Chris Kuzneski

Chris Kuzneski in his own words:

I grew up in Indiana, PA, with my parents and three siblings. As a fourth-grader, I wrote my first book, The Monster Cookbook, a work of fiction that detailed the culinary and nutritional needs of a dozen creatures that I’d created. The school’s librarian was so impressed that she had it hardbound and placed in the school’s library with all the books that my classmates enjoyed. Unbeknownst to her, a career in writing was born.

I attended Indiana High School where I was voted Class Clown of my senior class and anchored the offensive line on a team that won back-to-back CENPAC championships. I continued my football career at the University of Pittsburgh ― playing with future NFL stars Tony Siragusa, Jeff Christy, Mark Stepnoski, Craig “Ironhead” Heyward, and many others. Unfortunately, a freak foot injury ended my athletic career. (That, and a severe lack of athletic ability.)

While studying at Pitt, I wrote for The Pitt News, the Indiana Gazette, and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, eventually earning my B.A. in writing and my M.A. in teaching. From 1992 until 1998, I taught English and coached football in two western Pennsylvania school districts and was selected to Who's Who Among America's Teachers. But in my mind, I still wasn’t doing what I wanted to do. I wanted to be a writer. So I quit my job and took a leap of faith . . .

My first novel, The Plantation, was praised by James Patterson, Nelson DeMille, Lee Child, James Rollins, and several of the top writers in my genre. My next thriller, Sign of the Cross, was released in 2006 and became an international bestseller, translated into more than fifteen languages. Sword of God climbed even higher on the charts, hitting the New York Times and London Times bestseller lists. My fourth book, The Lost Throne, debuted in the UK Top-5 and stayed on the charts for several weeks. It was also my first American hardcover. The paperback version hit the New York Times list. My fifth book, The Prophecy, reached #4 on the UK charts and was released in America on July 8, 2010. My latest book, The Secret Crown, is currently available in the UK, but won’t be released in America until January 2012. 

I currently live on the Gulf Coast of Florida. When I’m not enjoying the sun, surf, and hurricanes, I’m working on my next novel, which will be the seventh book in the Payne & Jones series.

www.chriskuzneski.com/

The Ghost War

I just got acquainted with Alex Berenson's novels. I am a huge Robert Ludlum fan and over the years I grew to love Tom Clancy, Vince Flynn and Daniel Silva. These names are masters of espionage thrillers. They actually set the bar so high that when I set them as standards for a really good espionage thrillers, no other writer satisfies me, until i picked up a Berenson book. 

In The Ghost War, Berenson took a drive in the slick espionage sedan, floored the pedal and never pulled back. This is a great novel in a genre where disappointment has been the trend for years. Alex Berenson was a whiff of fresh air.

Summary:

In The Faithful Spy, John Wells became the only American CIA agent ever to penetrate al-Qaeda, but his handlers became distrustful of him, and he of them. He had to stop a devastating terrorist attack nearly alone.

Now Wells is back in Washington. HIs wounds have healed, but his mind is far from clear. He is restless, uneasy in his skin, and careless with his safety. When the CIA finds evidence of a surge in Taliban activity, backed by an unknown foreign power, it takes little to convince Wells to return to Afghanistan to investigate. But what he discovers there is far from what he expected.

Real-world threats, authentic details, a scenario as dramatic as it is plausible — The Ghost War is another “timely reminder of the extremely precarious way we live now” (The Washington Post).

“A tautly paced, credible, and gripping scenario guaranteed to buttress Berenson’s niche as one of the stars in the suspense firmament.”