NOVEMBER 9, 2010 . . .
GHOSTING. St.
Martin’s, $24.99. ISBN: 9780312613020
Something new for me . . . a sailing thriller,
focused
on a family under threat. Hey, I've been a sailor for a lot of
years!
Jack, Arlen, Ric, and Haley Scales have problems as a family. Dr.
Jack Scales's answer is a new sailboat and a
cruise
to Bermuda -- together. But the maiden voyage of Slow Dance will test them all, with
storms, lightning strikes, and finally, a violent hijacking at sea that
ends in rape and murder.
from St. Martin's Press, November 2010. Publicity:
Rachel Ekstrom, <rachel.ekstrom@stmartins.com>
A SLOW DANCE OF TERROR AT SEA -- The
Norfolk Virginian-Pilot, Dec 19, 2010
David Poyer depicts a dysfunctional family trapped on a 40-foot boat in
his new novel, “Ghosting.” The result is an absorbing thriller with an
unlikely hero.
“GHOSTlNG" by David Poyer
St. Martin’s. 304 pp. $24.99.
By Raymond Leach, Correspondent
Neurosurgeon Jack Scales may be world-renowned in the operating room,
but he’s a novice sailor, not nearly as capable as he thinks he is. He
cajoles his family into a long-distance sail from New York to Bermuda
on his new boat, Slow Dance, only to find misery and unspeakable
terror. The biggest object on the boat is Jack’s ego, and he fails to
appreciate the complexity of the journey, the inexperience and
dysfunction of the (family) crew, and the hazards they might encounter.
In “Ghosting,” Eastern Shore resident David Poyer
has left his longtime protagonist, Cmdr. Dan Lenson, on the beach this
time. The result is an absorbing thriller with an unlikely hero. What’s
most gripping is the way the bad situation that Jack Scales has put his
family in keeps getting worse: a suspicious death before the family
sails, boat-crippling mishaps and
stormy weather, and an extended confrontation with drug smuggling
pirates. Stripped of any romanticism, these pirates are desperate,
cynical, and casually capable of horrific violence.
Poyer does a convincing job of relating the vastly
different thought processes of the Scales family members; how they
perceive one another, the sailing trip and how to deal with the
escalating series of mishaps and dangers they confront. Son Ric is
mentally ill, a violent schizophrenic who recently survived a suicide
attempt. Jack refuses to part with the notion that he'll someday
recover and follow in his footsteps as a doctor. Jack’s wife, Arlen, an
author, has recently begun an affair with a younger man and plans to
divorce Jack after the trip. Poyer’s most intriguing character is the
Scaleses’ daughter Haley, an intelligent and athletic college student.
Haley advances from bit player who evidences all the
trappings and superficiality of a stereotypical spoiled daddy’s girl to
the center of the action. Poyer, who has a daughter in this age range,
does a superb job in illuminating Haley’s mental and physical
metamorphosis into a desperate fighter who passes the most grueling and
terrifying tests of resilience and resourcefulness.
Poyer gives us just enough sailing procedure and
terminology for realism; in fact we learn along with the family how to
raise and lower various sails. His literary device is clever: Jack
either remembers the how-to or looks it up in the manual before
carefully instructing the crew on what needs to be done, while the
reader absorbs the lesson.
Many lessons in the book lift it above the average
airport paperback. Among them: The hazards of boating, especially in
the ocean, are not to be taken lightly, no matter how smart or rich you
are. A dysfunctional family trapped on a 40-foot boat is unlikely to
find a miracle cure for its ills while under way on the Atlantic.
Pirates are predators, seaborne carjackers with little resemblance to
Johnny Depp’s Jack Sparrow. .
“Ghosting” is an excellent effort by David Poyer,
and worthy of being gift wrapped for the holidays.
Raymond Leach is a retired Marine in Virginia Beach.
Q&A with David Poyer
David Poyer, long a Norfolk resident, lives on the Eastern Shore with
his wife, novelist
and poet Lenore Hart, and their daughter, Naia.
He says he’s now finishing “The Towers," a Modern Navy novel, due out
in August. He's just
co-written a screenplay with veteran screenwriter Ken Vose, “Liberty
Run,” and is planning
another book. We caught up with Poyer by e-mail.
