The Shadow of the Evening

Against the background of the mystery of the Etruscans and the beauty of Tuscany, The Shadow of the Evening interweaves the lives of two cousins, David and Alexander, from a summer spent at their grandmother's farm in Maryland, to a dark resolution in the Tuscan city of Volterra.Fifteen-year-old Alexander is a genius, whose brilliant, flawed mind is obsessed with the Etruscans, an obsession that will end in tragedy. Twelve-year-old David, more rooted in reality, is caught up in their "summer of the Etruscans" and almost comes to believe in Alexander's fantasies.The two lose track of each other, but that long ago summer remains unfinished business and will bring David, thirty years later, to Volterra to find out what happened to his cousin. There he will not only find the answers, but also reach an epiphany in his own life.The first part of the book tells David's story. The second is a narration of events in Volterra, seen through Alexander's disintegrating mind. The third part takes place in Volterra, where David investigates the mystery of Alexander. Overlaying the human mystery is the enigmatic presence of The Shadow of the Evening, an Etruscan statue that appears to create a continuum between past and present, challenging our belief that we are more evolved than past civilizations.About the Author: Laura Brylawski-Miller was born and grew up in Milan, Italy, and now resides in Arlington, Virginia. She holds a BS in allied health and an MFA in creative writing. She has publi