One man's struggle to accept his wife's death, and the cost of bringing her back to life. While in the process of bringing his wife, Sandra, back to the living, Arthur journals about moments from his past that changed him. During the journal writing, he rediscovers how, as an orphan, his ability to animate objects and people to life may have ultimately destroyed the lives of the few who grew close to him. The old stuffed teddy bear that helped him assemble puzzles when he was a child might have been too much of a secret for his adoptive mother to keep. His friend Quincy, who had abilities similar to his, might have been scared away by Arthur's abilities. And his grade school teacher is still harboring a secret about his biological father that she can only hope to be true. Once Sandra is alive again, things become more complicated. She claims Arthur is not who or what he thinks he is. Her ire shines a spotlight on the insidious but most likely true, unspoken nature of their relationship. In the meantime, a mysterious smell envelopes the community-a stench so heinous it can be fatal. As the number of deaths from the stench mounts, Arthur must decide who to animate back to life and who remains dead.
About the Author: U.L. Harper is a speculative fiction/horror author, influenced by magical realism. A former journalist from Long Beach, California, he now resides in the evergreen state of Washington with his wife. He is a soon-to-be father, and an avid Dodgers fan. I began writing one-page stories in the summer after sixth grade. Imagine stories about pools of blood and kids jumping across dimensions. Eventually, I finished my first novel. The Nothing Bottom. I have no recollection of what it was about. But I do remember by the end I thought it sucked. Mostly for learning purposes, I self-published my first word processed novel, The Flesh Statue. It's the novel that is closest to my heart. At its core it's about a teenage boy, Langley Jackson, who is forced to live with his grandmother who is taking care of his grandfather. His grandfather has a bad case of dementia, and recently suffered a stroke. Langley avoids home life by doing graffiti and learning poetry with some of his new friends. And there are anarchists rumored to be taking over the city. My next piece of work was In Blackness. A coming-of-age aliens story. It was followed by In Blackness: The Reinvention of Man. The third In Blackness novel is yet to be released. The Secret Deaths of Arthur Lowe is the first novel or story of any kind I wrote that let the audience know the race of the characters. That fact doesn't mean anything. Still a fact. I grew up in Long Beach, California but spent a bunch of time in San Pedro. I was greatly effected by San Pedro. It has a certain smell, and quite the interesting small town. There is no place like San Pedro. Long Beach is where my heart is, however. Without going too much into it, it's where I learned things don't have to be okay. You can be homeless, regardless of how hard you work or what your intentions are. I lived in other places around Long Beach, Los Angeles County, but I'm not here for a life story. What's important is that there are many people to thank. I didn't get here alone. But since I believe in all or nothing, I'm saying nothing. Not enough time to tell about all. I now reside in Puyallup, Washington. Got married in the house we currently live in. Child on the way. It rains a lot out here, and I'm fine with that. Thanks for being here. Keep in touch. U.L. Harper