RIZE Press

RIZE Press publishes books written by people of color as well as writers from historically excluded groups.

Recent REleases

FATED TO FLAME by S. A. Gladden

Jasmine Walters leads a simple life; she goes to work, comes home, and finds another sewing project to dive into on the weekends. But after a fateful encounter with a stranger, she learns that she’s destined for something greater than retail.
Jasmine is the Prime – a human blessed by a magical Flame to act as arbitrator between the Hellenians and Draconians, two ancient races engaged in a diplomatic dispute that awards the victor access to the human realm. Leon Exousia, the newly crowned Hellenian High Lord, seeks her out in order to maintain the rights of the Flame for his people. But when Jasmine later meets the Draconians, what she uncovers will have her questioning everything she thought she knew about her role, and her weighty decision grows even more daunting than before.
Is she only a tool, led by the strings of fate? Or will she be able to forge her own path?
The answer lies at Mount Hyperion’s peak, where the soul of the Flame resides.

ISBN (pbk) 978-1-955062-53-4

ISBN (ebook) 978-1-955062-54-1

THE VALLEY OF SAGE AND JUNIPER by Shay Galloway

Steadfast Genesis and defiant Isaiah are content on their famed grandfather’s ranch nestled against the Rocky Mountains. When a mysterious new preacher arrives, called Leader by his congregation, the foundation of their legacy is shaken. Their pious mother, wooed by Leader’s commanding presence, becomes a devout member of his fold, pulling the sisters into Leader’s reach. While the Depression puts pressure on the ranch, Leader’s prosperity only grows. But his “church” is more than it appears. Once Genesis discovers his true intentions, she must fight to keep her ranch—and her sister—out of Leader’s grasp.

ISBN (pbk) 978-1-955062-60-2
ISBN (ebook) 978-1-955062-55-8

A PURPOSE TO OUR SAVAGERY by Tomas Hulick Baiza

A mother struggles with what it means to be Chicana as she searches for her son at a powwow. A delivery driver has a fateful encounter with a voracious customer at the end of the world. A grieving father learns the true identity of the hummingbird that hovers outside his kitchen window. A Mexican cowboy — who might or might not be the Messiah — orders a pepperoni pizza on a Friday night. A troubled young man develops an unexpected bond with his neighbor’s racist yard ornament. In his debut collection, Baiza explores the poetic and mythic spaces between light and ark, where Aztec gods and more contemporary obsessions fight for dominance.

Paperback 978-1-955062-41-1
Ebook 978-1-955062-42-8