Today I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for SLY AS A FOX (The Sylvia Wilson Mysteries Book #2) by Wendy Koenig on this AME Blog Tour.
Below you will find a book description, my book review, an about the author section and the author’s social media links. Enjoy!
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Book Description
Sylvia Wilson’s brother, Aaron, is working with a joint bank robbery task force. When he goes missing, she joins forces with the FBI to search for him.
But nothing is what it seems.
With very little time left, Sylvia will burn Heaven to the ground to find her missing brother and bring him back alive. FBI, be damned.
SLY AS A FOX (The Sylvia Wilson Mysteries Book #2) by Wendy Koenig is a fast-paced, action-adventure mystery/thriller with a wise beyond her years, Krav Maga fighting, female protagonist who is a bartender/bar owner. While this is the second book in the series, it can be read as a standalone, but to get more character background and action try out the first book, On the Sly, which I also recommend.
Sylvia Wilson is still procrastinating on her decisions for the rebuild of her bar after an arson fire destroyed it, getting back to her Krav Maga lessons, and dealing with nightmares and panic attacks after her run in with a killer in book one. Attempting to deal with all these personal problems, she is then notified of the disappearance of her police officer brother who has gone missing on an undercover operation for the FBI.
Sylvia will do anything, even go against the FBI agents who do not appear to be helping, to find her brother and bring him back alive.
This is an edge-of-your-seat mystery/thriller with plenty of misdirection, lies, and action. Sylvia is a complex character with a deep love of family, friends, and difficult animals, but also deeply scarred by the death of her parents for which she feels partially responsible. She is only 22 years old in the books, but very street wise and worldly from working in bars before she was legal. Because of her law enforcement father, she and her brother grew up playing games that ultimately help them in the present such as her knowledge of guns, her black belt in Judo and her current study of Krav Maga. The mystery plot in this book was well paced and interesting as Sylvia looks for her brother and then with his help looks for a mole in the FBI. The ending was not completely what I was expecting, but I liked it.
I recommend this exciting action-adventure mystery thriller and I am looking forward to Sylvia’s next adventure.
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About the Author
Wendy is a published author living in New Brunswick, Canada, with her husband, Vince, and two cats named after the Blues Brothers, Jake and Elwood. Her first piece to be printed was a short children’s fiction, Jet’s Stormy Adventure, serialized in The Illinois Horse Network. She attended University of Iowa, honing her craft in their famed summer workshops and writing programs. Since that time, she has published and co-authored numerous books. Several of her manuscripts and short stories have won international awards and have appeared in multiple venues.
Today I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for THE LEOPARD OF CAIRO (Apex Predator Espionage Thrillers Book #1) by Bayard and Holmes on this Author Marketing Experts Blog Tour.
Below you will find a guest post from the authors, a book summary, my book review, an excerpt from the book, and the authors’ bios and social media links. Enjoy!
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Guest Post from the Authors
As Bayard & Holmes, we are known for accuracy in our espionage tradecraft. This is due to Jay Holmes’s fifty years of military and intelligence experience fighting against the Soviets and the terrorist groups they sponsored during the Cold War, straight through to the current Global War on Terror. As a result of our experience and authenticity, people like to ask us questions about the shadow world.
One of the common questions we receive is, “What are some of the most common mistakes writers make about the CIA?” The answer to that would be vocabulary.
Our espionage professionals at the CIA do not refer to themselves as spies. The word “spy” is considered a bit derogatory. As Holmes says, “Spying is seamy. It’s what the Russians do.” Technically, spies are foreigners who are spying on us, or they are foreigners who are spying on other countries for us.
Also, and this is a big one for the folks at the CIA, the intelligence personnel at the Agency are not “CIA agents.” In the world of the CIA, agents are people, most often foreigners, who are spying for our behalf on their own or other foreign governments.
The exceptions to that rule are the actual guards at the physical facilities. For example, if you were to go to headquarters, the personnel in security who would greet you at the gate are “CIA agents.” An easy rule of thumb is that if the position someone holds regards law enforcement, physical protection, or facilities security, they are agents.
In other words, Jack Ryan is not a CIA agent, but the guard he talks to at the front gate of headquarters is an agent, and the foreign spy who gives him information is an agent.
Instead of being spies or agents, our intelligence personnel are referred to as “officers” and “operatives.” Intelligence personnel at the CIA are technically called officers, which is a label particular to the CIA. CIA officers are actual employees of the CIA rather than contractors, and they get pretty touchy when you call them agents.
The term operative can apply to CIA officers and contractors, as well as to personnel from other civilian and military intelligence organizations. The term is rather vague and has no official definition, but it generally refers to men and women who work in field operations.
So to sum things up, Jack Ryan is not a spy or an agent, he is a CIA officer who must guard against foreign spies, collect intelligence from foreign agents, and sometimes goes into the field with operatives.
This is just one example of the accuracy that is the hallmark of our Bayard & Holmes fiction. To supplement, we have a Truth & Fiction section at the end of The Leopard of Cairo and all our novels, and we are happy to take your questions about the shadow world at the Contact page at our website, BayardandHolmes.com.
