For immediate release
Contact: Geoffrey Wells
Mobile: 646 919-0002
Email: geoffreywellsfiction@gmail.com
Middle grade thriller evokes the
fentanyl overdoses on the North Fork.
Author says kids need to know what they and their parents
and schools are up against when it comes to drug abuse.
Southold author, Geoffrey Wells has released a timely thriller for middle grade readers. Never Less is an empowering and relatable adventure about two middle grade friends from diverse backgrounds that outsmart an addicted problem dad. This cross-generational novel about addiction, loyalty and an undying friendship will generate vigorous conversations at the dinner table and in middle schools.
Southold author, Geoffrey Wells read from his book, Never Less, at the New Suffolk/Cutchogue Free Library in January.
Wells spoke about how we all need a safety net, but a true friend might be just as important for middle graders to discover their own power over the toughest grown-up problems. He was joined on a panel by two harm reduction specialists for a brief introduction of resources and help for drug prevention and addiction.
Justine Briscoe, BS, CASAC
Seafield Comprehensive Inpatient/ Outpatient Addiction Treatment
Jackie Kanarvogel, Director of Education & Training
HUGS (Human Understanding & Growth Services)
Summary:
Southold, NY, author Geoffrey Wells has released a thriller written entirely from the point of view of two twelve-year-olds from diverse backgrounds.
Mindy comes from a well-healed family. Her father is a doctor but also addicted to “painkillers”. Pablo is a child of immigrants who could be deported at any time. When the two soccer buddies discover suspicious goings-on at the old mill on Mattituck Inlet, on the Long Island Sound, they decide to investigate with the help of an octogenarian mentor who tells them that, during Prohibition, the mill was used to smuggle bootleg liquor. The pair set out to stop a callous scheme to yank the safety net away from drug users by lacing recovery pills with a fatal dose of fentanyl.
A novel with historical context: The tragedy on the North Fork, of Long Island.
In August 2021, after the Southold Town community was left devastated when cocaine laced with fentanyl caused six residents to overdose, the author began drafting his story. “What sort of agony must a child endure seeing a parent become an opioid addict? I asked myself how a twelve-year-old must feel knowing that drugs in their community make everyone unsafe. I wrote Never Less in the first person entirely from a middle grader point of view because they are so vulnerable. I wanted to show young readers how they can harness their own powers to overcome the societal threats that surround them, so Never Less is a story of hope.”
By empowering seventh and eighth grade readers—and perhaps their parents—readers will discover a way to deal with this evil threat, and that empowerment leads to what Wells calls sacred hope—a hope that, when coupled with action makes the world better place.
"Never Less deals with a difficult and highly-charged subject in a thoughtful way. Author Geoffrey Wells has taken great care to craft an empathetic novel that will spark important conversations with middle school students."
“This is not just a story about addiction, but a story about two teens who care so much about their fathers that they are willing to do anything to keep them safe. Pablo and Mindy are wise beyond their years, and their tenacity and big hearts showcase the importance of family, biological or chosen.”
Never Less can be purchased at Burton’s Bookstore, in Greenport, NY, and soon in other bookstores, to be announced. Purchase on-line at Amazon.
About Geoffrey Wells:
Geoffrey Wells has published a trilogy of thrillers, The Trilogy for Freedom with sub-genres ranging from international politics to romantic suspense to eco-thrillers.
His previous eco-thriller, The Drowning Bay dealt with a woman’s quest to help a young boy search for his missing activist mother. Wells also published the picture book, Moonglow written by Peggy Dickerson and illustrated by Cynthia Wells.
Never Less is his fourth novel.
Full biography here.
