Scott D. Parker
When you’re a writer, you always want to share your books with the world. But when the book in question is your favorite, then the excitement is just that much higher.
In a month, ULTERIOR OBJECTIVES: A Lillian Saxton Thriller, will be released. The tagline is this: What if the only way you could discover who killed your brother was to lie to your commanding officer?
In the order of the ongoing series of World War II-era novels I’ve published, this one actually ends up being the second. WADING INTO WAR is the first. The closing chapter of that novel is the opening chapter, from a different perspective, of ULTERIOR OBJECTIVES.
When it came time to design a cover, I wanted ULTERIOR OBJECTIVES to stand out from the other three novels to date. This is a special novel for me, partly because my dad helped brainstorm the big themes on a drive from Dallas to Houston last summer. I wanted a cover that would mirror this book’s big action.
One of the big set pieces of the story is a car chase. Lillian’s car, a convertible, is being tailed by another automobile and two motorcycles. Lillian isn’t driving, so it’s left to her to deal with her pursuers as best she can. I wrote the scene with a huge grin on my face, and I knew that this was the scene for the cover.
I had a particular scene in mind, and I also had an inspiration: Clive Cussler. If you look at nearly all of his modern covers, there is a commonality to them. You’ve got the title, his name, and the subtitle of whichever character is featured. That is what I wanted.
As I wrote a few weeks back, I went to 99Designs.com to conduct a contest. Bob, from B&J, created the perfect cover for ULTERIOR OBJECTIVES. And, without further delay, here it is.
I love the little details Bob drew. Lillian’s hair flying around as her car speeds down the road. Tire marks on the road. The bad guy driver, visible, but in shadow. Cool explosion of one of the motorcycles. Needless to say, when Bob presented me with this cover, I was ecstatic.
As good as that cover is, the book is just as good. And guess what? I’m sharing the first 5 chapters with anyone who wants to read it.
I’ve set up an account at BookFunnel. If you click this LINK, you’ll be able to download a mini-ARC. You get the first 5 chapters of ULTERIOR OBJECTIVES as well as some samples of the other books and short stories I’ve published.
So head on over to BookFunnel--a great site to upload free books and ARCSs--and pick up your copy—mobi and pub—of the mini-ARC. Then, come November, you’ll get to read the entire novel.
Psst. If you just want to read Chapter 1, it’s available right now at my blog.
I made this offer to my mailing list and I’ll go ahead and make it here as well. If anyone wants to receive a copy of the entire novel ahead of the publication date, I’ll be happy to give you a free ebook. My only request would be that you provide an honest review on Amazon, Kobo, GoodReads, Barnes and Noble, Apple, or any other online store. If you are interested, please comment or send me an email.
So, what do you think of the cover?
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