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Spectrum: Book 1 of The F.O.K. Series
Would you risk losing your family to live your truth?
Come and join Frances as her story unfolds into a world she never imagined. Frances tests the strengths of her friendships, the lengths she is willing to go to find happiness, and the courage to stand her ground...even against the people she loves the most.
With her new found voice and a desire to live without edits, Frances quits her high powered job to follow her passion to paint. What she did not gamble upon was becoming the desired obsession of Ethan, a fellow artist. Frances's world spins out of control as she ignores his advances to explore her own growing hidden desires.
Will Frances have the strength to follow her heart? Will the strict Catholic Upbringing and family rooted in the culture of St. Louis pull her back to their ideals?
With Book 1 of the F.O.K. Series, you will find a contemporary, urban drama that will pull you into a world of warmth, suspense, and humor.
This story pulls you into a world that is seductive, emotional, and rewarding.
Grab an Irish coffee and dive into this book!
Frances and her close friends survive their lives through regular meetings of their Buena Vista Irish Coffee Club. The streets of San Francisco are brought to life through their adventures. This contemporary story of friendships navigating through our messy contemporary world will keep you reading.
Humor with an EDGE.
All is not rosy in the world of Frances. If you want some suspense with your laughter this is the story.
Become the newest member of the Buena Vista Irish Coffee Club!
Scroll up and Add to your cart today.
Come and join Frances as her story unfolds into a world she never imagined. Frances tests the strengths of her friendships, the lengths she is willing to go to find happiness, and the courage to stand her ground...even against the people she loves the most.
With her new found voice and a desire to live without edits, Frances quits her high powered job to follow her passion to paint. What she did not gamble upon was becoming the desired obsession of Ethan, a fellow artist. Frances's world spins out of control as she ignores his advances to explore her own growing hidden desires.
Will Frances have the strength to follow her heart? Will the strict Catholic Upbringing and family rooted in the culture of St. Louis pull her back to their ideals?
With Book 1 of the F.O.K. Series, you will find a contemporary, urban drama that will pull you into a world of warmth, suspense, and humor.
This story pulls you into a world that is seductive, emotional, and rewarding.
Grab an Irish coffee and dive into this book!
Frances and her close friends survive their lives through regular meetings of their Buena Vista Irish Coffee Club. The streets of San Francisco are brought to life through their adventures. This contemporary story of friendships navigating through our messy contemporary world will keep you reading.
Humor with an EDGE.
All is not rosy in the world of Frances. If you want some suspense with your laughter this is the story.
Become the newest member of the Buena Vista Irish Coffee Club!
Scroll up and Add to your cart today.
395 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 25, 2017
7 people are currently reading
32 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
September 29, 2018
I wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy this story just from the synopsis. It's not often I read adult stories, especially when it's very prevalent with today's events. We see Frances go through massive life changes. Divorce, career change, and understanding one's sexuality. And it also deals with mature content: gun violence, sexual assault, harassment, assault, and attempted r*pe. I really wish the author mentioned that these topics were going to be put. Some folks can handle it, and some just can't.
The beginning of the story was a bit rough getting through just because it took the author a while to set every character and setting up. Some of it probably could have been cut, but it's up for debate. Some might enjoy it. Some might not. I did enjoy getting to know who was who and how everyone connected with Frances. I enjoyed how the writer depicted everyday adult lives for Frances and her friends. Jobs, exhaustion, hobbies, love, etc.
Throughout the story, Frances goes through a lot. I mean a lot. Some that's pretty rough (see above on the mention of topics), and some, I thought, was pretty neat to read. We see Frances blossom to who she truly feels she is - a painter and someone who has felt at ease when it comes to falling for women. Seeing her go on dates was hilarious. She didn't know what to do, but began to get the hang of it. But, it did come with consequences. Majority of her family do not approve because of Catholicism, but her friends and sister show her what family truly is. A group of people who support you no matter what. And that was beautiful to see.
Frances has an insane life, I'm not going to lie, just from what she went through. But all I can say is Molly, Molly, Molly. I can't wait to see what Molly does in the next book because Frances couldn't stop staring!
