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November, 2018

HISTORICAL FICTION RELEASE

My Heart Belongs in Gettysburg, PA. Published by Barbour. A Civil War romance set in Gettysburg between the years 1860-63. A great deal happens long before the famous battle that transformed the town forever. Be sure to put it on 2018's  Christmas reading list.

throughout 2018

NEW EDITIONS

New editions of many of my most popular works will be issued throughout 2018 beginning in January. This includes making sure every edition can be purchased as an eBook as well as in paperback. Titles include: Mizzly Fitch (finalist, Dartmouth Book Award); Zo (finalist, Kobzar Literary Award); The White Birds of Morning (winner, Best Historical Novel, The Word Guild Awards); Mister Good Morning (a collection of inspirational short stories); and The Rose of Lancaster County (an Amish romance set in the era of Colonial America).

spring/summer 2018

MONTANA AMISH ROMANCE RELEASE

An Amish couple struggle to build a cattle ranch in southern Montana, alongside their families, using the Old West ranching techniques of the 1870s and 80s.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Stay in the Know

2017/18

BEAUTIFUL SKIN

Beautiful Skin by author Murray Pura made me feel as if I had been in a war; you can almost smell the fumes coming up off the pages. It’s so life-like and realistic that you have a more in-depth appreciation for what family members and friends have experienced in battle. Although, one thing I will say, that if you are expecting the kind of romance novel that usually sports a man’s bared chest on the cover, this is not that kind of romance. Beautiful Skin goes much deeper than other romance novels. However, you will find much more gratification out of this soul piercing love than you will find in many other books. I highly recommend this book for anyone who wants to really grasp what true love is, because not many books are able to capture it so well. (Reader's Favorite)

2017

PETALS

No carps in this review. No typos. Nothing but powerful imagery and strong experiences . . . For me, star counts are hard. I try to be consistent. My personal guidelines, when doing an ‘official’ KBR review, are as follows: five stars means, roughly equal to best in genre. Rarely given. Four stars means, extremely good. Three stars means, definitely recommendable. I am a tough reviewer. This time, five stars was an easy decision. Enjoy. Pura stands among the great writers of descriptive experience.
JIM BENNETT, Kindle Book Review Team member.

Expand Your Reading Experience

RECENT BOOKS

The journey, the struggle, the quest for faith, joy and celebration, a ticket for a fast and furious ride, darkness, light, fantasy, reality, love and romance and the heart, on the edge, all the colors of heaven, good versus evil, whisked away to a galaxy of stories you've never dreamt of before . . . pick up one of my new titles today and vanish, for a time, into an entirely different universe of mind and soul that inspires and invigorates your whole life.

SOME OF MY BOOKS & STORIES

judge a book by its cover 

Here are some of the cover images of a number of my published works.

Zo

This is one of only a few books that has left me feeling out of my body. It has an effect that no reader will be able to ignore; it will grip you and you will not be the same afterward. If God came to me and said that I could only recommend one book in my entire life, this would be that book. It shook me. (Erin Nicole Cochran for Reader's Favorite)

The Wings of Morning

Pura has created one of the finest stories of Amish fiction I have ever read. (Romantic Times RT Reviews)

All My Beautiful Tomorrows

 Reveals the enduring human spirit and one’s desire to find a place in one’s heart through faith - a place to call home.  (Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Reader's Favorite)

TESTIMONIALS

Word on the Street

WHAT PUBLISHERS DO YOU WORK WITH?

I'm grateful to be connected with Harper Collins, Zondervan, Baker, Barbour, MillerWords & Harvest House.

HOW MANY BOOKS DO YOU PUBLISH A YEAR?

It depends on the number of contracts I'm offered or what opportunities arise to produce a fiction or non-fiction work. Generally, however, I release 2-3 books every 12 months. The calendar year of 2018 will be different because a number of titles are being re-released in newly revised editions with different covers and different publishers.

HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN WRITING & HOW DO YOU COME UP WITH YOUR IDEAS FOR YOUR STORIES?

I guess it was always in the blood because I began writing stories for my mom when I was about 9 or 10, and then stories for my peers when I was in high school. I was first published when I was in my teens and I was paid for that story too (I still have the check stub). My first novel in print was Mizzly Fitch, coming out in a new edition in 2018, and my first novel released in the USA (though not my first book) was A Bride's Flight with Barbour. And my ideas? Well, at least 50% of fiction comes from real-life experience, so I write about what I've lived and what I've seen. Travel helps, meeting new people and getting to know old friends better contributes, reading, film, art, relationships - really all the stuff of all my days and dreams and nights, all my fears and my tragedies and my joys, all my hope and all my faith and all my struggles go into the stories I create, regardless of the genre.

FAQ ABOUT MURRAY PURA

Things People  Often Want To Know

born on the 25th of january

because i was born on Bobby Burns Day (some say Robbie Burns or Rabbie Burns), the birth date of the famous Scottish poet ("Auld Lang Syne" and "the best laid plans of mice and men often go astray") my parents gave me Scottish names (Murray & Andrew) . . . mom insisted my birth date was providential (what we'd now call synchronicity) and that i'd be a writer . . . and indeed the passion to write was there from the virtual beginning, for as soon as learned my letters, I began to hand print and publish my own books and stories, first for mom, but then for my peers . . . and wherever I've lived (Canada, USA, Scotland, the Middle East) the poet and novelist has always been a creative force in my life . . . my faith is in my stories and all my struggles and questions too, as well as my joys and the things that fill me with wonder . . . and i've always been blessed with the most wonderful readership and audiences . . . join us and enjoy the stories along with thousands of others around the world . . . 

LITERARY AWARDS & PROFESSIONAL ENDORSEMENTS

Pura's books have won or been finalists for various literary awards & have been the recipients of special merit from professional reviewers.

Awards include the Kobzar, the Dartmouth, the Rone and the Word Guild. Professional Reviewers include Readers Favorite, RT Book Reviews, Publishers Weekly and USA Today.

LITERARY AWARDS & PROFESSIONAL ENDORSEMENTS

READERS FAVORITE

SIX BOOKS BY MURRAY PURA HAVE RECEIVED "TOP PICK 5 STAR AWARDS" FROM RF READERS FAVORITE: Beautiful Skin/Petals/The Wings of Morning/All My Beautiful Tomorrows/Zo/Ashton Park

LITERARY AWARDS & PROFESSIONAL ENDORSEMENTS

RT BOOK REVIEWS

TWO BOOKS BY MURRAY PURA HAVE RECEIVED STELLAR ENDORSEMENTS FROM RT REVIEWS - RT REVIEWS 4 1/2 stars = GOLD PHENOMENAL – IN A CLASS BY ITSELF: The Wings of Morning and Whispers of a New Dawn

LITERARY AWARDS & PROFESSIONAL ENDORSEMENTS

KOBZAR LITERARY AWARD

Murray Pura has been a finalist for the Shevchenko Foundation's $25,000 Kobzar Literary Award for his novel ZO