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Michael was born and raised in Maryland. He and his wife of thirty-five years, Kathleen, moved to Wyoming in 2010. In his leisure time, he runs and reads, both to excess. He has run numerous marathons, including Boston and, in August of 2010, completed the one hundred mile Race Across the Sky in Leadville, Colorado.
The Author's working life has been a smorgasbord of careers and occupations: UPS driver, mall cop, maintenance man, cabinetmaker, woodturner, master electrician, business owner, and more. All his life, he dreamed of being a writer. Writing was something he dabbled with in the little spare time he had while he and his wife raised their four children. With the children grown and bringing along families of their own, the urge grew to take that leap of faith into a writing career.
In January 2011, the stars aligned and circumstances finally allowed Michael to pursue his passion. The result was like the bursting of a dam- the 125,000 word rough draft for Harvest of the Heart poured onto the page in just seven weeks. With the help of Bill Thompson, who has worked with such authors as Stephen King, Peter Straub and John Grisham, Michael honed his craft and his manuscript. He is excited that 2011 will yield the first fruit of his new writing career. And the tree is full of blossoms.
Reviewed by Janet Jensen for Readers' Favorite
"Harvest of the Heart" is a tightly written suspense novel about a serial killer, his victims, the FBI agent obsessed with his capture, and an avenging angel. Selmer builds suspense very well and requires the author to engage immediately. The writing is clean and the reader is immediately plunged into the heart of the plot.
The main characters are very strong. I admired the focused determination in the three main characters as each pursued their goals with complete and well-conceived plans, at great personal cost. At times, the reader must question whether the personal cost is worth it: another intriguing facet of this book. I appreciated the scenes that were completely unpredictable; there were many, and they advanced the plot with greater intensity. I think the book could have been made better with more background on the serial killer and the experiences that turned him into the calculated and methodical criminal who remained at large for many years, frustrating all who sought him and terrifying the public (as well as this reader).
"Harvest of the Heart" is a compelling read. I liked the thought-provoking ending. Secondary characters were well-conceived and have important roles in the book. Locations (mainly, the D.C. metro area and rural Wyoming) are well-described and played an important part in the development of the plot.
Though there is some descriptive and necessary gore in the book (after all, it's about a serial killer), Selmer writes a strong novel about crime and criminals without resorting to vulgar language. It can be done and he does it well, without diluting the impact of the story at all.
I look forward to more suspense from this author.
