"There will be a price to pay for bad medicine."
Trial and Redemption
Janus Key Series Book 2
by Thomas Reilly
Genre: Time Travel Fantasy, Suspense
WINNER
OF THE LITERARY TITAN GOLD BOOK AWARD
AMAZON BEST
SELLER
SCIENCE
MEETS MAGIC…
PROLOGUE
February 1965
With teeth chattering from the bitter cold, Billy trudged along the frozen, urban streets marked by tall, darkened buildings that swayed in surrender to the punishing wind. The frigid chill seeped through his threadbare clothes, numbing his fingers and toes, and paralyzing his mind. Freezing, starving, jobless, homeless; could things get any worse? With his last embers of hope vanishing into the icy landscape like fallen snowflakes, the barren sky was suddenly illuminated by a bright, piercing light. Attracted to the beam like a moth to a candle, Billy approached a two-story, brick building and entered through a large revolving door into a spacious lobby bathed in luminous white light. Once inside, he sighed in welcome relief as a burst of warm, rejuvenating air permeated every pore of his frozen body. A concave-shaped reception counter bearing an encouraging sign, Welcome Veterans, beckoned to him. Suddenly, a small, stern-faced man clad in the white lab coat of a staff physician materialized, ghostlike, from behind the counter and spoke in a menacing voice. “You are not welcome here. Get out.”
“But I am a veteran.” stammered Billy.
“The man replied, “I don’t care; get out or I’ll have the guards drag you out by your feet.”
Reluctantly, Billy turned around and headed back into the arctic unknown. It’s so cold; I’ll freeze to death out here.
Shivering in a violent tremor, Billy suddenly realized his whereabouts as he felt the hard mattress rub against his aching back. It happened again, this dreaded, recurring dream! Jolting upright, the familiar glare of two red beams emanating from the opposite side of the room met his torpid gaze.
That damn key. Ever since I won it, I’ve had this nightmare. And those eyes stare back at me like glowing embers every night. They never light up during the day.
Billy recalled the recent events with the strange key. Among the first crop of American soldiers to be deployed in the escalating Vietnam conflict, the eighteen-year-old enjoyed traveling the beautiful country and chatting with the friendly locals in his role as a military adviser to the Army of the Republic of Vietnam. But as the tempo of the war increased and wandering became more perilous, his disillusionment with the conflict grew, especially after witnessing several traumatic incidents, including a brutal attack in a Saigon restaurant by hostile Vietnamese forces. When his tour ended in early 1965, he was more than ready for some R & R back home in Peoria, approximately one hundred and fifty miles south of Chicago. First, however, he and a few army buddies decided to stop in New York City for an extended stay. He had never visited the Big Apple, America’s largest city, and was anxious to tour its major attractions.
One evening, during their ritualistic poker game in the cheap Brooklyn hotel room they shared for their New York adventure, one of his colleagues, depleted of cash, placed an ancient-looking key attached to a tarnished brass ring in the pot. When Billy won the round, he grabbed the key with the rest of the winnings and asked.
“Okay, Harry, what am I supposed to do with this thing?”
Harry replied, “I hate to lose that keyring; it was my good luck charm. Look at it closely. The key’s shaft is carved in the image of a two-faced, old man, one looking forward and the other backward. The eyes sparkle, almost like they are seeing right through you. I’m sure it represents Janus, the Roman god of time. Maybe it will bring you luck.”
Billy laughed in derision. “Well, I don’t know anything about Roman gods, but I could use some good luck.” With that, he tucked the small icon into his shirt pocket and proceeded to deal the next hand.
It was later that night when jolted awake from a disturbing dream that had seemed so real— roaming frozen, urban streets in a state of poverty left him trembling in despair—when he noticed one set of eyes on the old icon shining brightly at him, like two ruby red embers. Within a few minutes, the lights subsided, and the icon remained dark until the next night when the pattern repeated itself. Tonight was the fifth night in a row with that same dream and with those same piercing lights greeting him as he woke.
