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I officially published my first book ‘Louisiana Hydra’ in March 2024. It is a thriller novel, which has been my preferred genre to read for years. That obviously makes me a big fan of authors such as John Sandford, David Baldacci, Michael Connelly, Lee Child, Ian Rankin and Jo Nesbo, to name a few.
I do, however, have to give a big shout-out to Stephen King, who changed me from a passive reader of whatever crossed my line of sight into a reader who would end up drumming his fingers on the desk, waiting for that next book to come out. Good job & thank you, you creepy bastard.
Retirement resulted in dramatically expanding the amount of spare time I had available. And apparently, there is a limit to the number of home improvement projects one can take on before their significant other starts pointing to the back door saying, “No. Out. Dig a ditch or whatever. Just stop doing things in here.” I’m a lousy ditch-digger, so writing seemed like a reasonable alternative.
Before retirement, I spent most of my career in the technology field. Up through the ranks. Operations. Programming. Data Analysis. Systems Analyst. Architect, Manager. The propeller on my beanie was always spinning. I really did love it and I worked with a lot of really great people.
I have an incredible family. My dog is a good boy. Our cats are…well… cats. Life is good. I’ll tell you more as it comes to me.
Reviewed by Alma Boucher for Readers' Favorite
In Louisiana Hydra: The Stinson/Borden Thriller series Book 1 by Gregory Ryman, as the most well-kept and secretive member of the CIA, William Stinson was a legend in the global hacking world. Stephanie Borden and Senator Glenway sat at a table next to William at the café, where he enjoyed a coffee while reading a book. Stephanie met with the senator to talk about the disappearance of a whistleblower who was going to divulge information related to national security. When the senator was shot, William grabbed Stephanie, and they ran to the park to hide from the assassin, afraid they might be next on the hit list. William teamed up with Stephanie and used his technological know-how to unearth the truth while aiding the authorities in their investigation.
Gregory Ryman's Louisiana Hydra hooked me from the start until the end. This page-turner kept me on the edge of my seat. There were several surprising twists and turns in the plot that I never saw coming. It had a fast pace and interesting characters with deeper personalities than initially met the eye. Despite their past traumas and pain, William and Stephanie became an incredible team after meeting by accident. The part about the daemonware that William put on phones to gain access to the device and to listen in on conversations piqued my interest. The story was masterfully crafted with a shocking ending. It took me completely by surprise, and my feet were thrown out from under me. I enjoyed reading it and look forward to the next book.
