Echoes of the Rain released today, Thursday 3rd July 2025
Based on a true story, Echoes of the Rain follows 14 year old Alex Harris as he finds himself living on the streets having once lead a privileged life.
Below, I explain the origins of the story…..
Hi everyone, thank you for choosing this book. Out of the collection available to date, this is the one most personal to me. So what does Echoes of the Rain mean to me, and why does it still keep me from having a peaceful night’s sleep? Well, the answer to that is both beautifully simple and darkly moving. Think of it this way, Alex is a real person, or rather two people. The early Alex was a young boy I met in prison custody, a boy who was once full of hope, dreams and promise. All this wiped out by one parental decision that led to a horror so bad, it still makes me wonder how he survived – maybe another book…. The second, but very main character, however, is someone who is still part of my life. Again, a very young prisoner, street hardened, untrusting, set on a path of utter destruction, but with the faintest glimpse of salvation and opportunity still peeking out from the mish mash of an addict’s brain. I remember thinking once, that it was like looking up at a distant star, glistening a billion light years away, cold, dark and lonely, and wondering what its story was. Twenty-five years later I awoke one night thinking about ‘Alex’ and wondering how this star’s story finally ended, not realising that by mid-morning he would be slowly, and in a hushed tone, spilling out his early life story to me. A story so compelling, that even the BBC wanted to run it as a podcast, but the real Alex wanted to stay hidden. It’s just how he was, and how he will always be. I wrote as quickly as I could, while he spilled out his story via numerous meetings. He is complex, fantastic, worrying and inspiring, all wrapped up in my new surrogate son. Of course, some things are purely from my head, but I would like to think that you, the reader, navigate your way through this story and understand what a dark, dangerous, underbelly hides behind the bright lights of every city and every town. Before I go and let you begin to turn the pages, why did I choose this title? Have you ever listened to the sound of dripping water while you lay in bed at night, wondering where it’s coming from, and what damage it’s causing? Now imagine being in pitch darkness, chained to a post, smelling your abuser’s breath. Drip! Drip! Drip! Enjoy the trip.