Click on the picture to view 45-second YouTube video trailer for the last novel in the Stephen Connor Cold War Spy Novel Trilogy – Afghan Mirrors

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Reviewed by Ray Simmons for Readers’ Favorite

I’m going to be honest here. I loved Afghan Mirrors: Stephen Connor Cold War Spy Novels Book 3 by Michael Connick. I loved it because, though it is a novel about the C.I.A., a lot of the story involves military training and Michael Connick gets that training right. When an author can explain the pertinent characteristics of an M16 rifle and the differences between it and an AK47, I know he has done his homework. When passages in his story can actually take me back to my military training days, then I know that not only has he done his homework, but he is also a good writer. Michael Connick is a good writer and he has done his homework. I would even venture that he is a veteran, but I could be wrong about that.

Afghan Mirrors is a Cold War tale. It was a different world then, and Michael Connick gets that world right. I liked the protagonist, Stephen Connor. He reminds me of myself and many young American men at the beginning of dangerous government service. This is a character I can relate to. There are a lot of characters in Afghan Mirrors, and most of them are military personnel. Michael Connick gets them right, whether I liked them or not. The plot is good. This is a great spy novel. The action is very realistic, and not overdone like so many novels do. The writing is perfect for the genre. In fact, the writing and the protagonist reminded me of the Jack Ryan character who featured in many Tom Clancy novels. Afghan Mirrors is the third book in the Stephen Connor series and I plan to read the rest.

I recently finished the first chapter of my new novel. It was much longer than my usual chapters, running just short of 5,000 words.

Right now the novel is titled “HPD”. It’s going to be a mystery/police procedural set in my current hometown of Huntington, WV. It will follow 12-years of the career of a police officer, how he changes as a person during that time, and with a mystery element woven through it.

It’s very different from anything I’ve written before, but I’m getting excited to see how it’s already coming together very nicely. The first chapter turned out so well that I’ve entered it on its own as a Mystery Short Story in the annual WV Writers Annual Writing Contest. As with all my novels, I have no idea right now how it’s going to end. I’ll only find out after I finish writing it!

More news to follow!