Q. How did you tap your experience as a parent of a teenage daughter to
create Haley Scales?
A. Ha ha! Certainly Haley isn't my daughter, who's more artist than
athlete. But then, I've
been a teenager too. Most teens feel powerless. They also resent
being expected to behave in certain ways - ways they may see either as
too adult, or too childlike, or based on insulting assumptions. As a
writer, I can find my way into those feelings, and thus into a
character like Haley - a swimming champion torn from serious
competition for a “stupid family sailing trip" -
very easily. And into Ric's mind too - a confused, in some ways
terrifying place.
Q. Were you concerned that a bad situation that kept getting worse
would lose the reader?
A. What actually happened was that as I had to put the Scaleses through
their purgatory, I became increasingly stressed. Lenore will attest
that I was immured in the office, not wanting to
talk, even growling at her. Of course this was always the plan for the
novel; it's about a family under threat, a family that, initially at
odds and nearly dysfunctional, learns that they do love and really are
willing to sacrifice for one another. . . . Did I worry that I'd lose
the reader? I didn't. If characters ring true, and their lives are
interesting, I find my readers will stay with them through hell,
rooting for them to turn things around. That, to me, is the essence of
a good story - people whom we care about coping with danger and
challenge, and having to make hard decisions that
illuminate who they really are.
BrodartVibe's "New and
Noteworthy," Nov. 16, 2010:
Ghosting by David Poyer
carries a heavy duty message to anyone taking to the high seas with a
sail boat. Don’t go unprepared, don’t go in arrogance and ignorance of
what may be demanded of you. A tense
sea thriller, Ghosting starts
off easily enough with a fun bon voyage party. Fun is taken out of the
equation early on. Then it’s all about an epic storm, smugglers, and
survival.
“Dr. Jack Scales, a prominent neurosurgeon, is at the peak of his
career. To celebrate, he decides to make up for lost time and buys a
sailing yacht christened Slow Dance, for a family cruise to Bermuda.
But the family is strained: Jack’s wife Arlen is secretly considering
leaving the marriage; Rick, their mentally disturbed 20-year-old son,
may need to be committed to a group home; Haley, a rebellious teenager,
would rather be anywhere but trapped on a boat with her family; and
Jack himself is not prepared for the challenge of the open sea.
“Day by day, the Scales face mounting dangers. A lightning storm nearly
destroys the boat, Rick’s unstable condition worsens, and both Arlen
and Haley realize that Jack is in over his head. Still, emerging from
the storm, they find a fragile unity…until a man adrift on a raft leads
them into danger against a terrifying gang of smugglers, who will stop
at nothing to gain control of Slow
Dance.”
Poyer’s novel is not to be confused with a cozy mystery. There is
nothing cozy about it. There’s real terror and desperation in these
pages. If terror is not your cup of tea, you may not like this novel.
However, the author has done a great job of capturing a sailing trip on
the ocean and it’s fun to read just from that aspect. For those who
want more than a dash of danger in their reading, this one fits the
bill.
Perseverance in the face of extreme danger plays a large role in the
novel and the reader will come away with strong sense of admiration for
the teenage daughter. Without being in danger of spoiling the novel, I
cannot say much more than to say that Haley is a wonderful character.
When the going gets tough, she stands tall.
Ron Samul, from Library Journal, said, “Poyer draws on his nautical
expertise to create a thrilling and disturbing portrait of what people
will do when they have nothing else to lose. This dynamic sea thriller
casts plot twists, conflict, and fear into the dark waves of
uncertainty and will appeal to fans of Charles Williams’ Dead Calm.”
Poyer’s 30-year career included service in the Atlantic, Mediterranean,
Arctic, Caribbean, Pacific, the Pentagon, and the Mideast. He has
written 18 Navy and sea novels, as well as sailing and nautical
articles for Chesapeake Bay
Magazine, Southern Boating, Shipmate, Tidewater Virginian and
other periodicals.
Highly recommended.
~Ginny
Reviewed by Harriet Klausner:
Egotistical but brilliant neurosurgeon Dr. Jack Scales purchases a
fancy yacht he christens the Slow Dance. Although he has little
sailing experience and that in sheltered environs and his vessel is not
ocean oriented, he decides to sail from Long island to Bermuda.
