Industry scuttlebutt – more reliable than one of those unaffiliated blogger dudes but not as reliable as this fine family publication – rage on and on about a new author prolific beyond the imagination of normal scribes.
The back story.

First time author pen’s a great book.  By the time he’s found an agent, he’s finished his second book, by the time the agent is ready to send out book #1, writer had finished book #3; by the time a publisher bought #1, writer had finished book #4; and by the time book #1 came out in the US and UK, the writer had finished book #5.
And the good news for Grit-Lit readers — they plan to release two Matt Hilton hard covers a year for the next 2 years … at least!

“Dead Men’s Dust” by Matt Hilton. (William Morrow $24.99, 336 pages. Hard cover.) www.MattHiltonBooks.com
Joe Hunter is the perfect Grit-Lit tough guy. If you haven’t been able to satisfy your jones for Lee Child’s Jack Reacher, Robert Crais Joe Pike or are still re-reading Travis McGee hoping John D will rise from his grave and write another unmatched novel, dig out your credit or library card and order “Dead Men’s Dust.”
Hunter is a former Special Forces agent with exceptional killing skills. Skills that lead some to call him a vigilante. But, if you’re a single mom whose children have been threatened, Hunter’s the guy you need.
Hunter is one of the most exciting new tough guys to come along in years. And he’s up against a devious, smarmy, rotten, scary tough guy, Tubal Cain. Just the name makes you want to cock and lock your Glock, doesn’t it?
Hunter spent years in the Special Forces hunting bad guys. His objective — kill murderous thugs, save innocent strangers. Now, trusty SIG Sauer strapped to his side, he sets out on another mission. Only this time, it’s personal.

“Pirate Latitudes” by Michael Chrichton. (Harper Collins $27.99, 312 pages. Hard cover.) www.michaelchrichton.com
Switching speeds we move from a brand new author to the last book by one of the best selling, most popular Grit-Lit authors of all time. Chrichton is the only writer – EVER – to have the number one book, movie and TV show all at the same time. “Pirate Latitudes” was discovered as a complete manuscript shortly after his death in 2008. DreamWorks and Steven Spielberg have all ready bought the movie rights.
But we all know that with the possible exception of James Bond, Harry Potter and any movie featuring lots of scantily clad women, no movie is never as good as the book. Right? RIGHT!
It is 1665 and King Charles II’s Jamaican Colony is a weak English outpost surrounded by a vastly stronger Spanish empire. English privateers (pirates to you and me) have free reign to raid Spanish ships and settlements as long as the governor and the crown receive their cut of the booty. But political shenanigans and devious competitors conspire to make even being a simple pirate a bloody savage experience.
Here’s an example of why Chrichton is one of the best of all time.
“… Sir William had explained the workings of the Colony to the new governor. Sir James had listened and had thought he understood, but one never really understood life in the New World until confronted with the actual rude experience.
Now, riding in his coach through the stinking streets of Port Royal, nodding from his window as the commoners bowed, Sir James marveled at how much he had come to accept as wholly natural and ordinary. He accepted the heat and the flies and the malevolent odors; he accepted the thieving and the corrupt commerce; he accepted the drunken and gross manners of the privateers. He had made a thousand minor adjustments, including the ability to sleep through the raucous shouting and gunshots, which continued uninterrupted through every night in the port.”
Chrichton at his best.
Hey, Mr. Depp. Wanta play another pirate, Matey?