Crash and Burn

Inspiration

(note from Peter)

The inspiration for the storyline that unfolds in Crash and Burn stems from wanting to explore the consequences of the most horrific event that anyone could possibly experience. For such an event to fit into the storyline, as I wanted to portray it, I chose to see what would happen to the hero of the first book, The Experiment, when he discovers that the woman he loves, her two children and her mother, are murdered as revenge for his annihilation of the criminal organization that had Los Angeles in its grip for more than a year. So, where the last pages of the first book ends in a high note when the hero and the woman he loves decide to marry after having found a solution for their disparity (she is a famous movie actress, and he is an extraterrestrial who needs to remain an enigma), the second book begins with a low note when he discovers that she and her family are dead.

I found it difficult to find the words to describe the hero’s grief in a heartfelt way – such that readers would feel something resembling the emotion that he had to endure. I decided to let him experience the nature of what we call ‘complicated grief disorder’ – a condition that can be described by a continuous heightened state of mourning that keeps someone from healing. It is accompanied by intense sorrow, pain, and continuous focus on the loss of loved ones. I had him escape to the Adirondack mountains to be alone for six months, where he attempted to commit suicide three times. He finally finds some reprieve when his biological parents take him to meet his two sisters, whom he had not met before. It is at their home that he comes to terms with his guilt for not having ensured that the little family he loved was sufficiently protected. But I shouldn’t reveal more than that, to let readers discover for themselves how he returns to society to resume the role he was designated for, and to find love again.