The beginning of the story was a bit rough getting through just because it took the author a while to set every character and setting up. Some of it probably could have been cut, but it's up for debate. Some might enjoy it. Some might not. I did enjoy getting to know who was who and how everyone connected with Frances. I enjoyed how the writer depicted everyday adult lives for Frances and her friends. Jobs, exhaustion, hobbies, love, etc.
Throughout the story, Frances goes through a lot. I mean a lot. Some that's pretty rough (see above on the mention of topics), and some, I thought, was pretty neat to read. We see Frances blossom to who she truly feels she is - a painter and someone who has felt at ease when it comes to falling for women. Seeing her go on dates was hilarious. She didn't know what to do, but began to get the hang of it. But, it did come with consequences. Majority of her family do not approve because of Catholicism, but her friends and sister show her what family truly is. A group of people who support you no matter what. And that was beautiful to see.
Frances has an insane life, I'm not going to lie, just from what she went through. But all I can say is Molly, Molly, Molly. I can't wait to see what Molly does in the next book because Frances couldn't stop staring!
December 23, 2017
Wow what a book! Man this is one amazing book. This is so well-written and thought out. This story that is told with excellent writing skills by Sheila M Sullivan. She has a wonderful way with words that make the story flow.
This is an impressive literary debut with one of the warmest, good-hearted, and funny novels about accepting ones true self and all the new adventures that brings. I love her chosen title of her first book which appropriately describes the new views of the trials and victories of our lives. She sets the tone for the book from the first words of the first chapter. Which gives us the level of sensitivity and humor that caries thought-out the whole book.
‘Frances our main character relapsed into her Catholic memory as she dipped her finger into the holy water set in front of the church entrance. Her mother said that being Catholic was in their Irish DNA. But we know that is not true but for Frances this is an important turning point. As she walked up the center aisle of the Church, she focused on the ceiling in search of a sign that god would strike her with down if she tried to approach the main altar. But she was not ready to test the theory, so she headed to the confessional cubbies tomakeher confession only to stop and wonder were confessions crimes or sins? This is just one thought of many she has. And you will find more as you read the book. ‘Frances experiences three major life changes that led her to newfound freedoms allowing her to explore the Spectrum that makes up life.
Now before I ruin this for you I will leave off here. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did. If you do like this book, please consider leaving a review. The Authors really like it when you do; they value your opinions too
This is an impressive literary debut with one of the warmest, good-hearted, and funny novels about accepting ones true self and all the new adventures that brings. I love her chosen title of her first book which appropriately describes the new views of the trials and victories of our lives. She sets the tone for the book from the first words of the first chapter. Which gives us the level of sensitivity and humor that caries thought-out the whole book.
‘Frances our main character relapsed into her Catholic memory as she dipped her finger into the holy water set in front of the church entrance. Her mother said that being Catholic was in their Irish DNA. But we know that is not true but for Frances this is an important turning point. As she walked up the center aisle of the Church, she focused on the ceiling in search of a sign that god would strike her with down if she tried to approach the main altar. But she was not ready to test the theory, so she headed to the confessional cubbies tomakeher confession only to stop and wonder were confessions crimes or sins? This is just one thought of many she has. And you will find more as you read the book. ‘Frances experiences three major life changes that led her to newfound freedoms allowing her to explore the Spectrum that makes up life.
Now before I ruin this for you I will leave off here. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did. If you do like this book, please consider leaving a review. The Authors really like it when you do; they value your opinions too
April 13, 2018
One thing that is literally jumping out of this novel and something every reader will surely notice once he or she starts reading it is the author’s experience- both in writing and reading. This is something I definitely like and something that attracted me to this book (besides the title, which suggests something mysterious).
The book is about the author’s life and the three big changes she went through. We read about her “beginnings,” where she has “everything that she would need in her life,” such as wealthy husband, a good job, and a supportive family. However, the author discovered that neither of these truly satisfies her and that she needs a change. During that time, the author begins her quest for her “freedom.”
From here on and until the novel finishes, we read about the author’s experiments and how she is trying to discover what will truly make her happy (or satisfied because neither of things she had before made her satisfied). Thanks to her parents, who are described as Catholic, it appears that she has problems, both with her identity and her sexuality (because the oppression and religious views of someone can greatly damage a person and thus distort who she really is).
