New International Thriller From Boston Author Asks Tough Questions In An Election Year

“A” (Clipper Trade Books, 2012), tells the story of former Special Operations officer, Lt. Colonel Mack Maran, a “black, Jewish, wanna-be-Irish American raised in South Boston’s tough housing projects and educated at West Point.”
By: Clipper Trade Press
 
Aug. 23, 2012 - PRLog -- NEW INTERNATIONAL THRILLER FROM BOSTON AUTHOR ASKS TOUGH
QUESTIONS IN AN ELECTION YEAR

WELLESLEY, MA AUGUST 1– The debut thriller novel A! for Argonaut, which has received enthusiastic support from reviewers and readers alike, from author Michael J. Stedman is now available in paperback and e-book editions.

“A” (Clipper Trade Books, 2012), tells the story of former Special Operations officer, Lt.
Colonel Mack Maran, a “black, Jewish, wanna-be-Irish American raised in South Boston’s
tough housing projects and educated at West Point.” Maran is a commander with the Special Action Warfighter Command, a clandestine special action unit that works outside the normal chain of command—men who do not exist. When a mission to rescue hostages in the Congo goes horribly wrong, Maran is betrayed by the Pentagon and tossed out of the Army in disgrace.  To restore his honor, he has to unravel the conspiracy, and sets out with a team of cyberwarfighters from his military past to clear his name and punish the perps. What he uncovers leads him from his newly-opened private corporate spy firm in Boston to the dangerous streets of Kinshasa, where the Queen of Diamonds, an Afro-Asian gem smuggler, Amber Chu, has access to the keys to the puzzle.  

“Mike Stedman…takes us with knowledge and
persuasiveness into the dark continents of Africa and men's
souls.” --- Richard Marek, former publisher and president of
E.P Dutton.

Stedman’s novel, which will appeal to fans of Vince Flynn, Brad Taylor, and Brad Thor, points out the relationship between the illegal arms dealing, blood diamonds, and world-wide Islamic terror.  It also illuminates the desperate condition of women in war-ravaged Africa, and challenges the loopholes in American campaign finance reform, which allow foreign interests to anonymously influence leaders who must trade their integrity for donations to fund their out-of control campaigns. The author is available for interviews, book club appearances, and
speaking engagements.

Clipper Trade Books is a small, independent press launched in 2012 and distributed to
retailers via the Ingram Book Company.
For more information, to request a review copy, or to schedule an interview,
contact:
Michael J. Stedman / MICHAELJSTEDMAN.COM

ABOUT MICHAEL J. STEDMAN
MICHAEL J. STEDMAN, Boston born and bred, is a former
political columnist, magazine writer, and intelligence consultant
to major corporations. He has been both a practitioner and critic
of the spy world on the board of the New England Chapter of the
Association for Intelligence Officers. Stedman, a former U.S.
Army Reserve soldier with the 94th Infantry, is a past chairman
of the New England Chapter of the Republican Jewish Coalition
as well as President of the Wellesley Rotary Club. He lives
outside of Boston with his wife. They have three sons, three
daughters-in-law, and seven grandchildren, including identical
twin boys.

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
1. Do you see any parallels between the situations that you created and what’s happening
here in our present time?
2. What are blood diamonds?
3. In your novel, there’s a direct tie between the sale of blood diamonds and Islamic
terrorism. Is that true today?
4. You paint a bleak picture about life for women in Africa, who face infibulations (female
genital mutilation) as well as rape, violence, and starvation. What can people in the U.S.
do to help?
5. Did your previous career experiences in corporate intelligence influence anything that
happens in this book?
6. Your hero, Mack Maran, creates a private security company that hacks into some pretty
sensitive information. How accurate is that? Should we be worried about the security of
our national secrets?
7. You released A! in a presidential election year, with some pretty damning commentary
about the state of campaign finance. What do you see as the primary challenges with
the current electoral system?
8. Why did you choose to publish this novel yourself, rather than go through the traditional
process of finding an agent and a publisher?
9. Did you really used to drink with Jack Kerouac?
10.What’s next for you as a writer? Any other projects planned or underway?

WHAT READERS ARE SAYING ABOUT A! FOR ARGONAUT

"Mike Stedman has written a splendid thriller about a
thrilling subject: diamonds. He takes us with knowledge and
persuasiveness into the dark continents of Africa and men's
souls."
Richard Marek, former President of E.P. Dutton, Editor
and Publisher of Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Identity
and Thomas Harris’s The Silence of the Lambs

“A high adventure page-turner as current as today’s headlines and an ominous
prediction of tomorrow’s. Action-packed and exciting, “A!” and its hero, Mack
Maran, will have you on the edge till the final scenes and leave you wishing for
more.”
Gordon Cucullu, former Special Forces Lieutenant Colonel and author of
Warrior Police: Rolling with America’s Military Police in the World’s Trouble
Spots

“Stedman has masterfully woven special ops, international crime, cyber attack,
and politics into a thrilling cliff-hanger.
Rudi Peksens, Brigadier General, US Air Force, (Ret)
 
“A for Argonaut delves deeply into the lives of Africans in some of the most war-
torn countries in the world—particularly into the lives of women, through the
multi-faceted character of Amber Chu. Although a fictionalized account, the novel
highlights the all too real impacts of violence and civil strife on even the most
tenacious women and their families.”
Emma Rackstraw, Wellesley College ‘12, International Relations Major
For more information, to request a review copy, or to schedule an interview,
contact:
Michael J. Stedman
MICHAELJSTEDMAN.COM / 781 801 5159 / michael@michaeljstedman.com
End
Source:Clipper Trade Press
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