Dear Friends,
How Time Flies!
All I can say is . . . WOW! Only sixteen days and The Amendment Killer will finally be out there. On the streets. Online and in bricks and mortar stores too. “Wherever fine books are sold.” But who’s counting? This writer is, that’s for sure! It’s been quite some journey, that’s for sure too. Just can’t wait for November 1. Even if everyone else can. 🙁 Just sixteen days to go.
A “Key” Back Story
As this epic moment approaches (hey, it is epic to me), many of you have been clamoring (well, at least asking) for a little back story on some of the “key” characters in The Amendment Killer. Putting aside the fact that all of these characters are key to me, there are four who stand out, Cyrus Brooks, Frank Lotello, Cassie Webber, and Tommy Thomas.
It seems to me that we must begin these back stories with Cyrus Brooks. After all, Cyrus has been there from day one, from the very beginning of the Brooks/Lotello thriller series. You might say that the Brooks/Lotello thriller series would be nothing without Cyrus Brooks. No slight to Frank Lotello, but Brooks is the heart of this series.
While The Puppet Master, which will be released next Spring as the prequel to The Amendment Killer is the apparent second in the series, it actually is the first. I am still polishing The Puppet Master in spite of the fact that I have already finished The Amendment Killer. Suffice it to say that The Puppet Master is a more complex and demanding manuscript. “But well worth the wait,” he said!
As some of you know, I wrote the first draft of The Puppet Master on a dare from some friends. True story. No one but The Wife knew I was doing it. Trying to do it. I had a story in mind, a vigilante serial killer bumping off abusive politicians in Washington, D.C. And a judge as my protagonist. At the center of things. Rather than the typical detective and lawyer protagonists.
“Excuse me. Can we talk?”
“Huh? Who are you? How’d you get in here? I’d be nervous, but frankly you really don’t look all that threatening.”
“The door was open. I just walked in. Looked like you could use some help. My help. Name’s Cyrus Brooks. Judge Cyrus Brooks to you. Hear you’re going to write a novel. That’s a laugh! Big undertaking for someone like you. Someone who’s never even written a short story. You need me. And not all that threatening, you say? How do you know I’m not packing? Seems like you’re pretty cocky for someone who hasn’t exactly made it yet. Not exactly John Grisham yet. Not exactly Lee Child yet. Not exactly —
“I get it. You’ve made your point. But me . . . cocky? Seems like you’re the one here who’s pretty cocky.” I countered with that line because I clearly wasn’t feeling very cocky, or confident, about this writing gig I was about to try. “What makes you think I need anything from you? That you can help me? With anything.”
And so Cyrus told me. Exactly why I needed him. Cyrus Brooks. And, as always, Cyrus was . . . spot on.
Married literally to his actual wife, Eloise, of however many years, Cyrus was “also” married figuratively to his “other” wife, the law. Cyrus is a legal scholar second to none. Smart as they come. And doesn’t he just know it. Or at least so it seems.
But there is more to Cyrus than Eloise and the law. Much more. Albeit not more important to Cyrus than Eloise. Or the law. In spite of his aching arthritic joints, and his rotund silhouette, Cyrus imagines being a superstar musician, a superstar dancer, a superstar actor, a rock superstar, and a superstar athlete. But, alas, he’s none of those. And he never will be. But he is a superstar dreamer. And a superstar person. With a heart of gold. And not a dishonest bone in his body. Except . . . sometimes. Whenever he deems it to serve the greater good. And not to put anyone in harm’s way. At least not intentionally.
So I dream of being Cyrus Brooks. And how could Cyrus Brooks not be at the center of the Brooks/Lotello thriller series? If only because he was first.
Wanna know more about Cyrus Brooks? Well, then, you’ll have to read The Amendment Killer. You can now get it wherever finer books are sold, and be reading it in . . . just sixteen days.
Well, I Lied (Hey, Our Political Representatives Lie All The Time, Why Not Me Every Now And Then?)
I know I recently said that I was done celebrating–and sharing–all the flattering reviews I’ve been receiving. Well, I lied. I just can’t get over my excitement at hearing someone saying something nice about my writing. Hey, I gotta tell someone. And who, if not you, my friends, the members of my writing community. So, here’s “just one more.” You can skip over it if you want. (No! I didn’t really mean that! 🙂 )
THE AMENDMENT KILLER is a book with heft that feels like it’s flying by, written by someone who appears to know his subject in detail, and uses that knowledge to weave a fantastic tale. It’s full on, fluid, and memorable.
America is facing a Constitutional crisis. Following the convening of a sizeable public committee aiming to end the personal perks of Congress, which is broadly seen as unduly money-chasing and so undemocratic, “Amendment 28” has been introduced. The addition to the Constitution curtails personal perks without Congressional consultation. Congress deems that illegal.
In a landmark legal case involving concepts centuries old, it’s the job of the Supreme Court to make a landmark decision, and in doing so decide if the new Amendment should stand or fall. We join the battle from a number of perspectives. That of the lawyers. That of a Supreme Court justice. That of a kidnapper. And that of the grandchild of the Supreme Court justice, the kidnapping victim.
This is a clever construction. Barak weaves a complex narrative, filled with educated-feeling courtroom events. It uses some clever parallels, such as in the TV coverage explaining the ongoing drama to the “general public” (and thus the reader). There are lots of added strands of theater, like the insulin shortage that threatens to prematurely kill kidnap victim Cassie, or the strange but believable connections tie together the various pieces of the story.
Can a typically liberal-leaning judge be “persuaded” to go over to the dark side, rule the Amendment illegal, and thus save thus save the various “benefits” that the Amendment looks to cut off? Will he put his family ahead of the good of the nation, and solidify the power of Congress seemingly intent on abusing it?
The strengths and weaknesses of the lawyers’ cases were expansive, and carefully thought out. The multiple perspectives work well, too. As a reader we have just enough to understand the differing angles of each person involved, while the gorgeous twists and turns in other corners keep you charging on.
-James Hendicott for Indie Reader, IR Approved, Mystery/Thriller, October 5, 2017
And One Last Nice Thought For Now
Of all the nice things that have come my way of late as a result of my writing, here’s one I hadn’t expected. The Wife and I were just reunited with some old friends, D and P, with whom we’d somehow allowed ourselves to lose track, only to find that they’ve recently joined my writing community and pre-ordered The Amendment Killer! The Wife and I are looking forward to getting back on that track.
Happy Count Down everyone! Like Cyrus, you’ve come along for the ride. Thank you for that.
Ron
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