Sunday Snippet: In Enemy Territory (a Black Raven Banner novella)

Once again, Ohio weather is all over the place. But at least it hasn't been sweltering hot. Had setbacks with our cars. Mine is still not quite ready. The new engine computer the garage ordered didn't work so they got another one. Hopefully this week. My husband had a deer literally jump on top of his CR-V, shattering the windshield, knocking the rearview mirror off, and sending the driver's side mirror clear over to the passenger side floor. It even dented the top of the car up to the sunroof. I'm pretty sure it's a total loss. Luckily my husband is okay, aside from having a ton of glass all over him. He found glass all the way in the back of the vehicle.

Really busy work week. I finished up a copy edit and continued work on a developmental edit. Also started a new project that's not quite a developmental edit, but it is cleaning up a lot of formatting in a manuscript to get it ready for a copy edit, which a colleague is going to do. Had an exchange with a new author and hope to work with her in the future.

Semi-decent week of viewing. I didn't quite make a full round, mainly because I spent a lot of time on the phone trying to get the insurance sorted and line up a rental until we know for sure what's going on with the CR-V.

I did get an episode of My Life Is Murder in and thoroughly enjoyed it. Lots of twists and turns in this one. Once again, Madison stole the show. Also really cool to have indigenous representation for the storyline. And … more hints about Alexa's family. Here's hoping we'll see more of them.

I think I watched the finale of Signora Volpe, and it might have set up a future episode featuring Sylvia's ex. That would be a lot of fun. So awesome to see her niece again and getting to know her dad. Isabelle ended up stealing this episode. Going to watch the behind-the-scenes stuff next.

Finished up Best in Paradise with the first of the two-parter that set up Florance's exit. It was a great episode and very bittersweet as the actress mentioned when she introduced the episode.

Also caught another Death in Paradise and enjoyed the mystery. It's also fun to see Jack trying to move on from the loss of his wife. The awkward but awesome communication with Anna is lovely to watch.

Started an episode of Elementary but need to finish it this week. Too many distractions to get all the way through the show. It looks like a good one though.

That's pretty much it for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from In Enemy Territory, a Black Raven Banner book.

Here's the miniblurb:

Verity Jones and Emory Cavendish welcome a new CO under the Black Raven banner. Lawrence Worthington hits the ground running and gets up to speed quickly. He has to—the mission rate doubles when a group of resistance teams get ambushed simultaneously. He needs every member—including Verity—at the top of their game and he has to find out how the enemy got their hands on the base locations.

And a preview snippet…

"Jones should fly out to get the lay of the land."

Verity's head snapped around at Percy's suggestion. Had he gone starking mad? Mission launch would be sometime in the next few hours.

She shook her head. "Afraid I'll have to decline, Longfellow." Facing forward again, she blinked when Worthington quirked an eyebrow. "Er, I'll be happy to fly out if you order it, sir. But I've got several irons in the fire with those two downed birds and finishing the upgrades on the last five stingers." She also wanted to test the new tracking device she'd designed.

She itched to be back in the air, but she also wanted the guys she worked for to have an edge.

Worthington agreed. "That does take priority, but I do want to see you fly soon." He glanced out the window. "Maybe we can go up together after you complete the repairs."

Verity bobbed her chin. "I'd like that. I'll let you know when I've got it all finished." She'd welcome the opportunity to match wits with one of her dad's rivals.

Worthington nodded. "Cavendish, Longfellow, get two four-man teams together. I want two in the stingers to act as escorts and a two-man team in a cargo plane to move refugees." He flipped his notebook shut. "Wheels up in two hours for one team and the other is on standby. You decide who goes out first." He dismissed the group.

Verity made a beeline for the Bertha Jay. She wanted to install the device she'd been working on for a trial run.

Emory caught up with her when she made the final adjustments. "Not like you to turn down an opportunity to fly out. Everything okay?" A note of concern entered his voice.

She smiled. "Yeah, nothing's wrong." She pulled him in close to the plane. "I've been working on a new project." Pointing to the tracker, she explained its concept. "This works like a homing beacon and internal tracker. When planes are on the ground, they don't show up on radar. This gives us coordinates when they're not flying." At least she hoped it would.

Emory's eyes widened. "That's brilliant." He gave her a long look. "You don't want Worthington to know?"

She jerked her head back and forth. "Not yet. It's untested and I'd like to work out anything buggy before I show him." She lifted one shoulder. "He's a progressive guy. If this works, he'll want all the planes to have them." And she'd probably have to pull Emory and Percy in to help her with building and installation.

