Today I am featuring
Luzon
by Richard Whitten Barnes
About
Luzon:
Here's a
short excerpt:
Daniel could see the luminous hands of his watch--almost on the hour. Emilio and Vicente were expert at keeping the boat stable in the worsening sea, the rest of them holding to the gunnels. He’d been signaling out to sea every sixty seconds, as close as he could guess, and again removed the flashlight from where he’d tucked it in his life vest. This time he left the light on longer, waving it right to left.
“I saw something reflected by the light!” Vicente shouted.
“I did too. I think it’s the sub’s periscope!” Emilio said.
They began to paddle hard to the east.
They’d gone a short distance when a blinding light caught and held them for an instant. Then, it was gone, but now they could hear the sound of an engine revving to high speed.
Daniel thought first of their charge. “Major! Over the side!”
“What?”
“He’s right! You have to hide!” Riza shrilled.
They literally picked the man up and dumped him in the sea.
Now, twin spotlights came on, and stayed on, bearing down from high above.
“Don’t resist. They have us!” Emilio called.
Hoping to conceal Scott’s bobbing head in the waves, Daniel stood up, the flashlight still in his hand. He didn’t see the muzzle flash in the glare of the spotlights, but the bullet felt like a sledge hammer, as it knocked him backwards into the boiling sea.
"Nooo!" Riza cried, but it was too late. He was lost in the darkened waves.
Available at these and other booksellers:
Amazon * Apple iBooks * Barnes & Noble * Smashwords
Author Links:
Daniel could see the luminous hands of his watch--almost on the hour. Emilio and Vicente were expert at keeping the boat stable in the worsening sea, the rest of them holding to the gunnels. He’d been signaling out to sea every sixty seconds, as close as he could guess, and again removed the flashlight from where he’d tucked it in his life vest. This time he left the light on longer, waving it right to left.
“I saw something reflected by the light!” Vicente shouted.
“I did too. I think it’s the sub’s periscope!” Emilio said.
They began to paddle hard to the east.
They’d gone a short distance when a blinding light caught and held them for an instant. Then, it was gone, but now they could hear the sound of an engine revving to high speed.
Daniel thought first of their charge. “Major! Over the side!”
“What?”
“He’s right! You have to hide!” Riza shrilled.
They literally picked the man up and dumped him in the sea.
Now, twin spotlights came on, and stayed on, bearing down from high above.
“Don’t resist. They have us!” Emilio called.
Hoping to conceal Scott’s bobbing head in the waves, Daniel stood up, the flashlight still in his hand. He didn’t see the muzzle flash in the glare of the spotlights, but the bullet felt like a sledge hammer, as it knocked him backwards into the boiling sea.
"Nooo!" Riza cried, but it was too late. He was lost in the darkened waves.
Available at these and other booksellers:
Amazon * Apple iBooks * Barnes & Noble * Smashwords
My Book
Review:
I have read other books authored by Richard Whitten Barnes and,
once again, he doesn’t disappoint.
Luzon starts with the changes brought to one Japanese-American
college student in California, Daniel Suhiro, working towards his law degree at Berkeley at
the time Pearl Harbor is bombed. He has returned from two years of study in
Japan where he stayed with his aunt and uncle. His life and that of his family
is turned upside-down as wartime measures mean his family’s finances are frozen
and they must prepare to live in a relocation camp. Daniel realized he will not
be able to complete his degree. He is pressured into enlisting in the military,
which he resists, just as in spite of his wish to protect his aunt and uncle in Japan being threatened, he prefers to resist the foreign operative who puts
pressure on him to spy for Japan. Faced
with many vying for his loyalty, he makes his choice. Although many of us are
aware Japanese living on the west coast were ordered to internment camps, I
liked how the author expanded on additional challenges the Japanese-Americans
faced. The author developed this character well, and his story included many
details about some of peculiarities of the Japanese language and procedures that
revealed he did his research.
I also enjoyed the character of the OSS operative, Riza Manceda.
The two are prepared and sent on a mission together in the Philippines, her
native land. Unlike many novels where a plan is laid out, and the reader
follows the characters as they follow the plan and overcome opposition, Mr.
Barnes’s plot involved the plan falling apart more than once. The characters then
are forced to put together new plans in their efforts to fulfill their
assignment. It kept me guessing. Once again, I enjoyed reading about the
resistance groups in the Philippines. I appreciated the research that went into
these details.
The author did a great job making the secondary characters
memorable and interesting. The romance elements were sensual. The language was
a little rough in spots. The story held my interest from beginning to end. I
could not put the book down. I highly recommend Luzon to anyone who enjoys a good war story, especially one full of
intrigue and set in the South Pacific.
About
the Author:
Richard
Whitten Barnes is a native Chicagoan, graduating as a chemist from Michigan
State University. He is now retired from a career in international chemical
sales and marketing, which has taken him all over the world. Barnes is a
veteran of the U.S. Army 82nd Airborne Division and an avid sailor. He lives in
Lake Wylie, S.C., but spends summers with his wife Marg and dog Sparty at their
cottage on St. Joseph Island, Ontario, on the shores of Lake Huron.
Author Links:
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