Why readers love The Secret War
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Another gripping adventure with Jake Maguire that was fun and thrilling to read.
A good mystery with unexpected twists.
Absolutely enthralled by the book.
I learned more about the elements of the Vietnam War from his book than I ever did in school or college.
Enjoyed the color and fast pace.
The descriptions of locations and history are informative and entertaining.
It is chock full of intrigue and things to think about.
I like the references to the days of Air America and the heroin trade in the Golden Triangle.
Galt knows his way around Washington.
The story draws you in.
Galt’s characters are real people with their flaws and assets.
I like Jake.
Combine great characters with historical fiction in a book, and suddenly one finds themselves reading past midnight because the book just wouldn’t let them go to sleep!
Galt’s books could be great content for Netflix!
Most entertaining.
Enjoy this free excerpt from The Secret War
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Chapter 1
Breaking up is painful. Especially in springtime.
On the bus ride to work Jake Maguire felt a growing frustration. His girlfriend had just left him.
Before she departed that morning to chase down another story for national public radio, Amber Jones had stood on their front stoop with an Uber car waiting. Her tall and shapely form had wavered as if she debated whether to stay or go.
She had looked so desirable, so loving, so lonely. She was his life partner and confidant, his best friend. And yet she’d accused him of hurting her deeply.
His heart had gone out to her. He wanted to make things right between them.
He remembered leaning forward to kiss her.
She had barely returned the advance.
He still felt the tentative pressure of her lips against his. It felt like the end of something.
As he stared blankly out the bus window with dawn lifting over the nation's capital, his true feelings were revealed. He was angry. What had he done wrong? Why was she blaming him?
The whole blow-up had begun the night before over a stupid television program.
Amber had turned to him and inquired, “Why don’t we ever watch black TV shows?”
That had triggered a long discussion in which she implied he wasn’t spiritually or emotionally equipped to align his interests with hers. The cultural and personal divisions ran deep.
“It takes commitment if this is going to work,” she’d said.
“I am committed.”
She had given him one of her trademark sidelong stares.
“See?” he’d said. “I’m here with you.” And he let the show resume.
Dull, churning Hans Zimmer music accompanied the title sequence of The Crown.
“If you don’t know what I’m talking about, baby,” she had said, “you’ll never get it.”
“I know what commitment is,” he’d replied defensively, and reminded her he had worked for over a decade at the FBI.
She then poked him directly at the heart. “Commitment starts here. Not in the wallet.”
Then she dropped the bombshell.
“Mama once told me, ‘Don’t go mixing business with pleasure.’ Well, here I am sleeping with my landlord.”
He paused the show again.
There was so much packed into that statement, it truly stung. Was he no more than a landlord to her? Was she saying he had no empathy? Was their relationship no more than a business arrangement?
It was the racial overtones of the word “landlord” that hurt most.
The bus rumbled on, taking him toward work and away from home.
Excerpt from The Secret War
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A sobering reflection on military intervention, deportation of refugees, and the war on drugs written by acclaimed American author Fritz Galt.
“An entertaining mystery.” – author Linda Q. Cavazos