Political Thriller
Date Published: August 13, 2026
Run Time: 10 hours 17 minutes
U.S. Senator Rick Taylor has been warning anyone who'll listen: the national debt is no longer a spreadsheet problem-it's a ticking bomb. But in Washington, truth is toxic. Colleagues dismiss him, constituents scream about "cuts to my benefits," and the media paints him as the villain who wants to gut Social Security.
Then the blackmail begins.
A shadowy network led by a ruthless operator making huge profits from unchecked government spending will stop at nothing to silence anyone who threatens the status quo. After Taylor's wife is targeted in a terrifying swatting attack and a sniper's bullet nearly ends Taylor's life, the message is clear. Shut up... or die.
Is There a Message in Your Novel That You Want Readers to Grasp?
Yes and no. I start with a contemporary
topic most people have seen in a headline but may not know much about. I
research it, then weave it through a thrilling tale. So most readers leave
knowing more than they did—in Debt Reckoning: Teetering on the Brink,
that context is the national debt.
What I don’t have is an agenda. I’m not
trying to tell anyone what to think. The issue stays in the background. The
character’s experience turns the page. I don’t write about superheroes but
ordinary people, like the reader, who find themselves out of their depth, often
in a life-and-death bind. I want the reader asking one question: Oh gosh,
what would I do?
Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
The standing challenge is keeping the
reader engaged.
If possible I want every chapter to open
with its own hook and end with a reason to turn the page. The harder part is
doing that while slipping in information that may be new to the reader. It has
to feel like it belongs to the scene. If it reads like a briefing, people skim.
How many books have you written and which is your favorite?
I’ve written three full-length novels and
one novella.
I don’t have a single favorite. A
Higher Betrayal is the one I like for the ride—the pace, the locations, the
turns. Debt Reckoning: Teetering on the Brink is the one I like for the
subject matter. The national debt is easy to ignore until it isn’t. Readers
have told me they appreciate the information in an easy-to-digest format.
If You had the chance to cast your main character from Hollywood today, who would you pick and why?
I’d cast John Krasinski as Rick Taylor.
Rick is an ordinary Minnesota businessman
who goes to Washington to try to make a difference and then has to survive what
that choice costs him. Krasinski has that everyman quality—he still looks like
somebody’s neighbor—and he’s already shown he can handle the action when the
story turns.
When did you begin writing?
I started my first novel, Wayward
Patriot: Preserving the Vote, in February 2021.
How long did it take to complete your first book?
The manuscript took about a year.
Learning how to publish took another fifteen months. Editing, layout, and
promotion were a steep curve. I had to learn the business of being an author.
Did you have an author who inspired you to become a writer?
Tom Clancy.
I got hooked on his political thrillers
in the 1990s. He made large systems—submarines, intelligence, government—feel
like a story you could live inside. During the contested election of 2000 I had
the thought that a manipulated national election would work the same way. I
didn’t sit down to write for another twenty years. When I finally did, Clancy
was still the writer I was measuring the pages against.
What is your favorite part of the writing
process?
I enjoy the creativity.
An author can send the story anywhere it
needs to go. Characters get challenged, rescued, or taken off the
board—whatever serves the book. I like that freedom. Building a world and then
finding out what the people in it will do when it turns on them.
Describe your latest book in 4 words.
The bill comes due.
Can you share a little bit about your current work or what is in the future for your writing?
I’ve embraced a topic that’s already in
the headlines. This time it’s AI and humanoid robots.
Once I had that, the thriller question
was the usual one—what could go wrong?
The book puts FBI Special Agent Betty
Finnigan, a secondary character from two earlier novels, where she can see the
drama from various points of view.
About the Author
Jack was introduced to thrillers when Tom Clancy's The Hunt for Red October was published. However, for most of his life, he was a reader rather than an author. During the 2000 Presidential election as he watched TV coverage of the Florida recount with 'dimpled chads' and 'hanging chads,' he thought an election conspiracy would be a great basis for a thriller. It wasn't until 2020 when he retired from his career, which included management positions in corporate America and small business ownership as well as a brief stint in ministry, that he sat down to write Wayward Patriot: Preserving the Vote.
His unique approach to political thrillers rips headlines from the news and weaves them through a thrilling tale of patriotism, political corruption and crisis. He says, "when I see some major new issue or technology in the news I want to learn more about it. I enjoy sharing what I learn with others by wrapping a story around it that will engage and entertain readers."
He and his wife, Barbara, have three grown children and seven grandchildren and divide their time between Colorado Springs and Tucson.
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