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Local author releases horror novel in time for Halloween

By ALEXANDRIA

BOURNONVILLE

Journal Staff Writer

MARQUETTE — Just in time for the spooky Halloween season, local author Jeff Vande Zande has released his first horror novel, “The Dance of Rotten Sticks,” with Montag Press of California.

A former Marquette resident, Northern Michigan University graduate and professor at Bay College in Delta County, Vande Zande has written numerous other books but hasn’t delved into the horror genre until now.

Vande Zande’s main character Isaac Fletcher has been on a downward spiral since his wife died in a tragic car accident. A single father taking care of his three daughters, Isaac has since turned to alcohol to cope. To make up for his lackluster parenting, he plans to take his kids to the recently purchased island property — that Isaac bought with his now-deceased wife — for his daughter’s 11th birthday.

“The bulk of the novel takes place on an island and that’s pretty typical of gothic horrors — to isolate your characters in an unsettling location and a location they’re often trapped in,” Vande Zande said.

When Isaac arrives with his kids, though, the paranormal forces present have other plans.

This island-centric book was partly inspired by Vande Zande’s friend’s island property in Traverse City. Another inspiration was the strange case of James Jesse Strang, a Mormon dissident who created his own sect of the religion on Michigan’s Beaver Island, where he also declared himself king. The bold actions of a man isolated on an island, driven by occult forces, influenced Vande Zande’s novel.

“You see a lot of horror novels, not that I’ve read them, but you get the basic premise: spilling blood, torture and whatnot,” he said. “It just goes the easy route but the core also allows you to explore aspects of the human condition.”

Interested readers and fans can attend an author reading, signing and meet-and-greet at the Peter White Public Library at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 24 for free.

Vande Zande will have copies available to purchase.

Alexandria Bournonville can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 506. Her email address is abournonville@miningjournal.net.

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