Sharp humour despite tragic subject in Brighton author's new novel

John explains the background: “I delivered medical aid to orphanages and hospitals across the globe, including Romania during the revolution, South America and Bosnia during the war. The success of each mission depended on enlisting the unlikely support of those I called ‘benevolent rogues’. These men and women used their wit and guile to deliver medical aid and help save lives. Thirty years later, I decided to weave these extraordinary stories into my 1990s-based thriller, Heartbreak.

“Readers will relate to its heroine who, despite being a young teacher in rural Ireland, wants to help children, whether abandoned in Romanian orphanages or fleeing the war in Bosnia. Even the Rogues she meets on the convoy who are veterans of humanitarian aid crises, grow to respect the unworldly teacher for her tenacity and quick-wittedness.

“Despite the tragic subject matter, there is also sharp humour which I am sure readers will enjoy.

“This was based on my personal experiences, as it helped me, and my Rogues, to get through some traumatic times.

“Heartbreak is set in the 1990s and tells the story of Lenka Brett, a smart but unworldly, young, Irish teacher, who volunteers to deliver medical aid when she learns of the horrifying plight of children in Romanian orphanages. An English naval officer, Captain Simon Trevelyan, volunteers to be her co-driver. Together, they join a convoy of humanitarian aid drivers known as the Rogues, the last hope for those in areas where official charities cannot enter.

“Lenka falls in love with one of the drivers, but when the Rogues become the target of mercenaries, tragedy follows, and she discovers her lover is not who he appeared to be.

“Heartbreak is a fast-paced thriller, but delves into subjects that are relevant today, such as the role of the individual in a world of superpower politics, and the plight of refugees caught in wars not of their making.”

John added: “Heartbreak is the first in The Lenka Trilogy.

“The Lenka Trilogy follows Lenka Brett’s adventures that take her to Romania, and later Bosnia during the war and finally South America.

“It completes my trio of trilogies, using major historical events from the last hundred years as their canvas. The Rogues Trilogy, Churchill’s Rogue, The Gathering Storm and The Darkest Hour, is set in the 1930s. Its characters are at the forefront of the Spanish Civil War and the rise of the Nazis.

“My second trilogy, The Lochran Trilogy, Churchill’s Assassin, The Last Rogue and The Alpha Wolves, is set in the 1960s at the height of the Cold War. It starts with an assassination attempt on Sir Winston Churchill, which begs the question, why kill a man the world knows is dying?

“It was a joy to research and then weave the thriller together around the Cold War and the fight for civil rights and sexual equality, all laced with the darkest of gallows humour.”

John added: “Sadly, I lost several friends I worked with during my days delivering medical aid. Ten years ago, I met the children of two of those who had died, and I was shocked to discover that they knew little of the extraordinary things their parents had done.”

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