Newly Released Books Worth a Look

Available on Amazon

A couple of new books that seem interesting. First is ...

Science Fiction Adventure

The Counterfeit Captain 
by Henry Vogel

Hot off the digital press, this is set in the same universe as Fugitive Heir which, the Good Lord willing and the creek don't rise, I hope to review soon. It's by Henry Vogel who is a great story-teller  - literally, he tells stories live as well as writes.( If you remember, I previously reviewed his charming children's book. )

From the blurb:

Captain Nancy Martin expects a lonely death.
Passing out as her battle-damaged starfighter bleeds the last of its air, she comes to in the cavernous and deserted docking bay of an unknown starship. Leaving her crippled fighter to seek help, she finds she's been scooped up by a gigantic generation ship inhabited by the descendants of the original crew and passengers--people whose entire universe is the ship!
Mistaken for the vast ship's long-lost and near-mythical Captain, Nancy is welcomed as a savior. She believes she's found the allies she needs in her desperate fight for survival. But an even greater menace lurks in the shadows of the ship--one that controls every inch of the ship and every life aboard it. One that will stop at nothing to destroy--

And here's another...

Available on Amazon

Modern Spy Memoir

Left of Boom: How a Young CIA Case Officer Penetrated the Taliban and Al-Qaeda 
by Douglas Laux and Ralph Pezullo
I found this at the new books shelf of my local library.
From the blurb:

On September 11, 2001, Doug Laux was a freshman in college, on the path to becoming a doctor. But with the fall of the Twin Towers came a turning point in his life. After graduating he joined the Central Intelligence Agency, determined to get himself to Afghanistan and into the center of the action. Through persistence and hard work he was fast-tracked to a clandestine operations position overseas. Dropped into a remote region of Afghanistan, he received his baptism by fire. Frustrated by bureaucratic red tape, a widespread lack of knowledge of the local customs and culture and an attitude of complacency that hindered his ability to combat the local Taliban, Doug confounded his peers by dressing like a native and mastering the local dialect, making contact and building sources within several deadly terrorist networks. His new approach resulted in unprecedented successes, including uncovering the largest IED network in the world, responsible for killing hundreds of US soldiers. Meanwhile, Doug had to keep up false pretenses with his family, girlfriend and friends--nobody could know what he did for a living--and deal with the emotional turbulence of constantly living a lie. His double life was building to an explosive resolution, with repercussions that would have far reaching consequences.

I leafed through it and there are sentences, in fact, whole paragraphs, that are redacted. So I wonder how reading it will be. There are also a bunch of photos included. Seems intriguing.
One strange thing - the Amazon cover says "John Smith" but the physical book says "Douglas Laux" so I'm guessing the author had planned to use a pen name at first.

Have a happy hump day!