Fan Mail by Joseph Lewis
A barrage of threatening letters, a car bomb, and a heart attack rip apart what was once a close-knit family of adopted brothers. Randy and Bobby, along with fellow band member and best friend, Danny, receive fan mail that turns menacing. They ignore it, but to their detriment. The sender turns up the heat. Violence upends their world. It rocks the relationship between the boys and ripples through their family, nearly killing their dad. As these boys turn on each other, adopted brother Brian flashes back to that event in Arizona where he nearly lost his life saving his brothers. The scars on his face and arms healed, but not his heart. Would he once again have to put himself in harm's way to save them? And if faced with that choice, will he?
About the author
After having been in education for forty-six years as a teacher, coach, counselor and administrator, Joseph Lewis has semi-retired and now works part-time as an online learning facilitator. He uses his psychology and counseling background to craft thriller/crime/detective mysteries, and has taken creative writing and screen writing courses at UCLA and USC.
Lewis has published eight books, all available on Amazon and each to excellent reviews: Taking Lives (May 2021) the prequel to the Lives Trilogy; Stolen Lives (May 2021) Book One of the Lives Trilogy is a BestThrillers 1st Place Award Winner for Crime Fiction, and a Literary Titan Gold Book Award Winner; Shattered Lives (May 2021) Book Two of the Trilogy; and Splintered Lives (May 2021) Book Three of the Trilogy (May 2021); Caught in a Web (April 2018), which was a PenCraft Literary Award Winner for Crime Fiction and named “One of the Best Crime Fiction Thrillers of 2018!” by Best Thrillers; Spiral Into Darkness (January 2019), which was named a Recommended Read by Author’s Favorites; Betrayed November 2020 is a Top Shelf Award 1st Place Fiction-Mystery; Top Shelf Award Runner-Up Fiction-Crime; PenCraft Award 1st Place Winner, Maxy Award Runner-Up for Mystery-Suspense, a Literary Titan Silver Book Award Winner, and a Reader’s Favorite 5 Star Rating Winner; Blaze In, Blaze Out January 2022 has already won a Literary Titan Gold Book Award, A Reader’s Favorite Recommended Read, and was an Editor’s Pick by BestThrillers.com . Lewis has another thriller-crime-mystery, Fan Mail hitting the market March 30, 2023.
Born and raised in Wisconsin, Lewis has been happily married to his wife, Kim. Together they have three wonderful children: Wil (deceased July 2014), Hannah, and Emily. He and his wife now reside in Virginia.
Social Media Links
Author Website at https://www.jrlewisauthor.blog
Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/joseph.lewis.author/
Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/Joseph.Lewis.Author
Amazon at: http://www.amazon.com/Joseph-Lewis/e/B01FWB9AOI /
Blog at: https://www.simplethoughtsfromacomplicatedmindsortof.com
When I wrote Fan Mail, like any author, I had a story idea and I wrote it. It wasn’t until after it was completed, with all the edits finished, did I realize just how much each chapter or paragraph or sentence impacted the whole and led to the climax.
I come from a family of ten- six sisters and three brothers, of which, I am the second youngest. There is a twenty-year difference between the oldest sibling and the youngest. As you can imagine, some of us are closer to each other than others, though all of us love one another. It is no less different in the Evans family among the boys.
Their father, Jeremy, suffered a heart attack, but he’s healing. But his heart attack, along with threatening letters and a car bomb, threatened the closeness and the relationships in the family, especially among the brothers.
In this extract from Fan Mail, Brian’s life hangs in the balance. The family doesn’t know if he will live or die. This is hard on each brother and his mother and father, but especially hard on the youngest brother, Michael, who most everyone calls Two. He and Brian are extremely close, as evidenced in this passage.
Michael wandered off by himself, but is found in the hospital chapel by his brother George and his father Jeremy.
The little chapel, darkened except for dim lighting and votive candles, was empty except for Two, who sat in the second pew on the left. Head down, shoulders hunched, weeping quietly.
Jeremy and George sat down on either side of him.
“I thought I’d feel Brian here.”
Neither Jeremy nor George responded.
“I prayed just like Brian taught me. I came with thanks and praise. Then I asked God to protect Brian.”
Jeremy sat back, shocked. What else did Brian teach him?
“I think I prayed correctly,” Two said as he wiped tears from his eyes.
“I’m sure you did,” Jeremy said as he slipped an arm around the boy’s narrow shoulders.
“But why couldn’t I feel him?”
It came out as a sob, and Jeremy hugged him and kissed the side of his head.
“Because Brian is alive,” Jeremy whispered, hoping he was correct.
Two shook his head. “Brian can’t die yet.”
“We don’t know anything yet, Two.”
“No, you don’t understand. It’s cold and rainy outside. Brian wants to die on a sunny day with a bright blue sky and fluffy white clouds. But not until sunset. That’s his favorite time of day. Sunset is when he talks to God about his day. He talks about how he screwed up and he apologizes and promises to do better. He can’t die yet. It’s raining, and it’s cold, and it’s not sunny. It’s not sunset. He can’t die yet.”
How could Jeremy argue with that? He knew there was nothing he could say that would make sense to Two. It wasn’t the time or place to talk to his youngest about weighty thoughts.
“I want to be with Brian. He shouldn’t be alone,” Two whispered as he wiped away tears.
Jeremy gave Two a hug, kissed the side of his head, and said, “Let’s go back to the waiting room. The doctor or your mom should be out soon, and they’ll give us an update.”
Two sighed, nodded, and the three of them stood and left the chapel together to be with the rest of the family. And wait.
Of and by itself, this passage is impactful, but when read with the lead up and following passages, it tugs at one’s heart. It’s full impact leads to the conclusion that I guarantee will bring tears to your eyes.
