Jackson Coppley's Blog, page 12
August 31, 2020
Dean Koontz - Devoted
Dean Koontz is a prolific storyteller. With over a hundred books to his name, one wonders how he can package his craft of the supernatural and creepy with a new twist. How about making a breed of dog super smart? Mix in a murderer with a genetic defect decent into cannibalism. Voila, you have Devoted.
Koontz does several things very well in this book. First, he takes a character, a business executive who is morally corrupt and, due to an infectious lab accident, transforms him to a beast in gradual, subtle ways. Second, he lets us know what it would be to have the intellect of a human confined to the body of a dog. He mixes all of this into his proven plots where the bad guy is unseen, just around the corner, ready to grab you by the throat.
Regarding the super-smart dogs, I enjoyed how he portrays this ‘what-if.’ Remember, such a dog may lack thumbs with which they might pick up a pen and write the words they can read, but they have a vastly superior sense of smell which, in Koontz’s telling, can smell evil of different varieties.
Although I enjoyed this exploration of smart dogs, Koontz spent too many pages here and there waxing poetically about the whole thing. He was swooning over dogs. That’s fine, but it wasn’t needed for the story.
Devoted contains two main story arcs and half-way through the book, you believe there is only one, and that one is coming to an end. Patience. Koontz kicks in the second part of the tale and pulls in characters whose names you have read but have not yet come on stage. Then we have the larger, more sinister plot.
If you like the world of Dean Koontz as I do, you will not be disappointed. I dinged the number of stars by one because of the on-and-on about dogs. Nevertheless, this never ruins the tale. Recommended.
August 16, 2020
The Atlantis Gene - A Review
Sometimes it’s difficult to critique another author’s work without comparing it to your own. However, when I see A.G. Riddle’s The Atlantis Gene constantly positioned in the genre with my own Nicholas Foxe Adventures, I can’t resist. But I’ll try.
The Atlantis Gene is premised on an advanced civilization, from thousands of years ago, unknown to modern man, until an areological discovery is made. OK, that’s like The Code Hunters. But take that premise and add worldwide conspiracy theories, bloody shootouts, the origin of the Spanish flu, and experiments on unsuspecting victims. While we’re at it, toss in Nazis time traveling to the present for good measure.
Whew!
What Riddle does well is creating a fast-paced chase. Bad guys after a pair of good guys. Bombs blowing up everything that automatic weapons don’t destroy first. Action scenes are not easy work. Riddle does them well.
But, right in the middle of the book, we change gears, seriously downshifting to a saga that begins in the First World War. We read a story that goes on for several chapters that has a completely different feel, as though someone dropped the pages from another book into this one. It makes you want to shake your Kindle to see if it inadvertently switched books on you. You conclude that this is the backstory of key characters and events in the plot, but it takes way too much time. I suggest that you could skip all this material and not lose much.
Then we pick up the chase again. But wait, Riddle has some more tricks up his sleeve. How to pull some surprises about the characters roles in this mystery? I know, let’s have central characters change their names. So, this guy is really that guy in the backstory and the other guy is another guy.
Bottom line: This is a well-written action adventure thriller. Longer than need be, and it just gets the story started. Tune in to other installations in the series for more. I debated giving The Atlantis Gene three stars or four. On the basis of appreciation of the craft of writing good action scenes, I give it four stars.
July 28, 2020
Zoltar
A short story for your amusement.
I am Zoltar.
It was one fateful night I saw something that needed action, and the fortune of a young girl would change forever.
They cajoled and nudged The Girl toward me. The dollar appeared from a friend and she handed it to The Girl. I could see The Girl hesitate, perhaps from embarrassment more than fear. At her friends’ insistence, The Girl placed the dollar in the slot.
After some of my usual movements and pronouncements, I delivered to her a rather harmless and quite expected card from a slot that produced so many expected cards. The girls all crowded around to see what it said.
You will have a great adventure.
All the girls laughed and concocted wild and teasing conjectures as to what adventure might lie ahead for their friend. But The Girl did not dismiss the fortune out of hand. As her friends teased, The Girl looked Zoltar in the eye searching for further meaning. I knew she would be back.
The man was large and seemingly a brute. He took the red cap from his head and slammed it to the ground. His girlfriend left in a huff. The man picked up the cap. He was perhaps a race fan. It said Le Mans on it. I had not seen one like it. He walked after the girlfriend.
Follow the man in the red cap.
"What man? What red cap?"
Without further payment, another card came her way.
The cap bears Le Mans on it.
Several blocks later, the man came to a rental house on a wooded lot, one of the few remaining humble structures in a beach town replacing such homes with mansions. The Girl hid behind a pine tree, peeking out at the man as he entered the house. The Girl crept closer. There was nothing else in sight but an old panel van.
Why she was following this man, she did not know. The Girl reasoned that very specific cards coming from a fortune teller machine must mean something.
