Marilyn's Musings

Some writers wonder where they receive the idea for the next novel and for me the crucial aspect of the conjuring up of ‘Soft Target’ was partly due to my years in law enforcement. As a former street cop and member of the elite SWAT I had witnessed multiple hostage situations – some with positive results and some with not so much. Entering public education after nearly ten years behind the badge left me wondering what would happen if a hostage situation occurred at a school in the United States. Sure, there had been school shooting like Columbine, Sandy Hook and the like and as terribly tragic as they were my imagination kept coming up with the greatest question a writer in two words ‘What if?” After attending a symposium concerning school safety when I was Director of Student Services put on by local and federal law enforcement agencies one speaker intrigued me. Col. Dave Grossman, retired Army and psychologist who had created a program called ‘Killogy’. The psychology of w...

This is by far the most exciting book I’ve read in a long, long time. A thriller , Soft Target , is about terrorists who lock down a huge mall and start shooting. Yes, they have demands, but there is far more behind what’s going on than that. This is what makes this thriller so exciting, the layers and layers of plot that intertwine in the most unusual and surprising ways. It’s also a tale of modern times, true heroism, when politics get in the way of common sense, and the unfortunate goals of too many of today’s journalists. The hero is someone we all hope will be around when something as big as what is depicted in this story depicts. Saying too much more might take away the sheer pleasure of reading this great page-turner. Can you tell I liked it? (When posting this review on Amazon I was surprised by several negative reviews. My only thought was they let their own political views get in the way of enjoying a most exciting story.) Marilyn (I was given this book by Simon and...