Accompanying Captain Jack is his reluctant family; his wife Arlen who
considers leaving him, his twentyish bipolar son Rick who may be sent
to a group home, and his rebellious teenage daughter Haley who loathes
any family outing of more than a minute.
From the start, the ocean voyage proves dangerous as Jack’s
inexperience surfaces rather quickly and Rick stops taking his
meds. They know they fortunately survive a deadly accident and a
storm leads the Slow Dance to nearly sinking. When Jack rescues a
man at sea, he leads his family into a group of deadly predators who
plan to kill the males and rape the females before murdering
them. Only Jack stands in their way.
Although the Scales’ family could use the nautical expertise of Dan
Lenson, David Poyer has given his star a respite so Jack and his three
charges are on their own. The story line is fast-paced and filled
with twisting action that grips the audience as one misadventure like
waves keeps on coming. Even though the climax seems unlikely,
fans will root for the beleaguered family as each must scale their
personal fears and needs to risk sacrificing their life so their loved
ones might survive.
from Library Journal, Sept 1,
2010:
Dr. Jack Scales is
the cocky novice captain of a newly purchased, high-end yacht not
designed for ocean travel. With little seamanship experience, he takes
his dysfunctional family on a weeklong sail from Long Island to Bermuda. His wife is on the cusp of leaving him
for a younger lover; his bipolar son, Rick, stops taking his
medication, and the voices in his head get louder; and Haley is a
rebellious teenager who just wants to get this vacation over with. As
they leave, a dark omen begins the trip in peril, and the family must
unite to survive a vicious storm. Celebrating their narrow escape, they
find a man adrift who leads them to a ring of drug smugglers who will
do anything to take over the yacht. Verdict In
a change of pace from his Dan Lenson naval technothrillers (e.g., The Weapon), Poyer draws on his
nautical expertise to create a thrilling and disturbing portrait of
what people will do when they have nothing else to lose. This dynamic
sea thriller casts plot twists, conflict, and fear into the dark waves
of uncertainty and will appeal to fans of Charles Williams’s Dead Calm.—Ron Samul, New
London, CT
Hardover November 2009, Mass Market Paper December 2010 . . . THE
CRISIS
Drought and Famine are Dan
Lenson’s enemy this time...
along with a dangerous and charismatic insurgent
leader
“Two things distinguish David
Poyer's terrific Dan Lenson thrillers: Superb storytelling and
unparalleled authenticity.” –Ralph Peters
“Dave
Poyer has again captured the essence of modern warfare. Not only is
this a gripping war tale, but through its rich characters offers
important insights into the roots of the current global conflict of
cultures.” -Major General Andrew B. Davis, USMC (Ret),Former
Commander, U.S. Marine Corps Forces Europe and Africa
The
cries come on the wind, on the blowing dust. They’re high,
exultant,
mingled with the grind of tires, the noisy honking of trucks.
Then the
killing begins.
Years of drought and famine have
brought Ashaara to the brink of chaos. When the government falls,
a
charismatic young warlord known as Al-Maahdi begins an armed
insurgency. As thousands of refugees stream toward camps, the
United
States intervenes to feed them, and to try to stabilize a strategically
important region.
Commander Dan Lenson and his
Tactical Analysis Group find themselves at the heart of the
humanitarian mission. The team helps coordinate food and water
supplies, manages massive port and inland logistics, and directs
strikes against insurgents and pirates. Dan is torn between
the
plight of men, women, and children struggling to survive, and the
brutal reality of fighting a ruthless enemy whose tactics checkmate
American might. NCIS agent and fellow Muslim Aisha ar-Rahim meets
with Al-Maahdi to attempt to arrange a cease-fire . . . but
fails. A devastating insurgent offensive and a massive hotel
bombing wipes out the last hope for democratic government.
With
thousands of lives at stake and the humanitarian mission about to
collapse, Dan – along with SEAL master sniper Teddy Oberg – has to
scour a forbidding desert, find Al-Maahdi, and kill him…fast.