Overall, the book has some qualities. I like the author’s style of writing for example. However, what I do not like is that there is nothing spiritual and “spectral” about this book. At least, I could not find it. What this novel actually is a “coming out of closet” story of a lesbian woman, who “after successfully fighting the religious oppression of her parents and the life in which she was, she finally discovers who she really was all this time.”
The book is about the author’s life and the three big changes she went through. We read about her “beginnings,” where she has “everything that she would need in her life,” such as wealthy husband, a good job, and a supportive family. However, the author discovered that neither of these truly satisfies her and that she needs a change. During that time, the author begins her quest for her “freedom.”
From here on and until the novel finishes, we read about the author’s experiments and how she is trying to discover what will truly make her happy (or satisfied because neither of things she had before made her satisfied). Thanks to her parents, who are described as Catholic, it appears that she has problems, both with her identity and her sexuality (because the oppression and religious views of someone can greatly damage a person and thus distort who she really is).
Overall, the book has some qualities. I like the author’s style of writing for example. However, what I do not like is that there is nothing spiritual and “spectral” about this book. At least, I could not find it. What this novel actually is a “coming out of closet” story of a lesbian woman, who “after successfully fighting the religious oppression of her parents and the life in which she was, she finally discovers who she really was all this time.”
September 23, 2018
Frances visits Church to find her identity and to confess her guilt done in past but had to leave without getting and decided to head to the coffee club to settle her thoughts and judged the priests of being unable to show the way to lost people. In the Club, Winter assured Frances to help her in searching boyfriend and in return needed Frances’ help to move to the condo which she had bought. Frances was living away from family for over 12 years had still the array of messages from Kavanagh family disturbing her morning. Her phone was everything providing news, the channel for communication with family, friends. According to promise, Frances was supposed to meet Winter that day but felt too lazy and started to look for an excuse to avoid the situation. The dominating nature of Frances mother had made the siblings unable to cut her call and this leads to a series of memory as of how photography became part of her life and her suffering as the middle child. Instead of helping Winter, Frances decided to spend days in Redwood forests hugging trees to clear her thoughts and confusion about family, her divorce and life. This story is a continuation from the FOK series and shows the importance of having personal time above all in order to overcome difficulties of life and would be advised to the reader who finds that their life is stuck in between and not reaching anywhere.
March 16, 2018
A book that has it all
Spectrum is book one of The F.O.K. Series by Sheila M Sullivan. I’ll be honest, when I started reading this book I was having a hard time getting into it and I almost stopped a couple times. The beginning is confusing and I didn’t really understand where it was going with the storyline. But it was definitely worth sticking out to see what happened. The book really hooked me at about the halfway point. From there on out I had to keep reading because I needed to know what happened next in Frances’s crazy mixed up life! From guilt ridden divorced catholic girl to budding lesbian with so much drama in between!! The story has a little bit of everything, drama, mystery, suspense, and romance! I really can’t wait to read what Sheila Sullivan has in store for Frances and her Irish coffee drinking friends in the book number two!!
Spectrum is book one of The F.O.K. Series by Sheila M Sullivan. I’ll be honest, when I started reading this book I was having a hard time getting into it and I almost stopped a couple times. The beginning is confusing and I didn’t really understand where it was going with the storyline. But it was definitely worth sticking out to see what happened. The book really hooked me at about the halfway point. From there on out I had to keep reading because I needed to know what happened next in Frances’s crazy mixed up life! From guilt ridden divorced catholic girl to budding lesbian with so much drama in between!! The story has a little bit of everything, drama, mystery, suspense, and romance! I really can’t wait to read what Sheila Sullivan has in store for Frances and her Irish coffee drinking friends in the book number two!!
March 23, 2018
This book was an absolute gem to read. I think I laughed most of the way through this book, which says quite a bit about it. The author definitely has a way with words that will keep you engaged through every single page of the book. Of course, it does focus on some real issues that women face when it comes to life and love. I am excited to see where the author takes this series as she certainly started it off with a bang. I love the vibe of the story too. It put me in a great mood as I read it, which makes me love the story even more. This is the perfect thing to read when you’re stressed out or feeling hopeless with life. I would recommend it to anyone, but I think women that have a love of comedy and life will take to this story even more.
October 11, 2018
Ridiculously funny and sometimes outrageous, this was a delight to read.
