Slade

An unlikely celebrity with a self-help book becomes a reluctant spiritual guru to the Hollywood elite, spawning a cult he wants nothing to do with.

"...a unique attempt, using an unusual style and format, to pinpoint and highlight both the light and dark sides of the human psyche. Slade is an incredibly powerful and thought-provoking story... This is a fantastic book on many levels and I can highly recommend it." Readers' Favorite Book Reviews, Grant Leishman (5 Stars)

> GOLD MEDAL: Reader Views: Reader's Choice Awards - 2023 - All Fiction (Chosen from 23 Category Winners)
> GOLD MEDAL: Feathered Quill Book Awards - 2023 - Adult Fiction
> WINNER: Pinnacle Book Achievement Award, Fall 2022 - Best Literary Fiction

A car crash thirty years earlier left Slade Bennington severely disabled but with a new outlook on life. His book about overcoming trauma becomes a bestseller and a box office hit movie. Slade strikes up an unusual friendship with Schuyler, the six-foot-tall teenage actress who portrays his sister in the movie. She encourages him to continue writing, and his pithy musings about life spur a nationwide following of devotees who study his books like Holy Scriptures.

Slade becomes a counselor to the celebrity in-crowd-the Shaman to the Stars. While thousands adore Slade, others call him a Svengali or Rasputin-like character who controls and manipulates his clients.

One disillusioned fan spends years plotting revenge.

EVOLVED PUBLISHING PRESENTS an offbeat literary/satire novel that unfolds in a series of interviews with the main character and those who know him best, plus snippets from Slade's books and news reports. The unconventional structure, dark humor, and cast of quirky characters will appeal to readers of Chuck Palahniuk and John Irving. Brought to you by the author of such award-winning greats as Hannah's Voice, Carry Me Away, Turning Trixie, and Bones of Dead Man's Bluff.

Robb Grindstaff is an award-winning author of contemporary southern fiction, often set in locales where he has lived. His career in journalism and media management took him from small towns in Oklahoma, North Carolina, Texas, and Wisconsin to Phoenix, Washington DC, and Tokyo, Japan. He left the news media business in 2020 to pursue his writing career, and he's an instructor and editor for other writers. He now lives in the Lake of the Ozarks region of southern Missouri with his wife, where he enjoys fishing, grilling, and walking his neurotic dog. Connect on Substack and social media @robbgrindstaff.