The American Crusade
by Mark Spivak
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GENRE: Political Thriller
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BLURB:
A
power-hungry vice president, a bad batch of shady intelligence, and a sinister
plot to destroy Western civilization.
Just another day in America.
On May 1, 2001, a group of radical Islamic terrorists crash a Boeing 737 jet airliner into the Mall of America—and Vice President Robert Hornsby knows his moment is coming.
The attack kills three thousand American citizens and throws an entire nation into a panic, but all Hornsby sees is an opportunity, a chance to imprint his fanatical values on the soul of the country he loves and become the most powerful vice president in American history.
With the aid of his affable but ineffectual president; the reluctant, conscience-stricken secretary of defense; and a preening, foppish faith leader with more than a few skeletons in his closet; Hornsby declares war on terror—and anyone who stands in his way. But as media scrutiny of the administration’s actions overseas intensifies, Hornby’s one-man campaign against evil begins to unravel—with striking parallels to the thirteenth century’s doomed Fourth Crusade—and sends the nation spiraling toward another deadly tragedy.
The American Crusade paints a grim and often cynical picture of America’s recent past, reflecting the attitudes, politics, and fears that shaped our nation in the new millennium. By sampling the contemporaneous French text on the Fourth Crusade, On the Conquest of Constantinople, author Mark Spivak reminds us of that ever-vital adage: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
Fans of The Castle by Jack Pinter, The President Is Missing by Bill Clinton and James Patterson, House of Cards by Michael Dobbs, The Whistler by John Grisham, and the Aaron Sorkin–penned TV drama The West Wing will love this book.
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EXCERPT:
The lights from the lanterns flickered against the walls of
the cave. It was nearing midnight on May 1 in the tribal areas of Kabulistan,
the mountainous and impenetrable regions high up near the Persepostan border.
Salman Al-Akbar sat on a cushion, surrounded by his inner circle. Fazil Ahmadi,
his director of operations, had just finished briefing him on the aftermath of
the Mall of America attack and the subsequent suicide missions around the
United States.
“Allah be praised!” Al-Akbar’s normally sad eyes were bright
and jubilant. “We have succeeded beyond our wildest expectations, beyond the
reach of our dreams. Allah is most with us.”
“This is so,” said Fazil Ahmadi. “Had we dreamed it, it
could not have gone better.”
“What time is it now in Washington?”
“Four-thirty in the afternoon, sir.”
“And where is the young American President now?”
“We have no knowledge of his whereabouts, sir. He is in
hiding.”
“Hiding?” Al-Akbar’s eyebrows arched toward the ceiling of
the cave, and his normally expressionless face was close to registering
hilarity. “From whom is he hiding? Robert Hornsby?”
“He has been removed from sight, sir. We suspect they took
him to one of their nuclear installations.”
“Do they actually think we are in possession of nuclear
weapons?”
“We believe it is a precaution on their part, sir.”
“Allah be praised!” Al-Akbar clapped his hands in glee.
“This is beyond our imagining. Everything has gone off perfectly, with
synchronized precision.”
“They will most certainly retaliate, sir.”
“Against whom?” asked Al-Akbar with contempt. “Our forces
are safe. The loyalty of the warlords is secure, and they will not betray
us.”
“We believe their most likely target will be the Dua
Khamail. They will wage war against them and will surely defeat them. Then,
they will restore Selim Hanjuk to power.”
“Let them have the Dua Khamail.” Al-Akbar shrugged. “To us,
it matters not who is the ruler of Kabulistan. Any war they wage against the
innocent population can only help us. It will bring more recruits to our side.”
“This is true.”
“One thing I will guarantee you. They may topple the
government of Kabulistan, or all of the governments of the earth, but they will
never be at peace again. As they fall off to sleep, they will see us in their
nightmares.”
“Yes, sir. Our position is strong, and the Americans can
only immerse themselves in quicksand by invading Kabulistan. They will never
find us, much less defeat us.”
