An interview with the author Alex Lukeman

Ingo Loechel: Alex, can you briefly tell the readers of the online magazine something about yourself?

Alex Lukeman: I live in central Arizona, about 90 miles north of Phoenix. It’s a great place to be. I’ve traveled a lot, lived in a lot of different places here and abroad.

I like old radios and old motorcycles, and restore them for fun.

I played guitar for a living for ten years. I still play. I’ve done a lot of different things over the years.

Ingo Loechel: How did you get into writing?

Alex Lukeman: I loved Sci Fi as a kid and sent stories to magazines, none of which were published. My first published book was in 1969, an ACE sword and sorcery paperback called “The Bane of Kanthos.” I may write more of these eventually. I have several non-fiction books published. Part of me has always been a writer.

Ingo Loechel: As far as I know, you made your novel debut in 2012 with "White Jade". How did the book come to be published?

Alex Lukeman: I had an agent who submitted the book around. Everyone liked it: no one bought it. Espionage and thriller books are a very tough sell. So I self published. The first book and the next (The Lance) did very well, so I kept going.

Ingo Loechel: How did you come up with the idea for the novel and the book series "The Project"?

Alex Lukeman: I wanted to create a team of consistent characters who were dedicated to keeping the world safe from the bad guys. There are plenty of them out there. I try to keep things relevant to real life.

Ingo Loechel: How long did it take to write your debut novel?

Alex Lukeman:It took about a year.

Ingo Loechel: How would you describe Nick Carter and Selena Connor, the two main protagonists of the book series? Are they both down-to-earth characters?

Alex Lukeman: Nick is a former Recon marine, a very tough guy with a good heart and an intelligent mind. 

Selena is a natural athlete, a brilliant linguist, a woman who has always tested the limits, very courageous and skilled in martial arts. 

She’s very wealthy, the result of an inheritance from her murdered uncle. That story begins in White Jade. They are both very down to earth people.

Ingo Loechel: Nick Carter and Selena Connor are both members of "The Project". What exactly is this organization and what is the task of this organization?

Alex Lukeman: Project is an acronym. It stands for PResidential Official Joint Exercise for Counter Terrorism. It’s an elite, black ops unit that reports only to the president of the US. 

It’s headed by Elizabeth Harker, another key female character who was dead ended by the US Justice Department because she disagreed with the conclusions of the investigation of 9/11 (the destruction of the World Trade Center). 

She’s honest, tough and smart. The president asks her to form a counter terrorism unit: that’s the Project.

Ingo Loechel: The secret organization AEON is Project's adversary. What exactly is AEON?

Alex Lukeman: AEON stands for Aeturnus Est Novo Ordo: The New Order is Eternal. It was established far back, perhaps in the time of the Templars. It has always been a secret society of powerful, wealthy, ruthless men who want to control the world. Does such a society or group really exist? It would explain a lot, wouldn’t it?

Ingo Loechel: How important is research for your "The Project" novels?

Alex Lukeman: Very important. If I’m not personally familiar with a weapon or location, or technique, etc., I research it. I try to make the stories believable. They are based on reality, although I do expand on that.

Ingo Loechel: How many places that play a role in your books have you personally visited?

Alex Lukeman: Many of them, but not all. I have been to Eastern Europe and Russia, lived in Spain and Scotland, travelled to the Himalayas, Japan, the Far East, the Arctic, Morocco and more. But there are many places I haven’t been. Then I research them.

Ingo Loechel: In your opinion, what distinguishes your “The Project” novels from other works in the genre?

Alex Lukeman: For one thing, an ongoing, consistent core group of characters: the “Team.” Everything in the books is based on some actual reality, possibility, or historical event. Science, weaponry, location, etc. I try for realism, up to a point.

Ingo Loechel: Do you have literary role models that inspire you in your novels?

Alex Lukeman: Sure, but I don’t have their incredible ability as writers. I wish I did. James Lee Burke and Craig Johnson come to mind. Ken Follett, Steve Berry, Alex Berenson. I could go on.

Ingo Loechel: "The Enemy", the last novel in "The Project" series to date, was published in 2022. Can you briefly tell the readers of the online magazine something about the content of the book, as this novel has not yet been published in Germany?

Alex Lukeman: Hopefully one day it will be published in German. The bad guys are set to unleash a plague on the world that will require a vaccine to counteract it. 

The vaccine contains a protein that gets into the brain and can respond to electronic stimulation. That leads to some very bad results, including mind control. Such a protein actually exists, by the way...

Our heroes must stop them before they carry out their plans. It isn’t easy. Parts of that story take place in Germany.

Ingo Loechel: Was "The Enemy" the last novel of the book series? Or are there more "The Project" novels planned for the future?

Alex Lukeman: I am working on the Book 24 now. It is likely to be the last one.

Ingo Loechel: The first novel featuring Michael Thorne, "The Russian Woman", was published in 2022. How did you come up with the idea for this new book series and this new protagonist?

Alex Lukeman: Mostly I wanted to tell a different kind of story, with fewer central protagonists. I intend to continue this series. 

Michael Thorne becomes involved with Anya Volkova, a Colonel in the Russian military who is deeply concerned over Russian actions  that will lead to nuclear war. 

I have been to Russia and I wanted to use it as a setting. Some of it is based on Russian activity in Syria and on certain existing weapon systems the Russians have developed.

Ingo Loechel: The second "Michael Thorne" novel, "Red Banner", was published in 2023. Can you briefly tell the readers of the online magazine something about the content of the book, as this "Michael Thorne" novel has not yet been published in Germany either?

Alex Lukeman: Red Banner deals with a Chinese invasion of Taiwan. Michael Thorne is a rebellious CIA agent with enemies inside Langley. He is sent to Taipei, where he is expected to fail. It’s never a good idea to underestimate Thorne, though.

Ingo Loechel: What book projects are you currently writing or working on? Can you tell the readers of the online magazine anything about them yet?

Alex Lukeman: Only that Book 24 is in progress and it will be a hard journey for the Project team.

Ingo Loechel: Alex, thank you very much for answering the questions.

Alex Lukeman: You’re very welcome. Thanks for the opportunity. I hope your readers enjoy the interview.

 

To the german version of the interview!

The novels of Alex Lukeman

The Project

• 2011: White Jade
• 2011: Projekt: The Lance
• 2012: The Seventh Pillar
• 2012: Dunkle Ernte (Black Harvest
• 2012: The Tesla Secret
• 2013: The Nostradamus File
• 2014: The Ajax Protocol
• 2014: The Eye of Shiva
• 2015: Black Rose
• 2015: The Solomon Scroll
• 2015: The Russian Deception
• 2016: The Atlantis Stone
• 2016: The Cup
• 2017: High Alert
• 2017: Solomon’s Gold
• 2018: Phoenix
• 2018: The Last Opion
• 2019: The Black Templar
• 2019: The Sword
• 2020: The Lair of Anubis
• 2020: End Game
• 2021: City of Gold
• 2022: The Enemy

Michael Thorne

• 2022: The Russian Woman
• 2023: Red Banner