Today it's my turn on the BlogTour Operation Large Scotch: O.L.S. by Bill Flockhart.
'Operation Large Scotch' is my first book and at my age (71) possibly my last. it reflects on my life in many respects having worked in a distillery in my early working life before digressing into financial services.
My interests are sport (especially golf, swimming and basketball, (the latter through my two sons who played at international level) and current affairs in our ever changing world.
I have always enjoyed a challenge, which producing a book has certainly proved to be, but I would recommend writing to the retired population as it certainly keeps your brain active.
Two years after publishing 'operation large scotch' I am delighted to release my second novel 'She's Not a Lovely Girl' which is a sequel to my first book. I only hope it gives everyone the pleasure 'O.L.S.' did judging by the favourable reviews it received.
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About the book
Fearing the Good Friday Agreement will effectively end the lifestyle his IRA terrorist cell has enjoyed for years, Michael Caldwell the leader of the 1972 Club (named after the Bloody Sunday Massacre) decides to turn his attention to targeting the UK Government economically. He launches an attack threatening to bomb the Scotch whisky industry unless the British Government pay the terrorists a £20m ransom.
Armitage Brown, Assistant Controller of MI5 is given the task of stopping the terrorist attack but is unable to get any information on the assailants as to how, where and when they are going to deploy their explosives if their demands are not met. He co-ordinates a strategy, using all the emergency services, to thwart the terrorists under the code name ‘Operation Large Scotch.’
Both the military and the intelligence services have been guilty of murderous acts going back over the previous eighteen years. John Johnston, a young Ulsterman, living thousands of miles away in South Africa, is determined to get revenge for the killing of his father in Belfast. With the assistance of Mossad, the Israeli Secret Service he releases information that will haunt both the British Military establishment and the terrorists.
Will MI5 succeed in preventing mayhem in various towns around Scotland?
When tackling the conflict between the IRA and the British military it's important to give a balanced account, especially when trying to make a point about two wrongs not making a right. I can imagine neither side would agree and believe the other is more at fault. I'm not going to get into the politics of it, because the bad blood goes back too far and deep.
When young John inadvertently becomes a witness to a heinous crime his father realises that the only way to keep him safe is to whisk him away to a completely different continent. Little does he know that he will delve back into the nightmares of his childhood later in life in an attempt to avenge the loss of a loved one.
The language and transitions could do with being a little smoother - less abrupt, although one could argue that it's a style, as opposed to the misfires of a debut novel. Flockhardt clearly writes with passion, both for his premise and the topic.
It's a spy come military thriller - an explosive story that wades into controversial topics. The author balances the controversy with an attempt to create a bridge to close the rift by acting as the observer. Simultaneously he delivers a fast paced read, whilst reminding readers that just because one group acts in the name of an honourable institution it doesn't make some of their deeds any less deadly or wrong. It also serves as a reminder that terror committed in the name of an honourable goal doesn't make the havoc and death it causes any less of a crime.
Buy Operation Large Scotch at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Published in ebook and paperback formats on 11th December 2017. Buy at Amazon com.
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