Emory didn't argue. "What do I have to do?"

Verity grinned. "Nothing. That's part of the functionality. Pilots won't need to add anything to the pre-flight checks." She bumped her fist on the hull of the plane. "I'll monitor from the hangar while I install the upgrades to the stingers and work on the repairs."

Emory nudged her shoulder. "This could be a tide turner."

Verity gave a nod. "I'm hopeful." She'd love to give Blackraven the upper hand.

I have so much love for this series. I'm still not completely settled on the actual name yet, but Black Raven is edging out anything else.

 

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye

Sunday Snippet: In Enemy Territory (A Blackraven Banner novella)

Wow, another rough week on the home front. My middle kiddo is really struggling right now and I hate not being able to help him even though he's an adult. He's really tired of landing in the emergency department but we might be getting closer to figuring out what's going on with him. A few specialist appointments in September might help even more.

Didn't get as much television viewed but had a decent amount nonetheless. Started out with The Brokenwood Mysteries and thoroughly enjoyed the episode. I really like seeing previous characters in their recurring roles.

Finished up Silent Witness's second episode and don't remember watching it during my first viewing. Glad I got to see it.

Watched an arc of Classic Who and should be finished up with the season eighteen soon. I think it might be the last one for Four.

Got another episode of UFO Witness viewed and rather enjoyed this one. Still feels staged but I liked the deep dive into whether there's a secret underground base of operations for aliens.

Caught two episodes of The Muppet Show with Raquel Welch and James Coco as the guest stars. About halfway through season three and looking forward to more.

Finished out McCartney 3, 2, 1 and would love to see more. So many great moments and songs in this brief look into Paul McCartney's journey as a musician.

Watched another episode of Peak Practice and ended up liking it a lot. Will can be such a prat sometimes but I like that about his character.

Enjoyed another lesson on Master Class. LeVar Burton focused on reading to children and interacting with them about the source material. Very interesting!

Started Inside the Episodes: The Witcher and loved going back to revisit the first episode. I'm looking forward to the next installment.

Caught another episode of New Rugrats and loved it. I really enjoy the updated version of this show.

Finishing out the week with Chicago Med and it's a heat wave episode. I'm totally feeling that this week. It got hot again.

That's pretty much it for television this week. Tonight's post is from In Enemy Territory, a Blackraven Banner novella.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Verity Jones and Emory Cavendish welcome a new CO under the Blackraven banner. Lawrence Worthington hits the ground running and gets up to speed quickly. He has to—the mission rate doubles when a group of resistance teams get ambushed simultaneously. He needs every member—including Verity—at the top of their game and he has to find out how the enemy got their hands on the base locations.

And a preview snippet…

Verity scrubbed the grease off her hands and redid her ponytail. Nervous tension roiled in her gut about meeting the new CO. She grabbed the edge of the sink and exhaled slowly.

"Probably just feeling some guilt over Whitcomb's downfall." Then again, the guy tried to get her killed.

Pushing away from the sink, she finished getting cleaned up and exited the head. Standing outside, she stripped off her coveralls in the hall. The door opened and a major entered the corridor, no doubt the new commanding officer.

Verity hoped he'd walk right on by and give her a few moments to get situated. She thought she might be in the clear when he strolled past but then he paused and turned around.

He spoke to her back. "Soldier, is there a reason you're stripping in the corridor?"

Verity froze for a second. Damn. It figures. Nothing for it, she'd have to brazen it out.

She stepped out of the coveralls, squared her shoulders, and turned to face the new CO. "It's specialist, sir. I'm a civilian. As for removing my coveralls…" She rolled the clothing up, starting with the legs. "That was to make myself presentable … to meet you, sir." She tucked the rolled-up garment under her arm and thrust her hand forward. "Specialist VJ Jones."

He shook her hand, giving her a curious once-over.  "Jones as in—"

She nodded, assuming he meant her dad. "As in. Yes, sir."

His lips curved in a wry twist. "So, you're Cavendish's girl."

What did he mean? "Excuse me?" Her head spun with the abrupt change in topic.

She usually had to chitchat about her dad before switching gears. She had a whole spiel ready to go. Discussing her relationship with Emory didn't seem appropriate.

The major nodded. "The CAG sings your praises, Jones. You feature prominently in his reports."

She ducked her head. "I do my part, sir. No more or less than anyone else around here."

He gave her a long look. "You're nothing like your dad. Which means you and I are going to get along just fine." A sheepish chuckle followed his statement.

