BLUE AMBER

Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine June 2011

 

Imprisoned revolutionary Fricis Svaars knows his days are numbered. The Tsar's secret police plot his murder within the walls of Riga prison, but Fricis won't go quietly to his own assassination. His daring escape attempt takes him to the rocky shores of the Baltic Sea in winter, trapped between the guns of his relentless pursuers and the frigid waters of the open sea...   A 2012 Derringer Award finalist.

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Length: Short Story

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Setting: The Baltic seacoast in winter. 1910

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Genres: Thriller, Suspense, Prison, Historical

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Main Character: Fricis Svaars

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BLUE AMBER was republished in a standalone e-book

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Praise for BLUE AMBER

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"Blue Amber crackles with energy, authenticity and pure storytelling magic from the first line nonstop to the last.  William Burton McCormick's timeless tale  of men challenged by both the elements and their own psyches, set against the backdrop of Latvia in 1910, reads like Jack London with just enough James Rollins and Steve Berry thrown in for good measure.  A beautifully realized vision that's riveting in all respects."

-Jon Land, USA Today bestselling author of Strong Darkness

 

"This is a grim tale of survival in the harshest of conditions, both man-made and natural and it is a credit to the writer that I was so captivated by a story that is not a genre I would normally read. Where do I begin? The sense of time and place is so strong I felt I was there on the Baltic coast. I can't fault the writing which is equally strong and tight. There isn't a word out of place. The writer's knowledge of and authority over his subject matter meant that I remained gripped to the page from beginning to end and forgot I was reading 'professionally' rather than for pleasure. Stunning."

-The Historical Novel Society

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