Oh. Well in that case....

 

But I want an extra long update later!!!

 

That's mean Denise.. making him cry.
I have a very sneaky suspicion that I might just know what this is all about, but I'm probably wrong. 

Can't wait though!...except I'll have to won't I?

My review... continued

Chapter 2

Meg again. And she is clearly a SHADO operative, but we still don’t know quite what she is doing ..yet. I like these little intrigues, they keep the reader guessing  about what is happening. Good reprise of the Mindbender and TImelash incidents.. so this story isn’t about either of those, and probably not anything similar. So, something very unusual… especially as Meg says ‘It shouldn’t have happened,’

A hint of what is to come in the next words? Madness, chaos and death’? No… you wouldn’t…...would you?
I’m getting seriously worried now, especially after the prologue!

So we go back into the detention room. And Straker is instantly on  the defensive, with Jackson calmly sitting there. Straker is the one asking the questions, as if trying to find an explanation, as if desperately trying to deny that he is the actual cause for what has happened.

We find out that Straker  is under constant observation in SHADO, and the reasons for that observation, and there is the hint that this could be   a mental breakdown, and that Straker is aware that this could be the case. This is a really thoughtful intense story, not action-packed, little techno-speak, no aliens, but it is so true to the series, so indicative of what might have gone on after, Mindbender or Timelash for example.

And in those episodes we see just how vital Ed is to the running of SHADO and how the aliens need to remove him. Is all this an alien plot to destroy Straker? Somehow I really don’t think so. I have the feeling that this  is a descent into hell by someone who has been pushed to the very limits of his endurance. And perhaps that’s why I find this a compulsive read.

Masks within masks.. and yet Straker is hiding behind a mask even now. What else is he masking from us?

I love the bit about coffee! A little moment of light relief in an otherwise tense and dramatic story. but you use it to develop the story… Straker not eating, not sleeping , having nightmares,etc.
You cleverly keep his nightmares secret, but hint at truly dreadful  things….

Another cliff-hanger off and ending. And again I can hear that silkily smooth voice, that creepy tone..’What happened two weeks ago to precipitate this crisis?’

Now that made me think! I was quite happily running along the line of something happening in the office.. some event maybe in Control etc, but to discover that whatever it was happened two weeks ago.. puts a whole new perspective on things.. Very clever, very cunning, very  ‘Denise’. 

Brilliantly done.

Wow!   
I'm a bit overwhelmed.  That's a pretty awesome review, Louise!  Thanks! 

This story -- for all that it's mostly dialogue -- takes a lot out of me as I'm writing it.  Which is probably why I haven't done more than a chapter a day on it.  But we're coming down to the wire now.  I don't know yet if there will be a 5th chapter, but things have come to a head and will be exposed in the 4th. 
For me, one of the most intriguing aspects of the commander's character is his repression.  There is so very much more going on inside the man than he ever lets you see.  But you get glimpses of it occasionally in his eyes.  And man -- you gotta love those eyes!    So this story is really enjoyable for me to write, because I'm slowly peeling back the layers he's been hiding under and revealing the inner man.  SUCH a thrill! 

It's a pleasure to share that thrill with you!  Stay tuned for the climax of the story, coming up sometime today.  Probably.   

Well, see.  I hate to say it, but the thing is, this is the kind of story that begs for a sequel.

And the reason I hate to say it is that any sequel would need to be as intense as the first story was.  And I might need a vacation first! 

But yes, the story ends happy.  Or at least, with him at peace.  You may need the sequel to get to happy.    Confused yet? 

Alec was very hard at work!

You have Jackson spot on here in his sinister mode, very nice!.

I'm adding this one to the list of reviews I need to do!

No comment! I'm much too much of a gentleman to go there!

Enjoying. Nothing to add to Louise's review. dragon done in.