Steve Forman recently blogged about Top Producer on CriminalElement.com. Click here to read his review, Trust Your Vonnegut. Many thanks to Steve for his kind remarks.
By the way, there's a scene in my new novel, The Trust, that will make some readers forget the sharks in Top Producer. What happens? For now–let's just say I found inspiration in one of my home improvement projects gone bad. Which happens more than I care to admit…
The Trust will hit bookstores sometime this summer.
It was a balmy 53 degrees on New Year's Day in Narragansett, the perfect temperature for a Polar Bear Plunge. Global warming style, that is.
I'm standing here with my son and daughter before our big race into the ocean. After pictures not available!
The featured speaker, Norb Vonnegut, was there to discuss his latest novel,The Gods of Greenwich, which takes on the high-rolling world of hedge funds. And, lo and behold, that same day, the billionaire hedge fund mogul Raj Rajaratnam received the longest prison sentence ever for insider trading–11 years in prison. A jury convicted Mr. Rajaratnam of securities fraud and conspiracy…
If you've read Top Producer, you know I'm fascinated by sharks. These predators are big and powerful. They move like the rest of the sea should drop everything and genuflect.
This summer I had the good fortune to fish with Eric Swanson, who is both a friend and an incredible boat captain. We were chasing "monsters," tuna to be specific. And the day proved to be one I'll never forget.
"Like fighting a rhino," Eric warned early that morning.
Even before we threw in our lines, his words reminded me of that scene from Jaws: "You're gonna need a bigger boat."
Eric was right. We were using short, stubby poles, thick through the middle. When the fish struck, they bent our rods in half and tugged like there was no tomorrow. The fish pulling us in or us pulling them out—I would have given you even odds the first time one struck.
I don't think a single tuna hit our lines that day. It's hard to know, because the bait techniques that attract tuna also attract sharks.
No matter. We hooked four sharks. We guessed them to be about 300+ pounds each. The next day, I took Advil just to recuperate from the fights.
The smallest shark was the one I remember most. Near the surface, wrapped in the line, the shark stopped fighting for a moment. We saw it looking at us in the boat, studying the situation, appraising how to get away or perhaps how to get us. Its dorsal fin looked like a black razor blade.
I had never gone eye to eye with a shark before, and the experience was nothing short of terrifying. The creature was cunning.
My advice. If you need to see a shark, stick to the aquariums. Here's a shot of one breaking the surface.
The winds are blowing forty to sixty mph. The tide is surging something fierce. And the roads are shut down. Yet, our courier delivered The New York Times today, Sunday August 28.
Thank you to our delivery person, whoever you are, for thumbing your nose at Irene. Stop by, and I'll give you a copy of The Gods of Greenwich.