All books written by me, Terry Morgan, are protected by copyright as are film and TV rights and all related scripts.
"PARK ROAD"
Originally published as BAD BOYS on Smashwords in 2022
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1047983.
Total length: 100,000 words.
Following feedback this revised version was published online in March 2023 and as a paperback n April 2023.
This story started as an experiment in writing style and a venture into sensitive ethnic, cultural and social problems.The result was a 100,000 word novel that I completed in 6 months.
Park Road lies at the heart of a poor, run-down inner-city area with long standing social, ethnic and religious issues that have, for years, been studiously ignored by law enforcement and social services in order to avoid creating ethnic and religious tension.
Park Road is a sensitive, thought-provoking and possibly controversial story that started out as a study of two, fatherless young men: Qasim from Pakistani parents and Kevin, mixed race Pakistani-English. But two boys became four and then five and so we now have Walid, a parentless refugee from Syria and nineteen year olds, Kurt and Winston from Nigeria.
The backstreets have always been a good recruiting ground for terrorist groups like ISIL and the story moves from Turkey to northern Syria and, with ISIL planning to move from the Middle East to focus on South East Asia, they are looking for more. It’s Qassim (Cass) who is their target.
I' made Kurt the narrator because:
“You’re the genius. Kurt. You’re the only one who got an A in English at school.” Cass suggested.
“And you got style,” Kevin said.
“And wit,” Walid added.
“And a nice turn of phrase," Winston said.
And Kurt agreed: “Yeh, OK, then. I’ll admit to my superior intellect. It’s my ethnicity. Intelligence flows through my veins because it’s in my African genes.”
COMMENT:
"I have not been able to put your book down the moment I started. The plot is compelling, to say the least. Bad Boys has given me an all new perspective and I have you to thank for that."
"Prisoners" (of Conscience & Circumstance), an updated & illustrated version of "The Cage" was published on Smashwords and Free-ebooks.net during 2019.
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/918881
https://www.free-ebooks.net/ebook/Prisoners 5 X Five Star Ratings as at August 2019!
The paperback version was released on 25th March 2019 - available free, on request.
Short Synopsis:
The year is 2050 and the world’s human population has reached 10 billion. In a densely populated mega city blighted by social problems, unemployment and declining living standards a young man, desperate for advice, visits his uncle, an ex-politician and professor of biology and a man many still consider an extremist for his views on human population control.
TOTAL WORDCOUNT: 30,000
NOTE: Is this a novel? I'm not sure.
Writers are always asked to what "genre" their book belongs. I'm being forced to admit I don't know.
Reviews: "Captivating: The real overview of the world now and ...to come" (Free-ebooks)
Several people suggested there were short stories hidden inside most of my novels so, never content to let good suggestions lie unattended, this is the result: six short stories.
The paper back version is available direct from me.
The Red Lantern is a back street Chinese restaurant in the Nigerian capital, Lagos where Frank Marshall has been living for too long when he is approached by businessman Ollie Thomas. Ollie has been tasked with solving the problem of a prominent member of the British House of Lords whose lifestyle as an adviser on African affairs has become a deep embarrassment to the British government. In return for help, Frank is to be offered his long-awaited chance to return to the UK.
Mitchell. Sierra Leonian truck driver Mitchell is so reliable and hard-working that according to Mr Suleiman, Mitchell’s boss at Mambolo Transport Enterprises, he is definitely management material. So, when Mitchell reports that charity goods and even United Nations supplies are finding their way into the warehouse of Rocki General Supplies on Sani Abacha Street, Mr Suleiman quickly concludes that Rocki’s owner, Mr Moses, is “a fraudster, a crook, a skimmer and a thief.” And Mr Suleiman is not one to turn a blind eye. "Mr Moses might pull knife on me,” he says, “But I pull carpet, I pull strings."
The Pink Coconut is an open-air nightclub in Lagos where businessman Ollie Thomas, already a reluctant participant in dubious MI6 operations, meets his Nigerian friend William Akinbiyi in an attempt to stop vast funds of money being diverted from essential medical supplies into the pockets of corrupt individuals. But with Ollie’s suspicions that his corrupt MI6 controller is planning to be one of the main beneficiaries what can they do?
