robert bertolet

For Clarke Frederick Douglass Gable, criminologist, author and aficionado of all things antique, life is certainly like a box of chocolates—and some of them are rancid. Like being afflicted with these two middle names—those of a black slave and abolitionist.

When he reads an old letter written to his mother, he discovers that the man Clarke has always called “Dad” is not his biological father. With no siblings and both parents gone, he must investigate on his own. Are his middle names a clue to his identity?

To make matters worse, his friend is brutally murdered by a psychopath who has killed at least seven times before. All the victims bore names similar to those of famous movie stars, and the FBI has dubbed the murderer the “Movie Star Serial Killer.” A photo of the late movie great, Clark (no “e”) Gable was left at the scene of his friend’s murder, making the FBI suspect that Clarke may be the killer’s next target.

As investigations often do, skeletons of all colors, sizes and generations are disturbed and ugly facts are brought to light—a light that Clarke does not see coming. He uncovers his mother’s rape as a young woman, a brother never mentioned before, and the racist murder of his grandfather. When he discovers a link between his mother’s past and the genesis of a serial killer, it’s clear his time is running out. Will Clarke catch the killer or catch a bullet?