JON LAND: STRONG VENGEANCE

DEBORAH CROMBIE: A big welcome here at Jungle Red to Jon Land! For our THRILLER FORTNIGHT, we've had two authors with male protagonists this week. Now Jon is going to give us a different twist.  I love the premise of this book, and I love that Jon's heroine, Caitlin Strong, is a Texas Ranger. Here's a little set-up for Jon's new Caitlin Strong novel, STRONG VENGEANCE:

 1818:  In the Gulf waters off the Texas coast, the pirate Jean Lafitte and his partner Jim Bowie launch an attack on the Mother Mary, a slave ship carrying an invaluable treasure.

The Present:  Fifth-generation Texas Ranger Caitlin Strong finds herself investigating the murder of an oil rig crew that had found the long-lost wreckage of the Mother Mary.  But the crew also uncovered something else beneath the surface of the sea—something connected to a devastating attack about to be launched on the United States by a mad American-born cleric who has recruited an army of homegrown terrorists.

With the stakes higher and evil darker than any she has encountered before, Caitlin races to find the connection between the treasure pilfered centuries before and the deadly secret hidden on the bottom of the ocean today.  This as she struggles to raise the teenage sons of her imprisoned lover Cort Wesley Masters who secures his release just in time to join the fight by her side.

But shadows and subterfuge abound, starting with Teofilo Braga, a waste management baron hiding secrets born of his own past that are somehow linked to the threats America is facing.  Caitlin’s desperate path plunges her deep into that past and an unsolved mass murder committed near the island refuge of Lafitte himself.

Caitlin’s only chance to defeat the terrorists lies in first solving that 30-year-old mystery.  In the end, only the strongest of vengeance can win the day, Caitlin and Cort Wesley standing with guns ready to save the country from the greatest threat it has ever faced.

Now, Jon tells us why he chose a female protagonist for his thrillers.

CAITLIN STRONG: ACTION HERO!

          Female action hero.  For many thriller fans, that’s an oxymoron.  And you can’t really blame them.  A woman capable of mixing it up with the likes of Lee Child’s Jack Reacher?  Come on, no way, right?

            Wrong.  Caitlin Strong, who returns this month in Strong Vengeance, is a Texas Ranger capable of mixing it up with just about everyone.  Her past three adventures have pitted her against a villainous Haliburton-like company responsible for torturing her husband (Strong Enough to Die), a renegade Mexican colonel about to launch a guerilla war against the U.S. (Strong Justice), and a radical right-wing militia intent on starting a second civil war (Strong at the Break).  Now in Strong Vengeance she’s up against homegrown Islamic terrorists planning to wipe out the United States as we know it.   Those plotlines may seem more fit for Steve Berry’s Cotton Malone, James Rollins’ Sigma Force, Brad Thor’s Scott Harvath, or Vince Flynn’s wonderful Mitch Rapp.  Only difference is they’re men . . . and not Texas Rangers either.

            See, it comes down to credibility.  Building a believable female action hero starts with a foundation the audience will buy into and the Texas Rangers form the perfect basis for that.  These lawmen (and now lawwomen!) have been legends for nearly two centuries now, coming to exemplify the lone hero so vital to the development of American fiction in general.  The Rangers’ exploits have reached a mythic, virtually iconic level and they remain to this day symbols of standing up for what’s right no matter the odds.  Which describes Caitlin dead solid perfect.

            Of course, some will say that casting female Caitlin in the all-male Texas Rangers strains credibility in its own right.  So I made her not just a Ranger, but a fifth generation Ranger with her forbears all being veritable legends in this exclusive community.  That helps lead to her being accepted but, ultimately, she has no problem proving herself against bad guys every bit the equal of those run down by Caitlin’s father Jim and her grandfather Earl Strong.  That’s why I decided to frame all the Strong books by featuring them in subplots set in the past that inevitably turn out to be connected to what and who Caitlin’s pursuing in the present.  In Strong Vengeance, for example, Caitlin has to solve the thirty-year-old mass murder of five college students, a case her legendary father and grandfather never solved, in order to stop those homegrown terrorists from wreaking havoc on the nation.  And there must be something about her as a female action hero that’s resonating, because here’s some breaking news:  Sony has just optioned the first book in the series (Strong Enough to Die) in order to build a television series around Caitlin!  Hey, we’ve still got a long way to go but at least she—and I—have a shot (no pun intended!).

            Stephen King once said “it’s not the tale, it’s the telling.”  Well, for me it’s not the gender, it’s the person.  And Caitlin Strong can stand toe-to-toe with any of her contemporaries, even though that doesn’t necessarily mean eye-to-eye.

         

So what do you think, readers?  Can a male author effectively write a female hero?  Do you think terrorism is overdone as a theme or does the "homegrown" angle here make it different enough to be of interest?  And I'd like to know what you think makes a great thriller and would love to hear some of your favorites and why.

Jon Land is the bestselling author of thirty thrillers, most recently the Caitlin Strong series that includes Strong Enough to Die, Strong Justice, and Strong at the Break.  The next entry, Strong Vengeance, will be available just in time for ThrillerFest.  He’s also bringing back his longtime action hero Blaine McCracken in Pandora’s Temple for Open Road Media in November and this past year published his first ever nonfiction book, Betrayal. Betrayal is currently being developed as a television series by Fox for Denis Leery and Jon just inked a deal with Sony to bring Caitlin Strong to the small screen as well.  He lives in Providence, Rhode Island and can be found on the Web at jonlandbooks.com. 

