James L’Etoile uses his twenty-nine years behind bars as an influence in his award-winning novels, short stories, and screenplays. He is a former associate warden in a maximum-security prison, a hostage negotiator, and director of California’s state parole system. His novels have been shortlisted or awarded the Lefty, Anthony, Silver Falchion, and the Public Safety Writers Award.
Face of Greed is his most recent novel. Look for Served Cold and River of Lies, coming in 2024. You can find out more at www.jamesletoile.com
There’s this old saw in literary circles that authors should write what they know. I don’t necessarily agree with that guidance because I often find it more interesting to write about what I want to know. If I’m interested, then maybe the reader will be as well.
But there was a piece of that advice that stuck with me as I wrote Face of Greed. 
Write what you know, but write it while you can. There is a plotline in the book dealing with the main character’s mother, who is struggling with the ravages of cognitive decline—dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease. Detective Emily Hunter is a hard-charging investigator working to solve a complex murder of a political powerbroker who has to balance that demanding job with acting as a caretaker for her mother.
Emily’s burden is something many of us with aging parents have experienced or might have waiting for us in the years ahead. It’s a scary thing, and for the purpose of the story, in Face of Greed, it keeps Emily off balance. She’s sure-footed in her role as a detective with keen instincts and a solid partner in Javier Medina to follow the clues and bring down the bad guy. But with dementia and Alzheimer’s, Emily struggles.
One day, her mother is living independently, and the next, she’s had to move in with Emily because her memory lapses had gotten to the point when she nearly burnt her house down, forgetting the stove was on. It’s an insidious disease. Emily has a conversation with her, and she seems “with it,” aware of what’s happening around her. Then, the next moment, she loses touch and thinks Emily is still in high school.
Emily has to balance her responsibilities to her mother as her primary caregiver with the demanding job of a homicide detective. She has no family to rely upon, and she’s not the kind of person to ask for help. Emily must step outside her comfort zone and not only ask for help to care for her mother but make critical decisions for her long-term care.
So where does all this come from, you ask?
I was once in Emily’s shoes. My mother had dementia in her later years. It crept in slowly, and, as I found out, those who experience dementia become clever about filling the gaps in their memory. They’ll invent an idea that fits, and they’re convinced it’s what really happened. For example, I found Mom dressed and ready to go to a doctor’s appointment when I went to her place. I picked her up, and halfway there, she forgot where we were going and decided we were going to the grocery store instead. Another sign was simple decision-making would cause anxiety, so she found a workaround common to people with dementia. At a restaurant faced with dozens of menu options, the deception is, “What are you having? Oh, that sounds good. I’ll have that too.” It’s a workaround so they don’t have to make that decision. All the sensory input from the menu can’t get through.
As a caregiver for an aging parent, the roles are suddenly reversed. You’re now the parent to the much older child. And that dynamic can create a great deal of friction. Emily experiences it, and so did I. The person living with dementia sometimes realizes their life, who they were, is slipping away. They feel lost, disconnected, and alone. Some experience Sundowner’s Syndrome, where they try to leave wherever they are to get “home.” Their perception of home may be a fragment of memory from the distant past.
Caregiving can be difficult for the caregiver as well. It’s exhausting and mentally draining listening for the next sound of an escaping parent or that phone call that they’ve run off or hurt themselves.
I wanted to bring this into Face of Greed for a couple of reasons. It makes Emily struggle to balance her life. She feels guilt and sadness over her mom’s situation. And she realizes she can’t do this alone. She must bring other people into her life and let them help. Asking for help isn’t something that comes naturally to Emily—wonder where she got that from?
But I also wanted to talk about dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease because so many of us have gone through this—parents are aging, and this is an unfortunate common experience. I’ve gotten feedback from many readers who tell me that Emily’s struggle in this area resonated with them. They’d felt similar demands and struggled to find the help their parent needed.
It makes Emily a bit more multi-dimensional, and as tough as she seems, she’s got a big heart. It opens her up to people coming into her life at the right time—as she’s the better for it. I guess we all need to be a little more like Emily. And we all need to write what we know while we can because we don’t know what the future will bring.
Visit Amazon to meet Emily: Face of Greed (A Detective Emily Hunter Mystery) – Kindle edition by L’Etoile, James. Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.
Jim, my deepest condolences. I have Face of Greed on my TBR pile. Forgive me if I wait a few months; I’m proud to promote you and attest to your talent. I lost my mom to dementia in November so I’m afraid it’s wait too fresh. But this is such an excellent post and reminder.
As a segue to your point, I met a woman who was doing her mother’s memoirs while she was fading. She found her mother had led a dual life while researching her background. There are some parts of history that will never be recorded. I have mother’s wonderful stories of growing up, nurses’ training and life afterward. Need to compile all these memories as fast as I can.
Best wishes on a wonderful sell-through!
Donnell, I’m so very sorry for your loss. You’re in my thoughts. A collection of your mother’s stories would be a wonderful way to honor her memory.
Thanks for hosting me on the blog, George! Truly appreciated and I hope folks get something from this piece of Emily’s character.
I’ll have to get this one. Being as old as I am, when I forget or lose something it does make me worry a bit.
Jim, your book sounds fascinating and I can’t wait to read it. My mother also developed dementia before her death almost fourteen years ago but her heart and lung disease took her before it got too severe. You’ve illuminated a subject that so many face. And I always enjoy your books!
Heartbreaking and touching. This post helped wake me up. Thank you.
Thank you, Jim, for including the difficult subject of dementia in your book. It’s a wonderful way to depict the multi-faceted character of Emily. I use the word “wonderful” from a writer’s perspective, as dementia certainly isn’t “wonderful.” My parents are 87 and showing signs of cognitive loss. I am educating myself on how to best care for them. I’m thankful I have a brother to help. And people like yourself, who can share their wisdom and experience.
Thanks for a great book, Jim. My mom had Alzheimers too. I wasn’t her care giver but did experience some of what you mentioned when I visited. Thank you for taking us on the journey.
I’ve known Jim for years and can attest that he’s a wonderful writer. He’s able to utilized his vast experiences, and also create characters that you care about and want to root for. Nor does he shy away from difficult subjects, as Face of Greed obviously shows. I highly recommend his excellent books.
i fully intend to add Face of Greed to my list. I read Dead Drop, another Jim’s books and I have to agree he is a fantastic writer with wonderful characters and twists that are surprising and create more dimensions to the overall story. The fear of dementia or Alzheimers plays on the minds of many elderly persons, myself included. As writers we keep our minds active and pray for the best. My mother had dementia and it pulled at my heart strings. My wife and I are both 77 yr old orphans as our parents have passed. We relish in the visits of our six children, eleven grandchildren and eight great children. They keep us young and busy.
Thank you all for sharing this powerful post. Jim and Donnell, you have my heartfelt sympathy. When my mom passed unexpectedly, I found her hair curlers in the refrigerator. I took that as a sign that she went before experiencing the worst of dementia as you both did. Establishing a connection with the reader like this can be moving and inspirational if handled well. Thank you for your candor, Jim…and Donnell.
I enjoyed Dead Drop and can’t wait to read this new novel. I just moved it to the top of my TBR list! Thank you, Jim, for sharing this story with your readers.
I just finished Face of Greed, and really enjoyed it. Lots of surprises.
This is such an important topic. Thanks for tackling it Jim. I’ve got Face of Greed on the TBR list. My mom also had dementia and it was heartbreaking. She lived long enough to forget her family.