To be perfectly honest, I likely would have never read or even heard of Mike Dellosso if I hadn’t accepted assignments to proofread two of his novels for Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas.
Even then, I nearly turned down the first one when I saw that it took place in a dystopian society. See, dystopian really isn’t my thing (notwithstanding the fact that I have for years been a devotee of “The Walking Dead” TV series, which is about as dystopian as you can get.) But I put aside my prejudice and said yes.
And was I glad I did.
Without giving too much of the plot away, Midnight is My Time follows disfigured loner Andy Mayer and his young, blind companion, Missy, as they head north in a post-apocalyptic world to an unknown future. Along the way they are almost continually beset by threats of assault and death from a bevy of bad guys—including one of a decidedly inhuman nature. But what is the true, unrealized reason behind their journey? Or the source of the superhuman power Missy unexpectedly summons in times of the greatest danger?
Ah, dear Reader, you’ll have to check out the book for yourself. I promise you’ll be on the edge of your seat.
Next up from Mike was the romance/drama A Million Miles from Home, featuring Ben and Annie Flurry of the perfect life, the perfect family, until a sudden and tragic loss upends their world and sends Ben and his daughter Lizzy back to his childhood home. But will he find the help he seeks there, when memories of that home are shadowed by Ben’s formerly abusive, now supposedly changed father? How will home-taught Lizzy adapt to and even overcome her new physical limitations as well as a new, public school?
Mike manages to answer all of these questions from the vantage point of his Christian faith without proselytizing or sugarcoating. His characters are always believably human, with relatable foibles, needs, and desires.
Suffice it to say, the man’s a storyteller. Here’s part of what I wrote to him today:
Dear Mike,
Not all that long ago I had the great if unexpected pleasure of serving as a proofreader for your novels Midnight is My Time and A Million Miles from Home. I say “unexpected” because in the spirit of complete honesty, I almost turned down the first book due to my general dislike of dystopian literature. (Okay, I’ve read all of two books in that genre, so undoubtedly I was unduly prejudiced.)
May I tell you how glad I am I took that initial assignment? How you kept me up until 1:00 AM on a week night to see what fate Andy and Missy would finally face even though I had to get up for work less than six hours later? How I voluntarily thumbed to a chapter of a book of the Bible that I have tended to avoid like the legendary plagues of Egypt and certainly haven’t glanced at for years? How I recognized parts of myself in the second book, marveled at how effectively you told such wildly different stories in such wildly different voices, leaving me alternately tearful and fearful, resentful and hopeful, till finally gladdened by the rebirth of hope?
Well, I guess I just did. So here’s my thanks for honoring the storyteller within you, for sharing your gift with me and thousands of other readers. I hope you’ll continue to do so for years to come.
Do yourself a favor and check out the gem of a voice that is Mike Dellosso. I’m betting you’ll thank me for it.
