The Influences of Too Secret Service

Too Secret Service, part one, is finally out. It is bat guano insane, action heavy, and thankfully, THERE IS NO POLITICS IN IT WHATSOEVER.



(If you think that the ending and villain is political.... it was written in 1999, so no.)

This was a strange book series, because a lot of it ended up being influenced by why I was reading at the time.



To start with, I was reading a lot of the early Jon Land novels, staring his professional badass Blaine McCracken. They were full of action and nonstop running. They were on par with Dirk Pitt novels. Maybe they were even better. The villains were all insane and over the top ... though I think my main villain wasn't quite as insane.



You can see some of the fingerprints still kicking around. There is a computer geek in the novel named Blaine Lansing -- the exact opposite of McCracken. Though "I'm going to use a computer hacker" was more inspired by Tom Clancy's NetForce novels. (If you ever get a chance to watch the tv movie ... read the novels.)



We won't even go into Dances With Werewolves. That book was more influences by the Modesty Blaise novels. If anyone ever tells you "female James Bond," hit them with the hardcover omnibus edition of Modesty Blaise. Then take them to the hospital after they are concussed. This series was particularly gonzo, but fun as well. And they had no problem with blurring genre lines between thriller, fantasy and science fiction (also like Bond). Modesty Blaise was another series with a Male / Female character duo.