The phone in The Girl's hip pocket buzzed. The Girl may have thought she was cool and unflappable, but this time, the cell phone buzz she received so often spooked her. She removed the phone to see that she had a text message from 'Z.' 'Who is Z?' she thought. 'No, that can't be,' she reasoned knowing the only Z name with whom she had recent communication was Zoltar. The message asked, 'What is the license plate number?' The Girl smiled. Z was on the case.
She crept slowly to another tree to be able to read the plate on the van. She froze. The man returned from the house. He was carrying his girlfriend like a sack of potatoes over his shoulder. The girlfriend was bound and gagged with duct tape. The girlfriend was not moving. Was she dead?
The man left the door open and returned to the house. The Girl had to get closer to read the plate. She was able to move to the opposite side of the van. It was parked close to the house, but she had enough room to squeeze behind the open door and see the license plate. She took her phone and responded to Z with the number.
The Girl didn't hear the man return until the backdoor of the van slammed shut. The Girl tried to find the inside door release in the darkened interior but was too late. The van started to move.
"Little girl," the man said to The Girl. "I don't want to hurt anyone, but if you don't come back over here, this woman is dead."
As two policemen cuffed the man, another police officer walked to The Girl, still frozen in place by the water. "Are you all right?" she asked.
"Do you know somebody named Z?"
The Girl knew the answer to that question was murky on several levels, she could only say, "I'm not sure."
"Well, we got these repeated text messages on all our phones from Z that simply provided a plate number and the words, ‘He is here.’ We ran the plates and found that the owner, that man over there being cuffed, had a warrant for his arrest. Assault with a deadly weapon. We put out an APB and I saw that van pass me. I followed it and, when it pulled off the road, I called for backup.
"Whoever this Z is, you owe him big time."
The girl knew the officer was right.
The Girl came to me once again. She talked to me, ignoring inquisitive expressions from those who wondered why one would talk to an inanimate object. The Girl knew why.
Perhaps out of habit, curiosity, or simply keeping up appearances, The Girl put a dollar in my slot. Zoltar produced a card. She removed it, read it and smiled. Then her friends came along and rushed to The Girl with expressions of 'There you are,' and 'We've been looking for you.' The girl put the card in her pocket, keeping the message between Zoltar and herself.
And there it will remain.
Come, let Zoltar tell you your future.
July 21, 2020
Hamilton
Hamilton is not only a testament to a unique individual, but an informative history of the nation’s founding. Hamilton is a long read at over 800 pages, but well worth it.
Although Chernow makes Hamilton more heroic than perhaps wise for a historian to do, the man was certainly remarkable. What was unexpected is the bio teaches history of the founding of The United States I never knew. Political mudslinging of today was nothing compared to the early days of the republic, even from greats like Thomas Jefferson.
But what I recognized most is the timing of our country's founding. The industrial revolution and the invention of the corporation coincided with our country's founding, and it obviously took hold. Take the time. Read it.
June 29, 2020
Review of The Ocean Raiders
Reviewer John Walker just posted the following review on Amazon
of The Ocean Raiders. It serves as a good synopsis of the book...
Nicholas Foxe is back! Adventure, intrigue, and mysteries in Venice and beneath the sea
Reviewed in the United States on June 29, 2020
Nicholas Foxe is back! After the rip-roaring adventure and world-changing revelations of The Code Hunters, the wealthy adventurer with degrees in archaeology and cryptography arrives in Venice to visit an ambitious project by billionaire Nevin Dowd to save the city from inundation by the sea, but mostly to visit Christine Blake, who he hadn't seen for years since an affair in Paris and who is now handling public relations for Dowd's project. What he anticipates to be a pleasant interlude becomes deadly serious when an attempt on his life is made immediately upon his arrival in Venice. Narrowly escaping, and trying to discover the motive, he learns that Dowd's team has discovered an underwater structure that appears to have been built by the same mysterious ancients who left the Tablet and the Omni, from which Nick's associates are trying to extract its knowledge. As Nick investigates further, it becomes clear a ruthless adversary is seeking the secrets of the ancients and willing to kill to obtain them. But who, and what is the secret?
This is another superb adventure/thriller in which you'll be as mystified as the protagonist by the identity of the villain until almost the very end. There is a large cast of intriguing and beautifully portrayed characters, and the story takes us to interesting locations which are magnificently sketched. Action abounds, and the conclusion is thoroughly satisfying, while leaving abundant room for further adventures. You, like I, will wish you had a friend like Guido Bartoli. The novel can be read stand-alone, but you'll enjoy it more if you've first read The Code Hunters, as you'll know the back-story of the characters and events which set this adventure into motion.
June 23, 2020
BookBub Announcement
In case you didn't get the email:
New release in ,Action and Adventure
June 2, 2020
The Ocean Raiders - A Nicholas Foxe Adventure
Nevin Dowd, a billionaire who owns a number of high-tech companies, is in Venice to help save the city from the next big flood. His underwater excavation work uncovers a mysterious object with curious markings. He calls on Nick to decipher the code.
British intelligence discovers evidence of a machine hidden in the ocean that can draw massive power from seawater, but at enormous risk. Is this energy machine connected to the object Nick is trying to decipher?
