Perched on a mountain, in an abandoned monastery above the village of Ames Perdue (Lost Souls) in the French countryside, lives Peter. Peter was once called James, but that was long ago, in another life. He leads a solitary life high up in the fresh air, alone with his thoughts. His only companions are his animals and the occasional visitor, mostly women who climb to the top of the mountain for reasons unknown to him and spend time there before returning to the world below.
Peter hides a dark He is a deserter from the army, hence his change in name and identity. He believes the world thinks him dead, and he is happy to leave it that way. When he visits the village below, he finds likeminded people of all nationalities and stations in life living in harmony. Everyone there has their own secrets, and it is considered impolite to ask about a person’s background. In Ames Purdue, everything is in abundance and people are happy. Peter, though lonely, is happy.
Then one day, his world is brought crashing down with the arrival of a young woman named Sarah.
Justin Fox is writer who lives in Sydney Australia at the foot of the Blue Mountains. A born lover of storytelling, he never tired of hearing the stories of other's and began creating his own at a very early age. Justin showed signs of what is now known as Hyperlexia as a child (The precocious ability to read words without being trained) as he puts it, 'I never learned how to read I just knew how'. Jusin's writing shows a deep understanding of emotion, we are given insight into his character's inner thoughts, feelings and emotions as they come to life. The stories that have been building up over a life spent living and are finally ready to come flowing out. Our,'desire', is to bring enjoyment too as many people as possible, by sharing them.
The Fallen is a quiet, contemplative novel about exile, reinvention, and the fragile peace people build when they believe the world has forgotten them. Justin Fox creates a reflective, almost monastic atmosphere where secrecy is not sinister but necessary a story less about escape than about choosing how (and whether) to belong again.