The Peacock, a flashy night spot on the outskirts of Bangkok, has become a meeting place for all sorts of foreign criminals. It’s also where Ritchie Nolan, straight out of drama school and a raw recruit to international commercial crime investigation is sent to infiltrate a Russian-led gang engaged in counterfeiting, money-laundering and narcotics. Posing as Micky Parker from East London with a bag of fake perfume samples to tempt them, his first task job is to become accepted enough to be invited into their gang.
Lazarus. Two self-proclaimed Nigerian Pastors, Lazarus of the Good Tidings Christian Peoples Church and Ayo of Christ's Centre of Holy Visions are up to their necks in corruption, but their fragile relationship is crumbling. Under huge pressure to find two million dollars to pay off politicians and other accomplices, it is the sad, guilt-filled and genuinely God-fearing Lazarus who belatedly realises that Ayo is far better at crime and corruption than he is.
The Printer. Grzegorz Samoszewski (Greg) has retired and lives only to care for Dalia, his sick, wheelchair-bound wife and for the hobby he pursues in his garage – experimenting with high tech printing. But Greg’s quiet life changes abruptly when he receives an unexpected visitor from the local Moslem community seeking some specialist printing jobs. Having succumbed to threats and increasingly worried at what he’s become involved with Greg desperately wants to move away but what can he do with Dalia to take care of? And Greg’s other problem is that he’s Jewish.
TOTAL WORD COUNT: 97,000
"A PROFESSIONAL VENDETTA"
"There aren't enough women in your books" said someone.
Here's the result!
Synopsis:
Eccentric, untidy Oxford University Professor “Eddie” Higgins has become the ‘scientific adviser’ to a local cosmetics company run by its new and vivacious chief executive, Isobel Johnson. It doesn’t begin well. “Yours is an industry dogged by exaggerated claims, impossible claims and false claims,” he tells her. Can they work together and so expose the Russian and Chinese gang exploiting cosmetics companies for counterfeiting, money-laundering and drug smuggling? With the investigation moving between the UK, Thailand and Malaysia it is the relationship between the passionately anti-cosmetics and unkempt Professor Higgins and the vivacious professional business woman Isobel Johnson, that forms a backdrop to the story. With “Eddie” strongly believing that vanity is a human weakness and to exploit ii for profit is in itself a crime, can the two ever work together, accept each other’s views and turn the company around?
Vendetta is the third in the Asher & Asher international crime series with a new, younger face, joining the team.
Total words: 97,000
Reviews:
"A really well written fast-paced action plot. Every woman should read it, although just fiction you might start to think about buying anti-ageing products. I totally enjoyed reading it. Some nice sense of humour also. Downloading more..." (Free e-books)
“Through this fast-moving story of a serious international criminal investigation runs a deeply philosophical and cleverly written analysis of modern society and its emphasis on vanity, selfishness and outward appearance. A truly unique piece of work.”
"There aren't enough women in your books" said someone.
Here's the result!
Synopsis:
Eccentric, untidy Oxford University Professor “Eddie” Higgins has become the ‘scientific adviser’ to a local cosmetics company run by its new and vivacious chief executive, Isobel Johnson. It doesn’t begin well. “Yours is an industry dogged by exaggerated claims, impossible claims and false claims,” he tells her. Can they work together and so expose the Russian and Chinese gang exploiting cosmetics companies for counterfeiting, money-laundering and drug smuggling? With the investigation moving between the UK, Thailand and Malaysia it is the relationship between the passionately anti-cosmetics and unkempt Professor Higgins and the vivacious professional business woman Isobel Johnson, that forms a backdrop to the story. With “Eddie” strongly believing that vanity is a human weakness and to exploit ii for profit is in itself a crime, can the two ever work together, accept each other’s views and turn the company around?
Vendetta is the third in the Asher & Asher international crime series with a new, younger face, joining the team.
Total words: 97,000
Reviews:
"A really well written fast-paced action plot. Every woman should read it, although just fiction you might start to think about buying anti-ageing products. I totally enjoyed reading it. Some nice sense of humour also. Downloading more..." (Free e-books)
“Through this fast-moving story of a serious international criminal investigation runs a deeply philosophical and cleverly written analysis of modern society and its emphasis on vanity, selfishness and outward appearance. A truly unique piece of work.”
