Only the Lover Sings
by Daniel Fitzpatrick
TESTIMONIALS
“In this moving, evocative novel, which describes a few days in the life of a fourteen-year-old boy during the hurricane that came close to destroying New Orleans, a new and fine voice emerges from the South. Daniel Fitzpatrick integrates compelling narrative with a unique poetic sense, probing the deep waters—one might say the flood waters—of youth’s conflicts, of love and friendship, of doubt and faith in a time of grave trial. As the central character struggles through internal and external turmoil, he gropes for understanding of how to deal with the collapse of security, and with his parents’ wounds and the ancestral inheritances of psyche and culture on both sides of his family. Gradually the author shows us the soul’s journey through powerlessness towards mysterious hope and ultimate faith in life. The story is about a natural disaster, of course, and yet more than this: it is a living metaphor of the devastating spiritual flood that has swept through a once-Christian civilization, leaving inestimable damage, confusion, corruption, displacement, and death in its wake. Above all, it tells the perennial story of man’s search for the meaning of his human identity, and his eternal value, in the midst of catastrophe.” ~ Michael D. O’Brien
“A beautiful novel – fresh and inspiring!” ~ Ronda Chervin
“Only the Lover Sings is an elegy to youth and an act of faith. Daniel weaves myth and reality, faith and fantasy, certainty and longing in to a story that will challenge the reader. While our lives can seem to revolve on certain remembered moments, the author shows that they can be affected equally by a hurricane as by an unsaid word. He writes with grace both bringing forth the sacramental in passing moments and describing the concrete reality of attending high school. For the author, it is a description of a pilgrimage. For the reader, it is the beginning of one. The book cuts through the modern fixation on identity to ask if we can love others who do not share our defining beliefs.” ~ Capt. Patrick Brehany, U.S. Army
“A fascinating story of loss and discovery, clashing the theme of the coming of age of a teenage boy with an odyssey through tragedy, faith, and deeper meaning.” ~ Fr. Thomas Schaefgen, O.P., Catholic Chaplain, Tulane University
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Daniel Fitzpatrick grew up in New Orleans, LA, studied Philosophy at the University of Dallas, and lives in Hot Springs, AR, with his wife and two children. His poems and essays have been widely published. Only the Lover Sings, his first novel, explores his memory of Hurricane Katrina and seeks to reveal the weight of glory bound up in each moment of human life.
OTHER YOUNG ADULT FICTION
Damnatio Memoriae by Chai Mahfood
Damnatio Memoriae by Chai Mahfood After confronting unspeakable paranormal entities and narrowly escaping with his life, a young man faces the challenges of survival in the aftermath. Paperback: $9.99 | Kindle: $7.99 TESTIMONIALS "Chai Mahfood's chilling sequel to her...
The Darkspire Conspiracy
The Darkspire Conspiracy by Joseph Chaput As darkness rises in Scandia, and an ancient evil awakens after nearly twenty centuries of slumber and all things give way before it. Sigrún and her family and friends, embark on a whirlwind quest, of passion, vengeance and...
Wingswept: The Dragon and the Dove by Therese Judeana
Wingswept: The Dragon and the Dove by Thérèse Judeana Dragons in the mountains. Dragons in the ice. Dragons on the road. Dragons are extinct - that’s what Alandis was taught. That history is rewritten when Alandis runs from the breaking of her heart, and by strange...
Vows by Cynthia Linkas
Vows by Cynthia Linkas Fall, 1964. Academy of Sorrows' nuns and girls are at crossroads. Janey, a senior, yearns for faith and breaks the rules. Sister Philippe, a young independent nun, struggles to keep her vows. Mother Superior leads them in discipline and belief....
Galahad by Michael Walker
Galahad by Michael Walker Galahad is a knight in search of a quest. Abandoned at a medieval monastery as a child, he journeys to Camelot to earn his spot at the Round Table. Impressed by his valor in the tournament joust, King Arthur sends Galahad to find the Holy...
The Divine Tragedy by Chai Mahfood
The Divine Tragedy by Chai Mahfood Jackson Abgayani is employed by his local pastor to save two boys from the hands of Gary Miller. Unsure of what's to come, he'll agree to walk the dark road in hopes of stopping the profane sabbath. Will he endure? Paperback: $9.99...
Ad Maré: Song of the Pleiades by Grace Bourget
Ad Maré: Song of the Pleiades by Grace Bourget A kingdom living in the shadow of a five-hundred year curse. A people banished for protecting their home against it. Seven stars gliding westward. One ancient city has already fallen to the sea. The only hope to save...
Ransom: Shadow of an Empire – Book I: Cross of Secrets
Cross of Secrets by Thérèse Judeana An impenetrable shadow has bound the galaxy of Andromeda for centuries. After a freak accident of space, an empire of slave traders learns to control time. Now nothing can stop them from taking whom they will. In the deadly currents...
Ransom: Shadow of an Empire – Book II: Trial by Time
Trial by Time by Thérèse Judeana An impenetrable shadow has bound the galaxy of Andromeda for centuries. After a freak accident of space, an empire of slave traders learns to control time. Now nothing can stop them from taking whom they will. In the deadly currents of...
Ransom: Shadow of an Empire – Book III: Shards of Crystal
Shards of Crystal by Thérèse Judeana An impenetrable shadow has bound the galaxy of Andromeda for centuries. After a freak accident of space, an empire of slave traders learns to control time. Now nothing can stop them from taking whom they will. In the deadly...
The Messiah of the Metro Café
The Messiah of the Metro Café By Ronda Chervin It was 9:00 A.M., October 24, 2022. The reporters of the Catholic Weekly of Los Angeles met in the chief editor’s office for their special assignments. “This cult leader is influencing some St. Mark’s seminarians from his...
Vale of Hope
Vale of Hope by Grace Bourget In 15th-century Spain, a reckless youth finds himself grounded with the worst punishment he can imagine: volunteering in a leper camp. Working amongst those the world has proclaimed as dead to society, Paul finds that there is more to...
The Squire’s Journey
The Squire's Journey This is a story of a journey, written to help young people deal with grief and loss. Every journey has a beginning. Every journey has a starting point, when a person’s life takes a turn and he starts on the path that will be his life for the rest...
The Guest of Night by Lucy Underwood Healy
The Guest of Night Three teenagers are drawn into the hidden underside of Elizabethan England: a world where how you pray can get you hanged, and misplaced trust can kill. Catholicism is forbidden in this world, and Catholics walk the line between faith and fear....
Children of Slate by Thom Brucie
Children of Slate Morgan O’Bryan, studying for the priesthood at St. Francis Seminary, comes under the tutelage of Father Christopher. Father Christopher suspects that Morgan might possess the gift of healing, and he wants to introduce Morgan to the knowledge of and...