A Confluence of Strangers

In a quiet, unassuming town, three strangers find their lives intertwined by an event that seems anything but ordinary— an unsettling murder that casts a long shadow over the community. As the story unfolds, each of these three unique individuals takes their turn sharing their journey of discovering the others. What begins as a dark mystery soon reveals itself to be a tale of unexpected connections, a hidden love story, and the unraveling of one person’ s deeply unusual past. At the heart of A Confluence of Strangers is an unlikely bond between Alex, an enigmatic older man with a mysterious past; Anna, a café owner seeking refuge after a high-pressure career in government; and Leon, a thoughtful university professor with a passion for literature. As their shared love for good food, meaningful conversation, and a thrilling mystery pulls them together, they find that their differences are the very thing that unites them in a story of redemption and discovery. This poignant novel celebrates the transformative power of friendship and love, offering a powerful reminder that even in the face of life’ s darkest questions, connection and compassion can light the way.

Fullbright scholar and emeritus professor of English at Willamette University, Michael Strelow is the author of The Greening of Ben Brown, a finalist for the Ken Kesey Novel Prize, Henry: A Novel of Beer and Love in the West, Some Assembly Required. nominated for the Arthur C. Clarke Award in science fiction, and The Moby-Dick Blues. He has also published several middle grade books, poetry, short stories, and creative non-fiction in many literary magazines such as Orchid Magazine, Oregon Quarterly, Sou’ wester, CutBank, Northwest Review, Kansas Quarterly, Mid-west Poetry Review, Poetry Midwest, Bellingham Review, Willow Springs, and others.