Tobias: akin to the shifting sands of an hourglass as above, so below - Hardcover

by Wilfred Varno (Author)

When a past symbol resurfaces on a farmer's hard-earned land, a small neighborhood near Milwaukee will rip apart at the seams in a fight of blood, sweat, and tears.

51-year-old Salvatore "Sal" Coppola has finally achieved his life-long dream: buying the farm he always wanted to settle down on, away from the busyness of city life. However, he finds that happiness is harder to find than a needle in a haystack when something-lost for centuries-resurfaces amid his fields of corn.

At the same time, Sheriff Kenneth Graf faces a disturbing truth as a high school quarterback falls ill under strange circumstances. Sheriff Graf's best friend, Lloyd Stevens, desperately seeks the respect he had in high school by helping him investigate hieroglyphs found in a barn.

Despite Lloyd's efforts, University professor Joseph Leroy shines new light on the case, leaving Lloyd feeling overshadowed.

When Sal, the Sheriff, and Joseph form an unlikely partnership, Lloyd feels abandoned, falls behind on the investigation, and begins constantly obsessing over crime scene photos.

Soon, the quarterback's mental instability, the trio's investigation, and Lloyd's silent dalliance with a darker force come to a head. The fiery, long tail of a meteorite will not pass by unnoticed, any more so than that of a simple barn cat being unwaveringly chased by a curious dog.

Tobias is a riveting urban fantasy novel in the same vein as American Gods (Neil Gaiman) and The Talisman (Stephen King). It features untold biblical passages, legends, and folklore-and is sprinkled with a generous dash of government conspiracy. Young adults and adults with a penchant for dark fantasy and stories that describe the vastness of the universe are sure to enjoy Tobias' bright cast of characters and twisting plot.