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Book Summary
John Viera left his CIA fieldwork hoping for a “normal” occupation and a long-awaited family, but when a Pakistani engineer is kidnapped from a top-secret US project and diplomatic entanglements tie the government’s hands, the Intelligence Community turns to John and his team of ex-operatives to investigate — strictly off the books. They uncover a plot of unprecedented magnitude that will precipitate the slaughter of millions.
From the corporate skyscrapers of Montreal to the treacherous alleys of Baluchistan, these formidable enemies strike, determined to create a regional apocalypse and permanently alter the balance of world power. Isolated in their knowledge of the impending devastation, John and his network stand alone between total destruction and the Leopard of Cairo.
THE LEOPARD OF CAIRO (Apex Predator Espionage Thrillers Book #1) by Bayard and Holmes is an edge-of-your-seat international espionage thriller with storytelling that pulls you into exotic locations and takes you on a thrilling adventure to stop a plot to change the world’s governments balance of power. This is the first book in the series, and I cannot wait to get started on book #2, The Panther of Baracoa.
John Viera has left the CIA to start a “normal” life, but occasionally gets called back into off-the-book operations with a team of other ex-operatives who are able to accomplish jobs the government legally or politically cannot. John and the team are sent to discover why an engineer and his young daughter have been kidnapped, but what they discover is just the tip of the iceberg in a conspiracy that could end up killing millions.
This plot never lets up on the action and peril. The authors are able to introduce you to many characters, both good and bad, while never losing the fast pace of the story and also surprising you with the many plot twists throughout. John Viera and the rest of the team are fully developed both in their personal lives and their contributions to the team. The intrigue and mystery of the shadow cabal is a great way to keep me hooked and ready to grab the next book in the series.
I highly recommend this exciting start to this international espionage thriller!
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Excerpt
THE LEOPARD OF CAIRO
John Viera jumped back from the swirl of soot. The bright green-and-blue Quetta city bus choked out another cloud, and a donkey beside it snorted, rattling its cart full of secondhand housewares. The vendor in the driver’s seat searched the crowd for one last customer. John ignored his hopeful glance and watched the bus chug deeper into the bowels of the Hazara Town market district.
The aroma of fresh bread sweetened the stench of exhaust that hung over the rush-hour crunch. John ducked into the bakeshop’s recessed doorway and scanned the street.
Bright paints battled vainly to beautify cement walls between dirty gray roll-down metal shop doors. Signs above the portals broadcast goods and trades in Urdu and English, revealing the creep of Westernization into the Islamic stronghold. Above John’s head, electrical wires crisscrossed, tying the one- and two-story structures together.
Vendors bustled to secure their wares in time for evening prayers. Mothers gripping plain cloth shopping bags herded children down sidewalks while bicycles competed with cars and donkey carts for street rights. None of them appeared to notice John. Western influence was widespread enough that he did not stand out with his collar-length umber hair, reddish beard, blue jeans, and khaki jacket.
Satisfied there were no immediate threats from the street, he glanced at his watch: 5:45. Martin would be waiting. John exited the bakery doorway and continued in the bus’s wake.
A bicyclist veered into traffic, and a truck swerved and jerked, cutting off a rusty sedan. The sedan’s horn blared. John flinched and pressed his hand to his ear.
¡Hostias! ¡Qué idiotas! He wished for a split second that he was still crouched in the mountains of Afghanistan, where he was sanctioned by the US government to capture or kill hostile actors, or at least to slam their heads in their car doors. In the city, though, he was constrained by rules of law and discretion. John quelled his irritation and strode to the corner.
He crossed with the light and visualized the remainder of his route to Martin’s. His MI6 counterpart had said his good-byes only a few weeks before, anticipating the welcoming women and rich cigars he would explore at his new post in Cuba. What ill wind could have blown the man from paradise back to hell so soon? Had he identified the mole in MI6? John picked up his pace.
An open truck shoved past, its load of sheep bleating protests through warped wooden slats, stinking of mud and hay. John wrinkled his nose. A block up the street, the truck spun a U-turn through an unlikely gap in the traffic and parked in front of a restaurant.
The bus ahead of John stopped at the corner across from the sheep. Passengers crowded on. Then a shopkeeper stepped from his corner store and threw his arms wide. The bus driver sprang to the sidewalk. The men clasped in a hug and submerged into conversation.
A fresh-faced woman in a pink hijab and sky-blue kameez veered around the talking driver, a little boy in tow. The child hugged a toy blow-up horse and grinned as if he clutched the Koh-i-Noor diamond. John gave the boy a smile when he passed.
Suddenly, three men in gray kameez tunics and salwar trousers burst around the opposite street corner. John’s head snapped up, drawn by their speed and focus. They stopped and scanned the crowd. One pointed toward the truckload of sheep and then pulled a pistol and fired.
John dove behind a parked car and drew his Makarov pistol from his waistband. Fight or flight? He stilled his urge to fire back. The last thing he needed was to become embroiled in a local turf war, particularly so near Martin’s. He only hoped his friend was not involved. He had to get to Martin.
More shots. Horns blared, and cars crowded one another to escape. The bus driver levitated into his vehicle. He threw it into gear and bullied his way around the corner. People who had sheltered behind the bus scrambled toward shops, even as shopkeepers slammed down their corrugated metal doors. Only two people weren’t moving—the child with the toy horse kneeling beside the woman in the pink hijab.
