While surfing the Internet at work, Lloyd believes he’s found a relic from an old genocide. If he’s right, the artefact would be worth a ton of money, and it will give lots of people closure when they find out what really happened to their families.

But there’s one problem. The artefact–if it really exists–is in the possession of Carla, a shy woman in the company’s Accounts Department, and she never lets it out of her sight.

Lloyd seeks the help of his friend and fellow employee, Robert, whom Carla is desperately in love with. Will Robert agree to use Carla’s feelings for him to get information about the mysterious object?

What are the main themes of your book?

I like to think there are two over-arching themes in the story. The first is greed, where the protagonist wants to get his hands on the item, simply because of how much money it will be worth. The second is a bit deeper, and it’s the deep seated need human beings sometimes have to know the truth, or to invent truths that don’t exist. The point, of course, is that sometimes the truth hurts, and other times there’s nothing to be found, no matter how hard we want there to be.

Who or what inspired your story?

The idea came to me one day while I was struggling on a particularly perplexing issue at work. I decided to take a break and clear my head. As soon as I was able to remove myself from the problem, the story of Heritage of Deceit came to me. It occurred to me that I was trying to read far too much into the problem I was trying to solve (hence the second theme).

What do you like best about your primary characters?

I really like Lloyd’s passion, and his unwillingness to sit back and do nothing as life, and a job he’s grown bored with, passes him by.

What are their worst peculiarities?

In the beginning of the book, Lloyd is naive and uncaring. It’s the fact that he’s only interested in what he can personally gain that makes me sometimes want to smack him upside the head. But hey, we wouldn’t have a story otherwise!

How does your main character evolve?

Lloyd doesn’t really change, but Robert, his friend, learns to stop lying to himself about how he feels about certain things and people, and also learns that it’s sometimes better to come clean and tell the truth, no matter how much it hurts.

What’s the principal message you want to send to your audience?

The ultimate message cannot be summed up better than what they discover written inside the artefact, but I’m not going to tell you what that is. You’d best read the book.

What’s the nicest thing anyone has said about your book?

A review on Smashwords said: “Loved it what a good read !!! Had me completely hooked” (Vicky Leigh). I’d never heard anyone so enthusiastic about my work. It was really motivating for me! 

Where can we purchase it?

Lots of places. You can find all the links on my site. 

About the Author

Graham Downs was born in Alberton, in Gauteng, South Africa. He now lives in Germiston with his wife. He is a computer programmer in Rivonia, who has always had a passion for writing.

The stories he writes are not constrained by genre, length, or time period. They are the stories that are burning to be told, and unleashed onto the world.

Notable works include A Petition to Magic, a fantasy short story, and Heritage of Deceit, a thrilling novelette.

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