Ed Protzel's "Something in Madness" available for preorder

I’m thrilled to announce the Oct. 23 release of Something in Madness, the final book in my Southern historical DarkHorse Trilogy. The novel will be available in print and ebook formats. You can preorder the Kindle edition now on Amazon.

1865. Abolitionist Durksen Hurst and three black friends return home to a devastated Mississippi, the sole survivors of a Union colored cavalry regiment. But instead of peace, they find unregenerate Confederates who reject emancipation still in charge. Undeterred, Durk opens a law practice to help disenfranchised freedmen — only to be threatened by powerful planters and nightriders. A black school is burned; a petition march to Jackson is terrorized. And when one of his friends goes missing, Durk is horrified to discover Black Codes being used to force freedmen into brutal servitude. Clever Durk schemes to liberate them, but must contend with armed ruffians — and a rigged court system. Will fire and bullets prevail?

I utilized real events and attitudes from the era, as well as varied points of view — black, white, mixed-race, Native American, male and female — to ground both the characters and the story in reality.

Something in Madness can be read as a stand-alone novel or as the satisfying conclusion to books 1 and 2 of the trilogy, The Lies That Bind and Honor Among Outcasts.

Ed Protzel is a University City resident. Something in Madness is his fourth novel. Connect with him at: www.edprotzel.com.