It's Always Five O'Clock
In 1989 my father wrote to me about an idea for a novel. I was in the USAF at the time, stationed in California, and this was before email, so we wrote letters to each other as we developed the plot. Initially we thought we might co-author this book. But we eventually decided that we would each write our own novel using the same basic plot. We thought it would be fun to compare the books after we were done to see how our individual styles and viewpoints took our stories in different directions.
Later that year, Dad finished his manuscript, It’s Always Five O’clock. I, on the other hand, was preparing to leave the military and had more pressing issues – like finding gainful employment as a civilian. It was several years before I went back to this plot and began work on my manuscript. The end result was Consequences, which I eventually published in 2005. As far as I know, Dad never submitted It’s Always Five O’clock to his agent for consideration.
In preparing this novel for publication, it was interesting to compare and contrast it to my novel. There are certainly similarities, but there are also significant differences in the plot and character development that are indicative of our respective ages, experiences, interests, and writing styles. Also, even though this book was written in 1989 and there are a few references to popular events that happened that year, it’s not really “dated” other than the obvious lack of technology that is prevalent today. None of the characters use cell phones or email or send text messages – all of which would have been really useful in a few situations.
Like all of Dad’s work, the strong character development and insight into human nature is what makes this book so engaging. The plot is entertaining, the characters are interesting and believable, and the circumstances they allow themselves to be drawn into are very compelling.
It’s Always Five O’clock is a haunting story about the dark side of human nature, and the frailty of the human psyche, which will stay on your mind long after you’ve finished reading the book. It is my pleasure to offer it for your enjoyment.