Blood seeped across her shoulder and rib cage. She gestured toward a shop with her good arm and shouted in Urdu. “Run. Now. Run.” The child burrowed closer.
John shoved his pistol in his waistband and charged to the woman. He swept her up and spoke to the boy in Urdu. “Follow us.” He sprinted toward a spice stall. The child dropped the horse and dogged John’s heels. The shopkeeper met John’s eyes, shook his head, and crashed down his metal door.
A bullet whizzed past and shattered a divot from the cement wall. John ducked away from the flying chips. The woman in his arms screamed, and her gaze sought her son. The boy tugged the end of her kameez and let go.
“Here,” cried a voice.
The bus driver’s friend crouched, holding open a slice of doorway at his corner shop. John ran, the boy beside him. The man rolled up the door to let them in and then slammed it down behind them.
Frightened people shuffled aside, and John laid the woman on the floor. Bright red oozed from her shoulder, shading her blue kameez a deep purple. She gripped her arm close and grimaced. John whipped off his jacket, peeled out of his T-shirt, and pressed the cotton against the wound.
The woman groaned. “Hakeem. Where is Hakeem?”
“I have him.” A man pushed forward and showed her the child in his arms. “He is unharmed.”
John spotted the shopkeeper. “Call an ambulance, and bring some towels.”
“We don’t have towels,” the man said. A woman with her hands full of T-shirts pushed past him.
“We can use these. I’m a nurse.” She knelt beside John. “I will care for her.”
“Thank you.” John moved out of the woman’s way and turned to the store owner. “Where is your bathroom?”
The man pointed to a door at the back of the store. John wedged through the people and opened it onto a reeking closet where a window gaped wide above a hole in the ground with a footprint on each side. He pulled himself through the window into an alley, and he landed on his feet and ran.
Three blocks later, he slowed to a walk. A knife vendor gawked and John glanced down. His blood-smeared jacket hung open, revealing his bare six-pack. He zipped up the coat.
A block away, a sign reading Changezi’s tilted across the street front of a three-story cement apartment building. In front, a white panel van purred to life and whisked away as John crossed the street. John circled toward Changezi’s dwelling at the back of the building. He turned the corner and froze.
Changezi’s goat pen hung open, and his three nannies clustered at his front door. John’s skin prickled. Even Changezi’s youngest child would not be so careless with such valuable property. He drew his pistol and shooedthe goats the five steps into the pen. Then he knocked at the manager’s door. Silence answered—a sound unprecedented from a home with two wives and five young children.
John bounded up the steps to Martin’s old apartment door. A bullet hole gaped next to the doorknob, and splinters littered the ground. His heart racing, he hugged the wall, pistol in hand, and tried the knob. The door swung wide. More silence.
He ducked low and peeked around the corner into the apartment’s shadowed hallway. Nothing. He crept up the passage to the living room.
A threadbare divan squatted under a window next to a weathered table that had been tipped sideways. Two straight-backed chairs stood by an upended bowl with two apples on the floor.
“Come out,” John said.
A man rose, his hands up. His gaze riveted to the bloodstains on John’s jacket, and his knees quivered. “Don’t shoot. I have a wife and child. Please.” A woman in a navy-blue headscarf peered from behind him. She clutched a bundle in her arms.
John lowered his weapon slightly. “I’m looking for a man named Martin. He’s English. My height and build. Blond hair and blue eyes. Have you seen him?”
The man’s eyes grew wide. He shook his head. “I saw nothing.”
John dropped his pistol to his side. “I don’t even need to know your name. What happened, and did you see him?”
“Nothing. Nothing happened.”
The woman’s glance darted from John to her husband and back. Then she lowered her eyes and stared at the child in her arms.
“It’s clear a bullet came through that door recently. I’m not with whoever did that. I only want to find my friend.” John retrieved an apple from the floor and settled into a chair with the manner of an overlord. “I can see something happened here, and I’m not leaving until you tell me.” He raised the apple to take a bite.
“Wait,” the man said.
John moved the apple away from his mouth and cocked his head.
“I saw a blond man in the hallway. I was taking out my trash, and he ran out of the flat next door. He jumped down the rubbish chute. Then three men ran up the stairs and started shooting. I barely made it back inside.”
John stood. “Have you seen these men before?”
“Never.”
“What did they look like?”
The man shifted and glanced toward the door, as if expecting the men to reappear. His voice was barely audible. “Black hair and gray clothing. That is all I saw.”
John’s mind flashed on the shooters at the market, and dark fear unfolded. He tossed the unbitten apple to the man. “Thank you.”
He readied his Makarov and stole from the apartment. The next door slanted ajar. Standing against the wall, John reached out and tapped it. It creaked open. A sharp whiff of bleach wafted into the hallway. He peered inside.
Chaos. A table skewed sideways, kitchen drawers dangled, and stuffing sprouted from chair cushions. No sign of Martin. John scanned the debris and noticed a minute red spot on the carpet. He knelt down and touched it. Then he sniffed. The iron tang of blood filled his nostrils.
John bolted down the stairs to the trash room. A red trail spotted from the Dumpster to the back door and stopped. A chill ran up his spine. He combed the alley. It was empty—no one and no clues. Martin was gone.
