Near Somewhere

Near Somewhere
(Foreword by Chef Dean Fearing)
Near Somewhere,the second installment of a series by author Edward Cozza, that began with IPPY Gold Medal and 3 Beverly Hills Book Awards winner for his debut novel Nowhere Yet. There are people in the world who lack the feeling of connection. It is not just being close to someone affluent, someone famous. It is having the hope there is someone out there for you to care about, maybe more so that someone cares about you. In Nowhere Yet, the characters were reconnecting with people from their past, people they loved, people they missed. In Near Somewhere,Townes Mantle is beginning to feel crushed by his lack of connection & he doesn’t know how to get out of the vice that is creating. Not everyone is fortunate enough to have someone from their past to help them. Perhaps because Townes has put his feelings out to the universe, he begins to meet some very unique people, people he enjoys being with, people he could spend a life with. It is not just a simple matter of stating your intention & wishing things would get better. Getting what you want can come with unintended consequences. How these characters sort out the consequences makes for a very entertaining journey. It is not always possible to learn a lesson from a novel, but there are lessons here, especially about connecting with the things in life, the things in spirit, that you wish to connect with. There are people in the world who lack the feeling of connection. It is not just being close to someone affluent, someone famous. It is having the hope there is someone out there for you to care about, maybe more so that someone cares about you.Townes Mantle has hit the wall in his life & he doesn't really feel a connection with anyone. He has his dog, he has his band partner Zeeder. but he needs more. His life of endless travel is rapidly making his nerves unravel. He needs someone to share his life with, someone to tell him he is all right, tell him he isn’t going to fall apart. He just wants to rearrange, get out the novel he has been writing, & the universe will talk care of the rest. That is when three women enter his life & his complications take on an entirely different tone. With the return of characters Annie and Kat, both of whom take a liking to Townes, but are themselves struggling with their own internal forces. Add to the mix: a despicable person from Annie’s past that won’t go away. Towne’s closest friend Zeeder, with no traceable past. A famous actress with a mystical sense. A high spirited wine maker, & the connections begin in ernest, but not without complication. Trouble lurks within the man from Annie’s past & his unscrupulous cohorts, which could prove to be dangerous for anyone near them.
Southern California, New York, Dallas & the California Wine country serve as the backdrop for people connecting with each other, & Townes doing everything he can to keep from throwing his briefcase in the river & walking away.