Meet Patrick Parker.
All the way from Texas.
I’ve been following Pat on Twitter for some time. His novels have
garnered numerous 4 and 5 star reviews. They’ve won awards.
Here’s a note from his website:
“My goal is to entertain you. I want you
to be thrilled and on the edge of your seat all the time, wondering what is
going to happen next.”
I’m happy to tell you I have a copy of the book Pat is telling us about this week. I’m anxious to dig in.
Patrick has agreed to share the Story Behind the Story with us.
Hi Allan! Thank you for the opportunity to be a guest on the
Scribbler.
Patrick Parker received his
bachelor’s degree in management and his master’s degree in international
relations. He joined the US Army and spent five years in Italy and one in
Germany. After retiring from the military, Parker spent an additional fifteen
years in the defense industry. Now retired again, Parker enjoys writing, going
to the range, and astronomy. He lives in Texas.
Parker is the author of Six Minutes Early, War Merchant,
and Treasures of the
Fourth Reich. All are available through
Amazon.com (http://amzn.to/1izsnBH).
Title: Treasures of the Fourth Reich
Synopsis: Treasures of the Fourth Reich is
based on actual events.
The story
begins in September 1944 in the Alps where SS Major Fabian is planning to
abscond with a large portion of loot the Nazis planned to use to fund the
Fourth Reich. As the officer in charge of security for the mine in which some
of the art works are stored, he has an excellent opportunity for some
sleight-of-hand that will keep him in riches for decades. The art disappears, a
body is found and identified as Fabian’s, and no one is the wiser.
In 1993
Maria Connor, an art expert from Panama and her husband, retired Lieutenant
Colonel Dix Connor, are quietly pursuing their careers in Italy when Maria
becomes fascinated with the tales of lost Nazi plunder. Maria stumbles across
several valuable art pieces she believes were lost during the war. She begins a
clandestine and unofficial investigation when she is shown a panel from the
Amber Room which was originally in the Summer Palace of Peter the Great and
stolen by the Germans when they invaded Russia during the war.
Maria’s
sleuthing leads to Fabian’s journal which documents everything he stole from
the Nazis—a staggering fortune of art treasures—and the locations spread around
the Tirol. During her investigation, Maria gets kidnapped in order to protect
the stolen art from discovery. Dix then enlists the help of friends with
military intelligence connections to help find Maria. They learn that OSS
Officer Robert Hamilton, responsible for the official repatriation and
restitution of the Nazi loot stored away in the Bavarian salt mines, took
advantage of his unique situation and formed a secret organization with a
German farmer. Pegasus, as their organization was called, possessed the only
record of Fabian’s fortune.
Dix and his
friend exchange the journal for Maria, then flee for their lives. Along the way
they learn that certain secret files from the end of the war, thought
destroyed, were going to be turned over to the G-7 during a meeting in Munich.
These files would expose Pegasus and Hamilton as the leader. During the
meeting, Pegasus planned to assassinate the Russian President and destroy the
files. Pegasus kills those that get in the way or are no longer of use to the
organization. Dix and Maria became an obstacle to Pegasus and must be
eliminated.
Armed with
the only evidence against Hamilton, narrowly escaping his last trap, they race
against the clock to the Munich meeting of the G-7 to stop an assassination,
avoid arrest by the authorities, death by Pegasus, and bring down the deadly
organization trafficking in stolen treasures.
The Story Behind the Story: When I was in the Army I lived and traveled
in Europe for six years and was intrigued with European history. I toured and
visited museums, churches and castles in Italy, Germany, Hungary, Switzerland
and Austria. Some were used by the Nazis to store loot, while others concealed
hiding places for the treasures. I read a lot of history about the Nazi
pillage. After reading one story about the Nazi stashes in the Bavarian salt
mines, it occurred to me how it could have played out. So, I took a “what if”
approach to history and wrote the story.
Website: http://bit.ly/1ZEoYGu
A question before you go, Pat.