This recurring dream is really bothering me. What does it mean? Could it be a signal from this strange key about my future?
The following morning on his way to a local coffee shop, he decided that he had had enough of the ancient keyring. Glancing around to make sure he wasn’t noticed by any passing pedestrian, he grabbed the icon and flung it into the middle of the empty street, hoping his action would cast away his nightmare.
Chasing Time
Janus Key Series Book 1
A time-bending adventure like no other
A Literary Titan Gold Award winner
“A brilliant debut novel from start to finish, you won't be able to put it down.” — N.N light’s review
“It had me sitting on the edge of my seat until the conclusion.” — Reader’s Favorite
"An earnest and moving novel, Chasing Time is an emotive mixture of contemporary fiction and fantasy, for a story that reads like a potential film.” — Self-Publishing Review
Chasing Time takes the reader on a thrilling adventure as history professor Tony Lucas seeks an ancient time-bending key that may hold the secrets to a miracle cure for his beloved wife, trapped in the throes of the debilitating and deadly ALS. Racing against time as the disease extracts its unforgiving toll, Tony embarks on an amazing quest involving a series of unexpected plot twists, cryptic clues, and memorable characters.
Driven by a strong male lead, this heartwarming book combines realistic medical elements with a hint of fantasy to create a gripping, suspenseful narrative. Reilly spins a compelling tale of a devoted husband’s resilience and perseverance as he pursues a life-saving mission that extends from ancient Rome to modern-day America to the lush olive groves of Andalusia. The story takes the classic medical drama, historical fiction, and fantasy genres and turns them all completely on their heads. With its precise and witty style, Chasing Time is an engaging, must-read story like nothing you have read before.
Do the characters all come to you at the same time or do some of them come to you as you write?
I start off with the major characters that come to me very rapidly, if not all at once. But most of the supporting characters come to me as I write.
What kind of research do you do before you begin writing a book?
For Chasing Time, I spent several weeks researching ancient Rome to describe the prologue and the origin of the Janus key. I also spent several weeks researching aspects of ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) including prevalence, symptoms, current treatments, potential therapeutic approaches, and the plight of patients and their caregivers. I hope a realistic description of the disease and its impact is apparent throughout the book as Ann, Tony’s wife, struggles with this insidious foe.
For Trial and Redemption, I relied on my experience and knowledge to describe the biotechnology and scientific aspects of the book. However, the legal aspects, including the ins and outs of a wrongful death suit, involved many weeks of research and study for me to describe in realistic and accurate fashion.
What do you think about the current publishing market?
What do I think about the publishing market- both good and bad. The good is that Amazon Kindle allows anyone with the drive to master the system to publish their own book. The bad is that this same system floods the market with so many books that it is difficult for a new author to establish any type of reputation and following.
Do you read yourself and if so what is your favorite genre?
I read every day and enjoy many genres including history, historical fiction, adventure and suspense, and magical realism.
Do you prefer to write in silence or with noise? Why?
I have always concentrated best in a quiet environment. Simply put, noises distracts me.
Do you write one book at a time or do you have several going at a time?
I find one book at a time is more than enough. My major challenge in writing a book is to develop a unique and original story and this is difficult enough with one book.
Pen or type writer or computer?
Computer, although my poor typing skills drive me to distraction.
Thomas Reilly is a retired biotechnology scientist who holds a doctoral degree in microbiology. He is the author of numerous essays and articles on science and technology. TRIAL AND REDEMPTION is a story of medical suspense coupled with a hint of magical realism. His first book in the Janus Key series, the award-winning CHASING TIME, was reissued in 2023. He lives in Wilmington, Delaware with his wife Linda.
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This sounds like a good story.
ReplyDeleteThis looks like a addictive novel.
ReplyDeleteI like the excerpt. Sounds good.
ReplyDelete