Vanishing Illusions by Dave Spohn

About the book

Brent Shannon becomes a candidate to succeed his boss when her promotion is announced. The job is a magnet to his ambitions, but he fears it will unravel his marriage. Brent holds a respected corporate management position and enjoys a bright future. Two things impassion him -- Annette, his wife, and his work. Annette, an attorney on a career sabbatical to raise their children, knows her husband better than he. Vanishing Illusions occurs eight years after an acrimonious separation initiated by Brent's workaholism. Before reconciling, Annette demanded a promise that family would always trump career. Brent's adherence to that promise has created a thriving marriage.

Patricia Bolivar agonizes over her feelings for Brent which are intensifying and much deeper than just business.

Annette searches for validation of her fears. She contacts the man who was her lover during the separation. He reaffirms his love and asks her to come to him.

Kruger successfully destroys Brent's reputation.

Annette learns that Kruger's inner circle accomplice is also his gay lover. She is able to have Kruger's lover confronted, and he admits to the concocted scheme. He and Kruger are fired.

Patricia admits that she is in love with Brent.

Annette realizes that her separation affair had been deep love not escape and tells Brent she is leaving.

Brent is offered a promotion to a high level corporate position and accepts.

Kruger loses the affection of his lover, and his wife rebuffs him. He takes his own life.

Brent will be relocating. He and Patricia decide to make sense out of their individual lives. They make a date for dinner in six months.

About the author

Dave Spohn holds a B.A. in Political Science from The Citadel, Charleston, South Carolina, and a M.A. in Organizational Communication from the University of Kansas. He began his career as a commissioned officer in the US Army. His assignments included Vietnam and Korea. He is a graduate of the US Army's Command and General Staff College.

Leaving the military, his business career began in an entry level staff position. Over his career, he held various positions. His last was as President of a wholly owned subsidiary of a Fortune 100 company. His experience from "cubicle to corner office" provides the foundation for his first novel, Vanishing Illusions.

He now writes, teaches, and consults. He teaches as an adjunct professor with the Department of Communication, Central Piedmont Community College in Charlotte, North Carolina, consults with business organizations on communication issues, and is working on his second novel, Deceitful Corridors.

Dave's hobbies include golf, reading, spoiling grandchildren, and a passionate, almost unhealthy, addiction to the Green Bay Packers. He and his wife Mary, along with their dogs Sandy and Jeb, live in Lake Wylie, South Carolina.