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Category:
Literary Fiction
Publisher: Richard French
ISBN-10: 1539793567
Type: Fiction
Pages: 401
Copyright: June 27, 2013
ISBN-13: 9781539793564
Price: $2.99 (eBook)
The third novel in a series called "Witnesses", "Testimonies" begins with these words: "The stories of a free people aren't always smooth and orderly." Never mind what challenges the main characters face, they are usually sturdy and resilient.
This novel consists of several narratives about people who are determined to improve their lives. They contend with such obstacles as war, plague, corruption, inner waywardness, and the ambitions of a cult that has become destructive. Do the main characters give up on their goals or do they persist in their quests for renewal of life for themselves, for people close to them, and for their society as a whole?
Excerpt
SHEILA AND PETER: THE END OF A PLAGUE
Paul Kingsley imagined that the 24th century would be an austere time in North America. Governments, businesses, and ordinary citizens fought the aftereffects of a plague that crippled the continent for decades and also afflicted most of the rest of the world.
Peter Black Horse, an artist nearing the age of forty visited a convalescent home where his wife Sheila, who’d lost part of her memory as a delayed result of exposure to the plague, had been a patient for several weeks.
He held her hand as she gazed at him blankly. “Do you still want to separate?” he asked, leaning closer to her.
“That’s my idea, yes,” she said in low voice.
It was a hot day. The air conditioning system was broken so the windows were open Peter wiped moisture from her face. “I did what I promised you. I brought you the pages I wrote to help you get your memory back. We had great times together, you know. I’ll leave it with you so you can read it.”
“If you insist,” Sheila said.
“You don’t have to read it all at once.”
“Where does it start?”
“Introductory stuff first, then a lot about me.”
“That figures.”
“After that, it’s all about you and me together, which is how I hope we’ll stay. Now, you probably don’t remember how the country got where we are.”
“How can you expect me to remember that?” Sheila asked. “The plague hit before I was born. All I knew about was life with the plague.”
“And you’ve forgotten what a hero you were at one point.”
“I was never a hero,” Sheila protested. “You’re just flattering me ‘cause you want us to stay together. I always lived an ordinary life. The plague made sure I had no choice. If I ever get out of here, I’ll have the best adventures ever.”
“We can do exciting things together,” Peter said. “Adventures are always better when there’s two.”
“Tell me about it.” Sheila turned her head toward the window. “I’m tired of a boring life.”
“Our life wasn’t boring,” Peter said. “Never.”
“Tell me about it,” Sheila repeated.
“Read what I wrote for you,” Peter pleaded.
“I will when I get around to it.”
She leafed through the pages after he left and set them on her night table. She’d go back to them later.
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