AUSTIN, Texas - s4story -- Reader Views announces Like Sapphire Blue by Marisa Billions as one of the overall grand prize winners in fiction. Billions' novel takes home the gold award, an award honored with a cash prize and special marketing promotions.

Emma Landry has it all in life—including a beautiful wife, Bailey, who she is hopelessly in love with. So why is Bailey staring at her from across the table with unfeeling eyes? Something has happened. Emma can feel the world she's worked so hard to build crumbling, and it seems there is nothing she can do to change it. She's done everything but pull her heart out of her chest for this woman, which she would gladly do if it meant salvaging the unsalvageable. Emma's heart is breaking. But to understand how they got to this point, she must go back to the beginning.

Stephanie Elizabeth Long with Reader Views said of the story, "Like Sapphire Blue pulled my heartstrings from the first page. Emma's character exuded passion and heartache that was palpable and Billions couldn't have crafted a more root-worthy main character. Emma was tough and resilient, and relentless in her pursuits. Despite the level of hate and animosity she endured for being a lesbian in a community of ignorant people, she channeled that hate and transformed her life into something beautiful."

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Billions notes, "Where my first novel was based in part on my personal experience, Like Sapphire Blue was full-blown creative expression, and to put it out there in the world was terrifying- only to find it so well loved and received- has meant the world to me."

Like Sapphire Blue (ISBN 978-1914965586, Mirador Publishing, 2022) is available at online bookstores everywhere.

Marisa Billions is an author and high school English teacher. She holds a bachelor's and master's degree in Criminology. She is the author of the fiction novels, This Too Shall Pass, Like Sapphire Blue, and Into the Blue Again, and is working on a new novel. She lives in Southern California with her wife, Stephanie and son Alexander and two dogs Max and Bonnie. Learn more at https://authormarisabillions.com/

The Reader Views Literary Awards program helps level the playing field for self-published authors, allowing readers to recognize the most creative and exciting new books in the industry. The program is recognized industry-wide as one of the most respected literary awards programs for independent authors. Top honors include cash prizes totaling $2,500. Learn more at https://www.readerviews.com/.