"AN HONOURABLE FAKE"
The paperback version is available directly from me
Total length 103,000 words
Some comments from readers:
"...a rare sort of political thriller - a black African hero!"
"...accomplished and knowledgeable - a class follow up to Whistleblower."
"...I lent it to a friend, who has now read all your books ....great story line."
"…I just wish this guy, Gabriel, was for real. Africa needs someone like that."
And some background to writing the novel:
I haven't been to Nigeria for a while. It's a country I used to know very well and I still follow all its news. I love the people but the country itself worries me deeply. It has so much potential but so many problems - overpopulation, the economy, poverty, corruption, terrorism. Studying it is like holding up a mirror to the future for us all.
I feel it's too big, too diverse and too unmanageable but there are other even bigger countries (India for instance) that will, no doubt, become a 'super power' in the not too distant future, so I might be wrong.
But I am hopeful for President Muhammadu Buhari. He is an outspoken man who understands the problems and is desperate for change, but a huge burden lies on his ageing shoulders. I wish him well.
The main character in this story (which is based just a few years into the future) is a charismatic 'fake pastor' risen from the Makoko slums of Lagos, a hero to some for his views on terrorism, poverty, fraud and corruption but an enemy to others who see him as a threat to their own power and lifestyle.
I like to write about things that could, quite feasibly, be true but that's not always easy when news unfolds and things change on a daily basis.
I'd like to think that this novel might also strike a note among younger Africans, after all the future of their countries lie very much in their hands.
Synopsis:
At age fourteen Femi Akindele, an orphaned street-boy from the Makoko slum in Lagos decided to call himself Pastor Gabriel Joshua. Unqualified and self-taught and now in his mid-forties Gabriel has become a highly acclaimed international speaker on African affairs, economics, terrorism, corruption, fraud and the widespread poverty and economic migration that results.
But Gabriel soon discovers that popularity never guarantees solutions or support for change. Together with his loyal, boyhood friend Tunde Oyedepo who, aged thirteen, became Solomon, Gabriel’s long ambition has been to create an alternative society funded by private donations and profits from their own company, Solomon Trading. But the area he has chosen for his economic experiment lies on the poverty ridden but dangerous northern borders of Nigeria and, if he is to achieve anything and attract investment, it’ll need defending from the ongoing terrorism that still plagues the area. With the US, UK and other Western powers still unwilling to help, Gabriel again decides to do it himself with a small, private army run by an ex British SAS soldier.
But then Gabriel receives notice of an international arrest warrant falsely alleging fraud, corruption and money-laundering by Solomon Trading in connection with a big Nigerian government contract. This is followed by the murder of Solomon Trading’s London-based manager.
In an attempt to understand what is going on and who is behind it, they employ the services of London-based international commercial crime investigators Asher & Asher.
What Mark Dobson from A & A uncovers is a mixture of corporate politics – Russian and French – and a highly-organised group of wealthy and corrupt individuals already financing a terrorist operation (the COK) with one purpose in mind – the overthrow of the democratically elected Nigerian President and the establishment of a vast, new West African state. What stands in their way is the widespread popularity of Gabriel Joshua, the recently elected Nigerian President Hamed Massoud Azazi. and the newly appointed head of the Nigerian State Security Service, Colonel Martin Abisola.
"WHISTLEBLOWER"
WHISTLEBLOWER"
The paperback version and the full film and TV script for Whistleblower is available direct from me.
BOOK WORD COUNT:: 120,000 words (426pages)
The further I got into writing this novel, the more I grew to like and respect Jim Smith the main character. Beard apart I suppose he's a bit like me - a man with basic needs who believes money doesn't guarantee happiness and that it doesn't make sense to stay quiet when you believe something's wrong.
