Alex Campbell was the golden boy. The senior psychological profiler for the force, that was until a failed suicide attempt landed him in a high security mental hospital. What drove him to want to take his own life?
His arrest rate for apprehending the most notorious murderers was unusually high, and upon his release from Stoneybrook Mental Hospital, his talents did not go unnoticed by the new police task force or the underworld they are trying to penetrate. When the daughter of a politician and the nephew of a crime boss are abducted by the same man they both take desperate measures to make sure Alex and his team are on the case.
The kidnapper slowly reveals details of his reasons for the abductions that affect high society as well as the lower criminal elements. As past dimensions reverberate into the future, Alex must confront the kidnapper who warns he is the only one with the ability to stop the Killing Flow.
Fans of Dexter, Lisbeth Salander and The Dead Zone will find Alex Campbell a compelling character. Part detective, part psychic. With terrible talent for diving the nature of objects. This is an unrelenting paranormal / psychic crime series, with plenty of twists and turns leading to a dramatic conclusion as the connection between the missing children comes to an unsettling end.
~~~
Q&A with Barry Crowther
Q: What made you move to a psychic paranormal mystery rather than stay with the straightforward mystery novel genre?
B: I have been a mystery buff for a long time but always enjoyed the odd horror novel. I wrote a few scenes that were gangsteresque (like my other work) but with some weird twists to the scene. These became Alex Campbell's waking dreams. It was an enjoyable process and I can see how fantasy or horror writers get a kick out of it. That scene led me on to write more and it just grew into a novel.
Q: How is Alex Campbell different than Matt Spears, your other series character?
B: Alex is very much under pressure the whole time, his mind and heart are breaking. Matt is much more self assured and aware of his skills in combat etc. Whereas Alex has a unique gift, one which haunts him. This psychic talent gives him the ability to touch objects which then reveal where they ave been, who they belonged to and what happened to them. The idea came from the concept that everything in the universe is connected, we are all constructed from atoms. If it holds true that 'energy cannot be created nor destroyed' then everything that happens or has happened is still here in some form. He's like a psychic archeologist or historian.
Q: Whats the attraction with gangsters and the underworld? They always seem to play a part in your books.
B: In reality my family is connected to the mafioso in some way. Without naming names I have family members who are in the family and I have family members who are in the police. This makes for great family gatherings. I'm just a working stiff, so both sides are happy to tell me things about what is happening in their worlds. From my experiences with both side, the world of the gangster is far more interesting than the world of the cop. Though that can be exciting too, but the colorful characters are the ones trying to evade the law, trust me.
Q: You have been asked if Missing will ever be made into a movie many times. Do you think the books could be adapted for the screen?
B: Not really, as they are too complex. My writing is very visual and I try to keep the prose active and immediate. I don't describe characters at length, or have wordy descriptions of places. I try to keep this within the imagination of the reader. They can do their own casting and world construction, I'll just lead the story.
His arrest rate for apprehending the most notorious murderers was unusually high, and upon his release from Stoneybrook Mental Hospital, his talents did not go unnoticed by the new police task force or the underworld they are trying to penetrate. When the daughter of a politician and the nephew of a crime boss are abducted by the same man they both take desperate measures to make sure Alex and his team are on the case.
The kidnapper slowly reveals details of his reasons for the abductions that affect high society as well as the lower criminal elements. As past dimensions reverberate into the future, Alex must confront the kidnapper who warns he is the only one with the ability to stop the Killing Flow.
Fans of Dexter, Lisbeth Salander and The Dead Zone will find Alex Campbell a compelling character. Part detective, part psychic. With terrible talent for diving the nature of objects. This is an unrelenting paranormal / psychic crime series, with plenty of twists and turns leading to a dramatic conclusion as the connection between the missing children comes to an unsettling end.
~~~
Q&A with Barry Crowther
Q: What made you move to a psychic paranormal mystery rather than stay with the straightforward mystery novel genre?
B: I have been a mystery buff for a long time but always enjoyed the odd horror novel. I wrote a few scenes that were gangsteresque (like my other work) but with some weird twists to the scene. These became Alex Campbell's waking dreams. It was an enjoyable process and I can see how fantasy or horror writers get a kick out of it. That scene led me on to write more and it just grew into a novel.
Q: How is Alex Campbell different than Matt Spears, your other series character?
B: Alex is very much under pressure the whole time, his mind and heart are breaking. Matt is much more self assured and aware of his skills in combat etc. Whereas Alex has a unique gift, one which haunts him. This psychic talent gives him the ability to touch objects which then reveal where they ave been, who they belonged to and what happened to them. The idea came from the concept that everything in the universe is connected, we are all constructed from atoms. If it holds true that 'energy cannot be created nor destroyed' then everything that happens or has happened is still here in some form. He's like a psychic archeologist or historian.
Q: Whats the attraction with gangsters and the underworld? They always seem to play a part in your books.
B: In reality my family is connected to the mafioso in some way. Without naming names I have family members who are in the family and I have family members who are in the police. This makes for great family gatherings. I'm just a working stiff, so both sides are happy to tell me things about what is happening in their worlds. From my experiences with both side, the world of the gangster is far more interesting than the world of the cop. Though that can be exciting too, but the colorful characters are the ones trying to evade the law, trust me.
Q: You have been asked if Missing will ever be made into a movie many times. Do you think the books could be adapted for the screen?
B: Not really, as they are too complex. My writing is very visual and I try to keep the prose active and immediate. I don't describe characters at length, or have wordy descriptions of places. I try to keep this within the imagination of the reader. They can do their own casting and world construction, I'll just lead the story.
