There's an author who needs some love. Cards on the table. I know the guy. He's written two books. Both take place in Scotland. Both are thrillers, but not necessarily military. Here's the thing. I love Scotland. If you've been then you know the deal. If you haven't this is a great chance to learn about the wonderful country.
The author is James Mack. I know a metric ton of information about him so let me share what he says about himself on his Amazon page so I don't speak out of turn.
James is the real deal.
His first book is Only the Dead.
In the chaos of conflict, Sergeant Finn Douglas, a veteran Royal Marine Commando, is forced to commit a terrible act to save the lives of his men. Haunted by his actions and devastated by the loss of his family to a terrorist attack, he turns his back on war and killing and escapes to a wilderness off the coast of Scotland.
As a team of Military Police are dispatched to track Finn down and bring him to justice, it provides one of the men with the opportunity to redress an old grudge against the Marines.
And he will stop at nothing to see this through.
When a gang of violent wildlife-poachers shatter his sanctuary, Finn has no choice but to intervene in order to save the lives of the people and animals that he has come to admire. But his actions soon provide the Military Police with a lead, and incur the wrath of the poachers' psychotic leader.
In the mid-winter, mountain wilderness, the manhunt becomes a race against time between the forces of law and order and a vicious murderer determined to take his revenge.
A novel similar to Only the Dead is Bearskin which takes place in Appalachia.
His second book is Fear the Dark.
Police Constable Tess Cameron loves her job in the coastal village of St Cyrus. With her Sergeant due for retirement, Tess has her sights set on making detective. Life is good.
When she arrests a violent stranger who refuses to reveal his identity, Tess suspects that all is not as it seems. Digging further into the background of the mysterious stranger, she finds that he is a disgraced former Special Forces soldier with a chequered past.
When the worst storm of winter hits the village and communications and electricity are cut, the severe weather is blamed. Tess however, feels that something more sinister may be responsible for their isolation.
Because the stranger has friends.
This has the feeling of a rural Attack on Precinct 13. I've been to the setting and James nailed it.
So there you have it. Two great books. Please give them a try.