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Author Bios
Piper Bayard is an author and a recovering attorney with a college degree or two. She is also a belly dancer and a former hospice volunteer. She has been working daily with her good friend Jay Holmes for the past decade, learning about foreign affairs, espionage history, and field techniques for the purpose of writing fiction and nonfiction. She currently pens espionage nonfiction and international spy thrillers with Jay Holmes, as well as post-apocalyptic fiction of her own.
Jay Holmes is a forty-five-year veteran of field espionage operations with experience spanning from the Cold War fight against the Soviets, the East Germans, and the various terrorist organizations they sponsored to the present Global War on Terror. He is unwilling to admit to much more than that. Piper is the public face of their partnership.
Together, Bayard & Holmes author non-fiction articles and books on espionage and foreign affairs, as well as fictional international spy thrillers. They are also the bestselling authors of The Spy Bride from the Risky Brides Bestsellers Collection and were featured contributors for Social In Worldwide, Inc.
When they aren’t writing or, in Jay’s case, busy with “other work,” Piper and Jay are enjoying time with their families, hiking, exploring back roads of America, talking foreign affairs, laughing at their own rude jokes until the wee hours, and questing for the perfect chocolate cake recipe.
Today I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for THE OTHER MURDER by Kevin G. Chapman on this Black Tide Book Tour.
Below you will find a book description, my book review, an about the author section and the author’s social media links. Enjoy!
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Book Description
Sometimes, the most dangerous thing . . . is the truth.
For disgraced cable news producer Hannah Hawthorne, covering the shooting of a pretty NYU sophomore is a chance for redemption. When the story snowballs into a media circus, Hannah’s reporting fans the sensationalistic flames and earns her acclaim. The tragic murder prompts protests and vigils that further magnify the story.
Meanwhile, Paulo, a neighborhood newspaper reporter, is following the other murder in Washington Square Park that same night – a young Hispanic boy. He discovers an unexpected connection that is political dynamite. When Hannah and Paulo team up, they uncover disturbing facts, leading them to question everything they thought they knew. It also leads them to the man who might be the killer.
When the story is ready to explode, the truth may be hotter than anyone can handle. Breaking the next scoop could ruin Paulo’s paper and wreck Hannah’s career – and it could get them both killed.
If you like David Baldacci’s page-turners, Michael Connelly’s cops, and Sara Paretsky’s quirky characters, you will love The Other Murder.
TRIGGER WARNING: Heavy theme of racism in the context of the news media’s coverage.
THE OTHER MURDER by Kevin G. Chapman is a crime thriller/police procedural with a twist in the storytelling that shines the light on media bias today. This is a tour de force standalone crime fiction novel that I could not put down.
Two people are murdered on opposite sides of Central Park. One a female white NYU student and the other a male Hispanic high school student. The media latches on to the white female’s murder and the story broadcasts across the country, while the Hispanic male’s story is largely ignored. No one believes the two may be tied together.
The story is written with intertwining perspectives between two journalists investigating the murders and two NYPD detectives investigating the murders. The investigation is very well plotted and paced between both groups, but what made this an exceptional read for me was the integration throughout the story of differences in handling, investigating, and reporting on crime depending on gender, ethnicity, and social class of the victim. It shines a spotlight on what media organizations believe readers want to read vs. the entire truth of the story.
All the characters in this story are fully developed, relatable and realistic, both good and bad. The plot is believable on every level. There is nothing I would want to change.
I highly recommend this brilliant crime thriller/police procedural!
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About the Author
Kevin G. Chapman is an attorney specializing in labor and employment law and an independent author. In 2021, Kevin finished the first five books in the Mike Stoneman Thriller series. Righteous Assassin (Mike Stoneman Thriller #1), was named one of the top 20 Mystery/Thrillers of 2019 by the Kindle Book Review and was a finalist for the Chanticleer Book Review CLUE award. Deadly Enterprise (Mike Stoneman Thriller #2) was also named a top-20 Mystery/Thriller of 2020 by the Kindle Book Review and made the Short-List for the 2020 CLUE Award. Book #3, Lethal Voyage, was the winner of the 2021 Kindle Book Award and a Finalist for the CLUE and for the InD’Tale Magazine RONE Award. Book #4 in the series, Fatal Infraction, was named Best Police Procedural of the year by the Chanticleer Book Review, and book #5 (Perilous Gambit) was published November 24, 2021. Kevin has also written a serious political drama, A Legacy of One, originally published in 2016, which was short-listed for the Chanticleer Somerset Award for literary fiction. A Legacy of One was re-published in a newly re-edited and revised second edition in 2021. Kevin recently completed a stand-alone mystery/thriller titled Dead Winner, published in late 2022, winner of the 2023 CLUE Award (best suspense/thriller), and he is working on a stand-alone mystery titled The Other Murder. Kevin is a resident of Central New Jersey and is a graduate of Columbia College and Boston University School of Law.
After a shootout in Dubai left Hamza al Saud dead and elevated brilliant aeronautical engineer Qasim Nadar to hero status in England, everyone assumes the terrorist threat from al Qadar has been eliminated. Everyone except JSOC counter-terrorism analyst Whitney Watts. But when she decides to help MI6 penetrate Nadar’s secret network, Watts she gets a little too close to the truth and finds herself in a deadly situation not even her teammates from Tier One can save her from.
