PRAISE FOR JUNTA
by Ken Puddicombe
“JUNTA examines the politics of a nation as only a skilled storyteller like author Ken Puddicombe can. Rich with local flavor and characters that live and breathe on the page, JUNTA will stay with you long after you close the book." —KAREN FENECHauthor of The Protectors Series. “Junta” takes you on an historical journey from a journalistic viewpoint with rhythm and tone that is tastefully weaved with lots of conflict and drama. If you are looking for adventure with a meaningful slice of life, then Kenneth Puddicombe will not disappoint you from the opening pages throughout the end. “ —Marita Berry, author of Red September.
"Kenneth Puddicombe's "Junta" is an atypical novel set against the backdrop of a military coup in a Caribbean state. It is culturally vibrant while keenly insightful of general human nature under duress, portraying both the purer and darker desires of a mixed bag of empathetic characters. Definitely worth a read." –Margaret Sisu: author of Nathaniel Myer
“After a first novel—"Racing in the Rain" (2012)— introducing a Caribbean, steaming in post-colonial turbulence, Ken Puddicombe follows up with Junta, another suspenseful tale of churning political chaos, as Professor Marcus Jacobson discovers the elusive lure of democratic impulses in St Anglia, Caribbean home of his slave-owning ancestors. –Frank Birbalsingh author of Novels and The Nation: Essays in Canadian Literature.
"In the words of Sir Winston Churchill, “Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time". In Ken Puddicombe’s new book, Junta, he tells a gripping story that affirms the wisdom of those immortal words. In 1949 on the island nation of St. Anglia in the Caribbean, the power-hungry head of the armed forces, General Marks, sets out to wrest an imperfect democracy from the hands of the people. A bloodless coup spirals out of control and leads to a coup within a coup when the General finds himself betrayed by his own aide, the devious Captain Stevenson. The power grab threatens to plunge the island nation into chaos. People rise up in protest and blood flows on the streets of St. Anglia. The diverse characters in the book become enmeshed in the struggle and the tension between them builds increasingly from page to page. The publisher of the island’s main newspaper, Clarence Baptiste, stands defiant in defense of democracy. Marcus Jacobson, a professor repatriated from Canada, Father Bert, a Catholic priest and the leader of the student union all join hands to resist the tyrants. Will the “worst form of government” Democracy prevail in St. Anglia? Will the power of the people win out in the end? Or will military strongmen prevail and succeed in their quest for power? RICO DOWNER —author of There Once Was a Little England.
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