With so many other, easier forms of entertainment to digest in the world, it’s an author’s job to make the time that a reader takes to read their book worthwhile. That means developing page-turning plots and relatable characters that you can attach yourself to while escaping reality. Based on reviews and personal feedback, author Patrick Morgan has done just that with his psychological thriller, Apparent Horizon. Check out my interview with Morgan below and find out what makes his story so compelling. You can also read my review of his YA paranormal novel, Realms, here!
About the author and book
Author name/pen name: Patrick Morgan
Author links (links will open in a new tab)
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Apparent Horizon book summary
On the eve of his best friend’s wedding, Michael is warned by an old classmate, now a NASA scientist, that a gamma ray burst from a nearby exploding star will hit the Earth the following morning at 11:13 a.m. – an incident that will irrevocably destroy the ozone layer, disrupt the food chain, and ultimately prove cataclysmic for all life on the planet.
Michael and the groom-to-be, Drew, laugh off the prediction as a demented joke. However, at precisely 11:13 a.m. the next day, a blinding light in the sky disrupts Drew’s wedding. News media outlets dismiss the cosmic event as a harmless phenomenon, but Michael knows better.
Under Drew’s influence, Michael begins to transform his rather mundane life, previously shackled by powerlessness and fear, into something more unrestrained and ultimately dangerous. Feeling the weight of an unseen doomsday clock ticking his final days away, he pushes the moral envelope further and further on a quest for control over his own reality – no matter who might suffer for it.
Book excerpt
This whole concern over the time, the whole act of wearing a watch in the first place, now seemed absurdly ridiculous to Michael. He almost smiled at his own foolishness. Nothing but a bad dream, he told himself. The crazed ramblings of a drunken conspiracy theorist who spends too much time looking at stars and watching movies like Deep Impact and Armageddon.
Last night was silliness. Absolute sloppiness and stupidity. He marveled at the idea that he had somehow allowed the night to discomfort him to such a degree.
What did he expect? They had all had so much to drink, even before that stupid absinthe. Who even knows what that did to all of them… maybe Aaron had actually seen the green fairy, and it was she who had whispered her lunacies into his ear.
And then, the sky pulsated.
A hundred heads turned upward, as if on strings, in perfect unison. The blue was gone, the clouds were gone, the birds were gone, the sun was gone. All was white, bright, and blinding. There was no sound, not even an echo or thunder. Nothing moved, nothing shook. All was still except for the light, which seemed to move somehow, shifting and shimmering… and it was not unbeautiful.
Review excerpts
5.0 out of 5 stars
Timely thriller that you can read in one night! Highly recommend – Horror Queen
Reviewed in the United States on October 18, 2020 (Amazon)
Verified Purchase
Reading this honestly felt like I was watching a movie, the images in the language were so clear. It’s a great one for people with short attention spans, because it moves quickly and is easy to follow! It had me on the edge of my seat, with the twists and turns and full on gut-punches.
It’s a story that explores the dark underbelly of humanity… where a seemingly ordinary person is driven to a breaking point and loses control…. I mean, it could happen to any of us (much as we hate to admit it)… so what will it take? What are we capable of once we hit our breaking point and lose control? And what do “consequences” mean if NOTHING actually matters? Eek… gives me goosebumps.
Can’t wait read more of this author’s work! I’m excited to have discovered a talented new author at the beginning of his career, and I’m itching to read more. I recommend this book for sure!
Talking Shop
What’s the best review/compliment that you’ve received about your book?
Over and over again, the thing I keep hearing from people and reading in reviews is that it’s a true page-turner that is “impossible to put down.” I can think of no better aim for a writer to reach for than that.
What is a fun or strange source of inspiration that ended up in your book?
There’s a Hollywood bar in my book called Power Surge which is named after an actual bar in Hollywood called Power House. It’s changed a lot over the years, but when I first went in there, it was a seedy little dive right near Hollywood and Vine. I definitely tried to capture some of its ambience in my story, and hopefully I did a pretty good job. (Although if you go there now, it’s nothing like what it once was… they’ve definitely cleaned it up!)
How long have you considered yourself a writer? Did you have any formal training, or is it something you learned as you went?
I’ve been writing stories for as long as I can remember — fantasy as a child, poetry as an angsty pre-teen, and then full plays as a high-schooler. I didn’t start writing novels until I was in my mid-20s. I’d like to think my formal training as an actor prepared me for writing — just in terms of the shared similarities in telling stories.
If you don’t make a living exclusively writing, what is your day job? How, in any way, does it relate to your life as a writer?
I’ve done a little bit of everything over the years — managing a restaurant, waiting tables, bartending, driving an Amazon delivery truck, copywriting, etc. I’m not sure any of it has really influenced my writing — at least not consciously — but who knows?
What is the most fun part about writing? The most difficult?
The most fun part of writing for me is storytelling. I have a background in theatre, so that’s absolutely where I derive the most joy from my writing: creating worlds and characters to inhabit them. I definitely feel like I gravitate more toward character-driven stories than plot-driven ones.
The most difficult part of writing for me is reminding myself not to overdo it with language, as I have a tendency to overwrite at times.
“What If” Scenarios
If your book ever becomes a movie and you get final say over the cast, which actors would you hire to play your characters?
I would cast Dane DeHaan as Michael, Oscar Isaac as Drew, Domhnall Gleeson as Aaron, and Rashida Jones as Jeanette.
If you could have one person that you admire, living or dead, read your book, who would it be?
Maybe it’s just the actor in me, but I have to say Shakespeare.
Would you rather own your own book store or your own publishing house, and what would you sell or publish?
I’d rather own my own bookstore… and I would make it a wondrous place. We’re talking Disneyland meets Rainforest Cafe meets Tim Burton meets Burning Man. It would be a combination bookstore/bar/coffee house/record store/hangout spot. You’d never want to leave.
You have the means to hire a full time assistant to help you with your writing. What tasks do you give them to do?
Entertain my puppy so I can focus on my work.
You have final say over who reads the audio book version of your story. Who do you choose?
I mean… Morgan Freeman. Duh.
Just for Fun
Favorite time of/part of your day.
I’m a huge fan of dusk. As a kid, it’s that magical time right before dinner/homework/bedtime where it’s still sort of daytime and light out, but night is fast approaching. As an adult, it feels the same way. I just love how it seems between worlds almost.
A book that you recommend everyone reads.
I’m obsessed with Jonathan Tropper lately. All of his books are phenomenal, but if I have to pick one, I’m saying THE BOOK OF JOE.
Favorite Halloween costume ever.
As a kid, I went as corn-on-the-cob once (when I lived in Iowa, too… thanks Mom!) As an adult, I’m proud of the year(s) I went as the driver from the film DRIVE (Ryan Gosling’s character). I even purchased an exact replica of the white satin scorpion jacket.
Yes, I still own it. No, I don’t know when or where to ever wear it.
A talent you have and a talent you wish you had.
I really wish I could sing well — that’s easily my choice for a talent I wish I had.
And a talent I have? I’ve taught myself how to make little iMovie trailers for birthday parties and special events over the years, and they’re pretty darn cool (if I do say so myself).
When time travel is achieved, do you go forward or backward?
I’d go back to the 80s for the music alone. I was born in 1989, so I just barely missed it (being zero doesn’t count).
Buy it!
Buy a copy of Apparent Horizon here, and help support local bookstores. This is an affiliate link, and I will earn a commission on any sales.
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This was fun to read. I loved this. You should do more author interviews.
I have an entire section devoted to author interviews. Feel free to check them out!