As Lieutenant Commander Keith “Chunk” Redman and the rest of Tier One fan out across London in search of Watts, Nadar prepares to unleash his most dangerous weapon yet—an advanced drone with artificial intelligence and stealth technology. To stop a horrifying attack on London, Chunk and his Navy SEAL brethren must seek help from an unexpected ally and find a way to stop a war machine that was designed to be unstoppable.
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Elise’s Thoughts
Sons of Valor, War Machine, the third book in the series, by Brian Andrews and Jeffrey Wilson finishes the overarching story of terrorist Qasim Nadar. They use their vast experience to write engrossing thrillers. Andrews worked as a nuclear engineer on naval submarines, while Wilson was a trauma surgeon embedded with the East Coast Navy SEALS.
In the stories, Nadar fools everyone and is considered a hero in England. Everyone that is except counter-terrorism analyst Whitney Watts. After getting a call from her MI6 counterpart Lucy Kim she flies to England to work with Lucy to try to out Nadar as a terrorist. Unfortunately, their investigation turns upside down and they are kidnapped by the terrorists. As Lieutenant Commander Keith “Chunk” Redman and the rest of Tier One travel across London in search of Watts, Nadar prepares to unleash his most dangerous weapon yet, an advanced drone with artificial intelligence and stealth technology.
The authors know how to keep the tension high with the suspense growing on each page. Readers will not want to put this epilogue down.
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Author Interview
Elise Cooper: How did you get the idea for the series?
Jeffrey Wilson: We hope to continue the series as long as people continue to read them. This is a spin-off, a shared universe with the “Tier One Series.” The eighth book comes out next year. There was a minor character in the previous series, Chuck Redman, who was widely popular with the readers.
EC: What is the premise of the “Tier One Series?”
JW: The entire SEAL team gets wiped out because of leaked intelligence. The sole survivor gets a new identity, John Dempsey, and now is part of a covert operation task force.
Brian Andrews: The first book of that series came out in 2016. John Dempsey, the main character of that series, is not in the “Sons of Valor Series.” Although in the second book there are a lot of references. But there are other cross-over characters.
Elise Cooper: Did you base Chuck Redman on the real retired SEAL Jay Redman?
JW: He is a good friend of ours and we wanted to honor him. We do it a lot where we put those who we had a professional and personal relationship in our books. Chuck does not represent Jay, but we did it to honor our friendship.
EC: How did you get the idea for the current book, Sons of Valor III: War Machine?
BA: We tend to write our military thrillers as trilogies. The Qasim Nadar thread wraps up in this book. In the real world we like to give the antagonist characters some leeway to flush out their motives and organization. There is a great line, “Every villain is the hero of their own story.” We embrace this in our writing. It is not our point of view, but the character’s thoughts and actions..
JW: We do not like our bad guys to be two-dimensional cookie cutters unlike Dr. Evil. The risk is do readers have sympathy for a terrorist. We wanted to explore will Qasim do the right thing or take the path of evil. People will see his evolution through the books on becoming a Jihadi. In book 2 there was a clear path for him to take, but the one he takes should cause someone to hate him.
EC: Book 1 has this quote, “It is a shame that it takes personal losses and suffering for most men to find their courage.” This seems so relevant for those families that brutally lost loved ones in Israel on October 7th. Do you want to comment?
JW: This is a timely quote referencing how someone’s tragedy is tested under fire. It would be great if no one had to discover this about themselves. Think about the stories that came out of 9/11 and how heroic actions were displayed. I read amazing stories of how people were so incredibly brave on October 7th. A young female army officer went out in her PJs with her gun, joined up with someone else, and held off the terrorists, protecting their little village. There is such inspiration in these stories.
EC: What do you want readers to get out of the books?
JW: This is why we write these books, hoping people will have a new appreciation for the toll it takes on the operator: the relationship with one another and their families. We feel there is a higher reason we wrote the books, to honor the men/women we served with and to share that world.
EC: How would you describe Qasim?
BA: Qasim is cold-hearted, diabolical, and evil. He cares about his cause. He cemented himself as a person of significance in the local culture. In book 3, he has drunk the Kool-Aid, taking a leadership role in a terrorist organization. He must deal with personal problems, money, motivation, logistics, and must keep secrets. He wants a Caliphate where there must be a shift of power and take control.
JW: We want to show how the technology and information is different now. There is an information war going on the same time as a covert war. The operators are new but also the terrorists are more sophisticated. This is a different dynamic post 9/11. We wanted to explore what a new generation of terrorists looks like. They are multi-educated, bi-lingual, and tech savvy. It is also an infiltration of culture and society that is no longer just in the Middle East. This is a change in the real world which we wanted to write about. These are the battlefields of the 21st century.
EC: How would you describe Chuck Redman?
JW: Highly intelligent, tenacious, intuitive, mission and team before self.
EC: How would you describe Lucy?
BA: Whitney saw her as sad, intense, brave, focused, loyal, and cared about others concerns. When she faces mortal danger, she stands her ground.
EC: How would you describe Whitney?
