The First Shall Be Last

by Joe Ellis

Overview

A MURDER MYSTERY and small-town LOVE STORY, THE FIRST SHALL BE LAST will draw the reader into the lives of the GREATEST GENERATION, the men and women who sacrificed dearly to save the world. "Haunting, captivating, compelling, THE FIRST SHALL BE LAST is a powerful mystery that grips the heart." -- Nancy Haddock, Berkley Books novelist. Description: Two young lovers separated by war cling to hope and sanity by exchanging passionate letters. As Howard heads to his first battle on the Pacific island of Peleliu, Helen fulfills her call to duty by working at a local factory. They soon discover they have more to worry about than the elite Japanese forces deeply entrenched on the island. One of Howard's platoon members, Judd Stone, seeks revenge against a black stretcher bearer by the name of Josiah Jackson. Howard fears Stone may go to any length to get what he wants, even murder. Sixty years later Reverend Byron Butler enters the hospital room of an old Marine who wants to confess a dark secret. But Butler can't discover the whole truth until he investigates other leads--Helen and Howard's letters, Josiah Jackson's son, and a mysterious footlocker. Known as the "forgotten battle," Peleliu marked the first time segregated black troops mixed with white Marines on the front lines. The integration wasn't mandated. It was attributed to the ferocity of the battle as black soldiers aided the wounded. The novel is based on the memoirs of James E. Ellis, the author's father.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940014515047
Publisher:	Upper Ohio Valley Books
Publication date:	04/15/2012
Series:	Ohio Valley Mystery Series , #2
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	268
File size:	217 KB

About the Author

Joe C. Ellis, a big fan of the North Carolina’s Outer Banks, grew up in the Ohio Valley. A native of Martins Ferry, Ohio, he attended West Liberty State College in West Virginia and went on to earn his Master’s Degree in education from Muskingum College in New Concord, Ohio. He has been employed by Martins Ferry City Schools for the last thirty-three years where he currently teaches art and computer graphics at Martins Ferry High School. He also has been lay preaching for the Presbyterian Church U.S.A. for the last twenty-one years. He pastors two churches in the Martins Ferry area, the Scotch Ridge Presbyterian Church and the Colerain Presbyterian Church.
His writing career began in 2001 with the publication of his first novel, The Healing Place. In 2007 he began the Outer Banks Murder Series with the publication of Murder at Whalehead and in 2010 Murder at Hatteras. The popularity of this series continues to grow with his 2012 installment, Murder on the Outer Banks.
Joe credits family vacations on the Outer Banks with the inspiration for these stories. Joe and his wife, Judy, have three children and three grandsons. Although the kids have flown the nest, they get together often and always make it a priority to vacation on the Outer Banks whenever possible. He comments, “It’s a place on the edge of the world, a place of great beauty and sometimes danger—the ideal setting for murder mysteries.”
One of Joe’s passions is distance running. Murder on the Outer Banks opens with a 5K footrace in which an older man runs to victory against much younger competition. In the last year (2011) Joe has posted 5k times and half marathon times at the national class level for his age group. Because running definitely keeps him younger physically and mentally, he enjoyed writing a novel with these themes as important threads in the plot. Joe hopes to continue to write stories set on the Outer Banks and run along its beaches for many years to come.