THE SIREN’S REFRAIN Release date June 2022
Dennis Jung – author
Finally, a romance novel… of sorts. No conflict zones or refugee camps. No bloodshed or intrigue, only complicated people acting out their lives. THE SIREN’S REFRAIN is now available as a soft cover from my publisher www.BookBaby.com at their Book Shop (preferred). It is also available as an Ebook on Kindle and soft cover from Amazon (although slower delivery time than with BookBaby).
In this story, the renowned travel writer, Leon Riser, is facing not only middle age but terminal illness. He has sequestered himself in his cabin in the Rockies, his sole companion his private duty nurse, Fumiko Sato. An unexpected visit from his former step-daughter Iris forces him to revisit his troubled on and off again twenty-five-year love affair with Iris’s mother, the famous singer-songwriter Lou Ann Catskill whom he has not spoken with for over five years. It seems that Lou Ann, who struggles with Bipolar Disorder, has walked out on her current husband and has gone missing. Iris enlists Leon’s help in finding her.
Out of obligation to Iris, Leon puts aside his physical limitations and conflicted emotions, and agrees to accompany Iris as far as Santa Fe, Lou Ann’s most recent domicile. Fumiko feels she has little choice but to accompany them. Their initial efforts come to naught and do little more than resurrect painful memories for Leon, forcing him to examine some of the seminal chapters in his tangled relationship with Lou Ann.
All the while, Lou Ann is forced to face her own culpability in the failure of their relationship. Their parallel cross-country odysseys eventually lead them both to Austin, culminating in revelations and reckonings. THE SIREN’S REFRAIN explores themes of aging, mortality, and regret. At its heart, it is a story of a love affair that has endured both the passage of time and the very bonds that enabled and threatened it. Settings include Colorado, Tahiti, Santa Fe, Los Angeles, the Big Island, Nicaragua, Honolulu, the Texas Hill Country, Austin, and the Yucatan.
My previous novel, STATES OF EXILE was selected as a finalist in the New Mexico-Arizona Book Awards. That book and THE ANGEL’S CHAIR are available through the online Book Shop at www.store.BookBaby.com. This is probably the quickest way to order a copy. My earlier novels that were available on Amazon and were published by Martin Brown Publishing may not be available currently due to the publisher closing business. I hope to republish them soon through Kindle Direct. Stay tuned.
My previous novel (published Dec 2019), THE ANGEL’S CHAIR, was selected as a finalist in the New Mexico-Arizona Book awards in the Adventure/Drama category.
The first novel in the Harper Harris series, STILL LIFE IN A RED DRESS, was selected as a finalist in the New Mexico-Arizona Book Award in the Adventure/Drama category. This novel also won First Place in the Mystery/Suspense category in the 2011 Southwest Writers Workshop Annual Awards.
I have included short essays about my books under the BOOKS Header. First chapters can be found in the SAMPLER Section. As always, I welcome comments and reviews on my blog or the Amazon site.
I became interested in writing novels after receiving encouragement from friends who read my letters relating my travels in Asia and the Pacific. My use of visual imagery and my sense of place are what make my novels as much an escape to a geographical location as the mental landscape of my characters. Tapping into my background in anthropology, I weave into my stories a sense of the mythical and the universal in the human experience – the drama and the conflicts that consume us all, regardless of culture.
For some additional insight into my take on writing fiction, I encourage you to go to the header page titled ON WRITING and read my short essay THE ART OF THE LIE. My novels appeal to readers who enjoy an escape to a world outside their experience. My characters, many of them loosely based on actual people, are often complicated and flawed, and for that reason, they don’t fit neatly into ones expectations of their motives, actions, or the outcomes of my stories. I also like to weave into my stories threads of history, a certain philosophical viewpoint, and my own personal viewpoint of the human condition. What I hope to accomplish is to tell a good story. I hope you enjoy them.
My email is djung@cybermesa.com