What have been the most enjoyable
and the least enjoyable about publishing?
I think
the most enjoyable aspects of writing and publishing is when you receive a
review stating how much the reader enjoyed the story. Often, I am asked, “What
parts are real and what parts are fiction?” I always try to make it realistic
and leave the reader asking that question.
I think
the least enjoyable is that it takes a long time, and writing is a solitary
venture.
My other books:
War Merchant
In a world
of espionage, deception, betrayal, terrorism, and murder, Dydre uses the next
assignment Zsigmond gives her—the deliverance of new technology to
terrorists—to escape his merciless grip.
Dydre, a
single mother, is caught up in a world she doesn’t want. Her boss Clayborne
Zsigmond—a black market arms dealer—uses her six-year-old son as a pawn to keep
her in line. Visitation is a reward for her obedient behavior.
Forced to
deal with the worst terrorists and dictators around the world, she uses
disguises and a deadly poison to give her an edge in dealing with those that
want to kill her. To stay alive, she has honed her skills that few could
defeat.
When an
opportunity occurs to break free from Zsigmond, she moves fast but the risks
she takes puts her on the firing line when her plan goes deadly wrong, and
success looks bleak. Those she thought she could trust betray her. Not only is
her life in jeopardy but also her son's as she finds herself pitted against
Zsigmond, his mercenaries, a double-crossing businessman, terrorists, the FBI,
and a man from the Department of Defense.
Six
Minutes Early
Former Delta
Force commander Max Kenworth is comfortable living life far from the front
lines. But when terrorists raid a classified installation containing formidable
portable devices, Kenworth returns to the fray to hunt down the dangerously
equipped enemy. And with a disgraced Special Forces officer leading the attack,
Kenworth fears the U.S. is doomed to face mass destruction.
Bombarded by
bureaucratic incompetence, political corruption, and holes in national
security, Kenworth struggles to locate the operatives and their plundered
nukes. But as the elusive traitor reaches American soil, Kenworth must work
fast to protect millions of innocent lives from radioactive devastation.
Can Kenworth
outsmart the merciless rebels and prevent a nation-wide catastrophe?
Broken
Arrow: Acts of Treason (anticipated release is Spring
2022)
"Broken
Arrow" is the code word used by the military and NATO to describe a lost
or stolen nuclear weapon.
During the
attempted coup d’état in Turkey in 2016, former Green Beret, turned traitor,
teams with terrorists and steals six nuclear weapons from the US Air Base in
Incirlik, Turkey.
Max Kenworth
and his team chase the terrorists across the Middle East and South America,
capturing four of the nukes. One disappears somewhere in the Middle East and
the other one is discovered in Manhattan, NY.
The traitor sets
a trap for Max and takes him prisoner. Does Max get free and disarm the nuke or
does he meet his fate along with Manhattan? No spoilers here. I hope you will
preorder a copy of this thriller when the release is announced.
Thank you
again, Allan, for having me as a guest on the Scribbler!
It’s my
pleasure to have you as a guest, Patrick. Thank you for taking the time to tell
our visitors about Treasures of the Fourth Reich. I wish you
continued success with your novels.
Thank you dear readers & visitors. Don't forget to leave a comment.
I like Patrick’s answer to the question about what parts of a book are real and what parts are fiction. Letting the reader figure that out is part of the fun!
ReplyDeleteI agree Janet. Makes the reading all the better.
DeleteHI Allan, thank you for this introduction to Patrick and his books. I also write fictionalised history and I use a mixture of real characters and fictional ones. People familiar with the history would know the famous names and others would not. It is always interesting to gain insight into other writers processes and thoughts about writing. Patrick is correct when he says writing is a solitary occupation and it does take a long time.
ReplyDeleteHi Robbie. I think adding real figures to historical fiction gives it more realism, more recognition. If used in the proper way, of course. Thanks for visiting and your comment.
ReplyDelete