Gridlock

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Gridlock

by Kevin John Grote

Giveaway ends September 20, 2013.

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Newest novel set in Washington, DC

Set in the present time.

GRIDLOCK

Today is Friday. 
The worst travel day. The get-out-of-town day. 
Fridays in the summer become even worse as fatigued local residents crowd the highways seeking an escape from the heat and congestion.
East, to the Atlantic Ocean.
West, to the Appalachian Mountains.
North, to the big cities, Philadelphia, New York, and Boston.
South, to the Virginia, Carolina, and Florida beaches.
The traffic, bumper to bumper, in the heat and humidity, inches along.

Not everyone is ignoring the situation.
Some view the situation as an opportunity.

The morning drive will never be the same,
Never.

New novels

Working on some new novels and book covers.   

Summer is hot and rainy this year.  

Still have to finish Susquehanna.  Had a thriller I had to write, took me a month.  I will be sending it out for proofs in a couple of days.

Tally-Ho! - Giveaway

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Tally-Ho!

by Kevin John Grote

Giveaway ends August 15, 2013.

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1745 - Giveaway Autographed Copy

Goodreads Book Giveaway

1745

by Kevin John Grote

Giveaway ends August 15, 2013.

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Tyburn - Giveaway on Goodreads (Autographed Copy)

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Tyburn

by Kevin John Grote

Giveaway ends August 15, 2013.

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Skye - Giveaway on Goodreads! (Autographed Copy)

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Skye

by Kevin John Grote

Giveaway ends August 15, 2013.

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Juniata Giveaway (signed copy)

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Juniata

by Kevin John Grote

Giveaway ends August 09, 2013.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

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New Trilogy

Going to do one on Pontiac's Rebellion.  

As I research more, the story in the West does not change, just players leave the stage and the survival of the fittest goes on.  It will not end in the East until the 1830's.  Pontiac and Guyasuta, will give way in time, to Tecumseh and The Prophet.

 

Book trailers

Skye - Youtube  1745 - Youtube

Tyburn - Youtube  Tally-Ho! - Youtube

Juniata - Youtube

Susquehanna - Youtube

Pontiac's Rebellion: Reenactment of the Attack on Fort Ligonier in 1763

A warm day, but the reenactors put on a great show.  I can't wait for Bushy Run.

Fort Ligonier (22 Jun 2013) Youtube video of the pictures I took.

Nemacolin's Path

To reach the riches of the Ohio Country, hunters, trappers, traders, pioneers, and rangers followed the ancient Indian trails through the mountains.

Nemacolin's Path video

The Algonquins video

Redcoats

 The more I research, the more I learn from those dedicated reenactors who bring history to life.

The Natives

 The best part about writing about history is coming across folks who live it for others.  I have been very impressed with all the re-enactors I have been meeting as I research my novels.  All have been more than willing to share their knowledge and insight on how life in the 18th century was.

Mother's Day.

While looking through the archives, I found this picture of my mother taken when she was 17.  I didn't notice this picture before out of all the ones I have scanned in.  I love the expression on her face, the photographer really captured her spirit.  I find it hard to believe that this skinny girl would be 82, just as I ponder my own age.

What is she thinking about?
Life?
Family?

What did I think about at 17, not the great issues of the day, mainly sports and girls, a thought of college and the looming quagmire in Viet Nam.

Patty O'Mara, my mother went a long way from a housewife in a small town in Western Pennsylvania.  I could not help but cry looking at the picture once more.

I found this one while cropping the one above.

Juniata on sale May 1st

My fifth novel.  

“Juniata”, the first volume published in a planned series of five novels, aptly named The Seekers, begins in the courtroom of London’s Old Bailey and nearby Newgate Prison, and moves to the Low Countries with the struggles of British Army in the War of Austrian Succession, a brief stop in Ireland, and finally continuing along the colonial frontier in the mountains, rivers, and valleys of Western Pennsylvania. 

“Juniata”, is the latest novel in the series which spans the years 1644 to 1758, from the English Civil War, to the onset of the Jacobite Rebellion in the United Kingdom, then moving to North America for the French and Indian War.

“Juniata” embodies a mix of deception, courage, betrayal, and of course, romanticism.  The fictional characters interact with authentic historical figures in actual events from the landscapes and battlefields of the 18^th Century.  

“Juniata” blends the characters from my two other series, The Jacobites and The Highwaymen as he continues the saga of Oliver Duggan, Simon Warren, Captain James Fawkes, and his cousin Lieutenant Archie McLawry.  Fawkes, the émigré Scot and former Jacobite rebel, leads a Ranger Company of the Province of Pennsylvania.  Duggan and Warren escape the legal system (and the hangman’s noose) for service in the English Army.

1751

 The few settlements on the frontier are beset with intrigue.  Who is siding with the French?  The British?  The Iroquois?  The lid on the pot is starting to come lose.

Hunter Pace on a Windy Day.

Down in Loveville, MD for the DLB Spring Hunter Pace.  Bright skies and a strong wind blew through and sent Old Man Winter on his way out.

Tyburn featured on Authorgraph

Get a personal autograph for any of my novels on Kindle.  http://www.authorgraph.com/featured

Learning a lot

Growing up in Western Pennsylvania, I was sadly ignorant of the history east of the mountains.  Doing research, I have come in contact with quite a few characters that need to be more famous, Conrad Weiser, among them.  I had heard of the Ephrata Cloister, but knew little more.  There is a lot more to Colonial America then was/is covered in the books.  I learn more of the Tulpehocken Valley.  Of Mordecai Lincoln.  Of Shikellamy.