BA: She takes initiative in this book. She found a lot of strength from Lucy. Her goal is to be part of the team.
JW: Both Lucy and Whitney are tenacious. We did not want to write Whitney as a one-woman killing machine taking out the bad guys single handedly or a mousey analyst who fades in the background. We pushed her out of her comfort zone, which she hated, but realized it made her tougher. She is someone who never quits. She is one of my favorite characters.
EC: What about the relationship between Whitney and Redman?
BA: They are both mirrors of the other. They recognize in the other characteristics they admire. Both are confident. There is a scene in the book where she is on the verge of physical collapse and starts to think about who the person would be she could rely on to get her out of this situation. Her subconscious understands it is Chuck because she does not realize her own inner strength. Over the first two books she grasps how much she admires and respects him. Chuck also tries to think what she would do when trying to rescue her. They both try to do what the other person would do when the other person is not there.
EC: Is the piece of equipment, Valkyrie, true?
JW: It is a drone and manned from the ground. There is technology in development that has the capability. We wanted to explore how much autonomy should AI have: should it include a kill decision?
BA: There are drones that can fly along fighter jets that augment pilots on missions. It is a stealth drone, with a vertical takeoff from anywhere. We had in the book what safeguards would the military program?
EC: Next books?
JW and BA:
The next Sons of Valor book does not have a date yet but there will be one.
There is a techno-thriller coming out in April, titled Four Minutes. A task force collects
Intelligence from the future to stop attacks in the present. They use this information to
try to stop the bad guys.
We will be writing the next Tom Clancy book titled Act of Defiance, coming out on the 40th
anniversary of the book Red October. A Russian super weapon is deployed at sea
and it’s up to Jack Ryan to find a countermove.
The next Tier 1 book comes out in July titled Ember, the name of the taskforce. The
taskforce does covert operations.
The fourth book in the Shepherds series comes out next fall. We explore combat and faith
with a speculative element. There is a supernatural spiritual warfare element that
blended into a covert ops’ thriller. This includes using scriptures of the Bible. It has
demons possess bad guys.
THANK YOU!!
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BIO: Elise Cooper has written book reviews and interviewed best-selling authors since 2009. Her reviews have covered several different genres, including thrillers, mysteries, women’s fiction, romance and cozy mysteries. An avid reader, she engages authors to discuss their works, and to focus on the descriptions of their characters and the plot. While not writing reviews, Elise loves to watch baseball and visit the ocean in Southern California, with her dog and husband.
The day that every secret service agent trains for has arrived. The White House has been breached; the President forced to flee to a massive doomsday bunker outside DC to defend against whatever comes next. Only the most trusted agents and officials are allowed in with him—those dedicated to keeping the government intact at all costs.
Among these is Erik Hill, who has given his life to the Secret Service. They are his purpose and his family, and his impressive record has made him a hero among them. Despite his growing disillusionment from seeing Washington corruption up close, Erik can’t ignore years of instincts honed on the job. The government is under attack, and no one is better equipped to face down the threat than he is.
The evidence leads him to a conspiracy at the highest levels of power, with the attack orchestrated by some of the very individuals now locked in with him. As the killers strike inside the bunker, it will take everything Erik Hill has to save his people, himself, and his country.
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Elise’s Thoughts
Inside Threat by Matthew Quirk is a political thriller that will remind readers of Vince Flynn’s Transfer of Power and David Baldacci’s characters Sean King and Michelle Maxwell, retired Secret Service Agents. The plot has secrets, lies, and betrayals with the readers not knowing who the bad guys are and who are the good guys.
The book begins with an attack on the White House, obvious that it has been breached. The President, his wife, the most trusted officials, and the best Secret Service Agents move to a secure underground facility known as Raven Rock. Most impressive is how Quirk drew a simplified version of this complex. It is a facility 700 feet under a mountain near Camp David.
Secret Service Agents Eric Hill and Amber Cody, soon discover the threat is locked inside with them. Communications have been cut, exits sabotaged, and bodies piling up. Hill and Cody must use their skills and instincts to determine who can be trusted. Are the perpetrators the officials, or those in the Army, or the Secret Service? Both know they must do whatever it takes to protect the institution they have been sworn to serve and protect.
Given the current events, this concept of a threat to the government from within is very scary. Wondering who is a friend and who is a foe has readers taking the dangerous journey with Hill and Cody. The many twists will keep people reading, not wanting to put the book down. The Q&A below comes from notes from a conversation with Quirk that has been condensed.
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Author Interview
Elise Cooper: How did you get the idea?
Matthew Quirk: I try to strike a balance between a conspiracy shadow behind certain powers, while adding hope, realism, and not feeding into the cynicism. The premise has what would happen if a President came under attack? I played with these questions for the readers to think about. What is the drive behind someone going against the office they are protecting? Are they protecting a larger value by taking matters into their own hands? Is going rogue part of the problem or solving the problem? Who can be trusted? This is my go at a Die Hard or Seven Days in May story with a bit of Agatha Christie thrown in.
EC: Was the President based on anyone?
