Owensboro resident Drake Higdon recently crossed writing a book off his bucket list after completing A Cold Day in West Virginia, a historical fiction novel that follows mob relations in 1960s Boston.
Higdon said he’s always been interested in history, but specifically the history of Boston and the mob during the early days of the city.
“I feel like in life we’re not going to get anywhere if we don’t realize our history,” Higdon said.
So one day in 2020, he woke up and had the mission to paint a picture of what daily life was like for some people during that time period.
The novel primarily depicts fictional characters; however, some of the mobsters involved were actual figures in the city.
As he researched, Higdon learned that many people had to rely on the mob structure to help make a living for their family — which is how readers meet his lead character Aphicious Bianchi.
Bianchi is a construction worker and after reuniting with a high school friend, he trades the stress of his previous job for getting involved with the local mob.
“He has to decide if he wants to go down that road. He battles with his morals, and I call it an epic fall from grace or, depending on how you look at it, a rise to grace,” Higdon said.
He noted that for the most part, Boston doesn’t shy away from their history — both good and bad.
That helped with the development of the book, Higdon said, as many scenes took place in historical places such as Faneuil Hall. Higdon said he’s never visited Boston, so being able to research as much as he has over time has been extremely helpful.
Higdon is grateful to finally release the book, but he isn’t done writing yet.
He said he constantly writes poetry and has plans to write a second book unrelated to his maiden novel.
A Cold Day in West Virginia can be purchased on the Barnes & Noble website here.
