The Fickle Hand of Destiny (eBook, ePUB)

The Fickle Hand of Destiny is a sweeping tale of survival, love, and fate set against the unforgiving sands of the Sahara and the turbulent corridors of history. Ali, a young scholar-turned-slave, endures unimaginable trials after his capture in the desert. Stripped of his freedom but not his resolve, he journeys through the harsh landscapes of North Africa, bound by chains yet guided by an unyielding will to reclaim his destiny. His sole purpose is to return to Leila, the woman he left behind-a love that has both haunted and sustained him. But fate is a cruel master. Alongside the enigmatic Captain Riley, Ali wrestles with questions of faith and providence as they struggle toward freedom. Betrayals, shifting allegiances, and the echoes of a past that refuses to be buried lead him to the heart of the British Empire, where his intellect becomes his greatest weapon. As he rises to prominence in academia, the ghosts of his past resurface in a final, devastating revelation-one that will challenge everything he thought he knew about love, loss, and the power of choice. Told with the lyrical depth of Thomas Hardy and the historical weight of The Count of Monte Cristo, The Fickle Hand of Destiny is a gripping tale of resilience and redemption. Will Ali escape the chains of his past, or has fate already written his story? Bartholomew Renda was born in New York and raised in a middle-class Italian-Irish family. Drawn to a life of faith and discipline, he became a member of the Legionaries of Christ, but instead of joining the ministry, he chose a different path-one that led him to the U.S. Army. During his deployments to Germany, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia, he immersed himself in literature, studying the works of Spanish, English, and Italian writers who shaped his understanding of history, destiny, and the human condition. ‘Fate does not ask permission, nor does it wait for a man to be ready-it simply arrives, indifferent to hope or despair.‘ A storyteller with a keen eye for the struggles and resilience of the human spirit, Renda‘s writing is infused with the weight of history and the depth of personal experience. The Fickle Hand of Destiny is his latest novel, a sweeping tale of survival, fate, and redemption. He is currently working on a new historical fiction novel exploring the complexities of homelessness.