SYNOPSIS
Rather than a synopsis, here are some reviews:
"..This book has the sort of political intrigue that captivates viewers of shows like "House of Cards," but the main man is actually a decent person in "Whistle blower." As someone who prefers protagonists on the correct moral side of the spectrum, it made the book that much more enjoyable. (AMAZON)
".."Whistleblower", by Terry Morgan, is an international thriller that stretches from England to Thailand with many stops in between. The plot centers around the timely topic of international aid money and the criminals who feed on it. The hero, the story's whistleblower, is British ex-politician Jim Smith, and the story follows him around the globe as he seeks to put a stop to the corruption. Morgan, a world traveller who now resides in Thailand, knows his locations well. Cities in Italy and Africa come alive, and Jim Smith's home in off-the-beaten-path Thailand is wonderfully described, allowing readers to feel like they're there--this is no easy thing to do, and the authenticity of the various settings is a real strength of the book. Another strength includes the protagonist. Smith is not a typical hero. He's older and lacks the suaveness and action-hero credentials of a James Bond or Jason Bourne, but he more than makes up for it with his intelligence and depth--a big pleasure in the book is being invited into this man's life as he tries to pick up the pieces after an underhanded campaign aimed at ruining him. The plot moves along briskly, and the technology, players (politicians, intelligence agencies, criminals), and small details about the finance industry all add up to a novel rich in credibility and intrigue. Anyone interested in seeing the world from the comfort of a good armchair should read Morgan's book." (AMAZON)
E"...Excellent plot and great characterisation; I enjoyed the story all the way through." (Free E-books)
"...Fast moving with an International backdrop. An outspoken British MP on a mission to untangle a fraudulent network, siphoning off millions of taxpayers aid money right under the noses of European institutions. Threats, blackmail and cyber crime. A creaking, self serving, bureaucratic system, run by committee, gives perfect cover to the powerful and corrupt. In a world of light touch regulation and automated checks and balances, the story offers credible glimpses of how these institutions are run. Ultimately, it takes American involvement to hone the efforts of rooting out the endemic corruption. Great stuff."
"An engrossing read written with knowledge, skill and great sensitivity."
"......an action-packed political drama...........a fast-paced thriller, one that will have you sitting on the edge of your seat and waiting for more. Corruption is a major issue for countries all over the world and there are many authors who are talking about this, but I feel like Terry Morgan has done, by far, the best job of it."
"....a spellbinding thriller............... exploring themes of politics, justice, crime, and a character’s unwavering quest to expose the truth...... This is a breezy read with characters that readers will enjoy.
"......a spellbinding thriller with a memorable protagonist and a cast of strong characters....... Whistleblower is well-plotted and skilfully written, and I enjoyed everything from the gorgeous prose to the deft character handling. It is fast; it is exciting; it is surprisingly delightful."
"....Fans of realistic, tough and gritty modern fiction are sure to adore the work of author Terry Morgan, who brings thrills and action to the world of the global political conspiracy genre with great gusto. The atmosphere surrounding protagonist Jim Smith is constantly thick with subterfuge, secrets, and lies, and the threat is conveyed beautifully with Morgan’s sharp prose and atmospheric dialogue. Each chapter is a masterclass in heightening tension..."
"...an incredible mystery/thriller that would actually be a great motion picture as well.."
"....The characters are well-developed and the plot ingeniously thought-out. Great writing, punctuated with exciting dialogues. The setting is captured in vivid descriptions and Terry Morgan gives readers strong imagery .....a breezy read with characters that readers will enjoy."
"...Intriguing book with a germane plot of the problem of the scams and abuses of international foreign aid that continue to beset us today. The amounts of money squandered, stolen and disappearing are staggering. This plot is further enhanced by the credible research and verifiable facts. Also, refreshing to find a protagonist of retired age exposing this corruption at personal risk and with single minded perseverance despite the odds stacked against him. A morality play that deserves reading and that begs governments to take a hard look at their hypocritical aid programs that seldom, if ever, assist the people they were intended to help. The worse part is that the problem is not unknown but little supervision or enforcement guarantees the continued corruption. Looking forward to reading the sequel." (Free Books, August 2021)
EXCERPT FROM THE PROLOGUE:
Jim Smith talking to US Senator Colin Stafford and FBI Legal Attache, Stephen Lockhart, at the US Embassy, London.
"Make no mistake, these are powerful people. They already have money and resources but they are out to make even more. Security is what keeps them out of sight. Politics and bribery is what shuts mouths. Threats and fears of repercussions are what keeps people in their place. That is the power they think they have over everyone.
They depend on ordinary people only interested in holding onto ordinary jobs by doing ordinary things - things they are told to do, day-to-day. But they'll use anyone - politicians, big and small businesses, the press, PR consultants, magazine and newspaper editors, TV, the radio - they'll pay anyone for a story or a piece of news or comment to counter suggestions that things are not as clean as they appear. They'll hack phones and they'll record conversations. And if all that doesn't work then they'll bring in the really nasty elements - underworld characters who know nothing of what is going on but who'll do anything for the promise of big money.
