News From James Houston Turner, Author and now Screenwriter! Congratulations My Online Friend! And, Talanov is Back!

I'm so Excited Folks to hear from one of my favorite writers! James Houston Turner, with, perhaps, my most very favorite character, Talanov! Given the war now ongoing  overseas, I'm wishing Talanov was involved in making sure that Ukraine wins his "stupid" (my word) war!

And I'm also excited because, like me, James has had to deal with some physical issues which has taken him away... And successfully moved through those days...

And I'm, also so excited because during the time I was unable to review, another Talanov book was published in 2020! Fan Alert! Watch for my review asap... but I already added it to my TBR! And check out the big time photo op with Ll Cool J!

Search My Blog for "James Houston Turner" or "Talanov" to learn about past books!

Fri, Jul 28 at 1:41 PM

GREAT NEWS!!! Three of my screenplays – Square Pegs, Finding Star, and Hell Creek – have been nominated for “Best Screenplay” in the Content 2023 Film Festival & Media Summit, which is one of the premier Christian film festivals. 

I wrote my first screenplay in 1982, so acknowledgment like this after so many years means a lot to me. But as the late pastor Chuck Smith once told a group of us in a Calvary Chapel seminar, “Blessed are the persistent, for they will inherit everything.”

I love Pastor Chuck’s borrowing of language from the Beatitudes, and his sense of humor with it, because it drives home the truth of how certain biblical principles serve to make us better people. I won’t lie: the journey has been challenging, which only accentuates the sweetness of this moment. Thanks to all of you who have stood by me. Regarding Square Pegs, which was my “first rodeo” in terms of me helping produce a film (and what a learning curve that was), the film itself is scheduled for release later this year (or early next). I’ll let you know once I know more.

The support I’ve received with my award nominations highlights what I call the “power of one,” which is a testament to those individuals who chose to share my news on their social media pages. Thank you for standing with Square Pegs (and me) in this regard. To further highlight the importance of such sharing, one need only look at the recent surprise blockbuster film, "Sound of Freedom."

Movie is available on UTube

As I write this, it has earned a whopping $134m at the boxoffice. No one expected that, and it’s a living testimony to the power of one. Like many of you, I was one of those who shared news about this film on my FB page, and what I shared was in turn shared by 55 others. The power of one … magnified and multiplied. 

Like Sound of Freedom, Square Pegs has a message that will uplift, bless, and inspire. I can’t wait for you to see it. In fact, I can’t wait to see it myself!

~~~

On the Talanov front, my latest novel, 

Into The Eye,

which opens in Africa, is in the final stages of being written. It will be the third installment of what we hope will be a franchise of Talanov films, depending on the success of Greco’s Game, which is still moving forward with the good folks at Wonderfilm. I will definitely keep you abreast of pre-production news, which will accelerate later this year. 

As we speak, Talanov and his team have just landed on the deck of the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier as it pushes northward off the coast of Kenya. There's a lot of great action in this thriller, which will be released as a novel in 2024. Like Greco’s Game, it continues Talanov’s fight against the global plague of human trafficking. In the images above, we see his helicopter landing on the carrier.

~~~

Finally, I am excited to say, my script, Finding Star (completed with the assistance of Tara Lynn Marcelle), will be produced by Wonderfilm, and we are currently brainstorming a wishlist of actors for the main roles. 

Summary: Running from her "country-girl past" by living in the fast lanes of Los Angeles, where she is on the verge of landing her dream job in television, sassy food blogger Star Saldana has her world rocked when she learns her "other mother," Aunt Pim, is dying of cancer back home in Austin, Texas. After flying home to spend time with Pim, Star's dream job is given to someone else, forcing her to confront the "country-girl skin" she's been trying so hard to shed, especially when she must enter a local barbecue competition in order to win enough money to save Pim's beloved restaurant from being repossessed. Trouble is, Star doesn't know the first thing about cooking barbecue.

Set against the colorful backdrops of barbecue and country music, Finding Star will not just entertain you, but also speak to the unavoidable challenges of life many of us face at one time or another. More news on this front is coming soon. As always, if you no longer wish to receive these updates, let me know and I will remove you from the list.

In the meantime, a final hug of thanks to all of you for your enduring friendship and support. Until next time …

Jim

PS: feel free to keep up with these projects via my IMDb page: https://www.imdb.me/jameshoustonturner

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Author James Houston Turner announces that the new Talanov website (http://www.talanov.info/) is coming soon. Included on the site will be a list of quotes made by various readers, authors and bloggers. The quotes will be about Talanov himself rather than a specific book, so if you would like to submit a comment for inclusion, please email it to me or post it on Talanov's Facebook page, which you can do by clicking HERE.

Here are some examples of comments already made: "Dark, sexy hero for the new millennium" (national bestselling author, Jordan Dane); "The most memorable character we've come to know" (Ehsan Ehsani, The Mystery Tribune);"Sexy ... dangerous ... tantalizing" (Abigail Ortlieb); "A modern-day knight" (Daniel Cann); "A wonderful character"(Rick Koster, The Dallas Morning News); "Bond meets Bourne" (John Solomon, Chopin vodka); "Aleksandr Talanov can eat crackers in my bed anytime" (Gloria Foster).

I would love to add your quote to this list, so please reflect on your impressions of our guy and either post or send me a comment.

Meet Zoe!

Please Welcome Character Aleksandr Talanov to BRH!

Inspired by the actual KGB informant who leaked word out of Moscow that James was on a KGB watchlist, former KGB informant, Aleksandr Talanov has become James Houston Turner's signature protagonist in the Talanov Thriller Series. He made his debut in Comfort Publishing's 2011 bestseller, Department Thirteen.

