The Other Two-Fifths

The shadow of Abe Lincoln disappears in the catastrophic race riot shattering the Springfield, Illinois community in 1908.  Despite the model of a harmonious community, a labor strike in the mines pitted blacks against whites. A lone man seeking revenge seizes the moment, raging a war against the Carter family.  The cauldron of racial hatred leads to the destruction of two black communities, claiming seven lives.  Hollis Carter escapes.  He begins a journey of social justice; one that continues on in his children and grandchildren.

The Carter legacy becomes an organization, covert and lethal, in 1956 Chicago. The Amos family uses the organization to save a young black man from murder, as they fight injustices not tackled in courtrooms. It is this same organization that saves four black voter registration workers and a lone white freedom rider who fall into a deadly KKK ambush in 1969 Mississippi.

Amos Carter’s great-granddaughter and her husband, two survivors of the bloody Mississippi Voter Registration Drive, recall the pain and celebrate the victory during the historic inauguration of the first African-American president of the United States.

Joan Early developed a love of books while growing up in rural Mississippi. Reading was her prime entertainment throughout childhood. Later, she chronicled her family’s history in stories told by ethnically diverse ancestors and expressed her feelings through song lyrics and poetry.

Early’s professional writing career began in 2003 when her short story entry won first place in Ebony Magazine’s literary contest. She continued writing historical fiction and family sagas, but changed to contemporary romance. Her published works include: Sara’s Reward (New Concepts Publishing, 2007), Look Both Ways and Fireflies (Genesis Press, 2009), Oak Bluffs and Friends in Need (Genesis Press, 2010) and Separate Dreams (Genesis Press, 2011).  Joan’s first novel, Legacy (First Books, 2002) remains a favorite with book clubs, and was followed by: Night Sweats (New Concepts Publishing, 2012), A Tangled Web and Heartstrings (New Concepts Publishing, 2015).  She returns to her first love of historic fiction and family saga in The Other Two-Fifths. Joan and her husband live outside of Beaumont, Texas, where she continues writing, attends writer’s conferences, and enjoys entering literary contests.

Represented by Loiacono Literary Agency, www.loiaconoliteraryagency.com/authors/joan-early/

Published by Argus Publishing www.a-argusbooks.com/ (release 2016)