Best concert, book and movies of 2011

Since the year is over. Thought I would share my views on 2011 with respect to music concerts, books and film.

Concerts:

            This year I was lucky enough to see Eric Clapton at the MGM in Vegas. Jeff Beck at Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater. Rod Stewart in Vegas at the Forum and Andrea Bocelli in Tampa.

Winner for best concert – Jeff Beck.

            An incredible performer at age 66 emits high energy and is considered one of the best guitarists in the world. Beck is one of three noted guitarists to have played with The Yardbirds; (Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page). He also formed The Jeff Beck Group with Rod Stewart and Beck, Bogert & Appice. Interestingly he does not use a pick but instead gets incredible sounds from his fingers and the vibrato bar on his Fender Stratocaster. Curious fact: Jimmy Page played bass for a short time with Jeff Beck in the Yardbirds.

Winner for best book – Top Secret America: The rise of the new American security state. Dana Priest and William Arkin.

            Both authors are relentless reporters. Priest has won two Pulitzer Prizes for her work. In this book they uncover the explosive growth of America’s secret world since 9/11, it’s staggering. The waste, redundancy and domestic surveillance steps the government is taking is scary. The novel focuses on the Pentagon’s secret army that has killed more terrorists than the rest of the US forces combined. After 9/11 Congress gave a blank check to America’s secret security agencies with no public accountability. We worry about the government checking our email…oh it’s much worse than that. All the money, in the hundreds of billions and over 800,000 employees doing “Top-Secret,” work and guess who they’re focusing on next??? Us…!

Winner for best movie – Martyrs

            Okay, this is not a new movie (2008) but new for me. I saw it this year, heard about it for a while and it is the best horror to come out in years.

            This is a disturbing movie!!!!!

It’s a French film written and directed by Pascal Laugier. It is being ranked as one of the scariest movies ever made. The last 30 minutes is gruesome, some say the most intense ever filmed. It’s not the bloodiest but it’s intense. The reason why the torture is happening is so unexpected…it’s brilliant.

As a side note here’s a few of my favorite Netflix streaming movies:

            Let the Right One In

            Frontiers

    The Horde

    Them

    Creep

    Isolation

    High Lane

    Deathwatch

Norm Applegate author of:

Shockwave

Amazon

A Disturbing Expose on Counter Terrorism. Gave it 5 Stars!

Dana Priest and William M. Arkin, have written an incredibly important book. “Top Secret America.” Bottom-line, they have unveiled JSOP, Joint Special Operations Command, the pentagon’s secret killing machine and the growth of America’s post 9/11 counter terrorism agencies. Frightening.

            Priest is a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and along with Arkin, they expose the secret buildings, unlimited funding in the billions and sadly how no one in Congress is accountable.

            Some worry about surveillance by Goggle and Facebook! It’s nothing compared to what the government is doing in the name security. Not sure what we are getting for the vast dollar amount spent by Congress. Close to a trillion dollars has been spent!

            The CIA, NSA and who knows how many other secret agencies involved missed the “Arab Spring.”

            The book is a must read for anyone interested in where our nation is headed.

            Dana Priest and William M. Arkin deserve another Pulitzer.

Norm Applegate

Author of Shockwave

Lunch with New York Times Best Selling Author David Hagberg

Lunch with New York Times Best Selling author David Hagberg. Our usual stop is Sarasota's Polo Club in Lakewood Ranch. Talked publishing, tipped a few and snapped some photos of our novels...cause that's how we roll...




DAVID HAGBERG has published more than seventy novels of suspense, including the bestselling JOSHUA'S HAMMER, SOLDIER of GOD, and ALLAH'S SCORPIION. 

Former Air Force cryptographer David Hagberg is a bestselling author of international thrillers who has a knack for creating fiction that becomes fact. In THE WHITE HOUSE he predicted North Korea’s development of nuclear weapons and intercontinental ballistic missiles. In JOSHUA’S HAMMER he foresaw the 9/11 attack on the United States by bin Laden and his al-Quaeda, in DESERT FIRE Saddam Hussein’s nuclear ambitions, in HIGH FLIGHT the downing of airliners as a method of terrorism on a massive scale. 