It is a sort of white collar mafia who have learned to specialise in this form of crime. With just a few sitting at the very top there is a structure of lesser fraudsters beneath, all kept in order by threats, blackmail, bribes and promises of money.
Finding those at the top might not be as difficult as we think, but they will be protected by a reputation of dignity, professionalism and status that has been deliberately constructed to make any accusations from outside look absurd and totally inconceivable. I tried the accusations route and I was the one made to look absurd.
And they are using technology, software, the internet - anything that will help to conceal what they are doing. As for their helpers - the lesser fraudsters - they will want to keep them in charge of the day to day operations because they still need them. They need all the systems to appear to be working normally and efficiently, because they might one day need to explain away security and bureaucratic weaknesses they have been ruling over for years and to find plausible excuses for the vast sums of tax payers money they have lost and stolen. That is when the complete innocents and the lesser fraudsters will suddenly find fingers being pointed directly at them. They will become the dispensable, sacrificial offerings to muddy the waters and divert attention.
I know all this because it happened to me. That's why I stayed out of sight for a while, but I always planned to come back to renew my campaign.
So be aware. Those fraudsters sitting at the top will not look like criminals. As they go about their public lives they will look and appear calm and normal because they feel untouchable.
And even if massive fraud was proven, would they automatically lose their freedom, their jobs, their status, their pensions? No, not necessarily. Because the entire system is designed to automatically cover up such activity and if it ever came to public enquiries - which is unlikely - they would point fingers at each other and then hide without fear of prosecution behind the complexity of the organisation. Things like that would take years, if ever, to come to Court.
So we will probably show that the whole system is at fault here. Whether we can do anything about it in our own small way I really don't know, but I'm damned sure the millions of hard-working, honest, tax payers out there would support us in anything we do. That is where our strength lies.""
The paperback version and the full film and TV script for Whistleblower is available direct from me.
BOOK WORD COUNT:: 120,000 words (426pages)
The further I got into writing this novel, the more I grew to like and respect Jim Smith the main character. Beard apart I suppose he's a bit like me - a man with basic needs who believes money doesn't guarantee happiness and that it doesn't make sense to stay quiet when you believe something's wrong.
SYNOPSIS
Rather than a synopsis, here are some reviews:
"..This book has the sort of political intrigue that captivates viewers of shows like "House of Cards," but the main man is actually a decent person in "Whistle blower." As someone who prefers protagonists on the correct moral side of the spectrum, it made the book that much more enjoyable. (AMAZON)
".."Whistleblower", by Terry Morgan, is an international thriller that stretches from England to Thailand with many stops in between. The plot centers around the timely topic of international aid money and the criminals who feed on it. The hero, the story's whistleblower, is British ex-politician Jim Smith, and the story follows him around the globe as he seeks to put a stop to the corruption. Morgan, a world traveller who now resides in Thailand, knows his locations well. Cities in Italy and Africa come alive, and Jim Smith's home in off-the-beaten-path Thailand is wonderfully described, allowing readers to feel like they're there--this is no easy thing to do, and the authenticity of the various settings is a real strength of the book. Another strength includes the protagonist. Smith is not a typical hero. He's older and lacks the suaveness and action-hero credentials of a James Bond or Jason Bourne, but he more than makes up for it with his intelligence and depth--a big pleasure in the book is being invited into this man's life as he tries to pick up the pieces after an underhanded campaign aimed at ruining him. The plot moves along briskly, and the technology, players (politicians, intelligence agencies, criminals), and small details about the finance industry all add up to a novel rich in credibility and intrigue. Anyone interested in seeing the world from the comfort of a good armchair should read Morgan's book." (AMAZON)
E"...Excellent plot and great characterisation; I enjoyed the story all the way through." (Free E-books)
"...Fast moving with an International backdrop. An outspoken British MP on a mission to untangle a fraudulent network, siphoning off millions of taxpayers aid money right under the noses of European institutions. Threats, blackmail and cyber crime. A creaking, self serving, bureaucratic system, run by committee, gives perfect cover to the powerful and corrupt. In a world of light touch regulation and automated checks and balances, the story offers credible glimpses of how these institutions are run. Ultimately, it takes American involvement to hone the efforts of rooting out the endemic corruption. Great stuff."
