Blog Archives
Pivot Turns to Freedom
Louis Tong’s Pivot Turns to Freedom is a coming-of-age novel about Leonard Pan, a Singaporean ophthalmology trainee who moves to England in the 1990s and starts building a life beyond the expectations of his family and profession. Leonard’s work takes him through hospitals in Great Yarmouth, Sunderland, and Nottingham, but ballroom dancing becomes the real thread holding the story together. What begins as a private interest grows into a competitive ambition, complete with demanding coaches, changing partners, financial strain, injuries, and a troubling sponsor who turns encouragement into control. The novel follows Leonard across four years and thirty-nine chapters, giving his search for freedom plenty of room to develop.
Leonard is an entertaining narrator because he’s restless, observant, vain, insecure, funny, and frequently wrong about other people. His medical training shapes the way he sees everything, so dance movements become anatomy, hospital routines resemble choreography, and personal problems are treated like conditions he can diagnose. That habit creates much of the comedy, but it also reveals his central weakness. He’s so intent on proving himself that he sometimes treats dance partners, colleagues, and friends as pieces in his personal success story. The book’s most satisfying movement comes when Leonard begins to understand that freedom isn’t simply getting away from his father or winning medals. It’s learning to make choices without being ruled by pride, resentment, or someone else’s approval.
The novel has something in common with Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist, since both stories follow a protagonist who leaves familiar surroundings to pursue a dream and gradually discovers that the journey is changing him in ways the original goal couldn’t predict. Tong’s approach, though, is grounded in the awkward details of adult life: temporary contracts, immigration limits, petrol costs, aching feet, difficult personalities, and the challenge of finding someone willing to practise on a Tuesday evening. Leonard’s dream isn’t presented as a clean spiritual calling. It’s tangled up with ego, family history, loneliness, attraction, and the desire to be noticed. That messiness makes the book feel more like a personal memoir shaped into fiction than a polished fable.
The book’s strongest quality is its specificity. The medical scenes, British regional settings, Singaporean family dynamics, and technical descriptions of ballroom dancing give Leonard’s world a distinctive texture. At times, his elaborate observations slow the pace somewhat, and the late psychological mystery involving Joseph adds an unsettling note that I didn’t feel was fully resolved. Still, that ambiguity suits a novel about a man who’s spent years misunderstanding both himself and the people around him. Pivot Turns to Freedom is ultimately a warm, eccentric story about ambition becoming perspective. Leonard reaches the competition he’s chased, but his more meaningful achievement is recognizing that a full life depends on collaboration, gratitude, and the freedom to value the people beside him.
Pages: 280
Revenge Against the Bullies
The Wood Sprite follows a sixteen-year-old girl who receives a strange piece of wood, not knowing that it contains paranormal powers that are about to put her in grave danger. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
Mia’s character came from my own experiences of being bullied as a teen. I was shy and introverted like her; my school days were spent trying to evade the bullies at all costs. I tried to make myself invisible, which was impossible since I was six feet tall by age thirteen. Mia’s home life was also similar to mine, as one of my parents suffered from alcoholism, and our whole family was damaged by it.
What were some ideas that were important for you to personify in your characters?
For Mia, I wrote a protagonist who appeared vulnerable, yet had the inner strength to persevere despite being thrown into the proverbial “lion’s den.”
The enigmatic Wendy Ravenwood is a personification of Mia’s desire for revenge against the bullies she feels impotent to face on her own. Wendy’s true origins remain a mystery even to me, except that she is a manifestation of Mia’s fears and her desire for a better life.
In a male-dominated world, I wanted my primary female characters to be strong and appealing, yet believable. While Mia is small and seems meek, she finds she has an inner strength she can rely upon. Late in the novel, the paranormal ability suddenly appears that will profoundly change her life and those of others.
Pete Chandler, and Jake and Missy Anderson are primary recurring characters that anchor the entirety of the Wallowa Lake Thrillers series. All eight novels feature their close-knit family and small circle of friends in some form.
As with most writers, most of the main characters exhibit bits and pieces of my own personality and/or experiences.
With so many characters and merging plotlines, how do you balance story development with shocking plot twists? Or can they be the same thing?
Unlike many authors, my writing is “SOP,” or seat-of-the-pants, style. I have a general idea of the direction I want the novel to go; then I build the plot, sentence by sentence. I never truly know where it’s going to lead, any more than someone who’s reading the book. With each paragraph, I craft the storyline and plot twists as my Muse dictates, choreographing the action. As the Wizard of Oz said from his escape balloon, “I don’t know how it works!” Neither do I, but I trust my Muse.
What is the next book you are working on, and when can your fans expect it to be out?
The next Wallowa Lake Thriller novel is Angel of Oregon, which should be released in Spring 2024. It centers on a slightly older Mia Chandler, who’s now a Resident Doctor, in a compelling new adventure that I hope everyone will enjoy reading. I have finished writing all eight of the Wallowa Lake Thrillers; those yet unpublished are still in the editing process. I’m currently working on a new, stand-alone thriller, called The HyperVisionist. which involves an elderly, billionaire attorney whose eyesight is rapidly failing due to macular degeneration. He is desperate—regardless of the cost—to find the cure before he loses his sight completely. Unfortunately, he ends up with much more than he bargained for.
Author Links: Barnes & Noble
The Wood Sprite
High school can be a tumultuous period, filled with new challenges, friendships, and evolving responsibilities. In James Dobie’s The Wood Sprite, the latest entry in the Wallowa Lake Thrillers Series, Mia’s high school experience takes an unforeseen, captivating turn.
Mia’s life is anything but straightforward. She navigates the treacherous waters of school bullying and deals with the repercussions of her parents’ addictive behaviors. But her world is turned upside down when a fellow student is found lifeless in the school restroom, accompanied by enigmatic items in her bag. That day, Mia has an eerie encounter with a mysterious figure seeking a drop of her blood. Could there be a link between these two unnerving events? Is Mia’s fate intertwined with the untimely death of this student?
Dobie’s narrative is refreshingly crisp and direct. Instead of delving deep into ornate descriptions, the story highlights dynamic actions and pivotal moments. This emphasis ensures readers remain riveted to the unfolding events and deeply connected to the characters. Mia, in particular, exudes a captivating aura that pulls readers deeper into her journey. While Dobie touches on serious themes, the focus is on delivering a fluid and coherent narrative rather than lingering extensively on these subjects. This measured approach will resonate with many, but those with sensitivities to particular themes should proceed with caution.
The Wood Sprite promises a lively reading pace with succinct, gripping chapters that beckon you onward. Although the central mystery might be familiar territory for seasoned thriller enthusiasts, the blend of suspense and paranormal aspects offers a refreshing divergence. If the thriller and supernatural genres pique your interest, this novel promises to be both enthralling and stimulating.
Pages: 235 | ISBN : 9798987133811