She barely had time to process the comment before Emory's voice preceded him down the corridor.

"Jones! Hop to it—" He stopped short then snapped to attention. "Major Worthington, sir. The men are in the briefing room, awaiting your arrival."

The pieces clicked into place when Verity heard his name. Major Lawrence Worthington—the second best pilot of the united forces. That explained the earlier comment.

Verity turned to face Emory. "Sorry I'm late. I found the new CO—or move to the point—he found me."

They walked toward Emory and Worthington sent him on to get the men ready. Verity stopped to put her coveralls in the wash station.

She fell into step beside the major. "So, you're…"

Worthington cracked a smile. "Yeah, I am." He entered the briefing room and headed to the front of the space.

Verity grabbed a seat in the back and settled in for the opening remarks. Life would certainly be interesting from this point forward.

I love how this series is coming together. Verity and Emory are a joy to write and the secondary characters are also fun.

 

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye

Sunday Snippet: In Enemy Territory (Under the Blackwatch Banner)

Whew. What a week. Our high school's homecoming is next weekend and we're in a flurry to get the last-minute accessories for the big event. We usually host about six couples each year and we're getting the menu finalized and nailing down who's bringing what. Like I said. Whew.

Had a semi-productive viewing week for television. The season premiere of The Last Ship didn't disappoint. I loved how much exposition they packed into small moments. I'm so excited for the next episode, even though we lost two of my favorite characters.

I caught the second episode of Birds of Prey. Also caught episodes of Pensacola Wings of Gold and Lexx. I'd forgotten what happened during the most recently watched Lexx. Now I need to see the next episode to see what the fallout was. LOL

Caught a classic movie on DVD, Crazy Love. It's a Myrna Loy / William Powell comedy and it was excellent!

Watched another episode of Strike Back. I'm beginning to like how the team is coming together and it was great to have some references back to the previous incarnation of Section Twenty.

Finally, I watched the next to last episode of season six Chicago Fire. I'll be interested to see what happens in the finale.

That's pretty much it. Caught the usual marathons of Murder, She Wrote and In the Heat of the Night along with a mini-marathon of The Saint.

Tonight's post is from In Enemy Territory, an Under the Blackwatch Banner book.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Verity Jones and Emory Cavendish welcome a new CO under the Blackwatch banner. Lawrence Worthington hits the ground running and gets up to speed quickly. He has to—the mission rate doubles when a group of resistance teams gets ambushed simultaneously. He needs every member—including Verity—at the top of their game and he has to find out how the enemy got their hands on the base locations.

And a preview snippet…

Emory Cavendish pulled the printed strip from the telegraph. "Shit." He grabbed his cover and darted from the office.

He needed to find Verity and get his squadron together. The new commanding officer would be at Blackwatch within the hour.

Crossing the courtyard at an almost dead run, his gaze scanned the road leading to the estate. "Nothing like supremely short notice." He reached the hangar and ducked inside, letting his eyes adjust to the dimly lit interior.

He spotted Verity first—when didn't he—and headed in her direction. Flat on her back, she used wrench on the landing gear of a plane. Her bent knees gave her some extra leverage to get the bolt refastened.

He stopped next to her and waved the four pilots present over. "New CO is due anytime now. Let's get everyone together and be ready when he arrives." Verity sat up, her face smudged with grease. "Jones, you'll want to get cleaned up a little. Meet us in the briefing hall when you can." She gave him an eye roll but got up and dusted off her hands.

Giving him a mocking salute, she smirked. "Right away, captain." Turning on her heel, she sauntered across the hangar and exited to cross the grassy lawn.

His second in command came up beside Emory. "Do you know who the new CO is?" Concern edged his voice.

After the fiasco with Whitcomb, Emory didn't blame him for being worried.

Emory nodded. "I do. And it's a definite step up." Which didn't actually say much.

An animated corpse would be better than Whitcomb turned out to be. But their new commanding officer's reputation nudged into sterling territory.

The deputy CAG's eyebrows rose. "Are you going to fill me in or is there some big secret?" Patience would never rank as one of Percy's strong traits.

Emory didn't see a reason to keep Percy waiting. "Major Lawrence Worthington is coming to take Whitcomb's place."

Percy's mouth dropped open. "As in…" Wonder and awe filled his voice.

Emory lifted his chin. "As in." Britain's former best pilot.

Only one other man had a better record than Worthington—Victor "Ace" Jones.

Verity's dad.

I'm very excited about this series. Here's hoping I get the time to finish up the plotting and planning and really dive into the writing.

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye