Book Title: Boy on the Beach by R.D. Maddux
Category: Adult Fiction; 304 pages
Genre: Mystery / Thriller
Publisher: Ezekiel 12 Publications
Release date: March 11, 2017

Synopsis

Andrew Foster, a real estate developer in San Diego, is a man suddenly haunted by his past. Memories, like specters from his former life of sex, drugs and rock and roll have come crashing into his current world of business in this sunny coastal city. The ominous, repeated appearance of a black SUV at the beach where he meets his sister each week, has triggered fears that it’s payback time for a bad choice he made years ago.
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To add to his frustrations, his hopes of a big breakthrough in the San Diego real estate market haven’t come to pass. He’s starting to wonder if his visions of success will ever come true when an investor offers to finance his dream project. Soon things start to fall into place for Andrew in business, life, and even love. He starts dating the beautiful and business-savvy Nicole but even with her at his side he can’t seem to shake the ghosts of his past. As the relationship with Nicole deepens, Andrew opens up to her about the many loves and adventures that have taken him from the crazy days of living in Big Sur and Joshua Tree to business success in San Diego. Her wise insights help him face the character flaws that have caused him to fail in his past relationships.

Rounding out his social life is his once-a-week task of assisting his sister with her nanny job watching a young boy named Chandler. They build sand castles on the beach and enjoy the beauty of nature together. But the now ominous weekly appearance of a strange car at the beach has awakened Andrew’s fears. Is the boy in danger? Or worse, has an enemy from Andrew’s past come seeking revenge and now Chandler’s caught in the middle?

A strange twist of events threatens to destroy Andrew’s dreams, but as he searches for answers, a sudden revelation offers hope of a future he never imagined.

Autographed Copy can be purchased here

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Review

I had mixed feelings while reading this book – some of the time I felt for Andrew and what was he was going through as we flipped back and forth in this life (37 years in the past, age 20) and the present (57), and some of the time I thought he deserved what was happening to him. He is rather arrogant when it comes to women. He is fast approaching 60 but was negative towards women just hitting 40, like they weren’t worth being around. But that sort of behavior is expected in shallow men that expect a trophy to hang on their arm.

Andrew aside, the story was a slower pace until the end when the events were coming to a head. While I sort of suspected different pieces of the story, I was very surprised at how the story ended. There are some questions I have that were left unanswered, but it wrapped up a few things. There was some misdirection regarding Andrew’s development and the financial partner. I couldn’t quite figure out why Donovan would tell Landon why he was doing what he was doing to Andrew. The years didn’t quite match up so I couldn’t figure out the truth.

I’m not 100% sure what years the past encompassed. My guess is the 60’s based on comments of free love and the number of drugs that were present. Plus the characters were living in communes and referred to as hippies. It was an interesting look into this part of the past and the author’s vision for that time frame.

Overall a decent story that is wrapped up somewhat nicely at the end (most questions are answered). I would have liked a faster pace, but that is my preference.

We give it 4 paws up.

About the Author

R.D. Maddux has story telling in his blood. Since he was young he’s always loved a good tale. He’s been writing seriously since he was in high school and college. His novels range from Mystery and Intrigue to Sci-fi/fantasy. With Boy On The Beach he’s set the story in modern America, to be exact, on the West Coast of California. He’s a native of the golden state and has been a resident of San Diego since 1987. Before that he grew up in northern California and lived in the Sacramento Valley and Bay Area with sojourns in some of the beautiful parts of our state.

Living in California for over 60 years he couldn’t help but watch the way things have changed in our culture and the impact this coast makes on the rest of America and the world. So even though Boy On The Beach is fiction, like most serious novels, it is not without a context and comment on issues we all face in our changing world. It takes place in real locations that are very familiar to him and its characters, which are fictional, no doubt have their counterparts in the real world. Boy On The Beach is a story of intrigue, suspense, revenge, love and redemption with flashbacks to the era when sex, drugs and rock and roll set our culture on it’s inevitable journey to our present day. This idea has been rattling around in his heart and mind for a decade and it’s finally coming to the page.

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