AUTHOR NEWSLETTER
Herb Hughes
Summer/Fall, 2024
A WAR BY ANY OTHER NAME NOW AVAILABLE
Books From The Pond proudly announces the release of the third novel in the Drake Blast series: A War By Any Other Name.
The Arab village of Ascoa is wiped out. In a tit-for-tat move, the African village of Latriki is also destroyed. Then, like a freshly lit string of firecrackers, a brutal war explodes.
Drake is a Master Detective in the 2040s. He often doubles as an international spy. But this time, he must take on the role of Special Peace Ambassador to the two warring nations. Drake is dubious of his new assignment, but there is some old-fashioned detective work involved. While he is negotiating peace, he has the covert task of investigating the murder of the prior Ambassador, which includes finding something hidden by the man shortly before he was stabbed to death. Drake knows the item is significant, but he does not know what it is or why it matters.
With a deepening mystery surrounding it, this is not an ordinary war. Drake gets swept into that mystery. He is reunited with an old friend, reporter Rabiu Dlamini of South Africa. Together, they investigate a mass grave filled with Arab soldiers in fake uniforms. A lovely African lady known only as Makena claims she and her baby are the lone survivors of Latriki and that the enemy soldier who spared their lives is buried in the mass grave. Then, Makena is kidnapped and used as bait to lure Drake into a trap. While trying to rescue her, Drake discovers a conspiracy unimaginable in scope and scale. Drake must save Makena and her baby, solve the mystery surrounding the war, and save his own life, all while bringing peace to two devastated nations. Is that asking too much?
A War By Any Other Name is available at:
eBook ($2.99): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DJWFLJHB
Paperback ($13.95): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DJXR4BML/
It can also be read for free on Kindle Unlimited.
BLUE APPLE BOOKS NOW OPEN IN DOWNTOWN MADISON
A new independent bookstore, Blue Apple Books, was opened in downtown Madison, Alabama, fulfilling a lifelong dream for the owner, Robin Dauma, a former English teacher. Chain bookstores typically spoon-feed customers with books from the big five New York publishing companies. Independent bookstores can provide these and much more, including the very best indie books and books from local authors.
Robin has combined Blue Apple Books with South and Pine, which carries a wide variety of items for home and gifts. You can visit Robin’s store at 14 Main Street, Suites B and C. You can also order from her website at:
Follow Blue Apple Books on social media (@blueapplebooks and @shopsouthandpine). Remember to buy local for your holiday shopping! Blue Apple Books carries decor, gifts, books, puzzles and games, and local art. They also regularly hold fun workshops and events.
REELS FOR MY NOVELS RELEASED ON SOCIAL MEDIA OUTLETS
My son, Stephen, and I have developed some reels for social media to promote my novels. Here are the YouTube links to the three most recent. All are less than a minute long. Please take a look and let me know what you think, especially the last one for The Crystal Shell. We decided to take it up a notch. Did we succeed?
Tennessee Yankee: https://youtube.com/shorts/3aVpZxWbazw?si=OqSDzShnf5_f5MTQ
The Drake Blast Novels: https://youtube.com/shorts/24CBmR0bzLU?si=QlBzp8R8fzrhEMab
The Crystal Shell: https://youtubecom/shorts/xPpmgVZlwNE?feature=share
A NEW LOOK FOR MY AUTHOR WEBSITE COMING IN 2025
We (Stephen and I) are planning to update the website in 2025 with a new, updated look. It will take a while to get this done, but I’ll put out a notice when it’s complete. In the meantime, the current website will remain in operation. You can continue to buy autographed novels on the SHOP page. Over the next few weeks, we will be adding the new release and some new bundles.
POUNDING THE KEYS – THE WEDDING
[Pounding The Keys is a regular feature about my current novel(s) in progress.]
With A War By Any Other Name now formally released, I have turned my full attention to The Wedding. This new novel is historical fiction set during World War II. An American reporter and a Polish society girl are to be married on September 1, 1939. Adolf Hitler has other ideas.
As I’ve mentioned in prior emails, The Wedding is based on a song with the same title that Tim Lewis and I wrote in the 1980s. Tim is a songwriter of some note. He has co-written hit songs that have been recorded by many artists, including that downhome band from Fort Payne. You may remember them as “Alabama.” I was fortunate enough to work with Tim for a number of years. We wrote close to forty songs. One of my favorites is The Wedding. Tim’s melody for this song has a sound that will never go out of style.
The current plan is to have the first draft ready by spring and the novel released no later than August 2025. The emphasis here is on the word “plan.” (As Robert Burns so eloquently indicated in his poem, To A Mouse, there is plenty of wiggle room there. ☺ )
JUST FOR FUN
[Writer’s jokes. Something to help you smile.]
Why do writers prefer cats as pets? Because they’re experts in creating cliffhangers.
What does the narcissistic cow say? “Meeeeee!”
Why did Stalin only write in lowercase? He was afraid of capitalism.
What do you call a writer who doesn’t follow the rules of sentence structure?
A rebel without a clause
Why did the writer bring a notebook to the bakery? To jot down some fresh ideas.
What’s the difference between a park bench and a writer? A park bench can support a family.
My apologies for any repeats. And the cow joke is not really a writer joke, but it was cute.
Thank you for reading my newsletter,
(That looks pretty good, doesn’t it? The computer writes a lot neater than I do!)
PLEASE PASS THIS NEWSLETTER ALONG TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY. And please ask them to do the same. The more the merrier, of course. Heck, the entire English-speaking world would be good!
Also, if you have read one or more of my novels, please consider leaving a review on Amazon and/or Goodreads. If you don’t want to write a review, you can rate the novel without writing a single word. I know corporations have beaten people to death requesting feedback. It’s gotten to the point where almost everyone has become immune to the requests. But I’m not a big corporation. I’m just me. And your review or rating would be so wonderfully helpful. Reviews and ratings are literally an author’s lifeblood. Thank you.
If you are not on my email list and would like to receive my newsletters, send your name and email address to: herbhughes1994@att.net.
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Back issues are available on my website: www.herbhughesnovels.com/blog
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