Author Biography | Interview | Books by this Author | Readalikes
Dan Fesperman first began writing about dangerous and mysterious people and places as a journalist, a newspaper career that culminated in his years as a foreign correspondent for the Baltimore Sun. Reporting from Europe and the Middle East, he covered three wars while also finding the time to write his first three novels. He then quit the newspaper biz to write fiction fulltime, and now travels on his own dime.
He grew up in Charlotte, NC, and, as a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, is a diehard Tar Heel. He is married to the journalist Liz Bowie, and they live just north of Baltimore. Their two children have moved off to adventures of their own.
Dan's thirteen critically acclaimed novels of intrigue and suspense have won two Dagger Awards from the UK Crime Writers Association, the Dashiell Hammett Prize from the International Association of Crime Writers, and the Barry Award for Best Thriller, and have been selected as the year's best mystery/thriller by USA Today.
Dan Fesperman's website
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You set your last novel, The Warlord's Son, in Afghanistan. Your new
novel, The Prisoner of Guantanamo, is set at the now famous prison camp. Why is
it important for you to base your fiction on current events?
I've always been fascinated by the way events in the here and now echo so much
of what has gone on before. So I guess you could say that it's not just the immediacy I find attractive, it's also the timelessness. In Afghanistan, foreign
empires have been blundering around for centuries, always faring worst when
they're convinced they know best. How could you not be intrigued by the
possibilities of exploring the way that's playing out now, right under our
noses?
Guantanamo, to me at least, represents yet another period in our history when
we've let hubris and insecurity push us to the limits of what is considered
"American behavior." There is a side to us that, when threatened, wants to just
kick ass and take names and forget about rules and rights for a while. But if
you look back through history, this has always produced its own set of problems.
So it was fascinating for me to offer a fictional take on some of the forces in
collision down at Gitmo.
When and why did you decide ...
Jasmine Aimaq was born in Germany to a Swedish mother and Afghan father. At age 4, she moved to Afghanistan with her parents and sister, and attended a French school in Kabul. They left the country in 1976, two years before ... (more)
If you enjoyed:
The Warlord's Son
Try:
The Opium Prince
by Jasmine Aimaq
Nadeem Aslam was born in Pakistan in 1966 and moved to Britain at age 14. His family left Pakistan to escape President Zia's regime.
His novel Maps for Lost Lovers, winner of the Kuriyama Prize, took him more than a decade ...
(more)
If you enjoyed:
The Warlord's Son
Try:
The Wasted Vigil
by Nadeem Aslam
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