Blog Archives
Encrypted Patriot: The Ghosts That Protect America
Encrypted Patriot, by D. M. Currie, is a hard-charging political and military thriller built around a covert team operating in the shadows while America faces an attack from the inside out. The story follows Cash, a private investigator pulled into the world of NCOD, where secret missions, hidden enemies, and impossible choices become part of his new reality. From the opening assassination attempt to the final pursuit of Locke, the book keeps its focus on people who operate where official records don’t reach.
What gives the novel its shape is its sense of mission. Currie presents Cash and his team as men and women who live by loyalty, sacrifice, and country, even when those ideas come at a brutal personal cost. The line “History will not remember them” captures the book’s view of these characters: they’re protectors who may never be known, but whose actions matter deeply. That idea runs through the entire story and gives the action a bigger emotional frame.
The plot moves quickly, jumping from desert compounds and safe houses to Greece, Mexico, Washington, and the Pacific. There’s a lot happening, including terrorist cells, corrupt officials, foreign influence, poisoned infrastructure, drone attacks, betrayals, and a national crisis that turns into a fight for the country’s future. Currie writes with an urgent, cinematic style, and the chapters often end on a hook that pushes the reader into the next mission.
Cash is the center of the book, but the team dynamic gives the story much of its energy. Tanner brings grit and personality, Wesells adds another layer of operational tension, and Locke becomes one of the most compelling figures because her role keeps shifting as the truth about her comes into focus. The relationship between Cash and Locke adds betrayal and personal pain to the larger conspiracy, especially once the team becomes “dead men walking” and the mission turns even more personal.
Encrypted Patriot is a patriotic thriller with a big scope, a fast pace, and a strong appetite for danger. It’s about covert warriors, compromised institutions, and the cost of defending a country when the enemy is already inside the gates. Readers who enjoy action-heavy thrillers with secret operations, political stakes, and a constant sense of escalation will find a story that leans fully into intensity and keeps pushing until the final page.
Pages: 422 | ASIN : B0GP6DH42Y
The Meteor Symphony: Stories and Poems
The Meteor Symphony is a colorful mix of short stories, poems, and microfiction, stitched together with music, humor, grief, and hope. It moves from tales of jazz musicians and stolen saxophones to intimate portraits of aging, love, heartbreak, and resilience. Some pieces lean into whimsy, others lean into sorrow, and many hover in the strange, honest space in between. The title story ties it all together with an imaginative search for a lost symphony, but the book itself feels like a symphony of voices, moods, and rhythms.
I enjoyed the range in this book. One page had me laughing at the absurdity of a sax heist, and the next had me sitting with the weight of a widow’s quiet grief. Burke writes with sharp clarity, yet there’s also a looseness in her storytelling that feels natural, like listening to a friend talk late into the night. I loved that she didn’t try to polish away the odd details. People misstep, conversations derail, feelings clash, and it all feels real. At times, the jumps between stories and poems felt a little jarring, but in a way, that’s what made it lively. The collection refuses to settle into one mood.
I also found myself connecting with her fascination with ordinary people. She doesn’t write grand heroes or villains, but flawed, funny, messy people. That resonated with me. Her style is direct but not cold, and she doesn’t shy away from emotions. Some of the poems hit me harder than the stories, brief as they were, because they carried that distilled punch of truth.
I’d say this book is best for readers who like variety, who don’t mind skipping from lighthearted banter to heavier reflections, and who enjoy the intimacy of short-form writing. If you’re open to being surprised, amused, and sometimes gutted all in one sitting, Burke’s collection is worth your time. I’d recommend it to anyone who loves music, who has wrestled with family, or who has ever paused at sunset and felt the ache of beauty and loss in the same breath.
Pages: 114 | ASIN : B0DTJ37FVK
