This is a guest post by my fellow #RRBC Board member and all-around great fellow, John Fioravanti. It is part of his Genesis Saga blog tour. Take it, John!

The Genesis Saga Tour

From the blog of Nicholas C. Rossis, author of science fiction, the Pearseus epic fantasy series and children's booksI’m grateful to my host of this final post of THE GENESIS SAGA TOUR, and to Nonnie Jules of 4WillsPublishing who arranged it all! The full lineup for this tour can be found at https://wp.me/P43s9i-2g

My purpose is to give readers a greater familiarity with planet Genesis, set within the Equations universe created by author and friend, Kenneth Tam.

To this end, we embarked upon a series of interviews of some key players in Book One of The Genesis Saga: PASSION & STRUGGLE. Nonnie Jules of the famed interviews, Who’s On The Shelf With Nonnie Jules?’ agreed to lend her formidable skills to this process. She gave me the nickname “Fio” a while back – so keep that in mind in case she opts to use it!

Nonnie and I have returned to her office at 4WillsPublishing. She’s happy to be back home. Nonnie checks her watch and notes with satisfaction that we have been gone just a few minutes.

NJ:     Fio, I’m glad I got to meet those people on Genesis. I hope Marco and Marie can make a go of it. Tell me, do they get married…

JF:       (Interrupting) And live happily ever after? (Nonnie grins at me.) Good try! Tell you what; I’ll give you a sneak peek at the Prologue of Book Two, TREACHERY & TRIUMPH…

A spring storm had pounded the Newfoundland coast, just the day before, and left debris strewn across the stony shoreline. A lonely figure made its way gingerly along the beach, carefully planting each foot, in turn, between the stones and bits of branches. His progress was slow, and the strong, relentless wind slowed his unsteady gait even more. Stopping to catch his breath and steady himself, Marco Rossini looked upwards to the overcast grey sky and took in a deep breath of fresh, salty air. The rhythmic sound of Atlantic waves slapping the rocky shore quieted his anxious spirit.

Redirecting his gaze away from the ocean, the young Vice President from Genesis spotted a downed tree trunk near the edge of the beach. He carefully made his way to the resting spot and sat down slowly to maintain his balance. A grimace momentarily transformed his features revealing his spine’s protest at the change in posture. The discomfort passed quickly and he leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees, his open hands cupping his face. Heaving a sigh, Marco wrestled with his loneliness.

It had been just one week since the Earther Sloop ENS Flame had departed for Genesis carrying his companions: ArcGeneral Pat Conroy, his oldest and closest friend: Marie Brooklynn, ace investigative reporter for the Genesis Free Press and his new-found love, as well as Annie Pinto, Marie’s media partner and wife of his friend Gian Pinto. He knew it had been the right decision to send Marie home, but his heart said otherwise. He sorely missed the warm embrace of the only woman who had touched his heart in many years.

*     *     *

“Enough moping, Mr. Vice President,” Marco chided himself aloud. He chuckled in response to his own order. “Gods! Things are bad when you start ordering yourself around!” Gingerly, he brought himself to a standing position and turned toward the well-worn path that began at the tree line a dozen meters away. Taking him back to the Caine estate, its well-packed ground would afford him less treacherous footing.

Marco enjoyed these moments, walking alone among the fragrant pines. He was reminded of his childhood in Darymanis City, on Genesis, where he’d often explored the nearby rainforest with Pat Conroy’s older brothers. He noticed a family of wolves who frequented the property, and recognized them as the Caines’ distant relatives. Identifying the human figure as friend, not foe, the wolves formed an escort for Marco as he made his way through the pines.

Rossini made eye contact and smiled at each wolf, in turn, while remembering the fear he’d experienced at their first meeting, a few days earlier. Seeing another fallen log, he decided to rest once more and enjoyed the pungent pine aroma carried on the gentler breeze among the trees. The wolves stopped too and arranged themselves on the ground nearby – like his own personal guard. Smiling, he thought about his personal security detail – his three Alpha Corps agents. His Lead Agent, Ted Gallo, had remained with him on Earth, while James Drury and Ben Grafton had accompanied Marie, Annie, and Pat back to Genesis. Ted had gone to London, for a few days, to confer with leaders of the Guards – the elite Earther marines who were the equivalent of the Genesis Alpha Corps. The smallest cub leapt onto his lap, bringing a smile to his face. Today, these Alpha Wolves guarded him.

Thank you all for joining Nonnie and me on this wonderful trip to a troubled world…

Who is John Fioravanti?

From the blog of Nicholas C. Rossis, author of science fiction, the Pearseus epic fantasy series and children's booksJohn Fioravanti is a retired secondary school educator who completed his thirty-five year career in the classroom in June, 2008.

Throughout his career, John focused on developing research, analysis, and essay writing skills in his History Classroom. This led to the publication of his first non-fiction work for student use, Getting It Right in History Class. A Personal Journey to the Heart of Teaching is his second non-fiction work; it attempts to crystallize the struggles, accomplishments, and setbacks experienced in more than three decades of effort to achieve excellence in his chosen field.

John’s first work of fiction is Passion & Struggle and is set within Kenneth Tam’s Equations universe (Iceberg Publishing). He claims that, after two non-fiction books, he’s having the time of his life bringing new stories and characters to life!

At present, John lives in Waterloo, Ontario with Anne, his bride of forty-one years. They have three children and three grandchildren. In December of 2013, John and Anne founded Fiora Books for the express purpose of publishing John’s books.

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