former newscaster struggling with sobriety. Both
are flawed characters with true-to-life resolve and
promise.
Lawson told about the decline of his television
career, the move to Capitol Hill, drinking more,
more, more. The hangovers. The isolation. Finally
getting fired. The self-righteous anger. The realization
that it was his own damn fault.
Panting with the exertion of running in boots and
the rest of his equipment while pulling the hose,
Chavez reached the end of the gravel drive, the stone
wall on the edge of the orchard. So far, the fire
remained on this side of the wall. There wasn’t much
underbrush in the orchard; it was mainly a grass fire.
He pulled the trigger on the nozzle pistol grip and a
good stream of water flowed. He aimed it at the foothigh
flames, knocking the fire down as he moved back
toward the center. The hot smoke blew in his face,
dampened with the mist of the hose. A rainbow circled
the flowing nozzle. He reached up, cleared his eyes,
and smiled.
David Sparks has a proven career in politics and
government. His first novel is an achievement. Well
written suspense fiction is hard to find from debut
authors. Sparks has created a solid platform for
future fiction.
Raised in Illinois and Massachusetts, Sparks
graduated magna cum laude from Tufts University
and received a master’s degree in public administration
from the Kennedy School of Government at
Harvard University. Sparks also was a fellow at
the Institute of Politics at the Kennedy School.
His career included a variety of local, state and
national political and public sector positions, including
senior roles on three presidential campaigns.
He was also executive director of the Collins
Center for Public Management at the McCormack
Graduate School of Policy Studies at the University
of Massachusetts – Boston.
Sparks is married and lives in Florida and Maine.
He has a daughter, Grace, who lives in Washington,
DC.
“Built to Fail” is his first novel. His second book, a
young adult novel called “Burying Pinkie Pie,” was
published in February, 2018.
Built To Fail is available on amazon.com and in most
bookstores.
G
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Reviews
“At a time when I found sitting down with a book a bit of a challenge, I joyfully found myself
immersed in this fascinating story. I particularly enjoyed the adolescent banter between two main
characters, their relationship emerging as authentic while their humor offered a fun side trip in a
story that covers some pretty serious material. I enjoyed the use of wind turbines in a modern
story (in interesting contrast to the earlier-era cover image) of nuanced political intrigue in an
action-packed storyline - very "readable" to those of us outside that arena. There is a lot to offer in
this book but, most importantly, a host of characters I look forward to meeting again.”
–Amazon
“A true-to-life story of intrigue and double-dealing in Massachusetts where political skullduggery
is an artform. Sparks knows this world and brilliantly brings it to life in this exciting novel.”
–Walter Robinson, Pulitzer Prize-winning editor-at-large of the Boston Globe, portrayed by
Michael Keaton in the Academy Award-winning film Spotlight
“A gripping, authentic story of corruption and courage in state and local politics, individual
bravery, politically intrepid volunteer firefighters and, unusually, the power of recovery in
Alcoholics Anonymous in reshaping a life. From the sharp elbows in Statehouse and
congressional offices, to the sounds and smells of green energy scams and their promoters, to
the sweaty palms of men and women under pressure, the elements of the story pull you in. For
those in recovery, the buttress of Alcoholics Anonymous for one protagonist in need will be
familiar.”
–Amazon
May/June 2018 GASPARILLA ISLAND 23
/amazon.com