The Catalyst

The Commons #3

by Michael Alan Peck

“The world needs heroes, but it has only us. So we’ll have to make the best of it—and so will the world.”

Jonas Porter has a point. But Paul Reid isn’t certain that his mentor is telling the truth about his plans. Because this time around, there’s more than one world at stake if the heroes fail.

Never mind that it’s not clear who the heroes are, and trust is at a premium.

Jeremy Johns wonders how much to believe the journal that his vanished friend Abel left behind. Audra Farrelly needs to convince herself that she and Porter are fighting the same battle the same way. Charlene Moseley must have faith that Quarry, her team’s former adversary, wants to help them now.

The mysterious and powerful Apalala-Aidan has informed Zach Brucker that he’s not his friend, so Zach knows where they stand. But Zach’s mother, Annie, can no longer deny that her son is beginning to worry her.

The Dharma Rangers are the stewards of the nuclear weapons that will determine whether multiple realms will survive. And it doesn’t matter who the Dharmas trust—because it seems everyone has control of their missiles but them.

The truth is false; allies are enemies; and the only way to save all of existence is to destroy it.

There are no guarantees. Nor have there ever been.

Not in The Commons.

422 pages, Paperback

Published October 23, 2021

About the author

I tell tales big and small. Life's magical, but it isn't always enough for a good story. So I make up the rest.

To me, it's not real until I've put it into story form, which means I repeat myself a lot. In fact, the phrase that passes my lips most often is, "I may have told you this before, but ..."

I've made my living writing about TV, its celebrities, and its past. (I used to pen a column called "Ask the Televisionary" for TV Guide.com.) I've also put food on the table reviewing restaurants, writing about travel, and doing SEO and content strategy.

Only the writing counts in the end.

I have a godawful memory, so I focus on the written word. I like to think that over time, I've gotten better at it--the writing, not the remembering. I forget important dates. I'm pretty good with movie lines. But after several years, I tend to tweak them. I prefer my versions over the real ones.

Funny goes a long way with me. Probably further than it should.

I grew up outside Philadelphia and have lived in New York, L.A., and San Francisco. My current home base is Chicago.

You’ll find also find me on Facebook, Google+, and a href="http://cowbird.com/michaelpeck/"....

At holiday time, the missus and I terrorize the world via The Little Drummer Boy Challenge. Please join us.