Nick’s team guards a device that contains advanced knowledge, including details of the energy machine. A group of assassins working for someone known only as Frost, attempts to steal it.
Can Nick and his team get to the machine before it destroys Venice?
I've been to Venice several times. Two years ago, I considered how the rising sea level is dramatically affecting the ancient city. Boats cannot pass under many bridges and flooding is becoming more severe. What better place to create an adventure?
Last year, I returned to Venice with an agenda. I wanted to visit the bridge where a bad guy gets what's coming to him. I stayed in the suite where a character is murdered. I met with the engineers for Mose, the flood control project. I visited the police station where a central character works. I wanted to make the book believable and real, even if there is a scifi element involved.
I trust that when you read The Ocean Raiders, I succeed in transporting you to Venice. Let me know how the trip goes.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO
April 6, 2020
The Bomber Jacket
I've been asked about my short story, The Bomber Jacket. It was published in the book Beach Life (see below). For your enjoyment, I've posted it here as well...
The Bomber Jacket
Brown leather, cracked with age, yet still supple after all these years, first worn by a man of the greatest generation in war, later acquired by a young boy to appease a passing style, and now hanging here in a consignment shop on Second Avenue. The embroidered patches spoke its heritage: 827th Bomber Squad on the back, the Flying A on one shoulder and Old Glory on the other. But setting this one jacket apart from any other, a red Maryland Terrapin pin. The ornament took my breath away. That pin, I put on this jacket many years ago. Holding the jacket to my face I smelled the salt and smoke of that night at Dewey.
He was so young, or so it seems now when everything becomes younger as I get older. Dark green eyes, black hair and a swagger that made him seem taller than he was. He wore this bomber jacket over a white tee prideful in the latest fad more than to stay warm in the cool weather of spring break at the beach. His swagger put me off, but his charm won me over that spring. So cool, so confident, he drew me in.
Walking with him made the delights of the Boardwalk more delightful. Dolle’s popcorn was heaven’s manna; a burger from Gus and Gus, fine mignon; the odd flavors of The Ice Cream Store became culinary exploration. His irresistible laugh made me love him. It was deep, exposing no care in the world.
“What do you want to do in life?” I asked. “Everything,” he answered. I was sure he would. How I remember the unlimited possibilities, the adrenaline rush of what might be possible when the world is still new to you. If I could recapture that gold nugget possessed by youth.
We sat by a bonfire on Dewey’s beach in the dark evening as the short break neared its end. The stars over the ocean were magic. Despite the warmth of the fire, I shivered. He took off his prized jacket and placed it over my shoulders. I could not have gotten a more personal token from anyone.
We swore we would stay in touch. No texting back in those days. Just a postcard sent and received now and then. Like all spring romances for the young, forever does not live long. He, like me, must have continued with real life. I never knew. I married, raised kids, divorced, on my own. From time to time, I would recall that spring break.
What drew me into this shop, I do not know. I never go to consignment shops. Yet here I am, holding this vestige of the past. It was his bomber jacket. There was no doubt about it. It was that night at the bonfire I put the pin on his jacket. Something from my school to remind him of me. He said he would keep it there always. It appears he did just that.
I must have held the jacket in my hands for the longest time. A sales girl asked me if she could help me. I asked her why this jacket was here. “Estate sale,” was the simple answer that spoke volumes. Forever does not live long.
Read other fine short stories in Beach Life - Rehoboth Beach Reads
March 21, 2020
The Code Hunters - The Movie
Book Pipeline selects novels to pitch movie studios. Is there a book that might challenge a movie producer? The Code Hunters may be one. See the follow Book Pipeline review:
THE CODE HUNTERS is an incredibly ambitious, sprawling sci-fi adjacent action-adventure story. The vivid imagination of the author is impressive and should be commended. However, looking at THE CODE HUNTERS through a purely film/TV adaptation lens, it's unlikely that it would be attractive to producers and studios. The biggest reason? This would require an astronomically large budget to pull off. And with producers and studios increasingly showing trepidation towards taking large financial gambles on untested, globe-trotting IP such as this, THE CODE HUNTERS would likely scare a lot of them off.
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Keep in mind the feedback is not a criticism of the writing or the material itself--we consider the current film/TV market demands heavily, if not exclusively, into our criteria. Many entries, to be honest, were quite good, or had glimmers of potential, but for various reasons we felt the project might have a tougher time grabbing the attention of production companies. Since we work very closely with winners and finalists on development and circulation, we have to put that standard at the forefront.
March 11, 2020
Why?
I’m sharing a video with you. It’s a TED talk on ‘Why.’
Simon Sinek’s TED talk, “Start With Why?"
You might wonder why a writer would share a video like this one. It’s actually one that several writers rerun for themselves from time to time, just as I did today. When I spend time on marketing, the nuts and bolts of getting readers to give my books a try, I lose track of why I’m writing. Paraphrasing the video, it’s not ‘I’m a good writer. I have a book like the ones you read. Will you buy a copy?’ No. It’s ‘I have stories I love to tell. Spend some time with me and I’ll tell you one.’
