The following A Body To Bones excerpt is from tan Authorsden 2018 most popular book. Author Donan Berg's highly reviewed novel is available in bookstores that include www.amazon.com , and Overdrive at your local library.
Spring of 1954.
The quiet is broken by the slide of the wooden door to open the portal of St. Mary's confessional. A thin, unlined, purple velvet cloth hides the female penitent's identity from the priest, each in their own private space, permitting only voices to be heard. A hint of hair spray scents the air.
"Bless me, Father Murphy, for I have sinned."
"Yes, go on."
"I don't know what to say...where to start. I felt new life growing within me. At first, there was denial. I am married, but my husband was not the father. I did not tell anyone, not even the father. I suspect the real father does not even know what he created. I worry that my secret will be exposed, and many close to me will be subject to community disrepute, disgrace, scorn, and scandal. I have failed in other ways to live by what my mother believed in and taught me. I fretted that I was not worthy to be her daughter. Then I was consumed with the anguish of knowing that God will let this baby grow to be born, with the magnitude of all the consequences that I cannot hide. I have been drowning in guilt. I had to make a decision. I had to act somehow. Then God intervened. For my sin, God took two young lives, including my innocent daughter, my own flesh and blood. He cut out my ability to conceive more children."
"As humans, we never fully understand God's great plan. As God's family, we must believe He's compassionate. There is a sacred trust. For your--"
Before the priest can end this confession, he hears:
"One life extinguished was the result of an unholy union. Its death does not unburden me. My failure to be morally strong and my failure to honor my mother do not go away. I feel ashamed, conflicted. I cannot be truthful. To speak out will only bring shame, chastisement, and hurt the persons I love who live, or the memory of those departed. It's hard to hold it all inside, to not let the lies be seen, to bear all the pain in secret behind an accepted facade."
"Yes," the priest coughs before continuing. "We all, including me, have secrets from other humans but not from God. We must believe in Him, seek His forgiveness, and above all, pray to Him and believe in His everlasting life. Now, for strength and your penance, say three Our Fathers and three Hail Marys after saying your prayer of contrition."
The confessional portal sliding door is unexpectedly pulled closed the only way it can be -- from the inside.
Ten years later....
"Oscar...Where are you? I can't see you." Oscar hears his friend's voice echo behind him. Cobwebs stick to Oscar's hands and face as he creeps forward into the darkness. He feels an insect crawl across his forehead; he shakes his head. "Ouch," he yells, his head now hurts.
"Oscar, I'm scared. Let's go home. Where are you?" shouts Jim.
"I found something. It feels weird."
Copyright 2018, DOTDON Books
Copyright 2008, Donan Berg
Read reader reviews at www.authorsden.com and elsewhere. A Body To Bones by author Donan Berg is available at major bookstores. Also check for his Second Skeleton Mystery Series novel The Bones Dance Foxtrot . Author Berg won a first place gold award from Feathered Quill for his romance novel, One Paper Heart. His short story collection, Bubbling Conflict and Other Stories, continues to garner positive reviews.
