“The Kerguelen Cat” uses a degree of creative license when it comes to some of its featured aircraft. One in particular is inspired by the futuristic Horten designs of the 1930s and 1940s.
Pioneering the “flying wing” concept with both gliders and powered prototypes, the Horten brothers later scaled up their ambition with the massive H.XVIII pictured here but the project never left the drawing board…
Calling all passengers for boarding, your flight to the 1930s is ready for take off!
“The Dragon Run” is now LIVE on Amazon, for Kindle, on Kindle Unlimited, and on paperback. Grab it while it’s hot: https://amzn.to/34Ko42l!
There’s more! If you want to know more about the Dragon Rapide and other featured planes, TDR comes with “Planes of Ascalon”, a free companion booklet to satisfy your curiosity. Download it here!
“The Kerguelen Cat” announcement
Today’s other goodie is the unveiling of the cover for “The Kerguelen Cat”, scheduled for release on May 1st, 2021. Part II of the Ascalon Circle series is bound to amp up the stakes so keep your seatbelts on!
“The Dragon Run” is a love letter to aviation, but it also has a few easter eggs & nods to other works, from “Out of Africa” to “Pulp Fiction”. Among these, one stands out. More than a nod, it’s a tribute to Joseph Kessel’s “Vent de Sable”, published in 1929.
In 1925, Kessel was
the first passenger on the Toulouse-Saint-Louis line, traveling among
bags of letters (there was no seat!) with only an interpreter (in case
they crashed in Tuareg territory) and the pilot, Émile Lécrivain. “Vent
de Sable” is a glimpse into the lives of these early mail pilots, their
trials and their joys, their pioneering efforts, their tragedies…
A
conversation with the pilots one night alludes to a colleague whose
legend is only beginning. His name is Jean Mermoz. The mythology of the
“Line” is in its infancy, but the players are in place.
My scene
is an overt tribute to a passage that I actually heard on the radio, in
Kessel’s own voice, before I read it in the book, of a particularly
difficult episode of this extraordinary journey. It is a hauntingly
emotional tale and I can only hope my feeble efforts gave it justice.
It’s D-30 before the big day! But what if you just CAN’T wait to take a look? Well, worry not, I got you covered!
Click the image above to download an exclusive preview of the first pages of my historical fiction debut novel, “The Dragon Run”. Simply save it and send it to the e-reader of your choice!
Gearing up for the launch of my debut novel “The Dragon Run” on November 1st! I had the privilege to be invited to write a guest post for the blog of fellow author Susan Shiney. You should check out her website, it’s full of wonderful stories as well as helpful tips and techniques about writing and promoting your work. Thank you Susan for having me on your platform! Link: https://bit.ly/35EJEqc
While reading about Midway (cf. yesterday’s post), I found out that the IJN aircraft carrier Sōryū was actually at Hainan Island in 1940 to provide support for the Japanese invasion of French Indochina. So… it’s a bit of a stretch, but I might just go and squeeze a cameo in “The Kerguelen Cat”…
First, I’m overjoyed to announce that The Dragon Run finally got a release date! The Kindle edition is now available for pre-order on Amazon, with a paperback version to follow very soon.
When will it be ready? Well, I’m glad you asked! The book will be released November 1st, 2020!
Secondly, a book would be nothing without… a cover! And it is my immense pleasure to share with you the TDR cover below:
The bold yet minimalist style is meant to call back to the golden age of pulp spy/adventure stories. What do you think? Does it work?
Finally, as part of the redesign that I mentioned in my previous post, I’m sharing today the launch of my dedicated author website, www.rachelrelat.net:
This new site will become the main hub for writing-related news, release dates and updates on the Ascalon Circle series and other works. Hope to see you there!
Well, that’s all I got for you today. Hope the post-lockdown is going well for everyone and until next time!
