KAYE TROUT'S BOOK REVIEWS 1

I specialize in reviewing Print-On-Demand (POD) published books for my website and Midwest Book Review. Please query for a review by email to hgunther234@hotmail.com.

Saturday, April 15, 2006

LANTERNS IN THE MIST by Edward Fotheringill

Lanterns in the Mist
Edward Fotheringill
Cockeysville, MD 21030
Booklocker.com, Inc.

Genre: Mystery/Metaphysical/Thriller
ISBN: 1591138841, $14.95, 240 pp, 2006

Lanterns in the Mist is the most enjoyable book I have read since I began reviewing POD published books . . . for both the story and the beautiful quality of writing. About the story, I quote from the back cover:

"Part murder mystery, part philosophical discourse, part supernatural thriller, this novel explores the unexpected dimensions of both the light and dark sides of human nature. At the still center of the world lies the energy of pure potentiality, pure possibility. As that energy unfolds outward and manifests itself, anything can happen. We human being are left to interpret the happenings and endure them. We are rarely successful at either."

"Set in and around Baltimore, Maryland, the story chronicles the intersection of several lives gone strangely off course. At the center of it all is Father Dick Byron, a renegade Catholic priest who, despite his loss of faith in Christianity, has become an instrument of God. What Byron discovers is that life on earth is not unlike a Shakespearian drama where the forces of nature, however, inscrutable, are not to be denied."

This story is unique with its many twists and turns and spiritually enriched by metaphysical elements woven expertly throughout the fabric. To my mind, the author tells it like it is, plus he has a refreshing style of writing--short chapters moving to you-know-not-where, which do not fill in all the details, and yet, you understand what has happened. The attractive cover was designed by Julie Sartain.

The book begins with:
"Dreams. Dreams in the unfolding fertile awareness of the human race. Flickering images, never completely transparent, appearing and disappearing across the screen of human consciousness. Dreams breathe through the pulse of a subject, inner landscape which is, at the same time, paradoxically personal and collective. Some dreams flash-out during the waking state. They pick us up and compel us towards our destiny. Some dreams germinate out of the sleeping state. They reveal fragments of meaning, fragments of our possibilities. They are the fabric out of which myths are woven."

"Then, there is The Dream. The Dream in the Mind of God. This Dream has no boundaries, neither personal nor universal. It includes everything because it includes no-thing. Everything possible in the waking state is there. Everything possible in the sleeping state is there. This Dream displays no fragments, only the totality of pure possibility. This dream harbors all myths before their time."

I highly recommend this book to mystery lovers, to readers in search of themselves, to readers on a spiritual path, and to intelligent readers who can appreciate the author's literary gifts.

Edward Fotheringill has taught philosophy for 24 years, from 1979 to 2003. He is currently a free-lance jazz drummer in Baltimore, Maryland, and leader of the Ten Directions Jazz Group. He and his wife, Linda, divide their time between Baltimore and Bridgewater, Vermont. I hope we will see more novels by this very talented author. Thanks for the great read!

Reviewed by Kaye Trout - April 15, 2006 - Copyright

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