Putin's
Useful Idiot
by
Kenyon Kane
Genre:
Historical Espionage, Romance
November
1984, Richard Hart lands at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport carrying
a dossier he doesn’t have security clearance to open, a map of
Moscow missing most of the street names, five ten-dollar bills
(probably dyed with invisible ink) and an American Express card.
Acting as a CIA “financial” agent, Hart must close a deal with
the KGB, rig the transaction to produce enough “black money” to
bribe KGB hard-liners to retire, and get out alive. And he only has
Colonel Putin there to help him.
PUTIN'S
USEFUL IDIOT is about Richard Hart, a self-centered materialist
living in New York City married to a woman half his age, dining out
every night at fancy restaurants and spending his weekends shopping
with his wife at expensive stores like Bergdorf-Goodman, Henri
Bendel, and Gucci. Forced to take an assignment to Moscow, he winds
up in an environment where money is worthless because there is
nothing to buy, food is scarce and for the most part terrible and
even drinking water is impossible to find at times. As he adjusts to
his new environment, he comes to find that his materialistic
viewpoint is selfish, and in fact unnecessary to his happiness, and
as he finds joy in the new friends and relationships he makes, he
transforms toward the collective.
But
is it all a set-up by his partner in crime V. Putin? Is he just
another Useful Idiot? As a counterpoint, while Hart is evolving in
his social views toward the collective, his Soviet counterparts
evolve toward capitalism because the free markets are coming to the
Soviet Union and everyone is going to need western currency to
survive. Inspired by true events, PUTIN'S USEFUL IDIOT is a
ride-along first person, present tense adventure jampacked with
danger, passion and humor
Kenyon
Kane grew up in the San Fernando Valley north of Los Angeles before
there were freeways. He worked for two US Cabinet Secretaries. His
job was to complete financial transactions in the Soviet Union,
Grenada and Northern Ireland.
GUEST POST
Tell
us something really interesting that's happened to you!
I
worked for two US Cabinet Secretaries. I worked in black op financial
transactions in the Soviet Union, Grenada and Northern Ireland
Where
were you born/grew up?
In
the San Fernando Valley north of Los Angeles, before there were
freeways. The Hollywood Freeway ended at Cahuenga Pass, there was no
405 Freeway and to get to the beach you had to take Sepulveda, and
Ventura Boulevard ended at Sepulveda.
If
you knew you'd die tomorrow, how would you spend your last day?
With
my family, my wife and three boys,
What
are you passionate about these days?
Social
Justice which is why my book encompasses social impact entertainment.
Do
you have a favorite movie?
The
Thin Red Line - James Jones - later a movie
Which
of your novels can you imagine made into a movie?
A
Useful Idiot
What
inspired you to write this book?
Everyone
involved in the assignment to Moscow is dead.
What
can we expect from you in the future?
Next
book - Black op financial mission to Belfast
Do
you have any “side stories” about the characters?
V.
Putin is a character in A USEFUL IDIOT
How
did you come up with the concept and characters for the book?
Based
on real life people.
Tell
us about your main characters- what makes them tick?
A
USEFUL IDIOT is about Richard Hart, a self-centered materialist
living in New York City married to a woman half his age dining out
every night at fancy restaurants and spending his weekends shopping
with his wife at expensive stores, e. g. Bergdorf-Goodman, Henri
Bendel, Gucci. Forced to take an assignment to Moscow, he winds up in
an environment where money is worthless because there is nothing to
buy, food is scarce and for the most part terrible and even drinking
water is impossible to find at times. As he adjusts to his new
environment he comes to find that his materialistic viewpoint is
selfish, and in fact unessesary to his happiness and as he finds joy
in the new friends and relationships he makes, he transforms into a
communism. But is it all a set-up by his partner in crime V. Putin.
Is he just another Useful Idiot? As a counterpoint, while Hart is
evolving in his social views towards the collective, his Soviet
counterparts evolve towards capitalism because the free markets are
coming to the Soviet Union and they all are going to need western
currency to survive.
If
your book was made into a film, who would you like to play the lead?
Tom
Hanks
Anything
specific you want to tell your readers?
Choice
lines from A USEFUL IDIOT:
- “everyone’s an atheist till it’s time to die.”
- Jesus told us: “it is more difficult to pass a camel through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to pass through the gates of Heaven.”
How
did you come up with name of this book?
It
is a quote attributed to Lenin commenting on the assistance he was
receiving from John Reed an American journalist - “Ten days that
Shook the World”
Are
your characters based off real people or did they all come entirely
from your imagination?
All
real people.
Do
your characters seem to hijack the story or do you feel like you have
the reigns of the story? Convince us why you feel your book is a must
read.
It
is an historical account that gives the true picture of the Soviet
Union in 1984 and dispels the misconceptions put out by American
propaganda during the Reagan administration and before. It calls
capitalism to account for the poverty and starvation throughout the
world through the words of Jesus.
What
did you edit out of
this book?
About
30k words of real life experiences in Moscow that were interesting
and environment building, but were not related to plot progression or
character development.
Is
there a writer whose brain you would love to pick for advice? Who
would that be and why?
James
Jones - From Here to Eternity and the Thin Red Line because he wrote
about his real life experiences during World War 2 with a thematic
slant toward the disparity in justice between the officers and the
“joes” who actually did the fighting and dying.
Do
you write one book at a time or do you have several going at a time?
One
at a time. Writing requires concentration and total immersion and I
cannot do more than one novel at a time.
Pen
or type writer or computer?
Computer
Tell
us about a favorite character from a book.
V.
Putin because he was so different in 1984 than he is today. In 1984
he was struggling to survive in a dangerous environment.
Describe
your writing style.
First
person present tense with a goal to put the reader in the Novel.
How
long on average does it take you to write a book?
Two
years.
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