In "The Santa Shop" he showed us how a raw emotional story can bring readers to a better place. In the epic and powerful "Under-Heaven" he has done it again...times three.
Traumatized by the violent murders of his parents and himself, nine-year-old Nate wakes in a version of Purgatory. With the help of dead relatives from above and below, he struggles to find a way to move on. Meanwhile back on Earth, Nate's sole surviving sister seems to have been imprinted with darkness because time and again she finds herself involved with violent men and dangerous situations. When mobsters follow her and her latest boyfriend down a dead end dirt road, it doesn't seem likely that anyone will escape. The final player in this emotional opus is five-year-old Jesse who places his hope and faith in his drug-addicted father. It isn't until his kidnapping from his Boston school that the pain really begins.
Tim Greaton's "Under Heaven" will pull you out of your world and leave you gasping for breath in his, and the surprising culmination of this entwining story will stay with you for a lifetime. One reviewer says, "Like walking the edge of a cliff that provides a breathtaking view, this book is both scary and beautiful." While another reviewer declares, "Tim Greaton's fans will follow him to Hell in gasoline raincoats...."
You're invited to find out why.
From the Author:
Dear Reader,
By now, many of you are aware that I had a pretty horrible childhood. For me,
there aren't a lot of cheerful memories, and dredging up what few I have is like
revisiting a graveyard. I was a somber kid and my childhood was something I
survived not something I enjoyed. I don't blame my parents. They loved all of
their children, but they themselves came from dysfunctional homes and were no
more qualified to raise six children than I am to perform brain surgery. My
parents did their best but their best was a disaster. No child should ever
experience what I or, worse, what the two boys in this novel endured.
Unfortunately, such tragedies occur every day.
In my case, if it weren't
for a local library and the books that allowed me brief periods of escape during
those dark years, I'm not sure where I would be today. It is certain, however,
that I owe a great debt to the librarians and those many authors who toiled for
me. If my novels can help even one similarly troubled soul find a few moments of
escape, then I will have succeeded.
Thank you for considering
"Under-Heaven." I'm humbled by the time you've already invested and am hopeful
that Nate and Jesse's emotional journeys will lead you to a brighter place in
the real world.
Your friend,
Tim Greaton
