"ONCE UPON A MISSING TIME: A NOVEL OF ABDUCTION" BY PHILIP MANTLE 14.95 US (paperback)7.99 US (ebook) For U.S. purchase:Createspace (buying here gives a few extra dollars to the author)"ONCE UPON A MISSING TIME" is a powerful and emotional journey involving married couple Alan and Pamela Morrison and their teenage daughter, Wendy. Alan is a teacher at the local high school, and his wife Pamela is a social worker for the local authority. One night, whilst driving back from their in-laws home near the rural North Yorkshire village of East Yardsley, the Morrison family encounter something that would change their lives and world view forever. The Morrisons have a close encounter with something quite extraordinary. On arriving home, they discover nearly four hours of their lives are missing. Plagued by nightmarish shared dreams, the Morrisons look for answers for their missing time. Their search for answers threatens to tear the family apart, leaving them with lives that will never be the same again. Set in rural England in 1990, this was an era before the internet and the digital age. The Morrison family search for answers that eventually ends in frustration and betrayal. This is not a story about alien visitation, but rather how a family try desperately to cope with a phenomenon that no one seems to understand. Although a work of fiction, Once Upon A Missing Time is based on real life close encounter cases from the U.K. All of the characters in this drama are based on people who have either experienced this phenomena first-hand, or have been UFO investigators. The names, locations, and professions of all have been changed to protect the individuals concerned. Once you have read Once Upon A Missing Time, you will realise that the phrase "close encounter" was not just a figment of Steven Spielberg's imagination. * * * Reviews: In this fascinating new book, Philip Mantle swaps roles as a knowledgeable investigator of the UFO phenomenon to assume the garb of Sci-Fi author and makes the transition seamlessly. In doing so he brings first hand knowledge to a subject still deeply mired in mystery and speculation. What makes the book doubly interesting is that all the characters, although fictitious, are drawn from actual cases involving alleged alien abduction and the attention to detail shows. In fact one of the investigators could easily be the author. Read more >> From "ONCE UPON A MISSING TIME" Just as the car was moving away from the junction, Wendy's shout drew their attention. "Look mum, a shooting star!" They both followed her outstretched finger to point just above the hills to the north, where a small, bright white light followed a fast, steep trajectory towards the shadowy horizon. Just as it seemed that it would be lost forever behind the stark hills, it levelled out and followed the terrain for a short while before finally disappearing below the skyline at a shallower angle. They watched for a short while, puzzled, before Alan moved away from the junction and applied the power again. Pamela looked across at him once more when the speedometer reached sixty. "Watch it, Alan." He nodded and backed the power off a little in order to round a bend. He was preparing to accelerate again when his eyes widened and his reflexes took over for just long enough to ensure their safety, snatching his foot from the accelerator and jamming it on the brake pedal. The car's nose dipped as the updated brakes did their work and their speed dropped rapidly until they were at a standstill. Alan took the car out of gear and applied the handbrake as he stared at the impenetrable bank of glowing green mist before them. The lights on the panel of the radio flickered into darkness and the sound from its speakers suddenly ceased. With a baffled look at Pamela he knocked the gear shift back into 'D' and moved off cautiously. He had heard of small banks of mist in country lanes which collected in the fields and then obscured an area of road for a short while before either moving on or diffusing, but had never seen or heard of green mist. He thought of mysterious agricultural chemicals and rolled his window up quickly as he drove on slowly. He was about to remark on the fog's strangeness when a childlike scream of pure terror made them both look round. Wendy was sitting in the centre of the rear seat, as far away from either window as possible and pointing, dumbfounded, towards her left. Pamela looked round for a moment before turning back to Wendy. "What is it, darling? What's wrong?" Wendy continued to point at the window against which the mist pressed. "Th Th There was a face there. Like a cat with funny eyes." Pamela looked back to Alan for a moment with a concerned look on her face. She mouthed 'KEEP GOING' at him before turning back to Wendy. "It was probably just a sheep. Maybe there's a fence down somewhere along the road." "It didn't look like a sheep; it had no nose and funny eyes." "It's just the fog love. It makes things look strange." Pamela's last word seemed to echo through the air between them for a long time before there was a heavy bump which caused the car to veer across the road. Immediately, the headlights were cutting through the mist and then they were out of it and back on the familiar stretch of road again. Alan began to accelerate and took a quick look at Wendy. He was surprised to see that she was asleep again. Pamela was lying back in her seat and gazing at the sky through the sunroof. She turned back to Alan as she felt the car accelerate. "What the hell do you think that was?" "I don't know - some kind of fog?" "What sort of fog is green?" * * * ENDORSEMENTS FOR ONCE UPON A MISSING TIME "Philip Mantle has put the trauma of the alien abduction into perspective for all of us in his story that sucks us in on the first page. It is a tale, not of aliens, but of the results of those who have been abducted and what they experience as a result of something that is beyond their control. Mantle has provided a story that draws to in and keeps you entertained from the first page to the last. It is a story that causes you to keep turning the pages."- Kevin Randle, UFO author, lecturer and broadcaster, USA. "A not to be missed fiction, from one of the leading authorities on UFOs. Has to be worth reading!"- Philip Gardiner, Author/filmmaker, UK. "They say time is a great healer-and it is, until it goes missing. Philip Mantle's novel, Once Upon a Missing Time, takes us on a dark tour through the oft-misunderstood abduction phenomenon - and the angst it can cause in the lives of its victims. Mantle is extremely knowledgeable about the abduction phenomenon, and it shows. In this novel, his real-life expertise translates dramatically into the lives of the characters. Scrupulously well thought-out, it provides a gripping insight into one of the greatest enigmas of our era. Although a work of fiction, it carries a disturbing aura of reality on every page. A thought-provoking read that should not be missed."- Mike Hallowell, Freelance journalist line-height: 19px;">- Lee Paqui - Editor, UFO Encounter, and Lee Paqui - UFO Research, Queensland, Australia. "Philip Mantle is probably one of the major unsung heroes of the British UFO scene, having been eclipsed by the likes of Timothy Good and Nick Pope. In this, his first fiction book, he tackles the thorny subject of the 'abduction' and 'Close Encounter' scenario. Although the book is a work of fiction, it draws from many well documented cases from the never-ending enigma that is the UFO subject. This book will provide a thought provoking read, if you are skeptic or believer in the phenomenon."- Kevin Goodman, author of "UFO Warminster: Cradle of Contact," UK. "The work of Philip Mantle is never a surprise, because we know how good it is. In this book, although a work of fiction, I know that Philip has used all of his experience to bring the close encounter experience to life."- Thiago Luiz Ticchetti, UFO researcher and author, Brazil. "In a classic example of poacher turned gamekeeper, Philip Mantle has dug deep into his long established background as a world renowned investigator of the UFO phenomenon to produce a first class novel based on his years of experience in the field and a damn fine job he makes of it too. This book bears all the hallmarks of a homage to a well loved and understood subject and it is told in a surprisingly matter of fact manner that belies the central premise of alien abduction and how it can badly affect those involved."-Brian Allan: Author, speaker and researcher specialising in paranormal phenomena, UK. * * * Philip Mantle is an international UFO researcher, lecturer and broadcaster. His books have been published in six different languages around the world. He is the former Director of Investigations for the British UFO Research Association and former MUFON representative for England. Philip has written articles and features for numerous publications around the world and has been both editor and assistant editor of high street UFO publications. Philip can be contacted via his website, www.beyondroswell.com. or email him at philip.mantle@gmail.com
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