DEBS: Jon will be stopping in to respond to your questions and comments, AND he's very kindly offered to give three copies of STRONG VENGEANCE to lucky readers who comment, so get your names in the hat!

JAMES ROLLINS: BLOODLINE

DEBORAH CROMBIE: James Rollins needs no introduction from me, so I'll just say how thrilled I am to have him joining us on Jungle Red for THRILLER FORTNIGHT.  And that if there is anything I like better than suspense, it's suspense and DOGS! Here's James to tell you all about his new book, BLOODLINE!

Gone to the Dogs

By James Rollins

If you ever want to truly make an author cringe, ask him this question:  “Where do you get your ideas from?”  It is the inevitable query at any book signing. I think most of us dance around trying to answer that because ultimately we don’t know—and we fear any attempt to look inward risks chasing off that Muse of New Story Ideas. However, there is probably one commonality among authors: we always have our antenna up, waiting to receive that next big idea or exciting new character from our muse.

For my latest book (Bloodline) that muse arrived in the shape of a dog wearing a vest, attached by a leash to a man wearing body armor.

In the winter of 2010, I participated in a USO tour of authors to bases in Iraq and Kuwait. It was a great opportunity to give back and thank the warriors out there in harm’s way. But as a veterinarian myself, I was drawn to those four-legged warriors and the men and women who “handled” them. I was lucky enough to see these pairs working and training, but also playing. It was abundantly clear that there was a strikingly unique bond between handler and war dog, and I wanted to learn more.

At a base in Mosul, I ran into a veterinary school classmate of mine from the University of Missouri. We were both equally surprised to have this mini-reunion in the deserts of Iraq. Twenty-five years had passed since we both graduated, and we were a long way from our old school. He was a member of the Army veterinary corps, and beyond catching up, I learned about his role working with these war dogs, along with what it’s like to be a veterinarian in the military.

After that talk, after seeing those dogs in the field, I knew I wanted to try to bring these unique heroes to the page. The first recorded use of war dogs goes back to 4000 B.C., to ancient Egypt, where dogs were used in battle. The more modern use of military working dogs by the U.S. military truly started in World War II, where family dogs were volunteered into service. Since then, dogs have become an integral part of the U.S. military—including the dog, Cairo, who was involved with the takedown of Osama Bin Laden.

But what I found the most enlightening and moving was the deep and lasting bond between dog and handler. The pair work, train, eat, and often sleep together. As a result of this intimacy, handlers have developed a phrase to describe their relationship with their dogs—It runs down the lead—describing how the emotions of the pair became shared over time, binding them together as firmly as any leash. Some claim that their dogs understand them better than their own spouses. And it’s that bond and ability for the two to operate as one that I wanted to try to capture in this new book.

I also sought one other goal in this novel. As a veterinarian, with three decades of working with dogs, I wanted to portray these stalwart war heroes as they really are—not just as soldiers with four legs, but as real dogs. In this book, I wrote several scenes from a dog’s perspective. I wanted readers to experience what it’s like to be a war dog--to be in their paws--to paint an accurate portrayal of how a dog perceives the world, of how he functions in combat with his unique talents and senses. It was my small way of giving back, of honoring these exceptional American heroes. I hope I did them justice—because they deserve it.  

JAMES ROLLINS is the New York Times bestselling author of international thrillers, translated into more than forty languages. His Sigma series has been lauded as one of the “top crowd pleasers” (New York Times) and one of the “hottest summer reads” (People Magazine). In each novel, acclaimed for its originality, Rollins unveils unseen worlds, scientific breakthroughs, and historical secrets--and he does it all at breakneck speed and with stunning insight. 

DEBS: As an owner of German shepherds, so often used as military working dogs, and having written a novel that revolves around search and rescue dogs and the unique bond that develops between working dogs and their handlers, I am absolutely fascinated by the premise for this book. Jim will be checking in today to chat and answer questions, so please stop by,  say "hi," and find out more about BLOODLINE.

 

       

FAVE 4ths!

DEBORAH CROMBIE: Did you ever wonder how we Americans would celebrate the adoption of the Declaration of Independence if it had been signed on, say, January 4th, 1776? Snowballs? Chestnuts roasting on an open fire? Rum punch?


But as it is, we know the drill--picnics, hotdogs, concerts, fireworks, as well as, for many of us, lots of sunscreen and mosquito repellent.


For the past few years we've spent our July 4ths at dear friends; dipping in their pool, grilling, chatting with a convivial group, and then at dark, carrying our lawn chairs out into the street to watch a nearby fireworks show. But a few months ago, our friends moved to Louisiana, and we are really going to miss our special celebrations with them.


But as for me, having just finished writing a book, this 4th of July I suspect I won't mind curling up on the sofa and napping.  Maybe we'll watch Independence Day. And we do have hotdogs, local organic ones. My hubby found these directions for making spiral hot dogs--isn't that fun? We'll let you know how that works.


So how about you, REDS and readers? What's your fave way to spend your 4th?


(And a little safety reminder from JR: Stay cool, and keep your dogs and cats inside.  More pets are lost on the 4th of July than any other day of the year.)

HAPPY 4th OF JULY FROM JUNGLE RED!