Psychological Thrillers discussion
BOTM Past to Present
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SEPTEMBER 2018...BOTM... The Camel's Back..By Brian Christopher Shea
I really enjoyed this book!! It just goes to show that government bureaucracy can have a detrimental effect on a persons life!! And the higher ups didn’t care!! They just make sure their butt was covered!! As Ruth said, I was actually rooting for him to obtain the funds from the ATM drop!! He was basically forced to do this, especially with the medical issue for his medically challenged little girl.
This is a FAANNTASTIC story and I'm giving it FIVE ***** Stars as soon as I finish my review.
5 stars for me as well!! When I complete my review!!
Well, Ruth, I know how I would react if some other country came in here and killed my friends and family. Making the Translator an actual human is a difficult writing task. But it makes the story and the stakes all that much more real and personable.
Okay, The Camel's Back is up on my BOTM site along with links and other nifty stuff. Check it out and I'll see y'all right back here!http://botm.blackdogebooks.com/
This is my first Goodreads book club connection and it's really quite exciting. I love connecting with readers and hearing their thoughts. Ask me any question you like and I'll do my best to answer it. And thank you all for the kind words.
stephanie wrote: "Mr. Brian, this thread is ALL YOU!....Folks, let the games begin...……."
Thank you so much for selecting my book to be a part of you reading list. I'm honored and humbled.
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The first part of this book is really an eye catching, Declan shoots someone of color, then he snaps,,Yes it reminds me of that weekly series SNAP....Folks can get you to snap real quick like. And I was rooting for him to rob a few more places, and get away...Yes I was rooting for the bad guy...
Great question Stephanie! I had Declan mask himself as a black man or Hispanic because it would be the best misdirection as far as law enforcement. It gave him a bigger separation from the physical description. His intention was never to frame another race, just to make it near impossible for them to pinpoint him. Nick was too smart for the ruse anyway ;)Political correctness has never entered into the minds of the criminals I've faced in my real life job. So I didn't want to bind him to it either. I wanted to run the robbery with the optimum chance of his ability to realistically get away with it.
So some of my writing comes from experience. The opening scene happened to me in January of 2015 where I was in an armed standoff with a young black man with a gun to his head. I was able to get him to drop the gun ...after some very tense minutes. I tried to make that as real as possible. I actually ran into the kid two years later and we had a long talk about that night.
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So moving on to why a lot of people snap after they loose their jobs...hummm. Let me tell ya, when this Deputy was terminated, and the LT thought that he was going to come back because he was sooo upset that he was terminated. Men, most of them can't take the "YOUR FIRED"..line….Me, I would just pick up my undies and get another. But one thing I know for sure is even if you get fired at one Police Dept, you can get picked up within 6 months at another.....
Sometimes people can't see beyond their immediate circumstance. I could've made Declan just a down and out kind of guy, but I really wanted to have some fun with him and spice things up a little. The bank robbery was really fun to write. Some of my partners told me it was as if I had actually planned one...lol.
Brian - I enjoyed the book very much. I also liked the fact that even though he was terminated from his job - he still remained loyal to being law enforcement and did whatever he could to protect the American people from this terrorist. He went full out in this book. I also liked the way that the book started out in Afghanistan and the history behind the actual plot.
Thanks Vickie, I really wanted to take readers on a journey. It's a story that's been bouncing around in my head for years. I am glad to have released it. A very cathartic experience. I will now use the series to tackle other challenging topics, but always with the intent of entertaining.
Brian - that sounds like a great plan. Your writing was superb and the character development was spot on!!
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Brian wrote: "So some of my writing comes from experience. The opening scene happened to me in January of 2015 where I was in an armed standoff with a young black man with a gun to his head. I was able to get hi..."Outstanding!
I have an interesting FBI story, but I'll save it for my memoir! 😨
I really enjoyed the insight, comments and great questions on the book. I fell asleep very happy last night. I will continue to check back in and respond to any inquiries. Thanks again to all!
