

Anissa narrowly escapes an Islamist massacre in Syria. Alone, she restarts her life in New York and is eventually drawn to two men: a Syrian-Christian activist and her billionaire college professor.

Traveling Light

Jeff Tompkins. Jeff Tompkins. $2.99 e-book, ASIN B00RD43Q52

Amazon, Apple iBooks, BN.com, Kobo, Smashwords

A young woman’s carefully planned future is upended by her impulse buy of a used car and a chance meeting with another young woman. This novel features two women protagonists and a setting that readers don’t often encounter in contemporary fiction—the unique American subculture that is highway I-95.

The Woman in the Movie Star Dress

Praveen Asthana. Doublewood Press. $3.99 e-book, ASIN B00R9WTCD8

Amazon

What if the clothes you wore carried ghostly fragments of your soul, and somehow those fragments got transferred to one who wore those clothes next?

Mystery/Thriller

Due Diligence

Owen Parr. CreateSpace. $10.95 paper (284p), ISBN 978-1-5076-6647-0; $3.99 e-book, ASIN B00SXL55CG

Owenparr.net, Amazon, BN.com

A romantic thriller featuring intrigue, double crosses, corporate takeovers, money laundering, assassinations, and a sinful love affair. The Cuban government attempts to launder its illicit gains of over 40 years, utilizing Wall Street.

Duplicity’s Child

F.J. Harmon. CreateSpace. $14.95 paper (325p), ISBN 978-1-5024-4883-5; $2.99 e-book, ASIN B00NQEZXBI

Amazon, Kobo, BN.com

Mace Franklyn, physiologically scarred but determined to prove himself, is mired in a battle with the narcissistic head of the Michigan Bureau of Investigation as he pursues a serial killer.

Long Hill Home

Kathryn Pincus. Koehler Books. $17.95 paper (260p), ISBN 978-1-940192-84-0

Amazon, BN.com, Books-A-Million

The lives of three strangers collide in the aftermath of a crime. The victim, a Good Samaritan who is falsely accused and wrongfully imprisoned, and a reluctant witness all suffer tremendous adversity in the wake of the crime, and they ultimately discover that their lives and their fates are inextricably and permanently connected.

The Next Target

Marcel Trigueiro. CreateSpace. $4.99 e-book, ASIN B00IU1R73O

Amazon

Death warnings reach hundreds of thousands of people. A few get killed. Millions become scared. The computer forensics specialist in charge will discover, the hard way, that no one’s safe.

Spectre Rising

C.W. Lemoine. CreateSpace. $14.99 paper (392p), ISBN 978-1-4910-8181-5

Cwlemoine.com, Amazon, BN.com

A former fighter pilot risks it all after his F-16 pilot fiancée goes missing during a routine training mission.

The Twin: Jack Owens Series

Wayne Lasner. Wayne Lasner. $2.99 e-book, ASIN B00HRKV6O0

Amazon

The U.S. is threatened with the most covert kind of terrorism. Imposters, twins, will replace political leaders and government officials in an attempt to destroy the country. One young CIA agent will uncover the plot, saving the U.S. from an unfathomable outcome.

Who Is Malcolm Black?

Marcus T. Naef. Eloquent Books. $31 hardcover (464p), ISBN 978-1-60860-876-8; $9.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-62516-686-9

Amazon, BN.com

Betrayed by his longtime partner, Malcolm Black is forced to flee Miami. He becomes the ruthless leader of a drug cartel and plots revenge on his former associate. Years later, his return to the U.S. strikes down the existing drug syndicate along with his ex-partner.

SF/Fantasy/Horror

American Badass

Jeff Chacon. Wooden Stake Press. $12.95 paper (250p), ISBN 978-1-940936-04-8; $4.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-940936-05-5

Amazon, BN.com, Tattered Cover

Ron Watson, Last Zombie Standing, heads to Las Vegas to fit in and to get his undead head straight—and finds himself accidentally trending on social media while dodging bullets and getting drunk, laid, and fed.

A Door to Truth

J.S. Johnson. Amazon. 99¢ e-book, ASIN B00KFX48R8

Amazon

After accidentally discovering a planet similar to Earth, an international team of specialists scrambles to launch a ship to investigate. The truth is beyond value, but is passing through the Door worth the price?

The Last Giant: Transgression, Part 1

J.R. Hardesty. Golden Cocker Press. $16.95 paper (396p), ISBN 978-0-9907264-0-1; $2.99 e-book, ISBN 978-0-9907264-4-9

Amazon, BN.com

Honor his duty to his guild or to his loved ones? Facing sorcerers, mad queens, and violent death, the young Giant Menannon must answer a vexing question: Where lies loyalty?

