In the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic and the racial reckoning of 2020, two unlikely friends are forced to confront what home really means.

A young Black man and a middle-aged White man meet through the Indianapolis tech company where they both work. Though separated by age, race, and life experience, they discover a powerful connection through music, poetry, and the emotional landscapes that have shaped them. What begins as an unusual friendship becomes something deeper as both men find themselves questioning the world around them—and their place within it.

Disillusioned by their state’s response to the pandemic and shaken by the racial strife unfolding across the country, the two men leave Indianapolis on a transformative journey. Against the eerie backdrop of a fractured America, they face isolation, grief, uncertainty, and the complicated truths that define love, loyalty, friendship, and identity.

As the road carries them away from everything familiar, they begin to reevaluate their beliefs, their histories, and the meaning of belonging. Through shared adversity, conversation, art, and memory, they forge a bond that challenges them to see themselves—and each other—with greater honesty and compassion.

The Edge of Motherland by Michael Leppert is a moving work of cultural heritage fiction for readers who appreciate character-driven literary fiction, contemporary historical fiction, stories of unlikely friendship, and novels that explore race, resilience, connection, and hope during uncertain times.

Michael Leppert is an award-winning lecturer, columnist, essayist, and author based in Indianapolis, Indiana. A longtime communicator, public affairs professional, and educator, Leppert brings decades of experience in government, policy, business, and storytelling to his work.

He teaches speech and writing at Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business and serves as an adjunct professor at IU’s O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs. He earned his B.S. in Public Affairs from Indiana University and his M.S. in Communication from Northwestern University, building a career rooted in the two fields that have shaped his life: government and communication.

Before entering academia and writing, Leppert spent thirteen years in public service for the State of Indiana. His career began at the Indiana Boys School, where he worked for five years and later served as program manager in the Intensive Treatment Unit. He then spent eight years at the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission, ultimately serving as Executive Director of the IURC. In that role, he became known for his ability to explain complex and often controversial issues with clarity, insight, and accessibility.

After leaving state government in 2002, Leppert spent two decades as a private-sector lobbyist, public affairs consultant, and communications advisor, working with corporations, nonprofits, government leaders, community organizations, and business executives to help advance strategic priorities. His experience with public policy, political systems, and institutional decision-making has deeply informed his fiction and nonfiction writing.

Leppert began writing a weekly column in 2014, with his work appearing in newspapers throughout Indiana. His first book, Contrary to Popular Belief: A Chronicle of a Progressive in Indiana, was published in 2016. His novel Flipping the Circle, published by Greenleaf Book Group in 2021, is a political thriller that draws from his deep knowledge of Indiana politics, lobbying, and government culture. His fiction explores power, corruption, identity, morality, and the complicated human stories behind public life.

At the heart of Leppert’s work is a passion for helping people understand complicated ideas through story. Whether in the classroom, in public commentary, or on the page, he is driven by the belief that storytelling can bring clarity, challenge assumptions, and create meaningful connection.

Michael lives in a historic neighborhood in downtown Indianapolis with his wife, Amy Levander, and their rescue dog, Birdie. He has two adult children, Alex and Jack. He and Amy are competitive golfers, beach walkers, and enthusiastic lovers of live music, comedy, and theater.

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At the center of The Edge of Motherland is a question that becomes increasingly difficult for its two friends to answer: what makes a place—or another person—feel like home? Leppert approaches that question through the specific pressures of 2020, but also through the quieter forces that shape identity over a lifetime: memory, art, conversation, geography, and the assumptions people carry into relationships. That emphasis gives the novel room to explore a divided moment without losing sight of the individuals trying to live through it, making this a thoughtful choice for readers interested in friendship, belonging, and the complicated work of understanding someone whose life has followed a very different path.

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Wars, famine, political corruption, economic depression, social injustice, civil unrest, all of which leads to the spiritual, personal unrest of the human soul. 

And it makes us wonder... How do I, as a person, and we as human beings, work together individually yet collectively to make the world a better place for those who live here today and for those who will be born into this world tomorrow? 

Aspiring author Phillip Anderson, author of The Needs of the Heart, provides deep insight into the human emotional spectrum as well as giving deep introspective insight into the emotions and principles he believes people of all races, religions, ethnicities, and demographic backgrounds need to not only make themselves better people, but the world a better place.

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One of the more challenging ideas behind The Needs of the Heart is that improving the world and improving ourselves cannot be treated as entirely separate projects. Anderson begins with social conditions that can make an individual feel powerless, then redirects attention toward the emotional and philosophical territory where a person can still examine choices, principles, and relationships with others.

That makes this a book centered less on escaping difficult realities than on considering how human beings might respond to them. Its questions reach from the private life of the individual to the kind of world inherited by future generations, giving readers an opportunity to consider what the needs of the heart might demand not only from society, but from themselves.

An Evolutionary Anthropologist, respected lecturer, martial artist, husband, and father, Kyle journeys to Northern Norway in search of the breathtaking Aurora Borealis and the ancient petroglyphs of Alta. But beneath the dancing northern lights, something impossible happens. A violent geomagnetic phenomenon tears Kyle from the modern world and hurls him across the corridors of time. 

What begins as scientific fascination quickly becomes a desperate fight for survival. 

Thrown into the Stone Age among primitive hunters, Kyle unknowingly leaves behind clues that will survive for thousands of years. He battles Viking warriors, walks beside Silk Road caravans, witnesses the rise of empires, and survives civilizations most people only read about in history books. Along the way, he encounters moments that forever alter him—including an unforgettable friendship with a young boy who will one day become Genghis Khan and a journey east with Marco Polo toward the legendary court of Kublai Khan. 

But every jump through time comes at a cost.

