He lives at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in
Colorado.
His latest book is the
thriller/international/action novel, Dark
Spiral Down.
Website: www.mikehoutz.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/michaelhoutz
The main protagonist, Cole Haufner, has led an interesting life. He was born in Massachusetts to a Chinese mother and German father. At the tender age of 6, he is stranded in China at a Shaolin monastery, along with his older brother. At the age of 15, he moves back to the U.S., finishes high school and college before embarking on a meteoric rise in mixed martial arts. Funny thing is he hates fighting. He prefers a quiet existence which brings him even more fame and attention. The dichotomy perplexes him.Butch “Dragon” Haufner, the older brother, is a Delta Force team leader in the U.S. army. He’s part of a task unit that works primarily in the Pacific region and finds himself operating back on his old home soil.Ron “Hammer” Thompson is Butch’s second-in-command. He’s a former linebacker for Univ. of Texas who gives up a possible career in the NFL to serve his country. He’s forced to teach Cole, on-the-fly, basic military tactics when the two meet on foreign soil.“Lilly” is a 19 yo Chinese girl who is one of the world’s top computer hackers. She helps her adoptive father, a former CIA operative with various tasks. She’s sweet, naïve, and only wants to escape her existence in southwest China.Barret Jennings, offspring of a wealthy railroad magnet, is a former CIA employee living in exile in southeast China because of a key failure twenty years ago. He groomed Lilly from an early age because of her extraordinary intellect and his multitude of illicit activities.Commander Park is a notorious North Korean agent and sociopath bent on obtaining an invention capable of producing clean energy. He’ll kill anyone and anything in his way.
If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what
would that be?
Believe in yourself. It’s a long process of becoming a published author and too much time and outside influence can strain a commitment to write. Any new skill takes time to accomplish a certain level of proficiency, and writing takes a little longer than most others. Trust in the habit of constant improvement.
What would you say is one of your interesting writing
quirks?
For action scenes, I crank the heavy music to get fired up. You’re not in a life or death situation without a massive dose of adrenalin. I find my mind sharper for deadly struggles if my blood is pumping.
I’m very fortunate that readers actively seek me out. I get a rush when they start telling me about their favorite scenes. Their excited voices are really satisfying to hear. Our conversations are really unique in that no two people seem to focus on the same things. That speaks to the individual experience. I hear words like “shocked”, “intense”. or “I never expected that” most frequently.
What is the toughest criticism given to you as an author?
I received feedback from a contest judge saying, “Good thing you have the option of self-publishing, though I wouldn’t recommend it for this work.” Two months later, I won a big award and landed a contract. Suck it, Mr. Judge.
What has been your best accomplishment?
For writing, it was winning the Zebulon award which launched my budding career. My most important accomplishments usually have something to do with my kids—my primary focus in life. I happened to save a number of lives in my medical career—a major milestone in my desire to help others.
Do you Google yourself?
Only when I was figuring out how social media plays into the writing career. I was already pretty familiar with the things I’d accomplished (insert smirk). I’m not famous enough to have too many erroneous mentions about me, but I’m hoping that changes.
I have two WIPs—the follow-up to this book launch and a medical thriller I’m working hard on. There’s a 3rd in my head, but I have to put my foot down somewhere.
Fun question – if you were princess or prince,
what’s one thing you would do to make your kingdom a better place?
As a prince, I’d get rid of all lawyers and bring back pistol deuling.
Do you have anything specific that you would like to say to
your readers?
Just that it’s my sincerest goal to entertain you all, and I welcome the chance to interact with everyone, whether in person or social media. I know what a thrill it is when I get to interact with my favorite authors, and I’m hoping I can be there for people who might look to me in that same way. Nothing makes me happier than someone who read my work reaches out and tells me they’re glad they chose to spend time with my book. High five!