Rebels of Jupiter

Russell Beideman. Smashwords. $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-311-76932-9

Amazon, Apple iBooks, Baker & Taylor, BN.com, Kobo, Page Foundry, Smashwords

The colonies orbiting Jupiter are in open rebellion against the Earth Commonwealth. After finding those responsible for the chaos, Detective Darvin must decide which is more important—humanity or revenge.

Red Sulphur: The Greatest Mystery in Alchemy

Robert Bosnak. Red Sulphur Publications. $13.13 paper (468p), ISBN 978-0-9909321-2-3

Amazon, BN.com

Inspired by true events, this is 17th-century science fiction about the Philosophers’ Stone, the ultimate power of creation. A triangular love thriller and adventure set in a time when great scientists were also alchemists.

A Secret Tale: Requiem for Deliverance

Lee Crawford. Dorrance Publishing Co. $15 paper (164p), ISBN 978-1-4349-1477-4

Dorrancebookstore.com

Lee has fallen in love with the enigmatic Osaris. But he knows he will never impress this intelligent and beautiful woman. Driven on a quest through a magical land, Lee must dig deep in order to become the best man he can be.

Romance/Erotica

Ancient Guardians, Book 1: The Legacy of the Key

S.L. Morgan. Pasidian Press. Free e-book, ASIN B00ARK6SUO

Amazon, Apple iBooks, BN.com, Kobo, Smashwords

College student Reece Bryant is focused on medical school. Unbeknownst to her, Levi Oxley has the enormous responsibility of her safeguarding. When Reece is pulled into Levi’s domain, Pemdas, through a hidden vortex, she finds herself in an enchanted land much like 17th-century Earth. With her very existence paramount to the delicate balance of the universe’s order, Reece must wait in this dimension until it is safe for her to return to her life on Earth. She and Levi must draw on each other’s strengths in order to save themselves and all of Pemdas from an eternity of despair. First book in a series for young adults ages 13 and up. The second installment, Ancient Guardians: The Uninvited, is available now.

Angel’s Awakening

Akaria Gale. Akaria Gale. $6.99 paper (182p), ISBN 978-1-5033-1952-3; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-5022-9829-4

All Romance, Amazon, BN.com

A race to prevent the apocalypse forces Charouth and Azazel into an unlikely partnership. Will love blossom again for the celestial ex-lovers, or will ancient allegiances tear them apart forever?

Him, Her, and Paris

Heather Starnes. Story Gazer Publishing. $11.99 paper (322p), ISBN 978-0-615-67040-9; $2.99 e-book, ASIN B00RNKYM36

Amazon, BN.com

Guy, girl, and Paris equals love, romance, and adventure. Wrong. Exchange student Abby Rodgers moves to Paris for an opportunity at an internship at a fashion house. It’s a chance to put her life back on track and escape memories of her brother’s death. Undercover FBI agent Ethan Gray is in Paris, finalizing a match-fixing case against a tennis star. A conviction is his ticket to promotion, but when Abby becomes involved with his main suspect, Ethan must choose between love and the FBI, the only true family he has ever known. Choose loyalty, choose safety, choose wealth, or choose love. Choosing doesn’t always mean losing.

Inner Beast (Master Series, Book 30)

Justus Roux. Erotictales Publications. $4 e-book, ASIN B00S9RBBFY

All Romance, Amazon, Apple iBooks, BN.com, Smashwords

Master Xanthos’s BDSM community is about to be shaken to its very core when Master Xanthos finds out Master Dimitri’s secret.

Miss Ivy’s Tea Room

Marlene Rose-Clarke. LifeRich

Publishing. $19.99 paper (250p), ISBN 978-1-4897-0008-7

Amazon, BN.com

The patrons of Miss Ivy’s Tea Room find comfort at the local hot spot. Proprietor Julia Horne is a Jamaican immigrant and former corporate executive pursuing her American dream of entrepreneurship. Her daughter, Victoria, is determined to pursue her own idea of the American dream. At the tearoom, Julia meets new and fascinating people and forms friendships. The one thing she and Victoria never expected to find there is love. Enter Charles Blackman, a former pro basketball player turned entrepreneur, and Mason Green, a famous Broadway and television actor. Each embraces the unexpected possibility of true love during turning points in their lives. Current social issues weave through the interactions of the customers, which allow the reader to relate to their experiences.

