Secrets

by Emma Palova

From action-packed 40 Hunks- where Jose transports 40 Mexican men on a bus to labor in the USA ,to the corrupt police chief who extorts favors from his victims during town events, to the pastor in White Nights,the book delivers egoistical characters to the reader.Thematically the subjects of the stories cover the epic human struggle for happiness. Some stories like the Chief and Secrets in Ink are based on my journalistic experience from covering small towns. Typishly Magazine “The story Chief has a nice The town had two memories; one forgiving and one unforgiven. The ambitious characters of chief Will in the Chief and Father Samuel in White Nights rock the scene in their vivid portrayal of the doomed. The main historical fiction story Silk Nora digs deep into the turn-of-the- century Belding and beyond into the roaring 1920s with the inventions and advancements such the Ford Model T automobile and the telephone. In the action-packed 40 Hunks, driver Jose transports Mexican men across the border to work in the Michigan orchards under a shady governmental agreement. Underlying are themes of sexuality and loneliness. Aging and time create the main premise in Waiting for Snow and in Six Palms by the Tiki. In Six Palms by the Tiki, a doctor renders a scary diagnosis. I explored the theme of mature love. Other stories like When Layla met Corey and Oceans Away touch on longing for love in spite of distance. Devil’s Elixir questions a doctor’s expertise and misuse of opioids. Catholicism and sins shape the following White Nights, Being Faustina and Six Palms by the Tiki. Also, the category of addiction to drugs plagues the characters in Cupcake Wine and Raspberry Rage. The Booksafe Code digs into the history of an old village. The main insights include the transformation of characters such as in Waiting for Snow and in The Writer, the Nun and the Gardener not always to the positive outcome. Some end tragically due to the characters’ inability to cope. People often ask me what inspires me, and how do I come up with the ideas for the stories? The answer varies from day to day, even from morning to night. Most of the characters are simple men and women, who do not always find a way out of different situations and challenges; their perception shifts like the grains in an hour glass. Some get stranded in the narrow part, others pass through. But good also prevails over evil as in Waiting for Snow, as the two friends explore different dimensions of time. About the cover and the main story Silk Nora. I have visited the Belrockton Museum in Belding on countless times. It was built as a dormitory for silk city girls in 1906 at the height of the silk industry built up by the Belding brothers. While visiting the museum in the fall of 2017 with a friend, we found the photo of “Gossip” in the bathroom. Not only did it inspire the cover, but also the name of the book “Secrets.” I firmly believe that gossip lies at the bottom of any secret. It is also one of the major sins, along with lies.

332 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 1, 2019

About the author

Emma Palova, (Konecna) born in former socialist Czechoslovakia is a Lowell-based short story writer, novelist, screenwriter and a journalist.
"I am quite often inspired by the old socialist traditions in the country, that has exchanged them for capitalist," Palova said.
I am currently working on my memoir "Greenwich Meridian, where East meets West." It is about our immigration saga from the country under the Soviet occupation.
Some of the insights that I have gained while living in the USA, I found incredibly true to what we were taught in school under the socialist propaganda.
"The three big experiences continue to inspire me: capitalist, catholic and communist."
I've lived all three of them, and use the insights in my writings.