CAZENOVIA — Last fall, former Cazenovia resident Richard Corrigan released his latest novel, “Crust.”
The science fiction suspense/adventure book centers on genius scientist Jon Argus, who is trapped on a rundown space station with the knowledge that an underground nuclear test will have catastrophic effects on earth and endanger humanity.
“A mysterious enemy, whose goal is to capitalize on the impending catastrophe, suddenly surfaces, and to ensure the warning is concealed from the world, activates a plant to kill Argus’s ex-wife and daughter,” the book description states. “Argus has to conquer his emotional demons, convince the world of the imminent cataclysm, escape the sabotaged space station, and save his family before the unthinkable happens.”
According to Corrigan, the book’s plot was inspired by recent events.
“For years, North Korea has been escalating their nuclear testing in an attempt to achieve prominence as a world power,” he said. “They continually explode their devices underground at an acute angle. The earth’s mantle floats on molten magma. Every so many hundreds of thousands of years, the magma and crust separate and magnetic north and the equator [change positions]. The theory purported in the story states that if a nuclear explosion is large enough and the angle is just right, the crust will move.”
Corrigan graduated from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University with a major in sociology and a minor in psychology. He went on to study at Mount Airy Seminary in Germantown, PA. He has spent the last 30 years consulting, teaching and freelance writing.
“Crust” is the writer’s fourth novel. He released “Krystal Vision” in 2016, “Krystal Scent” in 2017, and “Krystal Touch” in 2018. His celebrity biography, “Circle of Confusion,” was released in Oct. 2020. He has also published a number of short stories.
Corrigan said his favorite thing about fiction is its ability to allow the writer and reader to slip into a realm that doesn’t exist.
“With imagination [you can] make people and worlds come alive, so that those who read the stories are affected emotionally,” he said.
Corrigan lived in Cazenovia from July 1982 until Nov. 1999, during which time he and his family resided in the former Temperance House Tavern, a historic building located at the base of Temperance Hill Road on Route 92, about halfway between Cazenovia and Manlius.
Built by Cyrenus Bartholomew in 1815, Temperance House served as a turnpike tavern for almost 60 years.
The building’s owners participated in the Underground Railroad, helping slaves escape from the south.
The tavern eventually closed in 1872 when the Syracuse and Chenango Valley Railroad opened and passed it by.
The historic home features a “keeping room” with an original “farmers window” that was handmade from glass bottles, an outside well that was originally located inside the house, and a ballroom that was transformed into the master bedroom.
Temperance House was awarded a New York State Historic Marker in 1998 after the Corrigans independently restored the building.
“None of the work was contracted out,” Corrigan said. “The restoration was completed by me and Diana, my spouse, and our two children, Melissa and Sean . . . After the 1998 Labor Day storm, we were without power for eight days. We threw a bucket down the well, [and we] drank, cooked and washed with the pristine water. The fireplaces kept us warm, along with the parlor stove, which we used for cooking. And the fruit trees and garden kept us fed.”
Crust is available in bookstores, through Ingram, and online at Amazon.com.
To learn more about Corrigan and his work, visit richardfcorrigan.com.
