Happy Fourth of July! Whether you’re celebrating with friends and family or keeping a low profile, have a safe and happy holiday!
Here’s this week’s quote (Compliments of http://www.wisdomquotesandstories.com/): “Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.” ~ Robert F. Kennedy
So who was born on this date in history? Let’s find out who in the writing world was born on June 27th. (Compliments of http://www.onthisday.com/today/birthdays):
Paul Scarron, French writer (Virgile Travesti); Christian Fürchtegott Gellert, German poet and novelist (Fables & Tales); Nathaniel Hawthorne, American author (House of 7 Gables, The Scarlet Letter); Lynette Roberts, British poet; Christine Lavant, Austrian poet and writer (Das Kind); Ann Landers [Eppie Lederer], American advice columnist “Ask Ann Landers,” twin sister of fellow advice columnist “Dear Abby” (Abigail Van Buren); Neil Simon, American playwright (The Odd Couple, Plaza Suite, Biloxi Blues); Patrick Tilley, British sci-fi author (1st Family, Blood River); Paul de Wispelaere, Flemish writer and critic; Colin Welland, British screenwriter (Chariots of Fire) and actor (Straw Dogs); and Ron Kovic, American anti-war activist and writer (Born on the Fourth of July).
Any names familiar to you? There were three for me: Nathaniel Hawthorne, Ann Landers, and Abigail Van Buren. Whether you recognize anyone on the list or not, if today’s your special day I hope you have a great one and many more to follow!
My Published Work
All of my novels are participating in a gripping reads promotion, covering action & adventure, mystery& suspense, and sci-fi & fantasy/horror. There are a total of seventy-nine novels available between now and the 15th. Why not check these out–never know when you’ll come across your next favorite author.
https://books.bookfunnel.com/grippingreadskuor99/yblerf0c6g
My Work in Progress
The editing process of Revenge is now underway. 
Over the past week, there were another six new chapter reviews, bringing the total number to 711. As always, plenty of useful suggestions as always to improve my writing and very timely with editing on the horizon.
Here’s another snippet:
The door slammed behind Bennie and Justin as they walked into the kitchen. Justin went to the fridge and yanked out a jug of orange juice while Bennie pulled glasses from a cupboard.
As they poured the juice and sat, Alberto walked into the room. “Well? Did you take care of things?”
“Piece of cake, as the Americans would say.” Justin glanced at Bennie. “After we sent her to her god, we weighted her body, took it to the middle of the lake, and pushed it in.”
Alberto glanced from Justin’s face to Bennie’s. “Where did you find a boat?”
“Uh. There was one on the beach.” Justin grinned. “No one was around, so we borrowed it.”
“I see.” Alberto drummed his fingers on the table as he stared at the ceiling. “That’s one loose end tied up.” He tossed a small piece of paper on the table. “The man we hired to kill the CIA woman in an accident was released from the hospital.” He smirked. “The man failed yet expects his payment—he sent me a text earlier, along with where he wants to collect the money.”
“Are all Americans so greedy?” Bennie laughed. “Where do we find him?”
Alberto gestured at the paper. “That’s the location. He’ll be there in two days. He wants the money in small bills and placed in a backpack. Take care of him—but make it slow and painful. Failure cannot be tolerated.”
Bennie and Justin glanced at each other and nodded.
Justin poured another glass of juice. “Anything else?”
“Leave me.” Alberto waved them away. “I must think.”
***
Left to his thoughts, Alberto wandered into the living room, and sat in a brown leather recliner, adjusting the chair’s position until he was comfortable. I think this immoral country is corrupting Bennie and Justin’s minds. He shook his head. Once we’ve exacted revenge, we’ll return to the Middle East, where we can continue our jihad against the Israelis and those rushing to be their friends.
He fished his phone from his shirt pocket and dialed.
“Hello?”
“No names. Do you recognize my voice?”
Silence. “Uh, yes.”
“Good. How is your work progressing?”
“By the end of the week, I will have twelve packages ready for your use.”
Alberto chuckled. “Excellent. Can you make two smaller ones which can be attached to the bottom of a vehicle?”
“As you wish. Do you want activation by a sensor or remote control?”
“Hmm.” He tapped his index finger against his lips. I want to witness their deaths. “Remote control.”
“Okay, I’ll put a test model together as soon as I can and find a place to test it. If it works, I’ll make two operational devices for you.”
“Keep me posted.” Alberto broke the connection and grinned. At least one of my team remains loyal to Allah. He put the phone back in his pocket and closed his eyes.
Two hours later, Alberto woke with a start. The room had dimmed as the sun headed toward the horizon. What disturbed me? He climbed out of his chair and walked from room to room, checking all windows remained locked.
After he finished examining every external door and window, he stepped into the utility room. There!
More next time.
In 2019-2020, I posted the first seven chapters of Ultimate Escalation on the two subscription writing sites I use, receiving 101 chapter reviews.
As of this morning, all seven chapters have been revised and reposted. So far, the they’ve received sixty-nine chapter reviews. Excellent suggestions to further tweak the story and fix a few typos.
Once I pull Revenge from the two writing sites, I’ll also stop posting snippets here and begin with ones from Ultimate Escalation.
Books I’m Reading
I recently finished reading The Swagger Sword: Templars, Colombus and the Vatican Cover-up (Templars in America Series Book 8) by David S. Brody. As with all of the novels in this series, there’s an excellent blend of truth, myth, and fiction.
Join Cameron Thorne, his fiance, Amanda Spencer-Gunn, and their adopted daughter Astarte, as they’re embroil in another chase to determine whether their is any validity to the engraving on a sword they stumble upon. Will this lead to a hidden scroll and undue centuries of mistruth?
Cameron and Amanda put their lives on the line as they attempt to solve the riddle. With plenty of twists and turns, this one will have you flipping the pages to find out what happens next. If you haven’t read any of the novels in this series, you don’t know what you’re missing!
That’s all for this week. I hope you found something of interest or at least useful for your own writing and reading. If you have any suggestions for a topic you’d like to read about, please let me know. Until the next time, thank you for reading and hope you drop in again.
© Copyright 2021 Randall Krzak. All rights reserved