Born and raised in Duluth, Minnesota, David Hagberg joined the Air Force right out of high School where he was trained as a cryptographer, stationed in Greenland above the Arctic Circle and in Germany where he helped construct the (then) world’s largest crypto center on the planet. He attended the University of Maryland, Overseas Division and the University of Wisconsin studying physics, mathematics and philosophy. 

But he learned to write as a cub reporter on the Duluth Herald & News-Tribune and later as a news desk editor for the Associated Press. His first novel TWISTER was published in 1975 by Dell, and since that time he has published more than 70 novels of suspense in a career that includes a nomination for The American Book Award, three nominations for the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Allan Poe Award and three Mystery Scene best American Mystery awards. 

His papers are archived at the University of South Florida in Tampa. 

David and his wife Laurie, who is a professional fundraiser, make their home in Sarasota, Florida from where, whenever they have spare time, sail the West Coast of the State and the Keys.


Norm Applegate's Shockwave on Amazon
Shockwave

Shockwave: New Thriller Release

I'm introducing my novel; SHOCKWAVE, the first thriller I've published. My other novels are classified as horror but I always thought Into the Basement could be a thriller; although if abduction and torture has happened to women; and we know it has, it would be a horror! 

Deborah Levinson went over the manuscript for spelling and grammar. Then she sent me nine pages of ideas, all great stuff. A big shout out to her for helping me.

The cover is by James Rone. He did "Jumpers." SHOCKWAVE, is cool. If your looking for an editor or book cover artist contact them. You can reach them through me or Facebook. Below is what I've posted on Amazon and Smashword's premium catalog. 

*                   *                   *

Thriller writer Norm Applegate, author of Into the Basement, introduces us to a new character, Jack Dwyer.

Shockwave.

Loner Jack Dwyer.

Pretty woman Kelly Paul.

Homegrown terrorists use pipe bombs to kill.

The cause? They want America back.

Violence breeds violence.

Never underestimate a loner!

Book Description:

Jack Dwyer is observant. Sitting at Starbucks he watches a van come to a stop. A nervous guy gets out, looks around, seems strange. Dwyer watches him. The guy crosses the street. Dwyer realizes the guy’s staring at a pretty woman, Kelly Paul. Dwyer makes eye contact with her. Dwyer looks left, right, reacts, moves fast, pushes her down, saves her but the bomb explodes. People are killed. She goes missing and Dwyer is the suspect.

Dwyer can’t forget her. Doesn’t understand why she’s missing.  He’s a loner, ex-military, a psychologist and he has seen death. He’s wildly attracted to the pretty woman and he goes after her.

Beau Redell, and a group of sadistic followers, is the problem.  Kelly Paul has been taken, abducted, terrorized. But Dwyer finds himself alone and a violent conclusion is inevitable…

Shockwave by Norm Applegate

Pipe Bomb. Hostage. Terror.

Edited by Deborah Levinson.

Cover art James Rone.

Shockwave is approximately 79,000 words long, and is specifically formatted for Kindle. This ebook also contains bonus material:

Chapter 1 of Into the Basement by: Norm Applegate.

“Into the Basement introduces us to Norm Applegate's no nonsense staccato writing style and realistic approach to the thriller/suspense/genre.” - Withersin Magazine June issue 2008, withersine.com

"Norm Applegate is a new voice just emerging onto the field of the mystery/thriller novel that has the rest of us looking over our shoulders."  - David Hagberg New York Times & USA Today bestselling author of Dance With the Dragon, Allah's Scorpion and Mutiny.

"Norman Applegate’s writing truly delivers with all the raw force and prose of a top rate storyteller, seasoning his tales with a mixture of classic genre skill and infusion of intrigue and characterization that makes the stories move." - Nicholas Grabowsky Horror author of "Halloween IV.

“Applegate creates a very graphic and violent story filled with blood, gore, and sex.” – The Book Faery Reviews

Books by Norm Applegate:

First to Die – Just $2.99!

Blood Bar  - Just .99!

Into the Spell – Just .99!

Jumpers (short story)  - Just .99!

…and thriller novel

Into the Basement – Just $1.99

#1 in Kindle Store >Comics & Graphic Novels > Graphic Novels > Horror: Since March 2011