MQ: This is an interesting time for politics, with such a high temperature. I try in writing a plot to be non-partisan. Some readers of my books have diametrically opposed views. They find corollaries of what is currently happening. For them, the story will often confirm their views of how they perceive Washington DC. For instance, if there is a crooked President in the book, each side thinks the President is part of the other side. For me, it is interesting that I can write these political thrillers in an incredibly polarized time and still have them appeal broadly.
EC: How would you describe President Kline?
MQ: Some think he is paranoid, elitist, aloof, but others think he is caring and protective. One of the mysteries of the book is, can the President be trusted to defend the Constitution?
EC: What is real in the book?
MQ:“Yankee White,” a special background investigation, basically a clearance, required of anyone who will hold the President’s life in their hands such as a chef, helicopter pilot, and a doctor. There is this distinct circle of people that would single handedly be able to kill the President.
The saying “shut up and color,” which is military slang for “do your job and follow orders.” This was one of the themes of the book because what if doing the right thing and following orders are at odds.
My friend had written an entire book on Raven Rock, the bunker 700 feet under a mountain near Camp David. I tried to find a bunch of imagery. In the beginning of the book, I drew a simplified layout of the architectural buildings and tunnels. I wanted the reader to follow along with the action I did take some liberties to streamline things, but everything in the book comes from real life.
The Presidential Emergency Action Documents, which are documents that can be invoked by the President. No one knows what is in them. The President could possibly create martial law, suspend Congress, nationalize industries, and ignore the Constitution.
EC: Do you think Secret Service Agents can be flies on the wall?
MQ: I have this book quote, they “can see everything and see nothing.” I did talk to Secret Service people for the book. Their job is to protect the person and yet they are seeing Washington politics up close. They still do their job, which is protecting the office. Even if it someone they do not respect they are still willing to protect them, even to the point of sacrificing their life. This is very honorable.
EC: How would you describe the Secret Service Agent Eric Hill?
MQ: Direct, a straight talker, protective, has a slight temper, loyal and suspicious. Because of his backstory he is disillusioned.
EC: How would you describe the rookie Secret Service Agent Amber Cody?
MQ: Tough, smart, stubborn, enthusiastic, disciplined, and feels she needs to prove herself to be brave.
EC: There is a book quote about the Secret Service that reminds me of those in the military. Please explain.
MQ: You are referring to this book quote, “The Service was in many ways closer than family. Agents spent more time with each other than they did with their wives and husbands and kids. They gave everything to the job, including their lives… They lived together, ate together, counted off endless hours driving through the sticks, standing in the rain, staked out in cars, and holed up in hotels.” Many of them are former military. Talking to the real-life Secret Service Agents gave me this impression. They are so dedicated. It is like a military brotherhood.
EC: A movie or TV show being made?
MQ: Yes, we just announced that Chernin Entertainment has optioned the book for a feature film. I’m really excited to be working with them. The Night Agent has been renewed for season two with the plan to be out in 2024.
EC: Your next book?
MQ: It’s early, so this could change, but the premise is that an actress who always plays tough characters and is well trained in weapons and martial arts has her friend gone missing. While looking for them, she is drawn into the world of espionage and diplomacy. To save her friend and survive she needs to become as tough as the characters she plays on TV.
THANK YOU!!
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BIO: Elise Cooper has written book reviews and interviewed best-selling authors since 2009. Her reviews have covered several different genres, including thrillers, mysteries, women’s fiction, romance and cozy mysteries. An avid reader, she engages authors to discuss their works, and to focus on the descriptions of their characters and the plot. While not writing reviews, Elise loves to watch baseball and visit the ocean in Southern California, with her dog and husband.
Off the northeast coast of Russia, the captain and crew of a small crabbing vessel are brutally murdered by members of Bratva, the Russian mafia—their bodies stuffed into crab pots and thrown overboard. The killers scuttle the vessel off the coast of Alaska and slip ashore.
In Washington, DC, Supreme Court Justice Charlotte Morehouse prepares for a trip to Alaska, unaware that a killer is waiting to take his revenge—by livestreaming her death to the world.
In Anchorage, Alaska, Deputy US Marshals Arliss Cutter and Lola Teariki are assigned to security detail at a judicial conference in Fairbanks. Lola is tasked with guarding Justice Townsend’s teenaged daughter while Cutter provides counter-surveillance. It’s a simple, routine assignment—until the mother and daughter decide to explore the Alaskan wilderness on the famous Glacier Discovery train. Hiding onboard are the Chechen terrorists, who launch a surprise attack. While they seize control of the engine, Cutter manages to escape with Justice Townsend by jumping off the moving train—and into the unforgiving wilderness.
With no supplies and no connection to the outside world, Cutter and the judge must cross a treacherous terrain to stay alive. Two of the terrorists are close behind. The others are on the train with the judge’s daughter—and they plan to execute her on camera. With so many lives at stake, Cutter knows there are only two options left: catch the train and kill them all . . . or all will be killed.
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Elise’s Thoughts
Breakneck by Marc Cameron comes alive with a train ride deep into the Alaskan wilderness. US Marshal Arliss Cutter along with the Alaskan setting plus the Russian mob make for a good thriller recipe. There is plenty of action, suspense, and mystery.
