2nd novel released on Amazon: Cologne & Coffee, more helicopter pilot shenanigans...

[Bladestrike]

My latest fiction novel; Cologne & Coffee just released on Amazon in paperback and Kindle:

Cologne & Coffee

Two helicopter pilots traverse the globe in search of riches; Jacques, a womanizing rascal, and Ethan, a young lad finding his way.

In contrast to Jacques’s happy-go-lucky existence, Ethan seeps into a criminal underworld to sate his incipient greed. Saddled with a curse and a love for a married woman, he's thrust deep into events that threaten his moral fibre.

Follow the two men from the wilds of Manitoba to the deserts of Somalia, from the Turkish Black Sea Coast to the beaches of Gabon, from Azerbaijan to the shadows of Tangier, from the jungles of Suriname and Colombia, back to Canada’s East Coast… their lives intertwined, their fate inescapable

 

Kicks around Quebec, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Gabon, Liberia, Azerbaijan, Somalia, Turkey, Romania, Kenya, Tanzania, Colombia, Cote D'Ivoire, Morocco, Uganda, Suriname, Trinidad.... helicopter contract stuff, plus embezzlement, venom smuggling, sex trafficking, counterfeit aircraft parts and other bad things. Please give it a read. Amazon reviews much appreciated!

[Winnie]

Well, I can say I thoroughly enjoyed the first book, fun and characters I could relate to, so will make sure and get this one too!

Thanks D for the good work!

[Bladestrike]

Thank you!!! Hope you enjoy it

[Bladestrike]

Cologne & Coffee is a grim tale, a serious novel intended to incite emotion, the characters deeply flawed, bad things happen... First reviews coming in, and while there is praise for the prose, the darkness is unexpected. Be prepared to take a little trip. Hence the back of the novel has been ammended:

 

A dark and intertwining tale of two cocksure pilots traversing the globe in search of riches; Jacques, a womanizing rascal, and Ethan, a young lad finding his way. 



 

Trouble finds Jacques at every turn, as Ethan seeps into a criminal underworld to sate his incipient greed, and is thrust into events that threaten his moral fibre. 



 

Follow the two men from the forests of Manitoba to the deserts of Somalia, from the Turkish and Romanian Black Sea Coast to the beaches of Gabon, from Azerbaijan to the shadows of Tangier, from the jungles of Suriname, Liberia, Colombia… back to Canada’s East Coast… their lives intertwined, their fate inescapable.

 

AND it is a fictional tale!!! The S61 OEI off the West Coast of Newfoundland is pretty close to how THAT happened though, and that bar in Baku....

 

[Bladestrike]

I know I'm tooting my own horn too much, but just got the best review I've ever gotten (and I'm bored sitting in camp not flying - day two):

Book Viral Review

The BookViral Review:

Sometimes there are novels that strike you in a certain way, haunt your memory and provide some of the terms with which you view your own life and Hoover’s latest release is certainly one of them. It’s fast-paced, consistently compelling and hugely readable but what distinguishes Cologne & Coffee most is its many rich characters and the size of its vision.

A read that grabs your attention from the very start it ranges from 1986 to 2007, from Gabon to Colombia and just about every hotspot in between as we follow the lives of freelance helicopter pilots Jacques and Ethan. Two diametrically opposed characters who are unwittingly on a path that will see their lives and fates intrinsically bound together because of the decisions they make. And on this level, Hoover achieves the difficult feat of following two intersecting story arcs, one in which everything goes right for Jacques and the other in which everything goes wrong for Ethan.

With several converging plotlines Hoover’s narration rarely falters and is easy to follow as Jacques and Ethan are brought into the focus. Both are well-nuanced and the overriding draw of the novel is that all the twists and turns that set their lives on converging paths are wholly believable.

In the main, this is because Darcy takes as much time to emotionally build his characters as he does to create credible and often seedy real-world settings. Often combining these with a deadpan degree of social commentary as Jacques reflects on his life and who even when flying into the jaws of ****, has an insouciance, a devil-may-care attitude, that undermines the drama.

The pace of Hoover’s novel is rapid, almost hectic at times, the touch glancing and he doesn’t linger on any of its settings too long. Shaping even the most casual scenes decisively as the lines between right and wrong become heavily blurred.

A wholly captivating read whilst being refreshingly devoid of genre clichés Cologne and Coffee proves a superb follow-up release to Hoover’s first novel and is unreservedly recommended!

[OTR]

Well just ordered both of them from Amazon - these guys sound familiar?  Maybe one of us 🙃🤣.

Hope you are doing well with this venture.  Looking forward to the read.