A to Z: A for Adult -- Al Lyons

Al Lyons is a guy in his mid forties, a typical Dad, except that life throws him a curveball when his wife of seventeen years dies suddenly. Al is left with the care of his semi-estranged, teenaged son, Ricky. Like a lot of Dads, myself included, Al dotes on his son. But he has some problems communicating. And a hard time dealing with his frustrations.

Al is a teacher at the local high school. He also coaches football. He has looked forward to coaching Ricky on the high school football team. But Ricky shows some independence and a rebellious spirit and decides football is not for him.

This family rift is in the background when the two undertake a trip to Guatemala in the wake of the death of Mary, Al's wife. There Al hopes he and Ricky can reconnect and commit to strengthening their relationship, but their quest for wholeness mysteriously opens them to a world-shattering confrontation with evil itself. Al is kidnapped by the Santos Muertos and held hostage in an underground facility beneath the Alberta oil tar sands. There he is water-boarded, and interrogated by Samael Chagnon, the leader of the Santos Muertos cartel, and held as the bait to trap Ricky, who holds the key -  a Mayan  codex known as the Chocomal -  to Chagnon's desire for world domination. Al depends on his memories of his family and grows spiritually while in confinement.

As Al discovers. being a father, being an adult, and being a man, is a life-long voyage of discovery. And sometimes the key is not what you might think.

SAVIOR will be published April 18th on the Amazon Kindle platform by Harvard Square Editions. Visit the SAVIOR page on the HSE website, and then check back here throughout the A to Z challenge month to learn more about SAVIOR and publication launch details.