"An engrossing read written with knowledge, skill and great sensitivity."
"......an action-packed political drama...........a fast-paced thriller, one that will have you sitting on the edge of your seat and waiting for more. Corruption is a major issue for countries all over the world and there are many authors who are talking about this, but I feel like Terry Morgan has done, by far, the best job of it."
"....a spellbinding thriller............... exploring themes of politics, justice, crime, and a character’s unwavering quest to expose the truth...... This is a breezy read with characters that readers will enjoy.
"......a spellbinding thriller with a memorable protagonist and a cast of strong characters....... Whistleblower is well-plotted and skilfully written, and I enjoyed everything from the gorgeous prose to the deft character handling. It is fast; it is exciting; it is surprisingly delightful."
"....Fans of realistic, tough and gritty modern fiction are sure to adore the work of author Terry Morgan, who brings thrills and action to the world of the global political conspiracy genre with great gusto. The atmosphere surrounding protagonist Jim Smith is constantly thick with subterfuge, secrets, and lies, and the threat is conveyed beautifully with Morgan’s sharp prose and atmospheric dialogue. Each chapter is a masterclass in heightening tension..."
"...an incredible mystery/thriller that would actually be a great motion picture as well.."
"....The characters are well-developed and the plot ingeniously thought-out. Great writing, punctuated with exciting dialogues. The setting is captured in vivid descriptions and Terry Morgan gives readers strong imagery .....a breezy read with characters that readers will enjoy."
"...Intriguing book with a germane plot of the problem of the scams and abuses of international foreign aid that continue to beset us today. The amounts of money squandered, stolen and disappearing are staggering. This plot is further enhanced by the credible research and verifiable facts. Also, refreshing to find a protagonist of retired age exposing this corruption at personal risk and with single minded perseverance despite the odds stacked against him. A morality play that deserves reading and that begs governments to take a hard look at their hypocritical aid programs that seldom, if ever, assist the people they were intended to help. The worse part is that the problem is not unknown but little supervision or enforcement guarantees the continued corruption. Looking forward to reading the sequel." (Free Books, August 2021)
EXCERPT FROM THE PROLOGUE:
Jim Smith talking to US Senator Colin Stafford and FBI Legal Attache, Stephen Lockhart, at the US Embassy, London.
"Make no mistake, these are powerful people. They already have money and resources but they are out to make even more. Security is what keeps them out of sight. Politics and bribery is what shuts mouths. Threats and fears of repercussions are what keeps people in their place. That is the power they think they have over everyone.
They depend on ordinary people only interested in holding onto ordinary jobs by doing ordinary things - things they are told to do, day-to-day. But they'll use anyone - politicians, big and small businesses, the press, PR consultants, magazine and newspaper editors, TV, the radio - they'll pay anyone for a story or a piece of news or comment to counter suggestions that things are not as clean as they appear. They'll hack phones and they'll record conversations. And if all that doesn't work then they'll bring in the really nasty elements - underworld characters who know nothing of what is going on but who'll do anything for the promise of big money.
It is a sort of white collar mafia who have learned to specialise in this form of crime. With just a few sitting at the very top there is a structure of lesser fraudsters beneath, all kept in order by threats, blackmail, bribes and promises of money.
Finding those at the top might not be as difficult as we think, but they will be protected by a reputation of dignity, professionalism and status that has been deliberately constructed to make any accusations from outside look absurd and totally inconceivable. I tried the accusations route and I was the one made to look absurd.
And they are using technology, software, the internet - anything that will help to conceal what they are doing. As for their helpers - the lesser fraudsters - they will want to keep them in charge of the day to day operations because they still need them. They need all the systems to appear to be working normally and efficiently, because they might one day need to explain away security and bureaucratic weaknesses they have been ruling over for years and to find plausible excuses for the vast sums of tax payers money they have lost and stolen. That is when the complete innocents and the lesser fraudsters will suddenly find fingers being pointed directly at them. They will become the dispensable, sacrificial offerings to muddy the waters and divert attention.
