brian oldham

Synopsis

The Consequence of War , 99,000 words

Gritty Anti-Hero Crime Fiction, according to Kirkus Reviews, that deals with the real problems of combat veterans when they come home from war, the lifelong struggles of the condition that affect every part of life. I call this a love letter to all veterans.

This is not a John Wayne veteran book where we end up on top of a hill with a flag; it’s about real veterans. It is very hard and dark and violent. Every veteran has had suicidal and homicidal thoughts after returning home. Every veteran has had trouble with drugs and/or alcohol. Every veteran who has PTSD has to find at least one person to share his or her story and the condition prevents that. We all feel ashamed.

Every combat veteran could find his or herself in this situation and all of us fear that we will not be able to fit in again. This is the story of one veteran, Elijah McCoy, 6 years in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, he was a member of the 75th Ranger Regiment. He fought alongside Juno Valdas and when he got out and had no where to go he went with Juno to Oakland City. He has been home for two years but he is not at peace. Elijah wants to be at peace, to find love, to understand himself but his PTSD stands in his way and is pushing him farther away. His life is withdrawn, violent, and lonely.

This book tells a compelling story that happens to a gay couple but it is not about the gayness of the couple.

In this book Elijah is sinking into a life of violence and in the beginning of the book commits two acts of violence. One opens a door to redemption through the love of another man, and the other creates a problem that is too big to solve alone forcing him to make a decision as to his future. As he comes up on the radar of a crime group and the Oakland Police at the same time, he finds himself moving toward a huge battle with a criminal biker gang, working with the police under their control, and trying to navigate his way through several competing demands for his skills. At the same time he hopes to find out whom he really is, to find love and understanding, and to have a chance at a normal life.

This book details the movements of a former Ranger and describes exactly what he had to do in the war in Afghanistan and how it was done. Over the last 5 years have been writing about the effects of war on the lives of veterans in what Kirkus calls a muscular prose and that they describe as dark and compelling stories of maladapted men trying to find healing.

I spent 30 years in the investment world after coming home from Vietnam and did a large amount of non-fiction writing for product description, marketing, training, recruiting, managing.