A Life Loved: A Life Singular, Book 6 (Volume 6)

Sixth in Epic 7-part Serial: Love and Loss, Celebrity and Secrets

The Endless Pursuit of Love and WisdomIn essence a love story, "A Life Singular" is a seven-part contemporary fiction serial. Recipient of two WILDsound Review Award (November 2015 and February 2016), official selection for the New Apple Awards for Literary Fiction (October 2015) and a Shelf Unbound Notable Book of 2014 (December 2014), "A Life Loved" follows a successful rock star while he writes his autobiography after the tragic loss of his soul-mate.

The books' themes are triumph over mental illness, the choices we make between right and wrong, and how one affects the other over the relentless passage of time. Sales proceeds go to two Australian non-profit organisations assisting young people with their education: EdConnect Australia and The Smith Family.

Dealing with some of the more complex social justice issues of our age, the universal theme of love and our fascination for celebrity spirit the reader behind the scenes of a superstar family who are plunged into grief, proving that there are always many sides to a story we see in the media. The important events in our public lives are always overshadowed by the backstory's real truth.

A Life Loved synopsis

Lynn Dyson and Jeff Diamond had become the celebrity couple with the Midas touch. With their son showing signs of fulfilling his sporting destiny and a daughter who was already driven to right the world’s wrongs, they were showered with accolades and adoration from every corner of the globe.

How had this nobody from the wrong side of the tracks got so lucky? With his dream girl by his side every step of the way, the superstar’s multi-faceted career knew no bounds. Politicians clamoured for photo-opportunities, the press fed well on each persuasive controversy, and the success of their business empire funnelled millions of dollars into worthy causes.

No wonder they had been an assassination target! Jeff’s autobiography foretold this omen with twenty-twenty hindsight, his open wounds smarting with each obvious opulent and outspoken occasion. “The higher you climb, the harder you fall.” This tedious cliché rang true for the father as he captured his teenagers’ many exploits for posterity. He and Lynn had dared to scale enormous heights, paying the ultimate price far too soon.

Had it all been worth it? The book held these secrets, painstakingly transcribed by a man who couldn’t wait to find out what was to come. Whether taken from his lover’s journals, the children’s memories or the cataclysm of poetry pouring from his lonely heart, the months leading up to his latest challenge had legitimised every decision the forever couple had ever made.

He only hoped the same good fortune would hold true in the next lifetime.

Lorraine Pestell was born in London and has had a successful IT career in the UK, US, Europe, Singapore, and more recently Australia. Lorraine currently resides in Bendigo, Victoria, with her 9-year-old Belgian Shepherd, Nikki. Lorraine has two main goals for her writing: first, to inspire fellow sufferers of mental illness to rise above their symptoms and make a success of their lives; and second, to encourage non-sufferers to tolerate, support and even love those afflicted in their quest to live a "normal" life. Although still working full-time, Lorraine is a passionate volunteer for several organisations, including serving on the Board of Directors of Propel Youth Arts WA, being a mentor for The Smith Family's iTrack program and providing project management assistance to The School Volunteer Program. She finds that volunteering time and energy to those less fortunate is an effective antidote to life-long depression and the symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. The idea for "A Life Singular" originated when Lorraine was 14, and the story continued to develop in fits and starts since then, whenever time and life events permitted. However, three years ago, a new element of the plot triggered a sudden urge to complete the books, and since then the story has evolved into seven separate books.