Felix M Temple
Felix M Temple
Hey All!
Today is my stop on the Felix M Temple blog tour and I am here today with two extracts for you all.
Title: The First Law of Fate
Author: Felix M Temple
Publisher: Clink Street Publishing
Published: 4th June 2020
Format: Paperback
Source:: N/A
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Summary: The Russians, Chinese and Americans are planning to control satellites. The French program secret additional functions to a satellite. The Italians are working for a number of Gulf States to include secret interception facilities.
The Russians know about the French plans, so do the British. Secret files are hacked from some US military systems.
François Duhamel investigates for the DGSE. CIA agent Bruce Waller flies to Paris. Sir Charles Beresford of MI6 has to work out why the President of the US thinks there is a British double agent. The three friends work together for their mutual benefit.
The British think Michael Cocke is responsible. The Turks buy intelligence from him. They believe he has double-crossed them.
The Russians obtain a copy of American agents in Russia, and the British discover a list of Russian agents in the Middle East. The Indians obtain a Chinese document they give to MI6.
As the problems are resolved, Michael Cocke’s life is expendable. The Turks hand him over to the Russians; the Americans and Russians have time to get their officers out; the Chinese agree not to attack the British in exchange for the return of the secret document; the French avoid a collapse of the government.
Extract
He could not imagine it at the time, but the impeccably dressed man that struck up a conversation with him would inevitably lead to his disgrace and death. That was, if he made the wrong decision.
The final item before the interval was the clarinet quintet Recalling a Serenade by Paweł Szymański.
‘You know,’ the man said, as they waited to order refreshments, ‘that last piece of music was commissioned by the Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival in 1996. Kari Kriikku played the clarinet with the Silesian String Quartet.’
‘I was not aware,’ he replied. From his accent, demeanour and quality of the clothes he was wearing, the person that spoke to him was clearly a member of a noble family of the ancien regime. ‘It was interesting,’ he continued the exchange, ‘but I came to listen to Ravel, Debussy, and Poulenc, not the Pole.’
‘Our French composers are, naturally, wonderful. You say the music by the composer from Poland was interesting. It is thought provoking, and it was the first time I heard it. The composer has written a modern piece with references to classical structure – very clever. Did I detect a reference to Sergei Prokofiev’s Classical Symphony? Maybe. I like the pizzicato. It sounds like rain falling; or, even though it might be a rather fanciful association, like stars twinkling.’ The younger man was obviously not interested in discussing the music, so the older man announced who he was. ‘But let me introduce myself, I am Guerin.’
They had been watching him for a while. The older man insisted on buying them both a glass of wine. He directed the conversation to politics and the state of the nation. The younger man engaged enthusiastically, outlining his belief that the wrong people were in control of the state apparatus.
As the second half of the concert was about to begin, Guerin told him that he liked the passion the younger man had revealed. ‘You are one of us,’ he said, ‘perhaps you want to know more?’
‘Yes, I am passionate about my country. It needs to change.’
Title: The World’s a Minefield
Author: Felix M Temple
Publisher: Clink Street Publishing
Published: 4th June 2020
Format: Paperback
Source:: N/A
Add It: Amazon. Goodreads.
Summary: A new type of autocratic politician dominates the political landscape.
With the deliberate appointment by the Prime Minister of an unsuitable candidate for the top job of C in MI6, trouble begins. The new man sweeps people out. Most of them die by accident or suicide.
Sir Charles, a loyal subject and member of a family that has been part of the ruling elite for generations, knows he will be next. He and his colleagues from Australia, France, and the United States of America have to find out why they are being attacked. They must meet the challenge; failure will mean certain death.
Caught up in the maelstrom facing the security services of the western world, the plans of a crook go drastically awry when one of his political contacts dies in a young man’s bed. The international threads of business intertwine with the greed of politicians as a few loyal officers save the Service. Love blossoms between those caught up in the business, and in a small house outside Marrakesh, Katharine acts to lift the black pain inflicted upon her after the brutal death of her lover in 1973.
Extract
A Still Point of the Turning World
The man nodded a ‘hello’ to the jogger running towards him on the river path as they passed. Seconds later, the man was flat on his front, his head deep in the grass, the nettles towering above him. In a swift and well-practiced action, the runner had turned and jumped on the man from behind, forcing him off the path into the long grass. The assailant sat on his back, using his considerable weight to keep him face down and to prevent him from moving his body. The action occurred extremely quickly and with no warning, which meant that there was little he could do to respond. ‘What are you doing? Get off me,’ he began into the grass. The tall muscular man controlled the inept struggles of his quarry, who was no match for the height, weight and fitness of the young attacker. The killer shifted his weight to enable him to press the handle of a sharpened kitchen knife into the palm of the man’s right hand. ‘Why? Why me?’ he shouted. There was no response. ‘Wait until Sir Charles finds out,’ he continued as the other forcibly crushed his fingers around the handle, raised his head, and cut his throat in a single, controlled, well-practised, movement. Gurgling blood splashed out, colouring the grass a light red as it ran into the earth. Pain, loss of bodily functions, and the physical disorientation accompanying such a violent and unexpected experience left the victim dazed and rapidly loosing consciousness.
‘He won’t know. He’s next. When the police look at your computer, they’ll find it’s full of very nasty images. They’ll quickly reach the conclusion that you knew you’d be found out. A nice little open and shut case of suicide; you embarrassed the Service.’
In the last moments of life, he gave a deathly pale look of defiance, as if to say ‘But they’re not that stupid.’
The attacker smiled. He answered the wordless expression. ‘Don’t delude yourself. The coroner won’t be asking any questions or doing too many embarrassing tests. Enjoy your rest. You’ll be found in an hour or so, so don’t worry.’
About the Author
Born in the middle of the twentieth-century, Felix M Temple has meandered through life. As he enters the slippered pantaloons of life, he is gradually graduating to fiction.
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