Haying in the Moonlight

Haying in the Moonlight features Louise Hammel who returns to the USA as a professor at the University of Northern Colorado. Her Psychology Department shares the building with Sports and Exercise Science where she meets a like-minded colleague Brad Mc Daniels. When Brad's brother commits suicide in the small town of Boulder Montana the incident creates a research opportunity for Louise to interview survivors of suicide in the local community. The contemporary issue of suicide is explored through stories of farmers the elderly business people high school students and Indian reservation youth suicide pacts. The stories are complex and yet end with a hopeful outcome. This knowledge leaves Louise vulnerable and wondering what she will do next in her life.The Louise Hammel SeriesCarol Fortino explores serious contemporary issues in her four novels including: hubris drug cartels human trafficking political intrigue cultural differences religion adultery child separation suicide and karma. The character of Louise Hammel an American academic takes readers on globe-trotting trips from New Mexico to Australia on to the Philippines and back to Montana. The Rings of Hubris explores the character trait of hubris through issues such as missing persons murder drug cartels and human trafficking. The story takes place at Mountain State College in Highlands NM when Louise Hammel was a young academic. Although Louise is not featured in the novel it is her academic advisor Professor Josh Blagslade who murders two wives a lover and a young boy. In Driving Forces Louise Hammel left a teaching position in Colorado and moved to Brisbane Australia. After earning her Ph.D. she takes an important job in the island of Mindanao Philippines. However she is not the main character as the novel centers around her driver Rico Bernales who through love with a Muslim widow is drawn into the dangerous vortex of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). The story intertwines complex issues of Filipino society: human relations religion education culture and politics. In Wineglass on the Veranda Louise Hammel plays a more pivotal role. She is introduced as a semi-retired professor from the USA housesitting for friends on Berundji Island near Brisbane. From a photograph taken from her veranda she helps police uncover the life of Alex Crabbe a man who suffered the consequences of child separation and as a compromised adult commits murder.