Welcome to Skeels.org


  • This is the official site for Peter Skeels, author / writer


  • Peter Skeels On the boat Kehoe Beach At the cabin


  • My 7th novel, The Journal Writer, will be published August 16th, 2024. It will be available almost everywhere.
    It will also be available in audio format but I do not have a date yet on that.


  • An Interview With Author Peter Skeels

  • My seventh novel, The Journal Writer, is complete, and I am pleased with the result. The publication date is August 16th, 2024.

    The Journal Writer

  • A note from Peter Skeels- Twenty years ago I had the idea of writing a novel where every chapter was a short story. But due to the disparate nature of short stories I had no idea how to do it.
    I kept revisiting the idea, and 2 years ago I figured it out; this is that novel.

  • This is the link to a trailer my publisher created for The Journal Writer

  • The Journal Writer takes place over many decades of Chris's life. During that time, this journal is his account of his life in its entirety.
    His journal gives us a unique window into his life, with which we get to watch his successes and failures
    as he tries to understand why he is the way he is and repair his broken parts. Seemingly without a solid foundation,
    he nevertheless goes forward, and while he is often the only tangible thing he has, he keeps going forward.
    This is the story of a man who realizes he is completely broken but decides he wants to fix himself.
    Can he do it? Does he have the long-term tenacity for the job? Does he do it?
    The Journal Writer will be published August 16th, 2024.

  • The Box, my sixth novel, is now available to buy using your favorite book store. Amazon has it, and all of the other online book stores.

    Just ask for The Box by Peter Skeels or simply click on the following link to search online:

  • This is the link to an Amazon review of The Box

  • This is the link to Goodreads and the first review of The Box

  • This is the link to Goodreads and the second review of The Box


  • This is the link to a trailer my publisher created for The Box

  • The Box


    The Box tells the story of Rupert and Lucille; their lives, loves, families, achievements, and failures. Lucille is the last child born to a family of generationally poor dirt farmers, while Rupert is the only child born to multi-billionaire parents. Rupert and Lucille's paths cross due to a confluence of seemingly random events, and, as their business relationship grows, so does their friendship, love, and respect grow for each other. The Box tells how a simple invention has the potential to transform not only their two lives, but the story tells how the invention has the potential to change the lives of thousands of people. Where does it all lead though? Does the invention lead to the good that Rupert first envisioned? Does the invention help Lucille out of her generational poverty? Does the invention help anybody? Or, is the old adage that says, "No good deed goes unpunished," really true?

  • Novels

  • My collection of novels are available at Barnes and Noble, Amazon, Austin Macauley, elsewhere online, or at most book stores, worldwide.


  • Interloper A Natural Pause Persistent Persistent Consenting Adult The Box The Journal Writer
    With the publication of the first 4 novels, I have concluded the tetralogy about Michael.

    Below is a summary of those four novels, and some reviews, followed by summaries of Consenting Adult and The Box.

  • Interloper
  • Interloper is the first novel in the tetralogy about Michael's life.


  • Interloper


  • Back Cover blurb
    From birth Michael hasn't belonged anywhere, and from birth no one has really liked him. At 17 he sets out to find himself and to find a place and people where he belongs. He tries drugs, rock and roll, but doesn't belong. He travels across the United States and still nothing. He travels to Europe and through 20 countries, and while he makes some friends he still doesn't belong. Michael doesn't seem to fit into society nor any religion that he's tried. He's a happy and an optimistic guy for some reason, and every day he gets up expecting that this is going to be the day he finds someone or something that he fits into and belongs with. Does he find it? Does he finally find that he fits in with somebody or something? Does he find happiness and contentment?

  • Click here for an independent review of my novel Interloper


  • A Natural Pause
  • A Natural Pause is the second novel in the tetralogy about Michael's life.


  • A nice trailer my publisher created

  • A Natural Pause

  • Back Cover blurb
    Michael learns he is dreadfully unhappy but he is in the middle of his life. He has a wife, children, a job and responsibilities galore. People count on him! How can he just stop? How can he correct the situation? He is not prepared to be tied to this situation so he decides to face his fear. His methodology is unusual to say the least. He must relive some of his past, navigate a new relationship, and convince people he is not insane. Does Michael succeed? Does he achieve his goal?

  • Persistent
  • Persistent is the third novel in the tetralogy about Michael's life.