Publisher's Weekly STARRED REVIEW:
The CrisisDavid Poyer. St. Martin's, $25.99 (368p)
ISBN 978-0-312-54439-3
When civil war threatens to turn
Ashaara, an impoverished nation on the Horn of Africa, into a failed
state and a potential sanctuary for jihadists in Poyer's outstanding
12th thriller to feature Cdr. Dan Lenson (after The Weapon), U.S. naval forces
stationed near the Red Sea quickly respond with humanitarian relief.
The lack of any legitimate local government leads to escalating chaos,
and the mission soon changes for Medal of Honor winner Lenson and his
cohorts to nation building and then counterinsurgency. Assorted Islamic
militants, Westernized liberals and remnants of the former dictatorial
regime manipulate each other as well as Western governments in an
effort to control a desiccated chunk of land that makes Somalia
look like paradise. Poyer, an Annapolis
graduate, focuses on how his vividly drawn characters behave amid the
shifting alliances, while the action inexorably builds to a conclusion
that's both tragic and ironic. (Nov.)
Shipping October 2009. Pub
November 2009. Price 25.99. ISBN 978-0-312-54439-3.
Mass Market edition published December 2010.
Toll Free (888) 330-8477..... or (800) 221-7954, ext. 1 ....or call any
Wholesaler. Publicity: Joe Rinaldi (800) 221-7954 ex.
5565 or
<Joe.Rinaldi@stmartins.com>
In Paperback December 2008 . . .THE
WEAPON
Iran has a deadly new weapon –
and the only way to preserve the peace in the Persian Gulf is to steal
it.
U.S. Navy Commander and Medal of Honor winner Dan Lenson has been
handed another outside-the-box assignment. TAG Charlie, an elite
team of active duty sailors, SEALs, and civilian analysts, is tasked to
investigate and defuse emerging naval threats around the globe.
When the Skhval-K – an unstoppable rocket torpedo designed to destroy
U.S. aircraft carriers -- is demonstrated at a Moscow arms show, Dan
tries to buy one, so the Navy can build countermeasures. But he's
lucky to escape with his life when he's set up by Russia's ruthless new
counterespionage service.
When the Russians sell the new weapon to Iran and China instead, Dan
decides that if he can't buy one, he'll steal it. But a daring
nighttime penetration of Iran's largest naval base goes wrong
too. Now Dan finds himself captaining a submarine he barely knows
how to submerge, pursued by Iranian destroyers and sub-hunting aircraft
through the shallow, hazardous Persian Gulf.
Just another fine Navy day...but one not everyone on TAG Team Charlie
will live through.
St. Martin's
Press. On Sale: 11/25/2008. Hardcover Price 24.95.
ISBN: 978-0-312-37493-8. ISBN-10: 0-312-37493-3. Trim: 6
1/8 x 9 1/4 inches. 368 pages. Booksellers: Order Now from
St. Martin’s Press at <http://us.macmillan.com/theweapon> or Toll
Free (888) 330-8477..... or (800) 221-7954, ext. 1 ....or call any
Wholesaler.
Publicity/Galleys/Appearances: Harriet Seltzer at 646-307-5567 or
<Harriet.Seltzer@stmartins.com>.
Readers: call your local bookstore
to order. Find the one nearest you here. Or
buy from Barnes & Noble, Indigo, Borders, Booksamillion, Amazon, or
any other major online source. Or (still more choices!) click
through direct to Macmilan/St Martin's now to order THE WEAPON here.
THE REVIEWS:
The WeaponDavid
Poyer.
St.
Martin's,
$24.95 (320p) ISBN 978-0-312-37493-8
"Poyer's
fine military thriller, the 11th in his Dan Lenson series (after Korea Strait), provides what
his fans have come to expect—tight structure, plenty of authentic
technological detail and a hero who acts like a man rather than a
cartoon superhero. When the Russians offer a powerful new rocket
torpedo they've developed for sale to the world, the U.S.
government sends Cdr. Dan Lenson, U.S.N., to purchase one. After the
deal falls apart, Dan attempts to “liberate” one of the new weapons
from a container ship headed for China. When that mission
goes to hell, he and his team steal an Iranian submarine carrying one
of the super torpedoes. From then on, we're submerged deep into Das Boot territory with Dan and
his small crew playing cat and mouse with a deadly Iranian frigate." --
Publishers Weekly
December 2008 . . . KOREA STRAIT in paperback:
A violent coup threatens to ignite a new Pacific war
r
Naval officer and Medal of Honor winner Dan Lenson’s being hidden by
the US Navy after his derailing of a presidential assassination
attempt. In the Pacific, he’s assigned to conduct a major
international exercise with players from South Korea, the US, Japan,
and Australia. But old alliances are unraveling, and old
commitments are being rethought.
