A Covenant of Poppies

1991. Journalist Duke Johnson must uncover why his news service is blaming the wrong side for the Yugoslav wars, and what happened to his parents during WWII. The stories told to him by his lover, Jelena, draw him further into the conspiracy until learning that the answers lie in a horrific event that occurred fifty years prior--a holocaust which was buried from history.

Please note that this is a PG-13 story. There are some raw, brutal, and sexual scenes, but nothing gratuitous. While not enough to warrant an R-rating, IMO, this is not a story for young readers or those who aren't prepared for an honest depiction of events.

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I started researching this story sometime ago, when I saw Christianne Amanpour of CNN stand over a pit of graves harkening back to World War II. I took years to try and understand why people were so intent on killing each other. Was it human nature, or was it--as I soon began to learn--something far more insidious and depraved?

Even now I can't pretend to know the answer. But what I learnt sent me on an odyssey that continues on, opening up a world of secret cabals and shadow governments, of battles fought in the name greed not patriotism, of a very real Big Brother who willingly pulls the trigger on those of us who are determined to abide by the laws of patriotism, faith, and brotherhood. We are all part of a battle fought since the beginning of time.

A Covenant of Poppies is the first book in series of political- conspiracy-psychological thrillers that will take the reader across the globe and into the unknown world lurking just beyond this one, as well as the unfamiliar one within. Some of the books planned will border on Science Fiction and what some might call Alternative History. A Covenant of Poppies might well be more general fiction than thriller or mystery, but it contains elements of each. Please offer me your feedback, and if you like the story, your votes. I am very interested in hearing what you have to say.