Barb Caffrey's Blog

Today is one of those happy occasions, for me at least.

I’ve been a mentor and friend of Piotr Mierzejewski for the past twenty-five years, and my late husband Michael also was a mentor and friend to Piotr. The two of us gave him a great deal of help while Michael was alive, and I continued to do the same after Michael died. I saw promise in his plotting, but at the time, there were some issues he had to straighten out.

Many people, writers included, would’ve given up their dreams of writing something that hits the target dead-on after so many years and so many different attempts, but Piotr is like I am in this. He is relentless. He doesn’t stop until the wall falls down. (Don Quixote has nothing on him.)

Edited to add: Those of you who, like me, sometimes wonder if we’re ever going to make it as writers? You need to do what Piotr has done. He has improved himself year after year as a writer, and now has written something stunningly powerful. That’s the only reason I mentioned how long it took.

In other words, do not stop. As the rock group Hollywood Undead says, “Don’t you ever give up, if you ever get stopped.”

Back to original post, already in progress:

Now, writing as Peter Stanley, Piotr has written such an excellent novella, out today, that I needed to come share it with you right away. (Yes, I edited it, so I’ve been champing at the bit to let you all know for several weeks now.) It’s called “Asset Denied,” and is the first of the Gene Bukowski Files.

Here’s the blurb:

When the Senate demands answers, Gene Bukowski becomes the man in the chair.

A failed operation.

A missing asset.

A cartel leader who should already be dead.

As investigators dig into the past, the story behind the Vargas operation unfolds – revealing a web of intelligence failures, covert deals, and decisions made in the shadows.

But the deeper they dig, the more dangerous the truth becomes.

Because some assets are too valuable to lose.

*** end blurb ***

I’ll try to get you a cover pic later. For now, though, I thought it more important to let you know that a) this ebook is out, b) it’s the first solo effort by any writer for publisher Keith Hedger’s new Defiant House publishing company, and c) it truly is outstanding. It’s available on Kindle Unlimited, so what are you waiting for?

The second bit of news is, I recently reviewed a novel on Amazon by Keith Hedger called MOVING TARGET. (I bought this book over a year ago, long before I knew much about Keith, but only recently got a chance to read it. I was mad at myself after, because of how good this book was.) The review took several days to be posted, and at first I thought it had been disallowed for some weird reason…but it has now been posted, and I’m about to cross-post it here in case it disappears:

It’s called “Good, Fast-Moving Cyberpunk Dystopia That Held My Interest Throughout.”

The main character of Keith Hedger’s intriguing book MOVING TARGET is a young woman named Breeze. She has cyber implants, including ocular implants, has upgraded her muscles and bones as much as she can, and is skillful, determined, and an excellent fighter. But when she and the team she serves with are given a lousy job, she has to try to survive its painful and destructive aftermath.

Breeze is an anti-hero most of the time, but has a genuine decent streak in her that comes out at the oddest times. She refuses to deliberately hurt the innocent. She tries hard to live by her own moral code, and when she can’t, it costs her something. Then, as everything goes to Hell in a handbasket, Breeze must make a deal with some very bad people, one that will upend everything she knows and everyone she’s ever cared about. (I’ll stop there to avoid spoiling your reading.)

There are many reasons to like MOVING TARGET, starting with all the action: it’s believable, fast-moving, and intense. The characterization is vivid and lively. The setting is appropriately dystopian, yet almost instantly recognizable (that’s a neat trick many writers would love to be able to pull off, but can’t, yet Keith Hedger did so seemingly without effort). It’s still the United States, somehow, but darker, moodier, grittier, scarier, and with newer and worse ways for society and those who serve it to fail and keep on failing.

Mind you, Breeze knows that the world is a mess, but she doesn’t really think about it much. (She can’t. It would distract from keeping herself alive.) What she does to try to even the scales (i.e., helping the innocent, going out of her way to leave people alone who are no threat to her) is sensible, logical, and very human.

Despite all the fancy upgrades that extend her strength, her reach, improve her eyesight, etc., Breeze is still a young woman with an old soul, trying to find a way to live life on her own terms. Her journey has some unexpected stops, and the ending seems to come too soon–mostly because we want to know what this interesting woman is going to do next.

Expertly paced and plotted, MOVING TARGET should be on your keeper shelf (or favorite ebook icons, take your pick) if you love suspense, cyberpunk narratives, amoral heroines (with a surprisingly decent streak), and/or just plain good reads. It read fast and well, yet I couldn’t help turning back to the beginning once I’d reached the end (far too soon, as I said before), just to appreciate the craftsmanship that went into setting up Breeze’s journey.

In addition, the journey Breeze took toward finding her lover (paired off late in the book) was quite poignant. (I wish I could say more, but that really would spoil your read. I’m trying hard not to do that.)

Five stars, recommended.

Barb Caffrey

*** End of Review ***

I sign my name to reviews partly because I used to review a lot of books over at Shiny Book Review, and partly because it denotes that I take reviewing seriously. Whether I know someone or not, I take each book as I find it. There have been times in the past I’ve been unimpressed by some of my favorite writers and have said so. (I’m sure they didn’t appreciate it, but it was my honest view.)

In other words, I take ownership of my reviews, as I should, and take the time and effort to figure out what I think, why I think it, and what will likely matter to a reader looking for a new book. Then I talk about those things.

One thing I could’ve mentioned in the review, but didn’t think of at the time and am now kicking myself, is that it reminds me, just a little, of Rosemary Edghill’s three cyberpunk novels starting with HELLFLOWER. Her main character, Butterfly, isn’t much like Breeze. But some of the issues are similar. Rosemary’s novels came out before some of the more celebrated cyberpunk novels in the field, were exceptionally good, and remain exceptionally good. I often re-read them, in fact, and bought several copies of them over the years (print and ebook) as I kept wearing them out (plus I wanted to support Rosemary’s career).

The good thing about books is, they live on after the writer has passed. Rosemary, as I’ve said before, was an outstanding writer who could write in any genre, any field, and do exemplary work that I believe will stand the test of time.

Here, in case any of Keith’s readers didn’t know about her yet, I wanted to let you all know that Rosemary’s books are also out there, are wonderful reads, and while not available on Kindle Unlimited, are ones that you will likely read over and over due to the use of language, the skillful plotting, and the winning nature of heroine Butterfly and the young teenage boy from a military culture she helps, starting with Hellflower and ending with Archangel Blues.

So, today I got to talk about not one, not two, but three fine writers, all in their unique ways. (Sometimes I love writing this blog.)