The Lazarus Covenant: International Suspense at its Most Realistic and Thrilling!
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International Suspense Thriller, The Lazarus Covenant, AVAILABLE NOW!
I started writing The Lazarus Covenant after my first deployment to Bosnia in 1997. At the time, I was commanding a Special Forces company in Sarajevo. My fellow soldiers and I were involved in many situations throughout Bosnia and the Balkans that made an enduring impression on me-our Special Forces teams were frequently being attacked with car bombs, satchel charges, RPGs, knives and clubs. When we weren't being attacked, we were often under the threat of an attack.
In the midst of this turbulence, at the invitation of a good friend who was then a prosecutor for the war crimes tribunal, I drove to Vukovar, Croatia and saw the destruction from the war there. At the time, I recall thinking that it looked like Dresden after the fire bombings during WWII. I returned from that visit with a new outlook on humanity, having seen the worst of what we are capable of doing to one another-- and it reinforced for me the moral imperative we all have to stop ethnic cleansing, genocide and war crimes wherever they occur. That notion was underscored again as we assisted in uncovering the mass graves from the Srebrenica massacre. In these war zones, Special Forces teams must deal with everyone--the good, the bad and the ugly, and Bosnia was certainly no exception. On more than several occasions, I would find myself in the same room, drinking coffee with officials who I suspected were responsible for these atrocities! To arrest them, however, the grave exhumations and investigations had to be completed.
Returning from Bosnia, I was often asked by friends and family to describe what it was like there. I found it difficult to adequately explain. How do you explain what it's like to pull bodies out of a mass grave in 100 degree heat? Or to be under attack by people you're there to help? Or to be searching for information and intelligence that could save one, or perhaps, hundreds of lives? Needless to say, all of those experiences defy easy explanation.
I chose a fictional venue to relate how a crisis can unfold in an area like the Balkans. Nearly a decade and a great deal of research later, this novel is the result. Many of the situations described mirror what I witnessed in Eastern and Central Europe. My goal in telling this story was to convey an intriguing plot with realism, fidelity and a host of interesting characters to help readers better understand these crisis spots and the people who inhabit them. My hope is that in some way this novel conveys the need to erase the terrible scourge of hatred and religious extremism, and to work for enduring, long-term solutions to these problems.
In the midst of this turbulence, at the invitation of a good friend who was then a prosecutor for the war crimes tribunal, I drove to Vukovar, Croatia and saw the destruction from the war there. At the time, I recall thinking that it looked like Dresden after the fire bombings during WWII. I returned from that visit with a new outlook on humanity, having seen the worst of what we are capable of doing to one another-- and it reinforced for me the moral imperative we all have to stop ethnic cleansing, genocide and war crimes wherever they occur. That notion was underscored again as we assisted in uncovering the mass graves from the Srebrenica massacre. In these war zones, Special Forces teams must deal with everyone--the good, the bad and the ugly, and Bosnia was certainly no exception. On more than several occasions, I would find myself in the same room, drinking coffee with officials who I suspected were responsible for these atrocities! To arrest them, however, the grave exhumations and investigations had to be completed.
Returning from Bosnia, I was often asked by friends and family to describe what it was like there. I found it difficult to adequately explain. How do you explain what it's like to pull bodies out of a mass grave in 100 degree heat? Or to be under attack by people you're there to help? Or to be searching for information and intelligence that could save one, or perhaps, hundreds of lives? Needless to say, all of those experiences defy easy explanation.
I chose a fictional venue to relate how a crisis can unfold in an area like the Balkans. Nearly a decade and a great deal of research later, this novel is the result. Many of the situations described mirror what I witnessed in Eastern and Central Europe. My goal in telling this story was to convey an intriguing plot with realism, fidelity and a host of interesting characters to help readers better understand these crisis spots and the people who inhabit them. My hope is that in some way this novel conveys the need to erase the terrible scourge of hatred and religious extremism, and to work for enduring, long-term solutions to these problems.
About the Author
John Fenzel is a senior Army Special Forces officer who has served on our nation's battlefields throughout Europe and the Middle East. He has served as a military assistant on the personal staff of the Secretary of Defense, as a Special Assistant to the Vice President, and as a White House Fellow during the Clinton and Bush administrations.
He commanded the Special Forces Training Battalion at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. In the wake of the September 11th attacks, he served as Staff Director for Tom Ridge in the Homeland Security Council. He was the principal architect of The Homeland Security Advisory System, our nation's color-coded alert system.
In his 25 years of military service, John has served in numerous command and staff positions around the world. During Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, he commanded a Special Forces "A-Team," training, equipping and advising a Kuwaiti Battalion and accompanying them during the liberation of Kuwait. He has commanded three Special Forces companies, leading the first Army deployments to Pakistan and the Baltic States. In Bosnia, he commanded the special operations teams in the U.S. and British sectors, working closely with the United Nations to secure the indictments and convictions of those responsible for war crimes in Srebrenica. He is the only active duty American military officer to testify at The Hague in support of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY).
John is a graduate of the Naval War College and the National War College. Born in Iowa and raised outside Chicago, John lives with his wife and three children at Fort Knox, Kentucky where he commands an Army brigade. The Lazarus Covenant is his first novel.
The Lazarus Covenant
Dust Jacket Front Cover
Summary of Novel
In Bosnia, the past is prologue for one man who must come to terms with a violent and tragic childhood in order to prevent a renewed Balkan war...and a nuclear holocaust.
In the latter years of Tito's Yugoslavia, two young boys, cousins Marko and Celo come upon a mass execution in progress. As they witness the executions and try to help a near-dead survivor to safety, they are discovered by a Yugoslav Army Officer who attempts to kill them. In a desperate struggle for survival, they fight their way home. Because of his injuries, Celo remains with his father while Marko flees with his aunt to the United States. Both boys remain separated into adulthood....
Thirty years later, as war threatens to ravage the Balkans again, Marko reluctantly returns to Bosnia as Mark Lyons, the FBI's Special Agent in Charge of the Balkan Region. On the day he arrives in Sarajevo, an American peace envoy is brutally assassinated, and the United Nations High Commissioner asks Mark to investigate.
Sandy Evenson, beautiful, gregarious war crimes prosecutor for The Hague witnesses the assassination. As it unfolds in front of her, she frantically takes photos of the carnage. Mark investigates the scene and soon suspects a cover-up is underway. Ghosts of Mark's Balkan childhood return when Sandy's photos are printed.
News of the assassination quickly arrives at a White House desperate to avoid another Balkan War. In the Situation Room, the Commander of the U.S. Joint Special Operations Command, Lieutenant General John Thorpe is informed that stolen plutonium is in the hands of an Islamic Jihadist group in Bosnia, and he is sent to Bosnia to determine if the two incidents are connected.
At its foundation, The Lazarus Covenant is a story of profound personal transformation. In their own unique ways, war crimes prosecutor Sandy Evenson, Serb war criminal Celo, and General John Thorpe each force Lyons to confront his own demons, his own humanity, and a deadly religious sect assigned the mission of protecting the Vatican from catastrophic threats.
An explosive international thriller in the tradition of Gerald Seymour and John LeCarre, The Lazarus Covenant explores the scourge of extremism, terrorism and war in a haunting tale of friendship, faith and forgiveness. Writing from his own experiences, John Fenzel relates this story authentically in dramatic settings that extend from the Oval Office to the Balkans, all in a time of extreme crisis.
Pre-Publication Praise for The Lazarus Covenant
With this extraordinary debut work, John Fenzel's talent, vast experience and deep knowledge of 21st century global conflicts jump out of every page of The Lazarus Covenant.
-Mary Matalin
A gripping, gripping plot and great storytelling!
-General Wesley Clark (USA, Ret.)
With the sure hand of one who has labored round the clock in the basement of the West Wing as crises have unfolded in post Cold War capitals, and as a writer who combines a scholar's understanding of the ageless hatreds that afflict and inflame Balkan passions...with rare eloquence in prose, John Fenzel has created an absorbing thriller that is enlivened by bone-chilling plausibility and relevance to contemporary challenges. I couldn't put it down. Read it now and look for it soon in your neighborhood theaters!
-Robert McFarlane, National Security Advisor to Ronald Reagan
If John le Carre were to visit the Balkans, this is the kind of thriller he would produce. Fenzel probes the dark secrets of one of Europe's most intriguing places--Bosnia--bringing its tortured history to life while crafting an even more disturbing story involving ruthless terrorists, loose nukes, and a team of secret operatives racing to prevent disaster. And this author is no armchair commando. Fenzel, a special operations officer in the U.S. Army, has generated fascinating prose that can only come from someone who has seen the intel, belly-crawled across unknown battlefields, and helped manage crises in the West Wing. The Lazarus Covenant explores a secretive world with rare verisimilitude, while deftly plumbing some questions of good and evil.
-Rick Newman, Correspondent, U.S.News & World Report
No publisher will give me the column inches I need to comment on this novel. To say I enjoyed it and turned the pages furiously is an understatement. I was totally absorbed in this compelling and exciting work. John Fenzel's military experiences, his sense of history and place, and the blend of characters and conflict make this a truly suspenseful, impressive and easy read.
-Tom Ridge, Former Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security
The Lazarus Covenant races along the razor edge of a darkly dangerous precipice-a compelling story written by an author whose real life traced that same razor edge."
-Robert Andrews, A Murder of Justice (G.P. Putnam)
From the White House Situation Room to the treacherous terrain of Sarajevo, John Fenzel, who knows both worlds intimately, takes readers on a gripping adventure. Suspenseful, well-written, and often terrifying, The Lazarus Covenant brilliantly translates into fiction the ongoing struggle to stop the most dangerous weapons from falling into the hands of the world's most dangerous people. A riveting read. A true page-turner. I can't wait to see the movie!
-Judith Miller, FOX Commentator, Journalist and Author, Germs: Biological Weapons and America's Secret War
The Lazarus Covenant weaves the haunting history of the Balkan wars with a contemporary tale of nuclear terrorists on the loose, all the while catapulting the reader through the hairpin turns of its suspenseful plot. Each of Covenant's many unexpected revelations unveils another layer of intrigue and draws us closer to the intrepid Mark Lyons and the villains he must identify and stop before it's too late. John Fenzel masterfully combines key elements-grisly Balkan history, the specter of nuclear terrorism, and a compelling level of operational detail-to give his story a gripping, even unsettling, realism. This novel will reward both veterans and newcomers to these issues with a page-turning adventure not to be missed. I'll look for it on the bestseller lists....
-Max Boot, Foreign-Affairs Columnist for the Los Angeles Times, Senior Fellow in National Security Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, Author of War Made New (Gotham Books, 2006)
You cannot write an intriguing, edge of your seat book like this unless you are grounded from experience in actual operations. Colonel John Fenzel has the training and real world experience in the Balkans and with special operating units to bring this story to life.
-Brigadier General David Grange (USA, Ret.), CNN Military Analyst
In a book infused with history, John Fenzel blends riveting intrigue with multi-layered plots. I found myself caught in a spider's web of suspense that only grew with each chapter. Set in Bosnia in 2007, the narrative unfolds as terrorists plot nuclear Armageddon cunningly using centuries of ethnic and religious conflict to mask their moves. The battlefield stretches from small villages in the Balkans to the White House and the Persian Gulf. Fenzel's extensive field experience with special operations and his intimate knowledge of the inner corridors of power in Washington D.C. infuse The Lazarus Covenant with vivid imagery and a deep-rooted sense of reality that will leave you wondering where art ends and reality begins.
-Donatella Lorch, Director, Knight International Press Fellowships, International Center for Journalists
Colonel John Fenzel's experiences on the front lines of the global war on terror make The Lazarus Covenant an incredibly gripping and compelling read; that he is an equally masterful storyteller also makes this page-turner first-rate entertainment. While the current publishing field is crowded with wanna-be commandos, very few of them have ever been in the weeds, calling an air strike, surviving in a shifting world of intentions and misdirections, where survival is matter of smarts as well as brawn. If you want to know the news behind the news, and to see first-hand the drama of "the human heart in conflict with itself," read Fenzel. Period. His writing career is filled with nothing but promise. The Lazarus Covenant is just the beginning, and it is a superb one.
-Doug Stanton, In Harm's Way: The Sinking of the USS Indianapolis and the Extraordinary Story of Its Survivors (Owl Books)
Colonel Fenzel's The Lazarus Covenant is an engrossing adventure story that puts believable men and women in the vortex of Balkan politics. It is a remarkably well-written novel with a graceful style, rich detail, and characters who are entirely believable and whose destinies are of compelling interest. While other authors gather material for their stories in libraries, this book is clearly based on the author's extensive experience inside American Special Forces and on the ground in the Balkans. Only a Green Beret could write such a detailed, convincing, and culturally sensitive novel where the reader is never quite sure how much is fiction and how much is fact. An excellent story told in an excellent way.
-Hans Halberstadt, Roughneck Nine One , War Stories of The Green Berets , U.S. Navy Seals In Action, Green Berets -- Unconventional Warriors Under Cover
Riveting! Relentless, brilliantly nuanced, and vividly detailed. Told with an insider's view of one of the world's flashpoints and the horrors of war, The Lazarus Covenant plunges us headlong into tomorrow's headlines.
-Dick Couch, Chosen Soldiery , The Sheriff of Ramadi
John Fenzel has witnessed first hand the triumph and tragedy of life in the Balkans. He has used that experience, and his expert knowledge of the inner workings of government, to produce a brilliant debut novel. Rich in detail and brimming with suspense, The Lazarus Covenant paints a chilling picture of how the passions of the Balkans could ignite yet another round of conflict....only this time with global consequences.
-Roger Cressey, Former White House Counterterrorism Director and NBC News Terrorism Analyst
-Mary Matalin
A gripping, gripping plot and great storytelling!
-General Wesley Clark (USA, Ret.)
With the sure hand of one who has labored round the clock in the basement of the West Wing as crises have unfolded in post Cold War capitals, and as a writer who combines a scholar's understanding of the ageless hatreds that afflict and inflame Balkan passions...with rare eloquence in prose, John Fenzel has created an absorbing thriller that is enlivened by bone-chilling plausibility and relevance to contemporary challenges. I couldn't put it down. Read it now and look for it soon in your neighborhood theaters!
-Robert McFarlane, National Security Advisor to Ronald Reagan
If John le Carre were to visit the Balkans, this is the kind of thriller he would produce. Fenzel probes the dark secrets of one of Europe's most intriguing places--Bosnia--bringing its tortured history to life while crafting an even more disturbing story involving ruthless terrorists, loose nukes, and a team of secret operatives racing to prevent disaster. And this author is no armchair commando. Fenzel, a special operations officer in the U.S. Army, has generated fascinating prose that can only come from someone who has seen the intel, belly-crawled across unknown battlefields, and helped manage crises in the West Wing. The Lazarus Covenant explores a secretive world with rare verisimilitude, while deftly plumbing some questions of good and evil.
-Rick Newman, Correspondent, U.S.News & World Report
No publisher will give me the column inches I need to comment on this novel. To say I enjoyed it and turned the pages furiously is an understatement. I was totally absorbed in this compelling and exciting work. John Fenzel's military experiences, his sense of history and place, and the blend of characters and conflict make this a truly suspenseful, impressive and easy read.
-Tom Ridge, Former Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security
The Lazarus Covenant races along the razor edge of a darkly dangerous precipice-a compelling story written by an author whose real life traced that same razor edge."
-Robert Andrews, A Murder of Justice (G.P. Putnam)
From the White House Situation Room to the treacherous terrain of Sarajevo, John Fenzel, who knows both worlds intimately, takes readers on a gripping adventure. Suspenseful, well-written, and often terrifying, The Lazarus Covenant brilliantly translates into fiction the ongoing struggle to stop the most dangerous weapons from falling into the hands of the world's most dangerous people. A riveting read. A true page-turner. I can't wait to see the movie!
-Judith Miller, FOX Commentator, Journalist and Author, Germs: Biological Weapons and America's Secret War
The Lazarus Covenant weaves the haunting history of the Balkan wars with a contemporary tale of nuclear terrorists on the loose, all the while catapulting the reader through the hairpin turns of its suspenseful plot. Each of Covenant's many unexpected revelations unveils another layer of intrigue and draws us closer to the intrepid Mark Lyons and the villains he must identify and stop before it's too late. John Fenzel masterfully combines key elements-grisly Balkan history, the specter of nuclear terrorism, and a compelling level of operational detail-to give his story a gripping, even unsettling, realism. This novel will reward both veterans and newcomers to these issues with a page-turning adventure not to be missed. I'll look for it on the bestseller lists....
-Max Boot, Foreign-Affairs Columnist for the Los Angeles Times, Senior Fellow in National Security Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, Author of War Made New (Gotham Books, 2006)
You cannot write an intriguing, edge of your seat book like this unless you are grounded from experience in actual operations. Colonel John Fenzel has the training and real world experience in the Balkans and with special operating units to bring this story to life.
-Brigadier General David Grange (USA, Ret.), CNN Military Analyst
In a book infused with history, John Fenzel blends riveting intrigue with multi-layered plots. I found myself caught in a spider's web of suspense that only grew with each chapter. Set in Bosnia in 2007, the narrative unfolds as terrorists plot nuclear Armageddon cunningly using centuries of ethnic and religious conflict to mask their moves. The battlefield stretches from small villages in the Balkans to the White House and the Persian Gulf. Fenzel's extensive field experience with special operations and his intimate knowledge of the inner corridors of power in Washington D.C. infuse The Lazarus Covenant with vivid imagery and a deep-rooted sense of reality that will leave you wondering where art ends and reality begins.
-Donatella Lorch, Director, Knight International Press Fellowships, International Center for Journalists
Colonel John Fenzel's experiences on the front lines of the global war on terror make The Lazarus Covenant an incredibly gripping and compelling read; that he is an equally masterful storyteller also makes this page-turner first-rate entertainment. While the current publishing field is crowded with wanna-be commandos, very few of them have ever been in the weeds, calling an air strike, surviving in a shifting world of intentions and misdirections, where survival is matter of smarts as well as brawn. If you want to know the news behind the news, and to see first-hand the drama of "the human heart in conflict with itself," read Fenzel. Period. His writing career is filled with nothing but promise. The Lazarus Covenant is just the beginning, and it is a superb one.
-Doug Stanton, In Harm's Way: The Sinking of the USS Indianapolis and the Extraordinary Story of Its Survivors (Owl Books)
Colonel Fenzel's The Lazarus Covenant is an engrossing adventure story that puts believable men and women in the vortex of Balkan politics. It is a remarkably well-written novel with a graceful style, rich detail, and characters who are entirely believable and whose destinies are of compelling interest. While other authors gather material for their stories in libraries, this book is clearly based on the author's extensive experience inside American Special Forces and on the ground in the Balkans. Only a Green Beret could write such a detailed, convincing, and culturally sensitive novel where the reader is never quite sure how much is fiction and how much is fact. An excellent story told in an excellent way.
-Hans Halberstadt, Roughneck Nine One , War Stories of The Green Berets , U.S. Navy Seals In Action, Green Berets -- Unconventional Warriors Under Cover
Riveting! Relentless, brilliantly nuanced, and vividly detailed. Told with an insider's view of one of the world's flashpoints and the horrors of war, The Lazarus Covenant plunges us headlong into tomorrow's headlines.
-Dick Couch, Chosen Soldiery , The Sheriff of Ramadi
John Fenzel has witnessed first hand the triumph and tragedy of life in the Balkans. He has used that experience, and his expert knowledge of the inner workings of government, to produce a brilliant debut novel. Rich in detail and brimming with suspense, The Lazarus Covenant paints a chilling picture of how the passions of the Balkans could ignite yet another round of conflict....only this time with global consequences.
-Roger Cressey, Former White House Counterterrorism Director and NBC News Terrorism Analyst
The Lazarus Covenant in Short...
At Stake: The greatest threat to world stability in history.
The Story: One man's journey of profound personal transformation in the midst of extreme international crisis.
The Title: The Lazarus Covenant
The Story: One man's journey of profound personal transformation in the midst of extreme international crisis.
The Title: The Lazarus Covenant
Author Interview about The Lazarus Covenant
You say much of the book is based on your own experiences in the Balkans. How much is fiction and how much is fact?The Lazarus Covenant is a novel. It fits in the suspense and psychological fiction genres. While the setting is real, the characters and events are entirely fictitious. And yet, I would argue that the events described in the novel are nonetheless plausible. We are often quick to point to other religions as "fundamentalist" or "extreme," when the truth is, all religions and faiths can be misused and misinterpreted for dangerous, even lethal goals.
I have seen the terrible dehumanizing result of political and religious extremism (both Islamic and Christian) in person, around the world, on the battlefield and off. Many of those experiences and scenes came flooding back to me as I wrote this novel. Take a look at the LINKS page (Why is The Lazarus Covenant Relevant?) to gauge for yourself what is fact and what is fiction%u2026.
A virtual tour of the novel is offered on your website. How do you take that tour?
The Lazarus Covenant Tour is designed to further bring to life what you will read in the novel. It will lead you through the path of Mark Lyons, chapter by chapter.
I deployed to the Balkans on several occasions with my Special Forces Company and I visited again recently to do some additional fact-checking. The novel's story is a chase across the Balkans and Europe, through cathedrals, mosques, palaces, mass grave sites, minefields, an aircraft carrier, and even a special operations tactical headquarters. The Photo Tour illustrates the setting locations described in the book.
I thought Bosnia was on the mend, but your novel assumes another crisis there. Is that realistic?
I think it's entirely realistic. On the surface, I would agree that things appear to be improving in Bosnia. New construction, such as a new airport terminal in Sarajevo, reconstructed homes and neighborhoods, displaced refugee returns, and rebuilt governing institutions have made for a stronger infrastructure, but my impression from a very recent visit there is that significant challenges remain. Organized crime, massive unemployment (roughly 40% and increasing), scant foreign investment, and high foreign debt diminish the country's prospects for any rapid progress, at least in the short term. My observation has been that to improve any war-ravaged state, it is the economic ties that are most successful at binding people together. Montenegro's referendum for independence has also sparked the same movement for independence in Kosovo and in the Bosnian Republika Srpska. A lot depends on the progression of events now underway after the recent general elections: if the Republika Srpska votes to secede from Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bosnian Croats could quickly follow suit and make their bid to unify with Croatia. Kosovo remains a flashpoint, as does the Vojvodina region in northern Serbia. In short, the political situation is far from stable.
The spread of the radical version of Islam practiced in Saudi Arabia; Wahabism, is another big concern. Tremendous infusions of Saudi money have contributed to rebuilding large mosques and homes throughout the country. But during my latest visit to Bosnia, I noticed a dramatic increase in the number of young men with long beards and head scarves than there were a decade ago. These are only indicators, but when you also consider the same issues raised by Roman Polko's character in the novel: the subterranean hatreds that linger between Bosnian "ethnicities:" the Serbs, Croats and Muslims the picture is more worrisome. These emotions still exist, in spades. Addressing that undercurrent of hatred is a long-term project that we have to undertake if we want to see a permanent culture of peace in the Balkans. For any who might contest that these hatreds are deeply entrenched, I'd recommend they read Rebecca West's Black Lamb and Grey Falcon. Written during the early part of the 20th Century, between World War I and World War II, it's really superb--and just as cogent today as it was when she wrote it.
The Lazarus Covenant also describes a deadly terrorist threat against the Vatican. That scenario, too, is grounded in reality. I would encourage you to review some of the news articles provided in the Current Events page to get an idea of the ongoing security challenges that the Vatican faces. As you read these articles, keep in mind that the Vatican, in addition to being the central governing capitol of the Catholic church, is also a sovereign state. 109 acres in size, it is a European Microstate, much like Liechtenstein and Monoco. Like any other nation-state, wouldn't you expect the Vatican to have the ability to covertly detect and counter threats targeted against it and its head-of-state (in this case, the Bishop of Rome--the Pope)? Or, would you say that the Swiss Guard could handle that by itself....?
I am a member of a book group. Is there a reader's guide for The Lazarus Covenant?
Yes. See the link to the Reader's Guide below.
Where can I find photos of the Balkan scenes you describe in your novel?
Go to The Lazarus Covenant Photo Tour below.
How do you balance writing and being an active duty Army officer? Where do you find the time?
And, don't forget being a Dad!!! I have two young daughters and a two year old son, so it's not easy! Juggling work, writing and home is a challenge, but I truly enjoy doing it all and wouldn't trade it for the world.
Fortunately, writing is a flexible profession, so I can schedule it whenever I'm free. Usually that's early in the morning or at night after the kids are in bed. The great thing about writing is that it doesn't only involve sitting down at a desk: you can think about it when you're driving, or when you're out on the jogging trail, or when you're overseas on a research trip. But to get the novel done you must write, and that's where the early morning and late evening hours are crucial for me.
Are any of the characters in The Lazarus Covenant real or autobiographical?
The characters in The Lazarus Covenant are based loosely on people (often a composite of people) who I have either known or encountered around the world--usually in crisis spots and war zones, or here in Washington (lots of grist for any writing mill there!). And yet, by design and necessity, the characters in this novel are still entirely fictitious.
My writing reveals my interest in people-people who have complex, intriguing, animated lives--who must sort out their own pasts if they are to resolve their present and future challenges. By design, my characters change and evolve and they propel the story forward. Often, the plotlines are consistent with situations that I've actually witnessed or participated in. I care deeply about my characters, and so my goal is to make them as realistic and believable as possible.
What kind of research did you do for The Lazarus Covenant?
Much of The Lazarus Covenant is based on my own experiences over the past two decades-the result of personal observations of ordinary people from around the world, in times of extraordinary crises. Once the novel was completed, I traveled to the Balkans to walk the ground again, where the story takes place, just to ensure accuracy and realism (take a look at the Photo Tour!) Some aspects of a place do change, and so it often calls for an adjustment here and there to the setting. Usually those revisions are pretty minor, but sometimes major revisions are in order. That, ultimately, is the novelist's challenge! My belief is that if realism is your goal in writing, you just can't achieve that in a library or behind a desk conducting Google searches-to achieve realism and accuracy, you have to go there and see it for yourself!
The authenticity of the intelligence reports and other information in The Lazarus Covenant seems to be TOO realistic! Are you revealing any classified information?
I haven't revealed any state secrets in this book. However, I did write it with the intent of giving readers a level of detail and operational fidelity difficult to find elsewhere. The novel has also been cleared for publication in a comprehensive Department of Defense Security Review. Even the DoD reviewer, who said she has reviewed some of Ken Follet's books, went out of her way to say how much she enjoyed The Lazarus Covenant!
I'm interested in learning more about the Balkans. Where should I start?
I would recommend you start by exploring the links on this website and then get your hands on the books mentioned in the Reading List and in the Store.
Is it realistic to assume that Christian religions could become as violent as Islamic extremists?
A new brand of mystical, conservative Christianity has already spread across Africa, Latin America and Asia, and Christian extremism has followed this explosive trend (for example, the Lumpa Church in Zambia, Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in Uganda). Any religion or church that promotes communal orthodoxy, mysticism, puritanism, obedience to spiritual and prophetic authority--those that are messianic and apocolyptic in their approach--risk the kind of violence depicted in The Lazarus Covenant. As Islamic migration spreads throughout Europe, I believe we'll see a corresponding emergence of Christian fanaticism...even among traditional "Western" religions that teach non-violence.
An Excerpt from The Lazarus Covenant
Marko looked back, but could see nothing through the forest. "Don't stop me. I'm going down there."Celo looked at Marko for a moment, as if sizing him up. Finally he said, "I'll watch for the guards up here and cover you. If I start shooting, you run. Understand?"
Marko nodded silently and began descending-sometimes sliding-down the steep hill toward the base of the dam. He stopped when he heard the moaning again, this time louder and more distinct, more human. It was not an animal.
As he inched closer, he realized that in order to get to the mass grave, he would have to go below the gravel base another fifty feet to the bottom of the hill, and then climb up to the dam steppe. Directly across from the hole, he was overcome by the putrid smell of decay, human excrement and loam. He choked back the heavy bile that rose in his throat. He tried to hold his breath but it only made the smell worse when the lack of oxygen forced him to inhale the thick rancid air. He dropped to his knees and elbows, pressing his mouth to his free hand to muffle the sound of his gagging.
He clung to underbrush and pulled on tree saplings to assist in negotiating the steep parts of the climb. Drawing closer, zigzagging between trees and boulders, he saw the guardhouse with the corrugated metal roof on top of the dam. A moment later, he heard the voices-faint, indecipherable. He froze, then slowly moved to flatten his body against the steep incline. His arms were outstretched in front of him, holding onto a sapling to prevent from sliding down.
Who were they? Guards or survivors?
The sound of crunching above startled him. Seconds later, he felt an avalanche of gravel, branches and leaves falling around and on top of him. He reached for his pistol, but before he could remove it from his belt, a giant hand suddenly took hold of his wrist. His pulse raced. Reflexively, he pulled back, but the man's grip was too strong.
"Comchye...Neighbor...." It was a rasping, barely audible male voice, heavy with desperation. "Please . . . help us!"
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- MeganCasey MeganCasey Mar 12, 2009 @ 1:10 pm
- Wow. Just wow. Every author should watch and learn from you, John. So smart to set up signpost pages about your work and ideas, and get feedback straight from your readers. Best of luck with the book! -- Megan
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- Mike Barry Mike Barry Mar 11, 2009 @ 9:31 am
- Got the advance notice. hit me with an email.
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Reply
- Scott Seidel Scott Seidel Mar 9, 2009 @ 11:41 am
- I've had the honors of reading an early version of this. From the beginning, I was addicted...just couldn't get enough of it!!!! Now I can't wait to get a hold of the finished work. Improvements to a great work mean this book is AWESOME!
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Reply
- John_Fenzel John_Fenzel Mar 7, 2009 @ 10:38 pm
- Thanks so much, Margaret! You have been such a tremendous friend and supporter--"there at the creation," as they say! No finer friend than that. [in reply to Margaret_Schaut]
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Reply
- Margaret_Schaut Margaret_Schaut Mar 7, 2009 @ 12:27 pm
- Riveting, as all of your writing is, John! I'm delighted that you made such a beautiful Squidoo lens on this, as well as sharing your writing tips and techniques with all of us. Blogged, stars, thumbs UP! The WORKS!
Publisher of The Lazarus Covenant
BREATHE Press
Publication Date: March 2009
488 pp. 6 x 9
ISBN: 7-63027-76779-9
Hardcover
$24.95
PRE-ORDERS ACCEPTED NOW!
Get Your Copy of THE LAZARUS COVENANT First!
- ORDER A COPY DIRECT FROM THE PUBLISHER HERE
- Pre-Orders for The Lazarus Covenant can be made direct from the Official John Fenzel website!
The Book in One Sentence:
In a race against time across the European Continent to the Oval Office, THE LAZARUS COVENANT explores the scourge of religious extremism, nuclear terrorism and war in an unforgettable tale of friendship, faith and forgiveness.
Media Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
"This may be too realistic!" --Those words, from a former senior White House national counterterrorism official to author, John Fenzel about his newly released international suspense thriller, The Lazarus Covenant, resonated. Those words were also the reason he had to submit the novel for a comprehensive review by the Department of Defense-to ensure no state secrets were released. "Not only did they approve it for release, they really liked it!" Fenzel says, smiling. "The reviewer told me it was one of the more exciting projects they'd worked on!"
It took John Fenzel ten years to write The Lazarus Covenant, and another five years to get it published. He was an Army Special Forces Major when he started the novel. The road to publication for many authors is long, but in Fenzel's case it makes eminent sense when you consider that all-the-while, he's kept his day job-commanding Green Berets on our nation's front lines.
That just may be what makes Fenzel's novel so compelling. Since he began writing The Lazarus Covenant, he's deployed frequently abroad-throughout Europe and the Middle East, worked in the White House as a Special Assistant to the Vice President, as Governor Tom Ridge's Staff Director after 9-11 (where he led the effort in creating the color-coded terror alert system), commanded a Special Forces battalion, and served as a Military Assistant to the Secretary of Defense.
Today, John Fenzel is a Colonel, commanding an Army brigade at Fort Knox, Kentucky. "After returning from war zones, people would often ask me, 'what was it like?' For anyone who's deployed abroad, I think, it's always difficult to adequately describe-so after a while, you just stop trying," he said. "But I also believed it was important for people to understand, so I decided to try to convey a sense of it through a novel."
What are the prerequisites to write such a story? "You cannot write an intriguing, edge of your seat book like this unless you are grounded from experience in actual operations," General Dave Grange, a CNN military analyst, explains. "Colonel John Fenzel has the training and real world experience in the Balkans and with special operating units to bring this story to life."
True to form, The Lazarus Covenant is no simple story. In fact, it's complex, it's controversial, and it's downright terrifying. From a gut wrenching mass execution witnessed by two young boys to the discovery of a secret nuclear weapons laboratory, Fenzel adeptly navigates the darkest recesses of the human condition.
"If John le Carre were to visit the Balkans, this is the kind of thriller he would produce," Rick Newman, author and correspondent for US News and World Report, says. "Fenzel probes the dark secrets of one of Europe's most intriguing places--Bosnia--bringing its tortured history to life while crafting an even more disturbing story involving ruthless terrorists, loose nukes, and a team of secret operatives racing to prevent disaster."
Or if it's Clancy you want, Fenzel delivers in spades. Colonel Fenzel draws on his experience in the White House, in the Pentagon's "E-Ring," and in crises spots abroad. Those experiences animate his story in a way Tom Clancy never could: from the Oval Office in Washington, D.C. to the Hill of Apparitions in Medjugorje, Bosnia, The Lazarus Covenant stands alone as a compelling portrait of how today's crises are managed--truly managed.
"It's about that," Fenzel explains, "but at its foundation, it's also a story of profound personal transformation. How people adapt and change in these environments."
Indeed, we meet protagonist Mark Lyons at the end of an already excruciating path that has led him from a turbulent childhood in Yugoslavia through adulthood as an ex-police chief in the bloody streets of Belfast. When war threatens to ravage the Balkans once again, Lyons reluctantly returns to Bosnia after a decades-long absence, this time as another police chief and peacekeeper, of sorts. Upon his arrival in Sarajevo, Lyons is immediately confronted with the brutal assassination of an American diplomatic envoy-an event that forebodes a global web of terror that it turns out, only he can stop.
In their own unique ways, war crimes prosecutor Sandy Evenson, Serb war criminal Celo, and American General John Thorpe each force Lyons to confront his own demons, his own humanity, and a deadly enemy whose memory he had long ago suppressed...until now.
"If you want to know the news behind the news, and to see first-hand the drama of 'the human heart in conflict with itself,' read Fenzel. Period," says author, Doug Stanton. "His writing career is filled with nothing but promise. The Lazarus Covenant is just the beginning, and it is a superb one."
Fifteen years after putting pen to paper, how does it feel to actually have your novel published? Colonel Fenzel pauses and laughs, "I suppose it's a lot like sending your kids off to college-they're always with you, day-in and day-out--you're thinking about them, raising them, taking care of them-and then, suddenly, they're gone, into the real world. You just hope they do well out there."
Fenzel need not worry. With an abundance of insider pre-publication praise and a truly riveting story to boot, The Lazarus Covenant is certain to do well "out there."
"This may be too realistic!" --Those words, from a former senior White House national counterterrorism official to author, John Fenzel about his newly released international suspense thriller, The Lazarus Covenant, resonated. Those words were also the reason he had to submit the novel for a comprehensive review by the Department of Defense-to ensure no state secrets were released. "Not only did they approve it for release, they really liked it!" Fenzel says, smiling. "The reviewer told me it was one of the more exciting projects they'd worked on!"
It took John Fenzel ten years to write The Lazarus Covenant, and another five years to get it published. He was an Army Special Forces Major when he started the novel. The road to publication for many authors is long, but in Fenzel's case it makes eminent sense when you consider that all-the-while, he's kept his day job-commanding Green Berets on our nation's front lines.
That just may be what makes Fenzel's novel so compelling. Since he began writing The Lazarus Covenant, he's deployed frequently abroad-throughout Europe and the Middle East, worked in the White House as a Special Assistant to the Vice President, as Governor Tom Ridge's Staff Director after 9-11 (where he led the effort in creating the color-coded terror alert system), commanded a Special Forces battalion, and served as a Military Assistant to the Secretary of Defense.
Today, John Fenzel is a Colonel, commanding an Army brigade at Fort Knox, Kentucky. "After returning from war zones, people would often ask me, 'what was it like?' For anyone who's deployed abroad, I think, it's always difficult to adequately describe-so after a while, you just stop trying," he said. "But I also believed it was important for people to understand, so I decided to try to convey a sense of it through a novel."
What are the prerequisites to write such a story? "You cannot write an intriguing, edge of your seat book like this unless you are grounded from experience in actual operations," General Dave Grange, a CNN military analyst, explains. "Colonel John Fenzel has the training and real world experience in the Balkans and with special operating units to bring this story to life."
True to form, The Lazarus Covenant is no simple story. In fact, it's complex, it's controversial, and it's downright terrifying. From a gut wrenching mass execution witnessed by two young boys to the discovery of a secret nuclear weapons laboratory, Fenzel adeptly navigates the darkest recesses of the human condition.
"If John le Carre were to visit the Balkans, this is the kind of thriller he would produce," Rick Newman, author and correspondent for US News and World Report, says. "Fenzel probes the dark secrets of one of Europe's most intriguing places--Bosnia--bringing its tortured history to life while crafting an even more disturbing story involving ruthless terrorists, loose nukes, and a team of secret operatives racing to prevent disaster."
Or if it's Clancy you want, Fenzel delivers in spades. Colonel Fenzel draws on his experience in the White House, in the Pentagon's "E-Ring," and in crises spots abroad. Those experiences animate his story in a way Tom Clancy never could: from the Oval Office in Washington, D.C. to the Hill of Apparitions in Medjugorje, Bosnia, The Lazarus Covenant stands alone as a compelling portrait of how today's crises are managed--truly managed.
"It's about that," Fenzel explains, "but at its foundation, it's also a story of profound personal transformation. How people adapt and change in these environments."
Indeed, we meet protagonist Mark Lyons at the end of an already excruciating path that has led him from a turbulent childhood in Yugoslavia through adulthood as an ex-police chief in the bloody streets of Belfast. When war threatens to ravage the Balkans once again, Lyons reluctantly returns to Bosnia after a decades-long absence, this time as another police chief and peacekeeper, of sorts. Upon his arrival in Sarajevo, Lyons is immediately confronted with the brutal assassination of an American diplomatic envoy-an event that forebodes a global web of terror that it turns out, only he can stop.
In their own unique ways, war crimes prosecutor Sandy Evenson, Serb war criminal Celo, and American General John Thorpe each force Lyons to confront his own demons, his own humanity, and a deadly enemy whose memory he had long ago suppressed...until now.
"If you want to know the news behind the news, and to see first-hand the drama of 'the human heart in conflict with itself,' read Fenzel. Period," says author, Doug Stanton. "His writing career is filled with nothing but promise. The Lazarus Covenant is just the beginning, and it is a superb one."
Fifteen years after putting pen to paper, how does it feel to actually have your novel published? Colonel Fenzel pauses and laughs, "I suppose it's a lot like sending your kids off to college-they're always with you, day-in and day-out--you're thinking about them, raising them, taking care of them-and then, suddenly, they're gone, into the real world. You just hope they do well out there."
Fenzel need not worry. With an abundance of insider pre-publication praise and a truly riveting story to boot, The Lazarus Covenant is certain to do well "out there."
The Lazarus Covenant on Amazon!
The Lazarus Covenant by John Fenzel
In Bosnia, the past is prologue for one man who mu more...0 points
TOP SECRET
An excerpt from The Lazarus Covenant
TOP SECRET UMBRA WNINTEL NOFORN29 JANUARY
SUBJECT: MOVEMENT OF LEVEL 4 PERSONALITY
1. (TS) CONFIRMED MOVEMENT OF DR. AHMED NAZIR FROM ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN TO SARAJEVO VIA PAKISTAN INTERNATIONAL AIRWAYS ON 28 JANUARY. NAZIR'S PRECISE DESTINATION AND PURPOSE FOR THE VISIT TO BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA ARE UNKNOWN.
2. (S) NAZIR PERFORMED AS THE DEPUTY SENIOR ENGINEER FOR PAKISTAN'S MODERNIZATION OF ITS NUCLEAR ARSENAL. PRIOR TO JUNE 2008, NAZIR WAS RECOGNIZED TO HAVE FULL ACCESS TO ALL NUCLEAR PROGRAMS IN PAKISTAN.
3. (S) NAZIR GRADUATED FROM THE MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY WITH BACHELOR'S, MASTERS AND DOCTORAL DEGREES IN THE FIELD OF NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND ENGINEERING. HE SPEAKS FLUENT ENGLISH AND HAS WORKED AT SEVERAL NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS IN THE UNITED STATES AND SOUTH AFRICA DURING THE PAST DECADE.
4. (TS) THE U.S. TREASURY DEPARTMENT COUNTERTERRORISM TASK FORCE HAS CONFIRMED THE WIRE TRANSFER OF 6 MILLION EUROS FROM DUBAI TO LIECHTENSTEIN'S CENTRAL BANKING SYSTEM ON 20 JANUARY IN THE NAME OF AHMED NAZIR.
TOP SECRET/SCI
Excerpt from <i>The Lazarus Covenant</i>
THE DIRECTOR OF CENTRAL INTELLIGENCEWashington, D.C. 20505
INFORMATION MEMO
April 15, 1977, 12:00 PM
FOR: THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
FROM: Stansfield Turner, Director of Central Intelligence
SUBJECT: Sources of Future Balkan Conflict-Yugoslavia After Tito
(C) You asked for our best analysis of the worsening situation in Yugoslavia and what the future holds for its president, Josep Broz Tito. This memorandum addresses those issues.
Background:
(U) Notwithstanding the common Slavic ancestry of the Balkan people, the renewed conflict between the Serbs, Croats and Bosniaks (Slavic converts to Islam) is deeply rooted in past centuries of conquest and subjugation. Historically, Yugoslavs have been divided by history, geography, language and culture. The Ottoman Empire's victory over the Serbs at Kosovo Polje ("Field of Blackbirds") in 1389 marked the beginning of eventual Ottoman domination over the region and mass conversions to Islam.
(S) The Balkan wars of the early 20th century and World War I strongly influenced the ultimate formation of Yugoslavia-- "the Land of the South Slavs." In 1929, Yugoslavia's creation as a unitary state, while favored by many South Slav intellectuals, largely ignored known entrenched divisions within its diverse populace, contributing to ethnic hatred, religious enmity, cultural clashes and language barriers. In 1941, Nazi Germany invaded Yugoslavia, partitioning the state into zones of occupation and annexed territories. The predominantly Roman Catholic Independent State of Croatia was created and ruled by the Ustashe--a fascist puppet regime. During World War II, a bloody civil war erupted between the Ustashe, the Bosniaks, the Serb Royalist "Chetniks," and Josep Broz Tito's communist partisans. With U.S. Office of Strategic Services (OSS) assistance, Tito emerged from World War II as Yugoslavia's sole leader. In short order, Tito transitioned himself as Yugoslavia's dictator.
(S) Tito sought to eliminate sectarian nationalism in favor of socialist unity in Yugoslavia by creating six federal republics. Included among these were: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, and Serbia. Despite OSS/CIA warnings, Tito refused to closely align his governmental boundaries with Yugoslavia's diverse ethnic divisions.
(TS-WNINTEL) In an effort to stabilize the resulting domestic volatility in Yugoslavia, Tito is now resorting to mass arrests of suspected spies, dissidents and intellectuals. CIA HUMINT sources (LAZARUS) confirm, through eye witness accounts, that these prisoners are being executed en masse, and buried in unmarked mass graves around the country. Tito's purges have produced an illusion of peace and harmony within Yugoslavia, but a strong undercurrent of nationalistic strife remains.
Analysis:
(TS) Tito's remaining life expectancy is estimated to be no more than three years. In the absence of a chosen or natural successor to Tito, a power vacuum in Yugoslavia is viewed as certain. Nationalistic fervor will feed demands for greater autonomy and political reform among all six republics. These movements could splinter Yugoslavia and will likely result in civil war closely drawn along ethnic and religious lines. Religious animosity among the three major denominations--Eastern Orthodox (Serbs), Roman Catholic (Croats), and Islam (Bosniaks)--will remain the dominant divisive cultural factors in the Yugoslavia; and if exploited effectively, would contribute to armed unrest between ethnic factions extending beyond the 20th Century.
CLASSIFIED BY: DCI - Stansfield Turner
REASONS: X2
DECLASSIFY ON: April 15, 2009
TOP SECRET/SCI
BREATHE Press Contact:
To arrange an interview, bookstore event, book club discussion, or writer's conference appearance, contact our publicity manager at BREATHE Press, Claire Raynor at: (336) 324-1190, email: ciri@breathesolutions.com The Lazarus Covenant Characters
Goran "Celo" Mescic - 12, nearly 13 year old boy. Cousin to Marko
Marko Mescic - 12 year old boy. Cousin to Celo. Father is a political prisoner taken from him in the night. At story opening, Marko had been with Celo, and his aunt and uncle for six months
Milan Mescic - Celo's father and Marko's uncle, taken by Tito's men
Tito - Leader of Yugoslavia
Lazarus - Victim of mass execution at Brinisi Dam
Milan and Maja Mescic - Celo's parents, Marko's aunt and uncle
Goran Maric - Head of the organized crime syndicate in Eastern Bosnia
Mark Lyons (Marko) - Assistant Commissioner of the European Police Mission (EUPM) for the Balkan Region
Kate Kamrath - Reporter for the The New York Times
Jack Fulbright - Chief American envoy to Bosnia-Herzegovina
Milo Stanic - The President of Croatia
General Ian Rose - European Union Force (EUFOR) Commander (British)
Doctor Jean Renee Lauvergeon - Doctors Without Borders physician who sees girl with radiation sickness
Joseph Steinberg - The U.S. Ambassador to Bosnia
Lieutenant General Lester "Butch" Sterns - Army 3-star in Suburban with Steinberg and Fulbright
Sergeant Mike McCallister - EUPM assistant to Mark Lyons
Sandy Evenson - Lead investigator for the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY)
Roman Polko - United Nations High Commissioner
Robert Childs - CIA Station Chief for the Balkans
Jon Schauer - Photojournalist and long-time friend of Sandy Evenson
Vladimir - Helicopter pilot (loaned by Polko to Mark)
Sergeant Maric - Local Bosnian police investigating the Fulbright ambush
Riso and Refik Siric - Father and son owners of the "Restauran Slap" in Oborci where ambush takes place
Lieutenant General John Thorpe - Commanding General, U.S. Joint Special Operations Command
President Thomas Sells - U.S. President
Jim Goodwin - Deputy Director of the CIA
Chris Ryan - Team leader of the British SAS Team
Dragan "Ivo" Bostic - Deputy for Celo Mescic
Savo Heleta - One of Croatia's war heroes from the last Balkan war, Catholic Monsignor, Archbishop of Zagreb and Deputy to Papa Voyo
Cardinal Alojzije Stepinac - World War II Era Croatian Catholic Archbishop
Marko Mescic - 12 year old boy. Cousin to Celo. Father is a political prisoner taken from him in the night. At story opening, Marko had been with Celo, and his aunt and uncle for six months
Milan Mescic - Celo's father and Marko's uncle, taken by Tito's men
Tito - Leader of Yugoslavia
Lazarus - Victim of mass execution at Brinisi Dam
Milan and Maja Mescic - Celo's parents, Marko's aunt and uncle
Goran Maric - Head of the organized crime syndicate in Eastern Bosnia
Mark Lyons (Marko) - Assistant Commissioner of the European Police Mission (EUPM) for the Balkan Region
Kate Kamrath - Reporter for the The New York Times
Jack Fulbright - Chief American envoy to Bosnia-Herzegovina
Milo Stanic - The President of Croatia
General Ian Rose - European Union Force (EUFOR) Commander (British)
Doctor Jean Renee Lauvergeon - Doctors Without Borders physician who sees girl with radiation sickness
Joseph Steinberg - The U.S. Ambassador to Bosnia
Lieutenant General Lester "Butch" Sterns - Army 3-star in Suburban with Steinberg and Fulbright
Sergeant Mike McCallister - EUPM assistant to Mark Lyons
Sandy Evenson - Lead investigator for the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY)
Roman Polko - United Nations High Commissioner
Robert Childs - CIA Station Chief for the Balkans
Jon Schauer - Photojournalist and long-time friend of Sandy Evenson
Vladimir - Helicopter pilot (loaned by Polko to Mark)
Sergeant Maric - Local Bosnian police investigating the Fulbright ambush
Riso and Refik Siric - Father and son owners of the "Restauran Slap" in Oborci where ambush takes place
Lieutenant General John Thorpe - Commanding General, U.S. Joint Special Operations Command
President Thomas Sells - U.S. President
Jim Goodwin - Deputy Director of the CIA
Chris Ryan - Team leader of the British SAS Team
Dragan "Ivo" Bostic - Deputy for Celo Mescic
Savo Heleta - One of Croatia's war heroes from the last Balkan war, Catholic Monsignor, Archbishop of Zagreb and Deputy to Papa Voyo
Cardinal Alojzije Stepinac - World War II Era Croatian Catholic Archbishop
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Take a Photographic Tour of The Lazarus Covenant
On this slideshow, you will be taken on a photographic tour of The Lazarus Covenant. A satellite tour is also provided. Please note: Although there are no spoilers presented in these tours, there are some clues to the plot, so you may want to wait until you've finished the book to review them!
- The Photographic Tour of The Lazarus Covenant!
- Most of these photos were taken during a dedicated research trip to Bosnia and Croatia as I was writing The Lazarus Covenant!
More Interview Questions for Author, John Fenzel
How can I find out if you're going to be doing any book signings or appearances?Keep checking this site!
What is your email address?
John@JohnFenzel.com.
What is your political affiliation?
I am a registered Independent. To serve the leadership of both parties faithfully as an active duty military officer, I believe you have to be.
The characters in The Lazarus Covenant battle against some very tough moral and international threats, especially religious extremism and Weapons of Mass Destruction. Do you see a link between these threats?
It's a worst case scenario, but I do believe there is an intrinsic linkage between both threats--if you consider the crises, conflicts and wars we've been injected into recently, it's not difficult to conclude that religious extremism is a first cousin to political extremism. Given the irrational thought process required for any deliberate WMD attack to occur, extremist views and policies of state or nonstate actors are the first prerequisite--well before means and motive.
Historically, the "Balance of Terror" between The Soviet Union and the United States was regulated by a U.S. policy of Containment and by a presumption of rational decisionmaking. But how do you contain a zealot or a regime led by religious or political extremists armed with the means to execute a nuclear, biological or chemical attack? Our nation's Special Mission Units--Delta, SEAL Team 6, and others-exist precisely for that purpose... and we are indeed fortunate to have them!
Is it true that your first job in the Army was to defend against WMD attacks?
Yes. The first five years I served in the Army, I was a "Chemical Officer" stationed in Germany. In that role, I developed programs and means to defend our soldiers against nuclear, biological, and chemical attack on the battlefield. During those Cold War days I was also responsible for the authentication and release of nuclear weapons if the National Command Authority ordered it. I still vividly recall the 2 AM phone calls alerting us for the no-notice nuclear release authentication exercises! As soon as the Army gave me permission, I went through the Special Forces Selection and Qualification Course, and I've been a Special Forces Officer ever since. I look back on it all now and it's been a wonderful experience, and a great ride!
How does a Green Beret end up working in the White House?
I've been very fortunate. Looking back over the past two and a half decades, I've been able to serve our nation around the world during extraordinary times of peace and war. About ten years ago, prior to coming to the White House, it occurred to me that in my role as a Special Forces company commander, I was in the role of executing our nation's foreign policy. With every deployment I made abroad, I realized that I was missing something important. After my first deployment to Bosnia--after everything I'd seen there--I started searching for the connective tissue that makes national policies relevant to our foreign policy, and to our armed forces. Acquiring an intimate understanding of our government, I realized, can only be gained through active service at all levels, and it led me to the White House Fellowship program. It's a remarkable program available to Americans of all professions, and I found it interesting that as a young Army Lieutenant Colonel, Colin Powell had been a White House Fellow! I knew that it was a very competitive process, but I had nothing at all to lose by applying. If selected, it would allow me an opportunity to work in an arena where national policy and strategy intersect. That's precisely what happened. After an extensive selection process, I was notified that I was selected as a White House Fellow in the 2000-2001 Class. My first work placement was in the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, and then as administrations changed, I moved to the Vice President's Office. When the Fellowship year concluded, I stayed on as Governor Ridge's Staff Director.
Did you invent the color-coded alert system?
I didn't "invent" the Homeland Security Advisory System (HSAS), but I initiated the process and led the effort in developing it. I had a LOT of help from some extremely talented and dedicated people. In the wake of the September 11th attacks, I was serving as Governor Tom Ridge's Staff Director. The days after September 11, 2001 were hectic, and yet very, very productive. The pace of each day was fast and the hours were long. If you recall, the country was being inundated to threats at that time and we were reacting to them in the best way we knew how. FBI Director Mueller, Attorney General Ashcroft and Governor Ridge were being put into the rather unenviable position of alerting the country to those threats--without any real framework or frame of reference to convey the severity. The second time Governor Ridge went on national television to alert the public was in December 2001. I recall sitting on the sidelines of the White House Press Room watching the press conference. As usual, Governor Ridge did a remarkable job; and yet, as we were walking back to his office, I sensed his continued frustration that we still weren't operating with a real system. I assured him we would develop a good one. I was at my parents' home in Illinois over that Christmas and I recall sitting at their home computer generating ideas for a threat advisory system. When I returned to the White House, I brought them into a series of brainstorming sessions with my colleagues. Over the next several months, we all worked exhaustively to develop a comprehensive and informative system with input from all of the stakeholders: federal departments and agencies, the States, major cities, corporations, and the American People. Love it or hate it, my own belief is that when it's used properly, it's a great system to keep the American people informed of threats to our security. In recent years, the HSAS has come into its own, providing a common "national vocabulary" for terrorist threats that is easily understandable and eminently useful, but I believe there's still much more to do in the realm of public warning.
If you could say it all in just one sentence, what have the past two decades taught you about our military?
Now, more than ever, serving in our nation's military requires a deep understanding that our armed forces must be a part of society, rather than apart from it.
And in one sentence, what did serving in the White House teach you?
That one person can make a difference in our government!
How can I get you to speak at my convention/event? Who do I contact?
Send a query through this website (Contact), with the title "Appearance" or "Event" in the subject line. Mention that you want me to appear at your event. There is a charge that is consistent with what speaker's bureaus typically cost out for authors. I'm happy to make these appearances, but it's difficult to fit them in; and the logistics of travel with my schedule can be challenging, so pricing events and speaking engagements is unavoidable.
Writing
Where do you get your ideas?
I often get my ideas from my own experiences, past and present, in the White House, in the Pentagon, in international crises spots, and then connecting the dots in an interesting way. Asking the question "What if?" is always a key consideration for any novelist, and I am no exception. What if the Vatican had its own elite commando force to protect itself, like other governments have? What if one of the great Western Christian religions was able to be hijacked by extremists? How could that happen?
Why did you become a writer?
I started writing nonfiction articles early on in my career in the Army. They were mostly professional articles that dealt with military strategy and international strategy. Writing novels isn't that much of a leap, when you consider that if it's done properly, it can reenact the same dynamics and facts and make them more easily understood, albeit in a fictional venue. I have always been an avid reader of authors like Alan Furst, Brian Moore and Graham Greene. You just don't get any better when it comes to international suspense than these great novelists! My belief is that the best fiction instructs as well as entertains.
Can you describe your writing day?
I wake up by 5:00 in the morning (sometimes earlier), work my way downstairs to brew a cup of coffee, climb back upstairs and write for a few hours until it's time to go to work. I try to get a few hours of exercise in during the day to clear my mind. Normally, I'll start writing again by 8 or 9 PM when I get back home.
How much research do you do?
The majority of the time I spend on a novel is spent on research. I believe research is crucial to establishing realism and plausibility in a novel. Interviews, visiting the setting locations, and identifying the best methods to weave story, plot, theme and characters are all part of that process. I've found, though, the best "research" is my own life experience: having gone to war, working in the White House, jumping out of airplanes with a full battle gear onto a darkened drop zone, pulling bodies out of mass graves, hammering out national policy, seeing the terrible aftermath of war, firing foreign weapons, traveling around the world, testifying at The Hague%u2026all of it provides a foundation for what I write and for the raw human emotions found in my writing. To the extent I can, my goal is to put you "there" with me. For what I haven't been exposed to, and for those issues I'm not an expert in, I talk exhaustively to friends (or strangers!) who are doctors, veterinarians, pilots, naval officers, policemen so that I can get it right. Plausibility and realism are critical to good suspense and drama. I enjoy learning about many topics, so I'll often
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The Lazarus Covenant
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Glossary
AC-130: AC-130H/U "Spooky" GUNSHIP is a heavily armed aircraft with side-firing weapons that integrate sophisticated sensor, navigation and fire control systems to provide surgical firepower or area saturation during extended periods, at night and in adverse weather. Missions of the AC-130 include close air support, air interdiction and force protection.
AK-47: The AK-47 Avtomat Kalashnikova 1947 is a gas-operated assault rifle designed by Mikhail Kalashnikov, produced by Russian manufacturer IZH, and used in many Eastern bloc nations during the Cold War.
BKA: Bundeskriminalamt, Germany's Federal Criminal Division, comparable to the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the United States. Conducts investigations in especially serious crimes where other countries play a role. The BKA is also responsible for the cooperation with Interpol.
Bosniaks: South Slavic people living primarily in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Sand%u017Eak region of Serbia and Montenegro. Smaller populations are also present in Kosovo and Republic of Macedonia, as well as in the other former Yugoslav republics. The majority of Bosniaks are Sunni Muslims.
Browning High-Power: A semi-automatic 9mm pistol. The British Special Air Service, the FBI Hostage Rescue Team, and the WWII-era U.S. Office of Strategic Services (OSS) are among the organizations that have used the High-Power.
C-17: The C-17 "GLOBEMASTER III" is the newest, most flexible cargo aircraft to enter the United States airlift force. The C-17 is capable of rapid strategic delivery of troops and all types of cargo to main operating bases or directly to forward bases in a deployment area. Read more:
CH-46: The CH-46E "Sea Knight" is a twin-engine, tandem rotor helicopter used primarily by the U.S. Marine Corps to provide all-weather, day/night, assault transport of combat troops, supplies, and equipment during amphibious and operations ashore.
CH-47: The CH-47 "Chinook" is a twin-engine, tandem rotor helicopter designed for transportation of cargo, troops, and weapons during day, night, visual, and instrument conditions.
Chetniks: A Serbian nationalist and royalist organization with origins in the 19th century Serbian movement that opposed Ottoman rule. During the Yugoslav wars during the 1990s, many Serb paramilitary units called themselves Chetniks, and Croats and Bosniaks commonly used the word to describe any armed Serb unit, regular or paramilitary.
CSG: "Counterterrorism Security Group," an NSC working group consisting of senior counterterrorism officials from many governmental agencies and departments. The CSG coordinates and prioritizes the interagency law enforcement or counterterrorism response to terrorist threats, and deconflicts and tracks the actions of the United States Government in crises.
DCI: Director of Central Intelligence (Director of the CIA).
Delta Force: "1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta." A United States Army elite counterterrorist group based at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Also known as CAG (Combat Applications Group).
DNI: National Intelligence Director
EUFOR: European Union Force
EUPM: The European Union Police Mission. Leads in coordinating policing aspects in the fight against organized crime. The EUPM assists local authorities in planning and conducting major and organized crime investigations.
F/A-18 "Super Hornet" Strike Fighter: A single- and two-seat, twin engine, multi-mission fighter and attack aircraft that can operate from either aircraft carriers or land bases.
F-22A "Raptor": the United States Air Force's newest fighter aircraft.
Read more:
FBI: Federal Bureau of Investigation
GSG-9: Grenzschutzgruppe-9, the counterterrorism unit of the German Federal Police.
HALO: High Altitude, Low Opening free-fall parachuting technique.
HELLFIRE Missile: AGM-114B/K/M "Hellfire" Missile is an air-to-ground, laser guided, subsonic missile with significant antitank capacity. It can also be used as an air-to-air weapon against helicopters or slow-moving fixed-wing aircraft.
HIP: NATO Codename for the Russian-made Mi-8 Transport Helicopter. The most massively produced helicopter in the world.
HUMINT: Acronym for HUMan INTelligence. An intelligence gathering discipline that involves collecting information either by interviewing or tracking a subject of investigation, or by using a combination of 'black' techniques to gain confessions or involuntary disclosure of information. The organization primarily responsible for the collection of HUMINT for the United States is the CIA.
ICTY: International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. A United Nations-sanctioned legal institution rendering judgments and setting important precedents of international criminal and humanitarian law. Many legal issues now adjudicated by the Tribunal have never actually been adjudicated or have lain dormant since the Nuremberg and Tokyo trials. The ICTY is located in The Hague, The Netherlands.
Interpol: "The International Criminal Police Organization - Interpol." With 184 member countries, Interpol is the world's largest international police organization. Created in 1923, it facilitates cross-border police cooperation, and supports and assists all organizations, authorities and services whose mission is to prevent or combat international crime.
ISI: Inter-Services Intelligence, Pakistan's intelligence service
JNA: Jugoslovenska Narodna Armija, Yugoslav People's Army
JSOC: Joint Special Operations Command. The United States joint headquarters command responsible for conducting US counterterrorism operations. JSOC is reported to command the US military's Special Missions Units. These units are tasked with conducting counterterrorism operations, strike operations, reconnaissance in denied areas, and special intelligence missions.
KIA: Killed in Action
MAC-10: Military Armament Corporation Model 10. A highly compact, recoil-operated selective fire submachine gun. Specifically, a machine pistol.
MEDEVAC: "Medical Evacuation."
MH-60L: The MH-60L "Direct Action Penetrator" is a highly modified version of the standard US Army "Blackhawk" helicopter, configured for special operations use, with a full complement of offensive weapons systems.
NATO: North Atlantic Treaty Organization
NEST: Nuclear Emergency Search Team. U.S. Teams responsible for searching out and to "render safe" (safely defuse or destroy) nuclear material or nuclear weapons.
NSA: National Security Agency. Headquartered at Fort Mead, Maryland.
NSC: National Security Council
P-3: The P-3 "Orion" is a land-based, long range anti-submarine warfare patrol aircraft.
Pave Low: The MH-53J "Pave Low" heavy-lift helicopter is the largest, most powerful and technologically advanced helicopter in the United States Air Force inventory. The embedded technology in this helicopter enables the crew to follow terrain contours and avoid obstacles, making low-level penetration possible.
PC: "Precious Cargo"
PIFWiC: Persons Indicted For War Crimes
POLAD: Political Advisor
POTUS: President of the United States
POTUS/VPOTUS/NSA/NDI: President, Vice President, National Security Advisor, National Intelligence Director
Red Notice: An Interpol Red Notice is the closest instrument to an international arrest warrant in use today. Interpol (the International Criminal Police Organization) circulates notices to member countries listing persons who are wanted for extradition. The names of persons listed in the notices are placed on lookout lists.
SAS: Great Britain's elite Special Air Service Regiment
SEAL Delivery Vehicle (ASDS): The Advanced SEAL Delivery System is a long-range "mini-submarine" designed to deliver special operations forces for clandestine missions.
SEALs: The elite Naval Special Operations unit of the US Navy. The U.S. Navy's SEA, AIR, LAND (SEAL) teams are often cited as the most elite, flexible and highly trained Naval Commando force.
SECDEF: Secretary of Defense
SFOR: NATO's Stabilization Force, predecessor to EUFOR.
Super Cobra: The AH-1W "Super Cobra" is the US Marine Corp's attack helicopter. The Super Cobra provides full night-fighting capability and is armed with a 20mm turret gun, TOW, Hellfire, Sidewinder, Sidearm missiles, and 5 inch or 2.75 inch rockets.
STU-III: Secure Telephone Unit - Third Generation. A family of secure telephones introduced in 1987 by the NSA for use by the United States government, its contractors, and its allies to encrypt telephone calls and prevent eavesdropping.
TOP SECRET (TS) is a government security classification applied to information or material the unauthorized disclosure of which, if disclosed, could reasonably be expected to cause exceptionally grave damage to the United States national security.
UMBRA: Code word for intelligence obtained through electronic communications.
WNINTEL: Warning Notice -- Intelligence Sources & Methods Involved.
NOFORN: Not Releasable to Foreign Nationals/Governments/Non-US Citizens.
UN: United Nations
UNHCR: United Nations High Commission for Refugees
USSOCOM: United States Special Operations Command
Turks: The Ottoman Turks first invaded Bosnia in 1386 and completed their conquest in 1463. A derisive term often used by Croats and Serbs to describe any armed Muslim unit, regular or paramilitary.
Ustashe: A Croatian far-right organization put in charge of the Independent State of Croatia by the Axis Powers in 1941 that pursued Nazi/Fascist poli
AK-47: The AK-47 Avtomat Kalashnikova 1947 is a gas-operated assault rifle designed by Mikhail Kalashnikov, produced by Russian manufacturer IZH, and used in many Eastern bloc nations during the Cold War.
BKA: Bundeskriminalamt, Germany's Federal Criminal Division, comparable to the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the United States. Conducts investigations in especially serious crimes where other countries play a role. The BKA is also responsible for the cooperation with Interpol.
Bosniaks: South Slavic people living primarily in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Sand%u017Eak region of Serbia and Montenegro. Smaller populations are also present in Kosovo and Republic of Macedonia, as well as in the other former Yugoslav republics. The majority of Bosniaks are Sunni Muslims.
Browning High-Power: A semi-automatic 9mm pistol. The British Special Air Service, the FBI Hostage Rescue Team, and the WWII-era U.S. Office of Strategic Services (OSS) are among the organizations that have used the High-Power.
C-17: The C-17 "GLOBEMASTER III" is the newest, most flexible cargo aircraft to enter the United States airlift force. The C-17 is capable of rapid strategic delivery of troops and all types of cargo to main operating bases or directly to forward bases in a deployment area. Read more:
CH-46: The CH-46E "Sea Knight" is a twin-engine, tandem rotor helicopter used primarily by the U.S. Marine Corps to provide all-weather, day/night, assault transport of combat troops, supplies, and equipment during amphibious and operations ashore.
CH-47: The CH-47 "Chinook" is a twin-engine, tandem rotor helicopter designed for transportation of cargo, troops, and weapons during day, night, visual, and instrument conditions.
Chetniks: A Serbian nationalist and royalist organization with origins in the 19th century Serbian movement that opposed Ottoman rule. During the Yugoslav wars during the 1990s, many Serb paramilitary units called themselves Chetniks, and Croats and Bosniaks commonly used the word to describe any armed Serb unit, regular or paramilitary.
CSG: "Counterterrorism Security Group," an NSC working group consisting of senior counterterrorism officials from many governmental agencies and departments. The CSG coordinates and prioritizes the interagency law enforcement or counterterrorism response to terrorist threats, and deconflicts and tracks the actions of the United States Government in crises.
DCI: Director of Central Intelligence (Director of the CIA).
Delta Force: "1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta." A United States Army elite counterterrorist group based at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Also known as CAG (Combat Applications Group).
DNI: National Intelligence Director
EUFOR: European Union Force
EUPM: The European Union Police Mission. Leads in coordinating policing aspects in the fight against organized crime. The EUPM assists local authorities in planning and conducting major and organized crime investigations.
F/A-18 "Super Hornet" Strike Fighter: A single- and two-seat, twin engine, multi-mission fighter and attack aircraft that can operate from either aircraft carriers or land bases.
F-22A "Raptor": the United States Air Force's newest fighter aircraft.
Read more:
FBI: Federal Bureau of Investigation
GSG-9: Grenzschutzgruppe-9, the counterterrorism unit of the German Federal Police.
HALO: High Altitude, Low Opening free-fall parachuting technique.
HELLFIRE Missile: AGM-114B/K/M "Hellfire" Missile is an air-to-ground, laser guided, subsonic missile with significant antitank capacity. It can also be used as an air-to-air weapon against helicopters or slow-moving fixed-wing aircraft.
HIP: NATO Codename for the Russian-made Mi-8 Transport Helicopter. The most massively produced helicopter in the world.
HUMINT: Acronym for HUMan INTelligence. An intelligence gathering discipline that involves collecting information either by interviewing or tracking a subject of investigation, or by using a combination of 'black' techniques to gain confessions or involuntary disclosure of information. The organization primarily responsible for the collection of HUMINT for the United States is the CIA.
ICTY: International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. A United Nations-sanctioned legal institution rendering judgments and setting important precedents of international criminal and humanitarian law. Many legal issues now adjudicated by the Tribunal have never actually been adjudicated or have lain dormant since the Nuremberg and Tokyo trials. The ICTY is located in The Hague, The Netherlands.
Interpol: "The International Criminal Police Organization - Interpol." With 184 member countries, Interpol is the world's largest international police organization. Created in 1923, it facilitates cross-border police cooperation, and supports and assists all organizations, authorities and services whose mission is to prevent or combat international crime.
ISI: Inter-Services Intelligence, Pakistan's intelligence service
JNA: Jugoslovenska Narodna Armija, Yugoslav People's Army
JSOC: Joint Special Operations Command. The United States joint headquarters command responsible for conducting US counterterrorism operations. JSOC is reported to command the US military's Special Missions Units. These units are tasked with conducting counterterrorism operations, strike operations, reconnaissance in denied areas, and special intelligence missions.
KIA: Killed in Action
MAC-10: Military Armament Corporation Model 10. A highly compact, recoil-operated selective fire submachine gun. Specifically, a machine pistol.
MEDEVAC: "Medical Evacuation."
MH-60L: The MH-60L "Direct Action Penetrator" is a highly modified version of the standard US Army "Blackhawk" helicopter, configured for special operations use, with a full complement of offensive weapons systems.
NATO: North Atlantic Treaty Organization
NEST: Nuclear Emergency Search Team. U.S. Teams responsible for searching out and to "render safe" (safely defuse or destroy) nuclear material or nuclear weapons.
NSA: National Security Agency. Headquartered at Fort Mead, Maryland.
NSC: National Security Council
P-3: The P-3 "Orion" is a land-based, long range anti-submarine warfare patrol aircraft.
Pave Low: The MH-53J "Pave Low" heavy-lift helicopter is the largest, most powerful and technologically advanced helicopter in the United States Air Force inventory. The embedded technology in this helicopter enables the crew to follow terrain contours and avoid obstacles, making low-level penetration possible.
PC: "Precious Cargo"
PIFWiC: Persons Indicted For War Crimes
POLAD: Political Advisor
POTUS: President of the United States
POTUS/VPOTUS/NSA/NDI: President, Vice President, National Security Advisor, National Intelligence Director
Red Notice: An Interpol Red Notice is the closest instrument to an international arrest warrant in use today. Interpol (the International Criminal Police Organization) circulates notices to member countries listing persons who are wanted for extradition. The names of persons listed in the notices are placed on lookout lists.
SAS: Great Britain's elite Special Air Service Regiment
SEAL Delivery Vehicle (ASDS): The Advanced SEAL Delivery System is a long-range "mini-submarine" designed to deliver special operations forces for clandestine missions.
SEALs: The elite Naval Special Operations unit of the US Navy. The U.S. Navy's SEA, AIR, LAND (SEAL) teams are often cited as the most elite, flexible and highly trained Naval Commando force.
SECDEF: Secretary of Defense
SFOR: NATO's Stabilization Force, predecessor to EUFOR.
Super Cobra: The AH-1W "Super Cobra" is the US Marine Corp's attack helicopter. The Super Cobra provides full night-fighting capability and is armed with a 20mm turret gun, TOW, Hellfire, Sidewinder, Sidearm missiles, and 5 inch or 2.75 inch rockets.
STU-III: Secure Telephone Unit - Third Generation. A family of secure telephones introduced in 1987 by the NSA for use by the United States government, its contractors, and its allies to encrypt telephone calls and prevent eavesdropping.
TOP SECRET (TS) is a government security classification applied to information or material the unauthorized disclosure of which, if disclosed, could reasonably be expected to cause exceptionally grave damage to the United States national security.
UMBRA: Code word for intelligence obtained through electronic communications.
WNINTEL: Warning Notice -- Intelligence Sources & Methods Involved.
NOFORN: Not Releasable to Foreign Nationals/Governments/Non-US Citizens.
UN: United Nations
UNHCR: United Nations High Commission for Refugees
USSOCOM: United States Special Operations Command
Turks: The Ottoman Turks first invaded Bosnia in 1386 and completed their conquest in 1463. A derisive term often used by Croats and Serbs to describe any armed Muslim unit, regular or paramilitary.
Ustashe: A Croatian far-right organization put in charge of the Independent State of Croatia by the Axis Powers in 1941 that pursued Nazi/Fascist poli
Reader's Group Guide
About this Guide
The questions that follow are intended to enhance your reading and discussion of The Lazarus Covenant by John Fenzel. We hope these questions will provide you with new ways of looking at and talking about this psychological suspense fiction novel set against the backdrop of a gathering international crisis. As no previous novel before it, The Lazarus Covenant explores the scourge of religious extremism, terrorism, and war in an unforgettable tale of friendship, faith and forgiveness. With scenes extending from the Oval Office in Washington, D.C. to Apparition Hill in Medjugorje, Bosnia, The Lazarus Covenant is a revealing and compelling story of how international crises are truly managedby ordinary people in extraordinary, often desperate, circumstances.The Lazarus Covenant is a character-driven story. As such, this Reader's Guide is organized first by general questions about the book, but then by each of the major characters who drive the story to its stunning conclusion.
General Questions
Why do you think the author selected the Balkans as the setting for this novel?
Could he have staged the same kind of plot in the United States, with all
American characters?
Who do you believe plays the dominant role in resolving an international crisis?
Can crisis resolution be performed solely from the Pentagon or the White House?
Who are the real break-glass-in-case-of-emergency people who actively resolve
crises, but who we never seem to hear about?
How do you feel Mark Lyons changes throughout the novel? What devices does
the author employ? How do the other characters change Mark's life? How do
those characters, themselves, change?
The Vatican is a sovereign government. As a government, do you believe the
Vatican would unilaterally defend itself against an international terrorist threat?
Would it be possible for one of the great western religions to be hijacked by
fundamentalist extremists or even terrorists? When this occurs, how can it be
stopped?
How does this story reveal the process of connecting the dots to form a
coherent intelligence picture for special operations and intelligence organizations
to use in addressing a gathering WMD threat?
Is it fair for a journalist to assume the role of a covert CIA operative? Under
what circumstances would such a role be justified?
Given the circumstances, do you agree with President Sells decision to conceal
the ambush at Oborci as a mine accident in order to prevent the crisis from
escalating into a war?
Do you believe the Ravno Crisis to be a realistic scenario for a future crisis in the
Balkans? Did the Dayton Peace Accords fully resolve the war in Bosnia?
What would have occurred had Papa Voyo been successful in accomplishing his
goals?
Would you characterize this novel as anti-Catholic?
How does the Prologue set the stage for the rest of the novel? What important
introductions are made? What themes are introduced?
Do you believe terrorists could design and construct a nuclear weapon? If they
were successful in doing so, how do you believe they would attempt to target it?
How does the discovery of Lazarus' identity represent a closure for Mark?
The Main Character: Mark Lyons
The novel begins with an especially traumatic experience for Mark as a boy.
How does this experience change Mark's life? How does the experience affect
his attitudes toward others?
Mark is engaged in a constant struggle with his past. Does he ever really let go
of his past?
How important is it for Mark to reconcile the tragedies of his past in order for the
confrontation he has with his nemesis at the end of the novel?
How does Mark ultimately channel his energy to reconcile his past, once and for
all?
Is it ever really possible to fully reconcile ones past, even when it is marked with
violence and tragedy?
What is Mark's attitude toward the past? Toward the future? How are these
attitudes changed by the end of the novel?
Dreams and flashbacks are a recurring motif in the novel. Do Mark's dreams
help or inhibit his progress in reconciling his turbulent past?
What clues Mark in first to the fact that Kate Kamrath's death was not an
accident?
Sandy Evenson
Would you describe Sandy Evenson as an antagonist for Mark Lyons? If so, in
what way?
Sandy describes herself as a global citizen. Do you agree with her own
characterization? Who else that you know could this label apply to? In an era of
globalization, do you think this role becoming more or less prevalent?
Do you agree with Sandy's decision to visit Mark's aunt in Chicago? What did it
help her achieve? Would you have done it?
Sandy has a set of rules when it comes to romance, but she admittedly and
consciously breaks them in Marks case. In general terms, is this a good idea or a
bad idea?
Papa Voyo
Do you believe Papa Voyo is a realistic villain? Could an Archbishop in the
Catholic Church actually be so evil?
Does Papa Voyo have any redeeming traits?
How does the way in which Papa Voyo kills reveal his true personality?
Does Papa Voyo force Mark to change? How?
What is Papa Voyo driven by? How are his belief systems misaligned?
In his own mind, what connects Papa Voyo to Mark? What connects Mark to
Papa Voyo?
In what way does Cardinal Alosjiya Stepinac become a significant character in
the novel?
Celo
How do the dynamics between Celo and Marko change in the prologue? How
does the relationship between them change throughout the rest of the novel?
Could the crisis have been resolved without Celo? Would you characterize his
role as direct or indirect in guiding Mark toward resolution?
Celo is portrayed as a catalyst for the Ravno Crisis. He kills, takes hostages and
even blows up a church! And yet, somehow, he emerges as a sympathetic
character in the novel. Why?
What role does Celo play in Mark's evolution and transformation?
John Thorpe
How does General John Thorpe ultimately achieve operational success in
resolving the WMD threat?
Consider the relationship between Mark and John Thorpe. And the relationship
between John Thorpe and Jim Goodwin. Between each, there is an undeniable
and profound trust that has been forged in the past on battlefields and in
obscure war zones. How are each of their relationships unique?
What role does John Thorpe play in Mark's evolution and transformation?
Roman Polko
As United Nations High Commissioner for the Balkans, how does Roman Polko
inject himself to achieve an ultimate resolution for the crisis?
Could the crisis have been resolved without Roman Polko?
What role does Polko play in Mark's evolution and transformation?
Do you accept Roman Polko's premise that long-term conflict resolution is
possible only through building tolerance in the minds of the children? What
other ways can generational (often genocidal) conflicts be resolved for the longterm?
Does Mark ultimately succeed in accomplishing Polko's vision for a lasting peace
in the Balkans?
John's Blog
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byTable of Contents
- The Lazarus Covenant Book Trailer
- About the Author
- The Lazarus Covenant
- Summary of Novel
- Pre-Publication Praise for The Lazarus Covenant
- The Lazarus Covenant in Short...
- Author Interview about The Lazarus Covenant
- An Excerpt from The Lazarus Covenant
- Post Your Reviews of The Lazarus Covenant!
- Publisher of The Lazarus Covenant
- PRE-ORDERS ACCEPTED NOW!
- The Book in One Sentence:
- Media Release
- The Lazarus Covenant on Amazon!
- TOP SECRET
- TOP SECRET/SCI
- BREATHE Press Contact:
- The Lazarus Covenant Characters
- Follow Author John Fenzel on Twitter!
- Take a Photographic Tour of The Lazarus Covenant
- More Interview Questions for Author, John Fenzel
- Amazon Spotlight
- Related Links for The Lazarus Covenant
- Glossary
- Reader's Group Guide
- John's Blog
- Bosnia Unraveling
- Report: Balkans Biggest Instability Threat For Europe
- THE LAZARUS COVENANT's Relevance To Current Events...
- The Lazarus Covenant- AVAILABLE NOW!
- Media Kit for The Lazarus Covenant
Bosnia Unraveling
Is Truth any Stranger than Fiction?
February 23, 2009NYT Editorial
It has been a long time since the United States paid serious high-level attention to Bosnia. After the 1995 Dayton Accords ended the genocidal horrors, Washington moved on to other priorities and largely left oversight of the peace agreement to Europe. Now it's time to seriously re-engage before the deal unravels.