“Their memories are short,” mused Al-Akbar. “They forget
that the Russians tried and failed. It was their Vietnam. And the Americans are
far weaker than the Russians. They do not have the will for a prolonged
conflict.”
“Let us not underestimate their military strength, sir.”
“These infidels are like the Crusaders of old.” Al-Akbar’s
fingers worked prayer beads in the darkness of the cave. “They have many
troops, they have excellent weapons, and they have knowledge of warfare. But
they lack the fire of belief, as well as the support of their people. And they
do not have Allah on their side.” He smiled approvingly at his lieutenant. “You
have done well today. And soon we will do better still. Today is the beginning
of the great Jihad. Nearly eight hundred years ago, the East was ruled by Saladin
and the true believers were victorious. That day will come again.”
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
In the realm of non-fiction, award-winning author Mark Spivak
focuses on wine, spirits, food, restaurants and culinary travel. His first
book, Iconic Spirits: An Intoxicating History, was published by Lyons Press in
2012. He followed this with Moonshine Nation (Lyons Press, 2014), hailed as the
definitive book on illegal corn whiskey in America. From 1994-1999 he was the
wine writer for the Palm Beach Post, and was honored for excellence in wine
criticism “in a graceful and approachable style.” Since 2001 he has been the
Wine & Spirits Editor for the Palm Beach Media Group, and contributes to a
number of national magazines. He is also the holder of the Certificate and
Advanced Diplomas from the Court of Master Sommeliers.
Mark’s first novel, Friend of the Devil, was published by Black
Opal Books in May 2016. Set in Palm Beach in 1990, it tells the story of
America’s most famous chef, who has sold his soul to the Devil for fame and
fortune.
Mark also has an endless fascination with the American political
system and is an avid follower of Washington politics. His second novel, The
American Crusade (a gripping political thriller set during the invasion of
Iraq, which dips into the shadowy world of government conspiracy and political
sabotage), will be released by TCK Publishing on April 4. He is currently at
work on Impeachment, the sequel to The American Crusade.
Pre-order The American Crusade on Amazon:
Visit Mark's website at www.markspivakbooks.com, and sign up for
his free newsletter and political blog:
www.markspivakbooks.com/free
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While most
people would probably say they’d be horrified, the real question is why:
In 1776,
there was no professional political class. The Founding Fathers were men who
were successfully engaged in a range of real-life occupations. George
Washington started his career as a surveyor, and later became a wealthy
landowner; Benjamin Franklin was a printer, among other things, and Paul Revere
was a silversmith.
When the
need for a revolution occurred, it required a sacrifice on their part: They
were forced to abandon their families and businesses to fight a war and found a
nation. These men were patriots, citizens who served their country out of duty.
They never dreamed of a situation where office holders would become the
equivalent of highly-paid welfare recipients.
Because they
lived in the real world, the Founding Fathers operated with common sense. They
devised the system of checks and balances so that all three branches of
government would be equal, and to avoid having one dominate the other. In doing
so, of course, they were mindful of the monarchy they had just fought to
overthrow, and they wanted to make certain that the government could not be
ruled by a tyrant.
Thus, the
next thing they never dreamed of was that their system of checks and balances
would become a recipe for gridlock. They were aiming for fairness, for parity,
for a sense of balance. They couldn’t have imagined a situation where the
Executive and Legislative branches would fight to the death to prevent the
other side from accomplishing anything, and where the loser would take their
grievance to the courts.
Because they
were citizens temporarily serving their nation, the Founding Fathers could also
never anticipate that nearly 10% of the population would be working for the
government (either state or federal), or that there would be twice as many
government workers as manufacturing employees. They’d probably stunned by the
bloated, inefficient Cabinet departments in Washington, D.C.
They would
be quite startled by the fact that women are allowed to vote, along with
non-members of the economic elite. In the early days of the republic, the right
to vote was limited to landholders and wealthy individuals. When they look back
at history, activists who complain about voter suppression should realize that
the Founding Fathers invented the practice (and were much better at it than anyone
in the present day).
