The Tech - Featured Article
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What offends her superiors most is that her intolerable antics have earned her one of the best track records in the FBI.
It’s too bad, some cases are better left unsolved.
When Cassidy is transferred to the backwaters of Arizona she finds herself leading a crew with so many black marks on their records, it’s a miracle any of them remain employed.
Thankfully, their first case pretty much solves itself. But as Cassidy and her team continue throwing bad guys behind bars, a creeping sense of suspicion grows. The cases are easy, a little too easy, and troubling patterns become impossible to ignore.
Then things take a violent turn, and an elusive figure steps forward to help. But in a conspiracy big enough to topple kings, every player has an agenda— and misplaced trust will have devastating consequences.
IT Professional Puts His Creative Side on Display in Debut Novel Mark Ravine’s “The Tech” Filled with Intrigue, Fast Paced Action, and Lots of Twists and Turns.
It seems a lot of people enjoy crime stories these days. What’s your favourite?
If you enjoy legal thrillers, it may be a book by John Grisham. If medical fiction is more your speed, Michael Crichton may be your author of choice. And if you are a true technology geek, you’re sure to enjoy the debut novel by Mark Ravine, who is an informational technology (IT) worker by day, and a talented writer by night.
When The Tech, released in February 2020 by Dawn Hill Publications, gets underway, Federal Bureau of Investigation (F.B.I). agent Alexandra Cassidy has just been assigned to lead a team of low-level agents.
Each member of the team is there for a reason, having made a significant mistake in the past, or rubbed a superior the wrong way. It isn’t long before Alexandra realises the cases being assigned to her team are too easy to solve.
First they bust a bank robbery ring in a matter of days, then they expose a sex trafficking ring just in time, saving several young girls from a horrible fate. When she turns to Mike, the tech, for help figuring out why the cases assigned to the team have been so easy to solve, Alexandra isn’t sure if she can trust him, or if he is part of a larger conspiracy that she can feel in her bones.
“Like Mike I love technology. I love developing technology. I like to make technology work for the benefit of others and I’m very passionate about crime prevention, and arresting the bad guys. That’s the core moral compass I have,” says Mark Ravine, who modeled Mike after himself.
He says Alexandra is a composite of several female characters in his favourite crime shows. The other characters are modelled after people he knows.
Also of note, the 13 chapters in the book are laid out like the 13 weeks of a procedural, with titles such as “Grab Your Gear,” the catchphrase of special agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs from N.C.I.S., played by actor Mark Harmon, and “Oh Boy,” made famous by actor Scott Bakula during his role in Quantum Leap.
“I wanted each of the chapters to be representative of a single episode in a series,” says Ravine, who adds that The Tech started out as a screenplay, but then turned into a book. He is intending for the story to be the first in a series of books about Alexandra and her team.
The Tech has received hundreds of reviews on Goodreads.com. Among those giving it five stars are Christie who said, “From the first page I was hooked, and I wanted, no I needed to keep reading to find out what was going to happen next. The team members are all amazing and I loved how the author described each of them. Also I loved how they worked so great together, even though they were such a mismatched group.”
Tracie said, “ Every chapter kept me captivated as I wanted to know how they would solve the case/s. The writing style made me feel like I knew every member of the squad. I will definitely recommend this book to everyone who enjoys a great crime thriller.”
Anthony said, “A must-read action-fueled thriller, author Mark Ravine’s “The Tech” is a smash hit debut novel. The author has put together a memorable cast of characters and an amazingly interwoven plot that ticks every box in the classic FBI thriller and takes it up several notches. Be sure to grab your copy today!”
Vishnu Chevi said, “While reading the book, I was visualising that a series was playing in front of my eyes.” Author Mark Ravine envisions a series as well. In fact, he is planning to pitch Netflix executives in the idea.
About The Author
Mark Ravine has been a voracious reader since childhood, but it wasn’t until he was well into adulthood that he decided to give professional writing a try. “Looking back, my inspiration was the feedback I got from a newspaper columnist to whom I had written an angry letter to the editor,” he says.
After getting great feedback on his writing style, he started writing short stories. Now his debut novel has hit the market.
Dawn Hill Publications released The Tech in February 2020. It is the story of Special Agent Alexandra Cassidy who has made a career of disobeying orders, challenging authority and asking uncomfortable questions. When she is assigned to lead a crew of misfit agents, and comes to realise the cases they have been assigned to investigate are too easy to solve, she is compelled to figure out who is “pulling the strings.”
Mark Ravine is an IT professional by trade, who hopes to launch a second career as a novelist. He makes his home in London, England.