Valiant Savage

Dave Edlund

Light Messages (OCT 27) Softcover $15.99 (320pp) 978-1-61153-362-0

Dave Edlund’s riveting action thriller, Valiant Savage, blends history and science fiction as Peter Savage and his company perfect a technological weapon meant to lead to a paradigm shift on the battlefield. Things go awry when the demonstration of the weapon is interrupted; Peter is knocked out, and the weapon is taken. Peter’s friend—the commander of the Strategic Global Intervention Team, James—is believed to be the mastermind behind the attack.

Setting out to find the truth and rescue James, Peter clashes with a domestic terrorist group, the Cascadia Independence Movement. The CIM hopes to enact a political coup involving targeted assassinations in order to break off the Pacific Northwest as a sovereign nation. Its leader, General Stuart Denson, boasts a unique historical tie to the early days of America that is the foundation for his master plan. He believes that the US’S acquisition of the Pacific Northwest violated a lost treaty, and he has evidence.

Peter’s revolutionary technology has a science fiction element that’s at the edge of science fact: it uses lasers to bypass the environmental restrictions that afflict traditional ballistics. When it’s used by the CIM for their assassinations, Peter faces the group himself, armed with the bare minimum gear and with his faithful canine, Diesel. Peter has little time to confront the potential consequences of his invention as he races to thwart their coup, the likes of which America hasn’t seen since the Civil War.

The taut action scenes ramp up in intensity throughout, leading to an explosive showdown featuring Air Force One. Between the CIM’S ruthless military tactics and Peter’s unique combat savviness, the battles play out with varied but dire stakes.

Valiant Savage is a pulse-pounding action thriller that’s anchored by its charming everyman hero and a fascinating historical mystery.