Yes, Ruth. It's a wonder that "soft" targets are not being hit all over the place in America. People would be freaking out completely. Actually we have special National Guard units that have received extensive training in modern CBR warfare (Chemical, Biological and Radiological) with "sniffer" tools they use when deployed to monitor public events. These folks have special trucks that are laboratories. Actually, their training goes beyond extensive. So they're out there looking. I can never get them to comment on actual attack attempts, however. So it's not like we've gone to sleep regarding various threats.
About a third of the way into the book, Brian mentioned a target outside the bank where the bus caught fire and then was detonated. He mentioned a set of coordinates. Naturally, I had to see what was at those coordinates and tracked the location down on Google Earth. And guess what? He didn't just make that up. I've got pictures on my website. Check 'em out. http://botm.blackdogebooks.com/
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I'm so glad I didn't screw up the coordinates...
And yes, soft targets were the focus of my book. It's always been something that plagued me after 9/11. So much energy was spent protecting large venues I began to think of ways to harden smaller less visible events. It was a conversation with a fellow SWAT teammate and when we were running a security detail at a football game. I think you see where I took that thought with the book...
Bridges would be great. I actually had in mind John Krasinski or Ryan Phillippe. Someone mentioned that they saw Dennis Quad, but I think he might be out of the age range for Nick. The book may be adapted to screenplay in the near future. Fingers crossed it will make the next step someday.
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I agree - Izzy should be the cast from Fast and Furious (Michelle Rodriguez). She was such a bad a— in that movie. Colin Firth should be Nick!!
How about Mark Wahlberg for Declan? Maybe I am putting the horse before the cart...I've got to get back to writing book three. It's going to have some insane plot twists.
Ruth is already letting the cat outta the bag with Book 2! Oy! What excitement here! Okay, I added CASTING CALL to my botm, so check that out. I forgot Turncoat's name. So please advise and I will fix that. http://botm.blackdogebooks.com/
Mason "Moose" Richards. A hard character for me to write, but necessary for the story
Just wanted to say I am reading this and am only on chapter 4 and I am enjoying it so far...
Ruth I totally agree hook line and sinker I'm telling ya
Ruth wrote: "Speaking of that character [Mason "Moose" Richards], what did y’all think of him. Was it easier to be sympathetic towards Declan?"I understand how the storyline went, but a SEAL Team commander? That's a stretch for me. Now if there is some basis in fact for this kind of behaviour, I'd like to hear about it. From personal experience as an Army MP, I know that officers are not exempt from being pigs and bad guys. I always enjoyed coming down on them, too, as a lowly Spc4, but technically "ranked" as a Full-Bird Colonel when on the job. The stories I could tell! HAHAHA!
Ruth wrote: "I think the commander started off with a great business. "Well, there ya go!
Ruth...your assessment is spot on. Then of course the relationship between Moose and Khaled took a turn for the worse...
Thanks. My new designer really has a great way of building on my vision.
Brian - I really like the new book cover!!
People are always holding up these stupid casinos we have all over Montana. Probably most are caught right away. Or there are packs of nitwits roving the countryside looking for low-level joints to pop. This is my guess. I've run into more than one broken down car filled with half-wits. The last one I encountered in front of the Library, of all places. There was something funny about the vehicle, so I said something to the drive. He had huge broken English telling me to fugedaboudit. Sounded Ukrainian to me. They probably just crossed the border from Canada. I got a chilly feeling there.
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Ruth, I'm so glad that you liked that scene. it was really fun to write humanistic side to Declan. I wanted readers to see him as a loving father and husband...not just a badass. most of the guys that do his job in the real world are more than their job title. I wanted to do that part justice.
Brian - I posted my review on GR and AZ. I hope it was sufficient! I didn’t want to put too much in it because I didn’t want to spoil the mystery and intrigue for other readers. I really enjoyed this book! You did an awesome job writing it.
Vickie,I just had a chance to read them. Thank you so much! I'm glad that you enjoyed the story. There is plenty more to come and I am hard at work on number three. Please keep me posted.
Thanks for taking the time to read my debut novel.
Folks, let the games begin...…….