Flat Light

In 1987, two East German intelligence officers realize their socialist state is near collapse. They embezzle funds, defect to the West, and prepare to avenge their communist homeland's demise. Besides their ample funding and exotic talents, these assassins get a 25-year head start.

Also in 1987, a young man begins studying assassination. In election year 2012, his lethal skills will confront the Germans' invincible plan.

The story begins in fictional Montshire, New England's second-largest state. A failing ski resort called Stumpy Runs operates its fabled Pole Buster ski trail there. One day it draws a pretty blonde skiing alone. Three elite French soldiers are skiing then, too, but almost nobody else is. It's brutally cold that day.

When the Frenchmen try to rape the blonde, a young lift attendant named Ben Montgomery intervenes. He has basic martial arts skills learned from his late grandfather. Soon two of the goons lie unconscious in the snow, but the third one, swinging a crowbar left nearby, almost kills Ben.

Ben survives because of the blonde. She draws a tiny .22 caliber pistol and shoots the hulking Frenchman in the shoulder from twenty-five yards. She calmly walks toward him, carefully firing her last five shots while the enraged Frenchman lumbers her way, murder in his eyes. She drops him with a well-placed kick before rushing to help Ben.

The blonde is Shannon Wilcox, an accomplished woman who has powerful friends. For Ben Montgomery, 1987 is about to become a very good year.

That same day inside East Germany, state security officers Ludwig Ernst and Otto Strempf meet behind closed doors. Strempf has diverted government funds to finance the two men's defection to the West. Once in the West, they'll patiently take revenge on America for East Germany's demise.

Ernst defects first. He, like Strempf, is an expert skier. He crosses a minefield and surrenders to what might be NATO's tiniest contingent-two very cold enlisted men in a small truck. They eagerly take Ernst to their headquarters. That way they all can get warm sooner.

Ernst negotiates the deal that brings Otto Strempf, the men's wives, and their two sons to the West. It helps Ernst that Otto Strempf's a very big fish, as Cold War defectors went. For the Strempfs and Ernsts, 1987 will be a very good year.

The East Germans buy a drab ski lodge in Montshire. They become model citizens, improve their facility, and patiently prepare to kill America's political leaders in the 2012 election season. Small kills will occur along the way, as the two little boys grow into monsters.

Ben Montgomery during the same years will become not only world-class deadly, but also a good husband, father, and friend. He develops the high-end analytical skills that eventually lead him back to Montshire for a dramatic clash between good and evil. We think it's one of those high-stakes showdowns you just might long remember. We will, anyway.

Flat Light's Randall Jarmon's only ski novel so far. While it seems perfect for winter reading, we also recommend it for the beach. A story that transports you to ski country might take your mind off hot days and high humidity, right?

Mikvelk Publishing, LLC