T F Troy
The very first paragraph of "The Absolution of Mars" draws the reader in, setting a playful scene, and invites you to learn more. Immediately I wanted to know who these children were, who the Captain was, and why they were talking about fighting monsters. I love the way we learn more about the children through dialogue and the things that Boyd says to them. The storytelling has a nice flow and pace to it.
The intriguing opening phrase of the book establishes the mystery and rich historical detail of the narrative. With its intriguing and thought-provoking opening paragraph, the first paragraph successfully grabs the reader's attention and promises a captivating read.
Author T.F. Troy plunges us immediately into the action with the first chapter of "The Absolution of Mars". And in this story, we get the ending before the explanation. Chapter one speaks of our main character’s demise and then chapter two bounces us back to twelve days prior.
This writing style creates mystery that keeps you intrigued, waiting to find out what happens next. We are then introduced to a new character, Jemm Pender. Jemm is a slave, owned by the Pender’s. Through him, we also learn of Marnie and her gifts, and a great deal about the times in which they are living.
The book handles really difficult subjects surrounding racism and at times, it’s difficult to read, especially when racial slurs are used. Readers should be aware going into it that this book deals with some very real, very painful parts of America’s past and the days of slavery. That said, from a historical perspective and a human POV, it’s done very well and accurately. - HFC Review
A student of the American Civil War since visiting Gettysburg more than 50 years ago, T.F. Troy has an award-winning journalism career spanning more than 40 years. He currently serves as Executive Editor of Cleveland Magazine’s Community Leader as well as the Editor of Ohio Business Magazine. He also writes features for Northern Kentucky Magazine and Dayton Magazine, among other regional publications. His work with those publications has won him numerous awards, taking first, second and third place in Ohio for Magazine Feature Writing. Troy’s work has appeared in major metropolitan daily newspapers including the Cleveland Plain Dealer and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
In addition to the previously mentioned publications, Troy also held positions as a Senior Editor for both ABC/Capital Cities and ICD Publications in New York. His work has appeared in numerous national consumer and trade periodicals throughout his career. In his first book Cleveland Classics: Great Tales from the North Coast, Troy interviewed local and national Cleveland celebrities such as: Jim Brown, Bob Feller, Patricia Heaton and Arsenio Hall among others. The Absolution of Mars, set just after the Civil War, is his first novel.
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