TALANOV PROFILE   STATS: NAME: Aleksandr "Alex" Mikhailevich Talanov KGB RANK: ColonelDATE OF BIRTH: February 04, 1958 HEIGHT: 6'1" (185.42cm)WEIGHT: 172 lbs (78.02 kg)HAIR: Brown, with touch of gray at the templesEYES: Brown PERSONALITY: Strong Aquarius personality: smart, enterprising, loves puzzles and dilemmas and finding unique solutions to problems; inventive and thinks outside the box; a realist (tends to look at the glass as being half full, but knows glasses are easily broken); thrives on processing information; curious and alert but often cold, calculating and indifferent to the emotional needs of others. An early morning runner and avid student of chess, Talanov is fluent in English (American, British) Russian, Ukrainian, German, Spanish, andFrench. Committed and loyal, he enjoys spicy food (paella and pizza), fast cars, cold vodka and passionate music. BACKGROUND: Since his youth, Talanov was destined to be part of the Komitet Gosudarstvennoy Bezopasnosti -- the Committee for State Security -- or the internal security and foreign intelligence agency of the old Soviet Union. His father, Mikhail Ivanevich Talanov, was reportedly killed when he was an infant, with his addict mother, Nina, dying from a narcotics overdose when he was four. Alex was subsequently handed over to his elderly maternal grandparents, who lived in a ninth floor Moscow flat. The grandparents, however, couldn't cope, so he was turned over to State minders, who immediately noticed his athletic and educational abilities and placed him in the Komsomol -- the Communist Youth Organization -- where he would be taught the fighting and philosophical skills needed to advance him to the KGB. It was here that he was taught Combat Sambo, where he rose to the rank of Black Belt, his instructor preferring the traditional belt system of rating over the cumbersome "razryad" system most sambists employed. It was also here that he learned how love was a weakness and vulnerability that an enemy could exploit. It was here, at age sixteen, that he became known as Ledyanoĭ chelovek -- the “ice man” -- cold, calculating, charming and capable, yet possessing an unusual idealism about fairness, which his minders fed with Communist propaganda about the evils and decadence of the West. Feeding on their words like a carnivore feeds on flesh, Talanov was rewarded with entrance into the Surveillance College in Leningrad, where his achievements resulted in an appointment to the analysis section of Directorate 7 (responsible for the monitoring of Soviet nationals and foreigners). His contributions in the area of surveillance and security soon led to a promotion to Directorate 9 (the KGB Protection Service, which included the 40,000-man uniformed bodyguard for Party leaders and families, as well as the protection of government installations, especially those containing nuclear weapons). In Directorate 9, he was mentored by the great Dimitri Lazovic, who chose him to coordinate the physical protection of Party leadership. It was here that Talanov came to the attention of Yuri Andropov, whose appreciation for saving his life resulted in his being selected for the Moscow State Institute for International Relations. After graduating, he was promoted to the rank of colonel -- the youngest in KGB history -- and assigned to The First Chief Directorate, which was responsible for foreign espionage and KGB operations abroad. Segmented into eleven geographical regions, the First Chief Directorate saw to the placement of intelligence officers in legal positions in embassies and elsewhere abroad. Talanov oversaw those assignments as well as provided analytical support to various sub-directorates and services, as well as personal assistance to Andropov on a number of secret assignments. Talanov was not sure when the cracks began to appear, but appear they did in Department Thirteen: "Why did we get married?" Andrea asked. "What do you mean?" She turned toward him. "You romanced me like there was no tomorrow, and we end up having this fabulous whirlwind marriage. But that's as far as it went." Talanov did not reply. "We're little more than strangers, Alex. And you seem happy to keep it that way." "I think you're overreacting." "People are trying to kill us! And you think I'm overreacting? Talk to me, Alex." Talanov massaged a dull ache in his forehead. The pressure was getting to him. "Tell me about your world," she said. "Are you sure you want to hear this?" "I think it's time, don't you?" After working a pillow into place, Talanov settled back and for half an hour explained how the KGB had trained assassins, terrorists, and deep cover agents at its Balashikha complex, near Moscow. "Communism on paper is what attracted my idealistic hopes: equality for all, freedom from oppression...that sort of thing. But over time, I became aware of all the things I had not been taught: that communism outside the classroom was really state capitalism ...the government's elite taking from others what they wanted for themselves. It's why communism can never work, and why I began helping the CIA bring it down...not that anyone in Washington cared." "You sound cynical." "I am. Trouble is, there are men out there with guns for whom these lofty ideals don't matter one bit." "It appears they matter a great deal. The question is, why?" Talanov's disillusionment led him to become November Echo, the legendary KGB deep cover informant who supplied the CIA with intelligence on KGBactivities during the Cold War. For his service over the course of several years, Talanov was paid US $1.3 million by William Erasmus "Bill" Wilcox -- codename La Tâche -- the CIA branch chief in the American Embassy, in London. Talanov quietly invested the money in offshore accounts, thus enabling him to settle in Australia at the end of the Cold War as a multi-millionaire. It was in Australia that he met and married Andrea, who was the owner of Elegant Cuisine, a catering company, although his inability to return his wife's love was the cause of many problems. The couple lived in the swank Sydney suburb of Mosman until killers firebombed his house and burned it down. Within months of those events (chronicled in Department Thirteen), Talanov convinced his wife to move with him to Los Angeles in an attempt to find anonymity and peace (Greco's Game). Tragically, that peace was short-lived. Talanov and Andrea in Scene from Department Thirteen...

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