On the
positive side, regardless of any and all glitches in our current system,
there’s little doubt the Founding Fathers would be proud of us. They’d likely
be amazed that their experiment in democracy had lasted more than 200 years,
and that—despite its problems—had mutated into one of the most egalitarian
countries on the face of the earth.
The
American Crusade
Author: Mark Spivak
Publisher: TCK Publishing
American
release date: April 1, 2019
Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Political Thriller/259 pages
Overall Personal Rating: ★★★
The United States of America has
suffered the unspeakable—a major terrorist assault on American shores, at the
Mall of America in Minneapolis, which has left some three thousand citizens
dead, including the brave souls on an airliner who wrestled the terrorists for control
of the plane but who still died tragically. Robert Hornsby is the
vice-president to George Cane, the aw shucks president whose uncle previously
held the office. Cane was away from the White House when the attack occurred. A
quick-thinking Hornsby had him flown to safety and then took control of the
situation, although he claimed that President Cane was directing operations
from his command post in Cheyenne Mountain. The blame for this outrageous act
is placed on an radical Muslim group called Husam al-Din. What the public
doesn’t know is that the administration, including Hornsby, had had advance
notice of the attacks.
The head of Husam al-Din is a
terrorist named Salman al-Akbar. His current location is unknown, but he is
believed to be hiding in a cave in the mountains of Kabulistan. Kabulistan is
ruled by the Dua Khamail, although the extent of their allegiance to Husam
al-Din is not known.
Hornsby’s aide, Scott Leventhal,
approaches the vice-president with an explosive revelation—the administrative
assistant to a congressman from Michigan, David Burnham, appears to be gay. And
closeted. Which makes him vulnerable to blackmail. This is interesting information
to have indeed. At the moment, they
don’t see the US as being in a position to move against Husam al-Din
strongholds in Kabulistan until the Dua Khamail are toppled and the former
rulesr, Selim Hanjuk, is back in power. Meanwhile, intelligence indicates that
the neighboring country of Sumeristan is stockpiling dangerous weapons,
including chemical weapons and poisons. Military forces are diverted to deliver
the people of Sumeristan from its brutal dictator and uphold the people’s right
to a democracy.
But is this even the truth, or a
ploy to invade Sumeristan?
People outside the inner circle
are beginning to put things together, but will they be able to do anything with
the knowledge? Who can be trusted in this all-too-familiar game of politics?
Which side is the President on, or is he as much of a dupe as anyone else?
It’s not hard to see from the
outset that The American Crusade is a
thinly veiled retelling and imagining of 9/11, disguised as the May Day attack
on the Mall of the Americas. George Cane is George Bush Jr and Hornsby is Dick
Cheney. The former president, Bill Hampton, whose wife Bethany is the senator
from New York isn’t hard to figure out either. Hornsby and his cronies ride
roughshod over ethics and morals, doing what they perceive to be in the best
interests of the country… or is it their own?
Perhaps this is a testament to the corollary that absolute power
corrupts absolutely.
The terrorist in hiding is
obviously the Ayatollah Khomeini, while the dictator Hornsby wishes to
overthrow is Saddam Hussein, with the claim that he possesses weapons of mass
destruction.
Although the story is based on
history, this is an interesting take, and Hornsby is an interesting choice for
the main focus of the book. He is ruthless to the nth degree and determined to
get what he wants, no matter the price. Is this what really happened? I have no
idea, but it’s as good a theory as any. Did the government possess
foreknowledge of 9/11, much as they did the attack on Pearl Harbor years
earlier?
Conservatives may not care for
this tale, as their side does not come off particularly well. But the story is
compelling, and I found myself very curious to see what would happen next. I
would recommend it if you’re into political intrigue and seeing bad guys get
their comeuppance.
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ReplyDeleteThanks for your incisive comments (mostly on target, except for Khomeini being the terrorist in hiding). I look forward to meeting your readers and answering any questions they might have.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a good book.
ReplyDeleteGreat post - I enjoyed reading it.
ReplyDelete