Reclaim My Heart

Donna Fasano. Montlake Romance. $12.95 paper (282p), ISBN 978-1-4778-1798-8; $3.99 e-book, ASIN B00FAH87JO

Amazon, BN.com

Sixteen years ago, Tyne left town, pregnant and ashamed. Now her 15-year-old son is in trouble with the law. Desperate for help, she contacts her son’s father.

Seven Days and Six Worst-Case Scenarios: A Humorous Romantic Mystery

Leslie Huggans. Leslie Huggans. $2.99 e-book, ASIN B00OGWETM8

Amazon

Mix dry wit with a juicy corpse and let simmer over a hot romance to serve up a wicked comedy bursting with murder, narcotics, and one gorgeous piece of man-flesh.

Starblind: The Jane Sevis Chronicles

D.T. Dyllin. Tik Tok Press. $2.99 e-book, ASIN B00Q6BNH8Y

Amazon, Apple iBooks, BN.com, Kobo

Owner of the Chimay-grade starship dubbed the Pittsburgh, Captain Jane Sevis is one of the best bounty hunters in the galaxy. When a particularly slippery target reveals the real reason for being in her database, her world is turned upside down in more ways than one. Will she follow her gut and look the other way for the man she may be falling for? Or will their love fall prey to her mercenary heart before it gets a real chance to ignite?

Taylor, the Journey Home

Harold J. Fischel. Harold J. Fischel. $14.95 paper (411p), ISBN 978-0-692-34181-0

Amazon, BN.com

Taylor Marx has it all—he’s a popular high school quarterback, a huge hit with the ladies, and his family employs most of the town they live in. But before Taylor is through, he’ll go on a globe-spanning journey to reunite with Maria, the only girl he’s ever truly loved. When his spiteful grandfather has Maria’s parents deported back to Argentina, it sets in motion a chain of events no one could have predicted. Taylor ends up on the run, until being in the wrong place at the wrong time sees him convicted for a crime he didn’t commit. Will Taylor ever see the outside of a cell again? If so, will Maria still be waiting for him?

Too Close

Elizabeth Krall. Elizabeth Krall. $9.99 paper (259p), ISBN 978-1-4820-9792-4; $3.99 e-book, ASIN B00B6AE1E4

Amazon, Apple iBooks, BN.com, Kobo, Smashwords

Three weeks before their wedding, Nicola and Greg discover they may have the same mother. Will they break society’s rules and fight for love, or break their hearts and part?

Virgin Quest

Mark Radford. CreateSpace. $7.95 paper (106p), ISBN 978-1-5059-1518-1; $2.99 e-book, ASIN B00SIC8QN0

Amazon, BN.com

Tom Webber was ready for the race of a lifetime—the Virgin Quest, where moral values is the key to winning the heart of a decent woman, among chaotic temptations.

Inspirational

Healing Rain: The Rain King

F.L. Raynaud. Dream Weaver Publishing. $14.99 paper (296p), ISBN 978-0-9905959-4-6; $7.99 e-book, ASIN B00RQNN48Y

Fredraynaud.us, Amazon

An epic journey of faith, seen though the life of John Parker. How one person can open the floodgates of heaven and bring rain upon a dry and weary land.

My Dog Gets It: 11 Reflections of Humbleness

G.E. Williams. Tate Publishing & Enterprises. $10.99 paper (92p), ISBN 978-1-63063-207-6; $9.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-63268-576-6

Amazon, Apple iBooks, BN.com, Books-A-Million, Tate Publishing

Develop your relationship with Christ, as reflected in your relationship with your dog.

What Brings You JOY?

Carol Miller Fradkin. CreateSpace. $14.95 paper (258p), ISBN 978-1-4996-6335-8

Amazon, BN.com

A collection of more than 350 responses to the question “What brings you joy?” from people ages six to 97, representing a wide variety of geographical locations, backgrounds, personal challenges, and occupations.

Whose Apple Is It, Anyway! Empowering Purpose to Achieve Your God-Ordained Destiny

Linda F. Williams. Whose Apple Press. $9.99 e-book, ISBN 978-0-615-73863-5

Amazon

Williams aims to equip readers with two powerful weapons to sidestep enemy mind-fields, reclaim enemy territory, and leverage purpose so they can realign themselves with destiny. She says the book contains real talk for real people in a real world. Readers will discover why what we have been taught about our flesh is off-focus, why the soul is the prime target, and why the mind is the battlefield. Williams tells a story of emotional and physical abuse, rape, divorce, and a 17-year marriage to a man who was later convicted as a sexual predator. Readers will learn to wield the weapon they’ve had all along and gain the skill to leverage it to navigate enemy mind-fields devised to redirect focus and sidetrack purpose.

