Flash of Fire

Flash of Fire Summary

Arlie Aames, a retired art teacher and sculptor of marble, yearns for fame and critical acclaim, replicating that of his lifelong idol, the immortal Michelangelo. Now stricken with Frontotemporal Degeneration (FTD)—an insidious form of dementia that ruthlessly steals his humanity and personality, the prospects for such artistic triumph appear grim.

Yet, the resilient brain defiantly compensates by unleashing a surge of creativity, which launches Arlie’s greatest artistic achievement—L’ultimo abbraccio, The Last Embrace—a stone creation rivaling the dimensions and magnificence of his Renaissance hero’s David. Thus ignites a life-and-death race between his visionary fire and disintegrating mind.

With increasing global interest in Arlie’s miraculous effort, the potential for a huge financial windfall, a final chance at artistic redemption, and the sculptor’s relentless struggle to complete the work before succumbing to a rapidly encroaching death, a cabal of nefarious forces gathers like a malevolent storm to swindle the impending success from its creator—two of Arlie’s three children, along with his greedy sister-in-law, devise the insidious plan. To thwart the treachery, the youngest sibling, a loving and loyal daughter, enlists the help of her father’s lifelong romantic admirer, who, despite enduring decades of unrequited love, palliates Arlie’s final journey by serving as both the merciful conduit between him and the Great Beyond—selflessly sacrificing her devotion by reuniting him with his deceased wife in the hereafter—and as the protector of his legacy.

Flash of Fire explores the perils of aging, the mysteries of artistic genius, the capricious nature of success and failure, the agonies of familial betrayal and sibling rivalry, the tortuous hunt for immortality, and the contentious relationship between the exaltation of love and the despair of rejection. It is a tale in which King Lear meets The Agony and the Ecstasy.