Location: United States
Member Since: April 19, 2015

Sign in to subscribe to email alerts for L. J. Kritz

L. J. Kritz

Biography

Lou began writing in high school, chronicling events of interest and recording major events. He has contributed to business and medical journals but has always wanted to express his thoughts in fiction. Born into a close society in the mining and steel region of southwestern Pennsylvania his hardworking parents relied on deep religious conviction to get them through life's struggles.

Lou witnessed his church's idiosyncrasies and embarked on a long-term quest to understand religion and how it affects beliefs and daily life. After spending 12 years in Lancaster County, PA, including four years in an Amish house and being immersed in that society, he felt equipped to write "Dark Angel Amish" and it's sequel, "Pay the Devil." Now, his newest effort, "The Final Cruise," draws on the religious influence in today's terrorist societies, and how this affects everybody from innocent ordinary people, to unscrupulos politicians, and major national efforts to overtake enemies.

Lou and his wife, Loraine, live in Costa Rica, realizing a dream that they've had for many years.

Smashwords Interview

Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?
I was born in the coal fields in southwestern Pennsylvania, in a mostly Catholic community. The church was a powerful influence and it began with the church-sponsored elementary school. I began watching what was taught versus what actually went on around me and was mesmerized by how religion could be a tool for good, or could be co-opted by those that had other aims and goals.
What's the story behind your latest book?
In both "Dark Angel Amish," and the new sequel. "Pay the Devil," I used the Amish Church as the vehicle to show how it can all go so wrong, yet there are good, gracious people, both within a church, and some without, who are trying desperately to live an honorable life. I've always been intrigued by the Pennsylvania Dutch mystique of a quaint, old fashioned lifestyle, with a stern unforgiving discipline in the shadows that keeps it all together.
Read more of this interview.

Where to find L. J. Kritz online

Website: http://www.LJKWords.com
Facebook: Facebook profile

Books

The Final Cruise by
Price: $9.99 USD. Words: 109,100. Language: American English. Published: May 6, 2020 . Categories: Fiction » Cultural & ethnic themes » Cultural interest, general
A novel that brings together the extreme fear caused by terrorism, the anger at warmongering countries who see warfare as almost a hobby, and simple people who believe that they are on the happiest vacation of their lives. While major powers battle for supremacy, millions are killed or wounded as their homelands are destroyed. It is a story that incredibly poignant in today's Corona Virus world.
Pay the Devil by
Price: $3.99 USD. Words: 108,230. Language: English. Published: June 30, 2016 . Categories: Fiction » Cultural & ethnic themes » Cultural interest, general
"Pay the Devil" continues the story, begun in "Dark Angel Amish", of the true effect of self-aggrandized cult leaders in the Amish Church in Lancaster County, PA. Three women, an Amish farm wife, a Mennonite woman who is also a lesbian, and an "English" outsider from Philly, are all struggling to make sense of the Elders' cruelty and heavy-handedness. They are tested to their limits.
Dark Angel Amish by
Price: $3.99 USD. Words: 100,010. Language: English. Published: April 24, 2015 . Categories: Fiction » Cultural & ethnic themes » Cultural interest, general, Fiction » Thriller & suspense » General
Within the confines of the peaceful Amish community in Pennsylvania, hides the heavy-handed Elders using their assumed anointed power without regard to the laws of the land. Their reckless disregard for everything outside of their own inflexible opinions leads to the demise of a young Amish family and changes forever the lives of the people coming in contact with them.

L. J. Kritz's tag cloud

amish    amish drama    cruise ships    cult crimes    culture    cyprus    elders    honeymooners    isis    lancaster county    lesbian    mennonite    middle east war    murder    murder and persecution    pa dutch    pandemic    politics    religion    religion and gay and lesbian issues    romance    simple life    sisterhood    syria    terrorism    vindication    virus