Mercenary at Midnight is a blazing assembly of provocative verse by author, philosopher, and creator Nicholas Ryan Howard. Crafted in the moments of utmost vulnerability—and always after the midnight hour had struck—the poet journeys without allegiance into the harrowing land of introspection armed only with a combination of daring, desperation, and mettle. The 100 poems, tales, and reflections within showcase the author's rebellion against complacency, rage against submission, and insurrection against resignation. Packed with vigorous wordplay and a razor-sharp wit, the writing burns like a shot of whiskey and sparks like an exposed wire sizzling in the rain.
Published Valentine’s Day 2021 in association with NRH Books, Inc.
Blue Bones, Blood Roses, Black Eyes is a collection of poetry chronicling painful relationships in the life of the author. The second book of poetry for Rosa Nadine Xochimilco Sánchez, this publication is a continuation from her first book on love, Hearts Aflame, Still Burning. While the first book was full of hope, this chapter of her story shows what happens when love turns dark. The book features 81 poems spread over three sections: Blue, Blood, and Black, the themes of the work incorporate the darkness of loneliness and destruction as felt through recurring metaphors of the emptiness and dangers of space, catastrophic weather, and performance on a stage. Also woven throughout the work is a thread of resolution and victory that can only come from survival after a struggle.While designed to be a light for anyone experiencing abuse, to know they are not alone, the work showcases both the turmoil and the aftermath of traumatic and toxic relationships. Because of this, the poems include subjects of domestic violence, abuse, abandonment, infidelity, divorce, Narcissistic Personality Disorder, suicide, trauma, and survival. Created over time combining real people and real stories, this collection serves as a window into a dark hidden past. Autobiographical and emotional, Blue Bones, Blood Roses, Black Eyes is an honest look into how it feels to experience betrayal at the hands of those you trust the most.
Published Walt Whitman’s Birthday 2019
Hearts Aflame, Still Burning is the first published book of poetry by Rosa Nadine Xochimilco Sánchez. This collection is a glimpse into the dreamlike state of being in love. Lyrical and suggestive, the author's language is romantic and surreal, blending tangibles and intangibles in an ethereal state. Focusing on feeling and emotion above reality and temporality, these 40 poems tell a story of love and dreams in another time and place.
Published Valentine's Day 2017