As an aggressive China threatens US allies, a force of unidentified
submarines tracks down through the Sea of Japan. Dan realizes
this may be the opening of a new Korean War – a cunning attempt to
upset US alliances and realign the balance of power in Asia.
Together with a ruthless South Korean commodore, Dan battles faulty
torpedoes, two typhoons, and the Washington establishment to keep war
from erupting in the Pacific. Featuring fierce action at sea and
political intrigue ashore, Korea
Strait is both a first-class thriller and a gripping exploration
of leadership and command.
REVIEWS FROM THE CURRENT PRESS:
"Well up to Poyer's excellent standards. No bluster, no dazzle,
just real naval engagements that we may well see before long." --
Kirkus Reviews
"Fans of modern naval warfare will relish the details and sea action,
as well as the insights into the Korean situation and the Korean
people." -- Library Journal
"The taut 10th entry in Poyer's series featuring US Navy commander Dan
Lenson (following The Threat)
is rich in the naval detail fans have come to expect . . . Poyer
provides readers with a satisfying, fast-paced narrative in which Dan
must negotiate his past, his superiors, and an unpredictable submerged
enemy. Poyer's tech talk throughout is nicely turned, and Dan
Lenson remains a winningly weary hero." -- Publisher's Weekly
Publication: Hardcover, December 2007. ISBN-13:
978-0-312-36049-8........Price $24.95
Mass market paperback December 2008. ISBN 0312-384-122.
For all who've asked . . . THE THREAT is now available in unabridged
audiobook format both on CD and for download to your Apple®
iPod®,
Pocket PC, Palm OS handheld, Palm Treo, etc. -- check with
www.Audible.com
to see if other devices are compatible. You can also enjoy
Audible®
audio on your PC, Mac, or on CDs you burn.. Not a word's left
out;
this is a quality production! To order the CDs themselves,
contact
Blackstone Audio Inc. at (800) 729-2665 or www.BlackstoneAudio.com.
August 2007 . . . THE THREAT in Mass market paper
A Gripping Novel of Intrigue and
Conspiracy in the West Wing
From inside the White House, Navy commander and Medal of Honor
winner
Dan Lenson takes on threats to the President and the Nation in David
Poyer's
ninth gripping thriller about the men and women of today's U.S. Navy
and
Marine Corps.
After narrowly bringing USS Horn through a nuclear attack
off Israel, Lenson, on light duty while recovering from his injuries,
is tapped to serve on the military staff of President Robert "Bad Bob"
De Bari. Is it
an honor? Or the death knell for his career? He's not
really
sure.
But he'll do his duty nonetheless. Never one to settle for
pushing paper, or for following accepted procedure, Lenson plunges into
his job
as Director of Counternarcotics Interdiction on the National Security
Council Staff. His first challege is the Cartel's
assassination of the son of the new president of Colombia -- a death
the Cartel hopes to pin
on the US Air Force. He's barely gotten a lid on this when his
staff
uncovers a frightening terrorist plot: a dirty bomb, smuggled into
America
via clandestine drug channels and loaded onto an air freight flight.
Meanwhile,
an even greater threat is building inside the United States government
itself.
When Dan becomes the aide carrying the codes to unleash nuclear
war,
and a deeply unpopular De Bari enrages both the Cartel and nakedly
ambitious
elements in the US government, Dan himself becomes an unwitting
accomplice
in a plot to kill the President -- and the only one who can possibly
halt
it.
Packed with vivid looks inside the White House, the Situation Room,
Air Force One, counternarcotics operations, and the military aides and
staff
who actually exercise the powers of the Presidency in the 21st Century,
THE
THREAT is a spellbinding yet all too realistic thriller from first page
to
last.
