I met Ms. Faith
Chatham about 10 years ago while running for U.S. Congress, District Three,
East Texas. I was immediately impressed, drawn to her tenacity and her
brilliant brain. I was even more impressed when I saw her words in print. I
loved her encouragement of women and young college students about the
importance of educating themselves both academically and politically. The richness of my
political life has been invigorating since my introduction to the Dynastical
History of this East Texas WIZ kid from Harrison County.
This amazing author
writes of East Texas and the newspaper as an insider. She is a 6th Generation
East Texan and her family are Texas Republic pioneer settlers.
She has spent over
twenty years in newspaper and her first job was writing for The Marshall
News Messenger before becoming an Ad Rep for The Longview
News Journal and opening her own independent advertising agency in
Longview.
“Public corruption
is not a victimless crime,” she states.
The book is inspired
by the authors’ experiences in business in Longview during the era when Sheriff
Tom Welch's crime organization was at its heights. As a young single
businesswoman, Ms. Faith noticed things that seemed a bit odd to her but, it
wasn’t until the death of Deputy Wayne Gill, like most citizens of Gregg
County, that parts of the crime story begin to unfold. Prior to that she
states, “I was oblivious to the depths of corruption in local government.” And,
because of what she saw and learned, she was further inspired to write her
book.
She confided her
fears and suspicions to the new newspaper publisher, Tom Meredith. She had no
evidence, but had seen enough and heard enough to realize that things were not
how they should be. The newspaper publisher had no local ties and had been the
publisher in Lufkin when that paper won a Pulitzer Prize for investigative
reporting on the death of a mentally challenged marine recruit during basic
training. He was a journalist she trusted to protect his source and have the
tools and resources and resolve to investigate. He contacted the Texas
Attorney General who worked with the Texas Rangers and the FBI.
Except for the
newspaper publisher, Ms. Faith did not discuss what she had seen, heard or
suspected until decades later. Now that the principals are deceased, she has
created fictional characters to share some of the experience of those she knew
in Longview in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Ms. Faith is a
highly effective writer and her work is a must read. It will keep you on the
edge of your seat until the last page. And, you will certainly want more.
Councilwoman Shirley J. McKellar, PhD
August
30, 2019, Tyler, Texas
BLUE, ILLICIT AND UNSPOKEN by Faith Chatham is available on Amazon.com in paperback ($19.95) or e-book ($5.99). This week Kindle Unlimited is featuring it as one of their READ FOR FREE Selections. https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Faith+Chatham&ref=nb_sb_noss_2
Ms. Chatham's second novel in the Graham Fergusson Adventure Series, DIVIDING LINE is available for pre-order.