Title: DARK SPIRAL DOWN
Author: Michael Houtz
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Pages: 377
Genre: Thriller/International/Action
COLE HAUFNER is a reluctant superstar in
the professional mixed martial arts world. After his latest fight, his wife and
child perish in a car crash. His grief deepens when his brother, BUTCH, a Delta
Force operator, is absent from the funeral and reported missing by two furtive
strangers who show up unannounced at the burial. Despairing, and acting on a
tip, Cole travels to his childhood home in southeast China, looking for his
brother.
Butch and his teammate, HAMMER, are the
sole American survivors of a gun battle between their unit and North Korean
commandos, both sides fighting over possession of a stolen suitcase containing
a miniaturized fusion device that could either provide unlimited clean energy
or be converted to an undetectable bomb seven times more powerful than a
nuclear explosion. Leading the North Koreans is the sociopath, Commander PARK. Pressed
into helping the Koreans is a disgraced former CIA operative, BARRETT JENNINGS.
Cole meets with the uncle who raised him,
MASTER LI, and is warned to stop his search for Butch. Barrett discovers Cole’s
identity (with the help of a genius computer hacker, LILLY), which opens a
twenty-year-old wound when Barrett was blamed for the disappearance of Cole’s
father, along with the man’s invention. Barrett enlists the 14K organized crime
syndicate to help capture Cole. Hammer, separated from Butch during the fight
for the device, thwarts the gang’s attempt to kidnap Cole, and the two then set
off to find Butch and the device. All parties converge on the city library
where Butch, now disguised as a monk, is attempting to communicate with the
Pentagon. Barrett and Park capture Butch, while the 14K gang nabs Cole.
Danger mounts as Chinese authorities begin
investigating foul play within their borders. Cole fights his way free of the
gang and reunites with Hammer. Both men
find Barrett’s apartment and discover Lilly (the man’s stepdaughter), who
divulges Barrett’s identity and plan. Cole clashes with Hammer, who is willing
to sacrifice Butch in order to recover the fusion device. Lilly offers her help
in exchange for her and Barrett’s rescue from Park’s grip. Meanwhile, Barrett
discovers the true nature of the case the North Koreans are pursuing and,
sensing he and Lilly are to be assassinated by Park once he has the device,
frees Butch. Butch, trusting Barrett was sent to rescue him, leads the turncoat
to the site where he hid the device. Barrett, hoping to make a quick fortune
selling it, shoots Butch before escaping with the case.
Cole, along with Hammer and Lilly, arrives
at the location of Butch and finds him gravely wounded. Butch fingers Barrett
for shooting him and for stealing the case. Cole wants only to save his brother
but Butch makes him promise to kill Barrett and recover their dad’s invention.
The revelation that the device is his father’s scientific discovery propels
Cole forward to fulfill his brother’s mission. Cole is forced to abandon Butch
at a hospital. Cole pursues Barrett to a remote dock where the ex-CIA man is
planning to escape China by boat. With the Chinese military now actively
looking for Cole, Cole confronts Barrett and Park sparking a gunfight. Barrett
kills Park. As Barrett turns the gun on Cole, Hammer kills Barrett. Cole,
Hammer and Lilly escape via the boat, and the fusion device is safely returned.
Readers Love Michael Houtz!
“If
you’re in the market for a fast paced, action filled, page-turning thriller,
Mike Houtz delivers a must-read novel. I highly recommend this emotional
rollercoaster of a book for every die-hard thriller reader…Get it ASAP!”
~Lima
Charlie Review
~*~
“…this
work proves that author Houtz is undoubtedly a rising star in the publishing
world.”
~Andrea Brunais, Author
~*~
“Mike
Houtz takes us on fast-pace adventure in Dark
Spiral Down, a thrilling ride along
the border between China and North Korea, where Cole Haufner is in
pursuit of his Delta Force brother and a device that has the potential to
change the world forever or destroy it.”
~Dan Grant, Author
~*~
“Dark Spiral Down is a phenomenal debut
novel by Mike Houtz. This book has everything readers of the genre love: a
great plot, memorable characters, and a powerful voice. It’s a must-read!”
~Ammar Habib, Bestselling & Award-Winning Author, Editor-in-Chief of Thriller Magazine
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