Red Maple

Tom Jennings’ simple request is that his son be allowed to take one less class during his upcoming senior year in high school. A simple denial of his request with no supporting reason causes Tom’s natural investigative instincts to take hold, and the more he discovers about the schoolboard in his small suburban town, the more dangerous life becomes for him and his family.Even as he champions what he feels is the right thing, Tom is haunted at every turn by the death of his young daughter. His journey brings him face-to-face with his own morality, and he finds himself questioning his commitment to his own faith. Eventually, his rage is the only thing that fuels him as he embarks on a trail of wickedness he could never have imagined uncovering.Meanwhile, Matt Daniels’ best friend-a precocious, counter-culture, twenty-year-old sociology student, Jovie Brenner, investigates clues related to Matt’s mysterious suicide. As the bright, inquisitive son of the Maple, Illinois, schoolboard chairman, Matt had been investigating the depths of the mysteries and corruption in his hometown just prior to his death. When the authorities refuse to pursue the inquiry, Jovie sets out to follow the clues Matt left behind, and in the process, engulfs herself in her own increasing peril.Tom and Jovie independently discover a conspiracy between members of the municipal government, the schoolboard, and a conglomerate of fracking companies that are tightly-woven within the clutches the communist government of China. Desperate to find a way out and stay alive as they pursue their investigations, Tom and Jovie decide to team up and collect enough evidence to destroy the forces that have launched against them. A dangerous pursuit ensues, and Tom and Jovie find themselves hiding from various unknown agents who mean them harm.From the author of Everlene’s Sky comes a novel of intrigue, corruption, and murderous betrayal.