Recommended Independent Authors

My earlier posts about self-publishing got me thinking about the quality of self/independent published authors versus those from a mainstream publisher. Generally, the latter will provide a better, professionally edited and written book, and more competent research, plotting, and dialogue. I've also tried many self-published authors whose work left a lot to be desired (as I have with New York Times bestsellers from the big five publishers, to be fair). 

But I'm not here to criticize or disparage anyone's work they spent months, if not years working on, so, in my opinion, here are your best options for independent authors. 

These guys have all turned out consistently entertaining, well-written books with engaging plots and characters, and deserve the commercial success and critical acclaim they've garnered. Reading these books, I can totally see them as a hardcover release from Putnam or St. Martins on the bookshelf. Except these books are much more fairly priced than a $30 hardcover or a $13 ebook.

First off is Jack Murphy. A former army Ranger and Green Beret, Jack Murphy has so far published four books in his series about Deckard, a former special ops soldier turned freelance operative. His books are unique in that they combine big, completely over-the-top, creative action stories with real life details and authenticity when it comes to weapons and tactics. The first one, Reflexive Fire, remains my favorite. Anyone who likes the The Executioner/Mack Bolan series will love Deckard.

Then we have Peter Nealen, a former Marine who has written multiple books in multiple series and is apparently an absolute machine when it comes to writing. I highly recommend his American Praetorian series, about a private military corporation in a not-too-distant dystopian future where the US is a mess domestically and is no longer a superpower. I loved all five books, especially Alone and Unafraid. The first book in Peter's new series Brannigan's Bastards comes out next month, and I am very much looking forward to that.

There's also Stephen England. His books aren't as heavy on the military aspects as the above authors. Instead he's closer to Vince Flynn, covering espionage and political maneuverings, with a dash of Robert Ludlum-esque global conspiracies. His books are also quite long, approaching Tom Clancy size, and each volume reads like the season of a television series. I've read the first two, Pandora's Grave and Day of Reckoning. Hopefully, I'll get to the third one soon. 

Next is JT Patten, a former intelligence professional whose books have received praise from Mark Greaney, Joshua Hood, and Dalton Fury. He's also made the cross from self-published author to landing a contract with a publishing house. His first hardcover from Kensington comes out next year. It's always encouraging to see a self-published get a major publishing contract. 

Elsewhere in this blog, I've recommended The Ronin Genesis by Steven Hildreth. Hildreth, who writes realistic CIA and Special Forces-based thrillers. His books are very well written, but unfortunately he does not appear to be very prolific. Hopefully, it'll be less than two years before his fourth novel is published.

AP Bateman is another quality author, and I recommend his books Lies and Retribution and The Contract Man, which cover the British side of things and focus on MI6/SAS.

Between the above authors, that's enough quality reading material to last you well into the next year at an affordable price.