Aaron Lugner is a chameleon. A skillful con-artist hidden in plain sight, he uses his good looks and mysteriousness as camouflage. By blending within the visions those around him desire, he preys upon their vulnerabilities. He is despicable, yet why then, like the women he romances, do we like him?
When trouble abroad forces Aaron’s return to the US, he meets Myriam, a beautiful Amerasian, one of the “dust of life” orphaned by the Vietnam War. Desiring to change and convinced he is in love, Aaron vows never to lie to her. Away from Myriam, his lies begin to take on lives of their own. With her, his split selves threaten to collide.
Character-based and dialogue-driven, In the Chameleon’s Shadow offers an approachable literary exploration of our culture’s affinity for self-deception and our uncertain relationship with identity.
Lost and Found is an eclectic collection of twelve stories recounting tales of love and loss, heartache and redemption. The collection offers a ranging cast of vibrant characters, from Emily, isolated on the Oregon coast as she confronts the loss of her unborn child while a thousand miles away from her childhood home to Homer, an aging farmer struggling to hold onto once familiar expectations after he finds a migrant worker’s body dumped on his land. Readers will venture into the chaos of the war in Iraq and the violent uncertainty after Vietnam, into Colorado mining towns and Wyoming missile silos, and into the hearts and minds of people trying to make their way in an ever-changing world.
“Mark Hummel’s writing is strong and lyrical without calling attention to itself, brave and at the same time showing an admirable amount of restraint. He creates characters who captivate the reader. They surprise us, but in a way that ultimately feels right, inevitable.”
Barry Kitterman, author of From the San Joaquin, Fiction Editor of Zone 3
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