Welcome to the Blog Tour for Line of Fire by Taylor S. Newport, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!
About the Book
Title: Line of Fire
Series: Dauntless Defenders #1
Author: Taylor S Newport
Publisher: Independently Published
Release Date: November 7, 2024
Genre: Christian Action Thriller
The enemy is relentless, but they made one fatal mistake: they underestimated him.
Australian mercenary Tyler Reid, known as "The Ghost of OZ," has a talent for evading detection, a skill that has caught the eye of multiple government agencies. When a shadowy group targets a CIA asset and her revolutionary drug ND1, the Deputy Director calls in Tyler. Eager for action, Tyler takes the job. He soon realizes that the enemy is not only after the drug, but also out for his blood. Then the mission goes south, and he is forced to seek an unlikely ally.
For covert foreign operative Alexandra Romanova, freedom is a distant dream. Escaping one prison only led her to a more dangerous one. Her deadly skills are at her boss's disposal, but she’ll use them only to escape. Her final chance hinges on retrieving ND1, but the elusive Ghost of Oz complicates things. Tyler Reid isn’t an easy mark, and the better she gets to know him, the more she questions the mission she's tasked with. Soon she faces a dire choice: kill a man she is convinced is good, or pay with her own life.
As Tyler and Alex venture beyond their orders, the line between enemy and ally blurs. On the edge of failure, trust becomes a dangerous gamble with every decision dragging them deeper into the line of fire. As enemies close in and alliances shift, they are ensnared in a ruthless battle where survival depends on split-second choices. In this high-stakes fight, time is running out, and the margin for error is zero.
Line of Fire is the first book in the Christian thriller series Dauntless Defenders. It is NOT a standalone novel.
PURCHASE LINKS: Goodreads | From the Author | Amazon | BookBub
Excerpt
“I heard about what you did in the Congo. I was impressed by your ability to rescue the journalist while being hunted by terrorists. I was even more surprised that you managed to get out of the country without leaving any records.” Rawlings glanced around the room for a moment.
Tyler met his gaze. The only way to avoid being tracked was to stay under the radar. That was exactly what he’d done. Despite having a passport, he chose to take a less obvious route back to Oz. “I took a cargo plane.”
Rawlings frowned. “So, you paid the pilot to smuggle you into the country?” He crossed his arms.
“He never knew I was on the plane.”
Was Rawlings…smiling? The expression was foreign on the Deputy Director’s face. “Ghost of OZ is right.”
About the Author
Taylor S Newport is an up and coming Christian author. Four years of research has brought her to release her first high-octane novel to the world. In 2024, she placed as a Finalist in the ACFW Genesis Contest. Currently, she travels the United States with her family and GSD mix, Bella, probably writing her next novel.
Connect with Taylor by visiting taylorsnewport.com to follow her on social media or subscribe to email newsletter updates.
Author Interview
Q: What inspired you to write Line of Fire?
Taylor: A lot of different things to be honest. Books. Movies. The Bourne and Reacher movies, among others, inspired me quite a bit. I’ve always been a fan of action thriller books and movies, but the language and inappropriate scenes always bothered me. I wanted to create a series where people had the same suspense and tension without any of that. That led me to create the final version of Line of Fire.
Q: How long did it take to write this book?
Taylor: It took probably eighteen months to write the version of the book that I published. But I had multiple versions prior to this that will never see the light of day. Lol. Those are better left forgotten. The current version is all I want anyone to read. I think that by November of last year, I had the rough draft complete. But without any help/mentoring in writing prior to that, I had a lot of work to do with my book, especially getting it to be Deep POV. So I spent January and December rewriting a chunk of it and entered it into the Genesis Contest. While waiting, I edited it further. Changed some scenes, deleted others, added some more. I made sure that my book was ready for publication by the time that the winners and finalists of the contest were announced—I was thrilled to discover that my book was one of three Finalists. So…I’d say that it was at least short of two years for the current version to be completed.
Q: What surprised you while researching/writing this novel?
Taylor: Hmm…I don’t know anything specific to be honest. I mean, I did so much research. This book, while fictional, has as many factual things as I could find and pack into it. The characters are as realistic as I could get them. I did extensive research on Australian slang to make sure the MMC sounded authentic. I also had to figure out all of the weapons. But the gambling scenes in the book may have been the hardest to learn. It’s hard to write something that you can’t do. It took me several days of research to figure out the basics to poker.
Q: Do you have a favorite quote from Line of Fire?
Taylor: Favorite quote? What? How do you expect me to find one??? It’s so hard. Okay. Fine.
Here’s one of my favorites: “Because I need a ghost.”
Q: When did you first know you wanted to be an author?
Taylor: My sister got me into writing. Not on purpose. She liked to play around with story ideas and I was just a jealous little sister to be honest. For a while, I wrote kids stories that also won’t be seen by another human eye. I don’t think I ever really stopped writing…or at least thinking about writing for eight years. Something that made me really want to be a writer was reading Ranger’s Apprentice and then Ronie Kendig’s books. After reading Ronie’s books, I think I really tried harder to be a writer.
Q: Would you share something about yourself that most readers wouldn’t know?
Taylor: I’m a lot younger than I seem.
Taylor: I’m a fast reader so by the time you’re reading this I’m probably reading a fantasy book of some sort. I have a long list of fantasy ARC books to get through and review. ;)
Q: What is your favorite genre to read?
Taylor: Oh my…I hate this question. LOL. I love thrillers, romantic suspense, and fantasy. I can’t really choose between them.
Q: What is your favorite hobby?
Taylor: Reading…But I also do archery and sew. These hands are dangerous. Hehe.
Q: What is your favorite season and why?
Taylor: Autumn. I just love the colors, the cool temperatures, and the unique feel. Also my birthday is in November so I’m a fall girl all the way.
Tour Giveaway
(2) winners will each receive an ebook copy of Line of Fire and a $15 Amazon Gift Card!
Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight December 16, 2024 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on December 23, 2024. Winners will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.
Giveaway is subject to JustRead Publicity Tours Giveaway Policies.
Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!
I enjoyed the interview.
ReplyDeleteThe book sounds great. Love the cover
ReplyDeletei loved reading this post! Thanks for being on the tour :)
ReplyDeleteThis should be an excellent novel. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for sharing!
ReplyDelete~ Taylor S Newport
I enjoyed the author interview.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the interview
ReplyDelete