Nonfiction

Hearts Beneath the Badge

Karen Solomon. Missing Niche Publishing. $12.99 paper (247p), ISBN 978-0-9863221-0-5

Amazon, Apple iBooks, BN.com, Lulu.com

Interviews with men and women in law enforcement across the U.S. reveal good deeds and broken hearts—the ultimate in irony. They might buy cookies for a child and be gunned down moments later just for wearing a badge.

May Day, May We

Claire Taft Sherman. Dorrance Publishing Co. $11 paper (92p), ISBN 978-1-4809-1033-1

Dorrancebookstore.com

With humor and common sense, Sherman approaches the problems most in need of solving. She covers nutrition, human relationships, politics, and the creation of a tax system based on the most just of all people: mothers. This book encourages the reader to take a fresh and logical look at the world.

Wynwood: Street Art of Miami

David Bethune. David Bethune. $100 hardcover (50p), ISBN 978-0-9864252-0-2

Amazon

Bethune’s homage to the incredible murals of Miami’s Wynwood district, the largest collection of street art in the U.S., is a unique exploration in multiple exposure photography.

Bio/Autobio

From King to Obama: Witness to a Turbulent History

Earl Ofari Hutchinson. Middle Passage Press. $12.95 paper (244p), ISBN 978-0-692-37071-1

Amazon

This book seeks to convey the exhilaration the author feels at having walked in the shadow of history of a Dr. King, a Miles Davis, a John Lennon, a Bob Marley, and many others—people whose monumental accomplishments affected the lives of millions over a half century from the mid-1960s to the first decade of the 21st century.

Inside the Founding of ‘Newsweek’: How a Hot-Tempered, One-Legged RAF Pilot Launched an American Media Giant

Thomas J.C. Martyn. Purple Plum Press. $9.99 paper (220p), ISBN 978-0-9852380-2-5

Amazon, Google Play, Kobo

Martyn had a vision: to establish a weekly news magazine that would rival Time. His memoir reveals the struggles and triumphs of launching Newsweek during the Great Depression.

Not in the Pink

Tina Martel. Tina Martel. $30 paper (194p), ISBN 978-0-9939548-0-1

Notinthepink.ca

An illustrated graphic narrative of artist Martel’s journey through Stage 2B breast cancer.

Ride the White Horse: A Checkered Jockey’s Story of Racing, Rage and Redemption

Eddie Donnally. Shine Publishing. $14.95 paper (338p),

ISBN 978-0-9891366-0-0

Amazon, Ingram, BN.com

A sexual abuse victim falls from grace as a thoroughbred jockey and newspaper writer. He becomes addicted to crack cocaine and same-sex encounters, only to find redemption in a jail cell.

Waiter to the Rich and Shameless: Confessions of a Five-Star Beverly Hills Server

Paul Hartford. Hillhurst Literary. $3.99 e-book, ASIN B00QXA0TX4

Amazon, Apple iBooks, BN.com, Smashwords

A down-and-out musician chops off his hair to become a server at the top of the Hollywood food chain and discovers a cloistered world of money, fame, bad behavior, and intrigue.

Business/Personal Finance

Escaping Condo Jail: The Keys to Navigating Risks & Surviving Perils of the “Carefree” Community Lifestyle

Sara E. Benson and Don DeBat, illus. by John Michael Downs. CreateSpace. $24.95 paper (623p),

ISBN 978-1-5005-7260-0

Amazon, BN.com, Book Daily

A comprehensive yet witty “encyclopedia” for anyone involved in real estate in any way. Problems are exposed, and valuable instruction is given to provide rock-solid strategies and workable solutions.

Science

Are the Androids Dreaming Yet? Amazing Brain. Human Communication, Creativity & Free Will

James Tagg. Hurst Farm Books. $30 hardcover (436p), ISBN 978-1-910464-00-7

Amazon, Apple iBooks, Ingram, BN.com

Many scientists think it’s just a matter of time before computers become smarter than us, and then what? This book charts a journey through the science of information, from the origins of language and logic to the frontiers of modern physics, from Lewis Carroll’s logic puzzles through Alan Turing and his work on Enigma and the imitation game, to John Bell’s inequality, and finally the Conway-Kochen Free Will Theorem. How do the laws of physics give us our creativity, our rich experience of communication, and especially, our free will?

The Dance of the Moon

Pari Spolter. Orb Publishing Co. $42.75 hardcover (202p), ISBN 978-0-9638107-8-6

Amazon, Baker & Taylor, Ingram

Spolter provides an explanation of the complex motion of the moon. Instead of a long series of advanced mathematical equations, and theories or assumptions, there are many easy-to-understand graphs based on the latest ephemerides of unprecedented accuracy.

