The Avid Reader

Thursday, June 12, 2025

Virtual Book Tour: CROWN OF BLOOMS by R.C. Dicken @pumpupyourbook

When a shy disillusioned pastor’s son becomes fast friends with a worldly, freckle-faced, painter, he is forced to grapple with intense new emotions that he can’t pray away…

Author: R.C. Dickens

Pages: 143

Format: Paperback, Kindle

Genre: Coming of Age/Literary Fiction

Kayden Moses has worked for 15 years to be a good pastor’s son. He’s volunteered at every Vacation Bible School, never missed a youth group meeting, and tries to follow the example of his spiritually gifted twin sister, Delilah. However, all his diligent efforts are disrupted when he meets the biggest stumbling block of his life:

Alex. The new boy in youth group. Bubbly. Opinionated. Dizzyingly nice to look at.

Suddenly, Kayden finds himself caught in a spiral of confusion and asking questions he’s never asked before.

Who is Kayden Moses? Because he’s certainly not a good pastor’s son anymore.

Crown of Blooms can be purchased at Amazon and B&N.

Book Excerpt

The church gym smelled of fresh, hot body odor and even more profusely of cheap cologne. The youth game room had been abandoned by the boys in favor of a pickup basketball game before their parents arrived to take them home. Kayden sat on the bleachers that creaked with every twitch, imagining the girls upstairs having much more fun with the foosball table and the worn UNO deck, and waiting for someone to tire out and pull him into the bracket. He sucked the noxious smell in deep in an attempt to distract himself from how the late afternoon sun was interacting with the sweat on Manny’s skin; Manny was dark and when the light hit that smooth black skin it glowed, reflecting in stark patches on the ripples in his bare stomach and, most prominently, his chest.

– Excerpted from Crown of Blooms by J.C. Dickens, Juniper Press, 2024. Reprinted with permission.

About the Author

R.C. Dickens is the pen name of Juniper Ray, a black, queer writer, choreographer, teacher’s assistant and disaster living in Appalachia with big dreams of escaping out to the West Coast. Along with their debut novel, Crown of Blooms, they have worked as a ghostwriter for several years and have published several short stories. In 2023, Juniper won the Webby Award for Best Single Episode of a Podcast for their appearance on Snap Judgement. When they aren’t writing (which is rarely) Juniper enjoys dancing, singing, anime, cosplay and generally being a menace to the general public.

Website & Social Media:

Website ➜ https://rcdickens.wixsite.com/website

Facebook ➜ https://www.facebook.com/AuthorRCDickens

Instagram ➜ https://www.instagram.com/rcdickens_author