Who designed the cover of The Orange Moon Affair? I design my own covers. From an early age I have been able to draw, and indeed find design and drawing relaxes me and takes my mind off work and the problems of life. When I wanted to drive racing cars, I designed my own Formula Ford, built it and raced it professionally. When I was first published, I disliked the covers the publishers did for both the hardcover and paperback editions intensely, so when I retrieved the rights for those books, I redesigned the covers myself and have continued to design the covers for the seven published eBooks that are currently available on Amazon. Whether they are successful or not, is for the reader to judge.
Will you write other books in the same genre as The Orange Moon Affair? Absolutely. I already have the next two books in the Thomas Gunn thriller series underway following on from The Orange Moon Affair. They are challenging but fun to write and stretch my skills, which is I think, the only way an author can grow. I hope my readers enjoy reading them as much as I enjoy writing them.
How much of the book is realistic? The definition of “Fiction” is “literature in the form of prose, especially novels, that describe imaginary events and people”. Having said that, I think that fiction works best when the “imaginary events and people” are based strongly in reality. My characters are composites of people I have met, known, talked to, worked with and some that I have simply observed. They live in a world we understand because that world is our current experience. So I would say that the book is 100% “realistic” and yet still fiction.
How important do you think villains are in a story? I think villains are important in certain types of stories, the most obvious being in thrillers, suspense, espionage, action and adventure and in true stories of course where they’re real. But that role in other genres may equally be played out by someone who simply evokes strong emotions and creates dramatic tension, so that the energy of the story is carried forward through the actions of that character and the reactions of others to him/her.
The danger of villains is when they are written one dimensionally. For a villain to be believable and create greater depth to the plot, they have to be multi-dimensional, a little more complex than your traditional “bad guy”. Then an author has more ways of tapping into that villain’s character to play with the dark and the light, and to hold a reader’s attention. Mind you, that’s just me – sometimes a Bond-movie-type-of-book with the villain that’s pure evil whom we love to “boo” is greatly entertaining and just what we need.
Do you have to travel much concerning your books? My parents lived and worked abroad for most of my life, so I have been in the fortunate position to have lived and worked in many countries around the world. I was born in Hong Kong, lived in and went to school in India, lived in Iran, then Libya where I worked for a Geophysical Survey company and learned to write computer code. In the Army I was sent to Cyprus, France, Northern Ireland and Germany and have travelled extensively in Italy and Spain. For twenty-five years I lived in the USA and have travelled to New Zealand, Australia, Mexico, Canada, Malta, Sicily, Austria, and Egypt. All these countries and their cultures find their way into my books.
The Orange Moon Affair - by the bestselling author of CONTACT - is the first book of a compelling new thriller series, an action-packed conspiracy with a hero and heroine you hold your breath for. If you enjoy the action of Robert Ludlum, the intensity of Brad Thor and the international intrigue of Daniel Silva, then this book’s for you!
Ex-British Special Forces soldier Thomas Gunn is drawn back into his old life of international intrigue and danger following the murder of his billionaire father. The deeper he digs the more complicated the puzzle becomes until he finds himself working for MI5 uncovering a global conspiracy that puts the freedom of the western world at grave risk. His girlfriend Julie becomes his accomplice surprising him with her loyalty, strength of character and physical prowess.
While traversing the globe being shot at, shot down and losing loved ones – a haunting question tears at his soul – was his father really at the heart of this evil conspiracy? Or was he a pawn in a larger more insidious game that even he could not control?
Seeking the final answer could cost Thomas dearly, ripping from him all that he most loves and cherishes and leaving him questioning his past, his future and what kind of person he is or wants to become. The final outcome depends on him. Or does it?
As a former Captain of Britain’s elite Parachute Regiment and son of an MI6 operative the author brings his own unique and eye-opening experiences to the character and exploits of Thomas Gunn, as well as an unsettling blurring of the lines between fiction and reality when exploring the ruthless abuse of power and position for personal gain.
“… The Orange Moon Affair is timely, eye-opening, fast-paced … you will find you want to turn the next page, and the next page, and the next … the first of the Thomas Gunn series … you don’t want to miss them!” 5 Stars, Remy Benoit.
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Genre – Thriller
Rating – PG13
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Website http://www.afnclarke.com/
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