Self-Help

Trance Formed Body: Use Self-Hypnosis to Control Your Weight, Size, and Shape

Robert DeGroot. Doctor Hypnosis. $19.95 paper (256p), ISBN 978-0-9864058-0-8

Amazon, Ingram

Using dialogue, this book tells the story of two couples as they work with a hypnotherapist to use self-hypnosis to trance-form their bodies. You can read along and go into trance to learn how to use self-hypnosis to get the body you want. Or you may read the scripts to go into and out of trance with your eyes open. Change your body image from what you’ve got to what you want. Minimize stress-caused belly fat with effective coping strategies. Make the right choices by transforming motivators into attitudes. Replace obsolete blocker beliefs with new supportive beliefs. Redirect the power of your fear center to protect the body you want. Access your internal resources to keep your trance-formed body. Win the mental game of weight control at the subconscious level.

Children’s Fiction

Archie’s First Adventure

Katherine Kleymenova. Cedar Alley Publishing. $17.95 hardcover (42p), ISBN 978-0-9939841-0-5

Amazon, BN.com

Archie the mouse, who lives in a little house under the big cedar’s roots in the forest, has never been farther than Calm Creek. But when he receives a letter from his friend Bruno, inviting him to visit for Christmas, Archie realizes it’s time to do something very unusual—have a real adventure.

The Atlantis Rain: Rain Fields

Dionne L. Fields. Dionne L. Fields. $14.99 paper (80p), ISBN 978-1-5058-5332-2

Amazon, BN.com, Books-A-Million, Google Play

A fairy tale about a little boy just seven years old and a second-grader in Mrs. Brantley’s class who finds learning to be a fun adventure.

Be Proud: Talking with Trees, Book 1

Colleen Doyle Bryant, illus. by Manuela Soriani. LoveWell Press. $9.99 paper (24p), ISBN 978-1-4679-2190-9; $1.99 e-book, ISBN 978-0-9849056-0-7

Amazon, Baker & Taylor, BN.com, Ingram

A wise old tree helps a boy learn, “Oh no! I have a conscience!” in this tale about honesty and making choices you can be proud of.

Ella Mae the Courageous Cheerleader

Stephanie Cameron. Tate Publishing & Enterprises. $18.99 hardcover (28p), ISBN 978-1-62854-600-2; $9.99 paper (28p), ISBN 978-1-62024-830-0

Ellamaebooks.com, Amazon, BN.com

A picture book written in rhyme, sharing a personal story of facing bullies with confidence and faith. Each book comes with a free audiobook download.

Gabbie Flowers: And the Key to the Universe

Dianne Caplin. Balboa Press. $12.99 paper (154p), ISBN 978-1-4525-2142-8; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-4525-2141-1

Amazon, Balboa Press, BN.com

An invisible boy and a magic bubble help defeat the bully in the classroom.

Lexi Goes on Vacation to the Outer Banks

Janice Wills Kingsbury. CreateSpace. $11.99 paper (46p), ISBN 978-1-5001-0326-2

Outerbooks.com, Amazon, BN.com

Ms. Janice and Mr. Rob have vacationed in the seashore town of Duck, N.C., for 10 years. Duck is a friendly place with sandy beaches where children and dogs romp to their hearts’ content. This year Lexi, a new addition to their dog family, will come too. But this vacation will be like no other, and as the sun sets on the beach, it promises to be a long night—one the family will never forget.

Nickerbacher, the Funniest Dragon

Terry John Barto, illus. by Kim Sponaugle. AuthorHouse. $15.95 paper (34p), ISBN 978-1-4969-5454-1; $3.99 e-book, ASIN B00SKKX2AW

Amazon, BN.com, Books-A-Million, IndieBound

Nickerbacher wants to be a stand-up comedian. His papa wants him to guard princesses, because that is what’s expected of dragons.

Children’s SF/Fantasy/Horror

Against Her Gentle Sword: Fighting for Love and Freedom in a Woman’s World

Alan Stroe. Tiberian Press. $9.99 paper (144p), ISBN 978-1-5052-3129-8; $2.99 e-book, ASIN B00NNZRGBU

Amazon, BN.com

On an island ruled by women, a boy yearning for freedom is selected to duel in front of the girl he loves. All of his opponents outmatch him physically, and they include some of his closest friends. A former ally hijacks his revolutionary plans, turning them into an evil power grab.