“The Banana Belt” Author at the Book Revue Tonight

It is  often said that truth is stranger than fiction, and those who aren't yet familiar with the work of prolific local author Jeb Ladouceur will find that he's a master of both.

Ladouceur, the founder and Publisher Emeritus of The Fire News, a monthly newspaper that has served firefighters and their families since 1973, will talk about his new novel, "The Banana Belt," at the Book Revue tonight at 7 pm.

It's the fourth novel that Ladouceur has published since his retirement in 2001 and his fourth appearance at Book Revue. As in the past, word of Ladouceur's book talk is expected to attract a standing room only crowd.

"The great thing about Jeb is that he keeps writing and turning out books. He doesn't keep his fans hanging and gives a great talk," said Julianne Wernersbach, Book Revue's publicist. He's is very clever, and always has that "great hook," that special something extra that keeps readers coming back for more, she added.

Ladouceur is best known for his trilogy of thrillers centering around Roberto Trebor, a psychopathic killer with a Hannibal Lector-like persona who harbors a twisted fondness for anagrams, palindromes and other forms of word play. Trebor's abusive family history sets him on a chilling killing rampage which comes to a head in "Calamity Hook." In this much anticipated finale to the series, Trebor travels to Oklahoma to settle his vendetta against his arch enemy, homicide detective Steve "Rosie" Rosenberg.

Fans will find that Ladouceur literally explores uncharted territory in his latest spellbinder, set in a crescent of flat, arable land known as the banana belt in otherwise mountainous Idaho.

Although Ladouceur has never visited this part of our country, his meticulous research and vivid descriptions will make readers feel like he knows this region like the back of his hand.

According to Ladouceur, the spark that ignited his literary waltz of the imagination came from a most unlikely source- a series of emails from an old high school chum, Genie Victoria, who now lives out-of-state.

In one of their exchanges, Genie, a retired teacher, shared the startling piece of information that one of her former students had been convicted of murdering his best friend. Even more startling was the fact that this man's common law wife, also a former student, had simply vanished.

"It doesn't take much of an imagination to establish the nucleus for a real mystery here, " Ladouceur said of the makings for his novel. And why Idaho? His friend's husband, an officer in the military, served a tour of duty there, and this state seemed to offer interesting contrasts sociologically, economically, and geographically, Ladouceur indicated.

"I personally have never been anywhere near Idaho, so one can imagine how hard pressed I would have been to write a novel about the place without my former classmate's input," Ladouceur said.

The story resonates with the richness of detail for which Ladouceur has become so well-known.  As the convicted killer,  christened with the fictitious name, Lonnie Pitts, awaits execution on death row, three parallel plots place Ladouceur's cast of engaging characters on a collision course with destiny.

Readers will find that Ladouceur used the still missing common law wife as the basis for what is perhaps his most riveting character ever.

"Millie is an endearing, saucy ghost, of all things, having been shot and killed by the violence-prone husband she absolutely adores, even in death," Ladouceur said.

In addition to giving readers a tantalizing preview of his book, Ladouceur will talk about the writing process and take questions from the audience.