1. Please introduce our readers to The Eighth Day. What is it all about? The Eighth Day is a Sci-Fi techno-thriller set in New York City, 2041. It begins when our unsuspecting hero receives a warning from a stranger. “Nothing you know is real. Your name isn’t Shawn Jaffe, you’re not an investment broker, and you’re not from Ohio.” But the stranger is murdered before he can explain. Shawn isn’t sure who he can trust. Even his own memories are suspect. Someone is watching him, controlling him, using him. Veteran Detective Sam Harrington is assigned to the case, and when Shawn vanishes, it’s up to Harrington to figure out what’s going on. He’s pitted against adversaries who are cunning and ruthless and will stop at nothing to ensure he doesn’t interfere with their plans. …show more content…
You are a combat veteran and have served 17 years active duty. How did your experience in the U.S. military influence your work? I’ve tried to keep the military out of my writing. I know, I know. They say to write what you know. But I live, breathe, and eat the military for most of my waking hours. I don’t want to spend my imagination in the military, too. My protagonist is a stockbroker—or so he thinks, wink wink, nudge nudge—and Sam Harrington is a bitter old detective. That being said, my time in the Army definitely seeped into the story. In The Eighth Day, the US is at war with Brazil, and I reference a previous war with Mexico—homage to the fact that we’ve never accurately predicted where the next Great American ConflictTM will be. It also has some Vietnam flashback scenes, à la “Danforth, pull up flank! Watch out for Charlie up in the trees!” That’s a quote from Eric Cartman for the South Park unsavvy. I suppose you might say The Eighth Day has more than its fair share of military references—for example, one of the main antagonists served in the Marines—it just doesn’t have a strong military bent. 4. Why do you write techno-thrillers? What is it about technology that fascinates you