They said, “See Naples and then die!”
Rachel had thought it was to do with the natural beauty of the place. A misconception she soon lost after climbing down from the C130 troop carrier. The suspicious death of her predecessor, followed by the murder of a sailor, and an enforced liaison with a chauvinistic and probably corrupt cop saw to that.
“See Naples and then die!”
Some said the saying was anonymous. Some attributed it to Goethe. Still, others said it was Lord Byron, or maybe Keats. When the young brother of a mercenary hitman became her main suspect, Rachel leant towards Keats. Didn’t the poet die here? Somewhere near, for sure. Prob-ably coined the phrase on his deathbed.
And then, the cherry on the top of her ice cream soda, she could smell grappa on the breath of the mercenary when she interviewed him. The only thing worse than a violent man: a violent man who drinks.
The only thing worse than a violent man who drinks: a violent man who drinks and considers himself Rachel’s enemy.
What inspired you to start writing?
I was always going to be a writer. I began writing seriously in my teens and finished my first full manuscript in my early twenties. It was a tome of some 200k+ words for which I received countless rejections. At the time I was quite hurt, and I shelved the book and vowed never again to lift my pen in anger. It was many years later when I found an old dusty copy of the manuscript in the attic of our family home. I dusted it off and sat down to read. Suffice it to say, I still can’t believe just how awful the book was. In the end it was fate (and redundancy) that got me back to the keyboard. After being laid off in 2016 I found it impossible to get another job.
What was the hardest part about writing this book?
For me, the hardest part of writing any book is the editing. I find the actual story creation and the writing to be fairly straightforward. I suppose 35 years as a professional writer and editor in the IT world gives me a good base from which to work, in that I find a blank page less daunting than I otherwise would. Because I spent so long in that disciplined world of technical writing, planning is an essential part of my process, which also eases the writing aspect of being a novelist, at least for me. Despite being an editor for the latter part of my career, I find editing my own work nigh impossible. Of course, another professional editor is a must, but I like to submit an MS that is as near perfect as I can get it. I know my editor likes it that way too.
Does one of the main characters hold a special place in your heart? If so, why?
All of my characters have a special place in my heart. Aren’t we told our characters are our babies? As such it would be unjust to show favouritism. But seriously, a good deal of work goes into creating the characters, and I am not sure showing preference would be a good idea. Putting that extra effort into one over the other is likely to cause an imbalance, and today’s readers are totally unforgiving in my experience.
If your book was to be made into a movie, who are the celebrities that would star in it?
I always picture Angelina Jolie in The Bone Collector when I am imagining Rachel in the book scenes. I think, aside from her looks, it is that determined quality she exudes that fits the part of Rachel so well. For Boccone, I like to picture Kiefer Sutherland as Jack Bauer in season 8 of 24. He would need to be of a darker complexion and with darker hair, but it is his cruel streak and leaning towards a sociopathic character after his love interest is murdered, which draws me to him.
What do you hope your readers take away from this book?
Does a book need a message? I know many literature experts who would say it does, but I am not a great fan of moralising. Messages can be so one sided – don’t do that because of this, and probably belongs firmly in the Literary Fiction genre (now there’s a misnomer – aren’t all books literary?). Some of the novels I’ve enjoyed the most are those without any real message, like Lee Child’s first Jack Reacher book. As such, I want my readers to immerse themselves in the story and enjoy it for what it is: a tale about life with the odd murder, corrupt officialdom, and solid characters (good and bad) thrown in for good measure. Mostly, what I want them to take from The Alcoholic Mercenary is about 350 pages of distraction and a sense of satisfaction at the end. When I read reviews that say, “that’s X number of hours I will never get back” or similar, I cringe and hope I never see such a review for one of my books.
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Phil Hughes
Although educated in Classical Studies, Phil is the author of several historical crime novels. Having spent many years living in the Mafia infested hinterlands of Naples, Phil bases his nov-els on his experiences while living there. Much of what he includes in his stories is based on real events witnessed first-hand.
Having retired from writing and editing technical documentation for a living, Phil now lives in Wexford with his partner and their border terriers, Ruby, Maisy, and the new addition Ted. He writes full time and where better to do it than in the Sunny South East of Ireland.
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Thank you so much for hosting the blog tour for The Alcoholic Mercenary.
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Mary Anne
The Coffee Pot Book Club
Great interview!!!
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