Tom Fowler
Author and Freelance Writer
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In the Midst of Normalcy
To view the bookcover, Click Here:
In the Midst of Normalcy (AKA The House of Murder) is now complete and available in E-book form. The cost is $5.50. To order, please access the Paypal ordering page Here
It is now available in paperback from lulu.com. Click here to order.
Allow me to offer a short synopsis: A joyful family reunion has been interrupted by a shocking murder. Only a family member could have done it but the police are baffled. Nobody knows why the killer did what he did or if he will strike again. The fear and tension are thick in the Coleman home. Only one person knows for sure why the murder took place and if another will occur, but he (she?) is silently hiding in plain sight. The murder is resolved in an unusual way.
To view more sample chapters, click here to to go to the excerpt page.
Prologue
Christmas Eve, 1961
John Coleman loved spending Christmas Eve in his parent’s home. This was a time for him and his two brothers to be together with their families and celebrate Christmas a few hours early. This was a special time for the entire Coleman clan. As he watched the children noisily unwrap the many gifts which were exchanged, he thought of his parents. They were quite elderly now and no one knew how many more of these happy Christmas Eve gatherings they had left to enjoy.
At this hour, all was right in John’s world. He was indeed full of good cheer and more than a small amount of his dear friend and companion, Jack Daniels. This was truly, for him, the best time of the year. John had never been and never would be as happy and at peace as he was on these memorable Christmas Eves.
As often happens in life, harsh reality intruded upon John’s perfect moment. A sense of dark foreboding overtook him as he viewed one of the children commit a despicable act. It happened so quickly that he almost missed it and, for many years afterward, would tell himself it was the whiskey that caused him to make more of what he had seen than a mean-spirited children’s prank would normally merit. Still – the dark premonition would stay with him for the rest of his life.
In the noisy din of merrymaking, one of the children purposefully stomped hard on the hand of one of the smaller children, bruising three fingers and eliciting a painful cry. An evil smile quickly crossed the face of the offending party, quickly to disappear back into the face of childish innocence. Perhaps because the Christmas Spirit himself was present with the Coleman family that night, the child with the painful bruises did not suffer a fracture or broken bone. The incident was quickly forgiven and forgotten, but it would haunt John for the rest of his days.
John passed away in 2006 at the age of 86, outliving his parents and both brothers. Had he lived a little longer, perhaps he could have said or done something to keep the tragic events of 2008 from happening.
But, we will never know.
Notes from Tom:
The E-book is over 72,000 words in length (297 pages).
My thanks and deep appreciation go to my friends Tom and Tonya Adams. Tom allowed me to "borrow" his recreation room and poster of Marilyn Monroe for an important event in the story.