I know all this because it happened to me. That's why I stayed out of sight for a while, but I always planned to come back to renew my campaign.
So be aware. Those fraudsters sitting at the top will not look like criminals. As they go about their public lives they will look and appear calm and normal because they feel untouchable.
And even if massive fraud was proven, would they automatically lose their freedom, their jobs, their status, their pensions? No, not necessarily. Because the entire system is designed to automatically cover up such activity and if it ever came to public enquiries - which is unlikely - they would point fingers at each other and then hide without fear of prosecution behind the complexity of the organisation. Things like that would take years, if ever, to come to Court.
So we will probably show that the whole system is at fault here. Whether we can do anything about it in our own small way I really don't know, but I'm damned sure the millions of hard-working, honest, tax payers out there would support us in anything we do. That is where our strength lies.""
'AN OLD SPY STORY'
The paperback version is available directly from me.
'An Old Spy Story' was my first full length novel. Drafted mostly whilst I was travelling on business.
it was first self-published as a paper back in 2012 but I've changed it several times since then.
The story came direct from my heart & I challenge anyone to write a book like this without having travelled alone, worldwide, on business, and done the sort of things that the main character, Ollie Thomas, has done. Several characters in the book are based around people I've actually met but dear old Ollie became a real close friend to me during the six years or so it took to write the book and develop his character. Ollie made me laugh and he made me cry. He was eighty six years old in the story and I like to think he's still going strong though I hope he's given up on the whisky.
Short synopsis:
The old spy in “An Old Spy Story” is eighty-six years old Oliver (“Ollie”) Thomas.
Still wracked by guilt and anger over his past, Ollie makes one last attempt to settle unfinished business. During a long career struggling to make an honest living with his own export company, Ollie carried out parallel assignments in Africa and the Middle East connected to British Intelligence. Through the use of threats and blackmail from his controller, Major Alex Donaldson, Ollie became embroiled in Donaldson's private money making schemes including assassination, money laundering in Africa and arms shipments to the IRA through Libya. Now, recently widowed and alone, Ollie goes on one, last assignment - to deal with Donaldson.
WORD COUNT: 120,000
REVIEWS & COMMENTS:
"...a masterful tale by someone who knows exactly what he's writing about..........John Le Carre? Watch out....."
"This is no ordinary espionage story and if you only read the chapter on 'Sarah' you'll see why. This chapter is so good it made me cry and few books have ever managed to do that.........."
"...Having been in business for myself and traveled well, I loved this plot. Linking the Cotswolds with international trade, bribery, corruption and the murky workings of British Intelligence. The depiction of the many fixers and middle men ring so true, as do the dubious business practices. Gritty descriptions of far flung cities and their low budget hotels give a convincing portrayal of how much import-export business used to be done - maybe it still is! Easy reading."
"...Plenty of action and a compelling read, the writers description of the death of Olly's elderly wife, is very moving. Very good read, and a pretty accurate description of that kind of business!"
"...just read it. A wonderful and moving love story from an elderly man's perspective is beautifully woven into it and the ending is masterful"
"...I enjoyed it, exciting, endlessly beguiling and fun."
"...an excellent portrayal of a third rate spook - not officially on the books - who operates outside diplomatic channels and without any proper protection. Always in a danger zone our aged hero gets the job done despite his wife's death and his growing addiction to booze. This is a very compelling read from a 'knowledgeable' author."
"...thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish. A remarkable book from a new writer who has quite clearly been there and done it - easy reading."
"When I read it, John le Carre kept coming to mind, but you know what? - I found it a lot easier to read! Nice work."
THE MALTHUS PANDEMIC”
(Following the COVID-19 outbreak, a revised edition was publisheed in September 2020)
The paperback version is available directly from me.
TOTAL WORD COUNT: 127,000
This was the first in the Asher & Asher international crime novels. It is a thriller that moves around some countries I know well. It's about a high flying virologist deciding it was time to do something about uncontrolled population growth because, as he says, over-population is too sensitive a subject for politicians and they won't discuss it. And yet it is the basic cause of most of the world's problems: poverty, environmental destruction, conflict and mass migration.