It’s filled with giggles and with its aspect towards Catholicism mixed with a sexual element (and also the fact it’s set in Ireland) this can sometimes be pretty damn edgy.
The premise surrounds Frances who quits a high-end job where she’s stable and earning a good amount of money to find what she really wants from life, to paint.
This risky move from a comfortable lifestyle in search of something more is both inspiring and terrifying. Throughout the book, there are many events that show the problems with making such a decision but ultimately it shows how following your passions is always the right thing to do.
It’s filled with giggles and with its aspect towards Catholicism mixed with a sexual element (and also the fact it’s set in Ireland) this can sometimes be pretty damn edgy.
The premise surrounds Frances who quits a high-end job where she’s stable and earning a good amount of money to find what she really wants from life, to paint.
This risky move from a comfortable lifestyle in search of something more is both inspiring and terrifying. Throughout the book, there are many events that show the problems with making such a decision but ultimately it shows how following your passions is always the right thing to do.
October 30, 2017
A great story of self discovery
Frances is our main character who is the proper upstanding Catholic wife until everything begins to change. When our main character goes on a journey of self discovery, she leaves her job in the corporate world, leaves her husband, and begins to find happiness through art which is her real passion and the exploration of real happiness. This is a funny and thoughtful story with a great vision for where the journey will take you. I applaud Sheila Sullivan, the author, for putting together this experience and sharing the story with us, the readers. Would recommend this one to all those who live life for the true happiness that it can provide.
Frances is our main character who is the proper upstanding Catholic wife until everything begins to change. When our main character goes on a journey of self discovery, she leaves her job in the corporate world, leaves her husband, and begins to find happiness through art which is her real passion and the exploration of real happiness. This is a funny and thoughtful story with a great vision for where the journey will take you. I applaud Sheila Sullivan, the author, for putting together this experience and sharing the story with us, the readers. Would recommend this one to all those who live life for the true happiness that it can provide.
January 5, 2018
Reading the book description, I expected a serious, thoughtful book, but I was pleasantly surprised at how funny it was! This was an excellent read, and has something that everyone can relate to. Frances is the main character and had her life mapped according to how it should go. Handsome guy, well-paying job, happy parents, etc. When three major life-changes happen, Frances starts to question all that she knows, and all that she thought was desired in a life. As her life is turned upside-down, she begins to do things SHE truly loves and enjoys, and begins to discover what exactly in life produces true happiness. A thought-provoking, funny, smart, and thoroughly enjoyable book.
September 16, 2018
Spectrum is an inspiring and motivating story. It zones in on issues and circumstances that numerous individuals wind up in later on in life. Instead of living to satisfy everybody except herself, Frances chooses to make several changes. Her life wouldn't be lived to please every other person but herself any longer. Making some much-needed improvements to her vocation, her family life, and her beliefs presents numerous difficulties. To carry on with the new existence she has chosen for herself, she will need to disrupt the lives and convictions of people around her. Spectrum is an intriguing story of genuine self-discovery.
January 22, 2018
I received this in my Jan 18 Bookworm Box subscription. I really, really tried to get into this book and I never could. After having only been able to read a few pages a day without quickly loosing interest, I finally have up. It's the first time in my life I have ever not finished a book. I may try again at another time to read it. I read the other reviews about it being super funny, I kept waiting on it and it never came. This was after almost 10 chapters.
June 18, 2017
Great!
Great read, nice to laugh out loud from reading a book! Fun to get to know the characters and learn about their friendships. Can't wait to read book number two!
Great read, nice to laugh out loud from reading a book! Fun to get to know the characters and learn about their friendships. Can't wait to read book number two!
May 17, 2018
If you enjoy reading "smart humor" you will LOVE this series!! OMG, there are so many laughable moments. I looked up the Catholic Church address in San Francisco and the address really is at 666 Filbert Street! This author has done her homework and has made the references real and extremely funny! I bet the scene in the Muir woods forest actually happened! I need to get to the Buena Vista for an Irish coffee to learn more about the setting of many of the chapters! The character development is excellent and probably some of the best writing you will find these days. If you don't have all of your senses tuned in, you may miss some of the richest writing experiences out there today. I don't want to spoil the adventure for you. Hope those of you readers who enjoy intelligent, thought provoking writing find this book as fun to read as I did!!
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews