Odessa, like many of my other novels, could not have been written without the support of the former director of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Steven Walker; Janet Waldorf, Deputy Chief of Communications within the DARPA Public Affairs office, and her staff; and the DARPA program managers and contractors who took the time to speak with me by phone or via email. Left of boom. Now, I get it. Thanks to you all!
For my research in Argentina, I called upon a fellow author, Abel Basti who wrote the World War II history book titled Hitler in Exile. The language barrier was a challenge but Google translator came through. Not only did he have me utterly convinced that Hitler escaped his Berlin bunker and fled to Argentina via Spain, but that the Soviet Union assisted in the coverup in exchange for future cooperation against the United States. I’ve always loved a good conspiracy theory, and Hitler’s escape is certainly a grand one. However, one thing is certain. It was the Soviet Red Army who discovered Hitler’s dead body and then promptly whisked it away before British Intelligence could view it. Confirmation of death was always in question.
Here's a special shoutout to a family who has contributed to my novels before. In the Geostorm series, I introduced the readers to Tommy Bannon who, alongside Dr. Kristi Boone, brought a unique zoological angle to the story. The character, Tommy, was based upon a real-life Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, Dr. Thomas McNair. Thomas is a good friend and the veterinarian who takes care of the princesses of the palace. Dani and I have also become friends with his wife, Kala McNair. Kala inspired me to create a character in her name, sort of. She’s unaware of this so I’m not including the backstory until the final installment of this trilogy, Odessa Strikes. If I tell you, dear reader, I’ll be telling her and therefore I’ll be spoiling the surprise.
Finally, as always, a special thank you to my team of loyal friends who’ve always supported my work and provided me valuable insight from a reader’s perspective. Denise Keef, Joe Carey, Shirley Nicholson, Bennita Barnett, Karl Hughey and Brian Alderman.
This is why I wrote Odessa.
Because you never know when the day before is the day before, prepare for tomorrow.
Thank you all!
Choose Freedom and Godspeed, Patriots!
About the Author, Bobby Akart
Author Bobby Akart has been ranked by Amazon as #25 on the Amazon Charts list of most popular, bestselling authors. He has achieved recognition as the #1 bestselling Horror Author, #1 bestselling Science Fiction Author, #5 bestselling Action & Adventure Author, #7 bestselling Historical Fiction Author and #10 on Amazon’s bestselling Thriller Author list.
Mr. Akart has delivered up-all-night thrillers to readers in 245 countries and territories worldwide. He has sold over one million books in all formats, which includes over forty international bestsellers, in nearly fifty fiction and nonfiction genres.
His novel Yellowstone: Hellfire reached the Top 25 on the Amazon bestsellers list and earned him multiple Kindle All-Star awards for most pages read in a month and most pages read as an author. The Yellowstone series vaulted him to the #25 bestselling author on Amazon Charts, and the #1 bestselling science fiction author.
Bobby has provided his readers a diverse range of topics that are both informative and entertaining. His attention to detail and impeccable research has allowed him to capture the imagination of his readers through his fictional works and bring them valuable knowledge through his nonfiction books.
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Author’s Introduction to the Odessa trilogy
August 15, 2020
As of this writing, the United States was going through a period of upheaval. For my loyal readers, you’ve known for years that my worldview, and therefore my novels, have been shaped by personal experiences as well as certain other works of literature and art.
Years ago, reading the massive treatise by Edward Gibbons titled the History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire led me to the following premise:
All empires collapse eventually. Either they are conquered by a more powerful enemy or they collapse under the weight of their debt. But make no mistake. Every great empire and nation-state eventually fails. There have been no exceptions in the history of mankind.
Which leads me to the artistic work of Thomas Cole. Beginning in 1833, Thomas Cole created a series of five paintings depicting the growth and fall of an imaginary empire. It’s a place that begins peaceful and full of freedom. Then, it achieves a level of glory indicated by joyous occasions and vast amounts of wealth, as shown in The Consummation of Empire.
But, as Gibbon’s Decline and Fall led me to realize, Cole had reached the same conclusion as evidenced by his paintings. Like the Roman Empire, Cole showed decadence, wealth, vice, and corruption ultimately led to war and eventually destruction of the state. The result, was Destruction as depicted in this painting.
It’s possible America is going through a similar period at this time. Like all new empires, the Founding Fathers thought they’d laid the groundwork for their principals and ideals to last forever through the adoption of the Constitution. Only time will tell whether the U.S. Constitution and this great republic can withstand the enormous political pressures from both outside our borders, and from within.
During World War I, an obscure German soldier named Adolf Hitler had been injured and was hospitalized as The War to End All Wars came to an end. He took up political
