MISSOURI NORMAL is Telory Arendell's 64,000-word upmarket women's fiction debut novel about a psychic 25-year-old's quest for respect in the Southern Midwest. This is M. Scott Swanson's Throw the Amulet meets Kimberly Diede's Whispering Pines.
To JANE MONTGOMERY, "Missouri Normal" is everything she's trying to avoid: house-bound, bible-thumping, double-wide trailer trash. As an older returning college student, Jane is a community outlier. After saving her mom's life on 9-11, she can't ignore her psychic ability. Prediction of a near-fatal robbery cements her fate: invent a modern equivalent for psychic readings or fall prey to Southwest Missouri prejudice.
Jane's childhood crush, SAM BATES, believes in empirical evidence. Military engineering stations him in San Diego. When the two meet up years later back home in rural Missouri, Jane falls deeper for him despite his refusal to respect her psychic ability. On vacation with Sam in Oklahoma, a tribal elder of the Muscogee Creek Nation recognizes Jane's gift.
A 'Seer' has no place in contemporary life, so Jane pursues reputable employment to honor her talent. She fears abandoning her disabled mother and bears the brunt of psychic ridicule. An option that moves Sam closer to home arrives right before his deployment to Afghanistan. Jane spends two years in a Social Work graduate program while Sam serves his deployment overseas, their company restricted to holiday visits. Sam's return holds a double surprise that cements this couple as Missouri Normal: an IED has disabled one of Sam's legs while Jane is now pregnant with his twins, one a Down's baby.
Missouri is one of few states whose residents span a continuum from practicing psychics to military veterans and imagines both as equally viable members of their community. Telory Arendell's debut novel explores this unlikely pairing and argues that society needs both sides of this equation. Her deep characterization prompts an immersive reading experience true to this Southern Midwest locale. It takes you right there in believable ways. Character voices highlight regional dialogue and neurodiversity. A true celebration of difference turns what is considered broken into a gift. Finding your broken defines your gift, and what breaks us makes us. A vision will only help if you share it. In this debut novel, visions lead a Seer to counseled clarity.