Fortunately, an immediate return to widespread violence seems unlikely. But Dennis Blair, the new director of national intelligence, warned Congress recently that Bosnia's survival as a multi-ethnic state is seriously in doubt, with tensions at their highest levels in years. The deal that ended the war created a decentralized political system that has entrenched rather than eradicated deep divisions. Bosnia's political leaders continue to prey on their countrymen's ethnic prejudices and insecurities. Haris Silajdzic - the Muslim in Bosnia's three-member presidency - has called for the Serbian Republic inside of Bosnia to be abolished. The Bosnian Serb prime minister, Milorad Dodik, who is supported by Russia, has talked about secession.
Bosnia's people ultimately must take responsibility for what their country is to become. But the United States, which led the Dayton negotiations, has a vested interest in making sure the peace deal does not erode further. So does the European Union, which has 2,000 peacekeepers and a special representative in Bosnia.
The United States and its allies must craft a plan to salvage Dayton's promise. It can use the lure of eventual E.U. membership to get Bosnians to write a new constitution that will finally create a functioning multi-ethnic state. We are reassured that President Obama's aides are beginning to discuss Bosnia. The new president's commitment to aggressive diplomacy could help ensure that Bosnia's horrors are never seen again.
Report: Balkans Biggest Instability Threat For Europe
Balkan Forum Reporting by Sinisa-Jakov Marusic
| 13 February 2009 |
The Balkans remain the source of the greatest threat to stability in Europe in 2009, according to an annual threat assessment presented by the US intelligence director Dennis Blair, AFP reports."Despite positive developments in the last year that included Kosovo's peaceful declaration of independence from Serbia, the election of pro-EU leaders in Serbia, and offers of NATO membership to Croatia and Albania," the Balkans will again pose the greatest stability threat for the old continent, the report says.
The main challenges come from the unresolved political status of the Serb minority in Kosovo, and the troubled inter-ethnic power-sharing arrangements in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
The report notes that despite 22 out of 27 European Union countries having recognized Kosovo's independence, Serbia still openly supports parallel ethnically-divided institutions there.
"It [Belgrade] has used political and legal means to challenge and undermine Pristina's sovereignty and to limit the mandate of the EU's Rule of Law mission, EULEX in Kosovo, which is meant to help Kosovo authorities build multi-ethnic police, judiciary and customs systems," the report said.
This is driving a de-facto partition of Kosovo between an Albanian-majority south and a Serb-majority north and is frustrating Kosovo Albanians, the US intelligence notes.
Concerning Bosnia, the report says interethnic tensions there have reached the "highest level in years". Its future as a multi-ethnic state "remains in doubt, although neither widespread violence nor a formal split is imminent."
The US agency is concerned about the threat of secession by the Bosnian Serbs and the call by some Bosniak leaders to eliminate the Serbian entity, Republika Srpska.
The Balkans remain the source of the greatest threat to stability in Europe in 2009, according to an annual threat assessment presented by the US intelligence director Dennis Blair, AFP reports."Despite positive developments in the last year that included Kosovo's peaceful declaration of independence from Serbia, the election of pro-EU leaders in Serbia, and offers of NATO membership to Croatia and Albania," the Balkans will again pose the greatest stability threat for the old continent, the report says.
The main challenges come from the unresolved political status of the Serb minority in Kosovo, and the troubled inter-ethnic power-sharing arrangements in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
The report notes that despite 22 out of 27 European Union countries having recognized Kosovo's independence, Serbia still openly supports parallel ethnically-divided institutions there.
"It [Belgrade] has used political and legal means to challenge and undermine Pristina's sovereignty and to limit the mandate of the EU's Rule of Law mission, EULEX in Kosovo, which is meant to help Kosovo authorities build multi-ethnic police, judiciary and customs systems," the report said.
This is driving a de-facto partition of Kosovo between an Albanian-majority south and a Serb-majority north and is frustrating Kosovo Albanians, the US intelligence notes.
Concerning Bosnia, the report says interethnic tensions there have reached the "highest level in years". Its future as a multi-ethnic state "remains in doubt, although neither widespread violence nor a formal split is imminent."
The US agency is concerned about the threat of secession by the Bosnian Serbs and the call by some Bosniak leaders to eliminate the Serbian entity, Republika Srpska.
THE LAZARUS COVENANT's Relevance To Current Events...
02/25/2009 11:00 AM
Can reality mirror fiction? As Bosnia's downward spiral gains more attention from the international community and from the United States, it appears that current events in the Balkans may indeed be on a parallel track as the storyline for The Lazarus Covenant. But, you can judge for yourself.
Here is an article that ran in Der Spiegel on February 25, 2009:
THE PROPHET'S FIFTH COLUMN
Islamists Gain Ground in Sarajevo
By Walter Mayr in Sarajevo
Radical Muslim imams and nationalist politicians from all camps are threatening Sarajevo's multicultural legacy. With the help of Arab benefactors, the deeply devout are acquiring new recruits. In the "Jerusalem of the Balkans," Islamists are on the rise.
The obliteration of Israel is heralded in a torrent of words. "Zionist terrorists," the imam thunders from the glass-enclosed pulpit at the end of the mosque. "Animals in human form" have transformed the Gaza Strip into a "concentration camp," and this marks "the beginning of the end" for the Jewish pseudo-state.
The King Fahd Mosque is located in Sarajevo's Alipasinio Polje suburb. The huge, Saudi monumental style building made of gray-brown sprinkled marble looks like a UFO -- complete with antennas shaped like minarets -- stranded among the high-rise apartment buildings on the edge of the city.
Over 4,000 faithful are listening to the religious service in the King Fahd Mosque, named after the late Saudi Arabian monarch King Fahd Bin Abd al-Asis Al Saud. The women sit separately, screened off in the left wing of the building. It is the day of the Khutbah, the great Friday sermon, and the city where the imam has predicted Israel's demise lies some 2,000 kilometers (1,240 miles) northwest of Gaza.
It is a city in the heart of Europe: Sarajevo.
"Tea or coffee?" Shortly after stepping down from the pulpit, Nezim Halilovic -- the imam and fiery speaker of the King Fahd Mosque -- reveals himself to be the perfect Bosnian host. He has fruits, nuts and sweetened gelatin served in his quarters behind the house of worship. A chastely-dressed wife and four children add themselves to the picture. It's a scene of domestic tranquility that stands in stark contrast to the railing sermon of the controversial Koran scholar.
Familiar Allegations
Sarajevo's King Fahd Mosque was built with millions of Saudi dollars as the largest house of worship for Muslims in the Balkans. The mosque has a reputation as a magnet for Muslim fundamentalists in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and the imam is said to be the patron of the Wahhabites, although they call themselves Salafites, after an ultra-conservative movement in Sunni Islam.
Halilovic is familiar with the allegations and the usual accompanying thought patterns: Wahhabite equals al-Qaida, which equals a worldwide terror network. He says he has nothing to do with that, but he "cannot forbid a Muslim from worshiping in my mosque according to his own rites." He explains the general air of suspicion surrounding the King Fahd Mosque as follows: "The West is annoyed that many Muslims are returning to their faith, instead of sneaking by the mosque to the bar, as they used to do, to drink alcohol and eat pork."
Many Bosnians have despised "the West" since 1992, when the United Nations arms embargo seriously impeded the military resistance of the Muslims in their war against the Serb aggressors. It wasn't until four years later, and after 100,000 people had died, that the international community -- at the urging and under the leadership of the US -- finally put an end to the slaughter. Over 80 percent of the dead civilians in the Bosnian War were Muslims.
This traumatic experience left a deep mark on the traditionally cosmopolitan Muslim Bosnians -- and opened the door to the Islamists. Years later, the religious fundamentalists have declared the attacks by Christian Serbs and Croats a "crusade" by infidels -- and painted themselves as the steadfast protectors of Muslim Bosnians.
Imam Halilovic served during the war as commander of the Fourth Muslim Brigade. A photo shows him standing next to a 155 milimeter howitzer, dressed in black combat fatigues, a flowing beard and a scarf wrapped around his head. He witnessed the arrival of the first religious warriors from countries in the Middle East and northern Africa. These fighters brought ideological seeds that have now found fertile ground -- the beliefs of the Salafites, Islamic fundamentalists who orient themselves according to the alleged unique, pure origin of their religion and reject all newer Islamic traditions.
Another Explosive Situation
Sarajevo is at the crossroads of the West and the Orient, in the heart of Europe -- a place where Islam meets the Catholic and Orthodox churches, and a place that shares the historical legacies of the Ottoman Empire and the Austria-Hungary of the Habsburgs. If Europe were to lose Sarajevo's Muslims as mediators between these worlds, it would have to contend with yet another explosive situation.
Bosnia's capital city still remains a bustling town with well-stocked bars, concerts and garish advertisements for sexy lingerie. Men with billowing trousers and full beards and women with full-body veils are still a relatively rare sight on the streets. The last reports of sharia militias intervening against public kissing in parks on the outskirts of town date back two years ago.
Intelligence sources have reports claiming that %u20AC500, the equivalent of a monthly salary in Sarajevo, was rewarded to every woman who decided to wear a full-body veil.
According to a survey conducted in 2006, however, over 3 percent of all Muslim Bosnians -- over 60,000 men and women -- profess the Wahhabi creed, and an additional 10 percent say that they sympathize with the devout defenders of morals. But since the radicals and their Arab benefactors have been subject to heightened surveillance in the wake of 9/11, they tend to keep a low profile.
In the evenings, though, individuals and small groups quickly exit the shell-pocked apartment buildings surrounding the King Fahd Mosque. At this time of day, there is a much smaller crowd of worshipers than at noon during the big Friday prayers, and the fifth column of the prophet can almost feel as if it has the mosque to itself.
They pray differently, with spread legs and in tight rows, "so the devil cannot pass." They refuse to allow fellow worshipers to say the ritual peace greeting "salam" at the end, they don't say a word, they don't want to be part of the Jamaat, the community, and they leave the mosque together as a group before the others.
Locked the Doors
The older generation of Muslims in Sarajevo's mosques now has to listen to lectures from bearded missionaries on what is "halal" and "haram" -- lawful and forbidden -- as if they and their ancestors had been living according to a misconception for over half a millennium. To protest this, the imam of the time-honored Emperor's Mosque has temporarily locked the doors of his house of worship -- for the first time in its nearly 450-year history.
This clash of civilizations also takes place in less prominent places, like the Internet forums of the Bosnian Web site Studio Din. Here the heirs of the officially godless, socialist Yugoslavia can learn about the Salafi doctrine. They ask questions that have to do with everyday life -- listening to music, smoking, earning money -- but also questions dealing with clothing and moral rules.
Sarajevo youth hang out in Sarajevo's popular Atila club. Under the Salafi doctrine espoused by some conservative Muslims here, "music is forbidden in Islam" and "listening to music is a sin."
The answers from the preachers on the Web are unequivocal: "Music is forbidden in Islam, listening to instruments is a sin." "Smoking is forbidden in Islam." "Whoever works as a cleaning lady at a bank that charges its customers interest is an accessory to a sin. It's no different than having cleaning ladies in bars and brothels."
In October, 2008, the Baden-Württemberg state branch of the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, Germany's domestic intelligence agency, conducted a study on the Studio Din Web site, which is also regularly visited by Bosnians living in exile. Entries in the forum -- which include discussions on jihad, the holy war, as a direct way of reaching Allah -- indicate time and again visitors from the Wahhabi King Fahd Mosque in Sarajevo, Imam Halilovic's flock.
Could a radical, potentially violent parallel society be emerging in the Muslim dominated region of the war-torn republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina, eight months after the signing of the Stabilization and Association Agreement with the European Union?
TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE GO TO:
http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/0,1518,609660,00.html
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