Frank Maraj

Snapshots of Life Frank Maraj

"As Bella looked back over her shoulder, she saw the outline of a form staggering into the roadway. It was Vindoo. She had not killed him. But, he was still coming after her." The novel begins with the brief intersection of two young lives: Pinnie and Bella. Their attraction to one another is immediate. Their innocent adventure together quickly devolves and Bella is driven out of Pinnie's life. Pinnie, disillusioned and disowned, spirals out of control. His journey is just beginning. Bella's story shines a light on the racial and religious prejudices of the 1960s. As a young child, Bella has an idyllic life, and is shielded from the harsh realities that her parents face. When she starts school, Bella is targeted and tormented because of her mixed Hindu and Christian beliefs and her mixed heritage. After being abused, assaulted and orphaned, Fate intervenes and rescues Bella. Pinnie's journey takes him on a lonely spiritual quest. The world he encounters provides a new path completely devoid of the extravagant trappings of wealth. This book takes the reader deep into the broken society of the fictional country, Trinada, a Caribbean island. It explores different cultures and philosophies and reveals the inequity that naturally follows when basic human decency is sacrificed at the altar of wealth, power, and privilege....