Unexpected Viper Review

Author Steven Hildreth, Jr has taken the time from his own writing to read VIPER. You can check out his generous and constructive review here. Having been a fan of his work for quite some time, this is definitely a Big Deal for me, and immensely motivational (bigly). I encourage anyone who has not already done so to pick up or download a copy of FAULT LINES, the first book in his new series, as well as THE RONIN GENESIS, which is my personal favorite.

Awesome

My books have been included on Spy Guys and Gals, probably the Internet's largest website devoted to spy novels and series. Check out the page here and browse around and look for other series/authors while you're there.

New Book Underway

A new book, likely titled SCORPION: GRAY ZONE, is officially and finally underway.

I'm not going to say much about it just yet, but the articles below give some hint as to where it's going, though not in he obvious way that will probably first come to mind. Hint: Think "Operation Gladio" and all the problems that arose from that.

Modern Guerillas and the Defense of the Baltic States

If Russia Invades, US Special Operations Forces Have an Unconventional Plan to Liberate the Baltics

US and NATO Special Ops Just Fought a Fake Guerilla War in West Virginia

Setbacks

I've run into some setbacks with Book #4, and am basically re-writing a significant section of the middle act, dealing with a mercenary mission to locate Houthi anti-ship missile launchers in southern Yemen. As originally written, it felt too forced, too long, and was ruining the pacing of the rest of the story. This will likely take up most of my writing for the rest of the month, and I should  be back on track in August. The good news is that I'm very confident with the new version. 

For Book #5, it might be prudent to write the Forsyth way. He does his research, writes an extensive 30,000-words outline, then goes back and adds depth to turn it into a 90,000-word novel. 

Buried in Black by JT Patten

JT Patten was gracious enough to let me read an advance copy of his upcoming novel, BURIED IN BLACK, which will be published in November. I enjoyed it immensely, as you can tell from my review below. Patten has a very distinctive style of writing, and I highly recommend his books, especially if you are looking for something a bit different in the genre. November is still a long way's off, so you should read his earlier self-published books SHADOW MASTERS and PRIMED CHARGE, if you haven't already.

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JT Patten’s new novel is a unique and well written addition to the military/spy thriller genre. Drake Woolf, his new protagonist isn’t the typical Mitch Rapp clone, and Patten’s portrayal of the world of espionage and covert operations isn’t glamorous or black and white, instead existing within a morally grey area populated with complex characters who possess dubious intentions, motivations, and loyalties. Each character has their own distinctive voice and personality, and Patten's dialogue is sharp, authentic, and flows well. Although the plot has plenty of action and twists, this is also very much a character-focused story.

Drake Woolf is a soldier from the Intelligence Support Activity, specializing in implementing high tech SIGINT techniques to gather intelligence. He’s also troubled and heavily influenced by a childhood incident in which he witnessed the murder of his parents, who were CIA operatives in Tunisia. An early sequence in the book highlights Woolf’s skills with both SIGINT and direct action as he tracks a terrorist target in Lebanon. Here he’s also introduced to Sean Havens, the protagonist from the author’s past self-published novels. From there, the plot shifts to a terrorist bombing outside the Pentagon, and we are introduced to the Mohawks, a group of JSOC-trained Iraqi special ops soldiers who, with the support of an Iranian general, are personally motivated to launch a campaign of terrorism and assassination against the Americans they believe betrayed them and their families. The hunt begins for the Mohawks, and the plot soon becomes increasingly more complex and personal for Drake.

“Buried in Black” will appeal to anyone who prefers the darker, grittier, and more authentic side of the genre where authors like Dalton Fury, Jack Murphy, Joshua Hood or Sean McFate reside, and the ending suggests Drake's story will continue.  

 

Stuff about Book 4

Facebook is harassing me that I haven't posted any updates in over a month and that my followers are eager to hear from me, which is rather a dubious claim. I don't particularly have any updates to post, but I'm over 80,000 words into Book 4 and well into the third and final act. Roughly half those words involve bullets, explosions, and colorful descriptions of violence. It also has mercenaries, spies, ISIS, chemical weapons, missions in Yemen, Eritrea, and Syria, a large cast of morally questionable characters, and a cameo by the crown prince of Saudi Arabia. Still no cover, but the title is Rogue Element.

Facebook Page

My author Facebook page has been up and running for a while now. You can find it here. I haven't updated it, though, because I've been using this blog to say whatever I feel like saying, and this blog automatically is cross-posted to my Amazon and Good Reads pages, but I'll now post all future blog updates on FB, too. It'll probably be a more convenient way of receiving updates for most people, and better for contacting me, if you wish to do so. 

I really need to stay on top of the imperative social media side of writing and publishing.