Dead Man Waking

by Peter Cropsey

Dead Man Waking is the story of Eddie Wilkins, prison bound, heroin addicted and caught in a life that has consumed him. Riding fast Harleys and running with outlaw gang members has captured all of Eddie's passions. He has a knack for crime and a partner he can depend on and together they cut a swath through the underbelly of Orange County. A motorcycle accident in the back hills of Modesto Ca. finds Eddie badly injured and on the couch of an old farmer where he travels back through the past and into his childhood trying to unravel the mystery of how he got to where he is. Outwardly and by all appearances Eddie is one seriously messed up dude and a total scumbag but right from the start of the story you sense that as a protagonist there are a number of qualities in Eddie that make you cry out for his redemption. Eddie has a heart and it is the philosophical observations Eddie makes as he goes through his life that will endear him to the reader. Dead Man Waking is a fast read that fulfills the curiosity about the darker side of life while at the same time engenders a sense of hope and the feeling that you really want to know what is going to happen to Eddie next. Eddie represents a demographic. He is the guy doing life in prison in a maximum security facility, he is the guy who overdosed on heroin so his buddies threw his body in a dumpster, he is the guy who used to be a gunslinger but is now toothless and pushing a shopping cart down the street talking to himself. He is the young girl who was viciously molested by someone she trusted and ended up in a life of drug addiction and prostitution. But also Eddie is the guy who fought through and found forgiveness, grace and love in God and emerged from his own personal hell to a life of victory.

228 pages, Paperback

First published October 8, 2010

Reviews

[Cherie]

If you like true and real life stories of human beings who’ve walked through the “trenches of life” but found God...this is a book for you. I couldn’t imagine a life like this growing up, however, it reminds me that God is a forgiving God. That we all have a little voice inside us. I’m thankful for this book as it shows hardships, miracles and hope for anyone.