Publishers Weekly
12/06/2021
Gilstrap’s engrossing sequel to 2021’s Crimson Phoenix finds former U.S. Congresswoman Victoria Emerson continuing to organize an Ortho, W.Va., community of like-minded survivors of Hell Day, an “eight-hour conflict that left the world in ruins” 34 days earlier and wiped out all 21st-century technology. Then troops led by Capt. Roy Magill, of the Maryland National Guard, show up. Magill, who claims to represent the U.S. Army, threatens to arrest members of the Ortho community unless they hand over their provisions. His brutish intimidation tactics lead to a firefight and mass casualties for his side. In the aftermath, as rumors and reports of marauding groups grow, the community prepares for an inevitable reprisal attack. Meanwhile, Emerson’s missing 18-year-old son, Adam, tries to protect his pregnant girlfriend as they make their way to Top Hat Mountain, where he hopes to reunite with his family. Power struggles among surviving U.S. government officials hunkered down in D.C.-area bunkers add to the drama. Fans of doomsday military thrillers will delight in the resilience of Gilstrap’s family of preppers and their quest for survival on their terms. Readers will eagerly await the next installment. Agent: Molly Friedrich, Friedrich Agency. (Feb.)
From the Publisher
Praise for Blue Fire
“Gilstrap’s engrossing sequel to 2021’s Crimson Phoenix finds former U.S. Congresswoman Victoria Emerson continuing to organize…Power struggles among surviving U.S. government officials hunkered down in D.C.-area bunkers add to the drama. Fans of doomsday military thrillers will delight in the resilience of Gilstrap’s family of preppers and their quest for survival on their terms. Readers will eagerly await the next installment.”
—Publishers Weekly
“A John Gilstrap thriller, crammed with violence and testing of the soul, might be the perfect work of fiction to sink into in a tough time for the real world.”
—New York Journal of Books
Praise for John Gilstrap
“Engrossing…. Fans of doomsday military thrillers will delight in the resilience of Gilstrap’s family of preppers and their quest for survival on their terms.”
—Publishers Weekly
Praise for John Gilstrap and the first Victoria Emerson thriller, Crimson Phoenix
“Crimson Phoenix ticks every box for big-book thrillerdom. We’re treated to political turmoil, military action, harrowing escape and relentless pursuit, and heart-warming—and heart-wrenching—scenes of family struggling against conflict, which Gilstrap pens like no other author. The novel seizes you on page one and never lets go—and I don’t mean just until the last page; this riveting book will stay with you long after you finish it. And to top it all off, he’s created one of the most singular and compelling heroines to come along in years.”
—Jeffery Deaver, New York Times bestselling author
“A single mother’s smart, fierce determination to protect her sons turns this vivid day-after-tomorrow scenario into a gripping page-turner.”
—Taylor Stevens, New York Times bestselling author of Liars’ Legacy
“Gilstrap’s apocalyptic thriller about nuclear war and one family’s fight to survive in its aftermath weaves tradecraft and survival skills with themes of the nature of evil and the power of justice into an explosive story that keeps your mind churning and pulse racing while it locks you into your chair until the final page. Don't miss this powerful new series from a master thriller writer.”
—Jamie Freveletti, international bestselling and award-winning author of Running from the Devil and Robert Ludlum’s The Janus Reprisal
“John Gilstrap's Crimson Phoenix snaps with action from the very first page. It's certain to hit the 10-ring with old and new readers alike.”
—Marc Cameron, New York Times bestselling author of Stone Cross and of Tom Clancy’s Code of Honor
“Rocket-paced suspense.”
—Jeffery Deaver
“Gilstrap will leave you breathless.”
—Harlan Coben
“When you pick up a Gilstrap novel, one thing is always true—you are going to be entertained at a high rate of speed.”
—Suspense Magazine on Final Target