The main plot line has Deputy US Marshal Arliss Cutter and his partner, Lola Teariki assigned to a security detail at a judicial conference in Fairbanks. They are appointed to the protective detail of US Supreme Court Justice Charlotte Morehouse and her teenage daughter Ramona. After the conference ends, they decide to take a scenic train ride to explore the Alaskan wilderness on the famous Glacier Discovery Train. Unfortunately, no one suspects the Russian mobster, Maxim Volkov, who wants the Justice dead in retribution for the role she played in the death of his wife. The Russians are brutal, unrepentant, and have no qualms about killing anyone who gets in their way. The train’s confined space makes the Justice an easy target. To save the Justice, Arliss has them both jump overboard. This is where another antagonist, the setting, comes into play.
The other sub-plots involve the growing romance between Lola and Anchorage Policeman Joe Bill Bracket, the pursuit for truth about Arliss’s brother Ethan’s death, and the need for Arliss and his sister-in-law Mim to address their feelings for each other.
This story takes off, putting readers on a wild ride with the characters who are fighting for their survival. The action is authentic, the characters well written, and the plot intense.
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Author Interview
Elise Cooper: The idea for the story?
Mark Cameron: All these books are boiling around in my mind from my career. I wanted to write about the different jobs of US Marshals including a protection “gig” for my main character Arliss.
EC: How would you describe US Supreme Court Justice Charlotte Morehouse?
MC: For many years my primary focus in the Marshal service was protecting Supreme Court Justices and District Judges. It is something I am familiar with including the setting of Alaska. Justice Morehouse lives in an insulated world and has a position of power. She rises above people waiting on her and doing all the research. She is a good listener and a good person. I did not write her as a damsel in distress, but Arliss did help her survive Alaska. She has a teenage daughter, Ramona who Lola, Cutter’s partner, protects, interacts with, and can show a playful side.
EC: Was Morehouse based on anyone?
MC: None of the characters are based on any one person. But she was inspired by those I met. I was on Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor’s detail a few times. I met her when she had come to Alaska to fish. I always respected her demeanor, a wise human being. I interacted with Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg since I was the Chief when she came to Alaska. I wanted to write about how the US Marshals protected them. We protect everybody equally and stay out of the politics.
EC: You mention in the book another types of law enforcement, VPSO?
MC: It stands for Village Public Safety Officer. They have a motto, “First Responders in the last frontier.” They are funded by the state and the tribes. It is a quasi-law enforcement type. They help the state troopers. They are generally unarmed but do carry teasers, pepper spray, and a baton. Many times, they are in places where there are no troopers stationed and do have power to arrest. They do everything from combating criminals, fires, and do search/rescue. I wrote about this profession with the character George Polty.
EC: How did the setting of Alaska play into the plot?
MC: The Alaska setting is an antagonist because it is so brutal. The Alaskan wilderness is uncaring and scary. The wind, the snow, and the river. Whether a billionaire or pauper the river can drown someone. People must learn to go on the wilderness’s terms. If someone fights it head on, they will lose. There is no fair. If someone is not smart the setting can kill them.
EC: There was also the Alaskan train. Did you do any research?
MC: My wife and I rode it just last year. I flew over it, took some boats, and then four wheelers to make sure I was familiar with the area. It is wild, off the grid. The train goes through once a day during the season, but the rest of the time it is locked in snow and ice. When the snowpack melts there are chunks of ice, scouring the riverbank. The river rises and turns turbulent.
EC: What is the role of Captain Tom Walker, a former Army Ranger sniper?
MC: He represents those people who is a loner, odd duck. He hides out, sick of civilian civilized life. Arliss Cutter is envious of his simple life.
EC: Why the Russian mob angle?
MC: I said in the beginning of the book, Russia is just like Alaska except they have tigers. It is the same setting. The wilderness is the same. Russia is just across the water from some of the Alaskan islands.
EC: Where are you going with the relationship between Mim and Arliss?
MC: She married his brother, Ethan, who died a few years ago. She is a little scared of her own feelings. The next book will show where they will be headed. Some readers will think that there is an attraction between Mim and her brother-in-law, Arliss. Hopefully I laid the groundwork that he is not a stalker, but their feelings have been a long slow burn. But I think most people will think that if they get together it will be organic and natural. He is damaged, having lost his last wife to cancer; she is widowed; and they do have a past when they were sixteen and dated.
EC: Can you explain the meaning of Grandfather Grumpy’s credo, “never go anywhere for the first time”?
MC: It means talk to people who have been there already, don’t go anywhere blind. Read up about it. Get all the information you can. All these sayings I have learned along the way. I started in law enforcement in the eighties. I worked with cowboys, Viet Nam vets, my own grandparents. I used their rules and put them in Grumpy’s words when they fit the narrative.
EC: Next book?
MC: The overall arc about Ethan’s death will continue. It is titled Bad River. There will be a murder investigation in the far Alaskan north, around Utqiagvik. It will be out a year from now.
THANK YOU!!
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BIO: Elise Cooper has written book reviews and interviewed best-selling authors since 2009. Her reviews have covered several different genres, including thrillers, mysteries, women’s fiction, romance and cozy mysteries. An avid reader, she engages authors to discuss their works, and to focus on the descriptions of their characters and the plot. While not writing reviews, Elise loves to watch baseball and visit the ocean in Southern California, with her dog and husband.