  • A nice trailer my publisher created


  • Persistent"

  • Back Cover blurb
    Persistent follows the main character Michael through the next decades of his life after A Natural Pause. After he becomes a single parent, he realizes he needs to go back to college to update his career choices. Finally, he starts his own business hoping to lower the stress in his life. But the traumas from his early childhood and the subsequent traumas and pressures as an adult cause his personality to split into pieces. Michael doesn't consciously know this has happened, yet he compensates unconsciously by creating a theatre-of-selves to help him navigate his life. As the decades pass, the reader gets to know him and his behaviour. They laugh with him and they worry with him. They learn about his god and his dog. Does his out-of-control behaviour, that is so very far from normal, start to come under control? Or is it his demise?


  • The Last Garden Published May 31st, 2022


  • The Last Garden


  • The Last Garden is my last novel in the tetralogy about Michael's life, and it has but a single character- a man grown old now, who builds a garden where none had existed before.


  • Back Cover blurb
    He looks back on his life, and forward to his life, and he wonders what, if any, connection there might be between this garden and his life.


  • Consenting Adult

  • My fifth novel Consenting Adult was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize!

    "Your Fiction entry (Consenting Adult peter skeels)
    in the 2023 Pulitzer Prize competition has been approved."
    I did not win but just being nominated for the Pulitzer Prize is a dream come true!

    Consenting Adult


    Independent reviews
    ***** 5 out of 5 stars.
    Intriguing
    Consenting Adult by Peter Skeels is an interesting and thought-provoking read. The lead Jonathan is trying to rewrite the ten commandments to suit the current era, so the author walks us through how he goes about it and his thought process during this time.
    He has some interesting information and comparisons of different religious view points. While I don't accept that we have to rewrite anything in the Bible and I don't believe it's a dated book, it's a different perspective and I loved reading it.
    The relationship between Jonathan and Susan moved gradually but seemed forced during the start, and their interactions sounded weird, but that's probably just my opinion.
    Set aside some time for this exciting read and enjoy a whole other perspective the author gives us with this book.

    Consenting Adult
    by Peter Skeels
    ***** 5 out of 5 stars.
    Brian Kanda's review:
    Mar 13, 2022
    It was amazing
    "Peter Skeels' book "Consenting Adult" is a philosophical narrative that exploits the model of an infant's upbringing to discuss thematic concerns, such as free will and determinism. The writer further addresses forms of social bias, notably the socio-economic classes that prevail in society. The text adopts a third-person viewpoint to pursue the story of Jonathan, the protagonist, as he envisions himself both as a child and an adult. It philosophically uses the model of a child's upbringing to foreground the innocence that a human is born with.
    "The novel draws inspiration from the spiritual dimensions to highlight the subjective battles individuals have to engage in within themselves regularly. The author's approach employs multiple scenes in which Jonathan participates in diversified social interactions and mirrors how they influence him. He then visually establishes himself as an adult observer, analyzing Jonathan's reactions to his surrounding environment. By doing this, Skeels shows the extent to which society plays a role in shaping how we learn about things, like consent.
    'In 'Consenting Adult', Peter Skeels explores the theme of human relationships by looking at how they affect our lives and the decisions we make. His characters are a diverse group of people from all walks of life who have one thing in common: they're all trying to find their place in this world. Drawing his inspirations from his teaching profession, Jonathan uses rhetorical questions to provoke readers into meditating upon their faiths. For instance, he expects his students to ask themselves: Who am I now? What am I supposed to be doing?
    "The author presents his characters as ordinary people like us. The conversations between the characters are realistic and captivating. The characters in the novel sound like any other person you would meet on the street. Jonathan, the main character, always questions and talks to himself. He even engages us in his dilemma of whether he feels towards Susan is genuine love or merely infatuation.
    "There is nothing to dislike in this book, which is exceptionally edited. This is an exciting book that will make you ponder over your beliefs. It is a book that can help you understand yourself better as you meditate upon your beliefs through some questions posed by the book. I'm positive that it deserves the maximum rating of five out of five stars.

