I first met Dony Jay when he asked to join one of the Facebook groups I belong to. When I saw from his profile that he has a debut novel and read its title, The Warrior Spy: A Thriller (A Warrior Spy Thriller Book 1), I immediately checked it out on Amazon and was excited as this was another novel in the genres I love, this one being Christian military (although, Dony classifies it as a spy thriller, hmm, may have to add this as another genre to my list!). I am not able to review this at this time, so I offered Dony an Author/Novel Spotlight post.
So sit back and let Dony talk about this intriguing novel, its background and Christian themes, and himself as an author.
However, to whet your appetite and pique your interest, here is the book cover and its description:
So sit back and let Dony talk about this intriguing novel, its background and Christian themes, and himself as an author.
However, to whet your appetite and pique your interest, here is the book cover and its description:
Delta Force operator Reagan Rainey, on temporary duty assignment with a secret CIA entity known as Directorate Twelve, is tasked to do just that--get answers. But to do so, he not only has to outwit and outmaneuver a dangerous cabal of foreign actors believed to be at the center of it all, he must contend with a deadly assassin who is bent on destroying him.
Relying on his bedrock faith in Almighty God, Rainey is forced to race against the clock to uncover what is really going on and why, before his beloved America is pushed to the brink of war.
The Warrior Spy is the first book in the Warrior Spy thriller series. It is jam-packed with heart-pounding action, all-out spy warfare and a new American hero that is sure to please.
It's comparable to thrillers by such authors as Robert Ludlum, Brad Thor and Vince Flynn, while also containing a clear faith element. If you love for-God-and-country-type books, The Warrior Spy was written for you!
Now a word or two (or more!) about Dony:
Dony Jay is a husband and father of two. He has a BS degree in Criminal Justice. He's served in law enforcement for more than 12 years, having spent most of that time as an investigator.
Dony considers himself an insatiable book addict. He began seriously writing in late 2010, his goal: to author a fresh Christian spy thriller series that champions not only America as she was founded but also her strong faith-infused heritage.
When it comes to writing and life in general, he finds inspiration in the sacrifice and dedication to duty of those who selflessly serve others, particularly in the cause of freedom and liberty for all. He is a proud American as well as a firm believer in the truth, love and hope of Jesus Christ.
When he's not reading or writing, Dony enjoys spending time with his family, playing sports (mostly soccer), hiking, and cheering on the Philadelphia Eagles.
He lives in beautiful Pennsylvania.
In Dony's words, he speaks candidly of the background to Warrior Spy and the journey to becoming a published author:
I have always considered myself a book addict, which is probably putting it mildly. Sometime in 2010, I began to get the urge to write a thriller. I read all kinds of books, but my favorite fiction genre is the spy thriller genre. It occurred to me that there was just no Christian spy thriller series out there (none that I had read to that point, at least) that came anywhere close to the general market thrillers I love to read. Of course, there are quality Christian novels/thrillers out there, but none that I found had a magnetic and memorable protagonist over the course of a series. I'm talking a protagonist like a Mitch Rapp (Vince Flynn) or a Scot Harvath (Brad Thor) with respect to Christian fiction. Someone that men and women alike are drawn to. So I decided to create that type of character first and then set him loose in a story. Reagan Rainey would be just as lethal and capable as a Rapp or a Harvath, but he would have something that neither of them had: a bedrock faith in Almighty God. Something that immeasurably sets him apart from them.
For about 6-8 months or so, I did the usual thing: queried agents looking for that daring soul to take a gamble on an unknown. I got modest feedback, but no real interest in representation, so after prayer and encouragement from some author friends and, of course, my lovely wife, I decided to venture out into the deep waters of independent publishing (aka self-publishing). Thus, I created my own imprint: Merry Hill Publishing and voila! On December 3, 2015, through much toil, sweat, and tears--with the stellar assistance of several key people in the indie world, The Warrior Spy was born.
Through the book and the coming Warrior Spy Thriller series, my goal is to not only provide entertainment and excitement to readers but also to do the following:
1) Draw readers to the truth, love and hope of Jesus Christ. This is my number one goal, but the writing doesn't have to be preachy.
2) Commemorate and honor all those who daily protect the innocent and defend freedom; freedom is certainly not free.
3) Champion American values--traditional American values--and the idea of American exceptionalism, particularly due to her biblical heritage. That is what has made America great. I believe this is why America and the world more broadly are going through such tough times lately. We've grown away from a firm reliance on Divine Providence.
4) Inspire. There are real heroes out there, you might not know it from the current media climate, but there are. Through compelling fiction, I hope to inspire readers to recognize these heroes, perhaps even make them strive to be better people, to serve their fellow man.
5) Make people think. About what is important in life, and what is trivial.
6) Bring Christian (and non-Christian) men especially back to faith-based thrillers. I want my books to appeal to readers of Christian fiction and also general market fiction. I know, I've got high hopes, right... TBS (Cable TV station) had a slogan sometime ago that went, "Movies for guys who like movies." Well, I guess you could say I write books for guys (gals, too) who like movies but also like to read. LOL.
And Dony makes an important point of stating the Christian themes in Warrior Spy:
1) God is always in control and He is faithful. No. Matter. What.
2) The power of prayer is very real.
1) God is always in control and He is faithful. No. Matter. What.
2) The power of prayer is very real.
3) Good ultimately prevails.
To further highlight Warrior Spy, here is an excerpt chosen by Dony:
Persistent shards of sunlight penetrated tiny cracks and crevices in the tightly pulled blinds. They knifed their way far into the room, exposing the intricate wood grain texture of each plank in the floor. It was quite a spectacle within the safe house, as clusters of clouds outside drifted in front of, then past, the sun. The invading light would quickly dim and disappear, then in an instant, return with ferocity. Each time, the sunlight seemed more intense as it splintered into a latticework of squares, rectangles, and trapezoids across the floor.
Now, a little more than three hours since they’d been in Nika’s apartment, Rainey sat in a lumpy, cappuccino-colored recliner. His eyes were fixed on the Fox News Channel’s footage of the salvage effort taking place along Lac St-Louis. Including the crew, all 215 people aboard Flight 612 had perished last night in one inexplicable instant. Rainey shook his head as he took in the carnage being hauled up onto barges and flatbed trucks. A small army of people clad in red search and rescue gear spanned the panorama.
“Any word on what caused it?” inquired Alcott from behind his laptop.
“No. Just a lot of speculation.”
“Well, now,” said Alcott.
“What?”
"I just got an update from Job about that phone call Nika made.”
“And?”
“Number comes back to a pre-paid assigned to Telus Mobility. Metadata puts the phone in the same general area where Horst was taken. Date and time fit, too. And get this… The phone is still active. It’s hitting off a tower in the St-Lèonard area of the city as we speak. Job has it narrowed down to a specific address. It’s about twenty minutes from here.”
“So what’s the plan?”
Alcott stood up. “He wants you and me to go recon the location. Drummy and Bobo are to stay on the girl for the time being. I’ve requested some more people. For us to properly tail one person, let alone two, we’re going to need them. He said he’ll get back to me. It’s your call. What do you want to do? You wanna wait?”
Rainey shook his head. “No. We can’t. Intel’s perishable. We might lose our lead in the meantime. No, we do what we’re told. We go to the address and develop the situation.”
“My thoughts exactly. Let’s do it.”
---END EXCERPT---
If you want to investigate Dony more, he can be found here:
Twitter: @DonyJayBooks
Website: www.DonyJayBooks.com
Newsletter: Dony Jay's Reader Intel Bulletin
After all this, if you want to buy Warrior Spy, you can here:
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