David Poyer’s novels are ranked among the finest military fiction of
our time. Not only for their vividness and authenticity,
but for their unflinching probing of the deepest dilemmas of military
and personal ethics. Bristling with intrigue, action, and a
wealth of inside detail about how the White House actually works, THE
THREAT is
Dave Poyer at his very best.
ISBN... 0-312-33961-5 Price 24.95 US
STORES...ORDER FROM ST. MARTIN’S PRESS...(888) 330-8477
toll free, or from your wholesaler
READERS...ORDER NOW FROM YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORE!
REVIEWS FROM THE CURRENT PRESS:
From Kirkus Reviews:
Dan Lenson becomes the man with the "football"—that ever-present
briefcase containing presidential nuclear codes.
Still recovering from the nuclear attack that sank
his destroyer (The Command, 2004), Commander Lenson faces formidable
challenges as he tries to find his balance in Washington, working
closely with a Clintonesque president thoroughly detested by the
military establishment. The Navy has assigned Dan to the small
anti-drug task force working directly under the National Security
Advisor. It's a thankless job, far from the work the officer expected
to do—identifying and neutralizing the looming threat of nuclear
terrorism. Setting aside his reservations, Lenson steers his motley
handful of aides into the narcoturbulence and quickly counters a move
by a drug lord that would have undermined a reasonable Colombian
administration. But as usual,
Lenson's decisive action seems only to have increased the suspicion
with
which his higher-ups regard him. Things are equally cloudy on the home
front.
Lenson's beautiful, higher-ranking wife, Blair, spends as much time as
Lenson
does away from their suburban home. Then Dan is abruptly assigned to
the
spooky duty of guarding the nuclear football for President De Bari. The
shallow,
sneaky president, the first Italian-American in the Oval Office, has
been
cutting deep into the military budget, spending the peace bonus
rendered
by the collapse of the Soviet Union on domestic priorities. He's also
been
carrying on his infamous extramarital affairs, and evidence suggests
that
Lenson's wife may be in presidential target range. Throughout, Poyer
inserts
cryptic electronic conversations among unknown parties who are steering
someone
toward an assassination job.
A gloomy story, but Poyer remains the most
thoughtful of the military-thriller set and a master of authentic
detail.
Praise for Poyer's Previous
Dan Lenson
Novels
"No one writes gritty, realistic military
fiction better than David Poyer. No one."
--Stephen Coonts, author of America
“Not since James Jones' The Thin Red Line have
readers experienced the gripping fear of what it's like to fight an
enemy at close quarters. Far beyond that, Poyer's research is
impeccable, his characterization compelling, and the Iraqi Desert Storm
scenario, all too believable when we
see how the United States Marine Corp's finest
deals with the worst of what mankind has to offer. A must
read for all students of military history."
--John J. Gobbell, author of When Duty Whispers Low
"I've been a David Poyer fan for over a decade
and his storytelling abilities – always first-rate – just get better
and better."
--Ralph Peters, author of Beyond Terror and The War in
2020
"Black Storm is a gripping, gritty novel that
reads like the real thing. You're with the Marines every step of
the way, on a search and destroy mission into the heart of Iraq. David
Poyer knows his stuff."
--Vince Flynn, author of Separation of Power and The
Third Option
“ABSOLUTELY RIVETING. David Poyer has captured
the essence of what it is like on long range patrols, and what Marine
Force Reconnaissance and Special Operations Forces could face in the
ongoing war on terrorism...distinguished by quick actions and
continuing suspense that will keep the reader on edge until the very
end.”
– Maj Gen. HarryW. Jenkins, USMC (Ret),
Former commander, 4th Marine Amphibious Brigade in Desert
Storm.
Drought and Famine are Dan
Lenson’s enemy this time...
Iran has a deadly new weapon –
and the only way to preserve the peace in the Persian Gulf is to steal
it.
For all who've asked . . . THE THREAT is now available in unabridged
audiobook format both on CD and for download to your Apple®
iPod®,
Pocket PC, Palm OS handheld, Palm Treo, etc. -- check with
www.Audible.com
to see if other devices are compatible. You can also enjoy
Audible®
audio on your PC, Mac, or on CDs you burn.. Not a word's left
out;
this is a quality production! To order the CDs themselves,
contact
Blackstone Audio Inc. at (800) 729-2665 or www.BlackstoneAudio.com. 