David Burt has just published his debut thriller novel, Embedded, perfect for fans of Jack Reacher or Jason Bourne. He talks to Verve about his move to fiction after previously writing non-fiction with Lengthening the Shadow.
Can you tell us about Embedded?
Embedded centres around a young Afghani boy in the 1980s who loses his family in a botched attempt by the CIA to kill a warlord. It follows his lifelong quest for vengeance. A chance meeting with Raihana, an Afghani girl, complicates his life. From Afghanistan to America – with the unwitting assistance of a Pakistani drug cartel, the New York Casario crime family, and the CIA – Ali puts in place a plan so destructive it would alter the course of history. The culmination is three explosive days in New York where Ali is the most hunted man in America. It’s a story of loss, revenge, and love, and challenges the concept of terrorism and how terrorists might be made.
You must have done a lot of research for a book of this nature?
There were thousands of hours of research. The book is set around historical periods and events such as the Russian invasion of Afghanistan. To make it authentic, I had to research all about the region: what they wear, eat, and the language. I knew nothing of the CIA, how and where it operated. Nor did I know much about the mafia crime families and organised crime; or about heroin and the process from the poppy fields to the white powder sold on the streets.
When it came to New York, where most of the novel is set, I realised I couldn’t get what I needed from the internet, so we travelled there. While there, there was a freak incident which could so easily have taken my wife’s life. Not wanting to waste an experience, it forms quite a violent part of the novel.
What did you enjoy most about writing Embedded?
I genuinely love the process of writing thrillers. The challenge of developing an exciting plot to take readers from their own worlds, into one created from my mind; enticing them to turn the next page, and the next until putting the book down isn’t an option.
Embedded by David Burt is out now, available online and in bookstores (Mary Egan Publishing, RRP $35.00).
