Good morning!

Midsummer’s Day, for once, lived up to expectations. It was the hottest day of the year so far. I spent it with my wife and my extended family in a boathouse on the south bank of the River Thames. A lovely day.

Many years ago, I set up a meetup group in London on a Brazilian social media app called Orkut. I didn’t realise it was Brazilian at the time. I used to organise fortnightly meetings and events. This was exciting and very new. 

One evening, I was seated in an Irish pub in Covent Garden with seven assorted Romanian and German guys. This was the evening our first Brazilian arrived.  She was a stunning South American beauty. The pub was huge and on several floors. She spotted me immediately.

A wonderful smile. 

“Are you Charles?”

Then the wonderful smile impaled all my companions to the backs of their chairs.

She lifted both hands and did a double wave.

“Hello boys!”

It was a seminal moment. Two of those guys married Brazilian women and have children. 

London is full of different nationalities. For me, this is one of the joys of living there. 

A young Estonian turned up at our next meeting. Next meeting, four Estonians arrived. And this is the way the group gathered members.

One of the best-represented nationalities in the group were the Iranians. One time, the Iranians hired a restaurant. They called the chef and ordered dishes not on the menu. It was amazing to savour food with flavours that were entirely new to me. The Iranians were smart, funny, cultured and friendly.

I woke up this morning to find the United States had joined Israel in its attack on Iran. I know most Americans are opposed to their country getting involved in yet another war in the Middle East. They do not want their sons and daughters, wives and husbands, fathers and mothers, senselessly dying and being brought home in body bags.

There was a time when I thought Israel was a plucky little state we needed to support against its hostile neighbours. No more. Gaza has opened our eyes. Attacks on the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria and now Iran have revealed what Israel really is: a Western colony. A terror state. 

I know I’m going to get some hostile messages. I know some people will unsubscribe. That’s fine. 

If you’ve read ‘Beyond The Shining Portals’, maybe you’ve worked out who the dynatoi are. They are the brutal sociopaths who rule the world. And the Maiden Orders. They are for the poor and oppressed. Three of their Orders work with the people at different stages of their lives: birth and childhood, courtship and parenthood, old age and death. However, the three books in my Portals trilogy follow the machinations of the Fourth and Hidden Order. The Resistance. 

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I have booked slots for ‘Beyond The Shining Portals’ to appear in book clubs from the 6th to the 10th of July. They won’t accept ‘The Half-Life Girl’ because it’s the second book in the trilogy (and by the way, Joseph, thank you for being the first person to read and review the book. 5-star reviews are always welcome) 

The book clubs between them, estimate there could be 10,000 downloads because the rating stands at 4.8 out of 5.0. I’m indirectly promoting ‘The Half-Life Girl’ because I’m hoping the cliffhanger at the end of book one will draw readers into book two.