During his dry spell, Parker crafted three novels that met with untold rejections. Following his retirement, the now 69-year old author reworked the beginning of Hell's Gate, and landed a three-book deal from a publisher that rejected it two decades earlier. The fulfillment of that three-book contract led to another. A Covert War, set for release March 31, 2010, is the second book of Parker's latest deal.

The novel unfolds with Susan Ellis walking into the office of Guard Right Security, a one-man outfit in the heart of London. She wants Marcus Blake to accompany her to Afghanistan to find her brother who disappeared one year ago. After desperate pleas from Susan, Marcus's curiosity gets the better of him, and he is drawn into a world of arms and drug smuggling in which the main players are high officials in the CIA and the British establishment.

For Parker, the novel wasn't intended to be a bullet-dodging hike through the middle of the Afghan War, "The are others out there who know a lot more about Afghanistan than me, so I'm leaving that to them."

Instead, the story delved more into the behind-the-scenes world of international diplomacy. Parker also kept the story closer to his homeland of England, especially East Anglia, where he spent a good part of his life. But his characters eventually insisted on going to Afghanistan and, as the author, Parker had to follow them.

Which was fitting, as this was the first book Parker wrote without knowing how it would end. Even the title itself was a mystery until, "One of the characters just happened to say, 'I didn't want to get involved in your covert war...'"

With seven published books to his credit, Parker sees himself as an established writer, "Whether or not you're a good writer is in the eyes of your fans." And Parker, who retired with his wife Pat to the South coast of Spain, has his targets set on strengthening his fan-base in the U.S., "It's the American market you've got to crack if you're really going to be successful." Never give up.

If A Covert War isn't Parker's breakout book in the States, his next book, The Boy from Berlin might be.  "This one's giving me a problem, but it's a self-inflicted problem that I'm happy to deal with. Once I work it out, I think it will be one of the best I've ever written. I'm looking forward to completing it."

Learn more about Michael Parker, his past novels, and perhaps contribute to his blog, by visiting www.michaeljparker.com.

Dan Levy works from his Lincoln, Nebraska home as a freelance writer for the aviation and financial industries. His first novel, THE BLOWDOWN LIMIT, is an aviation-thriller winging its way in search of representation and publication. Bestselling author Jon Land noted, "Dan Levy's THE BLOWDOWN LIMIT reminded me of Michael Crichton's AIRFRAME and Thomas Block's MAYDAY in all the right ways. Levy pilots his tale in a smooth and seasoned fashion that will make this the next book to make people think twice before flying the friendly skies."