A WORLD I NEVER MADE by James LePore Featured

What would you do if you were called to another country to identify the body of a loved one who apparently committed suicide, only to find out it’s not your loved one but they are now missing?

That was the basis of attorney turned author James LePore’s first novel. James is currently on virtual blog tour with the paperback release of that book, A WORLD I NEVER MADE (ISBN: 978-0981956855).

The 352-page paperback was released last month by The Story Plant. Here’s a brief synopsis of it: Pat Nolan, an American man, is summoned to Paris to claim the body of his estranged daughter Megan, who has committed suicide. The body, however, is not Megan’s and it becomes instantly clear to Pat that Megan staged this, that she is in serious trouble, and that she is calling to him for help. This sends Pat on an odyssey with Catherine Laurence, a beautiful but tormented Paris detective, that stretches across France and into the Czech Republic and that makes him the target of both the French police and a band of international terrorists.

Juxtaposed against this story is Megan’s story. A freelance journalist, Megan is in Morocco to do research when she meets Abdel Lahani, a Saudi businessman. They begin a torrid affair, a game Megan has played often and well in her adult life. But what she discovers about Lahani puts her in the center of a different kind of game, one with rules she can barely comprehend, and one that puts the lives of many—maybe even millions—at risk.

A WORLD I NEVER MADE is an atmospheric novel of suspense with brilliantly drawn characters and back-stories as compelling as the plot itself—a novel that resonates deeply and leaves its traces long after you turn the final page.
 
Here’s also a brief excerpt from the book:
Pat arrived at his hotel at a few minutes before noon, which gave him just enough time to put the roses into a vase with water and wash his face and hands before going down to the lobby to meet Officer Laurence. When he unwrapped the roses, a prayer card of some kind fell out; he put this in his pocket without thinking much about it. He told the desk clerk that he was expecting an Officer Laurence of the Paris police and pointed to a stuffed chair in a corner where he would be waiting for her. There he sat and began to ponder his strange meeting with the flower girl, but within seconds, or so it seemed, he was interrupted by a tall angular woman in her mid-thirties dressed in a chic dark blue suit over a white silk blouse. Her nose was on the large side and slightly bumpy, and would have dominated her face except that it was nicely in proportion to her high, wide cheekbones and full-lipped broad mouth. The eyes in this face, forthright eyes that met his squarely, were an arresting shade of gray-green that Pat had never seen before. Her gold bracelets jangled as she extended her hand to him and introduced herself with a half smile and a nod of her head.
“Do you speak French, Monsieur Nolan?”

A WORLD I NEVER MADE has also gotten rave reviews. Here are just a few samples.

“A WORLD I NEVER MADE is a compelling page turner—one of those wonderful books with characters as strong as the story and a story worth reading. Don't miss it. LePore is an author to watch!” —M.J. Rose, author of THE MEMORIST

“I picked up A WORLD I NEVER MADE and was riveted from start to finish. An adventure to places both exotic and intimate, told with great sensitivity, inventive plotting, and propulsive suspense. Jim LePore is a great discovery.” —William Landay, author of THE STRANGLER

“James LePore has written a fascinating suspense story of power and treachery, broken relationships and redemption….I highly recommend this compelling suspense story filled with vivid characters and haunting storylines. A story that will stay with the reader long after the final page.” —Bella Online

Now for some background on James. He is an attorney who has practiced law for more than two decades and is also an accomplished photographer (his work can be seen at www.nakedeyeimages.com). He lives in South Salem, New York, with his wife, Karen Chandler, who is an artist.

A WORLD I NEVER MADE is his first novel and was written after extensive research into the history of Islam on the Iberian Peninsula, and travel in Europe and North Africa. James writes novels of suspense, driven as much by gripping stories as by strong, complex characters. His second novel, BLOOD OF MY BROTHER, was released on December 25, 2010; and his third novel, SONS AND PRINCES, is available now at Amazon.

In addition, James is a writer of short fiction. His stories stand alone as dramatic works, but are also meant to illuminate the central characters in his novels. ANYONE CAN DIE, a collection of short stories written to accompany A WORLD I NEVER MADE, was released in February 2011. He is currently at work on his fourth novel, the story of a Manhattan district attorney whose son is wrongly accused of murder, which The Story Plant will publish in the fall of 2011.

To learn more about James and his writing, check out his website at  James LePore Fiction.

Do you enjoy novels that make you consider what your own actions would be in the same situation?

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