In the story the virologist teams up with a rogue organisation to spread a designer virus he has created - an extreme action, maybe, but all very feasible. I trained as a biologist before going in to business and human over-population is a subject I feel very strongly about. For every downloaded e-book, I contribute £1 to 'Population Matters.'
http://www.populationmatters.org
PROLOGUE to the new edition:
No-one asked questions when the Kofi Clinic opened on that hot, dusty and chaotic side street in the centre of Kano, Nigeria’s second city. In Kano, things just happened. People came and then they went.
Perhaps the old lady who sat mending torn clothes or the man next door who mended bicycles saw something. Perhaps, too, the old man who sat every day on an old tyre that lay amongst the accumulated urban debris and watched and listened to the crowds of jostling people, trucks, buses, taxis and carts going to and from the market place also noticed. But no-one cared.
In a crowded city of four million people, where three million lived in poverty, why should they have noticed the stranger, a big man in a long white bubu and wearing a traditional hand-woven cap? Here was a man like everyone else who came and went in the heat and dust. Perhaps only the sewing lady, the bicycle man and the old man who sat on the tyre saw him arrive one morning and take delivery of a second hand desk, some wooden chairs, a metal filing cabinet and a cardboard sign printed with a red cross and the words ‘Kofi Clinic, Doctor A. Mustafa’. Perhaps, too, they were the only ones who watched him fixed that sign above the door with a hammer and two nails.
If anyone had heard him speak, they would have heard Arabic but not Hausa and, anyway, he never stayed long enough to strike up a conversation because he’d quickly head back to his room at the Grand Central Hotel.
It was at the Grand Central that Doctor Mustafa met the white man who joined him for one quick visit to the Kofi Clinic before leaving on a flight to Nairobi.
No-one turned up at Doctor Mustafa’s clinic when one evening, shortly after the white man’s visit, a light was turned on and the door was opened for the first time. No-one turned up on the second night either, but on the third night six men were waiting outside when Doctor Mustafa arrived and unlocked the door. On the fourth and fifth evenings, rumour had spread that the Kofi Clinic was not a place to go if you were sick or felt ill but a place that offered cash for testing new medicines.
“Na sana’anta twenty thousand naira,” said one enthusiastic volunteer who emerged waving his money to a man still waiting in the queue outside. “Easy money, man,” he added before heading off to buy a live chicken to take home to his wife and six children.
The Kofi Clinic, its business finished, closed shortly after that and Doctor Mustafa was not seen again. A nail then fell from the sign above the door so that it hung at an angle.
REVIEWS & COMMENTS
SMASHWORDS - July 07, 2014 : "What a fantastic plot! I enjoyed the reading"
'A well researched and realistic thriller that combines bio-terrorism, international commercial crime and the politics surrounding population control and terrorism. A good and easy read.'
"Anchored firmly in the present, no high tech Bond style gadgets, just good old fashioned detective work. Gritty descriptions of the international locations, compelling plot and poignant rants about the inadequacy of democratic institutions and persuasive insight on the inner workings of the global establishment. Easy reading and difficult to put down once started. Enjoyable read."
EXCERPT
"How does a million deaths from a SARS-like virus in the USA sound?" Larry asked the US Ambassador to Nigeria.
"Let me describe a scenario to you. Imagine, if you will, a country that deliberately spreads a virus, like SARS, with no known cure with the intention of wiping out hundreds, thousands, or perhaps millions of people in a neighboring country. Would you call it war using biological weapons, sir? And if it was carried out inside their own country against an ethnic minority for instance it would be called ethnic cleansing or genocide, right?
"Yes, I suppose so," said the Ambassador, "But....."
Larry gave him no chance to interrupt.
"But if it is a private company releasing the virus because they had a treatment or a vaccine ready to launch to make huge profits from, what would you call that, sir? Good business practice?"
"I'd call that very unethical, Larry."
"Yes, and what would you say if some of the scientists behind creating that virus and developing the drug or vaccine not only had a commercial interest in it but held some very extreme political views about the need to reduce the world's population for a hundred reasons that they would, if needed to, site as indisputable evidence for their actions?"
"But that's ridiculous, Larry. They wouldn't be allowed to get away with it with all the checks and balances in place on research of that sort."
"Are you sure there are any proper checks and balances? Because I'm not and I've looked. There are no international policing systems in place. Any rogue scientist could team up with any rogue businessman with a history of fraud or malpractice and hell bent on making even more money - and what's there to stop it?"