As Kyle struggles to survive brutal landscapes, ancient warfare, and the terrifying instability of the auroral corridor itself, the man he once was slowly begins to disappear beneath scars, grief, and centuries of memory. Meanwhile, back in present-day Pennsylvania, his wife Samantha refuses to give up hope. Alongside archaeologists and scientists searching for answers, she uncovers ancient carvings, unexplained historical anomalies, and evidence suggesting Kyle may still be alive somewhere… in another time. 

AURORA RIFT: A Man Out of Time is an epic blend of historical adventure, science, survival, and emotional human drama. Spanning thousands of years of civilization from Stone Age Norway to the Persian Empire of Xerxes, from Viking seas to the vast Mongol world the novel asks a haunting question:

If time itself opened before you… Would you ever truly find your way home again?

Thomas LeBrun began his martial arts training in the early 1970s, inspired by Bruce Lee and Joe Frazier. He formally studied Judo, Tae Kwon Do, and Okinawan Kenpo, later expanding into Yoshitsune Ju-Jitsu under Sensei Michael DePasquale Sr. and Jr., as well as Aikido, Arnis, pressure-point applications, and boxing. His dedication earned him rank in multiple disciplines. 

LeBrun’s path led him to the Close Protection field, where his martial arts knowledge evolved into specialized training in defensive arts, non-traditional weapons, and personal security. He has protected high-profile clients such as Bill Gates, Elton John, and Whitney Houston, working in more than 45 countries. In 2009, he created LeBrun’s American Combatives, a modern system bridging traditional martial arts with real-world application, later authenticated by Grand Master Ron Van Clief and Shidoshi Glen Perry. 

A recognized authority in defensive arts, LeBrun earned his 10th dan in Hogoshin-Do in 2022 and has been honored with multiple awards, including Security Expert of the Year (2021) and induction into the Ultimate Warrior Class (2022). He is also a multi-award-winning, #1 international best-selling author of Hiding in Plain Sight and the Cameron Stone series, and was named Best Action & Thriller Author in Alabama, United States of 2025. 

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The scale of Aurora Rift: A Man Out of Time may span thousands of years, but its central tension remains sharply personal. Kyle can survive another battle, another landscape, and another century, yet every escape carries him farther from the husband and father who first traveled to Norway. Samantha's search gives that loss a tangible form as ancient carvings and historical anomalies become possible evidence that the man she knows is still somewhere inside history.

That connection between the archaeological record and one family's separation is what makes the premise stand apart. Kyle is simultaneously studying history, altering it, and becoming part of it, while the people in his own time attempt to reconstruct his path from what he leaves behind. For readers intrigued by the idea of a modern scientist forced to experience humanity's past from the inside, Thomas LeBrun has built a time-travel adventure with a particularly ambitious reach.

First responders are trained to move toward emergencies that most people instinctively move away from, but the effects of those calls do not necessarily end when a shift is over. In Burned Out, licensed clinical social worker Iris Waichler turns her attention to the cumulative trauma experienced by firefighters, paramedics, and EMTs—and to the families who often experience its consequences alongside them. Built from candid conversations with first responders and their loved ones, the book looks beyond the emergency itself to the physical, emotional, and relational toll that repeated exposure to trauma can create.

Non-Fiction, Self-help

Date Published: May 29, 2026

Publisher: Manhattan Book Group

Burned Out evolved from conversations I had with a friend who had been a firefighter for 30 years. He shared stories about traumas he and his fellow firefighters experienced while on the job. We discussed universal challenges that first responders face in terms of not knowing what to do with this trauma, recognizing its symptoms, and the impact it had on family members and loved ones. I interviewed male and female paramedics, firefighters, and Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT's) around the country to get their candid personal stories and experiences. I also interviewed family members. We all shared the goal of wanting to. help fellow first responders and family members understand the dynamics of trauma, its impact, and how they can get support to cope with its consequences with renewed understanding and resilience.

Key themes of book:

1. What types of trauma do first responders experience on the job?

2. How does it impact them physically and emotionally?

3. How does it affect their relationships with family members and loved ones?

4. How can first responders and family members understand and cope with these traumas?

5. What ways can they effectively communicate and understand the ramifications of trauma?

6. Where can they go for help to deal with the trauma and learn to heal from it?

Message for readers: My hope for those who read this book is that you will have a greater understanding and appreciation for the sacrifices our first responders and their families make in the service of others. I believe reading these personal accounts in combination with the information, support, and resources provided will be invaluable to all who take the time to read Burned Out. I hope you will share it with others you believe might find it beneficial.

Burned Out addresses a part of emergency service that can remain largely invisible to the public: what happens after first responders repeatedly witness serious injury, loss, crisis, and human suffering. Waichler brings together the voices of firefighters, paramedics, EMTs, and family members rather than treating occupational trauma as an experience that affects only the responder. Her clinical social work background adds another layer to those firsthand accounts, with attention given to recognizing trauma, understanding its effect on relationships, communicating about it, and finding appropriate support.

Burned Out is particularly relevant for firefighters, paramedics, EMTs, and the spouses, partners, relatives, and friends trying to understand what repeated exposure to emergencies can mean away from the scene. Counselors, healthcare professionals, social work students, and others whose work intersects with emergency personnel may also find value in the combination of personal experiences and information about trauma. The book's focus on both responders and their families makes it especially suited to readers interested in resilience, communication, relationships, and the less-visible consequences of serving on the front lines of crisis.

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Burned Out places attention on the people behind the uniforms after the immediate crisis has passed. By bringing first responders and their family members into the same discussion, Waichler examines trauma as something that can reach beyond an individual and into the relationships surrounding them. The personal accounts at the center of the book also give readers a reason to consider what support can look like after years of responding to other people's worst moments. For those who want a clearer understanding of that often-unseen part of emergency service, this is a thoughtful place to begin.

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