My Guest Blogger is author Ted Tayler. He has just released the second book in his Olympus Project series. I had the opportunity to read and review “Gold, Silver, and Bombs”; it’s a compelling work of fiction set against the backdrop of the 2012 London Olympics. The primary protagonist, Colin Bailey, aka “The Phoenix”, continues to evolve in his role working for the Olympus Project. Here Mr. Tayler will speak a little about Colin Bailey and his history.

WHAT MOULDED THE CHARACTER OF ‘THE PHOENIX’?

Colin Bailey was the main protagonist in my first two action thrillers; his story began in ‘The Final Straw’ where the events took place which led him on a seemingly endless campaign of revenge and his quest for justice.

His character was set in stone the moment I wrote the first four words of that first novel “Colin Bailey was invisible.”
I had no idea when I wrote that sentence, that it would change my life completely.

In the book we learn of his early family life; the lack of love, the neglect, the bullying he suffered at school from the boys who would inevitably become leaders of the rival gangs on the lawless council estates in the town where Colin lived. Colin vowed to get his revenge and to right the wrongs carried out against him. He planned what to do right down to the smallest detail; nothing was left to chance. Many of us have probably felt badly treated or wronged and thought how we might go about putting things right.

Colin Bailey is different: he actually DOES it! For those of you who have not yet read ‘The Final Straw’ I won’t reveal the tragic event that turns Colin’s life upside down and unleashes a killing spree to rival any book you’ve ever read. Let’s just say that things were never the same again in that quiet West Country town where he was brought up.

There were several loose ends to be tidied up and in the sequel ‘Unfinished Business’ Colin did exactly that! He also added a few more villains to his list of victims; people he had identified while he was living abroad, watching his homeland slip further into the hands of organised crime, drug barons and sexual predators.

Colin Bailey has a clearly defined set of values regarding what is right and what is wrong. He believes that if they are guilty then the criminals must pay the price. There are no soft sentences, no community orders or getting off on a ‘technicality’, not in Colin’s world!

This new series features Colin Bailey as ‘The Phoenix’, a man who has cheated death and is now being used by a secret organisation to continue their own fight against crime. It seemed the perfect home for Colin! I wasn’t sure what to do with his character after two novels. In the end I was persuaded to give him a new direction. I think there are many more adventures ahead for Colin. I certainly hope so! It’s so much fun writing about good triumphing over evil, especially when the character bringing that triumph about is Colin Bailey; evil personified.

For the first two books in the series go to:

The Olympus Project http://amzn.to/18ZKv49

Gold, Silver, and Bombs http://amzn.to/1BqnKmM

All my other titles are listed on Amazon also. Why not catch up on Colin Bailey’s stories so far?

Elizabeth Horton-Newton’s Reviews of The Olympus Project Books
https://elizabethnnewton.com/2015/05/20/the-olympus-project-by-ted-tayler/
https://elizabethnnewton.com/2015/06/29/gold-silver-and-bombs-the-phoenix-series-book-2-by-ted-tayler/