    Irene Roth
    5.0 out of 5 stars An Intriguing and Thought-Provoking Philosophical Story
    Reviewed in the United States on March 12, 2022
    "This is a very intriguing novel that is thought-provoking and philosophical. I love the modern approach to the ten commandments and how the author weaves the Socratic method into his story. I love the questioning scepticism spirit of the narrative and how readers are also led on this journey of self-questioning.
    "The story is about Jonathan, who is hired to teach a creative writing class at a local college. He set on a quest as a modern-day Moses to rewrite the ten commandments so that they are more relevant to the modern-day person who may struggle to live his/her most moral and meaningful life.
    "Jonathan is surprised when his students are sceptical about all that he is presenting. Each scene of the story takes the reader deeper into the questioning tendencies of the students. It's a wonderfully deep and unforgettable journey of self-discovery about topics that will stretch the imagination.
    "Peter Skeels's story is skillfully written. It has plenty of imagery, it will transport the reader the reader right into the middle of the story. I honestly felt as if I was one of the students in Jonathan's class. What a wonderful tribute to deep reflection and questioning for a philosopher like myself."

    4.0 Out Of 5 Stars Rewriting The Ten Commandments
    Peter Skeels's novel CONSENTING ADULT is well-written and richly descriptive with brilliantly drawn characters and settings. The author weaves a well-crafted philosophical narrative that serves, perhaps, as an allegory for the pains of being. It's a unique work that will captivate the reader from the opening chapter. Skillfully constructed, this well-written tale of morality and ethics will have you turning the pages from beginning to end. There's plenty of imagery in the writing style that makes you feel you are right there in the story, and that's something I look for in a good book.
    To summarize the synopsis: Jonathan is hired as a creative writing instructor at the local community college. An idea occurs to him out of nowhere: what if there was a modern-day Moses who was told by God to rewrite the Ten Commandments, and what would they be like now if they were written? Jonathan is interested by the concept, but his students are not. If the Commandments get written, what would the present-day Commandments end up being?
    This was a captivating read that had me immersed from the beginning. The story flowed from scene to scene with ease, and the author shows exceptional ability when it comes to storytelling. There are scenes of a graphic sexual nature. Nevertheless, the themes and outcome are just as affecting in the arresting contemporary landscape. Recommended.

  • Back Cover blurb
    Jonathan is hired to teach a Creative Writing class at the local college. Out of nowhere comes the idea of what if there was a modern-day Moses and he heard that God wanted him to rewrite the Commandments now? What would they be if they were written today? Jonathan is intrigued by the idea, his students are skeptical, so sit back, enjoy the journey, and see if the Commandments get written and, if they get written, what the present-day Commandments end up being?

  • The Box Now available everywhere


  • The Box


    The Box tells the story of Rupert and Lucille; their lives, loves, families, achievements, and failures. Lucille is the last child born to a family of generationally poor dirt farmers, while Rupert is the only child born to multi-billionaire parents. Rupert and Lucille's paths cross due to a confluence of seemingly random events, and, as their business relationship grows, so does their friendship, love, and respect grow for each other. The Box tells how a simple invention has the potential to transform not only their two lives, but the story tells how the invention has the potential to change the lives of thousands of people. Where does it all lead though? Does the invention lead to the good that Rupert first envisioned? Does the invention help Lucille out of her generational poverty? Does the invention help anybody? Or, is the old adage that says, "No good deed goes unpunished," really true?

  • The Journal Writer Available spring of 2024


  • The Journal Writer

  • The Journal Writer takes place over many decades of Chris's life. During that time, this journal is his account of his life in its entirety.
    His journal gives us a unique window into his life, with which we get to watch his successes and failures
    as he tries to understand why he is the way he is and repair his broken parts. Seemingly without a solid foundation,
    he nevertheless goes forward, and while he is often the only tangible thing he has, he keeps going forward.
    This is the story of a man who realizes he is completely broken but decides he wants to fix himself.
    Can he do it? Does he have the long-term tenacity for the job? Does he do it?
  • The Journal Writer will be out in the spring of 2024.

  • A note from Peter Skeels- I had the idea of writing a novel where every chapter was a short story. But I had no idea how to do that.
    Finally, after twenty-five years I figured it out, and this is that novel.

  • I will of course update book covers, publishing dates of new novels, etc., as and when I receive them.

  • My cousin walked into Green Apple Books on Clement St in San Francisco to buy A Natural Pause and they had copies of my novel.

  • So my novels are available either online or in most bookstores, or your favorite bookstore will order them for you.

  • The highest compliment you can pay an author is to leave a review. It can be one sentence or paragraphs long, and you can leave a review here:


  • Create a review please!


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  • A Natural Pause