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A Division of
Francine P. Biere
Synopsis & Reviews
Death in the Desert
by
Francine P. Biere
ISBN: 1-932695-23-0
Rated: PG-13
$14.99 Tradesize Paperback
Fleeing the horror of September 11th, journalist
Meagan Wagner returns to the tranquility of Arizona,
only to discover that her nightmare has just begun.

    Meagan is greeted by a nameless and faceless
terror stalking southeastern Arizona.  Hundreds of
strangers crawl through the desert night, following
the people smugglers who are guided by greed and
a disregard for human life.
  
    Parched bones and dying immigrants, ravaged
by the sweltering heat, litter the once peaceful
landscape of the desert.  But Meagan’s vulnerability
and isolation intensify as she witnesses the horror
and shock of a busload of injured and dying children.
Along with her close-knit community, fear turns to
outrage with the realization that human lives are
tragically taken at the hands of illegal immigrants.
    
    In Meagan’s attempts to discover the truth and
to help put a stop to the desert carnage, she risks
more than her career.  She learns that the price for
justice and integrity can be paid with risking your life.
REVIEWS
Memories fade...but fear is everlasting.
---Reviewed by LightHouse Literary Reviews
Rating:  4 ½ (out of 5)

Meagan Wagner, an award-winning journalist, has settled back in the safety of Cochise County, Arizona.  She has fled back to her roots in order for her to start healing from the devastation and fear that crept into her life after September 11, 2001.  Living in Washington D.C. at that time, Meagan should have been covering the hysteria and chaos that surrounded the hours and days following the attacks on New York and Washington.  Instead, she was glued to the television like the rest of the country.  She was experiencing failure when she should have been taking pictures and writing about the experience.

Back in Arizona, she has settled into her life out on the ranch with her Uncle Billy, the closest thing to a father that she has in her life.  Billy, a recovering alcoholic, has managed to turn his life around after years of drifting and drinking.  Now Billy has won the lottery and lives comfortably on the ranch.  One thing he had the good sense to spend his money on.  The other constant in his life is his niece, Meagan, who has always shown him unconditional love even when most of her love life was dry like the desert that she lived in. 

The quiet Arizona area that she lived in was quickly becoming the gateway for illegal immigrants from Mexico entering the United States.  The area was becoming a little dangerous as the drug runners and coyotes (or paid guides) that brought the Mexicans became greedy and wanted more and more money to do these deeds.  As more and more illegal Mexicans turn up dead in the desert from dehydration, the area becomes a tinderbox waiting for a spark.  That spark comes and the fire of hatred and bigotry runs rampant throughout the county.  Meagan is unintentionally fanning the flames with her stories.  With the help of Uncle Billy and her friends, Meagan finally sees that the fear she has is running her life. 

Wow, this book is really a lesson in fear and how it can run your life without you knowing it.  Francine Biere tells a very touching story, it brought tears to my eyes a couple of times.  I think that this is a must read book.

***


“Death in the Desert is a novel with its heart in the right place.  Well done, Francine Biere.  I thought Death in the Desert was grand, as they say over here (in Ireland).  Best of luck with it!!!  I hope that Death in the Desert raises awareness and lends support toward those good causes which try to assist poor migrants.”

---Featured Review by Mick Halpin, Critical Mick Reviews Free of Rules, Dublin, Ireland

***


“Death in the Desert is a literary experience that takes the reader to a place they may never otherwise go.  Invaluable in this, true-to-life characters flesh out a dark but needful exposé of human suffering intensified, if not begun, by people who manipulate the tenets of their own freedom in order to maltreat others.”

---Reviewed by Cami Tapley, Lindenville Publishing, Gibraltar Fiction Series, Michigan

***


“It’s powerful.  The characters in the book seem real and not just some flat people on a page.  It is obvious from the book how much Francine loves Cochise County.  She did a good job painting the plight of the Mexicans in the little town across the border.   Every scene was believable and realistic.  I found myself crying and the ending was perfect.  She showed real people with real problems, like Uncle Billy.  She’s done a superb job.”

---Maggie Chan, Canada (fan and avid reader)

***


“I was extremely impressed with the caliber of writing of this wonderful woman!  From the first word to the last, I was deeply enthralled and entranced with the story.  It is well written, the story believable.  And it left me wanting more!  Being from the area that the book was written about, I found myself believing every word!  I think that this author is on her way to being a "Best Seller" and am definitely waiting for the second book!”

---Toni Hortien, Sierra Vista (fan and avid reader)

***


My husband gave me a copy of “Death in the Desert” for my birthday.  It was like watching a suspense movie, you kept reading because you wanted to see how it turned out.  I have a habit of sometimes skimming through the last few chapters to see how things will end up, but I did not do this with this book.  This was definitely a thumbs up.
---Valerie Kellerman, Sierra Vista (fan and avid reader)